Bread Upma | Upma Recipes

When we met my friend last month in a get-together, he asked if my blog is focused on women or people who are experts in cooking. I said "No, it is for everyone". He then suggested me to post some recipes which are easy so that bachelors or newbies can try. So I decided to tag/label my easy-to-cook recipes as "Quickies/Bachelor(ette) cooking" per his request and here it goes.
Bread upma is my favorite snack and perfect for a light yet filling breakfast/dinner. 

Ingredients:
Bread - 8-10 slices (I used wholegrain bread)
Onion - chopped - 1 cup
Dried red chilli - 2 - broken
Sambar powder - 1/2 tsp or Chilli powder - 1/4 tsp + Corainder powder - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Chana dhal - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Coriander leaves/Cilantro - To garnish

Method:
Cut the bread slices to 1" pieces. Heat oil in a wide pan and add the mustard seeds and chana dhal. When the mustard seed splutters add the dried red chilli and onions. Fry until the onions turn transparent, add the sambar powder, turmeric powder and salt. Saute for 2 mins and pop in the bread pieces. Turn the heat to low and mix gently until the onion is well coated on the bread pieces. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot.

Sending this to Food Palette Series - Brown event by Akheela and Fast Food not Fat Food event by Priya.

Sending this to Srivalli's Breakfast Mela.

Mango Cupcakes

It was raining the whole day Sunday but the temperature was not so cold. Rain was a welcome break after the cold days (Yeah, winter is still here). Sundays were mostly stay-at-home-take-rest days and the afternoons are meant for a movie/tv. I was craving for something fresh and hot and was in a mood to have freshly baked goodies from oven. I had a can of mango puree which had brought from Indian stores before a couple of weeks. I made this mango cupcakes after some googling. 
I made few tweaks to the original recipe which called for cardamom powder and ground almond but I replaced it with MTR Badam Feast (Almond mix with saffron). I also dropped the butter since I was using oil and fruit puree. I reduced the sugar to 2/3 cup instead of 3/4 cup since my mango puree was sweetened. I got a super-soft fruity muffin with a almond touch.

Ingredients:

Source: Journey Kitchen
All-purpose flour/Maida - 1 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp (Make this 2 tsp if going eggless)
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Badam mix - 1 tbsp  
Mango puree - 1 1/2 cups (360 ml)
Canola oil - 1/3 cup (80 ml) - Any vegetable oil would be fine
Sugar - 2/3 cup (Make it 3/4 cup if mangoes are not so sweet)
Vanilla - 1 tsp
Eggs - 2 (room temperature)

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Place the oven rack in the middle and line the muffin tray with liners. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, badam mix in a whisk/Sieve together three times. Cream the oil and sugar with a hand mixer in a low speed for a minute. Add the eggs and mix for 2 mins. Now mix in the vanilla and the mango puree and beat until well mixed. Now pour the wet ingredients over dry ingredients and mix until combined. Do not over-mix. The batter would be of cake batter consistency. Pour to the liners and bake for 25-30 mins until a tooth-pick inserted comes out clean. Serve warm.
Note: These super clicks are by my DH

 

Sending this to JFI-Rerun-Mango event by Satya extended to March 15th.

Also sending this to Vaishali's event Spring and Treat to Eyes event by Rumana.

Sending this to Srivalli's Kid's Delight hosted by Nupur of UK-Rasoi, for the month of April 2012.

Mango

Thai Red Curry

Whenever we decide to go out for a formal-dining, we would first prefer Thai cuisine. I love Thai food for not only its similarities with Indian food but also the divergence of it. The array of colorful veggies and exotic coconut flavor is also a clearly scoring factor. Trying to search for recipe for Thai curry online, I landed on Aipi's USMasala. For this month's Tried & Tasted event the selected blog is Aipi's US Masala hosted by Priya of Mharo Rajasthan. Aipi is one of my first blogger friends who used to visit my blog and give lovely comments. She has a very beautiful (colorful) space with lots of interesting recipes and I chose to try Thai Red Curry from her blog.

Ingredients:
For the Red Curry paste:
Shallots/Pearl onions - 2 small
Dried Red chillies - 7 (soak in 1/4 cup of warm water)
Galangal / Ginger - 1" chopped
Garlic - 4 big cloves
Lemon rinds - 1/2 tsp or Lime leaves - 1-2
Cilantro stems - 1 tbsp
Coriander powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Roasted Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Pepper powder - 1/4 tsp
Paprika - 1/4 tsp
For the Curry:
Red curry paste
Coconut milk - 2 1/2 cups or 3/4 of a can
Water - 2 cups (If using canned coconut milk)
Snap peas - about 10 (Blanch for 3 mins and transfer to cold water)
Extra Firm Tofu - about 1 cup cubed - Saute in a tsp of oil
Bell pepper strips - 1/2 cup
String beans - 8-10 - cut in half and then length-wise
Cauliflower - 5 florets
Broccoli - 5 florets
Shallot/Pearl onions - 2 chopped
Soya sauce - 2 tbsp
Salt - to taste
Thai Basil leaves - 6-7 (or Basil leaves)
Oil - 2 tsp

Method:

Blend the ingredients under Red curry to a paste with little water.
Heat oil in a wide skillet and add the red curry paste and saute in medium heat. The paste should cook until oil separates. Add the coconut milk (and water if using) and stir for a while. Add in the soy sauce, salt, vegetables and tofu. Cook until the veggies are half-cooked but still maintain the crunch, approximately 5 mins in medium heat. Put the torn basil leaves and boil for about a minute. Garnish with more basil leaves and serve with steamed rice.

Sending this to 'Tried & Tasted' event by Lakshmi of Kitchen chronicles guest hosted my Priya of Mharo Rajasthan.

And to Dish it Out - Tofu/Paneer and Bell Peppers event by Vardhini.

Orange Rice with Caramelized Onions

Off late I had been coming across many recipes with orange in the blog world. It is long time since I bought oranges, so I picked a couple of those on my weekend grocery shopping, planning to try something new with this one. I came up with this citrus-y, tangy-sweet orange rice. It had a zesty and sparkling taste.

Ingredients:
Rice - 1 1/2 cups
Orange juice - 1/4 cup
Zest of 1 orange
Salt -  to taste
Onions - Thinly sliced - 1 cup
Oil - 1 tsp
Sugar - 1/2 tsp (optional)
For Seasoning:
Oil - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp
Green Chilli - 2 slit open/Red chilli flakes per taste

Method:
Wash and soak the rice for 15 mins. Cook it with a drizzle of oil, half a tsp of salt and 3 cups of water. When done, fluff it with a fork and allow it to cool in a wide plate. Caramelize the onions, by frying it in 1 tsp of oil in medium heat until it turns golden brown. When the rice is cool mix the orange zest and juice. In a small skillet/kadai, heat oil, add mustard seeds, urad dhal and green chillies. Pour the seasoning over the rice and mix. Add salt as required. Serve topped with caramelized onions. You may alternatively mix the onions to the rice. This is a great quickie and a perfect lunch-box recipe.

Sending this to Twist the Traditional - Pulihora event by Satya and Only - Original Recipes event by Pari guest hosted by Nivedita.
Also sending this to Full Plate - Thursdays event by Miz Helen.

Sending this to Srivalli's Kid's Delight hosted by Nupur of UK-Rasoi, for the month of April 2012.

Drumstick (Moringa) and Garlic Curry / Murungakai Poondu Kuzhambu | Indian Curry Recipes

When I do not want to make anything with dhal but yet keep it simple and wholesome for a lunch, I would go for this kulambu. Usually I do not add coconut but this time I added to make it taste similar to fish kulambu. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

Ingredients:
Drumstick - Chopped into 3" pieces - 150 g
Garlic - 15 cloves
Onion - chopped - 1/2 cup
Tamarind - size of a big lemon or Tamarind paste - 2 tbsp
Fenugreek seeds - 3/4 tsp
Gingelly oil/Sesame oil - 4 tbsp (This is THE taste-maker)
Salt - to taste
Make a paste:
Coconut - 2 tbsp
Coriander powder - 3 tsp
Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Water - Few tbsps to grind

Method:
Cook drumsticks in a pressure cooker with 2 cups of water and 1/2 tsp of salt for one whistle. You can alternatively cook it in microwave until it is done, about 6-8 mins. Drain and reserve this water to thin the tamarind juice, we don't want to lose any nutrients. Soak tamarind in warm water and extract juice. Thin it out (with the previously reserved water) to make about 4-5 cups of tamarind water. Grind the ingredients under 'Make a Paste' to a fine paste adding water. Mix the paste to the tamarind juice and set aside for 15-20 mins. Heat the gingelly oil in a deep skillet and add the fenugreek seeds. Fry in medium heat until it becomes light brown. Take care as the seeds tend to burn easily. Add the chopped onion and the whole garlic cloves. Saute until onions are transparent and the garlic is soft. Now add salt, tamarind juice and boiled drumsticks. Check for seasoning and add salt or chilli powder if needed. Boil in medium-high heat until kulambu gets desired thickness. Serve hot with rice and any dry curry of your choice. Pappads or fryums are a great combo.

I am sending this to Healing Foods - Ginger & Garlic by Siri guest hosted by Sara.
Also sending this to Only - Original Recipes event by Pari guest hosted by Nivedita.

Moringa Oleifera