Fattoush salad

Here’s a classic salad recipe… something so famous that it needs no introduction!

Its like spring in a bowl! :)

Vegetarian Moussaka. Well, almost!

It was like love at first bite, the minute I bit into my plate of Moussaka in this Mediterranean restaurant in Hyderabad, the taste imprinting itself on my mind, and refusing to let me be till I try it out myself. Traditionally made with minced meat, lamb or beef, this is a classic Greek dish served as main course along with some crusty bread.

I, of course, decided to try a vegetarian version of this, even replacing the feta cheese and eliminating the egg from the bechamel sauce.

Iranian Veg Stew, another recipe

Yesterday being Sunday, and the husband craving for some garlic cheese pilaf, I wanted to pair it with a vegetable stew. The recipe kept forming by itself in my head, and I mentally kept on adding all the ingredients to it. I cross-verified it with the recipes in the Vegetarian Dishes from the Middle East book and was all set to make it. That was then I realized that I had made something similar before. Quite different in terms of ingredients, and base, but almost similar in the method of making.
That was when it struck to me that like sambar, there can only be one method of making an Iranian Vegetable Stew. You just change the taste by altering the ingredients, or seasonings. And that’s how I got about to this recipe.

 

That beauty called Hummus!

As I was licking it away with Rotis today, I realized that I don’t have a recipe of Hummus on my blog. And which self-respecting blog doesn’t have the recipe for Hummus, tell me? :)

And so, here it is!
The much spoken about, the most loved , the healthiest and the easiest dip ever – HUMMUS!
Ta da!

Now, the recipe for hummus itself doesn’t differ from blog to blog , its the same all over. What might differ is what is added to the hummus to get a flavour after its done. I have some ideas towards the end of this post.

Ingredients(For two people, for two days)
Chick Peas – 1/2 C, soaked overnight in water
Garlic cloves – 8-10
Extra virgin olive oil – generous quantities
Sea salt – to taste
Lime juice – juice of half a lemon

Instructions
Pressure cook the chick-peas till they are soft.
Once the peas are cooled, in a mixer blender, blend all the ingredients. Drizzle olive oil to enable the blending.
The resultant mixture should have a smooth texture.

Ideas
1. I have a recipe book which talks about adding some yogurt to the chick peas while blending it. Though I am yet to try this version, its a good idea. Certainly ups the health quotient of the dip, and adds a certain tangy flavour too
2. There is a variant of Hummus which is flavoured with basil pesto. Either you can swirl in pesto after the hummus is made or blend the chick-peas with basil leaves while preparing the hummus
3. Garnish Ideas – Parsley, Red paprika powder, Ground pepper, Extra virgin olive oil, Toasted sesame seeds – Any or all of these together give a great taste to the Hummus
4. Hummus can be used as a dip for crackers, side-dish for rotis, or with bread for sandwiches.
5. I have once eaten a version of Hummus which used sesame oil instead of olive oil while blending the peas. Great flavour. And healthy too.

An Iranian Dinner, may be? (Part 1)

I fell sick and all, but this has been a good week as far as food is concerned. We’ve had guests for 3 days in a row, and I made different stuff every evening. First it was some basic Arrabiata Pasta which the husband praised as my best ever, and the friend who was visiting was forced to say the same too ;), and then it was something based on Middle-Eastern food. I will be cooking Thai for the last set of people visiting us.
Last time I was visiting Blore, we were invited to visit N at her brand new home. Since her housewarming gift was back in Hyd, and I wanted to pick up something for her, I decided it would be a book. A cookbook. In my opinion, what better gift than a cookbook for a MasterChef!  I saw this Arabian dishes book and immediately picked it up for her. And when I was flipping through the pages of this book, I realized how much I love this book, and how much I’d want a copy for myself. Sitting right there in her massive entertainment area, I booked another copy for myself on Crossword. So by the time I was back home in Hyd, I had the book waiting for me to be picked up in the Mailroom. Since then, everytime I open the book, it has been a Flavour Fest in the kitchen!
What I loved about the Middle-Eastern cooking is the interesting mix of flavours. And the usage of daily ingredients in a different way, or a different dish altogether. Like Yogurt, for example. We’d eat it, drink a diluted form of it, make Kadhi with it, or Raita to be eat with it. These are the same things that the Persians or Armenians would do too, but with a different mix of herbs/spices to this. I loved the idea of Garlic-Yogurt sauce for example, our basic Raita  but with garlic in it, and with Za’atar sprinkled over it. Very interesting.
Another point that has made the Middle-Eastern cuisine a hit in the house is the fact that there are a lot of rice dishes. Being a South Indian vegetarian family, rice plays an important role in our daily khana , and there are a lot of rice dishes in the Persian/Armenian/Mediterranean cuisines. And the fact that the book itself is for vegetarian food only always gives me tonnes of options for every course, should I decide to make this for dinner.
So for this dinner I was planning, I wanted to make a simple cheese pilaf, an Iranian vegetable stew and some yummy garlic-yogurt sauce. In short, as simple as rice, stir-fry and a Raita to with it all. However, I decided to add a little twist to the first two dishes.

I decided to flavour the rice before I bake it, and make a tomato based vegetable stew. I used copious amounts of garlic since that is a house-favourite (God save you if you don’t eat garlic and have been invited to dine in our house ;)) and dried dill. Dill happens to be a very famous herb in this cuisine, and I’ve discovered its beautiful flavour and aroma only after adding it to the butter.
I only spent 45 mins in the kitchen to make all these, but the compliments I got for the food… well… I know for sure that this will be cooked over and over again , for the both of us and for the friends visiting us.

Cheese Pilaf (Serves 3 , with this as main dish)

IngredientsBasmati Rice – 1.5 Cup, washed
Garlic Cloves – 5-6 , crushed in a mortal pestle
Butter – A dollop or 1 tbsp
Dried Dill – 1 tbsp
Black Pepper – 1 tsp, crushed
Sea Salt – to taste
Boiling water – 3 Cups

Cheddar cheese slices – 4-6
Dried Dill – 1 tbsp
Black Pepper – 1 tsp, crushed
Toasted sesame seeds – 1 tbsp

Instructions
Put a thick bottomed tawa on medium heat, and add the butter to in. Once butter heats up, add the crushed garlic, dried dill and sauté them. Now add the rice to this and mix well enough so that the butter evenly coats the rice. Add the black pepper and salt to this and sauté the rice. Add boiling water and close the pan with the the lid. Cook the rice till the water evaporates, and the rice is separated and dry enough. Let this cool down.
Once the garlic rice cools down, spread half the quantity in a shallow baking dish. Spread the cheese slices on this. Sprinkle some dill and black pepper. Spread the remaining rice and the cheese slices on top of it. Sprinkle again with dill and pepper. Bake this in a pre-heated oven at 185C for 20 mins or till the cheese turns golden brown.
Remove from the oven to set, garnish with the toasted sesame seeds.
Serve hot, with the stew for accompaniment.

An Iranian Dinner, may be? (Part 2)

 

To go with the cheese pilaf, I decided to make a vegetable stew. The recipe that caught my fancy, and suited all the ingredients  with the ones I had at home was the Iranian Vegetable stew. But it uses a white sauce base with flour and I am not a huge fan of anything white with flour in it. So I tweaked the same recipe to be made with red sauce. As my cooked dubbed it, this regular rajma but without the rajma masala, and with Dill in it.

The only flavours you will notice when you take your first spoonful of this stew are the freshness and the tartness of the tomato puree , the crispness of the spinach and the flavour of Dill and garlic.

Iranian Vegetable Stew (with red sauce, serves 3)

Ingredients
A mix of chickpeas & kidney beans – 1 C, soaked overnight and pressure cooked
Tomato puree – 1 C (I make this at home)
Onion – one medium sized, sliced very thin
Spinach leaves – 1 bunch, chopped coarsely
Garlic cloves – 6-8, crushed in a mortal-pestle
Dried Dill – 2 tbsp
Black pepper – 2 tbsp, crushed
Sea salt – to taste
Red paprika powder – if required
Juice from half lemon – if required
Olive oil – 1 tbsp
Coriander leaves – 1/2 cup, chopped fine

Instructions
Heat the olive oil in a pan, and sauté the onions and garlic in it. Add half the quantity of the dill and black pepper and sauté these together. Add the cooked peas-beans mixture to this and mix.
Now add the tomato puree , spinach leaves, salt and red paprika powder. Cook on medium flame for 10 mins.
Add water if required, to dilute the stew.
Once the stew is cooked, remove from heat.
Stir in lemon juice if the stew requires any more tartness.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with the pilaf.

Garlic Yogurt sauce is another favourite in the house, mostly because of the inclusion of garlic into everyday boring Raita, and the usage of spring onions in it. Not only for soothing the spice in anything Middle-Eastern, you can also use this as a Raita for the regular Parathas and Biryanis.

Garlic Yogurt Sauce

Ingredients
Fresh Yogurt – 1 C, beaten smooth
Garlic cloves – 4-6 , chopped into very small pieces
Spring onions – a bunch, chopped very small, including the green stalks
Sea Salt – To taste
Za’atar spice – 1 tsp
Toasted sesame seeds – 1 tsp
Coriander leaves – a small bunch, chopped fine

Instructions
Mix the first four ingredients well in a bowl, garnish with the last three ingredients and serve along with pilaf.