Healthy Capsicum, Carrot and Corn salad

In our part of the world, it is supposed to be summer.  Yes, supposed to be because it doesn’t feel like summer…as it has been raining pretty much every other day. In the last 2 months, we would probably have had one week without any rain.  Weather apart, I love summer for another reason…abundance of colourful veggies and fruits.  I’ve been making lot of salads, both fruit & vegetable salads.  Salads are very refreshing and also eating raw food is very healthy leaving you feeling more energetic. It’s easy to put together, satisfying and the added benefit is, not many dishes to do :)

In this case, along with Capsicum, Carrot and Corn, I also added some Buckwheat groats and chia seeds. You can read about the health benefits of Buckwheat here and Chia seeds here. I soaked the Buckwheat groats overnight, rinsed them well and added it to the salad.  Word of caution, water soaked with buckwheat would turn very starchy so you need to rinse thoroughly before adding it to the salad.

Capsicum, Carrot and Corn salad

Capsicum (green or red) – 1

Carrot -1

Corn – 1

Buckwheat – ½ cup (optional)

Chia seeds – 1 tablespoon (optional)

For the dressing:

Lemon - 1

Ginger – 1 inch piece (optional)

Salt & pepper to taste

Coriander leaves to garnish

Remove the corn from the cob, chop capsicum and carrot finely and place them in a bowl and add the buckwheat groats.  If you are using canned corn, drain the water thoroughly before adding it to the salad. 

Soaked Buckwheat groats

I made a simple salad dressing with juice of 1 lemon, salt, pepper and also grated ginger.  I used fresh ginger and it gave the salad an awesome flavour and zest. Garnish with chia seeds and finely chopped coriander. I packed this salad for lunch so did not add any tomatoes as it could make the salad soggy.  If you are planning to serve this immediately, you could add some cherry tomatoes.  To make it crunchier, throw in a handful of roasted peanuts. 

Healthy Salad Ready

Homemade Christmas Gifts

Happy New Year to all!

Hope you all had a lovely Christmas and a fantastic start to 2012. December is a very busy period with shopping, xmas lunches and dinners, parties and what not. Every year I spend a lot of time thinking about gift ideas for near and dear ones. 

This year was no different…I was wondering what to give D’s (my son) teachers, my colleagues and family friends as gifts as I didn’t want to give those candles or store bought chocolates again.   As I was driving to work, I had this light bulb moment…homemade edible Christmas gifts!  I personally don’t celebrate Christmas but I do love the idea of sharing during this time of the year :).

Now that I’ve decided its homemade gifts I had to finalise what I’d make / bake.  I zeroed in on Jam Drop cookies which featured in the programme 4 Ingredients by Rachael Bermingham and Kim McCosker.  As the name of the programme suggests, it’s a very simple recipe with just 4 ingredients and yet the end product, a very delicious one. I wanted to make something chocolaty as well and remembered Nigella Lawson’s Chocolate Pistachio Fudge. It’s a bit rich but hey, it’s Christmas after all :)  Now to the recipes…

Ingredients for Jam Drop cookies:

Plain flour – 2 cups

Caster Sugar – 1 cup

Unsalted Butter - ½ cup

Jam of your choice

Method:

1.       Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius

2.       Cream butter and sugar till fluffy.

3.       Fold in the flour and make small balls and flatten them on a lined baking tray

4.       Make an indent either with a back of a wooden spoon or with your finger and fill it with jam of your choice. I alternate with Strawberry and Raspberry jam. 

5.       Makes around 25-30 depending on the size of the cookie

You could add vanilla extract to it.  Next time I make a batch of this I’m going to add some spice mix.  I’ll let you know how it turned out.

Chocolate Pistachio Fudge

Dark cooking Chocolate – 350g

Condensed Milk – 395g

Pistachios – 150g

Butter – 30 g

Salt – a pinch

Chocolate Pistachio Fudge - Nigella Lawson

Method:

1.       Place the dark chocolate, condensed milk, butter and salt in a heavy based pan and stir to melt

2.       Roast the pistachios lightly and roughly chop them. 

3.       Add the nuts to the melted mixture. I also added some cranberries at this stage.

4.       Spread the mixture on to a tray and smooth the top.  I used a rectangular tray lined with a baking sheet.

5.       Let the fudge cool and refrigerate it until set. 

6.       Cut into little squares and enjoy!

Indulgence Time – Almond Burfi

It is that time of the year again…Deepavali.  I love the festivities that surround this festival…exotic food, new clothes, fire-crackers, enjoying time with family and friends. I make it a point to celebrate all festivals but I’ve always been partial to Deepavali.

As a kid, Saraswathi Pooja day was our Deepavali shopping day.  Excitement would build on as clothes, matching accessories and shoes were readied for the festival of lights. Bakshanams to be made were finalised, fire-crackers bought and split equally (not) between Akka and I.  As the festival drew closer, Amma would start making huge quantities of sweets and savouries. I could hardly sleep the night before Deepavali as I wanted to be the first one to get ready after the traditional oil bath and start bursting crackers…how I miss those days :(

Living away in a different country, I don’t really see any difference between Deepavali day and a normal day.  Although there is no Deepavali shopping or fire-crackers I keep the festivities going by preparing sweets at home, having friends over for dinner, lighting diyas and yeah, some sparklers!!

This time around I made Rava Ladoo, Gulab Jamun, 7 cup cake and Almond Burfi.  For savouries I tried my hand at Thattai for the first time which I baked for a healthier version and also Ribbon Pakoda.  Now enough of my rambling and here you go with the recipe...

Almond Burfi: Makes 25-30 burfis


Ingredients:

Almond Meal – 200 gms

Sugar – 200 gms

Thickened cream – 300 ml


Method:

Take a heavy bottomed pan and mix all the above ingredients


 Keep the heat on medium and stir the mixture constantly


 In about 20 minutes the mixture will start leaving the sides of the pan


 Pour the hot mixture on to a greased plate or pan and let it cool


 Cut into desired shape (squares or diamonds) and enjoy.

This will keep well for about a week in the fridge.

Wishing you all a cracking Deepavali!!