Holy Cow! Vegan Recipes

Pumpkin Pie

2009-12-05T16:47:00.001-05:00

I went traditional for Thanksgiving this year with a Pumpkin Pie. Of course, it was not all that traditional since it was completely eggless and dairy-free. Plus it tasted blissfully good and it was cruelty-free and it rounded out Thanksgiving at my house quite nicely, thank you.

I used tofu as an egg substitute in my pumpkin pie and it created a texture that was supremely silky. Trust me, once you try this vegan pumpkin pie, you'll never want to go back to the unhealthy one you were used to.

I'm just going to get on with the recipe now. For a great variation on a pumpkin dessert, be sure to check out my Pumpkin Cheesecake.

Enjoy, all!

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

For crust:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (try to use unbleached)

1 tsp sugar

4 tbsp vegan "butter" or margarine

4 tbsp transfat-free shortening (or vanaspati)

1/4 tsp salt

Ice-cold water

Mix the flour, sugar and salt. Then, using a fork, cut the butter and shortening into the flour mixture until you have balls of fat no larger than peas.

Drizzle ice-cold water over the flour, 1 tbsp at a time, stirring with the fork, until the dough starts to come together. Once it holds together, turn it onto a lightly floured platform, shape into a disc, and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

To roll the pie dough, remove it from the plastic wrap and roll into a disc large enough to fit over a 9-inch pie plate with some overhang. Transfer the dough to the pie plate and crimp the edges to make a decorative border. The easiest way to do this, if you're not used to it, is to take a fork and press all around the edge in a decorative pattern.

Now you need to blind bake the crust. What this means is baking the crust without the filling. But placing a crust by itself in the oven causes it to shrink, so take a piece of aluminum foil and smooth it over the crust, making sure you push it against the sides and bottom of the crust. Let a little bit of foil hang over the edge so the edge will not brown too fast.

Now fill the crust with uncooked rice or uncooked beans (these act as weights to keep your crust in place), making sure you fill all the way to the top. I have a box of rice that I use again and again to blind-bake crusts-- after I am done, I just store it until I need it the next time. Do not cook the rice or beans that you use to blind bake.

Place the pie pan, rice or beans and all, into a 400-degree preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and carefully lift off the foil and the weights. Now pierce the crust all over with a fork and return it to the oven for 5 more minutes until it is lightly golden-brown.

Remove.

For the filling:

1 15-ounce can of pumpkin puree

1 12-oz package silken tofu

3/4 cup vanilla soymilk

3/4 cup sugar + 2 tbsp molasses (just use dark brown sugar if you don't have molasses)

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp salt

Whisk all the ingredients together in a large bowl or in a food processor (the way I did it).

Pour the pie filling into a warm crust and bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 45-50 minutes or until the filling is set but slightly quavery. Remove the pie to a rack and cool completely before serving.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Creamy Tofu Kofta Curry

2009-12-01T20:50:00.005-05:00

I've been incredibly busy these last few days as you may have guessed from my slower blogging schedule. As a result, I didn't have a chance to share my Thanksgiving recipes with you, but I did want to post this one dish I made-- and loved-- as fast as I could.

I first stumbled upon this recipe on Sanjeev Kapoor's Web site. I've written about this popular Indian chef before, and I am a huge fan of his recipes. I am also a huge fan of kofta curries-- Indian-style vegetable balls (they look like meatballs but taste better) floating in a spicy, often creamy sauce. So when I saw the words "Soya malai kofta" among Kapoor recipes, I couldn't wait for an occasion to make this delicious-sounding dish and Thanksgiving seemed perfect because the curry has a lovely, festive, orange color.

Since "malai" is cream, I left that out, of course, and substituted instead with some Silk soy creamer. You could leave the creamer out altogether and use more cashew paste instead.

I made a few other changes too, like adding kasoori methi to the koftas, so I am posting my version of the recipe below. You can find the original here.

Bye for now, and I'll be back with more soon. Until then, enjoy this!
Creamy Tofu Kofta Curry

For the kofta:

1/2 cup crumbled soft tofu

1/4 cup Bengal gram dal (chana dal). Cover with water and soak at least a couple of hours. Cook until the dal is tender and most of the water has evaporated. Using just enough water to keep the blender blades moving, grind to a puree.

2 potatoes, boiled and mashed

1 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp garam masala powder

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

Salt to taste

4 tbsp cornstarch (cornflour)

2 tbsp kasoori methi, crushed between palms

Oil to deep fry.

Heat the oil in a skillet or a kadhai (a small, Indian-style wok).

Mix all the ingredients together and shape into 3/4-inch balls.

Deep fry, a few at a time, until each kofta turns golden-brown. Remove to a dish lined with paper towels and drain. Set aside.

For the curry:

1 large onion

1 tbsp garlic paste

1-inch piece of ginger, finely grated

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

12 cashews, soaked in water for about 30 minutes, then blended to a paste

1 cup tomato puree or crushed tomatoes

1/2 tsp garam masala powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/4 tsp cumin powder

1/4 tsp red chilli powder

1/4 cup soy creamer

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves, for garnish

1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil

Heat the oil in a skillet.

Add the onions and saute until golden-brown.

Add the coriander, cumin, chilli and turmeric powders.

Immediately add the ginger and garlic and saute for a few seconds.

Add the cashewnut paste and cook, sauteing, for a couple of minutes.

Now add the tomato puree and cook, stirring often, until the oil surfaces.

Add 2 cups of water or vegetable stock, bring to a boil, then simmer until you have a fairly thick gravy, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Add the salt and garam masala. Stir everything well, then add the soy creamer and stir in. Turn off the heat.

Pour the curry over the kofta balls and garnish with the coriander.

Serve hot, preferably with delicious pooris.

Frankie, Eggless

2009-11-27T14:08:00.003-05:00

In the days before burgers and pizzas descended on Bombay's food landscape, there was the Frankie.

The Frankie is a delicious, flaky wrap stuffed with veggies or meat. It was ridiculously popular, especially among the city's modern young crowd, perhaps because -- with a name like Frankie-- it appeared less homely than a vada-pav or a pav-bhaji, other popular street snacks.

My favorite place to grab a sizzling hot, just-made Frankie was at the super-busy Churchgate station, before I could hop on a train to take me home. Eating a Frankie in this, one of the busiest railway stations in one of the world's most crowded megalopolises, as commuters literally elbowed past you -- almost knocking the food out of your hands-- was an experience by itself.

I still remember those wonderful, tantalizing tastes: the smokiness of the peppers and the spices and the soft, crispy texture of the wrap. There really was no flavor quite like it.

One of the key reasons a Frankie tastes as unique as it does is an egg wash that is brushed on to both sides of the wrap, after which it is baked on a super-hot griddle. The eggs give the Frankie a distinctive brown pattern on the outside and its crispy, flaky texture. I've seen vegetarian versions of a Frankie that do away with the egg wash altogether, but, frankly, all you are left with is a vegetable wrap that is not a Frankie.

So before making a Frankie at home, I spent a lot of time wondering what would make a good egg-wash substitute. Then it hit me.

Tofu. Tofu is high in protein like egg which would help with the browning and the texture and, when beaten, it has about the same thickness that makes it spreadable without being too drippy. So tofu it was, mixed with a tiny bit of oil to make it more spreadable, and I think it did a great job of emulating the egg without the eggy smell.

To stuff my Frankie, I used a mouth-tickling, tangy tamarind chutney and a mix of colorful, healthful vegetables including red bell peppers, potatoes, carrots and mushrooms. You can try almost any vegetable that cooks fairly fast but retains a nice bite. I would have preferred the flavor of green bell peppers in the Frankie, but I used red since I had those on hand, and they were quite delicious. But if you have a choice, go with the green.

So here's the recipe. Hope everyone had a great, meat-free Thanksgiving and here's looking forward to the holiday season. Enjoy, all!
Frankie

For the wrap:

2 cups all-purpose flour (resist the urge to sub with whole-wheat because you won't get the right texture)

1 tbsp canola oil

1 tsp salt

Water

Mix the flour, oil and salt by hand until you have a grainy texture.

Now, adding a little water at a time, knead the flour until you have a firm dough. Cover and set aside.

For the filling:

Ingredients:

1 large bell pepper (capsicum, cut into thin, long strips

2 small carrots, julienned, or cut into thin, long strips1 red onion, sliced lengthwise

8-10 button or crimini or portabella mushrooms. Cut the mushrooms into thin slices. If using portabella, cut the cap lengthwise into long strips.

1 large potato, cut into skinny, french-fry-like strips

1 tsp garam masala

2 tsp chaat masala

1/2 tsp red chilli powder (or more or less per your taste)

1/2 tsp or more of ground black pepper1 tbsp canola oil

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Heat the canola oil in a skillet.

Add the onions and potatoes and cook, stirring, until the potatoes start to turn golden-brown.

Add the remaining veggies and stir-fry for a few minutes until they are tender enough but still have a good bite. You don't want mushy vegetables in your Frankie.

Add the powdered spices, stir together to mix well, add salt, and turn off the heat. Stir in the coriander leaves. Set aside.

To make the tofu wash, beat together 1/4 cup of silken tofu with 1 tsp vegetable oil. Set aside.

To make the wrap, take a ball of the dough around 1-inch in diameter. Using some flour, roll it into a circle about 7-8 inches in diameter.

Transfer the circle to a hot cast-iron or non-stick griddle brushed lightly with oil.When bubbles begin to appear on the wrap, flip it over. Brush the top with the tofu wash-- you want a thin layer and you want it to spread as evenly as possible without lumping in places.

Now flip over the wrap again and brush the other side similarly with the tofu wash. Wait until the underside of the wrap is nice and golden brown and comes off easily with a spatula before you flip it one last time.

Spread a little tamarind chutney (recipe follows) in the center of the wrap. Now place some of the vegetables in the center. Then, working carefully and using the spatula, fold the edges of the wrap over the filling. Press down on the top of the wrap with the spatula for a minute to ensure it stays in place.

Remove from the griddle and eat hot.
Tamarind chutney

2 tbsp tamarind extract (bought at the Indian store)

1/2 cup water1/2 tsp finely powdered fennel seeds

1/2 tsp finely ground cumin seeds

1/2 tsp finely ground coriander seeds

Salt to taste

2-4 tbsp grated jaggery (an unrefined Indian sugar)

Place all the ingredients in a small skillet and, over medium heat, bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let the sauce simmer for another 8-10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened. Taste and add more jaggery or salt if needed.

Turn off the heat before the sauce is too thick-- it will thicken more on standing.

Vegetable Kung Pao

2009-11-25T12:04:00.002-05:00

Desi and I had our friend, Roshani, over for dinner the other night. Roshani's a fan of Indo-Chinese cuisine, so picking out what I would cook for her was a breeze. And it was also perfect because as you know this is Chinese month here at Holy Cow! when we celebrate all food Chinese

Among the dishes I made were Vegetable Kung Pao which you are bound to find on any Indo-Chinese restaurant menu. While Kung Pao is a dish originally from China's Schizuan province, Indian cooks have for years now adapted it to suit local tastes

I love cooking Chinese because it gives me a chance to add a plethora of colorful, healthful vegetable to almost any recipe. Also, the strong, vibrant flavors of all those sauces and vinegars and oils would, I think, make it difficult even for a meat-eater to miss the meat.

One tip for Chinese cooking: try using vegetable stock in soups and any saucy dishes because the stock adds a richer dimension and flavor to the final result

This is a short post on a busy day, but before I go I want to wish everyone a very happy Thanksgiving, and hope yours will NOT include death and suffering in the form of a cruelly slaughtered, stripped and stuffed turkey. This is a time to be grateful for everything that's right in our world. Honestly, I can't think of a better way to celebrate that than with a delicious vegetarian or vegan meal that boosts health instead of weighing it down with cholesterol.

There are thousands of delicious options, and if you need more than what this blog and dozens of other vegan blogs have to offer, you can check out the New York Times which has been posting vegetarian options for Thanksgiving on its Well blog. Martha Stewart recently did a show on a vegetarian thanksgiving which you can watch here

Also, check out my vegan Thanksgiving feast with an Indian flavor from last year.

And now for the Kung Pao. One note on this-- the recipe includes lot of heat with three different kinds of chillies, so if you don't like your food hot, feel free to leave out everything but the red chillies that go in at the beginning of the recipe.

Enjoy, all!

Vegetable Kung Pao

Ingredients:

1 red onion, chopped

1 carrot, cut on a bias in thin discs

10-15 mushrooms, halved or quartered if large

1 small head broccoli, separate into florets. Peel the larger stems and cut them into discs.

2 red or green bell peppers, chopped

2 sticks of celery, chopped

(Tip: It is important that all your vegetables be roughly the same size when you chop them so they will cook evenly. Make those veggies that take a little longer to cook, like carrots, a little smaller. You can use all kinds of veggies here, including cabbage. You can also add some tofu, cut in cubes, just before you add the cornstarch.)

2 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup water

1 tbsp sesame oil

2-3 red chillies, broken into 1-inch pieces

2 tsp garlic paste

2 tsp ginger paste

1/4 cup peanuts, toasted lightly on a skillet and then coarsely chopped

4-5 scallions or green onions, chopped

Mix in a bowl:

2 cups vegetable stock or water

1/4 cup soy sauce or more to taste

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

1 -2 tsp hot chilli sauce like Sriracha

2-3 green chillies (optional, and only if you like a lot of heat)

Heat the sesame oil in a wok or other large nonstick skillet.

Add the red chillies and saute for a minute or so until they start to darken.

Add the ginger and garlic pastes and saute for a few seconds.

Add the vegetables and stir-fry on high heat, stirring constantly, about 2-3 minutes or until the vegetables begin to soften.

Now add the stock-soy sauce mixture in and allow it to come to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer a couple of minutes or until the veggies are cooked but have a good bite to them. You don't want your vegetables to turn soft and mushy.

Add the peanuts and stir in. Now add the cornstarch-water mixture, one teaspoon at a time, until you have a sauce that's fairly thick. Do NOT add the cornstarch at once-- watch your recipe closely and add only as much as you need.

Check for salt and add if needed. Add the scallions and give it a quick stir. Turn off heat and serve hot.
***

Now for a quick prod to all of you cooks out there to get cooking for It's A Vegan World: Chinese. We still have nearly a week to go, and I am waiting for many more entries. So stretch off that lazy streak and get cooking!

Sugar Cookies Invade My Cookie Jar!

2009-11-24T13:18:00.002-05:00

I was thrilled to get a review copy of Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar because I've been a long-time fan of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. In fact, it was Moskowitz's and Romero's fool-proof recipes that helped me convince Desi-- who is a bit of a cupcake maniac and not a vegan-- that cruelty-free cupcakes are better than their egg-and-dairy counterparts in more ways than one.

With Cookies, Moskowitz and Romero seem all set once again to make not just the vegan die-hards among us but also the omnivorous skeptics sit up and take notice. With 100 cookie recipes, there's something here to appeal to every cookie lover, from exotic Irish Creme Kisses, Tahini Lime Cookies and Mexican Chocolate Snickerdoodles (with an unexpected cayenne pepper kick) to your comforting old Chocolate Chip Cookies and Deluxe Cocoa Brownies.

I tried the sugar cookies because not only do I love their utter simplicity, but they are, of course, a staple for the holidays which are going to be here in no time at all. I prefer eating sugar cookies by themselves, without all the bells, whistles and sprinkles that they typically get prettied up with, but I did sandwich some of my favorite jelly into some of the cookies and then dusted them with powdered sugar for a simple but completely decadent treat.
The recipe was super-easy. I had everything I needed on hand and the ingredients made a beautiful dough that was easy to roll out and cut into cookie shapes. I made little holes in the center of some of the cookies using an apple corer so the jelly could squirt through. They tasted divine and looked really cute. A win-win.

I apologize to my readers for my spotty schedule these past couple of weeks but there's been a lot going on in my life that's been keeping me busy. Rest assured, I am around and I am going to keep posting as often as I can.

In the meantime try these cookies. They're amazing!
Roll-And-Cut Sugar Cookies

Ingredients:

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup margarine, slightly softened (like Earth Balance "butter" sticks)

1/2 cup nonhydrogenated vegetable shortening

1 cup sugar

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp lemon extract (you can also use almond, maple or any other flavor)

1/4 cup vanilla soymilk (or other non-dairy milk)

In a bowl, sift together the flour, cornstarch, salt and baking powder and set aside.

In a larger bowl, cream the shortening, margarine and sugar with electric beaters until the mixture gets all soft and fluffy, for at least 4 minutes.

Scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure everything mixes in. Now beat in the vanilla and lemon extracts and the soymilk until everything is just combined.

Beat in half the flour and when it is thoroughly moistened, and then mix in the rest to form a soft dough.

Divide the dough into two and pat each portion into a disc. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.

On a lightly floured platform or board, roll each disc to about 3/8ths-inch thickness. Cut it into shapes with a cookie cutter. Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, about 1-inch apart. Reroll leftover scraps and shape into more cookies.

In a preheated, 350-degree oven, bake the cookies for about 10 minutes until done.

Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool for five minutes. Then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.

(Recipe from the book Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero, published by Da Capo Lifelong, a member of the Perseus Books Group. Copyright © 2009. www.dacapopresscookbooks.com)

Brown Rice Dosas

2009-11-19T17:07:00.005-05:00

Most South Indian cooks have a pot full of dosa batter sitting in their refrigerators which they can pull out at any time to make a quick and nutritious breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner. Dosas cook pretty quickly on the skillet so in no time at all one can have a pile of hot, steaming crepes ready to eat.

And making a dosa batter itself is not difficult, although it does require some soaking time to let the rice and lentils soften so once they are ground up into the batter they can cook quickly on the skillet. I like making quick dosas such as my moong dosa or coriander adai because they require even less soaking time than a regular dosa. But when I get the craving for a traditional dosa, I have a foolproof batter that's ready in about 4 hours. Not bad.

This time, I wanted to make my foolproof batter healthier by using brown rice instead of white, which I usually use. I have used brown rice in dosa batters before but I find it usually requires more soaking time. While wondering this past weekend, late in the afternoon, how I could get my dosa batter ready for dinner, I had a brainwave. Parboiled rice.

Now before some of you seasoned cooks out there scream, hey, that's what Indian cooks usually use for dosa, hear me out. I am not talking about the parboiled rice you can buy off the shelf. Instead, I thought I'd parboil my brown rice for a few minutes and then soak it with the lentils, reducing the total soaking time. Get it?

So that's what I did, and I couldn't be more pleased with the results. I needed just five hours of soaking time and the dosas themselves were perfect-- I spread them thin and they were crispy around the edges and delicious with the nutty flavor of brown rice.

Here's the recipe. Enjoy, all!

Brown Rice Dosas

Ingredients:

2 cups brown rice

1/2 cup poha (flattened rice). You can get a brown-rice version of this in Indian stores too.

2 tbsp chana dal (bengal gram dal)

1/2 cup udad dal (black gram dal)

1/2 tsp methi seeds

Salt to taste

Cover the brown rice with water in a microwave-safe bowl and nuke it for five minutes.

Allow the rice to sit in the hot water for another half an hour.

Now add the rice to the remaining ingredients, along with the water. Add more water to cover the lentils and rice. Allow them to soak for at least 5 hours and more if you have the time. Drain.

Blend the rice-dal mixture, in several batches, adding enough water to make asmooth batter that's runny enough to spread into a crepe, but thickenough to coat the back of a spoon.

Heat a cast-iron ornon-stick griddle. The griddle should be hot enough that when you sprinkle a few drops of water on it, they sizzle and evaporate.

Using a ladle with a rounded bottom, pour somebatter into the center of the griddle and, in a quick but smoothmotion, spread outward in circles. Don't be afraid if youmake holes: just add a small drop of batter to patch it. If your dosa does not spread smoothly, it's possible your ladle is hot. Turn off or lower the heat, and try again.

Pour a few drops of oil around the dosa's edges to help it crisp up. Once the underside is golden brown, loosen the dosa gently from the skillet and flip over. Ifyour griddle was hot enough to begin with, this step will be very, veryeasy.

Cook the other side for a few seconds, giving more time if your dosa is thicker. Serve hot with some sambar or chutney or both.

Because I was pressed for time, I served the dosas with this super-simple chutney that requires just four ingredients but tastes just divine.

Easy Coriander Chutney

1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves and stems

1/2 cup coconut milk

A few drops of lemon juice

Salt to taste

Just give everything a whir in the blender until the cilantro is completely broken down. Check salt and serve with the dosas.

***
Desi and I are being tourists in our own city this week. There isn't a better place to live in than Washington if you want to do that-- the city's filled with great buildings, monuments and the most amazing museums and almost all of it is free.

Yesterday we were at the Museum of American History which is home to everything from Dorothy's ruby slippers from the "Wizard of Oz" to Julia Child's entire kitchen from her home in Massachusetts. It was the setting for almost all her television shows.
As we left the museum, exhausted, we caught this glimpse of the Washington monument, ethereal in the twilight.

Eggplant and Mushroom Vindaloo

2009-11-16T14:45:00.007-05:00

When the flower children went east looking for spiritual enlightenment, it is not surprising that many ended up in Goa, a lush paradise along India's scenic west coast.

Not surprising because not only is Goa indescribably gorgeous, but because it also is the home of an inclusive, diverse, happy people steeped in the intoxicating culture of "susegado" -- taking it easy.

The locals joke that there are three things Goans do best: khavap, pivap, nidap. Or eat, drink, and sleep. The drinking, of course, refers to Feni, a popular homestyle liquor that runs thicker than blood in many veins here and that is brewed from the quirky, upside-down cashew fruit that grows abundantly in Goa's emerald valleys.

My stepmother is a Goan, and as a girl I spent many summers in this tiny state attending family weddings, events, or just visiting with a big, extended family of cousins and aunts and uncles. My father lives there now, and each time I return to India I look forward to spending some time rediscovering this land that, despite the inevitable scars of progress and overwhelming tourism, holds on to its seductive innocence.
Goa played host to Portuguese colonists from the 1500s all the way until 1961 and modern-day Goa is a mix of this past alien culture and the demands of its present in a globalized India. Old, faded but magnificent Portuguese-era homes with wide verandahs and intricate iron grillwork in the windows sit on the narrow streets that were once lazy pedestrian pathways and are now clogged with noisy cars spitting out gray exhaust. The beaches, once strewn with Goans and hippies who assimilated effortlessly with the locals, are now consumed by expensive resorts accessed by a privileged few.

Young people dream of leaving homes tucked in scenic valleys dotted with mango and jackfruit orchards to work at one of the many call centers that have sprung up around the state.
But despite the changes, Goa's charm is hard to smother, as is the delightful nature of its diversity. The state has large populations of both Hindus and Christians who speak the same language, Konkani, with vastly different accents. Churches like the Basilica of Bom Jesus are as much at home here as the colorful domes of the Mangeshi temple. In fact, Hindus and Christians cross-worship at each other's churches and temples with unbridled gusto. "The more gods to get blessed by, the merrier," my Goan aunt, Vilas maushi, an avid temple- and church-goer herself, once explained very logically.
The cuisine of Goa-- or rather the cuisines-- are just as diverse and delightful. Both the Hindus and the Christians cook a good deal with rice and fish but they cook these ingredients up into vastly different dishes. The Christian cuisine includes dishes like Cafreal, a spicy preparation made usually with chicken and with spices and herbs like coriander, pepper, ginger and garlic. Then there's Bebinca, a multi-layered sweet made with flour and eggs and coconut milk and often sold fresh by the roadside. And Ambot-tik, a spicy-sour dry curry made usually with fish, among many other dishes.

The Hindus, on the other hand, cook fish curries fragrant with triphal, a small, round spice, and mellowed with coconut paste, and vegetable stews like khatkhate and Ambyache Sasam (made with ripe mangoes which also grow abundantly here).

The dish I am sharing today, Vindaloo, is a Goan classic but it is not something my stepmom made in her Hindu kitchen. The reason was it is usually made with pork which is a popular meat among the Christians of Goa but which, for some reason, is a meat even Hindus who are not vegetarian seemed to shun, at least in those days.

I shun pork because I would rather not eat a cute little pig (did you know they are smarter than dogs ?). So my vindaloo is made with two veggies I love and that make great meat substitutes-- eggplant and mushrooms. Trust me, you'll never miss the meat.

I adore vindaloo because it is gloriously vibrant, with the contrasting flavors of vinegar, garlic, chilli powder and mustard. It goes beautifully with boiled rice but I also love scooping it up with a laadi pav roll, sold fresh in Goa by pav-wallahs who make the rounds of neighborhoods each morning on their bicycles.

And now for the recipe. Enjoy, all!
Eggplant and Mushroom Vindaloo

Ingredients

1 large eggplant (I prefer this kind for this dish because it has a heftier texture), cut into a chunky dice

12-15 crimini mushrooms (use button or even shiitake if you prefer), halved or quartered if large

2 medium red onions, chopped

2 cups crushed tomatoes

1 tbsp olive oil

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves

4 spring onions or scallions, white and green parts chopped (optional)

1 2-inch cinnamon stick

2 tsp black mustard seeds

Grind to a paste in a blender the following ingredients:

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar (this recipe traditionally uses white vinegar but I prefer balsamic because it's sweeter and the flavor goes better with the veggies)

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

6-8 cloves garlic, minced

A 1-inch piece of ginger, chopped

2 level tbsp garam masala

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp red chilli powder (use more or less per your taste)

1 tbsp mustard seeds, ground

1 tbsp coriander seeds, ground

1 tsp cumin seeds, ground

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

Marinate the mushrooms and eggplant in the paste and set aside for at least an hour.

Heat the olive oil in a large pot.

Add the onions and cook, stirring, until golden-brown, about 10 minutes. Do not hurry through this- you want the onions to develop a lot of flavor

Add the marinated vegetables and cook, stirring about 5 minutes.

Add the crushed tomatoes and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil, lower the heat to simmer. Cover the pot and allow the curry to cook for about an hour, stirring once in a while to ensure the veggies get cooked evenly.

Once the vegetables are really tender, add more salt if needed and stir in the mustard seeds.

Stir in the coriander leaves and garnish with the spring onions, if using.

Serve hot.

Apple Cake With Caramel-Pecan Glaze

2009-11-14T13:43:00.003-05:00

Channel-surfing for a cooking show this morning, I caught Christopher Kimball, the pompous and intensely annoying host of America's Test Kitchen, deriding vegetarian food and a tofu dessert he ate somewhere.

"It is terrible," he and another cook went in unison, talking about chocolate mousse made with tofu.

Now maybe the particular mousse these people ate was terrible and warranted that criticism. But is that good enough reason to tar as terrible any dessert made with tofu-- or for that matter made without dairy or eggs? No way!

Cooks like Kimball don't want to admit to the possibility that dairy-free and egg-free desserts can be delicious for the simple reason that doing that would render their own animal-product-filled desserts redundant. After all, as any intelligent person would have to agree, if one can make a great-tasting recipe without using ingredients that hurt animals, it would be a no-brainer to go with it, wouldn't it?

The problem is, for those among us who look at celebrity cooks like these for guidance, their words become the gospel. For as long as people have been baking cakes and cookies, no one -- until fairly recently -- thought of questioning the tradition of using eggs and dairy. In fact, I remember when I first started baking all I heard was the importance of butter and cream and eggs in turning out a good baked product or dessert.

Then along came some innovative vegan cooks who showed us that not only is it possible to make wonderful desserts that are vegan but that they taste better too, and, cherry on the icing, they're better for you. I, for one, am so glad that I dared to try what they had to offer. It changed the way I cooked and baked and I am happier and healthier for it.

What's more, even Desi who is quite the critic when it comes to his favorite sweets admits that the vegan versions are tastier.

To anyone who still has doubts that making cruelty-free desserts is a breeze, I'd challenge you to try my Apple Cake with a Caramel Pecan Glaze. This cake is moist, delicious, full of flavor, and not only is it vegan but it is whole-wheat and low fat. Best of all, it's super-easy to make.

This cake would look really pretty baked in a bundt pan, but I don't have one so I just made it in a tube pan. But if you do have a bundt pan, use it.

Here's the recipe. Hope everyone's having a great weekend!
Apple Cake

Dry ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp ground cinnamon

Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl and set aside

In a small bowl mix together:

3 Granny Smith apples, cored, deseeded, then chopped into a fairly small dice

1/3 cup sugar

1 tbsp molasses (you can use dark brown sugar instead of the regular sugar and skip the molasses. I love the molasses with the apples because it really deepens and enriches the flavor of the fruit)

In a large bowl, whisk together the following wet ingredients:

3 tbsp flax meal + 9 tbsp water

1/2 cup canola oil or other flavorless vegetable oil

1/2 cup soy milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup crushed pineapple

Now add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until well-blended, but do not overwork.

Add in the apples and mix together so they are evenly distributed through the batter. This is a pretty thick batter so you'll get a good workout for your hand.

Pour the batter into a greased and floured tube or bundt pan and smooth the top.

Place in a 350-degree oven and bake around 80 minutes or until a toothpick inserted close to the center comes out with moist crumbs sticking to it.

Remove and cool on a rack about 30 minutes before sliding a knife around the edges and then unmolding.

Caramel-Pecan Glaze

Mix in a saucepan:

1/2 cup sugar

1 tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp water

Simmer over medium-low heat until the syrup turns brown.

Turn off the heat and very carefully and slowly (because it will splatter), :

1/2 cup of soy milk and 1 tsp vanilla extract.

Now add 1/2 cup lightly toasted pecans and stir (you can chop the pecans if you like)

Pour over the top of the cake and allow the glaze to set before serving.

Looking for more great and fruity vegan dessert options? Try my Peach Upside-Down Cake, my Carrot Cake with a "Cream Cheese" frosting or my Mango Cheesecake. And if you're still not convinced that dairy-free is the way to go, read more about what goes into making those dairy products here.

Burrito Bowl

2009-11-13T12:27:00.006-05:00

One of my favorite meals to order on the go is a burrito bowl-- you know, where they pile on the rice, beans, guacamole and salsa and all other goodies into a single container and you can dig in without any fuss. But as much as I love eating stuff I don't have to cook myself, I love eating the stuff I make at home more because -- for one-- I know exactly what's going into it, and besides, I can make it healthier. And yes, even a vegan burrito bowl bought at a restaurant, however healthy, can be healthier.

The great thing about a burrito bowl is, there's no one way to do it. You can add in all your favorites and leave out anything that doesn't appeal to you. I usually order mine with rice, beans, guacamole and some lettuce and it's just perfect.

For my homemade burrito bowl, I made yellow rice using brown rice instead of white-- a great way to add healthy fiber without compromising taste. I then smothered it with some creamy refried black beans spiced with smoky chipotle chilis in adobo sauce. Because in Mexico they often stir cheese into the refried beans at the end, I substituted with a vegan powerhouse that makes a great cheese AND salt substitute-- miso. You can leave it out but it adds great flavor.

On top of all this goodness I spooned some bright-green, chunky guacamole. And then I covered it all with strips of lettuce.

Bliss in a bowl.

You can, of course, tweak it to your taste. Some tomato salsa would be incredible here, or you might even add some mango salsa for a truly special touch.

Here go the recipes. Enjoy the weekend, all!
Burrito Bowl

(Makes 6 servings)

Yellow Rice

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups brown rice (I used long-grain Basmati)

3 1/2 cups water

1 tsp cumin seeds

2 jalapeno chilies, cut into rings (remove the seeds and white ribs if you want to tone down the heat)

1 onion, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil

Salt to taste

Heat the oil. Add the cumin seeds and, when they sputter, add the onions.

Cook the onions over medium heat about 10 minutes until they caramelize. Don't hurry through this step because you really want the flavors to develop.

Add the jalapeno rounds and stir in. Now add the turmeric and salt and mix.

Add the rice and stir to coat with the oil and spices and until it starts to turn opaque, which will take no more than 1 to 2 minutes.

Add the water, bring it to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer on a low flame for 45 minutes or until the water is completely absorbed and the rice is cooked.

Allow the rice to stand, covered, for at least 10-15 more minutes before serving.
Refried Black Beans

Ingredients:

1 cup black beans, soaked overnight or at least 4-5 hours, then cooked with enough water until tender. Reserve about 2 cups of the cooking liquid. (If using canned, use 2 cups of black beans and the water they were canned in)

1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil

1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce, chopped fine, with 1 tsp of the sauce

1 red onion, minced

5 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp shiro miso (white miso), or, if you'd rather not use this, salt to taste

Coriander for garnish

Heat the oil. Add the onions and saute until golden-brown, about 10 minutes.

Add the garlic and chipotle chili. Stir together for a minute.

Add the beans and the water. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and allow it to simmer. Mash the beans with a potato masher or a ladle. I like to mash some but not all to get a great texture.

You want to turn off the heat when the beans are still a little soupy because they will thicken further as they stand. Just a minute or so before turning off the heat, add the miso and stir in. Add salt only if you need it.

Garnish with coriander.

Guacamole

Ingredients:

2 perfectly ripe avocados, cut into a small dice

1/2 small red onion, minced

1 tsp garlic powder or 3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 jalapeno pepper, minced (remove seeds and ribs if you aren't hot about the heat)

Salt to taste

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix with a spoon, mashing the avocado as you go. I like the avocado chunky but you can really mash it down if you like.

To put together the burrito bowl:

Chop some lettuce into fine strips.

In a bowl, place 3/4 cup of the yellow rice.

Make a dent in the center with a ladle, then spoon in about 1/2 cup of the refried beans

Top with 1/4 cup of the guacamole and as much lettuce as you like.

Desi loves to add a tablespoon of vegan sour cream to this (I use Tofutti), but I love it just the way it is.

Eat up!

For more great Mexican recipes from many creative cooks, visit It's A Vegan World's Mexican edition.

Grilled Naan

2009-11-11T10:25:00.001-05:00

Here's a quick post today about an easy and quick way to make a popular Indian recipe: grilled naan.

I usually make naan the time-consuming traditional way, with yeast and in the oven. And although it is still quite quick to put together, I wanted to find a way to to make it quicker.

The naan recipe I'm sharing today uses baking powder as leavening instead of yeast, which means you can pretty much skip all the time needed for rising etc., although you do need to rest the dough for no more than half hour after you've kneaded it. The naan is-- as the name suggests-- baked on a grill instead of in the oven. All in all, it takes no more than an hour from mixing this dough to having hot and fresh naans on your plate, all ready to eat. Besides, those grill marks do look pretty, don't they?

The recipe makes four naans, but feel free to double it if you want more.

So here's the recipe for a favorite made easy. It's fluffy and soft and quite delicious. A winner, in my book.

Grilled Naan

(Makes 4 naans)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (use unbleached if possible)

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp sugar

1 cup soymilk + 1 tbsp vinegar

1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil

Mix the all-purpose flour, salt, sugar, baking powder and baking powder in a large bowl

Add the soymilk and oil and mix with a wooden spoon or at medium speed in a stand mixer. The dough will be very sticky. Beat for about 5 minutes.

Now turn it out on a floured surface and knead with oiled hands.

Divide the dough into 4 balls-- oiling your hands again will help form the balls.

Set them aside for 30 minutes.

Roll out each ball into a round or an oval, about 7 inches in diameter.

Heat a grill pan (you can also do this on an outdoor grill) until it's really hot but just short of smoking. Brush with a little oil. Place a naan on it and turn the heat down to medium.

Grill until golden grill marks appear on the naan, about 2 minutes. Then flip over and grill the other side for another minute. Flip over once again at an angle so you get a nice grill pattern on the naan. (Don't overdo the grilling because the naan does harden up if it cooks too long). Brush some olive oil on both sides of the naan, if desired.

Serve hot with a spicy curry like My Dad's Not-Mutton Mushroom Curry or my Chickpea Curry With Caribbean Spices.

Apple Tart

2009-11-06T12:51:00.006-05:00

There's never a better time than Fall to bake an apple tart. It's cool enough to get the oven going, and the perfectly wistful memory of summer in the rust-yellow leaves on the sidewalks just makes me crave a warm, gooey treat.

More, the temperature is just right for the science of pie-making. While it is absolutely possible for a seasoned pie-maker to turn out a beautifully flaky-crusted pie or tart any time of the year, those who are newer at this might find they get better results in a fall or winter kitchen when it's easier to keep all the ingredients cold.

Apple Pie is one of Desi's favorites and I usually bake the deep-dish version with a top and a bottom crust because the crust, of course, is his favorite part (and mine!) But I just as often make this skinner tart because it's much lighter. It also makes for an elegant presentation, so if you're going to have guests you want to impress this would be a perfect choice.

When I first began making this tart, I'd make it open-faced and the concentric, overlapping circles of apples arranged inside the tart looked so darn pretty. But I always had many scraps left over after fitting the dough into the tart pan and it seemed a shame to waste perfectly decent pie dough, so I began to use the leftovers to make a lattice top. It looks quite pretty and besides, there's nothing that cannot be improved by a little more pie crust!

The ingredient list for this pie is short and the procedure pretty straightforward. But remember to work fast with the dough and do not overwork it. Like I said, there's some science that goes into making a perfect crust and it involves not letting the fat melt into the flour if you want those air pockets that make all those flaky layers, and not over-developing the gluten in your dough. So if you leave the dough sitting around on the kitchen platform while you go do the laundry, sorry, but your tart is going to a non-starter.

Here's the recipe. Have a great weekend, all!

Apple Tart

Ingredients:

For the crust:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

4 tbsp vegan butter

4 tbsp shortening

1/4 tsp salt

1 tbsp granulated sugar

Mix the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl. Add the fat cut into pieces and, with a fork, cut it into the flour until bits of fat are evenly dispersed in the flour. You should not have pieces of fat any larger than a pea.

Add ice-cold water, 1 tbsp at a time, mixing the dough with the fork, until it comes together.

Shape the dough into a disc and wrap it in plastic wrap or place in an airtight container. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

While the dough chills, make the filling.

For the filling:

3 medium apples (I used the tart Granny Smith variety), deseeded, then halved, then cut into very thin slices

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 1/2 tbsp all-purpose flour

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Set aside for 15 minutes.

To assemble the tart:

On a floured surface, roll out the dough. The disc should be wide enough to at least fit into the bottom and sides of your tart pan. If you'd like a lattice top, make your disc about an inch wider.

Now fold the dough and lift it into a greased tart pan. With your fingers, delicately, push it into the corners of the tart pan.

Run the rolling pin over the top of the tart pan. This will cut out the overhanging pieces of dough. Remove the scraps of dough and push them together into a disc. Refrigerate this ball of scrap dough while you arrange the apples in the tart pan.

Arrange the apples in concentric circles around the tart pan, starting with the outermost layer. You can, of course, use any arrangement you like or even just pile them in haphazardly, but the concentric-circle look is, to my mind, the most beautiful and traditional.

Pour any leftover juices in the bowl on top of the apples.

Now take the remaining dough and roll it wide enough that it would fit over the top of the tart pan. Using a pizza cutter or pastry cutter, cut it into thin strips (you can cut them wide or thin depending on how labor-intensive you want this to be)

Arrange the strips on top of the tart in a lattice pattern. You can find more detailed instructions on making a lattice top in my Maple-Drunk Apple Pie post.

Sprinkle about 2 tsp of sugar mixed with 1/2 tsp of cinnamon on top of the lattice.

Place the tart in a preheated 375-degree oven for 50 minutes until the juices bubble and top is a nice, light golden-brown.

Allow the tart to stand at least an hour on a rack before you unmold it.

Enjoy!
Love apple desserts? Check out my Tarte Tatin and my Maple-Drunk Apple Pie.

Mango Cupcakes With Mango Buttercream Frosting

2009-11-04T10:07:00.012-05:00

As Thanksgiving approaches, I know all of you -- vegan or not-- are looking for great options to the same-old-same-old pumpkin pie, sweet potato pie or whatever tired old orange-colored dessert it is that typically graces your Thanksgiving table.

Well, I have one for you and every word of it is like a fresh, sweet, tropical kiss: vegan Mango Cupcakes with Mango Buttercream Frosting.

Mmmm...

As you already know, I love my cupcakes. After all, how can anyone not love portion-controlled indulgence? And yes, I'll admit, these are indulgent, and rich, although probably nowhere near as rich as a non-vegan version could be. Besides, all of us need a little indulgence every now and then, don't we? And what can be more comforting than a soft, fluffy cupcake covered with mounds of soft, fluffy frosting.

I use canned mango puree in these cupcakes. Try to use the puree of Alphonso mangoes (which is available in Indian stores) because this is by far the richest and most full-bodied and sweetest mango you'll ever taste. Hands down.

The buttercream is made with vegan butter (like Earth Balance) and shortening with a dash of mango puree and trust me, one bite of this and you will feel like you've just died and gone to heaven. It's a beautiful, versatile icing and one that you can use to frost all kinds of cakes.

Time to go, but here are the recipes. Enjoy, all!
Mango Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cardamom powder

Sift all the ingredients into a bowl and set aside.

In another bowl, beat together until well-mixed:

1 1/2 cups mango puree

1/3 cup canola oil

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a whisk just until you have a smooth batter. Do not overmix or overbeat.

Divide the batter equally among 12 cups of a standard-sized muffin pan lined with cupcake liners. Smooth down the tops with the back of a spoon or spatula or you will have a lumpy top (it'll still taste delicious, though :))

Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven about 27 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Vegan Mango Buttercream Frosting

8 tbsp (1 stick) vegan butter like Earth Balance

8 tbsp vegetable shortening

2 cups confectioners' sugar (I've seen recipes that use more than 3 cups of confectioners' sugar for the same amount of butter and shortening and if you like a really sweet frosting, you might try adding more. But 2 cups, I found, was just perfect).

1/4 cup mango puree

1 tsp vanilla extract

Cream together the butter and shortening until they are fluffy, about 1 minute.

Now add the mango puree and vanilla and half the sugar. Beat until mixed, then add the remaining sugar and beat until mixed. This should take no more than 2 minutes altogether.

Frost the cupcakes after they've cooled completely.

It's A Vegan World: Chinese

2009-11-03T15:16:00.002-05:00

Pack your bags, or rather your woks--we're taking off this month for the land of ancient wisdom, impenetrable mystique and delicious takeout.

Yes, it's Chinese month here on It's A Vegan World and I'm looking forward to bringing you along for the journey.

I'm really excited about this one not just because I, like almost everyone out there, love Chinese food, but because I've always been smitten from afar with this land so rich in culture and tradition and billion-plus life stories. In fact, if there was just one country I could visit before I died, it would have to be China.

But exotic as China is to those of us who live elsewhere, its food is anything but foreign almost anywhere around the world. Here, in the United States, it is rivaled only by pizza as the most popular takeout food and in my home it beats pizza hands-down any day because it's not just delicious but also usually loaded with delicious veggies like broccoli and eggplant. It helps of course that there are at least three Chinese takeouts within a quarter mile radius around my house :)

What makes this event more fun is the fact that Chinese food has been adapted into so many different versions around the world. There are thousands of great recipes and variations to choose from and try, and I am hoping you'll try at least one-- or more -- this month.

So get cooking folks, and if you need a nudge here are some helpful resources:

The International Vegetarian Union's page of Chinese recipes.

VegWeb's extensive collection of Chinese recipes

Vegetarian and vegan Chinese recipes from About.com

The guidelines are the same as always, but here they go again:

The deadline is Dec. 1, 2009.

These foods are no-nos in vegan cooking, so please leave them out: honey, butter, eggs, cheese, ghee, milk, yogurt (basically no milk-based products), gelatin, and, of course, no meats or fish. Vegan meat or cheese substitutes are fine.

Link back to this announcement, and feel free to use the logo below.
The recipe should be cooked for this event, but if you'd like to send a recipe you've already posted, you do need to link back to this announcement and repost it.

Non-bloggers are also very welcome. Just send me your recipe and a picture.

As for bloggers, send me an email with your post to myveganworld[at]gmail.com. Include these details:

Your name

Blog name

Post url

A photograph of your dish (any size)

Happy cooking, all!

Rava Upma

2009-10-31T13:00:00.002-04:00

I've been writing this blog so long now that I sometimes just can't remember off-hand which recipes I've shared with you. Yesterday, as I made rava upma, one of my favorite breakfast -- and sometimes lunch-- options, I was a little stunned to realize that I had never gotten around to posting it.

Likely because upma is one of those dishes so ubiquitous in so many Indian homes, you don't really think of it as something special. But its popularity flows naturally from the fact that it is delicious, healthy and easy to throw together. A win-win all around.

I always thought of upma as the savory cousin of sheera or halwa, the sweet dish that's also very popular in Indian kitchens. But it is healthier, of course, because there's no sugar, for one, and you can add all kinds of veggies into it.

There's a little bit of measuring and technique involved in making a basic upma, and you do have to be careful to follow instructions closely if you want an upma that's light and fluffy with each round grain separate instead of gummed-up together, lumpy, or unappetizingly dry. That said, this is also an easy recipe once you've got the technique down, as well as a very versatile one when it comes to the other ingredients you can throw in. My favorite additions are onions, spring onions, green or red bell peppers (capsicums), carrots (grated), and even cabbage. You can also throw in spinach, green peas, broccoli...in other words any veggie that could be eaten al dente because you don't have time to cook the veggies too long.

So here's the recipe for a very simple but very classic Indian dish that's perfect for breakfast, lunch and any time in between. Enjoy your weekend, all!
Rava Upma

Ingredients

1 cup rava (sooji, cream of wheat, farina)

2 cups water

2 green chillies, minced

1 tsp grated ginger

1 sprig curry leaves

1 small onion, cut into a small dice

1 red bell pepper, cut into a small dice

4 spring onions (scallions), green and white parts cut into 1-cm pieces

1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

A pinch of asafetida (hing)

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves

2 tbsp grated coconut (optional)

Slices of lemon to spritz on the upma

On a dry skillet, roast the rava, stirring constantly, until it turns just a couple of shades darker and smells fragrant. Always roast on medium to medium-low heat because you don't want to burn it, and don't leave the rava unattended on the stove. Once it's roasted, remove to a plate and set aside.

Heat the oil in the same skillet. Add the mustard and asafetida and wait for the mustard seeds to sputter.

Immediately add the curry leaves, green chillies, onions and spring onions. Saute until the onions are soft but not brown. Add the ginger and stir in.

Add the red bell peppers and turmeric and saute until the peppers are softened, about 2-3 minutes.

Now add the water and bring it to a boil.

Turn the heat to low and have a ladle ready or a sturdy fork ready.

Slowly, pour the roasted rava into the skillet and immediately start mixing it in with the water. Work fast because you don't want dry lumps in your upma. You want to get everything mixed in fast so that every grain of the rava absorbs the water.

Turn off the heat and mix in the coriander leaves and coconut, if using. Serve in bowls with slices of lemon that you can spritz over the upma, and, if you desire, some coconut chutney.

Baked Samosas With A Chickpea Filling

2009-10-29T20:25:00.005-04:00

My first job as a journalist was for a then brand-new (and now defunct) newspaper in Bombay called The Independent published by the Times of India group. Our offices were on the fifth floor of the vast, domed, Gothic building in south Bombay, just across the street from the buzzing Victoria Terminus where trains from all over India chug in and out all day and night.

The Times building was home to several publications, including magazines and newspapers in English and other local languages. The look of the office of each publication varied drastically based on which one, of course, brought home the most biryani. The Independent, which still had to prove itself, was just a nondescript mess of cubicles and desks. In contrast, on the third floor was the designer-decorated, purple-painted home of the publishing group's cash cow-- the Times of India -- which, despite being one of the crummiest newspapers you'll ever read, also has the distinction of being India's top-selling English daily.

On the second floor were the offices of the advertising department which resembled a posh five-star hotel. Sandwiched between the Times and the Independent, on the fourth floor, were the offices of magazines like the once-illustrious Illustrated Weekly of India and the women's magazine Femina.

But the most interesting floor of all was the sixth floor which was the cafeteria.

It was a long, plain room with white walls, steel-topped, clinical tables and a view of the roofs of other buildings crowded together. You didn't have a choice of dishes for lunch, dinner or any in-between snacks-- you ate whatever was dished out that day, which was usually a flavored-down version of a typical Indian meal: bone-dry rotis, white rice, a sambar or dal, and a subzi, all of it accompanied by a fiery-hot pickle and papads.

You ate out of huge steel plates the size of a tray, each with three or four divisions, one to hold the rice, another for the dal, and so on. The silverware-- or rather aluminumware-- was made up solely of scratched, bent spoons. While that didn't bother most of us because we either used a single spoon or -- in true, sensual-Indian style-- our fingers, Desi, who likes his silverware to be just so, improvised with two spoons.

The cafeteria staff was made up of a number of young men from Udupi, a place in the south Indian state of Karnataka that could, in all fairness, be called the birthplace of the south Indian fast food industry. That's because it was folks from Udupi who set up all around Bombay and the rest of the country those restaurants that sell healthy, cheap and delicious South Indian fast food like dosas and idlis and vadas and sambars.

Anyway, these young men who worked in the cafeteria spent almost all their time between those four walls with the exception of some of the youngest workers-- still children-- who attended night school. Most were new immigrants to Bombay, lured to the big city by jobs that surely didn't pay well. They slept at at night in the long dining room and worked extra-long days from morning through night to save enough money to send home to their families, including the wives and children they had left behind.

Despite what must surely have been incredibly tough lives, these guys were unfailingly cheerful. I particularly remember one curly-haired guy with a ready smile named Janardan who would make the rounds of the newsroom, his small frame bent under a huge steel container of food slung over one shoulder, bringing us hot tea and snacks during those long, dreary night shifts in the newsroom. You could tell which snack Janardan would have by which day of the week it was. One day it would be bondas-- plump, deep-fried lentil fritters served with a chutney. Another day it would be a chivda, a dry mix of rice crispies and peanuts and spices. Yet another day it would be upma, a savory dish made with cream of wheat, or farina.

My favorite day-- I think it was Thursdays-- was the day he brought us samosas which was one of the few offerings from the cafeteria that was actually delicious. It was always served with a sweet-sour tamarind chutney.

No one needs to be told what a samosa is-- if you've ever eaten in an Indian restaurant, you've most likely had one. It is easy to see why this divine, deep-fried treat made up of a crisp jacket around a delicious stuffing of potatoes would brighten up anyone's day-- or night.

But deep-fried foods don't get to feature in my kitchen on a regular basis. So when I make samosas, I prefer to bake them.

Baked samosas are actually great-- they give you the same satisfaction, the same crunch, the same deliciousness, and all of it for way fewer calories. You do need to be careful about how you make the dough which almost resembles a pie dough, and roll it out pretty thin.

Another great thing about samosas is that you can stuff them with just about anything. While a stuffing of potatoes and peas is traditional, I like putting in all kinds of things, from other veggies to lentils and, this time, chickpeas.

So here's my baked samosa recipe, a true treat and one that never fails to bring back memories of those sweet, unsung cafeteria workers in the Times building who worked so hard for so little to make the lives of the rest of us who worked there just a little more easier.
Baked Samosas with a Chickpea Stuffing

For the samosa dough:

2 cups all-purpose flour (DON'T substitute whole-wheat flour here because you won't get the flakiness that's so important in a samosa crust)

1/2 tsp ajwain (carom seeds-- these are easily found in Indian grocery stores. They have a distinctive, sharp and spicy flavor that's great in the samosas)

2 tbsp vegetable shortening (make sure you buy one without any trans fats)

1 tsp salt

Cold water to knead

Place the flour in a bowl, mix in the salt and ajwain, then add to it the vegetable shortening. With your fingers, crumble the shortening into the floor until the shortening is evenly distributed and the flour looks grainy. This will ensure your crust is crisp.

Now, adding just a little cold water at a time, knead the flour into a stiff dough. Don't overknead it-- stop as soon as you have a mass that holds together because you don't want to overactivate the gluten.

Cover and set aside while you make the filling.

For the filling:

1 cup of chickpeas, soaked overnight if possible, then cooked until tender but not mushy. Drain out all but 2 tbsp of the cooking water.

1 medium potato, cut into a very small dice, then cooked until tender

1/2 medium red onion, minced

1 tsp garlic paste

1 tsp ginger paste

2 green chillies, minced

1 tsp chaat powder

1 tsp garam masala

Juice of 1/2 a lemon or lime

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves

Salt to taste

2 tsp canola or other vegetable oil

Heat oil in a skillet.

Add the onions and saute until they just start to brown, about 4-5 minutes on medium heat.

Add the ginger, garlic and the green chillies. Saute for another minute without letting the garlic burn.

Add the chickpeas with the 2 tbsp of reserved cooking water and potatoes, then the garam masala and chaat masala. Add salt.

Stir well to mix together. Allow the stuffing to cook without covering the skillet until all the water has evaporated. Mix in the coriander and set aside.

To assemble the samosas:

Break off a lime-sized ball of the dough and roll it into a ball between the palms of your hands.

Roll it out into a really thin round, about 5 inches in diameter

Now roll in a single direction to make an oval.

With a knife or a pastry-cutter, cut into two so you have two semi-circles.

Smear water along the edges of each semi-circle. Now bring the edges together to form a cone. Press with your fingers to seal the edge.

Place 2 tbsp of filling into the cone, stopping short of filling all the way to the top.

With your fingers, push together the top of the cone, making a little pleat in the back if necessary. You want to get a tight seal so nothing stumbles out during baking.

Prepare the rest of the samosas the same way. Place them on an oiled baking sheet.

Mix 1 tsp oil with 1 tbsp soymilk. Brush the tops of the samosas with this mixture to get a nice, golden-hued crust (it of course won't be as brown as when you deep-fry the samosas).

Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 40 minutes or until the edges of the samosas are golden-brown. If desired, flip the samosas over halfway through baking.

I served them hot with this cilantro coconut chutney. I added a couple of sprigs of mint to the blender for a slightly different but exquisite flavor.

Enjoy, all!

Mushroom "Makhani"

2009-10-27T12:40:00.003-04:00

Here's a dish so incredibly delicious, I couldn't wait to share it!

My Mushroom "Makhani" is made with exactly the same spices as the ones I would use in the past to make Chicken Makhani (or Butter Chicken), a popular Indian restaurant dish. But trust me, the vegan version tastes better than anything you'd pay for in a restaurant and is actually good for you, unlike its meat-containing counterpart which is loaded with unhealthy cholesterol and calories.

I substitute the makhan, or butter, in this recipe with vegan butter, just a small amount of it. Instead of cream, I use a paste of cashews which not only tastes better, but is great for you. In fact, some of you might have noticed that I often use nut pastes as a cream substitute. Pistachio and cashew pastes work best as cream substitutes, because they have the smoothest flavor and texture, but you can also try walnuts or pine nuts in other recipes that ask for cream.

I have given here the garam masala recipe because I used a toasted garam masala (meaning one where I toast the ingredients first) this time. There's already an untoasted-ingredient recipe on my blog that you can find here. I use them interchangeably. If you use the untoasted one, remember to add it to the skillet before the wet ingredients, like the tomato puree, go in, so it has some time to hang out in the oil and let the flavors of the spices bloom.

On with the recipe, then. Got a busy day ahead. Enjoy, all!
Mushroom "Makhani"

Ingredients:

2 cups baby bella or crimini mushrooms, quartered if big, or halved

1 cup tomato puree or crushed tomato

1 large red onion

5 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tbsp finely grated ginger

1 large green bell pepper (capsicum), seeded and cut into fairly large chunks

1 1/2 tbsp garam masala (recipe follows)

1/2 to 1 tsp red chilli powder like cayenne

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/3 cup cashew pieces soaked in 1/2 cup warm water for about half an hour, then ground to a paste

1/4 cup kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves). Try not to leave out this ingredient because it really clinches the flavor. It is available in Indian stores.

Salt to taste

1 tbsp canola oil

1 tbsp vegan butter, like Earth Balance

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves, for garnish

Heat the oil in a skillet or saucepan.

Add the onions and saute until the edges turn brown.

Add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry another minute.

Add the mushrooms and the green peppers. Stir fry for a minute, scraping up any garlic or ginger that stick to the bottom of the pan.

Now add the tomato puree, red chilli powder, turmeric and garam masala, Stir to mix. Let it cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomato is almost dry and begins to express the oil.

Now add a cup of water, bring to a boil, and cook until the vegetables are quite tender. Then add the cashew paste and kasoori methi and allow the curry to simmer for another 5 minutes. Add salt to taste.

Add the vegan butter and turn off the heat. Stir until the butter has melted into the curry.

Garnish with coriander. Serve piping hot with naan or pooris.

Garam Masala

Ingredients:

4 cloves

4 green cardamom pods

2 1-inch sticks of cinnamon

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

10 black peppercorns

Dry-roast the ingredients on a hot skillet until they are a couple of shades darker. Grind to a fine powder in a coffee grinder and store in an air-tight container in a cool, dark place.

Making Non-Violence A Habit

2009-10-23T17:53:00.002-04:00

Gandhi statue at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Atlanta

On our road trip earlier this month, one of the highlights was the time we spent on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was born and where he later preached at the Ebenezer Baptist Church. King is buried here, along with his wife, Coretta Scott King, and the entire street lined with historic homes and buildings is a living museum to the African-American community and its struggle for civil rights.

I don't usually idolize people but even the most jaded among us would find it hard not to be moved by the life of a visionary. And King was a visionary in the same mold and of a similar stature as Gandhi, the man who comes as close to being an idol for me as any human being possibly can. In fact, as many of you already know, King was greatly inspired in his struggle for civil rights by Gandhi's non-violent struggle for India's freedom from British rule.

It is needless to say that Gandhi and King are among the greatest minds and influences of all time. Even politicians who sanction wars can't help but quote these men. But why is it that as we pay lip service to their vision, we disregard the essence of their message with the attitude that it is too Utopian to be practical?
The home where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was born.

Gandhi and King were too smart to ask for Utopia in our flawed world. But, very reasonably I think, they saw non-violence as something all of us, as intelligent human beings capable of independent thought, can understand or at least appreciate. Yet, so many years after they showed us the way, there are a couple of tiny things that keep us from getting it: laziness and an unwillingness to be the change.

It is easy to think that the world is such a horrible place, there is not much we can do about it, so why bother? We pick up the newspaper in the morning, read about wars and famine and tsunamis, throw some money at it if possible, and then go back to our comfortable lives and our families and our jobs because, let's face it, it's easy and it's what we are used to.
But being the change is not difficult: all it takes is courage. Not each one of us has to be a Gandhi or a Martin Luther King, nor does each one of us have to go and start a hospital or a school in a remote village in India or Africa, or achieve world peace. (Well, if you can, more power to you!) But for starters, it is enough to just want to infuse non-violence into the way we think and then begin to act on it.
Desi at the memorial

The key is not just to think about violence in the obvious forms of war and bloodshed, but to realize that it is something we often apply, without a second thought, to the most mundane and unnecessary situations: not taking the time to listen to others, honking impatiently at the person in the car ahead of you who won't go as fast as you want them to, forming a prejudiced opinion of someone based on how they look or talk, or just saying an unkind word in an angry moment to someone else (even if you say sorry afterwards) are all forms of violence that we could well do without.

Best of all, like most good things, non-violence is habit-forming: try it for a while and you will get addicted to it. And who knows, maybe one day you will bring about world peace or start that school for needy kids in Africa (and go vegan, of course :))
The Ebenezer Baptist Church on Auburn Avenue where King was a pastor

One of the reasons many of us don't want to make the change is because we're afraid we'll be the only ones. Unfortunately, in our world, it's easier -- maybe even cooler-- to be a jerk than it is to be a saint. But is that a good reason for not even trying to do the right thing? Is it a good enough reason to let our world remain as flawed, as hurt, as violent as it is?

I'll end with a quote from Gandhi, inscribed under a statue of the Mahatma that stands at the King memorial in Atlanta, because no one could have said it better:

"Nonviolence, to be a potent force, must begin with the mind. Nonviolence of the mere body without the cooperation of the mind is nonviolence of the weak and the cowardly, and has, therefore, no potency. It is a degrading performance. If we bear malice and hatred in our bosoms and pretend not to retaliate, it must recoil upon us and lead to our destruction."

Spicy Fava Bean And Eggplant Stew

2009-10-22T20:22:00.003-04:00

As the weather cools down, I get a craving for those chunky, hunky, red-blooded stews that get all my juices flowing.

My Fava Bean and Eggplant Stew is a perfect blend of deliciousness and nutrition and it is full-bodied enough to satisfy any appetite, especially when paired off with a bowl of rice or a crusty bread.

What I love about this stew is that is it stuffed with veggies: although I mention only eggplant in the title, there are green and red peppers, tomatoes, spring onions and potatoes in here. If you desire, you could even toss in some mushrooms or carrots or sweet potatoes or onions.

The fava beans, which are buttery and velvety, break down in the stew and thicken it. The veggies add plenty of texture as well as a bouquet of flavors.

Busy day ahead, so goodbye for now. And don't forget to cook up some stew tonight!
Fava Bean and Eggplant Stew

Ingredients:

1 cup dry fava beans, soaked for an hour at least, then covered with water and cooked until tender (I like to pressure-cook them)

1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

1 small eggplant or half of a really large one, cut into 3/4-inch chunks

2 medium potatoes, skin on, cut into 3/4-inch chunks

1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 3/4-inch chunks

1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 3/4-inch chunks

2 cups crushed tomatoes or tomato puree

1 tbsp garam masala

1/4 tsp turmeric powder (optional)

1/2- 1 tsp red chilli powder, like paprika (if you're really brave, you might try adding one chipotle chili in adobo sauce instead. It gives the stew a rich, smoky flavor that I happen to love but it will get your blood boiling. Literally.)

4 spring onions (scallions), white and green parts chopped

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves

Heat the oil in a large pot. Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds, then add the potatoes and continue to cook, over a medium-low flame, about 4-5 minutes until they begin to color just slightly. Keep stirring to ensure the garlic does not burn.

Add the eggplant and stir for another 2 minutes. Now add the bell peppers and salt and stir to combine.

Add the tomato puree, garam masala and turmeric, if using. Stir well and allow the puree to cook for about 5 minutes or until it starts to express the oil.

Add the fava beans with any remaining cooking water and stir well to combine. Add water if the stew is too thick. Bring to a boil, cover, lower heat so the stew just simmers, and let it cook 30 minutes or until all the vegetables are really tender.

Check salt and turn off the heat. Add the spring onions and coriander and mix in.

Enjoy!

For other screaming-hot and delicious stews and curries that are perfect in fall, try my Chana Masala or my Garlic and Lemon Rasamor, one of my favorites, My Dad's Not-Mutton Mushroom Curry.

Mango Halwa

2009-10-21T10:51:00.007-04:00

It's hard to stay away from sweets during this time of year and now that the season for everything orange is on, I couldn't help but make one of my quickest and most favorite recipes: Mango Halwa.

This vegan Mango Halwa is a variation on my vegan Sheera recipe, but the finished dish tastes really different because here I add mango pulp instead of the banana which goes into the sheera. I'd be hard put to it to decide which one's better: they are each exquisitely delicious in their own way.

The halwa is not at all a guilty pleasure. It does contain sugar but since I always use the unrefined sort (like turbinado or organic cane sugar) that contains plenty of vitamins and minerals, I don't have to feel bad about eating it in moderation. The sooji or rava or cream of wheat or farina (all different names for the same stuff) that forms the base is made of wheat and good for you and so's the mango pulp. So eat up, folks!

This is a great dish to throw together for a quick snack or dessert because it's ready in 30 minutes, tops. Gotta rush off now, but here's the recipe. Enjoy, all!

Mango Halwa

Ingredients

1 cup rava (sooji or cream of wheat or farina)

1/2- 3/4 cup sugar (how much you add depends a lot on how sweet the mango pulp is. Add a little at a time and don't worry if you have to add it at the end...it mixes up fast)

1 1/2 cups mango pulp (use Alphonso pulp if possible because it has the best, richest flavor)

2 cups vanilla soy milk (almond milk would also be great here)

1 tsp powdered cardamom

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/4 cup cashewnuts, chopped into large pieces

1/4 cup golden raisins (optional)

1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil

Heat a wide skillet. Add the rava and roast, stirring constantly, over medium heat until the rava turns a couple of shades darker. Remove to a plate and set aside.

In the same skillet, heat the oil. Add the cashews and the raisins, if using, and saute until they turn just lightly golden.

Add the soymilk and mango pulp and 1/2 cup of sugar. Stir and allow the mixture to come to a boil. Check for sweetness and add more sugar if needed.

Turn down the heat to low and add the vanilla and then the roasted rava. Using a whisk or a ladle, stir quickly to mix with the liquid. You need to work fast to ensure your halwa is not lumpy and that the rava and the soymilk-mango pulp mixture is smoothly integrated.

Turn off the heat when the halwa has a creamy consistency. It will continue to thicken as it stands, so don't wait until it's too dry.

Enjoy!

Omana's Simple Peanut Curry

2009-10-20T10:36:00.005-04:00

I have a surprise today-- a guest post from one of my oldest and dearest friends, Sangita. Sangita and I bonded at school in Bombay over our common love for everything literary. Sure, we were a little competitive when it came to impressing our English teacher, Mrs. Kutty, with essays and poems we had scribbled into our little notebooks, but we collaborated just as often to create literature projects for school and class exhibitions.

Our paths diverged when we went to different colleges, although we both -- despite our love for writing-- took up the sciences. I, after getting my undergrad degree in Physics, decided I'd rather be a journalist. Sangita on the other hand went on to get a doctorate in Physics but she keeps up her love for writing with her witty and thoughtful blog, Skaypisms.

During the times I hung out at Sangita's home as a teen, which was often, we shared some truly delicious food her mom cooked for us. One dish I have never forgotten was a great peanut curry, a specialty from the south Indian state of Kerala. Here, in her own, vivid words, Sangita shares her memories of cooking with her mom and her mom's recipe for this incredibly simple yet incredibly flavorful dish. Enjoy!

******
Some teenagers are forever, I thought gloomily, when Vaishali asked me about my experiences cooking with my mother. My memory of mummy’s kitchen is always alive with all the wonderful smells of Keralite curries wafting through. And with the sounds of our ‘conversations’ when I attempted to cook anything. All teenagers have a period of adjustment with their mothers, but I realize that in her realm, I never really grew up. My experience cooking in my mother’s kitchen has always been, to say the least, colorful. The rest of the family watched in shameless amusement at our constant bickering and drama, the mother of all sitcoms. It gave the phrase TV dinner a whole new meaning.

Mummy is very particular about the ingredients that went into her curries, only the freshest, only the cleanest, only the best. Spinach was washed in a huge vat of water several times, and apples were scrubbed till the grime of Bombay slid away revealing gorgeous shades of red and gold. The spices had to go into the pot in a particular order, and she would more often than not, lecture me on the physics and chemistry of making a curry. But while a perfectionist renders brilliant results, her co-workers have a difficult time. Ask me. (And the good lord help me when mummy reads this blog!) Call it fate, but invariably in my mother’s kitchen, I do the wrong thing. Always.

“Aiyo! No, no! not like that!

Wait for the onions to get a tad more golden!

You’re putting in the garlic? Ohhh, what’s the point? It will melt away!”

“I know, mummy, I know, am I a ten year old? I can cook!” I retort, my voice shrill enough to shatter the glasses in the cabinet.

“Let it boil, let it boil! Else the turmeric will never get cooked. We’ll taste the raw turmeric! Oh! Have you ever tasted raw turmeric? I tell you, it’s not something you want to taste in your meal.”

“ARRGGGH!,” my voice has by this time reached the correct pitch for the neighbors to rush to their own cabinets to try and save their glassware. It doesn’t help at all that I am very hot headed. Hot headed, quite literally, because in my desperation to one-up mummy I had moved too quickly and gotten a huge ladleful of sauce on my hair, right from the hot pan.

Such little incidents aside, the end result is always wonderful, the family is in splits at our little mother-daughter Gilmore Girls drama, the food turns out to be finger licking good, and several months later, mummy and I manage to laugh about it.

Mummy is well known in our family for her culinary skills. I remember folks dropping in with special requests: “Chechi, make that mor-curry, no? I have been thinking about it all the way here!”

Vaishali recently mentioned a particular peanut curry that mummy had once made for her. Considering that it has been more than twenty years to that meal, this memory is certainly a compliment to mummy’s culinary skills. So here it is, the peanut curry, a la mummy.

Omana’s simple peanut curry

Ingredients

1 cup raw peanuts

2 small potatoes (boiled and chopped into large cubes)

1/4 medium red onion, finely chopped

2 tsp red chilly powder (this gives the curry just a mild heat, add more, if you prefer a more pungent taste)

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

5-6 curry leaves

1-2 green chilly peppers (Serrano)

Salt to taste

2 tbsp oil

Method:

Soak peanuts in warm water for at least an hour (it should soak nicely, otherwise it will not cook well!”) and then pressure cook.

Heat the oil in a large pan. Add onions and fry till they are soft and golden brown (“Aiyo, watch it! Not too much, if it becomes completely brown, it will taste bitter!”) Add turmeric, fry for a few seconds (“the turmeric should not taste raw!”)

Add the red chilly powder and the curry leaves, fry for a couple of seconds and then add the peanuts and potatoes. Add salt. Add a little water (“take the water from the cooker! all nice nutrients of the peanuts are in there!”). Add the slit green peppers (“this is just for the nice fragrance, I alllways take out the seeds, you know the seeds are not very good for the stomach!”).

Cover and cook for about 10-15 minutes or so, till the gravy thickens (“the more you boil the better the spices get infused in the peanuts, so pour some more water if needed.”).

Enjoy with hot chappatis!

“Now, molay, remember, this has lots of proteins and starch and good fat, but its heavy, so it’s always good to complete the meal with yogurt and salad, mind you!”

I’ve sometimes left out the potatoes for a sharper curry. The potatoes tend to make it smoother and starchier.

Happy Diwali, All!

2009-10-16T01:03:00.000-04:00

Gobi Manchurian (low-fat) And Stir-Fried Noodles

2009-10-15T18:48:00.004-04:00

Two diverse cuisines hobnobbing together can produce some pretty tasty results, and a great example of that is Gobi (or Cauliflower) Manchurian.

We Indians have had a long love affair with Chinese food. Long before the '90s brought fast-food chains and their inevitable pizzas and burgers and other junk food pouring into Indian cities, it was Chinese food that most of us wanted when we craved something exotic and different. The food was in a cuisine class of its own and quite likely bore no strong resemblance to real Chinese cuisine since it was heavily adapted for our flavor-seeking tastebuds. At restaurants I have eaten stir-fried noodles seasoned with dry red chillies and mustard seeds and gravied Chinese dishes smothered in Indian spices like coriander and cumin.

Cauliflower Manchurian is one of the more popular products of Indian-Chinese cuisine and it has always been one of my favorites, with its sour-spicy notes and the crispy florets of cauliflower that melt in your mouth. Typically the cauliflower is deep-fried, which gives it that great crunch. Now while I do like to indulge in some deep-fried food once in a while, I also like to keep my meals pretty healthy most of the time. So I baked the cauliflower instead, saving on the fat calories, and the result was still delicious. In fact, I swear that the sauce is so flavorful, you'd never notice that the cauliflower was not deep-fried first. But if you do want the extra crunch, you can always choose to deep-fry the florets in my recipe.

To go with the manchurian I made some stir-fried Udon noodles. These couldn't be simpler-- they take minutes to make and taste great and they're loaded with veggies. Udon noodles are wheat noodles that are typically used in Japanese cuisine, but here I cooked them the Indian-Chinese way. Talk about fusion!

I got the noodles as well as some of the condiments with a $30 coupon I received from Foodbuzz and Asian Food Grocer, an online food store. In a vegan kitchen, Asian foods can be invaluable because they offer so much flavor, but you do have to be careful because many sauces and pastes contain animal ingredients. The Asian Grocer Web site displays the ingredients for each product online, which was very helpful.

Here are the recipes. It's a busy afternoon, so bye for now. Enjoy, all!
Cauliflower Manchurian

1 medium head of cauliflower, separated into medium-sized florets (you don't want to make them too small or they'll turn mushy too soon)

6 tbsp cornstarch + 1/2 cup water or more as needed to make a runny paste

1 tsp red chilli powder

Salt to taste

2 tsp canola or sesame or other oil

Grease a large baking dish. Dip each cauliflower floret into the cornstarch paste and place it on the baking dish in a single layer. Bake in a 450-degree oven for 40-50 minutes or until the cauliflower is cooked but still crunchy and lightly browned.

(If you choose to deep-fry, heat oil -- at least an inch deep-- in a skillet and then deep-fry the florets a few at a time until they are golden-brown)

To make the sauce:

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 small onion, thinly sliced

1 medium green bell pepper (capsicum), thinly sliced

1 tbsp ginger paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

3 tbsp low-salt soy sauce

2 tbsp vinegar

2 cups water

2 tbsp cornstarch mixed in 1/4 cup water

1 tbsp sugar

Salt if needed

Heat the sesame oil and then add the ginger and garlic paste. Stir fry for a minute until the ginger and garlic smell fragrant, not raw, and then add the onions and bell peppers.

Saute for a couple of minutes, then add 2 cups water and soy sauce. Bring it to a boil, turn the heat to low, and simmer for a couple of minutes.

Add the vinegar, sugar and salt if needed, then add the cornstarch-water mixture and allow it to simmer for a couple of minutes.

Add the cauliflower florets and stir well to coat. Turn off the heat after a couple of minutes.

Garnish with chives or chopped spring onions, if desired.

Stir-Fried Udon Noodles

Ingredients:

1 9.5-oz packet of Udon noodles

1 cup thinly shredded cabbage

1 large green bell pepper, thinly sliced

1 medium carrot, cut into thin strips

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp or more as needed of low-salt soy sauce

1 tsp hot sauce like Sriracha (optional)

1 tbsp vinegar

Cook the noodles according to package directions until they are cooked but not too tender. You need them to be al dente in order to be able to stir-fry them without turning them into a paste. Drain, rinse in cold water, and spread on a plate to cool.

Heat the sesame oil in a large pan or preferably in a wok.

Add the onions, stir-fry for a moment, then add the remaining veggies.

Stir-fry quickly over high heat for about 2-3 minutes until the veggies start to get tender but still have a bite.

Now add the soy sauce and vinegar and hot sauce, if using.

Stir together, then add the noodles. Using a pair of tongs, stir-fry the noodles for another 2-3 minutes.

Garnish with chopped spring onions if desired. Serve hot with the Gobi Manchurian.

Also, try my Chinese Fried Rice.

Badusha For Diwali

2009-10-14T13:56:00.010-04:00

It was always the sound of fireworks that woke me up each Diwali morning, well before the sun was up. Powerful Lakshmi bombs that could rip off an eardrum, rockets whistling out of empty glass soda bottles to explode in a shower of lights, zameen chakkars swirling in a moment of frenzied glory before dying into blackened and burnt-out little discs on the floor.

Outside the window, the still-dark morning sparkled with a billion lights. Kandeels, colorful paper lanterns, surrounded by strings of tiny bulbs twinkled in the windows of each apartment. On the sills and outside doors were little earthen oil lamps, or diyas, their live flames traditional and indispensable symbols of the great festival of lights. At their front doors, the women in the neighborhood, beautiful in saris fringed with gold, anklets tinkling, moved around to create rangolis-- designs of multicolored sand poured through deft fingers-- to welcome the gods.

As a child, from the moment I opened my eyes, I would be filled with anticipation for the next five days into which, it seems, were crammed all of the most wonderful things in the world.

Once I was past what then seemed like the ordeal of an oil bath (my mother rubbing oil into my hands and legs and hair which would then be washed off with a fragrant herbal paste called utane-- a must for Diwali), I could run off to join my friends all dressed up in my new clothes, my own box of firecrackers in hand. My parents usually did not let us get the more dangerous firecrackers (and some of them could be pretty dangerous), but I was happy enough with the uncomplicated ones like sparklers and anaars that burst into a pretty fountain of colored lights.

All the time, what I really couldn't wait for was the food which would be brought out once all the adults were bathed and ready and had gone through the ritual of a Diwali pooja.

Women in India start planning for and preparing Diwali snacks, or pharaal (in Marathi), weeks ahead. The types of sweets prepared vary with each state and region boasting its own specialties.

In my part-Konkani, part-Maharashtrian home we made chakali (a savory, swirly snack that is unequivocally my favorite food in the world-- you know, what I'd eat for my last meal), chivda (another savory snack that's a mix of flattened rice or poha and peanuts and dry coconut and all kinds of goodies), sweets like karanji (a half-moon shaped, fried dumpling stuffed with coconut and jaggery), rava and besan laddoos, all kinds of burfis (a milky Indian fudge) and many many more amazing sweets. The treats would all be stored away in large boxes until Diwali day when we could eat all we wanted. Diwali is also about the spirit of sharing and once we were done eating, I'd be dispatched to each neighbor's home with a big plate filled with goodies.

The following days would each bring more fun and food. There was Bhau Bij, a celebration of the bond between brother and sister, which was always celebrated at my aunt Akka's home along with all of my father's siblings and their families and a delicious vegetarian dinner (most Hindus, including meat-eating ones, adopt vegetarianism for the duration of religious festivals because, let's face it, we all know the gods really wouldn't want us to eat their kids!). Then there was Lakshmi Pooja, the celebration of the goddess of wealth and prosperity. The fourth day of Diwali is also celebrated by some Hindus as the beginning of the new year, and there would be more fesitivities to go with it.

I've not seen Diwali in India in more than 13 years now. Here, in the Washington region, there's usually a Diwali mela organized by the local Indian community and some other events, but I rarely make it to those because, frankly, it's just not the same. I do light some diyas, though, and make a sweet on Diwali day because there are some traditions you just don't want to let go of, and for me Diwali is definitely one of those.

Diwali begins this week, on Friday, Oct. 17, but I wanted to start the celebration a little early by sharing with you a sweet that was part of Desi's Diwali celebrations when he was growing up: a classic south Indian sweet named badusha (or padusha).

Badusha is kinda like an Indian donut: it's a floury fritter that's deep-fried and then dunked in a sugar syrup that first soaks into it and then glazes the top. When you bite into a badusha, your teeth first crackle their way into a crusty, sugary coating and then sink into a soft, tender, juicy interior. Can you think of anything more delicious than that?

So here's the recipe for my vegan badusha-- it's just as delicious as one made with tons of ghee, not to mention less unhealthy, and best of all it's cruelty-free. Now the gods would have to love that!

Here's wishing all my readers a very happy Diwali and a great and prosperous year ahead!
Badusha

(makes about 15 pieces)

For the fritters:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

4 tbsp zero-transfat shortening like Crisco

2 tbsp canola oil

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp powered cardamom

1/4 tsp baking soda

Some soymilk for mixing the dough

Oil for deep frying

For the sugar syrup:

2 cups sugar

1 cup water

1 tsp powdered cardamom

To make the fritter dough, mix together the flour, salt, baking soda and cardamom powder in a bowl. Now add the oil and the shortening. Using your fingers, break the shortening into the flour until you have a fairly grainy mix.

Add a little soymilk at a time, mixing with a fork, until you have a dough that comes together and holds together but is not sticky.

Place the dough in the bowl, cover and set aside.

To make the syrup, mix the sugar and water in a saucepan along with the cardamom and bring to a boil. Let it continue to boil until it easily coats the back of a spoon. To test if it's ready, pour a drop on a greased plate and pick it between your thumb and forefinger. Slowly separate them. If the syrup forms a single thread that holds together for a few seconds, it is ready. If it doesn't form a thread, it needs to boil some more.

To shape the badushas, divide the dough into fifteen pieces. Now roll each piece between your palms to get a smooth ball.

Place the ball on one palm and flatten it into a disc with the fingers of the other hand, around 1 1/2 inches in diameter. With your thumb, make a depression in the center of the disc. Set aside and shape the remaining badushas.

Heat about 1 1/2 inches of oil in a cast-iron or steel pan, preferably with a rounded bottom. When the temperature reaches around 350 degrees, immerse one or more badushas, taking care not to crowd them. I have a cast-iron skillet about six inches in diameter that I use for deep-frying and I fry around 4 at a time. The oil should not be too hot or the outside will cook faster than the inside, and you don't want that. It should take at least a couple of minutes for each side of the badusha to turn golden-brown.

Remove the fried badushas from the oil with a slotted spoon, let the excess oil drip off, and drop into the sugar syrup. Make sure both the badushas and the syrup are hot or they won't absorb the syrpu. Let them stay immersed for at least four minutes. Flip over if required to ensure that the syrup distributes evenly.

Remove the badushas to a rack placed on top of a plate and allow them to cool until the sugar syrup hardens up.

Enjoy!

This badusha goes to Sireesha's timely event, Sweet Series. Thanks for hosting, Sireesha!
Love Indian sweets? Try my vegan sheera or my carrot halwa or my almond kheer (badam kheer).

Support the HAPPY Act in Congress

2009-10-13T11:41:00.006-04:00

A quick post today to call on all of you to support a bill in Congress that would give responsible pet parents a break at tax time.

Introduced by Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, a Republican from Michigan, the Humanity and Pets Partnered Through the Years (HAPPY) Act would allow pet parents to deduct up to $3,500 in pet care costs each year.

In these tough economic times thousands of people who love their pets have been forced to give them up after losing their jobs or homes or both. Because although it is very true that pets don't ask for much, it doesn't mean they don't cost much.

My three dogs and two cats lead a pretty no-frills life: they eat healthy and sleep in comfortable beds I buy at Costco, stay in a clean and safe but unfancy boarding kennel when we travel, and play with toys I buy in a thrift store. All the kids get groomed at home with the only exception being two visits to the groomer each year for Freddie whose fast-growing silky hair is too complicated for us to handle.

But medical costs for dogs and cats can be daunting-- between checkups for all our pets, vaccines and daily meds, a cardiologist for Freddie who has a mitral valve relapse, and frequent vet visits for Opie who suffers from hypothyroidism, arthritis and mild hip dysplasia, our pets take a bigger bite out of our resources than we ourselves do.

While I cannot imagine giving up my pets under any circumstance, I can see why some people are left with no choice. But how cruel it must be for those who love their pets and need their unconditional love during tough times to have to give them up too. Even worse, many of these pets end up being euthanized in shelters because there are not enough homes for them.

Even if you don't have a pet at home you can surely understand how important it is to keep animals in loving homes. Please go to the ASPCA advocacy center now and urge your congressman to support the HAPPY Act, H. R. 3501. It'll take a minute of your time but think of what a difference you will make to all those beautiful animals and their grateful parents out there!

On the same note, here's another suggestion for more direct ways to help keep animals in loving homes that are going through rough times. I often clip newspaper coupons for pet food and treats that I can buy for cents or sometimes get for free at the grocery store or pet store, and then I take them to my local animal shelter. They donate the stuff to pet parents who cannot afford to buy food for their animals but are eager to hold on to them.

I also sometimes ask friends and neighbors for donations of any old blankets and towels that I can take to the shelter. Animal shelters house dogs in runs that get unbearably chilly during the cold months, and given that most shelters are run by the city, they usually have very limited resources to keep the dogs warm. And trust me, they are always grateful for anything you can bring in.

The picture at the top of the page is of a super-sweet rescue who was waiting for adoption as part of a drive organized by the Humane Society of Charlotte in the Bank of America corporate headquarters building in Charlotte, North Carolina, which was one of our road-trip stops last week. All the dogs were incredibly gorgeous and super-friendly (my face was sticky with all the kisses I got!)

I think this guy's name was Murphy...who could resist that innocent face?

Moong Dal Dosa, And Mayberry

2009-10-12T08:31:00.005-04:00

Mount Airy is a gorgeous, sleepy town nestled in the valley of the Blue Ridge Mountains right near where North Carolina meets Virginia.

Once you've driven into town past the inevitable neon-lit fast-food restaurants, gas stations and strip malls, the landscape becomes kinder and gentler. The houses are small, the yards neat, and the streets rolling up and down show off breathtaking views in the distance.

By 5 pm all the shops on Main Street are closed. The only activity and sounds come from a handful of tourists taking pictures of the storefronts of Barney's Cafe, Opie's Candy Shop and Floyd's Barber Shop. Outside the cafe-- a diner straight from the '60s with the picture of an iconic, bumbling sheriff's deputy displayed large in the window--a sign announces classic southern dishes like chicken and dumplings, sweet potato pie and all sorts of desserts for $2 apiece. A little further down the street are signs telling you where you can find Wally's gas station and the old courthouse.
If Mount Airy is beginning to sound a lot like Mayberry, the fictional town popularized in the Andy Griffith Show, a television sitcom way back from the '60s, you're right on the money. Mount Airy is the place where Andy Griffith was born, and the town that he is supposed to have based Mayberry on. Mount Airy, in turn, seems to be returning the compliment wholeheartedly by modeling itself on its fictional counterpart.

On our road trip this past week, we dropped in on Mount Airy en route from Charlotte, North Carolina, to say a quick "Hey."
Desi and I started watching reruns of this series when we moved to the United States in the 90s. It was easy to sink into the snug comfort of a black-and-white world where everyone knows one another, is nice to each other, helps each other out, and where no problem cannot be solved in 30 minutes. (And now you know why we named one of our dogs, Opie, after the character a very young and adorable Ron Howard played in the series :).)

It was late by Mayberry standards when we arrived and all the Mayberry exhibits were closed, but we had a memorable visit nonetheless. Most of the people we met greeted us with a smile, quite unlike us Washingtonians who usually glare at tourists clogging our Metro trains at rush hour. We also stopped by the Andy Griffith Playhouse which was also closed, but newspaper clips displayed outside announced the premiere of Griffith's latest movie and recent pictures of the actor visiting his hometown.
Small towns like Mount Airy are often the highlight of our road trips. Often, wrung out by the dreary highways we rely on to take us from one point to another, we stop in for a meal and sometimes for the night in those tiny towns where you can savor a uniquely different flavor of American life.

Sometimes we choose towns because we were charmed by how they looked or sounded on television or in a movie, even one we didn't like, simply because that's how we find out about it. After regretting the time we spent watching Runaway Bride, we still made a stop in Berlin, Maryland, the lovely town not far from Ocean City where it was shot. We've visited Burkittsville, also in Maryland, the wooded, one-road town where the cult classic Blair Witch Project was made. And on a trip through New York state we couldn't resist dropping into Jamestown and Celeron, the neighboring towns where another one of our favorite yesteryear sitcom stars, Lucille Ball, was born and raised. (And yes, Lucy, our other dog, was named after her. You can also guess now who Freddie gets his name from!)

***
Now on to the recipe I wanted to share with you today, my Moong Dal Dosa, which is both quick and incredibly nutritious.

I love dosas but I don't make them as often as I'd like to simply because all that overnight soaking is a little bit much for someone as unorganized as I am. This dosa requires just a two-hour soak which even I can make time for. And the result is super-delicious and nutritious: since the dosa has both lentils and rice in it, it makes a complete protein. How great is that?

Here's the recipe. Enjoy, everyone!
Moong Dal Dosa

Ingredients:

1 cup rice (you can use all kinds of fancy rices available specifically for dosas here, but I just use any medium-grain rice I have on hand)

1/4 cup moong dal

1/2 cup coriander leaves, chopped

2 green chillies, chopped

Salt to taste

Cover the rice and moong dal with water and allow them to soak for at least 2 hours.

Drain the water and put the rice and dal in a blender along with the coriander leaves, chillies and salt. Add just enough water to keep the blades running and to get a batter that's thick enough the coat the back of a ladle, but runnier than a pancake batter (unless you want really thick dosas which I personally don't like)

Heat a well-seasoned cast-iron or non-stick griddle. Once it's hot, scoop up about 1/4 cup of batter in a ladle with a rounded bottom.

Pour the batter into the center of the griddle. Using the bottom of the ladle, quickly spread the batter outward in quick, concentric circles until you have a dosa about 7 inches in diameter.

Drizzle a few drops of oil around the edges of the dosa which helps crisp them up.

When the bottom is golden-brown, flip the dosa and cook the other side around 30 seconds.

Serve hot with chutney or any spicy, gravied vegetable dish.

Tip: If you dosas don't spread and the batter clumps together instead, your griddle could be too hot. Turn off the heat or sprinkle some water on the surface of the griddle to cool it down and try again.

You might also want to check out my versions of Adai and Coriander Adai, two other delicious quick dosas.

***

I'll leave you with a picture of JoJo, an adventurous and gorgeous little cat who lived at a hotel we stopped at for a night in South Boston, Virginia. JoJo (that's what Desi named him), who couldn't get enough head rubs from us, refused to stay inside our room with the door closed but sat patiently right outside most of the night.