Veggie Pita Pocket

Welcome to my world of yummy hummus and pita! And note... two pockets do fill you up.... ideal as an evening snack if you have guests coming in .... or light lunch / dinner during those lazy days when you just want to munch something and watch TV.

P.S. His all-time fav!

Cooking Time: 5 mins

Ingredients (for 2 pockets)
*Pita bread - 1
*Hummus - 4-5 tbsp
*Garden veggie pattie - 1
Dried coconut powder - 2 tbsp (Thengai podi / Chammandi podi serves the purpose)

* Available at regular grocery stores like Safeway, Ralphs, etc. I generally buy the patties from Costco... they taste exactly like the veggie cutlets served in India :)

Preparation

• Microwave the pita bread in high heat for 1 min
• Tear it into equal pieces - you will notice it has a like a pocket like opening to stuff things inside
• Spread hummus evenly inside each pocket and sprinkle some dried coconut powder
• Microwave the veggie pattie per package instructions (the Costco one takes 30 secs)
• Stuff equal amount of veggie patties inside each pita pocket
  
• Apply hummus to seal each pita bread (now filled with veggie pattie)
• Sprinkle some more dried coconut powder
  

Want to pack some to-go? Simply wrap each pocket using aluminum foil or plastic food wrap, and you're all set! :)

Source: Kutti Geetha

More-Kali

A recipe so close to my heart and extremely simple to cook! Most families substitute tamarind with buttermilk, and hence the name more-kali. I have always enjoyed the tamarind version prepared by Periya Pappu and Dhadhimaa :)

Cooking time: 15 mins

Ingredients (for two)
Rice powder - 2 cups
Tamarind juice (enough to make a batter of medium consistency)
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard - 1/4 tbsp
Split urad dal - 1/4 tbsp
Green chillies - 2 (finely chopped)
Curry leaves
Asafoetida (Perungayam)
Salt to taste

Preparation

• Mix tamarind juice and rice powder to make a batter (medium consistency)
• Add salt and asafoetida to this mix
  
• Heat oil in kadai and add mustard. When the mustards splutter, add split urad dal, green chillies, curry leaves and fry for a few seconds
• Add the rice powder / tamarind juice mix to this, while stirring slowly
• The contents will start getting a little thick (like kesari). At this point, turn off the heat and set to cool
  

Apt for a quick evening snack or a lazy cook's lunch/dinner ;-)

Source: Periya Pappu, Dhadhimaa

Rava (Sooji) Kicchidi

A simple recipe for all ye rava (sooji) fans... and again, this is my version and I bet there are variations in ingredients / preparation method from home to home.


Cooking time: 20 mins

Ingredients (for two)
Rava - 1 cup
Onions (diced) - 1/2 (US size)
Tomatoes (diced) - 1
*Carrots (diced) - 1/2
*Peas - 1/2 cup
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard - 1/4 tbsp
Split urad dal - 1/4 tbsp
Jeera - 1/4 tbsp
Curry leaves - 4 or 5
Dry red chillies - 3
Turmeric - a pinch
Grated ginger - a pinch
Salt - to taste
Corriander leaves - to garnish

*Tip - Stock some frozen veggies. Most brands offer carrots and peas frozen pack, which will make your life a little easier at the kitchen :) And trust me, they are as fresh as the ones from farmers market!

Preparation

• Heat oil in a kadai and fry rava till it turns light brown
• Transfer contents to a food plate and let it cool
  
• Heat oil in the same kadai and put the mustard in it
• Once the mustard starts popping, add split urad dal, jeera, dry red chillies and curry leaves
• Add onions and fry till golden brown. Then add ginger and sautee for few seconds
  
• Add tomatoes and sautee for few seconds. Now add turmeric and sautee again. Let stay for 1 min
  
• Add carrots and peas and sautee for few seconds. If you are using frozen veggies, do NOT let them thaw. Simply transfer them to the kadai and they will thaw in seconds
• Add 2 1/4 cups of water and wait till it comes to a boil (takes about 10 mins). Add salt
  
• Add fried rava to this while stirring the contents slowly
• Let stay for 5 mins. Stir occassionally (too much stirring will mess up the consistency... so watch out)
• Turn off the heat and transfer the kadai to a cooler stove plate and cover with a lid
  
  

Garnish with corriander leaves before serving. Tastes yummy with chutney or Lays BBQ chips (for all of us dealing with a chips addict at home!)

Source: Kutti Geetha

Welcome aboard!

Ha-ha! Finally!!... it took so many years to pull myself together and start a blog to share my passion...Food !! (yeah...eating and cooking!)

And hey, I am not here to claim that I'm a great cook and all that blah... I'm here to share some recipes that I enjoyed from good ol' Madras days to colorful Seattle. All credit goes to my parents for teaching me the skills right from class III, Sudha Athai for teaching me to cook the right proportion of food be it for 2 or 20 (trust me, it isn't easy)... and now to the man of the house who is quite adventurous when it comes to tasting different varieties of food! :)

And for all those near n dear visiting this space, you must have heard me say this quite often 'The best thing on earth..Food!' :) So welcome aboard... and hope this space proves useful!