Keerai thoran - Red amaranth stir fry

Sometimes, the most mundane of things can help bring forth the most pleasant memories. Very often, it is not the thing itself that we crave, but the fond memories associated with it that the heart yearns for.
I recently learned this profound truth when I spotted red amaranth leaves in the local farmers' market. While I have always loved the simple, earthy taste of a stir fry made with these leaves, it is only now, in the wake of having recently lost my grandmother, that I have realized how closely tied in this leaf is to my memories of her.

Some of my earliest memories as a child include her, impeccably dressed in her nine yards madisar podavai, walking to our front yard with a plate filled with tiny black seedlings. I would assist her in scattering these seeds around our coconut trees and then sprinkling water over them. I would check and water the seeds in the days to follow,my entire child's being thrilled to see the tiny shoots sprouting out of the ground. A few weeks down the line, my grandmother would harvest her crop of red keerai (red amaranth/malabar spinach) and hand them over to my mother to be cleaned and chopped. Once that was done, she would put her cheena chatti (wok) on the stove, heat some coconut oil in it, put in a simple seasoning of broken red chilli, urad dal and mustard seeds and then the chopped spinach leaves. These would cook remarkably quickly  in their own steam on a low flame. A garnish of grated coconut ground with green chillies was the final touch she added to the dish and then, knowing that this was my favourite way of eating it, she would mix it up with hot rice and ghee on a plate and hand it to me.
I now know that it is not the dish alone that I am so fond of, but the heaping helping of love with which it was made and served that I long for.

What you need:
Amaranth leaves/malabar spinach - 1 bunch (Any variety of leafy greens can be used but I am partial to the red amaranth leaves that grow particularly well in Kerala)
Oil - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Broken red chilli - 2
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup ground coarsely with 1 green chilli
Salt

Wash the leaves well and chop finely. Heat oil in a pan. Season with dal, mustard and red chilli. When the seeds start to pop, reduce the flame to low and stir in the chopped leaves and salt. Cover and let it cook in its own steam until wilted. Add in the ground coconut. Stir well and heat uncovered until the moisture evaporates.
Serve with hot rice and ghee.

Hara bhara kabab

This is arguably one of the most popular starters in India. Whether at restaurants or at home parties, this is a dish that makes an appearance at the table quite frequently. The kabab possibly gets its name from the distinctive green color it has. Mine are not green because I used yellow peas instead of green peas.

What you need: 
Potato - 1 medium sized, boiled peeled and mashed
Spinach - 1.5 cups, packed, steamed, squeezed and mashed
Peas - 1/2 cup - soaked overnight, cooked and mashed
Salt
Garam masala - 3/4 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger - a small piece, chopped fine
Green chilli - 2, minced
Cilantro/corriander - a little, finely chopped
Oil - a little for shallow frying the kababs
Cashew - one for each kabab (optional)

Mash the potatoes, spinach and peas together in a large bowl . Ensure that any excess water is squeezed out from the veggies before mashing. Heat oil. Toast the cumin seeds in it. Add in the ginger and chilli and saute for a minute. Pour this over the mashed vegetables. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Shape into balls. I was able to make 13 kababs using this recipe. Flatten slightly between your palms. Press a cashew into the center of the kabab. Shallow fry on tawa, turning over now and then until both sides are well browned and crisp.
Serve hot with ketchup or mint and tamarind chutneys.
This is my first post for Week 2 of Blogging Marathon #47 under the theme North Indian party starters.
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 47

Beginning the year with a book review

The new year has brought in its wake a resolve in me to eat healthy. No.....no, I am not dieting. I don't think I can ever do that......but I have included(it's the same as saying resolved to include, right?) more fruits, greens, sprouts and veggies in my diet. A few days into the New Year, I received a mail from blogadda asking if I would be interested in reviewing Bhanu Hajratwala's Gujarati Kitchen. Not one to miss out on a chance like that, I immediately clicked Reply and said Yes.

The book arrived neatly packed, and promptly delivered. At first look, it looks like a simple, no-frills, no-nonsense cook book. It begins with a......hold your breath......20 page introduction of the author, including 2 pages filled with photographs. Though long, I found the introduction well written and quite interesting to read. I don't think I've ever read so much about the life of any other cook book author.
The section after the intro contains General tips for the budding cook - ranging from cooking times, preparing and washing ingredients, and deep frying to sprouting. The basic pantry ingredients, and utensils used in Gujarati cooking are also explained briefly.
The magic of Gujarati cooking lies int he blending of spices.....and the author gives us the recipes of some basic spice blends. What I really liked is how she has, after the recipe, told us what quantities of ingredients can be used to make just enough for a single use.
The recipe in the book are categorized into Veg & non-veg starters, veg and non-veg main dishes, breads, rice, accompaniments with rice, sweets, chutneys, pickles, tea time snacks and mukhwas (mouth fresheners).
All the recipes are written in an easy-to-follow manner. The one thing that could be improved on is the pictures in the book. All the pictures are grouped together just before the start of the relevant section. For eg, just before the recipes of main dishes, there are two pages containing photos of different main dishes. I feel that it would have been better if the photo had been on the same page as the recipe.
To me, a cook book review can never be complete without cooking something from its pages. The dish I chose to cook from this book is called Bhaji ne vatananu shaak(Spinach and green peas curry).

What you need:
Spinach - 2 bunches, cleaned and chopped coarsely (roughly 6 cups)
Fresh green peas - 1/2 cup
Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 tsp
Asafoetida - a few generous sprinklings
Oil - 2 tsp
Onion - 1, chopped
Salt - to taste
Grind together:
Ginger - 2 inch piece
Fresh turmeric - 1 inch piece (I grew my own....YAY!!!)
Garlic - 6 cloves
Green chilli - 3 (adjust to taste)
Amchur powder - 1 tsp

Heat oil in a pan. Add fenugreek seeds and heat until they start to brown. Sprinkle asafoetida and stir for a few seconds. Add the chopped onion and saute until translucent. Now add the ground masala. Stir well for 2 minutes. Add the chopped spinach, peas, and salt. Mix well. Add about 1/4 cups of water, cover and cook until the peas soften. If you find that the curry still has water left in it, remove the lid and heat until all the moisture evaporates
Serve with roti/rice.
This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

Macaroni in creamy spinach sauce

What you need:
Macaroni - 1 cup
Spinach - 1 cup
Garlic - 8 cloves
Green chilli - 2 (adjust to taste)
Peanuts - a handful
Salt - to taste
Cheese(optional)
Oil - 1 tsp
Heat oil in a pan. Saute the garlic and spinach until the leaves start to wilt. Let it cool and then grind to a coarse paste along with the peanuts.
Take the macaroni in a pressure cooker. Add 1.5 cups of water to it. Stir in the spinach puree and salt. Close the pressure cooker, but do not put on the weight. When you see steam starting to come out of the vent in full force, wait for two minutes and then turn the heat to low. Let it cook for 6-8 minutes. Switch off heat. Top with grated cheese.
Enjoy!!!
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#6 hosted by Srivalli

Keera molagootal

This is the quintessential Kerala Iyer comfort food. I make keera molagootal so often that my blog feels incomplete without giving it a mention. Stated very simply, it is a gravy that is made by combining cooked spinach with a mildly spiced coconut-chilli mix and tuar dal. It is almost always served as an accompaniment to rice, though some people(including yours truly) also serve it with rotis.
What you need:
Spinach - any kind - 1 bunch (Iam partial to red spinach) - chopped fine
Tuar dal - 1 cup, cooked
To grind :
Red chilli - 3
Urad dal - 2 tsp
Fresh grated coconut - 3/4 cup

Heat a tsp of oil. Fry the urad dal and red chilli in it until reddish brown. Let it cool and then grind it to a smooth paste along with the coconut.
Take the chopped spinach in a kadai. Add sufficient water, turmeric powder and salt. Let it boil until the spinach is well cooked and soft. Mash it a little with a masher or the back of a ladle at this point. Stir in the ground mixture and let it boil for 5-6 minutes or until the raw smell goes away. Add the cooked tuar dal and heat for a minute or two.
Heat a tsp of coconut oil. Season it with some urad dal and mustard seeds. When the seeds sputter, pour it over the molagootal.
Molagootal is usually served with rice. Since it is not too spicy and has no tamarind to add tanginess, it is accompanied by either a tangy rasam or spicy thogayal or pachadi. I like my molagootal to be paired with spicy mango pickle.
Molagootal can also be made using other vegetables like ash gourd, snake gourd, carrot, potato and cabbage. The difference between keera molagootal and molagootal made with other veggies lies in the ingredients that are ground together. One of my earlier posts on cabbage molagootal has the recipe that can be followed while using other veggies.

This goes to Sra who is hosting the 4th helping of My Legume Love Affair which was started by Susan.
It also goes to Suganya's Vegan Ventures, Round 2.

Saam Savera

I recently had this dish called Saam Savera at a Gujarati restaurant and absolutely loved it. So much so that I wanted to recreate it at home. This is an original recipe to the extent that I tasted the curry, guessed what went into it and then a week later, trusted my memory to remember that taste and set about making it. The result is a non-oily yet delicious curry that goes well with rotis.

What you need:
Spinach - 1 bunch, washed and blanched/microwaved on high for 4 minutes
Onion - 1, chopped
Tomato -1, chopped
Garlic - 4 or 5 cloves, chopped
Green chilli - 1, minced (optional)
Ginger - a small piece
Carrot - 1, chopped fine and cooked
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Salt
Oil - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Corriander seeds - 1tsp
Milk - 1/2 cup

Heat a tsp of oil. Roast the cumin and corriander seeds until lightly browned. Add in the chilli, garlic, ginger, onion and tomato and fry for a few minutes until the raw smell is gone. Let it cool and then grind it along with the blanched spinach and milk to a smooth paste.
Transfer the gravy to a kadai. Add the cooked carrots, salt, turmeric powder and garam masala. Let it simmer on low heat for a few minutes.Njoy!!!