Kovakkai Sadam(Tindora/Indian Ivy Gourd Brown Rice)

Kovakkai(Tindora) is a popular Asian Indian Vegetable and is widely used in Indian Cooking. It looks like a small cucumber with a crunchy taste and can be used to make stir fry, stuffed and baked, or pickled raw by adding spices. Tindora is widely recommended for people with diabetes in alternate medicine due to its low glycemic index and its possible role in regulating blood glucose.

I love Tindora and this rice is a nice variation in using Tindora than the regular curries or pickle. Tindora, Onion, Brown Rice, Peanuts and Spices, this combination not only tastes so good but is absolutely good for you too. Who said Healthy Food doesn't taste good?

Preparation Time - 15 Minutes

Cooking Time - 15 Minutes

Serves - 2

Ingredients

Cooked Brown Rice - 2 Cups

Tender Tindora - 1 lb

Big Onion - 1

Roasted Peanuts - 1/4 Cup

Salt - 1 1/2 Tsp or to taste

Coconut Oil - 2 Tsp

Turmeric powder - 1 Tsp

Mustard Seeds - 1/2 Tsp

Asafoetida - pinch

Curry Leaves - few

Lemon Juice - 1 Tsp or to taste

Chopped Cilantro - 1 Tbsp for garnishing

Spice Powder/Masala

Split Chick Peas (Kadalai Paruppu) - 1 Tbsp

Coriander Seeds - 2 Tbsp

Red Chili - 4 or to taste

Fennel Seeds - 1/4 Tsp

Grated Coconut - 2 Tbsp

Method

1) Heat a pan and dry roast split chick peas till they are slightly brown, then add the coriander seeds, red chili, fennel seeds. Once all the ingredients are thoroughly roasted, add the grated coconut and saute till slightly browned and then switch off the stove and let these cool for a few minutes and after that grind into a coarse to fine powder and keep it aside.

2) Heat a wide mouthed pan, add a tsp of oil. Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds and once it stops spluttering, add asafoetida powder and curry leaves.

3) Add the chopped onion and once it is translucent, add the finely chopped Tindora, 1/2 Tsp salt, turmeric powder and cook till tender.

4) Once the tindora is cooked, add the brown rice, remaining oil, salt, the ground masala powder and saute for a minute.

5) Now switch off, add the roasted peanuts and lemon juice, chopped cilantro and serve with vegetable raita(pachidi/dip)

Event Participation

This goes to WWC- Wholesome Wholegrain Cooking - Brown Rice hosted by Siri an event started by Sanjeeta.

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Eggless Whole Wheat Chocolate Cake

If you go and google Vegan Chocolate Cake or Eggless Chocolate Cake, this is one of the most popular recipe you will run across in several sites. Looks like this whacky vegan chocolate cake recipe is around for years and is a definite  keeper. I just made a few changes to suit my preferences by substituting All purpose flour with Whole Wheat flour and refined sugar with raw sugar. Absolutely moist and delicious, the apple cide vinegar used in the cake is not reflected in the taste at all.

I have made this cake several times with whole wheat flour alone and whole wheat pastry flour alone. The regular whole wheat gives a very dense texture and the whole wheat pastry flour gives a crumbly texture, the combination of these two give a soft, moist and real nice texture. Also in the photo above, I made it using 1/4 Cup butter instead of Oil but it gives a slightly lighter color. This recipe works well only with Oil and not so good with butter. You can see the difference in color in the photo below made using Oil.

Preparation Time - 10 Minutes

Cooking Time - 15 to 30 Minutes(For Cupcakes around 15 or 9 Inch Cake 30 Minutes)

Serves - Makes around 12 Cupcakes or a 9 Inch Cake

Ingredients

White Whole Wheat Flour -1 Cup

Whole Wheat Pastry Flour - 1/2 Cup

Baking Soda - 1 Tsp

Salt - 1/4 Tsp

Unsweetened Cocoa Powder - 1/4 Cup

Vanilla Extract - 1 Tsp

Unflavoured Oil like Sunflower oil - 1/3 Cup

Raw sugar - 3/4 Cup

Warm water - 1 Cup

Apple Cide Vinegar - 1 Tbsp

Method

1) To the Warm water add the raw sugar and let this sit while we get ready with the other things. The raw sugar has a coarse texture, so it gives a rough and uneven surface on the top when baked as it is. So by dissolving it little bit the coarse surface can be avoided.

2) Preheat oven to 350 Degrees Fahrenhiet.

3) Sieve the White Whole Wheat Flour and Pastry flour, to this add salt and baking soda and make a well in the center.

3) To the water and sugar mixture, add the cocoa powder and combine to form a nice brown paste, to this add the oil and combine.

5) Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and combine without over mixing. If you over mix, the gluten in the wheat hardens and you will get hard, dense cake. It is ok to have some lumps.

6) Line a baking pan with parchment paper or cup cake moulds with cup cake liner.

7) To the cake mix, add the apple cider vinegar and combine. You will see the batter is raising, pour the batter to the lined baking pan and bake till a tooth pick inserted comes out clean.

8) Cool completely on a wire rack.

Notes - The cake is not that sweet and is perfect with Icing. For icing on the top, I whipped some butter with maple syrup and Chia powder(egg substitute) for the cup cakes. The one below, I used some raw whipping cream with Xylitol and served.

Events



1) Sending this to Delicious Dessert Event.



2) Sending this to Best Western Desserts - Valentine's Special hosted by Priya Mahadevan.



3) Sending this to Food Palette Series - Brown.

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Mixed Vegetable & Mung Bean Red Rice Flakes/Aval/Poha

Rice Flakes/Aval can be used to prepare tasty and quick dishes. All you have to do is to soak for 2-3 minutes or run it through the water depending on the thickness of the flake. Also you can choose a healthier version of the flakes by going in for a unpolished variety or the red rice variety flakes. Traditionally in South Indian house holds, you can see a variety of dishes prepared using these flakes like Lemon Aval, Tamarind Aval, Pepper Aval, Thayir Aval and Sweet Aval . I just modified the Lemon Aval little bit and added bell pepper, onion, carrots, peanuts boiled mung bean(you can also add sprouted raw mung bean- provided you have the time to chew and eat), roasted peanuts for the extra crunch. With the addition of mung bean and peanuts, it becomes a one pot dish with complex carbohydrates and protein. You can also few spoons of grated coconut, for the extra taste and nutritional value.

Preparation Time - 10 Minutes

Cooking Time - 10 Minutes

Serves - 2

Ingredients

Red Rice Aval - 1 1/2 Cups

Boiled Mung Bean - 1 Cup

Chopped Bell Pepper(Green, Orange & Red) - 1 1/2 Cups

Onion - 1

Grated ginger - 1/2 Tsp

Grated Carrot - 1 (Leave this out, if you are on a diabetic diet)

Roasted Peanuts - 1/4 Cup

Salt - 1 Tsp or to taste

Turmeric powder - 1/2 Tsp

Red Chili powder - 1/2 Tsp or to taste (you can substitute chopped green chilies, since this was for my kid's lunch box. I didn't want him to run into a chili piece accidentally so substituted it with red chili powder)

Lemon Juice - 1 1/2 Tsp or to taste

Tempering

Coconut Oil - 2 Tsp

Mustard seeds - 1 Tsp

Split Urad Dal - 1/2 Tsp

Curry leaves - few

Method

1) Heat a wide mouthed pan and add coconut oil. Once the oil is hot add mustard seeds.

After the seeds stop spluttering, add the urad dal and once it slightly browns add the curry leaves.

2) Now add the grated ginger, chopped onions and bell pepper.

3) Add little bit of salt and saute for a few minutes till the bell pepper is tender.

4) Now add the grated carrot and boiled mung bean and saute for few minutes.

5) Place the red rice aval in a colander and wash it few times. Since the one I use is the unpolished variety there will be lot of husk. So wash few times, to remove the husk and also till the flakes become soft.

Squeeze out the extra water.

6) To the vegetables add turmeric powder, rest of the salt, red chili powder and squeezed out aval(rice flakes). Combine and leave it in the stove for 2 minutes and then switch off.

7) After few minutes add the squeezed lemon juice combine thoroughly and serve with a cup of organic yogurt.

Events

This goes to Kurinji Kathambam event - Rice Flakes.

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Eggplant Raita/Yogurt Dip (Katharikai Pachidi)



Eggplant may not be one of the top food in many people's favorite food list. But there are so many interesting and tasty dishes one can prepare using this vegetable. Eggplant referred to as Brinjal or Aubergine is technically a fruit and is a native to India. It contains numerous vitamins and minerals, plus eggplant contains phytonutrients, antioxidants which can help prevent damage from free radicals and protection from certain types of cancer. With so many nutritional benefits and also with a superb taste, there should be no reason why any body shouldn't try this recipe.

Preparation Time - 15 Minutes

Cooking Time - 2 Minutes

Serves - 2

Ingredients

Big Round Purple Eggplants - 2

Thick Yogurt - 2 Cups

Onion - 1

Salt - 1 Tsp

Cilantro - Chopped finely 1 Tbsp

Tempering

Sesame Oil - 1 Tsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 Tsp

Green Chili - 1 to 2 as per taste

Asafoetida powder - 1/4 Tsp

Method

1) Wash and dry the eggplants.

2) In a medium open flame roast the eggplant one at a time, by rotating the eggplant once in a while, so that it gets evenly roasted on all the sides. Roast till the skin becomes charred and starts cracking. It is very easy to peel the eggplant after it is roasted.

3) Once the eggplant is completely roasted, remove it from fire and place it in a bowl and cover it for 10-15 minutes. This will ensure that the eggplant is evenly cooked on the inner side as well.

4) Once the eggplant is cold enough to handle with hands, peel the eggplant and mash it with your hands or a with a spoon.

5) To this mashed eggplant, add chopped onions, cilantro, salt, yogurt and combine thorougly.

6) Heat little oil, to this add mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds stop spluttering, add asafoetida and slit green chilies. Leave this for a few seconds and then transfer it to the raita and serve.

Note - You can add grated carrots, chopped bell pepper etc. But a simple eggplant alone or eggplant + onion tastes great.

Event Participation

1) This goes to Healing Foods - Eggplant event by Seasoned & Dressed an event started by Siri.

2) This goes to Dish Name starts with E an event by Akhila.

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Tomato Soup

There are certain vegetables which can be had with out worrying too much about the carb count. Tomato is one of them, technically a fruit but used in cooking as a vegetable. Tomato is a very good blood purifier. It contains a host of Vitamins A, C and K and other minerals and is also rich in Lycopene a defense sytem needed to fight against free radical damage. The presence of antioxidants in tomatoes is said to be helpful in cleansing toxic compounds from the body. So there is no reason not to include this wonder vegetable(fruit) in the every day diet.



Cooking Time : 15-20min



Preparation Time : 5-10 min

Serves - 4





Ingredients



Tomato - 4 big (chopped)

Celery - 1 Stick (finely chopped)

Onion or Scallion - 1 or 2 Stalks (finely chopped)

Onion powder - 1/2 tsp

Garlic powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)

Pepper - 1/2 tsp or to taste

Salt to taste

Coconut Oil/Ghee/Butter - 2 tsp

Water



Method



1) Heat 1 tsp of oil and add the chopped celery and  tomato pieces. Cover and cook till the vegetables are softened, stirring in between.

2) Switch of the stove and let the cooked vegetables cool down.



3) Once the vegetables are cooled completely, transfer them to a blender and blend thoroughly till you get a nice smooth puree. (I have a vitamix so, I get a perfect puree and there is no need to strain and discard the fiber)



4) Heat the rest of the oil and sauté the scallion  and transfer the pureed contents to the pan and add water to the desired consistency.



5) Add the onion powder, garlic, salt and stir, simmer till the soup starts bubbling and then switch off.



6)  Now add pepper powder and  a dash of Ghee(clarified butter) or Coconut oil to the soup and serve.



Event Participation



1) This soup goes to My Culinary Creations: Soup Recipes Event.

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Greens, Fruit, Nut & Veggie Salad with Yogurt & Honey Dressing

Eating vegetables raw is good as they retain the optimum nutrients required for the body. Cooking or over cooking leads to lose of nutrients, so try to include atleast one raw vegetable in your diet every day.

Salads are a good way to include raw vegetables in the diet. This is a very easy to make salad, the addition of fruits and nuts add lot of taste and make it very interesting to eat.

I had two cups of Organic Spring mix left out, a carrot,  bell pepper, half orange, a carrot and half an apple. Added handful of pistachio and sliced almonds and raisins. Addition of yogurt and honey made this salad taste almost like a dessert. Toss everything together and enjoy.

Preparation Time - 10 Minutes

Cooking Time - Nil

Serves - 2

Ingredients

Organic Spring Mix ( Baby Lettuces, Baby Greens, Endive, Radicchio) - 2 Cups

Organic Carrot - 1

Chopped bell pepper - 1/4 Cup

Chopped apple - 1/2

Diced Oranges - 1/2

Pistachio and Sliced Almonds - Handful

Raisins - Handful

Dressing

Thick Yogurt - 1/4 Cup

Olive Oil - 1 Tbsp

Honey - 1/2 Tbsp

Orange Juice - 1 Tbsp

Method

1) Add all the dressing ingredients in a shaker or container and shake it to mix well.

2) In a big bowl, add all the salad ingredients and add the dressing, toss, chill and serve.

Note - If you are looking for a salad for a person on diabetic diet, exclude carrots, raisins, apple and orange. Add cherry tomatoes, feta cheese and go for Balsamic Vinaigrette as salad dressing. But substitute the sugar in the salad dressing with Xylitol. Will post later on how to make Balsamic Vinaigrette at home.

Events

1) This goes to Only Salads hosted by Chef and her Kitchen an event started by Pari.

2) This goes to Food Palette Series - Green.

3) This salad goes to The Seasonal Sundal event.

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Kesar Peda (Saffron Infused Milk Sweet with Xylitol)

Peda is an Milk based Indian sweet done by simmering milk and adding saffron, cardamom and sweetner. This peda recipe is from Manjula's Kitchen and much simpler, easier and comes out perfect. I pretty much followed the original recipe except for substituting the Sugar with Xylitol. If you search for Xylitol recipes and information, you will find information stating that it can be substitute 1:1 for sugar. But it has a chilling feeling on the tongue which becomes more pronouced when added in equal amounts. So I have added only half the quantity, of the sugar mentioned in the recipe.

Now getting on to the recipe

Ingredients

Paneer - 3/4 Cup ( I used 4 Cups of Milk



Milk powder - 1/3 Cup



Milk - 1/3 Cup



Xylitol (Sweetener) - 1/4 Cup (if using sugar instead of xylitol go for 1/2 cup)



Unsalted butter - 2 Tablespoon



Cardamom powder - 1/4 Tsp



Saffron strands - pinch



For Garnish:



18 shelled pistachio seeds

Method:



1) Warm the milk and add the saffron strands so that it gets soaked for 10-15 minutes and the you get a nice orange color.



2) Heat a thick bottomed pan and add butter.



3) Once the butter melts add milk, milk powder, and paneer. Mix it well.



4).Cook mixture on medium heat stirring continuously until mixture starts leaving the sides of the frying pan and becomes like dough. This should take about 12 - 15 minutes. Now this is known as khoya.



5) Transfer the khoya into a bowl and let it cool off until khoya becomes just lukewarm and easy to handle with hand.



6) Mix the Xylitol and cardamom powder into the khoya and knead it for about a minute until every thing blends together and becomes a soft dough.

7) Divide the mix into about 18 equal parts and roll them into round balls. Lightly press it down with a pistachio on every peda, similar to a thumb print cookie.

8) Stays good for 3-4 days at room temperature and few weeks in the refrigerator and buy that mine was all done.

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