Pumpkin/Butternut Squash in yogurt sauce

Pumpkin is widely used in South India to make Kootu. I am always on the lookout for dishes that suit rotis. I was looking at this recipe in Anjana's blog and took inspiration from it to make this dish.

Do check out this Pumpkin dish as well in my blog




Ingredients

Pumpkin/Butternut Squash 3 cups
Clove 2
Cinnamon 1 inch piece
Bay Leaf 1
Star Anise 2
Fennel Seeds 1 tsp
Cumin 1 tsp
Onion 1
Garlic 3 pods
Yogurt/Curd 1 cup
Chilli Powder 1/2 tsp
Garam Masala 1/2 tsp

Method of Preparation

1. Cut the Squash into small pieces. Cook it in a pot with a little water.

2. In another pan, heat some oil and add clove, cinnamon, bay leaf, star anise, fennel seeds and cumin seeds.

3. When it sizzles, add chopped onion and garlic. Saute till  it is well done.

4. Add the cooked squash, curd, chilli powder, garam masala and salt. Mix well. Add some water if needed.

5. Simmer for a few minutes and switch off. Serve with warm rotis

Carrot 'Celery' Coriander Soup

Winter is over - well for most people.... But here in UK, it still feels like winter. I was almost tempted to switch the heating back on yesterday... The temperature is @ 14C with lows of 8C in the evening. This is one thing I hate about UK. Where is summer??? (oh by the time I am posting this, the weather has changed, there is a lot of sun today.. wooohoooo)

The rain made me make some soup. And I chose Carrot Coriander Soup.



Last Weekend being the Jubilee of the Queen, we had a 4 day weekend. So we hit the road. We drove to the Pembrokeshire National Park in South Wales. It was an amazing trip. Lots of fun... The weather was not so great... But it was Partly Cloudy on Day 1, Light rain on Day 2 and Sunny on Day 3. So overall not so bad.





When we were out and about in the cold, it was so comforting to have a bowl of soup with some bread. One of the soups we had was the carrot coriander soup and I knew I had to make it again soon.



Carrots are orange in colour right?? Am I wrong? Then why is my soup so green. I so wanted to blame it on the coriander. But guess what - he is not the only culprit. The guy who made my soup green is the celery. You might ask what celery is doing in carrot soup... Good question. I love celery in soup. So though not used by people to make carrot soup, I decided to add it anyways. If I knew I will loose the colour, I might have skipped it. So I ended up not making carrot soup... But all is not lost, I got a new soup variety to try. Carrot soup will have to wait.



As usual, the photo taking did not work as I wanted. I am very new to taking photos. And I am trying my best to learn. But the sun is not helping me at all. It was so dark and gloomy the whole day. I will keep trying. One of these days I am bound to take photos that I will love. In the meanwhile I will be happy enjoying the photos taken by some of my fellow bloggers.

Now off to the soup

Ingredients

Carrot 15 medium ones
Onion 1
Potato 1 medium
Celery 3 stacks (optional)
Coriander Leaves 1 cup (pressed down)
Coriander Powder 1 tsp

Oil and Salt to taste



Method of Preparation

1. Heat oil in a pan. Add chopped onions. Saute for a couple of minutes.

2. Add potatoes, celery and carrot all roughly chopped. Saute for a few more minutes.

3. Add 3 cups of water (or stock). Bring it to a boil and cook till all the vegetables are cooked. Add the coriander leaves

4. Cool. Stain the vegetables. Keep the water. Grind into a smooth paste in batches.

5. Transfer back to the pot with the cooking water. Bring it to a boil.

Serve with some crusty bread. This quantity made a big batch. It served around 5 big cups of soup.



Linking this to Show me your Hits - Carrots and Beets. Sangee Event hosted by Anusha

Chettinad Style Grean Peas Masala

Ingredients

Dried Peas 1 cup
Mustard 1/2 tsp
Cumin 1 tsp
Curry Leaves few
Onions 2 finely chopped
Green Chilli 1
Ginger 1 inch piece
Garlic 4 pods
Tomatoes 2
Coriander Powder 2 tsp
Cumin Powder 1 tsp
Chilli Powder 1 tsp
Turmeric 1/2 tsp
Pepper Powder 1 tsp

Oil and salt to taste

Method of Preparation

1. Soak the green peas in water overnight and cook in a pressure cooker till it is done. Make sure the peas retain their shape and is not overcooked. Mine got a little overcooked....

2. Heat oil in a pan. Add the Mustard seeds. When it sputters, add the cumin. When it sizzles, add the curry leaves and then the onions.

3. When the onions starts to brown, add a paste of green chilli, ginger and garlic. Saute for a couple more minutes.

4. Add finely chopped tomatoes. Cook till it is well done.

5. Add coriander powder, chilli powder, cumin powder, pepper powder and turmeric. Saute well.

6. Drain water from the cooked peas and add to the pot along with some salt. Mix well and cook in low flame for more minutes.

Serve with warm rotis or rice.

Race for Life - Cancer Research UK

Hi Friends

I am running a 5K Run called Race for Life on June 20th. Funds raised goes to Cancer Research UK.

Events like Race for Life are vital in funding Cancer Research UK's life-saving work into preventing, diagnosing and treating cancer. By sponsoring me now you can help more people survive cancer.

Last year was my first time and I raised £448. I am running in Memory of my mother. Please do check my Just Giving Page. No amount is small (Seriously, even if you feel like adding £2, Everything adds up). Together we can fight Cancer....

http://www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/roshnichandrasekar2012

I thought of posting this in my blog as I thought it will help me reach a wider audience. If a few of of you decide to contribute, it will go a long way... Even if you do not feel like monetarily supporting the cause, do wish me Luck!

Love
Roshni.

Paneer Gulshan

Milk is sold in cans here and we are not much of milk drinkers. I always buy a couple of cans for a coffee or tea. As we are not regular coffee/tea drinkers, I always end up with milk about to expire.

Now that I started making paneer, I need not worry. At the end of the week, I convert all the left over milk into Paneer and start working on some dish.

When Kaveri blogged this recipe from Radhika's site, I knew I had to try it. I had bookmarked it. Now was the time to try it. Thank you guys for the recipe. It was out of the world.

I did not deviate much from Radhika's recipe. I did not let my paneer set enough. Used it kind of immedietly. So it kind of started crumbling. Otherwise a perfect dish.

Updated photo




Ingredients

Paneer 1 cup cut into slices (use light;y fried tofu for a vegan version)
Onion 2 big chopped
Tomato 3 chopped
Green Pepper 1 Sliced
Red Pepper 1 Sliced
Ginger 1 inch piece
Garlic 8 pods
Chilli Powder 1tsp
Coriander Powder 1 tsp
Channa Masala 1 tsp
Turmeric 1/2 tsp
Cumin 1 tsp
Coriander Leaves for Garnish

Oil and Salt to taste

Method of Preparation

1. Grind the Ginger and Garlic into a fine paste.

2. Heat oil in pan. Add the onions. Saute till it starts to brown.

3. Add the ginger and garlic paste, salt, Chilli Powder, Coriander Powder, Channa Masala and Turmeric Powder. Cook for a minute.

4. Add tomatoes and peppers. Sprinkle some water. Cover and cook for a few minutes.

5. Add the paneer and coriander leaves. Stir and cook for a couple more minutes.

Serve with warm rotis