Archive for May, 2008

Spicy Sambhar and A Pinkie Tale ~ For Suganya

don't you just love a lazy Friday night...
oh, I am the king of my kitchen-floor castle… la, la, la la la…

Pinkie is a laid-back cat. He never seeks the spotlight — and hardly ever looks twice at toys. Not a bit like flighty little miss Daisy, always underfoot and looking for attention — she loves to play and will sit with her toys, gazing up at you pitifully until you satisfy her whim.

One thing Pinkie does like is string, so last night while he was lounging around the kitchen, I tried to entice him with a new toy. If you have a rambunctious kitty like Daisy, you may not think this looks like ‘play’ — but for Pinks, it’s a regular party! For more kitty commentary, hover over the photos…

what's this... yawn...
oh brother, here she goes with the toys again… ‘come on pinks, exercise is good for you’… that’s all I ever hear… nag nag nag…

oh great, she kicked it closer... yawn...
but mom, sprawling on the floor *is* good exercise…

I can't hear you... yawn...
ho hum… I’m not listening…

hmm... what's this I smell...
she’ll never entice me, never never never… unless… wait… what’s this…

now this is more like it...
could it be, could it be… did she dunk this…

hooray hooray!!
o joy, o joy, o happy day! She did, she did, she did dunk this in catnip!!
Ok mom, I quit you win, I’ll play I’ll play!!!

don't you just love a lazy Friday night...
ahhh, I am the king in my cozy-comforter castle… zzzzzz

~~~~~

I had planned to spend this weekend in Michigan, but something came up and plans changed at the last. Of course in my disappointment, I went looking for some comfort, and what better comfort food than sambhar?

I have tried dozens of sambhars and never met one I didn’t love. I could have sambhar daily, and then to change things up a little, for a few days I might eat *only* sambhar.

Last night I happened upon this mouthwatering recipe at Suganya’s yummy blog. While the vadai looked melt-in-your-mouth delicious, I was not of a mind to start deep-frying late at night. The sambhar however… it was too much to resist. The recipe called for grinding the paste with onion and tomato — something I have never seen before. I had to try it at once!

ingredients for spicy sambhar paste
all the ingredients for suganya’s spicy sambhar paste: coriander and methi seeds, chana dal, raw rice, grated coconut, fresh tomato and onion, and plenty of dried red chiles!

(Incidentally, this is the first time I have not used ISG’s magic sambhar powder since I can’t remember when. I almost felt guilty! ;) )

I noticed that my tolerance for heat has come a long way in just a couple of years.
I used every last dried chile called for in this recipe — a first for me.
This is is one fragrant and fiery sambhar!

I followed Suganya’s original recipe almost exactly — I added drumsticks to the dal and garlic to the tadka, and prepared it just a little differently.

Here is how I made it:

For the dal:

1/2 c toor dal
1 TB washed moong dal
2 tsp tamcon
1/2 tsp turmeric
10 2″-3″ pieces drumstick (I have to use frozen)

For the paste:

1 tsp canola oil
2 TB coriander seeds
1 1/2 TB chana dal
1 tsp raw rice
1/4 tsp methi seeds
2 TB grated coconut
8 dried red chiles

2 TB chopped red onion
1/4 c chopped tomato

For the tadka:

1 tsp canola oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp chopped garlic
6-8 curry leaves
1/2 c coarsely chopped red onion

salt to taste

chopped tomato for garnishing
ghee for dolloping

~~~

Pressure cook all the ingredients for the dal with 2 1/2 c water. I don’t have a whistling cooker — I cooked about 8 minutes. Remove and reserve the drumsticks, and mash the dal well.

Toast the spice paste ingredients in oil until fragrant. Cool slightly and grind to a paste with the onion and tomato. I added about 1/4 water to get a smooth paste.

suganya's sambhar paste
radiating heat from toasted red chiles ~ suganya’s sambhar paste

Toast the mustard seeds, garlic, and curry leaves in oil. Add the onions and cook just until they begin to change color. Remove the onions and hold aside. Add the ground paste and cook 2-3 minutes — by now a heady aroma will be filling the kitchen and you will be praising Suganya to the stars! Add the cooked dal, drumsticks, and 2 cups water. Stir well to blend, then simmer, uncovered, 10-15 minutes. Add salt to taste, and you’re ready to serve.

Find your favorite bowl. Pour a big ladle of the cheerfully bubbling brew over plenty of steaming hot sona masuri rice. Top with a few of the reserved onions and chopped tomato. Add a healthy dollop of ghee (hey, it’s comfort food, right!), find your spoon and take the whole kit and kaboodle to your favorite comfy chair.

Sit back, relax, and take a deep breath. Let the mysterious power of sambhar wash away the worries of your day. Then savor each and every bite :)

suganya's fragrant and fiery sambhar
ablaze with pungent red chiles ~ suganya’s spicy sambhar

Thank you Suganya, for this fabulous recipe!

~~~

Oh, and ISG — you didn’t really think I could make sambhar without you did you? ;)

wooden mathu in its natural habitat
using a kadaisal gives any dish that ‘extra something special’…

And now it’s time for summertime dreaming… of home sweet Michigan in all her June glory…

michigan sunrise
misty sunrise over Glen Lake ~ Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
near Empire, Michigan

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Coming Soon ~ A Pinkie Tale

pinks
completely oblivious to his impending fame… mr. pinks

Comments (4)

Celebrating Spring with Long Overdue Thanks!

At last, at last, it’s garden time! And at long last, it seems I can use WordPress again — oh, how I have missed sharing my little corner of the world with you all, dear friends! Hooray!

To celebrate, a few photos from the yard this holiday weekend…

french lilac
french lilac in bloom

female ruby-throated hummingbird
female ruby-throated hummingbird ~ taking off at an astonishing 53 wingbeats per second!

mesclun
good enough to eat ~ homegrown baby lettuces…

spinach
…and baby spinach

swiss chard
…and baby swiss chard ~ soon it will be ready for ISG’s chard sambhar!

ichiban eggplants and golden jubilee tomato
a longer wait for ichiban eggplants and golden jubilee tomato

and…

hmmm...
one expert told me… “looks like ash gourd…”

~~~~

During this little break, I managed to fix most of my computer issues. Happily, I am finally able to properly thank two wonderful blogger friends for a bounty of goodies! These fabulous packages came to me through the Arusuvai Friendship Chain. As I am sure you know by now, Arusuvai was started by lovely Latha and Lakshmi of The Yum Blog and two more dear ladies, Bharathy of Spicy Chilly and Bhags of Crazy Curry. It was introduced in the US by still another special lady, Latha of Masala Magic. Once more I send my thanks to you all! :)

beautiful bag full of gifts from Bhags!
beautiful Rajasthani-style handbag full of treats from Bhags!

This exquisite bag was filled with treats from all over India. Imagine my delight at this amazing assortment!

From Pune, soft and tender kokum, the likes of which I have never seen in any store. From Chennai, *real* filter coffee. And from Bhags’ own hometown of Nagpur, genuine varhadi masala. Fragrant doesn’t begin to describe this wonderful blend of spices.

Thank you so much, dear Bhags, for your kind generosity! Your package of treats from India means more than I can really say, and I can assure you each of your thoughtful gifts will be savored for a long time to come :)

mysteries from pel
package full of surprises from Pel ~ including one ingredient that was a big mystery to me!

From dear Pel, fellow Great Lakes afficianado, came this wonderful package full of surprises. It included homemade light-as-a-feather chaklis (and just because I am late Pel, don’t think I won’t be hounding you for that recipe!); homemade metkoot, to sprinkle over hot rice with ghee; giant white fungus for a yet-to-be-discovered Chinese-inspired dish, and lastly, music to cook by and incense to relax with after the last dish is washed.

Of course I musn’t leave out the obligatory mystery. It’s the bag at the front of the photo. At first I thought it was something to do with methi. I will leave Pel’s hint to see if anyone can guess: “It’s actually a single spice…..related to cardamom……the Thais use it fresh, Indonesians use it dried and powdered, like this…”

Thank you so much, Pel, for sharing your homemade delights with me :)

~~~~

Last but certainly not least — I have three more friends to thank.

Firstly, talented Eskay of A Bon Vivant’s Chow Chronicles so very kindly sent me this “Nice Matters” award way back in February. I hope you don’t mind the late acknowledgement, Eskay, and know that it means alot to me, to have this passed on from you!

Then today came another surprise — “You Make My Day” award from Jigyasa and Pratibha, two more talented ladies I feel honored to call friends. I am sure you know them as the co-authors of Cooking At Home with Pedatha. It just so happens I made one of Pedatha’s recipes tonight — the third time I have cooked this dish, actually — and here it is, pictured in all its glorious simplicity. I was never a fan of black-eyed peas ’till I tried this recipe, and I hope Jigyasa and Pratibha won’t mind if I pass along the general idea:

Cut and cook fresh brinjal with turmeric and salt in very little water. Mash lightly. Cook some black-eyed peas until just tender but not mushy. About 2-1 ratio, brinjal to peas.

Do the tadka with urad dal, mustard seed, dried red chillies, curry leaves and a bit of hing in very little oil. Add fresh grated ginger, slit green chillies and salt. Stir in the mashed brinjal and the peas. Simmer 10 minutes or so.

Garnish with chopped cilantro, and then I dare you to wait ’till the rice is cooked before you try :)

pedatha\'s brinjal pasty vegetable
Brinjal Pasty Vegetable (brinjal with black-eyed peas) from Cooking At Home With Pedatha. Do try this, dear Bee! — since you discovered Pedatha’s vaangi bhath, you may find you really love brinjal after all ;)

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Spring Mini-Break and Michigan Dreaming

I am taking a brief break for my daughter’s play week and also to try and resolve my computer problems. I will be back with surprises from near and far… I have been the lucky recipient of several surprise packages lately and I can’t wait to show!

Now that I can upload photos again, at least from work, I will leave you with some of my favorite Michigan photos. My wandering foot is itching for the end of May and a trip home :)

Enjoy the lovely spring weather and I’ll be back soon!

~~~~~

wagner falls
wagner falls near munising

taq falls
tahquamenon falls near paradise

stormy lake superior
summer storm brewing on the big lake

lighthouse
lighthouse at old mission point ~ traverse city

goldenrod
goldenrod near lake michigan

laker
ore boat in the st. clair river

rapid river
rapid river in antrim county

au sable river
the beautiful au sable river near oscoda

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