Strawberry Jam

Of course, February is the season of Valentine’s Day, of spring and strawberries too.

When in season, I cannot resist the beautiful berries and keep including them in as many ways as possible in our meals. We are not lucky to be living near a farm where we could pick our own juicy berries. So when my usual supermarket stocked fresh supplies at the best prices for the season, I grabbed the chance to make this delicious strawberry jam.

I took the recipe from my dear friend Jayasree Satish’s blog. She has compiled so many interesting recipes in her blog and I often revert to her blog for guidance. Jayasree, can’t thank you enough for being support and inspiration to all even after you don’t live among us anymore. Here is the link to her recipe -http://kailaskitchen.blogspot.in/2011/01/easy-strawberry-jam.html?

I really do not believe in the present day hype surrounding Valentine’s day. Surely, any day is good to express love and affection. All the marketing, merchandise and mayhem surrounding February 14th leave me feeling out of breath. So, in keeping with my belief that any day is good to express affection, love and good cheer, this is a recipe that I share with all. A jam I totally love, one that leaves me licking the last micro-drop of jam from the spoon. No preservatives, no artificial colours, no acidity regulators – nothing synthetic. Only pure fruit, sugar and pure love!

What’s good about this jam (or any other, for that matter )

• A good home made jam, besides filling your home with an indescribable aroma of bubbling fruit pulp, makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside,  leaves you feeling like a kid too!
• You can control the sugar added, add any spice to give it a different dimension, cook it to your preferred degree of doneness. No more jams with more sugar than pulp, or ones that will tear the bread slice apart but will not spread on with any shred of grace or dignity! (Psst, true of several Indian brands)
• You can entirely do away with the preservatives, nature identical flavouring substances (who wants those, we have real nature bubbling in our pots) and the whole host of added chemicals which are needed in commercial ventures for shelf life, portability etc. True, this jam is likely to last only a few weeks and that too in the fridge, but hey, so what? It tastes so good, it is likely to be devoured in a week or so anyway!
• The only dampener is that eating real fruit is way more healthier than cooking it up. Boiling/cooking/heat reduces the vitamin and mineral content of the fruits. Yet, making homemade jam is surely healthier than store bought ones – fresher, no chemical additions.

Without further ado, here goes -

You need

1. Strawberries – 750 gms
2. Cane sugar -  350 gms
3. Juice of 1 lemon

To assemble

1. Wash the strawberries by soaking in a tub of tap water for 10 minutes.
2. Rinse over a colander with more water, lay out on a towel to dry a little, give about 10 minutes of drying time.
3. Hull the berries only after the washing step.
4. Weigh the berries after hulling. This is to estimate sugar needed. I have used sugar at approximately half the weight of berries. You may need more sugar if the berries are more tart. I guess you can add more later, while cooking if required.
5. Cut into quarters or smaller, drop into a clean stainless steel / glass bowl.
6. Pour the weighed sugar over the berries. Toss well, keep covered overnight or at least for 4- 5 hours. (I kept it overnight in the fridge)
7. Place a heavy-bottomed pan over the stove, stir the berry-sugar mixture in it. Add the juice of 1 lemon too. Keep stirring over medium to high heat until the mixture looks homogenous and glossy. Ti took me less than half an hour for this quantity of fruit. Time can differ based on quantity and flame strength.
8. The sheet test for doneness of jam is to drop a spoon of jam on a chilled plate or saucer. The jam has to fall in a ‘sheet’. The jam on the saucer should develop a ‘skin’ in a minute and appear crinkly when pushed with a finger.

The jam had small chunks of strawberries, I loved it totally. You could puree the fruit and sugar together before heating if you do not like a chunky jam.

Enjoy licking it off a spoon, over a muffin or spread on a slice of warm toast.

Cherry tomato Lettuce Salad

Well, this salad does not even need a recipe. It is such a simple combination of veggies and dressing. In fact, I am sure several of you will have tried out some version of this salad. I made this salad to accompany the Low Fat Creamy Pasta. The salad, pasta and fragrant garlic bread comprised dinner last weekend. Quite a combination of textures, colours, flavours and tastes. It was a very satisfying meal.
Taking some time to plan, shop and create good meals is so fulfilling. The happiness I feel when I sit down with loving family members eager to sample the latest creations and finding their faces light up with joy and hearing those happy exclamations – these make all the effort of cooking worthwhile. Well let me also admit that I go through my good share of disasters, and food that no one wants to touch. But thankfully, these happen lesser than the former.
As I said, this salad is a simple combination of dressing, veggies and tossing them together.
You need
For the veggies -

1. Iceberg lettuce – 1 small head
2. Cherry tomatoes – 22-25 numbers
3. Cucumber – 1-2 medium (really, your choice)
4. Ice cold water – enough to dunk the lettuce in (approx. 4 cups)

For the dressing -

1. Balsamic vinegar – 1 tbsp
2. Extra virgin Olive Oil – 4 tbsp
3. Crushed black pepper – 1-2 tsp
4. Salt – 2 pinches
5. Sugar – 1 pinch (optional)

To assemble

1. Wash the lettuce head, tear leaves apart by hand into bite size pieces and keep immersed in ice cold water until needed.
2. Dunk the cherry tomatoes in a bowl of water for 5 minutes, drain, pat dry and cut into halves. Place in a large mixing bowl.
3. Rinse the cucumber thoroughly with the peel on . You can retain the peel on the cucumber or partly peel them too. If there are too many seeds along the middle of the cucumber, you may want to discard them. If so, cut into half lengthwise, remove the ‘seedy’ parts and slice into half circles. Else, if the seeds are tender, you can slice the cucumber into thin disks. Place along with the tomatoes in the mixing bowl.
4. Pour the balsamic vinegar into a bowl. Pour the Olive oil in a thin drizzle whisking with a fork all the while. Continue to whisk well until all the vinegar and oil have blended into an almost homogenous mixture. Add the crushed pepper and salt now, whisk them in too. Dressing is ready.
5. Now is the time to drain the lettuce in a colander – drain it well, shake up the colander and coax the last drops of water out! Add the lettuce to the mixing bowl, pour the salad dressing on top and mix well, toss, shake – do whatever except spilling the contents!
6. Chill the salad for at least half an hour before serving so that it is at the right temperature and the flavours settle well.

Notes

• You can add pitted black olives, walnuts, coloured peppers (capsicum), rocket leaves or any preferred vegetables to the salad. Use dressing in proportion to the vegetables used.
• Using fresh tender vegetables, and chilling well before serving help to enhance the taste of the salad.

Low Fat Creamy Pasta

A Happy New Year to all.

As with every year, I have resolved to live healthy, live happy, be grateful for the nice things in life,spend more time with my kids. I am also pushing myself to find healthier food, better recipes, to share with all and do my bit for a better world. Pasta and Italian food are quite a favourite among people all over the world. We love Italian food at our home too. Based on frequent demands from my kids, I try to recreate popular dishes like pasta in bechamel (white) sauce at home. However, the amount of cheese that is required each time sends alarm bells to my nutritionist mind. While some cheese is good for children, as part of milk intake, too much of it is unhealthy.

While watching an episode of Junior Masterchef, I saw one participant using an ingredient which could substitute for part of the cheese in white sauce. I was quite excited by the idea, and tried it out soon. The first attempt was just about edible – I think I scrimped too much on the cheese. The second time, I did not get the proportions right. So this time, I thought through the proportions carefully and tried – this version was by far the best.

I am sure several of us would have started off with New Year Resolutions to reduce weight, eat healthy and so on.. Most resolutions fizzle out because we lack the will power to stick with them. Low fat food, salad – only meals, tasteless food in the name of diets – these are sure fire methods to lose our goals instead of excess weight!

I named my blog ‘Healthy Slurps’ as I firmly believe that healthy food has to be tasty too. I believe in modifying or inventing recipes which optimise the nutrients in ingredients used and are filling and healthy at the same time. This recipe is a great example. So here is my recipe for creamy, oozy, tasty pasta in white sauce minus sin.

I have given measures for 500 gm. uncooked pasta. If you plan to make a smaller batch, reduce proportions accordingly, but you could also make a big batch and freeze the rest for later.

You Need

• Pasta shells – any shape you have in stock, I used small shell – 500 gm., uncooked.
• Skim milk – 800 ml to 1000 ml.
• Whole wheat flour (atta) – 1 heaped tbsp.
• Butter – 2 tbsp., to be used in parts through the recipe.
• Processed cheese – 50 gm
• Carrot – wash peel cut into thin disks – 1 level cup
• Green or any colour capsicum – cut into thin slices – 1 level cup
• Cauliflower – 12-15 medium sized florets.
• Seasonings –1. Dry Oregano and 2. dry basil – 1 tsp each (or to taste) 3. White pepper /black pepper crushed – 1 heaped tbsp, 4. Salt – 2 tbsp.
• Fresh drinking water – 3 litre or slightly more, if needed.

To Assemble

• Boil water in a large pot, add a dab of butter, 1 tbsp salt to the boiling water and boil the pasta in it for 7-8 minutes or as per instructions. Drain, rinse and set aside in a colander.
• Blanch the cauliflower florets, drain. Heat 1/2 tsp butter in a large pan, fry the cauliflower in it for a good 3 minutes, cool and puree to smooth paste in a blender. Set aside.

• Heat 1 tbsp butter in the same  large pan used for cauliflower, stir fry the capsicum first, add carrots next, add a pinch of salt, toss well.
• In a corner of the pan, add the rest of the butter, place the whole wheat flour over the sizzling butter and fry to remove the raw smell. (takes about a minute or less). Now pour the skim milk in a thin stream over the flour, stir briskly to avoid lumps. You could use a whisk too. Mix in the vegetables and the white sauce, let simmer together until the sauce thickens and bubbles evenly. Control the flame as needed throughout.
• When the sauce thickens and bubbles, add the cauliflower puree, the cheese, and mix all well.

• After the whole mixture is homogenous, add in the seasonings, taste and adjust as per your taste.

• Now the sauce is ready to coat the pasta. Pour in the boiled pasta, toss well to coat. cover, take off the heat and set aside for 10 minutes or so for the flavours to settle.
• Tasty creamy pasta is ready to be served. I served this with warm garlic bread and a lettuce - cherry tomato salad in a balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
  

Notes

The amount of cauliflower used for the puree is important – too much and it tastes like cauliflower soup, too little and it does not thicken well enough. Sautéing the cauliflower in butter makes sure that the taste does not overpower the other flavours in the sauce.

You can use the same sauce for lasagne or for a macaroni hot pot – spread some more grated cheese as top layer and bake as you normally would.

You can use more vegetables like broccoli, sweet corn kernels, baby corn, zucchini, even black olives if you like. ( I like black olives with a tangy tomato sauce )

You can sprinkle a tsp. or more of grated cheese on top while serving kids. Grated Parmesan tastes great. While Parmesan is not strictly ‘vegetarian’, use it if you feel comfortable.

What’s good about this pasta dish?

The most obvious advantage in this recipe is the limited use of cheese in the sauce. This recipe makes 8 –9 portions of pasta. 50 gms of cheese added here will amount to 6 gms per person – the quantities normally used would range from 30 –35 gms per portion. 

This means that, whatever cheese you have used in your recipe, you can cut down the fat content by 5 –6 times.

Despite cutting down on the cheese, the sauce does not lose out on creaminess, mouth feel or flavours – so we do not feel ‘deprived.’

Adding more vegetables to the dish or serving it with a stir fry or salad, as in my case, makes it a complete meal.

I have used butter optimally without indulging in excess.

I have used whole wheat flour as a thickener too as against refined corn flour or all-purpose flour (maida).

While processed cheese is not the best, I have used it here to show how despite an ordinary cheese, the sauce and the meal does taste great. Also processed cheese is most widely available in India. Feel free to use reduced fat – mozzarella in your recipe.

Do let me know if you liked the recipe, and do come back with your feedback after you have tried it out.

Stir Fried Capsicum

It appears that people either love or hate capsicum / bell peppers. Me – I love it in all forms. I enjoy it’s raw crunch in salads, add it lovingly to sambar to perk it up, toss it with paneer for a smart bhurjee,…
…Or I make this stir fry. Capsicum is the star in this dish, it does not play the role of accompanying artist. Rather, the spices and seasonings added, only serve to add to the punch of this amazing vegetable.

What’s good about Capsicum?

1. The best contribution from Capsicum to a meal would be it’s high Vitamin C, B and carotene (Vitamin A) content. While Vitamin C  and B reduces with heat and cooking, stir frying can ensure minimal losses. 
2. Capsicum has virtually no Sodium, so it is a great addition to salads for a person with high blood pressure.
3. The coloured peppers such as red, yellow, purple have a higher sugar content than the green coloured one. So it is recommended that diabetics use more of green pepper and lesser of the other coloured ones.
4. Capsicum also is a low calorie, no - fat vegetable. People keen on weight maintenance / weight loss can include this wonder veggie freely in their diets.
5. A note about the compound Capsaicin – this compound is isolated from other chillies of the capsicum family and used in several topical medications to relieve pain. This compound does not exist in sufficient quantities in Capsicum to have any pain relieving effects.

Without further delay. here is the recipe.

 

You need

1. Green Capsicum – 5-6 medium sized
2. Salt – 3/4 tsp
3. Fresh Coconut – grated, 2 tbsp
4. Chutney Dal – 2 tbsp
5. Green chilli – 3
6. Saunf – 3/4 tsp
7. Garlic – 2 pods, washed and peeled

For seasoning

1. Vegetable Oil – 2 tsp
2. Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp

To Assemble

• Wash, deseed and cut capsicum into thin slices.
• Powder all ingredients from 3 to 7 into a coarse powder.
• You could warm the chutney dal and saunf together before powdering. This step is optional – it helps to release the aroma and powder better.
• Heat oil in a wok / pan, add mustard seeds.
• When the mustard crackles, tip in the sliced capsicum and stir rapidly.
• Keep the heat at medium high, add salt and keep stirring for 3-4 minutes. Adding salt may release water from the vegetable. If it releases too much water, make a well in the centre of the pan and let the water sizzle out quickly. The veggies should retain the green colour and just turn soft but not soggy.
• Add the powdered mixture and toss to coat all slices.
• Remove from heat and serve warm with dal and rice.
• I served it with ‘basale soppu dal’ and steamed rice.

 

Variations

1. You could choose to include all coloured peppers such as red, yellow along with green pepper. If so, include in equal proportion, tip in the green pepper first and add the others halfway through.
2. Slice up a red onion and stir fry that first before adding the capsicum.
3. Add chopped coriander as a final garnish.

Notes

• The key to successful stir frying, is to chop / slice vegetables to similar size, so they fry evenly.
• Use a much larger wok / pan than needed to fit in the vegetables. This way, they swish around well and fry happily!
• Heat minimum oil to a good heat, just below it’s smoking point. Stir fry in this hot oil at medium high to high heat. This retains crispness, colour and flavour of the vegetables.
• Do not dump in all vegetables together. Add the ones that need more cooking first and so on till you add the quickest cooking vegetable last.
• The best stir fry is one that takes only a few minutes on high heat.

Cauliflower Koshimbir

 

When I heard my friend, Geetanjali tell me about the several koshimbir or salads that she rustles up often at her home, I was all ears. I am always on the look out for newer healthier food options. This salad, apart from new ingredients for koshimbir, also packs in freshness, sweet, tangy and citrusy flavours in.

While Geetanjali’s version had cauliflower as the sole vegetable, and used lemon juice for the tang, I added some carrots for colour, and had to improvise with grated raw mango since I did not have lemon at hand. You could try both versions. They taste just right with steamed rice and dal combo or with hot phulkas too. In fact, you could make a wrap with a hot phulka, some mustard smeared on it, filled in with the koshimbir, rolled up and enjoyed!

What’s good about this dish?

• Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable, similar to cabbage or broccoli.
• Fresh cauliflower is an excellent source of Vitamin C, Vitamins B1, B3, B5, B6. A great source of minerals like iron, manganese, potassium, too.
• Di-indolyl methane (DIM), a substance found in this family of vegetables have anti viral, anti bacterial properties and also functions as immune modulator. This property is being used in clinical trials for treating Human Papilloma Virus (the virus that causes cervical cancer)
• Cauliflower has several other cancer fighting compounds too – they protect against prostrate, cervical, colon, breast, and ovarian cancers. All this makes it a very important vegetable in every woman’s diet.
• When cooking, wash the head under running water, parboil in salted water, rinse again and use in recipes.

Go on, realise the benefits of this wonder vegetable using it in recipes such as the one below - 

You need

1. Cauliflower – 1 medium head
2. Carrot – 1 medium Or Grated Carrot – 1/2 cup
3. Raw mango – 1 small OR Grated mango – 1/4 cup
4. Fresh grated coconut – 2 tsp, optional
5. Salt- 1/2 tsp or more if needed
6. Sugar – 1/4 tsp,optional

For seasoning -

1. Fresh coriander leaves – chopped, 2 tbsp
2. Oil – 1/2 tsp
3. Mustard – 1/4 tsp
4. Asafoetida powder (hing) – a pinch
5. Green chilli – 2, finely chopped

To assemble

1. Break the cauliflower head into small florets.
2. Boil about 1 litre water in a saucepan, add about a tsp of salt to it, drop the florets in the boiling water, turn off the stove, steep for a couple of minutes in the water. Drain, rinse under clean cold water. Now use a steel grater and grate the cauliflower florets into a finer texture.
3. Grate the raw mango, and the carrot too.
4. Toss all the grated veggies together, mix in the coconut, (if using) add salt and sugar and mix well without bruising the vegetables. Add in the chopped coriander too.

5. Heat the oil in a pan, add the mustard, allow to splutter, tip in the chilli and hing, and pour over the salad.

6.Chill for half an hour before serving.

The Birthday Cake

 

Happy Birthday to the bestest husband in the world!

This is a ‘different’ post – one of celebration and love.

I have borrowed the recipe, from Deeba of PAB. Deeba, thank you so much for helping me attempt a birthday cake on my own! I have tried to do justice to the wonderful recipe. Pictures had to taken furtively as the cake was meant to be a surprise for the hubby. Kids were all excited and ‘tried’ to help with the cake making too.

What did  I make?

Two recipes of Deeba’s Eggless chocolate vanilla cake without the chocolate centre, and one recipe of Eggless chocolate walnut cake. The variations for the vanilla cake were I did not use cherries for the topping, did not use vanilla sugar. I used a mixture of sunflower and olive oil and vanilla essence for flavour. For the chocolate cake, I used a mixture of sunflower and olive oil again, Ghiradelli cocoa powder and did not use walnuts for the topping. As I did not have a 6 inch tin, I used a 9 inch one – the cake did not rise much and flattened out. That was useful in a way – I did not have to torte too much for I was going to layer it. . 

I made the cakes a day ahead, cooled them well in the fridge overnight, and then ‘dressed it up’.For decoration, I used Tropolite with minced cherries in it. I used this whipping to sandwich the chocolate cake between the 2 vanilla cakes. For the icing, I used chocolate ganache, again made a day ahead and stored in the fridge. The whipped cream decoration and the birthday message on top were piped on by my 9 year old daughter, I am very proud of her. The chocolate curls were ‘curled out’ from a block of cooking chocolate using a serrated knife.

I need to improve on torting skills.

There, now that I have given you a complete account of the making, some pictures are in order!

Chilled Pasta Salad

Summer bring the best and the worst out of all of us. Think thirsty  parched throats, prickly heat,…and again think tall cool glasses of sherbet, lazy vacation days, at least for school going kids, ice cream, swimming, and of course the season’s best – mangoes! Mango is so rightly called the king of fruits. I am yet to meet a person who does not like this ever so fragrant luscious fruit. Also think chilled salads when you are in no mood to cook your self along with food in a sweltering kitchen. To me, a pasta salad seemed just the answer to a hungry family and a not-ready-to-cook mom, that’s me. Teamed with warm grilled garlic bread, this filling salad left us so happy and content last weekend. I urge you too, do recreate this Indian-Italian piece de resistance in your homes this summer.
What’s good about this dish?

• The meal combines grains(pasta and whole wheat bread), dairy protein (from the curd), fruit and veggies too. Hence it is a complete one pot meal.
• Ripe mangoes and corn add to the vitamin A, B6, C and E levels of the meal, apart from the natural dietary fibre content. 
• A good Potassium content in mangoes makes it a good fruit for people with hypertension. To make the dish more suitable for a hypertensive person, halve the salt used in the recipe.
• Fresh curd is rich in probiotics – the helpful bacteria that are needed for normal functioning and maintenance of stomach and intestines. Fresh curd is also rich in vitamins B and C. Even people with lactose intolerance can usually tolerate curd as the ‘lactose’ sugar is converted to ‘lactic acid’.

Do you need more reasons to try out this fuss-free delicious recipe….
You need

1. Small elbow or bow tie pasta – 250 gm ( I used  half of a 500 gm pack)
2. Sweet corn kernels – 1/2 cup, steamed 
3. Ripe, firm mango (any variety) – finely dice and measure 1 cup.

For the dressing

1. Fresh thick curd, and hung for an hour – 2 cups. Measure the cheese after curd is hung.
2. Onion – very fine minced, 2 tbsp
3. Sugar – 1/2 tsp
4. Black/white pepper powder – 1/2 tsp
5. Salt – 1 heaped tsp
6. Mustard – 1 tsp ( I used ‘Fun foods’ brand - English Mustard)
7. Fresh coriander leaves – finely minced, 2 tbsp
8. Green capsicum (Bell Pepper) – finely minced, 1 tbsp
9. Fresh cream – 2 tbsp (optional, I did not use any)

To assemble

1. Boil pasta for 8-9 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water. Leave to cool in the colander until dressing is ready.
2. Steam the sweet corn kernels for 2 minutes in the microwave oven.
3. Peel and dice the mango as finely as possible without squishing it!
4. Combine all ingredients for dressing in a mixing bowl. Please do not omit any ingredient ( I did not have capsicum and sorely felt it’s absence). Adding cream is your choice though – it helps to give a smooth mouth feel, but does amp up the calories.
5. Once the dressing is mixed in well, add the cooked pasta, corn, and mangoes and toss well.
6. Chill well before serving. I chilled for an hour before garnishing it with more mango slices and served it up, accompanied with warm, cheesy garlic bread.

Notes

• Can use pineapple when mangoes are not in season.
• Can use other vegetables such as carrots too.
• Can use fresh or dried parsley or other fresh herb seasoning. Pudina / mint, however will be too overpowering a flavour.
• Do not omit any ingredient from the ‘dressing’ list. I did not have green bell pepper (capsicum) at the time of assembling this salad and sorely felt it’s need to perk up the dish!