Vegetarian Recipe Blog
When life gives you a lemon, make lemonade, said somebody. Groovy! But what does one do when given a soaked cup of Toor daal? This was my quandary one weekday evening after getting back from work, when I found myself staring at soaked Toor daal, …
Time and tide waits for none says a 14th century adage and I am sure most of us could not agree with it more. Days fly by at the blink of the eye and even before we realize it months and years have passed by …
It is that time of the year again, when the cold front has set in. The cold makes me want to stay inside, bundle up in some warm clothes, pull up a rug and sip something warm from time to time. And when hunger strikes it makes you crave for something special that makes you feel good both inside and out. The first thing that comes to my mind is hot hearty SOUP with some warm crusty bread.
Both me and my husband are great fans of soups and we have all the time in the restaurants, however I had never ventured trying it out by myself. But after seeing many of Rachael Ray’s cooking shows and the ease with she makes them, by putting together readily available ingredients, in less amount of time, it got me started into trying it out.
I also looked for recipes on the internet that would suit my requirements. Even though there is no dearth of recipes for soup, my main source of idea and inspiration for this soup came from this site here. After going through numerous recipes I finally chalked out this recipe.
I could not help but realize many things while I was cooking this soup. This was the first time I was cooking with celery, navy beans, oregano and that I was not using the usual cumin, mustard, asafetida, curry leaves etc. I also realized that my everyday cooking is mostly vegan and that I hardly use any type of diary products in my cooking. Exceptions are in the case of desserts or the occasional “North-Indian” type of cooking which calls for milk or yogurt. Frankly, I am very pleased with this soup recipe. It is hearty, healthy, thick, chunky and filling. Best of all it is so easy to make and I am sure there will be more of these in the offing.
This is also my contribution to Vegan Ventures hosted by the wonderful and talented Suganya of Tasty Palettes.
Ingredients:
5 mini peppers
1 medium carrot
2 celery sticks
1 can vegetable broth
1 can cooked navy beans (any type of bean is just fine)
1 can diced tomatoes
½ cup pasta
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
Oil
Salt to taste
Preparation:
Chop the peppers, celery into small strips and keep aside.
Peel the carrot and cut it into small discs.
Chop the onions into small pieces and keep aside.
Cook the pasta separately and keep aside.
Method:
Take a heavy bottom pan; add about 2 Tbsps of oil. Add crushed garlic followed by diced onions.
After the onions are sautéed a bit add celery, peppers and carrots and cook for a while.
Next add the can of diced tomatoes, vegetable broth and part of the Navy beans and mix well.
Make a paste of the remaining beans and then add it to the above.
Yummy and delicious soup is ready to be served with warm bread!
Here’s raising toast to the much awaited and anticipated time of the week, the weekend. Ah! The sweet joy, relaxation and freedom associated with the weekend after a major grind parallels none. It all beings Friday evening after calling it quits at work, suddenly things …
I usually enjoy the drive back home from work sans the traffic of course. That is the time when I am done with the major grind of the day; away from the noise, tension, pressure, people etc. That is the time when I am by …
Cauliflower next only to Cabbage has been a favorite vegetable of mine. I enjoy eating them in any cooked form; however I love them best when they are transformed into this dry Sabzi with a mix of potatoes. I feel that it is very comforting, appetizing and also pleasing to the taste palettes. Another reason to love this cauliflower recipe is because it is so easy to make especially during the hectic weekdays. The cooking work is divided between microwave and the cook top and the dish gets done in no time at all. Cauliflower is also available all the year around in the groceries and provides a good break from the usual eggplants, Okra, cabbage etc.
This is my contribution to Srivalli’s Microwave Easy Cooking (MEC). This is not completly cooked in microwave as part of it is done on the stove top as well. Srivalli has however garciously agreed to accept this for her event.
Ingredients
1 medium cauliflower
1 medium potato
1 small onion
½ cup peas
2 cloves garlic
Green chillies
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Turmeric
Chilli powder
Jeera, mustard
Oil
Salt to taste
Preparation:
Cut the cauliflower into florets and wash it thoroughly.
Peel the potato and dice it into small cubes.
Chop the onions into small pieces and keep aside.
Crush the garlic and chop it into pieces. Slit the green chillies into 2 halves as well.
Method:
Take a microwave safe bowl, add enough water and put the potato into it. Microwave for about 4 minutes. Make sure that the potato is almost cooked.
Then add the peas and the cauliflower florets and microwave for another 3 minutes. Drain the water completely and keep aside.
Take a heavy bottom pan, add about 2 Tbsps of oil. Add jeera, mustard and let it splutter.
Add diced garlic, mix it well and let it turn brown. Then add green chillies and diced onions.
After the onions are sautéed and turned transparent, add salt and turmeric chilli powder and mix well.
Next add the cooked cauliflower, potato, peas to this and mix well.
Add more turmeric and salt and sprinkle water if necessary.
Lastly garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
Serve with Rotis/ phulkas or with Rice.
He has at least 17 different varieties of tea, green tea, rice tea, jasmine tea, rose tea, mango tea etc 8 books on tea, 2 videos, countless print outs on the benefits of tea, tea maker, innumerable tea cups, glasses, 5 tea strainers, tea bags …