cookbypassion

Black beans are classified as legumes. Like other legumes, such as peanuts, peas and lentils, black beans are high in protein and fiber. The black beans are very popular in Latin American Cuisine. These beans are Native to Americans but has been introduced all over the world.  Quinoa is a flowering plant in amaranth family. It is a annual plant grown as a grain crop primarily for edible seeds. Quinoa is closely related to edible plants like beetroot, spinach and amaranth. Quinoa seeds are processed to remove the outer layer which tastes  bitter. The seeds are cooked just like we cook rice and can be used in wide range of dishes. Quinoa is Gluten free, high in protein and it is easy to digest. Consumption of Whole Grains lowers the rice of several diseases. They are a source of carbohydrates, multiple nutrients and dietary fiber. Whole grain sources include Cereals, Minor cereals and Pseudocereals. Today's post is about Quinoa which comes under Pseudocereal type of whole grains. As

The Oat is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed. Oats are suitable for human consumption as oatmeal and rolled oats. Oats are considered as healthiest grains on Earth. They are Gluten-free whole grains and a great source of fiber, protein, vitamin  B, carbohydrates and several dietary minerals. As we are doing Whole Grain recipes for this week,  today's dish is with Oats. Instant Oats Idly, healthy and delicious dish to have for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Great way to feed your kids and family. This recipe goes to the 2nd day of week 4, BM 77, under the theme " Recipes with whole grains". Ingredients: Quaker Oats 1 cup Sooji / Wheat rava 1/2 cup Curd 1/2 cup Grated carrots 1/2 cup ( optional) Peas 1/4 cup ( optional) Chopped green chili 1 spoon Chopped cilantro / coriander leaves 1 tablespoon Salt to taste Eno fruit salt 1/2 spoon Water as required For Tempering: Curry leaves 5 Mustard seeds 1/2 spoon Cumin seeds 1/2 spoon Chana dal 1 spoon Chopped ginger 1/2 spo

Mujaddara is a rice dish cooked with lentils and caramelized onions. According to Wikipedia Mujaddara is a Arabic word for "pockmarked" the lentils among the rice resembles pockmarks. This dish contains of rice, lentils and meat and served during celebrations. Without meat it was a medieval Arab dish commonly consumed by poor. Because of its importance in the diet, there is a saying in the Eastern Arab world " A hungry man would be willing to see his soul for a dish of Mujaddara". Today we are starting with 4th week of Blogging Marathon 77. My theme for this week is "Recipes with Whole Grains". Whole Grain is a grain of any cereal  that contains the endosperm , germ and barn. The Cereal varieties include Wheat, Rice, Barley, Oats and Maize. For day 1, am here  with a healthy, simple yet delicious Lebanese rice dish " Mujaddara". This recipe needs rice and lentils as main ingredients. I have used brown rice and brown lentils here, you can replace

Cabbage is an abundant source of Vitamin C. You might be surprised to know cabbage is actually richer in Vitamin C than in oranges, which is considered the best source of the vital nutrient. Cabbage is very helpful in treating ulcers, depression, immune system boosting, certain cancers and defending against cough and cold.  Cabbage is also rich in fiber, it helps retain water and maintains the bulkiness of the food. So it is a good remedy for constipation and other digestion related problems. Very good for weight loss too. Kids do not like cabbage but I make sure I add this vegetable once a week in our meal. Today I have served rice along with Cabbage poriyal, plain dal and curd.This recipe goes to the 3rd day of  Blogging Marathon 77, week 3 under the theme " Healthy Weekday Lunches". Ingredients: Cabbage  2 cups ( shredded  / chopped) Frozen / Fresh peas 1/2 cup Grated fresh coconut 1/4 cup Curry leaves 6 Chopped cilantro 1/4 cup Turmeric powder 1/2 spoon Chili powder 1/2 s

Brinjal / Vankaya tomato curry is a popular south Indian dish served with hot rice. Brinjal can be combined with any vegetable, sure its going to be a tasty one. This simple dish goes to the 2nd day of Blogging Marathon 77 for week 3 under the theme " Healthy Weekday Lunches" Here goes the recipe..... Ingredients: Brinjal 6 Tomato 1 large chopped Onion 1 medium sliced Green chili 1 Curry leaves 4 Turmeric powder 1/2 spoon Chili powder 1/2 spoon Dhaniya / Corinader powder 1/2 spoon Salt to taste Oil 4 spoons Chopped cilantro Preparation: Cut the head of brinjals and cut into bite size pieces.  Add all the cut pieces in water so that they don't taste bitter  and change color when you cook. Heat oil in presser cook and add sliced onions and curry leaves. Brown the onions little bit, now add tomatoes and chopped green chili. Also add turmeric powder and mix well, cook till tomatoes turn soft. Now add brinjal pieces, coriander powder, chili powder and salt to taste. Add 1 cup

This Restaurant style mixed veg  kurma is simple yet delicious one, good to go with chapati , parotta or Poori. Ground cashew, poppy and coconut paste turns this dish into a  rich gravy along with the veggies. In Northern part of India they use yogurt and cashew to make a gravy. But in Southern part of India we use coconut, cashew and poppy seeds as main ingredients for the  gravy. Choose any style but for sure its going to be a delicious and rich Kurma made in just few minutes. I like to cook simple and healthy dishes for DH, kids and for myself during weekday. Once in a while unhealthy is ok too......hahahaha. Today as I was having  friends for lunch make this yummy and rich mixed veg kurma, along with Veg Dum Biryani .  This recipe goes to the 1st day of Blogging Marathon 77 for week 3 under the theme " Healthy Weekday Lunches". Here goes the recipe......... Ingredients: Frozen Mixed Vegetables 2 cup ( carrot, beans, peas, corn etc....) Onion 1 small sliced Tomato 1 medium

Idly podi  is a  course or smooth powder made out of mixture of ground spices. South Indians typically use this podi as a condiment with idly, dosa, utappam and many other dishes. People even love to have this spice powder with some hot rice and ghee. There any many versions for this spice powder, main ingredients being udad dal, chana dal, curry leaves and dry red chilies.   This recipe goes to 3rd day of BM 77 for week 1 under the theme " Condiments". Here goes the recipe...... Ingredients: Curry leaves 1/2 cup Chana dal 1/4 cup Udad dal 1/2 cup Sesame seeds 1/4 cup Red chilies 20 Hing / asafoetida 1/2 spoon Salt to taste Oil 2-3 spoons Preparation: Heat a pan and dry roast sesame seeds until golden brown. Remove and set aside. Now dry roast red chilies till they change color. Set aside. Dry roast curry leaves till they turn crisp. Now roast chana dal and udad dal till nice aroma comes out. Now add all the roasted ingredients, salt and hing into blender. Blend until smooth

Thai curry powder is used in most of the Thai recipes. Do not confuse between Indian curry powder and Thai curry powder. Indian Curry powder need some more whole spices, where as Thai curry powder need very few ingredients.  This curry powder gives meat or vegetable curries a spicy Thai taste. You can add some more red chilies to the recipe if you like spicy food. This curry powder is the main Ingredient in preparation of   Thai Pineapple Fried Rice. This recipes goes to Week 1, Day 2 of BM 77 under the theme "Condiments". Here goes the recipe........ Ingredients: Bay leaves 3 Coriander seeds 3 table spoons Cumin seeds 2 table spoons Turmeric powder 1 table spoon Black peppercorns 1 tea spoon Red chilies 3 ( more if you like spicy) Whole cloves 4 Cinnamon stick 1  Preparation: Dry roast all the ingredients on low flame for 5 to 6 minutes. Let the spices cool down completely. Blend the roasted ingredients in coffee grinder or regular grinder to fine powder. Store in air tight

Condiments are supplemental food such as sauces, spices or chutneys, which are added to a particular dish to enhance the flavor. There is a huge list of condiments which are used all over the world.  Today we are starting with 1st Week of Blogging Marathon 77. I will be posting 3 different "Condiments", which is my theme for this week. Cucumber & Carrot raita will be my 1st post for the week. Simple yet delicious raita served along side Spicy Biryani's, Pulao's or any Indian Bread. Carrot gives nice color and cucumber is best to beat this hot weather. Cucumber and curds is a perfect summer cooler too.  Adding little roasted cumin powder to raita gives  nice flavor to it. Here goes the recipe...... Ingredients: Curds / Yogurt 1 cup Chopped cucumber 1/2 cup Grated Carrots 1/4 cup Chopped cilantro 3 spoons Chopped Green chilies 1/4 spoon (optional) Salt to taste Roasted cumin powder 1/4 spoon Preparation: Using whisk beat yogurt into smooth paste. Add chopped cilantr