Vegetarian Zest

My childhood memories are mostly related to food. Food cooked by my avva (grandma,) trips to udipi restaurant, eagerly waiting for magi noodles on Saturdays, first trip to Nirulas, bhelpuri and bajjis on a beach, momos at kullu…there are a lot more. The recent memories of food if you ask me would always be home cooked food by my dearest ma. I always long to be home where I can just sit without thinking what to be cooked and still get the best food laid and being pampered to eat. My mom has got cooking genes from my grandmother, who would cook for a large family and still be ready for more. I still not understand how she managed to cook for a family of ten (plus) relatives who were regular visitors. Last summer when I went to Delhi, I specially asked for this mango curry (Mamadi pandu Pulusu…in Telugu) I’m very sure that every south Indian family knows about this curry and has their own way of making it…just like sambaar. Watching mom making this was an excellent way to learn....

Here’s this bitterly sweet recipe that I've been dying to share with you. As a kid there was this one veggie that I have always found super intimidating was – Bitter Gourd. As years have grown by, I have started liking mom’s Punjabi style karela recipe. Mom was behind me to use it on a regular basis as it helps in controlling blood sugar levels. Did I ever mention that she made me drink bitter gourd juice every morning on an empty stomach to control my blood sugars? Actually it helps. It has plant insulin which brings down your sugar levels. Back to the recipe…I saw it…I grabbed it....and then I got home, and didn't really know what to do with it. I have always eaten at my Delhi home but never made it myself. Googled but wasn’t very sure. One international call, jotted the recipe on back of the grocery bill and decided to make it instantly. --> Ingredients Bitter Gourd/ Karela 2 Chopped onions (1 medium size) Chopped tomatoes (2 medium size) Crus...

Lunch on any weekday (alone) is always uneventful. I usually eat quick bite while watching television. I get excited to cook on weekends when I and hubby eat together. These days we eat out in the patio as it is warm and sunny. For most parts of the world summer has begin but down here  it’s cold so we enjoy the sun. I made red pumpkin soup around 4ish. This is the time when you don’t feel like having coffee but still crave for something to fill your bellies. Hubby would have preferred a pack of Doritos but I wanted to make something healthy. There is nothing in it that is exotic or unavailable. You can even make this for dinner parties and trust me everyone will love it and you can pat yourself on the back, because it's just so easy… minimalist cooking. Ingredients Red pumpkin (diced) 1 cup Boiled chickpea ½ cup Garlic cloves 5 to 6 Fresh cream 1 tablespoon Olive oil 2 tablespoons Black pepper powder 1 teaspoon Salt to taste Water 1 ½ cups In a pressure ...

I haven't been in the kitchen much in the past few weeks… blame it on the jet lag, cold whether or simple laziness. What ever I did cook was nothing worth writing about. The other day I watching BBC lifestyle channel and saw Bill’s cookery show. The spaghetti salad recipe really caught my eyes and I instantly wanted to give a try. But this is not India, where I can just grab my wallet and go grocery shopping. I had to wait for my weekend trip to the farmer's market and bought our weekly stock of veggies and cottage cheese. The recipe asks for few things like cherry tomatoes and olives that are usually not bought by Indian households but this is worth buying because olives do tastes good with herbed paneer and tomatoes. So here goes the recipe…which has been slightly tweaked to suit my Indian taste. Ingredients Spaghetti 1 ounce Garlic cloves minced 3-4 Tomato(small) pureed 1 Cherry tomatoes 4-5 Mixed herbs Diced capsicum Cubes of paneer Olives 4-5 Cor...