Aviyal - Spicy South Indian Yogurt Stew!

Yogurt has been used in the Indian cuisine for many thousands of years. The west has now discovered the many benefits of cultured milk products like yogurt. The beneficial probiotic bacteria in yogurt help in strengthening the immune system, keeping the digestive tract healthy and providing  much needed protection against infectious bacteria and viruses.

In addtion to the probiotic bacteria goodness, Yogurt is nutritionally rich in calcium, protein and also Vit D. There are a number of ways in which plain unsweetened yogurt can be incorporated into our daily diets. In India yogurt is eaten daily at the end of the meal to help cool off the palate after the spice rich food and also to help get the daily dose of beneficial bacteria. There are several dishes that have been created over the centuries with yogurt as the main ingredient.

Aviyal is a delicious stew made with fresh vegetables simmered in a yogurt sauce and spiced with cumin seeds, curry leaves and coconut. Try this heavenly dish at your next summer party and your guests will surely enjoy the taste of exotic south Indian yogurt stew!

Aviyal         ( serves 4)

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Ingredients: 

3 cups of mixed vegetables (potatoes, carrots, plantains, peas) diced small.

Approx 11/2 cups water

11/2 tsp salt

3 tbsp desiccated unsweetened coconut

2 dried red chili

1 tsp cumin seed powder

5-6 curry leaves

3 cups fresh yogurt( mixed with 1 tbsp heavy cream to prevent yogurt from splitting)

1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 red chili dried ,1 tsp oil.

Cooking instructions

1. Place mixed veggies in water and bring to a boil. Season the veggies with salt if needed. Cover and cook till veggies are tender and turn off the heat.

 2. Grind the coconut, roasted cumin powder and 1 red chili into a fine paste. Turn on the flame and add the paste to the veggies and mix well. Cook for about 2 minutes till mixture heats up. Switch off the flame.

3. Beat the yogurt with a whisk to obtain a smooth consistency and 1 tbsp of heavy cream and mix it well. Check to see if salt is needed and add salt to taste.

Making sure that the flame is switched; add the yogurt slowly, while continuously stirring.

4 Now add the spice infused oil, heat oil in a small pan, add the mustard seeds, when they splutter turn off the heat. Now add red chili, the curry leaves and pour the oil onto the aviyal and mix well. Enjoy with rice!

Beans and carrot poriyal

Summer brings an abundance of vegetables to the farmers markets and among them are green beans and carrots with the carrot tops still on them! This simple yet exotic and very tasty side dish of green beans and carrots seasoned with spices and curry leaves can be a wonderful addition at your next summer party!

Beans and carrot poriyal ( Serves 4)

Ingredients:

     3 cups French cut beans

     1 ½ cups of finely diced carrots

¼ cup grated coconut- fresh or dessicated and unsweetened

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds.

6-7 curry leaves

½ tsp of grated ginger ( can be added in winter cause ginger produces heat in body)

2 tsp oil

Salt per taste

2 dried red chilli,1 tsp urad dal, 1 tsp chana dal

1 tsp roasted cashew nuts (optional)

½ tsp turmeric

Cooking Instructions:

1. Heat oil in pan. Add chana dal and roast for a minute, then add urad dal, mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Let mustard seeds splutter, add curry leaves, grated ginger, turmeric and roasted cashew nuts if using them. Add 2 tbsp of water and place a lid and cook for about 2 minutes till dals cook a little.

2. Then add the carrots and cover with lid and cook on low flame till the raw edge is taken off the carrots.

3. The add the beans and cook for a few more minutes with a lid on.

4. Now add the coconut, and salt and check to see if seasoning is balanced. Serve with rice or as a side dish.

(you may use finely shredded cabbage or shredded carrots, or shredded beets, only peas, a bag of frozen mixed veggies in this recipe.)

Oven Roasted Vegetables.

Roasting vegetables brings out the best in the vegetables. Roasting them makes them more flavorful and increases the depth of the simple yet crisp taste of the vegetable.

I find that almost all vegetables can be roasted to create quick, simple yet tasty sides that can be served warm as is seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, herbs de Provence or just a sprinkling of Italian seasoning! Roasted vegetables also make a wonderful addition to salads to create warm salads on cold wintry nights. They can also be added to pastas to make roasted vegetable pasta, lasagnas or even to cooked quinoa or rice to make a quick and tasty pilaf! It is always handy to have an assortment of oven roasted vegetables in the refrigerator to whip up quick and delicious week day meals.

Oven roasted Red Bell Peppers

Bell Peppers date back to around 5000Bc and originated in South America. They were spread to the rest of the world by the Spanish explorers. They are highly nutritious, versatile and tasty! They come in a variety of colors – green, orange, yellow and red depending n the stage of ripeness. The red bell peppers tend to be easiest to digest and also have the most amount of sweetness. Roasting the red bell peppers intensifies their sweetness and in fact my older son calls it the perfect’ vegetable candy!’

Roasting vegetables is the oven is the simplest of all methods of cooking and helps retain a lot of the nutrition as well. Preheat the oven to 375F, slice the peppers into long and slightly thick strips. Layer them on a sheet pan covered with aluminum foil and coat them with a generous coating of cooking spray. Season lightly with salt, pepper, paprika or any other seasoning of choice and bake in oven for about 25 min till the peppers look slightly charred and roasted. Remove from oven, cool them and store in a glass jar in the refrigerator.

Oven roasted Fennel   

Fennel is very refreshing in taste; it is crunchy, slightly sweet. It is very versatile and can be used in Mediterranean, Italian and Spanish dishes. Add it to your list of must have vegetables from the months of Oct through Apr when it is available in abundance and at its best!  Roasting the Fennel bulb brings out the sweetness of the vegetable.To roast preheat oven to 375 or 400 F, wash, slice and coat the sliced fennel with cooking spray or olive oil and add a dash of balsamic vinegar to intensify the flavor. Roast in oven for 30 min till tender and store them in a glass jar till ready to use.

Oven roasted asparagus

Asparagus is a member of the Lily family and is a very nutritious vegetable. It is in high in Folic Acid and is also a good source of fiber, potassium, vitamins B6, A and C, and thiamin. Roasting the Asparagus stalks after trimming the chewy and thick bottoms brings out the best flavor of the vegetable. The stalks cab be coated with olive oil, lemon juice and seasoned with salt and pepper before roasting. Roasted asparagus makes a great side dish to pasta!

Earthbound farms organic kale!

Calling Kale!

The 'let's eat our greens revolution' has caught on in the US and in our home!  In my conversations with friends and family the one argument that most have against greens is the time it takes to clean, wash and prepare them for cooking. Well, all that has ended for at least one of the greens we all must eat regularly – Kale! Today I was pleasantly surprised to find the Earthbound farms washed and ready to eat organic baby kales 1.5 lb mix in the vegetable section of our local Costco! The sight of the bag really excited me, yippee…no more time consuming washing required, just open the bag and cook away!

I grabbed the bag not sure of the tempting creations I would have to cook up to go through the 1.5 lb bag of the powerhouse greens.

I must admit to having ignored a lot of the greens popular in the western world for many years after my arrival in this country. I used to walk past the kale, chard, collards and dandelion greens admiring them  but unsure of how to turn the leaves into a tasty and healthy gastronomic creations!

The initial hesitation I had to using them changed after watching a few cookshows by holistic nutritionist chefs using the greens and also after reading up about the nutritional value and health benefits of the greens. We have now embraced them and have welcomed them into our cooking space!

Oven Roasted Kale

The first thing I did with the entire bag of Kale was to bake the leaves in the oven. Baking them is a very easy, quick and delicious way to use then Kale. Preheat the oven to 350F and cover a sheet pan with aluminum foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray and heap generous amounts of Kale on the sheet pan. Spray the leaves with the cooking spray as well and place it in the middle rack of the oven. Bake for about 20 min till the leaves wilt and get crisp. You, now have oven baked crisp kale that can be eaten as is with some salt and pepper, added to salads, added to yogurt to make a dip or paired with other vegetables to make pastas or Lasagna.

Here is the recipe for the Butternut Squash and Kale Lasagna, the first dish I prepared with my oven baked Kale!

Butternut squash and Kale Lasagna.

You will need:

Oven ready Lasagna sheets (enough to make three layers in a lasagna dish or a 9x13 inch baking dish).

 4 cups of Baked Kale

4 cups of Baked butternut squash ( The squash is cubed and placed in a hot 400F oven on a foil lined sheet pan , coated with a cooking spray and baked for about 20 min till golden).

3 cups of pasta sauce (tomato based)

1 cup of ricotta cheese, 1 cup of shredded mozzarella and 1 cup of parmesan cheese).

3 tsp of Italian seasoning mix

Salt, pepper and paprika to taste. 

1.   Preheat oven to 375 F or to the temperature suggested by the manufacturer on the Lasagna box.

2.       Mix the ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses in a bowl. Season with salt, pepper and paprika to spice it up.

3.       Grease the bottom of the lasagna or baking pan with cooking spray and start the layering process.

4.       Add a layer of tomato sauce at the bottom of the pan, and then build a layer of oven ready lasagna sheets on top.

5.       Add 2 cups of the kale mixture on top and layer that with cheese mixture. Sprinkle some of the Italian seasoning on top.

6.       Now, add another layer of the lasagna sheets followed by a layer of tomato sauce. Add 2 cups of the butternut squash pieces on top, followed by a sprinkling of the Italian spices, salt, pepper and paprika.

7.       Layer the cheese on top and put the last layer of lasagna sheets. Add the tomato sauce, followed by the remaining kale and squash pieces, add the Italian seasoning and lastly add the cheese on top. Spread evenly.

8.       Cover the pan with a piece of foil, bake for about 30- - 35 min with foil and then remove foil and broil for about 5 -7 min till the cheese browns.

9.       Remove lasagna from the oven, let it rest in the pan for about 10 min. Serve with a side of Salad and voila! You have an extremely nutritious flavorful meal ready!