KIDNEY BEANS WITH COTTAGE CHEESE

I love to create drama in my life.

It puts a smile , a twinkle in the eyes of people I love and care about...my family and friends.
A little prank here and a little twist there.
What better way to do that than with colour.
This dish is just that....a prank and a twist.
The result was amazing.
One morning my 17 year old son came and told me that he wanted to invite his school friends for lunch.
And told me sternly that he expected good food as his friends expect me to cook well, and as an after-thought added, with a sheepish smile, that I should have cottage cheese (his favourite)  in my menu.
Well, I decided to give him what he desired but with a twist.


tomato rice with kidney beans with cottage cheese



Usually, I make kidney beans in a red coloured gravy but I decided to give it a little twist and serve it in a white gravy where I use nuts.

And then he threw the bomb-shell. One of his friends was allergic to nuts.

I also had another problem with my menu...there were now two dishes rich in protein.
So here is what I did. It turned out perfect.



Kidney Beans with Cottage Cheese



KIDNEY BEANS WITH COTTAGE CHEESE:

serves 8

Ingredients:

.Kidney Beans...............................2 cups, soak overnight

.Water...........................................4 cups
.Salt...............................................to taste

.Cottage cheese.............................1 cup, cut into 1 inch pieces

for the gravy:

.Red onions....................................3, medium-sized

.Garlic............................................2 cloves

.Ginger...........................................1/2 inch piece, finely chopped

.Green chili.....................................1 tsp, finely chopped

.Water............................................1/2 cup

.Black pepper powder....................1/2 tsp



.Yogurt...........................................3/4th cup

.Ricotta Cheese...............................1/4th cup

.Coriander powder..........................2 tsp.

.Garam masala powder....................1/4th tsp.

.Nutmeg..........................................1/2 smidgen

.Cinnamon sticks..............................2

.Bay leaf...........................................2

.Vegetable Oil..................................1 tsp.

.Butter..............................................1 tsp.

.Salt..................................................to taste

Method:

.Soak the Kidney beans overnight.



.Wash and cook with 4 cups of water, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 bay leaf and salt to taste in a pressure cooker for 

  half an hour or until well cooked.

.Remove the cooking liquid* in a bowl and rinse the kidney beans. Set aside.

 for the gravy:

.Slice the onions and cut chili, garlic, ginger as required by the recipe.

.In a pan combine the onion, garlic, ginger and green chilies an boil till the onions are softened. Cool to

 room temperature.

.In a blender add the onion mixture, yogurt, ricotta cheese, coriander powder, garam masala, nutmeg and

 black pepper powder and blend to a smooth paste.



How to proceed:

.Heat oil  and butter in a pan.

.Add 1 cinnamon stick and 1 bay leaf.

.When fragrant add the onion paste and fry for 3 to 4 minutes or until the oil floats to the surface.

.Add a little water to get a sauce consistency. Simmer for 3 minutes.

.Add the rinsed and drained kidney beans.cook for 5 to 7 minutes.

.Add the cottage cheese and further cook for 5 minutes.

.Serve hot with Tomato flavoured rice.

Note:

*.Do not discard the cooking liquid. You can use it to cook the rice.



CAULIFLOWER AND PEAS EXOTICA

Hi Friends,
Colour and the nutritive values of vegetables and fruits absolutely inspire me to create new recipes.

I have always been fascinated by the maroon colour of the beetroot and so to offset that colour came my cauliflower and peas exotica. It truly is exotic. I love the flavour of the coriander and yogurt in this dish.
It is a very very simple dish to make.

I created this dish inspired by a very clean kitchen!!

"THIS IS A SELF CLEANING KITCHEN. CLEAN IT AFTER YOURSELF''.
For once this quotation in my kitchen worked, leaving a sparklingly clean kitchen, after my husband and children surprised me with a great breakfast in bed.
On the black granite worktop I found beetroots, a bunch of coriander leaves and cauliflower which couldn't

 find a place in my already oozing refrigerator. They looked so beautiful together that I had to use them.


cauliflower and peas exotica



Apart from the fabulous colours this combination gives dietary fiber, folate, vitamin C, other vitamins, protein, minerals, has anti-cancer properties and is low in fat. The best way to use cauliflower is stir frying,steaming or microwaving. Boiling reduces the level of nutrients as water soluble nutrients are lost in the water that is used for boiling.

I love to use the green cauliflower for this preparation. I call it the Pagoda Cauliflower though it is known as



the Romanesco broccoli. Unfortunately, it is not always available.





I will talk about beetroot and coriander another day.

CAULIFLOWER AND PEAS EXOTICA:





Ingredients:

.Cauliflower................................500gm.

.Peas............................................1 cup

.Oil...............................................1 tsp.

.Cumin seeds...............................1 tsp.

.Green chili..................................1/2, finely chopped

.Asafoetida powder(optional)......a pinch

.Red chili powder.........................1/2 tsp.

.Coriander powder.......................3 tsp.

.Turmeric powder.........................1/4th tsp.

.Garam masala powder.................1/4th tsp.

.Salt...............................................to taste

.Yogurt..........................................1/4th cup.

.Coriander chutney*......................2 Tbsp.

Method:

.Trim the cauliflower and cut into florets.

.Steep in a large bowl with salted tepid water for 15 minutes.

.Wash thoroughly. Drain.

.Par-steam or blanche the cauliflower florets in salted water.(I prefer to steam cauliflower along with 

 peas in the microwave for 3 minutes).

.Heat 1 tsp. oil in a pan.

.Add the asafoetida powder and cumin seeds.

.When cumin seeds crackle add the green chili.

.In a bowl mix together yogurt, red chili powder,coriander powder, turmeric powder, garam masala,

 coriander chutney and salt to taste.

.Mix well and add to the cumin seeds in the pan.

.Mix well.

.Add the prepared cauliflower and peas.

.Cover with a lid that fits snugly and cook on a low heat till dry and cooked, about 10 minutes.

.Serve hot with beetroot puris.

Coriander chutney:

Ingredients:

.Coriander leaves...................3 cups, very tightly packed, roughly chopped

.Green chili............................3 roughly chopped

.Ginger...................................1/2 inch piece, roughly chopped

.Garlic....................................1 medium sized clove

.Asafoetida powder................2 pinches

.Cumin seeds..........................1 1/2 tsp.

.Lemon juice...........................1 Tbsp.

Method:

.Grind into a paste or chutney.

.Add 1/8th cup of water if required to get a smooth consistency.

.Store this chutney in an airtight glass jar in the refrigerator or make cubes of 1 Tbsp. each and freeze,

 just like the spinach chutney.

Note:

.Asafoetida is very widely used in Indian cuisine. It has a distinct flavour.

.It is also known for it's medicinal properties.

.Helps in digestion and removal of wind from the stomach.

.Colic pain in children is cured by applying a mixture of a pinch of asafoetida powder and 1/2 to 1 tsp.

 water, on the navel of the baby. It works wonders.

.Turmeric powder is another ingredient common to Indian cuisine. It too has medicinal properties, antiseptic

 in nature, is used often added to warm milk when injured or have a sore throat, cough and cold.

cauliflower and peas exotica

(couldn't resist putting another picture of this awesome colour combination)

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