Rasaswad

 This is the secret that I still hadn't managed to learn from mom. Here it goes:  Take 4 parts whole dhana (coriander seeds), and roast them a few minutes on a very slow flame. The trick is to not roast them all the way, but just until they get warm, a bit crunchy, and slightly fragrant. Remove in a plate and let cool. Take 1 part jeeru (cumin seeds), and also roast it (not as much as you would for say, Shekelu jeeru). Again, just enough till it gets warm. Let it also cool. Coarsely grind each of them separately, and mix together. In a vaghariyu, heat a bit of oil, add hing, and add it to the spice mix. Now add a few whole red chillies (mainly to keep insects away). Once it's cool completely, fill into an airtight container.  This now belongs in your everyday masala dabba. 

 It's weird how I never wrote this one down. It was a staple in graduate school, and it's a super forgiving recipe..adapting to "whatever you manage to have on hand"...you'll see that theme here: Heat about 2-3 tbsp oil in a pan, add 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp ginger paste (jar is ok), 1 tbsp minced garlic (or garlic paste), and saute for a few seconds. Add one finely chopped red onion (or two if they are small, or white onion..whatever you have on hand is fine). Saute for a few minutes until onion turns slightly brown around the edges. Add 1 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp red chilli powder, 1 tbsp coriander powder (or coriander cumin powder, whichever you have on hand), 1 tsp raw mango powder (amchur, optional), 1 tsp chole masala (optional. Can also add garam masala). Saute all the spices for a few more seconds. Add a splash of water if needed to avoid burning the spices. Then add 1 can peeled and ground tomatoes (or use fresh, or tomato sauce, whichever you have on h...

The devil is in the details on this one...  11/2 cup w hole wheat flour +  1/2 cup  rice flour +  1/2 tbs  salt +  1/2 tsp  crushed pepper +  1 tsp  whole raw cumin.  3 tbsp  oil + 1 tbsp ghee warmed up and make muthi padtu mon. Make a stiff (but not too stiff) dough using very warm water (a bit over a cup) and set aside for half an hour or so. Knead well, and roll into big rotis. Dock with fork, and cut with a small cookie cutter. Dry on a paper while you roll the rest. Heat oil (fairly high heat), and then add lots of them at the same time. Keep the heat relatively high, so the oil temperature doesn't drop too much. Turn them a couple of times, and drain. Sprinkle some sanchal + mari powder. Cool and store in airtight container. 

 Was a great centerpiece for Thanksgiving this year.  Peel, core and dice 4 large apples. Roast 1 cup walnut in the oven, and chop it.  Butter and flour the bundt pan, preheat oven at 350.  In the mixer bowl, add 3 eggs, 1 cup white sugar, 3/4 cup light brown sugar, 11/4 cup oil, 2 tsp vanilla. Mix. Sprinkle 1 tsp fine salt, 2 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp baking soda. Then add 21/2 cups AP flour (I was running out, so ended up using some cake flour). Mix the batter until mixed. Add the apples and walnuts and mix lightly. Add to the pan, and bake for about an hour.  Glaze: Toast some more walnuts. Caramalize sugar. Add butter and milk, and a tiny pinch of salt. Cook. In case it curdles, run hand blender. Add some powdered sugar to get the needed consistency. Decorate the cake. https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/apple-walnut-bundt-cake

 My impulse buy during the pandemic was a kitchenaid bread bowl with baking lid. Here's the recipe:  In the bowl, add 2 cups AP flour, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour, 2 tsp instant yeast, 11/2 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp kosher salt, 2 tbsp butter and 1 cup warm water. Mix/knead for 5 minutes with the kneading hook. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes to an hour. At this point, they recommend removing it and folding edges. I just did it in the bowl, with a bread spatula, and it seemed to work fine. Let rise for another half hour. Flour the lid, and put the shaped loaf on it, make cuts, cover and cook in 375 oven for 35 minutes. Serve with loads of butter and fleur de sel!   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kmsBCZEoL4

 Peel and quarter Kohlrabi, add olive oil, salt, pepper and roast in 425 degrees oven until brown (about half an hour, turning a few times in between). Add chopped parsley and grated permesan and serve.  https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/roasted-kohlrabi-with-parmesan-3561919

This is actually a slightly different version of Wolfgang Puck's famous soup recipe. The thing is, it's also his own recipe from an old video, and I like it better, mainly because of the honey.  Cut open a butternut squash, remove seeds. Apply a bit of olive oil, sprinkle some salt and papper, and bake in a 425 degrees oven for about half an hour (or until it's properly cooked). Remove the pulp with a spoon and set aside. In a pot, heat some olive oil and butter, add half a chopped onion, saute for a few minutes. Add cinnamon, dry ginger powder, and cardamom. Add veg stock (or water), cream, and honey and reduce for a few minutes. Add the squash pulp, mix and blend using a stick blender (or regular blender). Cook for a few more minutes, and adjust the consistency as needed.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K63GLrvN9No

 This really does make things easier when entertaining folks for a brunch.  Syrup: boil together 4 cups apple cider, 2 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp brown sugar, and vanilla for about half an hour until syrapy. Preheat oven to 425. In a cast iron pan, add 2 tbsp butter, add peeled and sliced apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Cook for a few minutes till apples are softer. In a bowl, mix together 3 eggs, 3/4 cup milk, 3/4 cup flour, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon and set aside. Wipe the pan clean and heat on the gas for a few minutes until really hot, then add apples and pour the batter on top. Immediately move the pan to the oven and bake for about 12 minutes. Pour the syrup on top and serve.  https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/apple-dutch-baby

 Wash tindoras and remove stems on both ends. Thinly slice them (lengthwise). Apply a bit of salt. Heat oil, add mustard seeds, hing and add the tindora. Stir fry for a minute or so, cover and let cook on simmer. Add peeled and sliced potato (I had a parboiled one that I used, which worked really well). In a small bowl, mix together some fresh grated coconut, cilantro, turmeric, red chilli powder, dhania-jeera powder, and sugar to taste. Once the tindora are semi-cooked, add the masala mix to the pot, and cook everything together for a few minutes. Serve hot with fresh rotlis.  

 In a thick bottomed pan, heat 1 tbsp ghee, add 1/2 cup fine broken wheat (jheeni lapsi), and roast on a low flame till golden brown (about 10 minutes). Add 1/2 cup water and 1 cup milk, mix, bring to a boil, cover and simmer till all the liquid is absorbed. Add 1/2 cup sugar, stir, cover and simmer for a few more minutes. Add some crushed cardamom and serve.   

 This is hands down my more favorite sweet, and I still struggle to really get it right...plus those recipes that require two different sugar syrups and such seem too fussy. Here's one I found that's fairly streamlined, and worked ok. I wouldn't say great, but can hit the spot.  Add 2 tbsp white vinegar to 1 cup water. Bring 1 litre milk to a boil. Once the milk comes to a full boil, add the vinegar mixture and immediately turn off the gas. Milk will separate. Put a thin, wet kitchen towel on a strainer, and strain out the whey. Add some water to "wash" the chenna. Tie and hang for half an hour or so. Remove the chenna in a plate, and knead until soft and pliable. In a large pot (I washed and used the same pot), heat 1 cup sugar, 5 cups water, 4 whole cardamom broken,  and 2 tbsp of kewda water. While the syrup heats, make smooth balls from the chenna dough. Once the syrup comes to a boil, add the balls, cover, and cook on a high flame for 5 mins. Stir, reduce the...

 Soak whole moong, whole udad and chana daal. In a pressure cooker, add this, plus crushed ginger garlic and chilli paste, turmeric, red chilli powder, dhania powder, salt and butter and cook for 3-4 whistles.  Make a tadka with cloves, cumin, onion, ginger garlic paste, tomatoes, masalas and add to the daal. Boil, and add butter.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBo3T2Yt3TQ&t=21s

 Fafda:  200 gm Besan (I took about 12/3 cups) - sieve (do not skip) + 1/2 tsp each of salt, papad khar, ajwain + 1 tbsp oil. In one version, I mixed hing and papad khar in water, and added that to the dough. Make a semi-soft dough with water, and knead for about 4-5 minutes. Set aside for 10-15 mins. Heat oil in a kadhai, dip the whole dough in hot oil and knead. Repeat that process a few times, and then make small, oblong shape balls. On a wooden chopping board, push the fafda with the palm of your hand, and remove it with a very thin knife in the opposite direction. Then fry on low-medium heat. Sprinkle with blak salt and black pepper powder.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OODx6IrHoYo&t=202s Jalebi:  In a small pot, add 1 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup water and heat until sugar dissolves. Add saffron, and let it come to boil twice. Turn off the heat, and add some cardamom powder. Set aside. In a shallow pan, heat oil for about an inch or so, and add a tbsp of ghe...

 This is a riff on the original lonavala fudge, but slightly healthier and faster. In a vitamix, grind walnuts (plus throw in some almonds, cashews and pistachios too) with a bit of sugar until it turns almost into a butter. Remove. Now grind majdool dates (I happened to be using the dry grinder). Add back the nuts, coco powder, milk powder, some ghee, and a splash of vanilla. Grind everything till it all mixes well. Take out in a plate, then microwave in two bursts of 30 seconds, mixing in between. Add more ghee as required, grease hands and make small balls. Cool and store. 

Devil is in the details on this one. Wash, peel and grate russet potatoes with a large grater. Do not rinse. Put in a kitchen towel and squeeze. Cover with towel and microwave for two minutes. Add salt, pepper. Heat oil + ghee in a shallow pan, add potatoes, flatten with spatula, and cook on medium high heat for two minutes on each side.  https://www.seriouseats.com/shredded-hash-browns-recipe 

 Daal (Moong Mosur Daal): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRhmYqTJP0w Raw Banana veg:  (kacha kelar dalna) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yq3TzV5oYwc

 Baby M. loves her junk food, so here goes:  Sieve together about 2 cups of besan, add salt to taste, abt half a tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp red chilli powder, 1/2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder. Heat oil in a kadhai. Add about 4-5 tbsp hot oil in the besan and mix with a spoon (the oil is hot). Then add water until you get a semi-soft dough (somewhere between a batter and dough). Now with the spoon, stir the batter/dough for a few minutes to aerate the dough slightly. Add to  a well oiled Sev machine, and make sev in oil on high heat. Fry on both sides for about 20-30 seconds each and remove on kitchen paper. Sprinkle black salt + kashmiri red chilli powder mix. Store in an airtight container once cool. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RZ1Pkdx07U

Spice mix: salt + sugar + haldi + mirch + amchur + sanchal (black salt). I didn't add saunf powder, because I didn't have the time.  Fry corn flakes, daliya, peanuts and curry leaves and sprinkle spice mix.   https://www.nehascookbook.com/cornflakes-chivda-how-to-make-cornflakes-chivda-makai-chivda-recipe/

 Peel the raw mango. Then either use the peeler for making thin strips or make a small dice. Add some salt and set aside for a while (5-10 mins) In a pan, heat ghee + add mango + salt and saute. Once the mango softens, take it off the flame. Take the mango out. In the same pan, take the same amount of gol as the cooked mango, one to two "changla" (handful) water. Once the gol is wet, heat it, till it forms a drop when dropping (not syrup). Then add the mango, reduce the flame and put tadka on top (ghee +rai + red chilli powder). Add some saunf or whole crushed dhana. Then turn off the gas. 

 Focaccia:   In a mixer bowl, mix together 11/4 cups warm water + 11/2 tsp salt + 2 tsp instant yeast + 2 tbsp olive oil.  I added about 3 cups of A.P. flour, and mixed using the dough blade for about 5-7 minutes. Towards the end, ddd about 1/4 cup chopped calamata olives and 1/4 cup of chopper green stuffed olives. Also added about half a package of the grated quatro frommagio cheese from TJ. Take the dough out, oil the bowl, put the dough back, cover with oil, and then cover the bowl with foil/plastic wrap and let it rise for 11/2 hours. I then refrigerated overnight (optional). Next morning let the down come back to room temperature. In a 8X8 pan, oil, then the dough, then more oil, fleau de sal, chopped fresh rosemary and a small handful of grated cheese. Let it rise again for 45 minutes to an hour. Make dimples with finger. Bake in 425 oven for about 30 minutes or so. Let cool on a wire rack.  https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/cheese-and-herb-stuffed-foca...

 As someone married to a Sindhi, I should have perfected this by now, but I often forget small details, and like all simple recipes, it's the details that matter here. So here they are: Version 1:  Mix whole wheat flour, diced red onion, chopped cilantro, (optional: spring onion), finely chopped green chillies (less spicy variety), cracked whole dhania, and salt. Add oil for mon (not too much, but decent amount). Keep this mixture ready, and then only make the dough for 2-3 kokis at a time, since adding all the water initially might make the dough soggy. Add water to make a semi-soft dough. It should be harder than rotis and softer than puris. Roll a thick roti, and roast on a low-medium flame on each side till about half done and set aside. Make all the kokis like this, and then when ready to eat, roast it with ghee on each side. Should be crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. I also make small slots with the spoon or the spatula, so the ghee seeps in and it cooks mor...

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COBfHUaNTqE Wheat flour + salt + Ghee + water  = soft dough. Knead and set aside. Mix minced garlic, green chillies, cilantro, ghee, salt and pepper. Portion and roll into a thin chapati. spread the garlic-chilli mix, with a knife, make very long slits, leaving the edges (like making a fried karela). Then roll it, pull slightly, roll into a disk, roll again, and roast with ghee. Crush vertically to separate the layers. 

 Quick breakfast for a weekend - perfect bite size pieces for tiny fingers to grab. I sauted the veggies first (only so it's easier for the baby). In a shallow pan, add oil, finely chopped red onion, red bell pepper, grated carrot and peas. Mash the peas roughly to avoid choking hazard. Remove in a bowl, add sooji, a bit of besan, yoghurt, salt, pepper, chopped cilantro, baking powder and water. Heat oil in the same pan, and make small pancakes, cover and cook. Turn, leave the pan open, and cook on the other side. Cut up into bite size pieces and serve on a high chair tray :-)  Original recipe here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoEOcWTM8go&t=360s

 Here are some things that have been working for her at around seven months:  Breakfasts:  Salty oats - sindhi style with salt, whole black pepper, black cardamom and tadka of mustard seeds. Sweet oats  - also add whole black pepper and black cardamom Sheera - while wheat, sooji, daliya Khichu (Rice flour, yoghurt) Daliya khichdi (Nisha Madhulika's recipe works) - 1/2 cup daliya, roasted in ghee, 1/2 cup soaked moong daal, 4 cups water, salt, haldi, multigrain setting in IP. Tadka - ghee, jeera, hing, tomato, cooked veggies (beans, carrots, peas, peppers)  Daliya Bhatt (Thari waro bhatt) - ghee, whole jeera, 1/2 cup daliya, roast. Add 5 cups water, a pinch of salt, a few whole black peppercorn (and a pinch of ajwain in the winter). Cook in IP for 50 minutes at high pressure. Add about 1/2 cup gud and let it melt. Serve with more ghee.  Upama (Sooji, masala oats) Ragi - Hurihittu has been a lifesaver. Heat it with some milk, sugar, cardamom powder, and cook ...