Rasaswad

Boil, peel, cool, and dice 2-3 russet potatoes. Soak half a cup of boondi and set aside. Roast and chop half cup of peeled peanuts. Coarsely crush a table spoon of whole coriander seeds. Heat oil, add 1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds, one whole red chilli, crushed  coriander seeds, 1 teaspoon cruched red chilli flakes, 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, a pinch of aesofetida, and add the potatoes. Add salt and let it saute for about a minute. Add 3/4 teaspoon amchur powder, 1/2 teaspoon chat masala, soaked boondi, peanuts, chopped cilantro and mint. Let the mixture cool. Beat about 11/2 cups of yoghurt with 1/2 cup of water. Mix it with the potato mixture, and garnish with red chilli powder, chat masala, and chopped herbs. Cool and eat for dinner on a sultry summer night...

As crazy as it sounds....done right, this can be a fabulous dish....the kind that might some day show up in a fancy farm to table kind of restaurant.... Ok, so make sure you use a fantastic bread..I had this almost warm out of the oven (and freshly sliced) seven grain loaf I picked up this evening from Wegman's. Super crunchy crust, which I think really elevated this dish. Ideally you would grill the bread like for bruscetta, but I just heated it up on a griddle. Ok, now for the main part of the dish...wash and dry Okra, slice it medium thick (I think diagonal is not the way to go here). Heat some olive oil, add cumin seeds, let it brown and then add chopped white onion and saute for a couple of minutes. Add some minced garlic, turmeric, red chilli powder, coriander powder and amchur. Saute for a few more minutes, till the onion gets brown on the edges. Then add the bhindi and some salt and saute. Don't worry if it gets sticky. Keep sauteing on a medium heat for a while, til...

hot oil + thinly sliced (and dried) leeks + minced ginger + minced garlic + sliced napa cabbage + ribbon spinach + sliced red pepper + diagonally, thickly sliced kind oyster mushrooms (start of the show) + pre-cooked whole wheat noodles (Tang's Natural) + kosher salt + dash of sriracha + dash of rice vinegar + a couple of globs of Lee Kum Kee vegetarian mushroom flavored stir fry sauce +  enoki mushrooms + clamshell mushrooms + bean sprouts+ toasted sesame seeds = Amazing.

Oil + broccoli florets + sliced carrots + sliced garlic. Saute for a bit + sliced king oyseter mushroom + bean sprouts + defrosted wheat berries (1 part wheat berries + 3 parts water (I think) + salt and pressure cook for 4-5 whistles) + 1-2 table spoon of Salsa Macha + kosher salt + nutritional yeast + carrot greens. Salte everything for a couple more minutes and serve hot.

Pretty basic, but quite a hit with adults and kids alike. Melt half a stick of butter with a bag of chocolate chips (whatever kind you have on hand...semisweet for grown up, milk for chocolate) and cool. Whisk together a cup of sour cream, a teaspoon of vanilla, the cooled chocolate mixture and several cups of confectioner's sugar. Adjust according to how stiff/sweet you want the frosting to be. http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/sour-cream-chocolate-cake

Heat oil. Add finely chopped Ginger + Garlic + cilantro stems (lots of them) + spring onion + a little bit of red onion + yellow bell pepper (little bit..not a lot). Saute for a few secongs. Add finely diced carrots + finely diced cabbage (a big handful). Saute everything till the veggies soften just a little bit. Add a pinch of salt and some black pepper. Add soy sauce + dark Soy + rice vinegar + a small amount of schezwan sauce (indian style) + a few drops of dark sesame oil. Stir. Add a can of Straw Mushrooms split in half length wise. Add a couple of cups of water and let it come to boil. Add cornstarch slurry, let it boil and then simmer for a few more minutes. Adjust seasoning according to taste. Serve piping hot with finely chopped spring onion greens. Winter. Solved.  

Made these for a party at the boss's house...everyone loved it. 1 pack 14 oz graham crackers crumbs + 4 tbsp sugar plus 1 stick butter melted. Press in two cake pans 12x8. Bake at 350 for 10 mins and cool. 5 packs cream cheese, 1 can condensed milk ,  1 1/2 cups sugar, 5 eggs, lemon zest and or or vanilla. Divide in two and bake over a cookie sheet with water at 350 for 30 mins. For the topping: Heat about 3/4 cup sugar till golden brown. Add about 3/4 cup slivered almonds and pour on silpat and flatten. Breat it up into praline crumbs (I used dasto). I had some Cajeta/dulce de leche spread which I drizzled first. Then evenly spread the praline. In a small Ziplock, take chocolate and butter and melt. Drizzle the chocolate in a mesh pattern along with the Cajeta spread.