Creamy Veggie curry


Vegetables are a great source of fiber, proteins and carbohydrates. Making them into a creamy curry makes it delicious too. Lets get started.

The following ingredients measurements will serve  5-6

Ingredients

1. Carrots - 150 gms cubed
2. French beans - 100 gms, chopped to quarter inch thickness
3. Green peas - 100 gms
4. Cauliflower - 150 gms - cut down to florets
5. Potato - 100 gms cubed
6. Onions - 2 big - finely chopped
7. Cashews - 50 gms soaked for a couple of hours
8. Freshly grated coconut - 200 gms
9. Ginger - a big piece ( I took a 3 inch long one)
10. Garlic - 4 cloves
11. Green chilli - 5 nos
12. Coriander seeds powder - 2 tablespoons
13. Red chilli powder - 1 table spoon
14. Garam masala - 2 table spoons
15. Salt to taste
16. Butter - 2 cubes of 1 inch diameter
17. Freshly chopped coriander leaves - a handful
18. Cumin seeds - 1 tablespoon

Method:

1. Grind the Coconut , garlic, ginger and green chilli to a smooth paste
2. Grind the cashews separately to a smooth paste
3. Add half of the butter (i.e one cube) to a pan and add some cumin seeds and let it roast well.

4. Once it is done add the finely chopped onions.

5. Once the onion becomes light brown as sown below, add the ground coconut mixture.

6. Let the mixture get heated for a minute in low flame. Once it does, add all the vegetables.

7. Add all the seasoning agents - garam masala, coriander powder, red chilli powder , salt. Also add the remaining butter now (Its ok, if it is not very soft . Let it melt in heat of the gravy. If the butter is just out of the fridge and a little hard, it is ok.)

8.  Add two cups of water for the garvy to cook. Cover the pan and allow it to cook for sometime, make sure not to cover it fully, leave a small space for steam to escape. The gravy with vegetables and water  just added, will like below, (before it starts cooking)

9. Once the gravy is half done ( we can identify it from the color, also shown in below image), add the chopped coriander leaves

10. Cover with the lid again and allow it to cook. Just check on water level every now and then. So that if water dries out and the gravy is still not done add some more to avoid burning. Also there is a lot of chances for the coconut mixture to settle down at the bottom, Keep stirring every now and then.

11. Just poke on the vegetables after 15 mins to see if they are cooked. Once it is cooked, add the ground cashew paste.

12. The cashew paste gives a nice body and creamy consistency to the gravy. Once the gravy mixes well, let the gravy boil for a couple of minutes and creamy veggie curry is ready to serve . It goes well with aapam. We can try it with Chapathi, Poori too.

Healthy pinkies

Cutlets are one of the most favorite snack, but much low in nutrition value with high potato and oil content. Here is a healthy version of cutlet made out of beetroot 

The below makes around 15 - 2 inch diameter cutlets

Ingredients:

1, Beetroot - 200 gms

2. Carrots - 150 gms

3. Green peas - 100 gms

4. French beans - 100 gms 

5. Potato - 100 gms

6. Mirchi (used for bajji ) - 100 gms

7. Garlic - 3 cloves

8. Ginger - 1 inch piece

9. Rice flour - 2 table spoon

10. Green chilli - 4 nos

11. Coriander  leaves - A hand full

12. Garam masala - 1 teaspoon

13. Corainder powder - 1 teaspoon

14. Bread crumbs - to dust the cutlet

14. Salt - to taste 

15. Oil - for shallow fry 

Method:

1. Steam the Beetroot, carrot, french beans, Green peas and potato.

2. Mash the potatoes

3. Grate the beetroot and carrot as shown in below image.

 2. Add the boiled green peas and french beans

3. Saute the finely chopped Gralic and ginger until the raw smell goes off. Add the chopped green mirchi and fry until mirchi looses the raw flavour. Add the mirchi to the veggies. Also add the mashed potatoes

4. Add rice flour, garam masala, coriander powder and salt to taste

 5. Add the coriander leaves

6. Mix altogether well. If the mixture is sticky or watery , add some more rice flour. If we steam the veggies with correct water content , the grated vegetables will have the correct moisture. 

7. Mould them to the shape of your choice and dust them in bread crumbs and shallow fry them in tawa until the cutlet is golden brown on both sides.

Healthy pink cutlets are ready to serve. 

Aloo Gobi Palak - Spinach gravy with potatoes and cauliflower

The below measurements serves 4-5
Ingredients:
1. A medium size palak bunch
2. Ripe tomatoes - 4(Medium sized)
3. Onion - 6 (Medium sized)
4. Toor dhal - 2 Tablespoon
5. Saunf - 1 tablespoon
6. Cinnamon - 2 pieces
7. Cloves - 2 pieces
8. Cauliflower florets - 250 gms
9. Potatoes - 250 gms
10. Butter - 1 tablespoon
11. Coriander seed powder - 1 tablespoon
12. Garam masala powder - 1 Tablespoon
13. Salt - to taste
14. Chilli powder - 2- 3 teaspoons

Method
1. Wash the palak leaves well and remove the centre vein of the leaves. This is done because the palak leaves cook  faster and the vein might not cooked at the same time.
2. Boil the cauliflower and potatoes. Add the required salt to the potatoes and cauliflower florets while cooking so that they do not taste bland.

3. Add the washed palak leaves to hot water and leave for two minutes. the leaves will cook and shrink as shown in the second image below. 

4. Chop 4 onions roughly and saute them until they turn translucent . Do not brown the onions

5.Once the onions become translucent, add the chopped tomatoes 

6. Let the tomatoes become soft and once they are cooked , transfer the mixture to a different bowl and allow it to cool. add salt to it 

7. Grind the palak , onion tomato mixture and cooked dhal separately as shown below. First pic shows the ground palak, second the toor dhal  and third the  onion tomato mixture.

8. Add some butter to a pan and add the saunf, cinnamon and cloves. 

9. Once the spices splutter , chop the remaining one onion finely and add it to spices. Add the salt required for the onion to fasten the cooking.

10. Cook until the onions turn brown 

11. Add the toor dhal and onion tomato mixture 

12. Allow it to biol for a minute or two and then add the ground palak.

13. Once it comes to boil add the coriander powder , chilli powder , remaining salt and garam masala powder and allow it to boil for two to five minutes.

The Emerald Gravy is ready to serve.