Cooking for Avantika

Alu Bhindi has always been one of my favorites. This dry version is similar to something my mother would prepare (but without the more pungent spices and chillies). I skipped the green chillies and other pungent red chili spice and yet it is so flavorful, it is perhaps the quickest and easiest way to enjoy the full flavor of Bhindi on hot summer days or when summer is just setting in. Here's what you need: Three quarter of a cup lady finger (washed, dried and chopped in centimeter sized cubes) Three quarter of a cup white potato (washed, chopped in centimeter sized cubes and soaked in water) A Tbsp of sesame seed oil A Tbsp of fresh ginger chopped in half centimeter sized cubes. 1/2 Tbsp of Whole Panchphoran Seeds (Methi, Jeera, Kalonji, Saunf, Rai in equal quantities). A pinch of asofoetida (optional). ED7 Spice Mix and Sendha Namak  Corriander leaves and Lemon  And here's what you do: Heat a kadai on high flame and add oil, when the oil...

Kovakai is the Malayalam name for Ivy gourd or Tindi. It is one of those wonderful vegetables that can be cooked in so many different ways. Here's a recipe that uses coconut milk as the base to make a curry that goes well with rice as well as Rotis. The consistency of the gravy depends on the thickness of the milk. One can make this dish with a thick creamy gravy like so: Or a thin runny gravy like so: Here's what you need: 16-18 pcs Tindi (washed and dried, ends chopped off) 1 Cup Coconut Milk 2 tsp oil (used coconut oil) 1 tsp Black Mustard Seeds 1 tsp finely chopped ginger a few Curry Leaves Ama Spice Mix and Sendha Namak Chopped Corriander Here's what you do: Chop the Tindi once lengthwise and once widthwise in the middle so you get 4 big pieces of (3/4th of an inch or longer) from each Tindi. Heat oil in a kadai and add the mustard seeds when it is hot. While the seeds are crackling, add the ginger and curry leaves, mixing continuou...

This Ekadashi is said to be the last Ekadashi before the Hindu New Year begins with Chaitra Mass. This Ekadashi Tithi falls in the krishna paksha and thus precedes Amavasa or the New Moon. The New Moon that will bring with it a new year and new season and also another opportunity for the mind and soul to meet and work together as one before the senses take over and the mind seems to be racing ahead. The Vrat Katha is a very fitting and interesting story about how the mind deceives those who have not yet attained the supreme knowledge, or in other words accepted the supremacy of the Controller or you may call it the controlling forces. The moral of this story is difficult to explain in just a few lines, as one can not understand it without first having an understanding of the matters of the mind; so rather than writing stories about the story, I thought its better to talk about the astronomical phenomenon that shapes the unique circumstances of this period in time that we glorify ...

What do you do when you have a tub full of home grown tender mustard greens? I use them in a salad for lunch or cook them up for dinner into a very tasty Green Lobhia Curry. Here's what you need: 1/2 Cup Black eye Peas (Soaked till doubled in size) 2 Cups Mustard Greens 1/4 Cup chopped Spinach 1 Tablespoon of chopped Garlic 1 Teaspoon of chopped Ginger ED7 and Sendha Namak 1 Tbsp Tamarind Extract (Juice) or Lemon. And here's what you do: Immerse the Mustard leaves in a tub of water and clean thoroughly rubbing the backside of the leaves gently. Drain out the water and chop the leaves. The pungent smell of mustard will get stronger after the wash. Add washed and chopped Spinach to it and keep aside. In a kadai, heat the sesame seed oil till it starts to smoke. Quickly switch off the flame. Wait for a few seconds and add the garlic and ginger to it (it should be sizzling). Switch on the flame to medium and mix throughly so as not to burn or brown the...

Tindi or Ivy gourd as it is called in English is a wonderful vegetable and its got it's own unique taste. And when its still unripe, its perfect for this dish. In the ayurvedic texts the taste is described as pungent bitter but when cooked, its hardly bitter. Here's a recipe that brings out the wonderful flavor of tindi, combined with a few ingredients. Here's what you need: 1 cup ivy gourd (washed, dried and chopped in slices) Little more than a tsp of sesame seed oil A tsp of fresh ginger finely chopped  1/2 Tbsp of Whole Panchphoran Seeds (Methi, Jeera, Kalonji, Saunf, Rai in equal quantities). A pinch of asofoetida (only if you feeling gassy) Ama Spice Mix and Sendha Namak  Corriander leaves for garnish And here's what you do: Heat a kadai on high flame and add oil, when the oil has heated add the panchphoran seeds; as they sizzle, add fresh ginger, mix and follow up with Ama Spice Mix after reducing the flame a little. ...

French beans are one of those lovely green vegetables that do not really need many spices. They have a subtle flavor which comes alive with minimum cooking. When buying beans the slightly tender ones are the ones that taste best. As they are slightly astringent in taste, cooking them is important and yet that very subtle flavor gets destroyed easily when over cooked. They are best enjoyed lightly steamed or boiled without (m)any spices. Here what you need: A bunch (handful) of tender green beans (chopped in half or whole - I chopped them to fit the width of the pan) 1/4th Cup water (just enough to immerse most of the beans) A spoonful of olive oil (or ghee or butter) 1/2 a teaspoon of grated garlic A generous pinch of Salt and Pepper Some toasted sesame seeds (for garnish - optional) And here's what you do: In a wide bottom pan, add the beans and water and bring to boil. As the water starts boiling, mix to ensure all beans are wet. Cover the pan and cook for a mi...

As Winter gives way to Spring and the digestive system takes a break, I can't help but think about colours. The seasonal junctions are a time of the year when we naturally crave less food and it is at times like these that colors play an important role in meal planning. Its not so much about eating the right colors but more about ensuring the colors we eat are appetizing and set the right tone. Now I have always loved clicking pictures of the ingredients I cook with as I do of the food I cook and serve, because it should look right and it should look inviting and balanced. I cook very simple food with simple ingredients and basic spices, I don't use chillies a lot. I also do not use fancy plates or spend much time decorating. I click as I serve. But I do like to see colors and textures that look beautiful besides being appetizing and nourishing. We all have our own ideas about the energies expressed by different colors. Our attraction and repulsion towards certain...

There will come a point of time in life when you will move away from being a Karmayogi to being a mere Bhakti Yogi to being a Gynan Yogi.  Your belief in the Supreme will waver as you contemplate life and you will contemplate Atheism, this is an important step towards God realization and its completely normal and you must understand it as God's plan if ever you need to explain it. The cause of this transformation can be explained simply by the Law of Marginal Utiity or one can also blame it on imperfect or imbalanced Ahar Vihar Achar Vichar. There comes a time when you stop in order to wonder why you do what you do. That is when most people google answers for the questions of life. I am not against Atheists or Democracy or Google, I myself use a lot of Google but to use any tool effectively to its full potential, you have to know its benefits and limitations. Google is an awesome tool for the seeker but works like a weapon of mass destruction in the hands of the believer. Its ...