Kitchens Revealed: a Link Party

On my last post, Sangeetha mentioned that she would like a sneak peek into my little kitchen. Well, this weekend started with a lovely and relaxed morning so I thought it was as good a time as any to snap some pictures and share them here.

I've had fun putting together my new kitchen in the last month, trying to make it as organized and functional as I can. Much as I love to cook and bake, rummaging for tools and working in clutter can take the joy right out it. So I made some rules for myself and gave myself a stern warning to stick to them (yes, I frequently feel the need to lecture myself inwardly):

1. Leave two countertops absolutely clear and empty. This workspace is used only while I am actively cooking. Nothing is ever stored there permanently. 
2. Put all the tools and equipment in plain sight and where I can easily reach it. I know from experience that anything that is hidden away never gets used. In fact, I forget that I even own it.
3. Throw away (rather, donate) anything I haven't used in a few months. Unused stuff eats up precious kitchen real estate and gets in the away. I am very ruthless and unsentimental about getting rid of unnecessary stuff. 
4. A place for everything and everything in its place. Life is too short to go rummaging for things. 

My kitchen is a long, narrow rectangle. This is one of the long sides, with counters (2 of them empty, one with the microwave oven), sink, stove/oven, dishwasher.

All the overhead cabinets are way above my reach (I am very short on the petite side) so they are more or less useless.

Instead, all my storage is on the long wall opposite this one. I placed two Baker's Racks and they contain all my appliances, baking dishes, and all kinds of tools.

I bought these Baker's Racks separately (2 years apart, in fact) used (read super-cheap) from Craigslist, the online classifieds. But they match well. There is a power strip hidden behind into which all of these appliances can be plugged in. A few cheap S-shaped hooks made it easy to hang up all kinds of little things like measuring spoons, tongs and pot holders.

With my other tools, I stuck them in vases and put them on the windowsill next to the counter. It makes it so easy to just pluck out what I need.

The third wall is a narrow one and has a pantry (a simple cupboard with shelves, not the walk-in kind) and the fridge. Instead of hanging bags on the pantry door, I put my favorite dishcloth (a very sweet gift from my friend Bek, a fellow knitter) on a hanger as a little decorative touch.

My very favorite thing about this kitchen is the fact that the fourth wall opens into the back porch and backyard, so I can look out of the window as I am cooking and see the trees-

Now it is your turn. I would love to see your kitchens too. Kitchens can be big or small or downright tiny, tidy or messy, old or new, but they are the place where all the magic happens. Here's a blog event of sorts where you don't have to find a recipe or cook anything.

Instead of the traditional way of making round-ups, I am doing a link party. The round up will be right here as participants add their posts. I've been looking at link parties on craft blogs, like this one, and thought it might be fun to host one just as an experiment to see how well it works.

To participate:

1. Just snap a few pictures of your kitchen and write a post on your blog about your kitchen: what you love about it, how you have organized it, whatever you want to share.
2. Link to this post so your readers can come and check out all the participants.
3. Click on "Click here to enter". Add your post's link/URL. And a little caption or title, saying whose kitchen this is. You can add a picture that will show up as a thumbnail.
4. You can participate anytime until the end of the month, September 30.

Have a lovely weekend!

Cold Coffee for a Tea Party

Are you one of those people who loves sucking down pricey grande glasses of cream-topped something-cchinos from the corner cafe, you know the one with the little green signage with a mermaid on it? I'm not one for coffee drinks, but V loves them on occasion and so do many of my friends. If you are one of the coffee drink devotees, you might be interested in this cheap, simple way to fix your cravings right at home.

I often make cold coffee in summer, and until recently, I used one of two methods. One is to mix up instant coffee, cold milk and sugar and then do an energetic shake-shake-shake (anyone remember the ad?), the other is to brew hot coffee in a coffee-maker, chill it and then mix in milk and sugar. Both were fairly satisfactory.

Then, early this summer, I came across this post on Tiny Choices, a blog about environmental issues and the small changes we can make for the better. This was the first I heard of this method of cold brewing, and what a great method it is. Let's see- it needs no fancy appliances, requires no use of the stove, needs 30 seconds of hands-on time and makes "just like Starbucks" cold coffee for a tiny fraction of the cost.

This is what I do to make the iced coffee concentrate:
1. Use a clean glass jar.
2. Add 2 cups filtered water and 1/2 cup coffee grounds (we always buy the fair trade coffee from Trader Joe's; you can use your favorite brand).
3. Swish the water around so all the coffee grounds are submerged.
4. Put the lid on the jar and place it at room temperature away from direct sunlight.
5. After 8 hours or so, the coffee has steeped. Filter the coffee using a very fine mesh filter/strainer and your coffee concentrate is ready!

Mix the concentrate with chilled milk (soymilk or almond milk are wonderful too) and your favorite sweetener and serve over ice- oh so refreshing. I love mixing the concentrate with sweetened condensed milk to make something like the Thai iced teas you get in restaurants. The possibilities are endless. Top it with whipped cream and chocolate shavings or a dash of cinnamon to create your own fancy coffee drink.

I know people expect a strong cup of aromatic chai at a tea party, but right around tea-time on a hot summer day, a tall glass of iced coffee is just the thing. So this is my contribution to Anita's mad tea party- the deadline was 15th September. It is well into 16th September in her time zone but it is still the 15th in mine, so I hope my entry is in, right under the wire!

Anita recently wrote a very thought-provoking post and I would call it required reading for food bloggers. We food bloggers enjoy reading each other's blogs, trying recipes and exchanging tips, and posting recipes on our blog that are inspired by others, but along with those rights and freedoms come responsibilities, the need to be gracious and honest in acknowledging the ideas that come from others.

You lose absolutely nothing by crediting an idea or a recipe to someone else. After all, human progress is based on people taking what others have done and building on it, adding their own creative touches and creating variations and improvements. On the other hand, when we fail to give credit, we risk losing our reputation, trust and respect, and the loss of any of these is very hard to repair. So Anita's post was a timely reminder to me to try to be a high-quality blogger every time I sit down and type a post and I applaud her decision to take a stance and say something out loud in favor of doing the right thing.

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This was a treat we enjoyed last week, a gift from my friends: frutta martozana or marzipan fruits, a specialty of Sicily. They are very realistic and almost life-size.

Roasted Tomato Chutney

This recipe started when I bought a couple dozen beautiful tomatoes at the Farmers Market last Thursday. Then I kept the oven at a slow and steady 200F for a whole 12 hours on Friday and roasted the tomatoes with garlic and herbs, transforming the already tasty tomatoes into something more like candy.

That night, I put together the pasta salad that was my Big Discovery of last summer. A year later, I am still surprised at how much everyone loves it. 

A few leftover roasted tomatoes were stashed in a small container. What followed was a weekend of such rare and spectacular perfection that it makes me worry about the future. By the law of averages the rest of the year will have ghastly weather. But I digress. Luxurious weekends are just the thing for the dosa ritual- soaking, grinding, fermenting- and the resulting dosa deserves a tasty chutney to accompany it. 

Chutneys are so remarkably versatile. The traditional formulations are wonderful, but you can always invent a new one based on the unique contents of your fridge. I usually use a sauteed vegetable (tomatoes, onions, zucchini) or an herb (parsley, cilantro) with some coconut (frozen, defrosted)and some roasted gram (called phutane in Marathi and dalia in Hindi) to thicken the mixture and help the grinding process. The chutney gets some heat from fresh green chillies or red chilli powder, and of course some salt and some fresh lemon juice to brighten the flavors. A sizzling tempering of mustard seeds, asafetida and curry leaves provides the final savory touch to bring it all together. 

Roasted Tomato Chutney

1. Grind together to a thick paste, using some warm water as required (all quantities are flexible):
1 cup roasted tomatoes
1/2 cup fresh (or defrosted frozen) coconut
1/4 cup roasted gram dal
Red chilli powder to taste
Salt to taste

2. Make a tempering, pour it on the chutney and stir together:
2 tsp. oil
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
pinch of asafetida

I love trying dosa recipes from different blogs, and this week I made Vaishali's brown rice dosa. I love her idea of microwaving the rice for just a few minutes to soften it up and make grinding easier. Dosa is the perfect vehicle for brown rice and I have now switched entirely to using brown rice in all dosa recipes.

Wait a second...Dale is saying something.

Dale's Tales

Dale is the self-appointed sheriff of the backyard. He watches over his little kingdom from his vantage point on the porch. If he sees any threats to law and order, such as squirrels squabbling in the high branches or kitties walking along the fence, he leaves his sunny spot and makes a mad dash to bark sharply at them.

For now, the yard is quiet and peaceful and all is well with the world.

Cocoa Brownies

The US is looking forward to Labor Day weekend, the unofficial end to summer, and in my home, we are sure to have a busy and exciting time. Our dear Italian friend arrives this weekend with her husband, baby and sister and they will stay with us for a week. The guest room is ready, sheets and towels are freshly washed and the fridge and pantry are stocked up with enough food for a small army.

To welcome them with a sweet treat, I baked a batch of all-American dark fudgy brownies studded with walnuts. The recipe comes from one of the superstars in the world of desserts, Alice Medrich. I found the recipe here on Smitten Kitchen.

The recipe is unusual in many respects- for instance, you use cold eggs (straight from the fridge) where almost all baking recipes require you to use ingredients at room temperature. Also, after stirring in the flour, the directions ask you to beat the batter dozens of times, where most recipes want you to fold the ingredients in ever so gently avoid developing the gluten when you want a tender result. But it all works just perfectly. What's more, the recipe calls for ingredients that I always have on hand.

I followed the recipe closely with these minor modifications:
1. I reduced the sugar to a cup.
2. I used a microwave to make the butter, sugar, salt and cocoa mixture. This made brownie-batter-making a one bowl deal with very minimal clean-up.

Alice Medrich's Cocoa Brownies

• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick + 2 tbsp.)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder 
• Heaping 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1-2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, cold
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup walnut or pecan pieces (optional)

1.  Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. 
2.  Line the bottom and sides of an 8×8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.
3.  Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a glass bowl and microwave in short spurts until melted but not hot. It might look gritty- that's ok. This can be done in a double boiler too. 
4.  Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. 
5.  When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula.
6.  Stir in the nuts, if using. Spread evenly in the lined pan.
7.  Bake until a toothpick plunged into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 20 to 30 minutes.
8.  Cool and refrigerate to be able to cut with clean lines. Lift up the ends of the parchment or foil liner, and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Cut into 16 or 25 squares.

You can add sprinkles before baking for a festive touch.

These are dense fudgy brownies with a rich chocolate flavor- truly a treat. It is my second time making this recipe. The first time I sent a batch with my friend Neighbor Girl when she went to visit her grandma a couple of states over. Neighbor Girl reported that her grandma who normally picks at her food and barely eats anything ate several brownies with gusto. That just made me so happy, especially since I live too far away from my own grandma to ever bake or cook anything for her.

Fresh off the Hooks

My hexagon afghan is done- whew! And it makes me happy just looking at these colorful flowers. It definitely has a retro look though.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend.

BB7: The Iron Chef Edition

I watch my fair share of food-related programming on TV and one of the shows I often find while channel-surfing is Iron Chef America. In this culinary game show, a theme ingredient is revealed at the beginning of each episode, and the two competing chefs must make 5 different dishes using that ingredient. For instance, the secret ingredient may be chocolate, in which case the chefs are given access to a table laden with every form of chocolate imaginable, and the chocolate may be used in all kinds of interesting sweet and savory dishes. It is fun to see that even simple ingredients have such infinite potential, and to see a familiar ingredient being used in imaginative and new ways.

BB7 is the Iron Chef Edition.

The theme this month, inspired by the Iron Chef culinary competition, is One Ingredient, Two Ways. We are iron food bloggers, no doubt about it, but seeing as we have real lives outside of blogging, you know, little things like families, jobs, classes, kids- 5 recipes with one ingredients may be a wee ambitious, but 2 recipes is quite within our reach.

Select any ingredient- it could be a fruit, vegetable, legume, grain, herb, spice, flour, nut, even something like coconut milk or frozen peas or soy sauce or gluten. What you choose as your theme ingredient is entirely up to you. It could be something familiar or exotic.

Then, cook that ingredient in two different recipes where both recipes are inspired by other blog(s). For instance, you might choose chickpeas and make (1) hummus and (2) chana pulao. Or you might lemons and make (1) lemon rice and (2) lemon cake. You might choose coriander seeds and make two different types of masalas. This is simply a way to see how a single ingredient can have many different uses.

The Rules

1. From now until September 25, look through your favorite blogs and use one ingredient in two different recipes. 
2. The recipes have to come from other blogs; that is the whole premise of Blog Bites, so please turn to other blogs for inspiration. 
3. The two recipes you make with one ingredient can come from the same blog or two different blogs. 
4. Write a single post telling us about the 2 recipes you tried with one ingredient, with the following: (a) A link to the recipes on the inspiring blog(s), (b) A link to this post (the event announcement), (c) Picture of your dishes.
5. Please write a post specifically for this event. 
6. Please do NOT copy a recipe word for word from another blog- that would be both illegal and unethical. Either re-write the recipe in your own words if you have made substantial changes, or simply add a link to the recipe. One of the reasons I am hosting this event is to remind ourselves that when we use recipes from other blogs, we must be fair and honest in giving them due credit. 

Please make sure your entry meets all the rules above. Then, send me the link (URL) of your entry at the following e-mail address: OneHotStove AT gmail DOT com

You can send in as many entries as you like.

I will try my best to be a good host, by reading and leaving a comment on your post and thanking you for the entry within 2-3 days. Check back on September 26 to see the round-up. If you choose to participate, please take the time to come and read the round-up, read your fellow participants' entries and enjoy the event.

The food blog world has so many interesting events going on and it is easy to get lost in the frenzy of participating in them. For myself, I have decided to slow down and choose carefully, to participate in fewer events but spend more time writing a post specifically for that event. And then, I will try to be gracious and make sure I read and appreciate the round-up, to appreciate the theme of that event and learn something from it. I'm reminding myself that quality beats quantity every single time, and so I have tweaked the rules of this event to reflect that as well.

Thank you for your participation!

BB6 Mega-Potluck: I hope you're hungry!

Picture, if you will, a gorgeous relaxed weekend. The day is warm without being hot, breezy and sparkling with sunshine. The skies are blue with sprinkles of puffy cottony clouds. In short, the perfect day for a picnic.

The time is 11 AM, and long tables have been set out in the grass. Bloggers from all over the world have been magically transported to the scene and they come laden with dishes of food, all recipes inspired by other blogs.

So please grab a reusable plate and cloth napkin from one of the tables, and help yourself to brunch, lunch and desserts. This is what you will find on the buffet table-

For brunch, we have many interesting variations on popular Southern Indian breakfast foods, with sago rava idlis that look like they would absolutely melt in the mouth, lacy rice coconut kallappams that have been fermented with yeast and nutritious carrot oats dosai. Seasonal tomatoes go into this beautiful tomato dosa. To accompany all of these, a simply yet tasty onion chutney is just the thing, while those with fond memories of Udipi restaurants can dip into the hotel style sambar. To add a little spice, sprinkle the idlis and dosas with coriander chutney powder or horsegram lentil powder.

The other Indian breakfast favorite is parathas, and we have a choice of two: hara bhara paratha with spinach and paneer, and a cheesy oats paratha. One the side, try this green chilli pickle. In the spirit of minimizing waste, leftovers have been transformed into masala idli and phodanichi poli.

If you like sweet breakfast treats, there is a choice of maple pecan muffins or eggless cardamom muffins, tasty cranberry granola bars and a papaya banana smoothie to wash it down.

If you want appetizers and light meals to nibble on while you socialize, try the onion dip with potato chips or some muhammara and tabbouleh. Fresh summer corn is the star of corn patties, and you must try one of these green peas coracles that are almost too cute to eat. For something more substantial, help yourself to pasta in vodka sauce, or a slice of gourmet tile-baked pizza, or this portable treat called masala pav or perhaps one of these tasty roasted vegetable paninis.

On the salad table, we have some unusual combinations: tomatoes and peaches come together in a twisted caprese salad, grains, fruits, nuts and beans all get their chance to shine in this Turkish bulgur salad, and these pickled beets are bathed in vinegar and spices.

Then there is a whole large table devoted to Indian food.

It is a lucky day if you love potatoes, because you can choose it in all these different ways: in a simple eggplant and potato curry, paired with tomatoes in aloo tamatar curry, in a tasty sesame flax potato fry, and these spicy stir-fried potatoes.

Other vegetables are represented too, with cabbage in sesame curry paste, chow chow sukhi bhaji, eggplant bell pepper curry and a traditional Andhra plantain mustard curry.

There is a great selection of curries too, with minty peas and pineapple korma and a vegan take on a classic Bengali curry- tempeh malaikari. Chickpeas are cooked in two different ways- black chickpeas in gravy with a side of spicy stuffed peppers and chana palak. Paneer is a popular party food, cooked in rich curries for special occasions, and here we have three- paneer in a fennel-tomato curry, paneer dhaniya and paneer Nargisi. To sop up the curries, choose between these different breads, Goan specialty named poee, dinner rolls, and these beautiful garlic rolls.

If rice is more your thing, there are plenty of options here. Rice is paired with beans, vegetables and lentils respectively in chana pulav, soy nuggets and green pea pulao and bisibele bhath. if you like rice in its sweeter avatar, try this dish of meethe chawal. To satisfy a biryani craving, tuck into this everyday chicken biryani, a tasty 30 minute pressure cooker biryani, and a biryani "side-dish" to complete the meal.

Finally, it is time for dessert.

If you are too full and only want a bite or two, try these dark, raw but lovable cocoa mint nibbles, cute little candies called brigadeiros, sweet sticky banana halva, luscious kaala jamuns, sugar-soaked jamun or rugelach pinwheels that look too pretty to eat.

If you want to celebrate with cake, choose between cheerful cake pops, whole-wheat and vegan chocolate cupcakes, chocolate tahini gooey cakes, pistachio cupcakes with chocolate ganache or a thick slice of this cherry-studded cake.

Or you might want to cool off in the afternoon heat with almond pista kulfi or kesar pista coconut ice cream. If you dare, try some of this creamy and very unusual cabbage payasam.

Every party needs a show-stopping dessert and this is ours: strawberry mirror cake.

I want to thank everyone who brought these dishes to the potluck- I only wish I could wave a wand and make this potluck happen in real life. If you would like to participate in the next edition of Blog Bites, check back in 2 days to see what the next theme is.

Back to Basics: Crushed Peanuts

Funny thing about cooking- you might try an elaborate dish, try to replicate the professionally styled picture from a cookbook or cook a meal for 20 guests. Then one day you make something completely basic, like a pot of yogurt or a masala from scratch, and the big thrills seem to pale in comparison to this simple achievement and the accompanying sense of empowerment.

An event called Back to Basics celebrates just this feature of home cooking, where home cooks take small steps to self-reliance. The first round-up is full of useful how-tos. This month, the event is hosted at Served with Love.

I am contributing this jar of crushed peanuts or coarsely powdered peanuts, called danyacha koot, a staple in my kitchen and in many Maharashtrian homes. It consists of only one ingredient: peanuts.

Peanut powder, humble as it is, is quite the versatile ingredient. I use it in-

1. Sabudana khichdi: Whether you choose to make this on the stove top or in the microwave, crushed peanuts are the star of this beloved Maharashtrian dish.
2. Koshimbir: The Maharashtrian take on raita or salad. The way I make it, vegetables (carrots, cucumber, cabbage, tomato, beets) are chopped or shredded, and tossed with salt, cumin powder, crushed peanuts and minced cilantro. I often add either lemon juice or yogurt. The peanuts give flavor and texture to this quick salad.
3. Vegetable curries: Toss a few spoonfuls of crushed peanuts into simple bhaajis or vegetable curries, such as eggplant-potato or ridge gourd curry and the result is a tasty, thick, luscious sauce for your vegetables. 
4. Chutneys: Peanuts feature in a variety of chutneys of both the paste and powder varities and having crushed peanuts on hand makes it even easier to pull the chutneys together for breakfasts and brunches.
5. Thai dishes: When I make Thai-inspired curries in a sauce that features peanut butter or coconut milk, crushed peanuts make a crunchy topping for the dish.

Making crushed peanuts is the simplest thing. (1) Roast, (2) Remove skins if desired/needed, (3) Grind or crush. 

If you buy red-skinned peanuts (the kind sold in Indian stores), roast the peanuts on low heat in a single layer in a heavy skillet. Let the skins get dark spots but don't let the peanuts burn. Let the peanuts cool down, then rub the peanuts lightly between your fingers to remove skins. Separate the peanuts from the skins- an easy way to do this is to blow gently and let the skins fly off but you will have to sweep them up if you do this indoors. Grind using a mixie, a food processor or a spice/coffee grinder. I don't pulverize the peanuts to a fine dust, instead leaving them quite coarse with chunks of peanuts intact. If you don't have any of these appliances, place the roasted peanuts in a sealed paper or plastic bag and thwack them to your heart's content with a heavy saucepan. Of course a mortar and pestle would also do.

If you choose Thai peanuts, which are already skinned, you only need to roast and grind them.

If you choose packaged roasted peanuts, the only thing required is to grind them. I have used all of these avatars of peanuts at different times, depending on what was available to me. The flavor of the small Indian peanuts is my what I like best.

Store the crushed peanuts in an airtight container. Mine is a recycled glass mayonnaise jar that you see in the picture. In India, everyone seems to store this at room temperature; I store it in the fridge because (a) I don't go through it fast enough and peanuts can get rancid quickly, and (b) I am slightly paranoid and tend to store stuff in the fridge whether or not it is required.

Three Links

This weekend's ice cream was chocolate gelato- made with pantry ingredients- milk, cream, sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder- with dreamy, stunning results.

I waited several months for tomato season just so I could make Arundati's tamatar ka saalan and it was well worth the wait. We did not pause long enough to take pictures, but  give yourself a treat and try this rich curry if tomatoes are in season where you live.

When I spotted this 12 key zen habits poster with fun little reminders, I printed it out right away and pinned it at my desk. I've been practicing #3 for several months now and it is oh so liberating. #2 and #6 are the most challenging. And #10 has never ever been a problem for me although most people I know struggle with it.

Got an interesting link you want to share- a picture, recipe, idea or article that caught your eye recently? Share it in the comments if you like.

Mrs. Kumar and the Green Thumb

A childish tale children's story for the food-fiction event, Of Chalks and Chopsticks, hosted this month by Desi Soccer Mom. Thank you for the monthly incentive to work on our writing skills and for permission to let our imagination fly away for a few brief moments.

* * *

Mrs. Kumar and the Green Thumb

Roma's Mamma let out a deep sigh. Of course she adored her gap-toothed 7 year old, and of course Roma's unruly curls and bright saucer-shaped eyes made her heart ache with love. But Roma was on summer break after her very first year of school, and running her mother ragged. In her enthusiasm, Roma cut up the newspaper that morning to make collages before her mother even had a chance to open it. She then wore her party frock out to play and came home with a good portion of the lacy hem in shreds. "I wish you weren't so brash and destructive, baby", her mother wailed, "Do you know how much we pay for the newspaper subscription? Do you know how much that fancy skirt cost me? Money doesn't grow on trees, you know".

Indeed, Mamma's life revolved around how stuff did not grow on trees and why this was the reason Roma should behave herself. Sensing her mother's mood, Roma wisely crawled through a gap in the fence and escaped next door to visit her best friend, Mrs. Kumar. Mrs. Kumar was 63 years old but had the impish grin and twinkling eyes of a 10-year old. A retired high school teacher, she had the time and the energy to engage Roma in endless banter about everything and nothing. Unruly children did not faze her one little bit.

That afternoon, Roma found Mrs. Kumar hunched over in her dusty backyard shed, rummaging for old plastic containers and rusty gardening tools. What in the world? Mrs. Kumar straightened up and announced that she was growing tomatoes this summer. "Do you know how?" was Roma's question and Mrs. Kumar had to admit that she did not have a clue. All her life she had lived in a tiny apartment with a lone independent-minded tulsi plant that thrived for decades, and a succession of needy potted roses that perished in her care.

But what I don't know, I can find out- this was Mrs. Kumar's motto, and she collected advice, manure and seedlings from helpful neighbors, some of whom were commercial farmers. Over the next several weeks, Roma and Mrs. Kumar taught themselves to become amateur gardeners, planting tomatoes, methi seeds, baby eggplants and coriander, gushing over their growing saplings, wailing over unexpected pests and cultivating patience above all else as they waited to reap their harvest.

Each had personal breakthroughs. When a noisy and furious thunderstorm arrived one afternoon without warning, Roma forgot that she was terrified of storms, instead pressing her nose to the window and hoping fervently that her little plants would not keel over. The arrival of the methi marked the first time in Roma's short history that she willing put a leafy green vegetable in her mouth- a spoonful of Mrs. Kumar's simple aloo-methi subzi wrapped in a warm roti. Mrs. Kumar, usually pristine in her starched cottons, started favoring wrinkled faded salwars instead. Normally averse to exercise of any kind, she felt so invigorated by gardening that she decided to take long sunset walks every day.

When the first tomatoes were ready to be picked, Mrs. Kumar and Roma made an elaborate ritual of consuming them by making cheese tomato toast. It was a recipe Mrs. Kumar's daughter had conjured up years ago, as a teenager feeding a ravenous after-school appetite while mom was at work. Since then, it had become a family favorite.

Roma got busy under Mrs. Kumar's supervision. Fresh sliced bread was obtained from the town's only bakery. Amul butter was set out to soften. Cheese cubes were grated into a snowy white mound. Finally, the stage was set and four warm ripe tomatoes were harvested with great care, sliced and tucked into sandwiches. An old blackened sandwich toaster was pulled out to make golden toasts, oozing with melted cheese and fragrant tomatoes. The two best friends sat down to a lunch that had been months in the making. The summer was a success and what a memorable time it had been.

This afternoon, here is Roma, helping Mamma put away the weekly groceries. Mamma picks up a sack of tomatoes from the store and wrinkles her nose, "Ugh, this one has a rotting spot, out it goes", and starts to throw the tomato into the garbage. Roma's chubby hand shoots out and catches the tomato just in time. "Let's cut the spot out and eat the tomato, Mamma", she says, "...tomatoes grow on trees, you know."

* * *

Cheese tomato toast is a family favorite for me too. My aunt and uncle in South Bombay would often make it right around 4 PM when everyone was clamoring for a filling snack.

When I make it in my kitchen now, I use fresh sliced bread, unsalted butter, a combination of pepper jack and sharp cheddar cheeses, and a heavy shower of freshly ground pepper. This treat is reserved for the peak of summer because it depends on sweet, flavorful tomatoes. In lieu of a handy sandwich toaster, I simply grill the sandwiches on a cast iron griddle.

Ketchup is the traditional and authentic accompaniment to cheese tomato toast, but if you want to kick up the heat, add a dollop of green chili chutney to the ketchup.

How can something so simple be this good? Oh, that's right, only something so simple can be this good.

Have a wonderful weekend, and I will see you on Tuesday the 26^th with the potluck buffet.

Let the good times churn

So after holding out for many years, I gave in and bought an ice cream maker last week. There was much rejoicing in my household the day it arrived. I had to sit everyone down and explain that no, they could not have ice cream that very night because although the churning itself takes only 30 minutes, homemade ice cream calls for patience. The bowl has to chill for ages, the ice cream mixture has to chill for ages, after churning the ice cream has to chill for ages and so on.

I detest ice creams that are too heavy and eggy, so I am leaning towards eggless ice creams. The first recipe I tried was double chocolate peanut butter ice cream and yup, it is a keeper just like I imagined it would be.

The next one was this quick saffron coconut ice cream I first noticed on David Lebovitz's blog. The original recipe is from the Delicious Days cookbook. They're not kidding when they call it quick, in terms on hands-on time at least. My modification was to spike the mix with crushed pistachios, because kesar-pista is such a classic and popular combination. Here's how I made it:

1. In a saucepan, stir together, bring to boil and simmer for 10 minutes:

• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/2 heaped cup sugar (or more to taste)
• 1 1/4 cup heavy cream
• hefty pinch of saffron threads
• tiny pinch of salt

2. Chill the mix overnight, then churn in the ice cream maker. Add a handful of finely chopped roasted pistachios in the last minute of churning. Freeze.

I'm serving this tonight when friends come over for dinner and will update this post to tell you how they liked it. We've sneaked a few spoonfuls during the transfer process and think this ice cream tastes divine. 

Because this recipe is inspired by another blog, it goes to Blog Bites 6: The Potluck Edition. If you try a recipe from another blog and post about it in the next 15 days, you are welcome to bring it to the potluck. Entries are flooding in and this round is going to be really fun by the looks of it. 

If you have a favorite recipe for home-made ice cream or sorbet, please share it with me in the comments- thank you! I think we'll be making ice cream practically every weekend from now on. 

With snow-white coconut milk, green pistachios and saffron, this ice cream coincidentally contains the predominant colors of the Indian flag. Today is August 15th, Indian Independence Day-

Happy Birthday, India!

Home Cute Home

In the past, I've never really had the time or inclination or know-how to do any kind of thoughtful home decor other than simply creating a basic functional space to live in. But a move to a new home always provides the opportunity to start on a fresh space and we decided to put a little thought into creating a fresh and inviting place to come home to every day. I have been reading many home design blogs and they are ever so lovely and enticing and do-able- like these tutorials on Young House Love.

I started by making a simple paper wreath for the front door. I love wreaths; just like rangoli designs in India, they add a personal touch and seem to declare that this is a home, not just a house.

This tutorial from The Red Thread was so stunning. Here is my version of it-

I used a cereal carton to cut out the cardboard ring for the wreath base. The paper came from Jo Ann crafts, a retro green design and a textured yellow one. Then I cut out leaves and stapled them in place, added a bow and hung it on a wreath hanger. It is easier to make this wreath with thinner paper; the paper I used was a little difficult to fold and staple into place, but I like how it turned out.

Canine Update

A couple of you have been asking about Dale- here he is, out on a long leisurely weekend walk. All the humans and animals in St. Louis are panting in unison, because we are going through a pretty long and relentless heat wave here.

Dale strictly does not believe in change of any sort. The first day we moved to the new place, he whined ALL NIGHT about being in this new unfamiliar place- V and I were almost in tears trying to console him. The next day we bought him a new bed. What a great investment- now this dog cuddles into his hammock bed and snores through the night. He still won't run around in the backyard, preferring to stay on the back porch where he can keep an eye on us. But I know how this goes. There was a time when Dale would kick and scream when he had to get into a car, he hated it so vigorously. Now he loves car rides and tries to climb into any open car door, regardless of who the car belongs to. It is only a matter of time before he grows to love his new home. 

Flowers for Daisy

Ending this post on a solemn note- Dale and I want to offer these flowers as a tribute to Daisy, a sweet much-loved dog who passed away last week at the age of 17. Bulbul, we are so sorry for your loss.

Cool Onion Dip

Some days ago, we awoke on Saturday morning to gorgeous blue skies, glanced at our long list of chores and errands for the weekend- then tore up the list and went kayaking instead. With Neighbor Girl and her sweet little dog, V and I spent 4 hours floating lazily down the muddy but serene and scenic Meramac river.

Here's a picture of Neighbor Girl's dog, complete with a doggy-sized life vest. This pup is an expert swimmer. Halfway through the float trip, she jumped out of Neighbor Girl's kayak, swam to mine, and spent the rest of the journey on my lap.

After we pulled the kayaks ashore, we tore open a picnic hamper and ravenously ate hummus cucumber sandwiches, local Billy Goat potato chips with French onion dip and fresh cherries for dessert. The dip came from a local gourmet food market and we enjoyed it so much that I looked up a recipe right away and made a batch the following weekend.

It is hard to go wrong with slow-cooked, deeply browned onions. There are so many layers of flavor here, this is what "makes" so many dishes, from biryanis to onion soup.

The recipe is based on this one from Well Fed. While writing this post, I realize that the picture I took of the caramelized onions is strikingly similar to the one on Well Fed- I guess we own the same type of pan and wooden spoon.

Caramelized Onion Dip

(inspired by Ina Garten's recipe, via this post on Well Fed) 

1. Halve and slice 4 medium-large yellow onions thinly and saute them on medium heat in 2 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. butter.
2. When the onions start browning at the edges, turn down the heat, add salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste and cook on medium-low heat for 25 minutes or so, until browned nicely. 
3. Add 1 tsp. balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp. honey mustard and cook for a minute more.
4. Turn off the heat and let the onions cool down. 
5. In a bowl, stir together 1/2 cup low-fat sour cream, 1/2 cup cream cheese and 2 tbsp. mayonnaise into a smooth mixture. 
6. Stir in the onions. Adjust salt and pepper if necessary.
7. Cover and refrigerate for several hours before serving.

The combination of onion and potato is a perennial favorite, and sure enough, a classic dipper for this savory concoction is crunchy potato chips. Old-fashioned thick kettle chips are my absolute favorites; you need something sturdy to scoop up this thick dip (but if it too thick after being refrigerated, thin it with some milk or vegetable stock).

I wish there was an alluring picture for me to share here- potato chips nestled on a platter next to a bowl of onion dip swirled just so. I don't- instead, feast your eyes on this, the dip after a number of people stabbed into it. This is one of those dishes where you feel compelled to explain apologetically that it tastes better than it looks.

Because the inspiring recipe came from another blog, this post goes to Blog Bites 6: The Potluck Edition, hosted right here. I'm looking forward to trying many of my bookmarked recipes this month- they are patiently waiting to be made in my still-disorganized new kitchen.

BB5 Round-up, A Bonus Sandwich, and on to BB6

The challenge this month was to try a sandwich or wrap from another blog, and here are the delightful recipes that made it to the party-

Cool, juicy, sweet and salty- SS (SS blogs here): Lettuce wraps with sprouts salad. Inspired by Manjula's Kitchen.

A frankie by any other name would taste as divine- Aquadaze (Served with Love): Chicken egg kathi rolls. Inspired by Bong Mom's Cookbook.

She would be quite happy eating this every single night- Sana Hurzuk (Everybunny loved food): Grilled chicken wraps with tahini sauce. Inspired by Annie's Eats and Syrian Foodie in London.

Spice up a picnic- Priya (Priya's Easy N Tasty Recipes): Gobi tikka wrap. Inspired by Authentic Food Delights.

What to make when you have 4 cauliflowers on hand- Veena (Veg Junction): Cauliflower tikka wrap. Inspired by Authentic Food Delights.

A light meal comes to the rescue on a hot day- Bhagyashri (Taste Buds): Spicy red kidney bean wrap. Inspired by Sailu's Kitchen.

Beans dress up in their summer best- Nupur (One Hot Stove): Rajma wrap. Inspired by Sailu's Kitchen.

A tasty way to eat your plant protein- Melissa (Her Green Life): Open-faced lentil sandwiches. Inspired by Show Me Vegan. YAY for St. Louis blogs :)

Pesto works with everything- Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal (Mharo Rajasthan's Recipes): Cheese pesto sandwich with veggie pattie and veggies. Inspired by US Masala.

She's not a sandwich person but took the challenge anyway- Denny (Oh Taste N See): Indianized grilled cheese sandwich. Inspired by One Hot Stove.

How a really good loaf of bread can transform a sandwich- JK (The Gujju Ben Cooks): Italian style pesto sandwiches. Inspired by One Hot Stove.

Using Farmers' Market finds- Yummy 4 Tummy: Portobello mushroom sandwich. Inspired by Veggie Belly.

The burger is kicked up a notch- Denny (Oh Taste N See): Hot Tamale Burger. Inspired by Tasty Palettes.

There's no such thing as too many carbs- Latha (A Peek Into My Kitchen): Potato-sago burger. Inspired by Wake Up and Smell the Masala.

I want to thank all the participants for sharing the sandwich/wrap love and giving me a few fresh ideas in the process.

* * *

Here is a simple sandwich I made this weekend for my trivia team- if you use fresh, good bread and a creamy filling, the sandwiches are gobbled up in minutes.

I made the bread from this recipe on the King Arthur Flour website. By now, I've made this recipe a few times and it is a keeper. Oats make the bread very soft and tasty. I like cutting it into very thin slices.

The spread: 1 can of white beans (drained and rinsed), 1 bunch cilantro, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste, olive oil to process the mixture into a thick paste.

The filling: fresh cucumbers and red peppers.

* * *
For the next round of Blog Bites, BB6, I'm keeping it very simple.

BB6 is the Potluck Edition.

Try a recipe from another blog, and it can be anything you like, there is no theme this month. Here's our chance to sift through the bookmarks and try some recipes that have caught our eye while blog-hopping. In true potluck style, the round-up will contain a mish-mash of dishes, cuisines and flavors, and there will be something for everyone.

The Rules

1. From now until August 25, look through your favorite blogs and try out ANY recipe. The recipe has to come from another blog. This is the whole premise of the Blog Bites event, so please turn to other blogs for inspiration.
2. Write a post telling us about the recipe you tried, with the following: (a) A link to the recipe on the inspiring blog, (b) A link to this post announcing the event (c) Picture of your dish.
3. Please do not copy a recipe word for word from another blog- that would be both illegal and unethical. Either re-write the recipe in your own words, or simply add a link to the recipe. One of the reasons I am hosting this event is to promote the idea of cooking from blogs while giving them due credit.
4. Please make sure your entry meets all the rules above. Then, send me the link (URL) of your entry, either by leaving a comment on this post, or using the contact form. You can send in as many entries as you like.
5. I will acknowledge the entries you send in by leaving a comment on your post and thanking you for the entry within 2-3 days. Check back on August 26 to see the round-up.

Thank you for your participation!


All this week, I am busy moving to another neighborhood. Regular programming on One Hot Stove will resume from my new kitchen in a week or so. Have a lovely week, everyone.

Rajma Wrap

Dried beans and legumes are the "little black dress" of my kitchen. Keep them in your pantry and they can emerge dressed up for a feast or dressed down for an everyday lunch, and everything in between. 

In this recipe, kidney beans are decked out in their summer best, wrapped in a light wheat tortilla along with cool yogurt, fresh greens and sweet tomatoes. The inspiration for this wrap came from the curried kidney bean wrap from Sailu's Kitchen. You could think of this as an Indian burrito. 

I took Sailu's idea and changed it to fit the ingredients in my kitchen, and the fresh loot from the Farmers' Market, including the sweetest, ripest cherry tomatoes. This is a very flexible and forgiving recipe, as you can imagine.

Kidney Bean Wraps

A. Make the filling:

1. Heat some oil, and saute 1 small minced onion.

2. Add and saute:

• 1 tsp. ginger garlic paste
• 1 tsp. cumin-coriander powder
• 1 tsp. kasuri methi
• turmeric and red chilli powder to taste
• salt to taste

3. Add and stir fry on open heat until the mixture is quite dry

• 3 tbsp. tomato ketchup
• 2 chopped tomatoes (fresh or canned)
• 4 cups cooked kidney beans 

4. Turn off the heat, and add

• a dash of garam masala
• plenty of chopped fresh cilantro

B. Assemble the wrap:

• For the base, you can use store-bought tortillas, pitas or other flatbreads. I love the whole wheat tortillas from Trader Joe's. Leftover (or freshly made) rotis or chapatis would be wonderful too. 
• To the flatbread, add some kidney bean filling, dollops of thick Greek yogurt (or strained yogurt or sour cream), and your choice of fresh vegetables, including fresh greens, quartered cherry tomatoes, sliced onion etc. 
• For those who love spicy food, some green chilli chutney would be right at home here. This wrap is very reminiscent of those frankies I love to devour every time I get a chance.

Because this recipe is inspired by a fellow blogger, it goes to this month's Blog Bites: Sandwiches and Wraps, hosted right here on this blog. If you would like to participate, send in an entry in the next couple of weeks.

Speaking of frankies and street food, I am teaching a class on Indian street food at the wonderful Kitchen Conservatory on Sunday, July 25th- two weeks from now. If you or someone you know might be interested, please contact me for details.

* Talking Trash * 

I am looking to set up a compost bin in a couple of weeks, and getting unduly excited about it. Once all the compostable material is removed from our weekly trash, there is so little left, so setting up a good composting system is a top priority in reducing the amount of trash my household produces.

My two criteria are, (a) it should be a container system rather than a pit I dig up in the yard, because I don't want to deal with the hassles of dogs and assorted critters getting into the pile, (b) I want to use some biological prowess- be it worms or bacteria- to speed up the composting process.

Right now, the top contender in my mind is the Bokashi method. Any and all kitchen waste is pickled using anaerobic bacteria, then the fermented mass is buried in soil for a few weeks to make rich compost.

There is a wealth of information out there on websites and in books and it can be overwhelming. Do you compost your kitchen waste? If yes, do you mind sharing your experiences with me, especially with small-scale container composting? Thank you for your time!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake

We had a cozy pizza & cake party on the holiday weekend. Chocolate and peanut butter seems to be an ever-popular flavor combination around here, so I dug into the bookmarks and found the perfect recipe to try- peanut butter cup chocolate cake from Baking Bites. The recipe looked suspiciously simple. Aren't layer cakes supposed to be a pain to make?

To make it just a bit more complicated, I decided to make some crunchy candied peanuts as a topping for my cake. The recipe is from David Lebovitz and I followed it quite faithfully. In a heavy metal pan went raw peanuts (with pink skins on, the ones I buy in the Indian store), sugar and some water. Then it is a matter of stir, stir and stir again for nearly 30 minutes until the peanuts are coated in dark caramel and some grainy sugar. A final generous sprinkle of sea salt, cinnamon and red chilli powder, and the candied peanuts were poured onto a baking sheet to cool off.

We used some for the cake, as you will see later, and the rest became a too-tasty, addictive snack.

Now for the cake, which happens to be eggless, and the whole thing, cake and frosting, only used a stick of butter in all. Nice. Again, I followed the recipe closely. My only modifications:

• Cut down sugar by a third of a cup.
• Baked the batter in 2 cake pans, which needed only 20 minutes or so baking time since the cakes were not as tall.
• Used powdered buttermilk.

Then came the frosting: crunchy peanut butter, unsalted butter, icing sugar, tiny bit of salt and milk. Spread frosting on one layer...

...slap on the other layer. Drizzle generously with melted chocolate (I used a combination of milk and dark) and scatter the candied peanuts.

Gooey, messy and oh so good. With this cake, I can finally use the words "layer cake" and "quick and easy" in the same sentence. This one is a keeper.

* * *

I've loved participating in food blog events ever since I started writing this blog. Now, Jacqueline has started a great new website to keep us all informed about the fun events being hosted every month- it is called The Food Blog Diary. I want to thank her for including the Blog Bites: Sandwiches and Wraps in the July line-up.

Summer Fare: Raw Pasta Sauce

While the blog has been rather quiet this past week, real life has been busy and productive. I passed my road test and finally renewed the drivers' license, something I had been putting off for way too long.

My new job starts in just 3 days and I know it will take a while to adjust to the new schedule. But this blog brings me a lot of joy and is an ongoing diary of my food-centric life; I don't want it to fall silent. The plan is to try and update the blog once a week or so, perhaps with shorter posts.

To commute to work, and go around town for errands, and for riding in the park, I bought myself a bike yesterday-

Believe it or not, it has been 11 whole years since I last rode a bicycle (a trusty red BSA SLR bike is what I used from middle school right past college). Turns out it is true what they say about riding a bike- you don't forget once you learn. I hopped on and rode confidently. Got any suggestions for what I should name my new bike?

I have to give a BIG shout-out to our friend Mike Weiss of Big Shark Bicycle Company and his team for being absolutely terrific and helping me pick out a sturdy and affordable bike that fits my needs. I love supporting independent local businesses, especially ones where they so obviously love what they do, and when they show their customers the love. They even tried to convince me that I don't look dorky (or dorkier than I usually do) in a bike helmet.

Meanwhile, the weather in St. Louis has been picture perfect. We have been gorging ourselves silly on summer produce, throwing together meals with the loot from the Farmers' Markets and consuming them without pausing for blog pictures. Last night I finally remembered to grab the camera.

This is what we enjoyed yesterday- whole wheat spaghetti with a raw pasta sauce, or salsa cruda, that simply captures the essence of summer. No cook recipes are always welcome in summer, although you will have to turn the stove on to cook the pasta. While the pasta is cooking, grab a big bowl and toss in ingredients to make the sauce. A gourmet meal awaits you in 11.5 minutes. This is not an exact recipe, just a general method that you can tweak to your heart's content. Because it is such a simple recipe, the quality of ingredients matters even more than usual, so please use the best seasonal produce you can find.

Raw Pasta Sauce 

Salsa Cruda

1. Start boiling salted water for pasta. When it comes to a rolling boil, cook whole-wheat spaghetti until al dente, then drain the spaghetti.

2. Meanwhile, make the sauce. In a large bowl, mix the following-

• ¹⁄₄ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 large ripe fresh tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ¹⁄₂ cup olives, chopped finely
• 2 tbsp. basil-walnut pesto
• 1 bunch fresh basil, cut in chiffonade
• Hefty pinch of red pepper flakes
• Plenty of salt and pepper

3. Toss the cooked spaghetti with the sauce. Top with grated parmesan cheese and serve.

I'm sending this recipe to Presto Pasta Night, hosted at Fuss Free Flavors this week. This event is your one-stop shop for pasta inspiration for every season.

Neighbor Girl made this side dish to go with the spaghetti, again, something stunningly simple and completely delicious. This did not even make it to the table, everyone (except me- I don't do goat cheese) grabbed it in the kitchen and ate it standing up.

• Halve and pit fresh apricots.
• Grill them, or sear them on a pan with some butter, making sure to sear both sides.
• Place the apricots cut side up on a plate, fill the centers with your choice of cheese (she chose a crumbled goat cheese) and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. 

To all my friends in the USA, happy Independence Day weekend! What are you doing this weekend?