I have 3 reasons to blog today…

The weather is great here today, though a little humid , its been so long since it has rained in this part of the world, My part of world has brown coloured trees not the usual green , thats how dry it is… so , its been an oasis in the desert for us today with the showers yesterday and the drizzle today.

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I am a self confessed sky gazer or a ceiling gazer, especially after a long needed vacation. I’d be dreaming about life if I lived there.. which is practically not possible , Hey , but isnt there a saying ” Dare to Dream ?”

So , yesterday was one of those days when I was gazing at the ceiling ( its too hot to sky gaze) and forgot all about lunch. At noon a phone call from Yamuna shattered my dreams about winning a lottery and buying a million dollar home , atop a mountain … sigh!… Reality struck and hunger pangs increased when an almost empty refrigerator and kitchen stared at my face. All I had was a box of strawberries . With Yamuna , my best pal since 3rd grade, I really cant afford to take chances by hanging up and facing her wrath . Multi tasking was the key. I made this wonderful salad , ate half of it first , took pictures , chilled it for a while and then had a second helping to satiate myself. I realized chilling it makes a lot of difference… And all this while talking to her.

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I have been reading the Savoring Series of books from William Sonoma and the desserts series is a gastronomic experience with over 125 recipes from various international award winning cook books

Savoring Deserts has a eye catching , mouth watering photographs and clear instructions. It contains recipes from all over the world and I plan to try quite a few of them, especially the french desserts.

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Kohlrabi or knol- kohl as it is commonly called in India is quite similar to turnips. More about this fleshy vegetable here

Impulsive buyer that I am, I bought them on a whim from the farmer’s market which happens in a mall close by and I only knew how to make sambhar /kootu with this green vegetable and my dear K , hates all kinds of sambhars and rasams with a passion and I cannot do without either.He goes to the extent of shamelessly telling our close friends who invite us to their homes, not to expect him to taste them! Can u imagine someone eating idlis without sambhar?? I really haven’t got it till now !!!

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I am aware of certain dishes when it comes to maharashtrian cuisine as both my mother and mother in law grew up in maharashtra during their formative years. But I havent ventured much into this regional cooking except for koshimbirs, pithlay and zunka…

Well, I decided to try this restaurant special Vegetable Kolhapuri and of course Koshimbir , which I think is a soul satisfying relish! My entry to Nupur’s RCI – Maharashtrian cuisine, Originally concieved by Lakshmi of Veggie Cuisine

For the Vegetable Kolhapuri

Ingredients:
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1/2 cup of Beans
1/2 cup of cauliflower florets
1/2 cup of carrots
1/2 cup of peas
3 tomatoes finely chopped
1 medium sized onion finely chopped

For the Paste:
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1/4 cup dessicated coconuted(unsweetened)
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 table spoon khus khus ( poppy seeds)
1 teaspoon ginger paste
3 red chillies

For the popu/tadka/seasoning
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1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon hing

Method:
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1.Do the popu, tadka /seasoning by adding oil in a skillet and adding mustard and cumin seeds. Once the pop, add the onions and saute until pink.

2. Boil the vegetables and keep aside , dry roast the poppy seeds and add the sesame seeds and grind all the ingredients to a paste. The poppy seeds should be ground first and then the remain ingredients should be added, else the poppy seeds wont crush properly.

3.Once the onions turn pink, add the paste and the diced tomatoes and cook until done or the oil separates. Add all the vegetables and cook until they blend well. remove and serve hot with rotis.

Koshimbir:
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Koshimbirs are the soul satisfying relishes according to me, I can just eat them as a main course and be done with it. I did not make the traditional peanut koshimbir but instead opted for the yogurt one.

I added carrots instead of tomatoes and of course onions were always there.

Take 2 cups of curd and whisk until there are no lumps, add 1/2 cup of finely diced onions and 1/2 cup of finely chopped or grated carrot , salt to taste.

For the tadka, add oil in a vessel, half a teaspoon of mustard seeds, a pinch of hing and also cayenne pepper. Once done, slowly add to the curd mixture and lo! the koshimbir is done.