Mushroom Tofu and Onion Vegan Quiche

I usually make quiche with white sauce but this time I tried tofu instead and it was really super healthy and tasty as well. I could just manage to get a small bite of it, the rest of it my husband gulped. Mushrooms are rich in folic acid and are very necessary part of a vegan and vegetarian diet. I made this quiche using whole-meal pastry flour which gives lots of fibres. Its another quick recipe.


Ingredients

For pastry

2 cups wholemeal flour
1/2 cup water
a pinch of salt
2 tbsp oil (optional)

Method

Mix everything in a bowl and knead it into a dough. i dont have a food processor so I dont know how exactly a dough is made in it. I use my hands to knead a dough. Then roll it about 2-3 inches more than the baking tin base. This recipe make the pastry crust quie tough and hard and crispy. Fit in the pastry into a greased tin and press the pastry floue against the the wall of the tin. Now fill it with any kind of dry beans and cook in in the oven at gas mark 6 for 5 - 10 mins depending on the size of the tin . Check after 5 mins , If the pastry is cooked then allow it to cool else cook it for another 2 - 3 mins. After cooling brush the pastry with oil to prevent it from becoming soggy.

For quiche

10 button mushrooms ( you can use any kind of mushrooms ) chopped
350g of tofu crumbled and patted dry
1 tsp salt
1 tsp powdered black pepper
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 large onion chopped
pinch of chilli flakes to garnish (optional)
1 tsp oil

Method

Heat oil in a pan and add onions and garlic. Saute it till the onions are translucent and tender. Add salt and pepper. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 5 mins. To this add crumbled tofu. Arrange chopped pieces of mushrooms in the tin and pour the tofu onion mixture in the tin . Arrange the rest of the mushroom pieces on the top (try to fit it or arrange layers of mushrooms on above the other, these shrink after coking) and sprinkle chilli flakes.




For quiche with white sauce , you can skip tofu. For making white sauce you need
1 1/2 cup of soy milk (I use sweetned)
1 tbsp plain flour
1 tbsp vegan margarine
a pinch of salt and a pinch of black pepper powder
Melt the margarine and add flour. Pour all the milk little at a time and keep stirring to avoid lumps. Bring it to boil and simmer it and keep stirring till it thickens to a sauce consistency. If you get lumps , then don't panic , just continue to make the white sauce. At the end you can blend it smooth.

Carmelised Mango with mango sorbet and chocolate sauce

I had some leftover mangoes. They weren't quiet sweet variety , but I had to finish them before they started to rot. I browsed for some mango desserts and in some of the recipes I saw that mango can be caramelized and used in desserts. From my husband , I learnt that mango and chocolate can make a good combination. That instant I created this recipe....... Oh my god ! I feel so proud to have invented this recipe. This was a good recipe. And to note I haven't used sugar at all.

Ingredients

2 mangoes sliced into strips or chunked
handful of mixed nuts crushed or coarsely chopped (I used cashewnuts, almonds and pistachios)
2 tbsp cocoa powder or any chocolate drink powder
1/2 tbsp milk
2 scoops of mango sorbet
oil to brush

Method

Grease a baking tray and arrange the mango pieces. Lightly brush oil on these pieces and bake them for 15 mins or till they start to brown on gas mark 6. The time to brown these pieces make depend on the size of the pieces and the variety of the mango.

Meanwhile in a microwavable bowl take the cocoa powder and milk. Gently heat them for 10 seconds. Stir it and again heat it for 10 seconds. Repeat this till it gets a sauce consistency. I did this for a minute.

Once the mango pieces are done, arrange half of them in a bowl (as this recipe serves for 2). Top it with a scoop of mango sorbet and cpour chocolate sauce over it. Sprinkle with crushed nuts.

Stuffed Collard Greens (Pathrode / Konkani Style)

This is a typical Konkani dish. This is again prepared during festival or any special occasions It is normally prepared using colocasia leaves which is found in coastal regions of Karnataka. These leaves should be picked very carefully as some of them could be of wild variety and end up causing itching of the tongues when consumed. I have been quiet allergic to these leaves but I love eating them. My sister in law suggested that I use collard greens instead of colocasia leaves. I actually found that the taste did not alter too much and meanwhile I could happily eat them withot any worry of allergy. Thank you Mallika for your suggestion.

Ingredients
1 cup toor dal / red lentils soaked for 1 hour
1/2 cup white rice soaked for an hour separately
1/2 cup grated coconut
1 tbsp tamarind paste
6-7 dry red chillies
1 - 1 1/2 tsp salt
20 collard green leaves deveined and washed thoroughly and patted dry

Method
Grind coconut, red chillies, tamarind into a coarse paste. To this add toor dal and grind coarsely. And then add the rice and again grind near smooth but not very smooth paste.

Now place the back of one leaf towards you and apply the paste. Now place another leaf with back facing you and apply the paste. Repeat this procedure for 4 leaves. Now fold the right and left edges and roll them just like spring rolls. Repeat this for other leaves with each roll made up of 4 leaves. These rolls should be steamed in a steamer for 20-25 mins or till they are tender.

After they are cooked cut them into circles and serve.

The link below will give a detailed pictorial representation of the method. The ingredients may differ but the method remains the same for collard green leaves also. Thanks Aayi's recipe for the detailed pictures .

http://www.aayisrecipes.com/2006/06/06/pathrado-or-pathrode/comment-page-1/

Moong Beans with green beans curry

Ingredients

1 cup dry moong beans or 2 cups canned beans

1/2 cup chopped beans

1 tsp salt

For masala

3 tbsp grated coconut

1 tsp tamarind juice

3 -4 dry red chillies

a pinch of mustard seeds

a pinch of fenugreek seeds

a pinch of turmeric

For seasoning

1 tsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 sprig curry leaves

Method

For dry moong beans, you need to soak them overnight and following morning cooked them with 4 - 5 cups of water in pressure cooker for 30 mins. The cooker should not be opened immediately after 30 mins. Allow it to stand for atleast 30 mins. If the beans are not cooked then cook them again for another 15 - 30 mins.

Grind the masala ingredients with little water to a smooth paste. Add this to the cooked moong beans with salt . Add 2 cups water if using canned beans. Bring to boil and simmer it for 10 mins.

Take oil in a small pan . Add mustard seeds to the hot oil, after spluttering add curry leaves and immediately put off the flame. Add this seasoning to the moong beans and masala mixture. Serve this with white or brown rice.

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This is the link. Why don't you have a look ?

I like the comedy serial Some mothers do 'ave 'em. I am thinking of buying this one. If you are interested then u can just click on the link below and buy it. 

Enjoy!

Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em: The Complete Collection [1973]

Spicy fruit salad in coconut sauce (Konkani style sasama )

This is sweet and spicy dish so I cant categorise either in savoury or dessert. This is again served during festival meals and wedding. This can be prepared with variety of fruits. Most commonly used is pineapple. I have used mango, red grapes and bananas. But this can be prepared with just one kind of fruit or combination of these fruits.

Ingredients

1 cup raw fruits chunked (just a variety or mixed fruits)

3 tbsp shredded coconut

a pinch of whole mustard seeds

2 dry red chillies

1 tsp tamarind juice

1 tbsp jaggery or sugar or sweetener

a pinch of salt

Method

Take all the chunked fruits into a mixing bowl. Now grind the rest of the ingredients with 3-4 tbsp water in a blender. Add this ground mixture to the fruits and serve. This can be chilled. This tastes very flavourful the next day as these fruits marinate in the sauce. This can be served immediately also.

Minty Tofu Kebabs with Roasted vegetables

Forgive my presentation and photography. Still an amateur. This recipe is from www.massala.com . This website is run by a Hema Alur Kundargi . She has posted some healthy and awesome recipes mostly vegetarian and vegan. All the vegans and vegetarians out there ! this website is really worth browsing . She has posted recipes for beginners also. My husband doesn't like the smell and taste of yogurt but he munches theses kebabs. She has even posted the video for this recipe in Youtube as well.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=fb6RPhjb9fU&feature=PlayList&p=817FF6CADF84F8BA&playnext=1&index=22

The recipe can be found in link below.

http://www.massala.com/Tofu.html

Spicy cauliflower and potato

I always make spicy cauliflower and potato but this is slightly different. I got the recipe for this from www.paajaka.com. I am giving the link below

http://www.paajaka.com/2008/06/cauliflower-palya.html

This is not at all spicy because the only spice used here is turmeric and mustard. This was the first time I tried this , I liked it but my husband though it could have been better if it was little more spicy. If you dislike hot and spicy food , then this is really a treat. Other day when I made this, I wanted a very bland and good food and hence , I made this. Thank you Paajaka.

Vegetable Biryani

This is quiet a nutritious dish. This is very commonly served during parties, potlucks and wedding in India. You can add variety of veggies and make it more colorful and appetizing . This can be prepared very quickly and without any effort. This recipe was given to me by my ex colleague Sudha Baliga. She is a great cook. Thanks to her for this wonderful recipe.

Ingredients

5 -6 garlic pods chopped finely
1 medium sized cinnamon stick (equal to length of your index finger) powdered
3 -4 cloves powdered
2 cardamom powdered
3 onions chopped
1 tbsp red chilli powder
pinch of turmeric
thumb sized ginger piece finely chopped
1 cup of mixed veggies chopped (I used tomatoes, beans, carrots, peas, sweetcorn)
1 1/2 cup rice preferable basmati rice
pinch of sugar (optional)
1 tsp salt
3 cups water (for every one part of rice 2 parts of water should be added)
2 tbsp oil

Method

the spices can be powdered together or the whole spices with whole garlic pods and whole ginger can be ground in a blender. The latter saves time and effort. Heat oil in a pan and add the powdered spices and garlic and ginger and saute it for 1/2 a minute or you can add the ground spices with garlic and ginger and then saute it till you get the fragrance or aroma of the spices. Add the chopped onions and saute it till reddish brown . Now add washed rice and saute it for a minute or 2 and then add chopped veggies , roast them for a minute or wo . Now add chilli powder , turmeric, salt , sugar and water. Cook for 15 - 20 mins or till the rice is completely cooked and tender. At this point you can add more water if required. This is ready to be served with raita .

Dal and Roti

This is a very simple and common dish eaten in north india. And lately it has been quiet a popular dish even in south india and a cheap one too. During my college days , I would crave to eat this and pull a friend of mine to a near by fast food outlet and eat it. It was just 10 Rs per plate and I relished every bite of it and even eat from my friends plate . I tried this at home but the taste was never the same. I miss my food outlets in India.

Ingredients for Dal

1 cup cooked channa dal
a pinch of asafoetida
a pinch of turmeric
2 tsp ginger paste or finely minced ginger
2 -3 green chillies slit
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp salt
1 tsp oil

Method

Heat oil in a saucepan and when the oil is hot, add cumin seeds. When the seeds stop spluttering add asafoetida, turmeric , ginger and gren chillies. Saute it for half a minute and then add cooked channa dal and about 1/4 cup of water and salt. Bring this to boil and cook the dal further till they are very tender and are easily mashed when taken between the fingers and crushed. This is ideally served with chappatis and rotis.

Marrow curry (Konkani style ambath)

Ingredients

1 marrow chunked without the hard skin
1 onion finely chopped
3 tbsp grated coconut
1 tsp tamarind juice
3 roasted dry red chillies
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup red lentils / toor dal cooked and mashed
1 cup water
1 tsp oil

Method

Prepare the masala by grinding coconut , tamarind juice and red chillies with little water. In a pot add lentils , masala , marrow , salt and water and cook till the marrow is tender . Meanwhile heat oil in a small pan and when the oil is hot add onions and caramelize them . Add this to the pot above and the curry is ready to be served.