Week 13 - Bowl

Ingredients 

1 cup cooked grain (any one of quinoa, millet, etc - I use quinoa)

2 carrots 

1 beetroot

salad greens (optional - I use arugula+baby spinach)

pomegranate (optional)

1 tbsp roasted almonds (or any other nut)

1 tsp sunflower or pumpkin seeds (optional)

olive oil

salt

Herb - Cilantro, thai basil (optional)

For the sauce:

handful of mint leaves

handful of coriander leaves

1 green chilli

sweetener (a bit of jaggery or a couple of dates)

1/3 of a handful of raw almonds

1 tsp olive oil

salt

Method

 

1. Grind together the ingredients for the sauce.

2. Steam the beetroot for 6 minutes and the carrot for 2 minutes.

3. Peel the beetroot and slice them into 1/4 inch thick strips.

4. Do the same with the carrots.

Assemble the bowl separately for each person according to taste or it can be assembled together.

In a bowl, first add the grain. Then add the carrots and beetroot. Add salad greens if using. Add some olive oil and salt and mix. Add some green sauce - as much as you would like. Add the herb if using - not necessary. Top with crushed toasted nuts/seeds and pomegranate if using.

Above bowl is very versatile. This is just one variation. One can use different sauce, different vegetables, etc.

Week 11 - Indian Carrot & Yogurt soup

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 1 tbsp black mustard seeds
• 10 curry leaves
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 inch fresh ginger, chopped
• 1 or 2 green chillies, chopped 
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 pound or 1/2 kg carrots (about 6 large), peeled and grated
• 3 cups vegetable stock (can use Knorr or Maggi seasoning cube) or water
• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup rice flour dissolved in 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup chopped coriander to garnish
• salt
• oil/butter/ghee

Variation

    Can use 4 tbsp chickpea flour dissolved in 2 cups buttermilk instead of the yogurt and rice flour.

Method

1. Heat oil.  Add mustard seeds.  Then, add curry leaves, onion, garlic, ginger, chilli, pepper, carrots and salt and stir fry for 10 mins.  Add the vegetable stock/water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 30 mins until carrots are tender.
2. Blend the yogurt with the dissolved rice flour (in the mixie) for 5 mins.  This will prevent curdling.
3. Add the yogurt to the pot over low heat, stirring constantly clockwise with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes, until the soup begins to simmer gently. Cover, and allow to simmer over very low heat for another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  If the soup is too thick, add some warm water and bring back to a boil.  Adjust seasoning to taste.  Garnish with coriander leaves.

Amma's Carrot Chutney

Another one of my favorites.

Carrot and peanut raita

2 carrots
1/4 cup, roasted salted peanuts
1 small flake garlic, coarsely chopped
1 green chili, coarsely chopped
salt to taste
1 cup thick curd
1 tsp sugar
coriander leaves, to garnish

Peel and grate carrots. Crush peanuts coarsely with a rolling pin. Mix garlic, green chili and salt and crush to a pulp. Beat the curd until smooth and stir in the garlic mixture. Add carrots, peanuts, coriander leaves and mix well. 

Shredded Radish, Coconut and Carrot Salad

Another simple and refreshing salad from Yamuna Devi's cookbook.

Shredded Radish, Coconut and Carrot Salad

1/2 cup shredded radishes ( I used white radish but we can also use the round pink ones)
1/3 cup shredded fresh coconut
1/3 cup shredded carrots
salt
1/4 tsp paprika ( I did not have paprika so I added pinch of chili powder to spice up the salad)
2 tbsps chopped fresh corainder
1 tbsp ghee
1/4 tsp ajwain seeds
1/4 tsp fennel seeds
1/4 tsp cumin seeds

Combine the radish, coconut and carrot in a bowl. Add salt, paprika and coriander leaves. Heat ghee in a saucepan. When it is hot but not smoking, add the ajwain, fennel and cumin seeds and fry until they darken. Pour the seasoning into the salad and toss well.