a commonsense approach to eating well, living well and travelling
Zucchinis are very versatile and lend well to all manner of cooking styles. Simple, quick and easy to make a meal out of this unassuming vegetable.
INGREDIENTS
8-9 small tender baby zucchinis
Olive oil for brushing
100 grams sour cream
Salt and pepper
½ teaspoon lemon rind
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
I know that round here we refer to butternut as butternut pumpkin but in other parts it is called butternut squash. Squash or pumpkin it is really yummy roasted and makes a strong case for a salad being a meal.
INGREDIENTS
1 kilogram butternut pumpkin, seeds removed, cut into wedges
250 grams of small shallots (I used baby ones)
1 cup of buckwheat groats
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons harissa
The combination of red cabbage and fennel works really well. The seeds offer a nice crunch.
250 grams red cabbage, finely shredded
1 medium sized fennel bulb, finely sliced
1 large carrot (125 grams), finely julienned
Handful of chopped parsley
Barbecues and salads go hand in hand. Being a vegetarian, I am always experimenting with flavour combinations for protein packed salads that are a bit more than tossing leaves from a bag. This is an interesting and easy salad which works well for school /work lunches.
INGREDIENTS
2 x 400g tins butter beans, drained and rinsed well
2-3 large sticks celery, peeled and sliced at an angle
1 large avocado, cut into fairly large chunks
1 small red onion, sliced thinly
2-3 sprigs Italian parsley, coarsely chopped
Dressing
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
30ml lemon juice
Continue reading “AVOCADO, BUTTER BEAN & CELERY SALAD (ABC SALAD)”
You can buy long beans or Asian beans from markets. They are very juicy and succulent about 20 – 24 centimetres long. Salad works well with regular beans too.
INGREDIENTS
250 grams of long beans
1 baby Cos, washed and leaves separated
½ cup almonds, toasted
¾ cup pitted green olives, chopped finely
1 tablespoon harissa
Kala chana or black chick peas are smaller than the white ones and readily available in any Indian store. The chick peas are actually dark brown and remain firm even after cooking that is to say they have a bite. Being rich in protein, they are a wonderful addition to any meal. Both recipes are great for snacking.
When soaking the chick peas, add a teaspoon of turmeric, that way they retain a rich golden brown colour. After soaking them in water for 8 hours or more, you need to cook them either on stove top (probably upwards of an hour) or pressure cook for 4 or 5 whistles. Make sure you add salt to the chana prior to cooking. A cup of dry black chana, would yield sufficient quantity for four adults.
SUNDAL
This is a very popular snack particularly in South India. Black chana are considered auspicious and sometimes it is made in temples as prasadam too. (Prasadam is vegetarian food that is a religious offering in both Hinduism and Sikhism.)
I just love the vibrant shades of green of this salad. It is not only appetizing but a very filling salad as well.
INGREDIENTS
1 head broccoli
10-12 snow peas, cut on a diagonal in half
200 grams edamame beans (I used frozen and cooked them as per instructions on the packet)
If ever I had to represent summer on a plate, this would be the dish I would create. This is a recipe that is a classic but evolved over time. Having said that it tastes different every time I make it, owing to seasonal changes.
I love the flavours and also what this dish stands for. For me, it is about summer vegetables, long evenings and barbecues. You can serve this with crusty bread for light dinner or serve it as a side dish with barbecued meats. Either way, it is super easy, delicious and vegan plus it adds to your vegetable intake for the day.
INGREDIENTS
400g butternut pumpkin, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 large red onion
3 zucchinis, chopped
2 peppers, 1 red and I yellow, cored, seeded and chopped
1 eggplant, diced
Romesco sauce has its origins in the region of Catalonia in Spain. The fishermen in this area made this sauce to eat with fish. I think asparagus and Romesco is a wonderful match.
INGREDIENTS
1kg asparagus, woody bases trimmed
60ml balsamic vinegar
100ml apple juice
This deep green vegetable has sturdy stems that are sweet and the leaves have a hint of bitterness. They remind me of our broccolini. In Cantonese, this is gai lan and in mandarin it is jie lan. I recommend you try this and you will be pleasantly surprised at its versatility. Gai lan goes well with spicy flavours so I tend to blanch first and then stir fry with ginger or garlic.
GAI LAN WITH GINGER, GARLIC & RED CHILLI
I do this with choy sum as well as with young new season gai lan.
INGREDIENTS
A large bunch of gai lan or choy sum (300-350 grams)
2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil