Crispy Left Over Rice and Vegetable Cakes

A working parent can’t have too many quick and easy dinner recipes in their repertoire. The same applies to snacks. Something that can be easily made, served warm, are filling and delicious. Savory rice cakes made with left over rice, fresh or frozen vegetables come to the rescue when you have made too much rice and the family will not have any more.

Add dices vegetables of choice for color (bell peppers, kale, golden beets, red kidney beans),crunch ( celery, broccoli) and protein (shelled edmame beans, drained canned chickpeas ). Technically beans are not veggies but they add protein to the cakes and make them filling. And as they are staple of vegetarian diet, they fall under vegetable category for me. The possibilities to customize these savory cakes are endless based on what you have on hand and what flavors you crave. Italian seasonings, mexican spices and even Chinese spices can totally render this into a completely different snack.

Rice being a binder, you don’t need anything else to hold them together. Add spices, mix and mash. Shape and either bake in oven or pan fry with a little oil. With a side of salad this can even be a filling meal. Colorful, flavorful and crunchy to boot. Not to mention the protein and the fibre. Make some extra rice ( or moong dal khichadi or risotto) just so that you can make these the following evening.

Am sure this will soon be a staple in your house just like it is in ours!

Crispy Left Over Rice and Vegetable Cakes Recipe

• 2 cups left over rice ( or khichadi)
• 1/4 cup Onion, finely diced
• 1/4 cup bell pepper finely diced ( red and yellow mix)
• 1/4 cup asparagus or French beans , diced
• 2 tablespoons green onions finely diced (only the green part)
• 1 tablespoon fresh coriander leaves
• Handful spinach leaves chopped up
• 3- 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1/2 ” ginger root
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
• 2 teaspoon salt
• A generous pinch freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch of hing or asafoetida
• Pinch of turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice (reduce if you are not a lemon lover)
• 2 tablespoon oil (to fry)

1. Take rice in a large mixing bowl and break into smaller lumps with a spoon.

2. Add all the ingredients. Mix well. Taste and adjust seasonings. Shape the mixture into patties or cakes and set aside.

3. Heat oil in a non stick skillet. Fry them till golden brown and crispy on each side ( about 3- 4 minutes per side). Alternatively you can bake them at 325 F for 12 – 15 minutes till cooked through.

Serve warm with ketchup or mint chutney and onions and extra lemon. Enjoy!

A White Temple Overlooking A Lake – Birla Mandir and Hussain Sagar Lake.

I can’t believe I have not posted about the two popular attractions of Hyderabad: Birla mandir and Hussain Sagar lake.

Chances are you have seen the photos of a huge Buddha Statue rising above calm lake when you have searched for Hyderabad attractions. That lake is Hussain Sagar lake. Its an artificial lake built to solve the cities drinking water problem by Qtub Shah dynasty ( the ones now rest in Qtub Shah Tombs).

Along the lake on one side are gardens and parks known as Tank bund.  In the evenings, you will find young couples in love, families out for a stroll and friends making fun of each other and things around them all along the lake front. There are chaat-walas and ice-cream sellers. And a lot of traffic driving past noisily. Its quiet only after 10 pm or before 8 am; that’s when it makes for a pleasant walk ( if it isn’t smelly;))!

There are boat rides offered to the tall Buddha monument from Lumbini Park - a small urban park with laser and light show and musical fountains. We have not taken the ferry though I know my cousin is known to take the last boat ride fairly often. She mentioned its not as crowded then and it beautiful to watch the lights of necklace road (stretch of road between NTR gardens and Sanjeevaiah park) twinkle at night.

Birla Mandir is a beautiful white marble temple dedicated to Lord Balaji and is built on top of a hillock overlooking the Hussain sagar lake. Built by Birla foundation, it offers spectacular views of the lake, tank bund, various administrative buildings, flyovers and even Lumbini Park. It is a quiet place to contemplate life as the traffic goes by below.As with all Birla temples, security is tight, photography is restricted and even cellphones are not allowed inside.

Almost everyone visiting us wants to see both these places. Luckily they are very close to each other. A late afternoon temple visit, followed by a drive around the lake is perfect prelude to dinner in Ohri’s Tansen or at the Eat Street. I have seen folks go post dinner once the traffic has died down and then enjoy ice-cream at one of the many carts that are around.

If you have no other plans, why not visit Hussain Sagar this weekend?

Home Made Mango Juice

What do you do with the skins of mangoes and the seeds after enjoying mangoes? Discard it. Don’t you dare! They are perfect for making mango juice. Its anyways what most of tetrapak mango juice makers use with a bit of real pulp to make “real mango juice”. Added sugar, color, preservatives and god alone knows what else to increase shelf life, add color and make it smell like real juice.

It’s just very easy to make homemade juice from left over skin and seeds. I get to control the quality of mangoes , amount of salt and sugar and can spice it up with flavorings of my choice ( paprika, cumin powder or red pepper). The color and the taste are all natural.

I used Alphonso mangoes as they are my personal favorite but any other would work just fine. Just add  more sugar if the mangoes are bit tart. also, use less water if you like your juice to be thicker.

This is perfect to be hydrated on summer afternoons when plain water is just a bit meh.

Homemade Mango Juice Recipe

• Skins and Seeds of 4 mangoes
• 2 cups cold water
• 1 tablespoon sugar (adjust based on how sweet the mangoes are)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Pinch of black pepper  or paprika or cumin powder

1. Turn the skin inside out. Soak the seeds and skins in a bowl of potable water for 10 minutes with sugar and salt. If you are not squeamish, give the seeds and skins a good rub. The juice and even some pulp will be released as you soak.

2. Squeeze off excess water from seeds and skins in a separate bowl. Discard the skins and seeds now. Retain the juice – water.

3. Add the juice from step 2. into bowl from step 1.

4. Add black pepper or cumin powder. Taste and adjust seasonings. Let this cool in the refrigerator.

Serve chilled with ice or as is.

The Contemporary Paan

Dimmy -the paan palace has been a unique experience for me in Hyderabad. Having paan as a dessert in an ice-cream parlor like setup. Clean, hygienic with sit in option and no dubious folks giving you the looks!

A typical pan shop

Paan , usually eaten after a meal is both a digestive and a mouth-freshener. Its available at nearly every street corner in paan shops. It has traditionally been ‘frowned’ upon in my family. Kids from ‘good’ families don’t eat paan – that’s what grandma used to say. It was mainly to do with the ’not-up-to-any-good’ people who hang out at ’paan-shops‘ than to do with its ill-health effects. She used to give us a home-made version with coconut, gulkaand and tuti-frootis. So, as grown up I love paan. I don’t like the ones with tobacco or areca nut but the sweet kinds.

This paan palace in Jubilee Hills hence is the perfect contemporary version. We stepped in without hesitation. Chocolate paan, Meenakshi paan, Date- paan, kulfi-paan tempted us from within the glass display. Colorful, ready and inviting. There was a counter with assorted toppings (desiccated coconut, flavoured supari, nuts etc to make a custom paan). We asked for an ice – paan ( a Gurgaon – Delhi area speciality) and it was freshly made for us. Shaved ice filled in paan with typical paan toppings of gulkand, sweet supari and coconut. On a summer evening the generous helping of rose petals, coconut and ice are perfect end to a meal.

The shop is set up like a typical roadside paan- bedi shop with cigars, cigarettes and even chocolates. They also have shaved ice in classic kachi kairi and kala khatta flavors – which we will probably try next time.

We skipped dessert one evening and instead had  2- 3 types of sweet and dessert like paan.

That’s going to be our new routine -at least till the novelty wears off!

A Big Yellow Cake With Chocolate Frosting

I was busy making Varun a “biiiiggg” yellow cake with chocolate frosting. He has been asking me all week to bring a big cake to his pre-school on Friday.

I indulged him and baked him a yellow cake with chocolate frosting. This is the best cake ever!

Recipe is from Smitten Kitchen’s best birthday cake. I agree with the title!

We ate the bits and pieces from the cake’s dome. Varun’s school mates get to enjoy it tomorrow.

Apologies for a mobile phone picture. Can’t keep the cake out due to heat and humidity and if I open the fridge any longer, Varun will steal the M& M’s off the top.

I will be back with a real post tomorrow night – a contemporary paan experience in Hyderabad. In the meantime have a great day and thank you for reading me!

Whats For Dinner Tonight?

What do you folks plan for dinner every day? Its a big challenge around here. Sure, we have a cook – perks of being in India, but her cooking is a bit on oily side.  Coupled with my sweet tooth it doesn’t help my waist line. So our weeknight dinner is very simple and casual.

• Big bowl of salad with some protein (usually boiled eggs, sometimes chicken breast, rarely fish)
• Crunchy salad with bell pepper, beans, onions and cabbage with a simple seasonings ( lemon juice, salt, pepper and a dash of paprika)
• Plain rice (or 2 roti’s) with dal, stir fried vegetables and small side of salad
• Curd rice with lemon pickle
• Breakfast as dinner – omelet with bread, fried egg on toast
• Pasta with marinara or pesto sauce
• Stir fried rice with lots of veggies and beans (kidney beans, chickpeas, etc)
• Stir fried noodles with veggies and tofu
• Sandwich with basic cheese, peanut butter and a hint of jam
• Maggi (or instant cup-o -noodles)

We have experimented with chicken tenders, meatballs and rotisserie chicken when we were in US but they were not a big hit (especially the rotisserie chicken which I thought was too oily). In Redmond,

• Grilled Halibut and Salmon was our staple on Monday nights.
• Tacos featured regularly.
• Canned soup with grilled cheese sandwich was the old standby.
• Quinoa with chicken/eggs or tofu was a regular as well.

What do your weeknight meals look like? Soups, stews or salads? Crockpot meals or pre-packaged ready to eat single serve TV dinners? Or do you do take out like us? Pizza nights? Do share!