Red Split Lentils- Indian Style

Red Split Lentils are just about the easiest curry you can make, with absolutely no compromise on taste. Though I do take my sweet time to prepare any kind of food, I reckon this took me half an hour this morning, in total. I did go off and do some sewing whilst the lentils were boiling, but that's besides the point. Boil time was under 10 minutes, (after having soaked the lentils early this morning when I awoke). Total soak time must have been around two hours. When I saw that no more water was being absorbed it was time to cook! :) 

Not everyone soaks these lentils, but I find that it cuts down on cooking time drastically, to a mere 10 minutes.

      

Dry lentils 

Bloated and ready to cook! :) 

For this curry, I added a cinnamon stick, bayleaves, cardamum and salt to the water before adding the lentils. I would advise you to add the cardamum later on, in the 'turka,' or curry paste, Since the cooking time was so little, the flavor didn't come out too strong. 








I added the tumeric once the lentils were cooked (after 10 mins). You may well wish to end the whole process right here and now, should you choose, and you'd still get a tasty meal, not to mention, very pure food. 

We will take it a step further though, for those of you who wish to impress a guest who pops in for lunch, and you need to whip up something quick! ;) 






You'll see all the ingredients as well as full method below, but suffice it to say that the final step is a cinch, and makes a world of difference to this lentil curry. 

Ghee, Ginger & Spices

Pictured to the left here are all the goodies that went into the ghee (clarified butter- cooked very slowly on low heat to remove milk proteins, and best suited for Indian cooking). 

In the centre of the picture, next to the heart shaped ginger (you know me ;) ), you'll see a spoon, with a yellowish powder: HING, aka 'asafoetida.' 
It's the smelliest thing in the world, but a perfect digestive aid, which couples very well in Indian cooking, especially for the legumes & bean curries. With a touch of hing, you can eat in peace, without anticipation of the dreaded after gas!
If you can get over the smell, you'll soon learn that you won't cook without it. 
You don't use a lot, but if you don't use it at all, you just kind of notice that something is missing, though you can't quite put your finger on what that something is. It is indeed the stinky yellow powder!  

I personally, didn't grow up using it, and was only introduced to the spice a couple years back, and must admit, I was fairly nauseous from the smell at first, but I don't go without now:). 

What I learned today, is that Hing assimilates best in fat, so where I normally just add it to the lentils whilst they're boiling away, today it was the other way around, and I added it first to the ghee for about 15 seconds, before adding the rest of the spices. 

Now, I've not quite mentioned that when you make lentils, it's not the usual curry paste (Turka), that is used - the typical, onion, garlic ginger combo with masala. Well, that's not how I do it anyway. 
You use the same method- heat up your spices but only add ginger into the ghee, (no onion, garlic, masala), and once you've got that smell going on, after just a few minutes, add the magic to the finished lentils- easy peasy. 

Spices working their magic in ghee. 

My lentils came out fairy thick and I did use a hand blender to smooth them out, (which you can totally skip). You could add yoghurt, cream, coconut milk, more water, to thin the mixture, should you wish (and sure, you could add a tomato at the end-sometimes I do, sometimes not. Try it for yourself). 

How to make curried lentils - my style: 

Ingredients

300g Dry lentils which will swell to just under double @ 700g

Approx 3.5 cups of boiling water  

3 bay leaves

Cinnamon stick 

1 tsp salt

3/4 tsp tumeric

Turka (curry sauce)

2 Tbsp Ghee

1/4 tsp Hing/ asafoetida

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

3x cardamum pods (cut in half to release seeds)

1/4 tsp chili flakes (or as you desire)

A handful of Dried curry leaves, to start with (add more if you wish at the end)

2 tbsp chopped ginger 

1- Add bayleaves, cinnamon stick, salt  lentils to boiling water. Scrape off scum from lentils, and cook for approximately 10minutes. The lentils will already be done (taste to make sure they're soft, and add more salt should you wish). 

2- Add turmeric, and give it a good mix, allow to simmer on low heat, whilst you prepare the 'turka.'

3-Warm up ghee in pan, and add hing. Heat up for approximately 15 seconds, before adding everything but the ginger to the pan. Once you have a beautiful aroma wafting, add the ginger, cook for about a minute, and add the whole mixture to the lentils. 

Yes, that's it :). 

As always, play with your food. :) 

Too thick? Add more water, or cream or yoghurt, or coconut milk. 

Too salty, same as above.

Not enough of a curry flavour? Add more curry leaves, and coriander (I only had shoots on hand, but by all means, go nuts!). Speaking of nuts, you could add flaked roasted almonds on top, or even roasted sesame seeds (black ones would look beautiful on the yellow of this dish). 

Go on, your turn to play and create. 

Do let me know how you get on. AND as I'm new at writing out recipes, I'd love your feedback! Am I easy enough to understand? Are you getting all the info? 
Please comment and ask away. :) 

Peace & Love with all that you are and do <3

Always serve with a good spoon of ghee on top :)))) 

A Berry Raw Cake ;)

For the finale of an Indian Feast I did a few nights ago, I made this raw cake, in honour of birthday girl, and dear friend,  Kat Witgruber.

What you ought to know about Kat, is that she's just as adventurous in the kitchen, though her passion & specialty lies in baking- hence there was just no way I was baking anything - nothing compares to Kat's baked goods!! 

As for this cake, I kid you not, it is so very very simple. 

The ingredients are simple, and it doesn't take so long to prepare. I'm all about simplicity these days, without compromising on taste. 

I got the idea for this from this recipe, by someone I can only find as 'Megadaisy1's- thank you whoever you are!
I adapted it by substituting almonds for the macadamia nuts, and maple syrup instead of dates in the crust.     There's a fair bit of room to play, so go for it, do your own thing, using the following as a rough guideline. 

CRUST (& Topping)

2 cups Almonds 

1/2 cup Shredded Coconut 

1/4 cup Maple syrup 

Pinch of salt 

FILLING:

2x Avocado 

4x Banana (very ripe) 

Cacao powder

TOPPING:

Your choice of fruits & remainder of crust ingredients (if you wish). 

Put all the crust ingredients into a food processor, and blend to from a coarse mixture. 

Blend avocados, bananas and cacao powder. Fill in the crust. 

Add berries and voila- all done!

It did turn out to be quite a hit. So much so, that it's fast becoming part of my Indian Feast repertoire. 🌞 

Let me know if you try it, and in the mean time, I'm heading back into the kitchen to prep for tomorrow's lunch time feast, with a few angels. ;) 

A Tasty Treat in Just Minutes, & Only Four Ingredients :)

My sweet tooth dragged me to the kitchen after making my a couple of videos today, a welcome note for my website, plus a new EFT video.

First came the coconut, then I added cacao powder, figured I'd need something to sweeten - maple syrup from Yurai's parents- thank you very much - and cream, just because I can. ;)

You don't need a recipe, do you...? 

Ok, if you do, here's approximate measurements-

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1 Tsp (unsweetened) cacao powder

1Tbsp maple syrup 

1Tbsp cream 

(**add whatever else you fancy, cinnamon, cardamom, chia seeds, cacao nibs, oatmeal.....)

Mix everything together.

If mixture is too wet, add more coconut, otherwise more cream or maple syrup, depending on your tastebuds, and roll into balls or eat straight out of the bowl with a spoon.

How many portions? Enough.
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Play with your food! :D 

That's all, post done. 

Let me know if you try these, and don't forget to add a whole lotta love-- It'll negate the rest of the ingredients, if that's a worry for you (like it used to be for me). <3

Much peace and love. 

We're swapping over to sweets for a few posts :) 

Without any guilt or shame, I'm here to tell you that both my husband and I, love cookies, especially my cookies, full of butter, sugar and most importantly, a whole lotta love. :) "Healthy," is a state of mind, so for me, these guys a thumbs up. 

His favourite happen to be chocolate chunk. In fact, what he requests are chocolate chunks with bits of cookie. 

I found many recipes for the best cookie ever, and played with a couple of them to come to these beauties. One more trial and I've got them down pat, and ready to offer you :). 

Chocolate chunk with bits of cookie. There's a block of chocolate in the centre of these babies, and each chunk was placed
on top by yours truly. The ultimate cookie, made with love <3

Digestive Biscuits with a Twist :)

Folks, forgive me as I multitask numerous things. In order to get this blog going, I'm posting pictures for now, which I shall return to and give you "recipes," or a better idea on how to make what's shown, using what I use, my creativity and imagination. 

We're going to play with food guys, I'm going to teach you how! 

So bear with me, as I revamp my website, do lots of writing and everything in-between. I'll be back soon. (If you fancy, come along to Instagram, where you'll find tons of my food ideas, (and perhaps you can request the next recipe...Now there's an idea ;) ).

Much love and may you be blessed.

xxMunjeet  <3 :**

The Almighty Digestive.  :) 

...or butter and honey...? :) 

Cumin & Cardamum, anyone? 

Recipe #2: Salad of Grilled Cabbage & Bosc Pear, with Sprouts, Walnuts & Balsamico

No more excuses nor apologies- let's keep this food blog going. ;) I'll get better at this, and I believe the key for me is to blog immediately after I've finished playing in my studio (kitchen).

A close up :) 

On that note, something sooooo very simple for you: A salad, of all things, and just because it's a bunch of veggies, doesn't mean I've skimped on taste, believe you me, not. If it doesn't taste good, what's the point in eating it?

I popped over to the Hungarian couple I'd been told about recently, who drive into town on Saturday mornings, selling their fresh produce.   There they still were, at around 10am, when I was returning from my walk, and as it was raining, there was still plenty of stuff. I only bought fresh eggs and cabbage, as with my period immanent, I'll be cleansing over the duration of it, so only drinking water.

This is what I ended up having as my first meal today- Let's call it a salad with all kinds of delights OR, A simple Salad of Grilled Cabbage & Bosc Pear, with Sprouts Walnuts, & Balsamico,  which includes:

-White cabbage (I used approx a quarter, of a medium sized cabbage for myself)

-Olive Oil

-Lamb's Lettuce (handful)
-Bosc pear, very thinly sliced
-Red spring onion, chopped
-*Sprouted Chia
-*Sprouted Rukola/Rocket
-Walnuts
-A small clove of garlic, chopped
-Balsamic Vinegar
-Salt and pepper to your desire
*If you don't have sprouts on hand, by all means use a combination of herbs- parsley and/or basil would go very well.

A morning treat- A Simple Salad  :)

To create your work of art:

Get your oven going on the highest setting, and ready to grill.

Finely shred cabbage, and place onto an oiled, salted oven tray, and give it a toss, to incorporate the oil, and tuck it in the oven. Check back on it after 5 minutes to see if it's browning, when it is, give it another toss.  Should be ready in about 10 or so minutes, so in the mean time you can get onto chopping.  

Once you remove the cabbage from the oven, ensure that there's enough oil still on the tray to wet the pear pieces (both sides), and sprinkle salt over the whole lot. Keep an eye on these guys as they're thin- so just a couple of mins in the oven, please! 

Basically now, you're just plating up. :) 

Start with a handful of lambs lettuce, and weave in the cabbage (or just place a handful in the centre of the lettuce. Add everything else, and finish off with the balsamico. 

An added hint for it to taste even better, if I may..Bless your food, give it love and as you eat it, smile, and be grateful for another meal. 

Enjoy!

PS: As I'm a novice at this recipe writing, do let me know if I could improve for you. It all makes sense in my own head, though I know sometimes I'm even ahead of myself!!  ;)

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The very  next recipe coming up is this one: The almighty Digestive cookie, however you're going to get three versions, the original, and two twists. The one pictured below has cumin and cardamum in it, & some with dark chocolate- an unusual but tasty combo. ;D 

Recipe #1: Not so ordinary Egg Salad

A not so ordinary Egg Salad 

At long last, my first recipe, and even I’m surprised at what’s made the top of my list for what I’ll share with you first.

Recipe first and chatter after, because there’s much to share ;).

What you’ll need  (and please bear with me, as I don’t own any measuring tools, so quantity is approximate - you’ll have to taste your way through this, which is half the fun ;).

6 Eggs

2/3 cup(ish) Greek Yogurt (full fat for best results)

2 small onions

Pickles- as many to your liking

2 tbsp Olive oil

1 Tsp Dijon mustard

Parsley & Thyme (fresh if you have)

Salt and pepper as per your tastebuds

Alfalfa sprouts

A whole lotta love :) 

What to do:

Boil the eggs for at least 4 minutes, unless you fancy runny yolks.

Whilst the eggs are on the go, finely chop the onions, pickles & herbs (if fresh), and combine in a bowl.

Drizzle in olive oil, salt and pepper.

Mix the mustard into the yogurt in a separate bowl, and add them to the mixture.

Take a taste and see if it’s to your liking.

Add the eggs, give it all a mix, and serve on your favorite bread, with **alfalfa sprouts and fresh parsley to top it all off.

Top the salad on your favorite bread, or even pile on top of fresh veggies, (goes very well with steamed asparagus. If you're spreading it on bread, a lovely trick I like to do is to squeeze some fresh lemon on the bread before loading it up. 

**I'll put up a post about how to do alfalfa sprouts shortly- they're so easy! 

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Now then, truth be told, I’ve been playing and playing with food - even whilst on my body/mind, no foodcleanse-  creating and experimenting, and that’s half the reason I didn’t get to you sooner.  I know I kept promising a blog on the pictures I’ve been posting, (on my facebook food album and instagram),  but to sit and write was won out by wanting to go and play in the kitchen.

I wasn’t sure what I’d post first, as with playing, and creating new stuff, it was all getting a little overwhelming. This egg salad comes to you first, because it’s the latest thing I made. I hesitate to say, “created,” as it’s only egg salad, but to be quite honest, it’s pretty special.

It won my husbands heart in any case. I swear to you, every time we have a meal, it’s like getting married over and over again. (Which makes for great honeymooning). ;D

You may have noticed that I didn’t use mayonnaise, as per traditional egg salad. In all honestly, that’s two-fold. I refuse to buy mayo from the shop, AND I don’t own a whisk or any large bowls as yet, to make  my own. We (my husband and I), were not at all kidding nor exaggerating, when we’d made our crowd-funding campaign for the book that we are writing together about EFT/Tapping, called “Modern Alchemy for Emotional Freedom.” We’d really maxed out our credit cards,  family support, everything, and I’m blessed to be in a place of my own, rather than gypsy’ing around.

The flat didn’t come with any kitchen toys, like the last places I’ve lived in, and not being in a position to buy the quality things I see in my dreams as yet, has caused me to be more old fashioned. Everything gets done by hand, literally, and I quite love it.  Mind you, I do have one toy - a shiny red Kitchen Aid blender, which I kind of nicked out of my husband’s place, last time I went round there. He is far from complaining though, being the happy recipient of beautiful food.

More to come, now that I’ve started. :)

Thanks for reading, and play with your food!