Buddhism and Thukpa - Keep it simple

“The fundamental precept of Buddhism is Interdependence or the Law of Cause and Effect. This simply states that everything which an individual being experiences is derived through action and experience. From this understanding are derived the Buddhist theories of consciousness and rebirth”. That’s how the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso explains Buddhism in his autobiographical book “Freedom in Exile”. If I were to simply decipher those lines written above, it’d be - whatever you do, its consequences will follow you. If you do good, then you’ll meet good and if you do something bad, then of course you know what. It’s Karma. Since this blog is about food - well I should say since I am a foodie - we’ll diverge slowly towards food. 

 

The way he described Tibet and its beauty is exceptional. Though I have never been to Tibet but I can somehow get a feel of that place - Mountains, snow, people still living that simple life contrary to their neighbor. Though Tibet has changed, thanks to China. I won’t get into political things. Tibet’s temperature - which is quite cold - gives it a unique cuisine. It’s mainly meat and butter - you need calories, a lot of calories and heat. Being Dalai Lama is about being simple, keeping simple and at times eating  simple and healthy recipes. As a kid, the 14th Dalai Lama loved the visits from her mother to the Potala Palace. This is a palace where he was kept separated from his family to become a spiritual leader in the future. Apart from motherly love, there is one more reason he loved such visits - Thukpa. Let’s make this Tibetan noodle soup and try to make it good else Karma will haunt us!

Ingredients:

For Thukpa:-

Salt as required,

Pepper as required,

Coriander as required,

300 gms Rice Noodles,

100 gms sliced Carrots,

½ sliced Red Capsicum,

1.5 litres Chicken Stock,

300 gms diced Chicken,

2 pieces Green Onions,

1 tablespoon Lemon Juice,

1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil.

For Spice Paste:-

1 chopped green chilli,

1 chopped small onion,

2 chopped garlic cloves,

1 teaspoon ground cumin,

1 pinch asafoetida powder,

1 teaspoon chopped ginger,

½ teaspoon ground turmeric,

200 gms chopped tomatoes,

¼ teaspoon ground timur powder.

Preparation Method:-

1. First of all make spice paste. Combine all the ingredients in a blender. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add spice paste and cook, stir for 7 minutes. Pour in chicken stock. Bring to boil. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add chicken thigh and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from stock and shred roughly.
3. In the mean time bring 2 litres of water to boil in a large saucepan. Add rice noodles. Cook for 2 minutes. Place in huge strainer and pour cold water over it such that noodles don't stick to each other. Drain water and set noodles aside.
4. Add carrot and capsicum to stock. Simmer for 3 minutes until vegetables are a bit tender. Add lemon juice and season to taste.
5. Divide the noodles in bowls. Top with chicken. Ladle stock and vegetables over the noodles. Serve!
   
   
   

Healthy and Happy Eating!

Healthy Recipes for Kids Birthday Party

Angela is my neighbor and we spend a lot of quality time together, especially on weekends. Yesterday was her son’s birthday party. Kids await for their birthday party throughout the year. The joy on their face for this special day, makes us forget all the pain and stress in life. Tom turned 11 this year and just as all the birthdays, Angela wanted to make it special for him and so I. Since on weekdays we hardly have anytime, we have to go for quick and easy recipes keeping health into consideration as we all love our children.

Burrito - Kids love to pick this Mexican and Tex-Mex food. Whole wheat rolls with tempting filling such as diced grilled chicken, tomatoes, grated carrots and greens make an excellent healthy snack loved by people of all age groups. You can also stir-fry these veggies. Serve it with your favorite sauce. I usually pair burrito with my fav dip recipe, Vegan Walnut and Red Pepper Dip. You must give it a try as well.

Fruit Salad with Ice cream - Fruit salad with Ice cream is a good way to make your kids eat seasonal fruits. The recipe is quite flexible. Add in diced fruits (seasonal fruits) like watermelon, mango, grapes, bananas, cantaloupe etc. Take scoops of ice-cream and top on the salad. I usually use strawberry and butterscotch flavor. Serve in ice-cream bowls as shown. The bowls will be empty in no time. Kids will go bonkers over it!

Sweet and sour Meatballs - Ah! Here it comes. Do not make this recipe too spicy. You can prepare the meatballs in advance. Prefer baking the balls rather than deep frying them. Also you can fry the paste a day before birthday party. I prefer Italian style of preparing the sauce for meatballs. It consists of onions, carrot, celery, parsley, garlic, tomatoes, basil, black pepper. Enjoy the yummzz!

Strawberry Cake - The classic combination of plain vanilla cake, fresh strawberry and smooth cream never fails. I love bakery products, especially when they are homemade. The aroma of the bake is simply irresistible. Nevertheless, cake can be prepared a day before the birthday to save time, it all depends on our resisting power that we don’t eat it the moment it is cool. Kids love it.

Vegetable Rice Noodles - Rice noodles is a good way to treat yourself instead of the refined flour noodles. It’s an excellent meal for birthday party. It is gluten-free recipe as well. Mix in the seasonal veggies with bit of Vinegar, soya sauce, sweet chili sauce (kids will avoid chili sauce) and tomato sauce. The bowl of noodles will be over in no time for sure.

Happy Birthday!

Novak Djokovic and his Gluten Free Journey

These are hard times for all the health conscious people, including me. I say hard times because almost everything can be harmful for health, so what should we go for or not go for? I won’t answer for ‘what should we go for’ as I’ll end up a mentioning a lot of recipes, ironically making the whole meal “NOT” so very healthy. As far as ‘what should we NOT go for’ is concerned, a diet containing Gluten should be avoided. I haven’t implemented this yet but was simply thinking why not including gluten free diet twice or thrice in a week (whenever I can), so that even if I or you have to turn on to a complete gluten free diet, it can be done hassle free. This world number one tennis player, Novak Djokovic, suffered a lot before going for a gluten free diet. Gluten, which is found in wheat, barley and rye was affecting his metabolism. Eventually he was diagnosed as gluten intolerant and shifted to gluten free diet.

Consider someone whose parents own a pizza restaurant but son is sensitive to gluten. Sad! But his hard work and results after going gluten free are evident enough to make me think twice. I was going through a book, Serve Serve to Win, wherein Djokovic says - “What amazed me the most was how simple these changes were to make, and how dramatic the results were. All I did was eliminate gluten - the protein found in wheat - for a few days, and my body instantly felt better. I was lighter, quicker, clearer in mind and spirit. After two weeks, I knew that my life had changed. I sprang out of bed, ready to tear into the day ahead. And I realized that I had to share what I’d learned with others.” I can’t recall when was the last time I sprang out of bed, but let me try this healthy gluten-free recipe. Anyone, anytime may require turning to a gluten-free diet. Let’s practice now onwards.

Gluten-free Curry Noodles Soup

Ingredients:-

1 fresh Red Chilli,

200 ml Coconut Milk,

3.5 cm sliced Ginger,

1 teaspoon Turmeric,

1 litre Chicken Stock,

150 grams Rice Noodles,

1 teaspoon Brown Sugar,

2 tablespoons Lime juice,

1 teaspoon Tamarind paste,

2 tablespoons Thai Fish Sauce,

250 grams stir fry mix Vegetables,

150 grams cooked diced Chicken.

For Garnishing:-

2 Curry Leaves,

1 chopped Red Chilli,

1 piece chopped lemongrass.

Preparation Method:-

1. Take a pan and heat the chicken stock.

2. Boil the noodles in another pan. Drain water and set aside.

3. Add the remaining ingredients, except the vegetables, to the pan and bring to a boil.

4. When the chicken is hot, add the vegetables. When they are tender, add the drained noodles.

5. Divide the noodles between bowls. Pour the soup over them.

6. Serve sprinkled with curry leaves, red chili and lemongrass.

 The Gluten-free diet can be so yummilicious!

Diabetic Friendly Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies

The food craving for a diabetic and a non-diabetic person is the same. It is human nature to crave for the things, he needs to avoid. The scenario very well matches to that of a diabetic person. His desire for having desserts is doubled instead. I can well understand this coz my father has diabetes. This does not mean that low-sugar meals have to be tasteless. He has a sweet tooth. I am sure you loved my diabetic-friendly pecan ice-cream. 

Oats are significant source of dietary fiber. Oats have earned reputation as widely used healthy breakfast ingredient. There is nothing more fulfilling than to wake up and have a bowl full of steaming hot oats. So healthy and so tasty. Today we have different ways of using oats to give you a satisfactory yet tasty meal. If you have diabetes, you must know that a small square of dark chocolate is enough to satisfy your sweet tooth. Did you know that snacking on unprocessed dark chocolate will help in controlling obesity and diabetes? If no then surely try this recipe to quench your craving.

Ingredients:-

1/4 teaspoon salt,

1/4 cup nonfat milk,

2 teaspoons vanilla,

1/2 cup low-fat butter,

1/2 cup dried cherries,

1 teaspoon baking soda,

Cooking spray as required,

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour,

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger,

1/3 cup whipped egg whites,

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon,

2-1/4 cups uncooked quick oats,

1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate,

1 cup Diabetic friendly sweetner,

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce.

Preparation Method:-

1. Combine sweetner, butter, brown sugar, egg whites, applesauce, milk and vanilla in a bowl.

2. Mix with electric mixer until well blended. Stir in combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt.

3. Gradually mix in oats, cherries and chocolate until well combined.

4. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto lightly sprayed baking sheets.

5. Bake in a preheated 350 D.F oven for 10 minutes, or until light golden in color.

6. Remove from baking sheet and cool. Serve!

Happy New Year!

Healthy and Spicy Thai Fish Curry

A delectable Malaysian fish curry is cooked with goodness of your fav veggies, infused with lemony fragrance. This curry makes a perfect dinner for the chilly weather. It is spiced enough to prompt a dizzy drowsy appetite and keep you warm. The best part is that the curry not only works with all kinda fish such as snapper, warehou, ling but also with seafood, from crabs to prawns, lobsters etc. For now, I have tried the fish recipe using my fav tuna fish. 

Fish sauce provides the essential savory flavor that is typically found in traditional Thai cuisine. I just love the aromatic amber-coloured liquid. I have also used homemade orange sauce. Believe it or not, it can be made in a jiffy using few ingredients. I’m sharing my homemade sauce recipe too. Coconut cream is similar to coconut milk. It contains less water. It has a thicker and paste-like consistency. This is a lite recipe with very low calories. I have therefore chosen it to get rid of heavy meals, that we had in abundant on Christmas and New Year holidays.

Ingredients:-

3/4 cup Water,

1/2 teaspoon Salt,

Handful Curry Leaves,

1 teaspoon Fish Sauce,

3/4 cup Coconut Cream,

3 chopped Garlic Cloves,

500 grams firm Fish Fillets,

1 teaspoon Orange Sauce

1 tablespoon Tomato Paste,

2 tablespoon Grated Ginger,

3 tablespoon Extra-virgin Olive Oil.

Preparation Method:-

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Add onion, garlic and cook over a high heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion begins to brown. Stir in grated ginger and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add the fish sauce and orange sauce. Cook, stirring for another minute. Add tomato paste, 1/2 cup of water, the coconut cream and salt to taste. Mix well. Allow the sauce to come to the boil.
3. Stir in the fish cubes into the sauce. Then cover the pan and cook for 3 minutes, or until the fish is just cooked through, adding the extra 1/4 cup of water. Remove from heat.
4. Take another pan and add oil. Add curry leaves. Sprinkle them over the curry just before serving. Enjoy with steamed rice.

 

Ingredients for Orange Sauce:-

3/4 cup orange juice,

2 tablespoons sugar,

1 teaspoons olive oil,

1 teaspoons cornflour,

1/4 teaspoons lemon juice,

2 teaspoons orange squash.

Preparation Method:-

1. Take a pan. Add oil. Add orange juice, squash, sugar and cornflour. Cook until thick, by stirring continuously. Allow it to cool.
2. Add the lemon juice. Now mix gently.
3. Taste the sauce before you use. Enjoy!
   

Happy New Year!

Homemade Gluten-free Vegan Carrot Cake

Holidays are over but the spirit of the festive season is still on. Though I am not a gluten-free or vegan by nature, I wanted to try a recipe for my friends. So I tried Gluten-free Vegan Carrot Cake. I chose a beautiful cake tin to flaunt my recipe to the fullest, though the cake making procedure is extremely simple. Any celebration is incomplete without dessert, especially cake. 

Hope you liked the dessert that I had recently prepared, Low Calorie Lattice Christmas Cherry Coffee cake recipe. Yesterday, I invited my newly married neighbors for evening tea. I prepared very lite snacks coz everyone was tired of fritters and other heavy snacks that we had during the Christmas and New Year holidays. This carrot cake is very lite. I never allow desserts to finish at my home, as I’m very fond of them, my blog trail must have told you by now. So let’s go ahead with the recipe.

For the Cake:-

2 cups Sugar,

4 grated Carrots,

1/2 cup Cashews,

14 oz. Coconut milk,

1/4 teaspoon Ginger,

1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg,

1 teaspoon Cinnamon,

1/2 cup White Rice Flour,

1 tablespoon Molasses,

1/3 cup ground Flax seed,

1 teaspoon Baking soda,

1/2 cup Buckwheat flour,

2 teaspoons Vanilla extract,

2 teaspoons Baking powder,

3/4 cup Garbanzo Bean Flour,

1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar,

1/2 cup unsweetened Coconut Flakes.

For the Frosting:-

60 grams Honey,

2 tablespoons Lemon Juice,

1 tablespoon Vanilla Bean Paste,

200 grams Thick Coconut Cream.

Preparation Method:-

1. Preheat oven to 350 D.F. In a bowl sift flours, baking soda and baking powder. Now take a large measuring cup and combine coconut milk, vinegar, molasses and vanilla. Pour this liquid into the dry mixture. Add sugar and flax seed. Blend until smooth.

2. Now add grated carrots, chopped cashews and shredded coconut. Mix well. Pour into greased cake pan. Bake for 45 minutes.

3. Cool for 15 minutes. While cake is cooling, make the frosting. Blend the ingredients under frosting.

4. Add frosting on the cake when cool. Sprinkle with additional shredded coconut or nuts of your choice.

Happy New Year!

New Year Begins with a Healthy Breakfast

First of all wish you a very Happy New Year. Thank you so much for loving my yummy and mushy dessert recipes. After a grand dinner on New Year’s Eve, it’s better to munch on something healthy on the brand new day of the year. Isn’t it? A great year begins with a filling, healthy as well as yummy breakfast. Eating healthy throughout the year may not be our New Year resolution but a healthy beginning on 1st January, 2015 is always welcomed. These are some of the yummy recipes, this time not prepared by me but mom. But they are pretty simple and even a novice can prepare them. Eating the food cooked by your mom has its own charm and I hope everyone agrees with it. 

Healthy Tortillas (Whole Wheat or Rice Tortilla with Grilled Chicken Guacamole) - Though my mom prepared wheat tortillas, people allergic to gluten can go for rice tortilla as well. Grilled chicken breasts with chunky guacamole is a great option. Guacamole is an avocado-based dip. Cilantro, lemon juice and pepper give this guacamole a tangy and spicy kick. Nevertheless the hotness quotient can be managed accordingly. This rich filling if baked for a minute, gives an ultimate crispy and crunchy treat.

Lite Shake (Lychee and Coconut Shake) - Breakfast is incomplete without a shake. A low-calorie shake adds smile on everyone's face. Low-calorie lychee and coconut shake sounds amazing. A blend of my favorite fruit, lychee with coconut water really made my day. This fruit contains flavonoids in the pulp that helps in preventing some fatal and lethal diseases such as cancer. Coconut water is itself a very refreshing health drink. It helps you in reducing weight and gives you glowing skin. It is also a remedy for hangover. I'm sure everyone must have had lot of drink on New Year’s Eve.

Fruity Kick (Split Banana Fruit Treat) - Including fruits in your breakfast is always a healthy option. Banana is my favorite fruit. This yummy fruitful kick was a real surprise. A salsa of orange, strawberries, kiwi and ginger to serve with a banana split along with strawberry yogurt as a topping on it, is a brilliant idea. Well now I can say that the breakfast was not only an excellent beginning for the day but the entire year. So thumbs up for my mom’s yummy treat. 

Happy New Year!