Blueberry Muffins - the healthier kind

Most of my colleagues wake up an hour earlier everyday, just so they have enough time to do their hair, wear make-up and accessorize.  I, on the other hand, would pick sleeping in for the extra hour over looking my best, on most days. I do like to dress-up...sometimes, but everyday?  Since I hardly ever get home from work before 10pm, I prefer to indulge in a few extra minutes of precious sleep every morning. TH says that from the time he wakes me up to the time he sees me off at the door, he feels like he’s sending a child off to school every morning.  It takes him 30 minutes or so to finally succeed in getting me out of bed. Now before you give him more credit than necessary, I must mention that his relentless effort to wake me up every morning is more because I brew filter coffee for the two of us before we sit back to read the paper and enjoy the coffee.  Soon after, begins my race against time! As I manage to shower and get dressed in under 15 minutes, TH packs my breakfast (which I make over the weekend) and gets my coat so I can run off to work. 

with all-purpose flour...

Every Sunday evening, I get cooking (or baking) so as to replenish my stock that serves as breakfast for the work week.  This week, I baked blueberry muffins, and what I call "Omega-3" breakfast bars.  I kicked up the health quotient of my muffins by a notch - I substituted whole-wheat flour for all-purpose flour and added oatmeal.

with whole-wheat flour... 

(picture shot with phone since camera was out of battery)

1 ½ cups oats

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup all-purpose flour (I used whole-wheat flour+2 tablespoons extra liquid)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon powder

1 cup blueberries (I used frozen blueberries)

1 egg

1/3 cup vegetable oil

½ cup brown sugar (lightly packed)

½ teaspoon vanilla

Stir together oats and buttermilk in a small bowl, and set aside.  In another bowl, thoroughly mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt & cinnamon. Stir in blueberries.

In a third bowl, using an electric beater beat together egg, veg. oil, brown sugar and vanilla.  Add oats mixture and mix well with spatula. Add to dry ingredients all at once and stir just until moist.

Grease muffin tins. Spoon batter into tins, filling 3/4^th full. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees C) for 15-20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. 

Cool muffins tins on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes.

The addition of oats and whole-wheat flour to the muffins certainly did not disappoint.  They brought out a heartier texture and a wonderful nutty flavour to the muffins!     

P.S. I don't recall where I got the original recipe from 10 years ago, and hence am unable to give due credit.  If any of you come across this recipe in a book or on a website, please let me know and I will be happy to edit this post to include the information.

Karah Parshad and a burnt nose

To satisfy a mid-afternoon sweet craving I wanted to make Karah Parshad, that I remember eating at the Gurdwara.  As a little girl, the highlight of my trip to the Gurdwara was the warm parshad oozing ghee when placed in my palm, the aroma and taste of which was absolutely divine.  If you have ever tasted Karah Parshad at a Gurdwara you will be able to relate to my sentiments, the rest you will just have to take my word for it :)

So I set out on my first attempt at making Karah.  I measured the ingredients and followed the recipe from here.  However, I kept second-guessing myself about the atta being roasted enough and was sniffing (for the “nutty” aroma per the recipe) around the pan to check.   At one point, I was so exasperated from not knowing for sure if the atta was done.  The inability to control my anticipation of the delicious Karah, made me bring a spoonful of atta (being roasted in ghee) close to my nose.  I then proceeded to stick my nose too close to the spoon (accidentally, of course), which resulted in me burning the tip of my nose! Needless to say, I walked around looking like Rudolf (the red nosed reindeer?) for the next few days.  That said, I must admit, that my "red nose" was a small price to pay for the delicious Karah - although I might be forced change my mind if the burnt skin leaves a mark and does not get back to its original colour eventually ;-)

In an effort to help you keep your noses burn-free, I managed to find the recipe with illustrated pictures here.  I obviously did not find the recipe with the pictures before I burnt my nose!

Warm Apple Cider - Spiced & Spiked

The first and last time (hopefully) I got drunk was on my 27^th birthday.  I have a very low alcohol tolerance threshold, and have always been mindful about not drinking more that one glass of alcohol, staying hydrated, and  eating enough food.  On my 27th birthday, my colleagues who refused to believe that I had never been sloshed took it upon themselves to show me “how its done”.  So they took me out for birthday drinks and my sour apple martini glass kept getting re-filled "magically".  Needless to say, the combination of inexpensive vodka and sugar, being downed by a petite girl weighing 95 pounds (back then, I'm way past that now), combined with friends who were secretly filling the glass, ensured that it did not take too long for me to get tipsy.  I was doing just fine, and then over a span of less than five minutes everything turned upside down.  I will spare you the embarrassing details, but I woke up with the worst headache and shockingly, without eyesight the next day.  Since I had never experienced anything of that sort before, I was convinced that I had alcohol poisoning (courtesy Dr. House’s diagnosis of a patient on a recent episode).  I quickly rectified the eyesight problem by removing the contact lenses that I had slept with and then proceeded to frantically Google the symptoms of alcohol poisoning. Although I realize how dramatic it all sounds now, I cannot explain how relieved I was to learn from Google back then that I was NOT suffering from alcohol poisoning and that I was going to live.  After that near-death experience (or so it felt like back then) I swore to lay off alcohol, which I did for a couple of years.  Since then, I have cautiously tipped my toes into the drinking pool, and only occasionally indulge in a drink that I really enjoy.   

Its snowing today, and as I got cozy on the couch watching my favourite TV show,  I was craving some warm cider.  I decided to "kick it up a notch" by adding some mulling spices and a dash of brandy to keep myself warm. 

1 litre apple cider

3-4 cinnamon sticks

1 tablespoon dried orange rind pieces

½ teaspoon whole cloves

1 teaspoon whole all spice

A dash of good brandy

Gently simmer the apple cider along with mulling spices for about 15 minutes ( I pounded the mulling spices lightly since I prefer a stronger flavour).

Strain warm cider into glasses, and add a dash of brandy (or more, if you prefer).

Sit back and enjoy!

Sunday Brunch - Kokis

Although I meant to kick off the new year with this blog, it took me a while to get my act together.  After years of running the rat race, which was a trade-off to get my career going,  I have finally decided to take the time to do the things that I enjoy but had to put off.  As of now, 2012 looks like a promising year - I plan to train for a half-marathon, cook my heart out, and travel.  Will have to wait and see how it pans out...

I was looking forward to my Sunday brunch with Koki and Chai since I spoke to my friend, S on Thursday.  S's mother used to send Koki's for her daughter's friends at school at least once every week.  We loved them and so looked forward to them.  Kokis, part of Sindhi cuisine, are a kind of paranthas, that are flaky, and full of flavour.  The cooking process is different from that of a parantha which helps achieve the flaky texture, and the medley of seasonings that go into the dough impart the flavour.    

During my conversation with S this week, we reminisced about memories from school and Kokis were a big part of them.  I tried to recreate the Kokis I had eaten as a little girl and devoured them with my chai this morning.   As is evident from the picture, it was hard for us to resist breaking off the edges (just for taste), until the picture was taken.  

2 cups wheat flour

1 large onion, finely chopped 

1/4 cup coriander leaves, finely chopped

2 green chillies, finely chopped

3/4 teaspoon ajwain 

3/4 teaspoon anardhana powder

2 tablespoons oil for the dough + more for cooking

Freshly ground pepper

Salt to taste

Knead dough with all the ingredients, adding very little water at a time.  Let the dough sit for 10-15 minutes.  Then form into rough balls - should make around 7 Kokis.

Roll out one portion to flatten into a thick disc (about 1/3 inch thick). Lightly toast both sides in a heated frying pan on high flame (without oil) just until light brown spots barely appear. When done, take it off the pan, and roll it out again like you would a parantha.  Use a butter knife to lightly mark criss-cross lines on the surface of the rolled out dough, to ensure the Koki is cooked through (alternatively, lightly prick holes with a fork).

Gently place the rolled out Koki onto the frying pan on medium flame.  Flip over after a minute or so and then brush with oil.  After another minute, flip over and brush the other side with oil.  Continue cooking the Koki by pressing down with the back of a spoon and flipping over every 20-30 seconds until golden brown on both sides. 

Enjoy with Chai or with whipped yogurt.