I love mayonnaise, but I don't like it.

Duh...what did I just say, I mean, type?

I like mayonnaise, but I don't like the fact that it contains raw eggs. That is more a reflection of what I want meant. So, much as I love mayo, I tend to avoid it.

Then, one day, while browsing this website, I came across an eggless mayo recipe that sounded simple enough to try.

I tweaked the proportions of the ingredients a just a teeny weeny bit, here's what I did.




Ingredients:

Evaporated milk : 1/2 cup
Olive oil: 1/2 cup
Honey - 2 tsps
English mustard: 2 tsps
Lemon juice: 1-2 tbsps*
Salt

Method:

I used both, my hand held mixie and the blender to make the mayo, if you have a food processor, just use that.

So, pour the milk into a deep vessel and get your hand mixie started. Add the oil to it, 2 tbsps at a time. Once you've added all the oil, add the rest of the ingredients.

Transfer to the blender and whip at the highest speed for a couple of minutes.

Tada...eggless mayo!!


Verdict:

Absolutely delicious!! I did think that the lemon juice was a bit on the higher side when I spread it on sandwiches and burgers, but it was perfect with a potato salad I made.
* So, the next time I plan to add the lemon juice bit by bit, tasting as I add it.

Tomato Egg Sandwich with Eggless Mayo!


Not a recipe really, but then she wants to see our sandwiches. So here goes - brown bread, slap on the mayo and some chilli sauce, layer with boiled egg and tomato slices, top with some Sriracha chilli sauce. Cut it into triangles and chomp away!!

Off to Divya's Show Me Your Sandwich!!

So many bloggers seem to be going, er, bananas over the last couple of days....I am sure you have all noticed banana muffins and breads and halwas that have been going around in the blogosphere recently.

I couldn't resist going their way...going bananas, that is.

So here's a delicious Banana Choco Nut Ice Cream....packed with the goodness of bananas, nuts and low fat milk, this is a (healthy) treat that, to me, is irrestible!














Variations:

Instead of blending the bananas in the mixie, mash it up with your hand if you like a chunky ice cream.

For a chocolate chip effect, chill the base custard in the fridge. Melt the chocolate and add it to the chilled custard.

(If you are not using an ice cream maker, add in the above two variations after the last cycle of blending).

Notes:

* if the bananas are very sweet (mine were), add the lemon juice. If they happen to be a little sour, add another 10 gms of sugar and omit the lemon juice.

And don't go by my picture of a melting ice cream - that scoop endured different poses and angles for a not so perfect picture - in fact you'll need to let the ice cream rest for about 5 minutes at room temperature before serving.

Indulge!!

Picture this:

You wake up one day to the drumroll of thunder. And to the cling clang of the window blinds. You squint your eyes open and detect a huge flash of lightning whiz across the sky. Soon, huge raindrops are slapping hard on the window glass.

You check the time, you still have an hour to sleep and just as you start to pull the covers a little tighter, you hear the sound of tiny footsteps, growing louder. The daughter, too, has been awoken by the loud thunder and wants to cuddle beside her mom and dad. The three of you huddle beneath the covers.

An hour later, the alarm goes off. You approach the windows, the rain has stopped - all that remains of the thunderstorm are the wet grounds and the beads of raindrops that cling to the windows. The day is going to be beautiful, you can sense that.

You turn to the husband and manage to coax him to go late to office. "Let's go out for some breakfast", you say.

Think....a cafe by the sea side. As you walk to the cafe, a breeze picks up and the tress unload some raindrops from their branches on your head.

Think...

Steaming hot coffee. Pancakes drizzled with maple syrup, grilled banana on the side. Hash browns. Sizzling hot sausages. Crispy bacon. Sauteed mushrooms. Porridge, loaded with nuts and raisins. Assorted breads, with butter or jam or marmalade. Eggs: omelettes, sunny side up, poaced, scrambled - take your pick. Fruity yogurts. Chilled juices.

Decadent, isn't it? Well, some days are just made for such indulgent breakfasts.





Scrambled Eggs are my favourite breakfast, I could have these every single day. Here's my way of making these.

I have learnt, the very hard way, that the secret to a good scrambled egg is LOW FLAME. When making these, should you think that the pan is getting too hot, do take the pan off the flame for a few seconds.

Lightly beat the eggs. Melt a knob of butter. When the butter just about melts (it is ok to have that little bit of butter that has not yet melted), pour in the eggs. Get your wooden spatula, but wait for a few seconds before you start to use it. The eggs will start to set at the sides first, when that happens, just push them toward the centre of the pan and tilt the pan to distribute the uncooked eggs to the sides. Continue this till the eggs are softly set. Take it off the gas and let them sit in the pan for another 10 seconds. Add the seasonings of your choice, give it a quick stir and load it on top of a toast.

Enjoy!!

Suparna, Sree Vidya and Pinky have given me the Kreativ Blogger Award. Thank you very much ladies :))




The award comes with these rules:

1. You must thank the person who has given you the award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link the person who has nominated you for the award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 other Kreativ bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on which of the blogs to let them know they have been nominated.

So here goes, 7 things about me:

1. I have this huge water phobia. I cannot swim, I have changed many swimming coaches, sent a lot of money, well, down the drain but no, I still cannot swim.

2. I am also scared of darkness. If and when I have to sleep alone in the house, I need to have atleast one light on through the night. Considerations like carbon footprint notwithsatnding.

3. I am not a picky eater , I can and do eat pretty much anything. However, I cannot have white milk. Plain milk, that is. Need to put something in it. Even turmeric powder will do. But never plain milk.

4. I can cook without any complaints for a crowd. I can spend an entire day in the kitchen, if I need to. But I find it very difficult to make that cup of tea first thing in the morning. For a while, many years ago, I would make tea last thing at night, pour it into a thermos flask and drink it the next morning.

5. I love dogs. From a distance. As long as they keep that distance.

6. I have itchy feet...not just the kind that make me want to travel on holidays all over the world. My itchy feet compel me to move cities, to live in different cities. Or to move apartments within the same city. You guessed it, I thrive on change.

7. Though I live in city where it rains very regularly and often times without warning, I don't carry an umbrella. In fact I haven't carried an umbrella (or a raincoat) for over 12 years now. If I get caught in a shower, I simply wait it out and enjoy the shower. Or I walk in the rain.


I want to pass this award to Simran, Navita, Priya, Curry Leaf, Yasmeen, Varsha and Rush.

Comfort food........food that gives a sense of emotional satisfaction. It means different things to different people - after all, comfort food choices are a complex mix of culture, memories and other food associations- and so, what is comfort food to someone might be an absolute no - no to another. Nevertheless, no matter what our individual choice, we are all familiar with that sense of satisfaction, that sense of well being that comfort food gives.

So what exactly is this 'comfort food'? And why, after tucking into some 'comfort food' do we feel so good - a feeling that even the best of gourmet food can't bring?

Comfort food, it seems, alleviates stress, fatigue, depression, the general feeling of 'blues' - in other words, all negative states by minds by triggering certain chemicals in the brain that ultimately lead to the 'feel good' state of mind.

So what is my comfort food? Well, different things at different times - sometimes I crave chicken soup, at other times, nothing else but khichdi kadhi will do; sometimes, I yearn for some cheese and there are times when only dark chocolate is what I am after.

But my ultimate comfort food is Tomato Saar. Piping hot tomato saar, poured into a bowl, my hands cupping the hot bowl and the warmth seems to course through my hands all through my body. I could ask for nothing more, it satiates me so completely and yet leaves me craving for more!!

Tell me, what is your comfort food?




Tomato Saar

Ingredients:

Tomatoes - 1/2 kilo
Onion - 1, chopped
Ginger - 1 tbsp, grated
Cinnamon - 1" stick
Cloves - 5
cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Crushed peppercorn - 1 tsp
Red Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
curry leaves - 8-10
Coriander leaves - 1 tsp finely chopped + some more for garnishing
Coconut milk - 75 ml
Salt and sugar - to taste
Oil
Ghee - 1 tsp (optional)

Method:

Cut the tomatoes into half and scoop out the seeds. Then, boil them in a pan of water (the water should just about cover the tomatoes) with a tsp. of sugar till they are soft. Peel off the skins and puree the tomatoes in a blender.

Heat oil, add the cinnamon and the cloves, followed by the onions. Saute till the onions take on a slight pink hue.

Then, add the grated ginger and the cumin seeds and stir for half a minute.

Slowly, add the tomatoe puree to the pan (make sure that you lower the flame to the lowest, else the puree will splutter) and add the crushed peppercorn, red chilli powder, salt, sugar and the curry leaves and bring to a boil. Lower the flame and simmer for a further 5 minutes.

Now add the coconut milk (this gives the saar a lovely salmon colour) and bring to a boil - I use packaged coconut milk, if you use home-made coconut milk, then you might need to increase the quantity.

Add in the chopped corainder and the ghee.
(the ghee is optional, but there is no denying the lovely taste it gives the saar)

I serve this with piping hot rice and some veggies such as French beans or tindli or snake gourd . But most of the times, I like to sip it just like that. Tangy, sweet and spicy, all at once, all in one sip, it is an awesome explosion of flavours.


This, alongwith Fettucine with Prawns in Creamy Coconut Sauce is my entry to Let's Go Nuts: Coconuts being hosted by PJ this month.

Characters are the backbone of any book.

There are books where, as you turn the pages, you form a mental picture of the characters in the story; every page you read adds to that picture.

And then, there are books where the protagonists and the situations seem so real that you don't need to form any mental picture - right from the first page of the book, you feel as if you know them or that you've met them before.

The Space between Us by Thrity Umrigar falls in the second category. The novel revolves around the two main characters in the story, Sera Dubash and her domestic help, Bhima who has worked in the Dubash household for more than 20 years. And over the passage of so many years, the two women have been witness to each other's travails and triumphs in life's ups and downs.

The novel opens to a time where Sera is a widowed upper middle class Parsi woman living with her pregnant daughter and son - in - law. Even as Sera leads now leads a contented life, the memories of emotional and domestic abuse at the hands of her mother-in-law and husband occasionally cloud her happiness.


Bhima, on the other hand, lives in a slum with her orphaned grand-daughter Maya. She is a precocious girl and Bhima's hopes for a better future out of the slums are all pinned on Maya's education which Sera has financed.

However, Maya gets pregnant out of a wedlock and to make matters worse, refuses to divulge the name of the father. Bhima has faced many a difficult situations in her life, but has always managed to overcome those situations in her fight for survival.

How will she fight this crushing blow? And what role will Sera, who has never hesitated in coming to Bhima's help, play?

Admittedly, it is a plot that, at times, sounds very predictable. However, Thrity Umrigar is a very engaging story teller. The plot flits effortlessly between the present lives of Sera and Bhima and their reminisces of the days gone by. It is this narrative and the finely crafted characters and the nuances of their very complex relationship that made The Space Between Us a very compelling read for me.

Let's come to food part, shall we? So, we have Sera shedding tears over onions that she has to chop for making omelets, Bhima tucking into batata wadas at the market, Sera and Bhima's families accidentally meeting at Chowpaty where they've gone for having some bhelpuri, a very cholesterol laden meal at a bethrotal etc.

But, that was not enough for me.....problem was, I had already blogged about bhelpuri and batata wada. No, actually the problem was that I had already decided that I was going to make Dhansak before I had even read the book. After all, the book had Parsi characters in it, there just had to be Dhansak!

But all I got was this:

"Threw it with such force, Sera, it bounced off the table and into Feroz's dhansak".

That would do for me!!

Vegetable Dhansak

(adapted from Saffron Trail and EuphoRhea).

Ingredients:

Lentils - 3/4 cup (I use 1/4 cup each of Tur, Masoor and Moong)
Pumpkin/Squash - 1 1/2 cups
Eggplant - 1 cup
Fresh methi leaves - 1 1/4 cup, loosely packed
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Hing - a pinch

Onion - 1 cup, sliced
Tomato - 1 1/2 cup, chopped
Ginger and Garlic paste - 2 tsps each
Dhansak Masala - 2-3 tbsps
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Coriander seed powder - 3/4 tsp
Curry leaves - 12-15 (mine were very small)
Tamarind juice - as per the tartness you desire; I used 1/4 cup of very dilute tamarind juice
or
Amchur powder - 1/4 tsp

Ghee - 2 tbsps (don't substitute with oil/butter, ghee gives it an amazing flavour)

optional:

chicken/mutton - 250 gms
potatoes - 1/2 cup

Method:

(this makes enough for about 4-6 people, so adjust your quantities accordingly)

Pressure cook the lentils and the vegetables with tumeric and hing. Once cooked, you may puree this in a blender - I don't. Firstly, I like my dhansak chunky. Moreover, as you stir and cook the dhansak, the vegetables do tend to get mashed.

(If using chicken/mutton, marinate it with some ginger - garlic paste and red chilli powder. Pressure cook alongwith the lentils. Set aside if pureeing the dals, then add the meat back.

And though I love my meats, believe me vegetarian dhansak tastes as good as the non -veg version. In fact, I don't add any meat any more to my dhansak).

Heat ghee and stir fry the ginger garlic paste till fragrant. Add the sliced onions and fry for a further 3-4 mins.

Next, add in the tomatoes and saute till soft and mushy, mashing the tomatoes with the back of the spoon as you stir.

Add in all the dry masalas and the curry leaves, followed by the pressure cooked lentils and the tamarind juice.

Simmer for about 15 mins.

Easy isn't it?!!


Serve it with rotis or pulao; I served it with this Berry Pulao.



Oh and here's what the other members of the book club made:
Dee made the very Parsi Akuri , Curry Leaf made Akuri with Tofu and Simran headed to Chowpatty to enjoy a plate of Bhelpuri!!

Next month, we are reading Pomegranate Soup by Marsha Mehran. Join us, won't you?? To join the book club, just drop a line to Simran, her e-mail is: bombayfoodie(at)gmail(dot)com