Sometimes it becomes big challenge for me to come up with a nice lunch which can be carried in lunch boxes. It has to be fast (as I get only 2 hrs to cook both lunch & breakfast, eat and get ready), not repetitive, and also taste good when reheated. So I often end up making things like tomato rice, lemon rice , avrekaLu rice , puliyogare etc. But it gets really boring after a while. I don’t like to cook ahead, like previous day and rice- dal combination are very messy to eat at office. We are not yet adjusted to eating out, I never did it even when I was in India and here I don’t think we have enough options to suit our palate and budget. So whenever I find any such rice items that suit my lunch boxes, I try them.
This is one such item I found in Kannada magazine. I started buying gooseberry frequently after I discovered nellikayi saru . So I always have a pack in my freezer. So putting this whole dish together is a breeze. Its a nice change to the puliyogare . I have been cooking this for a while now, but squeezing in time to take this picture was another circus for me. Finally I am glad it is here :).
The fastest way to cook this is – Keep rice and gooseberries in pressure cooker to cook. The rice from previous day can be used (although I prefer cooking fresh rice) – When that is cooking, get everything else like spice powder etc ready, so once rice is cooked, you can put the dish together in minutes.
PS: This is not any traditional recipe, although it has many similarities to “traditional puliyogare ” – if there is any such thing!!!.
Ingredients: 2 cups cooked rice(make sure grains are separate) 3 big amla 1/2 tbl spn + 1 tea spn chana dal 1/2 tbl spn urad dal 1/2 tbl spn black sesame seeds 1 tbl spn dessicated coconut 1/2 tea spn fenugreek seeds 4 red chilies 1 tea spn jaggery 1/4 tea spn tamarind extract (increase the amount if you wish to make more sour) 1/2 tea spn mustard seeds 5-6 curry leaves 1 tbl spn peanuts Oil/ ghee Salt
Method: Cook the amla in pressure cooker(for fast cooking). I cooked it along with rice in pressure cooker when I was making rice. Discard the seeds. Crush the pulp slightly. I like some small pieces because it enhances taste. Heat oil and add 1/2 tbl spn chana dal , urad dal , black sesame seeds, fenugreek seeds, dessicated coconut and red chillies. Take care not to burn anything, you can fry them one by one if you wish. Grind to a powder along with jaggery. Heat oil and add peanuts, 1 tea spn chana dal . When they are fried, add mustard. When mustard starts popping, add curry leaves. Add amla, tamarind exact, 1/4 cup water, salt and let it cook for few minutes till it becomes thick. Now add the ground powder and cook for 1-2mins. Finally add the rice and mix well. Serve hot.
Serves : 2-3 Preparation time : 25 mins
V and I love pizzas. We like to eat them once in a while at Pizza Hut. But I get a real urge to make my own pizzas sometimes. Recently, I was watching the show Emeril Live and it was a pizza special episode. I thought of giving the pizza base a try. I did a small addition. I added 1 tea spn fried garlic to the base. I wasn’t sure it would make a big difference, but I was so surprised at the result. The whole pizza had such a great taste. Next time I will try with 50% wheat flour, this time I decided to make it with whole purpose flour because I wanted to see how it comes out. It was just superb. For the first time, we finished the whole pizza in one go!!!.
Ingredients: 1 cup water 1 envelope (2 and 1/4 tea spn) active dry yeast 1/2 tea spn sugar 3 cups(approx) all purpose flour 1 tea spn salt Olive oil 1 tea spn chopped garlic
Method: Heat water till it is lukewarm (105 F). I usually microwave it for 10-20 secs. Now add the yeast, sugar, 1 tea spn olive oil. Leave it for about 10mins till the yeast becomes active. You can see some bubbles on top which shows it’s active. In a pan, heat a little olive oil and fry the garlic till it becomes brown. Now add salt, 2 cups of flour, garlic and mix. If necessary add more dough till it can be handled easily (but still a bit sticky. I would say something like chapathi dough). Knead it on a lightly floured surface for few mins. (Do not knead for long, just 2-3mins is enough). Apply olive oil to a large vessel. Transfer the dough to the vessel. Cover the vessel with a plastic wrap and leave in a dry warm place for about 1 and half hours (or until it is doubled in size). Take the pizza dough out from the vessel and spread it into a large disc. Drizzle some olive oil on top. Spread a little corn meal over the pizza stone. Keep the disc on it.
How to assemble pizza: Preheat the oven to 450F for 10mins. Top with your favorite sauce(I use marinara sauce), vegetables(I use olives, onions, capsicum, sun dried tomatoes, jalapenos) and mozzarella cheese. Spread a little pepper and salt(optional). Drizzle little olive oil. Bake at 450F for about 12-15mins. Serve hot with your favorite sides.
Makes 1 large pizza
