Pumpkin raita.

This is an extremely simple dish with lovely flavours. My mom has taught me this dish.This can be replicated with carrots too. Only the seasoning will be devoid of fenugreek seeds in case of carrot raita.

Ingredients : 150-200 gm red pumpkin washed & roughly chopped ( I keep the skin on if it is clean ) , 1 green chilli ( optional ) , 1/ 2 cup yoghurt, 1red byadgi mirchi broken into bits, 4-6 fenugreek seeds ( methi dana ),  10-15 curry leaves, 1/4 tsp mustard seeds, 1/4 tsp cumin seeds, 1/4 tsp hing, 1/4 tsp haldi, 2 tsp oil, salt to taste.

Method :Pressure cook the chopped pumpkin pieces with green chilli in pressure cooker.Keep aplate which covers the rice vessel in pressure cooker. Keep the washed & chopped pumpkin pieces in the plate along with the washed green chilli. Pressure cook rice.

After the cooking is over, put off gas. Let the cooker cool.Open the cooker. Pumpkin & green chilli would be cooked.

In a bowl, take the pumpkin & green chilli. Mash with hands or with  spoon or ladle.Add salt.Mix with the mashed pumpkin & green chilli. Keep aside.

Beat the yogurt to form a smooth paste in another bowl.Keep aside.

Prepare the seasoning. Heat oil in a kadhai.Add methi seeds followed by cumin seeds. Add curry leaves & byadgi mirchi pieces. Put off gas.Add hing & haldi to the kadhai.Keep aside

Mix the beaten yoghurt with the mashed pumpkin- green chilli mix. Pour the seasoning over the pumpkin yoghurt mix. Mix seasoning nicely with pumpkin dahi mix .Serve with rotis, rice or pulao or khichdi !

The raita looks so much like a dip ,perhaps like a thick gravy .This dip can work with dal wadas or even crackers.I love the simple flavours of this dip.I am sure you will love it too !

Vegetable rich tahiri

I am an avid follower of Sangeeta Khanna on facebook. She posts her recipes & useful tips & tidbits on facebook under the caption Healthy Living with Sangeeta Khanna. Her tips, recipes & information have opened the world of food to so many like never before.....

I read about Tahiri pulao on Sangeeta Khanna's  blog. Tahiri is a mixed vegetable pulao from Uttar Pradesh. And I have been wanting to try it. She has a variety of Tahiri recipes on her banaras ka khana blog. And some days back , she had shared a mixed vegetable tahiri recipe .This is on her other food & recipe blog called healthfood desivideshi.  I tried it with some variations .Needless to add, I loved it !

Ingredients :3/4 cup rice (  used basmati tukda ) , 5-6 Cauliflower florets,1/4 cup  cauliflower stems cubed or cut into medium slices, 1/4 cup broccoli stems cut into medium slices, 1 tbsp peas,1/4 cup potato peeled & cubed ( optional ), 1/4 cup carrots cubed, 1/4 cup beans roughly chopped ( into half an inch a piece ) , 1 tbsp ghee, 1 tsp jeera,8 peppercorns , 2 cloves , 2-3 green chillies finely chopped, 1 inch ginger cleaned & grated, 1 tsp haldi, salt to taste.

Method : Heat ghee  a pressure pan on low flame..Add jeera.As soon as jeera turns aromatic, add the crushed pepper corns & cloves ( I crushed them in my small grinder jatr ...it can be done with pestle as well ).They will soon get fragnant. Add green chillies & ginger. Fry all nicely for aminute. Add all the vegetables except the cauliflower florets.Mix all nicely so that all spices & veggies get together. Add haldi .Mix all ingredients in pressure pan again.Add salt.Give the ingredients a stir so that salt gets mixed with all veggies.Add rice.Mix all the ingredients in pressure pan .Fry all for 2-3 minutes. Add cauliflower florets.Give the ingredients a  stir. Add water ( Added 1.5 cups water as rice was 3/4 cup ) .Stir everything for the final time. Close the pressure pan with lid.Cook for 2-3 whistles. Put off gas. After it cools. remove the whistle.After 10-15 minutes, open the lid & look at the Tahiri pulao ! It looks delicious. Serve with dahi , raita, papad, or vegetable salad or eat it just like that !

This rice was not at all spicy.So if you like it more pungent & spicy,please feel free to add more of spices ( cloves, peppercorns ) or green chillies & ginger or a combination of all as per your taste. Sangeeta Khanna has added quite a bit of spices, if you read her recipe.I use very little spices as I am used to  less spicy food.