HOW TO MAKE SPROUTED MOONG BEAN SALAD

A super busy day calls for a salad!!! There is no denying that at times we all look for fast, easy and no-fuss recipes with full of nutrients and flavor. Whenever I am in a hurry, I prepare eating sprout salads in the breakfast. It's a quick fix for low calories and flavor and great for people who don't have enough time to cook healthy meals. There are different types and varieties of sprouts but moong sprouts are my favorite.

Sprouts are energy boosting enzymes, extremely alkalizing and rich in micro-nutrients. They are loaded with protein, vitamin B1 and B6, vitamin K and minerals such as magnesium, calcium, phosphorous and zinc.

I kept it super simple today, this took me less than 5 minutes to prepare! Moong sprouts, cucumber, tomatoes, onions, a sprinkle of chat masala (salt, cumin and pepper), tossed in a vinaigrette flavored dressing - and it tastes extremely great. Enjoy experimenting with different flavors, vegetables, fruits, spices, dry-fruits, nuts and seeds of your choice. It will boost the nutritive value of your salad.

You can buy ready-made sprouts from the market or make them at home but it's always good and healthy option to make sprouts at home. The sprouts can be made ahead of time and simply boiled for 5 minutes right before serving.

HOW TO SPROUT MOONG BEANS?

1. Wash and rinse 1 cup of moong beans under running water.

2. Add cold water, preferably 2-3 times the volume of the beans, cover and place it in a bowl.

3. Soak the beans for 6-8 hours, depending upon the type and size of the seed, so that they swell properly.

4. Drain away the excess water from the bowl. Rinse them with fresh water and drain the water again.
5. Place the swelled beans and wrap it in a wet cloth.
6. Let soak in a cool place overnight and wait for atleast a day.
7. After 24 - 36 hours they will be properly sprouted (rinse and drain the beans after every 6-8 hours)

8. When the sprouts reach the desire length, they are ready to eat.

Notes:
1. Remember to wash the beans atleast 2-3 times a day.
2. After sprouting you can store them in a refrigerator and eat them in less than 3-4 days.



HOW TO MAKE SPROUTED MOONG BEAN SALAD?

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Serves: 4-5 people
Author: The Food Root

Ingredients
1 cup sprouted moong beans
1 tomato, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1/2 cucumber, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt or as per taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly grounded
1/4 teaspoon cumin powder

DRESSING
Ingredients
3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (optional)
2 tablespoon vinegar (balsamic, apple, white cider, wine)
of your choice - I used balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt or as per taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly grounded

Method

1. Prepare sprouts: Place spouts in a pan with water and salt, cover and boil for 5 minutes or until crisp or tender. Drain the water in a colander and let it sit out at the room temperature.

2. Chop raw veggies: Meanwhile, cut vegetables of your choice and keep it aside.

3. Dressing: Mix all the ingredients in a bowl, whisk together. If you are not using the dressing right away, cover and refrigerate it in a bottle, and shake again before use.

3. Assemble: Assemble your salad bowl, add moong sprouts, raw veggies and season it with salt, pepper and cumin powder. Drizzle the yummy dressing and gently toss them to combine. Enjoy!!

STUFFED JAPANESE AUBERGINE

This season my garden harvested heaps of gorgeous Japanese aubergines. We had lot of fun sharing it with our neighbours and making some delicious tasty recipes with these beauties. Japanese eggplants are long and narrow with edible seeds. They are generally less bitter and more tender than the other varieties of eggplants.

These beautiful Japanese aubergines are stuffed with the delicious mixture of ginger, garlic, tomatoes, aubergine and a host of spices! You can also add vinegar and/or soy sauce in the ratio of 1:1 to get the extra flavor, but that's totally optional. This dish not only look beautiful but taste amazingly good! You can serve them as an appetizer or as a side dish.

It's a simple, quick and healthy side dish which is low in cholesterol and rich in antioxidants, magnesium, potassium and dietary fiber.

Last weekend, my Mom cooked these stuffed aubergines for the entire family. I ate one of these babies and it was so good. It has a wonderful crispy crust on the outside and on the inside it is delicious creamy and soft.

To prepare the dish, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush the eggplants with oil and place in a baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for about 15 minutes or tender. Meanwhile to make the stuffing, add olive oil in a pan and fry ginger and garlic and stir. Add tomatoes and green chillis, stir for about 4 minutes. Using a spoon, scoop out the flesh of the eggplant and add it into the pan. Add all the spices and stir it well. Drizzle some soy sauce or/and vinegar to get the extra flavor, but that's optional. Now, give it a good stir and switch off the flame. Fill in the aubergines with the stuffing and serve warm or at room temperature with lemon squeezed over.

They can also be cooked in a gas stove. Just add oil in a pan and rotate these aubergines till it turn soft and tender. Then fill the stuffing in the aubergine and serve.

Give this a try! you will surely love it!
Happy weekend!!

STUFFED JAPANESE AUBERGINE

Serves: 3 people
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20-25 minutes
Author: The Food Root

INGREDIENTS

4 eggplants -  cut them in half lengthwise
3 large tomatoes, finely chopped
1/2 inch - ginger, grated
4 cloves - garlic, finely minced
2 green chillis, chopped
1/2 teaspoon - turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon - cumin powder
1/4 teaspoon - red chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon - salt or as per taste
1/2 teaspoon - soy sauce (optional)
1/2 teaspoon - vinegar (optional)
1 teaspoon - lemon juice (optional)
fresh coriander leaves, chopped

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. Then cut deep into the centre, making a crisscross pattern but not cutting through the skin.

2. Sprinkle some salt on the eggplant and keep it aside, for atleast 10-15 minutes. Then rinse thoroughly with water to remove the salt - (this step can be avoided, as we are using Japanese aubergines which are rarely bitter and doesn't need salting)

3. Preheat your oven to 180C/356F. Spread the eggplants in a single layer onto a pre-heated baking tray by lightly brushing it with olive oil. Roast it for 15 minutes in an oven, until it's evenly cooked. If they turn, soft and tender, they are done. Keep it aside and allow it to cool for couple of minutes.

4. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium pan, add ginger and garlic. Stir, for about 1 minute till it turns golden brown. Add chopped tomatoes and chopped green chillis, stir for about 4 minutes on medium flame. Using a spoon, scoop out the flesh of the eggplant and add it into the pan. Add all the spices (salt, turmeric powder, cumin powder and red chilli powder) and stir it well. Then, add handful of fresh coriander leaves, soy sauce or/and vinegar to get the flavor, but that's totally optional. Now, give it a good stir and switch off the flame. The stuffing is ready.

5. Fill in the aubergines with the stuffing and serve warm or at room temperature with lemon squeezed over.

NOTES

1. Sprinkle some salt on the eggplant and keep it aside, for atleast 10 minutes, as salting eggplant pulls the moisture from the eggplant. Then rinse it thoroughly to remove the salt.

2. For roasting the dish in a gas stove, add oil in a pan and rotate these aubergines till it turn soft and tender. Then fill the stuffing in the aubergine and serve warm or at room temperature.

3. You can also add vinegar and/or soy sauce in the stuffing to get the extra flavor, but that's totally optional.

AUBERGINE

Aubergine is typically a fruit but eaten as a vegetable. It grow in the same manner like tomatoes and peppers. They are usually deep purple in color, vary in different shapes and sizes and are harvested in mid to late summers. You can find this vegetable at any farmer's market or at any grocery shop. They are the most versatile vegetable available all across the globe.

They can be planted both in containers or a small patch of the garden. Harvesting too early or harvesting too late, would lead to poor quality and poor storage and hence is a cause for bitter taste of the fruit.


They are long and narrow with edible seeds. They are usually 4-5 inches long and 1-2 inches wide. They are generally less bitter and more tender than the other varieties of eggplants.

Spices like Oregano, dried basil, thyme, black pepper, garlic powder, goes well with Aubergine. There are various ways to cook aubergine. You can grill, roast, mash, stuff them with a flavorful filling and stir fry it. They are low in cholesterol and rich in antioxidants, magnesium, potassium, and dietary fiber. Best eaten fresh, they can be added in stews, salads, soups, dips, curries and purees.

This season we have harvested heaps of Japanese aubergines. I'm planning to make an easy stuffed aubergine recipe this week. It's super simple, healthy and delicious.

Have you ever tried stuffed aubergine recipe yet? It has a smooth, creamy texture and a smoky taste. I'm going to share the recipe this weekend! So, do check this space out!

GARDEN FRESH TOMATO SOUP

Incredibly delicious tomato soup straight from my garden!

I'm little obsessed with tomato soup. I could probably eat it everyday and never get bored. The beauty of this soup is, it fills you up so you eat less. This soup has so much flavors that you will never buy a canned one again. This is one of my favorite soup, it looks fancy and it tastes great! This easy homemade recipe is filled with just 3 basic ingredients - garlic, carrots, and lots of home picked tomatoes. I also added a sugar and little cream to neutralize the tangy flavor of the tomatoes. It's low in calories and makes a great afternoon snack too.

Since my garden is overflowing with tomatoes of every variety right now, I decided to try my hand at making fresh tomato soup. I used all different varieties, colors, shapes and sizes of tomatoes from my garden. I used mix of fresh heirlooms, cherry, plum and vine tomatoes. This soup is full of garden fresh flavor and can be made in less than 45 minutes.

Boiling veggies in a pressure cooker is best for soups. It shortens the cooking time and doesn't require any butter or oil. I didn't fried the veggies, I directly pressure cooked them as it's a healthy way to cook soup. This soup is versatile, healthy and tastes delicious even without all that oil and butter.


I chopped the veggies into small pieces and added them in the cooker. Than added salt, crush dried basil, water, and, pressure cooked for 2 whistles. This process retains all the color, nutrition and vegetables get perfectly steamed. Sure, this adds few more minutes to the soup but it's totally worth it!!!

Always remember to strain off the liquid, and set aside to add back into the soup later. Blend rest of the contents to the blender to make a smooth puree and return to cooker. Add in the strain water and fresh water, stir occasionally. Bring it to boil, and, reduce the heat for 25-30 minutes, or, until tomatoes have cooked down. Add sugar, oregano, and, season it with salt and pepper. Stir in some fresh cream and heat through. Transfer into the soup bowls and add a bit more cream. Serve hot with crispy croutons on top and enjoy!!

This soup always taste better the next day. If you make a large quantity of the soup, place it in the refrigerator and freeze it but don't add a lot of cream at once. You can also add cashew cream as it makes a wonderful vegan substitute for whipped cream.

Do try this recipe and let me know how you like it!!!

GARDEN FRESH TOMATO SOUP

Serves: 4 People
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Author: The Food Root

Ingredients

5 cloves garlic, minced
2 diced carrot
21/2 pound fresh tomatoes (mix of fresh heirlooms, cherry, plum and vine tomatoes)
3 cups - vegetable broth
1/2 cup - water
1 teaspoon salt or as per taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)

Directions

1. Throw in the tomatoes, carrots, garlic cloves and crushed dried basil in the pressure cooker with 3 cups of water. Allow 2-3 whistles. Let the mixture cool for atleast 10 minutes.

2. Take a big enough bowl, strain the water and set aside to add back into the soup later.

3. Blend the soup - Pour all these contents into the blender in batches, and, blend until it's smooth. You need to do this in 2-3 batches. (You can add more water if needed)

4. Pass the tomato puree through the strainer, to remove the skin and seeds. (optional)

5. Return the puree into a pan. Add in the strain water and 1/2 cup water and stir occasionally. Bring it to boil, and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until tomatoes have cooked down.

6. Add sugar, oregano, and, season it with salt and pepper.

7. Stir in the few tablespoon of fresh cream over medium heat until you reach the desired texture.

8. Transfer tomato soup into medium bowls and garnish with cream. (You can avoid cream if you vegan)

9. Serve hot with crispy croutons on top and enjoy!!

Croutons

You can make croutons at home in just 2 minutes. All you need is 4 slices of breads of your choice. Place them on the cutting board, cut them into 1 inch cube. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan over medium heat. Stir in the seasoning. Add breads cubes into the pan and toss until they are lightly browned and crisp.

Notes

1. Always remember to strain off the liquid, and set aside to add back into the soup later.

2. Pureeing hot mixture in a blender can be dangerous so let it cool for atleast 7-8 minutes.

3. If you feel that your soup is watery you can add 2 tablespoon of rice

4. If you feel that it's thick you can add a little more water.

5. I also added a sugar and little cream to neutralize the tangy flavor of the tomatoes.

6. Cashew cream makes a wonderful vegan substitute for whipped cream.

7.  If you want to make a large quantity of soup, you can place it in the refrigerator and freeze it, and, eat on another day.

8. If you are going to freeze the soup don't add a lot of cream at once.

QUICK CHICKPEA CURRY

Chickpeas delicately cooked in a tangy tomato gravy with aromatic spices!

Flavored with the aroma of cloves, cinnamon and bay leaves, chickpea curry is an extremely delicious dish for lunch, dinner or any kind of occasion! This dish can be found at any restaurant which serves North Indian food and surprisingly loved by all age groups. This is a fantastically easy dish to make and it's tasty too. Packed with protein and fiber, chickpea curry is one of my favorite recipes. It's comforting, warm, nutritious and can be eaten at anytime of the day. Layered with heat, tang and depth of flavor, chickpea curry taste best with naan, bhatura and rice.

My Mom prepares chickpea curry atleast once a week, yesterday when she made this, it was so so good, I had to share the recipe with you. 

Chickpea curry is cooked in a spice mix of bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon, turmeric, carom, ginger and garlic. But don't be overwhelmed by the long list of ingredients, the preparation is absolutely simple and easy to make. If you haven't try this recipe before, I would recommend you to try with the given quantities first.

Beans don't need to be soaked overnight, they can also be quick soaked. For quick soaking, boil the beans for 5 minutes, and let stand in warm water for about an hour. While cooking the chickpeas, add cloves, cinnamon, bay leaves, asafoetida, ground turmeric, salt and a pinch of baking soda in the pressure cooker. Baking soda is very effective as it helps in softening the beans and also decrease the cooking time. If you like the deep brown color of the chickpeas, you can add the 1 or 2 tea bags along with the above ingredients.

Heat 2 tablespoon of oil, add ginger and garlic, stir until fragrant. Throw in the tomatoes, stirring continuously for about 5 minutes. Add salt, chilli powder, ground coriander and roasted carom seeds, mix nicely. Next, add the cooked chickpeas and stir until the mixture is nicely mixed. Add the soaked water. Simmered, uncovered, for 5 minutes, until water is slightly reduced. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with rice, naan or bhature!

If you want to add any additional vegetable, stir in some roasted paneer or any veggie you like and have in hand.

QUICK CHICKPEA CURRY

Serves: 6 people
Soaking time: 1 hour
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Author: The Food Root


Ingredients

For Cooking Beans
1 cup - dried white chickpeas or garbanzo beans
4 cups - water
2 bay leaves
2 cloves
1/2 inch cinnamon
pinch of asafoetida
1 teaspoon - salt or as per your taste
1/2 teaspoon - ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

For Tempering 

2 tablespoons - clarified butter or oil
6-8 paneer pieces, cut in small square shape
1/2 inch ginger - peeled, grated
5-6 cloves - garlic, finely minced
2 medium size tomatoes, chopped
2 green chillis, chopped
1/2 teaspoon - salt or as per your taste
1/4 teaspoon - red chili powder
1 teaspoon - ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon - garam masala
1/4 teaspoon - carom seeds, roasted
coriander leaves, chopped


Instructions

1. Quick soak the chickpeas: Wash 1 cup of dried white chickpeas under running water till the water runs clear. Place them in the in a pot with 4 cups of water, 1/2 tablespoon of salt and bring water to boil for for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the chickpeas stand in the warm water for atleast 1 hour.

2. Cook the chickpeas: Open the lid and add ground turmeric, bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon, asafoetida, salt, ground turmeric and a pinch of baking powder. You can also add a tea bag (We don't generally do this but you can, for getting the deep color). Add water, (cold, preferably) if needed for consistency and pressure cook for 2-3 whistles on medium-high flame.

3. Sauté ginger and garlic: Meanwhile, heat about 2 tablespoons of clarified butter or oil in a non stick skillet, fry 6-8 paneer cubes (optional) and stir until it turns golden brown. Keep aside until needed in later steps. Now add grated ginger and chopped garlic, stir until crisp and golden brown, for about 1 minute on medium flame. (For the onion based gravy, add 2 chopped onions, continue to cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring often).

4. Prepare the tomato puree tempering: Next add chopped tomatoes, cook for 4-5 minutes on medium flame. Add chopped green chillis followed by salt, red chilli powder, ground coriander and roasted carom seeds, mix it well. Let the mixture cook till the oil separates.

5. Add the cooked chickpeas in the pan: Open the lid and drain the cooked chickpeas (but don't throw away the water. You can add the same soaked water in the pan to make the curry). Add the cooked chickpeas into the pan. Stir it for next 5 minutes, till the mixture is nicely mixed.

6. Prepare the chickpeas curry:  Add the soaked water in the pan to make the curry. Simmered, uncovered, for 5 minutes, until water is slightly reduced. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

7. Serve: Transfer the chickpeas to a serving bowl. Scoop the chickpeas with a bite of naan or rice and enjoy!!

Notes

1. Once you have drained the chickpeas, don't throw away the water. You can add the same soaked water in the pan to make the curry.

2. Add a pinch of baking powder while cooking the chickpeas (in the pressure cooker) as it helps in softening the beans and decreasing the cooking time.

3.You can also add a 1 or 2 tea bags (in the pressure cooker), for getting the deep brown color of the chickpeas. 

4. For the onion based gravy, add onions after stirring the ginger and garlic.

5. You can add in the variety of veggies, whatever you like and have in hand.

6. Avoid putting dry powdered spices directly to hot oil as it will burn quickly and curry may become little bitter. Add them after the tomato puree.

7. Spices like cloves, cinnamon, bay leaves, asafoetida and roasted carom seeds can be avoided.