Hope you all had a great Varalakshmi Vratham !
I am off to India tomorrow for my brother's wedding. Really exicited about it.
I will be a back after a short break.
Have a great Ganesh Chathurdi y'all !
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Asian Edamame salad
I really loved this salad from Corner bakery. I must have gone there several times just for this. Never heard about the Edamame beans before, but when I came to know about these young soybeans and how loaded they are, I really want to try it myself. Their description of their salad clearly says this "Edamame, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, red bell peppers, carrots, green onions, fresh basil, and cilantro in a ginger citrus dressing." I guess that says it all, right?. Also it was sweet so there should be honey in it. So here is my try on this.
Ingredients:
1. Edamame beans - 1 cup
2. Carrots - 1/2 cup shredded
3. Cucumber - 1/2 cup cubed
4. Red bell pepper - 1/2 cup cut
(I would definely add cherry tomatoes and green onion, but I didn't have any, so I skipped).
For the dressing:
1. 1/2 inch of ginger - grated (if you want to just use the juice, then you may need 1 inch)
2. 1 tbsp of Agave nectar or honey (add more if you want it sweet)
3. 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
4. 2 tbsp of orange juice (I used orange juice for the citrus in their description, may be a little lemon juice may also work)
5. Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp (less or more depending upon your taste.)
6. Salt
Mix all these well.
Method:
Cook the edamame beans as per the instructions. They are available as beans or beans in pods. I bought frozen organic edamame beans in pods.I have to just put it in boiling water with some salt, boil it for 3-4 minutes, drain and wash it in cold water. Then remove the beans from the pods. I shredded the carrots into thick ones. Add shredded carrots, cubed cucumbers, chopped red bell peppers, finely chopped basil, cilantro and mix it all along with the dressing. That's it, healthy tasty salad is ready. I may still be missing some secrect ingredient that the restaurant may have used, but this is very close.
My husband is not a big fan of salads. Its like one of those ads where the mother does everything to prevent the kid from hearing the word "vegetables" because he may not eat it... Like that, I cannot say "salad" to my husband, he wouldn't eat it :-) So I made this sundal style snack for him. With the beans, I just mixed some finely shredded carrots, coconut, one small finely chopped green chilli, few drops of lemon juice, salt and chilli powder.
Ingredients:
1. Edamame beans - 1 cup
2. Carrots - 1/2 cup shredded
3. Cucumber - 1/2 cup cubed
4. Red bell pepper - 1/2 cup cut
(I would definely add cherry tomatoes and green onion, but I didn't have any, so I skipped).
For the dressing:
1. 1/2 inch of ginger - grated (if you want to just use the juice, then you may need 1 inch)
2. 1 tbsp of Agave nectar or honey (add more if you want it sweet)
3. 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
4. 2 tbsp of orange juice (I used orange juice for the citrus in their description, may be a little lemon juice may also work)
5. Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp (less or more depending upon your taste.)
6. Salt
Mix all these well.
Method:
Cook the edamame beans as per the instructions. They are available as beans or beans in pods. I bought frozen organic edamame beans in pods.I have to just put it in boiling water with some salt, boil it for 3-4 minutes, drain and wash it in cold water. Then remove the beans from the pods. I shredded the carrots into thick ones. Add shredded carrots, cubed cucumbers, chopped red bell peppers, finely chopped basil, cilantro and mix it all along with the dressing. That's it, healthy tasty salad is ready. I may still be missing some secrect ingredient that the restaurant may have used, but this is very close.
My husband is not a big fan of salads. Its like one of those ads where the mother does everything to prevent the kid from hearing the word "vegetables" because he may not eat it... Like that, I cannot say "salad" to my husband, he wouldn't eat it :-) So I made this sundal style snack for him. With the beans, I just mixed some finely shredded carrots, coconut, one small finely chopped green chilli, few drops of lemon juice, salt and chilli powder.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Mystic India
Has anyone watched this film "Mystic India"? If you did, you will know why I get so excited talking about it. Wonderful movie, that rediscovers India in a way that is truly enchanting.
What has that to do with my art work? Everything. I am always inspired by the art of India in our day to day life. Be it a mehandi pattern or a rangoli design, the intricate patterns and vivid colors always amaze me. There was this scene/image from the film that caught my eye. I couldn't resist its grandeur and wanted to bring it close to me in the form of this acrylic canvas painting. There was a picture of it on their website. Being just an amateur, I could not do complete justice to this painting but really enjoyed making it. This is a 40''x30'' canvas. I guess I got too excited getting this large of a canvas because I have never done this large painting, for that matter, I have not even done that many smaller ones.
What has that to do with my art work? Everything. I am always inspired by the art of India in our day to day life. Be it a mehandi pattern or a rangoli design, the intricate patterns and vivid colors always amaze me. There was this scene/image from the film that caught my eye. I couldn't resist its grandeur and wanted to bring it close to me in the form of this acrylic canvas painting. There was a picture of it on their website. Being just an amateur, I could not do complete justice to this painting but really enjoyed making it. This is a 40''x30'' canvas. I guess I got too excited getting this large of a canvas because I have never done this large painting, for that matter, I have not even done that many smaller ones.
Here is a detail:
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