Carb on Kitchen3N

Samosa Cake

Tue, 13 Feb 2018 00:00:00 +0000

This is the story of how a typo turned into an entree. In Whatsapp group of fellow moms, coordinating the dishes of a potluck, someone offered up a Samoa cake. Misreading that for "Samosa Cake" many of the moms jumped at the prospect: "Samosa cake?! What's a Samosa Cake?! I want to try it!!". After clarifying the mix up, some ideas were thrown around as to what a samosa cake would look like. I immediately thought of layers of phyllo dough stacked with a samosa meat mixture, baked and cut in slices. When I looked up for recipes that would meet these requirements, I pulled together elements from a Borek recipe (Turkish layered meat pastry), an Egyptian meat pie, and the filling from a Yemeni Samboosa. There are cubanelle or italian frying peppers here for flavor, often seen in Turkish recipes. There's tomato paste from the samboosa recipe, an ingredient that is necessary for any red meat dish, in my humble opinion. And the whole layering and baking technique pulls from Egyptian meat pie recipe.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Tue, 18 Jul 2017 00:00:00 +0000

There is no rhyme or reason to this cake. It is neither healthy, nor a proper dessert. It is simply for chocolate lovers. It is a glorious use of a bland, high water content vegetable that lends it's moisture to the crumb of this perfect snack cake. It's blandness acts as a perfect palette for all the wonderful cocoa and brown sugar flavor to absorb. I've posted about chocolate zucchini cake before. This bread version is a bit heartier with whole wheat flour and almond flour - a little more substance to justify my classification of it as a snacking cake! I wasn't happy with any of the recipes I found online for chocolate zucchini loaf, so I made my tweaks, including adding chocolate chips, and voila! Perfection.

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (or 1 cup AP flour/1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup almond flour)
1/2 cup dutch processed cocoa plus extra for coating chocolate chips(if using natural cocoa, swap the amounts of baking soda and baking powder)
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
12 tbsp melted butter
1 lb zucchini, grated
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and lightly dust a 9inx5in loaf pan with cocoa powder. Stick in the freezer while preparing your ingredients.
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Turn off heat and allow to cool down.
Wash and cut off one end of zucchini. Grate, not completely finely, but not in huge slivers either. Place a large sieve over a bowl and place grated zucchini there to drain while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl (everything except the eggs, butter and chocolate chips). Whisk to combine, breaking up any large clumps. Make a well in the center and add eggs and butter. Mix with a wooden spoon (Bengali alert: I used my hands to mix this batter!). Add all of the zucchini and stir until combined. In a small bowl combine the chocolate chips with sprinkling of cocoa (maybe 1/4tsp). Toss to coat the chocolate chips with the cocoa. Add to the batter, gently folding in. Take the loaf pan out of the freezer and add the batter, spreading evenly across the loaf pan. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour 10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out relatively clean.*
Allow to cool completely before attempting to remove it from the pan.

*It won't come out completely clean due to the moisture of this loaf. A few crumbs are ok. You just don't want it to come out with wet batter.

Chocolate Candy Cupcakes

Mon, 16 Jan 2017 00:00:00 +0000

After a startling reading on the weight scale towards the end of December, I swore off sugar. Just two years prior I worked so hard to lose my baby weight. Inspired by beach body coaches in my network, I vastly cut down sweets, decreased portion sizes, drank tons more water, swapped quinoa for rice in many of my meals, and began to regularly exercise using Fitnessblender, the only exercise I’ve been able to stick to thanks to the fact that I can choose from workouts of different durations and can do it from the convenience of my home. So I lost the 9 pounds of lingering weight, and 8 pounds on top of that.

Crepes

Tue, 03 Jan 2017 00:00:00 +0000

The first time I had crepes was in Paris in 2006. Kids coming home from school were snacking on this conical things wrapped in paper filled with all kinds of chocolately/fruity goodness. My buddy and I did not hesitate. We got ourselves some crepes filled with nutella and slices of banana and our minds were blown. So delicious and, as I'd soon discover, so easy to make, with such simple ingredients?!

Flash forward to 2017 and I’ve made it 34098734287234 times. I’ve filled them with sautéed mushrooms and swiss cheese to serve to guests. With scrambled eggs and spinach for a savory breakfast. Most often though, with nutella/banana or simply with strawberry jam for my sweet-toothed family. It is the THE most requested breakfast item, surpassing pancakes, waffles, french toast, everything. Which works for me since it’s SO EASY and cooks much faster than all those other options.

Royal Icing

Thu, 29 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0000

I just started decorating with royal icing after all these years. Why have I been torturing myself all these years with confectioner's sugar/milk concoctions that thin too easily, and pipe too painfully?! Since royal icing is made with egg whites (I use meringue powder so I don't have to deal with leftover egg yolks), it has a lot of structure from the protein. Pipes wonderfully for borders and outlines and thins easily for flooding. I have been a fan of Sana Sodawalla of SugarBase_ for a while now. Her gorgeous marbled cookies, whimsical cakes, and informative videos are something to aspire to. Since I've started baking and cake decorating more, I've been creating more content tailored to Instagram. I like how the platforms caters to creatives, offering a very visual space to share our content, with lots of real estate for pictures, and just enough for explanatory text. I've created these cookies after watching her technique on marbling sugar cookies. I got the idea for gold splatter after taking a wonderful mommy and me art class I took with a talented local artist on paper collages. I don't know if I've done justice to Sana's beautiful cookies, but I hope you try your own version at home. My go to recipe for royal frosting below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L8vlUdQg34

Cinnamon Honey Skillet Cornbread

Wed, 02 Nov 2016 00:00:00 +0000

What’s the best gift you’ve ever received? Was it jewelry? A nice bag? Maybe those shoes you’ve been eyeing? For me, it was my engagement ring, hands down. BUT apart from the that, the best gift I continue to receive is from my mother. Every few months she gives me a jar of homemade ginger/garlic paste that is quintessential in Bengali cuisine. Sure, you can buy the jarred stuff from the desi grocery, but it’s just not the same. It’s fresh, preservative free, and it’s made with LOVE. Such a life saver on busy weeknights to not have to peel/chop fresh ginger and garlic.

Lentil and Bulgur Kofte

Sun, 07 Aug 2016 00:00:00 +0000

My heart is hurting. The world is burning. There is no where I can go, or send my family members, that feels safe from natural disaster, disease or rampant violence. Perhaps this is the way it’s always been - just now we are hyper aware because we are hyper connected. The natural disaster stuff is not new. Climate change is. And as a Bangladeshi American, I worry about the effects of glacial melting for a sea-level country like Bangladesh. We already have climate refugees.

Ramadan Round Up

Tue, 21 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0000

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Ramadan is halfway over, but there’s still time to make some of my favorite recipes for this time of year! Going clockwise from the top left:

Citrus Quinoa Salad with Dates, Almonds and Mint - we consume a lot of dates during Ramadan. This recipe uses up any extra dates you may have in a salad you can feel good about eating at the end of a long fast!

Aloo Chop (Fried Mashed Potato Balls)

Sat, 18 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Traditional Bengali iftars are an exercise in how many different ways can we consume fried foods. Ground up lentils and herbs? FRY IT! Fresh sliced eggplant? BATTER AND FRY IT! Whole green chilis? FRY IT! Mashed potatoes? FRY. IT.

There’s been a backlash by my generation against the fried iftars of our parents’ generation:

My Go-To Suhoor (Sehri)

Wed, 08 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0000

When you were a kid did you have curry for suhoor?

Let me take a few steps back here. Ramadan Kareem everyone! The blessed time of year when Muslims around the world abstain from food & drink (yes, even water) from dawn til dusk. Not just a physical fast, Muslims (healthy, adult) are to abstain from sex, violence and cursing. Particularly trying for those at northern latitudes where the days are long (16+ hours for us in NY), we need to make the most of our pre-dawn and fast-breaking meals. That means nutritious food that will keep our bodies busy breaking down complex carbs and proteins. Just as important: staying hydrated!

Citrus Quinoa Salad With Dates, Almonds, and Mint

Sat, 23 Apr 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Ramadan is coming up! I figured I should add a few more Ramadan friendly recipes to the blog, for those of us who are looking to depart a bit from the usual fried foods iftars. During these long summer days when we're denying ourselves food and liquid for 15 hours straight, we need to treat our bodies well! This is a dish you can feel good about eating, that's not going to make you crash before the long night of ibadah (prayers) you have lined up.

This recipe is based on one from Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table. I know a quinoa salad is not the first thing you think of when you consider French cuisine, but she’s filled her cookbook with things she makes for her family, without strictly adhering to a particular cuisine. In our hyperconnected world, it’s kind of impossible to resist influences from other regions. She’s got a Moroccan Tagine and carrot salad, small plates from her American upbringing, French pastries and traditional stews from her current residence. And she’s kind of an authority when it comes to food so I trust her with my quinoa!

Creamy Less Cheesy Mac and Cheese

Fri, 13 Nov 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Anyone else find themselves questioning their life choices? First world problems, right? I’ve got a roof over my head, food to eat, a wonderful family - so much to be grateful for. But I’m feeling sorry for myself because I haven’t “made it” yet or didn’t pursue one of the more conventional paths of engineering, medicine, or law (not that I have a litigating bone in my body). Of course this comes at a time when most of my high school and college classmates are receiving their secondary degrees and the grass is looking greener on the other side. But I’ve been trying to embody the saying I’ve read recently, “The grass is greener where you water it”. I love my family and would be so empty without them. But I need to reach my professional goals as well. Would love to grow this blog or my little side hustle (custom cakes) but I feel like I’m lacking some guidance. Is it my content? My outreach? Help me out, guys!! Granted I have two little ones, one who is isn’t in school yet, so my resources are limited. Speaking of little ones, for years I lamented that despite my efforts to make mac and cheese from scratch, my kids preferred the stuff from the blue box. Relieved, since dinner could be ready in a snap if I had the blue box on hand. Affronted, as well. So I sought a solution. The problem was the traditional mac and cheese recipes I followed were quite cheesy. Resulting in a strongly flavored and thick sauce.So, I thought I’d make a bechamel sauce, add in a little bit of cheese at a time until it had just enough thickness and was mildly flavored enough for my kiddos, and voila! I made something that my 3 1/2 year old would lick clean off the plate. This comes together so quickly, you’ll be like, blue box, who? Granted you have pre-shredded cheese. I use the Trader Joe’s blend of mozzarella, cheddar and jack cheese. It’s wonderful in omelettes, grilled cheese, etc. Throw in some frozen peas with the pasta during the last minute of cooking to make it a complete meal. Or shredded beef/chicken. The sky’s the limit. I just keep the chicken broth on hand in case it gets too thick. Make this once and you’ll never go back to Panera’s mac and cheese! Feel free to double the recipe if you have more mouths to feed!

Mustard and Chili Mashed Potatoes and a Giveaway!

Tue, 19 May 2015 00:00:00 +0000

There’s a lot going on in today’s post. Firstly, we’re talking vegetable peelers and a giveaway! My good friend’s husband has started a company selling premium kitchen products, with their first being this awesome curved Japanese blade vegetable peeler! Using mine was a breeze - the sharp blade made for smooth cuts and the design definitely required less pressure from the hand doing the peeling. The sprout remover on either side helped get those little “eyes” out. I tackled these buds in no time. I will say, though, if you are used to the vertical peelers, it may take some getting used to. But as with any sharp edge, take care to curl the fingers of your supporting hand away while using!Because this is such a great product and think you guys would love it, too, we are giving one away! To enter, simply comment on my FB page responding to this question: What’s the first thing you would use ChefBasix Vegetable Peeler for? Good luck!Secondly, we’re talking about ghee - clarified butter that South Asians use to cook (some dishes) with. It doesn’t have the milk solids of butter, so it has a higher burning temperature. This picture shows how it happens. After melting the butter over low heat, you keep it on until it attains this golden color, not the amber color you would look for while making browned butter. We are just looking for the milk solids in the butter to toast up to give the ghee a nice nutty flavor. You don’t want to get to that light brown stage, otherwise you will lose too much moisture. Once you’ve gotten the right color, take it off the heat. You can let it cool in the pot, but I poured it into this bowl to show you what was going on. The milk solids sink to the bottom so you only spoon off the fluid on top. Left to cool long enough it will congeal and resemble the store bought ghee. This last step is not totally necessary in today’s dish, as we are not cooking with the ghee. It’s more for aesthetic purposes so you don’t have bits of brown running through the mashed potatoes (don’t toss it, though! spoon it over toast for a snack!). Finally, we are talking about aloo bhorta (mashed potatoes)! It seems like potatoes are a universal comfort food. When coming back from a family trip, or on days when we were low on groceries, dinner looked like this: steamed rice, aloo bhorta, an omelette and daal. South Asian immigrant parents have an almost militant attitude toward eating out. Take out was a non-existent concept. As newcomers, our parents had to reign with frugality. Though we were brats about it and whined about wanting pizza or burgers, our parents did the hard work of making every single meal from scratch. The aloo bhorta and omelette were studded with pieces of raw onion and slivers of green chilis. Most of my time during those meals were spent picking out the aforementioned bits to get to the good stuff. I was never a part of the set-my-mouth-ablaze-to-enjoy-my-meal set. So now, since I’m in charge of my kitchen, I’ve started to substitute scallion for the raw onion and dried red chili for the fruity spice of the green chili (or Thai chili as it’s known to some). The dried red chili still has some heat - just not as explosive as its green counterpart.

Strawberry Rhubarb Hand Pies

Mon, 18 May 2015 00:00:00 +0000

I gave into peer pressure, guys. When the first ramps popped up in my instagram feed, I rushed to the Union Square Green Market to pick some up. Not too long after, I picked up some rhubarb without much idea about what I was going to do with it. I am all about eating seasonal foods, local, humane, natural, sustainable, etc. But sometimes the thing that’s in season isn’t exactly worth all the hype. Ramps are great and all. If you are less familiar with them, they are a green leafy vegetable available for a few short weeks in spring. They are sold leaves, stalk, bulb and all and have a lovely mild onion flavor. I loved them first time I used them, as a topping on my homemade pizza. More recently, I chopped them up and stewed them with some tomatoes. I even bought a ramp pesto that works wonders on a tomato mozzarella panino.

Over the Muffin Top Blueberry Muffins

Mon, 06 Apr 2015 00:00:00 +0000

I wasn’t planning on posting anything anytime soon. I’ve been swamped with work and caught in a whirlwind of Pre-K applications. If some of you have read my previous posts, you know I had been planning on homeschooling my kids. I felt I could provide them with a much more tailored education than could be provided at a public school - supplementing my kids’ homeschooling with extracurricular activities like soccer or dance classes, for the socialization, discipline, and physical outlet.

Fettucine with Mushrooms and Leeks

Sun, 08 Feb 2015 00:00:00 +0000

I have been using a dastardly amount of heavy cream in everything. Coffee - splash of cream. Pie - whipped cream. Fruit - sweetened AND whipped cream. Pasta - cup o’ cream.

I have a officially regressed from my diet of quinoa salads, eggs, oatmeal, and fruits/veggies. Size 2 - it was nice knowing you!

But let’s talk about the shrooms here. People can get downright militant when it comes to mushrooms: Don’t wash them!! Don’t crowd the pan!! Don’t season them too early!! All advice I’ve taken to heart many a time. And as much as I love properly sautéed mushrooms with bits of brown butter speckling the surface and all the right caramelization in all the right places, these mushrooms fare perfectly fine all in one pan, with leeks and all! And not just “fine”. How can I explain to you how well mushrooms and leeks pair without going into a series of clichéd analogies? Let’s try some non-clichés. Mushrooms are to leeks as

Mughlai Paratha

Fri, 21 Nov 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Mughlai paratha is a traditional flatbread they serve in Bangladesh. It’s a rich dough, stuffed with eggs, cilantro, onions, chili peppers and sometimes ground chicken. It’s pretty hard to track down a recipe. This post is a culmination of verbal consultation with my mother, taste testing at Bengali fast food joints, and YouTube research. It’s a little bit ridiculous, I know, because it’s not exactly a 30 minute meal. There are several steps, practice and patience required. But I figured with the upcoming holiday weekend, we all might have some extra time to get in the kitchen (it’s cold outside!), roll up our sleeves, and maybe even involve the kiddies (my little ones LOVE getting their hands on the rolling pin and dough whenever they can). Also, there will no doubt be lots of leftovers that would work perfectly as a filling for these guys. This baby has been in the pipeline for a looooooong time. I’ve been meaning to make it for ages. I’ve been experimenting recently, since I’ve been getting to know my rolling pin a bit better (hello, pie season). I’ve tried making it with pizza dough (which was delicious but resembled more of a calzone than a traditional mughlai paratha) and all kinds of ghee to flour ratios and cooking techniques (shallow fry, deep fry). And this is the glorious, delicious result! Yes, that is my Fresh Tinted Lip Balm on my kitchen counter. Where else would it be? I would love to add more filling. It would make the paratha even more delicious. But I err on the side of less filling just to avoid leakage and it running all over the pan. You, though, are at liberty to experiment with as much filling as you’d like!For those of you who aren’t familiar with ghee, it’s delicious. It’s butter that’s been melted, milk solids removed. You do that by melting a stick (or two) of butter in a small saucepan, allowing the solids to drop to the bottom, then utilizing the melted fat on top. It’s slightly nutty and has a higher burning temperature than regular butter, which is what makes it so great for this recipe (among others: pancakes, mashed potatoes, and so on). So I hope you guys give this recipe a try! And don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t come out super thin the first time. Practice makes perfect!

Homemade Ricotta (and a lasagna, too!)

Mon, 22 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Why on earth would you make your own ricotta? Because it’s delicious that’s why! Also, for these reasons:

Unlike homemade chicken stock, you don't need 98765432 ingredients. You need 4.
It doesn't take 3.5 hours. It takes 0.5 (and you don't even have to stand watch over it for the majority of that time).
You don't need any special ingredients/equipment (screw cheesecloth! I used a papertowel!)
It is awesome over toast (or fruit) with a drizzle of honey and slivered almonds (that is, unless almonds trigger your eczema). Breakfast all week! Use it to kick your lasagna up a notch! The recipe I've used all these years advised defrosting frozen spinach, mixing it with some ricotta, eggs, and seasonings and adding it as a single layer. It was my least favorite layer. So, this time, I heated up minced garlic and oil in a saucepan/wok. I cooked the spinach in it, seasoned it with salt, pepper and nutmeg, then added it to my homemade ricotta, decreasing the ricotta to spinach ratio quite a bit. No egg. It was divine. I didn't think this process through very thoroughly. I boiled all the lasagna sheets. I just kept adding layers while I had stuffing/noodles. The top layer didn't receive its due (read: I ran out of sauce). I'm sorry top layer. I still loved your nutty, cheesy contribution. And now I have leftover cooked lasagna noodles in my fridge. Roll ups next week? Another thing to make with your fresh ricotta - lemon (or in my case lime) ricotta cookies! Not pictured: the tangy, sweet glaze that goes atop these lovelies. And hopefully, your baking powder isn't out of date, like mine was, and yours more resemble fluffy clouds rather than lemon disks.

For the Ricotta (recipe courtesy of Ina Garten - surprise!)

Ingredients:

4 cups whole milk
2 cups cream
1 tsp salt
3 tbsps white wine vinegar

Directions:

Heat milk, cream and salt in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil.
Turn off the heat, add vinegar, and stir. Let sit 3-4 minutes while mixture curdles.
Place a mesh sieve over a big (preferably deep) and line it with cheesecloth or a paper towel. Carefully pour mixture in and allow the whey to separate from the curds for 20-25 minutes. Voila! You have ricotta cheese.

For the Lasagna (warning: did not measure - approximations below)

Ingredients:

3/4 lb ground beef
olive oil
1/2 large onion, diced small
2 carrots, peeled, diced into about 1/4 in pieces
2 celery sticks, chopped small (if you don't have carrots or celery, don't let this stop you from making this meat sauce!! use peppers, or more onions if you need to!)
3 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp chili flakes
salt
pepper
1 28 oz can crushed tomato
1 bay leaf
1 tsp sugar
about 2/3 box lasagna noodles (about 15 sheets)
16 oz frozen spinach
1 clove of garlic
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup of ricotta cheese
about 7-8 oz mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 cups freshly grated parmigiano reggiano (sorry, no shortcuts allowed for this step)

Directions:

For the meat sauce: brown meat in lightly greased skillet or wok over high heat, breaking up the meat and cooking until meat is no longer pink and has a nice crusty exterior. Remove from pan using a slotted spoon. Set aside on a plate. Add a bit more oil, then onions, carrots, and celery. Sauté until translucent (about 5 min). Add garlic, oregano, chili flakes, and about 3/4 tsp each of salt and pepper. Mix to combine. Add crushed tomato, bay leaf, sugar. Stir then cover and reduce heat to low. Let simmer for about 20 min, stirring occasionally. At the end of 20 min, turn off heat and check for seasoning (it should taste GOOD - if not, add 1/4 tsp more salt). Set aside.
In a medium skillet/wok, heat 1 tbsp oil or butter over medium high heat. Add 1 clove of garlic, minced. After about 30 seconds, add frozen spinach. Stir to break down clumps of spinach. Add about 1/2 tsp salt and pepper and 1/4 tsp nutmeg. Cook down until spinach is warmed through and flavorful (4-5 min). Set aside.
Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add a tbsp of salt and lasagna noodles and cook according to package directions (6-8 min). Drain, then drizzle with oil to keep from sticking. Set aside.
Assemble the darn thing: preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Add 1/3 of meat sauce to the bottom of a casserole or lasagna dish. Add one layer of lasagna noodles (3 of the traditional barilla noodles). Then add 1/2 of the ricotta/spinach mixture. Top with 3 more noodles. Then add another third of the meat sauce - spreading to distribute evenly. Top with half of the mozzarella cheese (shredded or sliced). Top with 3 more lasagna noodles. Add remaining spinach/ricotta mixture. Add 3 more noodles. Top with remaining meat sauce. Add 3 final noodles. Top with remaining mozzarella cheese and grated parmesan.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes. Uncover, then stick back in the oven for 10 more minutes. It should be bubbly and the parmesan should just be starting to brown. Let cool before slicing unless you want messy, gooey pieces like the one pictured here =).

Salsa all'Amatriciana

Thu, 10 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000

It’s Ramadan. The days are long. Brain cells hardly get enough glucose to function throughout the day. You would think after breaking our fasts in the evening, we get a second wind and can be productive. Not the case here. Usually after iftar, my husband and I try to make the most of the 20 or minutes we have together post-kids-bedtime and pre-taraweeh (nightly prayer). Yet even after he leaves for the masjid, I find myself completely unable to do ANYTHING productive. That includes the dishes. I don’t know why this year’s fasts has left my brain and body completely depleted (any md’s/rn’s/nutrionists feel free to chime in). But my dear friend Amreen has been requesting this recipe from the very first time I made it for her back in college. And I, being the jerk friend that I am, have neglected to share it until now. So, on Friday, with bacon, tomatoes and sidekick Moury in hand, whipped up this old favorite. This recipe is actually from my very first cookbook purchase in high school: Giada’s Everyday Italian. I know I’m always singing Ina’s praises and yes, her show really informed my current culinary outlook. But it all started with Everyday Italian. From Giada, I learned how to make my very first marinara sauce. Shrimp Fra Diavolo. Balsamic Roasted Chicken. Eggplant Caponata. Favorites that I use time and again - and they all come from this book. I can’t say as much for her follow up cookbooks, but this is definitely one I can vouch for. Any Roman reading this will gasp at my bastardization of their beloved Amatriciana sauce - a pancetta/onion/garlic/tomato sauce except with halal beef bacon in place of the pancetta. I’m sorry! This is just the best we can do! The fat from the bacon balances well with the sweetness/acidity of the tomatoes. So you neither feel like you’re eating a really greasy pesto, nor a flat lined marinara (let’s face it, marinara just isn’t that exciting unless doctored up with some crushed red chili flakes). My old, and I mean old (seriously, friends for 13 years now?), friend Moury was with me in the kitchen. And contrary to our last cooking experience, I wasn’t a total tyrant. She took all these photographs for you guys. And since I haven’t been doing any day time eating, these are the only photographs I could manage for this post. So, bacon and pasta lovers rejoice! The perfect marriage of the two is in this dish.

Banana Date Nut Bread

Tue, 25 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

I bought quinoa a week ago. I still don’t have the guts to prepare it, out of fear of what happens to unfortunately too many of my experiments in healthy-food-ness. Make it. Eat some the first day. Then a day goes by: everyone opts for the other options in the fridge. Another day goes by: my mom brings over a vat of chicken curry. Another day goes by: take out time! By day 4, no one will be eating what they hadn’t eaten the past 4 days (my chia seed pudding is currently suffering that fate)! So while I procrastinate on the quinoa, I tried to make some healthier substitutions in my usual banana bread. After going through Mastering the Art of French Cooking, I was all like “yeah! butter! if french people can douse their food in it, why can’t we?”. Then I read an article that scared the pants off of me about saturated fats. So what to do?! There’s got to be a balance between the Paula Deen fried mac’n’cheese-wrapped-in-bacon death on a plate and quinoa/kale/green smoothie diet.So, here is my answer. Banana bread. I know bananas have a bad rap for the amount of sugar in them, but hey, they have potassium. That’s important, right? Personally, I’d rather eat natural foods with natural sugars (like coconut water) and vitamins/minerals than an artificially flavored protein shake to curb my appetite! So, on to this bread. Does it have sugar? Yes. But there’s fiber from the date and whole wheat flour. Does it have fat? Yes. But it’s coconut oil and supposedly the saturated fat in that is better for you. And nuts! Good fats that keep you full longer! I cut the amount of sugar from the original recipe by a 1/2 cup. If you’re rolling your eyes at me at this point, I’m ok with that. This isn’t a cake baked in a loaf pan that you can call a breakfast. It’s hearty. It tastes good. And you don’t have to feel guilty for having a slice. Have it with a glass of milk for a snack, or with coffee for breakfast.

Easy Fried Rice

Mon, 10 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Ever since I started cooking for myself, my taste for takeout has rapidly declined (pizza and sushi exempt). Take chinese takeout for example: when I was a kid, it was the ultimate treat. My Friday lunch if I used my allowance wisely. I’m not sure what you know about Bengali moms, but they are pretty militant in their meal regiment. Rice, vegetable saute/bhorta, some kind of protein curried, and daal. That is what you have for dinner, every night. Without fail. Every bengali kid who grew up here knows the struggle to have something different on the table (first world problems, I know). And the retorts that follow: “Eh? Pizza? How is that any kind of food? What with all that cheese…and they wonder why American kids are so fat!”. This is usually said as one or more uncles are stuffing their faces with beef or goat curry and are working away at a Mt Everest sized mound of rice on their plate.

Chicken Noodle Soup with Mushrooms and Swiss Chard

Mon, 23 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0000

This is what happens when you’re too lazy to properly defrost a chicken. So, I stuck this baby (read: chicken) into a stock pot with 4 quarts of water, and whatever aromatics or root vegetables I had on hand. In this case it was carrots, half an onion, an inch and a half of ginger root, thyme and a bay leaf. I didn’t even half enough garlic (just a few cloves) so I saved it for the mushrooms and swiss chard. And I just let it simmer away during our morning routine.

Rice Pilaf (Palau)

Mon, 25 Nov 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Begin rant: I’ve got social media fatigue. I even convinced myself at one point that it was a productive use of my time, because wasn’t I mainly reading news articles and stuff? Recently, that answer became a glaring NO. Buzzfeed compilations, vine videos, 20 ways to know you’re from this city or that farm or truly ghetto. And my feed is just filled with shares of blog posts from self declared intellectuals who think they have such pearls of wisdom. I learn more from my moments of quiet reflection, when I’m running or washing dishes, than I have after reading a dozen of said articles. The handful of books I’ve read on marriage and relationships have given me important tools - many of which I’ve seen recycled time and again in those pieces. I can probably count on one hand articles of merit I’ve found through social media: Anne-Marie Slaughter’s famous article Why Women Still Can’t Have It All, NY Times’ The ‘Busy’ Trap, Nicholas Carr’s How the Internet is Making us Stupid, and The Extraordinary Science of Junk Food. So, my resolution is this: read more books. Reflect more. Check-in less. With this as an exception. End rant. On to the food. I know a lot of my (handful) of readers are on their own for the first time, either newly married, or going to med school (ok, that probably covers all of my readers). That’s why it’s important for me to cover all the bases of Bengali cuisine. And this rice pilaf (palau) is the quintessential dish for entertaining. Any time you have company, the main decision you have to make is: biryani or palau + curries? Plain rice isn’t considered special enough, even though some of the best meals I’ve had consisted of plain rice, served with a plethora of spicy/tangy bhortas, curries and daal. Actually, ask any Bengali and they will probably prefer the homey meals to these elevated, reserved-for-guests spreads.Even apart from the traditional spread, this pilaf would make a fine accompaniment to any roast poultry dish. Which is why I was eager to share it with you in advance of Thanksgiving, in hopes that you might give it a try in lieu of your usual rice or carb. Onions get caramelized and lend a sweet component. Toasted rice and browned butter give it depth. The whole thing gets hit with a wonderful concoction of aromatics: garlic, ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and bay leaf, providing the warmth and flavor. And the whole thing comes together pretty quickly, as long as you let the rice soak in some water while you get the onions going. The peas are optional, and often not included in Bengali rice pilafs (more common in North Indian cuisine). But I like to add them in to convince myself I’m feeding the kids something healthy. I served this alongside another classic for-entertaining-only dish: chicken korma, a sweet and savory chicken cooked in a curry/cream sauce, and spicy shrimp bhuna. And of course, salad! You definitely need a side salad to cut the richness. Followed by ice cream sundaes with homemade hot fudge (the recipe for that coming soon!). Pretty darn good if I do say so myself.

Pastitsio

Wed, 16 Oct 2013 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve already written about Pastitsio. But since it didn’t exactly get its close up last time, I figured it was time for a redo. Pastitsio, btw, is a baked pasta dish, layered with meat sauce, bechamel and parmesan (or kasseri). Even though there are a few steps (and several pots and pans) required to make this dish, the flavor is out of this world. It all started when I bought some ground lamb on impulse. Tired of chicken or beef or beef or chicken, I reached for the lamb. Then days passed as I’d open the freezer door, stare at it to figure out what I could do with it (meatballs, kebabs), then close the door again. Then I decided, it was time to remake this lovely casserole. I had to buy some ground beef anyway, as the combination of the two types of meat helps mellow the strong flavor of the lamb. The cinnamon and lamb is such an unlikely combination, but it just works. Along with the thyme, garlic and oregano, the aromatics perfume the whole house. This time though

Haleem

Mon, 05 Aug 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Warning: this post isn’t about finding the mother of all haleem recipes. I’m not even gonna say it will give your grandma’s a run for her money (though it’s darn good). No, this post is about accessibility. Haleem is not an enigma. Sure, there’s barley, wheat, lentils, even dried papaya. But you don’t have to go out of your way looking for ingredients you don’t usually stock your pantry with. Nor do you have to run to Jamaica or Jackson Heights, or wherever you go for your fix. Instead, you pick up a box of Shan’s Easy Cook Haleem mix and get ready to wow the salwars off your friends and family.

Olio, Aglio & Peperoncino

Tue, 25 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000

For most people, the holy trinity means the Catholic theological doctrine of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. For those in the culinary world, it usually means carrots, celery and onion. But for me, it really is olio, aglio & peperoncino (oil, garlic and pepper). On busy weeknights, it is your best friend. Heat up some garlic and crushed red pepper flakes in a pool of extra virgin olive oil and you have the base for a flavorful, fast meal in minutes. Throw in cooked spaghetti, spinach, green beans, or broccolini. Or use it to dress up fish or chicken breasts before grilling. Remember to filter out the pieces of garlic and pepper, of course, otherwise it burns. Once you do that, the whole thing becomes a super versatile garlic and pepper infused oil.

Khichuri (Rice and Mung Bean pilaf)

Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 +0000

For Bengalis, rain does not mean good books, cozy blankets or hunter boots. Nor does snow signal hot chocolate, snowmen or shoveling. No, for Bengalis, any sort of precipitation means only one thing: khichuri. Growing up, I always noticed, though never understood why on any overcast, slightly cool day, the first thing my dad would request was khichuri. I’d think to myself, in the usual teenage overly dramatic Holden Caulfield voice: Khichuri is just rice and daal cooked together…WHAT is the big deal? So, like Peter in The Snowy Day (can you tell I’ve been reading a lot of big and little people classics?), I thought and thought and thought about it.

Spaghettini with Cherry Tomatoes

Wed, 09 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000

By now you all know that consistency is NOT my middle name. I offer, not as an excuse, but as a simple explanation for my long absence the fact that I am just about to pop this baby out (of course that means posts will become even more intermittent once I am a fully sleep deprived zombie/mother of two). I have been relying on a combo take-out, mom’s cooking and trader joe’s prepared meals to get by.

South Asian rice pudding (Kheer)

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Apologies for dragging him into yet another one of my posts, but I’ll do it anyway. One of the many things my dear husband and I bond over is our mutual disdain for South Asian sweets. It seems they’re all permutations of milk products or by products, overly sweetened and offering little by way of depth of flavor (think: golap jam, rosh golla, malai kari and so on). We have, however, a few exceptions: sweet doi (yogurt), rosh malai and my Rahima Aunty’s kheer.

Pastitsio

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

This will likely be the first post of many about an Ina Garten recipe. The woman is a genius. What I would give to be one of her gay hamptonites solely for the pleasure of her food. Um, I mean company. Her approach to food, cooking and entertaining has significantly influenced mine. From “turning up the volume on classics” to her emphasis on only using the best ingredients in her cooking - I adore the balance she’s struck between tradition and modernity. Reverence for what works and adaptability for what doesn’t has become a core part of my cooking.