Paneer Jalfrezi

While I have not officially stated this, it must be pretty apparent that this is a vegetarian food blog. Having been born and raised a vegetarian, this is very much a part of my identity, albeit one that I rarely think about anymore. This is partly because I instinctively make food choices that fit my vegetarian lifestyle while satisfying my nutritional (and hedonic) needs. But this is also partly because I'm blessed to live in a part of the world where vegetarianism, while not the norm, is certainly a prevalent part of the culture. Viva Pacific Northwest! If anything is confusing to people around here, it's the difference between being a vegetarian and a vegan. In fact, just the other day, I was ordering food at the Thai cart on Marquam Hill in Portland, Oregon, when a guy in line behind me, overhearing my questions to the cart lady about vegetarian options, asked me this very question about how a vegetarian is different from a vegan. I explained to him that a vegetarian does not consume animals, while a vegan would also not consume substances derived from animals such as milk or eggs. He then proceeded to inform me that he himself was vegan!!!! So, why exactly did he not know the difference between vegetarianism and veganism? Was he testing me? I'm still so confused!

Anyhow, this whole exchange got me thinking a bit more about the nature of my vegetarianism. While I don't eat meat or anything cooked with meat-containing sauces and pastes, there are certain products that I know to contain animal ingredients that I eat anyway – I suspect that this is true for a vast majority of vegetarians, either due to ignorance and/or ambivalence on the topic. For instance, I do consume vitamin pills, medications, and supplements, many of which contain gelatin, which is derived from cow bones. I also consume, and enjoy, a vast variety of cheeses. I know what you're thinking – cheese is made of milk, which is not off-limits for vegetarians. Yes, but cheese making also usually involves the use of rennet, an enzyme that turns said milk into various forms of gooey, sharp, tangy, delicious cheese products. And this rennet is often derived from bovine stomachs, usually from young calves! In fact, apparently the first cheese ever made was apparently due to the accidental curdling of milk stored in bags made of goats' stomachs and the subsequent discovery of the deliciousness (and longer shelf-life) of this curdled milk.

These days, however, there are many different "vegetarian" rennets available on the market, partially due to the need to offer a product suitable for vegetarians, but mostly because of the lower cost of non-animal rennets. In fact, the majority of industrially produced cheese in the United States uses microbial rennet in cheese-making. European cheeses, sadly, are still largely produced using animal rennets. I wonder if this is due to an unwillingness to depart from tradition, or if the use of specific rennets actually affects the taste of the cheese. (Cheese experts, please weigh in.) In addition to microbial rennets, there are many different substances that have been used around the world to coagulate milk. The most notable among these is the use of an acid such as citric acid from lemons or acetic acid in vinegar to split milk. Cream cheese is made using this acid coagulation method, as is the popular Indian cheese paneer. Considering that a large part of the world's vegetarian population is concentrated in India, it is indeed fortunate that we have a method to produce a delectable cottage cheese without using rennet.

In the past, I've posted my favorite method of making paneer at home. Alternatively, should you be lucky enough to have an Indian grocery store nearby, paneer is readily available in the refrigerated or frozen sections of these stores. While you're there, I would also recommend that you take a look at the vast array of spices and pastes that are available, as many of these are not easily found at other stores or are much less expensive in South Asian stores.

Paneer is extremely versatile, and while it looks somewhat like tofu, thanks to its higher fat content, it lends itself well to flavoring and has a much fuller mouth-feel than tofu. (While I do love tofu, seemingly no spice or marinade ever penetrates its dense structure to flavor it from the inside out, which makes it a poor choice for Indian cooking, with a few exceptions.) A common paneer dish in Indian restaurants is something called Paneer Jalfrezi. This is usually a spicy, dry curry cooked with large chunks of vegetables, tomatoes, paneer, and spices like cumin, coriander, and chilis. Often, in restaurants, cream is added the dish to temper the spiciness of the curry. I like to make a home-style version of this curry to spice up a weeknight meal, as it's very flavorful, a departure from the ordinary, and can be cooked in a single pan in under 30 minutes! I generally just throw together any vegetables that I have on hand, but I particularly like mushrooms and zucchini if I have them. Other options that have worked well are red, yellow, orange and green bell peppers, creamy white heads of cauliflower, and nutty halves of Brussels sprouts. I also omit the cream, as this flavorful curry really doesn't need it. I have used tofu in place of paneer, and while this is not nearly as flavorful, it is arguably a lot healthier.

My recipe for Paneer Jalfrezi follows below, but this is really a dish that has tons of room for creativity and is very forgiving of deviations from the recipe. It goes very well with basmati rice or with rotis, a type of unleavened Indian flat bread.

Paneer Jalfrezi

Vegetables -- Variable, but try the following for a start:

2 Zucchini or summer squash, cut into 2 inch by 1 inch pieces

1 Bell pepper of any color, cut into large chunks

½ Cauliflower, cut into medium to large florets

10 large button mushrooms, quartered

1 red onion, cut into large chunks; do not omit

3 large tomatoes, cut into large chunks; do not omit

8-10 oz. firm paneer, cut into 2 inch cubes

For the curry:

4 cloves of garlic ground with 2 inches of ginger root and 3 green chilis

2 dried red chiils (optional)

1 t turmeric powder (optional)

1 T ground cumin, or more to taste

1 T ground coriander, or more to taste

1 T cumin seeds

Salt, to taste

Garnish:

2 T lemon juice, 3 T chopped coriander leaves

To make:

Add 1T canola (or vegetable) oil to a sauté pan. Once heated, add paneer pieces and sauté till light brown on all sides. Keep aside.

In the same pan, heat 2T oil and add cumin seeds and turmeric to oil.

When cumin starts to splutter, toss in onions and allow to brown.

Add the ground cumin and coriander, as well as the dried red chilis.

Add the ginger/garlic/chili paste and allow this to cook for a few minutes.

Now add the cauliflower, zucchini, peppers, and mushrooms, pausing a few minutes after each addition to allow veggies to cook slightly. Do not overcook. Unlike most Indian curries, the veggies in this dish taste best if they're still slightly crunchy at the end.

Finally, add the tomatoes and salt and allow the tomatoes to wilt slightly. Don't overcook to the point where tomatoes become soggy.

Toss in the browned paneer, being careful not to break the paneer cubes too much as you stir your curry.

Cook slightly longer so the paneer can absorb the flavors of the pot.

Taste the curry and add more spices or salt as desired.

Garnish with a squeeze of lemon juice and chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot (in a copper pot).

Sweet Valentine

What is the most romantic day of the year? An anniversary? A loved one's birthday? February 14^th? If you think the latter, then of course, you are not alone in celebrating this day of love and affection that has taken a strong hold in many countries around the world. Sure, it involves spending horrendous sums of money on mediocre roses; weeks of scouring for the perfect gift; dinner reservations made months in advance -- followed by a dinner had in a supposed aura of romance, but really just in close proximity to dozens of other couples crammed into a dimly-lit restaurant. But, still, it does give you something to look forward to mid-winter, when Christmas festivities are all said and done, and spring is tantalizingly close but not quite here yet.

My first exposure to this Hallmark holiday was when I was 12 years old, after my family had moved from Bombay, India to Kobe, Japan. In the 80's, Valentine's day was still pretty much unheard of in Bombay (and consequently, in all of India), so I was blissfully unaware of the social customs, expectations, and nuances surrounding this day in February. While in the United States, it seems appropriate to given any manner of gift, especially flowers and perfume, on Valentine's day, in Japan, milk or dark chocolate (not white chocolate, we'll get to that in a minute) is pretty much the only gift given. On February 14^th, women are expected to give chocolate gifts to their male acquaintances, including all colleagues! Since this is an obligatory gift, it is sometimes referred to as "girichoco" or "chocolate obligation". (I never quite understood how this custom evolved, but doubtless, Meiji had something to do with it. And speaking of commercializing Hallmark holidays, Japan does it better than just about any one else. Check out this link to see what I mean.) One such V-day, my dad received a chocolate heart from two of his colleagues, who told him that they were giving it to him jointly, as a Valentine's day gift. To this, my dad's response was: "So, it's a half-hearted gift?" Unfortunately, the joke was lost in translation, but that doesn't prevent him from repeating it to us every time the topic of Valentine's day comes up.

Anyhow, getting back to V-day in Japan, on February 14, only men receive chocolates from women. This is then followed, a month later, by White day, when these men have to reciprocate the favor by offering gifts of white chocolate to the women who bought them dark chocolate on V-day. And keeping in line with the commercial nature of these celebrations, this return gift is expected to be three times as expensive as the original gift received! My thoughts on this whole exchange are best kept to myself, lest I convey the impression that I do not enjoy receiving exquisite gifts on Valentine's day or any other day, for that matter.

Anyhow, I think that's quite enough of rambling about Valentine's day. Now onto two recipes that I tried out on my friends recently during the spectacular Packers Superbowl win over the…the other team. The first was some delicate and beautiful chocolate crackle cookies, courtesy of Martha Stewart. The second is a red velvet cupcake with a white-chocolate rose frosting.

These pretty, fluffy sweet treats were just the thing to temper this otherwise nachos and dip-heavy testosterone-laden Superbowl party.

The chocolate crackle cookies were something that I've wanted to try for a long time, since they look oh so pretty. I followed this recipe to a 'T', and the cookies were just perfect. The reward for the slightly greater amount of work that these cookies demand was more than worth it. I think I will try adapting these to make ginger molasses cookies soon to use up a jar of molasses sitting in my fridge since Christmas!

If you wanted to make Red Velvet cake from scratch, I'm sure you can find tons of recipes online. I recently saw this, on the essentials of making a Red Velvet cake from scratch, but busy girl that I am, I decided to just use a cake mix. Using the instructions on the back on the package to make mini and regular cupcake yielded a delicious, moist, hard-to-resist end product. I decided to frost these with a little bit of white chocolate ganache (recipe follows), to which I added a touch of rose water, in keeping with the romance of the upcoming V-day.

So, this Valentine's day, if you find that Cupid has aimed his sugar-tipped arrow at you, I hope that you will try one of these recipes and then drop me a note! Bon appétit!

White Chocolate Rose Ganache Frosting

• 8 ounces white chocolate chips
  
• 1 cup heavy cream
  

1. Heat cream in a heavy-bottomed saucepan until you start to see tiny bubbles around the edges of the liquid; this is called scalding the cream.
   
2. Pour hot cream onto chocolate.
   
3. Mix to melt chocolate and refrigerate until chilled through, about 3 hours or more.
   
4. Remove from refrigerator and add 3T rose water (optional).
   
5. Using an electric mixer, beat on high speed until thick and creamy.
   
6. Use immediately, or keep refrigerated upto 2 days.
   

Quattro Stagioni

As we round the corner on spring, I'm certainly in high spirits about the spectacular color show that is undoubtedly ahead of us. Don't you just love the changing of the seasons? There's something to look forward to at every turn -- veggies and perennials to plant in spring, beach trips and blooming roses in the summer, Thanksgiving gatherings with dear friends in the fall, and mugs of mulled cider in front of the fireplace in winter. As I was pondering the changing of the seasons, I decided to make a Pizza Quattro stagioni for dinner. Roughly translated from the Italian, this just means Four Seasons Pizza. I did have one of these in Florence during a recent trip to Italy, and it was molto delicioso. From what I understand, it is simply a pizza with four quadrants, representing the four seasons. It makes for a very nice meal due to the variety in the toppings.

I'm not sure if each of the "seasons" is supposed to contain a particular ingredient, but I'm guessing that this is not the case, since I've seen many, many variations on this pizza. I simply used whatever was available in my fridge – zucchini, shiitake mushrooms, mixed olives, and red bell peppers -- to throw together this easy weeknight dinner. I guess this post is really more to inspire rather than to serve as a strict recipe. So, pump up the Vivaldi, pour yourself a glass of chianti, and get creative. Buon appetito!

Guide for Pizza Quattro Stagioni

Pizza base (make your own or buy them premade. I use a whole wheat Pita from the refrigerated section at New Seasons Market, and these serve as the perfect base for individual pies)

Sauce (I used Prego Garden Vegetable; I've used a homemade pesto before, and this is also delicious)

Toppings: I used sliced red bell peppers; kalamata and green olives; shiitake mushrooms; and thinly sliced zucchini. But of course, the possibilities are endless. I topped all pizzas with fresh basil, which added a very nice flavor. Rosemary or oregano would also be great as a spice.

Cheese: Since I was using fresh basil, I opted for the classic pairing of basil with fresh mozzarella, but any cheese that melts would work well. If I had some feta in the fridge, I would certainly have used this as well.

To prepare: Sauce your pizza base, top with "toppings", sprinkle cheese and spices on top, and bake in a 350 deg F oven till bases are browned, toppings are tender, and cheese is melted (about 15 minutes for my pizzas).

Great for a weekday dinner!

Sunny Saffron

Winter has been unusually mild here in Portland. Yes, we have had our fair share of rain and gloom, but at the end of January, I'm already hearing birds chirping and seeing buds blooming in the garden. Just this past week, I have been stopped in my tracks by the appearance of our very first crocus, awakening sleepily from its winter's rest.


So I thought it fitting that this first recipe of the New Year have something to do with saffron. Saffron, of course, is the highly aromatic spice that is derived from the stigmas of the Saffron crocus (Crocus sativa). Wikipedia has an excellent entry about Saffron, with the sections on the history of its trade and its chemical properties being particularly interesting. Therefore, instead of boring you with a regurgitation of the facts, I will simply direct you to : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saffron

Since saffron is the world's most expensive spice, worth much more than its weight in gold, it's a good thing that a little bit of it goes a long way. Spanish saffron is often considered to be some of the world's best. However, saffron cultivars grown in the Kashmir region of India, as well as Italian varieties that I have admittedly never tasted, are apparently a lot more potent and sought after for their strong aromas. Saffron can be purchased in specialty grocery stores or Indian grocery stores. Once you get over the sticker shock and actually bring some home, I guarantee that you will be rewarded with a flavor and aroma that will sweetly scent your home and mesmerize your senses.

Now that I've rambled on about how expensive this sweet spice is, I will make you all jealous by telling you that one of my friends recently gave me a whole load of top-quality saffron from her spice cabinet. (This was after I had already cooked my way through a large gift of Spanish saffron from another friend.) What can I say – I guess I'm fortunate to have friends worth way more that their weights in gold!

So, armed with this new reserve of the precious dark maroon filaments, I set out to create a saffron cookie to share with my colleagues at a work meeting this week. I'm glad to say that they turned out just as I had hoped: slightly soft, a pleasant yellow in color, and bursting with saffron flavor. Many of my colleagues had never (knowingly) eaten anything cooked with saffron before, and the cookies were a big hit. I would definitely make these again, especially if having friends over for tea or a fancy brunch. While these cookies are delicious, they are also extremely satisfying, thanks to the incomparable flavor of the saffron. If, like me, you have a bit of a sweet tooth, this satiating quality is definitely desirable in a cookie.

So, without further ado, here's my recipe for Saffron Cashew Cookies. Do leave a comment if you decide to give these a try; I'd love to hear how they turned out for you. Bon appétit!

Saffron Cashew Cookies

To make about 18 cookies, you will need:

1 stick (1/2 C) unsalted butter, slightly softened

1 egg

2 scant cups of unbleached all-purpose flour

¾ C granulated sugar

¼ C packed brown sugar

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1 tsp baking soda

A pinch of salt

3 pods of cardamom*

A (generous) pinch of saffron, crushed and steeped in 3 T of warm milk for a few minutes**

1 C (or more of roasted cashew halves or pieces)

* A note about cardamom: this is another spice highly favored in Indian cuisine and makes a wonderful accompaniment to saffron. I think it helps to really enhance the flavor of saffron, and if you can plan ahead, I highly recommend that you not omit this from the recipe. You can purchase ground cardamom and use 1 tsp in this recipe, but the best flavor will be obtained from actually buying green cardamom pods, and using a mortar and pestle to pound these into a fine powder. After you pound the pods a few times, they should open up. At this point, remove the skins, and continue to powder just the black inner seeds. This sounds like a lot of work, but it really isn't, and the reward will be more than worth the effort!

Beat the sugars and butter together until creamy.

Add the egg and vanilla, along with the 'saffronated' (saffronized?) milk; beat to mix well

Combine the flour, salt, baking soda, and powdered cardamom in a separate bowl

Add flour mixture to egg/butter mixture and mix gently with a rubber spatula until well combined

(**Check to make sure your dough is a pleasant yellow color. If it isn't, you may not have added enough saffron. You can steep a little more in no more than 1 T warm milk at this time, and add it to your cookie dough, if you want).

Add cashews, reserving about 18 for garnish, and mix well to combine

Refrigerate the cookie dough for about an hour

Preheat oven to 350 deg F

Place the dough in mounded tablespoon-fulls on a greased cookie sheet

Flatten slightly with the tines of a fork

Press a cashew half on top as a garnish, if desired

Bake for 12-14 minutes till cookies are an even brown on the bottom

Resist the temptation to pounce on these as soon as they come out of the oven! They will be a lot better (and safer) once they cool slightly.

These cookies store well at room temperature in an air-tight container for upto 5 days. They are great on their own or paired with a hot cuppa chai.

Cutesy Citrus

Check out these cute little clementines called Calamondins that I found at New Season's Market this week. They are the smallest ones in the pictures below. I also found some Kishu clementines that were oh so sweet, and super cute, as well. Go get some if you are in Portland!



Bottom left image, from L to R: Calamondins, Kishu Clementines, and a good ol' Mandarin orange

Happy New Year!

As a rule, I try not to make New Year's Resolutions (NYRs). Partly because they involve much too much introspection that can put a damper on all the year-end festivities…but also because of the guilt that follows when well-meaning resolutions are inevitably broken. However, try as I may to avoid resolving to do anything in particular in the upcoming year, holiday parties are ripe with people who use the NYRs topic as fillers for more meaningful conversations. I found myself in one such conversation way back in December, where I blurted out something about being more regular with my blog posts – I guess this had been weighing on my mind for a while. But now having mentioned this to a group of people, I feel that my mission is doomed, since, NYRs are inevitably broken. (I know I already mentioned that, but I think it's worth repeating.)

Anyhow, I have now been racked with guilt for 20 days for not having followed through on my "resolution", thanks to endless deadlines at work and grey, gloomy Portland days keeping me out of the kitchen and firmly planted on my red couch. But yesterday, on a rare crisp, sunny January day here, I saw my tulips starting to peek out of the soaking wet soil in my backyard. Then, on my way to work, I heard sparrows chirping a little tune. Could it be that spring really is around the corner? Are we really not that far away from birds and butterflies; hood berries and hummingbirds; flowers and warmth; (and yes, allergies)? Inexplicably, these little reminders of winter's impending departure have inspired me to follow through on my impromptu 'NYR'. I rushed to my computer eager to start posting up a storm, but sadly, I realize that I don't have any recent culinary creations to share with you. (Did I mention I've been marinating on the couch during my free time this month?) But anyhow, in the spirit of starting off on the right foot in this New Year, I want to sign off on this first post with some pictures of a few treats that sprang from my oven during the holiday season. I know, I know, Christmas has come and gone, and I have been lazy, but I promise that this weekend, I will drag myself to the kitchen and get the creative juices flowing again.

In the meantime, enjoy the pictures. And speaking of resolutions, dear reader, perhaps yours should be to leave me a comment on Clean Platter from time to time?

Spiced Pears

I love this time of the year. Store windows are starting to decorate for the holidays, lights are strung up in trees and homes, party invites are sent and received by the dozen, and daylight savings time comes to an end, extending at least one weekend of merry making by an hour. Another lovely thing about this time of the year is that pears are in season. I simply love pears – all kinds of them. Although my favorites still are the crunchy, juicy Asian Pears, Oregon seems to have several varieties that are new to me and just as delicious.

While I’ve been enjoying pears for a long time, I’ve never actually cooked them. So this year, I thought I’d make my first cooked pear dessert and taste-test it on friends who were over for dinner. I had half a bottle of port wine staring at me from my pantry, and I found these cute little pears called Seckel pears at the local market. So, with these two main ingredients in hand, I got cooking. I thoroughly washed the pears and arranged them in a baking dish, with a little bit cut off the bottoms to make them stand upright. I then doused them in about a cup of port wine (for 8 pears); sprinkled some sugar on them till they looked like they'd received just a dusting of snow; added some cloves, cinnamon, and star anise to the baking pan; and set them into a 425 degree oven for 45 minutes. Every 20 minutes or so, I spooned the wine mixture back onto the pears and gave them another sprinkling of sugar. For good measure, I added some fresh cranberries to the pan, and man, am I glad I did. As the sugar and wine cooked down, it turned the tart cranberries into a gooey sweet-tart compote, which was my favorite part of the whole dessert.

As you can see, this dessert was super easy to make and was very pretty to look at. I served it with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream, and it received good reviews from the dinner crowd. So, if you’d like a really easy and pretty dessert tonight, give these Spiced Pears a try; the heady smell of the spices and sugar as the pears are baking is guaranteed to put you in the holiday mood, even if it is only the beginning of November.