A Real Crunch Muncher!

If you have ever read "The Namesake" or watched the movie, then you will remember this scene I am about to narrate to you. Ashima Ganguli newly married leaves her hometown in Calcutta, India to settle with her husband, Ashoke in Cambridge, MA. Ashoke is an engineering student at MIT and lives in an apartment on or near campus. Ashima wakes up in the morning and looks around their little kitchen to figure out what to eat for breakfast. Oh, I forgot to mention she's pregnant. I guess pregnant women have all sorts of cravings, something spicy, sweet or salt. All Ashima could find is a box of Corn Flakes in the cupboard. So she takes out a bowl, pours the corn flakes into it and just looks at it; it's so plain. The next scene that I remember from the movie was that she chops up onions and adds them to the cereal and tosses it with masala and salt. Note to self: every Indian household has masala for cooking...it's a necessity.

Anyways, after mixing everything together, she sits down by the table and eats her spicy corn flakes mixture for breakfast with pleasure. Now I have explained this particular scene to you because that was one of the scenes that reminds me of foods I grew up with and how I could relate to the movie. My mom made a similar Corn Flakes Mixture this weekend and I just couldn't help but think of the scene from "The Namesake".  And you know what, the procedure for this snack is so simple and so easy and it takes like 10 minutes. So grab some corn flakes and get cracking!!!

I'm sure you are so excited about this snack that you are dying to know what's in it, right? Well, I'm gonna tell you and then you have to tell me how it turns out. You will never look at Corn Flakes the same way again.

Ingredients:

- 7oz box of Corn Flakes cereal
- Handful of Peanuts / cashews
- Handful of Roasted channa dal
- ½ tsp of Red Chilli powder
- 1 tsp of Coriander powder (dhania),  (optional)
- 1 tsp of Salt (as per your taste)
- ½ tsp of Citric Acid powder, (optional)
- 1 tsp of Confectioner's sugar
- 3 to 4 tbsp of Vegetable oil

Procedure:
1) Heat oil in a small saucepan on medium heat and fry the peanuts/cashews until golden brown.

2) Remove from heat and add coriander powder, salt and citric acid and mix well.

3) Empty the cornflakes into a microwavable contrainer and add the roasted channa dal. Then transfer the  seasoning into it and mix well.

4) Reduce the power level on the microwave oven to 70% power and microwave for just two minutes. (Please note that heating time could vary on the power of the oven).

5) Remove from the oven and sprinkle the confectioner's sugar over using a metal sieve and mix well. When it cools down, store it in a tight container to keep it from going stale.

****If you guys haven't heard of The Namesake, you can read more about it at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Namesake

Your Opinion Counts!

To All Our Readers,

We want to open up the floor to give you a chance to suggest some recipes you would like us to make. For example, an authentic dish that you wish was a bit easier. We want to hear from you, the fans. Let us know how you like the blog so far and what you would like to see in the future.

So far we have posted recipes from different parts of India and will continue to do so. We believe everyone should try different cuisines, experiment and create something new. We have included some restaurant reviews for veggie lovers out there.

Hope to hear from you soon...

Are You Feelin' The Mango Madness?

My sister felt it last weekend! She wanted to make something different and fun for her friend's dinner party. So of course, she's talking about Mango pie. Mango Pie is not just easy but yummy. One thing to remember, it will come out firm and tasty if the recipe is followed properly. As usual, she called my mom to find out about the ingredients and recipe for the pie. This recipe is well known within our community and loved by all.
We usually make this cheesecake for our family get togethers because it doesn't require a lot of unusual ingredients, most of the ingredients except for the mango pulp are already at home. Our original recipe is for making 4 pies and the ingredients and measurements are listed below:

- 1 can (30 oz) of Mango pulp
- 8 oz Cream cheese
- 16 oz Sour cream
- 2 cups Sugar
- 3 cups Hot water
- 3 packets of Unflavored gelatine
- 4 (9 inches) Graham cracker crusts

My sister said she only wanted to make one pie, so below are the measurements for that quantity: 
- 1/4 can (30oz) of Mango pulp
- 2 oz Cream cheese*
- 4 oz Sour cream*
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 3/4 cup Hot water
- 3/4 packet of Unflavored gelatin
- 1 (9 inches) Graham cracker crust

Procedure:
Boil 3/4 cup of cold water and add sugar and gelatin until both are well dissolved. Next, blend everything (including mango pulp, cream cheese, sour cream and sugar, and gelatin mixture) and pour it on the pie crust. Chill in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours (depending on refrigerator settings).

My sister's update: Everyone loved the pie. The only downside was that a couple of the pieces crumbled as she took them out of the aluminum pie tray. 

***Quick Tip: 
- Most recipes are made for some number of servings. Be mindful when adjusting the measurements for making fewer servings. Leave ample time for setting and taste testing. Also, plan for another item just in case, your original item doesn't turn out well.
- If using low fat or fat-free sour cream or cream cheese, please use 1 packet of the unflavored gelatin to make sure the pie sets properly. 
- If you decide to make only one pie, you can use the rest of the mango pulp for making mango lassi (yogurt smoothie) or mango mousse. 

Upcoming Recipes

Let's start the summer off with some recipes that are made with fresh vegetables and herbs to keep ourselves feeling healthy and light. We have come up with some refreshing drinks to help you keep cool as well. 

"Green" Entrees

Garden Poha (flattened rice)

Drinks

Roohafza Milkshake

Desserts

Mango Cheesecake