Cottage Cheese, Cherry Tomato & Pasta Salad

                       
                             ''Change is the only constant'' - Heraclitus, Greek philosopher

How true! How things and people change over a period of time and keep changing. If I think of myself years ago and now, I can barely recognize myself! As a kid, I would most the of time be in my room, my nose buried in a book. Tinkle, Tintin, Enid Bylton, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, then came along Sidney Sheldon, Jeffery Archer, Mills and Boon... When we had guests over, my parents would have to call me out to say hello to them, and then I would promptly disappear back into the room in a flash. Now I have changed, I love company. And am obsessed with cook-books instead of novels. In school, I was the very serious student, pretty good at academics, lazy at sports. Teachers would ask us what we wanted to do when we grew up. Though I loved reading Biology and Chemistry, I hated the sight of blood and the smell of disinfectant, so I was not born to be a doctor. Math was not really my favorite subject, so not an engineer either. These two in those days were the highly recommended and aimed at professions. What I loved was languages. What I really wanted to be was a home-maker...and that was it. But it was hardly the thing you would win applause for from the teacher or class when you said that.

I got what was considered as pretty good percentage in my 10th exams. So taking up science as a subject in college was the thing to be done. But unambitious me opted for commerce. My father retired as a Professor in Chemistry, all of us siblings studied in the same college where he taught. My older sister was doing her Bachelors in Science, my younger sis knew from the time she was in Nursery (no kidding!) that she would be a doctor (she is a pathologist with a string of degrees and PGs now!) The Principal of the college (who also happened to be my mother's teacher in college) was not happy with my choice of academic & career route. I was called to his chamber, he wanted to know if I was really really sure that I did not want to be a doctor or an engineer. I mumbled my yes. You see, I was very unambitious. Now, I am extremely ambitious - I want to try to bake everything possible!

Though I won in a couple of elocution competitions, I was not one to just talk to people a lot, unless necessary. Now I talk nineteen to the dozen. Gosh, look at how I have been blabbering away endlessly of late here! All I meant to do was share some simple Cottage Cheese, Cherry Tomato and Pasta Salad with you...

Adapted from various recipes along similar lines.

Ingredients:
Cottage Cheese - 150 grams, about 3/4 cup when cubed
Cherry tomatoes - 12
Pasta, boiled al dente ( I have used fusilli) - 1 Cup
Walnuts, toasted and chopped - 2 tablespoons

For the dressing
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1 tablespoon
Lemon juice - 3/4 teaspoon
Garlic pods 6-8, roasted and grated to make 1 teaspoon paste
Mixed Italian seasoning - 1 teaspoon
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Fresh basil leaves, finely chopped - 1 teaspoon
Dried basil - a pinch(optional)
Chilli flakes - 1 teaspoon (optional)

Procedure : Make sure your pasta is boiled al dente, well drained and refreshed in cold water. Add a few drops of oil and toss to ensure that the pasta doesn't stick to each other. Cut the cottage cheese into fingers and grill lightly on a greased griddle. Remember not to overdo this or the cheese will become tough. Remove from the griddle, cool and cut into cubes. Wash and dry the cherry tomatoes.

Mix all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl. Add the pasta, grilled cottage cheese cubes, chopped walnuts and the cherry tomatoes. Toss to coat well with the dressing. Garnish with fresh basil and serve immediately.

Cottage Cheese, Cherry Tomato & Pasta Salad

''Change is the only constant'' - Heraclitus, Greek philosopher

How true! How things and people change over a period of time and keep changing. If I think of myself years ago and now, I can barely recognize myself! As a kid, I would most of time be in my room, my nose buried in a book. Tinkle, Tintin, Enid Bylton, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, then came along Sidney Sheldon, Jeffery Archer, Mills and Boon... When we had guests over, my parents would have to call me to say hello to them, and then I would promptly disappear back into the room in a flash. Now I have changed, I love company. Am am obsessed with cook-books instead of novels. In school, I was the very serious student, pretty good at academics, lazy at sports. Teachers would ask us what we wanted to do when we grew up. Though I loved reading Biology and Chemistry, I hated the sight of blood and the smell of disinfectant, so I was not born to be a doctor. Math was not really my favorite subject, so not an engineer either. These two in those days were the most highly recommended and aimed at professions. What I loved was languages. What I really wanted to be was a home-maker...and that was it. But it was hardly the thing you would win applause for from the teacher or class when you said that.

I got what was considered as pretty good percentage in my 10th exams. So taking up science as a subject in college was the thing to be done. But unambitious me opted for commerce. My father retired as a Professor in Chemistry, all of us siblings studied in the same college where he taught. My older sister was doing her Bachelors in Science, my younger sis knew from the time she was in Nursery (no kidding!) that she would be a doctor (she is a pathologist with a string of medical degrees now!) The Principal of the college (who also happened to be my mother's teacher in college) was not happy with my choice of academic & career route. I was called to his chamber, he wanted to know if I was really really sure that I did not want to be a doctor or an engineer. I mumbled my yes. You see, I was very unambitious. Now, I am extremely ambitious. In the sense, I want to try to bake everything possible:-).

Though I won a couple of prizes in elocution competitions, I was not one to just talk to people a lot, unless necessary. Now I talk nineteen to the dozen. Gosh, look at how I have been blabbering endlessly of late here! Let me stop here today and share some simple Cottage Cheese, Cherry Tomato and Pasta Salad with you.

Adapted from various recipes along similar lines.

Ingredients:

Cottage Cheese - 150 grams, about 3/4 cup when cubed
Cherry tomatoes - 12
Pasta, boiled al dente - 1 Cup
Walnuts, toasted and chopped - 2 tablespoons

For the dressing

Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1 tablespoon
Lemon juice - 3/4 teaspoon
Garlic pods 6-8, roasted and grated to make 1 teaspoon paste
Mixed Italian seasoning - 1 teaspoon
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Fresh basil leaves, finely chopped - 1 teaspoon
Dried basil - a pinch(optional)
Chilli flakes - 1 teaspoon (optional)

Procedure : Make sure your pasta is boiled al dente, well drained and refreshed in cold water. Add a few drops of oil and toss to ensure that the pasta doesn't stick to each other. Cut the cottage cheese into fingers and grill lightly on a greased griddle. Remember not to overdo this or the cheese will become tough. Remove from the griddle, cool and cut into cubes. Wash and dry the cherry tomatoes.

Mix all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl. Add the pasta, grilled cottage cheese cubes, chopped walnuts and the cherry tomatoes. Toss to coat well with the dressing. Garnish with fresh basil and serve immediately.


Talking about change, am having a tough tough time with the changes in blogger. Putting up this post has been a real struggle. I hope this gets sorted out very soon.

Putanipudi Kosambari

  Its amazing how smells are associated with memories, sometimes pleasant and sometimes unpleasant.  I am sitting under a fan whirring at full speed in the heat of North Karnataka when I smell Rasna and Kissan squashes. The smell of new books and chalk dust transport me to school, the smell of Johnson's baby powder brings back memories of my kids as babies. The smell of mangoes and jasmine remind me of festivals, specially Ramanavami.

During festivals and on auspicious occasions, its common tradition to invite married women for arishina-kunkuma or haldi-kumkum. Fruit, kosambari, kumkum, betel leaves and betel nuts, glass bangles, blouse pieces, coconut, flowers, coins are commonly given, the entire set of things called as a tambula or ele adike. A glass of cold panaka or juice is also offered along with a hand made fan. When refrigerators weren't yet a common household appliance, the panaka would be kept cold, with a wet cloth wrapped around the vessel of juice. The dripping wet cloth dries in no time in the heat, making it necessary to wet it all over again. Offering  panaka and the hand fan symbolize soothing people during the hot summer, thereby symbolizing a deed of punya.

Kosambari is a kind of salad usually made of soaked moong dal, or chana dal or sprouts, seasoned with green chillies, hing, salt, oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves and lemon juice garnished with the quintessential grated fresh coconut and chopped fresh coriander. Chopped cucumber or grated carrot are sometimes added. This salad is a very essential part of a traditional South Indian meal, makes a very tasty, nutritious and filling snack when eaten on its own. When offered as part of  tambula, its served on betel or badam  leaves or a donne (a kind of container made of dried leaves). Of course its now served most of the times in plastic containers for ease and convenience.

One kind of kosambari popular in North Karnataka is Putanipudi Kosambari. Roasted Bengal gram is called as putani in some parts of North Karnataka. Its also called as hurigadale. Pudi means powder. In this particular preparation, its coarsely powdered, mixed with fresh coconut, cucumber and seasoned. This again can be eaten by itself and also as an accompaniment  to hot rice and ghee.

Fruit Chaat

Doesn't this remind you of the spicy pineapple / cucumber / raw mango slices sold on the streets here? Slices of these slathered with the spicy green masala and given on a piece of plantain leaf accompanied by a piece of newspaper so thoughtfully given to help you wipe your sticky hands.  Few shopping expeditions are complete without having this snack I relish so much. And I ask for a extra spicy version, which which will have me scurrying towards the nearest juice center. 

Oh, I love to gorge on this fruit / veggie masala, chana-chur, chaat specially on Commercial Street. I love to eat jowar rotis served with spicy chutney and brinjal masala when I am in or around Gandhi Bazaar, of course, the masala dosa at Upahaar Darshni . Filter coffee at Pavithra, Jayanagar 4th Block, the yumm stuff at Coffee House now on Church Street, parathas and dal at Bobby's Dhaba, Ulsoor... the list goes on and on. Which is your favorite street food and your favorite small eatery? Tell me about it!

Aren't we often left with a pile of fresh fruit post festivals or functions at home or post the visit of that very generous guest who gifts a fruit basket with just enough fruit to see you through the next two weeks? So, the next time, an assortment of fruit rains on you, give the predictable custard or fruit cream a miss and try this wholesome, quick and spicy  Fruit Chaat. All it takes is just an assortment of fruit and some mint-coriander masala and you have a really healthy and quick chaat.

Chickpea & Black Eyed Bean Salad

A foodie on a diet!! Isn't that a tough, tough life??  Yeah, yeah,  I know I am exaggerating:-)) But it isn't easy either when you have food on your mind but not on your plate. Naw, am not starving, far from it - eating small meals and snacks all day. Healthy snacks of course. I am on the look out for the health bhi, taste bhi recipes, now more than ever. At the cost of repeating myself, like a lot of us, good, tasty food is very important to me  If I am on a diet, then it had better be low calorie tasty grub. Like this Chickpea and Black Eyed Bean Salad.

This Sanjeev Kapoor recipe was in my recipe diary since ages, but I had not made it as I was just plain lazy to take the trouble of cooking the beans separately. Its sometimes so strange that some ridiculously simple things like having 3 or 4 variety of beans at the same time in your pantry just takes ages to happen!!! Well, at last, I got the beans, soaked them and cooked them separately. Well,  it was 4 beans actually, but the third bean, the kidney beans, refused to cook well in spite of repeated attempts. I gave up!!! I forgot to get the green gram:-(. It became a Two Bean Salad instead of the original Four Bean Salad.

Again, there are no rules for making salads. Add or skip ingredients and vary the proportions of the same according to your taste and preference. A chilled salad is such a pleasure in summers, more so if its protein laden, low in fat, can be made ahead and stored. Indulge in this tongue tickling, chaat like preparation without any guilt whatsoever.

Pineapple, Corn and Roasted Bell Peppers Salad

 “To remember a successful salad is generally to remember a successful dinner; at all events, the perfect dinner necessarily includes the perfect salad.”.

Well, for me, the ubiquitous salad is no doubt an important part of a successful dinner, but also makes a great anytime snack. Specially, for those mid morning or late evening hunger pangs. Chilled make-ahead salads, particularly, make eating them more of a pleasure during summer. Toss the salad at leisure and have it when you are hungry and pressed for time. Aaah!! Isn't it great to just open your fridge and pull out the salad bowl and eat it in the midst of work?? If made with fresh veggies and a low fat dressing, you can eat this to your heart's content.One such quick, simple and colorful salad with the goodness of the veggies...

Chilled Penne Pasta and Sweet Corn Salad

All those years ago, my idea of eating out was a meal of North Indian or Chinese or Andhra food.  I was not  much of an experimental cook. My cooking was limited to regular sambar, rasam, idli, dosa, chapati, dal and the occasional sweets. And then suddenly we saw something called as a Salad Bar. A salad bar?? Visions of tomato, cucumber, lettuce, salt and pepper floated into my mind. I had almost instantly dismissed it as something very boring meant only for the very boring and health-conscious fitness freaks. Why on earth would someone want to pay and eat salads of all things??

Hubby being the more adventurous eater of us, insisted that we try out something at Namdhari's Salad Bar.  One of my earliest  memories of my visit to this place is eating this absolutely delicious Penne Pasta Salad. Creamy, chilled and yummy. I started to see the Salad Bar with more respect.  During our later visits, we  found that the place also serves some great sandwiches as well. The pasta salad went on my favorites list. Later on, I tried preparing a similar version and came out with this version.

This very easy- to- put- together-salad when served with Garlic Bread makes a perfect lunch on a hot summer afternoon.