Bengal Gram Hummus

Mine is a hummus eating family. Yes hummus…we like to it hummus with almost everything like raw vegetables, breads, chip or any crispy snack. I guess you have started thinking that it spikes our blood glucose level every single day. No, it doesn’t, because lentil hummus is low in calories. 

Making hummus at home means, it saves money, you can get any flavor of it, you can have it as much as you want, making it is very easy, your hummus would last in the fridge for longer time in comparison to store bought hummus. That is why hummus became the most essential house staple in my family.

Ingredients required:

½ cup of Bengal gram lentil (chana daal)
3 tomatoes

3 chopped and peeled garlic cloves

2 Dry red chilis

1.5 tsp dry roasted and ground black pepper

Curry leaves / Dhania leaves / Rosemary

Lemon juice

Oil for frying, garnishing

Method I followed:

Heat oil in a frying pan. Add lentil to the hot oil. Roast the lentil until you find brown spot on them. Remove the roasted lentil from the pan and set aside for cooling down.

Add little more oil to the pan. Add garlic and red chili to the oil and let them heat up.

Take another pan and place the tomato halves. Now dry roast them at high heat till the moment the skin of tomato chars and they become mushy. Remove the skin of the tomato carefully.

Add black pepper, curry leaves (or other option mentioned in the ingredient list) and salt to the warm tomato and leave it covered for 10 minutes.

Now take roasted lentil, tomato and lemon juice in a blender bowl and blend it for few minutes or until you get smooth hummus.

If you want to have it with rice, you can make it slightly grainy. Else you can serve it with any crackers, breads, sandwiches. 

Mint flavored Mango Mimosa

Today I will leave you with a refreshing and divine summer drink – Minty Mango Mimosa. 

We are hurtling towards the hottest month of the year. Searing heat is out there right from the early hours of the day. As temperatures sour, it leaves us stressed throughout the day. We all feel like to cool off with refreshing summer drinks at the end of the day. 

A tall glass of mango juice would be wonderful on the lazy evening. You don’t need to step outdoor if you whip up this easy mango Mimosa. 

Required ingredients:

1.5 cup of mango pulp (Remove all solid and fiber from 2 chilled mangoes)
1 cup of chilled water
1 cup of Sprite (I made non-alcoholic version of mimosa. If you wish to have alcoholic mimosa, you can use champagne of same quantity.)
1 tbsp of fresh lime juice
Mint leaves for muddling and garnishing
Ice cubes 

Method I followed: 

1. Muddle mint leaves and lime juice until the leaves get bruised.
2. Take mango pulp in a bowl and add chilled water. Keep stiring in them for 2-3 minutes. Then add bruised mint leaves. Now keep the bowl in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. 
3. Now take the bowl out of the refrigerator and combine Sprite.
4. Divide the mango mixture in serving glasses. 
5. Put some ice cubes and mint leaves on top of each glasses while serving.

Just look at the glasses full of mango nectar, I’m sure you are feeling like grabbing a glass right from the screen. :-)

Eggplant in Yoghurt (Doi Begun)

Eggplant in sweet gravy of white curd (Bengalis call it Doi Begun) is a lesser known dish cooked using minimal spices. As yoghurt gives the cooling effect, people prefer to have it in the summer. Many people in Bengal make it with a sweet gravy, but mine is light yet tangy.

Doi Begun is very easy to cook. The freshness of the ingredients would take you breath away. You can serve it with hot rice or chapatis. If you wish you can serve it chilled. For that you need to keep the Doi Begun in Refrigerator for 30 minutes. 

Required ingredients:

4 eggplants
200 gram of white curd
1 medium size onion sliced
1 tsp of turmeric powder
2 tsp of cumin seed
2 tsp of salt
1.5 tsp of each powder (coriander powder, chilli powder, garam masala)
Water for making gravy
Oil for cooking

Method followed:

1. Cut each eggplant into two equal size pieces. Spread turmeric powder and salt over those pieces and rub them well. Keep them aside for few minutes. 
2. Heat oil in a deep-bottom frying pan and fry those eggplant pieces properly and set aside. 
3. Now fry sliced onion in the same oil until it gets the color like golden brown. Once done, keep them aside. 
4. Set another pan on the oven and roast cumin seeds. Allow it to cool and them grind it into smooth powder.
5. Take yoghurt in a bowl and add roasted cumin powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder and salt to yoghurt and beat finely. Add little water if you want to make it little thinner. Keep it aside for few minutes. 
6. Heat the pan and pour half of the diluted yoghurt. Once it starts boiling, add fried eggplants. Then pour rest of the yoghurt on the top. Turn off the heat. Spread a pinch of  garam masala on the top. 
7. If you want to serve it chilled, keep it in refrigerator for 30 minutes. 

For other eggplant recipes click here