The Great Shallow-fried Vine Leaf Rissole
Fresh vine leaves are a rarity, unless you have an arbor in your yard. Most likely you will purchase them preserved in water, salt and citric acid, in 6-8 ounce (170-230 g) jars or plastic pouches. They are available at most gourmet stores or Greek groceries. The leaves are balanced, drained, finely shredded and folded into a seasoned, herbed batter. The mixture is then poured into an 8 or 9-inch (20-22.5 cm) sauté pan...
Crispy Puffed Rice Snack with Fried Cashews and Green Peas
In Indian bazaars, it is a familiar sight to see men puffing rice. A sand-filled karai is placed over glowing coals, and when the coarse sand is hot, rice is added. Using a long paddle, the sand is patiently stirred, until one by one, the rice grains pop into long pointed puffs. With nothing more than straining it through a fine sieve, hot puffed rice, called moori, is ready to be sold in recycled newspaper bags. Like everything in...
Mint-Lime Butter
I feel that a splash of lime or lemon juice livens up almost any food, and for those who are cutting down on salt it is a flavor booster and natural salt substitute. The limes in India are most like our key limes: yellowish-skinned, very juicy and sour. The dark green-skinned limes from Florida are quite acid by comparison. If you wish to control flavors, use lemon or lime juice for Sourness, the zest for concentrated taste, and fresh...
Clove-Sesame Ghee
This is a delicately flavored ghee that I have found excellent for sautéed green vegetable dishes –broccoli, asparagus, green beans and spinach. Prepare the ghee by either stove-top or oven method, with the following additions for every 3 pounds (1.5 kg) of butter: Ingtredients • 25 whole cloves • 2 table spoons (30 ml) whole sesame seeds • ¼ whole nutmeg Preparation Wrap the seasonings in a small piece of cheesecloth and add to the...
Yogurt Cheese
Unlike some cultured milk products in this chapter, yogurt cheese is not yet sold commercially in America. I think it could become as popular as Neufchatel or cream cheese. It is a revelation in light cheese, with an intriguing flavor. If you like yogurt, you will love dehin. It is nothing more than whole milk yogurt, or even low-fat yogurt, drained of whey and thickened until solid. It requires little more than a colander in the way...