The State of Maharashtra in India with its capital city Mumbai faces the Arabian sea and is famous for seafood dishes. Coconut is an essential ingredient in Maharashtrian cooking. The food is mostly cooked in peanut oil and most of the curries are spicy and tart from chilies and tamarind. The thing that makes Maharashtrian food different from food cooked in other states is the use of dry roasted and ground nuts, like peanuts and cashews and sesame seeds. This is fresh chutney that can be served with dinner as a condiment.

2 Cups Green Mango peeled seeded and chopped. This is a tart variety of mango available in Indian and Thai groceries in spring and summer. If unavailable, you can substitute with any hard mango from grocery stores.

4 Cloves Garlic peeled

5 or 6 Hot Green Chilies

10 or12 Curry leaves available dried or fresh in Asian or Indian grocery stores.

1 Cup Chopped Coriander Leaves

1 Cup Fresh grated Coconut or unsweetened, dried and powdered coconut.

½ Cup Tamarind extract. This can be obtained by soaking a golf ball sized lump of tamarind pulp in half a cup of hot water for about half an hour and straining it out. Tamarind pulp is available at Thai or Indian groceries.

1 Tbs. White sesame seeds

½ Cup Raw, skinned and unsalted peanuts

2 Dried hot chilies

1 Tsp. Whole Cumin seeds

1 Tsp. Salt

1 Tbs. Sugar

In a dry pan first roast the peanuts, sesame seeds, cumin and chilies on medium heat and powder them in a dry grinder. In a food processor put the mangoes, garlic, chilies, curry leaves, coriander leaves, coconut, tamarind extract, salt, sugar and the roasted mixture and process until fine. Serve with dinner as a condiment.

I learned this recipe during one of my visits to Pune, Maharashtra.

1 Cup Dried Garbanzo beans soaked overnight in warm water and drained.

1 Cup Carrots sliced thin

1 Cup Tomatoes chopped

1 Cup Red Onions thinly sliced

3 or 4 Hot green chilies sliced thin

1 Cucumber sliced thin

1 Cup Diakon or White radish thinly sliced

1 Cup Cilantro chopped

½ Cup Mint leaves chopped fine

1 Lime juiced

1 Cup Green onions chopped

1 tsp. Salt

1 Tbs. Sugar

1 Tsp. Ground Cumin

1 Fresh coconut cut into thin strips

Toss and mix all the ingredients except the coconut together in a bowl just before you serve dinner. Serve individually in small plates or bowls with dinner and add some pieces of coconut on top of the salad as a garnish.

4 Cups Overcooked Rice (Cooked until it is soggy)

1 Cup Plain Yogurt

1 Tsp. Mustard Seed

2 Cayenne Peppers, dried (or 1 Tsp. Crushed red pepper)

1 Tsp. Black Gram Lentils (available in Indian and Thai grocery stores, goes by the name of Urad Daal)

1 Jalapeno, chopped fine

10-12 Curry leaves, fresh or dried

1 Tbs. Cooking Oil

1 Tsp. Salt (or to taste)

Beat the Rice with a spoon, and set it aside. Whip the yogurt with salt, and set it aside. Heat the oil; add the mustard seed, lentils, and cayenne peppers. When these start to change color and splatter, add the curry leaves and the green chilies. Fry for one minute and then take it off the heat and mix in the yogurt. Mix in the rice and then let it sit for about one hour before serving.

This is a tasty rice dish from south India. It goes very well with spicy hot and dry curries and meat preparations. This dish will also help cool you off on bone melting hot days. Curry Leaves are available fresh or dry at Asian and Indian grocery stores.

Greek desserts are typically very sweet with a lot of fat content. One of the most popular one is Baklava, a dessert made with phyllo pastry, nuts and sweets. Another variation of the Baklava is Sourota, which is a Baklava Roll. When I was in a Loreto School in Calcutta India, one of my classmates was called Athena and was originally from Greece. Her grandmother used to come from Greece every summer to visit her. I took a few notes while watching her make this dessert and I have worked on refining this recipe ever since. This is the sweet result.

Ingredients:

2 Cups Shelled unsalted Pecans

2 Cups Shelled unsalted Walnuts

2 Cups Shelled unsalted Pistachios

2 Cups Almonds without skin

1 Cup Brown Sugar

1 Cup Corn Syrup

1 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon

½ Tsp. Ground Cloves

½ Tsp. Ground Nutmeg

1 Tbs. Grated Orange Zest

2 Tbs. Brandy (Optional)

1 Lb. Phyllo pastry

16 oz. Unsalted Butter melted

Pre Heat oven to 325 degrees

In a food processor or grinder, first grind the nuts finely. Take a bowl and mix well the ground nuts, brown sugar, corn syrup, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, about quarter cup of the melted butter, orange zest and the brandy. This is the filling for the phyllo pastry.

Take about 2 Tbs. of the butter and grease the bottom of a 14 by 18 by 2 inches deep pan or casserole. If you have a smaller pan cut the phyllo pastry to fit the pan. Frozen phyllo pastry should be defrosted in the refrigerator and not over the counter because at room temperature the pastry sheets will stick to each other. Work with one sheet at a time and keep the rest covered with a damp cloth or plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out. Try to be fast while working with phyllo sheets and always pre heat your oven before you put your Baklava in.

Take eight sheets of phyllo one by one and brush both sides liberally with butter. Place them one on top of another in the pan. Put one thin layer of the nut mixture evenly on top of the eighth layer and press it down very lightly. Take three more phyllo sheets, butter each one on both sides and layer them on top of the nut mixture. Put another thin layer of nut mixture on the phyllo and continue layering about three sheets between each thin layer of nut mixture until you have used up the nuts. After you layer the last nut mixture put eight phyllo sheets buttered on both sides as a covering for the Baklava.

You may spread out and overlap sheets so that you cover the entire pan. If you have leftover nut mixture you can freeze it for future use. You can freeze unbaked Baklava and then thaw and bake it some other time.

With a very sharp knife score the top of the Baklava diagonally from upper left to lower right and from upper right to lower left to make little diamond shapes. This is the traditional shape for Baklava but any other shape is fine. Do not cut all the way through. Leave the bottom quarter inches of the Baklava uncut. Pour about three tablespoons of butter over the top of your Baklava and bake at 325 degrees for about 30 minutes or until golden but not brown in color.

The Syrup

1 Cup Sugar

1 Cup Honey

1 Tbs. Grated Lemon Zest

2 Tbs. Lemon Juice

1 Stick Cinnamon

1 Cup Water

Boil the syrup ingredients for about 20 minutes or until it thickens up like syrup.

After you take the Baklava out of the oven, pour the hot syrup carefully over the top and let it sit for at least five hours or overnight. It will be very easy to separate the Baklava into the diamond shapes before you serve. Enjoy!

“Ayurveda” or the science of life is the ancient medical system of India and existed since about 5000B.C. There are four religious doctrines discovered many years ago in India. They are the Rig-Veda, Sham Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda. The Ayurveda is contained within the Atharva Veda. Ayurveda is based on firstly a belief in God. The healing system is based on love.

According to Ayurveda, there are three major life forces in the body called the three biological humors. In Sanskrit they are called Vata, Pitta, and Kapha and are also known as the “Tridoshas”. They again relate to the elements of air, fire and water and is the basis for the treatment of both physical and psychological constitution. There is also the three “Gunas” or qualities called Satya, Rajas, and Tamas. The biological humors are the root of this ancient healing system.

 Ayurvedic science of food and diet is a tremendously large field and influences every aspect of one’s life. In Chinese medicine there is reference to Yin, Yang and Chi or blood to be the primary elements in the body. In European Medicine it refers to as the Bile, Blood and the Phlegm. In Ayurveda “Purusha” means male and “Prakriti” translates as female. The “Tridoshas” Vata Pitta and Kapha as discussed before are the dynamic principles that govern the body, mind, and consciousness.

 The Ayurvedic treatment of any disease is based on the three biological humors and is reflected on the six tastes sweet, salty, sour, pungent, bitter and astringent. Ayurveda cannot change or cure health problems in an instant. Some factors like diet will respond to changes but again it requires some time to change any person’s established diet. Choosing the proper diet might lead to the cure of the disease itself.

Soups play an important part in Ayurvedic cooking. These are mostly made of beans, peas, lentils or “Dals” and spices boiled together and are high in proteins. There is a rice and lentil mixture called Khichuri or lentil stew, which is easily digestible and gives strength and vitality. Rice plays an important part in Ayurvedic cooking and is very good for Vata and Pitta diets and should be moderately used by Kapha diets.

Ayurveda sometimes recommends more cooked vegetables than raw for some people. Red meat is not recommended for any constitution at all but sometimes fish and white meat like chicken and turkey are more acceptable. In Ayurvedic diet the spices do not have to be extremely strong but then the food does not have to be bland either. The best way to keep all the biological humors content and to create tasty food is to figure out a balance between the amount of spices and oil used and to try to bring out the full flavors in them.

The Ayurvedic properties of some of the ingredients

Bitter Melon – This has a soothing effect on Pitta and the Kapha elements in the body. It is also very good for Diabetes and anemia. In India diabetics often grate it and drink the juice squeezed out of it first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.

Limes and Lemons – These have excellent healing power in Ayurveda. When people have morning sickness or nausea especially pregnant women, lemon or lime juice diluted with water and a little salt served as a drink works like a miracle. In very hot days lemon or lime juice mixed with five times as much water, a little salt and some sugar and ice makes a wonderful lemonade soothing and healing for the whole digestive system.

Cranberries- These are sour and astringent and one should not eat too much of it. It helps cool down the discomfort in very hot and spicy foods. Cranberries when eaten raw disturb all the three doshas but when cooked with sugar they help digestion.

Carrots cooked, help the digestive system and constipation. When carrots are eaten raw with other vegetables or as salad it helps prevent cancer.

Cilantro is the leaf of the coriander seed. It is also known as Chinese Parsley. This herb is a balance between all the biological humors and helps soothe colds, fevers and nausea. The Coriander Seed is among the medicinal plants mentioned in books about three thousand years ago. The seed when ground and used in dishes is good for digestion.

Garlic, this vegetable is very good for heart, lungs blood and the muscular system. Garlic has a lot of heat in it and too much of it should not be taken at one time. Garlic is said to purify the blood, lower blood pressure and aid digestion. It is also considered to be helpful in curing diabetes, lower cholesterol and help in asthma and whooping cough.

Onions though pungent help a lot with cholesterol. When eaten raw onions sometimes have conflicts with Vata and Pitta but helps Kapha and is good in colds and coughs and congestion.

Ginger has a very cooling effect on coughs, colds, heart problems and blood circulation. Fresh tea with ginger, basil, and honey is soothing in any type of cold. It also helps in digestion, eyesight, and is good for aged people as it heats the joints, is useful against gout, helps poor blood circulation and is also considered a cure for travel sickness. In India sometimes ginger is used as an antidote to poison.

Mint as the historians say, came originally from the Mediterranean. It is good for soar throat and hiccups. The aroma of mint is very soothing and refreshing.

Asafoetida or Hing is a dried resin like product extracted from the rhizomes of “ferula” or giant fennel. The name comes from the Persian word “Aza” meaning resin and the Latin word “Fetida” meaning stinking. Imported from Persia and Armenia, this spice is used in Indian, Arab and also some Roman cooking in very small amounts due to the strong and pungent aroma. It is medicinal because it can be a sedative, expectorant in colds and helps in the treatment of flatulence and bronchitis. Asafoetida grws well in the dry regions of Iran, Afghanistan, India and Pakistan.

Turmeric has been used in Asia for a very long time all over Asia. In the Carribean Islands it is called Indian Saffron. It has much more functions than food coloring, dyeing clothes and being an important ingredient in Asian food and Indian curry. Ground Turmeric is an antiseptic to raw fish and meat and is also a food preservative to some extent. Turmeric helps with all the biological humors in human body.

Mustard came from Asia and the Chinese have been using it for thousands of years. Apart from having it’s own taste and flavor mustard also enhances the flavors of other spices. Mustard induces vomiting and is regarded to be a diuretic and a stimulant and plasters made of ground mustard were traditionally used for healing arthritis and rheumatism.

 Cloves have a very good flavor alone or combined with other spices. It reduces gas and is good for digestion. The Clove Oil is used for tooth aches and massage for curing rheumatism. Clove is also an essential ingredient in Indian curries.

The best Cinnamon is from Sri Lanka but it is also grown in India, Brazil, Indonesia, the islands of the West Indies and the islands of the Indian Ocean.

Cardamom existed in India years before the birth of Christ and is one of the most ancient spices in the world. It is used separate as well as with other spice mixes. Cardamom cures stomach disorders and can be used as a breath freshner.

The word Khichuri literally means a hotchpotch or a mixture

2 Cups Mung Bean Dal, or split yellow Lentils available at the Indian Groceries or Asian and Thai markets. You could substitute with split Red Lentils available at regular grocery stores.

1 Cup Basmati Rice

4 Tbs. Ghee, clarified butter, or cooking oil

2 Bay Leaves

2 Whole Cayenne Peppers

1 Tsp. Cumin Seeds, whole

1 Jalapeno or two Serranos chopped fine

1 Tsp. Asafoetida or Hing powder (available at Asian or Indian grocers)

1 Tomato chopped, about one cup

1 Tbs. Fresh ginger peeled and grated

1Tsp. Turmeric powder

1 Tbs. Roasted and ground Cumin Seeds

1Tbs. Salt

1Tbs. Sugar

1Tsp Garam Masala (Equal amounts of Cardamom Cinnamon and Clove ground together)

6 Cups Water (You might need more)

In a big stockpot boil about 6 cups of water. Wash the Mung Bean Dal and put it in the pot with the turmeric powder. After the dal gets soft and starts to fall apart add the Basmati Rice. After the Basmati Rice cooks for about five minutes add the roasted Cumin Seed Powder. The consistency of this dish should be like the American chili. If you need more water add hot water so as not to slow down the cooking. After the rice is cooked but not glutinous turn the heat off the pot but keep it covered.

In a small pan heat three tablespoons of the ghee or oil. Put the bay leaves, cumin seeds, whole cayenne peppers whole and the Asafoetida. Keep stirring constantly and reduce the heat so as not to burn. Add the grated ginger and fry it a little bit. When the flavor starts coming out and the ginger turns a little light brown in color, mix the whole thing in the stockpot with the salt and sugar and start simmering it again. Add the green chilies, the remaining tablespoon of the ghee and the Garam Masala. Serve hot. You can be creative and add different types of vegetables to this stew. This stew is a meal in itself.

1/2 Cup Fine sugar

1 Cup Brown sugar

1 Tbs. Salt

1Tbs. Peeled and grated fresh ginger

1 Tbs. Whole mustard seeds

1 Tsp. Crushed red pepper

1 Tbs. Cooking oil

Heat the oil in a pot and put the mustard seeds and the crushed peppers in. When they start popping add the ginger. Fry the ginger a little bit and then add the cranberries, sugars, salt and simmer the chutney in medium heat till the cranberries are mushy and there is a thick gravy. Serve as a condiment or sweet chutney on the side with dinner.

1 Green lime juiced.

1 Tsp. Roasted and ground Ground Cumin seeds.

1 Tsp. Kala Namak or Rock Salt Powder available at Indian Groceries already powdered and if not available, use regular Salt.

1 Tsp. Sugar

1 Cup Plain Yogurt

1 Cup Chopped Cilantro

2 Tbs. Fresh Mint Leaves minced fine

Mix everything together in a bowl and serve as a condiment with dinner or as an appetizer with chips.

This cuisine is a special one and it is better to search for small sized whole vegetables.

1 Cup Small whole potatoes.

1 Cup Small onions peeled

1 Cup Frozen peas

1 Cup Butternut Squash peeled, and chopped

1 Cup Baby carrots

1 Bunch Spinach Leaves

1 Cup Brussel Sprouts

2 Plantains

2 Tarro Root this can be found in Asian markets or in regular grocery stores

You can be creative and add any vegetables. Do not stick to the rules, if you have bigger vegetables cut them in chunks.

Boil the vegetables together with 1 cup of water and after they are cooked try to dry the water up as much as possible on high heat taking care not to burn them. Cool the vegetables and mix them in a bowl with:

2 Tbs. Mustard Oil available at Asian or Indian Groceries. You can also use Ghee or Clarified Butter

1 Tbs. Ground hot mustard powder

1 Tbs. Salt

1 Green Lime or Yellow Lemon juiced

1/2 Cup Chopped cilantro

1 Jalapeno or two Serranos chopped.

Serve with plain rice or the rice and lentil stew.

4 Big Potatoes boiled, peeled and cubed.

1 Tbs. Ground Black Pepper

1 Tbs. Ghee or Clarified Butter or cooking oil

1 Tsp. Salt.

1 Cup Water

In a pan or cooking pot heat the ghee or clarified butter, or canola oil. Add the potatoes and salt and start cooking on medium heat until the potatoes mix well with everything. Add the ground black pepper and keep cooking. Add the water, lower the heat and simmer covered until the potatoes are more soft and the water is dried up. Serve over rice, toasted bread or with Kitchuri.