Neeru majjige (spiced buttermilk) - A Rama navami offering and summer special (delayed post by every account :-))

Last Tuesday we celebrated Sri Rama navami and as is customary, I made some neeru majjige, payasa and a kosambari in the evening. Took some pictures and put them in the draft as I was too tired to write that day. For the next 3 days, I was in all day training sessions at work which meant I was busy listening to presentations and talks that saturated my brain completely and when I returned home all I wanted to do was cook, eat and sleep :-). Notice the first verb in that last sentence, I love to cook and it relaxes me like no other activity. I am in my element in the kitchen and can cook after a long day of work but haven't found the energy to sit after a heavy meal and blog about it. I am taking pictures so that all the dishes will present themselves in due course.. but until then my posts will be a little erratic to say the least :-).

This weekend was gorgeous with temperatures touching 70F (yep, that is perfect summer weather for us :-)) and BH & I went back to our yearly routine of gardening. While the saplings are not yet ready in the stores, we prepared the bed, cleaned up the weeds, transported pots back to the outdoors so they can get some direct sun light instead of it being filtered through the windows. Well, here is how it mostly worked, while BH toiled in the Sun pushing our small tiller and squatted in the mud to pick up stubborn roots and large stones, I mostly stood looking very knowledgeable and called out smart decisions at regular intervals and was an integral part of planning the vegetable patch :-). I didn't make the saying "Behind every successful man there is a woman", I just follow it. Looking forward to enjoying some home grown bounty in the next 3-4 months. If no vegetables show up, atleast we will enjoy the green plants. Will keep you all posted. Last week, I went to the farmer's market during a lunch break as the weather was warm and very inviting, the walk down the hill for 2 blocks was a breath of fresh air and I loaded up on my quota of Vitamin D for the day, here are some pictures of the busy roads and busier people!

Back to the neeru majjige, which literally is yogurt thinned down with lotsa water and spiced with some herbs and spices. This is a staple in most homes in India during the hot summer months. The festival of Sri Rama navami celebrating the birth of Lord Rama comes in the month of March or April when Summer is typically starting and temperatures are soaring. So it is no surprise that most of the offerings during this festival have a cooling ingredient. We love neeru majjige any time of the year and I just make Ramanavami an excuse to churn some home made yogurt and make majjige. There is no big recipe here today, I will show you some variations I have seen and make but you can play with the herbs and spices used in the preparation to suit your palate.

Neeru majjige or buttermilk is considered healthier for daily consumption compared to thick yogurt, nammamma always churned and served buttermilk in lunch and dinner while yogurt was usually reserved as a side with rotti or dose(a) or avalakki during breakfast. Most South Indian meals end with a course of rice mixed with yogurt or buttermilk and it is served in all the weddings as the last course of a festive meal. I crave for that extra watery, lightly salted butter milk that falls on hot rice at the end of a very heavy meal. If I can have a piece of ripe lemon pickle on the side, I will probably eat just that one course without asking for anything else :-). Try that heavenly combination at home, very delicious and homely.

I recently had an Iranian/Persian version of spiced buttermilk in a friend's house and it was delicious. They call it Doogh and has a very strong mint flavor but is creamier and thicker than the butter milk I make at home.

Making home made yogurt is easy if you can get a good starter culture from some one :-). I some how have not grown used to the store bought yogurt and buttermilk except on rare occasions and like to make yogurt at home and I distribute generously to friends who ask for it since I will have a much wider network to ask for a starter from when I come back home from long vacations or if my yogurt goes bad for any reason :-).

A few things to keep in mind if you want to make yogurt regularly at home:
1. Always boil milk before attempting to make yogurt.
2. Always cool the milk to luke warm temperature (very similar to the warm water used for proofing the yeast since the yogurt culture will also die if the milk is too hot)
3. Use clean vessels to boil milk and set yogurt (nammamma and amma and now I all have separate vessels used only for the purpose, we do not use these vessels otherwise).
4. If you can get a good quality earthen pot, it works best for setting thick yogurt as it holds the temperature well, steel vessels work well too.
5. Here is the last of my tip I learnt from a friend (thanks S :-)) - once you add the starter yogurt to the warm milk, mix it well with a spoon, infact she told me to churn/whisk it once to get homogeneous, thick yogurt/curds.

Neeru majjige can be tailored and made in different ways. I sometimes use a whole lot of chopped cilantro and sometimes use just curry leaves shred into pieces. While I season it with oil roasted mustard and cumin sometimes, I just add ginger and green chili paste. In the very basic form it is whisked butter milk, thinned down with a lot of cold water and lightly salted. I personally like the yogurt to be a day old and slightly sour for added taste. So it is entirely up to you as to how you make it.

What do you need to make neeru majjige? 
1 cup home made (a day old) yogurt
4-5 cups of cold water
1 Tsp salt (adjust to taste)
2 small green chilies
1 inch piece of ginger (cleaned and peeled)
1 Tbsp chopped cilantro
Optional seasoning: 
1 Tsp oil
1/2 Tsp mustard
1/4 Tsp cumin
1/8 Tsp asafoetida

How do you make neeru majjige? 

• Clean and crush green chilies and ginger into a rough paste using a mortar & pestle.
• Take yogurt in a big bowl, add salt, crushed ginger-green chili and churn/whisk it using a hand whisk or a traditional wooden whisk (called kadegolu in Kannada)
• Once the yogurt is homogeneous, add water to bring it to the desired consistency, mix well. 
• Heat oil and add the seasoning ingredients, roast until mustard pops, add it to the buttermilk. 
• Taste and adjust spices as needed. 
• Keep aside for 20-30 minutes, serve chilled. You can sieve the buttermilk through a tea strainer to make a clear liquid. Longer you set it aside, the flavors get incorporated better. 

Variations: 

• Use chopped mint or curry leaves in place of cilantro
• If you have a garlic crush, add a clove or two to the seasoning. 
• Crushed ajwain/carom seeds/bishop's weed imparts a wonderful flavor in buttermilk. 
• Skip green chilies completely if you do not want a spicy buttermilk. 

Tomato Juice - Bidding adieu to comfort zones and embracing changing seasons

This day was inevitable and I saw it coming for quite some time now. Despite all the preparations - both physical & emotional, it was a very nervous moment. We stood by silently watching her pack her bag, check the wallet for the insurance proof and the newly acquired driver's license, as she turned around, gave a hug each and said before I could open my mouth, "I will call as soon as I reach there, Amma", that seemed to surge a flood of emotions inside. I stood there at the front door, anxious but trying not to show it to the little girl as she picked up the keys and confidently strode over to the driver's seat. We watched until the car turned the street corner and went back to purposefully cleaning the living room until the phone rang and we heard the dear voice say, "I am here, will call you later". The cleaning went a little bit more briskly after that and the air didn't seem to hang so heavily around us.

It was not a long drive, less than 15 minutes from home, she knew the roads well as we take those every week. The only difference was that she got her own license last week and drove there all by herself for the first time. A big deal for us parents and many a anxious waits until she calls in. The little girl is not a toddler anymore but a confident teenager rearing to explore the world and also do things on her own. Wish I could hold on for just a little longer for those years when I had to lower my eyes to talk to the tiny girl hopping along with me every where I went, the little girl that used to sing in the back seat while fishing up snacks from her bowl as we drove back home or the tired one that dozed off in front seat on the way home from a long drive or the chatter box that never stopped talking excitedly about her day at school or a camp she attended or the dorky one that would be thinking about some homework due the next day. Every change indicates she is growing up into her own person and not dependent on us any longer, it is how it should be and I feel happy that she has the conviction  to take on her challenges and learn along the way, yet at the same time, I feel that this inevitable change is coming too soon. Letting go is never easy especially when you love someone so dearly. I think about my parents as they saw us pass through these different phases and makes me appreciate and understand them a little bit more. It is a strange period in my life as I look back to see my parents' generation slowing down, sun setting and look forward to see a bright horizon with opportunities for my kids' generation, bitter and sweet at the same time.

Sunday is officially the beginning of Autumn, while bidding adieu to a bright and beautiful Summer, I want to embrace the Autumn and its colors with equal gratefulness and poise. Summer was glorious contrary to what many predicted but then who says Autum is not going to be good? I am looking forward to sweaters, long walks on the crinkly crisp fallen leaves and multitudes of hues all around. After all, it is nature's way of growing and growing up, right?

My tomato vines are still going strong and I picked another bushel of bright red, ripe tomatoes yesterday and made a simple, flavor packed juice to celebrate and say 'so long' to Summer. There is no recipe here, but I give you a few lines of 'how to's in case you want to see it. Also, I caught some really nice pics that totally captures the soul of this simple juice. Here is to changing seasons, growth and change in general.

What do you need to make Tomato juice?
Makes 3 servings
3 ripe, juicy medium sized tomatoes
1 Tsp lemon/lime juice
3 Tsp sugar (adjust to taste)
5-6 mint leaves

How do you make Tomato juice?

• Wash, pat dry and chop tomatoes.

• Take all ingredients to blender except water and make a smooth puree.
• Sieve the puree through a fine sieve to catch seeds and tomato skin.

• Taste & adjust to your liking. Add water for desired consistency.
• Chill and serve :-)

Strawberry Agua Fresca - Thirst quencher for the hot summer

Don't go by the name in the title, Agua Fresca literally translates to Agua (~water) and Fresca (~Fresh). This light, natural, lemony drink made with succulent summer fruits is not only delicious but also manages your calories compared to milk shakes or bottled/canned drinks.

Strawberries are one of my favorite fruits. I was bowled over these beauties when we first came to CA, some of our wiser cousins who had already been exposed to the local charm took us on a drive in Spring where farmers had put up road side stalls to sell freshly picked strawberries in all sizes of crates. Though you get strawberries year round in super markets, the actual harvest cycle is Spring/summer and fall. Smart farmers extend this cycle to the entire year.

Couple of years back, the big time garden enthusiasts me & BH are, we fell into the trap of growing strawberries in our back yard. We had a United way sale going on at work and I brought home 6 small saplings of Strawberry marked for early Fall harvest. We planted those tiny things in the ground, made sure Flora didn't trample when she excitedly jumped over them, fed, watered and cared for the plants. Come August, saw tiny blossoms and then small, little fruits emerging. It was a wonderful experience to see the strawberries growing organically in our own yard. DD was super thrilled that she could pick and eat fresh fruits from the plant at home :-). We infact harvested a few cups of not so big but very juicy strawberries and enjoyed them. Then the weather turned chilly and cold, we moved our potted plants inside for hibernation and left the strawberries out in the cold. When Spring reappeared the next year, I was happy to see that the strawberries had survived the harsh winter and started growing again, but very soon we realized the extent to which this hardy plant can go and take over your back yard. It was almost a strawberry infestation, the plants go beneath the top layer of soil, put out roots and every few inches, a new leaf and a new plant springs up :-). We moved from that home with all the memories tucked in and I decided not to grow strawberries in the back yard again so we have space for other plants.  May be I will give into the temptation some time in the future years :-), I am back to buying the huge boxes of the fruit from Costco in the meantime.

As I said earlier, Strawberry agua fresca is a strawberry flavored, slightly lemony drink that is perfect for a hot summer picnic.

What do you need for Strawberry agua fresca?
12-15 juicy, unbruised strawberries
2 Tblsp sugar (adjust if the fruit is sweet)
juice from 1.5 lemon (about 1/4 cup) - adjust if the fruit is tart, see Notes below.
6-8 cups of water

How do you make Strawberry agua fresca?

• Take the first 3 ingredients listed above and blend it till smooth. 
• You can strain the blended mixture and then mix water, but I prefer to use directly and not lose the natural fibers from the fruit - This step is your choice. 

• Add water to thin it down to a drink consistency.
• Chill and serve.

Enjoy the strawberry agua fresca at home or pack with ice for a picnic. We are off to do some hiking on this balmy day here. Have a great weekend. 

Note: 

• While you want the drink to pack the punch, you do not want the lemon juice to overpower. Remember it is strawberry agua fresca. 
• Other fruits you can use to create yummy agua frescas are melon (watermelons, cantaloupes), pinneapple.