Bean and potato salad- A guest post for Shab's Cuisine

If there is one blogger I can say I have a lot in common with, that is definitely Shabeena (Shabs as we fondly call her) of Shab's Cuisine. I cant remember how or when I stumbled upon her blog, but she was the first UK blogger I started following. It is a big deal because majority of the bloggers I follow are based out of the US or India, and disscovering that Shab was from this side of the pond was indeed something worth being excited about.

She has been blogging for many years now and somewhere along the way I discovered I had a lot in common with her. Thanks to Facebook, we send each other loooong messages regarding our blogs and have the longest chat sessions, that too at 11 and 12 at night. From endless discussions about prop shopping to charity store finds to ebay auctions to photography tips and new blog discoveries, the topics are forever flowing. Sales and deals at stores are immediately passed on and we make sure we check it out and get back with our inputs without fail. It's like shopping with your girlfriends, but virtually :)

 

I recently did a birthday cake for a friend and I must say that I couldnt have done it without Shab's help. I used to keep calling her up each and every time I had a doubt about fondant, frosting etc. and she would be such a sweetheart and help me out whatsoever. It is indeed great knowing that I have a blogger friend just a phone call away to solve doubts and more importantly to sit and talk mindlessly about props and painting boards and photography, instead of forcing the husband to listen to blog issues. So I didnt think twice when Shab asked me about a guest post, because there was no way I was gonna pass. We decided on a salad and so here's an easy peacy summer recipe- a bean and potato salad, which is a favourite at ours.

We have picnics in the park during summer and deciding on what to take is always an issue especially because only some parks allow bbq's and they are almost always the ones that are far away, which makes us think twice about heading there in the first place. So food items that are super duper easy to pack and tastes good when eaten cold are given priority. Sandwiches and salads mostly win after all the discussion and this salad is my first choice always. It is so easy to put together and tastes so good, you would have to try hard to stop yourself from eating spoonfuls while preparing it. It is also a very forgiving reciipe and you can add more ingredients or adapt them to your liking without compromising on taste. It is great eaten warm or cold, so there is no issue there. When I make it at home, I usually pair it with some grilled chicken and its a perfect meal and quite filling, I must add.

 

So without further ado, do head over to Shabs's Cuisine and check out the recipe and while you are there, dont miss out on her amazing array of Malabar dishes. She is a pro at it, and I hope some day I will be able to meet her in person and taste her food. Thanks a lot for having me over Shab :)

Gimme Greens!

I was all geared up to do some hardcore brunching on Saturday and more importantly i was more thrilled to use some of my new Le Creuset cookware I'd picked up a few days back when i went on this immense shopping spree. I have of course decided to return some of the clothes and shoes id picked up (I always always have second thoughts)...clothes because i have no patience to wait in line to get to the trial rooms and so i just buy it, come home, sashay around and then return it if i don't think it looks drop-dead-gorgeous..oh and also high waists may be back in style, but nah i don't think I can every be comfortable in it, after being so used to the super low waists...ah the freedom it gives you!. And shoes...i really liked it, and was proud i was being adventurous and went a lil off the usual style..but Ro passed snide remarks about it and its totally ruined it for me now... I keep telling myself I shouldn't really care about what he thinks about my clothes, and I really ignore it most of the time, but when I'm doubtful about something and if someone says its not the best, then im convinced I made the wrong choice...its only for clothes and shoes and bags btw..all the other things...I am so level headed, I find it very difficult to change self-made decisions, in fact.

Sorry, I'm rambling again....so what i meant to say was...lying in bed at 10, still...I was charting out what to make and how to style it for my pics when i realized that the 'wretched monthly visitor' had made its presence felt and i automatically went into bitch mode. Dragged myself outta bed almost in tears at having spoilt such a pleasant Saturday and walked into the kitchen pouting. My delightful, every happy husband had the telly blaring and James Martin on Saturday Kitchen Live was suddenly annoying. Ro was cooking and i was already pissed he hadn't noticed i was pouting..instead he sang..'good morning sunshine' and thrust a ladle full of something into my face...In between grabbing my coffee, I snapped at him and said:

I don't want to try it...

He wouldn't let go, eat it, eat it...it doesn't taste like liver at all...

LIVER???????????? WTF? You know i don't like liver, kidney, brain, eye, balls etc...and why do you ask me to try it every damn time.

Ro was confused...'are you mad cos the birds woke you up AGAIN?

NO! you dodo....you wouldn't know, I'm in pain... I hope you'd be a girl in your next life.

Laughter....non stop...'would I have massive boobs if I'm a girl in my next life?

Ladies and gentlemen, that's my husband for you....how he manages to make me smile in between all this, is beyond words.

So i plopped on my sofa and declared I wasn't going to move a finger and Ro said he would take over cooking for the day. After a heavy breakfast (not me), he started lunch preps at 1.30pm and made this rather yummy stir fry with rice and curd and his liver fry (yuck!), while i watched a corny chick flick..with a cold cider and a smirk on my face...maybe its not bad I'm a girl, after all;)

Stir fried beans with shallots and garlic

Sliced runner beans- about 2 cups

Shallots- 2, roughly chopped

Garlic- 3 pods, roughly chopped

Cumin powder- 1/2 tsp (optional)

Salt & pepper- to taste

Olive oil- 1 tbsp

In a frying pan, heat the oil and sauté shallots and garlic till light brown.

Add the runner beans, salt, pepper and cumin powder and give it a good stir.

Close with a lid and cook on high for about 5 to 6 minutes or till the beans are cooked just enough..not too mushy. You might want to stir in between, and if you feel its sticking to the pan, add a tsp of water.

Serve hot with rice.

Here is another easy peacy green bean recipe, a great accompaniment to any main.

I am sending these entries to the Vegetable Marathon Event hosted by Anita's Kitchen where the theme is Beans.

Ah, so thats how a thoran is made!

As you might have already guessed from the title, yesterday i learned how exactly to make an authentic mallu speciality- the thoran (vegetables of your choice with coconut). Till now i was making a mezhukupuratti (something entirely different), throwing in some coconut and calling it a thoran and wondered why it never turned out the sadya (feast) way. Ro used to shout at me asking why i am so stingy when it comes to putting coconut in my thoran and i used to retaliate saying, too much was not healthy. This time i went home, i saw my mom, mom-in-law using coconut oil lavishly and when questioned they said according to recent developments coconut oil was the healthiest..it apparently maintains cholesterol levels. Now that's news. So anyways, yesterday i decided to go veg. (basically i was lazy to go out and shop) and made a carrot and beans thoran and boy did it taste good. And its easy too. I followed Maria's recipe to the dot and it was perfect. Thanks Maria, i now know how different a thoran is from the mezhukupuratti. Ro thought it tasted different. 'Dude that's cos its the real thing.' He is so used to eating the shit i make, that if you give him the real thing he would say its horrible. Now i would say that's good training :)