i think there 4 i am ….

Deepavali or Diwali, popularly known as the “festival of lights,” is a festival celebrated between mid-October and mid-November for different reasons. For Hindus, Diwali is one of the most important festivals of the year and is celebrated in families by performing traditional activities together in their homes. However, in recent times it is an occasion that is celebrated by Indians of all religions living in India and abroad. The day also has significance for other religions in India.

I made this for a dinner date we had with my daughter’s friend and her family — a perfect dish that I could prepare in advance, then step away from the kitchen to socialize with our company.

A make-ahead dish for entertaining.

The ingredients I used are pretty standard for a paella, but I went lighter on the spice. For instance, I used chicken sausage instead of the spicy chorizo (which I love but didn’t think the kids would appreciate), as well as chicken thighs and jumbo shrimp.

For veggies, I used red peppers and peas. And to make the dish rich and creamy, I turned to Arborio rice, which I amped up with wine and saffron.

This is a dish for entertaining. It has all the Spanish flavors of an authentic paella, but it is toned down to please those who are not too fond of spicy food.

This one-pot dish has it all — meat, vegetables and pasta. Once again, I use chicken sausages (I always have chicken sausage in my fridge), leafy green broccoli rabe, whole-grain pasta and pine nuts.

Only one pot was used to make this broccoli-rabe sausage pasta.

The sauce comes from the water the pasta was cooked in — the starch in it thickens the pasta. Lots of basil, lemon zest and a bit of Pecorino Romano cheese give it a flavor boost.

And last but not least is a dish combined with one my grandmother used to make. She would cook rice and peas in a mixture of cilantro, green onions, regular onion and garlic — which I lovingly call “green rice.”

The vegetables were processed into a thick sauce, sautéed with cumin seeds, and then she would add the rice and peas.

I use this green rice with spinach and chicken. I sauté chicken thighs in a pan with the mixture of spinach, cilantro, green onions and garlic.

The sauce had all the flavor of my grandmother’s, as well as extra nutrients from the spinach. I sautéed the mixture with cumin seeds, and added the rice and cooked it with chicken broth.

I often use chicken broth to cook rice, couscous or any grain for great flavor without much work. I finished the rice dish with a generous sprinkling of golden raisins for a burst of sweetness amidst the savory, earthy spinach rice.

Add yogurt to the rice and you have all the makings for a superb meal.

I would love to hear about any one-pot meals you have in your repertoire. Write them in the comments below.

In a heavy wide pot, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle one teaspoon salt on the chicken thighs and place them in the pot. Brown each side for about 3 minutes on high heat. Take out and keep aside. In the meantime, blend cilantro, spinach, green onions, garlic, shallot, olive oil and water into a smooth paste. Add the green paste into the hot pan with the cumin seeds. Saute this mixture on medium high heat for about 15 minutes, stirring regularly (careful not to burn). Add the chicken pieces and broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the rice and salt. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to medium. Once wholes appear on the top, lower the heat and cover. Cook for about 20 minutes till rice is done. Add the raisins on top and cover for another 5 minutes with the heat off.

Even as I continue my quest for healthy food alternatives, I think back fondly to my high school years, when I would eat an Entenmann’s chocolate-covered donut almost everyday.

I would wash it down with some whole milk and a small bag of potato chips — a very healthy meal!

I eventually moved on to the coconut-covered chocolate donut from Dunkin Donuts.

All I knew was, it tasted good. But these days I have other priorities. And while I was looking for information on donuts, I found out it has a whopping 340 calories. Oh my, I think I gained a few pounds just doing the research.

For, in fact, while I was one bite away from a 12-step program for donut addicts in my youth, I now can’t remember the last time I indulged in a donut — or should I say doughnut?

Last year I was at the The Mall at Short Hills with a friend and we came upon a bakery called Brownie Points, with delicious-looking cupcakes, cakes and brownies. It looked very appetizing and clean. I bought a cupcake for my daughter to take home.

While we were paying, we looked over to a table covered with round, muffin-like confections. We were curious, so took a few steps closer.

And that’s when I met my first “duffin” — a cross between a donut and a muffin. And they’re baked.

Well, it did not take long before the old donut desire got the best of me, and we were sitting down with a cinnamon-sugar duffin.

It was heavenly. Similar to a pound cake but lighter, it was not too sweet. We played it cool, saying we might come back again and indulge every once in a while — but, O.K., maybe more often than that.

A few weeks ago, I found out the bakery had left the mall. How disappointing. How will I satisfy my newly formed duffin desire?

Once I get something in my head, especially if it is food related, it doesn’t leave me until I resolve it. The same thing happened with the duffins. I began an extensive search on the Internet. I was thrilled to find a recipe for it, which I then tweaked to my taste to make it my own.

I used white whole-wheat flour, raw sugar and added a bit of almond extract in addition to the called-for vanilla extract. Delicious.

But also very healthy. They have just a quarter cup of extra light olive oil.

I sat down and indulged in a duffin with some hot coffee. It brought me back to those unhealthy donut days.

I am planning on baking a chocolate and a jelly-filled one in the next few weeks. Stay tuned for it on my blog.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 12-muffin tin with a bit of oil in each cup.

In a large bowl, beat together sugar and egg till light and fluffy. Pour in vegetable oil, milk, vanilla and almond extracts. Mix to combine.

In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salt. Pour into the egg mixture and stir well.

Divide batter evenly into the muffin cups, filling about half full.

Bake for 15 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

While muffins are baking, melt butter in a small bowl. Pour half cup sugar and cinnamon into another small bowl and mix well.

Once the muffins are done, lightly brush the top with melted butter, remove from the pan and roll in the cinnamon sugar, coating all parts of the duffin.

Monica Puri Bangia is a mother and wife who loves to cook and entertain — but most of all, cook. She writes adaily food blog that highlights healthy recipes that are easy to make and kid-friendly. She is also cooking coach and teacher, providing cooking classes in her client’ homes and teaching about her native Indian cuisine at the Adult School. She also writes for a variety of other blogs and magazines — all about food, of course.

I am hoping to start a weekly tradition of top ten lists. This week I begin with things to change or do to stay healthy. I am definitely not a doctor nor a dietician but I do have common sense and I know what works for me and my family. Especially as a woman in my late thirties (I can’t say that for too long- so I will milk it for what it is), I find it harder to stay on course in terms of losing weight or keeping it off. I find I have to eat far less than I used to and exercise a lot more than before.

I guess things change as you get older and have kids. I feel very responsible for teaching my daughter healthy eating and living habits. Things that will stay with her for a life time. I want her to know how to live a balanced and happy life- well that maybe a completely different post…

So- I ask all of my readers to go through the list and comment ‘on the blog’ what things are on your list that are missing from mine. I would love to get a conversation going and learn from all of you out there. If you all are interested, we can do this on a weekly basis.

Off the Shelf: Making a Classic Dish Healthy

Monica Puri BangiaBurger and fries, hold the cholesterol and pour on the vitamins.

ON THE LOCAL

Monica Puri Bangia is a mother and wife who loves to cook and entertain — but most of all, cook. She writes adaily food blog that highlights healthy recipes that are easy to make and kid-friendly. She is also cooking coach and teacher, providing cooking classes in her client’ homes and teaching about her native Indian cuisine at theAdult School. She also writes for a variety of other blogs and magazines — all about food, of course.

How do you feel about reinventing a classic meal? If you had asked me this question years ago, I would have preferred the classic. Just eat it less often, I thought. Why toy with perfection?

Now I am older and my perspective on things have changed. My priority is eating healthy. So if you can tinker with a classic dish to make it less loaded with all the foods I want to avoid — why not?

My concerns these days are with weight (not gaining it) and health (enhancing it). That means a myriad of things we need to eat — fruit and vegetable requirements; protein and fiber — must be incorporated into our daily diets.

I also feel it is very important to teach my daughter healthy eating habits she can use for a lifetime. To do that, I try to incorporate different kinds of vegetables in a well-balanced meal consisting of a good protein and a healthy starch.

But that can be very challenging, especially when there are so many options for eating out or buying prepared foods. We do eat out as a family, but only at places where I trust the food quality. After watching Food Inc., I have become very careful about what I buy and where we eat.

So I took on a classic as a healthy eating challenge. As an experiment, I decided to make hamburger and fries in a completely different way — one that would pass my healthy-eating muster.

I gave it an Indian twist. For the hamburger meat, I used ground turkey and followed a seekh kebab recipe. Seekh kebabs are made out of spiced minced meat — typically lamb or goat. I used dark meat turkey to ensure tender burgers.

I bought whole-wheat buns instead of the regular ones. I also made a cilantro chutneyand bought tomato chutney (from Trader Joe’s). Doing so reduced a lot of calories and made the dish healthier.

I wasn’t done yet. Instead of using lettuce and tomatoes, I decided to caramelize onions and zucchini as a topping.

Don’t get me wrong: I love going our local pub in Maplewood to eat a burger with fries. The best part of that meal is the thick-cut potatoes called chips in the U.K. I finish every single one on my plate.

But to make my meal healthier, I decided to use sweet potatoes instead of regular ones. Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of Vitamins B, C and E. They are low in sugar and high in fiber.

I cut them up as regular fries and added extra virgin olive oil, garlic powder, salt and my favorite spice, smoked paprika; it provides a mouthful of flavor — very smoky and distinct — and complements the sweet flavor of the potatoes really well.

So my family got a classic meal — and I came away with pride that I had been able to provide it to them in a healthy, lower-calorie way. Try it out and let me know what you think.

Moral of the story: Eating well does not mean it has to taste like cardboard.

P.S: Stay tuned for a healthy donut recipe in my next post. Yes, you read it correctly: healthy donuts!

Heat a non-stick frying pan with one tablespoon oil. Brown the zucchini slices on both side till golden brown. Sprinkle salt. Keep aside and add the remaining oil and add the sliced onions. Saute on a low heat till the onions are soft, and sprinkle salt. Mix the cooked zucchini and onion and keep aside.

To assemble the hamburgers, spread the cilantro and tomato chutney on either sides of a bun. Place a patty on one side and top with zucchini and onion. Serve with sweet potato fries.

Place the fries on an aluminum foil lined cookie sheet. Drizzle the olive oil, salt, garlic powder and paprika. Mix well with your fingers and bake for about 45 minutes or till the fries are soft on the inside and crunchy and golden brown on the outside.

Little things make me happy—for example, if I visit a good restaurant, with decent food and great service, I become extremely happy. Well, I am a happy person because I ate at A Taste of AsiaSaturday night.

We walked in and were met with happy smiles and a very tall gentleman, who we later discovered to be the owner. We had our choice of tables and I decided to pick one in the corner to be able to discretely take pictures of the food.

We opened our wine and beer and began looking at the extensive menu. Appetizers ranged from $4.50 to $8. The entrees were anywhere from $11 to $19.50. I somehow made my way through the long list and noticed a chili chicken option. I grew up eating it and therefore decided to try it.

We ordered two appetizers: Crispy shrimp & crabmeat dumplings (from the specials) and daging istimewa—crispy pork shreds tossed in sweet sesame vinaigrette sauce. The pork shreds were the clear favorite—they were crispy and fried, which made them a bit chewy, but in a good way. The sweet and sour sesame vinaigrette was delicious. The dumplings were good, as well, but didn’t stand out.

Our waiter was very friendly and helped us navigate through the menu. He even got us two different kinds of hot sauce. He described one as a “killer”and extremely spicy, and it truly was—I would not recommend it for the faint of heart.

The chili chicken didn’t live up to my expectations. I was expecting savory and spicy. This one was on the sweeter side with a thick gravy—it was good, but I was a bit disappointed. Mongolian pork was next. It featured shredded pork in a sweet, peppery sauce. The best part of the dish was the bed of watercress—the earthy flavor stood out very well against the pork. I fished out most of the greens for myself.

My two favorites were beef rendang and jungle shrimp. The beef was described on the menu as a traditional braised beef with hot Asian spices and coconut milk, and was the most complex and delicious dish on the table. The beef pieces were clearly cooked for a long time, and they melted in our mouths. The gravy was full of flavor, and was not spicy (we chose spice level four, which is the same as medium). The coconut flavor came through loud and clear. It was a very different dish—unlike one I have ever had. I would highly recommend it.

We were all fascinated by the beef and decided to ask the very friendly owner about it. He told us this dish is as authentic as you can get—about 20 different spices are included in this stew-like creation.

The jungle shrimp was the clear winner on the table. It was stir-fried in a sweet and peppery sauce with lemongrass soy. When I read the description, I was a bit confused as to what lemongrass soy actually is. Either way, it tasted really good, and so I came home and looked up lemongrass soy. A bunch of candle making recipes came up, and I am still a bit confused. I should have asked the owner about it. But the jumbo shrimp tasted delicious with chunks of green peppers.

One last thing we had was a vegetable nasi goreng—a typical Malaysian spiced fried rice. It was nicely spiced and tasty.

Believe it or not, we still had room for dessert. We ordered the jackfruit, hazelnut gelato and a plate of Malaysian style sweet croquettes. Coconut gave them great flavor and texture. They were served with a dollop of whipped cream topped with toasted coconut. The jackfruit was very interesting—it was the first time I tasted it. It looked like a sliced mango but was firmer in texture. It was sweet and different tasting and may be an acquired taste.

Overall, A Taste of Asia offered a great experience. The staff was very sweet and accommodating. We accidentally broke a water glass in the middle of dinner, and it was cleaned up promptly. The waiter assured us he experiences one broken glass every day.

I walked out a happy woman and plan to go back very soon.

Want more? Check back later this week to see Monica’s replication of the jungle shrimp, recipe included.

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A Taste of Asia

245 Main St., Chatham

973-701-8821

Hours of Operation: Lunch, Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 2:45 p.m.; Dinner, Tuesday through Saturday from 5 to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 4:30 to 9 p.m. Closed on Mondays.

Another View of Above

Reviewer finds service slow and some of her dishes bland.

PHOTOS (2)

When I heard about Above restaurant opening above Eden Gourmet, I was excited about a new eating-place in the neighborhood — anything to do with food excites me. I looked at the menu online and was thrilled about the small plates. I loved the tapas-style menu Voro used to have.

So, when my friend recently made reservations at Above for her birthday, I was curious and excited — well, kind of. The thought of a fancy restaurant on top of a supermarket was a strange concept, but since I love Eden Gourmet, how bad could the restaurant be, I thought?

I had been to the pizzeria last year (before the cafe space was converted into the bar area of the new restaurant) and thought it was ordinary. The space was too big and reminded me of a cafeteria. My daughter’s pizza was quite forgettable, and my pasta was bland and required a lot of salt.

Upon climbing the stairs from the supermarket, we walked into a wood-paneled, dimly-lit dining area. It was quite full and the aromas were intoxicating. We asked for our table and were met with confused faces. They couldn’t find our reservation — well, eventually they did and asked us to wait, since our table was not ready. We decided to wait at the bar and have a drink. It was packed and reminiscent of a sports bar due to the combination of the big flat-panel televisions and the wood paneling.

After waiting in a corner for 15 minutes and not getting our drinks, we were called to our table. We didn’t have to walk far, since our table was right in front of the entrance doors. We had the pleasure of welcoming everyone who entered the restaurant, as they brought in a gush of cold air for us.

We sat for another 15 minutes before I got up to ask the hostess, who stood right behind us, if someone was going to wait on us. Our young waitress came a few minutes later, and we ordered drinks. She informed us the martinis would be a while, since the bar had run out of glasses. Well, we suggested that the bartender pour our drinks in another glass. I ordered a glass of Malbec, which was delicious!

I was happy to see no dish priced above $25 on the menu. We looked at the specials and ordered. I decided on two small plates from the special menu: a flatbread with fig jam and roasted duck and goat cheese. The crust was thin and crunchy. There was too much jam on the bottom, and it made the pizza too sweet. The shredded duck was good, but the gamey flavor didn’t contrast enough with the sweetness, probably because the jam was overpowering. The goat cheese provided nice bites of salty creaminess.

I also ordered a risotto with black truffles and shaved grana. It was watery, bland and the rice was undercooked. I kept sprinkling salt on it before finally giving up and calling the waitress.

In the meantime, my friends ordered a watercress salad with grapefruit and endive. I liked the crunchy endive, and the salad dressing was appropriate. Next came shrimp and asparagus, probably the best dish on the table. It had a delicious sweet and savory barbecue flavor. The shrimp was perfectly cooked and complemented the asparagus well. Clams ordered from the special menu were forgettable. I liked the red and golden beets. The charred goat cheese looked good but didn’t really taste charred. The honey drizzle around the cheese and the beets was too sweet, but overall the dish worked. The lasagna from the special menu was actually delicious, but cold. Then there was the roasted fig salad. The plate was piled up with frisee, blue cheese and, of course, the figs. It was quite good, but I would have sliced the figs instead of keeping them whole.

Next came orecchiette pasta with wild mushrooms, mascarpone and arugula. Like my risotto, it was bland and needed a copious amount of salt. The arugula was watery and didn’t have the familiar bitter taste I love so much.

We decided to talk to our waitress; well, we waited for her. After 10 minutes and questioning two bus boys, I called the hostess behind us and complained about the two bland dishes and the cold lasagna. She apologized profusely and offered to take the two dishes off our check and reheat the lasagna. She was also kind enough to send complimentary desserts to all of us. The two that stood out were the coffee-glazed chocolate cake with cappuccino ice cream and a nutella crepe, both delicious.

I’m not sure what to make of our disappointing experience. It could be that everyone there, including the kitchen staff, was having an off day? But I’m not sure I have the patience to go back and give it another try.

Monica Puri Bangia is a cooking coach and writes a daily food blog on www.sharingplate.com. She focuses on quick, healthy weekday meals. She also contributes to The Local.

About AB

i think there 4 i am…….

I ain’t gonna be just a face in the crowd, You R gonna hear my voice.

My philosophy is plain n simple. I believe lyf is beautiful despite seeing the worst of ppl n hell of injustice. Dats cuz in all that tym I waz trying to do justice to myself n made lyf worth living. I believe in being adaptable n independent without bickering about others’ faults.

I’m not a philosopher. Nor a preacher and I hate ppl who are lyk dat. I believe in the policy of live n let live. Dat goz for doz who trouble ppl n for doz who give uncalled fo advises.

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Project Smile India's Blog
Project Smile India is a non-profit organization which donates new and previously owned stuffed animals, coloring books/crayons, small toys, children’s reading books and blankets, woolen sweaters to give to children in orphanages and elderly in old age

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Project Smile India
Project Smile India is a non-profit organization which donates new and previously owned stuffed animals, coloring books/crayons, small toys, children’s reading books and blankets, woolen sweaters to give to children in orphanages and elderly in old age ho

Sharing Plate. com
My name is Monica Puri Bangia. I live in Maplewood, NJ. I was born in Delhi, famous for its Northern Indian cuisine. I studied at the French Culinary Institute in NYC. My personal passion is Italian.

There's something about me….
Queen Elizabeth in past life, now a Dentist by profession, social activist by choice and suffering from inherent sexiness !!!