MLLA 12: The Roundup

June 2009 has come and gone and we are in the thick of summer out here. Hot sticky days are followed by thunderstorms and skin-drenching rain. My garden is in full bloom and my schedule has simply exploded. And June has been a special month for me as I have travelled a lot, and written a fair bit!! I have also been the host of one of the most delightful and creative events to grace the food-blogosphere - My Legume Love Affair. Created by Susan @ The Well-Seasoned Cook, the 12th helping of this event has been running from June 1-30, 2009 @ Annarasa !

Though the title of this post reads 'The Roundup', I'd like to share at the very outset that the response to the event has been super and it will take me more than this single post to get everyone's entry up. The prize winning entry will follow the completion of the entire roundup on this blog:) Let me begin with thanking everyone who has participated and sent in such delightful recipes, all of which I feel privileged to share with you via this roundup. I would also like to thank everyone for their patience and request that in the event that you do not see your entry in the completed roundup, just send me an email and I will make sure it is placed in its rightful spot. Do remember though that the recipe roundup reflects the entries date wise as they landed in my inbox.

The very first entry I received for MLLA 12 has come from Sailaja @ Sailaja's Kitchen. Sailaja loves good food and she has prepared a deliciously spicy Rajma Vada. Doesn't it look like a tasteful and healthy snack!

Lubna @ Yummy Food has been a delightfully busy cook this month. She has enthusiastically sent in several yummy recipes for MLLA 12 over the course of the last month! I will detail them as they came in. The very first from her is Dosa - A South Indian Crepe with Instant Tomato Chutney.

Two entries from Priyasuresh @ Priya's East N Tasty Recipes are next. The first is Red Bell Pepper and Peanut Chutney - just look at the colour! And the second is a distinct and interesting preparation called Sri Lankan Paruppu Kari.

Location: Paris, France

Laura @ The Spiced Life loves her legumes. She sent in this beautiful Sabzi Dhan Shak (Parsi Spicy Squash & Legume Stew). Laura writes "Dhan Shak is a A famous Bombay dish, made unique by its use of Parsi dhanajeera powder, this lentil, mung bean and split pea stew is thick with veggies and fragrant with spices".

Location: SW Ohio, USA

The second entry from Lubna @ Yummy Food arrived in my inbox a few days later. It is Idli - A South Indian Delight. Do visit her blog for some interesting information on this all-time favourite dish from the Southerns states of India!!

Lisa @ Lisa's Kitchen writes, "One of my favorite beans is the versatile oval-shaped whole green mung bean. Particularly easy to digest, especially when soaked overnight, cooked along with some spices and vegetables, this mildly sweet little legume can easily be transformed into an entree that will quell thoughts of a decadent dessert". Lisa sends in Mung Beans with Mixed Vegetables.

Location: London, Ontario, Canada

Sra @ When My Soup Came Alive has recently acquired a new Bengali cookbook!! From this cookbook comes a recipe Legumes, And a Bit of Cheese - which is quite simply a mildly spiced but heavy dal. Sra says she tried this recipe "because the combination of paneer, potatoes and moong dal is intriguing and piqued my curiosity".


Middle-Eastern cuisine has captured the hearts of Bird's Eye View and her family! Writing @ Food and Laughter Sra says she happily discovered delights of ME cooking when visiting friends in New york. Now ME fare is as much a part of her cooking as any other. Here she has prepared Hummus to share with us at MLLA 12.



A tasty, healthy, and filling snack is coming our way courtesy of Aparna @ My Diverse Kitchen. Aparna notes that a delicious combination of chickpea flour and fenugreek leaves is all it takes to prepare these yummy looking Methi Muthias - Steamed Fenugreek Leaves!


Priyanka of Asankhana blog prepared a breakfast treat with a platter of Moong Dal Chila, and served it with tangy home-made mango pickle!! A perfect and satisfying breakfast.

Join me at my next post for more from My Legume Love Affair: 12th Helping!!

All content, text, and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007-2010. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

The Daring Cooks: Challenges 1 & 2

So here I am finally. When I joined the Daring Cooks in the footsteps of the Daring Bakers a few months ago, I had no idea summer would turn out so busy!! I did manage to complete both challenges in time periods specified, but got nowhere close to uploading my successes to this blog. A little window today has allowed me to do the needful:)


The very first Challenge presented to the Daring Cooks was Zuni Ricotta Gnocchi. The recipe looked fabulous, but as I hardly use eggs in cooking, I decided to create my own version of the same!! I followed all the instructions as provided by the recipe, but replaced the eggs with some beaten rice which I soaked in water for half a day, drained, and then mashed thoroughly. I also substituted tarragon leaves for the sage.


The Challenge for this month was Chinese Dumplings/Potstickers also known as Gyoza in Japanese. This was a great recipe and as I often make steamed dumplings at hoe it was easy and quick too. For the filling, I used my usual vegetarian recipe which included finely chopped carrot, mushrooms, spring onions, zucchini, ginger, blanched bok choi, and bamboo shoots. Rest went as suggested by Jen!! Hope everyone who has joined the Daring Cooks enjoyed these challenges as much as I did.

All text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2009. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

Announcing My Legume Love Affair: Twelfth Helping

A big hello to all my foodie friends out there. I am back after a bit of a sabbatical. Its been a busy two months, though I am happy to say fruitful ones :)


This month I begin with taking the baton from Lori @ Taste with the Eyes to announce a food event I simply adore - My Legume Love Affair. Created by the indomitable Susan @ The Well-Seasoned Cook, this event has become amongst one of the most popular in the foodie blogosphere. Indeed, it is my singular privilege this month to host MLLA - 12th Helping from June 1, 2009 to June 30, 2009!!

A legume for this particular event could be any beans, lentils, pulses, and/or the sometimes edible pods that contain these seeds - derivative products like tofu which is made from soy are welcome, as are leafy plants like alfalfa and fenugreek that are botanically classified as legumes!!

I would like to welcome all legume lovers to join me in participating in this event. Create and post your favourite and/or most delicious recipe that features legumes as the key ingredient. Email the entry to me at: annarasa@gmail.com along with your name, name of your blog, the link to your legume dish, and a short description of your creation. I do have one request though. This is a vegetarian blog, and so I would be happy to welcome all vegetarian recipes.

The many regular participants to MLLA, of course, know the rules governing this food event. For newbies whose enthusiasm I hope to whet, here are a few essential guidelines:

• You are welcome to send in as many recipes as you like.
• You can send in recipes that you might have submitted to other events also.
• Any recipes from your archives can be accepted ONLY if they are updated and re posted especially for this event. Please do not send in links to an old post.
• Non-bloggers are welcome to join in. Just send in your recipe to me with a photograph if you have one and all details mentioned above, and I will add it to the round-up. Your recipes will be eligible to enter the prize offered by Susan in the random drawing.
• If you would like your foodie colleagues and friends to know where you are located, you can add your City, Country to your entry. This is entirely your choice.
• It would be lovely if your entry is accompanied with a photograph. Preferred size of photograph: 350 pixels wide.
• Do describe your creation - just a couple lines telling us about the recipe you have chosen to enter into MLLA this June.
• And don't forget to link your entry this announcement and to Susan's host line-up @ My Legume Love Affair- Host Lineup.
• Susan has created a lovely badge for MLLA - 12th Helping. Show it off on to your post.

Last, but not least, there is a delightful prize for a single winning entry to MLLA 12th Helping. As always the winner will be chosen via a random drawing and the prize selected by Susan for this month's winner is a Ritz 5-Piece Egyptian Flat Kitchen Towel Set. The choice of colour of the kitchen towels will be the winner's but do note that this will also depend on the colour availability at the time. Finally, though multiple recipes are permitted, only one submission per person will be counted towards the prize drawing. The roundup will be posted in the 1st week of July - I will announce a date for this towards the end of the month.

All text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2009. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake - A Daring Baker's Challenge

The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.

This month has been extremely hectic for me - in fact I have not been able to update my blog at all:( But I did do the DB Challenge and here is the result.


My version is eggless and has a hint of citrus flavour - as I added pure lemon juice into it. Deliciously tart with fresh sweet oranges on the side!!

All text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.