Sundal - Chickpea Snack

Sundal is a quick and easy snack that can be made with just a few ingredients where the prime item is cooked garbanzo or chickpea. It can also serve as a nutritious and tasty addition to any salad. 

This is also a traditional dish made as a temple offering in south Indian temples when it is made without onions, garlic etc.

The recipe that we will list here includes onions, which adds a nice "kick" to it.

Ingredients:

1. Garbanzo beans (soaked overnight, boiled and strained) - 2 cups
Easy: Use canned beans!

2. Garam masala OR 
sambar powder OR
turmeric, red pepper flakes, cumin seeds (light crushed in mortar pestle), asafoetida 

3. Onions - 1/2 cup - chopped.

4. Vegetable oil or butter or any standard vegetable oil. - 1 Tbsp.

5. Mustard seeds - black or brown mustard seeds. 1-2 tsp.

Optional items but these make it taste superb!!

4. Green chilis, Cilantro - small amount (2-3 chilis, 5-10 small leaves cilantro) chopped fine.

5. Coconut flakes - unsweetened <<-- do NOT use sweetened flakes, read labels carefully!

6. Flax seeds or flax meal.  1 tbsp

7. Lemon or lime juice/wedge.

Instructions

This is a general procedure with most "curry" recipes.

1. Cook chickpeas or use can. Open the can, use a strainer basket and rinse the chickpeas from the can in at least 1-2 cups cold water. let it drain.

2. Add oil or butter to a dry skillet/wok and heat to medium heat for 2 mins. Add mustard seeds. If you have a mesh splatter screen cover skillet with that as mustard seeds tend to "pop". Once mustard seeds have popped, add flax seeds, let them brown a bit.

You can add asafoetida powder now (or if  using just garam masala or sambar powder then wait)

3. Add onions now, saute for a min or two. 

4. Now add masala powder, salt and turmeric to the onion, mix slightly. 

4b. Add coconut flakes (optional step). Stir it around for a minute. Add green chilis or red pepper if present.

5. Add the chickpeas now, stir around for 2-3 minutes. Switch off heat.

6. Add the chopped cilantro leaves. Mix in.

7. Serve into plates or bowls and provide a lemon wedge or spritz some lime juice directly. OR use as salad topping.

Egg Veggie Cups

I call them Egg Veggie cups, some others call them egg muffins.  Eggs make for great breakfast material. If you want to have a protein-rich breakfast low in carbs, then go for these egg "muffins" - You can make them from few ingredients and they form an easy bite to gran for busy mornings.

   

 Ingredients
Eggs - 10 (you can also use egg whites alone or remove a certain no of yolks to adjust for color/cholesterol preferences). - break the eggs into a bowl, whisk them lightly.
Onions - chopped to 1/4 inch or fine.
Red bell peppers - chopped fine.
Spinach - chopped up.
Green chilis (for a spicy kick) - chopped fine Optional.
Cheese - shredded cheese - optional.
Cilantro leaves for seasoning.- chopped fine.

In addition to these you can also add chopped broccoli or carrots.

  

So.. how did the final product come out? Wait till the end!

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Saute the vegetables in a skillet and season with cilantro and keep ready. Onions first, peppers/carrots/broccoli  next, Add green chilis after the onions, add the spinach last and do not sautee for more than 3 mins total.
3. Grease the muffin pan or baking pan with thin layer of oil or cooking spray.
4. Add a spoonful of sauteed vegetables to each muffin cup.
5. Pour tablespoon of the whisked egg mixture so that the muffin cup is 1/3rd to1/2 filled.
6. Sprinkle cheese and load tray into preheated oven. 
7. Bake for 20-25 mins or until eggs are set. 
8. Take out pan, and after letting pan cool a bit, use a spoon to press the baked egg from the circumference at 3-4 points, then it will release more easily and come out.
9. Allow to cool and store in refrigerator (4-5 days) or freeze.
10. To reheat, wrap in foil and heat in a toaster over for 4-5 mins or use skillet. Microwave might make it soggy but you can do it as last resort heating technique.

Speed/Laz-E tip: 1) Use liquid eggs
2) Use assorted frozen vegetabes, microwave them then lightly saute them in a pan over a spoon of oil.

  

If you dont like to deal with muffin pans..you can make them in a larger pan and cut into rectangular blocks or be creative - cut them to different shapes using cookie cutting tools or other shapes.

Update (/1/201) - See also this site: http://www.macheesmo.com/breakfast-sandwiches/