Apr 30, 2007

JFI: Greens

Since childhood, my parents have strived and made me eat “Greens”. There was a time when I stayed away from palak, methi, and other green leafy vegetables because of their bitter taste. Mom used to make parathas and puris so that at least some vegetables went in my stomach. So, why did Mom try so much to make me eat these veggies? Here’s the answer:
Green vegetables are rich in Vitamin A and B. They improve your eye-sight and shield you from vision problems. Greens improve your immune system and increase your resistance against diseases. They are Vitamin K found in most greens helps blood coagulation. These are just some of the benefits of eating green vegetables.
As my entry for JFI, I am sending a vegetable that’s a beautiful medley to two of my favorite foods. Palak and Paneer join hands to create Palak Paneer.

Palak Paneer



Ingredients
1.2 large bunches of spinach
2.2 packets of fried paneer
3.2-3 green chillies
4.8-10 garlic cloves
5.3 tbsps oil
6.½ tsp cumin seeds
7.Salt to taste
8.1 tbsp lemon juice
9.4 tbsps fresh cream

Method
1.Remove stems and wash spinach in running water. Blanch in salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove and hold under chilled water. Squeeze out excess water. Remove stems, wash, and roughly chop green chillies.
2.Grind spinach into a fine paste along with the green chillies.
3.Peel, wash, and chop garlic.
4.Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds. When they change color, add garlic and sauté for half a minute. Add the spinach puree and stir. Check seasoning. Add water if required.
5.When the gravy comes to a boil, add the paneer and mix well. Stir in lemon juice. Finally, add fresh cream.
6.Serve hot.

Sending this as my entry for JFI: Greens. JFI has now completed one full year. Though I joined this event very late, I am quite hooked on to it. I find this event entertaining and challenging, yet very sacred at the same time.

Don’t forget to eat greens. After all, Popeye got all his power by eating spinach. Enjoy some funny cartoons:)




Related post: JFI Greens round-up

13 comments:

Bong Mom said...

ha ha good cartoons...as we grow older we appreciate these veggies I guess.
Your palak paneer photo looks lovely

Ayesha Seerin said...

I too had greens aversion as a child .. I even used to wonder how popeye manages to eat so much spinach :-) .. Lovely pics

Lata said...

Looks good. Next time try adding some cashewnuts to get that restaurant taste. My Bhabi is from Kanpur, UP and she taught me the authentic one.

swapna susarla said...

Ha ha ha..
very good example for spinach swapna..

musical said...

i love palak-paneer. May i have some please :) He he.....i know, how elders used to convince us about eating greens, Popeye the sailor :-D Enjoyed reading you post a lot. and those cartoons, i am still laughing.

Roopa said...

looks very Good swapna! yummy my all time favorite!

Sharmi said...

hey the cartoons are great and funny!! nice entry.

Anonymous said...

Hi Swapna, your palak paneer looks delicious! I love all the garlic :)

Great cartoons too -- esp. the last one. I can see myself telling my daughter that ;) Thanks for sharing!

TNL said...

Hello Swapna....

Your recipe is so simple....I love it....using the minimal amount of spices in the spinach is what makes it taste so good....your looks wonderful.

Loved the cartoons too!

trupti

TheCooker said...

Liked the cartoons & loved the recipe.
-TC

Manasi said...

Hi Swaps! An all time fav!! I was a bit finicky abt paneer as a child, I had once eaten one that was rubber! eeewww!
Love the cartoons!

Sia said...

ha ha ha...those cartoons r funny...reminds me of my childhood days when i used to run miles away from eating greens;)

RML said...

Hi swapna,

The cartoons are great and the recipe awesome.U reminded me of my childhood days of running away from greens.But now greens are my favs.
Thanks for sharing
Madhuri