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My doctor sister, her husband and kids are here visiting from sunny California.  My husband and I headed to my sis-in-law and brother’s home yesterday, in fact my entire family got together at their place to hang with my doctor sister and family.  My brother made us all (17 of us… including kids), sushi.  Yeah, that is a laborious job for 1 person, but he loves to cook and host, REGARDLESS he was nice enough to stand there for two hours making us sushi while the rest of us stood around chatting up a storm drinking Pinot Noir.  Now whoever said men don’t step into the kitchen?  This ain’t the 1950s anymore, my brother who is overly qualified in his career, does!  Before I speak any further nice things about him, I am POSITIVE his wife and kids chopped up all the veggies for him, he really did the fun part.  ๐Ÿ™‚  In any case, from all of us, THANKS BITS & GINS, for an awesome dinner at The Bear Lodge!  LOL!!! (inside joke) LOLLLLLLLLLL!
Today was a looooooooooonng and exhausting day at work, it was crazy and chaotic.  I seriously don’t feel my job is suitable for me anymore, the stress level is pretty high and I’m at a different stage in my life, but luckily by the end of the day I was the shining star… GO ME!  In any case, I was pretty happy my work issues were resolved and the weekend was finally here. 
Speaking of the weekend, tomorrow my family, husband, and I are headed down to the Jersey Shore… OH YEAH, BABY!  I can’t wait!  This is an opportunity I have passed on for the last 11 years with my family because I was single and now I’m really looking forward to spending quality time with them at the beach.  So thanks to my husband, I’m finally hittin’ the Jersey Shore.  Additionally, I’m so looking forward to having walnut fudge and beach pizza, YOU KNOW, the hot thin slices dripping with oil and the cheese simply melts in your mouth, actually that sounds like New York pizza, too, but beach pizza tastes different.  OMG, I’ll be in heaven!  I’m super excited!  I’ll tell you guys all about my beach adventure at the Jersey Shore when I return!

On that note, I leave you with Dhaniya Baingan which is brinjals cooked in a cilantro paste… I invented this based off of my Brinjal Fry recipe and it was delicious!  My hubby loved it, too!

NUTRITION: Brinjals are a very good source of Fiber and Vitamin B1.

INGREDIENTS:

Cilantro Paste:

  • Garlic – 1 clove
  • Ginger – 1/2 inch piece
  • Green Chilies – 2
  • Fresh Cilantro – handful
  • Water – 2 tbsp (just to get the grinder/blender going)

Brinjal Recipe:

  • Olive Oil – 2 tbsp
  • Nigella Seeds (Kalonji) – 1/2 tsp
  • Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp
  • Turmeric Powder – 1/2 tsp
  • Medium Onion – 1 (sliced)
  • Brinjals – 10 (sliced… demonstrated below)
  • Red Chili Powder – 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp (start with 1/2)
  • Coriander Powder – 1 tsp
  • salt to taste

DIRECTIONS:
1. Slice a medium onion.

2. Heat a pan on medium heat.  When hot, add oil.  Add nigella and cumin seeds.  Saute until they sizzle… about 15-20 seconds.

3. Once they sizzle, add turmeric powder.  Saute about 5 seconds.

4. Now add the sliced onions.  Season with salt.  Combine.  Saute about 5-8 minutes until they are golden.

5. Now make the cilantro paste.  Here is what you’ll need.

6. Add the ingredients from step #5 to a Magic Bullet / Blender.  You may need to add a little bit of water to enable blending. 

7. This is how the onions should look.

8. Add the cilantro paste.  Combine.  Cook for about 5 minutes.

9. Now get your brinjals.

10. Slice them as follows…

11. Once done, check on the onions, this is how the onion-cilantro mixture should look.

12. Now add the sliced brinjals, 1/2 tsp of red chili powder, coriander powder, and salt. 

13. Combine.  Lower heat to dial #3 (low-medium heat).

14. Cover and cook for 25 minutes.  Keep checking and stirring in between to avoid burning.

15. After 25 minutes, this is what you should have.  Trust me, it tastes better than it looks.  ๐Ÿ™‚

16. I added a little salt and another 1/2 tsp of red chili powder for more spice.  Goes really well with roti/naan/rice, hope you love it!

Hi, I'm Nisha!

A foodie passionate about bringing authentic Indian recipes and global flavors to your kitchen. I create dishes using simple, real ingredients, and seasonal produce. Join me on this soul-searching journey as I share "what's cooking" through my love for good food. I hope to inspire you to cook more at home, explore new flavors, and enjoy the process along the way.


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