Dal is a very important dish in the Indian cuisine, and every household had different variations of dals. Sometime we enjoy plain dal and sometimes tadka dal with some veggies in our every day meals.Today i would like to share a very simple, easy, and very healthy recipe, Dal Palak. Palak/spinach has a lot of health benefits and has a beautiful color. Many dishes can be prepared using palak like curries, parathas, koftas, cutlets, pakoras, kababs and so on. Some times we can use palak puree to give a natural green color to our recipes. This recipe utilizes two types of dal: toor dal and moong dal. You are free to add one or both of them. The boiled dal is cooked along with spinach, garlic and other spices, which gives it an aromatic smell, and taste. Dal palak is best served with plain rice or roti.
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Dry Coconut Garlic Chutney
India has many street foods which are popular across the nation. Dabele, vada pav and pav bhajji are some of the most popular and are primarily from Maharashtra. Vada pav is prepared with batata vada (deep fried spicy potato balls/patty) with Pav and three types of chutney. Vada pav is incomplete without garlic chutney and people demand it when they buy Vada pav. This chutney is a dry and spicy, prepared with dry roasted coconut, garlic, chili and spices. Traditionally this chutney is prepared using garlic clove with skin however if you don’t like it, you can peel it. This simple chutney can be stored for 2 to 3 weeks in an airtight container when refrigerated.
Batata Vada ( Aloo Bonda)
Batata Vada (Aloo Bonda) is a very famous fast food in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Batata means nothing but potato. This recipe is very easy to prepare. Boiled and mashed potato is first saute’d with coriander, mint leaves, chili and ginger paste then deep fried after coating it with gram flour batter. It can be served as a snack directly, and can also be used to make popular vada pav when served with pav, mint-coriander, dry garlic and tamarind chutney. There is a slightly different version of batata vada in Gujarat where the mashed potato is mixed with green chilies, coriander leaves, and garlic paste and deep fried with gram flour batter. Enjoy batata vada with a hot cup of tea. 
Veggie Quinoa Uttapam
Uttapam is a well know South Indian breakfast dish which belongs to the dosa family. Generally most of the dosa’s are thin and crispy however; uttapam is thick and soft similar to pancakes. The batter for preparing any kind of dosa is the same however; the cooking process is different for different kinds of dosas. Uttapam is generally topped with vegetables like onions, tomatos and carrots and served with coconut chutney and sambhar. The batter for regular uttapam is prepared using 1 cup of urad daal and 3 cups of idli rice, however; in this recipe I have used red rice, quinoa, yellow moog daal and red poha to prepare the batter. This is slightly different than traditional uttapam and gives a different taste and texture to it. You can add your favorite veggies and the healthy uttapam is a perfect breakfast and after school snacks for kids.
Sweet Potato & Carrot Soup
Soup, generally used as an appetizer in Indian cuisines comes in variety of flavors based on ingredients. There are soups with ingredients such a lentil, tomato, beans, chicken and so on. The Chinese noodle soups are a entree rather than an appetizer. The two main kind of soups are clear and thick soups. This thick soup is prepared using sweet potato and carrot as main ingredients. It has beautiful red-orange color of carrot & beetroot, naturally sweetened by sweet potato and has hint of spices. This healthy and delicious soup is easy to prepare and best served with garlic bread and croutons. This is a favorite in my family and I keep getting demands for making this very often. 
Rosemary Chicken Breast
Rosemary is a aromatic herb which is also used for food flavoring. It is mostly used in bread, grilled fish, meat or chicken due to it’s piney fragrance and pungent flavor. To prepare the Grilled Rosemary chicken, first you need to marinate chicken with rosemary, pepper powder, garlic, chili, salt and lemon juice overnight. After that you can either grill it inside oven or on a griddle. Lemon and rosemary put together gives a nice flavor and aroma to the recipe. It’s bests served with stir fried veggies and wheat berries or rice. I personally love the fragrance of rosemary. Prepare this recipe for your family and friends in Thanksgiving break and have great time together.
Beet Greens Rice Roll
Leafy vegetables like spinach, mustard, kale or beet root are very healthy and everyone should add them as part of their meal plan on daily basis. This recipe is inspired from Japanese Sushi although completely vegetarian and a different texture. The recipe is very easy to prepare basically just saute beet greens with garlic and roll it into brown rice. When served with red beans sauce it tastes amazing. I have used brown rice however you can use any other rice whichever you like. The rolls can also be served with fried yellow daal and it tastes awesome with that too. The green beets can also be just eaten with Rice, Paratha or Roti. Add this recipe as part of you lunch or dinner and enjoy!
Oats lentil Pancake
Oats Lentil Pancake is a dish which can be used for breakfast or brunch. Unlike regular pancakes which is generally sweet, this recipe is salty and spicy. It is also more are less similar to Indian set dosa. Oats and Lentils are really good for health and adding them to your food routine would give you good health benefits. As the name suggest the main ingredient for this recipe is oats and any kind of lentil based on your liking. I have used yellow moong lentil for this recipe. Oats Lentil Pancake can be served with naturally colorful corn & avocado salsa and tomato beetroot chutney. You can also serve it with coconut or peanut chutney.