Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Oat Bran Muffin (Egg Free)

Oat bran is the edible, outermost layer of the oat grain. Like oatmeal, oat bran contains a good amount of heart healthy soluble fiber. It also contains a considerable amount of minerals including magnesium, copper and manganese. Just as with oatmeal, oat bran is also said to help in reducing cholesterol and is said to help in stabilizing blood sugar.

For a while now I have been wanting to use more bran in my diet. During my last visit to the health store I finally picked up both oat bran and wheat bran intending to use them in my baking. Initially I started using oat bran in small quantities in my yeast breads. Then I moved on to using it in muffins. This muffin is the first kind that I made with so much bran and I have to admit, I was a little wary about the texture of the muffin. But the muffin turned out to be very soft,not too chewy and definitely not very dense either.This is a pretty filling muffin because of the fiber in it and would make for a good option for breakfast on the go, or a travel snack too. If you have some oat bran lying around in your pantry, give this one a try and tell me what you think:-)

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Ingredients and Method to make Oat Bran Muffins
Dry Ingredients
1 cup oat bran
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup plump dark raisins

Wet Ingredients
3 tbsp flax seed meal (alsi powder/ali virai)  + 9 tbsp water
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp orange extract

Pre heat oven to 375 deg F. Line a muffin tray with muffin liners and keep aside.

In a large bowl add all the dry ingredients, mix well and keep aside.

In a small bowl whisk flax seed meal and water until it becomes gelatinous. Let sit for a couple of minutes, then add oil to it and mix well.
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Add this mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. Add milk to this mixture and mix gently. Finally  add orange extract, mix well.

Spoon mixture into the lined muffin tray until it is 3/4th full. Place in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until it turns golden and a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean.

Remove, cool and enjoy. Store in an airtight container and use up within a couple of days for freshest taste.
Yielded approximately 10 regular sized muffins.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Quinoa Mung Dosai (Savory India crepes)

Although I  have used quinoa in everything from  cutlet to spice powder to potato curry and even in a cookie:-), still dosai (savory Indian crepes) remains my most favorite way to include quinoa in our diet. Not only because quinoa tastes excellent in dosais but also because quinoa lends a nice crispiness to the dosai and I love crispy dosai, especially if I can achieve that with very, very little oil  :-)

This time I combined quinoa and mung bean lentil and used cumin seeds, green chilies and ginger to add flavor to the dosai. The dosai tasted delicious even on its own and the only reason I served it with sambar was so that I could get in some additional vegetables and protein that way :-) This dosai is quick and tasty, does not need fermentation and works very well for a light dinner or as a snack/ tiffin or even for breakfasts. If quinoa is new to you, do check out this post to know more about quinoa and its health benefits.

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Ingredients and Method to make Quinoa Mung dosai
1 1/2 cups quinoa
1/2 cup raw rice
3/4 cup split mung lentil (mung dhal)
1 inch piece of ginger
5 Thai or Indian variety green chilies (or to taste)
3/4 tsp cumin seeds
salt to taste
sesame oil as required to shallow fry the dosais

Soak the first three ingredients in a large bowl with sufficient water for about 3 hours.

Drain the soaked ingredients and grind in batches with cumin, green chilies and just enough water into a smooth batter. Add salt to taste to the batter and mix well.  The batter should not be too thick or too runny, in case of doubt err on the side of a thicker batter, you can always add more water later to achieve correct consistency.
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When making dosa, heat a flat pan/ tawa/ griddle on medium heat. Pour a little batter on the center of the pan and quickly spread into a thin circle.

Add a few drops of sesame oil around the circumference of the dosa. Cook until the lower side turns evenly golden, then flip over and cook the other side until it gets light brown spots on it.

Remove and serve hot with sambar/ chutney of choice/ molaga podi (spice powder) or even have it on its own, it  tastes pretty delicious :-)

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