Wheat Upma and a Smoothie

Growing up, upma wasn't my favorite thing - I would normally greet it with some groans and how comes... The exception to this rule was Semia Upma, though it barely made it to our table since my father didn't like it one bit. It's appearance was limited to the few times when he was away on business. But as I grew, so did my tastes and now I like a wide variety of upmas, especially the one made with cracked wheat, mainly because it has a better texture, kind of chewy.





WHEAT UPMA



Ingredients
Cracked Wheat (or Bulgur) - 1 cup
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Tomato - 1/2, chopped
Carrot - 1, chopped
Green Beans - 12-15, chopped
Peas - 1/4 cup
Green Chillies - 5
Garlic - 2 cloves, chopped
Ginger - 1/2 inch piece, chopped
Oil - 1 tsp
Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp
Mustard - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 5
Sambar Powder - 1 tsp

Method:
1. Heat Oil, season with mustard, urad dhal and curry leaves
2. Add onion, garlic, ginger and green chillies. Saute until they soften. Now add tomatoes and salt.
3. Once the tomatoes soften, add the chopped vegetables and sambar powder.
4. Saute them for about 4 to 5 mins. Add 2.5 cups of water and allow to boil.
5. Simmer and cover until the vegetables soften.
6. Add the cracked wheat, cover again and let it cook.

Serve with some coconut chutney or lemon pickle.

I made a Banana Strawberry Smoothie to go with this for our dinner. This is a simple, nutritious, very filling drink. A glass of this before a meal is sure to curb your appetite. The following recipe makes 3 generous 8 oz. servings. You can shake it up by varying the fruit and yogurt.

Banana Strawberry Smoothie




Ingredients
Banana - 1, ripe (frozen works too)
Strawberries - 6 large
Flavoured Yogurt - 1 container (I've used Yoplait Light in this case but anything that you have on hand, else susbstitute with home-made yogurt and some sugar)
Low Fat Milk - 12 oz
Icecubes (optional)
Honey / Sugar - to taste (optional)

Method
1. In a blender, swirl the banana, strawberries and icecubes (if using)
2. Once this is pureed, add the yogurt and milk. Blend again.

That's it - you are done!
Normally I never find the need to add sugar if using the flavoured yogurt but give a taste, add some honey or sugar to taste and blend for a few seconds more.


This is also my entry for creative Ms. Nupur's's A-Z of Indian Vegetables