Vegetable Korma!

Over the years of my stay in USA, of the many good things that happened, one is - me learning to cook, atleast to a level that it is acknowledged by my friends and clients.
Graduating from making Omlette and Dhal, now we are very conversant with Sambar, Korma and Kuzhambu and their variants!

Of these I wanted to especially document Cauliflower-cashew korma and Fish curry. Fish curry has been already documented in a boring 2 part youtube video spanning approx 25 mins. When the video was just about to go viral in the internet as Sulekha.com embedded that video in their website, i just protected the video to maintain a low profile :-). So in this blog I better document the Cauliflower-cashew korma.
This recipe is a modified version of a recipe I found in the internet.

Ingredients
Cauliflower - 1/2
Carrots - 4
Peas - 1/4 cups
Oil - Sunflower oil or Olive oil
Onions - 1
Tomatoes - 2
Garlic - 4 cloves
Tamarind paste - 1/2 teaspoon
Cashews - 3/4 cups
Salt
Mustards
Red chillies - 3

Preparation:
1. Wash the cashews and soak them in cold water for an hour
2. Cut cauliflowers and Carrots and boil them in a low heat until cauliflower and carrots become tender. We did this in a cooker with a loosely closed lid (not pressure cooked)
3. Grind the the cut onions, cut tomatoes and all the cut garlic cloves with cumin powder and salt in a blender with very little water just enough to make a paste.
4. Pour oil in the pan just enough to form a layer on it and heat the pan.
5. Once the pan gets hot, add 3 red chillies, Mustards
6. Pour the paste in the pan and saute.
7. By now if the carrots and cauliflower had become tender add some peas to it. After a few minutes you can mix the tamarind paste in water and add it to the boiling vegetables.
8. Grind the cashews in the blender and pour it over the sautee and keep sauting.
7. Add the boiled vegetables to it and let it boil.
8. Grind grated cocunut in a blender with some salt, a little turmeric and little chilli powder and pour it over the boiling mix.
9. Let it boil in low flame for 10 mins and the Veg korma should be ready!

ETA - a little more than an hour!
Taste - Amazing!! The cashews add a creamy flavour to the korma.


This curry goes well with rice, Chapathi, Idly or Dosa.

For questions and ingredient substitutes or suggestions...pls leave a comment.

DMV again!

I've always had memorable experiences at DMV (refer shanatkc.blogspot.com)

It is nearly 2 years since I moved to TX from Kansas, but i was holding on to my KS licence (without transferring it to a TX one) all this time for a couple of reasons.

1. I was told if i get my licence in TX, it is going to have an note saying that I am on a temporary work Visa. It will include my Visa expiration date as well which is not too far. Whereas my KS licence had an expiration date in 2014 which i thought was cool.

2. A more important reason, i like my pic on my KS drivers licence.

Technically speaking, i am supposed to transfer my licence within 30 days of my move to TX. However, I've not had any issues using KS licence (even though i've been pulled over by cops for either speeding or warning my headlamp isn't working...no one had any concern of me using the KS licence)
A couple of weeks back, my insurance called me and told me that I'll have to get a TX licence or else they are not going to renew my insurance.
So, I was finally at the DMV office on a Tuesday evening waiting for my token number to be called.
"Licence", a lady in her late 50s asked me at counter 3.
I provided my Kansas licence.
"Registration and social security card"
I gave that too... The lady turned aside, adjusted her specs and started typing on her computer. For some reason, she resembled my business user, a tough person. Not a good feeling!
She gave my registration and SS card back and asked me to pose for a pic...flash! Wished it came out as good as it was in my KS licence.
"Twenty five dollars please"
I then remembered that the DMV will take only cash and that I didn't have any.
"Do you accept card?"
"No. Cash or cheque only"
She told me to come back with cash and that I'll have to get a token again, wait in the queue. It was already 4.40 p.m and they close at 5.
Switched on my GPS, and relying on it to get me to the nearest bank. 'Bank of America in .9 miles'. Should be back in no time. It routed me to the highway. Not right. It apparently was routing to a Bank of America close to my home (not close to my current location). I can't make it to the bank in time. I then realized I'm on a highway without any licence. I should turn back to DMV to get my licence. Struck in traffic, i recollected sweet memories my GPS had given me in various trips including my trip to Canada which was not planned.
It was 5.10 when I reached DMV.
"The door is locked" a mexican lady pulling the DMV door told her mom.
Her mom then tried, it still wouldn't open. Then again, but with a little more force. Still no.
I approached the security guard who was lowering the flag. I told him that the DMV is having my licence and I need that back. He took me in through a side door.
My 'business user' to whom I spoke an hour back couldn't remember me. Then finally she recollected, "you are the one with H1 visa", thankfully not a comment on my name.
"We can't complete the transaction now, we are closed", she snapped.
"That's fine, i can come back tomorrow. But can I have my license back"
"We've shredded it" she said calmly.
"What?" felt bad and angry as my nice pic on my KS license is shredded.
"We shred all our documents by our end of the day"
"So, should I drive today without a licence" i wanted my license back.
She started thinking as this was a legal question to which she has to answer responsibly..."Well, in Texas you need to have a license to drive"
Then thoughtfully she went to a back room and came back after a few minutes.
"Sorry I can't find your license. There is a stack of documents, it will take time. Please come tomorrow"
As I left, she again said "sorry about that"
They ideally should have given my license back if the transaction couldn't be completed at that time. A feeling of guilt that they made me drive without a license must have haunted them, because they called me up an hour later (when I was in Walmart) and told me that they found my license. This time she made fun of my name. She said she can wait for half hour more if I am coming over to collect it or I could come the next day. I chose to come the next day.
Next day (today) at 8 in the morning.
"I came yesterday for transferring my Kansas license.." before I could complete my sentence, the person in the front desk stood up and escorted me with all respect. The rest of the crowd was watching me as I skipped the token system and the long wait and went to the counter. Every one in DMV office whom I had met yesterday, greeted me and the ones I didn't meet yesterday also knew about me. The thought that they made me drive without a license for a day, must have bothered them all.
"We will mail your TX license in 4 weeks..till then this is your temporary license" the person at the counter gave me my temp license.
I was in and out of DMV in 5 minutes. As I looked at my pic in the temporary license, i thought 'Not bad' :-)