Snack Attack

“Snack attack” sounds scary, right? But it’s the reality that every mother has faced. Be it exam season or vacation, it’s very typical for kids to get hunger pangs. And many moms feel lost as to what do I give them. A mother has to face the struggle of making a choice between healthy options, kids favorite and popular snacks. And from my experience I know that it is difficult.

As much as I would like to hand my kid a packet of “Lotte Choco Pie”, (and it’s the easiest option right? Total win-win) I know that I should do it as less as possible. Then what can I do to handle this situation?

One of the things I found is very effective is making certain rules. For example, I don’t bring chips, kurkure category items home. They can be enjoyed when we are on vacation. Also, I make sure there is minimum 1 fruit serving. Also maintain a variety and get seasonal fruits. A great way to do is to freeze some of these fruits and use it in smoothies. Making some of the popular dishes at home is also a great choice. This way we can control what goes in it and also the kids eats fresh food.

The other thing that has helped me is to get my kid involved in cooking. This is the best way to ensure that the kid learns to make a better choice. More often than not she is likely to reach for museli or banana or grapes. That’s what we want.

       Having said that here are a few snack ideas which are easy, nutritious and can be altered to the liking of your child.  These can be changed based on what you have on hand and what your child likes. For example, I make home-made granola using peanut butter and cocoa. I am happy because it has oats (sometime I use other grain flakes also. Quaker oats plus) and my kids loves the flavor.

1. Peanut butter banana sandwich - spread peanut butter on bread, add a layer of ripe banana slices, protein rich snack

2. Apple pie sandwich – Here is the link to the recipe on my blog. I took inspiration from an episode of Masterchef Australia.

3. Banana choco smoothie - peel and cut a ripe banana into 4 pieces and deep frreze for 2 hours, take 1 cup milk in mixer and 2 pieces of frozen banana ( 1/2 banana) and 1 tbsp of chocolate syrup. Blend, thick yummy smoothie ready.

4. Microwave bread pudding - cut a slice of bread into small pieces. Beat 1 egg, 1/2 cup milk and 2 tsp sugar. Add bread pieces to a microwave safe bowl. Pour egg mixture, let it sit for 15-20 minutes. Microwave 2 min + 2 min + 1/2 min

5. Quesadilla - spread grated cheese on half part of chapati, spread a layer of any veggie or cooked chicken pieces or boiled egg pieces,  spread another thin layer of cheese and fold the other half. Cook on non-stick pan till crisp. 

6. Add veggies like sweet corn, carrot and green peas to their favorite Maggie.

7. Make a wrap with scrambled eggs and a slice of cheese. 

8. Make a microwave mug cake using equal parts Ragi and regular flour. Recipe here.

9. Make sprout chaat or sprout parfait (Recipe here)

10. Keep baked khakra, flavored yogurt and roasted peanuts

Salt to Taste

I have heard chefs and cooks (what’s the difference anyways?) talk about adding salt to taste to the dish. With a deep interest in cooking, this term has always confused me. What does it mean “to taste” and how do I know it?

         When cooking any dish, I always worried about getting the salt levels right. What if I forgot to add salt or add too much? Trying to understand the line between just right and too much salt, I realized that this is not a thin line that you have to balance on. It is a pretty thick one and the width changes from one dish to the other and one ingredient to the other. I will explain myself.

         About 16 years back I was on a salt less diet for 5 weeks. You would think that this would be tough but its not if you eat the right things. I found that eggs don’t really need salt and over the years I have developed a taste for my eggs (sunny side up, scrambled or omlette) to have less or no salt at all. I think it brings out the flavor much better. All your leafy greens like spinach (palak), fenugreek (methi), amaranth leaves (chawali greens) have their own salty flavor and don’t need added salt unless you are adding other ingredient like potato, daal or chickpea flour (besan).

         Any preparation which uses curd/yogurt/dahi as a base needs very little salt and can be too salty very easily. So spare the salt for raitas and curd based gravies. The same goes when you are using any cheese in the preparation, go light on the salt.

         There are also ways about when is the right time to add salt to a prepation. Here are a few things I have learnt over the years. When marinating fish always add salt and let it marinate with salt. If you use the fish in a gravy add salt to adjust the flavor towards the end of cooking. When marinating meat (chicken, mutton) add salt to marinade if you are making a dry preparation like kebab or roast. For gravies, add salt once all the main ingredients for the gravy, including meat, are added and then let it cook. Check for salt towards the end of cooking and adjust.

         For veggies that wilt and lose a lot of volume during cooking, like palak and bhendi, add salt towards the end of cooking. For lentils, never add salt while they are cooking. Adding salt during cooking makes their skins tough and they wont cook well. Add salt in the last minute or so and mix. Only exception to this is chickpeas or chole. This is where you add salt while pressure cooking it and then later adjust in the gravy.

Tricky ones are like upma or pohe or any paratha dough. If you don’t add salt just at the right point, then very difficult to adjust it later. How many times have I asked myself to confirm about adding salt and still had to eat final dish without salt, huh!! And then there is the classic case of too many cooks. :) 

         Now to western cooking. When cooking pasta you have to add ample salt to the boiling water. This is the only chance for the pasta itself to salt. Final taste adjustment can be done in the sauce. Cooking potatoes for mashed potato or baking them, add salt right at start. Potatoes need salt. Any baking, specially cookies, cake, cupcakes add just ½ tsp of salt and brings out all the flavours.

         One thing I have to admit, I am guilty of not tasting the dish as it cooks. I can eyeball the salt required but never taste it myself. Thanks to my family members who are always ready to give a “Taste test” while still cooking. It is only now that I have started tasting it myself and hope I improve.

So much for salt and getting it right  Let me know your experiences about salt and we can learn from each other. Until next time, bye.