Indian Breakfast

This one is a favorite weekend breakfast in our home-it's a traditional South Indian breakfast dish. My husband is a "recipe in my head" kind of guy whereas I need everything written down. Well, I had gotten pretty good with this particular recipe, so I decided to "wing it" and see how I did. I did keep the recipe close by just in case. I thought I had everything lined up...
First, get the Indian spice container out and ready (check). Next, chop some red onions (check) and cilantro (check). Get the dried curry leaves ready (check).

Then, I glanced at the recipe for the heck of it, just to be sure I hadn't forgotten anything. I noticed that I had missed the turmeric. So, I grabbed it and added a spoon. The minute I added it I thought: "hmmm...that doesn't look like Turmeric. OMG-it's Tamarind". I added Tamarind instead of Turmeric (both t's, right??. So, I thought I would try to get it by Andy just to see if he noticed. I thought it might be a little tangy but shouldn't be too bad. He immediately noticed the color. So, I told him what I had done. Well, at least he got a good laugh and had fun telling his friend, Sadanand and his father. Thanks Honey! (and by the way, I ate 2 servings and thought it was pretty good, although a little tangy as anticipated).

So, here is the real recipe:

Cracked Wheat Upma

Toast approximately 1 Cup Cracked Wheat in a bit of olive oil and then set aside. Add a couple of rounds of EVOO in saute pan. When oil is hot, add 2 tsp mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds stop popping, add some chana dal, udad dal, cumin, curry leaves, and some green chilis. Add about an inch of ginger, 1 chopped carrot, 1 chopped onion, 1/2 Cup frozen peas and 1 tsp TURMERIC (not tamarind-ha!). Season with salt. When veggies are soft, add 2 Cups hot water and bring to a boil. When boiling, add the wheat and stir rapidly. Cover and turn heat to low. Simmer until water is absorbed. Garnish with cilantro.

The first picture is the finished product. The second one is Turmeric and the third is the Tamarind-I know, how the heck could I confuse those?? Just another day in the life...