Amazon Peppertrail.com Category:  Cooking/Food/Wine Publisher: iUniverse Inc. ISBN-10:  0595409768 Type: Non-Fiction Pages: 364 Copyright: January 8, 2007 ISBN-13: 9780595409761 Grains, Greens, and Grated Coconuts is a collection of treasured memories and delicious family recipes presented against a backdrop of Indian culinary and cultural history. This book introduces a delicious, varied, yet surprisingly approachable cuisine in its cultural context. Augmented with an extensive bibliography and a comprehensive glossary that provides the origins and history of each grain and spice, the book is a wonderful guide to cooking with herbs and spices. The ancient spice trade, which drew European explorers to southwest India and left an indelible imprint on this cuisine, made Kerala India’s wealthiest and most cosmopolitan region; this subject and more of the area’s colorful past is the subject of a historical chapter. Familiar with Western cooking methods, Ramachandran shows how to integrate these recipes into a Western-style menu and suggests ways for home cooks to expand their repertoire without having to create an entire menu of dishes. Culinary historians and home cooks alike will enjoy Ramachandran’s treasured stories and recipes in Grains, Greens, and Grated Coconuts. Excerpt Morning begins before sunrise in India. I still remember, from my childhood in lush, tropical Kerala in southwestern India, the sounds of a large joint-family household coming alive before daybreak. I could hear the clatter of brass pots and copper pans being washed and the rhythmic creak of the granite grinding stone pureeing coconut and green chilies for fresh chutney. Temple bells rang in the distance, announcing predawn prayers. The fragrance from the wood-burning stoves and the aroma of fresh decoction coffee permeated the entire house. Soon, the sizzle of dosa batter falling on the hot griddle would entice everyone to get up and get ready for breakfast. From Introduction

Translating India, Sometimes Fluently -The New York Times
By ANNE MENDELSON
Published: July 18, 2007

"ANY American cook who longs to plunge deeply into the cuisine of India is bound to grow impatient with the cookbooks offered by major United States publishers. Wonderful though many of those books are, their scope looks awfully limited stacked up against the riches now found in the innumerable grocery shops and restaurants that the Indian diaspora has brought here.

But mainstream cookbook publishers are no longer the only game in town. Thanks to globalization and new technologies, Americans now have access to a surprising range of ocean-hopping alternatives. Many Indian-published books show up at shops like Butala Emporium in Jackson Heights, Queens. Even more options are available online and from publishers in other countries.

These off-the-map volumes aren’t for everyone. What is often their greatest virtue is also their most frequent drawback: they rarely get any professional editorial whacking into conventional shape. So they can be rich in originality and insight but amateurish in design, writing style or — among the recipes — decipherability.

Two good illustrations of the trade-offs are “The Calcutta Kitchen,” by Simon Parkes and Udit Sarkhel (Interlink Publishing Group, $29.95), and “Grains, Greens and Grated Coconuts: Recipes and Remembrances of a Vegetarian Legacy,” by Ammini Ramachandran (iUniverse paperback, $23.95). The first roves adventurously around the great port city of its title; the other lovingly recalls the food of its author’s native Kerala state in the far south".

To read the complete review go to:
http://events.nytimes.com/2007/07/18/dining/reviews/18indi.html?ref=dining

Autuer!Autuer! Saveur Magazine, February 2008

Saveur's 2008 Top 100 List
By Nathakie Jordi

"Unfiltered culinary passion seems hard to come in cookbooks these days, which is why we celebrate the new generation of Self Published Cookbooks. By Turns idiosyncratic, contrarian, and often brilliant these indie tomes offer fresh perspectives rarely seen in mainstream publishing"

"Home cooks too, are finding their authorial voice. Ammini Ramamchandran, a Texas based food writer with roots in the Indian state of Kerala, has self published an authoritative cookbook cum memoir, Grains, Greens, and Grated Coconuts, on that region's elaborate, nuanced cuisine..... It is a testament to the power of the DIY ethic".


What a Delicious read - Reder Views Review
Reviewed by Tammy Petty Conrad for Reader Views December 22, 2007

What a delicious read! I have a wonderful collection of cookbooks and the ones I enjoy most are the ones that read like novels. They include stories about the food and people who make the dishes. Even if I never get around to cooking anything included, I appreciate the flavors and tales behind the delicacies shared. This is one of those books.

The author, a native Indian from Kerala in the southwestern part of the country, shares her background and her family’s recipes in such a loving way. She includes not only recipes, but the traditions, history and memories that go with them. I learned about the variety of food in her country and the diversity of recipes available in different regions. I also discovered some interesting historical facts. Having lived in the United Kingdom previously, it was fun to learn how some of the dishes arrived there from India and how they were modified for British palates. Interestingly, the Mulligatawny soup found in London started out much differently in India as molagu thanni!

I took many notes as I read about the author’s childhood and the dishes she remembered most. Paayasam, a type of banana pudding made with plantains and coconut milk, grabbed my attention. Now I know what to do with the plantains I always see at the grocery store looking a bit lonely! This is a vegetarian book, but that is no reason for meat lovers to disregard it. The variety of dishes is amazing.

The author says that “The skill of a traditional cook depends on his or her ability to judge taste with the eyes and nose.” Traditionally you are not allowed to taste a dish while making it. I can’t imagine not taking at least one small taste before serving something to my guests. Or being so attuned to your cooking that you would automatically know by the smell or sight whether it needed adjusting.

The author is also aware that anytime you try a new cuisine you need to take the time to learn about the ingredients and what they are used for, even how you can find them or what you can substitute for them if needed. Chapter Two goes through not only ingredients, but cooking methods and utensils required. At the end of the book, she includes an internet resource list for those who live in areas without available ingredients. She talks about the magic of spices and says that “Understanding spices is the cornerstone of the art of Indian cooking….” One thing I hadn’t thought about was howmuch the flavor of spices can vary from brand to brand and depending on where they are grown. She gives us permission to make adjustments based on our own palates and understands that cooking is a personal venture.

There are so many wonderful recipes to choose from. Mathan Puzukku, pumpkin and red beans with coconut and curry leaves, is a thick curry I can’t wait to try. Anything with coconut grabs my attention like Varuthupperi Kootaan, or fried plantains in coconut yogurt sauce. There is a whole chapter just on puddings. The recipe index is quite helpful as are the menu suggestions.

All that’s left for me to do is make a list and go the new Indian grocery store that just opened in my neighborhood. With “Grains, Greens, and Grated Coconuts,” I will have an adventure in my kitchen and who knows, maybe it will lead me to travel to India and try the dishes first hand someday.