Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Chutney Wale Aloo

Potatoes cut into 2" pieces 3

GREEN SAUCE
fresh coriander chopped 1 cup
pomegrnate powder 1/2 tsp
mint 1/2 cup
salt & sugar 1/2 tsp each

GRAVY
cumin seeds 1tsp
onions ground to paste 2
ginger garlic paste 4 tsp
yoghurt 1 cup
cashewnuts 2 tbsp ground to a paste till smooth
water 1 cup
oil 4tbsp
salt to taste red chilli powder 1 tsp
tomato chopped finely 1
garam masala 1/2 tsp
Peel & wash potatoes. heat oil in akadhai & deep fry over low heat until cooked & light brown in colour. keep aside.
For green sauce, put all ingredients in ablender & make a paste. keep aside.
Grind cashew & yoghurt to asmooth paste.
Heat oil ina kadhai. add cumin seeds, wait for aminute till golden.
Add onion paste, stir over low heat till transparent. Do not brown the onions.
Add ginger garlic paste & stir until oil leaves the masala.
Add yoghurt & cashew paste. stir for 1-2 minutes.
Add green sauce & red chilli powder. stir till oil separates & the mixture turns dry. add 1 cup water, stirring continuously on low heat till it comes to boil.
Now add the fried potatoes & salt. Simmer uncovered for 5 m inutes until oil leaves the masala and the gravy turns  thick.
Add chopped tomato & garam masala, stir & bring to a boil. serve.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Paneer Corn

Paneer Corn Taka Tak
Serves 4

Cottage cheese-cut into 1" pieces
fenugreek leaves dry 1 tbsp
Butter 2tbsp
Oil 1 1/2 tbsp
Tomatoes grind to puree in amixer 6
Salt 1 tsp
Chilli powder 1 tsp
Sugar 1/2 tsp
Onions-cut into rings 2
Corn 1 cup
Capsicum cut into 1" pieces
Cream 2-3 tbsp
Heat 2 tbsp butter in a wok. Add ground tomatoes. Cook till dry. Add salt, chilli powder & sugar. Cook for 2-3 minutes on low heat. Keep aside.
Heat 1 1/2 tbsp oil in nonstick pan. Add onion rings & saute till soft. Add corn & capsicum. Saute for 3-4 minutes.
Add cottage cheese & prepared tomato masala. Mix well.
Add 1/2 cup warm water & fenugreek leaves. Simmer till well blended.
Add cream & mix well. Remove from heat. Serve hot.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Breakfast Casserole

BREAKFAST CASSEROLE

Serves 4

Spinach 1kg – chopped and washed
Green chillies 2
Onion chopped 1
3 -4 garlic flakes
Little milk.
Put all of these together in pressure cooker to give one whistle and 10 minutes on slow flame.
Cool and grind to smooth paste. Keep aside.

Tomatoes 4 chopped
Onion 1 sliced
3 – 4 garlic flakes
Salt, sugar & red chilli powder
Deep Fry onion and garlic in oil till golden brown.
Sauté tomatoes, salt, sugar and chilli powder in non stick pan without oil for 5 minutes on high flame and 10 minutes on low flame. Cool it.
Grind fried onion and garlic and tomato mixture together to make a smooth paste.
Check the seasonings.

WHITE SAUCE
1tbsp oil or butter
1tbsp Maida (plain flour)
1cups milk, 25gms cheese
To prepare the white sauce, heat butter in a heavy bottomed pan. Add Maida and stir fry for a minute. Add milk, stirring continuously. Cook, stirring till thick. Remove from fire. Add cheese to the white sauce.

250 gms cottage cheese(paneer) - cut into thin and small rectangles
Sauté paneer pieces with 1tsp oil in a pan. Keep aside.

Now grease the oven proof dish. Place half the paneer pieces top with half spinach sauce, then half white sauce then half red sauce. Again place the left paneer pieces, top with spinach sauce, white sauce and in the end red sauce.
Sprinkle some grated pizza cheese on it and seasoned with oregano & chilli flakes.
Bake it in pre-heated oven at 250c for 20 minutes.
Serve with garlic bread.





Monday, May 9, 2011

UnFried Snacks

MEDITERRANEAN CROSTINI

Makes 8

French bread 8slices
Olives chopped ¼ cup
Cheese ½ cup grated
Salt & pepper to taste
Butter 1 tbsp
TO BE MIXED TOGETHER FOR MARINATION
Tomato slices thin 16
Basil 1 tsp chopped
Garlic chopped ½ tsp
Olive oil 1 tsp
Salt & pepper to taste
Place 2 marinated tomato slices on each slice of French bread.
Sprinkle some olives on top & then some grated cheese, salt& pepper.
Place on a microwave on high for 30 seconds.
Serve immediately.


MEXICAN SPICY CORN
Makes 12

Corn kernels ½ cup
Onions chopped ½ cup
Capsicum chopped ½ cup
Green chillies 1-2 chopped
Chilli powder ½ tsp
Tomato ketchup 1 tbsp
Dried oregano ¼ tsp
Butter 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Cracker biscuits or nacho chips 12-13 or as per requirement
Chopped coriander 1 tbsp
Combine the butter, onions & capsicum and microwave for 2 minutes
Add corn, chillies, chilli powder, ketchup & salt & mix well. Microwave for 1 minute.
Add the oregano & mix well.
Spoon this mixture onto crackers or nacho chips.
Serve immediately, garnished with the coriander leaves.





Sunday, May 8, 2011

WATERMELON PUNCH

WATER MELON PUNCH

There is something so perfectly refreshing in this drink.

4 cups watermelon puree ( approximately 1 medium watermelon)
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (approximately 4-5 juicy limes)
1/3 cup mint leaves
1/2 cup, plus 2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 cup water
Black salt as per taste
Make a simple syrup. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and /2 cup water in a sauce pan. Heat until sugar has dissolved. Let cool. Cut off watermelon rind.Remove seeds if there are any.Place approximately 2 cups of watermelon flesh into your blender. Using your fingers or a spoon, push down the watermelon chunks until they release a bunch of juice (this released liquid will help make the blending easier). Blend thoroughly. Do another batch until you have yielded 4 cups of pureed watermelon. You could strain the watermelon pulp at this point, but I really prefer the thicker texture of the pulp left in. Chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
Juice limes.Coarsely chop mint leaves. Crush mint with 2 teaspoons of sugar. When you are done, you will have a well-integrated mint/sugar paste. Add paste to the lime juice.Mix pureed watermelon and lime juice (with the sugary mint). Add 2-3 tablespoons simple syrup.Served chilled with the dash of black pepper. Always give the punch a stir before serving.



Monday, May 2, 2011

Taco Veggie

TACO VEGGIE

Serves 4-5

TORTILLA DOUGH
Maize flour 1 ½ cup
Flour 1 cup
Salt ¾ tsp
Mix maize flour, plain flour & salt in a big bowl.
Knead with warm water to make pliable dough
Cover with a moist cloth & keep aside for 1 hour.
Divide the dough into 11-12 balls. Roll into a shape of a thin round chapatti
Heat griddle. Place the rolled tortilla on it. Cook for a minute on medium heat.
Overturn & cook the other side for a minute or till brown specs start appearing. Remove from heat.
For TACOS, pick up one side of the tortilla and fold to get open semi circle. Do not stick the edges. Pick up the folded roti firmly from the joint side with a pair of tongs and deep fry holding with the tongs in hot oil till golden & crisp. Do not press the tongs, otherwise the sides will join together. Hold gently. Keep fried tacos aside.

CHEESE FILLING
Onion finely chopped 1
Capsicum finely chopped 2
Green chillies finely chopped 3 tbsp
Boiled rice ½ cup
Cottage cheese crumbled 1 cup
Salt ½ tsp
Butter 2 tbsp
SALAD TOPPING
Cabbage thinly sliced 1 cup
Tomato pulp removed cut into thin slices 1
Coriander leaves 2-3 tbsp
Salt 1 tsp
Lemon juice 2tbsp
Cheddar cheese grated ½ cup
Heat butter. Add onion & cook till brown. Add chillies, salt, rice, capsicum and cottage cheese. Mix.
For salad, mix all the ingredients together well. Keep aside
For assembling tacos, fill a taco shell with hot filling. Top with some salad and finely top with grated cheese. Repeat with all the taco shell. Serve with tomato salsa and sour cream.

SOUR CREAM
Fresh cream ¼ cup
Thick curd 1 ½ cup
Lemon juice 1 tsp
Salt ¼ tsp
Hang curd in a muslin cloth for 1hour.
Whip hung curd till very smooth.
Add cream to get soft dropping consistency.
Add salt and lemon juice. Mix lightly. Keep in fridge till serving time.
Serve cold.