Fajita Bean Burrito

Mexican food is really quick and easy. Out of the Mexican dishes, Kartik loves Burrito the most. It is a quick and easy dish to make and also to satisfy our weekend craving for carbs. Burrito is a wrap and its filling depends on ones liking; it can be lettuce, olives, jalapenos, beans, salsa, cheese, green onions, Spanish rice, sour cream, guacamole, etc. But I like to add a little bit of Fajita taste to it and so like to add sautéed bell pepper and onion.

Preparation Time: 10 mins
No.of Servings: 6



Ingredients:

• 6 Flour Tortillas
• 2 cups Refried beans
• 8-10 Olives sliced
• 3 Green Onions chopped
• 3 Jalapenos sliced
• ½ cup Sour Cream
• ½ cup cheddar cheese
• 1 green Bell pepper (long thin slices)
• 1 onion (long thin slices)
• 1/2 cup Guacamole
• ½ cup Salsa
  
• ½ cup hot Sauce
  

Method:

• In a pan take some oil and sauté bell pepper and onions till they turn brown.
• Warm up a tortilla in microwave for 10-15 seconds
• In the centre of the warm Tortilla place a spoonful of refried beans
• Then add olives, green onions, Jalapenos, sautéed bell pepper and onion mixture
• Top it with little bit of sour cream, salsa and guacamole and finally with cheese
• Repeat the same with other tortillas

Enjoy it with hot sauce.

Tips/ Variation:

• If Sour Cream is not available, one can use a little bit of cream added to thick curds

Technorati Tags: Wrap, Fajita, Mexican, Entree, Snack, Fast Food

Guacamole

Guacamole is a paste or sauce made from Avocado is originally from Mexico. It is used in many Mexican dishes & also as a dip with Nachos. To be used as a dip there is a minor variation, the recipe of which I will post in some days with the pictures of the same. The trick of making best guacamole is by using ripe avocados. The over ripen avocados are also bad in taste.

How to scoop Avocados – Hold avocado in one hand and with a large sharp knife in other hand cut it lengthwise around the seed. Open the two halves, remove the seed and scoop out with a spoon.

No. of Servings: 1 cup
Preparation time: 5 mins

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe Avocados halved
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 2 tbsp Cilantro
• 1 Jalapeno finely chopped
• 1 Garlic bud
• Salt & Pepper

Method:

• Mash Avocados with a fork
• Add all other ingredients to it & mix well.

Note:

• If Avocados are not ripe, keep it in a brown paper bag and let it ripe.
• Do not refrigerate Guacamole for a longer period; it will lose its color & taste

Technorati Tags: Mexican, Dip, Sauce, Paste, Condiement

Refried Beans

It is the most important ingredient for VegetariaMexican food. Refried Beans are not at all refried. Homemade refried beans can be served as a low-fat side dish, or with Mexican rice, Nachos or wrapped up into a burrito or used while making Tacos, Tostada, Mexican Pizza. These refried beans are vegetarian and vegan.

No. of Servings: 4 cups
Preparation Time: 15 min



Ingredients:

• 2 teacups red kidney or pinto beans (rajma)
• 2 large tomatoes, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 2 to 3 green chillies, finely chopped
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon roasted cumin seed powder
• 2 tablespoons oil
• Salt to taste

Method:

• Wash the beans and soak in water overnight. Next day, drain.
• Add the tomatoes, garlic, green chillies and one onion and put to cook in a pressure cooker. Drain. Keep aside the drained water.
• Heat the oil and fry the remaining onions for 1/2 minute.
• Add the beans, chilli powder, cumin seed powder and salt and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Mash the beans coarsely.
• If the mixture dries, add the drained water.
• Serve hot.

Technorati Tags: Mexican, Beans, Vegan, Dip, Side,

Ragda Patties

I made yet another street food or as we call it "chaat". Ragda Patties is another famous dish from the streets of India. It is a patty submerged in tasty yellow peas curry topped with tangy sauces. My mom used to make it often whenever we had too many guests at our place. Many times we also substitute the patty with bread, making it Radga Pav an equivalently tasty dish. Ragda Patties is a one-dish meal item which is very famous in the Indian kitchen as it also easy to make. In Northern India it is also called “Aloo Tikki Chaat”.

No. of servings: 5
Preparation Time: 30 mins



Ingredients for Ragda:

• 2 cups Yellow peas dried (Vatana)
• 2 tbsp Oil
• ½ tsp Mustard seeds
• ½ tsp Cumin seeds
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• ¼ tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp Red chilly powder
• 3 tsp Ginger chilly paste
• 2 tbsp Lemon juice
• 3 tbsp Grated jaggery
• 6 cups Water or as per required consistency
• A pinch of Asafoetida
• Salt to taste

Method for Ragda:

• Soak the peas overnight.
• Drain, add fresh water and pressure cook until 3 whistles
• In a pan, heat oil and add mustard seeds and let it splutter
• Add cumin seeds & add asafoetida
• Add in all the ingredients for ragda with 1 cup of water and mix well mashing the peas slightly so that the gravy thickens.
• Simmer for 10 mins and keep aside

Ingredients for Patties:

• 7 big Potato
• 2 tbsp corn flour
• 1 tsp Aamchur i.e. Dry Mango Powder (or can substitute with juice of half lemon)
• 1 tbsp Ginger chilly paste
• 1 tbsp Garam masala
• ½ cup Coriander
• ½ cup Mint leaves (finely chopped)
• Salt as per taste

Method for Patties:

• Boil, peel & mash potatoes
• Add all the ingredients for patties and mix well.
• With the help of greased hands form 12-14 round flat 1/2" thick 2" round patties, (use mould if you want any other shapes, eg. hearts, diamonds, etc.)
• Roast few at a time on a greased hot griddle.
• Turn once to roast other side, making them crisp and golden brown. Keep aside.

Ingredients for garnishing:

• Sweet Chutney / Tamarind Chutney
• Green Chutney / Mint Chutney
• Garlic Chutney
• 1 Onion chopped
• 1 cup Nylon Sev
• Few strands of Coriander Leaves chopped

Final Steps:

• Place 2 warmed patties in an individual bowl and pour some hot ragda over it so that patties are covered completly
• Top with all chutneys. Sprinkle some sev & onions on top.
• Garnish with Coriander leaves
• Serve immediately

Garlic Sauce/ Garlic Chutney

A must have ingredient in any chaat. Make this chutney in large quantities. It stays well refrigerated for upto two weeks and also can freeze it for approx a month. Sorry don’t have a picture of it, but will upload it at the earliest.

Preparation Time: 5mins
No. of servings: 3/4 cup.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 tbsp Chilli Powder
• Juice of ½ Lemon
• Salt to taste

Method:

• Combine all the ingredients in a blender with ¼ cup of water and grind to a fine paste.
• Before using, dilute with water and use as required

Note:

• Oil your hands before you peel garlic to prevent having a lingering garlic aroma throughout the day.

Technorati Tags: dip, condiment, chutney, sauce, paste

Vegetable Frankie

Frankie is the most popular fast food on the streets of Mumbai. The one I liked the most is near my house at Ghatkopar, Mumbai. Frankie is a crepe filled with spicy & tangy stuffing of potatoes, vegetables and dry mango powder (Amchur). The other variations for stuffing is paneer. But the recipe I am sharing here is typical Bamabiyaa style Frankie. There are also various style of making the Crepe batter. One can also use ready Tortilla, but for authentic Frankie try out the crepe batter as suggested below.

No. of servings: 6 persons
Preparation Time: 30 mins

Stuffing:


Ingredients for Stuffing:

• ¼ tsp Mustard seeds
• ¼ tsp Cumin seeds
• 7 medium size Potatoes (boiled & mashed)
• 2 medium size Onion (finely chopped)
• 2 small Green Bell pepper (finely chopped)
• 1 cup Tomato puree
• 3 tsp Garlic paste
• ½ tsp Ginger paste
• ½ tsp Green chilly paste
• ¼ tsp Turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp Red chilly powder
• 3 tsp Garam Masala
• ¼ cup finely chopped Coriander
• 2 tbsp Oil
• Salt as per taste

Method for stuffing:

• Heat oil in a pan and then add mustard seeds and let it splutter & then add cumin seeds
• Now add onion and saute till it becomes translucent
• Add ginger, chilly & garlic paste and stir for 2 mins
• Then add tomato puree followed by red chilly powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, salt and cook it for 5 mins
• Now add mashed potatoes and then finally Bell pepper and coriander.
• Mix well.

Crepe Batter:


Ingredients for Crepe Batter:

• 2½ cup White/All purpose Flour (Maida)
• 5 tbsp Gram flour (Besan)
• 2 cups Water
• Pinch of Salt

Method for Crepe Batter:

• Mix all the above ingredients thoroughly except water.
• Now slowly add water with simultaneously stirring the batter so that no lumps are formed.

Note:

• If required adjust the water to get the consistency as that of Dosa Batter (i.e. neither too thick nor too liquidy)

Seasoning:


Ingredients for Seasoning:

• ½ cup Dates & Tamarind paste (Kahjur Imli Chutney)
• ½ cup Mint coriander chutney (Phudina Chutney)
• Frankie Powder (4tbsp dry mango powder (Amchur) + 2 tbsp black salt (Snachal) + 1 tbsp Red chilly Powder)
• 1 Onion (long & thin slices)
• 2 cups grated Cheddar cheese (optional)

Note:

• One can also use Apple sauce in place of Dates & Tamarind Paste (Khajur Imli Chutney)

Final Steps:




How to proceed:

• Heat the pan on medium heat
• Now spread the batter like dosa or omlette or crepe
• After approx 30 secs flip the crepe (do not wait till it turns completely brown)
• Take approx 1 tsp of Mint coriander chutney & spread on the crepe
• Similarly spread 1 tsp of Khajur Imli Chutney
• Sprinkle little bit of Frankie powder
• Place the stuffing in the centre of the crepe as shown in the picture
• Garnish it with onion, Frankie powder and cheese as per taste
• Wrap it up and enjoy hot Frankie with or without Tomato Ketchup

Mint Coriander Chutney

This chutney is an awesome dip as well as accompaniment to many Indian dishes and chaats. It is a little spicy dip with flavor of mint.

Preparation Time: 10 mins



Ingredients :

• 1 bunch Coriander leaves
• ½ bunch of Mint leaves (half the quantity of coriander)
• 1 inch Ginger
• 3 Green Chilies or Jalapenos
• ½ Onion
• ½ tsp sugar (optional)
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• Salt to taste

Method:

• Coarsely chop coriander, mint leaves, ginger & green chilies
• Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and grind them
  
• If needed add very small quantity of water (as required) to make a smooth paste.

Use as and when required.

Tips/Variations:

• The spiciness can be adjusted to one’s taste.
• This chutney can be refrigerated for a week and can also be kept frozen upto a month

Khajur Imli Chutney

This sweet & sour chutney is an essential accompaniment to most Indian chaats.

No. of servings : 2 cups
Preparation time : 25 mins



Ingredients :

• 2 cups Dates (Khajur) deseeded
• ¼ cup Tamarind deseeded
  
• 1 cup grated Jaggery
  
• 1 tsp Chilli Powder
  
• A pinch of asafoetida (hing)

Method :

• Wash the dates and place them in a saucepan
  
• Add jaggery, chilly powder, asafoetida and 4 cups of water
  
• Boil it on a medium heat for approx 20 mins
  
• Allow it to cool
  
• Puree the chutney in a food processor & then strain it
  
• Use as required

Tips/Variations :

• Jaggery makes the chutney sweeter, but one can omit it if you prefer a more tangy flavour
  
• This chutney can be stored refrigerated for upto a month and deep frozen for more than 6 months.
  

Paneer (Cottage Cheese)

Paneer (Cottage Cheese) [Wikipedia reference] is a primary ingredient in many dishes in North Indian cuisine and is a good source of Protein. It is also used in making many Indian sweets. In India we also prefer having Paneer with some chat masala sprinkled on it as an appetizer.

No. of servings: 100 gms
Preparation Time: 5 mins (once milk is boiled)

Ingredients:

• 1 litre of Milk
• Juice of 1 lemon or 1 cup curd

Method:

• Put the milk to boil.
  
• When it starts boiling, remove from the heat and wait for 2-3 minutes.
  
• Add the lemon juice/curd and stir gently till all milk curdles.
• Leave covered for some time.
  
• Pour over a thin muslin cloth and drain out the whey.
• Cover with cloth and place a weight on top to drain out the water.
• Cut into pieces or crumble as required.

Tips/Variations:

• Use of curd gives the paneer a smoother texture
  
• One can also use Fat Free Milk for a low fat paneer. Just add salt along with lemon or curd. This may result in lesser amount of paneer.
  
• Pressing for a shorter time (approximately 20 minutes), results in a softer, fluffier cheese.

Pasta Salad

The pasta salad is easy to make, fresh, flavorful, filling as well as healthy. Being a cold salad it is an excellent compliment to the Southern California summer heat. These days it also fits into our summer dishes very well.

No. of Servings: 3-4
Preparation Time: 15 mins



Ingredients:

For salad:

• ½ cup Wheat Pasta
• ½ Yellow Bell Pepper
• ½ Red Bell Pepper
• ½ Green Bell Pepper
• ¼ cup Cherry Tomatoes
• 1 Carrot
• 4 Spring Onions
• 2/3 cup Lettuce
• ½ Jalapeno (optional)
• ¼ cup Boiled Broccoli
• 5-6 Pitted Olives sliced

For Dressing:

• 1 tbsp Olive oil
• 6 tbsp Vinegar
• 1 tbsp fresh chopped Parley
• 1 tsp fresh chopped Basil
• 1 tsp dried Oregano
• ½ tsp Italian Seasoning
• ½ tsp Garlic paste
• Salt & pepper to taste

Method :

• Boil Pasta & let it cool
• Mix all the ingredients of dressing & keep aside
• Cut all Veggies in bite size
• Mix veggies & Pasta
• Add in the dressing & toss
• Keep it in refrigerator for half atleast ½ hours and let it marinate
  

Serve Cold

Palak Paneer

This Indian dish combines fresh spinach and paneer (cottage cheese) in a creamy sauce. I have tried many variations of Palak Paneer and the one below is one of my best. It is a vegetarian dish cooked in an onion-tomato-spinach based green sauce moderately spiced. It is a great accompaniment with rotis, naan or hot steamed rice. This is the healthy recipe for Palak Paneer since the Paneer is not fried but is still soft & tastes good.

No. of Servings: 3-4 persons
Preparation time: 25 mins



Ingredients:

• 2 bunches of fresh Spinach
• 300 gms of Paneer (Cottage Cheese)
  
• 1 onion
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp Garlic paste
• 1 tsp ginger paste
• 3 green chillies
• 1 tsp garam masala
• ½ tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• ½ tsp Kasuri Methi (dry fenugreek leaves)
• 2 tbsp butter or oil

Method :

• Wash Spinach, & boil it in a pan without adding water (i.e. allow it to boil in its own water).
  
• Once spinach is boiled, drain the excess water (don’t throw it) and grind it.
• In a pan take ½ tsp butter or oil, add cumin seeds & let them splutter.
  
• Add onion followed by green chillies & tomatoes.
  
• Saute for 2 mins.
  
• Let the mixture cool & grind it.
• In a pan add the remaining butter or oil.
  
• Saute the onion-tomato mixture till fully cooked.
• Add garlic & ginger paste, followed by garam masala, coriander powder and turmeric. Saute for additional 5 mins.
• Now add the pureed Spinach, let it boil (if required add water) followed by Kasuri Methi
• Finally add paneer and simmer for additional 5 mins.

One can also garnish it with more butter. Serve hot with Paratha.

Tips / Variations:

• One can add more chilli paste as per taste & one’s liking.
• To make paneer soft, place paneer cubes in warm water for approx 15 -20 mins.

Vegetable Upma

Upma is a very famous South Indian dish. But nowadays it has become popular in many others parts of India especially as a form of snack & morning breakfast as it is easy to cook. Initially I used to cook the other version (mentioned in variation) which is slightly liquidy. But Kartik always loved South Indian style upma (which is less liquidy), the one which we get at South Indian restaurants in Matunga, Mumbai. So I learnt it from one of my South Indian Friend in my neighborhood. So now I make both alternately.

No. of Servings: 3
Preparation Time: 20



Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup Semolina (Rawa or Sooji)
• 1 Carrot chopped
• ½ cup Frozen peas
• 1 Onion chopped
• 1 tbsp ghee
• 1 tsp Udad dal
• 1 tsp Chana dal
• ½ tsp Mustard seeds
• ½ tsp Cumin seeds
• 5 Curry leaves
• 2/3 cup Water
• 1½ cup fatfree Milk (also see variation)
• 2tbsp Sugar
• 1tsp Lemon juice
• ½ tsp Ginger paste
• ½ tsp chilly paste
• 5 cashews
• 3 tbsp Coriander
• Salt as per taste

Method:

• Roast rawa on a medium flame for approx 10 mins or till it turns light brown & one get the aroma of roasted rawa.
• On the other side heat ghee in a pan.
  
• Add mustard seeds and let them splutter.
• Add udad dal & chana dal and saute it till they start changing colours.
  
• Add cumin, curry leaves and saute for half a minute.
• Add carrots followed by onion & saute.
• Add water
• Then add ginger paste, chilly paste, salt, sugar & lemon juice to water & let it boil for 1 min.
• Add Milk, peas and cashews & bring it to boil.
• Now keep on adding small amounts of rawa while stirring it continuously.
• After all the rawa is added, keep stirring for an additional ½ minute.
  

Garnish with coriander. Serve hot with Coconut chutney

Tips/ Variations:
You can also make Upma with Buttermilk instead of Milk. For that there is minor changes as follows :
Ingredients:

• 1 cup Semolina (Rawa or Sooji)
• 1½ cup buttermilk in place of milk

Method:

• The Initial 4 steps are the same
• Now add roasted rawa and saute it for 1 min.
• Add 1½ cup boiled water.
• Add ginger chilly paste, lemon , sugar and let it boil.
• Add 1½ cup buttermilk followed by salt and then simmer till cooked
• Add cashews.

Coconut Chutney

It is a great condiment with all South Indian dishes like Dosa, Idli, Uttapa, Upma, etc.

No. of Servings : 8-9 persons
Preparation Time: 10 mins (once dal is soaked)

Ingredients:

• 225 gms or 8oz of Grated coconut
• ½ cup Chana dal
• 2 green chillies
• Salt as per taste

For tempering:

• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 6 curry leaves
• 1 tbsp oil

Method:

• Roast Chana dal in 1 tsp oil, till it starts changing its colour.
  
• Add water & let it soak for 20 minutes.
• Grind coconut, dal & chillies in a grinder & blend well.
• In a pan add oil, mustard seeds & let it splutter.
• Add udad dal & then cumin seeds followed by curry leaves
  
• Add it to the grinded mixture.

Tips/Variations:

• One can add “Daliya” in place of Chana Dal. But chana dal tastes better.

Chunky Salsa

Salsa is great Mexican condiment which in Spanish means Sauce. It is not only one of the primary ingredients of most Mexican dishes, it tastes awesome with tortilla chips, nachos and scoops. I normally prefer homemade salsa then getting readymade from stores.

During the Memorial Day long weekend, we had our friends coming over from San Francisco and were planning to go to San Diego, so thought of making some salsa to have with Tostitos Baked Scoops during our journey. It turned out to be awesome and everybody loved it.



Preparation Time : 25 mins

Ingredients :

• 1 Jalapeno, seeds removed, chopped fine (wear gloves)
• 6 medium fresh tomatoes (boiled, skinned & then chopped into 1/4-inch chunks)
• 1 Large onion chopped
• 1 Bell pepper (roasted, peeled off the black skin & then chopped)
• 3 Green onions (spring onion) chopped with green tops included
• ½ cup loosely-packed fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• ¼ tsp cumin powder
• ½ tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp oregano, crushed between your palms
• ¼ tsp garlic paste
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2 tbsp Vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

• Mix Jalapeno, tomatoes, red onion, green onions, bell pepper, cilantro, cumin powder, chili powder, oregano, garlic paste, tomato sauce, vinegar, salt, and pepper.
• Refrigerate for 5-6 hours for the flavors to blend.

Serve with crisp tortilla chips as dip or serve as a condiment with other dishes. Store any leftover salsa in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Note:

• If you don't like it hot, it's just as good without the chillies.
• Feel free to adjust to your own tastes.

Paneer Bhurji

We love paneer/cottage cheese in all forms. This is one of our favorite & easy to cook paneer recipe without any rich and creamy sauce like other paneer recipes. It is just a simple stir fry of scrambled paneer, with green chillies, onions, bell pepper & tomatoes. Paneer can be bought from any Indian Grocery store or can be made at home, the recipe of which i will add soon. The Paneer used in the recipe below is homemade Paneer from Fat free milk.

No. of Servings : 3-4 persons
Preparation Time : 20 mins



Ingredients:

• 2 cups of scrambled paneer/cottage cheese (extra firm)
• 1 big onion finely chopped
• 3 tomatoes finely chopped
• 1 small bell pepper finely chopped
• 2 green chillies or 1 jalapeno finely chopped
• 5 flakes of garlic (paste)
• ½ tsp of ginger paste
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tbsp Red chilly powder
• a pinch of Turmeric Powder
• 2 tbsp ghee or butter
• Coriander for garnishing
• Salt as per taste
  

Method :

• Heat 1tsp ghee or butter, add cumin seeds and let it splutter
• Add green chillies and saute for half a minute
• Add onions, saute it for 3-4 mins followed by bell pepper and saute till cooked.
• Add tomatoes & cook till tomatoes they are pulpy & mashy.
• Add ginger, garlic paste, red chilly powder, turmeric powder, salt and cook for 5 mins.
• Finally add paneer and cook it for 5 mins till all ingredients blend with paneer.
• Garnish with coriander.
• Just before serving add the rest of ghee or butter to give it a taste (optional)

Tips/ Variations:

• Bell Pepper is optional
• One can also add ½ tsp of garam masala or pav bhaji masala (available at any Indian store)

Curd Dressing

Preparation Time : 5 mins

Ingredients :

• ¼ cup Beaten Fat free yogurt
• ¼ tsp Mustard sauce
• ¼ tsp Chat masala
• ¼ tsp Roasted cumin seeds powder
• Salt to taste

Method :

• Mix well all the ingredients

Note :

• This dressing is much healthier since it does not contain any oil or cream

Basic Salad Recipe

Few days back Kartik & I decided to go light on food in the evenings and so decided to go with soup & salad few times a week. So I started hunting for different kinds of salads, salad dressings & soups. Here below is the basic salad which goes well with different dressings.

No. of Servings : 3-4 persons
Preparation Time : 15 mins




Ingredients :

• 1 cup lettuce
• ½ cup cherry tomato (split into 2)
• ½ Bell pepper
• 3 spring onions
• 1 cucumber
• 1 carrot
• ½ cup boiled Garbanzo Beans
  

Method :

• Chop all veggies in bite size
• Put Beans & all veggies on the salad platter and mix well

Enjoy with any ready salad dressings or homemade dressings.

Tips/Variations :

• One can substitute Garbanzo beans with any variety of beans.

Vegetable Pasta

It is very easy to cook Italian dish. Whenever I feel lazy to cook but still want to eat something tasty as well as easy, Pasta is one of the dishes that comes to my mind. Here it goes…

No. of Servings : 3-4
Preparation Time : 25 mins



Ingredients :

• 2 ½ cup wheat Pasta
• 1 Onion (long & thin)
• 2 Carrots ( long & thin)
• ½ cup chopped French beans (partially boiled)
• 1 cup Broccoli (partially boiled)
• 1 small yellow Bell Pepper
• 1 small green Bell Pepper
• ½ diced tomato
• 2 spring onions
• 1 tbsp Minced garlic (if u like more garlic, u can increase the qty)
• 2cups tomato puree
• 1tsp finely chopped fresh basil
• 2 tsp Parsley
• ¼ tsp red chilly flakes
• Salt & Black pepper to taste
• 1tsp Oregano
• ½ tsp Italian Seasoning

Method :

• Boil pasta & keep aside
• Heat oil in a pan, Fry ½ tbsp minced garlic & some oregano…but don’t let it get burnt
• Add Carrots and saute for 1 min then add onion-saute for 2 mins & finally add bell pepper-saute it for 1 or 2mins.
• Now add Tomato sauce, followed by tomatoes, spring onions
• Add all spices like black pepper, chilly flakes, Italian seasoning, rest of oregano.
• Lastly add basil & parsley and followed by pasta.

Serve immediately with Garlic Bread

Garlic Bread

Garlic Bread reminds me of Pizzas etc, an eating place in Mumbai. We friends used to hangout at this place just to have garlic bread. It is just a mix of some butter or olive oil, garlic & oregano, applied on the bread and baked in the oven at 250 degree for around 10 mins.

Thai Red Curry

Kartik’s favorite cuisine is Thai. One day I decided to surprise him by making the same. Since I had never made any Thai food earlier, I referred n number of recipes… & finally decided to make Veg. Thai Red Curry with homemade red curry paste. The recipe below is a combination of the many recipes referred. It is one of the easiest & simple to cook recipe when one gets the craving for Thai food. Hope u all Like it!

No. of Servings : 2 persons
Preparation Time : 20 mins



Ingredients :

• 4 tbsp Red curry paste
  
• 1tbsp Paprika or Kashmiri chilly powder
• 1¼ cup Coconut milk
  
• 1 cup Boiled vegetables (French beans, broccoli, baby corn)
• ½ cup Carrot
• ½ cup Bell Pepper (red and green)
• ½ cup Onion
• 1 tbsp Basil leaves
• 1 tbsp Sugar
• ½ tsp Soy sauce
• ½ cup Extra firm tofu (small cubes)
• 2 tbsp Olive oil
• Salt to taste

Method :

• Heat oil
• Saute tofu & remove it on the side
• In the same oil add carrots and saute for 1 min
  
• Add onion saute for 2 more mins
  
• Add bell pepper for additional 1 min
• Reduce to low flame and add curry paste
• Add paprika or kashmiri chilly powder & saute for few more mins
• Then finally add coconut milk followed by boiled veggies, basil salt & sugar.
• In the end add sauted tofu & soy sauce

Serve with plain boiled (Jasmine) rice

Tips/Variations :

• One can adjust spicy taste by reducing or increasing red chillies or by using oil with red chilly.
• Also if anyone likes more of Basil, you can definitely increase the quantity of the same.

Thai Red Curry Paste

No. of Servings : 6 tbsp
Preparation Time : 25 mins

Ingredients :

• 5 dried chillies
• 1 tbsp Ginger paste
• 5 cloves Garlic
• 3 tbsp roasted Coriander seeds
• 1 tbsp roasted Cumin seeds
• 6-7 Peppercorn
• 1 Onion chopped
• 6 stalk of coriander
  
• Zest of 1 Lemon
• ¼ tsp Salt

Method :

• Soak red chillies 15-20 mins in ¼ cup of boiled water. Then drain water, crush red chillies
• Grind all the ingredients in the grinder or food processor.
• Store the paste in the airtight container (approx upto a month) or can freeze it upto 4 months

Tips/Variations :

• If storing the paste it is recommended to add oil (heated & then cooled) to the paste
• One can also add 3tbsp of chopped lemongrass if available.
  

Vegetable Florentine

Italian cuisine has limited variety in vegetarian except for Pasta & Pizza. Vegetable Florentine & Baked Cannelloni are few other interesting dishes available. The recipe here is based on the recipe from Tarla Dalal’s Low Calorie Book with some of my tweaks. Vegetable Florentine is similar to baked dish or baked vegetables but with an additional layer of Spinach. For this recipe you can use either the regular white sauce or u can refer to the more nutritious white sauce mentioned here.

No. of Servings : 8 people
Preparation Time : 45 mins





Ingredients :

For the Spinach Layer

• 10 teacups chopped Spinach
• 1 chopped Onion
• 2 tsp plain Flour (optional)
• 2 Chopped Green chillies
• Little less than ¼ teacup Skim milk
• A pinch of Soda bi-carb
• 2 tsp oil

For the vegetables

• 2 teacups chopped & boiled vegetables (French beans, carrots, peas, Broccoli)
• 2 teacups White sauce
• Salt & pepper to taste

For Baking

• 2 tbsp grated Cheese (optional)

Method :

For the Spinach Layer

• Wash the spinach & cook by adding soda bi-carb until soft, don’t add more water to it.
• Drain out the liquid & blend the solids in the liquidizer.
• Heat oil in a pan, saute onions & greens chillies.
• Mix flour with skim milk & add to the onion chilly mixture
• Finally add spinach, salt & pepper to the mixture & cook for 1 minute

For the vegetables

• Add all the boiled vegetables to the white sauce. Add salt & pepper & mix well

For Baking

• Spread the spinach mixture on a greased baking dish & cover with the layer of white sauce with vegetables
• Sprinkle the grated cheese on the top & bake in a hot oven at 250°C for about 20-25 mins

White Sauce

This recipe uses cauliflower as a thickening agent. It is low in calories but rich in Vitamin C & is a nutritious alternative to the usual white sauce which uses more of refined flour & butter as thickening agents.

No. of Servings : 3 cups
Preparation Time : 15 mins

Ingredients :

• 2 teacups Cauliflower
• 2 teaspoons Butter
• 2tbsp Plain Flour
• 1 teacup Skim Milk
• Salt & pepper to taste

Method :

• Boil cauliflower in 2 teacups of water until soft. Blend it in liquidizer & strain
• Heat butter, add the flour & cook for ½ minute
• Add milk & cauliflower puree & heat while stirring the mixture continuously until it becomes thick.
• Add salt & pepper

Vegetable Biryani

Biryani is originated in Persia and might have taken couple of different routes to become part of Indian Cuisine. Biryani is derived from the Farsi word 'Birian' which means "fried" or "roasted". There are many different kinds of biryanis and each one has its own uniqueness. The moment someone says B-I-R-Y-A-N-I we normally remember the famous Hyderabadi Biryani. Although the recipe below is not for Hyderabadi Biryani, it is equivalently delicious & healthy with lots of vegetables boiled or sautéed instead of fried.

No. of Servings : 4 persons

Preparation Time : 45 mins



Ingredients :

• 2 cups Basmati Rice
• ¼ cup French Beans (partially boiled)
• ¼ cup Carrots (chop as the size of matchstick)
• ¼ cup Peas (partially boiled)
• ¼ cup Cauliflower (partially boiled)
• 1 Potato (chopped like fries)
• 2 Onion ( chop thin & long)
• 2 Green Bell pepper(long & thin)
• 2 Diced large Tomatoes
• 1 cup Tomato Puree
• 2 tbsp Ginger – Garlic paste
• ½ cup Curd (preferably fat free)
• 1 tsp Turmeric
• 2 tsp Red chilly powder
• 1 inch Long Cinnamon stick
• 3 Cloves
• 2 Cardamom
• 2 Bay leaves
• 3 tbsp Biryani Masala (Available in stores)
• 4 tbsp Ghee
• 3 tbsp Dry Fruits (sauted in ghee - cashew nuts & raisins)
• Few strands of saffron

Method :

• Soak rice for 15 mins, then add salt & cook it with double the quantity of water. When done drain the excess water & keep rice aside to cool. (this method helps to remove excess starch from rice)
• Heat ghee in pan. Add bay leaves, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and let it splutter. Then add ginger garlic paste ( if u like more of garlic then u can increase the qty of garlic paste).
• Saute carrots for 1 min followed by potatoes.
• Then add onions - bell pepper – tomatoes & lastly add all vegetables. Saute all vegetables for 2 mins. (take care that vegetables don’t get overcooked)
• Now add turmeric, red chilly powder, Biryani masala
• Add Tomato puree followed by curd & let the gravy boil for 2 mins
• Add saffron (mixed in very little quantity of milk) just before adding Rice in the gravy & stir softly with 2 spoons so that rice does not break
• Finally garnish with dry fruits

Serve hot with Raita & Papad.

Onion Tomato Raita

Preparation Time : 5 mins

Ingredients :

• 1 large Tomato
• 1 large Onion
• 2 cups curd
• Black salt (according to taste)
• Coriander

Method :

• Beat curd.
• Add Tomato, onion & black salt.
• Garnish with coriander.
  

Tips :

• If you do not prefer too much of black salt you can also use a mix black salt + regular salt