Spanish Frittata

Overview:

My apologies for the delayed advent into writing about another eggitarian delicacy I prepared last month itself. The Spanish Frittata or most conveniently described as the baked Spanish Omelette. Making use of limited vegetables like potatoes, onions,mushrooms, tomatoes, red and yellow bell peppers, French Goat cheese, mozzarella cheese, Some fresh parsley and basil and a little spices like salt and black pepper.

Cooking Time : 40 mins including pre-cooking preparations and baking.

Ingredients :

• 8X1/4 inch aluminium pie pan.
• 4 large white eggs
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin Olive oil
• salt and crushed/powdered Black pepper
• 1 thinly sliced red pepper and yellow pepper
• one thinly sliced Potato
• one big onion thinly sliced
• half cup thinly sliced mushrooms
• one thinly sliced small tomato
• fresh Parsley and basil leaves (chopped)
• Fresh French Goat cheese and shredded Mozzarella cheese

Recipe :

1. Beat all the eggs in a large bowl and add salt and crushed black pepper to them.
2. In a separate skillet, heat olive oil on high flame and stir fry all the sliced vegetables, namely potatoes, red and yellow peppers, mushrooms and onions. Saute till they are medium glazed with a grilled appearance. Using an old skillet does the trick of giving that charcoals glazed look and flavor to the veggies. Turn off the flame, Sprinkle some salt and pepper over the veggies and mix finely diced tomatoes at the end. Keep covered.
3. Preheat the oven at 380 degrees F or 194 degree Celsius approximately. In the pie pan, pour the egg batter and add all the vegetable mixture to it. Cut 0.5X0.5 inch cubes of the goat cheese(around 10 cubes) and place at various places in the batter inside the pie pan.
4. Now sprinkle chopped parsley and basil all over the batter and garnish it with good amount of fresh Mozzarella cheese.
5. Very carefully , place the pie pan inside the oven and bake for around 20 mins. Keep on checking in between to make sure that the texture looks okay and not burnt. That has to be done because eggs cook very fast, and you would not want the awesome flavors of cheese and eggs to just be covered by a burnt stench ;)
6. Result will look something like this ;) . You will be able to smell the aromas of the eggs baked in those herbs and cheese by now. Its all done !!

Serving and Presentation :

Carefully cut a piece and serve with salad and bread sticks  I made a sauce by mixing mayonnaise and parmesan-romano sauce with lemon juice and garlic, and made a little presentation of my own !!

Omelette du fromage

Overview:

Easy to make and probably a snooty french breakfast ;) I bet, after you prepare this once , almost everyone having it would feel sitting in Paris :)

Well, its always good to have a change in the regular omelette breakfast for us Indians. With flavors of parmesan and smooth creamy french goat cheese,  dried thyme, basil, rosemary and fresh parsley leaves,  omelette du fromage (fromage : french for cheese) makes a filling and tasty and aromatic breakfast. Prepare it or savor it with butter, some crisp bread.

Cooking Time : 15 - 20 mins including dicing peppers and onions. Serves 4

Ingredients :

• 5 large white eggs
• grated Parmesan cheese, mixed with some freshly grated Mozzarella cheese.
• finely chopped onion, red , green and yellow pepper.
• finely chopped fresh parsley leaves.
• dried thyme,basil, rosemary leaves(these can be obtained from any dried seasoning mix)
• salt as per taste ( 1 teaspoon roughly)
• fat free cooking spray or 1 tbsp butter ( as you please)
• fresh french goat cheese( I use "President" french goat cheese. Its smooth creamy, mostly used for salad blends)

Recipe:

1. Beat the eggs nicely in a large bowl along with salt. Set aside.
2. Mix the grated cheese (parmesan and mozzarella  with some seasoning mix of thyme, rosemary and basil. This will help spread the aroma of these herbs into the inner layer of the omelette along with the cheese. With every bite, you'll be able to distinctly taste the cheese and relish the aroma of these herbs :)
3. Cut the goat cheese into small cubes of a little less than an inch. I recommend setting aside atleast 4-5 cubes for each omelette you prepare.
4. Heat a medium-small skillet on high flame and spread some cooking spray on it. You can also use butter to fetch the authentic french taste, but I suggest going easy on calories because we would be adding nice amount of cheese as well.
5. Reduce the heat to medium and keep that for another 2 mins. Now pour 1/4 th of egg batter in the pan and let it set. 
6. When the top of omelette is just a little moist, sprinkle the mixture of grated cheese we prepared evenly over the omelette so that no area is left that isn't sprinkled with a little cheese mix. Garnish with some red, green and yellow peppers. 
7. Keep the flame on medium low to low and now add the small cubes of goat cheese at all places evenly over the omelette.
8. Sprinkle some more dried seasoning mix of thyme,rosemary and basil  to increase the aroma. The goat cheese and vegetables will release a very little amount of water. Let it evaporate for a while and then put the freshly chopped parsley over the omelette. Now fold the omelette into half. This will be easy to do as the omelette must have cooked thoroughly by this time under low flame.
9. Let the omelette set for around 45 seconds In this interval, all the water lost by the vegetables will almost dry up keeping the inside of the omelette soft, mushy and moist by the melted cheese. By this time you will be able to smell the aroma of all the cheese along with the seasoning of rosemary, thyme,basil and fresh parsley filling up the kitchen. This means we are done !!

Presentation:

Serve in a platter garnished with fresh parsley, along with freshly baked crisp bread and butter....

Or... just the plain omelette. It tastes and smells like something you can find in a high end restaurant, but its just at the counter of your very own kitchen ! Bon Apettit !!

PS: I did not cut the vegetables very finely so my omelette broke in between. That's why I suggested "finely chopped everything" :)
The pic on the left is the perfect outcome !

Saag-blend with rice( eastern-UP saagpaitha)

Overview:

Green veggies have been my weakness since like forever.. well actually may be from the time I began to like the greens.. Let me strike an analogy.. Its like a child loving candies but despising them as he or she grows old.. and loving something he or she despised as a child..  seriously, how many of you like those sugary candies that much now.. and how many of you have started to like the greens, ones you despised when you were kids..

Anyway, so this one is also a recipe that runs in the family from my mother's side I suppose. Makes use of greens like Spinach, Methi (oregano) and Dill. Its extremely healthy.. look for yourself.. other than the fat from desi ghee, rest all is I guess Iron and chlorophyll from the greens. And as far as the taste is concerned, I am a huge fan of it !! So trust me, its good. Even my 2 year old daughter likes it :)

Serves :4 , Cooking time : 30 mins

Ingredients:

• 400-500 grams fresh Spinach leaves
• 400 grams fresh methi(Oregano leaves)
• 200 grams fresh dill leaves (Soya saaag)
• 5-6 cloves of chopped garlic
• 3X3 inch piece of ginger finely chopped
• 5 green chillies(chopped)
• salt as per taste
• black lentils (100 grams : urad chilka split)  
• 2 tsp desi ghee
• turmeric and red chilli powder (1 tsp each)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds(jeera)
• 1 tsp hing 

Recipe:

1. Clean all the greens thoroughly(separate leaves), wash them separately and chop them. Set aside.
2. Wash the lentils. Put approx 1 cup water in a steam pressure cooker. Add lentils and salt and turmeric.
3. Add the chopped greens that we set aside earlier.
4. Add chopped green chillies and chopped ginger .
5. Cook on high flame and let go atleast 4 whistles off.
6. Turn off heat and let the lentils and greens cook in the steam.
7. In a separate skillet, add desi ghee and heat on high flame. Add cumin seeds, hing powder and chopped garlic. Saute till garlic is reddish brown and crisp in texture.
8. Now add red chilli powder and turn the heat off. Add this tadka to the saag in the steam cooker.

Presentation:

Serve hot in a bowl along with freshly boiled rice or chapatis. I personally like it with rice, that is the UP style. 

PS: I have heard "Amitabh Bachhan" mentioning this in an interview as one of his favorite dishes in childhood times.

Chicken Biryani (North Indian style)

Overview:

To all my non-vegetarian friends searching for delectable and healthy Non-vegetarian cuisine, this one is easy , requires comfortable preparations and of course, is a delight for eyes and taste buds!!

A biryani, traditionally has to be spicy, with aromas from green chillies and cardamoms whether it is non-vegetarian or vegetarian. These two things will give the best flavor to it. The rice has to be Basmati/Tilakchandan because they give the best Rice-Aromas. In North-Indian cooking the biryani's are given a distinct aroma of cardamoms by a special technique of flavoring the rice. I learned it from my mom who in turn learned it from her father.This method was used by the chefs of "Nawaabs" at that time.. well atleast that is what my mom told me :)

Cooking Time : 50 mins (excluding Marination and Baking) , serves 4-5

Ingredients:

You will need

• Boneless Chicken Meat of your choice cut into 2X2 inch chunks.
• 1 cup Yogurt (Dahi) : With water  drained.
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 2X2 inch peice of ginger (chopped)
• 2-3 garlic cloves(chopped)
• Spices : Tandoori chicken masala(3 tbsp), Red chilli powder( 2 tsp), salt, Dhaniya Powder(2 tbsp), 2-3 cloves(laung), 2 bay leaves(tej-patra)
• tomato puree( one cup)
• green chillies diced into halves
• chopped coriander(Cilantro)
• lemon juice
• crushed black pepper
• 3-4 cups of boiled rice.
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds(jeera) 
• 3 cardamoms(break opened)

Marination:

For marination, drain water from yogurt by keeping it in a seive/peice of cloth for around 2 hours. Collect a cup of water drained yogurt. you might need around 3 cups of standard yogurt for this purpose. Now in a bowl mix some salt, red chilli powder, 2 tbsp Tandoori chicken masala and a little crushed black pepper.

Now add all the chicken in the bowl, mix well and set aside with a cover. The chicken needs to be marinated for around 10 hours, so its best to do it first thing in morning if you are planning for dinner, or a day before if you are planning a lunch.

Baking:

Bake the marinated chicken for around 35 minutes at 450 degree Fahrenheit or around 232 degree Celsius.

After baking separate the chicken in a bowl and splash some lemon juice evenly over it.

Recipe for chicken:

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the cloves(laung), and bay leaves to it. Now add onion, garlic and "half" of the chopped ginger and saute for a few minutes until the onions turn golden brown.
2. Now add the spices like Dhaniya powder, 1 tbsp tandoori chicken masala to it and stir well. Add the baked chicken to this and mix well. Cook for a minute with a lid on.
3. Now add the tomato puree and cook covered for 2 minutes. Add salt if necessary.
4. Simmer for a few minutes and add chopped green chillies and coriander.

Flavoring the Rice:

The rice should be freshly boiled. Now, flavoring the rice is extremely important to give the Biryani its authentic aroma and even taste. This is a very common method practiced in North Indian culture as I mentioned earlier too. Just heat 2 tsp oil/desi ghee in a large spoon or small skillet and add the mentioned quantity of jeera and cardamoms to it. Make sure, you break open cardamoms so that few seeds get into the   ghee. I recommend ghee instead of oil for a better taste and aroma, but if some of you are really picky about the ghee fat, you can replace that by oil. Fry for 5-6 seconds and add this to rice. Mix well so that all of rice gets the aroma from cardamoms.

Presentation:

In a large serving bowl, make a layer of flavored rice and run a layer of chicken gravy on it. Run alternate layers of rice and chicken till you reach the top of bowl. Decorate with green chillies diced in halves and cilantro, serve hot !!

Farfalle Pasta in sauteed peppers, onions,eggplant and mushrooms with rosemary chicken

Overview:

The Farfalle pasta is yet another ingredient that will add an aesthetic look to your food. Pasta is not a very healthy meal altogether, but when blended with vegetables or your choice of meat, it can be a delight for eyes and taste buds and will keep a good score on health factor as well. So, this mix and match came up in my mind just a couple of days back and I started cooking it in my head even before actually trying it for real.. !

Italian food mostly makes use of vegetables like onion, garlic,peppers,eggplant,tomatoes and mushrooms. Sometimes greener ones like romaine lettuce etc. but for this recipe I have used the ones I mentioned first.

Cooking time : 50-60 mins , serves 3-4

I really hope someone would try this recipe someday and let me know if they liked it :). It feels like "Julie and Julia" playing around. But thankfully, I am not obsessed with the cooking :)

Ingredients:

You will need :

• Farfalle pasta (one cup)
• Diced mushrooms(around 5-6) and 1 small diced eggplant(around half a cup)
• 1 Diced pepper each of your choice : Red, green, yellow
• 2 Diced onions
• Tomato puree
• Parmesan-romano pasta sauce(available at stores)
• grated Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese
• Italian Bruschetta dressing
• 2 tbsp Olive oil
• Salt as per taste
• 1 tsp Margarine/butter
• 7 garlic cloves (grated)
• boneless chicken thighs (2)
• Italian seasoning with dried Thyme, rosemary, oregano and basil.
• crushed black pepper
• lemon juice
• some red wine

Recipe:

1. In a pan, boil pasta along with some salt, drain it and set aside.
2. Wash chicken and cut in small pieces(1 x 1 inch). Sprinkle some salt, crushed black pepper and Italian seasoning over the chicken and set aside for 15 mins. Preheat the oven at 420 degree F or 215 degree Celsius.
3. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and add a tsp of grated garlic. Saute for a few seconds and add all the chopped vegetables like onions, mushrooms, peppers and eggplant. Saute or stir fry for a few minutes until the vegetables start loosing water. Add salt as per taste and cook covered for a minute.
4. Now add 2 tbsp of Italian Bruschetta dressing and saute well.
5. Cook open until the water starts drying up. Pour some red wine over the vegetables(around 2 tbsp) and then sprinkle Italian seasoning all over the mixture and set aside covered so that it doesn't loose heat and gravy.
6. Now in the preheated oven, bake the chicken for around 6-7 minutes. After that take out the chicken, drain the fat lost by it and pour some lemon juice over it. Set it aside.
7. Now add together the pasta and vegetable mixture and mix well without disrupting the shapes of individual ingredients.
8. In a separate skillet, heat some margarine/butter and add the rest of grated garlic. Saute until light brown and then add tomato puree. Heat for a minute and then add the Parmesan-Romano pasta sauce. Heat this mixture well. This will be the sauce for our pasta salad made in step 7.

Serving/Presentation :

In a platter, serve the pasta salad of "step 7" and top up with the baked rosemary chicken. Now pour some pasta sauce over it centrally and sprinkle the grated Parmesan,Mozzarella and Ricotta cheese. Sprinkle some Italian seasoning at the end to increase the rosemary aroma. Serve hot.

** For Vegetarians :Just Don't add chicken !!! ;)

Roasted Minced Eggplant with tomatoes (Baingan Bhartha)

Overview:

Among most of the North-Indian, central and western Indian cuisine, this is my favorite dish. I am a sucker for eggplants. Like, such a big fan that I can eat eggplants in any form, shapes, sizes and cuisines. Someday, I am going to learn to make authentic "Eggplant Parmesan" and I'll share the recipe too. But for today, its an Indian thingy !!

The characteristic of this dish which really stands out is that it has a really nice smoky flavor because of the roasting process. If its there, then you are in a for a real good eating time.

Cooking time : 60 mins including pre-cooking preparations and roasting the eggplant.

Ingredients:

You will need :

• 2 big eggplants 
• 2 onions finely chopped
• 3 tomatoes finely chopped
• 4-5 garlic cloves (chopped)
• half cup finely chopped ginger
• coriander powder (2 tbsp)
• red chilli powder (1 tsp)
• salt as per taste
• Zafrani Garam masala (from shan foods)
• cooking oil (2 tbsp)
• 3 chopped green chillies
• chopped cilantro(coriander) leaves

Roasting the eggplants:

Roast eggplant on flame directly. In case of  metallic plate burners/glass lid heaters use a grill stand to cover the burner and roast eggplant over it. It might take some more time in the later process.The roasting process should be slow so that the smoky flavor resides in the eggplant without actually burning it. Try using eggplants with thinner skins, they have juicier pulp and it makes the roasting process faster. The roasting should be done evenly all over the surface and you'll know when its done. The eggplant will loose water and become soft throughout and the skin will start to crack in many places.

Set the eggplants aside in a large bowl to cool down. After cooling, peel the skin off and mash the eggplants together into a large soft lump. 

PS: This process will look gross, but you will get over it soon ;)

Recipe:

1. In a small bowl take mentioned amount of coriander powder, red chilli powder, 1 tsp  garam masala, salt as per taste and add water in it to make a smooth paste.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet on high flame.
3. Add the chopped onion, garlic and half the amount of ginger to be used into the oil. Saute till golden brown.
4. Now add the masala paste we made in step 1 to the skillet. Saute for a couple of minutes.
5. Now add the mashed eggplants and stir nicely. Cook covered for around 5 mins on medium flame.
6. Add the diced tomatoes, green chillies and rest of ginger and stir evenly. Again cook covered for around 5 mins on high flame. If needed, add more salt.
7. You can add some tomato puree or amchur to give a more tangy taste to the eggplant. In some time you can whiff the roasty smell :)
8. Cook until the eggplant mixture turns brownish in color. This means that the eggplant is thoroughly cooked and even somewhat extra-roasted. This almost does it !

Serving/Presentation Instruction:

Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot with chapaties/paranthas.

Steamed Eggs

Overview:

Extremely easy and quick to make given its a feast worth waiting for.. Well, I don't really want to brag about it but could not help saying all that because this delicacy is something I make for lunch/dinner when I really don't have anything left to cook at home and everyone wants to eat "something nice". 

My husband's friends stopped by the other day and I had no idea what to offer for dinner, that would look nice to serve and quick to make.. so with simple daal-chaval I thought of adding "Steamed eggs" on the serving tray so that nobody goes disappointed from the house of a "born-chef" !! :)

Now Eggs cook very easily in just a little steam, just like you can poach the eggs in boiling water. 

The process has to be gradual , and trust me.. the result looks beautiful.

Cooking Time : 20 mins, serves 4-5

Ingredients :

• 4 White eggs
• 2 chopped onions
• some finely chopped ginger
• 2 chopped tomatoes
• Spices: 2 tbsp Dhaniya (coriander) powder, 1 tsp red chilli powder, 0.5 tsp haldi(turmeric), 0.5 tsp garam masala
• salt to taste
• chopped coriander(cilantro) and green chillies for garnishing.
• 2 tbsp cooking oil

Recipe:

1. Heat oil in a skillet and add onions and ginger to it. Fry until golden pink.
2. Now add all the spices and mix well.
3. Now add the chopped tomatoes and sprinkle salt all over the mixture. Add a little tomato puree to increase acidity. otherwise, just add 3 tbsp water.
4. break open all the 4 eggs over the mixture. Yes, just break open the egg and empty it out in the skillet over the mixture.. that is exactly what you have to do !!
5. After adding all the eggs, put flame on medium heat and sprinkle salt and garam masala over the recently added eggs to even out the taste. Just make sure you do not add excessive salt.
6. Cook covered for 5 mins. Open the lid and with a spatula gently tap on the eggs to see if they are still mushy.
7. Cook (covered) for a longer time if eggs are mushy. Eventually they will become firm throughout. That is because, We added water and tomatoes drained enough water to generate steam which cooked the eggs. So, we are all done !!

Presentation :

Serve in bowl garnished with chopped coriander/cilantro leaves and chillies. Can be eaten with Chapaties/Rice.

** So, You can play with the ingredients and spices used. This is a recipe with Indian spices, but I am thinking of making it "Italian" !!! 

Shrimp Salad

Overview:

All I can say about this is "quick" , "easy", "healthy" and "tasty".

Shrimps take very less time to cook. They must not be overcooked because then they become a little harder to chew as they loose excessive water. The best cooking result for fresh shrimps is mild toss and turn. That is why they should be added at the end.

Cooking time : 10 mins

Ingredients :

You will need : 

• Fresh Shrimps (Peeled and washed)
• 4 grated garlic cloves
• Salad blend of your choice. I personally like Romaine lettuce and carrots. But a little flavorful veggies like onion, peppers, green peas etc. will be an added advantage.
• Italian bruschetta dressing
• 1000 Island dressing
• Extra virgin olive oil
• salt 
• fresh lemon juice

Recipe :

1. Heat some olive oil in a skillet and saute grated garlic in it till golden brown.
2. Now add shrimps, sprinkle salt over them and gently toss and turn for around 30 seconds on medium flame.
3. Add some lemon juice and Italian bruschetta dressing over shrimps and turn the heat off so that the water lost by shrimps stays as a sauce dressing for salad.
4. Let the thick gravy cool down a bit.

Presentation :

Set the salad blend in a bowl and evenly spread the shrimp gravy over it. Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese  and dress with 1000 Island dressing or Catalina dressing for a sweeter taste. Bingo !! healthy and tasty meal is ready..!!

Pasta shells in Parmesan-Romano-tomato sauce

Overview:

Just my love for Italian food compelled me to do yet another experiment with beautiful pasta shells. I prefer using shells rather than spaghetti or noodles etc. because I love the way they look. They give a classy appearance to the simplest sauce, which is what we are going to see here.On the calorie count, this is more of a kids meal or athlete meal because it is high on carb and protein. Some fat too, but wait till you look at it! I bet you would want to dig in a couple of scoops at least :D

Ingredients : 

• Pasta shells
• 2-3 garlic cloves (grated)
• Italian Bruschetta dressing
• Italian seasoning with dried oregano, thyme, rosemary and basil.
• Ranch
• salt as per taste
• Parmesan Romano sauce(available at grocery stores)
• two big tomatoes (finely diced)
• Shredded Parmesan cheese
• Shredded Mozzarella cheese
• 2tbsp extra-virgin olive oil.

Recipe:

1. Boil pasta shells in saline water, drain them and set them aside.
2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and saute the grated garlic in it till golden-light brown.
3. Now add the diced tomatoes and sprinkle little salt over them so that they can loose water and become mushy.
4. Cook covered for 3 minutes on medium-high and now add around 3 tbsp of Italian Bruschetta dressing.
5. Cook covered for another couple of mins medium-high and then add 3 tbsp of Parmesan-Romano sauce.
6. Cook covered on simmer for another 2 mins and add 1 tbsp ranch to thicken the gravy.
7. Sprinkle some Italian seasoning over the gravy while cooking it on simmer flame.
8. Finally sprinkle some shredded Parmesan cheese and three times the same amount of shredded Mozzarella cheese and stir gravy.

Presentation/Serving:

In a platter, serve pasta shells and pour gravy evenly over them. Sprinkle some more Mozzarella cheese and serve hot.

Indian Pav - Bhaji

Overview:

Whenever Pav-bhaji comes to my mind, I am reminded of my Hostel/College days. Since I studied in Nagpur (Maharashtra, India), I got a chance to taste few authentic marathi delicacies and my good luck that the people who gave me that chance were generous enough to share their secret recipes too !

So this one comes from my very favorite "Kanta" tai, one of the cooks at my hostel. Although there was this particular stall in the nearby market who made the best bhaji ever in the whole town. I remember it was Rs 15 a plate, with 2 pavs and a bowl of bhaji.. sufficient for our "petite appetite" :D

Cooking time : 30 mins excluding the roasting of Pavs, serves 5-6

Ingredients: 

You will need :

• Florets from one large cauliflower(washed thoroughly)
• 1 bowl of fresh green peas (approx 200 gm)
• 2 small carrots (diced in smaller pieces)
• 3 -4 Potatoes (medium size skin peeled)
• MDH Pav bhaji masala
• 3-4 cloves of garlic (grated)
• 2 onions (chopped)
• 3 tomatoes (chopped)
• salt to taste
• butter
• chopped coriander leaves and chopped green chillies
• 2 tbsp oil

Recipe:

1. In a steam-cooker, put cauliflower florets, green peas, carrots and potatoes with some water. Cook at high pressure for 15-20 mins. so, let go approximately 4-5 whistles.
2. In a separate large skillet heat oil and add the grated garlic to it. saute until golden brown and then add the diced onions. 
3. saute the mixture until onions are golden pink and then add diced tomatoes. Cook covered until the tomatoes become soft and mushy. Add salt to taste and then add 2-3 tbsp Pav bhaji masala.
4. mix well and add chopped green chillies.
5. Now mix all the boiled vegetables with a large spatula. Mix well till the point they appear to be blended well. This will take around 15 mins of hard labor and the outcome should be more like a vegetable paste.
6. Now add the mix we made in the skillet to the blended vegetable paste and add a full glass of water. Heat the mixture on high flame and add more salt and pav bhaji masala as per the taste requirement. The bhaji is done.!!

Serving/Presentation Instruction:

Serve in a bowl garnished with chopped coriander topped with a tsp butter, alongside freshly roasted pav.

Pavs are available in Indian grocery stores and can be roasted in oven without oil too.

** Sorry about the hardly presentable picture. Actually I cooked for 2 cricket teams so made in bulk :)

Creamy Raspberry Shots

Overview:

Now what is a Culinary corner without a "Dessert Recipe". Tickle your taste buds with one of my favorite creations !! "The Creamy Raspberry Shots". Well, Its not totally my creation but I thought of a presentation like this after watching this Dessert recipe on TV. Although, on TV they were mixing-matching various portions to create your own dessert thing.. but since I am the author of "www.healthymealsonline.blogspot.com" , I had to think of the health quotient too. We will present the Dessert in a way so that less portion is consumed and everyone could enjoy some of it without much guilt !!

Preparation Time : 15-20 mins 

Ingredients:

You will need :

• 2 Boxes of Raspberries
• 2 cups sugar
• light whipping cream
• lemon juice
• 1 tsp butter
• Vanilla essence
• fine breadcrumbs
• couple of strawberries diced into halves

Recipe : 

1. Wash a handful of raspberries and set aside.

2. Heat 1 tsp butter in a skillet and add rest of the raspberries to it. Add one cup sugar and cook the mixture for around 5-7 minutes till the raspberries have become soft and mushy.

3. Now add the lemon juice and cook again for a couple of minutes so that the acidity settles down evenly.

4. Set the mixture aside and mix the fresh raspberries in it. Stir gently and let the mixture cool.

5. Whip cream along with sugar and vanilla essence.

Serving/Presentation :

This Dessert can be very beautifully presented in a tequila shot glass or a Margarita/Martini glass.

Place a layer of fine bread crumbs at the end of the glass, top it with a layer of raspberries mixture and layer some whipped cream over it.

Run these layers again if needed (as per the size of the serving glass).

Another Presentation

Make sure that topmost layer is cream. Now place the strawberry halves diagonally and top it with a mint leaf if you want a little scent and different color to your dessert !

Spinach-Ricotta gravy

Overview:

Italian food is getting a lot on my mind these days. Most Italian gravies are very rich and creamy, but the flavor, might I say is exceptionally good. So, this gravy goes very nicely with rice/pasta but the richness and creaminess is quite under control. But one needs to have a liking for "Spinach" at least. Well, you know.. Spinach, Ricotta cheese and garlic go hand in hand. These three .. and you can have a yummy gravy, nice pasta and pizza toppings too.

Cooking time : 40 mins including pre-cooking requisites, serves 4

Ingredients : 

You will need : 

• Fresh Spinach (regular big pack from any grocery store : its around 300-400 grams)
• 4-5 cloves of garlic (Grated)
• Italian Brushchetta dressing
• Italian seasoning (with thyme,rosemary,oregano,basil)
• 1 tbsp olive oil (Extra-virgin)
• grated Ricotta cheese ( a small bowl)
• salt to taste
• green chillies
• 3 tbsp tomato puree ( for acidity)
• fat-free half and half

Recipe:

1. Blanch the washed spinach for 5 mins (Put in hot salted boiling water, covered for 5 mins)

2. Drain the spinach and grind it with green chillies

3. In a large Skillet, heat 1 tbsp olive oil on high flame, add the garlic. Saute for a few seconds till it turns light brown.

4. Add 2 tbsp of Italian Bruschetta dressing and saute for a few seconds.

5. Now add the spinach paste,tomato puree, salt and cook covered for 5 mins on medium flame.

6. Add a little water if gravy is thicker, add salt to taste and cook covered for another 3 mins on medium flame.

7. Now add the ricotta cheese and stir the gravy gently.

8. Simmer for a minute, and sprinkle some Italian seasoning.

Serving/Presentation Instruction :

In a bowl, put some gravy and splash a little half-and-half over it. Serve hot with rice or pasta !

NOTE: If you add a little cumin seeds in oil and while adding salt add garam masala with it, add Paneer cubes instead of cheese ,remove Italian ingredients like Italian dressing and seasoning, you can call it "Palak Paneer" too :D

Now isn't it a 2-in-1 recipe ??

Chicken "Nawaabi"

Overview:

The nomenclature of this dish is not original. I, the Author did it. And that is because this Indian recipe is actually a blend of two regional Indian recipes. I thought of trying them out as a merger because I felt they had a lot in common. So, it takes ideas from "kashmiri" and "UP" style cooking.

Chicken "Nawaabi" as I like to call it, looks royal in presentation and is much better on the calorie count than many other of its chicken counterparts. I would tell a way, in which Indian non-vegetarian recipes can be made really healthy. And that would work for all the recipes which require similar ingredients. 

FYI, Author is a vegetarian :)

Preparation time: 60 mins including marination, baking and pre-cooking set-ups and serves 4-6.

Ingredients:

You will need : 

• 2 lbs ( roughly a kilogram) of  your choice of  boneless chicken 
• 1 big onion, some ginger and 5-6 cloves of garlic, green chillies.
• flavor spices : 3 big black cardamom(badi elaichi), 1 tsp cumin seeds, 2 Bay leaves(tej-patra), 2 small Cinnamon sticks(Dalchini), 2-3 Cloves (laung), 2 tbsp finely grated fennel seeds (Saunf), crushed black pepper, salt to taste
• dry spices : 2.5 tbsp coriander powder, 1 tsp red chilli powder, Zafrani garam Masala from Shan foods
• 1 cup plain yogurt beaten into a smooth mixture.
• 2 tbsp cooking oil.

Now Fennel seeds is a common kashmiri ingredient and onion,ginger,garlic comes from UP cooking habits. The common things in both the cuisines is that tomatoes are not used. Rest, most of the spices are similar.

Marination : 

It is particularly simple unlike regular chicken dishes. Wash chicken properly, cut into 3X3'' pieces. Sprinkle salt and crushed black pepper evenly over all pieces and lay them in a flat tray.

Set aside for 30 mins.

Baking needs:

Since here in US fresh chicken meat is available only in selected Indian grocery stores, most of us rely on frozen chicken. I always bake any type of frozen meat except seafood.

If you have fresh chicken, then you don't really need to bake. For the rest, I would suggest to do marination in the baking dish itself.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees  F(220 degree C) and bake the chicken for about 6-7 mins.

Let it cool down, drain the fat lost by the meat and separate the pieces into a bowl.

Recipe:

1. In a small bowl mix the mentioned amounts of coriander powder, red chilli powder, grated fennel seeds and 1 tsp zafrani garam masala and salt(according to taste). Add water to make a thick but smooth paste and set it aside.

2. Blend together, onion, ginger, garlic and 3 green chillies.

3. Put a large skillet* on stove top and let it heat on high flame for around 3 mins.

4. Put the blended paste of onion, ginger green chilies and garlic into the skillet and stir briskly. When the water in the paste evaporates, it takes at least 3 times lesser oil to fry.

5. Now in another smaller pan, put 2 tbsp cooking oil and heat it over high flame for a minute. Add black cardamom, cumin seeds, bay leaves, cinnamon and Cloves. Fry lightly.

6. Now add this oil to the heated paste in the large skillet and fry the whole mixture together for around 4 minutes. The mixture should turn brown by this time.

7. Now add the paste of spices we made in step 1 in the skillet. Stir briskly for around 1 minute

8. Now add baked chicken/marinated chicken to the skillet and toss and turn gently. All the mixture should be evenly covering the chicken.

9. Mix well and cook covered for 2-3 minutes on high flame. Now add the yogurt mixture to the skillet.

10. Cook covered again for 5 mins on medium flame.

11. Add a cup of hot water and cook covered for around 10 mins this time, but on medium flame. Chicken cooks very fast and it will not take much time.

12. Cook on low flame for another 5 mins. You can increase or decrease the viscosity of the gravy as per your needs. To make it thicker add more yogurt and to thinner it add water. Just make the salt content proportionate.

*Skillet should be with a cover with air vent. or a pressure cooker could be used. In case you use a pressure cooker, you have to turn off the stove just before the first whistle because chicken cooks extremely fast.

Serving Instructions:

Serve hot in a bowl garnished with cilantro and green chilies diced into halves along the length.. with rice/chapatis.

Now now.. don't tell me you all are not astonished with the amount of oil used in the dish. just 2 tbsp ..!! Isn't that great !! After-all it is healthymealsonline and I will try my best to stay coherent with that. Wait till you taste the chicken. Hope some of you will revert back with nice things to say.. 

Next up in chicken domain will be : Chicken Dopyaza and Chicken biryani (A legacy of my late grandfather)

Vermicelli

Overview:

Today in the morning, I was preparing "Vermicelli" as breakfast just as a regular chore when it occurred to me that its probably one of the easiest dish even a "Guy" could make when his girl is out of town or unable to cook. Well, guys would not want to undo the workout they did by eating some junk food outside. Making vermicelli will not only be easier, it will also be a healthy way to relax :) and that is when you really wanted to cook ;)

** Its an Indian Recipe

Preparation time : 30 mins including pre-cooking preparations. Serving two.

Ingredients:

You will need:

• 100 gm Vermicelli (Already roasted one, bambino pack available at any Indian grocery store)
• two tomatoes finely chopped( tomato puree can also be used)
• finely chopped onion : 4 tbsp
• finely chopped ginger : 1 tsp
• green chillies cut into halves along the length
• Coriander(Dhaniya) Powder : 2 tbsp
• Turmeric Powder(Haldi) : 1 tsp
• Salt to taste
• red chilli powder : 1 tsp
• black sarson seeds
• cooking oil : 2 tbsp
• Asafoetida(Hing) : a pinch
• one small potato finely diced into small squares
• green peas :(Washed) half a cup

Recipe:

1. First heat the oil in a large skillet( one which has a lid) on high flame and hing and sarson seeds to it.

2. As soon as the seeds start to pop add the cut ginger and onion.

3. Fry till golden-pink and add the cut potatoes to it. Cook covered for a minute on medium flame now.

4  Put all the spices in a bowl (Coriander,turmeric,red chilli powder) and add water to make a smooth paste.

5. Add the paste to the skillet and mix well. Now add the green peas and cook covered for a minute on medium flame.

6. Add diced tomatoes and salt to taste and cook covered for at least 5 mins on medium flame. The tomatoes should become all mushy. If they are not then cook for more time. In case of using a puree, this step will be bypassed.

7. Now add vermicelli to the skillet and turn well with a spatula.

8. Add water so that the vermicelli are "just submerged" in it. Do not add too much water.

9. Cook covered for 3-4 minutes on medium-high flame.

10. Turn and toss gently and check if the vermicelli have become soft.

11. Turn off flame and keep covered for 5 mins.

Serving:

Garnish with cilantro and green chillies, serve hot !

Pasta Salad (with or without meat)

Overview:

What if I told you that having a colossal stylish celebrity lunch was possible in your eat-out kitchen itself ! This pasta-salad has amazing looks and is extremely easy to prepare. I bet if you had guests coming over they would be singing about your lunch everywhere they go!

Or, are you ready to pamper your beloved on his birthday? Then, this lunch along with a glass of wine and a bouquet of flowers will do the trick.. But we will go easy on a few calories this time.

Cooking time : 30-40 mins including pre-cooking preparations. Serves 7-8

Ingredients:

You will need :

• Pasta shells
• Fresh Corn about 300 grams (roughly from 3 kernels)
• 2-3 Red and Green Bell Peppers
• 3 Bundles of scallions
• Cherry tomatoes diced into halves if they are not very small.
• your choice of meat : (Cooked Shrimps, Baked Chicken or Fresh Lobster) : this is optional
• 1 cup of Mayonnaise
• 1 cup of sour cream
• 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice.
• Crushed Black Pepper 
• A bunch of Dill (chopped)
• Salt to taste

Recipe :

Boil together Pasta shells and fresh corn.

Sauce :  This sauce is particularly simple to make. Although its a bit more on calorie count but a pasta salad amount that large could feed a group of 7-8 people. So gross calorie intake remains unaltered per person. You can reduce the portions used for smaller meals.

1. Mix together Mayonnaise and sour cream. Stir well.

2. Add salt to taste.

3. Add the lemon juice. Acidity brings out the flavor of vegetables and pasta.

4. Add a teaspoon of crushed black pepper and mix well. Set aside.

Pasta : 

1. Drain pasta and corn into a large salad bowl.

2. Now add all the diced vegetables like bell peppers, scallions, cherry tomatoes. If you wanted you can add finely chopped lettuce too.

3. Toss well and add the Sauce that we made earlier.

4. Add your choice of meat and toss gently.

5. Now add a lump of finely chopped Dill and stir the whole salad together.

Serving/Presentation Instruction : 

Serve in salad bowls topped couple of dill tripods ! The salad will not be very cold or very warm if served immediately. In 15 mins the whole salad will eventually come to an even temperature. I also sprinkled some grated Parmesan cheese :)

Stay tuned for the Dessert to be served with it !! Its called "Creamy Raspberry Shots"

Chinese Schezwan Curry

Overview:

The Asian cuisine is probably one of the most popular food among all age groups. Its ingredients are a variety of vegetables, sauces and meat. High on proteins and essential minerals, this cuisine can be an extremely healthy eating experience. Although I cannot vouch for the Asian restaurants on the health factor, but then if you have a known recipe and count of calories and fat in the food then cooking it for your family is worth the effort ! And trust me they will enjoy it.

Schezwan is a spicy Chinese gravy generally served with boiled and "Starch-drained" rice. Mostly a vegetarian dish, schezwan is a good source of protein from tofu, minerals and roughage from the vegetables and a little carb from the rice.

Cooking time : 40 mins including pre-cooking preparations.

Ingredients:

You will need :

• 250 g Tofu (standard pack at all grocery stores).
• Broccoli Florets (about 500 g)
• 2 diced red bell peppers
• 3 bundles of scallions (chopped).They are also called Spring onions.
• 2-3 cups of boiled rice(starch-drained)
• sugar
• salt
• Any readily available "schezwan sauce". I use "Ching's Schezwan Sauce"
• Lemon juice
• cooking oil ( you can use any :vegetable oil/olive oil )
• little cornstarch.

Recipe :

1. Cut tofu into rectangular pieces. You can also shallow fry this tofu  for better taste, but that will add a few grams of fat from oil, but the taste is worth it. Set it aside.

2. Heat some oil in a large skillet and add all the cut vegetables : scallions, diced onion, pepper and broccoli florets in it. Toss gently, just to stir fry.

3. Add some salt according to taste over the veggies. Toss again and now add around 3 tablespoons of sugar. You can replace sugar with any artificial sweetener if you are very carb conscious.

4. Cook covered for approximately 5-7 mins.

5. The veggies will strain some water. Add a litlle more hot water and around 3 tablespoons of "Schezwan Sauce"

6. Cook covered for another 5 mins. Open carefully and stir gently. 

7. Add a pinch of cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of cold water. Mix well and add it to the thin schezwan gravy. In a minute the gravy will turn thicker.

8. Add the diced (fried) Tofu to the vegetable gravy and toss or turn gently. Add the lemon juice evenly over the gravy and stir gently so that the vegetables and Tofu remain intact in the gravy.

Its almost done now !

Serving/Presentation Instruction:

Make a heap of rice in a platter. Create room to put gravy right in the middle of the heap. You can shape the heap of rice according or in contrast to the shape of the platter. I personally like contrasting the shapes of dish and platter while serving. Raise a couple of Tofu pieces in gravy and serve hot !!

Italian Shrimp gravy with rice/pasta

Whats nice than a yummy gravy with rice.. This one is a recipe I deciphered after having dinner with an Italian friend of mine. Never knew that making Italian day to day dining would be so easy.

Ingredients :
All you need is butter/margarine, 3 garlic cloves , uncooked shrimps, tomato puree, salt ,Bruschetta Italian dressings, Italian seasoning with thyme, rosemary, oregano and basil.

Recipe :
Personally I feel nothing can replace the taste that is provided by butter , but on the health factor I liked to replace butter with Margarine.
1.Heat a teaspoon of  Margarine in a skillet and fry grated garlic in it till golden brown.
2.Add thawed shrimps and toss gently, sprinkle a little salt and you just have to cook them for a minute.
3.Now add around 3 tablespoons of Bruschetta Italian salad dressing and toss shrimps again.
4.Add a cup of tomato puree or diced/squashed tomatoes and cook covered for a minute.
5.Add hot water and cook for a minute again and then add a little zesty ranch in it just to make the gravy look thicker.
6.Garnish it with Italian seasoning and decorate it with a cilantro tripod.
7.Serve hot in a bowl, alongside rice or freshly boiled pasta.


Enjoy the 15 minute meal and keep experimenting !!