MW Dates & Rice Flakes Pudding

I prepared a dates paste using honey and pitted seedless dates yesterday, homemade dates paste goes for easy preparation and i prepared the dates paste by soaking pitted dates in hot water and grind them as semi thick paste along with enough honey, voila easy as well as healthy dates paste is ready to enjoy..I loved it as a spread over some toasted bread, but unfortunately apart from me none at home loved the dates spread,after making out a bread with enough paste there were some leftover which finally i turned out as this simple, delicious and thick pudding along with rice flakes through microwave oven...This pudding tastes marvellous when served warm also they vanished within few minutes..Easy breezy pudding gets ready in less than 20minutes and we loved it..



1/2cup Rice flakes
1+1/2cups Milk
2tbsp Dates paste
1/2tsp Cardamom powder
1/2tsp Ghee
Few pistachios

Heat the milk in a microwave safe bowl for 2minutes in high, add the rice flakes and dates paste, cook everything for 8-10minutes until the rice flakes get cooked(stir twice in between)..finally add the cardamom powder, ghee and cook everything just for few seconds in high..Serve warm this thick pudding topped with few pistachios..

Mixed Vegetable Kurma - Version 2

I love vegetable kurma with anything, this time i tried making kurma slightly different from my usual way of making this gravy, i went for an onion based spicy masala and yogurt -cashew grounded paste for making this gravy..This gravy doesnt go for a long cooking process and gets ready in less time, needless to say that this kurma goes prefect as a pair with rice, rotis or with toasted bread slices..U have many options to enjoy this fingerlicking kurma..This kurma is totally coconut free, it just goes for thick yogurt and few cashews to give the taste and thickness to this kurma, if u want to skip completely cashews just go for some more coriander powder or either make a paste with poppyseeds & coconut..The choice is urs, personnally i think we can make this cashew based kurma atleast once a while for a change...



2cups Mixed Vegetables (potatoes, carrots, greenpeas etc)
1no Tomato (ripen & crushed)
1/4tsp Turmeric powder
2nos Bayleaves
1tsp Fennel seeds
Oil
Salt
Coriander leaves (chopped)

To Grind:
2nos Onions (big & cubed)
2tbsp Coriander seeds
1tsp Cumin seeds
2nos Dry red chillies
1tsp Peppercorns
1tsp Ginger
6nos Garlic cloves
1no Cinnamon stick
2nos Cloves
2nos Cardamoms
1cup Yogurt
8-10nos Cashews

Grind cashews and yogurt as thick paste and keep aside..Heat few drop of oil, sauté the cubed onions, ginger, garlic cloves until they turns slightly brown, take off and dry roast the remaining ingredients given in the list 'to grind', now add this roasted spices to the already sauteed onions, grind as fine paste with enough water..

In the same vessel, heat enough oil, fry the bay leaves, fennel seeds until they turns brown, add immediately the crushed tomato,mixed veggies,turmeric powder and sauté everything for few minutes until the veggies get half cooked, add immediately the grounded onion paste with salt, cook everything until the oil get separates slightly..now add the yogurt-cashew paste with enough water, cook the gravy in medium flame until the veggies get well cooked..Garnish with coriander leaves and enjoy hot with rice or rotis..

Chickpeas & Bread Masal Vadai

Its too cold here also its getting dark everyday at 4pm, most of our snacks goes for hot cup of tea or coffee, finally after a long hesitation i prepared this chickpeas and bread masal vadai with some soaked chickpeas and stale bread slices..For my surprise this masal vadai turned out super crispy and delicious..We enjoyed having this crispy beauties with a hot cup of tea..Simple masal vadai goes prefect along with some spicy coconut chutney or else with rice dishes...Needless to say that from now there wont be stale breads anymore at home, am gonna try this masal vadai with different beans,yeah we loved this crispy vadai that much..Sending to Kid's Delight-Holiday Special hosted by Srivalli..



2cups Chickpeas (soaked overnite)
5nos Stale bread slices
2nos Onion (chopped)
2nos Green chillies (chopped)
1tsp Ginger (grated)
2nos Garlic cloves (crushed)
1/4tsp Fennel seeds (crushed)
5nos Curry leaves
Few Coriander leaves (chopped)
Salt
Oil

Drain the excess of the water from the chickpeas also soak the stale bread slices in water and squeeze out the excess of water.. Grind the chickpeas,bread slices coarsely without adding water, if its too hard to grind just springle few drops of water..now add the chopped onions, chopped green chillies,grated ginger, crushed garlic,chopped curry leaves, coriander leaves, crushed fennel seeds with enough salt to the grounded batter...

Heat the oil for deepfrying..make small balls from the vada batter and flatten them..drop gently the flattened vadais to the hot oil and fry until they turns golden brown..

Quinoa Vangibhath

Vangibhath is one of the famous Karnataka rice dish usually prepared with a special spice powder, eggplant chunks and cooked rice, for a change i choosed this time some cooked quinoa to replace the rice and prepared this delicious,filling and healthy one pot meal which suits prefect for a lunch or for dinner..As most of u would have know that am a great fan of both oats and quinoa, i never stop trying and enjoying our traditional foods by using either oats or quinoa,this quinoa vangibhath is one among those trials which turned out really super delicious ..Am really happy to say that even my teddies and my hubby enjoyed this quinoa vangibhath for lunch with spicy potato fry and boiled eggs..



2cup Quinoa
2cups Eggplants (cubed)
1/4cup Tamarind juice
1tbsp Sesame seeds
1/2tsp Fenugreek seeds
1+1/2tbsp Oil
1/2tsp Mustard seeds
1tsp Channa dal
1tsp Urad dal
2nos Dry red chillies
10nos Cashewnuts pieces
Salt

Vangibhath Powder:
1/4cup Grated coconut
1tsbp Coriander seeds
1tbsp Channa dal
1tbsp Urad dal
2nos Dry red chillies
1/2tsp Asafoetida powder

Cook the quinoa with 4cups of water in a vessel until they get well coated, keep aside and let them cool...Dry roast all the ingredients given for the vangi bhath powder and grind them as fine powder, keep aside..Heat the oil and fry the eggplants and salt until the eggplants get cooked, keep aside..Heat a tsp of oil and add the mustard seeds, urad dal, channa dal,fenugreek seeds, sesame seeds, curry leaves, red chillies and cashew nuts, once they get well fried, add the tamarind juice and cook until its get thick..add now the grounded spice powder, keep in simmer until the oil gets separates, add the already cooked eggplant cubes, salt and cook until eggplants are tender, put off the stove..mix the cooked quinoa gently, adjust the salt if needed...

Enjoy with potato chips, fries or with eggs..

Matar Tawa Pulao

Actually my fridge was completely empty today.. Eventhough i wanted to make an easy breezy dish with some frozen veggies but something special for our sunday lunch, while just going through my freezer i got a packet of frozen peas, since a long i wanted to try tawa pulao coz i have to finish the already opened pav bhaji masala packet as its was sitting sadly in my pantry since a long, finally i went for preparing a simple,quick,delicious matar tawa pulao..I know this pulao will be very colourful if i would have added few carrots, capsicums or some beans..Anyhow this simple matar tawa pulao turned out our sunday lunch truly fabulous with some grilled chicken bites..Sending to A Fruit/ Veggie For A Month guest hosted by Richa, event by Priya..



3cups Cooked rice
1no Onion (chopped)
2nos Tomatoes (chopped)
1tsp Ginger garlic paste
2tsp Pav bhaji masala
1cup Frozen green peas
Salt
Oil
1/2tsp Cumin seeds
1tbsp Lemon juice

Heat enough oil, fry the cumin seeds until they turns brown, add immediately the chopped onions,chopped tomatoes sauté until the onions turns transculent, add the ginger garlic paste to the veggies, sauté until the raw smell goes on..add the frozen peas, pav bhaji masala, sauté for few minutes, add some water and cook until the water gets evaporated..Now add the cooked rice, salt, lemon juice and toss everything gently until everything get well mixed in high heat..put off the stove immediately..

Serve with potato chips or any sort of meats..

Profiterole - French Pastry Balls in Nutella Chocolate Sauce

Profiterole is a dish prepared with pastry balls filled either with whipped cream, pastry cream or simply served along with chocolate sauce..This dessert is quite common in France and i'll get them usually from supermarket, this time i wanted to make them at home that too with nutella spread as a smooth chocolate sauce using some low fat cream, u can serve this profiterole just by dusting powder sugar, either with caramel or with chopped fruits else with a simple chocolate sauce, since am a chocoholic person my choice went for this quick and delicious nutella chocolate sauce..This pastry balls goes for the same prepartion and baking procedure exactly like Chouquette, just u need to skip the sugar pearls that all...Sending this yummy profiteroles to AWED-French guest hosted by me, event by DK..



1/3cup Milk
1/2cup Water
3/4cup All purpose flour
100grms Butter
1/2tsp Salt
4nos Eggs (beatened)
1no Egg yolk

Preheat the oven to 350F, add the water, milk,sugar, butter in a pan and bring them boil in medium flame; once the butter gets melts, take the pan from the flame and add immediately the flour,mix well and cook in simmer again until the dough get stiff..

Transfer this dough to a large bowl, add the beatened eggs one by one until the dough turns like puree but slightly stiff, now fill this dough in a pastry bag and pipe out small quantity of this dough over a baking sheet lined in a baking tray, slightly brush the chouquette with beatened egg yolk and bake them in middle rack for 20minutes..

For Nutella Chocolate Sauce:

2tbsp Nutella spread

1tsp Confectioner's sugar

1/4cup Low fat cream

Heat the cream in simmer, add the nutella spread and confectioner's sugar, once everything get well mixed, put off the stove..Pour this chocolate sauce in a serving bowl, arrange the already prepared pastry balls and pour few teaspoons of this chocolate sauce over the pastry balls and arrange in fridge..Serve chilled..

Garlicky Broccoli Elbow Pasta

Pastas are our family favourites, we guys can survive with pastas for many days,yep we love that much, even i cook everyday pasta, its never gonna be boring for us..Our sterday lunch was this garlicky broccoli elbow pasta which i served along with grilled tofu bites..This pasta dish goes for simple,quick and for easy cooking process, u just need few garlic cloves, crushed tomatoes, broccoli florets,cream, cooked pasta,salt and pepper powder, in case if u need them more hot just add few pinches of red chilly flakes,voila the dish is ready to enjoy with any sort of grilled meats or veggies or just with grilled spicy tofu bites as i served along with this pasta..Am sending this pasta to Healing Foods-Broccoli guest hosted by Sayali, event by Siri.



2cups Cooked elbow pasta
5nos Garlic cloves (crushed)
2nos Tomatoes (ripen & crushed)
15-20nos Broccoli florets
Salt
2tbsp Cream
Pepper powder
Olive oil

Heat enough olive oil, fry the crushed garlic cloves until they turns golden brown, add immediately the crushed tomatoes, salt and cook until the tomatoes turns mushy,add immediately the broccoli florets, sauté for few minutes,now add the pepper powder and cream..cook for few minutes, finally add the cooked elbow pasta, toss everything gently until the pasta & veggies get well mixed..

Serve warm with grilled meats,veggies or tofu bites..

Sugar -Free Dates & Mixed Fruits Smoothie

Actually i was pulled to prepare  this thick smoothie coz of some leftover seedless dates and some leftover fruits salad prepared by my hubby sterday..Am a person who never trashed anything that much easily, so i  wanted to turn those leftover fruits as a thick smoothie using yogurt, this smoothie is completely sugar free,filling, delicious which suits prefectly for breakfast to start a hectic day with some bread toasts or for dieting people as this smoothie is quite a complete energy booster...Just add some ice cubes to this thick smoothie to serve them as a thin juice, u have so many choices to enjoy this healthy smoothie..Sending to Virtual Party - Beverages guest hosted by Aipi,event by Shabitha..



10nos Dated (soaked in hot water for an hour)
2cups Mixed fruits (kiwi, banana, apple,orange,peaches etc)
Water
1cup Yogurt

Blend the soaked dates with enough water as thick paste, add the remaining water, mixed fruits, yogurt and blend everything together as thick smoothie, enjoy immediately or with ice cubes..

Purée de Petit Pois/Green Peas Puree

Making out puree with veggies is quite usual in French cuisine, before i dont even know how to make delicious puree with veggies but after learning through my french friends, now i can prepare puree with any sort of veggies for our lunch or for our dinner, usually i serve puree with grilled meats or spicy chicken pieces or with a simple creamy mushroom sauce which goes awesome along with puree ..Day before yesterday i prepared this creamy green peas puree with frozen green peas, fresh cream, potatoes along with onions and vegetable stock water..U can also prepare this same puree for babies just by avoiding cream,onions and vegetable stock water..Sending to A Fruit/Veggie For A Month - Green peas guest hosted by Richa,event by Priya Mitharwal..



1/2kg Green peas (frozen)
1no Onions (chopped)
2nos Potatoes (chopped)
1tbsp Butter
1+1/2cups Vegetable stock water
2tbsp Fresh cream
Salt
Pepper powder

Heat the butter and sauté the chopped onions until they turns transculent, add immediately the green peas,chopped potatoes, sauté for few minutes, add the vegetable stock water, salt and cook everything in simmer until the green peas and potatoes get well cooked, finally add the fresh cream,pepper powder and blend as a creamy puree with a hand blender..

Serve warm with grilled meats or a creamy mushroom sauce..

Am very excited to send my two best recipes to 30 Best Recipes of 2009 going through at Chacko's Kitchen, this event is quite interesting for me since i have numerous list of dishes which are very special for me since cooking is one of my great passion..This interesting event was holded by 5members and they have their particular selection criteria for choosing 30best recipes from the numerous entries..

Am gonna send my Chandrakala & Sweet Almond Buns with fingers crossed..

Murgh Musallam

 Murgh musallam, a droolworthy and catchy chicken curry from Awadhi cuisine..The word Musallam means “whole” and Murgh means “chicken” is a rich creamy dish chicken dish which is quite famous from Awadhi Cuisine.  The dish has derived its name through the process of cooking whole chicken in a creamy sauce and an interesting combination of spices that result in a rich succulent dish that is mildly spicy and tastes amazing when paired up with plain cooked basmati rice, pulao or as a side to go with rotis. I used chicken pieces instead of whole chicken but the taste was delicious.The colour of the dish itself says how delicious this chicken curry would have tasted na, yep we enjoyed having this delectable murgh musallam with rice for our sunday's lunch and with rotis for dinner...One more delicious chicken curry to try and this curry is quite different from our usual chicken gravies...Eventhough the cooking process and the ingredients lists seems very long, this murgh musallam tastes truly soooo delicious, its really worth to try this dish..Sending to Sameena's Chicken Recipes and to Celebrating Regional Cuisine by Sujana..




1kg Chickens (cut as medium spices)
3nos Onions (big & chopped)
2nos Tomatoes (juicy & ripened,pureed)
2nos Garlic pods (chopped)
1/4tsp Turmeric powder
1/2tsp Red chilly powder
Salt
Oil
Chopped coriander leaves
15nos Almonds (soaked in hot water)
2nos Bayleaves
1tsp Shahjeera

To Grind:
1tsp Pepper corns
1/2tsp Cumin seeds
1no Cinnamon stick
2nos Cloves
1no Cardamom

For Marination:
1+1/2tsp Ginger garlic paste
4nos Crushed green chillies
3/4cup Yogurt
1+1/2tsp Coriander powder
1/2tsp Red chilly powder
Salt

Mix all the ingredients for marination,add cleaned chicken pieces to the mixture. Cover and let it marinate atleast for half an hour..

Dry roast the spices mentioned under 'to grind' on low flame till nice aroma comes out. Cool, grind to fine powder and set aside. Now grind the almonds with water to make into smooth paste,keep aside.Heat enough oil in a pan, add chopped garlic, chopped onions, and turmeric powder. Fry on medium flame for around 8 - 10 mts till the onions turn soft and light golden brown in color. Remove the onions, let it cool and grind to smooth paste.

In the same vessel, heat some oil, add the marinated chicken pieces in the oil without the marination. Fry on high heat for about 5-7minutes till the chicken pieces turn lightly brown on all sides. Remove and set aside.

In another vessel, heat few drops of oil, fry the bayleaves,shahjeera until they turns brown, add the onion paste, tomato puree, red chilli powder,a cup of water and cook on medium flame for about 5 minutes.Add the fried chicken pieces, left over marination,almond paste, and mix well. Add again enough water and cook covered on low flame until the chicken turns soft and the gravy turns slightly thick..

Finally add freshly chopped coriander leaves to the gravy.Serve hot with cooked basmati rice, biryani, pulao or rotis.

Lachha Paratha

A multi layered Indian flat bread quite familiar in Punjabi cuisine which tastes awesome when served along with chicken kurma or with channa masala usually this parathas are cooked in tandoor, the famous cylindrical clay oven which is quite a hard task for us to get here.. These parathas tastes and looks exactly like parotta but with minimum efforts this paratha tastes fabulous..This lachha paratha goes for flour, warm milk and oil, my teddies called these parathas as little sister of parottas since they looks exactly like our south Indian parottas..Lachha parathas are quite easy to prepare and its completely a filling dinner or lunch when served along with a spicy side dish..We enjoyed having this parathas with vegetable kurma, u can fold this parathas as many ways, i went for cutting the rolled dough as long strips and rolling them as likeswiss roll..once cooked, just push the sides of the paratha to release the layers and served them warm..U can conserve them very well for a day or two and serve warm by reheating them in a griddle or microwave oven..Sending to Celebrating Regional Cuisine hosted by Sujana..



2cups All purpose flour
1/2cup Whole wheat flour
1cup Warm milk/hot water
Salt
Oil as per need
Extra flour for dusting

Knead the flour, salt and a tablespoon of oil with warm milk, knead well as firm dough, brush the dough with oil and keep aside for an hour..Divide the dough as equal size portions and roll as circles..brush with some oil and sprinkle some flour over the rolled circles..Cut the circles as strips, arrange the strips one by one over themselves and roll tightly as a swiss roll..keep them aside again for an hour..now press lightly with rolling pin to give a round shape..

Heat few drops of oil, cook this rolled paratha on both sides by drizzling enough oil, until they get cooked well, once get cooked just push the sides to release the layers..Serve hot with spicy side dish..

Lauki Anardana Dal Curry

I couldnt stop myself adding anardana seed powder in my recipes nowadays,i love the slight tanginess given by this anardana seed powder whenever they are added in a dish..This time i tried out this dal with lauki, few spices along with moongdal,masoor dal... this dal curry tastes awesome with slight tanginess and goes prefect for lunch with rice and papads, loved this dal and enjoyed even with rotis for our dinner..I prepared a special spice powder by dry roasting coriander seeds, peppercorns, cumin seeds, dry red chillies, grated coconut and anardana powder..This spice powder spiced up prefectly this dal curry and turned out this dal bit dark coz of the addition of anardana seed powder...Sending this dal curry to CWS-Anardana Seeds guest hosted by Jayasri,event by me..



2cups Bottlegourd (chopped)
1/2cup Moongdal
1/4cup Masoor dal
1no Onion (chopped)
1no Tomato (chopped)
2nos Green chillies (slit opened)
1/4tsp Turmeric powder
1/2tsp Garam masala powder
1tsp Mustard seeds, urad dal
Few curry leaves
Salt
Oil
Water

To Dry roast &Grind:
1tbsp Coriander seeds
1tsp Peppercorns
1tsp Cumin seeds
2nos Dry red chillies
2tbsp Grated coconut
2tsp Anardana powder
1/2tsp Asafoetida powder

Dry roast all the ingredients in simmer and grind as fine powder..Meanwhile take the washed moongdal, masoor dal, chopped bottlegourd pieces, chopped onions,  chopped tomatoes,slit opened green chillies in a pressure cooker with enough water and turmeric powder,cook upto 3whistles and put off the stove, once the steam get released add enough grounded spice powder,salt,garam masala and cook in simmer for few minutes, finally lets splutters the mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves and add immediately the tempered spices to the cooking dals..

Enjoy with rice or rotis..

Chouquette-French Pastry Balls

Chouquette is a small pastry balls prepared with plain flour, eggs and butter..These chouquettes are always topped with sugar pearls and we get them very easily in French bakeries for very less price, thats the reason i never tried them making at home, since am hosting french theme as this month's AWED, i wanted to try these cute looking pastry balls for the first time at home, for my surprise they turned out super prefect as exactly as we get from bakeries and we enjoyed having them when they were still warm, eventhough these chouquettes goes for little bit more butter, its not that much harm to try and enjoy them once in a while at home..Sending these cuties to AWED-French guest hosted by me, event by DK..



1/3cup Milk
1/2cup Water
3/4cup All purpose flour
100grms Butter
1/2tsp Salt
4nos Eggs (beatened)
1no Egg yolk
Sugar pearls

Preheat the oven to 350F, add the water, milk,sugar, butter in a pan and bring them boil in medium flame; once the butter gets melts, take the pan from the flame and add immediately the flour,mix well and cook in simmer again until the dough get stiff..

Transfer this dough to a large bowl, add the beatened eggs one by one until the dough turns like puree but slightly stiff, now fill this dough in a pastry bag and pipe out small quantity of this dough over a baking sheet lined in a baking tray, slightly brush the chouquette with beatened egg yolk, springle sugar pearl and bake them in middle rack for 20minutes..

Enjoy with a cup of coffee..

Rosogollar Payesh

Few days back i came across this rasgulla payesh at Sandeepa's Bong Mom's Cookbook and the picture itself tempted me a lot and i immediately bookmarked this delectable dessert..This payesh goes for store bought rasgullas which makes the life easier, this dessert goes for an easy cooking process also at the same time this rasgulla payesh tastes tooo delicious,my H didnt stop having them and this dessert can suits prefectly for a party menu since this goes for easy ingredients.. When this rosogollar payesh served chilled, they tastes too marvellous..Thanks to Sandeepa for sharing this yummy dessert..Its really a fabulous feast for Bengali sweet lovers like me,i truly enjoyed having each and every bite of this rosogollar payesh.



15-20nos Rasgullas (store bought )
1cup Evaporated milk
2cups Whole milk
1/2cup  Sweetened condensed milk
Few saffron strands
1/2tsp Cardamom powder
Few pistachios nuts

Squeeze out the sugar syrup from the store bought rasgullas and keep aside..bring boil the evaporated milk and whole milk..add immediately the sweetened condensed milk, saffron strands and stir continously until the milk turns bit thick..add the cardamom powder, give a stir and put off the stove..Pour this saffron milk over the already prepared rasgullas, keep aside and let them cool..

Arrange them in fridge and enjoy chilled topped with pistachios..

Oats Neiappam

Traditional neiappams are prepared usually with grounded rice, jaggery,bananas and cardamom powder, for a change i tried them with rolled oats, packed brown sugar to prepare this neiappams with grounded rice batter..This neiappams are completely guilt free, healthy also at the same a prefect evening snack to munch..We guys enjoyed them for our snacks and needless to say that i prepared these healthy neiappams for today's Karthigai Deepam..Wishing u all a happy deepam festival..



1cup Raw rice (soaked for 2hrs)
1cup Rolled oats (soaked for 15minutes)
1no Ripen banana
1/2cup Brown sugar
1tsp Cardamom powder
1/4cup Grated coconut
Oil or ghee

Grind the raw rice, rolled oats as a bit coarse paste, add the ripen bananas, brown sugar and ground as fine paste, add immediately the cardamom powder, grated coconut and mix everything well..Heat the paniyaram pan, pour few drops of oil, spoon the batter to the pan and cook on both sides until they turns golden brown..

Enjoy warm..

Aloo Anardana

Aloo Anardana is quite a traditional delicious side dish with a slight tangy taste coz of dried pomegranate seeds powder, this potato fry is quite famous in North India..I prepared this side dish yesterday for our lunch which went as a prefect pair with rasam and sambar rice..We loved it eventhough for the first time i prepare this potato fry with anardana powder..The picture itself says how tastier these aloo anardana for the sure...Whenever i see the picture, its makes me hungry,yep i loved it that much..Obviously these droolworthy potato fry goes to CWS-Anardana powder guest hosted by Jayasri, event by me..



3nos Potatoes ( cooked&cubed)
1/2tsp Cumin seeds
1/4tsp Turmeric powder
2tbsp Ghee
1tsp Coriander powder
1tsp Red chilly powder
2tsp Anardana powder
Salt

Heat the ghee, let crack the cumin seeds, add immediately the cubed potatoes, fry the potatoes until they turns slightly brown, add immediately the coriander powder, red chilly powder, turmeric powder, anardana powder and salt, fry the potatoes for few more minutes until the potatoes turns crispy...

This crispy aloo anardana tastes fabulous with rasam,curd and sambar rice..

Île Flottante/Floating Island

A floating island is a French dessert consisting of meringue floating on crème anglaise,a milky vanilla custard.. The meringues are prepared from whipped egg whites with a pinch of salt cooked either in hot water or in microwave oven. The crème anglaise is prepared with the egg yolks, vanilla,sugar and hot milk, cooked over stove top until they get slightly thicken...I tasted this delectable dessert before 12years when i landed Paris for the first time in a French restaurant..Immediately i have fallen in love with this delicious dessert and its one of our family favourite dessert after chocolate mousse, i prepared this floating island today after a long for our dessert coz few of our family friends came to home for lunch, everyone relished each and every spoon of this yummy dessert, my teddies enjoyed the cooked egg whites just topped with the caramel syrup...Needless to say this famous french dessert goes to AWED-French guest hosted by me, event by DK and to Kid's Delight -Holiday Special hosted by Srivalli..



For Crème anglaise ( vanilla custard):
3cups Full fat milk
1tsp Vanilla extract
4nos Egg yolks
1/2cup Sugar

For Meringue:
4nos Egg whites
1pinch Salt

Bring boil the milk in simmer in a pan, meanwhile beat the egg yolks and sugar until they turns creamy pale mixture, gradually add the boiled milk, vanilla extract, mix continously (else the yolks will get cooked), now transfer this mixture to the pan and cook in simmer until they turns creamy and slightly thick..cover it and keep aside..

Beat the egg whites with salt until they turn foamy, beat until soft peek forms..Bring boil two cups of water in a heavy bottomed large pan, scoop the egg whites and drop gently to the boiling water, cook on both sides until the egg whites turns slightly hard or cook in microwave oven for few minutes....

Drop gently the cooked egg whites in already prepared vanilla custard, arrange them in fridge atleast for two hours..While serving garnish the floating islands with caramel syrup or candied nuts..

Microwave Cornmeal Kesari

I tried out this easy kesari today for our lunch as dessert with cornmeal, in my previous post i have told that there were some leftover cornmeal and i finished them today as kesari with usual ingredients, cornmeal suits prefect for kesari and they get turned withing less than 20minutes and they vanished within few minutes when compared to the preparation time, we enjoyed having this cornmeal kesari warm, its tastes truly fabulous and we loved it..Am sending this delicious cornmeal kesari to MEC-Sweets guest hosted by Priya, event by Srivalli..



1cup Cornmeal
1+1/2cups Sugar
1+1/2cups Milk
1/2cup Water
1/2tsp Cardamom powder
2tbsp Ghee
1tbsp Butter
Few saffron strands
Almond flakes (garnishing)

In a microwave safe bowl, take the cornmeal and cook for 2minutes in high (stir in between), transfer the roasted cornmeal to a plate, in the same bowl take the milk, water, sugar, saffron strands, butter and cook for 5minutes (stir thrice in between)..now add the roasted cornmeal,cardamom powder and cook for 2minutes in medium, stir now and add the ghee, cook everything in high for 5minutes..

Garnish the kesari with some almond flakes and enjoy warm..

Vegan Multigrains & Banana Biscuits

Last week, when i cleaned my pantry i was awestuck to see they were some small quantity of quinoa flour, whole wheat pastry flour, cornmeal,roasted rava,oats,brown rice flour,quinoa flakes and raisins..Immediately i wanted to make something as a bake since there were some over ripen bananas sitting sadly in my fruit basket, instead of making a bread i went for this quick,multigrains eggless, vegan biscuits, this biscuits goes for simple ingredients and they were absolutely delicious and crunchy once they came out of the oven..We loved the addition of raisins in this biscuits and enjoyed them for our snacks, my little one had these biscuits even for his breakfast. These biscuits are really healthy, wholesome at the same time a prefect breakfast with a bowl of hot chocolate, just dip this biscuits in hot chocolate and enjoy this healthy biscuits..Actually i wanted to call them as cookies, but these biscuits were truly crunchy and i named them as biscuits instead of cookies..



1cup All purpose flour
1/2cup Whole wheat pastry flour
1/3cup Cornmeal
1/4cup Rolled oats
1/4cup Quinoa flour
2tbsp Brown rice flour
1/4cup Quinoa flakes
1tbsp Roasted rava
1/4cup Raisins
1cup Banana puree
1tbsp Flax seed meal
1/2cup Sugar
3tbsp Oil
1/2tsp Baking soda
1/2tsp Baking powder

Take the banana puree, sugar, oil, mix everything well until the sugar gets well dissolved, mix the flax seed meal and 3tbsp warm water to make a thick paste..meanwhile take the flours, roasted rava, quinoa flakes,raisins, baking soda and baking powder in a bowl, mix everything well and keep aside..Make a well in dry ingredients and add gradually the wet ingredients, flax seed meal paste and knead them as a soft dough...

Preheat the oven to 350F, line a baking sheet over a baking tray, grease ur palms, take a small ball from the dough, flatten them as oval shape, with a knife just make some slashes over the biscuits and arrange them one by one with some spaces between them, bake for 20-25minutes in middle rack until the crust of this biscuits turns golden brown..

Enjoy!

Epinards à la Crème / French Style Creamed Spinach

Creamed spinach is quite a famous dish which is consumed atleast once a week in french school canteens, eventhough the french kids hate this creamed spinach very much, most of the french people hate this creamed spinach to the core when they were kid, each and everyone have their own version of story behind the reason for hating this creamed spinach...I tasted this creamed spinach before few years ago in a french friend's house when we were invited at her place for a lunch..I immediately fallen in love with this french creamed spinach dish which is served along with meats, grilled fishes or simply with pastas..Today i prepared this creamed spinach for our lunch and i clicked immediately since i was hosting AWED this month with french cuisine as theme..Needless to say that this creamed spinach goes to AWED-French hosted by me, event by DK..



1/2kg Spinach (stalks removed)
3tbsp Double cream
1tsp Butter
Pepper powder
Nutmeg powder

Heat the butter, add immediately the spinach leaves, sauté the spinach for few minutes, add the salt,double cream and cook for few minutes..Now either u can grind the cooked spinach as bit coarse paste or u can enjoy them without grinding also, but i went for grinding..

Finally spice the grounded creamed spinach with pepper powder and nutmeg powder..Serve with grilled chicken thighs, meats or grilled fish..

Butternut Squash & Quinoa Parathas

I know many of u will be definitely surprised to see again a dish with butternut squash,i was pushed to make some dishes coz of some leftover butternut squash puree, thats y i prepared this parathas along with quinoa flour and quinoa flakes spiced up with anardana seed powder which is known as pomegranate seeds powder and cumin seeds..For the first time am using anardana powder in my cooking, that too in paratha none at home found out the addition of anardana powder...Living in abroad have many advantages as well as many disadvantages, we cant get many Indian spices here that much easily,i couldnt able to find out the whole anardana seeds but fortunately i picked a packet of anardana powder from Indian groceries when we went for our weekened shopping, however anardana seeds are usually dry roasted and ground as fine powder while making dishes, using directly anardana seeds as powder will definitely go for less cooking process than the seeds na...Needless to say that this paratha is very healthy, filling, colourful and a guilt free dish to enjoy either for lunch or for dinner with a spicy side dish..Sending this parathas to CWS-Anardana Seeds guest hosted by Jayasri, event by me and to CWF-Quinoa guest hosted by Priya Mitharwal and finally to CMT-Rotis guest hosted by Akheela, event by Jagruti..



2cups Whole wheat flour
1cup Quinoa flour
1/4cup Quinoa flakes
1/2cup Butternut squash puree
2tbsp Anardana powder/pomegranate seeds powder
1tsp Cumin seeds
All purpose flour for dusting
Salt
2tbsp Yogurt
Oil

Take the whole wheat flour, quinoa flour, quinao flakes , butternut squash puree, anardana seeds powder, cumin seeds, salt ,yogurt in a large bowl, mix everything well, gradually add water and knead a soft and stiff dough ,keep aside for half a hour..Make 10-12 medium sized balls from the dough, dust with all purpose flour and roll as round disc using a rolling pin..

Heat few drops of oil in a tawa, drop gently the flattened parathas, drizzle oil if needed and cook on both sides until the parathas get cooked well..Serve hot with any sort of side dish..

Chicken Kofta Kurma

I often make chicken balls as an appetiziers specially for many birthday parties, since its always an hit among the little ones just with ketchup..everytime, my close friends ask me to prepare chicken balls for their partyfor starters..This time i have turned them as kurma without deepfrying or steam cooking the chicken balls and prepared a delicious kurma with these chicken balls..This yummy kurma goes tremendously with rice, just with bread toast or either with rotis..My H literally relished this kurma and enjoyed them with rotis for our sterday dinner.



For Chicken Balls:
3nos Chicken breast pieces
1no Onion (big & chopped)
1tsp Garam masala powder
1no Green chilly (chopped)
1tbsp Corn flour
Salt

For Kurma:
1no Onion (chopped)
2nos Tomatoes (chopped)
2nos Green chillies (slit opened)
1tbsp Ginger garlic paste
1cup Yogurt
5nos Cashews
1tbsp Coriander powder
1/2tsp Red chilly powder
1tsp Cumin powder
2tbsp Grated coconut
2nos Whole spices
Chopped coriander leaves
Chopped mint leaves
Salt
Oil

Grind the chicken breast pieces with garam masala chopped green chillies,cornflour and salt..meanwhile heat few drops of oil, sauté the chopped onions until they turns transculent..add the onions to the grounded chicken mixture and make medium sized balls from this chicken mixture..

Now heat enough oil, fry the whole spices until brown, sauté the chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, slit opened green chillies and ginger garlic paste with salt, cook everything until the veggies get cooked and the raw smell goes away..grind the cashews, coconut and yogurt together as fine paste..Add the coriander powder, cumin powder, red chilly powder to the veggies, cook for few seconds..Add immediately the grounded paste, water and cook everything for few minutes..

Add the already prepared chicken balls to the cooking kurma, close the kadai with a lid..dont disturb the gravy for 5minutes, once the balls gets cooked put the flame in simmer until the oil gets separates from the gravy..Garnish the kurma with chopped coriander and mint leaves..

Serve along with rice, rotis or with bread slices..

Beans & Quinoa Flakes Stir Fry

After making some bakes with quinoa flakes, they were almost half a packet of quinoa flakes were sitting in my pantry since a long, i definitely want to give them a second life, thats the reason i used those quinoa flakes in our usual beans stir fry.. Actually i used the quinoa flakes instead of grated coconut flakes which i usually used to add to my stir fries whenever i prepare them with veggies, few of my stir fries are prepared also with rolled oats, but this time i wanted to finish the quinoa flakes as soon as possible..Quinoa flakes get well mixed with bean stir fry  and none can find out those flakes coz once cooked those quinoa flakes turned transparent and presonally i felt its one of the best way to sneak those healthy quinoa flakes.



2cups Beans (chopped finely)
1/4cup Moong dal (soaked for half an hour)
3tbsp Quinoa flakes
1no Onion (big & chopped finely)
2nos Green chillies (slit opened)
1tsp Mustard seeds+urad dal
Few curry leaves
Salt
Oil

Heat enough oil, let crack the mustard seeds and urad dal..add immediately the chopped onions, slit opened green chillies, curry leaves and salt, sauté until the onions turns transculent, now add the chopped beans and soaked moong dal, sauté everything in simmer..Sprinkle some water and close the pan with lid, cook in medium high flame until the veggies get almost cooked, now add the quinoa flakes and cook in high flame until the water gets disappears..

Serve hot as side dish with rice..

Butternut Squash & Oats Bread

Most of my readers and friends know that i can prepare from appetiziers to desserts with oats and numerous bakes with oats, here comes one among those healthy bread which is prepared with roasted butternut squash puree and rolled oats as a yeasted bread, this bread tastes tremendous  when served along with nutella or with honey and this bread vanished within few minutes also everyone at home enjoyed this bread when they were still warm for their snacks..The crust of this bread turned out little bit brown but the bread was terribly delicious...Sending this bread to BBD#34 -Bread With Grains guest hosted by Swathi..



1cup Whole wheat flour
1+1/2cups Rolled oats (grind bit coarsely)
1/2cup Cornmeal
1/2cup Butternut squash puree
2tbsp Butter (room temperature)
1tbsp Active dry yeast
1/2cup Luke warm water
1tsp Salt
1/2cup Sugar
1/4cup Raisins

Mix the active dry yeast in luke warm water with salt and 1tsp of sugar, keep aside for 5minutes,until the yeast turns foamy..Take the wheat flour,coarsely grounded rolled oats, cornmeal, butternut squash puree, butter, remaining sugar and raisins in a large bowl, gradually add the foamy yeast mixture and turn everything a smooth dough..arrange the dough in a greased bowl and keep in a warm place for 2hours until the dough doubled their volume..

Punch down the dough, knead for few seconds and arrange the dough in a loaf pan..brush the dough with butter and keep aside again for 30minutes..Preheat the oven to 350F and arrange the baking loaf pan in the middle rack, bake for 25-30minutes or until the crust turns brown..let them get cool completely..

Hyderabadi Bagara Baingan

Few days back, i got a packet of purple small brinjals from Indian grocery, i wanted to make them something different, quite delicious but not as usual tamarind based gravy or simple sitr fry, while going through google, i got this droolworthy Bagara Baingan from Nag's space..Her picture itself tempted me a lot and i tried immediately her version of bagar baingan and served this delicious dish along with simple vegetable briyani for our saturday lunch..Thanks to Nags for sharing this yummy dish and we loved it..This bagara baingan goes to Priya's & Aipi's Bookmarked Recipes..



7nos Purple small brinjals
2tbsp Sesame seeds
2tbsp Peanuts
2tbsp Coconut
1no Onion (chopped finely)
2tsp Ginger garlic paste
1/4tsp Turmeric powder
1tsp Cumin seeds
1tbsp Coriander powder
1tsp Red chilly powder
1cup Tamarind juice
Oil
Salt
Chopped coriander leaves

Dry roast the sesame seeds and peanuts until they turns brown, grind these roasted seeds with grated coconut with enough water as smooth paste..

Either u can fry the whole brinjals or u can slice them slightly with stem intact, now fry the brinjals in oil until they turns soft, drain them and keep aside..In the same oil, fry the onions and ginger garlic paste until the onions turns brown, add the grounded paste and fry everything for few minutes..Now add the turmeric powder, chilli powder, cumin seeds, coriander powder and salt, mix well and cook for another few minutes..Finally add the tamarind juice, fried brinjal and cook them with lid closed for 10-12minutes..

Put of the stove and garnish with coriander leaves..

Coriander Onion Chutney

Green chutney prepared with coriander and chopped onions, goes fabulous along with hot steaming idlies or crispy dosas, y not as a spread over toasted bread and served along with simple potato masala as sandwich, u have numerous choice to enjoy this chutney..I enjoyed this chutney as side dish for curd rice today for our lunch, eventhough my H and my teddies loved this chutney with crispy dosa..



1/2cup Coriander leaves
1cup Onion (chopped)
3tbsp Urad dal
3nos Dry red chillies
1tbsp Channa dal
1tsp Tamarind pulp
2tbsp Grated coconut
1/2tsp Mustard seeds +urad dal (for tempering)
Few curry leaves
Oil
Salt

Heat few drops of oil, fry the urad dal, dry red chillies, channa dal until they turns golden brown, add the chopped onions, coriander leaves to the same pan, sauté for few minutes..Now grind all the ingredients except the spices for tempering and curry leaves, with enough salt  and water as thick paste..

Heat enough oil, let splutters the mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves, pour immediately the tempered spices to the chutney, give a mix..Enjoy with anything as u desire..

Varo (Indian Praline With Mixed Nuts) ~~ICC

Our this month's Indian Cooking Challenge was this Indian praline with mixed dry nuts, its a sindhi special sweets for diwali and this sweets is quite a rich, nutty sweets to enjoy anytime, actually this varo ressembles very much like our chikki we made either with peanuts or with any nuts with jaggery, but varo goes for sugar, ghee and different varieties of nuts..Thanks a ton to Srivalli for choosing this fabulous varo for this month's challenge, i enjoyed making and munching them thoroughly..Srivalli choosed two types of varos, one is from Simply Sindhi Recipes and the second one is from Madhvi's Foolproof Recipes..My choice went for the first one..



1cup Mixed Nuts (Sliced nuts like almonds, cashew nuts, pistachios)
2tbsp Dry coconut flakes
1tbsp Poppy seeds
1tsp Cardamom powder
1cup Sugar
1tbsp Butter

In a heavy bottomed pan, melt the sugar with ghee in medium high flame, within few minutes the sugar turns to light brown colour thick syrup, add the sliced nuts, poppy seeds,dry coconut flakes, cardamom powder, mix everything well until the nuts get well coated with the caramelized sugar..

Pour this mixture in a greased plate, flatten the mixture quickly with a rolling pin, let them sit for few seconds and slice them as u desire..Conserve them in an air tightened box and enjoy munching..

Tried & Tasted - Chef In You Roundup

Am honoured and very happy to post this Tried & Tasted Roundup, first of all i have to say big thanks to Lakshmi of Kitchen Chronicles for letting me to host this beautiful event and to Dk of Chef In You for giving her big support when i said i choosed her blog for Tried & Tasted event..I grateful to all my foodie bloggers for their beautiful contributions after trying and tasting many droolworthy dishes from Dk's space..Voila, am finally with the roundup, i enjoyed thoroughly preparing this roundup and very happy to present u all this delicious roundup..

1-3)Sonal Agarwal of Palate Corner tried Baklava from here..Paneer Lollipops from here & finally Chocolate chips & Nut Muffins from here..
4)Lata Raja of Flavours and Tastes tried Rajma-Paneer Parathas from here..
5-8)Smitha of Smitha's Spicy Flavors tried Eggless Chocolate Cake from here, Bisi Bele Bath from here,Eggless Banana Muffins from here & finally Creamy Carrot Soup from here..
9)Divya of Easy Cooking tried Easy Cauliflower Curry from here..
10)Yummy4tummy tried Mexican Rice from here..
11)Gayathri of Gayathri's Cook Spot tried Chocolate Fudge from here..
12)Umm Mymoonha of Taste Of Pearl City tried Punjabi Kadi from here..
13)Paaka Shaale tried Cheesy Corn Muffins from here..
14-15)Priya Srinivasan of Enveetu Kitchen tried Bread Raita & Mint Raita from here & here..
16)Priya of A Healthier Me tried Masoor Dal (Brown) Rice from here..
17-19)Kalyani & Gayathri Rajamani of Adiruchi tried Eggless Strawberry Cake from here, Sprouts Puluv from here and finally Tawa Pulao from here..
20-21)Priya Sreeram of Bon Appetit tried Eggless Chocolate Cake from here & Paneer Cigar Rolls from here..
22)Satyasree of Super Yummy Recipes tried Chocolate Topped Coffee Cake from here..
23)Shobana of Shobana's Cooking Journal tried Aloo Banarasi from here..
24)Megha of Livetoeat tried Badam Ka Halwa from here..
25-29)Pj of Seduce You Tastebuds tried Aloo Baingan from here, Purple Cabbage-Tofu Parathas from here, Spicy Roti from here, Vegan Pad Thai from here and finally Chickpea Pulao & Bread Raita from here & here..
30-33)Swapna of Simple Vegetarian Recipes tried Black Eyes Peas & Potato Curry from here, Pav Bhaji from here, Gulab Jamun from here and finally Hara Bhara Paratha from here..
34)Abbhirami Rajagopal of Soulful Creations tried Mushroom Nut Roast from here..
35)Menaga of Sashiga tried Kathamba Satham from here..

36)Siri of Siri's Corner tried Eggless Blueberry Coffee Cake from here..
37)Denny of Oh Taste N See tried Oats Roti from here..
38)Faiza Ali of Faiza Ali's Kitchen tried Tawa Pulao from here..
39)Divya Vikram of Dil Se tried Rajma Paratha from here..
40)Shanavi of Kitchen Secrets tried Small Round Muruku/Chakli from here..
41)Hema of Chef Hema tried Low Fat Potato Bonda from here..
42)Jayasri of Samayalarai - Cookingisdivine tried Quinoa Dinner Rolls/Pancitos De Quinoa from here..
43)Sri of Cardamom and Cloves tried Brownies from here..
44-48)Preetha of Preetha Bhojan tried Moroccan Spaghetti from here,Thattai from here, Milagu Vadai from here,Fresh Plum Bread from here and finally Nanaimo Bars from here..
49)Ameya of Spice Savant tried Paneer Onion Kulcha from here..
50)Aparna Mallya of Apy Cooking tried Lemony Linguine With Creamy Mascarpone from here..
51)Cool Lassi (e) of Pan Gravy Kadai Curry tried Blueberry Coffe Cake With Streusel Topping from here..
52-53)Sweatha of Tasty Curry Leaf tried Vegan Mexican Feast from here,here & finally from here and Peanut Salad/Verkadalai Sundal from here..
54-55)I tried Zucchini Crown Bread from here & finally South Indian Kadambam Rice from here..


Hope u guys will definitely enjoy going through this roundup and am happy to say that My Blog -Priya's Easy N Tasty Recipes was selected by Pj of Seduce Your Tastebuds for this month's Tried & Tasted edition...Pls do join ur hands with her friends..

Also if u r interested in hosting Tried & Tasted event, pls do send a mail to Lakshmi of Kitchen Chronicles..

Pepper Chicken Gravy/Kozhi Milagu Kuzhambu

Its our sunday special gravy which i served along with simple ghee rice..This gravy is completely spiced up with freshly grounded pepper powder and a special grounded masala prepared specially for this pepper chicken gravy..This gravy goes fabulous along with rice for lunch or either with rotis for dinner or with south Indian breakfast foods like idlies,dosas and string hoppers..This gravy is quite a fingerlicking dish which tastes tremendous even after a day...My H became a great fan of this spicy gravy and am gonna prepare them very soon as vegetarian version with a variety of veggies..




1/2kg Chicken (cut as medium size pieces)
1/2cup Yogurt
1/2tsp Turmeric powder
1no Onion(chopped finely)
2nos Tomatoes (chopped)
2nos Green chillies (slit opened)
1tsp Ginger garlic paste
2nos Potatoes (cubed)
2tbsp Pepper powder (freshly grounded)
Few coriander leaves
2nos Whole spices (bay leaves, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom)
Oil
Salt

To Grind:
2tsp Coriander seeds
1tsp Fennel seeds
1tsp Cumin seeds
5nos Cashews
1/4cup Grated coconut

Marinate the chicken pieces with turmeric powder,salt and yogurt, let them sit for an hour..Dry roast all the ingredients except the cashews until brown, grind as fine paste all the ingredients with enough water..Heat enough oil in a kadai, fry the whole spices until brown..Add the chopped onions, chopped tomatoes,sauté everything until the veggies turns soft, add immediately the slit opened green chillies, ginger garlic paste, sauté everything for few minutes..now add the marinated chicken pieces,grounded paste, cook everything in simmer until the chicken pieces turns pale..

Finally add enough water,cubed potatoes, coriander leaves, freshly grounded pepper powder and salt (as per need),cook everything in medium flame, until the potatoes get cooked also the pepper chicken gravy turns thicks..

Enjoy with rice or rotis...

Soya Chunks Pakodas

A packet of soya chunks was sitting in my pantry since quite a long, i dont want to make them either as anything with rice or as masala with soya chunks...Finally i wanted to make something with soya chunks for our evening snacks as cutlets, my H was asking something as deep fried snacks that the reason i went for making pakodas with those soya chunks..This pakodas goes for soaked and grounded channadal and grounded soya chunks with usual spices..This pakodas tastes fabulous for a rainy evening snacks with a cup of hot tea..We loved it, the addition of soya chunks in this pakodas changes the taste of usual pakodas..



2cups Channa dal (soaked for two hours)
1cup Soya chunks
2nos Onions (chopped finely)
2nos Green chillies (chopped finely)
1tsp Ginger (grated)
2nos Garlic cloves (crushed)
1/2tsp Fennel seeds (crushed)
Few Curry leaves
Few Coriander leaves (chopped)
Salt
Oil for greasing

Drain the excess of the water from the channadal and grind the dal coarsely,now add the chopped onions, chopped green chillies, ginger pieces, crushed garlic,curry leaves, coriander leaves, crushed fennel seeds with enough salt to the grounded batter, meawhile cook the soya chunks in water and salt, once they double their volume, drain the water and squeeze out the excess water, grind the cooked soya chunks as a coarse paste and add this grounded soyachunks to the channadal mixture and mix everything well.

Heat the oil for deepfrying..make small balls from this batter..drop gently the soya chunks pakodas to the hot oil and fry until they turns golden brown..

Aloo Gobi Methi Masala

My recent cooking goes for bitter god 'fenugreek', i cant stop myself to add the methis almost in my daily cooking either as leaves or as seeds...Yesterday i prepared this aloo gobi methi masala for our lunch and served along with curd rice..This masala goes awesome with curd rice also along with rotis..The combination of aloo and gobi mask very well the bitterness of methi leaves and this masala tastes tremendous..Adding methi leaves to this simple aloo gobi masala turned them more healthier at the same time its one of the best way to sneak the bitter god methi leaves..

2nos Potatoes (cubed)

2cups Cauliflower florets

1/2cup Fresh methi leaves

1no Onion (chopped)

2nos Tomatoes (chopped)

1tsp Ginger garlic paste

1tsp Red chilly powder

1tsp Coriander powder

1/2tsp Garam masala powder

Salt

Oil

2nos Whole spices (bayleaves,cloves,cinnamon stick)

Few curry leaves

Heat enough oil in a pan, fry the whole spices until brown, add the chopped onions,curry leaves, chopped tomatoes and gonger garlic paste, sauté until the veggies get well cooked... Add immediately the cubed potatoes,cauliflower florets, sauté until the veggies get half cooked..Add immediately the methi leaves, red chilly powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder, salt , sauté everything for few minutes, put the flame in simmer..Sprinkle some water if needed, close the pan with a lid and cook in simmer until the veggies get well cooked..

Serve hot as side dish with rice & rotis..

Watermelon Coconut Shake

I have prepared this very refreshing rose coloured shake few months back and it was sitting in my draft since a long, its time for me to reveal this beautiful looking shake with u all..This shake goes for a quick,simple, easy preparation and this shake tastes fabulous when served with ice cubes..Actually i prepared this shake coz of the sweetless watermelon chunks, since i dont want to trash them i prepared this refreshing shake with store bought coconut milk and maple syrup..Needless to say that none said no to this coconut flavoured shake..We loved it..Quite a refreshing shake to enjoy while its hot..Sending to Shabitha's Virtual Party-Beverages guest hosted by Aipi..



2cups Watermelon chunks
1cup Coconut milk
1cup Water
Maple syrup as per need
Ice cubes

Blend together the watemelon chunks, coconut milk, water and maple syrup until they turns as juice, dont strain the juice, serve immediately with ice cubes..

Enjoy !!

Bottlegourd & Sprouted Fenugreek Kootu

Healthy kootu with sprouted fenugreeks and bottlegourd , this kootu goes prefectly awesome with rice and rotis..Simple kootu to enjoy eventhough its really nutritious and tasty, we loved enjoying this kootu simply with pickles and papads....I prepared this kootu little bit thick as i want to serve them along both with rice for lunch and  with rotis for dinner..



1cup Bottlegourd pieces
1/2cup Sprouted fenugreek seeds
1/2cup Channa dal
1/4cup Moongdal
1no Onion (chopped)
2nos Tomatoes (chopped)
1/4tsp Turmeric powder
2nos Green chillies (slit opened)
1tsp Coriander powder
1/2tsp Amchur powder
1/2tsp Garam masala powder
1tbsp Lemon juice
Few curry leaves
1tsp Mustard seeds+urad dal
2nos Dry red chillies
1/4tsp Asafoetida powder
Oil
Salt

Take the washed channa dal, washed moongdal, chopped tomatoes, bottlegourd pieces, sprouted fenugreek seeds with turmeric powder,enough water and salt in a pressure cooker, cook upto three whistles..Once the whistle get released, add the garam masala powder, coriander powder, amchur powder and slit opened green chillies to the to the cooked veggies-dal..

Bring everything to boil(add water if needed)... meanwhile heat enough oil, let splutters the mustard seeds, urad dal, dry red chillies and asafoetida powder..add the chopped onions and curry leaves, sauté until the onions turns slightly brown...add this onions and tempered spices to the cooking dal..Finally add the lemon juice and put off the stove..

Enjoy with rotis & rice..

Tofu Chops

If u have some leftover tofu chunks, do try this easy breezy crispy chops for ur snacks..These chops is prepared with grated extra firm tofu along with mixed veggies..Its a fabulous snacks to enjoy along with some hot sauce of ketchup, if u love to enjoy ur fritters with rice u can also have this tofu chops as a side dish along with ur rice dishes, i loved this tofu chops along with rasam rice, both together tastes fantastic and this chops goes for an easy cooking process and will get definitely vanished within few minutes and none will find out the secret ingredient tofu, its one the best way to enjoy tofu also a better way to feed the picky eaters..Sending this crispy tofu chops to Pj's Tasty Tofu Treats...



1cup Tofu (grated)
2nos Potatoes (cooked & mashed)
1/2cup Carrots (grated)
1/4cup Capsicum (chopped finely)
1/4cup Cabbage (chopped finely)
1/4cup French beans (chopped finely)
1no Onion (chopped)
1tsp Ginger garlic paste
1tsp Red chilly powder
1/2tsp Amchur powder
1/2tsp Garam masala powder
1tsp Corn flour
1tsp Coriander powder
1/2tsp Cumin powder
Salt
Oil
Coriander leaves (chopped)

For crust:
3tbsp Corn flour
1/2cup Bread crumbs

Heat enough oil, sauté the chopped onions with ginger garlic paste until the onions turns transculent, add immediately carrots, french beans, capsicums, cabbage and grated tofu, sauté for few minutes..Add immediately the mashed potatoes along with salt, chilly powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder, amchur powder and cumin powder, cook everything simmer until the veggies get cooked..finally add the corn flour and chopped coriander leaves, cook for few minutes and put off the stove..

Once this mixture get cooled,roll them as oval and keep aside..Make a paste with corn flour and water..dip the rolled chops to the cornflour paste and roll well over the bread crumbs..Keep this chops in fridge for an hour..

Heat enough oil for shallow frying or deep frying, fry the chops in small batches until they turns golden brown, enjoy with ketchup or any hot sauce..

Fresh Bittergourd Juice

Fresh juice prepared from freshly chopped bittergourd suits prefectly for diabetic peoples, its adviced to drink this fresh bittergourd juice atleast twice a week for everyone apart from kids, its a healthy drink which helps to deduce the sugar level.. Bitter gourd juice is also a powerful natural diuretic and helps in decreasing weight naturally. It is interesting to note that bitter melon contains two times the beta-carotene of broccoli, two times the calcium of spinach, and two times the potassium of bananas. This juice contains vitamins B1, vitamin B3, vitamin C, phosphorus, and is rich in dietary fiber and therefore has been recommended as a natural herbal supplement.So needless to say more about this green catchy juice eventhough its hard to drink...Sending this juice to Vegetable Marathon - Bittergourd guest hosted by Nithu, event by Anita..

1cup Bittergourd (chopped finely)

1tsp Ginger (grated)

Salt

1tsp Lemon juice

2pinches of chaat masala

Pinch of pepper powder

Blend the chopped bittergourd, ginger and salt with enough water, strain this juice and add the lemon juice per need..Serve this juice topped with chaat masala and pepper powder..

Enjoy this bitter juice for better health..

Announcing AWED-French

Let me say first of all a big thanks to DK for giving the opportunity to host A.W.E.D event..AWED means A Worldly Epicurean Delight is an event started by DK of Chef In You , yep each and every month a new cuisine is chosen for this beautiful event, this month i got an opportunity to host this incredible event for the second time and i have choosed French cuisine as theme..After going to so many various cuisine, we are going to stop at France to try out many wonderful dishes..



A French meal might begin with a hot hors d'oeuvre followed by soup, main course, salad, cheese,and finally dessert. The French operate with a strong sense that there is an appropriate beverage for every food and occasion.The French Mediterranean uses olive oil, herbs and tomatoes in many of their dishes. The cuisine of northwest France uses butter, soured cream (crème fraiche) and apples. The cuisine of northeast France (Alsace, and to a lesser extent Lorraine) has a strong German influence which includes beer and sauerkraut..U have loads of choices to try many dishes from this beautiful cuisine..

Wat u need to do is:
1) Prepare any dish that should be vegetarian (eggs and dairy products are allowed), non-vegetarians are not accepted..

2)Post as many french dishes as u can in your blog from today onwards..many entries per person are allowed..

3)Link back ur entry to this A.W.E.D- French page and to DK's AWED page..

4)I'll accept the old entries, if they are reposted with this page link and Dk's page...

5)Using Logo is very much appreciated..

6)Email me to Priyasuresh09@gmail.com with subject as A.W.E.D - French with following details:
Your Name:
Blog's Name:
Recipe Name:
Recipe Url/Link:
Picture of the dish:

Please take care to send all ur delicious entries before 10th December 2010..

7) If u dont have blog, no problem..pls do send ur entries to the above mail address, i'll include them while doing the roundup..

Complete My Thali - Rice Roundup

Am so happy to present Complete My Thali Rice roundup, i was extremely happy to see almost 30entries including mine for this roundup and i have to say definitely a big thanks to all the foodie bloggers who contributed their delicious rice dishes for this humble event..My hearty thanks to Jagruti of Joy of Cooking for giving an opportunity to guest host this beautiful event..

1)Vegetable Rice -V2 from Priya Sreeram of Bon Appetit..
2)Meetha Bhaat from Nayna of Simply.food..
3)Brazilian Savoury Orange Rice from Janet of The Taste Space..
4)Tawa Pulao, Jack Fruit Biryani, Corn Fenugreek Pulao & Aloo Matar Ki Tehari from Aipi of US Masala..
5)Vegetable Pulao from Rekha Shoban of Rekha's Recipe..
6)Baked Kofta Biryani,Tawa Pulao,Corn Pulao& Masoor Rice from Chaitrali of I m not a Chef..
7)Cabbage Rice & Mutter Paneer Rice from Nidhya of Aaha Oho..
8)Capsicum Lime Rice from Suma Gandlur of Veggie Platter..
9)Being Healthy With Brown Rice (Vegetable Fried Rice) from Yummy4Tummy..
10)Coconut Rice & Pepper Rice from Kurinji of Kurinji Kathambam..
11)Sweet and Spiced Up Rice from Jagruit of Joy of Cooking..
12)Tricolor Pulao & Peas Pulao With Curry Leaves from Indrani of Recip Junction..
13)Vegetable Briyani from Swapna of Simple Vegetarian Recipes..
14)Tomato Rice from Neeraja Vella of Neeru's..
15)Coconut Rice from Akila of Learning to Cook..
16)Red Masoor Dal (Brown)Rice from Priya Srinivasan of A Healthier Me..
17) Finally my entries are Gooseberry RIce/Nellikaai Sadham, Capsicum Masala Rice, Cauliflower & Green Beans Rice, Aloo Palak Pulao, Capsicum & Tandoori Tofu Rice..

And the winner of this CMT-Rice goes to # 13 (choosed by Random.org)..Swapna's Vegetable Briyani won this CMT event, Swapna thanks for sending ur recipe..Jagruti will try out your rice dish to complete her thali and donate the money to UNICEF..

Hope u all enjoy this roundup..The next edition of Complete My thali event is going at Mina Joshi's Space..Do send ur entries friends..

Tofu Masala Stuffed Mirchi Fritters/Milaga Bajji

Mirchi fritters are quite famous street food in most of the Southern part of India, its a prefect evening snack and i love them specially while going to Pondicherry beach, the breeze and this hot milaga bajji together brings u out of this world..I prepared this mirchi fritters few days back using a simple tofu potato masala as filling and deepfried this mirchis using usual bajji batter...The tofu masala stuffed in this mirchis tasted truly fantastic and i felt its quite a fantastic way to sneak tofu, yep sometimes i have to make out different sort of dishes to satisfy the tastebuds of my picky eaters, but for my surprise this stuffed mirchi fritters, my teddies & my H finished once i served them for our evening snacks..Sending to Pj's Tasty Tofu Treats..



For Stuffing:
1/2cup Extrafirm Tofu
1no Potatoes (Big & cooked)
1no Onion (chopped)
2nos Green chillies (chopped)
Salt
Curry leaves
1/2tsp Cumin seeds +mustard seeds
Oil

For Fritters:
1cup Gram flour
1/4cup Rice flour
Pinch of Asafoetida powder
Pinch of Baking soda
1/2tsp Red chilly powder
6nos Chillies
Salt
Oil

Heat few drops of oil, let crack the cumin seeds and mustard seeds, add immediately the onions,curry leaves, chopped green chillies and salt, sauté everything for few minutes until the onions turns transculent, add immediately the grated tofu, cooked & mashed potatoes, cook in simmer for few minutes until the masala gets well cooked..put off the stove..

Meanwhile mix all the ingredients give in the list except the oil & chillies for fritters as thick batter with enough water..Heat the oil for deep frying..cut the chillies and discard the seeds, fill the chillies with the already prepared tofu masala..Dip the stuffed mirchis in the bajji batter, drop gently to the hot oil, fry on both sides until they turns golden brown..Drain the excess of oil with a paper towel..

Enjoy with a cup of coffee or tea...

Orange Oatmeal Bread

I couldnt able to bake some goodies since from few days coz of making sweets and savouries for diwali, finally i got an opportunity to bake some bread with orange juice along with oats as a quick bread...This bread turned out super delicious, prefect for breakfast along with a cup of coffee or for snacks along with a cup of hot chocolate..Healthy bread to enjoy anytime also its quite a low fat bread as i used sunflower oil and yogurt to prepare this bread..Sending this gorgeous looking bread to Monthly Mingle - Fruit In Baking guest hosted by Deeba of Passionate About Baking, event by Meeta K and to Culinary Smackdown November 2010 Challenge by Kitchen flavours..



1+1/2cups All purpose flour
1cup Rolled oats (grind as coarse powder)
1cup Sugar
1/2cup Sunflower oil
1/2cup Yogurt
2nos Eggs
1/2tsp Baking powder
1tsp Baking soda
1cup Fresh orange juice
1tbsp Orange zest

Preheat the oven to 325F, meanwhile take together the all purpose flour, rolled oats, baking powder, baking soda in a bowl, mix well and keep aside.. Beat together the sugar and eggs until they turns pale..immediately add the oil, yogurt and beat for few minutes, finally add the dry ingredients along with orange zest, give a quick mix and finally add the orange juice, mix everything well and pour this batter to a loaf mould lined with baking sheet..

Bake for 30-35minutes in middle rack until the skewer inserted comes out clean..Enjoy with a cup of coffee...

Kaju Katli/Cashew Fudge

Finally we finished out our diwali sweets & savouries distribution during the weekend,we had a great party time with family and friends, am totally exhausted and feel sleepy even rite now,i dont want to quit the bed since the rain god didnt stopped showering us..Weekend was rainy too eventhough we had loads of fun with family and friends, we couldnt stop munching all the diwali goodies and danced till late nite...After sharing all my diwalis sweets and savouries in my space,am here with my final sweet which i prepared for diwali, the famous nutty, rich and easy breezy kaju katli which goes for few ingredients,this cashew fudge also gets ready in less time..



1cup Cashews (broken)
1/2cup Sugar
1/3cup Water
Few drops of ghee

Grind the cashews as fine powder, dont grind them until they turns as paste..Meanwhile heat the sugar and water in a heavy bottomed pan, stir the sugar syrup continously until they reach the one string constitency, immediately add the cashew powder and cook in simmer until this cashew paste get thickens, grease a plate with ghee and keep aside...Pour this cashew mixture to the greased plate and keep aside until the mixture gets cool completely..

Slice the kaju katli as u desire and enjoy..