Well, I am not a lover of Pasta nor my hubby. But I decided to try this out over the weekend. I liked it. Its quick, includes veggies and 'A' liked it too.
Ingredients -
1) 1/2 packet Pasta of any kind. I used Penne
2) 2 cups chopped vegetables of your choice. (I used 1/2 packet of frozen stir fry vegetables)
3) Pasta/Italian sauce. I used the Traditional "Prego" brand
4) 1 tbspn chilli powder and cumin-coriander powder each
5) Salt as per taste
6) Olive oil
Ingredients -
1) Cook the pasta as per the instructions. Drain the pasta and hold it under cold water. Keep it aside.
2) Heat oil in a wide skillet and saute the vegetables.
3) Add salt and chilli powder. Mix well and saute for some more time. Do not over cook the veggies.
4) Add the pasta sauce and the cooked pasta. Mix well.
Serve hot.
This weekend I decided to try different cuisines. Mexican being my favourite, I tried out these Veg Quesadillas and loved it. The best part is you can include your choice of fresh veggies and enjoy them with hot Salsa. A perfect dish for weekend brunch or a quick dinner.
Here is what you need -
Ingredients -
1) 2 strigs green onions chopped finely
2) 1/2 cup bell peppers (green, red, yellow) diced finely
3) 1 tomato chopped finely
4) 1/2 cup spinach chopped finely
5) 1/2 cup mushrooms cut into halves
6) 1 tspn chilli powder or chilli flakes
7) Salt to taste
8) Shredded cheese of your choice
9) Olive Oil
10) Flour Tortillas
Method -
1) Heat olive oil in a wide skillet.
2) Add all the veggies and saute for some time. Add salt and chilli powder. Mix well and saute till the veggies are dry. Mushrooms leave water when cooked so make sure that the veggies are completely dry.
3) Heat few drops of oil in a pan. Place a tortilla and immediately flip over. Cook until golden brown.
4) Spread a layer of cheese on the tortilla followed by a layer of the veggie mixture.
5) Cover with another Tortilla. Put few drops of oil on the tortilla and flip it over.
6) Cook until it is golden brown and the cheese is melted.
7) Remove from heat and cut it into quarters. Serve it with salsa.
Well, this was an awesome dish i tried today. Its healthy as it includes lots of veggies and less oil. I liked it. It can be made as a brunch on weekends or even as dinner on weekdays. Well, but the whole credit goes to Hetal & Anuja from ShowMeTheCurry.com. I simply followed it and liked it.
Ingredients -
1) 1 cup spinach, mushrooms diced, bell peppers chopped finely and 1/2 cup green onions chopped finely. You can use any vegetables of your choice.
3) French bread sliced into big pieces.
4) 4 eggs
5) 3/4 cup milk
6) salt and black pepper
7) 2-3 green chillies chopped finely and a bunch of cilantro washed and chopped finely.
8) 1 cup Tomato Salsa
9) 1/2 cup shredded chees (optional)
Method -
1) Preheat the oven at 350 degrees.
2) Beat eggs in a bowl. Add salt, pepper, coriander, green chillied and green onions. Mix well. Now add salsa to this and mix well. Keep aside.
3) Take a baking try and coat the surface and the sides with baking spray or vegetable oil.
4) Spread spinach at the bottom. Over it add the mushrooms and then the bell peppers.
5) Layer the French bread on top of the veggies.
6) Now spread cheese over this layer and pour over the egg mixture.
7) /bake uncovered in the oven for 45 minutes.
8) Let it cool down for 5 minutes and then serve.
I served this with ketchup. You can also serve it with additional salsa.
I have eaten this dish only in restaurants but never tried at home. I had some leftover Paneer in the pantry so thought of giving this a try. You would need -
Ingredients -
1) 1/2 pound Paneer
2) 3 small tomatoes
3) 2 green chillies
4) 1 inch ginger
5) 1/2 tspn cumin seeds, a pinch of asafoetida and a bay leaf
6) 2 tbspn yogurt
7) 1 tspn red chilli powder, 1/2 tspn turmeric powder
8) 1 tspn garam masala
9) Oil and salt to taste
Method -
1) Heat 1 tspn oil in a pan and fry the paneer from both the sides.
2) Blend tomatoes, ginger and green chillies together.
3) Heat little oil in a wide skillet and add cumin seeds, bay leaf, asafoetida and turmeric powder. Saute for some time and then add the blended mixture. Mix well. Cover and saute for 2-3 minutes.
4) Now add the red chilli powder and garam masala. Saute for some more time.
5) At this time add the yougurt and mix well. Keep stirring for a minute and add the paneer cubes.
6) Cover the lid for 2-3 miniutes. Paneer Butter Masala is ready. Serve hot!!
I had joined a cookery class before marriage and thats when i learned this dish. The method is quite lengthy but worth giving it a try. It was awesome. You can have it with any gravy of your choice or simply with some raita. Here is what you need -
Ingredients -
For the gravy -
1) 1 cup boiled corn kernels
2) 1 small onion
3) 2 tomatoes pureed
4) 2 tbspn frozen shredded coconut
5) 2-3 dry red chillies
6) 2 tspn cumin-coriander powder
7) 2 cloves, 2 cardamom, 1 cinnamon stick
8) 5-6 cloves garlic
9) Salt as per taste and
10) Oil
Method -
1) Cut 1 onion lenghtwise. Heat very little oil in a pan and roast the onions, red chillies and all the spices along with the shredded coconut and blend it to a smooth paste with little water if required.
2) Take the tomato puree in a vessel and add the boiled corn kernels and the blended mixture, some sugar and salt as per taste and let it boil for some time.
For the rice -
Ingredients -
1) 1 cup cooked rice.
2) cloves, black pepperons, cardamom - 2 each, 1 bay leaf
3) 1 onion cut lenghtwise.
Method -
I baked this rice in the oven. But you can heat oil in a skillet, add all the spices, saute for some time. Then add the cooked rice and the tomato puree mixture, salt to taste. Mix well. Cover the lid tightly and let it cook on medium low flame for about 15 minutes.
For baking - Take a oven safe bowl. Spray little baking spray or simply coat the bowl with little oil. Now give layers of the rice and tomato gravy. Preheat the oven at 400 degrees and bake the rice for 30 minutes.
It tastes awesome. Enjoy!!
Sago or Sabudana looks like small hard white balls. But when they are properly soaked and cooked it tastes surprisingly awesome. We usually eat Sabudana during our "fast" but it can be prepared otherwise too. You can make Sabudana Khichadi, Sabudana Vada, Sabudana Kheer, Sabudana Thalipeeth. It tastes just too good in any forms. I made Sabudana Khichadi for Sankashta Chaturthi when we observe fast. Here is what you need -
Ingredients -
1) 1 cup sabudana soaked overnight
2) 2 tspn pure ghee
3) 1 tspn cumin seeds
4) 2 green chillies minced
5) Salt and sugar to taste
6) 4-5 tbspn roasted and crushed peanuts
Method -
Wash the sago poperly and soak it in little water. The water should be just enough to cover the sago. Cover and leave it overnight. The results should be a fluffy and soft sago. Add the peanuts, salt and sugar to the sago and mix it well.
Heat ghee in a wide skillet and add cumin seeds. Once they crackle add the green chillies. Now add the sago and mix it well. Cover and cook for around 4-5 minutes.
Garnish it with cilantro and add some lemon juice before serving. Serve hot!!
Well, this is much like the Egg Curry. The only difference is that this is more of a thick gravy than the curry. My grandmom used to make this. Here is what you would need -
Ingredients -
1) 6 hard boiled eggs
2) 1 large onion
3) 2 small tomatoes
4) 3-4 peppercons, 3-4 cloves, a cinnamon stick and a bay leaf
5) ginger garlic paste
6) 3 tbspn sesame seeds
7) 1 tspn turmeric powder
8) 1 tbspn cumin-coriander powder and chilli powder each
9) Salt to taste and Oil for frying
Method -
1) Cut the onions and blend them to a smooth paste.
2) Dry roast the sesame seeds and blend them with the diced tomatoes to a smooth puree.
3) Heat oil in a skillet. Add the spices, turmeric powder and the blended onions. Saute for few minutes till oil leaves the onions.
4) Add the tomato puree and saute for some more time.
5) Now add all the powders. Fry for a few minutes. Add little water. We want to make it on a little thicker side.
6) Let it boil for some time and then add the boiled eggs.
7) Mix well. Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
8) Garnish it with cilantro and server hot with chapatis.
Well, I am not a lover of Pasta nor my hubby. But I decided to try this out over the weekend. I liked it. Its quick, includes veggies and 'A' liked it too. 
