Cashew Barfi

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups of unroasted unsalted cashew - grind this finely in a mixer into soft paste (do not add any water)

2. 1/4 cup milk powder

3. 1/2 cup granulated sugar

4. 1 cup water

5. One pinch of saffron - optional

6. Rose water - 3-4 drops - optional

Preparation:

1. Hand mix very well the smoothly ground cashew powder and milk powder in a  mixing bowl.

2. Dissolve sugar completely in water, and bring it to a boil at high. Stir continuously for 8 minutes until the syrup starts to form a single-strand consistency as you drip it from the spoon.

3. Reduce the heat to medium, and mix  in the cashew+milk powder mix (along with saffron & rose water drops -optional) very well until the syrup is fully blended in.

4. Grease a large flat bottom stainless steel plate or glass plate with some unsalted butter or ghee. Pour the hot mixture into it, and flatten evenly to shape. Let it cool for 30 minutes.

5. Loosen the sides using a knife, and move the cooled mix to your greased counter top. 

6. Roll with a pin to smoothen both sides. Using a large knife, or pizza cutter, cut out equally spaced vertical bars. Run the puzza cutter at an angle to shape the bars into diamond shapes.

Kaju barfi ready!!

Pepper Beef

Ingredients:

1. Beef - 500gm

2. 2 Large onions sliced & chopped thin

3. Ginger garlic paste - 1 tblspn

4. Red chilli powder - 1 tspn (adjust to your taste)

5. Black pepper powder - 1 tspn

6. Coriander powder - 2 tblspn

7. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tspn

8. Curry leaves - 8 to 10

9. Thinly sliced coconut pieces - 4 tblspn

10. Salt - 1 tspn (adjust to your taste)

11. Coconut oil - 3 tblspn

Preparation:

1. Clean beef very well - rinse & drain 4-5 times. Chop into 1/2 inch cubes.

2. Heat oil in a pan.

3. Add salt, curry leaves, and ginger garlic paste. Saute for 2 minutes.

4. Now, add thinly sliced coconut pieces. Fry till golden brown, stirring frequently to make sure it doesn't get burnt.

5. Stir in chopped onion, and fry until light brown.

6. Add items 4 thru 7, and saute for 3-4 minutes. The mix for masala is ready.

7. Now add the chopped beef, and mix in very well to the cooked masala in the pan. Close the pan with its lid and cook in medium high for 10-12 minutes, letting it cook well in the heat & steam.

8. Open the lid, and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occassionally, until most of the water evaporates. Turn off the stove, and leave the pan open for another 5 minutes - let it sit there dry a little more. Serve hot with steaming hot rice, or rotis.

Enjoy!!

Easy tasty brown chana curry (kadala curry)

Prep time: 20 minutes (with cooked chana)

Serves: 4 adults

Ingredients:

Group 1)

1 cup small brown chana (dry)

- soak in water overnight to yield 2 cups

- rinse and drain in water 3-4 times

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or red chilli powder

Group 2)

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

2 tablespoons coconut oil

Curry leaves (optional)

1/4 teaspoon garam masala powder

1 tablespoon coriander powder

Group 3) 

1/2 medium tomato

1/4 large onion sliced big

1/2 inch ginger peeled & sliced

2 large garlic cloves

Group 4)

80 grams shredded coconut (or 1/6th of a 1lb frozen grated coconut pack, defrosted)

Preparation:

Cooking chana: 

In a small size pressure cooker, add group 1 ingredients with 1 cup water, tighten the lid and put the whistle. Heat on high. It takes 5-10 minutes for the first whistle. Switch off the stove, and let it pressure cook until pressure completely dies (~30 minutes). I usually do this step at least 5-6 hours before I plan to cook the curry.

Now the fun 'n exciting part begins:

Preparing the masala:

 Group 2 ingredients: Heat on medium high coconut oil, and add musard seeds. Add curry leaves once it sputters. Add garam masala and coriander powder. Stir lightly for 2 minutes. 

Now lets use our group 3 ingredients:

Grind the group 3 ingredients into a fine paste without adding any water (the tomato will serve that purpose). Mix it well into the paste on the stove.

 Keep cooking on med high for 5-7 minutes until the oil seeps out, and the mix resembles a thick paste. 

Group 4 ingredients:

Grind to a fine paste the coconut and 3 tablespoons of cooked chana in a small mixer, along with 2 tablespoons of water from the pressure cooker.

Add this paste to the mixture on stove, and cook in medium high for another 5-7  minutes, stirring frequently.

Now, add the cooked chana with the water remaining in the pressure cooker mixing in well into the cooked masala on the stove. Cook to boil (bubbles up a little), then turn off the stove. Add salt to your taste (we go low on  sodium for health reasons).

Tasty chana curry ready! 

Easy, isn't it? Serve with cooked rice or puttu or upma. Let me know how you like it.

Easy To Bake Tasty Vanilla Sponge Cake

Super easy and delicious vanilla sponge  cake.. takes less than an hour for prep & baking.

1.5 cups all purpose flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Mix all the above ingredients into a smooth paste with an electric beater.

bake at 365 degree F for 35 minutes on a 9x5 inch pan greased with butter or coconut oil.

Enjooooy!

Veggie noodles with shrimp

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Servings: 3 adults

Ingredients:

Group 1)

3 t-spoons coconut oil

1cup frozen salad shrimp

3 tablespoons marinara sauce

Juice squeezed from 1/2 of a lemon

Group 2)

2 zucchinis - made into noodles using spirulizer

1 large carrot - peeled into thin ribbons using potato peeler

4 broccolet heads - sliced long and thin

4 brussel sprouts - grated thin (optional)

Preparation method:

Heat a large pan on medium high, and add coconut oil

Now add marinara sauce and let it simmer for a minute or two; add a teaspoon of crushed black pepper.

Next, add the frozen shrimp and lemon juice. Mix it well with the marinara sauce.

Stir occassionally, and cook for a couple of minutes. Now, add carrot ribbons, followed by broccolets, followed by zucchini noodles.

Cover with a lid and cook for another 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, mix up the veggies and shrimp, turn off the heat, serve & enjoy!!

Potato Mushroom Masala Curry

Preparation time: 35 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients: 

Group 1)

2 medium potatoes

4 large white of brown mushrooms

 

Group 2)

2 tblspoons coconut oil

3 tblspoons onion paste

2 t-spoons ginger garlic paste

1 tblspoon tomato paste

Group 3)

2 t-spoons salt

1/4 t-spoon turmeric powder

1 t-spoon cayenne pepper powder

2 t-spoons coriander powder

Preparation:

Heat coconut oil in a stainless steel bowl on medium-high until it melts. Add onion paste and saute for a minute.  

Now add ginger+garlic paste. Saute for 3-4 minutes.

Add items in group 3 and saute for 2-3 minutes before adding tomato paste.

 

Mix well and cook for few minutes until oil starts to form around the masala. 

Now, add a cup of hot water to this mix and bring to boil. 

Add chopped mushrooms and potatoes.

Mix it well with the masala.

Close with a lid and cook for 10 minutes on medium high and our curry is ready!!

Serve with steaming rice, or with a plain nan with yogurt on the side!

Easy Peasy Healthy Indian Pizza

Welcome back! Here is a special pizza made using the Indian Dosa base.  I make it when my kids get tired of eating plain dosa and start demanding other interesting but not-so-healthy foods :) They request the same for lunch, and brag about it to friends! 

(Btw, for those of you who are new to the Dosa world, here is what one-of-the-Indian-foods-to-die-for is made of: urad dal or skinned black gram and basmati rice in 1:2 proportion (1 cup urad dal for 2 cups of basmati rice) is soaked for 8 hours, then rinsed off really well, and ground together with water and 1-2 teaspoon salt into a fine pancake like batter. The batter is then left to ferment overnight, and cooked the next morning. Refrigerate the left-over batter for later use).

1. To make dosas, set a griddle or cast-iron skillet over medium heat. If using cast-iron skillet, brush with about 1/4 teaspoon coconut oil or butter. I use an non-stick electric griddle and skips the oil brushing part.

Ladle 1/4 cup dosa batter (you can get this batter in any Indian store) in the center of griddle. Using bottom of ladle, quickly spread batter outward in a circular motion to a diameter of about 7 inches. The thicker you can make it the firmer will be the pizza base.

2. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon oil over the top. Leave dosa batter to brown gradually until outer edges begin to look dry, about 2 minutes, cooking on one side only.

3. Add one teaspoon of tomato paste and spread it on the top using a spoon

4. With a spatula, carefully loosen dosa from griddle. Bottom should be crisp and beautifully browned. 

5. After a minute turn it back

6. Add shredded cheese and toppings of your choice. (I added some turkey bacon strips)

Doesn't it sound easy peasy and healthier compared to regular pizza? Let me know what you think!

Simple Fried Rice - Shrimp & Paneer

Here is an easy to make mild fried rice recipe that wouldn't make kids run for a mouthful of sugar :)

Total preparation time: 45-60 minutes

Ingredients:

1) Shrimp- 2 cups (or 1 cup cubed paneer and 1 cup shrimp)
2)
a. cinnamon powder: 1/2 teaspoon
b. cloves powder: 1/2 teaspoon
c. cardomom powder (elaichi powder): 1/2 teaspoon
d. ginger paste: 1 teaspoon
e. garlic paste: 1 teaspoon
f. green chilli paste: 1 teaspoon
g. finely chopped big onion: 1/4th
h. turmeric powder: 1/2 teaspoon
i. thick coconut milk: 2 cups (1 can)
j. salt: to taste (I use 1 teaspoon, we go low on sodium)
3)
a. coconut oil: 1/2 cup
b. big onion: 1 full, finely sliced lengthwise
c. 1/2 teaspoon sugar
d. cashewnuts: 10 no.s
e. raisins: 20 no.s
4)
a. basmati rice: 2 cups rinsed well and drained
b. water: 2 cups
c. squeezed juice of one medium lemon/lime
5)
a. garam masala powder - 1/2 teaspoon (or 1-2 drops of essence)
b. coriander leaves, chopped; 1/2 cup

Preparation:

1. Cook shrimp with ingredients in (2) for 15 minutes on medium heat with lid closed.
2. Warm coconut oil in a pan.
3. At medium heat, fry cashew and rasins till medium brown in color, drain and keep aside
4. In the same pan, add the sugar, and fry thinly sliced onion till it turns medium brown (sugar makes onion very crispy when fried). Drain and keep aside.
5. (optional for those adding paneer cubes) Fry paneer in the same oil, drain and keep aside
6. Slightly fry the rice (cleaned and drained) in the remaining oil in the pan, stirring to make sure oil is coated uniformly on rice
7.  Add the fried rice to cooked shrimp mixture in step (1). Cook rice by adding 2 cups of water, and 1 full lemon juice, stir lightly every couple of minutes. Do not cover with lid, leave it open.
8. As the rice get 80% cooked, add in garam masala powder (or 1-2 drop of garam masala essence). Keep cooking on low-medium heat.
9. After the water evaporates completely, turn off the heat and add in fried paneer, cashews, raisins, chopped coriander leaves, and onion.
Serve steaming hot :) Enjoy!

Hulk Dosa aka Green Dosa (Ada dosa)

Serves a very hungry family of two adults and two kids. Lasts enough for 3 meal times :) 

special thx to my best friend Namrita for reminding me how healthy and tasty it is for kids, and how easy it is to make.

Prep time: 8 hours to soak/rinse, 20 minutes to grind the batter, a couple of minutes to make each dosa.

Note: if u don't  wish to make as much batter for 3 days, just use half the quantity of ingredients in group 1 and 2  .

Ingredients:

Group 1) 1/2 cup each of:

Urad dal

Idli rice

Group 2) 1/4 cups each of dry pulses:

Toor dal

Split geen peas

Whole moong (green gram)

Brown dal/brown gram

Quinoa (optional)

Group 3)

1/2 of a large onion chopped medium

1/2 of a medium tomato

1 cup spinach and kale mix (This is what makes it green! i used the frozen variety from costco)

2 green chillies or 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder

8-10 curry leaves

1/4 inch chopped ginger

Salt to taste

2 tablespoon flaxseed (optional)

Preparation:

1. Soak items in groups 1 & 2 for 8 hours/overnight in a large mixing bowl filled with water. The pulses double in size when soaked for so long, so make sure u add plenty of water.

2. After 8 hours , rinse the above soaked mix 3-5 times until water runs clear. 

3. Grind the above mix, and items in group 3 using a blender (or wet mixer or grinder) with 2-4 cups of water, adding a cup of water for about 2 cups of the mix.  The mix shouldn't be too watery, or too thick. 

4. Start making dosas rightaway, no need to let ferment. 

5. Store the remaining dough in refrigerator. Enjoy as breakfast or snack with coconut chutney, or sambar, or tomato chutney!

Simple humble choco cake

Super easy and delicious chocolate cake.. takes less than an hour for prep & baking. Thx to my lil' sister Chinnu for sharing this awesome cake recipe!

1.5 cups all purpose flour or equivalent GF baking flour.
2 eggs
100 grams butter (or 3 tablespoons of coconut oil)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Mix it up with a whisk, bake at 365 degree F for 35 minutes on a 9x5 inch pan greased with butter or covonut oil. If you are using greased muffin tray for baking, it should take only 20 minutes.

Enjooooy!

Banana Bread

Ingredients:

1 and 3/4 cup all purpose baking flour

OR 1 and 1/4 cup all purpose flour + 1/2 cup skinless almond meal/almond powder

2 medium sized riped bananas

2 whole eggs

1/4 cup brown sugar (i used thd soft brown jaggery from indian store)

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 tablespoon salted butter - melted at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

Preparation:

In your dry mixer, add banana pieces and  mix it well in the lowest speed. Add each ingredient (except for the baking flour/almond meal) one at a time and pulse until it looks well mixed. Close the lid super tight.. I had it flying all over the kitchen 😉

Preheat ur oven to 350 degree Farenheit. 

Now move the contents of mixer into a mixing bowl. Using a whisk blend in the flour little at a time.. May be 1/2 cup at a time, whisking along...adding some more.. Whisking along...until it looks really soft and smooth.

Coat a 9x5 inch pan (i used a bread pan), or muffin pan with a thin layer of melted butter or coconut oil. Pour contents of ur mixing bowl.

Bake in middle rack for 60 minutes if using the bread pan. Might take 35-45 minutes for the muffin pan (check in the middle of the cake if cooked by inserting a thin wooden skewer. It should come out clean/dry, not wet/sticky).

Hope u liked ur banana bread!

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