Rasam

South Indian cuisine is one of my favorite. Flavorful, healthy and delicious. Has so much variety and so much taste. Rasam is one such dish. A light soup, healthy and good for the soul. Can be made anytime and is good for those colds and during winters or rainy days to drive away your blues. 

Ingredients 

5-6 tomatoes chopped 

2 tsp crushed garlic

Few curry leaves

Walnut size tamarind 

1 tsp oil

1-2 tsp mustard seeds

Pinch of Hing

Ingredients of Spice mix 

1/2 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander 

1/2 tsp pepper

1 dry red chilli

Method

Crush the spices roughly for the spice mix.

In a pot pour 5 cups water.

Add chopped tomatoes ,tamarind, crushed garlic ,Hing,salt and spice mix. 

Boil on slow flame for about 30 mins.

Heat oil and add mustard. Let them splatter.

Add curry leaves and pour into rasam.

Add coriander leaves and serve hot. 

Protein packed healthy vadas

Diet protein packed vada with rasam 

My quest for healthier options for all the calorie rich foods never stops me from experimenting in my little kitchen. I saw this donut maker and I wanted to make my all time favorite ... Rasam vada without those extra calories. Today I tried mixed daals and they were passed by full marks by my friends and family. Sharing this goodness on my blog. 

1/2 cup red masoor

1/4 cup Chana dal

1/4 cup tuar

1/4 cup urad

1/4 cup quinoa 

1/4 cup dalia

1/4 cup rice

1 tbsp ginger

2 green chillies

1/2 tsp cumin 

1/6 tsp Hing

2 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1 tbsp baking powder

2-3 tbsp curd

1 chopped onion

Salt to taste

Method 

Soak all the grains for about 2-3 hours.

Grind them with green chillies and ginger .You can also add them chopped instead. Add curd to grind. Keep the batter thick. 

Add oil , onions, spices and baking powder and mix well.

Heat donut maker. Apply butter on both sides. 

Pour spoon fulls into each slot.

Close the griddle and cook for about 5-7 mins. 

Serve them hot with steaming rasam or chutney! 

Delicious and healthy !!

Whole wheat and white pao

White flour and whole wheat flour pao

I had been planning these a long time. At my college we used to make those white buns and immediately polished them off with butter. Nothing like hot buns with melting butter and this is what we did today as I baked these perfect paos! My home was filled with warm smells lifting my spirits and the low temperature and dull skies were soon forgotten . Soft, spongy, smooth and just soul satisfying .... Sharing the recipe of the perfect paos. They aren't stretchy like the ones at store. Enjoy it

Makes 28 white paos

Ingredients 

4 cups white flour

2 cups warm whole milk

20 gms fresh yeast

3-4 / 40 gms tbsp butter

2 tsp salt

Whole wheat pao ( makes 16 pao)

3 cups atta

1.5 cups milk

7.5 gms fresh yeast

3 tbsp butter

1.5 tsp salt

Method

I used the food processor that made my work lighter but you could knead it with hand.

In a bowl add the flour and salt.

Warm milk just enough so that it's warm to touch and NOT HOT.

Mix the fresh yeast in it and pour into the flour.

Turn the processor on and keep kneading. It looks too wet and impossible to come together but let the gluten break. Keep working on it.

Add the butter and keep working on the dough. 

In about 15 mins you will see it's coming together. 

Use oil on ur hands if you need to as it comes together like a baby's bum ... That's how we were told at college ☺️

Keep this for about an hour or so or till its double in size.

Use oil in your hands and roll into a cylinder.

Cut into equal sizes and roll into smooth balls.

In a buttered tray put these balls leaving about an inch of space between for them to rise.

Keep covered for another hour or so or till it rises to a double. 

Preheat oven to 200 degC. 

Brush the dough balls with milk and put into the oven.

Bake for about 12-15 mins till they are golden brown.

Remove and brush with melted butter.

Remove from tray to avoid sweating!

Enjoyyyy these hot out of the oven with chilled slice of butter melting Inbetween... Is heaven close?? Sure is.

Apple pasta

Kuch nahi se signature dish 😉

What do you do when you are stuck in a place in an apartment in the middle of fields on a lake side on Xmas with EVERYTHING closed? Slushy snow and cold winds and you want to cook the last dinner in your holiday home and you look inside your carry-with-you pantry and very few things there with no scope of eating out or cooking anything decent. I now decide to waken up the wanna be chef in me and push my limits. Pasta, a bottle of walnut pesto, few olives, olive oil and ..... No vegs :( .. Just apples that my hubby picked up from the farm we are holidaying on.....ok... Never mind ... Make pasta with apples 😳😜. My hubby tried to look excited and kids ....DARE NOT SAY ANYTHING😉and so here I go. Caramelized apples and olive pasta with sun dried tomato walnut pasta!!!!!! My hubby said .... Maan gaye yaar tumhe and kids polished off everything! Boiled some fusilli. Chopped apples and tossed them in olive oil and salt till they are golden brown. Sprinkle chilli powder. Add chopped olives and pour into the pasta. Mix the ready made pasta sauce and serve with ( thank God for few pepperonis) a smile. Happy me! 

Mock sarson ka saag

Rapeseed greens

Living here in Germany I have learnt to figure out my way with cravings for Indian vegetables and curries by modifying what we get here. If sarson isn't available here , doesn't mean we miss out on the lovely saag we got home. I walked through few Turkish stores and found these leaves which smell like mustard greens. I decided to experiment these which are used in salads here. It came out so yummy! I teamed it with pungent carrot instant pickle. Sharing it here on my blog.

Ingredients 

2 cup fulls chopped rapeseed greens

1 cup chopped kale leaves

1 cup spinach 

3-4 green chilles

2 tbsp chopped ginger

2 tbsp chopped garlic

2 chopped onions

1 cup tomato purée

1 cup milk

2 tbsp ghee

1 tbsp butter

2 tbsp maize flour

Salt

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1/2 lemon 

Method

In a pressure cooker add all the greens , 1 tbsp ginger, green chillies and salt and boil for 15 mins.

Cool and grind with maize flour, milk and little water to get a thick paste.

Heat ghee and add cumin and let it crackle.

Add ginger and garlic and let it brown.

Now tip in onions and brown well.

Add chilli powder and tomato purée.

Cook well and pour the saag paste.

Cook well on low flame for an hour.

Add more water if needed. 

Add butter and mix well.

Squeeze lemon and stir well.

Pour into bowls and top with tadka of ghee , cumin and chilli powder. You can also use garlic in tadka. 

Serve hot with makki ki rotis and pickles.

Karela pickle

Karela pickle/ thokku

Karela is a vegetable few like but our family is crazy about it including my 10 yr old. Buying them here in an Indian store is challenging at times and so this time I decided to give it longer life through pickling it. So here it goes .... Sweet , sour and bitter it fulfills all my needs of taste buds. 

Ingredients 

3 chopped karelas

1 chopped onion

1/2 can chopped tomatoes

3 tbsp tomato paste

(Can use just chopped tomatoes)

2 tbsp crushed chilli ginger

1/4 cup chopped garlic

Curry leaves

2 tbsp jaggery

1/2 cup oil

1/4 tsp hing

1 tbsp Chana dal

1 tbsp urad dal

1 tsp mustard

1/2 tsp methi seeds

1/2 tsp haldi

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp dhaniya powder

2 tsp sambhar powder

Salt to taste

Method 

Heat oil and add hing, mustard and methi let it crackle.

Add Dals and let them color.

Add curry leaves and garlic and let it color.

Add the ginger paste and cook on high heat.

Add the onions and karela and mix well.

Add salt and haldi and cover to cook.

When half done add tomatoes and cover to cook.

Add all the masalas and gur and cook till oil comes out of this pickle. 

Store in a clean bottle. Stays well for long.

Fresh Cranberry cake

I had these really sour cranberries my hubby got to try out. What better way to use them than a lovely cake.
Ingredients
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup maida
1/2 cup oats ground
1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup curd
1 cup fruit juice or as reqd
15 gms baking powder
1 tbsp vinegar
100 gms fresh cranberry or any other fruit

Method
Mix all the ingredients and adjust the consistency with juice.
Bake at 200 deg C in a preheated oven till a knife comes clean.
Healthy yummy cake is ready.

Baked samosas

Who doesn't love samosas? Yet the oil , white flour definitely discourages people like me to make them at home. This is my simple effort to make them healthy and guilt-free.
1/2 atta
1/2 cup maida
2-3 tbsp suji
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp oil
salt as required
1 big pinch baking soda
chaas/buttermilk as required

4-5 potatoes boiled and roughly mashed
1/2  cup boiled peas
1 tbsp ginger and green chilli crushed
1/4 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp dhaniya pwd
1/4 tsp garam masala
1 tsp amchur
1 tsp anardana crushed
1/2 tsp bhuna jeera
salt

Method
Knead all the ingredients into a soft dough, keep for 2- mins.
For the filling...
Mash roughly boiled potatoes.
Mix chilli ginger crushed, salt, bhuna jeera, chilli powder, amchur, dhaniya powder, garam masala, ch dhaniya, boiled peas and anardana.
Mix well and fill the samosas and bake in preheated oven at 200 deg C.
Enjoy with hot tea without any guilt.

Garlic chilli cheese pinwheels

A quick fix recipe for party snacks and work great as finger foods.
1/2 atta
1/2 cup maida
2-3 tbsp suji
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp oil
salt as required
1 big pinch baking soda
chaas/buttermilk as required

Method
Roll the dough, spread finely chopped garlic , parsley, grated cheese, salt, chilli flakes and pepper. roll tight and cut into spirals, bake in preheated oven at 200 degC till golden about 10-15 min depending on your oven.

Makkai, mushroom , panner Malai

Makkai, mushroom, paneer Malai

 

200 gms sliced mushrooms

200 gms panner chopped

200 gms boiled corn

1 cup sliced onions

1 tbsp chopped ginger

1 tbsp chopped garlic

2 chopped chillies

2 tbsp oil

1 bay leaf

2 crushed cloves

2 small stocks cinnamon

1 tsp cummin seeds

400 ml tomato purée

50 ml cream

1 tsp dhaniya powder

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1/3 tsp haldi

1 tsp kitchen king masala pwd

1 tbsp roasted kasuri methi

1/2 tsp degi mirch powder

Salt

Coriander leaves for topping

Method

Heat oil and add jeera and whole spices and let them color.

Add sliced onions and sauté till brown.

Add ginger, garlic and chopped chillies and let them get golden.

Add all the dry spices and cook few secs.

Add the tomato purée and cook well.

Add roasted kasuri methi and cream. Cook well.

Add all the vegs and paneer and cover to cook.

Let it reduce to the desired consistency. 

Top with dhaniya chopped and rumali rotis, delicious !!