Moong Dal Fry

Prep Time: 20 min

Cook Time: 20 min

Serves for: 2-3 persons

Ingredients:

1 cup - moong dal
1/2 cup - spinach

2 cup - water

2 tbsp - oil

1/8 tsp - asafetida

1/8 tsp - turmeric powder

½ tsp - mustard seeds

½ tsp - cumin seeds

½ tsp – Garam masala

½ tsp – Coriander powder

3 green chilies split lengthwise

1 tsp - ginger paste

1 tsp - chopped garlic

1 medium - chopped onion

1 medium - chopped tomato

1tsp – chilly flakes

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves

Curry leaves

Direction for Preparation:

1. Wash the moong dal,spinach. Add water, ½ tsp oil and boil in cooker for 2-3 whistles.

2. Heat oil on medium heat, in a medium-sized pan.

3. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafetida and curry leaves, in quick succession. Saute until spices starts splattering

4. Now add the green chilies, ginger paste and garlic. Saute for 1 minute;

5. Add onions, and continue stir until they turn translucent.

6. Add the tomatoes, and saute until they become soft.

7. Now add turmeric, garam masala and coriander powder. Stir well.

8. Add the boiled moong dal and salt, and fry until all the ingredients are mixed well. Garnish with Coriander leaves and chilly flakes.

9. Serve moong dal with chapattis, roti…

Tutti Frutti - Muffins

Again got long break from work ( 5 days ), not made any plans to go out of home. As I got new mini muffins tray from my brother, I tried these eggless tutti fruity muffins. It took almost 40 min to prepare but finished all muffins in 15 min...:) Beautiful.

Prep Time: 20 min

Cook Time: 10 min

Serves for: 2-3 persons

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter (at room temp)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup Milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour (maida)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup Tutti Frutti

Direction for Preparation: 

1. In a bowl, mix butter and sugar together.

2. Add the vegetable oil and beat it along with the butter mixture.

3. Add yogurt, milk and vanilla and mix well.

4. Combine the flour, soda, baking powder and salt together in another bowl

5. Add it slowly into the creamed butter mixture until moistened.

6.  Add Tutti Frutti gently.

7. Line a muffin pan with paper-lined cups and fill it 2/3rd full with the batter.

8. Sprinkle some of Tutti Frutti over the batter.

9. Preheat microwave for 200C about 5 min.

10. Bake them at 200C for 6-7 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

11. Cool it for few minutes before removing them from the pan.

Gulab-Jamun

In office my friend asked me about jamun preparation, I know how to do it but never tried all alone as always used to prepare with mom. Before giving her suggestion I tried this recipe in home and even given to my friend also… Initially thought of trying it with Khova and maida due to lack of time I end up doing it with MTR ready mix. I will soon update making it with Khova. It’s nice desert which can be prepared in time of 1 hour and served with ice-cream.

Prep Time: 20 min

Cook Time: 20 min

Serves for: 4 persons 

Ingredients: 

MTR Gulab Jamun mix – 250 gms

Sugar – 500 gms

Water – 1 ½ lt

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp

Kesar -1/2 tsp

Ghee – 200 gms

For dry Jamun coating:

Almond - 10

Cashew Nuts – 10

Sugar – 1tbsp

Direction for Preparation: 

1. First prepare sugar syrup, Mix water and sugar and bring it to boil and while boiling add Cardamom powder, ¼ tsp kesar. Switch of the syrup when it starts boiling. Let it cool down for sometimes, meanwhile prepare jamun.

2. Now in pan heat ghee for deep frying.

3. In bowl mix the MTR gulab jamun mix and ¼ tsp kesar, using water make dough (use water little by little as it requires very less water)

4. Make even sized balls by applying little ghee to your palm.

5. Deep fry these balls in ghee and let it cool for about 5-10 min.

6. Now soak them in sugar syrup for 15-30 min.

7. Serve hot jamun or dry jamun.

8. Coarsely grind almond, cashew nuts and sugar.

9. Take out soaked jamun from syrup and roll out the dry fruits mixture and serve it.

Red Sauce Pasta

Today my fridge is left with only some tomatoes, there are no other vegetables. So thought of trying red sauce pasta, as it required very less ingredients and easy to prepare. Try it out in home and let me know how it comes out.

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 20 min

Serves for: 2 persons

Ingredients: 

Shell Pasta – 200 gms

Tomato – 2 large

Onion – 1

Garlic – 6-7 Cloves

Grated Cheese – 4tbsp

Oil / Butter - 2tbsp

Herb spices 1tbsp

Chilly flakes – 1tbsp

Turmeric – ½ tsp

Salt – for taste

Coriander – 1/4 tsp

Chilly powder – 1tsp (adjust according to taste)

Direction for Pasta boiling: 

1. Bring water to boil than add pasta, boil pasta 10-12 min (when you buy pasta the packet contains the direction to boil follow them, as each pasta take different time to boil)

2. Drain water from pasta and immediately run cold tap water on pasta (this is to avoid the pasta sticking each other).

Direction for Preparation: 

1. Boil whole tomato for about 2 min.

2. In another pan add 1 tbsp butter, let it heat for while.

3. Add chopped garlic and onion saute for 3 min (always add garlic first then onion saute until the onion turns into transparent).

4. Grind boiled tomato and all sauted mixture; don't make fine paste (grind for 1-2 min).

5. In pan add 1tbsp of butter, when butter is hot mix the grinded mixture and saute for 2 min.

5. Now add pasta, chopped coriander mix them slowly (To avoid breakdown of pasta).

6. Add required amount of cheese and herb spices mix well, plate down hot red sauce pasta. Decorate with coriander and some chilly flakes.

Black Eyed Beans Masala

Prep Time: 30 min

Cook Time: 20 min

Serves for: 4 persons

Ingredients: 

Black eyed Beans – 1 cup

Tomato - 2

Onion - 2

Kasuri Methi -1 tbsp

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Green Chilly paste – 1tsp (adjust according to taste)

Garam masala- 1tsp

Coriander powder – 1 tsp

Red chilly powder – ½ tsp (it is used only for colour)

Ginger and Garlic paste – 1 tsp

Jaggery – ½ tsp

Mustard – ½ tsp

Jeera – ½ tsp

Salt as per taste

Oil – 2tbsp

Fresh Coriander leaves

Fresh Curry leaves

Water for boiling beans

Direction for Preparation: 

1. Soak black eye beans in warm water for 6 hrs or use store canned black eye beans which you will get in super markets.

2. Pressure cook beans for 5 whistel.

3. Grind 1 tomato and 1 onion, keep aside.

4. Finely chop Corainder, curry leaves, left onions and tomatoes.

5. In kadai add oil when it is hot add mustard, jeera and curry leaves wait until they starts spluttering.

6. Now add chopped onion, saute until onion becomes soft and transparent.  Add chopped tomatoes and saute until they become soft.

7. Add Grinded mixture of tomatoes and onion. Saute until raw smell of this puree goes out completely.

8. Add all spices i.e. Garam masala, Coriander powder, Red chilly powder, Green Chilly paste and Turmeric powder, 

9. Add Kasuri methi,Ginger and Garlic paste, Jaggery and salt.

9. Mix pressure cooked black eyed beans to the prepared gravy, garnish with coriander.

10. Serve this black eyed beans masala with Rice (just like Rajma chaval) or with chapati.

Sweet-Corn Soup

Prep Time: 15min

Cook Time: 15 min

Serves for: 2 persons

Ingredients:

American Sweet Corn – 1 cup

Butter - 1/2 tsp

Water - 2 cups

Pepper - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

Corn Flour - 1 tbsp

Vegetable Stock - 1/4 cup (optional)

Soy Sauce - 1/4 tsp (optional)

Rusk – 2 (Crispy bread for serving with hot soup)

Direction for Preparation:

1. Pressure cooks the corn for 4-5 whistles or until soft with a cup of water.

2. Grind the corns with little water to a thick paste. Reserve few corns for garnishing.

3. Add the corn flour with water, mix well without any lumps and keep aside

4. Heat a pan with butter, add the corn paste, and saute for 2mins.

5. Add 1 cup water, vegetable stock (boiled vegetable water), and corn flour water paste and mix well.

6. Add required salt.

7. Add soya sauce (when you add soya sauce the colour of corn mixture turns to bit reddish, if you want exact corn colour soup you can avoid this soya sauce),pepper and mix well.

8. Allow it to boil for 5-7 mins until the soup is thick. Switch off.

9. Garnish with remaining corn kernels and serve hot with rusk.

Palak-Corn Curry

Prep Time: 15min

Cook Time: 20 min

Serves for: 2 persons

Ingredients: 

Spinach/Palak - 2 cup

Corn - 1 cup, boiled

Tomatoes - 2

Green chillies - 2 split

Onion - 1 cup

Milk - 1 cup (or kene 2tbsp)

Coriander powder - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp

Asafoetida powder - 1/3 tsp

Garam Masala - ¾ tsp

Ginger and Garlic paste - ¾ tsp

Jaggery - ½ tsp

Fresh Coriander leaves

Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt as per taste

Direction for Preparation: 

1. Boil and Cool the spinach. Make it a paste. Keep it aside.

2. Grind 1 tomato and ½ Onion, keep aside.

3. Finely chop coriander leaves, remaining tomato and onion.

4. Heat oil adds cumin seeds, green chillies, onion and saute till golden brown.

5. Add tomatoes and cook it.

6. Add coriander powder and cook till the aroma of coriander spreads.

7. Add turmeric powder, asafetida powder, red chilly powder, Garam Masala, Ginger and Garlic paste, Jaggery, onion & tomato paste and saute well.

8. Add boiled corn into it and mix well and cook it for 1 min.

9. Add the spinach paste, salt and mix again.

10. Add milk and shimmer the gravy for 10 minutes.

11. Tasty palak corn is ready to be served hot with Indian breads (roti, chapaties, nan, etc) or steamed rice.

Kesar - Basundi..

Celebrating Raksha – Bandhan with sweet desert Basundi…J

Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 45-60 min
Serves for: 4 persons 

Ingredients:

4 cups whole milk

1 cup Sugar (adjust according to your test)

10 Almonds

10 Cashew Nuts

1 tsp of saffron

½ tsp Elachi powder

Direction for Preparation:

1 Bring the milk to a boil, and let it simmer till it reduces to 2 cups.
2. Meanwhile dissolve Almonds and Cashew nuts in warm milk for about 10 min, Chop some dry fruits and keep them aside for garnishing.

3. Also dissolve half the saffron in 1 tsp warm milk and Keep the other half for garnishing (warm these strands as it increases its smell)

4. When the milk is reduced to a thickness you like, add the sugar, stir until it dissolves completely.

5. Now make paste of soaked almond and cashew nuts.

6. Add the dry fruits paste and soaked saffron to the milk and stir it well, make sure lumps are not formed by adding the paste.

7. Leave it to cool, (The milk will thicken a bit more after cooling), Now garnish with chopped almonds, cashew nuts and warm saffron strands.

8, Add fresh cream, if you want more richness in the Basundi.