VEGETABLE FAJITA

Hearty and delicious vegetable fajita

This is a healthy, easy and delicious main dish from mexican cuisine. I have had this dish in restaurants couple of times and I absolutely love it. So I tried it at home and came out perfectly fine.  Here are the list of ingredients you will need.


Ingredients :-
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1 10-pack Tortillas (Taco size)
1 green/red bell pepper, sliced into long strips
1 zucchini, sliced into long strips
1 summer squash, sliced into long strips
1 large red onion, sliced
5-6 baby portobello mushrooms, halved/quartered
10-15 broccoli florets
3 Jalapenos, sliced (optional)
Sour cream
Guacamole
Salsa
Mexican blend cheese
Salt 
Freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil, couple of tbsp
1/8 tsp sugar

Sliced zucchini and summer squash

Directions :-
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1.  Pre-heat oven to 450 F. Note that we have to bake all the veggies separately, you may use separate baking sheets if you like or use a large baking sheet and spread 2/3 vegetables in separate groups as per the quantity, do not over-crowd them. Bake veggies for around 15 mins. till they start to turn golden but are still firm.

2.  Drizzle olive oil on all veggies. Season all veggies with salt and black pepper except onions and jalapenos. 

Seasoned Green bell pepper

3.  While baking the onions if you add some sugar, it pulls out the natural sweet flavor from the onions, making the result intensely flavorful. If you want the caramelized result, bake them for longer period till they turn brown, stirring occasionally.

Red onions, broccoli and jalapenos ready to bake

4.  For baking jalapenos just add salt. These tend to bake quickly so keep an eye on them.

5.  Once the veggies are done, assemble them on a big platter into separate groups so everyone can get veggies of their own choice.

6.  Warm tortillas on the skillet one at a time for 4-5 seconds turning on both sides.

7.  For serving, spread a tbsp of guacamole on the warm tortilla, add the veggies of your choice, 2-3 pieces per tortilla as we don't want to overstuff it.

Guacamole and veggies on warm tortilla

8.  Add a tsp of salsa, dollop of sour cream and generous handful of cheese.

Salsa and sour cream are added 

Garnish with a handful of cheese

9.  Now fold the tortilla from both sides simultaneously as shown in the picture, serve hot. Buen Provecho!!! 

Enjoy your mouth-watering veggie fajita!

GUACAMOLE

This is a dip made of mashed avocado mixed with chopped onions and other seasonings. It goes well with chips and is also used in many mexican dishes.

Guacamole

2 avocados, peeled, chopped & mashed with fork

1 small tomato, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, chopped
salt to taste
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp lemon juice
Handful of cilantro chopped


Mix the above ingredients properly and serve.

DRY GARLIC CHUTNEY/ KORDI LASUN CHUTNEY

Spicy hot garlic chutney

"CHUTNEY" refers to a wide-ranging family of condiments from Indian cuisine that usually contain some mixture of spice(s) and vegetable(s) and/or fruit(s). There are many varieties of chutneys. Chutneys may be either wet or dry, and they can have a coarse to a fine texture. Spices are added and ground, usually in a particular order - the wet/dry paste thus made is sauteed in vegetable oil or peanut (groundnut) oil. Sometimes vinegar or citrus juice are added as natural preservatives. 

In the past, chutneys were ground with a mortar and pestle made of stone.  In the present era, electric blenders or food processors can be used as labor-saving alternatives to the traditional stone grinding.

Today we are preparing a dry garlic chutney, this particular recipe has its origin - I believe in the state of Maharashtra - western part of India. Garlic chutney can be consumed in a variety of ways.  

Kordi lasun chutney

This chutney tastes best by itself and can be eaten as a side with lunch or dinner.

•  I also like to spread it on chapati with a drizzle of peanut oil, roll it and you got yourself a delicious mid-afternoon snack. 
• Also it goes best with "Vada-pao" - a popular vegetarian fast food from Mumbai.

Let's have a look at the ingredients.

INGREDIENTS :-
~~~~~~~~~~~

5 heads of garlic, peeled and halved
4 tbsp dried coconut powder
1 tbsp cumin seeds/ jeera
Salt to season
1 1/2 tbsp red chilli pwd. (adjust to your taste)
Small ball of tamarind (about the size of a sugar cube)
2 handfuls of plain roasted peanuts
1 tbsp oil


DIRECTIONS :-
~~~~~~~~~~

1. Ground the above ingredients (except the oil) in a chopper/grinder. The final mixture should be coarse.

Ingredients ready to grind

2. Add a tbsp of oil, mix well and store it in an airtight glass jar. 

3. This chutney has a shelf life of 10-15 days and can be preserved more by refrigerating it. 

Dry Garlic Chutney

INSTANT COCONUT LADOO (18-20 PIECES)

I happen to be a big fan of sweets. This is a sweet dish which can be made in under 10 mins. and tastes amazing.

Instant coconut ladoos

INGREDIENTS :-
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1/2 can (7 oz) condensed milk
1 cup dried coconut powder
2 tsp cardamom powder
Golden raisins for garnish
1/4 - 1/2 cup dessicated coconut for rolling (optional)

Sweet snowballs

PROCESS :-
~~~~~~~

1.  Take condensed milk and dried coconut powder in a  microwave proof bowl, mix thoroughly.

2.  Cook on high for 1 1/2 - 2 mins. till the mixture starts to thicken. Coconut powder will absorb all the condensed milk and the mixture rises a bit.

3.  Let it cool, now you will be able to form a ball out of it. If you feel the mixture is still damp, cook once more for 30 sec. 

4.  Now add cardamom powder, mix and shape them into small balls. Roll them into dessicated coconut if you like, it will look like a small snowball :) Garnish each ladoo with a raisin.

Sweet ladoos with hints of cardamom and golden raisins

Enjoy your holidays with these instant sweet snowballs. Happy Holidays!!!

 

 

 

HEARTY TOMATO SOUP AND CHEESE-GARLIC TOASTS (Serves 4)

Creamy tomato soup with cheese-garlic toasts

Are there some days when you feel you don't want to cook a full meal and instead cook something quick and light? Today is one of those days for me. Also today being a weekend, I want to make something quick so I can spend time with my family and something hearty as winter has set in. So what is a better way to treat your family on a cold winter day with a hot bowl of creamy tomato soup and cheese-garlic toasts. Now it's up to you whether you want to make it a lunch or a brunch. This recipe takes fewer ingredients and gives a restaurant-style taste.

INGREDIENTS :-
~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
2 cans (14 oz each) vegetable broth
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Salt to season
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp italian herb mix


PROCESS :-
~~~~~~~~

1.  Heat a heavy bottom deep pan to medium-high heat. Add crushed tomatoes and vegetable broth  in  it. Add black pepper, salt and sugar and mix properly.

2.  Let it start to bubble, now lower the heat to medium-low and let it simmer for 15-20 mins. Once it starts to thicken, add heavy cream and italian herb mix. Mix gently and puree the soup using an immersion blender. Let it simmer for couple more mins. if necessary. Once the consistency of soup is semi thick, turn the heat off.

3.  Ladle the soup in fancy bowls and enjoy it with cheese garlic toasts (recipe follows)

Creamy tomato soup with hints of italian herbs along with garlic croutons

 

 

 

NOTE :-
~~~~~

1.  If you do not have an immersion blender, let the soup cool and puree it using the mixer/blender otherwise use tomato puree instead of crushed tomatoes. Keep in mind that tomato puree will not give chunky texture to your soup as it is pureed fine.

2.  We added sugar to the soup which sounds kind of weird but it helps in bringing out the flavor of tomatoes and lessening its tartness.



CHEESE GARLIC TOASTS


INGREDIENTS :-
~~~~~~~~~~~~

White/Wheat bread slices
2-3 garlic cloves
olive oil
Sharp cheddar/ Italian blend cheese


PROCESS  :-
~~~~~~~~

1.  Pre-heat oven to 300 F.

2.  Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet. Drizzle both sides with olive oil. Bake for 5-8  mins till they turn golden turning once.

3.  Cut the top portion of garlic clove in a way that it stands. Now rub it over the hot toast on both sides for a nice garlic flavor.

Rub garlic on the warm toasts

4.  Layer the toasts with cheese of your choice.

Garlic toasts layered with cheddar and italian cheeses

5.  Start the broiler and broil these toasts till cheese is melted and starts bubbling. This step takes under a minute so keep a close eye on it or else it will burn.

Great way to enjoy your winter day!!!

Enjoy these mouth watering cheesy-garlicky toasts with thick creamy tomato soup. This sure is a nice, hearty way to start your cold winter day!

 

 

 

CHEESY, SAUCY PASTA FOR KIDS

Cheesy-saucy pasta

This is a fast, easy pasta dish cooked under 15 minutes, ideal as lunch or mid-afternoon snack for kids. For adults, you can make changes by adding some roasted veggies, lower the amount of  cheese and you are good to go. I have used tricolor rotini, you can use any kind of pasta your kid likes. I think if you add more color to your food, it looks beautiful on the plate and helps stimulate the taste buds.  After all, it is always a challange to make a kid eat good food :)

INGREDIENTS :-
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 cup tricolor rotini pasta
3 tbsp roasted red pepper and garlic sauce
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 tbsp pasta water


DIRECTIONS :-
~~~~~~~~~~~

1.  Cook pasta in salted boiling water according to the package instructions. I cooked mine for 8-10 mins.

2.  Ladle some pasta water for later use. Drain the pasta using a colander. Transfer pasta to the mixing bowl.

3.  Add all other ingredients saving some cheese for garnish. Mix properly with a spatula.

Colorful pasta covered with melted cheese

4.  You can see the cheese and butter getting melted with the heat of pasta. You can hear a peculiar sound when you mix the pasta, this sound somehow makes me hungry.

5.  Garnish with the remaining cheese and enjoy the colorful, cheesy and saucy pasta!!!

          I have used the roasted red pepper and garlic sauce as I like its flavor and color, you can use any sauce you like. Also I used mozzarella cheese as it melts beautifully and parmesan has a nice salty bite to it.




          On a cold winter day, this is a perfect bowl for kids. For adults, as I told earlier make some changes and this dish will definitely satisfy your appetite. Buon Appetito!

 

RAVA BESAN VADI

 



Rava-Besan Vadi

"Happy Diwali and a Prosperous New Year!!!" On this auspicious occassion , I thought why not start with something sweet :) The sweet dish I am making today comes from the state of Maharashtra - located on the western part of India.

Black Specks of Cardamom can be seen

Growing up, we had lot of sweet dishes in our house. I learned this from my aai (ie mom - as we call in Marathi). First let me tell you something about her - she is an amazing cook! and as a kid I remember she used to fulfill my wish of every dish I asked for. Even though it was a new recipe, she would make it a point to learn and prepare it for me. Thanks aai!



Rava-Besan Vadi

I love this sweet dish a lot and the best part is if you make a bigger batch, do not worry as it has a good shelf life of around 15-20 days. If you live in a place which has hot climate, I would recommend you to refrigerate it after a couple of days. That way it will stay fresh longer. You need very less number of ingredients for this dish.


Ingredients :-

1 1/2   cup besan (gram flour)
1/2     cup rava
1 3/4   cup sugar
3/4 - 1 cup water
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground cardamom powder
8 (7+1) tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
1/4 cup slivered almonds + golden raisins (optional)


Directions :-

1.  Heat 7 tbsp of ghee in a heavy bottom deep pan on   medium heat. Add besan and keep sauteing for 8-10 mins. Besan tends to burn quickly so it is necessary to keep a close eye on it and if needed turn down the heat to low-medium. It will start turning golden and give out a delicious smell.

Besan gets roasted in ghee

2.  Once besan is done, transfer it to a plate to cool. Add 1 tbsp ghee to the pan and add rava sauteing for 7-8 mins. on low-medium heat till it turns golden. Transfer it to the plate.


3.  In a deep pan take sugar and add as much water so that sugar gets submerged. Stir it constantly on low-medium heat so the syrup start getting sticky like honey about 8-10 mins.

Sugar syrup starts to bubble and looks foggy

4.  Now add the roasted rava and besan to the syrup. Remove any lumps and keep stirring for about 6-7 mins. or till the mixture starts to thicken and leaves the sides of the pan.


This stage is kind of tricky - you don't want the mixture to be very thick nor very thin. If you have a doubt,  turn off the gas and let the mixture cool for 10 mins., now check again. Because once the mixture cools it tends to thicken little more.
Once you make it, you will get a hang of it.

The final stage of rava-besan vadi

5.  Turn off the gas, add cardamom powder, dried fruits and mix thoroughly. Transfer it to a greased plate to cool down. After about 7-8 mins. cut it into diamonds and leave it till    it cools completely.



Rava-besan vadi are ready to serve!

6.  Once cooled, remove the diamond vadis with a spatula and store them in an airtight container. This recipe makes around 20 pieces.  Enjoy the sweet moments!!!