Tri colored Vermicelli

Vermicelli is one of those dishes that is hassle free and gets ready in a jiffy. I spent 10 mins in the kitchen(including cooking time), awesome dish as a breakfast or an evening snack. A cup of hot tea to go along with it is a bonus. Tri-colored vermicelli gets its name from the 3 vegetables we use, namely peas, carrots and corn.


Ingredients:

1/4 cup of mixed vegetables - Peas, diced carrots and Corn (I used frozen)
1 cup vermicelli
1 cup water
2 tbsp oil
1 green chili chopped
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp jeera seeds
1/4 tsp sugar
salt to taste
lemon for garnish

Method:

1. Lightly roast vermicelli in 1 tbsp of oil to get a golden brown color
2. In a separate pan heat a tbsp of oil and add mustard followed by jeera
3. Next add green chili and veggies, saute it a bit
4. Add water and let water boil.
5. Next add vermicelli and cook covered on a medium flame
6. Take off heat when done, garnish with a lemon wedge when serving.

Tomato Soup

Nothing can beat a bowl of warm Tomato soup when you are down with flu like symptoms. I followed this recipe I found online. I adapted it a bit to suit my sparse pantry and to keep the calorie count low. Here is my version, it tasted amazing!





Ingredients:
4 Tomatoes chopped
2 tbsp chopped onion
2 tbsp tomato sauce
1/2 inch of ginger chopped
2 cloves of garlic crushed
2 Bay leaves
1/4 cup of mint leaves
1/4 cup chopped carrots(I used frozen)
1/4 cup peas(I used frozen)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup water or veggie broth
1 cup 2% fat milk (or use cream instead)
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp olive oil
salt
pepper

Method:
1. Sprinkle salt, pepper(generously) and olive oil on the chopped onions,tomatoes and crushed garlic, roast it at 450 degrees for 15 minutes in the oven.
2. In a pan add butter and saute the ginger, followed by bay leaves, mint, carrot, peas and tomato paste.
3. Add water and cook the veggies for 10 mins
4. Once the veggies are cooked through add the roasted veggies and cook for 5 mins
5. Take off the heat and blend until smooth
6. Put the soup back in the pot, add milk and boil it one last time.

Serve hot with croutons or wheat thins!

Masoor Dal(Brown Lentils)

Of all Dals Masoor dal(Brown Lentils) is my favorite, for 2 reasons. Firstly because it has this nice earthy taste to it and secondly, its so easy to cook. You will know what I am talking about in a bit when you look at the ingredients list and the recipe below. This is a no frills recipe that tastes divine. You can serve it with rice or have it as a soup, it warms up your tummy instantly, I just love it.



Ingredients:
1 cup masoor dal aka Brown Lentils
slivered ginger 1 tsp
2 finely chopped green chilies or as per taste
1 tsp of cumin seeds
pinch of turmeric (optional)
Salt to taste
Seasoning:
1 tsp oil
2 cloves of garlic

Method:
Pressure cook all the ingredients(except for the seasoning) until the dal is cooked. I wait for 3 whistles on a medium-low flame and take off the heat. Once the pressure is completely gone check the consistency of the dal, add more water if desired.
In a separate small utensil, saute the garlic cloves in oil until they get golden brown on both sides and add this to the cooked dal.
Serve it as a soup or with some cooked rice.

You could cook the dal in a chicken or vegetable broth for a more healthier version. Enjoy!

Mooli(Radish) Paratha

Stuffing Ingredients:
1 cup of shredded Mooli(Radish)
1 tsp Jeera powder
1 Green chili finely chopped
2 tbsp grated ginger

For Dough:
2 cups wheat flour
1 tbsp oil

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients together for stuffing, sprinkle a tbsp of salt and set aside for 15 mins; radish will leave out water.
2. Squeeze out all the water from the stuffing. Rolling the paratha will become easier if the stuffing is dry.
3. Take the wheat four in a bowl and slowly add the radish water mixing and kneading. Add more water if desired.
Note: Usually 2 cups of wheat flour would take 3/4th cup of water, but it depends on the dryness and coarseness of the flour so adjust the water quantity.
4. Roll a small ball of dough and place a tsp of radish mixture in the center
5. Pull together the edges to cover-up the filling and dust-in some dry wheat flour
6. Roll it into a paratha.
7. Heat a flat non-stick pan and roast one side of the paratha until golden brown, repeat on the other side.
8. Repeat with rest of the dough and filling
9. Dab a little butter on one side of the paratha and serve with slices of onion and a chili if you like some heat :)

Honeydew Melon-Tang

To compensate for the mild summer last year, we are having a mild winter. It has been warm since last Friday and I have started missing the foggy mornings. Yea, I like the slight overcast or the morning fog. Please dont send me hate emails! :-p

Enough rants about the weather, what I have here today is a classic creation in my kitchen. This is what happens on a hot mid-afternoon, any fruit lying on the kitchen counter-top gets into the blender with a dash of creativity. This time we have a honeydew melon marrying the Orange Tang from Costco.

Ingredients:

1 HoneyDew melon's flesh cubed
2 tbls of OrangeTang

Method:

Blend cubed melon and Tang with 1/4 cup of water or Ice. Chill and serve!

Tofu Tikka Masala

Here is Paneer Tikka masala with a healthier twist. I substituted Tofu for Paneer but nobody missed the yummy, high-calorie Paneer. In-fact people were surprised to know it was Tofu and not Paneer. I give the credit to Costco's Tofu(firmness level 4), they were firmer and more porous than the ones in TJs/Vons. Because it was so porous it marinated well, taking in all the rich spices in the gravy. I plan on getting my Tofu from Costco henceforth. Glad that I tried them out!

Ingredients for marinated Tofu:
1/2 a pound of cubed firm tofu(Costco sells them in packs of 3, I used half of one pack)
2 tablespoon yogurt
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
Any spices you would like, I added the following:
2 tsp of cumin-coriander powder
1 tsp red chili powder
pinch of salt.

Ingredients for the sauce:
1/2 cup of tomato puree
1 diced green bell pepper(optional)
The usual Indian seasoning-
2 bay leaves
pinch of Hing
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp chili powder (adjust as per spice tolerance)
1/2 tsp of garam masala

Method:
Marinate the tofu by mixing together all the ingredients for tofu marination and refrigerate for about an hour. Once marinated shallow fry them on a pan to get a golden crust on all sides.Remove the tofu and use the same pan to make the sauce. Add a little oil and saute all the spices one by one, then add the tomato sauce and bring to a simmer. Once the sauce starts thickening mix the tofu piece into it gently and turn off the gas.

Goes well with Rice or Chapati

Onion Zhunka

Zhunka-Bhakri is a staple meal in Maharashtra. Zhunka is traditionally made with drumsticks, but the simpler version is using green onions. Here is the recipe

Ingredients:
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp jeera
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
A bunch of green onions(7-8) along with the greens roughly chopped
1 green chili chopped
1/4 cup besan roasted until golden brown
1 tsp jaggery
Salt to taste

Method:
Take a tbsp of oil in a pan, add mustard seeds when the oil is hot. When the mustard seeds sputter add jeera, ginger garlic paste, chili. Saute it for a minute and add onions let it cook through completely, covered. Add besan, salt, jaggery and mix well. Cover and cook for another 5 mins on low flame.
Jhunka is usually served with bhakris but chapatis go well too.