Quick and easy aloo mattar (Potato peas curry)

With a very picky eater at hand I always try to sneak up vegetables whenever I can either by mashing them or making them in a more appealing way (fritters, bajji
etc.,). This is one such dish in which the vegetables are well cooked and easy to mash and the gravy is convincing and appealing to the spice-seeking taste buds. This is one of my favorite ad trusted take-away food when we go out for a picnic or visit a zoo or park. And you can make it in minutes even in the busy mornings.

Things you'll need:
Onion - 1, finely chopped
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Tomato paste or puree - 1 tbsp.
Potato - 1, diced
Peas - frozen or fresh, 1/2 cup
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Turmeric powder -  a pinch
Dry mango powder - 1/2 tsp
Garam masala powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt - to taste
Oil - 2 tbsp

Yield - Serves 2 persons

Method:

Step 1:

Heat the oil in a pressure cooker or a pan, and add cumin seeds. When they start to crackle, add the onions and fry them until translucent. Add the ginger garlic paste, sauté for a while and add the tomato paste. Mix well.

Step 2:
Add the potato and peas sauté for a couple of mins and add the masala powders and salt. Mix well until combined. Add 1/2 to 3/4 cup of water according to desired thickness and close the pan. Cook for two whistles if using a pressure cooker or cook for ten mins in medium flame with lid closed if using a pan.

Step 3:
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves if desired and serve with roti, chapatti,  or poori.

Note:
if dry mango powder is not available use 1tbsp of lemon juice instead.

Vazhaipoo vadai

In my childhood days I've heard in songs and read in books that the banana tree is a great example for sacrifice as every part of it is consumed by humans. I would sometimes wonder if it is the tree's sacrificial nature to give out everything or the humans' selfish nature to get as much as we can. Philosophies apart, since the banana tree has a use in every bit of it, every house which has a garden space would have a banana tree. Even if it doesn't yield fruits, we can always use its leaves for serving or packing food, or use the trunk and flower in cooking. I remember  growing a banana tree in our house and waiting for it to yield fruits which seemed like a lifetime. I also remember the size of the fruits were nowhere near to the size of the smallest variety of banana. But the taste of something grown in our own garden is definitely better than the best of what we get in stores. Now...why I am I telling this story? just to explain the fact that the banana flower is edible. It is made as a dry curry as such (poriyal) or with dal (paruppu usili),  or as fritters (vadai). My mom once made this vadai and ever since I am a big fan of this vazhaipoo vadai (but I always wonder why it was purple). The toughest part in this recipe is cleaning the flower. Once you have done cleaning you can make the fritters in no time. You could also clean up the flowers ahead of time, but the flowers starts to darken if not cooked immediately. But they are still edible and doesn't affect the taste or texture of the vadai. The center portion of the flower is also edible and can be eaten raw or cooked,

Things you'll need:
Banana flower (Vazhaipoo) - 1
Channa dal - 1 cup, soaked for 2 hours
Onion - 1, big, Finely chopped
Garlic - 3 pods, minced
Curry leaves - 3 or 4, chopped
Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 2, minced
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt - as required
Coriander leaves - 3 or 4 springs, finely chopped
Oil - for deep frying

Yield - 15 - 20 pieces

Method:

Step 1:
Remove each petal of the flower and collect the small flowers inside. Remove the thin membrane and thick stamen in each small flower. When you have removed as many of the flowers (you could leave the smallest flowers toward the end), chop the flowers and soak them in water with a little turmeric powder until you get the vadai mixture ready.

Step 2:
Coarsely  grind the channa dal, add the rest of the ingredients  and mix well. Squeeze the water out of the banana flowers and add them to the vadai mixture and mix well.

Step 3:
Make small balls of the vadai mixture and flatten them to discs. Deep fry them in medium heat and serve hot with sauce or chutney.

 

 

Sending it to Vardhini's Dish it out event

 



 

Kesar milk peda

This is one of my favorite sweets from childhood. I remember whenever we get an assorted sweet box, I'll just grab the milk peda before anyone does coz I wouldn't dare to lose it at any cost (I was a little kid then, so I could be excused. couldn't I? ). I never thought that this would be so easy to make and even be done in 15 mins in microwave, until my friend enlightened me with this info. The pedas was no lesser than the store bought pedas. I gave it a try, not the microwave version, and it came out flawless. My husband took some pedas to his office and shared with his colleagues and they didn't believe it's home made. It was that perfect, and the safest bet when u have little time. The below mentioned recipe is for kesar peda which includes saffron, but you can also do the pedas without saffron.

Things you'll need:
Milk powder - 2 cups
Sweetened condensed milk - 1 can (14 Oz)
Butter - 1/2 cup (1 stick) , unsalted
Saffron - 1 pinch, soaked in 2tbsp of warm milk (optional)
Pistachios/almonds - to garnish (optional)
Ghee - as required, to grease your palms and a bowl

Yield - 25-30 pieces

Method:

Step 1:
Melt the butter in a wide bottomed vessel. Add the milk powder and the condensed milk to the butter and in low heat stir them until no lumps are formed.

Step 2:
Add the saffron with the milk to the mixture and keep stirring until it starts to leave the sides of the pan. Switch off the stove and transfer the  contents to a greased bowl.

Step 3:
When the mixture is warm enough to handle, make balls of desired size, flatten them by pressing your thumb in the center. Garnish with nuts.

You can either serve them after it is completely cooled down or store them for two weeks in an airtight container.

Tips:
You can make some designs on the pedas using food color and a basting brush.
Instead of making it as a disc, you could also try rolling the dough and cutting it in different shapes with a cookie cutter. This will lure the kids towards your pedas.
Don't leave the pedas in the heat for too long after it starts to leave the sides of the pan, or the pedas will be dry and cracked. (But they are still edible :))

Newyork cheesecake with mango jello topping

It was our sixth wedding anniversary and as usual planned on how to spend our day and what dessert to make (yeah! dessert is always part of the plan). We rounded up on cheesecake because it was on the list for too long. First I decided to try plain newyork cheesecake, but then I wanted to make it colorful and fruit based. Mango or strawberry no-bake cheesecake was an option. But I thought a layered look would be more appealing and challenging to try. So I chose to make a mango jello topped cheesecake. I wanted to keep it as a surprise element for my husband, just to see the priceless surprised look on his face when he knows that I inherited some of his experimenting skills. I also made some kesar  milk pedas for my hubby to share with his collegues. But the cheesecake  was the star of the day. One essential thing for making the cheesecake is a springfoam pan. It really helps you get your cheesecake in one piece.

Things you'll need:

Graham crackers (about 30 squares) - 2 cups, finely ground
Ground cinnamon - 1/2 tsp
Unsalted butter - 1 stick, melted
Cream cheese -  1 lb (2 8oz blocks), softened
Eggs - 3
Sugar - 1 cup
Sour cream - 1 pint
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Jello mix - 1 pack (mango flavor)


Yield - 15 to 20 servings

Method:

Step 1:
Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Mix the graham crackers, ground cinnamon and melted butter. Grease and dust the springfoam pan and press in the graham mixture evenly on the bottom and on the sides of the pan (It need not cover the entire sides. Just an inch high on the sides will do.). Cover the pan with a plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 15 mins.

Step 2:
Using an electric hand mixer or standing mixer, mix the cream cheese until soft. Add the eggs one by one to the cheese and mix together. Add the sugar, sour cream and vanilla, one at a time, and mix well until a creamy mixture is formed without lumps.

Step 3:
Pour the cheese mixture into the chilled pan and even out. Cover the outer side of the pan with foil and place it in a roasting pan. Add boiling water to the roasting pan not above half of the springfoam pan. Place it in the oven and bake for 45 mins to an hour. The key is the slight browning of the top of the cheesecake, and the center of the cake should still be jiggling.

 Step 4:
Let it cool for 30 mins. Cover the pan and chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours. Prepare the jello mix according to the package directions. Allow it to cool down until the mixture feels thick and not watery. But it should not have set yet. Pour the jello mixture on top of the cheesecake. Cover it again and refrigerate until the jello is set.

Step 5:
Run a knife between the sides of the cake and the pan to loosen the cake. Unmold the cake and transfer it to a cake serving plate. Decorate it as u wish and serve.

Tips:
You could add some mango pieces to the jello mixture.
You can alternatively mix mango juice and gelatin instead of store-bought jello.
Decorate it with fresh fruits or whipped cream topping.

Sending this recipe to Vardhini's bake fest event hosted by Archana 

Beetroot cake with buttercream frosting

This is one of our experiments. Since our carrot cake was a success my husband's idea depot opened and he suggested we try the carrot cake with different unusual ingredients. His ideas included beetroot, mango, cantaloupe (seriously?) and some fruits which we couldn't have imagined as a base for cake. First I dismissed the idea thinking he was joking but then decided to help his exploration. We discussed and fixed on a safest bet...beetroot. I thought it would turn out like a red velvet cake which it didn't. It actually tasted very good. We made half of the cake with nuts and half without nuts, frosted both with buttercream frosting. We took it to a get together at a friend's place. Surprisingly the kids didn't enjoy it as much as we did (how did they sense there's a vegetable in there hmm?) I added some pink food color to the buttercream frosting which is optional. Adding nuts enhances the taste. You could add finely chopped nuts of your choice.


Things you'll need:
All purpose flour - 1 cup
Baking soda - 3/4 tsp
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Ground cinnamon - 1/2 tsp
Ground nutmeg - a pinch
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Raw beetroots - 1 cup, grated
Eggs - 2
Sugar - 1 cup
Vanilla - 1/2 tsp
Canola or Vegetable oil - 1/2 cup
Applesauce - 4 oz

For buttercream frosting:
Confectioner's Sugar -  3-4 cups
Heavy cream - 2 tbsps
Butter - 1 cup, softened
Vanilla - 1 tbsp

Yield - 15 Servings

Method:











Step 1 :
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and dust a 9 inch cake pan. Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Take 2 tbsp of flour mixture and coat the beetroots in the flour mixture.

Step 2 :
With an electric mixer or hand mixer, beat the eggs, sugar, vanilla, oil, and applesauce, in medium speed until thoroughly mixed. Add the flour mixture in small batches and mix together. When the dry and wet ingredients are mixed without lumps, combine the beetroots  and nuts with the mixture.

Step 3 :
Pour into the greased cake pan and bake for 45 mins to one hour or till a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool down in the pan for 15 mins and then transfer to a wire rack and allow it to completely cool down.

Step 4 :
Prepare frosting by beating the butter to a creamy consistency then add the sugar in small batches mixing the butter and sugar with a spatula before turning the mixer on (to avoid sugar blowing everywhere). Add the  vanilla and heavy cream and beat it well until desired consistency is achieved. If you want a thick frosting add more sugar and if you want it thinner add some heavy cream one tablespoon at a time

Step 5:
Frost the cake according to your imagination and serve in slices.

Tips:
You can double the cake ingredients for a 13x9 pan or two 9 inch pans.
You can also use crushed pineapple instead of applesauce or omit them both. Adding the fruits results in a moist cake.
You can add food colors to the frosting and draw some designs on the cake.

Sending this recipe to Vardhini's bake fest hosted by tangyminds..

Carrot cake

Recently I was very much into baking cakes, actually from scratch. I used to bake cakes for my husband's birthday or if we have guests coming. But I usually use cake mixes and ready-made frosting. It was easy but not much fun. So I wanted to make at least one cake from scratch. My husband was the one who really motivated me in doing so. We got a perfect opportunity when we were visiting our friends for Christmas and one of our friend's daughter has her birthday on the same day. We decided to make a simple cake and frosting to start with and browsed a lot of  videos. I did so much browsing that my daughter at one stage wanted to watch the 'cake making' videos instead of cartoons...Even she too was so much geared up for making a cake. We finally rounded up on red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. We decided on combining two recipes, which was a grave mistake, and unfortunately it turned out to be a pinkish cake with dripping cream cheese frosting. But we somehow managed to make it up with some ready made frosting I had in my pantry and took it to the get together. Our friends were kind enough to say that the cake looked and tasted great. We promised ourselves the next time we should make a perfect  cake with a proper recipe and we tried carrot cake. Trust me...It was perfect. Even with intrusions from my kid, I managed to make it perfect. As they say there's nothing to go wrong in a carrot cake.

Things you'll need:
All purpose flour - 1 cup
Baking soda - 3/4 tsp
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Ground cinnamon - 1/2 tsp
Ground nutmeg - a pinch
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Raw carrots - 1 cup, grated
Eggs - 2
Sugar - 1 cup
Vanilla - 1/2 tsp
Canola or Vegetable oil - 1/2 cup
Applesauce - 4 oz

For cream cheese frosting:
Confectioner's Sugar -  3 cups
Cream cheese - 8 oz, softened
Butter - 1/2 cup, softened
Vanilla - 1 tsp

Yield - 15 Servings

Method:

Step 1 :
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and dust a 9 inch cake pan. Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Take 2 tbsp of flour mixture and coat the carrots in the flour mixture.

Step 2 :
With an electric mixer or hand mixer, beat the eggs, sugar, vanilla, oil, and applesauce, in medium speed until thoroughly mixed. Add the flour mixture in small batches and mix together. When the dry and wet ingredients are mixed without lumps, combine the carrots with the mixture.

Step 3 :
Pour into the greased cake pan and bake for 45 mins to one hour or till a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool down in the pan for 15 mins and then transfer to a wire rack and allow it to completely cool down.

Step 4 :
Prepare frosting by mixing the butter, vanilla  and cream cheese with an electric or hand mixer at medium speed, and adding the sugar in batches.

Step 5:
Frost the cake according to your imagination and serve in slices.

Tips:
You can double the cake ingredients for a 13x9 pan or two 9 inch pans.
You can also use crushed pineapple instead of applesauce or omit them both. Adding the fruits results in a moist cake.
You can add food colors to the frosting and draw some designs on the cake.
You could add some finely chopped nuts for a rich taste. Add them along with carrots to the flour mixture.

Baked Veggie Quesadillas

This is one of my favorite Mexican dishes. It can be either made as an appetizer or main course. It can be prepared plain or with veggies or chicken. There is no hard and fast rules for the filling. You can use your own imagination for the filling and seasoning. The following recipe is for veggie quesadillas.

Things you'll need:
Tortillas - 4
Mexican fiesta cheese blend - 1 lb
Bell peppers - (green and red) 2 cups
Onion - 1, diced
Garlic - 4 cloves minced
Cilantro - few sprigs
Salt and pepper - as required
Fajita seasoning (optional)
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Butter - as needed

Yield - 8 pieces

Method:

Step 1:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a pan, heat a little oil and saute onion, garlic and bell peppers with salt and pepper, fajita seasoning, salt and pepper and chilli powder, until the vegetables are almost cooked but still crunchy. Turn off the stove and add the cilantro. Divide the filling into equal parts depending how many tortillas you are using.

Step 2:
Take a tortilla on a paper plate spread some butter on both sides, add one portion of the filling to one half, add required amount of cheese blend, and close the tortilla. Prepare all the tortillas this way.

Step 3:
Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray or just smear some butter on the sheet, place the quesadillas and bake them until the cheese melts.

Step 4:
Remove the quesadillas from the baking sheet and cut them into half. Serve them with guacamole and sour cream or your favorite dip.

Tips:
You can also make them in a flat pan in the stove.
Make chicken quesadillas by adding cooked and diced chicken to the above mentioned filling.