Kofta in Spinach Gravy

Nutritious food to be enjoyed in the winter season

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins

Ingredients
For Kofta
4 boiled potatoes
4 tbsp rice flour
2 tsp red chilli powder
Oil for frying
Salt as per taste

For Palak Gravy
1 bunch  spinach
2 tbsp cooking oil
10 whole black peppers
2 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1 bay leaf
1 stick cardamom
2 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 cup water for gravy
Water for blanching spinach
Salt as per taste


Method

For making kofta
1. Peel and grate the boiled potatoes.
2. Add salt, red chilli powder and rice flour. Mix all things together to get dough like consistency
3. Make small balls of the mixture
4. Heat oil in a wok.
5. Now keep the flame slow and fry 4 balls at a time until the balls turn brown from the outside.

For the gravy
1. Wash the spinach. Boil water in big pan.
2. In the boiling water add spinach. Allow it to boil for 2~3 mins and remove from water.
3. Allow spinach to cool and then make puree.
4. In a wok add cumin, bay leaf, black pepper, cardamom.
5. When the cumin crackles add the spinach puree.
6. Add salt, chilli powder, 1/2 cup water and mix well.
7. Cover with a lid and cook on low flame for 2 mins.

At the time of serving mix the kofta to the gravy

Tip- To retain spinach color, blanch spinach without covering it with a lid

Blanched Spinach

Dough for kofta

Kofta Balls

Kofta ready 

Palak gravy ready

Matar Paneer recipe

This recipe is documented for my hubby. So that when i am on my vacation he can cook some ghar ka khana and that is why it is simple and easy to cook :)


Prep time  5 mins
Cooking time 15 mins

Ingredients 
250 gm paneer ( cut into cubes)
4 tomatoes
1/2 cup matar ( peas)
2 cups water
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 tsp jeera (cumin seeds)
1 tsp haldi (turmeric) powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp garam masala powder
Salt to taste

Method
1. Wash the tomatoes and cut into big chunks
2. Blend the tomatoes in amixer or blender to get a puree
3. Heat oil in a kadhai and add jeera.
4. Once the jeera sizzles add tomato puree.
5. Cover and let it cook on slow flame.
6. Keep stirring in between.
7. Once tomatoes are done (oil appears on the surface) add haldi, salt, red chilli powder and mix.
8. Add peas and water and allow it to boil.
9. Now add paneer cubes and and garam masala.
10. Cover the lid and cook for 2 mins.
11. Matar panner is ready and u can combine it with jeera rice to have great meal.


Tip - do not boil too much after adding panner, as the paneer would then become chew. Quantity of water will depend upon how much thick gravy you desire.

To the sizzling jeera add tomato puree

Tomato puree splatters so cove and cook

Cooking oil appears on top of the tomato puree

Matar paneer boiling

Matar Paneer ready to eat

Combo - matar paneer and jeera rice

Jeera Rice Recipe

A simple and easy recipe - Jeera Rice

Pre Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time: 10 mins

Ingredients
1 cup rice
1 tbsp cooking oil
2 tsp jeera (cumin)
2 cup water

Method
1. Wash the rice and allow it to soak in water for 10 mins.
2. Heat oil in a pressure cooker.
3. Add jeera and when it crackles add the rice.
4. Now add 2 cups of water.
5. Cover the pressure cooker.
6. Cook on high flame and after 2 whistles lower down the flame.
7. After the 3rd whistle switch off the gas.
8. After steam leaves the pressure cooker the jeera rice is ready to eat

Soaked rice in cooker

Jeera rice on my plate

and the rest in cooker 

Tip - Water amount is always double the rice amount to get perfectly cooked rice. 

Domino's Taco Indiana review

Checked out the latest side offer of Domino's - Taco's. It is available in both Taco Indiana Veg and Taco Indiana Non Veg. I tried the Taco Indiana veg . It costs you INR 89 and  the portion is decent enough for the evening snack

It is basically a crisp paranthaa Stuffed with 2 veg patties and cheese and topped with lots of oregano. The veg cutlets are nice and crisp and tasted like the veg burger in KFC ( stuffed with chick pea). Also the spices are mild and kids would love eating it.For each order you will get 2 tacos.

Personally i did not like it much as the veg cutlets have no flavor or spices. The only thing one can taste is lots of oregano and nothing else.

The Taco Indiana Chicken comes with minced chicken filling.

Taco Indiana Veg 

Taco Indiana Veg

http://www.dominos.co.in/menu/side-orders/more/taco-indiana-veg

Enhance taste of besan ka cheela

Tip of the day

To improve taste of besan ka cheela add 2 tbsp of curd to the mixture. It would taste awesome. Do not add to much curd because than the cheela would stick to the pan. Enjoy :)

Paneer Bhurji Dhaba Style Recipe

Paneer it is J

Prep Time:  10 mins

Cooking Time: 10 mins

Ingredients

1 cup crumbled paneer

1 onion sliced

4 tomatoes grated

3 tbsp cooking oil

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp garam masala

1tbsp kasuri methi powder

Salt as per taste

Method:
1. Heat a non stick pan and add cooking oil
2. To this add the sliced onion and stir till translucent ( Do not overcook)
3. Now add the grated tomatoes stir and cover with lid.
4.Allow the mixture to cook till the oil separates. Keep stirring in between so that the mixture does not stick to the pan.
5.When the cooking oil separates now add turmeric, chilli powder, garam masala and mix well.
6. Now add the crumbled paneer, salt and mix. Cover with lid and cook for a minute. and switch off the gas.
7.Now garnish by adding kasuri methi powder. I usually dr roast kasuri methi and then make powder.
8.Paneer bhurji dhaba style is ready J

 Tip – Do not overcook after adding paneer other it will become chew J

Sliced Onion

Grated Tomato

Crumbled Paneer

Cooked onion and tomato mixture

Paneer in the mixture

Paneer Bhurji Dhaba Style

Aate (Wheatflour) Ka Halwa Recipe

This one is my hubby's favourite dish and i end up making quite often.

Prep Time : 2 mins ( to gather all ingredients :) )
Cooking Time : 10 mins
Serves - 2 people

Ingredients
5 tbsp aata (wheat flour)
5 tbsp ghee
5 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup hot water

Method
1. Heat ghee in non stick pan.
2. Add aata (wheat flour) and stir untill you get nice brown colour.
3. Remove from flame and add sugar and mix well.
4. Now add hot water and stir to avoid formation of lumps
5. Place the pan back on low heat and cover with a lid and let it cook for 2 mins or until ghee starts floating on top
6. The atte ka halwa is ready to eat :)

Brown color of the aata (wheat flour)

Sugar with aata (wheat flour)

After adding hot water

Final stage ( you can see ghee on the edges )

Tip - Garnish with almonds to have crunchy texture to the halwa

Apple Crumble Recipe

Felt like having apple pie but did not have energy to go and invest so much time making it. So a quick fix and to satisfy my craving instantly decide to do a quick fix -apple crumble :)

Ingredients
1 golden apple
1/4 cup all purpose flour
40 gm frozen butter cut into cubes
4 tbsp ground sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon powder
1tsp lemon juice


Method
1. Peel and chop the apple.
2. Mix the ground sugar, lemon juice ,cinnamon to the cut apple.
4. Pre heat the oven at 180 degree Celsius.
3. Sieve the all purpose flour add the cubes of butter and make a crumble.
4. Grease  3 small ramekin or oven proof bowl with butter.
5. Add the apple mixture in the bowls and cover with the crumble.
6. Place the ramekins in the oven and bake at 180 degree Celsius for 40 minutes.

Apple with cinnamon and sugar 

Crumble

Apple Crumble 

Tip - cinnamon gives nice flavor to the apple crumble.

Pickle Rice Recipe

Its easy to make and just take about 30 mins and more over you do not have to chop and do additional preparations  So if your cook is on leave or coming late from work give this recipe a try :)

Ingredients:

1 cup rice washed and soaked for 15 minutes
2 tbsp Bedekar pickle mix ( mango pickle mix)
3 tbsp oil
2 1/4 cup water
Salt to taste
Fresh coriander leaves chopped and washed for garnishing


Method
1. Put the cooker on high gas flame and oil .
2. Now add the Bedekar mix and stir .Immediately add the rice, salt as required and mix well.
3. Now add water . Cover the cooker lid
4. Allow two whistles and then lower the gas flame ( until a third whistle or for 3 mins ) and then turn off the gas
5. Release the cooker lid and as soon the steam escapes the cooker lid will fall .
6. Serve the hot rice with fresh coriander garnishing
7. You can eat the pickle rice with curd or any curry vegetable.

Tip - you can add Bedekar mix as per your need for more fire :)

Pickle Rice 

Apple Pie Recipe

Ingredients
2 green apples
1 cup all purpose flour
60 gm Amul butter frozen and cut into cubes
1/2 cup caster sugar
3tsp ground cinnamon
1tsp lime juice
Pinch of salt
Chilled water

Method
1. Sieve the all purpose flour and add a pinch of salt.
2. Make a crumble mixture by mixing butter cubes with the flour mixture.

The flour and butter mixture 

3. Add chilled water as required to make a dough.
4. Allow the dough to rest for 5 minutes.
5. Divide the dough into 2 halves . Roll one half of the dough into a circle.
6. Pre heat the oven at 180 degree C.
7. Grease the baking dish by adding a little butter.
8. Cover the baking dish with the dough and blind bake for 15 minutes at 180 degree C.

Dough rolled in the baking dish

Blind baking the dough 

9. Peel and slice the apples. Mix sugar, cinnamon powder and lime juice.

10. Now roll the other half of the dough into a circular shape.
11. Place the sliced apples mixture in the baking dish. Cover the apple mixture with rolled dough.
12. Create some openings in the pie for the steam to release out.

Pie ready to gain in the oven

13. Put the apple pie back in the oven at 180 degree C for 15 mins or until the upper crust is brown.
14. Enjoy the hot apple pie.

Apple Pie 

Tip - Use green apples  as they are firm and give a nice tangy taste.

If you don't want to make pie you can also make apple crumble. Put the apple mixture in the baking dish and cover the flour crumble mixture over the apples and bake in the oven .