For the koftas:
2 cups peeled and mashed boiled potatoes
1 cup paneer mashed
1 bread slice mashed
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
1/4 cup chopped cashewnuts
1/4 raisins chopped fine
red chilli powder to taste
Salt to taste
cooking oil to fry the koftas

For the curry:
3 tbsps cooking oil
1 large onions quartered
1/2 cup tomatoes pureed
3-4 garlic cloves
1 tbsp ginger paste
3-4 green chillies
2 tsps coriander powder
1 tbsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp poppy seeds lightly roasted
1/4 cup cashews
1/8 cup milk
Salt to taste
2 tsps garam masala
Cream for garnish

Preparation:
Mix the potatoes, paneer, bread and cornstarch together. Add the spices to this mash and mix well. The resulting dough should be firm.
Make this dough into balls and put cashewnut and raisin mix in the center of each ball.
Heat the oil on a medium flame. Deep fry the kofta balls till pale golden in color.
Drain on paper towels and keep aside.
For the gravy, first boil the onions in a pan of water for 10 mins.
soak the cashews in warm water for 1/2 an hour.
Grind into a paste along with the green chilly, ginger, garlic.
Put this paste back into the pan and fry till the oil begins to separate.
Grind the poppy seeds and nut to form a paste and fry with the onion paste for another 5 minutes.
Add Tomato puree and the dry spices and fry on medium flame for 10 mins.
Add milk and some warm water to this paste (the sauce should be thick so do not add too much water).
Bring the sauce/gravy to a boil and then reduce the fire to a simmer.
Gently add the kofas to this sauce/gravy and cook uncovered for 2-3 minutes.
Turn off the fire and garnish with cream and cliantro all over the top of the dish before serving.

Kashmiri Dum Aloo

Karva chauth is one occassion where DH gets all the pmapering in the world. Although I mould the menu based on my desire and convenience but he definitely is the one who gets to eat the goodies.
I had been craving for some Dum Aloo since quite a while, so it was time to experiment with some.

2 oz ground fennel seeds (saunf) (i use a coffee grinder to grind the fennel seeds)
3 oz coriander powder (dhaniya powder)
1 tbsp red chilli powder (kashmiri mirch) - This will make the curry mildly spicy, you can increase the amount if you like it spicy
1-2 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 1/2 tbsp poppy seeds (optional) Soak the poppy seeds in water for 15 mins if using.
2-3 pieces peppercorn
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
7-8 red baby potatoes
1/2 cup yogurt
1 big clove of garlic
Salt as per taste
3-4 tbsp oil


Heat Oil in a pan. Add the cumin seeds. When they start to splutter add the red chilli powder. Stir it on medium flame for about a minute (don't let the chilli powder burn and don't forget to put on the exhaust fan).Add the peppercorn, poppy seeds, crushed garlic and chopped onion and salt. Saute for about 10 mins till the onion becomes soft and turns pinkish. In the meanwhile boil the baby potatoes till they are soft but intact(don't let it boil to a point where they start getting mashed). Add the ground fennel seeds and the coriander powder, fry for 2 mins till it starts giving a nice aroma. The dry mixture will coat around the onions. Add turmeric to the yogurt and beat it slightly to make it smooth. Add it to the sauteed mixture on a low flame and keep stirring otherwise the yogurt will curdle up. Keep stirring till it starts to boil. Add some water and bring it to a boil (you can add the water based on how dilute you want your curry to be). Cut the potatoes in half and add it to the mixture. Cover the pan and seal it with a cloth so that no steam escapes and turn the flame to low. This process gives the curry the 'Dum'.
Leave it on the flame for approx 30 mins. If the water starts drying up you can add more water in between and seal the pan again.

Note: If you like a richer meal, steam the potatoes only till they a little tender, cut them in half and then deep fry then before adding them to the curry. I like to make the curry such that I don't feel guilty after eating a rich meal, so i like to boil it instead of frying them.

Sorry, I could not take a picture this time, but will definitely put it up the next time I make it.

IHop style French Bread

A few weeks back I had the best of the French Toasts at IHop and ever since I have been craving to make some myself. I came across this recipe at this blog

2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
a pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 Tbsp all purpose flour
6 slices of thick sliced French bread (I got a loaf of french bread and cut thick slices)
Strawberries for decoration.

Beat the eggs and then add remaining ingredients and beat with an electric mixer. Dip both sides of bread and place in hot buttered pan.
Flip over when browned. Serve with some maple Syrup and Whipped Cream. Top with some halved strawberries. My daughter is in love with strawberries so I used them. The ones at IHop are served with some peach in its sweetened sauce.



Next time I know that I have acraving for the french toast, I don't need to rush out to IHop.

Idli Manchrian

I am a big fan of manchurian.. be it gobi, paneer, corn.. anything that is Indo-Chinese to summarize.
A few days back I had to cook some quick appetizer that was filling as well. I had some idli batter so I thought of making some idli manchurian. The fact that I like most about this is i don't really have to deep fry the idlis. I can just bake them and still have a yummylicious manchurian ready in not much time.

Idli Batter (Can use the ready to mix batters if you haven't prepared in advance) to make about 20-24 mid size idlis.
1 Green Pepper - Chopped in small cubes
1 medium onion - chopped in small cubes
Green Chillies - 6 in number (you can vary this depending on how spicy you want) slit lengthwise in two
Garlic - about 5 small pods
Soya Sauce - 4 tbsps
Tomato ketchup - 1/8th cup
Oil for frying - 3 tbsps
Cilantro - for garnish
Spring onions - for garnish
Salt as per taste

For the idlis:
Soya sauce - 3tbsp
Tomato ketchup - 3tbsps
Cornflour paste (3 tbsps cornflower mixed with about 1/8th cup of water)
Red Chilli powder - 1tbsp
1/2 lime juice

Preapare the idlis and cut each one in 4 parts.
Mix all the ingredients above and mix well with the idlis. Save about 1 tbsp of cornflower paste for the manchurian gravy. keep aside for 1/2 an hour. Shallow fry in a deep dish pan until the idlis start turning a little brown. Alternatively, you just sprinkle the idlis with lime juice and chilli powder and bake them in the oven for about 15 mins on 350F.

Recipe:

Heat the oil in a big vessel. Add mined garlic and green chillies. Add the Onions and fry for 2 mins. Now add the Green pepper and fry for another 5 mins. Add the tomato Ketchup & soya sauce and salt and let it simmer for 2 mins. Now add the fried/baked idlis and mix till the gravy completely coats the idlis.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and spring onions.

Couscous and Bean soup

The first attempt at making CousCous was a success. Aanya loved it and I loved feeding her something that was healthy. Obviously, it was time to experiment with something new. I make a spicy bean soup that hubby dear just loves. Will post the recipe for that sometime later maybe. I twisted the recipe a bit and made a couscous version of that. I must say that the dad and daughter were born with similar taste buds. Aanya just loved it.

Here's the recipe: (the serving size is a big bowl full. You can increase the veggies/beans/couscous as per your taste)

1/2 bowl couscous
1 small tomato
1/2 bowl onion finely chopped
1/2 bowl green pepper and red pepper finely chopped
1-2 baby carrots finely chopped
1/2 bowl green beans finely chopped
1/2 bowl of mixed beans (i used navy beans and chickpeas)
1/2 bowl of avacado chopped
1/2 cup of vegetable stock (You can substitute chicken stock for vegetable stock)
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp olive oil
parsley for garnish

Soak the beans in warm water for about an hour and pressure cook them till tender and not mushy. (i find it easier to pressure cook them. you can let them simmer for about 20 minutes in a closed pan too).
Fry the onion till they turn pink. Add carrots and green beans and saute till they are tender. Add the pepper and saute for additional 2 mins.In the mean while put the tomatoes in microwave for a min so that the skin comes off easily. Add the tomatoes to the veggies and saute for 2 more minutes. Add the beans, couscous and the stock. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for 10 mins. Fluff the couscous with a fork. If you like a runny, soup like consistency you can increase the amount of stock.
Add avacado and salt and pepper to taste.
Garnish with some parsley. I ran out of fresh parsley so just used some dry seasoning :-)

Serve hot.

Healthy Vegetable CousCous

Sometime back I was reading the health benefits of couscous and i found out that it is among the healthiest grain-based products. Coming from a purely Indian background, I never even heard of couscous until 2 years back. I have to admit that I am a big foodie  and I do like spicy, fried junk food in my meals. But being a super conscious new mom I was determined to try this out for Aanya.  I searched for a few recipes around. Couscous is majorly used in salads but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to give salad for a meal to my daughter. So here’s something I tried out and it came out really well.  I will keep trying more recipes with couscous and if each one of it becomes a success, eventually i’ll have more of couscous being cooked in my house :-)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup couscous

olive oil

1/2 small onion thinly sliced

1/2 red pepper finely chopped

1/2 green pepper finely chopped

1/8 cup chopped spinach

1 tomato

salt and pepper according to taste

Dry parsley

Cilantro

few tbsp yogurt

Cook the couscous using pack instructions. I use the ones that are ready in 5 mins.
Heat 1 tsp oil in a frying pan, add the onions and fry briefly. Add the peppers and fry for about 2 minutes. Add the spinach and cook for another minute. Heat the tomatoes and remove the skin. You can use canned tomatoes if you like. Add the tomatoes, bring to a simmer and cook covered until the vegetables are tender - add a splash of water if it looks too dry. Season well with salt pepper and parsley. Put some cilantro on top. Pour over the couscous and top with yogurt.

Note:
For 2 servings of couscous, you'll need about 125g couscous and 150ml of water or stock

Blueberry Banana Nut Bread

Yesterday evening was a dinner break for me. I was just surfing on my iphone and came across this link with a recipe for banana bread. I love the banana nut bread at starbucks. Since I had some time in hand to experiment with my culinary skills, I decided to give it a try. I was quite hopeful that with the sweet lovers in the family my attempt would not be a total waste :-)
Aanya was eating blueberries at that moment so I stole some from her plate and added it to the banana bread. With a few additions here and there, I must say I did a decent job. Between the 3 f us and another friend I saw a 3/4 loaf of the bread vanish in front of my eyes!! It can be a tasty filler for your little one or just some nice evening snack for dear hubby.

Ingredients:

All purpose flour - 1 1/4 cup
Nutmeg Powder - 1 tsp
Cinnamon powder - 1/2 tsp (you can increase the amount of cinnamon powder to 1 tbsp if you like a strong cinnamon taste)
Baking powder - 3/4 tsp
Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp
CornStarch - 1 tsp
Salt - a pinch
Vanilla Essence - 1 tsp
Egg - 1
Milk - 3/4 cup (I use low-fat)
Sugar - 3/4 cup ( this gives it a mild sweet taste. If you want it sweeter increase the amount of sugar)
Vegetable oil/Corn Oil - 1/2 cup
Bananas - 1/4 cup (use ripe bananas) - approx 1 large banana
Blueberries - 1/4 cup
Walnut - few chopped


Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a baking pan and keep. (I used a rectangular container)
Sift the dry ingredients and keep aside. Mash the bananas, blueberries coarsely and mix coarsely crushed walnut pieces. Do not completely mash the bananas as it tends to harden the bread.
In a bowl mix oil, sugar, egg and milk and whisk together till sugar is dissolved (i use an electric beater on low for approx 2 mins). Add vanilla essence and the dry fifted flour in batches. Keep adding the banana, blueberry and walnut mixture and fold it gently. Don't overmix the batter. Transfer the batter to the greased pan and bake for 45 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Once done, turn the pan upside down and let the bread cool on a wire rack.