This is one dish which is present in almost every restaurant menu.But somehow both of us never prefer to have paneer dishes outside because we dont like the taste of paneer.So while preparing this recipe I was sceptical whether at all we would like it or not.But to prove me wrong, this recipe turned out simple delicious and I could not believe myself that YES-palak paneer is indeed very tasty when cooked with the right ingredients and ofcourse the home-made touch is always there :)
Ingredients-
paneer(1cup)
spinach/palak(14-15leaves)
onion(1big)
garlic(1small piece)
ginger(6-7 cloves)
green chillies(2-3)
tomato(1small)
turmeric/haldi powder
red chilly/mirchi powder
coriander/dhaniya powder
cumin/jeera powder
Fresh cream(1tbspn)
salt
sugar
oil
Method-
Wash the palak leaves thoroughly.
Add some water and blanch them. ie- either boil the leaves or pressure cook them for one whistle.
Keep it aside till it cools.
Once done grind the blanched leaves in a mixer to a fine paste.
Cut the paneer into small cubes.
I have used home-made paneer as it is much more tasty as compared to the store brought one.
Chop the onion,green chillies,tomato fine.
Make a paste of ginger and garlic.Again you can use ready-made ginger-garlic paste, but home ground paste is always my choice.
Heat some oil in a non-stick pan.
Fry the paneer cubes till golden brown.
Remove the cubes, now add the chopped onion.
Saute the onion, then add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies.
Fry for about 2 min, then add chopped tomato.
Add the masalas -haldi,mirchi,dhaniya,jeera and salt.
Let the masalas cook.Add a pinch of sugar for taste.
Add the palak paste,fried paneer cubes and cook for about 2-3min more.
Just before turning off the flame, add fresh cream and give it a stir.
This is optional, but since I regularly make ghee so I always have it ready and believe me it gives a nice-creamy texture :)
Thats it ! serve hot palak-paneer with phulkas or roti :)
This is a dessert/sweet wishing everyone a very Happy New Year !! We had this paratha once at "Not Just Parathas" Gurgaon and fell in love with it. I could not believe myself that such a lip-smacking paratha with the kalakand melting... could be made at home with such ease :)You just need to get kalakand from a sweet/mithai shop and have this unique dessert at home.Try it once and am sure you would not forget it ever :)
Ingredients-
wheat flour/atta
salt
water
kalakand
Method-
Knead the flour with a pinch of salt and water and prepare the dough.
Refrigerate the kalakand for half an hour.
Make equal sized balls out of the dough.
Place the kalakand stuffing inside each one of them.
Roll out and make parathas.
Fry on both sides with ghee.
Serve delicious kalakand parathas hot :)
Besan ladoos are a common sweet delicacy during festivals in India specially Diwali.I made these on Diwali this year, but sorry for posting so late.This is an easy recipe ,but yes you have to be patient for this one,but at the end of it you have mouth-watering laddos..so give it a try atleast once :)
Ingredients -
chickpea flour/besan
ghee
powdered sugar
raisins/kismis
Method -
Heat a non-stick pan/kadhai.
Add the besan to it(flame should be on sim).
Keep on stirring till the raw smell/taste of besan goes.
This takes a long time so you need to be patient for this step :P.
Once the raw smell goes ie-the besan is almost done, add some ghee to it and stir.
After adding ghee, stir for another 10min or so.
Next,remove the pan off the flame.
Add ghee and sugar to it.
Adjust the sugar as per your sweetness.The amount of ghee should be adjusted such that you are able to make ladoos out of it.
Now mix all together and make small ladoos out of it.
Add a kismis each to one ladoo as a garnish :)
This recipe was lying in the drafts section for weeks or probably months ! I was so occupied with my work in office and baby at home that I could not get the time to post/blog.So finally I decided that I have to FIND time to invest in my passion :) So here it is -a simple and delicious chicken sausage recipe.This would hardly take you any time as you get the sausage ready.
Ingredients -
chicken sausage
tomato
black pepper
salt
eggs
oil
Method -
Chop the sausage into small bite-size pieces.
Heat oil in a non-stick pan.
Fry the chicken pieces on both sides till golden brown.
Chop tomatoes roughly(not small pieces).
Add the chopped tomatoes and fry.
Adjust the salt and black pepper as per taste.
Keep in mind the chicken sausage already has some seasoning.
Now remove the sausage and tomato into a bowl.
Scramble one or more eggs into the pan with required seasoning.
Now mix together the sausage and egg.
Delicious chicken sausage with scrambled egg is ready to serve :)
You might also like Tandoori Chicken
I had never tasted savoury dal parathas earlier.I was aware about the sweet dal stuffing which is known as puran poli.These parathas are more similar to the version prepared in Bihar as my mom learnt the recipe from a Bihari neighbour.There can be different variations specially made in North India.But these taste equally yummy..so pls try it if you have never had one :)
Ingredients -
chana dal(1 cup)
green chillies(2-3)
asafoetida/hing
ginger(a small piece)
oil
salt
sugar
wheat flour/atta
water
Method -
Soak the chana dal overnight or for 7-8hours.
Grind it in a mixer along with green chillies and ginger adding required water(little).
Heat oil in a non-stick kadai.
Add hing to it.
Then add the ground dal mix.
Keep on stirring it so that it doesnt get burnt.
Adjust salt as per taste and add little sugar.
Keep on stirring till it gets dry.
Prepare the dough by kneading the atta with water.
Make round balls of the dough and dal stuffing.
Take one atta ball and stuff it with the dal mixture.
Roll into a roti and fry on both sides with ghee.
Similarly prepare other parathas.
Serve these delicious dal parathas with a side-dish of your choice :)
A very easy and simple snack item which is healthy too as it is made up of chana..
Ingredients -
kabuli chana/chole -1cup
potato -1medium
green chillies
turmeric powder
red chilly powder
chaat masala
salt
coriander leaves
Method -
Soak the kabuli chana for 6-7hours or overnight.
Boil them till soft.
Boil the potato.
Mash the chana and potato together.
Add chopped chillies,coriander leaves and the remaining spices.
Adjust the salt for taste.
Heat a non-stick pan.
Drizzle some oil over it.
Make round patties of the mix,coat them with bread crumbs or sooji and put on the pan.
Cook on both sides till crisp.
Serve hot cutlets at tea-time with tomato ketchup :)
I saw this dosa recipe on a tv channel.The original recipe contained curd, but I modified it a little by avoiding curd and it tasted equally good.This can be an excellent breakfast item.I had prepared these dosas as an evening snack and all my family members loved them :)
Ingredients -
rice flour(1cup)
sooji/rava(2tspn)
cucumber(1)
cumin seeds/jeera
green chillies
coriander leaves
water
salt
oil
Method -
Wash and grate the cucumber with skin.
Take rice flour in a bowl.Add rava to it.
Add finely chopped chillies,coriander leaves and jeera.
Add salt as per taste.
Put in the grated cucumber and add lots of water.
Let it stand for 15min.
Again add water if required as sooji will soak water.
The batter should be a bit watery.
Heat a non-stick tawa.
Drizzle some oil on it.
Pour a laddle full of batter starting from the edges.(opposite of how you normally make dosas.)
Flip and cook on both sides till crisp.
Hot cucumber dosas are ready to serve :)
Beetroot is an excellent source of folate,manganese and iron.Needless to say it is necessary for kids/children.Having it by just boiling or in salads is not that tasty, many adults don't like it ! Least expect your kids to have it :p So here is one yummy jam which kids would love and assure mothers too :)
Ingredients -
beetroot(1)
sugar
milk(1/4 cup)
water for boiling
Method -
Wash the beetroot well and boil it till soft.
Peel off the skin and grate it.
Heat a non-stick pan.
Add some ghee and put in the grated beet.
Fry for about a min, then add sugar and milk.
Adjust the sugar as per your taste.
The milk quantity can be reduced.I added a bit more since it was for my toddler.
Keep it on the flame till you get a desired jam consistency.
Yummy beetroot jam is ready :)
This is a simple cold coffee recipe which you can have at home anytime.A great respite in the scorching summer..provided you are a coffee fan :p
Ingredients -
coffee powder
hot water
sugar
milk
ice
cocoa powder(optional)
Method -
Boil water in a bowl.
Add sugar and coffee to it.The quantity would be as per your taste.I used nescafe powder.
Stir it vigorously till its frothy.
Next add cold milk to it and refrigerate.
Add ice cubes while serving and you can sprinkle some cocoa powder on top if you wish.
Yummy cold-coffee is ready to serve :)
This recipe is one way to include all the veggies in your diet.Also it is a nice variation to the normal roti/chapati that you have.Try it out for a change and am sure you would love to have it again. :)
Ingredients -
potato(1 medium)
carrot
beans
capsicum
fresh coriander leaves
red chilly powder
salt
cumin/jeera powder
caraway seeds/ajwain
oil
ghee or butter
whole wheat flour/atta
Method -
Wash and boil the potato till soft.
Grate the carrot finely.
Chop all the veggies finely - capsicum,beans and coriander leaves.
You can add any vegetables you like.
Take a bowl and mix all the veggies together.
Add salt,red chilly powder,jeera powder,ajwain and mix.
Now add the atta into this mix little by little.
Add few tspns of oil in between.
Go on adding the flour as much as it goes.
The dough should be like a chapati dough.
Let it stand for half an hour.
With the help of a rolling pin roll the parathas.
Heat a non-stick tawa.
Fry the parathas on both sides with ghee/butter.
Serve the hot parathas with any sabzi/curd/ketchup :)
Aam panna as we all know is a drink which is famous for beating the heat.It is an effective remedy for heat exhaustion and heat stroke.Since its made from raw mangoes it is a good source of vitamin C.So this summer enjoy this refreshing home-made aam panna :)
Ingredients -
raw mango/kachha aam(2)
salt
sugar
roasted jeera powder(optional)
crushed peppercorns(optional)
Method -
Wash the mangoes and pat them dry.
Roast them on the flame just as we roast brinjal for making baingan bharta.
Let them cool down.
Peel off the skin and mash the pulp.Add some water in the pulp.
Now add salt and sugar as per your taste and add more water.
You can add pepper and cumin powder if you want some masala.I didnt add because we like it plain.
Strain the sherbet/syrup in a bottle and refrigerate it.
Put in ice cubes and serve the chilled aam panna :-)
Ragi or finger millet is a rich source of iron and calcium.This cereal is commonly known as nachani in the states of Goa and Maharashtra.Needless to say these cookies are very healthy and can be carried as a snack while in office or school or when you are travelling.. :)
Ingredients -
all purpose flour/maida(1cup)
ragi flour/finger millet flour/nachni atta(1cup)
ghee(1cup)
powdered sugar(1cup)
Method -
Mix the maida and ragi in a bowl.
Add the sugar to the flour.
Now add the ghee slowly slowly by constantly stirring the mixture so that no lumps are formed.
Once the batter is ready keep it for half an hour.
Preheat the oven.
Grease the plate with some ghee.
Make small cookies of any shape you like and bake them for 30-40minutes(convection option).
The surface of the cookies would get a brownish colour once done.
Serve yummy cookies at tea-time or just as munchies :)
I heard this recipe from one of my friend.When I first heard jeera raita I was a bit confused wondering how can raita be prepared out of jeera !But after getting the recipe from her and trying it, I must say it was a favourite in my house and I plan to prepare it many times in this summer:)
Ingredients -
curd/yogurt/dahi
onion
fresh coriander leaves
green chillies
salt
red chilly powder
cumin/jeera powder
Method -
Chop the onion,coriander and chillies finely.
Mix together in a bowl onions and coriander leaves.
Put in the chillies.
Add salt,red chilly powder.
Chill the curd in the refrigerator.
Now add the chilled curd over the above mix.
Finally add jeera powder and mix well.I prefer making the powder at home by roasting the jeera.
Serve the raita chilled :)
