Red Salad with Toasty Cheddar Bread

Salad doesn't have to be boring and only leafy. Red salad has all the things you like and yet healthy. Serve it up with toasted Cheddar bread.

Ingredients

Salad with Dressing

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
2 tblsp Almonds
2 tblsp Cranberries
1 tblsp Sunflower seeds
1 cup cut lettuce leaves
1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp Balsamic vinegar
2 tsp honey
salt to taste

Toasty Cheddar Bread

1/2 french baguette
1 tblsp olive oil
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Method

Salad with dressing

- Mix all the ingredients in a salad bowl.
- For dressing, in a cup, mix olive oil, balsamic vinegar, honey and salt.

Add the dressing right before serving salad.

Toasty Cheddar Bread

- Slice the baguette to 6 inch pieces and cut it horizontally.
- Add olive oil on the top and toast it until golden brown.
- Add the grated cheese on open side and let it melt.

Enjoy the crunchy salad with toasty bread.

Curd Rice with Cucumber and Grapes

Curd rice can be made interesting with chunks of cucumber, black grapes and spicy green chili. A perfect ending to a sumptuous south Indian meal.

Ingredients

1 Cup cooked rice
1 Cucumber, diced to 1 inch cubes
10 Black grapes, cut into halves
2 inch of ginger, diced
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp urad dal
1 tsp chana dal
1 tsp Methi powder
1 tsp Hing
1 cup yoghurt
1 Green chili, chopped
1 tsp oil
Salt to taste
Cilantro to garnish

Method

- Heat oil and add mustard seeds. When it splutters, add urad and chana dal.
- When they turn brown, add hing, methi powder, green chili and ginger.
- In a bowl mix rice and yoghurt.
- Add the tempering from above.
- Add the cucumber and grape pieces.
- Add salt and mix well.

Garnish with cilantro.

Corn Chowder Soup

Corn chowder soup is vegetarian alternative to clam chowder soup. Its a filling meal when served with crispy bread.

Ingredients

Kernels of 1 corn cob
1/2 cup cream or milk
2 tsp all purpose flour
Salt to taste
2 tsp crushed black pepper
2 small potatoes, diced
2 tblsp Unsalted Butter
1 tsp Basil
1 tsp Parsley

Method

- Heat Butter in a pan.
- Add the flour and let it brown slightly.
- Add the potatoes and corn.
- Fry it for 5 minutes.
- Add the milk and let it boil.
- Add basil, parsley, pepper and salt.
- Let it simmer for 5-10min.
- Using a hand/immersion blender, blend the soup but leave a few chunky pieces of corn.

Serve it hot with dash of hot sauce.

Tri Color Idlis

Idli is an easy snack, light dinner. With this recipe you will always make fluffy idlis. Serve it with tangy tomato chutney and cool cilantro coconut chutney.

Ingredients:

Dosa

1 cup raw rice
1 cup par boiled rice
1/2 cup urad dal
5-10 methi/fenugreek seeds
2 tsp salt

Cilantro Coconut Chutney

1 cup grated coconut
2 big green chili
2-3 sprigs of cilantro
2 tsp Dalia (optional)
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp oil
Salt to taste

Preparing Batter

- Soak the rice together, urad dal and methi seeds separately for at least 2 hrs.
- Grind the rice with as much water needed and urad dal and methi with as little water needed.
- Mix the above two batter along with 2 tsp salt.
- Preheat the oven to 170DegF.
- Keep the batter in oven for 10min covered.
- Leave the batter overnight.

Method

Idli

- Grease idli plates with little oil and pour a ladle of batter.
- Let it steam in a pressure cooker for about 20 minutes.

Do not put on the whistle on the lid

- Let the plates cool down for 2-3 min.
- Take the idlis of the plate with a butter knife.

Cilantro Coconut Chutney

- Grind coconut, cilantro, chili, dalia and salt with very little water.
- Temper mustard seeds and add to chutney.

Cool it and serve it with hot steaming idli.

Blackeyed Peas Curry

Blackeyed peas is a quicker alternative to rajma and chana. It goes well with rotis and rice. You will be amazed how quickly it cooks.

Ingredients

1/2 cup Black Eyed peas
1 medium onion, chopped lengthwise
2 medium tomatoes, diced
Cilantro to garnish
salt to taste
2 tsp Deghi Mirch or Kashmiri red chili powder
1 tsp oil
1 tsp Jeera
1 tsp Turmeric powder

Method

- Heat oil in a pressure cooker.
- Add the cumin seeds, turmeric powder.
- Add the chopped onions and let it sweat.
- Add the tomatoes and let it cook for few minutes.
- Add deghi mirch and mix it well.
- Add the dal and 1.5 cups of water and salt.
- Pressure cook for 3 whistles.

Garnish with Cilantro and serve with rice or enjoy with roti.

Sadabahar Dal

Sadabahar Dal is a tasty option for dal lovers. Rich in proteins and taste.

Ingredients

1/2 cup Masoor Dal
2 tblsp Kabuli Chana
1/4 cup green peas + carrots
1 small onion, chopped lengthwise
Cilantro to garnish
salt to taste
2 tsp Tandoori Barbeque masala
1 tsp Ghee
1 tsp Jeera

Method

- Soak the dal in water for 30min (optional)
- Heat ghee in a pressure cooker.
- Add the cumin seeds.
- Add the chopped onions and let it sweat.
- Add the dal, kabuli chana, peas, carrots and tandoori barbeque masala.
- Add 1.5 cups of water and salt.
- Pressure cook for 3 whistles.

Garnish with Cilantro and serve with rice.

Butter Naan with Amritsari Chole

Naan is a fermented bread and can be made easily at home. Serve it with kabuli chana made in truly Amritsar style.

Ingredients

Naan

2 cups All purpose flour
1 packet dry yeast
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
2 tblsp oil
1/4 cup water

Amritsari Chole

1 cup Kabuli Chana, soaked over night
1 medium onion
1 large tomato
1 tblsp tomato sauce/paste
2 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
2 green chilis
1 clove
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tbslp oil
1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
2 tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste

Method

Naan

- Warm the water and dissolve the sugar.
- Add the dry yeast and let it aside for atleast 10 min.
- Water will froth up.
- Add this water to the flour.
- Add salt and oil.
- Make the dough so that it stretches well.
- Leave the dough aside for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours, dough will puff up.
- Remove the air and let the dough puff up until you are ready to make naan.
- Heat the broiler at high.
- Roll out the naan with the help of rolling pin.
- Naans are usually oval in shape.
- Let it cook under broiler for 2-3 minutes or until brown spots appear.
- Add little butter as soon as you take it out of oven.

Amritsari Chole

- Cook the soaked chana in pressure cooker until 3 whistles.
- Puree onion, tomato, chili, clove, garlic and handful of cooked kabuli chana.
- Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds.
- Add turmeric powder, garam masala, cinnamon powder and bay leaves.
- Add the kabuli chana and 1/2 cup of water.
- Add salt to taste and the tomato sauce.
- Let it simmer for 5-10min

Serve chole with hot butter naan.

Ghiya Tilwaale

Ghiya Tilwaale is spicy version of the bottle gourd. You can use the same base for many veggies such as potatoes, eggplant etc.

Ingredients

1 big bottle gourd, cut into cubes
2 tsp Til/Sesame seeds
1 large tomato, diced
2 green chillies, chopped
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1 medium onion
4 sprigs of cilantro
2 cloves of garlic
2 inch piece of ginger
1 tsp oil
2 tsp Turmeric powder
salt to taste

Method

- Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds.
- Puree tomato, onion, cilantro, green chili, garlic and ginger in the food processor.
- When mustard seeds splutter, add turmeric and the above paste.
- Cook till oil separates.
- Add 1 cup water.
- Add the cubed gourd and sesame seeds.
- Add salt and let it simmer for atleast 15 min.

You can enjoy it with hot phulkas or with rice.

Raisin Couscous with Spicy Vegetables and Falafel

Couscous is an excellent nutritious grain. It is used primarily in Moroccan food. It can also be used in salads. Serve it with spicy vegetables and Falafel.

Raisin Couscous

Ingredients

1 cup Couscous
2 tsp Golden Raisins
Salt to Taste
1 pinch turmeric powder
1/2 lemon

Method

- Bring a pot of water to boil.
- Take it off the flame and add turmeric, salt and lemon half.
- Mix well and add the couscous along with raisins.
- Couscous will puff up in 5-10 minutes.
- Remove water and fluff it with a fork.

Spicy Vegetables

Ingredients

1 medium onion, cut lengthwise
1 cup mixed bell peppers (red,green and yellow)
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped to small pieces
2 medium tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup peas and diced carrots
2 tblsp Green Onions chopped
2 tsp paprika
salt to taste
2 tblsp Oil
2 cloves of garlic, chopped

Method

- Heat Oil in a pan.
- Add onion and garlic.
- Saute until onion sweats.
- Add green onions, walnuts, bell peppers, peas and carrots
- Add the tomatoes and cook well.
- Add paprika and salt.

Falafel

Ingredients

1/2 can garbanzo beans
1/2 medium onion
2 green chilies
2 cloves garlic
2-3 sprigs of cilantro
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder
salt to taste
1 1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 egg

Oil to fry

Method

- Grind all the above ingredients except egg and 1 cup of bread crumbs.

Do not add water for grinding. Grind it coarsely.

- Make small balls of the above mixture.
- Break the egg into a cup and mix well.
- Spread the bread crumbs in a plate.
- Dip the balls in the egg and coat it well with crumbs.
- Heat oil and fry the balls until golden brown.

Serve the vegetables in center and surround with couscous. Garnish with fresh cilantro.