Spinach Shake

Spinach is one of my favorite vegetables and I have always enjoyed it in savory form. Its part of my weekly grocery list and is always available in my refrigerator when I need it. You will see it on our plates during lunch and dinner time however I have never incorporated spinach in my breakfast. 

I've heard a lot from my friends about different kind of protein shakes, however I've never been a shake drinking person. Couple of weeks ago, I decided to try my hands on few however I was not able to develop my taste in them, until an idea sparked after seeing some online posts on spinach shake. As Spinach is an excellent source of IRON and CALCIUM, I blended it with some healthy foods to make this scrumptious wonder shake. 

I enjoyed making it and drinking it ever since. This is my daily breakfast. A large beer glass full of Spinach Shake...YUMMM!!!!

Cook time: 10 minutes

Serves: 1

Ingredients:

2-3 cups of washed and cleaned spinach leaves with stems

4-5 almonds with skin (you can remove the skin by soaking them in water overnight)

3 dates (pits removed)

1 apple or banana (I used Apple today but have used banana as well)

1 cup of fat free milk (you can use soya, almond or any other kind of milk)

Steps:

1. In a blender add dates (pits removed) and almonds. Add milk to the blender and mix well. [picture explanation]
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. Add apples to the mix and blend again. 
   
   
   
   
3. Add spinach and blend again.
   
   
   
   

Your final product is ready. No need to add sugar; dates and apples in the shake will do the trick. The scrumptious Spinach Shake is ready. One full glass will make you feel full. Do try it out and leave notes / feedback on my blog. 

ENJOY!!!!

Split Green Lentil with skin in Spinach sauce

                           
                          

Lentils are largest consumed food in Northern India. Excellent for any age group and easy to digest. It helps in lowering cholesterol and increasing energy. They come in different shapes, colors and sizes. I have cooked with all the lentils, however today I cook with "Split Green Lentil with Skin". This lentil is full of fiber and protein.  

I am a parent of a growing child and I am always looking to cook with tons of nutrients as well as flavors for her. Today I tried to cook these lentils in Spinach sauce which will be easy to digest and give her lots of energy. By adding spinach sauce, I added tons of Iron, Vitamin and other nutrients to the dish, making it a super power.

It came out amazing and I added cubes of Paneer to it for added taste and texture.

The end product of these ingredients together with added condiments is the most scrumptious entree eaten with Rice, Naan or Roti. Steps are given below.

Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Serves: 4-5

Ingredients:
1 cup Split Green Lentil with Skin - soaked in 2 cups water for 30 minutes
3 cups Spinach - blanched in 5 cups boiling water and grounded into paste
handful of slivered almonds - soaked in hot water for 15-20 minutes
Puree of 5-6 tomatoes - boil tomatoes in enough water, remove the skin and grind. Makes 3 cups.
1 onion - finely chopped
5-6 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
1 1/2 or 2 inch of ginger - finely chopped
1 tbsp oil
1-2 green chilies - finely chopped (adjust to taste)
1 tsp red chilly powder
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
a pinch of hing (asafoetida)
1 black cardamom pod
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
2 cloves
1 bay leaf
1 inch cinnamon stick
1 tsp cumin powder
7-8 cubes of Paneer to garnish
salt to taste (I used black salt/Himalayan salt)

Steps:

1. Pressure cook lentils in the soaked water, 1 cup of tomato puree, turmeric powder, salt to taste and red chilly powder. Turn off the heat after 2-3 whistles and set aside.
2. In a large skillet on medium heat, dry roast black cardamom pod, cloves, bay leaf and cinnamon stick. Grind all the dry ingredients into a powder. 
3. Add 1 tsp of oil  and on medium heat add the powdered spices and hing/asafoetida. Stir the dry spices for 10 seconds and added chopped onions. Cook the onions till translucent and add finely chopped ginger, green chilies and garlic to it. Cook for 2 -3 minutes. Turn off the heat and transfer onion/garlic/green chilly/ginger mix to a grinder. Grind the mix to a smooth paste.
4. In the same skillet on high heat add the remaining oil. Now turn the heat to medium and add cumin powder. Now add the remaining tomato puree and cook till the water almost dries out. Now add the onion paste to the tomatoes and cook for 1 minute..
5. Add the almond paste to the mix and cook for another 2-3 minutes on medium heat. Add the spinach to the mix with coriander powder and cook for 4-5 more minutes. Now add the cooked lentils to the mix and cook for another 10 minutes on low heat or till the water dries out (this is when you can adjust the salt, if needed). Mix it all and cook for 5 more minutes. 
6. Once done add the paneer cubes. Cook for 2-3 minutes and turn off the heat. 
7. Sprinkle black pepper on the top and serve hot.

You can serve it with Rice, Naan or Roti. Squeeze few drops of lemon for added flavors and enjoy.

Black-eyed Beans/Peas Patty

A patty packed with Protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Iron, Potassium and Calcium, made of Black-eyed beans/peas. Healthy with lots of nutrition for the whole family, specially for your kids. I have added a lot of flavor and texture to the beans using different spices and ingredients. Enjoy this patty as a snack and eat it with your choice of chutney or sauce and/or use it in a burger or bread with added condiments.

The only prep I did with this recipe is to overnight soak 1 cup of black-eyed beans/peas in 2 cups of water. Below are the steps and the ingredients, I used to prepare this power packed patty.

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serving: Makes 8-10 small to medium size patties

Ingredients for the patty:
1 cup overnight soaked black-eyed beans/peas in 2 cups of water
1 small onion - finely chopped
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilly powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
salt to taste
handful finely chopped fresh cilantro
2- 3 green chilies - finely chopped/to taste
1 inch ginger - grated
2 cloves of garlic - grated or finely chopped
1 tbsp oil to cook the patties
salt to taste

Steps: 

1. Pressure cook overnight soaked black-eyed beans in 1 to 1 1/2 cups of water or till 3-4 whistles. The beans need to be 3/4th way cooked. (this will give beans some texture).
2. Strain the beans. Keep 1 tbsp of water the beans were cooked in. (You don't want beans to be super dry or with too much water, otherwise it will loose the texture.).
3. With help of potato masher, mash the beans and add all the dry spices except the turmeric.
4. Now in a pan on medium heat in 1 tsp oil cook onions, garlic and ginger with 1 tsp turmeric powder along with green chilies.(I am not really looking to cook these through.) Saute for 1-2 minutes and turn off the heat. Add this mixture to the beans along with salt to taste and cilantro. Mix well.
5. Form patties and add them to a pan on medium heat with a little oil.
   
6. Cook for 2-3 minutes or till crispy on each side.
   
7. Cook 3-4 patty at a time in 2 batches, for them to be evenly cooked. This is what they will look like once done.
   
8. Once cooked you can serve it as a snack or appetizer with your choice of chutney or ketchup.
9. You can also roll it in a wrap with Greek yogurt sauce, lettuce and tomatoes OR you can add it to a burger or bread and eat it in a sandwich.

Well liked by my daughter. I am happy that she is getting all the nutrition needed through this patty with lots of amazing flavors. Enjoy the recipe and don't forget to leave your comments. 

Tandoori Chicken Masala - Restaurant Style

I love to eat Chicken with lots of taste and aroma. However enjoying it at a restaurant means feeling full after 3-4 bites and eating lots of calories. So I decided to try something new on my own (something that is guilt free), something that is home made and tastes as well as smells just like in a restaurant. After several failed attempts and no where close to what we eat in a restaurant, I finally came up with this amazing recipe.

Ever since we bought our very first grill (which was about 6-7 months ago), grilling has been a weekly affair for us. Our weekends are spent trying our hands in grilling on fish, chicken, and veggies as well as few other meats. Creating this recipe was no piece of cake as the grilled / tandoori chicken requires the right texture and taste along with the sauce.

After coming up with this recipe, my house smells amazing and its quiet enticing due to its eye catchy colors and the lovely aroma from different spices.

So here is the Tandoori Chicken Masala recipe - Restaurant Style...Enjoy it with a naan or zeera rice.

Prep: Marinate chicken overnight in the ingredients below
Cook time: 45 minutes to an hour
Serves: 4-5

Ingredients for marination:
1 pound chicken - cut in small pieces (thigh meat - skinless and boneless)
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilly powder (or more to taste)
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 1/2 cups hung yogurt (with no water) or greek yogurt
Juice of 2 lemons
salt to taste

Ingredients for sauce:
1 tbsp oil
handful of cashews - soaked in 2-3 tbsp of milk for 1 hours
1 tbsp sesame seeds
4 tomatoes crushed/pureed
salt to taste
3-4 tbsp water
4 cloves of garlic
1-2 whole red chilly (to taste - I used one)
2 tbsp dried kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) - hand crushed
3-4 black peppercorn - Kali Mirch
3-4 cloves - laung
2 bay leaves
4 green cardamon (hari elaichi)
2 inch cinnamon stick (dal chini)

Steps:

1. Grill the overnight marinated chicken till 3/4th way done. Turning after every 3-4 minutes for about 20 minutes or so. Take off the grill and set it aside. 
2. In a heavy bottom pan, on medium heat,  add 1 tbsp oil and add ground spices (grind peppercorn, cloves, bay leaves, green cardamon and cinnamon stick). Cook the spices in the oil for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add pureed/crushed tomatoes to the spices and let it cook through for 3-4 minutes or till tomatoes loose all the water. Add salt to taste. (you can add 1 tsp sugar now. I didn't use it)
4. At this time you can add paste of garlic and whole red chilies by grinding them together in a tbsp of water. Cook for 2-3 minutes by stirring constantly.
5. Grind the cashew nuts and sesame seeds in the milk cashews were soaked. Add the paste to the tomatoes and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
6. Now add the remaining spices to the sauce and cook for 2-3 additional minutes. 
7. At this time you can add the 3-4 tbsp of water (if needed and depending on the consistency you like) to get the gravy/sauce like texture. 
8. Add chicken to the sauce and cook covered for 10 minutes on medium heat and stir it after every 5 minutes. Cook the chicken till done.
9. Once chicken is cooked, sprinkle kasuri methi or dried fenugreek leaves on the top. (You can add 1 tbsp of heavy cream at this time as well. I didn't use it)
10. Serve hot with Naan or Zeera (cumin seeds) Rice.

Enjoy the taste and let me know how it turned out for you. My daughter had a finger licking moment and she requested me to make it quiet often. 

Rasgulla (cottage cheese balls in sweet syrup)

Growing up Rasgulla was one of my favorite dessert. Never had I thought, I would attempt to make this delicate delicacy at home. I am a part of 2-3 food groups on Facebook where foodies like me connect to share there creative ideas and recipes, originated right out of their kitchens. One of the recipes I came across and was highly commended by other members of group was Garima Narela's Rasgulla recipe right out of her blog - Cafe Garima. She had the whole process outlined for us with step by step instructions and pictures. To my surprise I always thought to make these little babies would be time consuming, however the whole process took me an hour to an hour 15 minutes. Its a must try for all....It just requires a little courage to come out of our comfort zones and try something as deelicious and flavorful as a Rasgulla...I have to say "ROSHOGULLA BHISHON MITHA, BANAO, BANAO NA".

Ingredients:

For Rasgullas (cottage cheese balls):

4 1/2 cups Whole Milk (boil and remove the cream)

2 - 3 tbsp Lemon juice 

10-15 ice cubes

For the sugar syrup:
5 cups water
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cardamom powder

For additional syrup, required to add after boiling the Rasgullas (Cottage cheese balls)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
8-10 saffron strands
1 tsp rose water (optional, I didn't use it)

For garnish:
5-8 finely chopped Pistachios
4-5 saffron strands

Steps:

1. In a large pan, bring milk to a boil and add the lemon juice, so that the milk starts to curdle.
2. Once the Chenna (cheese) starts to form, turn the heat off and add the ice cubes. Let it rest for a minute or 2.
   
3. Strain the curdled milk (Chenna) through a strainer lined with cheesecloth (muslin cloth). Wash the cheese thoroughly with fresh water to remove the lemony sourness.
4. Squeeze excess water from the Cheese (Chenna) by twisting the cheese cloth tightly and hanging it over a sink.
5. Remove it after 10-15 minutes and check the consistency. It should be slightly dry but yet moist.   Picture is below.
   
6. Take a bowl and rub/kneed your chenna (cheese) with fingers and heel of your palm, to form a dough like ball. This process will take about 5-7 minutes.
   
7. To make rasgullas, divided the Cheese (Chenna) into 12-14 small size balls (they look small right now but will grow double there size on boiling in the syrup).
   
8. While you make the balls, bring 5 cups of water to boil with a cup of sugar. Add add 1/2 tsp of cardamom powder. Once the syrup is boiled, add in the Rasgulla balls and close the lid. Boil them for 12- 15 minutes on medium flame.
   

9. Note: It is advisable to make them in two batches so that the Rasgulla's get enough space in the water to expand and to keep shape. Keep checking on the Rasgulla's every 4-5 minutes.
10. To check if the Rasgulla's are done, drop one Rasgulla ball in plain drinking water. If it sinks, it is done. If it floats, boil it for a couple of minutes and check again.
11. Once done, transfer the Rasgulla's gently to a large bowl or deep pan full of clean drinking water. Ensure that there is enough water for the Rasgullas', otherwise they might lose their shape.
12. On medium heat, add 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup of water to the sugar syrup in which the Rasgulla's were boiled. Boil the syrup till the sugar completely dissolves.
13. Add saffron strands when the syrup is warm. Do not add the strands while its still hot.
14. Once the syrup comes down to room temperature; remove the Rasgulla's from the plain water, squeeze gently and drop into the sugar syrup.
15. Chill in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours.
16. Now the spongy goodness is ready to be served. Before serving garnish these sweet beautiful babies with pistachios and eat cold. 

Enjoy the yummy goodness in any weather with power packed flavors!

Baked Gulgule/Pua//Pue/Pooda - Sweet Dumplings

My aunt who is from Eastern UP makes the best sweet delicacies during festive season. With Karvachauth approaching, the one thing I miss and can't forget is her hand made Goodh/Gur (Jaggery) ke Pue/Pua/Pooda/Gulgule (Sweet Dumplings).  The little scrumptious muffins/sweet dumplings were always prepared ahead of time, in bulk. She fried them in batches and we all enjoyed them for days.....
Here is something to remember the magic she created every year for us. So here is to you Chachi; love you and miss you. Do come visit us soon and try out my hand made twist to your awesome recipe.

No prep time needed. A quick and easy recipe to make. My daughter who isn't a fan of sweets/desserts, gobbles these in minutes. She loved it and so we. It reminded me of my family and I hope it does the same for you.

Cook time: 40 minutes
Servings: Make 15 (small size)
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups All purpose flour (I used unbleached)
2 ripe bananas - mashed (I used back of the fork to mash them)
1 medium apples - pealed and grated
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
11 tbsp or 2/3 cup brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
2 1/2 tbsp 1% milk

Steps:

1. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and let it sit for 1-2 minutes. Mix it again with a whisk.
2. Preheat the oven at 375 F (190 C), Grease the cupcake or muffin tray with butter and fill the molds half way with the batter. 
3. Once the oven preheat, bake the batter for 15-20 minutes.   
4. After 15 minutes use a toothpick to check if the muffins are done. (insert the toothpick in the middle of the muffin and if it comes out clean then they are done. If not, bake for 5 - 10 more minutes and check again). 
5. Once they are done baking they will fall out of the molds.
6. Enjoy it with a cup of tea or coffee....

No frying!!! An amazing way to enjoy the same taste and flavors of your childhood dessert/sweet this Karvachauth.....

I found my alternative, I hope you do too....

10 minute Microwaveable Dhokla Recipe

I had to think quickly on my feet this evening, as my husband and daughter came home hungry, looking for food. This recipe of mine comes in quiet handy, only if you have all ingredients at home; and luckily I did.....I made this 10 minute Microwaveable Dhokla that comes back as yummy as our normal Dhokla recipe. They both enjoyed it over there personally preferred drink - a cup of coffee and milk respectively. It can be eaten with ketchup or cilantro / green chutney (your choice of sauce).

I have been told that Dhokla made out of chickpea flour is called 'Khaman'. So here it is Khaman Dhokla (I have to use the term 'Dhokla' as that's what I have known it as, all my life :) ).

So here you go. A super recipe with all the flavors and ZERO prep time.
My promise, that every time plates will come back empty with folks asking for me....



 Ingredients for Dhokla:
1 cup Chickpea flour or Besan or Gram Flour
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup yogurt
1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste
1 tbsp fruit salt or ENO (If using ENO, make sure it has no added flavor)
2-3 finely chopped green chilies (more or less per your taste)

Ingredients for Dressing/Tadka:
1 tbsp oil
2-3 vertically slit green chilies
1 tbsp mustard seeds (raai/sarson)
10-12 fresh curry leaves
handful of fresh cilantro - finely chopped
1/4 tsp asafetida (hing)
1/2 cup water
1/4 tsp red chilly powder (optional)
1/2 tsp sugar (optional)

Steps:

1. Mix all the ingredients to make Dhokla (not the ingredients for dressing/tadka), except ENO/Fruit salt into a smooth paste using a whisk.
   
2. Grease a microwaveable pan and transfer the mixture in it. Now quickly add Fruit Salt/ENO to it and mix it one last time.
   
3. Microwave the mixture for 4-5 minutes and set aside. It's time to prepare the dressing.
   
4. Add oil to a skillet on medium heat. After warming up oil for 10 seconds, add asafetida (hing), mustard seeds, cilantro, curry leaves, green chilies and red chilly powder. Cook these ingredients for about 30-40 seconds or till mustard seeds start to crack.
5. Now add water to the mixture and cook for couple of minutes. This is when you can add sugar to taste, to the dressing.
6. Once done add the dressing to the cooked Dhokla....
   
7. Cut the prepared Dhokla into beautiful square pieces and enjoy it with your choice of sauce or drink :)
   
   
   

 We enjoyed it and I hope you enjoy it too.