HEALTHY SHELL PASTA IN CREAMY NUTTY AND VEGGIE SAUCE

Hello everyone 

Pasta... I think most of us including kids and elders, love to have pasta ,But at the same time try to avoid it some time due to sauce and creams used to make it delicious. My kids love to have these in their tiffin too,So I thought why not to give it a healthy twist that make people comfortable to have it without any guilt. I just added puréed veggies and nuts to the regular pasta and it turned out super delicious, guilt free healthy breakfast for us. This is best for kids who don't like chunks of veggies and keep removing from their plate and also don't like to munch on healthy nuts. Now they can have it without knowing that they are gobbling all those veggies and nuts , they used to hate😉.

Recipe of the same is given below, just give it a try.

HEALTHY SHELL PASTA IN CREAMY NUTTY AND VEGGIE SAUCE

Ingredients 

2 cup pasta , boiled and drained

8-10 almonds

4-5 walnuts

1 carrot, grated

1 spring onion, finely chopped 

1 big onion, finely chopped 

2 green chillies,finely chopped

2 medium tomatoes,finely chopped 

1/4 tsp turmeric powder 

1/4 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder ( optional)

1/4 tsp black pepper powder 

1/4 cup green coriander leaves,finely chopped ( optional)

1/2 cup milk

Water drained from pasta(as required)

Salt to taste

Method:

Take a wok, add chopped onions,chilies ,grated carrots and spring onions, nuts ,tomatoes , turmeric , Kashmiri red chili powder, black pepper powder and little water .Boil till tomatoes become mushy and nuts are nicely cooked. 

Now let it cool a little and make its smooth paste. 

Now transfer paste to the same wok , add milk let it boil  Then add boiled pasta and salt. let it cook till every thing get nicely coated with saucy consistency. If needed add some water drained from pasta to make sauce of right consistency. Finally add chopped coriander leaves and mix well. 

You can also add some butter for taste while adding sauce to wok. And your guilt free yummy pasta is ready to be served.

You can use any pasta of your choice, I added shell pasta.

You can also add any veggies or nuts of your choice.

This pasta can be served as breakfast or can be a good option for lunch box too. You can have it any time without guilt. Hope you all will like this simple healthy touch to regular pasta. Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot to me.

Happy cooking....

HOW TO MAKE SOFT YET CRISPY POORIS

Hello everyone 

Today I have a very simple recipe of plain poori. But generally we fail to give that crispness and softness at the same time and also it gets flat sometimes. We all love to have our pooris perfectly puffed . So I have some simple yet important thumb rules for perfect whole wheat flour pooris every time. Recipe is given below, hope it will be helpful to you.

HOW TO MAKE CRISPY YET SOFT POORIS

Serves: 3-4

Time: 30 mins

Ingredients 

2 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup warm milk

2 tbsp oil

Warm water to knead dough

Method:

Mix oil in flour, then add milk and using sufficient water make dough. After mixing everything knead the dough atleast for 4-5 mins to get nice dough. Dough should be little harder than chapatti dough but smooth .Let it rest covered for 10-15 mins. 

Now take small balls of dough using some dry flour roll desired size pooris. It should be little thicker than chapatti. Also take care while rolling, always roll with light hand. 

Heat sufficient oil in a wok at medium to high flame, to check whether it's done or not, put small ball of dough in hot oil if it comes immediately on the surface of oil then it's ready to fry pooris.

Put one poori at a time and press it lightly with ladle to puff it perfectly, let it get crisp from one side the flip it to other side and let it cook . Now drain it on a kitchen towel . Similarly fry all the pooris and your crispy puffed pooris are ready to serve with your choice of curry or fries.

Keep an eye on hotness of oil, if you find your pooris are getting darker fast then decrease the flame to maintain temperature of oil.

If you like more crispy pooris then can add 2tbsp of semolina (sooji or rava ) while kneading dough.

This is the simplest poori recipe you can make any time and serve it on any special occasion or for kids tiffin. Kids always love to relish on poori halwa or poori bhaji, so give this special treat to them any time.

http://sonicuisine.blogspot.ae/2015/10/atte-ka-halwa-whole-wheat-flour-halwa.html

Hope this recipe is helpful to those who fail to get perfect pooris, so please try it and pour your valuable comments and suggestions here they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

DRY DUM AALOO

Hello everyone 

If you don't want to have regular fries or curry dish to accompany your lunch and also not willing to have too much spices yet wants something delicious which can be prepared in minutes and tempting too. Then this is surely for you. Dum aaloo is a dish which is prepared in different way in different parts of country. I have dry version of dum aaloo today which is equally tempting and extremely easy to prepare with minimum spice . This can be served as morning/evening snacks with tea too. Recipe is given below, hope you will love it.

DRY DUM AALOO

Serves: 3-4

Time: 20 mins

Ingredients 

5-6 medium potatoes, boiled

1 medium onion, finely chopped 

1/2 cup green coriander leaves, chopped 

2-3 green chilies 

1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 tsp cumin powder

1/4 tsp cumin seeds

1/4 tsp asafetida (heeng)

Oil

Salt to taste

Method:

Peel and cut, boiled potatoes in big cubes. Make paste of coriander leaves and green chilies together. Now heat oil in a wok, add asafetida and cumin seeds. Let it crackle then add chopped onion. Let it fry till golden then add cubed potatoes and fry on high flame for 2-3 mins. Now add cumin powder, turmeric powder, ginger garlic paste,coriander chili paste and salt. Fry it for another 5-6 mins on medium flame or till potatoes are well coated with masala and get nice golden spots on it. 

That's it.... Your yummy dry dum aaloo is ready to serve either with dal rice combo or with tea itself. It also tastes best with piping hot paratha or poori. 

You can increase or decrease quantity of green chilies as per your taste.

This is simplest yet yummiest potato recipe you can try. Hope you all will definitely give it a try. Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

NO OIL , NO CREAM PASTA IN HEALTHY WHITE CREAMY SAUCE

Hello everyone 

Pasta... I think most of us including kids and elders, love to have pasta ,But at the same time try to avoid it some time due to sauce and creams used to make it delicious. My kids love to have these in their tiffin too,So I thought why not to give it a healthy twist that make people comfortable to have it without any guilt. I just added puréed onions, paneer and oats to the regular pasta and it turned out super delicious, guilt free healthy breakfast for us. 

Recipe of the same is given below, just give it a try.

NO OIL, NO CREAM PASTA IN HEALTHY WHITE CREAMY SAUCE

Ingredients 

2 cup pasta , boiled and drained

1/3 cup oats

2 big onion, sliced

3-4 garlic cloves

2 green chillies,slit

1/4 cup paneer ( cottage cheese)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp white /black pepper powder 

1/2 tsp garlic powder ( optional)

1/2 cup water

Salt to taste

Method:

First of all boil sliced onions, garlic cloves, green chilies and oats in 1/2 cup water, add more if needed. Let it cool and grind to a smooth creamy paste along with paneer. 

Now transfer paste to the same wok , add milk and let it boil.  Then add white /black pepper powder, garlic powder  and salt.

 Now add boiled pasta, mix well . let it cook till every thing get nicely coated with saucy consistency. If needed add some water drained from pasta to make sauce of right consistency. 

You can also add some butter for taste while adding sauce to wok. And your guilt free yummy pasta is ready to be served.

You can use any pasta of your choice, I added corni pasta.

You can also garnish it as you like , I sprinkled chilli flakes and dried oregano.

This pasta can be served as breakfast or can be a good option for lunch box too. You can have it any time without guilt. Hope you all will like this simple healthy touch to regular pasta. Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot to me.

Happy cooking....

HEALTHY AND LIGHT POHA IDLI

Hello everyone

I always found South Indian foods a real comforting food. Everyone likes idlis, doses, uttapams, sambhar etc  and I too a big fan of these soothing and light comforting food. As I always try to make little healthy changes in my regular cooking, in my previous idli recipe I used Dalia and then used oats but this time going to introduce you with poha idlis but made in traditional way as soaking and fermentation is included in whole process. These idlis are even more softer and moist than regular ones and I bet you are definitely going to love this recipe.So why not give it a try, recipe is given below.

Idea borrowed from Chef Sanjeev Kapoor .

HEALTHY AND LIGHT POHA IDLI

Serves: 4-5

Time: 2 hrs( excluding soaking and fermentation time)

Ingredients 

1/2 cup split urad dal

1/2 cup poha ( flattened rice)

2 cup idli rava or idli rice  

1 tsp fenugreek seeds( methi)

1/2 tsp salt

Method:

Soak poha, rice or rava+fenugreek seeds and dal separately for 3-4 hrs. Then grind dal using little water till light and tiny bubbles are visible in it. It will take nearly 15-20 mins for grinding each batch of dal, so have patience, as it's needed for good soft and spongy idlis. Now grind poha and rice or rava + methi to a smooth paste. Now mix all together well. Give it a good stir and let it ferment overnight at warm place ,in a quit big vessel to avoid overflow of batter.

Always use little water at a time for grinding other wise you may end with runny batter. Idli batter should be as thick to be fall as a blob.

When it get nicely fermented it will become frothy, now add salt in it and mix well. Ready your steamer or cooker with rolling boil water .Now grease idli molds and fill 2 tbsp batter in each of them and steam for 8-10 mins. Let it rest for 2 mins after done ,then scoop out warm idlis with wet spoon. Serve with your choice of chutneys and sambhar.

If you find your batter is not much fermented as needed then don't be disappointed just stir 1 tsp of fruit salt or eno in every batch of batter you are going to steam at a time. And you will get nice soft and fluffy idlis every time. But remember after adding fruit salt just give a quick stir, don't over mix and immediately pour in idly stand and steam.

This idli comes out so soft and moist that you will fall in love with these beauties. Hope you will enjoy this super soft and yummy idli . Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here ,they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

HEALTHY PASTA IN CREAMY OATS AND VEGGIE SAUCE

Hello everyone 

Pasta... I think most of us including kids and elders, love to have pasta ,But at the same time try to avoid it some time due to sauce and creams used to make it delicious. My kids love to have these in their tiffin too,So I thought why not to give it a healthy twist that make people comfortable to have it without any guilt. I just added puréed veggies and oats to the regular pasta and it turned out super delicious, guilt free healthy breakfast for us. This is best for kids who don't like chunks of veggies and keep removing from their plate. Now they can have it without knowing that they are gobbling all those veggies , they used to hate😉.

Recipe of the same is given below, just give it a try.

HEALTHY PASTA IN CREAMY OATS AND VEGGIE SAUCE

Ingredients 

2 cup pasta , boiled and drained

1/3 cup oats

1 carrot, grated

1 spring onion, finely chopped 

1 big onion, finely chopped 

2 green chillies,finely chopped 

1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste 

2 medium tomatoes,finely chopped 

1/4 tsp turmeric powder 

1/4 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder ( optional)

1/4 tsp black pepper powder 

1/4 tsp chaat masala 

1/4 cup green coriander leaves,finely chopped ( optional)

1/2 cup water

Salt to taste

Method:

Heat oil in a wok, add chopped onions and chilies. Fry till golden,then add ginger garlic paste and saute for 2 mins. Then add grated carrots and spring onions, saute for 4 mins . Now add oats and saute for a min. 

Add tomatoes , turmeric , Kashmiri red chili powder, black pepper powder and little salt. Saute till tomatoes become mushy and nicely cooked. Add water and let it cook till done. 

Now let it cool a little and make its smooth paste. 

Now transfer paste to the same wok let it boil  Then add boiled pasta, chaat masala and salt. let it cook till every thing get nicely coated with saucy consistency. If needed add some water drained from pasta to make sauce of right consistency. Finally add chopped coriander leaves and mix well. 

You can also add some butter for taste while adding sauce to wok. And your guilt free yummy pasta is ready to be served.

You can use any pasta of your choice, I added tricolor spiral pasta.

You can also add any veggies of your choice.

This pasta can be served as breakfast or can be a good option for lunch box too. You can have it any time without guilt. Hope you all will like this simple healthy touch to regular pasta. Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot to me.

Happy cooking....

WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR PANEER ROLLS

Hello everyone

Why kids don't like any thing we used to prepare in our daily routine is really a big question for every mother. But if the same thing is served in some different and interesting way then not only kids but elders too gobble even more. So today I am having a very simple yet healthy and tempting snacks made of whole wheat flour and paneer, which is a kids friendly ingredient and healthy too. You can prepare these a day before to give in kids tiffin or pack for traveling time as it will remain fresh for minimum two days on room temperature. Recipe is given below, hope you all will like it.

whole wheat flour paneer rolls

Serves: 4-5

Time: 1:30 hrs ( leaving proofing and resting time)

Ingredients

2 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp active yeast
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp milk powder
1/2 tsp thyme leaves(optional)
1/2 tsp rosemary leaves ( optional)
2-3 tsp oil 
Water to knead

For filling
1 cup crumbled cottage cheese
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
1 green chilli, finely chopped
1/4 tsp black pepper powder
1/2 tsp chat masala
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
1/4 cup finely chopped capsicum
2 spring onions, finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped green coriander
Salt to taste

Method: 

Add sugar in warm water and then mix yeast in it and let it rest for 10-15 mins or till it become frothy.

Add salt, milk powder, thyme , rosemary leaves and oil in flour and knead with yeast , milk and warm water till it become soft, shiny and nonsticky dough. It will take 8 to 10 mins. apply some oil on it and cover with damp cloth, let it rest for 2 hrs in a warm place like in closed microwave/oven or till it doubles it volume. 

Till then mix all the filling ingredients together .

Now punch the dough and cut in two halves. Make a thick roti (1/2 cm) of it and spread the filling on it and roll it in a  log. then cut in desired thickness rolls ( mine is 1 1/2 inch thick) and sprinkle some sesame seeds on it, press a little to stick seeds firmly ). Arrange in a baking tray lined with butter paper . Keep some distance between two rolls as it will increase in size while second proof and while baking too. Now let it rest for another 30 mins on warm place then bake in a preheated oven at 190°C for 20 mins and if you don't get desired colour then increase the oven temperature to 230°C and bake for another 4-5 mins or till it become golden brown. 

Similarly do the other half of dough. 

Now enjoy these super yum golden beauties with any sauce or chutney or as it is, in every form it will leave you drooling for another piece.

Hope you all will like these yummy cum healthy snacks and give it a try. Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot

    Happy cooking....

SUPER CRISP INSTANT MOONG DAL DOSA

Hello everyone

Who don't like dosa? I love all South Indian delicacies including crisp dosa. But sometime we instantly have craving for it but couldn't have it due to long process of soaking, grinding , fermenting and then we can have it after a long wait of whole one day. So generally we head towards restaurant to satisfy our instant cravings. So I thought why not to try some healthy , quick yet equally yummy substitute of this traditional delicacy. As a result here is this super crisp, yummy , healthy and quickest dosa for you to relish . It took maximum half an hour from soaking to serving. Even kids too love this quick version. Those who love dosa but can't handle urad dal heaviness can also enjoy these lite and healthy dosas. Now no more waiting for fermentation to enjoy your favorite meal.

Stepwise recipe is given below, hope you all will definitely give it a try and I bet , you will fall in love with this quick version.

SUPER CRISP INSTANT MOONG DAL DOSA

Serves: 3-4

Time: 30 mins ( max)

Ingredients

2 cup split moong dal

1/2 cup rice powder

2-3 green chilies

1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste

Salt to taste

Method:

Soak moong dal in hot water for 10-15 mins. Then add all ingredients together in a grinder and make a smooth paste using required water . Grind at least for 4-5 mins so that you can see small bubbles in batter. 

Batter should be of pouring consistency but not runny. It should be of consistency like regular dosa batter. Now your batter is ready to make dosa.

Take a non stick dosa tawa, heat it on medium flame. Grease it lightly and wipe with tissue or you can make dosa on it without greasing too. Pour  ladle full of batter in center and spread it in circular motion outwards. Its crispness depends on how thin you spread it. Let it cook till brown patches are visible. 

Then fold it as you like and serve hot with any chutney or sauce of your choice. Your super quick crisp dosa is ready.

If you have enough time in hand then can also soak moong dal in normal water for 1/2 hr then grind.

You can also make stuffed dosa by adding stuffing of your choice in it.

If you are making it on normal iron tawa then try to make 1-2 parathas on it before making dosa. After making each dosa wipe tawa with a piece of onion. It will act as non stick coating on iron tawa😁 and you will get nice clean and crisp dosas every time. 

Always keep heat medium, as at lower heat your dosa can't be spread nicely and on too hot tawa you will get burnt dosa. So to get nice crisp and golden dosa , keep medium heat. If it become too hot , sprinkle some water to lower its temp.

This is easiest and quickest dosa I ever made. Hope you all will love it too and please pour your valuable comments and suggestions , they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

SPICED SEMOLINA SAVOURY BREAD

Hello everyone

Bread is a thing which connects us to everyone in this world. Wherever you go, you can find bread in different shapes, sizes, flavours, textures etc but the main thing is it's bread. Today I too have a simple bread recipe to share. It's too simple too prepare but with a distinct amazing flavour, a zing of spices with mildness of onions and herbs. It's a perfect snacks for tea time or for kids tiffin. So give it a try at least once, you will definitely love it.

Stepwise recipe is given below , hope you all will must try this..

SPICED SEMOLINA SAVOURY BREAD

Serves: 4-5

Time: 3:30 hrs 

Ingredients

1/2 kg fine semolina ( sooji)

1 tsp + 2 tbsp oil

3/4 tsp dry active yeast

1/2 cup Luke warm water

3/4 cup warm milk

1 tsp + 1 tbsp sugar 

1 1/2 tsp salt 

1/2 tsp oregano 

1/2 tsp chaat masala

2 onions , finely chopped

2-3 green chilies , finely chopped

2 tbsp mint leaves, finely chopped

2 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

Method:

First of all add yeast in 1/2 cup Luke warm water and 1 tsp sugar, mix them lightly and leave for 5-10 min or till it become nice frothy.

Now in a wok, heat 1 tsp oil add cumin seeds and let it splutter, then add onions, green chilies, mint and coriander leaves , ginger garlic paste and turmeric powder. Sauté till extra moisture evaporates, let it cool. Now take semolina in a big bowl, add salt, 1 tbsp sugar, chaat masala, oregano and prepared onion mixture. Mix well, then add yeast mixture and milk to it. 

Combine everything together and let it rest for 5 mins. Then add 1 tbsp oil in it and knead for 5 mins again let it ready for 7-8 mins. Again add 1 tbsp oil and knead for another 5-6 mins to get nice soft dough. This resting and kneading process is important to produce gluten in dough , so don't skip it. Grease the dough with oil and keep it covered at warm place to rise, at least 1- 2 hr, depend on weather. 

When it become double in volume then punch the dough and flatten it on a plain surface and by rolling give it shape of a loaf and seal its edges by pinching. Now place it in a greased and dusted loaf pan. 

Again keep it covered at a warm place for second rise, for at least 45 mins to 1 hr. Now brush its top with milk.

Now bake it in a preheated oven at 230 degree C for 30 mins or till its top become nice brown and on tapping you can hear hollow sound. Now brush it with some butter and let it cool completely on a wire rack before slicing, to get nice clean slices.

Your bread is ready to be served with a cup of tea, enjoy these easy yet delicious bread slices. You can also give it in your kids tiffin or make sandwiches. In every way these will win your heart.

You can use any other herbs too and also any other loaf pan to get your desirable shape and flavour. But then baking time may change so after 25 mins keep an eye on it. Mine took exactly 30 mins😊.

If you find your dough dry while kneading (as quality of semolina affects dough) then can sprinkle some water but the quantity given will be sufficient for a soft dough.

So enjoy these savoury delicacies and pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

TRADITIONAL IDLI, DOSA AND UTTAPAM WITH OATS

Hello everyone

I always found South Indian foods a real comforting food. Everyone likes idlis, doses, uttapams, sambhar etc  and I too a big fan of these soothing and light comforting food. As I always try to make little healthy changes in my regular cooking, in my previous idli recipe I used Dalia and this time going to introduce you with oats idlis but made in traditional way as soaking and fermentation is included in whole process. So why not give it a try, recipe is given below.

TRADITIONAL IDLI, DOSA AND UTTAPAM WITH OATS

Serves: 4-5

Time: 2 hrs( excluding soaking and fermentation time)

Ingredients 

1 cup split urad dal

1 cup oats

2 cup rice ( idli rice or any old variety rice)

1 tsp fenugreek seeds( methi)

1 fistful cooked rice or soaked poha ( flattened rice)

1/2 tsp salt

Method:

Soak oats, rice +fenugreek seeds and dal separately for 3-4 hrs. Then grind dal using little water till light and tiny bubbles are visible in it. It will take nearly 15-20 mins for grinding each batch of dal, so have patience, as it's needed for good soft and spongy idlis. Now grind oats and rice + cooked rice or poha + methi to a smooth paste. Now mix all together and add salt. Give it a good stir and let it ferment overnight in a quit big vessel to avoid overflow of batter.

Always use little water at a time for grinding other wise you may end with runny batter. Idli batter should be as thick to be fall as a blob.

When it get nicely fermented it will become frothy. Ready your steamer or cooker with rolling boil water .Now grease idli molds and fill 2 tbsp batter in each of them and steam for 8-10 mins. Let it rest for 2 mins after done ,then scoop out warm idlis with wet spoon. Serve with your choice of chutneys and sambhar.

If you wish to make uttapam out of this batter then dilute a little. It's batter should be little thinner than idli batter and thicker than dosa batter. Thick pouring consistency batter. Now heat a non stick pan on medium heat, Apply some oil on it and pour 2-3 ladle full of batter on it and spread like a thick dosa. Sprinkle some finely chopped veggies ( grated carrots, finely chopped onions, tomatoes, capsicum,coriander leaves, chilies etc) over it and press lightly with a spatula so that they get nicely stick to batter. Cover it with lid and cook till upper sides looks dry, then flip it and cook for another 1-2 mins.

 Now your steaming hot spongy uttapam is ready to be served.

For making dosa, dilute batter further more till dosa batter consistency. Now heat nonstick dosa tawa on medium heat apply some oil and wipe it with tissue paper. Pour 1 ladle full of batter on it and spread  with light hand in circular motion outwards. Let it cook till brown patches are visible , then fold and serve with chutney and sambhar. 

Your crispy, crunchy dosa is ready. You can also stuff it with your choice of stuffing.

If you are soaking dal and rice over night then try to soak oats in the morning, it will be ready in 1/2 -1 hr. Overnight soaking of oats may leads to smelly batter. Don't  over ferment your batter , once it's done try to use it or keep it in fridge. Before using it let it come to room temperature for best result.

Your all the three South Indian delicacies are ready with the same batter, either enjoy at a time or have three times, different breakfast ,lunch and dinner . 

Hope you all will like this little healthy addition to this traditional recipe, pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....