One Day At A Time!

Potato is such a loved vegetable! Many describe this starchy root as humble. At least once a week, potato curry is part of our lunch. Any vegetable tastes better with potatoes, be it Aloo Matar , Aloo Palak or Aloo Gobi . Rather than the regular Aloo Gobi, today I cooked masaledar Aloo Broccoli in an oven.  Roasting vegetables in an oven makes it much more flavorful and I find it quite convenient. Ingredients: Potato - 1 big Broccoli Florets - about 3 cups Tandoori Masala - 1 tbsp Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp Kasuri Methi/Dry Fenugreek Leaves - 1 tsp Aamchur/Dry Mango Powder - 1/2 tsp Oil - 2 tbsp Salt How to bake Tandoori Aloo Broccoli: Preheat the oven at 375 degrees F. Line a baking tray with aluminum foil and grease it lightly with cooking spray or oil. In a mixing bowl, add tandoori masala, red chili powder, crushed kasuri methi leaves, aamchur, salt and oil. Mix well. Try any other seasonings/spice mix of your choice. Peel the potato ...

Zucchini is one of the local vegetables, I regularly use in our Indian meals. And parathas are our family favorites. Parathas are always a simple meal to plan and taste great with just achar and yogurt. If not yogurt, a Coconut Chutney goes well with any flatbread. Ingredients: Zucchini - 1 big Mini Bell Pepper (Red) - 1 Green Onions/Scallions - 6 Green Chili Paste - 1/2 tsp Jowar/Sorghum/Jola/Jwari Flour - 1/2 cup Besan/Chickpea Flour/Gram Flour - 1/2 cup Rice Flour - 1/2 cup Black Pepper Powder - 1/2 tsp White Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 1/2 tsp Jaggery/Gud/Gul - 1 tsp Oil - 2 tsp Salt How to make Zucchini Paratha: Grate zucchini. Finely chop bell peppers and green onions. In a big mixing bowl, add zucchini, bell peppers and green onions. Now add green chili paste, sesame seeds, fresh ground black pepper, grated jaggery and salt. Mix all the ingredients well and set it aside for about 30 minutes. If jaggery is not available, use molasses or sugar. For so...

Puranpoli or Holige , a lentil flatbread is an Indian traditional sweet made on the festive occasion of Holi. We Konkanis call it as Ubbati. My Mom used to make another version of this sweet delicacy, a coconut stuffed one, called as Narla Ubbati. I made a couple changes to my Mom's recipe, to save some time and to make it healthier. Here is a Whole Wheat version of Coconut Puranpoli . Dough: Whole Wheat Flour - 1 1/2 cups Milk - 3/4 cup Olive Oil - 1/4 cup Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Coconut Stuffing: Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1 1/2 cups Grated Jaggery/Gud/Gul  - 1/2 cup (tightly packed) Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 2 pods How to cook Coconut Stuffed Sweet Flatbread: Make Dough: In a mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour, turmeric and oil. Mix well. Now add milk, little at a time, and knead well to form a soft dough. Cover the bowl with plastic food wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes. Using all purpose flour/maida will make the puranpolis more soft. ...

When I say Popcorn, which word instantly comes to your mind?  I am sure its movies. Nothing makes the movies more fun than the crunchy salty popcorn, be it a theatre or at home. My family loves both kinds... the regular salty, buttery and this salty sweet caramel popcorn. If you love binging on this popular Christmas treat, you must give it a try. Though time consuming, its worth the effort. Ingredients: Popcorn - about 10 cups Light Brown Sugar - 1/2 cup (tightly packed) Unsalted Butter - 4 tbsp Water - 1/4 cup Vanilla Extract - 2 ts Salt - 1/8 tsp Cooking Spray or Butter for greasing How to make Crunchy Caramel Popcorn at home: I cooked 1/2 cup popcorn kernels in 4 tbsp olive oil in a very big vessel with the lid on. You can use microwave popcorn as well. Add popcorn to a very big mixing bowl and keep 2 big spoons ready for mixing. Preheat the oven at 300 degrees F and grease a big baking tray with cooking spray. Heat butter, water and sugar in a ...

Coconut Chutney is a staple in every South Indian home. You guys might have read about the variety of Konkani  Coconut Chutneys  my Mom makes for us. Let me add one more South Indian condiment today, where onions and tomatoes are the highlights and not coconut. Quite different from the regular coconut chutney, with a hint of sweet and sour flavors. Ingredients: Onion - 1 medium Tomatoes - 2 medium Ginger - 1/2 inch piece Green Chili - 1 Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 3 tbsp Chana Dal/Split Bengal Gram - 1 tbsp Urad Dal/Split Black Gram - 1 tbsp Dry Red Chilies - 3 Jaggery/Gud/Gul - 1 tsp Tamarind/Imli/Chinch - 1 tsp Coriander/Cilantro Leaves - few sprigs Oil - 1 tbsp and 1 tsp Salt Tempering/Tadka: Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1/4 tsp Curry Leaves/Kadipata - a sprig Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Dry Red Chilies - 2 Oil - 1 tsp How to make South Indian Onion Tomato Chutney: Heat about 1 tsp oil in a pan. Add c...

Weather is so gloomy around here these days and all I can think of is comfort food... fried goodness, a comforting bowl of hot soup and the list goes on. But I am much more concerned about calories when I cook our everyday meals. And our menu changed from deep fried to baked crispness. Herbed Eggplant with an onion flavor, steamed broccoli and a hearty Vegan Minestrone Soup . It was more like an Italian meal, with very few carbohydrates. Ingredients: Eggplant/Brinjal/Baingan/Vangi - 1 big Dry Italian Herb Seasoning - 1 1/2 tsp Black Pepper Powder - 1 tsp Red Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp Italian Seasoned Panko Bread Crumbs - 2 cups French Fried Onions - 1 cup Cooking Spray or Oil Salt How to bake Crisp Eggplant in an oven: Dice the eggplant into medium thick round slices. In a mixing bowl, add herb seasoning, fresh ground black pepper, red chili powder and salt. Toss the eggplant slices so that the slices are coated well. Cover and set it aside for about 30 minut...

So far, you have seen me blog about Indian Mithai made of Italian Ricotta Cheese. Ricotta Cheese works as a good substitute for both Khoya and Paneer, which are extensively used in Indian sweets. This is the first time I tried a savory dish with Ricotta and it turned out excellent. An Indian Kofta Curry which is traditionally made of Paneer, Indian Cottage Cheese. Kofta: Ricotta Cheese - 3 cups Boiled Potato - 1 medium Besan/Chickpea Flour/Gram Flour - 1/2 cup Green Onions/Scallions - 5 Garam Masala - 1/4 tsp Black Pepper Powder - 1 tsp Salt Oil for frying Sauce/Gravy: Onion - 1 medium Tomatoes - 2 medium Ginger/Adrak - an inch piece Pistachios/Pista - 2 tbsp Milk - 1/2 cup Dry Red Chilies - 5 Coriander/Dhania Seeds - 1 tsp Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1/2 tsp Fennel/Saunf Seeds - 1/2 tsp Poppy Seeds/Khuskhus - 1/2 tsp Cloves/Long - 4 Cinnamon/Dalchini - 1/4 inch piece Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 1 pod Oil - 1 tbsp Salt How to cook Indian Kofta Curry with Italia...

Whole Wheat Methi Thepla, a Gujarati Paratha is well known to many of us. Jowar Methi Thepla is not so famous as the wheat one, but its our family favorite.  Whenever I find a fresh Methi bunch, I know exactly what to cook. This paratha is more like a multi grain one.. you get to use a number of flours... corn flour, oats flour.  Skip wheat, oats and you have a nutritious gluten free bread . Ingredients: Fenugreek/Methi Leaves - about 4 cups Jowar/Sorghum/Jwari/Jola Flour - 1 cup Besan/Chickpea Flour/Gram Flour - 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 1/2 cup (optional) Yogurt/Curd/Dahi - 1/4 cup Ghee/Clarified Butter - 1 tbsp Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1 tbsp White Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 1/2 tsp Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1/2 tsp Green Chili Paste - 1 tsp Green Onions/Scallions - 5 Jaggery/Gud/Gul - 1 tsp Salt How to cook Jowar Methi Paratha: Heat a pan and dry roast the sesame seeds for about a minute, just until you get the roasted sesam...

If you have a sweet tooth like me and love nuts as well, this Indian sweet will definitely be your new favorite. Generally, Kaju Pista Roll is made with a Pistachio stuffing in a Cashew dough and is slightly time consuming for me. To save some time, I skipped the stuffing part. The stuffed Kaju Pista Roll looks more pretty, no doubt, but these Mixed Nuts Roll with Badam tastes even better. Ingredients: Kaju/Cashews - 1/3 cup Badam/Almonds - 1/3 cup Pista/Pistachios - 1/3 cup Sugar - 1/2 cup Water - 1/4 cup Milk Powder - 1 tbsp (optional) Ghee/Clarified Butter - 2 tsp Saffron/Kesar - few strands Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 1 pod How to make Mixed Nuts Roll/Barfi: Crush cardamom seeds and saffron strands in a mortar pestle to a fine powder. Grind cashews, almonds, pistachios in a dry blender jar to a fine powder. MAKE SUGAR SYRUP: In a thick bottom pan, add sugar and water. Keep stirring until sugar dissolves. Add powdered cardamom and saffron.  Continue cooking until...

Beans and lentils are the best sources of protein for vegetarians and vegans. And Bean sprouts are far more nutritive than beans. Today's salad is a light and wholesome meal.  If you are bored of the regular leafy salads and are looking for something different, this warm sprouts salad with a hint of mango and ginger is something you should try. Ingredients: Dry Mung Beans - 1/2 cup Red Onion - 1 small Tomato - 1 small Lettuce - about 1/2 cup Green Lime - 1 Ginger - 1/2 tsp Aamchur/Dry Mango Powder - 1 tsp Black Pepper Powder - 1/2 tsp Salt How to make Bean Sprouts Salad: MAKING SPROUTS: Soak mung beans in plenty of water for 8 - 10 hours. After soaking, beans will almost double in quantity. Wash the soaked beans well and drain the water completely. Make sure there is no water, or else sprouts might decay. Cover the vessel with a lid and leave it overnight in a warm place to sprout.  Alternately, you can tie the soaked beans in a cloth as well. ...

Though the Konkani term 'Polo' refers to a breakfast dosa/pancake, Sanna Polo is a side dish served with rice. The key ingredient of SaNa Polo is tender Bamboo shoots called as Keerlu/Keerla in Konkani. I generally make these savory pancakes with the veggies available and not necessarily with keerla. I grew up eating two versions of this, one involves soaking rice, grinding and stuff, an elaborate one. I prefer the second one, my Mom's hassle free recipe.  Some day I'll share the rice version too.

Some days I have a menu planned for our lunch and dinner. Other days, I have no clue what to cook and that seems like the biggest problem of the day. Turns out today, Salmon was my answer. And we enjoyed these zesty fish kababs with a salad and some Cheddar Biscuits . Ingredients: Salmon or any other fish - 2 pounds Cilantro/Coriander Leaves - few sprigs Ginger - 2 tsp Black Pepper Powder - 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp Lime - 1 (zested and juiced) Oil - 2 tbsp Salt Vegetables - Bell Peppers/Capsicum, Onion, Zucchini Oil or Cooking Spray How to cook Fish Kababs: Soak 5 bamboo skewers in water for about 30 minutes. Dice the fish into inch size pieces. In a big bowl, add lime zest and juice, oil, freshly grated ginger, finely chopped cilantro, fresh ground black pepper, red chili powder and salt. Mix all the ingredients well. To this marinade, add fish pieces. Coat the fish well with the marinade. Cover the bowl with plastic food wrap and r...

There are some ingredients which I have not tasted yet or tried in my kitchen ..... quinoa, couscous, macadamia nuts. No particular reason. Maybe, in future, I might try and share some interesting recipes with you.  Yeast used to be one of those ingredients. I am not sure why, but I was quite apprehensive about using yeast. But not anymore. Here is a Vegan Tawa Naan bread, made of fiber rich whole wheat flour. Ingredients: Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 1 cup + 2 tbsp Yeast - 1 tsp Warm Water - 1/2 cup Salt Oil How to cook Whole Wheat Tawa Naan: In a mixing bowl, add yeast and warm water. Stir with a spoon and set it aside for about 5 minutes. Add little salt and whole wheat flour. Add finely chopped or minced garlic, if you like Garlic Naan. Knead to form a soft dough. If the dough is too sticky, add few more tbsp of flour. Cover the bowl with a plastic food wrap. Let the dough rest in a warm place for 20 - 30 minutes or until the do...