Category: Starter

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Broccoli and Carrot Kebab

My kids are not fond of broccoli at all and in this season I am getting fresh broccoli from various sources and in excess. Not sure how much to eat as salad or vegetable in various forms. Finally my “mom” thinking cap got on and I grated the broccoli – and this is what happens!!!

Broccoli & Carrot Kebabs
Some yummy broccoli & carrot kebabs!!

Ingredients

  • Broccoli – 2 nos grated
  • Carrot – 2 nos grated (optional)
  • Ginger – 1 inch (grated)
  • Garlic – 4 slices (grated)
  • Salt to taste
  • Pepper powder to taste
  • Oregano seasoning
  • Potato – 1 small boiled or 2 slices of bread crumbs
  • Oil – 1 Tea spoon for grilling

Method

  • Saute the broccoli with ginger and garlic and salt in 1 tsp oil
  • You can add the grated carrot
  • Add the seasoning like salt, pepper, oregano seasoning
  • Add small grated boiled potato for binding
  • Mix all the same and make round shapes
  • Grill them on a pan
  • Serve with salad and sauce of your liking

The carrot is optional, I added so that my kids eat both the veggies and they loved the taste. But if you add too many vegetables then it will become like mix veg kebab rather than broccoli, so be careful.

Enjoy your broccoli this season !!

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Bottle Gourd made yummy

I was overwhelmed with the response I got on my post of Tangy Methi Amla. What made me happy that lot of people tried it and came back to me on the taste. It feels nice . Continuing with the healthy recipe trend, I am sharing the recipe of Grilled Bottle Gourd (yes that’s the humble lauki). This is very popular in our parties and guests love it. I do not disclose that it’s lauki till they have eaten it and no one can believe it!!

My kiddos love the lauki in this form and no yucky words come. Bottle gourd as you know is rich in vitamins and minerals and good for the stomach.  So here you go.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 Kg of Bottle Gourd (lauki)
  • 4 tbsp bread crumbs made from fresh bread. (Grind the bread in mixie)
  • 4 tsp yogurt
  • 6 tsp roasted channa flour (Grind Roasted Channa)
  • Oil – 1tbsp
  • 1 tsp chaat masala to sprinkle
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

Method

  1. Peel and cut the gourd into round slices about 1 inch thick
  2. In a pan heat oil and saute roundels with salt till they are tender
  3. Remove from pan to a bowl
  4. In a bowl mix breadcrumbs, channa flour and yogurt (dahi). Mix well
  5. Dip the roundels in this mixture
  6. Grill on greased Grill pan, till they are golden brown
  7. Serve hot . Garnish with chaat masala and onion rings

Grilled Bottle Gourd (Lauki)

This humble vegetable really tastes yum in this form.  You can replace the bottle gourd with zucchini or paneer or you can mix n match for an assorted platter.

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Pumpkin Soup

It has been a long time since i wrote on the blog but something or the other kept happening even if wrote i forgot to upload and then the mood changed and i did not like my article. Thanks for my family , friends and customers who kept following up with me for a fresh post.

Finally i am writing & it feels nice to be doing it . Here comes a winter soup recipe my favorite Pumpkin Soup. After tomato, this is my most favorite soups. It is extremely low on calories and yet is a very filling soup. Works wonders for losing weight. So here goes –

Ingredients

  • 1/2 Kg yellow Pumpkin, peeled and chopped
  • 1 onion cut in slices
  • 4-5 pods of Garlic
  • 1 tbsp of olive oil or any oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup Milk
  • 1 tbsp Cream (optional)
  • 1 tsp Cornflour (optional)
  • 3-4 cups water

Method

  1. Saute garlic, onion and pumpkin in olive oil for 3-4 min. Add salt to the vegetables.
  2. Add water and let it boil for some time till pumpkin becomes soft and mash-able.
  3. Sieve out the water in a pan and mash the pumpkin or grind it in the mixer ( by grinding in mixer u can have the thicker soup without cornflour)
  4. Add the pumpkin paste to the stock and add milk . If adding cornflour please mix in milk and add the same.
  5. Give the soup a boil and it is ready to serve. If you find it bland please add pepper and any other seasoning as per your taste
  6. For garnishing u can add cream and some basil leaves

Enjoy the soup and do share your version of the same. My kids also love the same –  I did not tell them it is pumpkin soup and they loved it. Now with Halloween so famous in India it is called the Halloween Soup in our house!!

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Channa Vada

It has been two weeks that I wrote something on the blog, I am sorry for the same. But thanks for waiting patiently.  I have been very busy setting up the production of healthy tea cakes and coupled with mothers day it just got crazy.

This time I am sharing a simple recipe of making south indian channa or masala vada. This suggestion was given by a friend who had come down to enjoy my South indian spread  at our place. I was rattling off the recipe to her and she said please write in your blog so that we can refer at any point of time. So here goes –

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Channa Dal
  • ½ cup finely chopped onion
  • ¼ Coriander leaves finely chopped
  • 1-2 green chilies chopped
  • 1 tbsp ginger grated
  • 10 black peppers
  • 2 slices of bread optional- grind them in mixie
  • 1 tbsp of cornflour if batter becomes too thin
  • Salt to taste
  • Oil for frying

Method

  • Soak Channa Dal for 4-5 hours
  • Coarsely Grind it in mixie without water
  • To this add onion, coriander leaves, Chilies, ginger, black peppers. Bread and cornflour to make it dry mixture.
  • Mix properly and make flat balls
  • Deep Fry them in oil
  • Serve them hot with coconut chutney

You can avoid green chilies if making for kids , even can add boiled vegetables to the same . Pl add cornflour to the same so that they do not break due to water in vegetables. The result is always yummy.

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Rajma Rice Balls

Leftovers from every meal becomes an issue but somehow, I try to manage this better. My husband compliments (which is rare) that you are the leftover queen. No one would come to know you used left over stuff and turned in an easy and yummy dish. Last time we had talked about Cream Corn crackers, it was also invented when we had leftovers from a Chinese meal.

This time we will make use of leftover Rajma – Rice and make pakoda’s with a twist!!

Ingredients

  • Boiled Rice – 1.5 cup
  • Cooked Rajma- 1 cup
  • Onion chopped- ½ cup
  • Coriander leaves- 1 tbsp
  • Green chilles chopped – 2 nos
  • Salt
  • Chat masala / Oregano- choose one otherwise flavours will be mixed
  • Amchur powder
  • Red chilli powder
  • 1 tbsp cornflour to be mixed in the batter and additional 1 tbsp mixed in water
  • Bread crumbs
  • Oil for frying

Method

  • Mix everything except additional cornflour and bread crumbs
  • Shape into balls
  • Dip each ball into the cornflour and water mixture
  • Dust the above ball in bread crumbs
  • Deep Fry the Balls
  • Serve them with Tomato sauce or any sauce or dip of your choose

rajma rice balls

Variations – you can add cheese to the mixture or corn or bell peppers to give it tangy taste. I can vouch that it tastes really nice. My kids make me make it especially when there is a play date. I even had to cook fresh rajma and rice to make it!! So it is no longer a leftover dish but now called Rajma- Rice Balls.

 

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Tangy Baby Potato Starter

A lesson I learnt from my mother who was an army wife that you  should be prepared to make something quick and with basic ingredients to entertain sudden guests . Also lot of time army cantonments used to be cut off from the main city and you had to do what you had with you at home. The basic rule that one follows is not to run off potatoes and onions at home.

This is simple recipe of Baby potato starter. It is big hit in our house and I get loads of complements on the same. It is easy to pack in kids tiffin also.

Method

  • Soak about 20 baby potatoes with skin. This step helps to clean the dirt nicely
  • Wash them nicely so that there are no traces of dust
  • Boil them in pressure cooker with one whistle and slow flame for 5-7 min or boil in a pan with water for 15 min. Please note this step is crucial as you cannot over cook the potatoes or have the skin peeling off

  • Let them cool for 5- 10 min .
  • Pick each potato and press them between palms to make it a flat structure as shown in the pic below. Please note the skin should be intact

  • Shallow fry or sauté them with olive oil till crisp

  • Remove from fire and sprinkle lemon juice, salt, chilli powder, chat masala and amchur powder

They are ready to be served. Simple and easy.

Tangy Baby Potato Starter

Serving tip you can keep the potatoes boiled and pressed and sauté them hot when you want to serve. If you do not want to stand in-front of the gas during the party then grill them in the oven for 10-15 min.