LEMON RICE

Hello everyone

South Indian flavours are my all time favorite. That's why I often used to prepare South Indian delicacies at my home and everyone loves it a lot. Today I was not in mood of cooking but some thing must be needed for our dinner. Then idea strikes to make lemon rice as I had lots of cooked rice from lunch and these will be perfect for preparing lemon rice in no time. As everyone have their own way of preparing the same dish, so here is mine version of lemon rice which never let me down in flavours. I can relish on these lemonish beauty any time.
Recipe is given below, hope you all will love to try it.

LEMON RICE

Serves: 3-4
Time: 10-15 mins

Ingredients

3- 4 cups cooked rice
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp asafetida ( heeng)
1 tbsp Chana dal
1 tbsp urad dal
1/4 cup peanuts ( optional)
2-3 springs curry leaves
3-4 dry red chilies
2-3 green chilies, finely chopped
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp black pepper powder ( completely optional, I added to spice up)
1-2 tbsp lemon juice ( adjust as per taste)
Salt to taste
Oil


Method:

Heat oil in a wok, add asafetida and mustard seeds. Let it crackle then add peanuts and fry for 2-3 mins. Then add Chana dal and fry till light golden . Add urad dal and saute for few seconds, till light golden. Now add both chilies and curry leaves. Saute for a minute then add turmeric powder. Just stir for a second and lemon juice followed by rice, black pepper and salt. Mix everything well and saute for 2-3 minutes to incorporate all the flavours in rice. Serve hot with any raita or as it is. It needs nothing to accompany as is full of aroma and flavour.

** Always try to add pre cooked rice ,  cooked atleast 3-4 hrs earlier. This will give nice fluffy rice.

* Don't add both dal together to fry as urad dal burns quickly. So follow the steps religiously.

* After adding lemon juice, immediately add rice as cooking of lemon juice may turn it little bitter.

* Adjust chilies and lemon juice as per taste.

Enjoy this super easy rice dish and satisfy your hunger in a yummy way. This will be best for lunch, dinner, breakfast or even for tiffin too.

Do try this simplest recipe and let me know your experience. Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

SEMOLINA PUDDING ( SOOJI KA HALWA OR RAWA KESHARI)

Hello everyone

Semolina pudding or sooji ka halwa is a very simple yet super Delicious dessert you can prepare in minimum time and enjoy any time. It is also called rawa keshari with little orange ( keshari) colour in it.

The ideal proportion for this pudding is 1:1:2:4 :: semolina:ghee:sugar:water

But being a calorie conscious mom I used to balance ingredients according to necessity only . Even then the end product was nothing less than ghee and sugar laden authentic rawa keshari.

In addition I added lots of almonds and few walnuts too for making it much more nutritious to my fussy eater.

This is one of the important dish from Navratri bhog also. So this navratri prepare it and offer to Goddess Durga .

Sharing mine version of sooji ka halwa. Hope you all will enjoy this healthy cum yummy delight.

Recipe is given below. Couldn't  take stepwise pictures as prepared for kids tiffin in hurry but will explain to my knowledge best. Do try and share your experience with me.

SEMOLINA PUDDING ( SOOJI KA HALWA OR RAWA KESHARI)

Serves:3-4

Time: 20-25 mins

Ingredients

3/4 cup coarse semolina ( sooji / rawa)

Ghee as per need

3/4 +cup sugar ( as per taste)

3cup +Water ( as per need)

Handful almonds and few walnuts, ground to fine powder along with 2-4 tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp green cardamom powder

Few drops edible orange colour ( optional)

METHOD:

Heat 2-3 tbsp of ghee in a wok and add semolina. Saute stirring constantly on medium flame till golden brown  and nice aroma starts to come . If going to add colour then saute till just golden .

Now add water with few drops of colour ( if using)and let it cook till semolina is nicely swollen. Now add dryfruits powder and sugar. Mix well and add some ghee , little at a time, till halwa starts leaving edges of the wok. Finally add cardamom powder and mix well. Switch off the flame and serve with some dryfruits garnishing.

* Amount of water added is on your choice of halwa consistency. If want nice fluffy halwa then add less water but for porridge consistency use more water.

* As My Lil one don't like any dryfruits that's why I added powdered one. You can add any dryfruits of your choice and chopped too.

* You can also use some milk to make it rich.

This is one of the simplest dessert you can prepare in jiffy and satisfy your sweet craving. Either prepare for kids tiffin or as an offering to god. Either in breakfast or as a dessert for guests . In every way you will be satisfied to the core.

Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

SPANISH RICE

Hello everyone

Rice is a grain which is used worldwide with different taste and texture. And today I am going to share one of such rice dish which is not from Indian cuisine. As we know Spanish dishes are not so spicy yet full of flavours. Once I came across a recipe of Spanish rice preparation, from that very day I thought to give it a try some day and luckily today made it. And viola it turned out super delicious beyond my expectations. So thought to why not share this tempting recipe with you all. There are no lots of ingredients or utensils needed to prepare it .But Believe me , you will never regret, atleast give it a try once and you will fall in love with it. Recipe adopted from Home Cooking.

Stepwise recipe is given below, do try and don't forget to share your experience with me.

SPANISH RICE

Serves: 4-5

Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

2 cups long grain aged rice ( preferably basmati rice), washed and soaked for atleast 30 mins

2 big onions, finely chopped

1 tbsp garlic , finely chopped

1 heaped tbsp oregano

2-3 big tomatoes, finely chopped

Salt to taste

Method: 

Heat oil in a pan, add chopped onions followed by garlic. Saute till transparent then add drained rice and Saute till rice become little golden. 

Now add tomatoes and oregano. Saute for 2 mins and add 4 cups water ( depend on quality of rice). Add salt and let it boil on high flame. Now cook till top of rice starts looking dry. 

Now lower the flame to minimum and cover rice with lid. Let it simmer for another 5 mins and put off the flame. 

Let it rest for 5 mins then open lid and mix the rice  lightly with a fork or knife. Again cover with lid and let it rest for another 10 mins.

 Now garnish with spring onions and serve hot with your choice of raita /curry/ chutney .

* Always use fork or knife to mix your rice to avoid breaking it.

* You can also use vegetable/ chicken stock instead of plain water to enhance its flavour. But then use salt accordingly as stocks are high in salt content.

Your super delicious aromatic rice is ready in no time to please your guests and family members.

Even kids too like this rice. You can prepare it for their tiffin or for any lazy day lunch/dinner.

So enjoy this easy peasy super yum treat and don't forget to remember me . Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

SPROUTED MOONG , OATS AND VEGGIE KABAB

Hello everyone

Till now you all might be come to know that I am a pity mother of lil fussy eater 😃. He doesn't like any veggies, But he loves to eat tikkis and kababs . So to feed him some veggies I use to make different types of kababs using different mix and match of veggies . This time tried to add sprouted moong to add additional nutrient to make some delicious and tempting looking kababs for him. Not only him but we all enjoyed every bite of it. Used capsicum, beans, carrots, potato and some oats to make these beauties. These are pan fried in very less oil , which makes it suitable snacks for weight watchers too. I used to have it as substitute for any of my meal , generally lunch. It's so yummy as well as filling that you will not going to miss your meal anyhow. 

Recipe is given below, hope to make you happy with its superb taste.

SPROUTED MOONG , OATS AND VEGGIE KABAB

Serves: 4-5 

Time: 30 mins( leaving the chilling time)

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cup very finely chopped mixed veggies ( beans , carrots, colored capsicum) , I used chopper to chop the veggies

2 cup sprouted moong ( green lentil), lightly steamed or microwaved for 5-6 mins.

2-3 medium size potatoes, boiled and mashed

2 big onions, finely chopped

3-4 green chilies, finely chopped

1/2 cup oats 

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

2 tsp ginger garlic paste

1/2 tsp black pepper powder

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1/4 tsp turmeric powder 

1/4 tsp garam masala powder

1/2-1 tsp chaat masala powder

Salt to taste

Oil

Method: 

First of all coarsly grind sprouted moong . Don't make its paste , grind for few pulses without adding any water. Keep aside for later use.

Heat some oil in a wok, add chopped onions and chilies. Let them fry till golden, now add ginger garlic paste and saute for 2 mins. Add all dry spice powder except chaat masala .

Now add chopped mixed veggies and some salt, saute for 4-5 mins. Cover and cook till veggies are tender.

 Add oats and saute for 3-4 mins. Now add ground moong and saute for 4-5 mins.

Add mashed potatoes again saute for 2-3 minutes.

 Now add  chaat masala and adjust salt. 

Finally add coriander leaves and mix well. Switch off the flame and your mixture for Kabab is ready. Let it chill in fridge for 1 hr. 

Now make desired shape of kabab from mixture . 

shallow fry on a non stick tawa till nice golden on both sides. 

Your nice tender and delicious kabab is ready to be served with any chutney or sauce. I served with tomato,coriander and mint chutney.

*You can use any veggies of your choice,  I used whatever was available.

*You can adjust spices as per your taste.

*You can prepare its mixture prior and keep in fridge. Just prepare kabab when have guests at home or can make it for kids tiffin . 

These are not only delicious but healthy too, as full of iron and fibers . Enjoy your day with yummy and healthy snacks. You can use these kababs as patties for your buns too.

Hope you all will love this easy cum healthy delicious recipe. Please pour your valuable comments and suggestions here, they meant a lot.

Happy cooking....

MIX VEG PANEER PALAK FRNKIE ROLL

Hello everyone

Serving nutritious, healthy cum delicious food to their family is every homemakers dream. And this dream becomes more challenging when you have fussy eaters at your home, just like mine. My younger one demand more attention , when I have to prepare lunch box for him. He is too picky to like regular meals, so I have to invent new forms of daily meals to lure him. Today I added some spinach, mix veggies and paneer to kids lunch box in some innovative way without telling them. Who doesn't know the nutritional values of green leafy veggies , which our kids totally deny. Generally kids are fond of paneer dishes, so I took advantage of this weakness of them and added some more nutrition in my way. Hope you will find it more interesting way to feed your child some more nutrients without more fuss. 

Recipe is given below, do try and see your kids having healthy snacks in delicious way.

MIX VEG PANEER PALAK FRANKIE ROLL

Serves: 8-10

Time: 30 mins 

Ingredients 

For filling:

1 cup cottage cheese ( paneer), cubed

4 cups thinly sliced mix veggies ( carrots, cabbage, beans, capsicum etc)

2 medium onion, thinly sliced

2 medium tomatoes, sliced

1 cup spinach , roughly chopped 

2-3 green chilies

2 tsp ginger garlic paste

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/4 tsp turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1/2 tsp curry powder ( optional)

1/2 tsp black pepper powder

1/2 tsp garam masala powder

1/4 tsp chaat masala powder

1/2 tsp lemon juice ( optional)

Salt to taste

Oil

For rolls:

8-10 tortilla wraps/ round parathas/ khubus 

Some salad

Sauce of your choice

Method:

First of all make smooth paste of spinach, green chilies and some water. Keep aside for later use. 

Heat some oil in a wok , add cumin seeds. Let it crackle and add sliced onions.

 Let it cook till transparent, add ginger garlic paste and prepared spinach puree followed by turmeric powder, cumin powder,curry powder and garam masala powder, fry till every thing is nicely cooked and starts leaving oil.

  Now add mix veggies and saute for 3-4 mins. 

Add some salt and cover to cook but still remain crisp. Now add sliced tomatoes and cook till tomatoes are cooked and soft .

Now add paneer cubes and saute for 2 mins and add chaat masala powder. 

Adjust salt and our filling is ready. 

Now either prepare round paratha or take ready made wraps and put required amount of above filling , topped with some salad and sauce. 

Roll it to give cylindrical shape and wrap in an aluminum foil if giving in lunch box , to retain its shape and softness.

 Or cut it in desired size and serve hot with any sauce or as it it. I used khubus this time.

*You can add other vegetables too as per your choice and availability.

* Paneer can also be replaced with any other veggie option or meat products as per your choice.

It is very delicious cum healthy breakfast/ tiffin snacks provides maximum nutrition in one go, and is very easy to prepare too.

 You can also prepare it for dinner/lunch/breakfast or whenever you want  as it is a complete meal and filling too.

Hope you all will definitely give it a try and don't forget to share your experience with me. 

Happy cooking....

ROT ( MILD SWEET POORIS)

Hello everyone 

Late post....  I made these on Tuesday as an offering to lord Hanuman 🙏🏻. As per our custom we use to offer mildly sweet pooris called "Rot" to Hanumam Ji on first Tuesday after Nag Panchami. 

How many of you too have this pratha ( custom) at your place?

As kids tiffin is a daily tension for fussy eaters moms, I am here with one more easy healthy tiffin snacks for kids. Even we can also keep it with us while traveling as it lasts long on room temperature and a filling snacks too. You can also make it in large batch and give to kids for two three days in tiffin or evening snacks. It tastes best with some spicy tangy pickle but you can have it as per your taste and preference. 

It is very well known dish to North Indians and I only added a little eye catching shapes for kids in it. Hope you all will like it and must try it at least once.

Recipe is given below.

ROT ( MILD SWEET POORIS)

Serves: 3-4

Time: 30mins ( leaving resting time)

Ingredients 

1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour 

1 tbsp mix dry fruits, coarsly ground ( optional )

1 tbsp ghee

2 -3 tbsp sugar ( can adjust sweetness as per your taste)

1/2 tsp green cardamom powder

Ghee to deep fry 

Water to knead

Method:

Mix all ingredients together well except water and frying oil. Now using sufficient water knead a soft dough of it like chapati dough. Keep it covered at any warm place for atleast 1 hr.

Now your dough is ready to make pooris. Heat sufficient ghee in a deep wok and turn flame to medium high. Take lemon size ball of dough and roll 1/2 cm thick poori and deep fry on medium flame till golden brown on both sides. 

For different shapes, roll a big poori of 1/2 cm thickness then cut designer pooris using cookie cutter and fry as told above. 

* Dough may be little sticky, so use dry flour to easily roll. Make sure to roll  pooris little thick to get nicely puffed and soft ones.

* If you are making it as an offering to God , then use ghee for deep frying otherwise can use any refined oil.

Your easy poori are ready to go in tiffins or accompany you in your journey. Enjoy it hot or cool , tastes good both ways. A dollop of spicy pickle enhances its taste to another level.

It's so easy and generally loved by kids, even my fussy eater loves it. So try it and let me know your suggestions and comments, they meant a lot to me.

Happy cooking....

FOUR DIFFERENT BREADS FROM SAME GARLIC HERB DOUGH AND PANEER ZATAAR FILLING

Hello everyone

I had some thick water drained from my biryani rice and don't want to throw it as was full of aroma and flavour. So thought to bake some bread and use this in kneading my dough as it was long I baked any bread. But then I thought why not to give it some artistic twist and bake some more flavours and designs of bread from this perfect dough. I saw some patterned bread pictures few days back, on Internet . Keeping that in my mind , I tried to make these four types of breads, which are loved by everyone in both taste and look. So here is the technique and tips with step wise pics for baking these cuties. Hope you all will definitely give it a try and come up with your feedback too.

FOUR DIFFERENT BREADS FROM SAME GARLIC HERB DOUGH AND PANEER ZATAAR FILLING

Serves: 3-4 ( each bread)

Time: 1 1/2 hr ( leaving proofing and resting time)

Ingredients

For dough :

4 cup all purpose flour / whole wheat flour/ chapatti flour
1 tsp active dry yeast 
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup warm water
1 tsp oregano 

2 tsp garlic powder or minced garlic

1/2 tsp thyme leaves(optional)

1/2 tsp rosemary leaves ( optional)
2 -3 tbsp oil 

1 cup warm water to knead dough ( I used drained water from biryani rice)

Milk to brush

Ghee or butter for final brushing 

For filling:

1 cup crumbled cottage cheese ( paneer)

1/2 cup Zataar mix

1/4 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp black pepper powder

1/4 tsp chaat masala powder

Salt to taste

*** You can use any filling of your choice ( potato filling, paneer filling, Nutella filling etc)

Method: 

For dough:

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, garlic powder or garlic, oregano, thyme , rosemary leaves and oil in flour and knead with yeast and warm water till it become soft, shiny and nonsticky dough. 

It may seem very sticky at the beginning but will become manageable after 6-7 mins of kneading. 

It will take 8 to 10 mins or even more ,to get perfect dough . apply some oil on it and cover with damp cloth, let it rest for 2 -3 hrs in a warm place like in closed microwave/oven or till it doubles it volume. 

Now punch the dough, again knead for 4-5 mins and cut in four equal parts.

Till then mix all the filling ingredients together . Keep aside for later use.

Cut the dough in four equal parts for four breads.

**** While making one bread , keep rest of dough covered.

SUNFLOWER BREAD:

First of all take 1 part dough and cut it in two equal size dough. Roll a little thick chapatti from it , place it on a baking tray lined with butter paper and spread paneer zataar filling on it evenly , leaving edges. 

Press it firmly to stick on the dough.Now make another thick chapatti from another part of dough and place it over filling, covering it fully. 

Now press the edges to seal. Using a big round bowl you can cut it to get perfect round shape flower.

 Now Place a small round cookie cutter or bowl at the center and make cuts on the dough as shown in pic.

Now twist each cut part as shown . Sprinkle some sesame seeds all over it and cover . Place at some warm place for second rise for at least 30 - 40 mins . 

Till then prepare for another bread.

Now brush it with some milk and bake for 15-20 mins at 220 degree C in a preheated oven or till desired colour it acquired. 

Remove from oven and brush some butter or ghee to get nice shiny finish and soft bread for long time.

Enjoy warm with hot cup of tea or coffee.

You can prepare this for any b'day party or in evening snacks or for kids tiffin too, they will love to relish on these beautiful paneer filled breads.

ROSE BREAD:

Now take 1 part of dough and cut it in gooseberry size small doughs. Take one dough and roll it to round chapatti and using a 3-4 inch diameter cookie cutter or bowl, cut round shape. Now make four equal size cuts on it as shown in pic. 

Place 1 tsp filling at the center and fold cuts as shown in pic. Your rose shape is ready. Place it on a baking tray lined with butter paper. Similarly make all the roses and sprinkle some sesame seeds on it.

*** Always keep prepared roses at some distance during second rise ,to avoid sticking on rising and baking. Otherwise it will ruin the shape of roses.

Now cover it and let it rest for 30-40 mins at a warm place. Now brush it with milk and bake at 220C for 15 -20 mins or till desired colour is acquired.

Remove from oven and brush with some ghee or butter.

 Now let it out and cool on a wire rack.

 Your savory yummy rose bread is ready to be served with a cup of tea or coffee. 

Kids will also enjoy it with some sauce . You can prepare it for your kitty party or for tiffin snacks too.

STAR BREAD:

Take 1 part of the dough and cut in two equal halves. Roll one part to a thick round chapatti , place on a baking tray lined with butter paper and spread filling on it evenly, leaving edges. Press it firmly to stick on dough. Now roll another half of dough to thick round chapatti of same size and place on filling, covering it completely. Press the edges to seal. Now place a small round cookie cutter or bowl at the center and make cuts as shown in pic.

Now hold two cut strips in both hands and twist them in opposite directions. Now stick their edges together. Similarly do with all the strips. Sprinkle some sesame seeds on it.

Now cover it and let it rest for 30-40 mins. Then brush it with milk and bake it at 220 degreeC for 15 -20 mins.

Remove from oven and brush with some butter or ghee.

 Now let it cool on a wire rack and your star bread is ready to be served to your kids.

Enjoy this lovely bread with your tea or coffee..

BRAIDED BREAD:

Take the last piece of dough and any left over from other doughs, cut in four equal parts. Now roll each dough in long ropes. 

Now tuck one end of each rope together and make braid as shown in pic. Place on a baking tray lined with butter paper. Sprinkle some sesame seed all over it. 

*** If you are not comfortable with four rope then go with three. And make braid as we do with hair.

Now cover it and let it rest for 30-40 mins then brush it with some milk and bake at 220 degree C in a preheated oven for 15-20 mins or till it become nice golden.

Now remove from oven and brush it with some ghee or butter.

Let it cool completely on a wire rack before slicing, to get neat slices.

Your yummy garlic herbed slices are ready to be served with butter or to be toasted.

Enjoy with hot tea or coffee.

**** Never divide bread dough by stretching,other wise the gluten formed during kneading will damage, just use knife or dough cutter to cut dough in pieces.

So bake these cuties and please your kids and family with your creativity. I tried to explain all the tips and tricks but if any thing left then please let me know by dropping down your queries and suggestions in comment box below. Your comments and suggestions meant a lot.

Happy cooking....