Lemon Rice

A very simple dish, yet tasty. Tried of cooking and want to eat some simple yet homemade food. This is one of the quickest south Indian dish that can be made. There can be variations to this, but all of us liked this recipe.


Ingredients:
Rice 1 cup (Cooked)
Lemon 2 nos
Turmeric 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Fried Cashews (Optional, can use peanuts)

Tempering:
Green chilly 3
Dry Red Chilly 2
Mustard 1 tsp
Black gram dal 2 tsp
Channa Dal 1 tsp
Ginger 2-3 small pieces
Curry leaves
Sesame Oil 2 tsp
Asafoetida 1/2 tsp

Chopped Coriander for garnishing

Preparation:
1) Spread the cooked rice while it is hot. Add 1 tsp sesame oil, Turmeric, salt and the lemon juice.
2) Meanwhile fry all the ingredients in the remaining oil and add to the rice.
3) Add the fried cashews and mix well. Garnish it with the chopped coriander

Good to be served with fried potatoes and mango pickle. Even plain potato chips would be good.

Simple Carrot Soup

A very simple dish, but due to it's creamy texture kids would definitely love it. Samyu a very fussy eater herself finishes it.

Ingredients:

Carrots 2 nos (if baby carrorts 10 to 15)
Unsalted butter 2 tbsp
Milk 1/4 cup
Heavy cream 2 tbsp
Pepper 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste


Preparation:

1) Cook and purée the carrots.
2) In a micro proof dish add milk and butter and microwave on high for 2 mins stirring in-between. (can add 1 tbsp maida to this mixture to make it more thick. Needs few extra mins for the raw smell of the maida to disappear).
3) Add the pureed carrots, salt & pepper and the cream and microwave on high for another 2 mins. Cool and serve.

We can puree fried onion, bean, peas together and add it to the soup and make it a complete vegetable soup.

Cup Cake

Ingredients:
Self raising flour 1 1/4 cups
Powdered Sugar 1 cup
Eggs 2 nos
Milk 1/2 cup
Butter 125gms (Room temperature)
Vanilla Essence few drops
Pink Food color - 2-3 drops (optional)
Pinch of salt

Preparation:
1) Preheat oven to 180 o C or 350 o F. Place the cupcake papers in a 12 cup capacity cupcake tin.
2) Beat the eggs and vanilla essence.
3) Beat in the butter and sugar and food color.
4) Mix the above two mixture and add the seived Flour and a pinch of salt.
5) Add the milk and beat until the mixture is smooth. There shouldn't be any lumps of flour.
6) Pour the mixture into the cupcake paper and place the tin in the preheated oven and bake for 15-18 mins or until done.

Spinach Rice

Ingredients:

Basmati rice 4 cups
Spinach 1lb
Big onion 1 nos
Ginger Garlic paste 2 tsp
Green Chillis 8 nos ground into a paste
Whole garam masala (4 cloves, 1″ cinnamom, 1 elachi, 1 star anise, 1 bay leaf)
Pudina leaves from 3-4 strands
Ghee 2 tbsp
Oil 1 tbsp
salt to taste
Garam masala powder 1/2 tsp
Coriander leaves chopped


Preparation:

1) Soak basmati rice in water for min 30 mins. Drain and fry the rice in 1 tbsp ghee for a few mins and set aside.
2) Add oil in the pan and fry the onion, ginger garlic paste, ground chillies and then add the spinach and fry until the raw smell is gone.
3) In a pressure cooker or rice cooker, add 8 cups water and add all the whole garam masala and let it boil for few mins and then add rice and the spinach and mix well.
4) Top it up with the remaining ghee and sprinkle the chopped corriander and garam masala powder and let it cook.
5) It can be served with raita. A cucumbar raitha tastes good with this.

Chocolate Brownie

Ingredients:

Plain chocolate 90 gms
Unsalted butter 150 g + extra for greasing
Plain Flour 125 gms (1 cup)
Cocoa powder 15 gms (1 tbsp)
Soft light Brown sugar 300 gms (1 1/4 cup)
Baking powder 1/2 tsp
Salt a pinch
Eggs 2
Vanilla extract 1 tsp
Chopped pecan/walnut 100 gms (optional)

Preparation:

1) Preheat oven to 180• C / 350• F. Grease a non-stick baking tin with butter
2) Break the chocolates into a bowl placed above another bowl of simmering water.
3) Once the chocolate starts melting add in the butter and stir occasionally. Once they are melted let it to cool.
The chocolate and butter can be melted in the microwave.
4) Sieve the flour, baking powder, cocoa and salt.
5) Beat the eggs and add the vanilla extract and the sugar and stir well.
6) Add the melted chocolate and butter mixture and stir.
7) Add the flour mixture and the nuts if it is used.
8) Pour the mixture into the baking pan and place it in the pre heated oven for 35-40 mins.

Vanilla Cake

Ingredients

Maida 1 1/2 cups
Powdered Sugar 1 1/2 cups
Butter 125 gms
Eggs 3 nos
Baking Powder - 1 tsp
Vanilla Essence - few drops
Nuts or Tutty Fruity (Optional)



Preparation

1) Sift maida and baking powder
2) Beat the eggs and vanilla and keep aside
3) Beat butter and sugar well. Add the egg and vanilla mixture
4) Add the maida to the mixture little at a time and beat the mixture in clockwise direction. Ensure that no lumps are formed.
5) Add the nuts to the mixture.
6) Preheat the oven to 200 o C and grease the baking tin with butter
7) Pour the mix into the baking tin and bake for 35 minutes at 200 o C

Biscuit

Ingredients

Maida - 1 1/2 cups
Powdered Sugar - 3/4 cup
Ghee & Vanaspathi - 3/4 Cup (both of them in equal propotion) or ghee - 3/4 cup
Milk Powder - 1 Tbsp
Custard Powder - 1 Tbsp
Cooking Soda - 1 pinch
Vannila essence - 2-3 drops
Cashew and Badam Powder - 1 tbsp (Optional)



Preparation
1) Mix all the above ingrediants without any lumps in it.
2) Make them into small round balls and spread it in a oven proof plate (Aluminium plate)
3) Preheat the oven to 200 o C
4) Bake it in the pre-heated oven for 15 mins at 200 o C
5) Take it out and let it cool.

Mutton Fry

Tried a mutton fry kind of semi gravy and came out well and the taste was good.

Ingrediants:

Mutton 750 grams
Onions 2 big
Curd 1/4 cup
Pepper powder - 1 tbsp
cumin powder - 1 tsp
Curry leaves
Green chilly - 1 (Optional)
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
coriander leaves
salt to taste
Oil/ghee

whole garam masala:
Cardamom - 2
Cloves - 3
cinnamon - 2

For masala:
Dry red chilly 6-7 nos
Garlic - 8
ginger - 2" stick
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Corriander powder - 1 1/2 tbsp

Preparation:

1) Fry the whole garam masala in oil.
2) Crush 3 cloves garlic and a little ginger and add it to the whole garam masala fry for a few seconds and then add the chopped onions.
3) Once the onions are fried well, add the cleaned mutton and add the turmeric and salt. Pressure cook until the mutton is cooked 3/4th.
4) Meanwhile fry the dry red chilly in ghee and set side. Fry the remaining ginger and garlic and the corriander powder and blend it into a fine paste.
5) Fry curry leaves and green chilly in a wide bottomed pan and add the cooked mutton to it and add the curd.
6) Stir it for few minutes and then add the ground masala, pepper powder and cumin powder to it and let it cook well until the water evaporates.
7) Sprinkle lemon juice and corriander leaves once the mutton fry is almost done.

Mushroom Black Pepper Fry

Had seen this recpie on MC India programme.... Tried it with available ingrediants. It came out well.

Ingrediants
1 packet Mushroom
Soy Sauce
Roasted and crushed Black Pepper
1 big Onion finely chopped
Dry red chilly - 2-3 nos
Capsicum - 1
Garlic pods - 3-4 chopped
Vegetable Stock
Cornflour
sugar a pinch
salt to taste
Red chilli sauce

Wonton Sheets - to fry and decorate (I didnt use this)

Preparation
Fry the mushroom adding cornflour, soy sauce, salt and pepper powder and keep aside

For sauce
1) Fry the red chilly
2) Add the chopped onions and garlic and stir for few mins
3) Add the chopped capsicum and add the roaster and crushed black pepper.
4) Add the vegetable stock and cornflour slurry then add the red chilli sauce, salt and pinch of sugar to it and fry for few seconds and then add the fried mushroom
5) Finally fry the wonton sheets ad decorate the mushroom fry.