Apple Pomegranate Lettuce Salad

During summer, most mid day meals are usually light and many a time, its salad and a large glass of a summer cooler or buttermilk, especially during the month of May. Today, I prepared a simple, colorful, crunchy, fruity salad, flecked with calcium rich toasted sesame seeds. Our lunch was salad and a mint flavored chilled lemonade.

In a bowl, whisk 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, large pinch of cinnamon pwd, few drops of lemon juice, pinch of salt and pepper to taste, 1/4 tbsp honey OR pineapple OR orange juice and a tbsp of toasted sesame seeds. Add 1 chopped apple, 1 peeled and chopped cucumber, grated small carrot, small bowl of pomegranate and washed and torn lettuce. Toss well till combined with dressing. Serve chilled.

You can add any fruit or nuts/raisins.

During summer, most mid day meals are usually light and many a time, its salad and large glass of a summer cooler or buttermilk, especially during the month of May. Today, I prepared a colorful, crunchy salad and a mint flavored lemonade for our mid day meal.
source: sailus food

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Tutti Frutti Cake

I am enjoying the season of cool temperatures and the kind of cooking and baking that it entails. I find myself drawn to firing up the oven more often than usual. Day before yesterday was a drizzly overcast day and I baked this simple yet interesting cake. We nibbled on it all day to find the cake disappear on the day of its preparation. If you want to bake this cake, try baking in a loaf pan and use pineapple essence which gives it a lot more flavor than vanilla essence. I used a part of the cake batter to prepare few cupcakes for Nehal’s school snack box.

Tutti Frutti Cake Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour/maida

2 tsps baking pwd

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/4 cup granulated white sugar

1/2 cup soft white butter

2 eggs, room temperature

1/2 cup low fat milk

1/2 cup tutti frutti

2 tsps pineapple essence or vanilla essence

1 Preheat oven to 175 C. Grease and flour a loaf tin.
2 Sieve maida, baking soda and baking pwd thrice and keep aside.
3 In a bowl, cream butter and sugar till smooth and creamy. Add one egg at a time and beat till well combined. Add pineapple essence and combine.
4 Add the flour in three additions alternating with milk, starting with flour and ending with flour. Do not over beat, just mix till well combined in low speed.
5 Sprinkle some flour over the tutti frutti to coat them. Add this tutti frutti to the batter and fold gently into the batter. Do not beat it but just fold until combined.
6 Pour batter into the greased and floured loaf tin. Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 mts or till a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Place on a wire rack to cool for 15 mts. Remove cake from pan and slice.

SOURCE: sailus fooD

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Simple Fish Roast

You can explore with different spices but go slow on the amount of spices you’d add to the marinade. You wouldn’t want the spices to overpower the flavor of fish. I have avoided garam masala but a pinch can be added. Do not omit lemon since its the key to the bright flavor of fish roast.

Ingredients:
8-9 medium sized fish fillet, washed
1 1/2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
juice of one lemon
pinch cumin pwd
large pinch coriander powder
pinch turmeric pwd
1 1/2 tsps red chilli pwd
salt to taste
1 1/4 tbsps oil
few curry leaves

1 Combine ginger garlic paste, lemon juice, salt, red chilli pwd, turmeric pwd, cumin pwd and coriander pwd in a flat dish. Apply this marinade lightly to the fish pieces and keep aside for 20-30 mts.
2 Heat oil in a non-stick pan, add few curry leaves, place the marinated fish and fry for 14-15 mts on low to medium flame.
3 Once its nicely browned, flip over gently to the other side and roast fish for another 10-12 mts till browned.
4 Serve hot with onion rings and lemon wedges.

source : sailus

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Cheesy Vegetable Pasta Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups boiled whole wheat pasta (penne or fusilli)
3/4 - 1 cup mixed vegetables (sliced or cubed and par boiled)
1 onion, finely chopped
2 crushed garlic flakes
2 tbsps grated cheese (mozzarella or amul cheese cube)
1 tbsp butter
3/4 tbsp maida/all purpose flour
1 onion, finely chopped
1/4 tsp mixed dried herbs or oregano or parsley
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 cup low fat milk
salt to taste
1 Cook penne or fusilli in salted rapidly boiling water, add a tbsp of oil and cook until al dente, drain completely. Sprinkle a tbsp of olive oil and keep aside.
2 Heat butter in a vessel, add chopped onions and garlic saute till transparent.
3 Add the maida and saute for 2-3 mts. Add the par boiled vegetables and combine. Slowly add the milk and go on combining till it forms a creamy consistency. Add a tbsp of grated cheese, salt, mixed herbs and pepper to taste and combine. Add the cooked pasta and combine.

4 Remove onto a baking dish, sprinkle cheese and bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees C for 10-12 mts. Serve hot.

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Vegetable Sandwich

This is Mumbai’s famous street food fare. Makes for a filling breakfast or brunch or evening snack. You can have it toasted or just plain without toasting.

Butter two slices. Liberally apply green chutney on the unbuttered sides of both the bread slices. On one of the slices, start layering with boiled potato slices, cucumber slices, tomato slices, onion slices and capsicum rounds. Sprinkle chaat masala pwd and black pepper pwd on top. Layer with a cheese slice (optional). Top with the bread slice and toast till golden brown. Serve warm with tomato ketchup.

Green chutney recipe: Grind 1 cup chopped coriander leaves, few mint leaves, 1-2 green chilli, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp sugar and 1/2 tsp salt to a fine paste, adding little water.

Share and Enjoy

source: sailus

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Chicken Masala Recipe

There are certain recipes which always remain our favorites and we can never be tired of cooking them over and over again. One such favorite recipe that I cook often and is enjoyed by my family and friends is the Spicy Chicken Masala Curry. This chicken curry recipe is not a fancy one, very simple, straightforward and quick to make. I don’t remember the recipe source, its been there in my recipe files since ages, thought I’d share it.

There are endless variations to the chicken curry and today’s chicken curry is prepared with the same basic ingredients as any normal chicken curry, the only other major ingredient is cashewnut paste. The spice level of the curry is high due to the use of black pepper and chilli powder. But the blending of cashewnut paste with the spices offsets the spicy flavor of the curry and gives this dish its unmistakable, not-too-rich, subtly sweet, warm and spicy flavour.


Spicy Chicken Masala Recipe
Recipe source: From my recipe files
Prep & Cooking Time: 30-35 mts
Serves 4-5 persons
Cuisine: South Indian
.
Ingredients:
Marinate:
½ kg chicken, washed and cut into medium sized pieces
3 tbsp curds
1 tsp red chilli powder (adjust to suit your spice level)
¼ tsp turmeric pwd
salt to taste
Make a paste:
6-7 cashewnuts
4-5 tbsps milk
Dry roast and make a fine powder:
1” cinnamon
10-12 curry leaves
3 cloves
Rest of the ingredients:
3-4 tbsps oil
2 big onions finely chopped
1 large tomato finely chopped
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tsp coriander powder
3/4 tsp black pepper powder (adjust to suit your spice level)
¼ tsp cumin powder
coriander leaves for garnish

1 Marinate chicken pieces in chilli powder, turmeric powder, curds and salt for 20 mts.
2 While the chicken pieces are marinating, make a paste of cashewnuts and milk. Keep aside.
3 Dry roast cinnamon, cloves and curry leaves for 1 mt and make a powder of them. Keep aside.
4 Heat 1 1/2 tbsps of oil in a cooking vessel. Add the onions and saute till pink. Add ginger-garlic paste and saute further for another 3-4 minutes on medium heat.
5 Add coriander pwd, cumin pwd, pepper pwd and combine well and fry for another minute.
6 Add the tomatoes and let it cook for 3-4 minutes. Combine well and cook till oil separates.Turn off heat. Cool and grind the cooked masala. Keep aside this masala paste.
7 Heat 1 1/2 tbsps oil in a cooking vessel and add the marinated chicken and cook on high flame for 4-5 minutes, reduce heat and cook covered for another 4-5 minutes.
8 Add the ground masala paste, cashewnut paste and ground powder of cinnamon, cloves and curry leaves and combine well. (Add a cup of water for more gravy consistency). Cook till chicken pieces are soft and you get the desired curry consistency. Adjust salt.
9 Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

Note:
Adjust the spices according to your choice. Dont over fry the masala too much or burn it as its the masala paste which gives the chicken its flavor. If you dont have curry leaves on hand, don’t worry. Do add more water for a gravy consistency. One variation is add a tbsp of coconut paste and juice of half a lemon to the above curry for added flavour.

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