Vegetable Biryani

Biryani is originated in Persia and might have taken couple of different routes to become part of Indian Cuisine. Biryani is derived from the Farsi word 'Birian' which means "fried" or "roasted". There are many different kinds of biryanis and each one has its own uniqueness. The moment someone says B-I-R-Y-A-N-I we normally remember the famous Hyderabadi Biryani. Although the recipe below is not for Hyderabadi Biryani, it is equivalently delicious & healthy with lots of vegetables boiled or sautéed instead of fried.

Palak Paneer

This Indian dish combines fresh spinach and paneer (cottage cheese) in a creamy sauce. I have tried many variations of Palak Paneer and the one below is one of my best. It is a vegetarian dish cooked in an onion-tomato-spinach based green sauce moderately spiced. It is a great accompaniment with rotis, naan or hot steamed rice. This is the healthy recipe for Palak Paneer since the Paneer is not fried but is still soft & tastes good.

No. of Servings: 3-4 persons
Preparation time: 25 mins



Ingredients:
2 bunches of fresh Spinach
300 gms of Paneer (Cottage Cheese)

1 onion
2 tomatoes
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp Garlic paste
1 tsp ginger paste
3 green chillies
1 tsp garam masala
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp Kasuri Methi (dry fenugreek leaves)
2 tbsp butter or oil
Method :
Wash Spinach, & boil it in a pan without adding water (i.e. allow it to boil in its own water).

Once spinach is boiled, drain the excess water (don’t throw it) and grind it.
In a pan take ½ tsp butter or oil, add cumin seeds & let them splutter.

Add onion followed by green chillies & tomatoes.

Saute for 2 mins.

Let the mixture cool & grind it.
In a pan add the remaining butter or oil.

Saute the onion-tomato mixture till fully cooked.
Add garlic & ginger paste, followed by garam masala, coriander powder and turmeric. Saute for additional 5 mins.
Now add the pureed Spinach, let it boil (if required add water) followed by Kasuri Methi
Finally add paneer and simmer for additional 5 mins.
One can also garnish it with more butter. Serve hot with Paratha.

Tips / Variations:
One can add more chilli paste as per taste & one’s liking.
To make paneer soft, place paneer cubes in warm water for approx 15 -20 mins.

Vegetable Frankie

Frankie is the most popular fast food on the streets of Mumbai. The one I liked the most is near my house at Ghatkopar, Mumbai. Frankie is a crepe filled with spicy & tangy stuffing of potatoes, vegetables and dry mango powder (Amchur). The other variations for stuffing is paneer. But the recipe I am sharing here is typical Bamabiyaa style Frankie. There are also various style of making the Crepe batter. One can also use ready Tortilla, but for authentic Frankie try out the crepe batter as suggested below.No. of servings: 6 personsPreparation Time: 30 minsStuffing:Ingredients for Stuffing:¼ tsp Mustard seeds¼ tsp Cumin seeds7 medium size Potatoes (boiled & mashed)2 medium size Onion (finely chopped)2 small Green Bell pepper (finely chopped)1 cup Tomato puree3 tsp Garlic paste½ tsp Ginger paste½ tsp Green chilly paste¼ tsp Turmeric powder2 tbsp Red chilly powder3 tsp Garam Masala¼ cup finely chopped Coriander2 tbsp OilSalt as per tasteMethod for stuffing:Heat oil in a pan and then add mustard seeds and let it splutter & then add cumin seedsNow add onion and saute till it becomes translucentAdd ginger, chilly & garlic paste and stir for 2 minsThen add tomato puree followed by red chilly powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, salt and cook it for 5 minsNow add mashed potatoes and then finally Bell pepper and coriander.Mix well.Crepe Batter:Ingredients for Crepe Batter:2½ cup White/All purpose Flour (Maida)5 tbsp Gram flour (Besan)2 cups WaterPinch of SaltMethod for Crepe Batter:Mix all the above ingredients thoroughly except water.Now slowly add water with simultaneously stirring the batter so that no lumps are formed.Note:If required adjust the water to get the consistency as that of Dosa Batter (i.e. neither too thick nor too liquidy)Seasoning:Ingredients for Seasoning:½ cup Dates & Tamarind paste (Kahjur Imli Chutney)½ cup Mint coriander chutney (Phudina Chutney)Frankie Powder (4tbsp dry mango powder (Amchur) + 2 tbsp black salt (Snachal) + 1 tbsp Red chilly Powder)1 Onion (long & thin slices)2 cups grated Cheddar cheese (optional)Note:One can also use Apple sauce in place of Dates & Tamarind Paste (Khajur Imli Chutney)Final Steps:How to proceed:Heat the pan on medium heatNow spread the batter like dosa or omlette or crepeAfter approx 30 secs flip the crepe (do not wait till it turns completely brown)Take approx 1 tsp of Mint coriander chutney & spread on the crepeSimilarly spread 1 tsp of Khajur Imli ChutneySprinkle little bit of Frankie powderPlace the stuffing in the centre of the crepe as shown in the pictureGarnish it with onion, Frankie powder and cheese as per tasteWrap it up and enjoy hot Frankie with or without Tomato Ketchup

Ragda Patties

No. of servings: 5Preparation Time: 30 minsIngredients for Ragda:2 cups Yellow peas dried (Vatana)2 tbsp Oil½ tsp Mustard seeds½ tsp Cumin seeds1 tsp Garam Masala¼ tsp Turmeric powder1 tsp Red chilly powder3 tsp Ginger chilly paste2 tbsp Lemon juice3 tbsp Grated jaggery6 cups Water or as per required consistencyA pinch of AsafoetidaSalt to tasteMethod for Ragda:Soak the peas overnight.Drain, add fresh water and pressure cook until 3 whistlesIn a pan, heat oil and add mustard seeds and let it splutterAdd cumin seeds & add asafoetidaAdd in all the ingredients for ragda with 1 cup of water and mix well mashing the peas slightly so that the gravy thickens.Simmer for 10 mins and keep asideIngredients for Patties:7 big Potato2 tbsp corn flour1 tsp Aamchur i.e. Dry Mango Powder (or can substitute with juice of half lemon)1 tbsp Ginger chilly paste1 tbsp Garam masala½ cup Coriander ½ cup Mint leaves (finely chopped)Salt as per tasteMethod for Patties:Boil, peel & mash potatoesAdd all the ingredients for patties and mix well.With the help of greased hands form 12-14 round flat 1/2" thick 2" round patties, (use mould if you want any other shapes, eg. hearts, diamonds, etc.) Roast few at a time on a greased hot griddle. Turn once to roast other side, making them crisp and golden brown. Keep aside.Ingredients for garnishing: Sweet Chutney / Tamarind ChutneyGreen Chutney / Mint ChutneyGarlic Chutney1 Onion chopped1 cup Nylon SevFew strands of Coriander Leaves choppedFinal Steps:Place 2 warmed patties in an individual bowl and pour some hot ragda over it so that patties are covered completlyTop with all chutneys. Sprinkle some sev & onions on top.Garnish with Coriander leavesServe immediately

Thai Red Curry

Kartik’s favorite cuisine is Thai. One day I decided to surprise him by making the same. Since I had never made any Thai food earlier, I referred n number of recipes… & finally decided to make Veg. Thai Red Curry with homemade red curry paste. The recipe below is a combination of the many recipes referred. It is one of the easiest & simple to cook recipe when one gets the craving for Thai food. Hope u all Like it!

No. of Servings : 2 persons
Preparation Time : 20 mins

Ingredients :

• 4 tbsp Red curry paste
• 1tbsp Paprika or Kashmiri chilly powder
• 1¼ cup Coconut milk
• 1 cup Boiled vegetables (French beans, broccoli, baby corn)
• ½ cup Carrot
• ½ cup Bell Pepper (red and green)
• ½ cup Onion
• 1 tbsp Basil leaves
• 1 tbsp Sugar
• ½ tsp Soy sauce
• ½ cup Extra firm tofu (small cubes)
• 2 tbsp Olive oil
• Salt to taste

Method :

• Heat oil
• Saute tofu & remove it on the side
• In the same oil add carrots and saute for 1 min
• Add onion saute for 2 more mins
• Add bell pepper for additional 1 min
• Reduce to low flame and add curry paste
• Add paprika or kashmiri chilly powder & saute for few more mins
• Then finally add coconut milk followed by boiled veggies, basil salt & sugar.
• In the end add sauted tofu & soy sauce
• Serve with plain boiled (Jasmine) rice

Tips/Variations :

• One can adjust spicy taste by reducing or increasing red chillies or by using oil with red chilly.
• Also if anyone likes more of Basil, you can definitely increase the quantity of the same.

Vegetable Pasta

It is very easy to cook Italian dish. Whenever I feel lazy to cook but still want to eat something tasty as well as easy, Pasta is one of the dishes that comes to my mind. Here it goes…

No. of Servings : 3-4
Preparation Time : 25 mins


Ingredients :

• 2 ½ cup wheat Pasta
• 1 Onion (long & thin)
• 2 Carrots ( long & thin)
• ½ cup chopped French beans (partially boiled)
• 1 cup Broccoli (partially boiled)
• 1 small yellow Bell Pepper
• 1 small green Bell Pepper
• ½ diced tomato
• 2 spring onions
• 1 tbsp Minced garlic (if u like more garlic, u can increase the qty)
• 2cups tomato puree
• 1tsp finely chopped fresh basil
• 2 tsp Parsley
• ¼ tsp red chilly flakes
• Salt & Black pepper to taste
• 1tsp Oregano
• ½ tsp Italian Seasoning

Method :

• Boil pasta & keep aside
• Heat oil in a pan, Fry ½ tbsp minced garlic & some oregano…but don’t let it get burnt
• Add Carrots and saute for 1 min then add onion-saute for 2 mins & finally add bell pepper-saute it for 1 or 2mins.
• Now add Tomato sauce, followed by tomatoes, spring onions
• Add all spices like black pepper, chilly flakes, Italian seasoning, rest of oregano.
• Lastly add basil & parsley and followed by pasta.

Paneer Bhurji

We love paneer/cottage cheese in all forms. This is one of our favorite & easy to cook paneer recipe without any rich and creamy sauce like other paneer recipes. It is just a simple stir fry of scrambled paneer, with green chilies, onions, bell pepper & tomatoes. Paneer can be bought from any Indian Grocery store or can be made at home, the recipe of which i will add soon. The Paneer used in the recipe below is homemade Paneer from Fat free milk.