mixed vegetables and beans cracked wheat pulav

healthy and delicious version of Daliya (cracked wheat or Bulgar wheat) for weight watchers.
simple and easy to make with calorie value of 120 for one bowl serving.

Ingredients:-

1) mixed beans(rajma,white eyed beans, canola bean...we usually get a pack in all the supermarkets)
    - 1 cup soaked overnight
2) mixed vegetables ( cabbage ,cauliflower, brinjal. green peas, carrots or anything of ur choice)

3) daliya or Bulgar wheat- 1 cup

4)onion 1 finely diced

5)1 tomato-optional

6)cumin seeds-1 tsp

7)green chilies-2

8)olive oil -1 tsp

9)a pinch of turmeric powder,1 tsp of garam masala powder

METHOD

1)heat a pressure cook add oil ,cumin seed,green chilly and onions
2)add all the beans,vegetables,powdered masala and salt
3)add daliya/bulgar wheat and tomato and stir well.
4)after around 5 mins add 1 cup water and pressure cook till 2-3 whistles.
5)serve with yogurt or raita.

Matar paneer Salad

Watching the whole family tuck into the weekly Sunday lavish meal while you enjoy a salad isn’t an option. With a little forethought and creativity you can enjoy exactly the same meal as everyone else with a fraction of the calories.Last sunday while preparing a regular spicy matar paneer for lunch I found an alternative option  for myself  ' matar Paneer Salad' ...which tested awesome with whole what pitta bread.

So here the recipe for you.......

1) tofu/Paneer(Dry curd cottage cheese)- 1 cup diced

2)Green peas (defrosted if frozen)- 1 cup

3) corainder or parsley leaves

4)green chillies- finely chopped 1-2

5)extra virgin olive oil 2 tbsp

6)lemon/lime juice-1/4 cup

7)salt and pepper

8)Chat masala-optional.

9)Onions-1roughly chopped

10)Garlic-2 cloves finely chopped

How I made it:-

1)Heat few drops of oil in a pan and saute onion and and garlic for 1 min 

2)add peas and paneer and fry gently for 1-2 mins.Set aside to cool down.

3)for the vinaigrette -In a mixing bowl add  olive oil,lemon juice,coriander leaves,green chilies ,chat masala ,salt and pepper and whisk for 1/2 min.

4)pour the dressing over matar paneer mixture and and mix well.

5)serve with tomatoes and lettuce on side.You can also serve as pitta bread sandwich .

Nan-khatai - An Indian cookies

Nankhatai puts me in flashback and evokes lots of memories in me mainly because,that is probably the closest I came to baking while I was a child.I don’t remember if I enjoyed eating it as much as I enjoyed seeing it baking in our OTG which my father bought for me just because I insisted him alot.I used to shout in happiness when I saw them puff up and break oh-so-gently on top making it the best and perfect nankhatais ever.One day one of my childhood friend Premu told me that how much she liked the nankhatais made by me though ahan!! she never praised me that time :)..So for you my loving Friend Premu I am putting this recipe first time on my blog :).

Ingredients

Maida/Flour - ¾ cup

Cooking soda - 1/8 tsp

Powdered Sugar - ¼ cup

Ghee or unsalted butter - 1/3 cup[generous]

Cardamom and Powdered Nutmeg - ¼ tsp each

Preheat oven to 180C.

Method :-

Cream the sugar and the ghee until well blended.

Sift the flour with the soda. Add this to the sugar-ghee mixture. Add the cardamom and nutmeg powders. 

Make a dough and divide into small balls. 

Flatten each ball onto a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 180 C.

Allow to cool and store in airtight containers.

rice and dal chilla!

As a kid I always relished my grandma's recipe called as  dhuska in Jharkhand state in India.

she prepared it with a batter made up of basmati rice and chana dal soaked overnight and then deep frying them shaped as doughnuts served with tomato chutney.I always prepare them but despite frying I prefer to make chillas out of them on nonstick pain with a dash of olive oil ....(I always take Extra care to cut the calories however possible)...I admit its less gud as hers...but its pleasing to tuck in the same flavors.

Recipes as following:-

Ingredients

1) 2 cups basmati rice and 1 cup chana dal soaked overnight

2)1 onion chopped very fine

3)2-3 spring onions chopped very fine

4)green chilies2- chopped  

5)coriander leaves(optional)

6) salt and pepper

Method

1) Grind together the soaked rice and dal into smooth batter with a consistency like dosa batter(add water if needed)

2)Mix in all the ingredients no2 to no6 

3) heat a non stick griddle or Pan and add dash of olive oil pour the batter and Spread the mix on pan in circular motion to prepare thin chillas

Cook on both the sides, I like it little crispier

veg quassidilla

A quesadilla is basically a Mexican-style stuffed pancake,like a toasted sandwich, made with two tortillas sandwiched together with a cheese-based filling. They are warmed through and served with guacamole and sour cream. 

They are one of my favourite things to eat at office ....'ON NO NONVEG DAYS' though it has non-veg version too.

After watching a cookery show 'Mexican food made simple' on foodnetwork I realized its so simple to make recipe and one dish meal...with a cooking time of less than 10-20mins you are all set to tuck in a wonderful meal.Combined with the crunch of sauteed vegetable and cheese filling, I was quite pleased with the end result my Taste bud( which is tuff to satisfy!!) and top of that my husband and the little relished it. I am happy that there is one more healthy recipe loaded with a lot of vegetables to add to my blog.

Just give it a try !! 

Here comes the recipe...

Ingredients:-

1)readymade whole flour tortilla

2)green peas-1/2 cup

3)green beans and capsicum-cut in very small pcs- half cup

4)finely sliced carrots-1/2 cup

5)sweet corn kernels-1/2 cup

6)finely chopped 1 onion

7)1/2 cup canned tomatoes /2-3 finely chopped fresh tomatoes

5)grated paneer/any cheese(shredded cheddar or mozarella) of ur choice.

6)tomato ketchup-2 tsp

7)salt and pepper

Method:-

1)Heat olive oil/veg oil in a wok and add onions,when it turns translucent add all the vegetables one by one 

2)after sauting for 2-3 mins add chopped tomatoes, tomato sauce,salt and pepper.

3)turn the heat off and add the paneer or cheese or both :)

4)take the tortillas and fill half of it with the filling and flap over it the the other hal and press gently 

5)Pre-heat a griddle and on medium heat roast both sides of the quesadilla brownish. flipping over to toast both sides.

 Ensure that you cook it over medium heat, you want the cheese to melt inside. Drizzle some oil if you want while frying the quesadilla

6)serve with chhese dip spreading on the top..and Enjoy!!

vegetable poha!!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 kg Poha (thick ones) 

• 2 Potatoes (medium sized) 

• 4 tbsp Green Peas 

• 4 tbsp Ground Nuts 

• 2 Onions (medium sized) 

• 7 tbsp Oil 

• 1 tsp Mustard Seeds 

• 5 Green Chilies 

• 1 Carrot (finely chopped) ,cauliflower chopped,potatoes cut very small

• 11/2 tsp Turmeric Powder

• 3 tbsp Coriander Leaves (finely chopped) 

• 1 lemon (juice) 

• Curry Leaves (few) 

• Salt to taste 

How to make Vegetable Poha:

• Wash the poha nicely and strain all the water out. Keep it aside.

• Heat oil in kadai or a wok. Add mustard seeds and ground nuts.

• When they start to splutter add onions, chilies, potatoes, carrot, green peas, capsicum,cauliflower and curry leaves.

• Fry them till the onions turn pink and the vegetables become soft.

• Add turmeric powder, salt and poha. Stir them well and allow it to simmer for five minutes

• Add lemon juice, and garnish it with coriander leaves.

• Serve hot.

DHOKLA IN MICROWAVE

Ingredients for dhokla
Besan/Gram flour-1 cup
Oil-3tsp
(I didn't use)
Salt to taste
Curd-2tbsp
Baking soda-1/8tsp
Sugar-1/8tsp
Lime juice-1tsp
Turmeric powder-less than 1/8tsp
Hot water-1/4 cup
Grated ginger & green chillies together-1tsp
Liquid to pour on top
Water-1/2 cup
Salt a pinch
Sugar-1 & 1/2 tsp
Lime juice-1tsp
(mix everything together)
Tempering
Oil-2tsp
Jeera-1/2 tsp
Mustard-1tsp
Garnish
Chopped coriander leaves & grated coconut




Method
Grease a glass tray & keep it aside.In another bowl mix besan,curd,salt,lime juice,sugar,grated ginger & green chillies.Pour hot water & whisk it well without any lumps.Now add the cooking soda mix it well & pour it immediately in the greased tray.Microwave it for 3 minutes.Insert a tooth pick to check its done.Cut into desired shape & pour the liquid on top while still warm.Temper & garnish it .Serve it with green chutney.

Friend's recipe Pasta in tomato basil sauce

One of my friend's recipe whichI really liked ...its yummilicious!!!!!!

Ingredients.

Pasta of your choice boiled 2 cups

Ready made tomato basil sauce-1 cup

olive oil-2 tbsp

onion-1 finely chopped

green chilly- 1-2 finely chopped

garlic -2-3 cloves finely chopped

salt and pepper

capsicum-finely chopped

butter/mayo/cream-1 tbsp

Method:-

1.heat oil and add onion,garlic and chillies and capsicum and saute for a minute

2.add readymade sauce

3 add salt and pepper and keep frying.

4 add pasta and mix well.

5.add butter or cream or mayonnaise for a smooth taste

onion and lettuce uttapam

Uttapam is a very popular South Indian dish. Here is Uttapam recipe. 

Ingredients:

Batter (1:3 ratio of urad dal and rice)

1 Tomato

1 small Onion

lettuce leave for garnishing

1 bunch of fresh Coriander leaves

Little broken Cashewnut or Putna or both

1 or 2 Green Chillies

Method:

Put them all in a small chopper and cut them very fine

In a cup of batter, mix all of it and add little salt.

Put your non-stick pan or tawa on burner and heat it up to medium heat. Use a serving spoon to spread the batter thick, spread a tsp of oil on sides (optional) and cover the pan for a while. Fire should be between medium and low. When it is ready (light brown) remove the lid and turn the Uttapam with the help of a spatula.

Allow it to bake for a while without the lid now. Turn it once more and keep it for less than a minute to make it crisp add lettuce. Serve with sambar and coconut chutney

note:-Batter is made up of 1 portion of urad dal and 3 portions of rice. One half of the rice is boiled rice and other half is kolam or basmati or any rice other than boiled rice. Rice and dal are washed separately and left overnight to soak well and after grinding them very fine separately, they are mixed well and left to ferment in a warm place for 12 to 18 hours.

sabudana khichdi

Ingredients

• 1 cup dry sago or sabudana
• 1/4 cup ghee
• 2 green chile peppers, chopped
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons coarsely ground peanuts
• 2 tablespoons grated fresh coconut
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• red onion 1(if it is not for fast)-finely chopped
• salt to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped coriander(optional)
• 1/4 cup plain yogurt (optional)

• Directions

  1. In a bowl, soak the sago 8 hours, or overnight, in enough water to cover.
  2. Melt the ghee in a large saucepan over medium heat. Reduce heat to low, and mix in the (onions -if not preparing for fast)green chile peppers and cumin seeds. Cook and stir until browned.
  3. Stir the sago, peanuts, and coconut into the saucepan. Over medium heat, cook and stir about 10 minutes, until sago is crisp. Mix in the sugar and salt. Top with yogurt, and garnish with coriander to serve.