Laccha Paratha and Saag Paneer

The 'Saag' making started with a funny incident at the Indian store....There were a few different greens and I didn't know the names of all.The store owner told me the name of this green(which I don't remember now) in his language.I asked him what all can you make with this green and he told a few dishes.He saw I still wasn't 'sold'....then he said to me.."Just buy it....why are you thinking....it's a Green vegetable....It won't harm you for sure' and then you don't have to worry about calories either'!!!
I bought the bunch:)

Saag Recipe

1 bunch greens chopped(Spinach/ Mustard/ any other)
1 cup cubed paneer
1/2 onion chopped
2 clove garlic minced
1/2 cup heavy cream/whole milk
1/4 cup yogurt
2tsp corn flour
1/2tsp Garam masala powder
1/2tsp Shah jeera
1/2tsp red chili powder
salt
sugar
oil

Method:
1) Chop the greens and pressure cook. Coarse Puree/ mash them up.
2) Heat 2tsp oil, saute jeera, onions and garlic,Add the cooked greens, milk and some water.
3) Fry the paneer cubes till golden or leave them as is.
4) Add the rest of the spices,salt sugar and yogurt to the saag.Add paneer cubes and let it simmer for few minutes.

Laccha Paratha

 I had heard about this unique technique of rolling the dough for Laccha Paratha and wanted to try it out myself.
The dough is first rolled out in a circle, then pleated like a paper fan, then rolled like a snail, pressed and then rolled out again. The result is a unique circular layered texture to the parathas!!!

1)I used regular chapati dough to make these. I applied some oil+flour on the inside to get the texture.Ideally you should apply oil/ghee liberally to get more layered texture......but I skimped on it.

2) After all the dough balls were done rolling this way..I let them sit for some time and then rolled them out into parathas.

3) Baked them on hot tava with some oil  and served them with the Saag Paneer!

Brown Rice- Spicy Green Chili and Onion "Appe"

It's weekend and have promised myself to write a blog post at least every week or two.
Since a long time, I had been wanting this 'Appe' pan, and finally I have it!!!

 Now, there might be many "Appe' batter recipes...but I remember the ones my mom made when I was little. She used the plain 'Idli' batter and added onions,green chilies and cilantro to the batter.I did just the same!! I used brown rice to make a healthier version.

Ingredients:
1.5 Cups brown rice
0.5 Cup white rice
1 cup Urad daal
salt

1 Finely chopped Onion
2 -4 green chilies finely chopped
1tbsp chopped cilantro
1 tsp cumin

Method:
1) Soak brown rice, white rice and daal separately for 5-6 hrs. Grind them into a fine paste and mix.
2) Let the batter ferment overnight.
3) Brush the Appe pan with oil and keep on the hot stove.
4) Add the chopped onion,green chilies, cilantro,salt and cumin to the batter.
5) Add 2tsp batter to the appe pan and cook with lid on for 2-3 mins.Turn the appe gently with a wooden dowel/ spoon.
6) Add a few drops oil. Let it cook for 1-2 mins till golden brown.

7) Serve  hot with your favorite chutney and sambar!

Vanilla Cake with Strawberry jelly filling and "Shaggy mum' flower design

Where have I disappeared?? Well.....meet the new Research Associate at Indiana University!!! Yes...going 'back' to work after 5 year long 'maternity' break! 
As you can guess, the passion that kept me 'busy' and 'motivated' all through the 5 years...will take a bit of a back seat now...and you won't see me blogging as before,but I will be cooking sizzling food and posting whenever possible. I hope you understand and keep visiting TheSizzlingPan as you always have:) 

Last week we celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary and I baked this cake specially for the big day!

I was looking for a Vanilla cake recipe...with oil instead of butter and I found a good one here:
http://acookatheart.blogspot.com/2011/03/simple-vanilla-cake-using-oil.html 

I baked the cakes( 2 round, 8 inch cakes) as directed.Made some butter cream icing in white and light green color.
In between the 2 cakes, I applied a layer of strawberry jelly/ jam.

Frosted the cakes with green icing. I made the shaggy mum flowers with stiff white icing. The final touch was the 'edible pearls' sprinkled on the flowers.

 What was on the menu for our Anniversary day???  We 'relived' our BIG day by recreating our 'Lagnacha menu'/ Wedding day menu on the 10th Anniversary:)

Egg-in-a-Hole!

Since the summer break started, I hardly get to watch my favorite "Food Network". Little 'E' has captured the TV and plays "Magic School Bus' NON Stop!!

Just when he was busy with something else, I happened to see a part of Ree Drummond's show and she was making ....Egg in a Hole!!! Loved the simplicity and the 'wow' factor which could be created with such few ingredients and I totally saw myself making this for breakfast the very next day!!

Here is the recipe:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/egg-in-a-hole-recipe/index.html

The only thing which I had to do extra was..to cook the egg longer to cook the yolk completely. ( I don't like uncooked flavor of eggs) Some yolk was still moist....which I re-heated in the pan to cook it fully.

Vegetable Biryani

I know..I know..what you are thinking...I haven't been blogging actively lately....but a lot is happening this month and it's hard to catch up with everything!! Both kiddos birthdays in June, then the Puerto Rico trip...'in-laws' will be here next week...M's work travel....
Anyways....here is my favorite "Vegetable Biryani' recipe that I made for lil 'A's birthday party. The theme was 'Soap bubbles' as she loveeess popping bubbles and I made snack foods that were 'round' like bubbles!!

Round Melon balls in Melon shells-

Nutella sandwiches cut into circles-

Vegetable Biryani Recipe:

Ingredients:
Rice-
1 cup Basmati rice
1.5 cups Hot water plus a little more
4 of each cloves, black peppers,small cinnamon pieces
1/2tsp black jeera
salt
2tsp oil

Vegetable masala-
1/4 cup each of carrots,cauliflower,potatoes,green pepper,peas, corn kernels
1/2 cup dry/fresh grated coconut
2 medium onions sliced
2 medium tomatoes
1tbsp  chopped mint
1tsp sesame seeds
2tsp Biryani masala
2tsp red chili powder
2tsp ginger-garlic
4 of each cloves, black peppers,small cinnamon pieces
1tsp black jeera
salt
4tsp oil

Toppings and garnishing-
1 large onion sliced and fried till golden brown.
1 potato fried like french fries
1/4 tsp saffron in 2tsp warm milk
Chopped Cilantro
Chopped mint
Cashews
Almonds

Method:
1) Wash the rice and keep aside. Heat oil, add the cloves etc, ad the rice and saute for few seconds. Add the hot water,salt and let the rice cook and absorb the water. Cover for 10 mins. Then spread the rice in large plates to cool and help the grains remain separated.
2) For the veg.masala- roast the coconut, onions,tomatoes till golden. Let them cool. Grind in the blender along with ginger-garlic, sesame seeds.
3) Heat 2tsp oil,add cloves,cumin etc and the vegetables. Saute the vegetables till golden.Add the above masala paste, chili powder, biryani masala, salt etc Add very little water and cook.Add the chopped mint and mix.
4) Layering-
Coat the pan with some oil Add some cooked rice in a layer. Top with some Vegetable masala, fried onions, potatoes , chopped mint and cilantro.
Layer with rice again, then masala, then rice again. Top and decorate with the garnishing.
Pour the saffron-milk mixture all over the rice.
Steam in the oven/ stove top on low flame till steaming hot!

Serve hot along with cool cucumber-onion-yogurt Raita!

Refreshing 'Spa' Water!

Since the past few trips that we took, it has become customary (and I love it!), that 'M' takes care of the kids and I visit the Spa in the resort we are staying in! I feel guilty at times, that I get pampered, but love the occasional indulgence!

This time, in Puerto Rico, I visited this "Bali' influenced Spa named 'Mandara'. After the Spa treatment, they offered this cool refreshing drink.... Simple cold water that had Lemon slices,Cucumber slices and strawberries soaking in it ....It was SO simple yet..SO Refreshing....I drank like 4 glasses of it.....literally:)

How to make it:

Fill a glass jug with cold water. Add few cucumber slices, 1-2 cut up strawberries and 2-3 lemon slices. Just squeeze a few drops of lemon juice in the water as well and let it chill and soak up all the good flavors!!!

 You will love to sip on this refreshing water and feel rejuvenated in minutes!

 

"Bites" from Puerto Rico!!

Where was I all last week?? Yeahhh....in Puerto Rico!!!! We were so excited to get on the plane for this trip. It was a special one because...it was a trip planned to celebrate our BIG 10th wedding anniversary!Time really flies.....and the 10 years don't seem that long at all....in a 'deep' depth of a loving relationship:)

So yeah...Puerto Rico was very 'familiar' in certain ways..and very different in the other. There was the familiarity of 'US' like malls and approaching western culture....and the difference was in small colorful houses, the narrow streets, the fusion cuisine of various cultures. It sometimes felt very similar to the modern day 'India'...where there are those big malls/resorts etc  lavishly decorated, beaming with money......and the minute you come out..you are struck by reality...the tiny houses in the slums, crowded streets etc.

The land itself was 'green'...lush with tropical vegetation...plantain/banana trees, mango trees, coconuts etc. The weather was cloudy rainy in the rainforest area....but otherwise pleasantly sunny.

Here are the glimpses of the few 'bites' we had in Puerto Rico--
Pina Coladas....I can sip on these all day long!

'Stuffed Piquillo Peppers" at "Marbella" Rio Mar Beach Resort in Puerto Rico. The peppers were stuffed with mashed plantains and porcini mushrooms. The crunchy salad of onions,green peppers and carrots made it more delicious!!!

Fried chicken with Mango

  Tostones (Plantain fritters)

Tres Leches cake

Seven Layer chocolate cake

A day at the Farm and Kale Chips!

Couple weeks ago...we made a 1/2 day trip to the nearby 'Huber' farms for fresh strawberry picking. The kids(and us) loved picking up the red juicy berries and filling up their baskets to the full! It was a beautiful day, lovely weather and farm fresh produce made the trip totally worth it.

At their bakery ....we bought this spicy "Jalapeno Cheese" bread and it was delicious!

And then the question was what all to make with this fresh and lovely produce- Kale, Corn, Asparagus and Strawberries??
For quite sometime...I had being hearing about 'Kale Chips" and wanted to try'em out.
I found the recipe here-http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/melissa-darabian/crispy-kale-chips-recipe/index.html 
They had a unique flavor with a crisp texture, a super healthy snack and the whole bunch of Kale was gone in no time! And guess who ate the most chips???? It was my little 'E' :)

Summer Salad with Mandarin Oranges, Almonds and a Cherry Vinaigrette

It's summer and it calls for a cool crunchy yummy salad!! As much as I love salads, I like to vary the veggies/ fruits, crunchy toppings and make my own dressings. It's much better that way I feel...you can cater to your own taste and get a 'feel good' healthy salad for yourself.

This one is perfect to be called 'summer' salad because of it's 'warm' color tones from oranges, cherry tomatoes and red cherry vinaigrette.

Ingredients:

2 cups 'Veggie' salad mix (with variety of lettuces, radish, carrots)

1/4 cup mandarin oranges

1/4 cup whole toasted almonds

few cherry tomatoes

Cherry Vinaigrette dressing:

1tbsp Extra virgin olive oil

1tsp Red cherry preserve

1/2tsp Lemon juice

1/4tsp black pepper

1/4tsp dried oregano

salt

Method:

1) Toss all the ingredients for the salad in the salad bowl.

2) Stir together the vinaigrette ingredients.

3) Pour the vinaigrette over the salad just before eating.

Enjoy the crispy-crunchy textures of this 'warm' colored summery salad

Gajar halwa/ Carrot Halwa with Vanilla ice cream

"Beta aaj maine tumhare liye Gajar ka Halwa banaya hai"....a typical old Bollywood movie dialogue. A dessert so typically 'Bollywood' that I actually think...Bollywood moms only knew how to make one dessert....Gajar ka Halwa!!

So...my 'beta' (son) for the past few days has been demanding this dessert....especially with Vanilla ice cream. The combination of warm 'carrotty' halwa melting the cold vanilla ice cream..could be anybodies dream! Can't wait to see his smile when he gets home from school and has his favorite bite:))

Ingredients:
4 Big carrots shredded
1/2 to 3/4 cup Sugar (adjust according to sweetness of the carrots)
1/2 cup Milk powder
1tbsp Ghee/clarified butter
1/2 tsp Cardamom powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg powder
1 tbsp golden raisins
1 tbsp cashews
2-3 Pistachios sliced for garnish
Silver leaf/ varkha for garnish

Vanilla ice cream

Method:
1) In a pan, heat the ghee. Add the cashews and fry till slightly golden.
2)  Add the shredded carrots and saute for 1 min.
3) Add the sugar,cardamom,nutmeg,raisins and mix. Add the milk powder, mix, and cook till the carrots are cooked.Cover with lid for 2 mins. The milk powder will cook with the liquid from the carrots and turn into something like 'khawa/khoya/ mawa'.
4) Before serving garnish with chopped pistachios.
Serve the warm halwa with cold vanilla ice cream.Enjoy!