Spinach Raita

It's always necessary to include greens in our diet. Some people especially kids dislike eating greens or the leafy vegetables. But these are the most healthy food provided by nature which is fully packed with lot of nutrients and vitamins. They are low in calories and fat content is so less. For being healthy, start including lots of greens in your diet !! 

Spinach raita is a refreshing raita and is so quick to make. I know I have said many times before that we are a raita fan family :). They are not just healthy, they sure give a light feeling and a comfort food too. Spinach and garlic is a wonderful combo, but my husband doesn't like adding garlic to this raita, so I usually make without it. You can add garlic if you wish, either way this green raita tastes just great and will be loved by all.

What you need?

2 cups chopped Spinach

1 cup Yoghurt

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

2 Green chillies chopped

1 tsp Oil

Salt

How to prepare?

Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard and cumin seeds. Add spinach and green chillies.

Spinach will leave out water. Saute until spinach is cooked and the water is dried up. Allow it to cool.

Beat the yoghurt well. Add spinach and salt. Mix well. Serve chilled with rice or roti.

Notes:

* You can also add mint or coriander leaves with spinach.

* You can add some chopped garlic just before adding spinach.

* Garnish with some chaat masala or red chilli powder.

Sending this to Healthy Cooking Challenge - Lunch event hosted by Kavi, initiated by Smitha

Puffs Pizza Pinwheels

Puffs Pizza Pinwheels are a quick snack and it makes a great party appetizer. These pinwheels are easy to make, they look very attractive and tastes delicious. My last post was Vegetable Pizza which explains making a pizza right from scratch. These pinwheels are an easy version of pizza which makes use of puff pastry. I had posted Mini Pizza Puffs few weeks back. The pinwheels are also the same recipe, except that the shapes differs. Those were small sqaure shaped pizzas, while this time I made them into pinwheels. My son who is not fond of the regular pizzas loves this version of pizza puffs. Make it for your family or guests, you will surely be appreciated.

What you need?

1 Puff Pastry sheet ( I have used Pepperidge farm brand)

Pizza Sauce or Tomato sauce

Veggies of your choice, finely chopped ( I have used Onions, Bell Pepper, Corn)

Cheese

Italian Seasoning

Red Chilli Flakes

Pepper

Salt

How to prepare?

Thaw the puff pastry sheet as per the packet directions.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a baking tray with aluminium foil and lightly grease it.

Spread the pastry sheet on a flat surface. Slightly roll it using a rolling pin. Apply sauce all over leaving an inch space at one of the edges. Spread the veggies over the sauce. Sprinkle salt, pepper, red chilli flakes and Italian seasoning. Finally spread some cheese.

Now start rolling from the edge opposite to the one where you left the space. Roll as tightly as possible and move towards the other end until you reach the free space. Apply a little water on that edge and roll till end. Seal the edge properly. Now cut the roll into about 1/2" pieces. Transfer these to the baking tray and keep them an inch apart.

Bake for about 15-20 minutes until the pinwheels turn golden brown. Cool for few minutes before serving.

Serve warm. Enjoy the wonderful snack.

Most of my US friends will be busy shopping and on vacation for next few days rt. :)

Advanced wishes for the Thanksgiving day.

Have a wonderful time with your family and friends !!



Sending this to following events:

Bake Fest at Zesty Palette





Fast Food, not Fat Food event at Now Serving





Holiday Baking at Srav's Culinary Concepts



Chirstmas Delicacy by Julie at Erivum Puliyum




and to Bake with your heart  at A Girl's Diary.

Vegetable Pizza (with Wheat base)

My interest in baking started after we came to US. Initially we were in Chicago and were there for about 2 years. That was the time I started using the conventional oven in the apartment. Most of us start by baking a cake or so. But my first experiment was to make a Vegetable pizza. After few trials, I successfully made the pizza. We just fell in love with the home-made pizza and I prepared it very often then. Nowadays, I don't prepare this very often as my son is not fond of pizzas, but I was wondering why I missed out sharing it in my blog !! 

I feel making a pizza at home is one of the easiest task. So guys, why do you want to buy a pizza or wait for a pizza delivery to home when you can make lovely pizzas at home :). I have used Wheat flour here for the pizza base which makes it very healthy. Add the veggie toppings as you desire. Except the resting time for dough, it's just simple and quick to make. I couldn't click better pics as we were very eager to grab the pizza :)

What you need?

For Pizza Base:

1 cup Wheat flour

1 tsp active dry Yeast

1/2 tsp Sugar

1/2 tsp Salt

2-3 tsp Olive oil

Italian Seasoning

Water 

For Toppings:

(Add as per your preference)

Pizza Sauce

Onion,Bell Pepper chopped and Corn

Pepper/Red Chilli flakes

Salt

Cheese

Italian Seasoning

How to prepare?

Warm 1/4 cup of water. Dissolve yeast and sugar into this. Leave this aside for 5-10 minutes so that it would become frothy. 

Mix wheat flour and salt well. Add the yeast mixture to this. Sprinkle some Italian seasoning. Combine well and form a dough by adding water as required. Finally add the oil and knead well. Keep this dough in a vessel covered with a wet cloth and leave it in a warm place. Let the dough rest for about 45 minutes - 1 hour or until the dough increases to double the volume. 

Now take the dough and knead again well. Using a rolling pin, roll it into a flat round base with medium thickness. I divided the dough into two equal portions and made 2 bases. 

Preheat the oven to 425F. Line a baking tray with aluminium foil. Slightly grease it with oil.

Transfer the pizza base onto the tray. Spread some pizza sauce on top of the base, leaving a little space on all sides. Put the veggies as toppings. Sprinkle some salt and pepper. 

Spread some cheese on top. 

Bake it in the oven for 15-20 minutes until base turns slight brown and cheese is melted.

Wait for a few minutes before cutting the pizza. Sprinkle some Red chilli flakes and Italian seasoning if you desire.

Notes:

* You can use All purpose flour or Maida instead of Wheat flour.

* Add vegetables you prefer as toppings.

* Do not roll the dough very thin, base might become crispy once baked.

Sending this to following events:

Bake Fest at Zesty Palette



Serve it - Savory Baked at Krithis Kitchen


Holiday Baking at Srav's Culinary Concepts


Fast Food, not Fat Food event at Now Serving



and to Bake with your heart  at A Girl's Diary.

Rava Idli/Semolina Idli

Rava Idli is an easy and quick recipe which is perfect for breakfast or snacks. No grinding and no fermentation for hours, they are so simple to make. I used to have these from south indian hotels back in India and they tasted extremely delicious when served steaming hot. But believe me, you can create the same taste at home. Once you make these at home, you may not want to taste the hotel idlies, so guys...definitely give it a try !! I had posted Vermicelli Idli few days back, which is another quick recipe and I prepare it similar to the rava idlies. The rava idlies are very soft and tasty ones, we actually enjoyed it as dinner a couple of days back.

What you need?

1 cup Semolina/Rava

1 cup Yoghurt

1/2 cup grated Carrot

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

5-6 Curry leaves chopped

1" pc Ginger chopped

3-4 Green chillies chopped

1/4 tsp Baking soda

1/4 cup shredded Coconut (optional)
few Cashews (optional)
few Coriander leaves chopped

2 tsp Oil

Salt

How to prepare?

If you are using unroasted rava, dry roast the rava in a pan for few minutes until it leaves nice aroma. Keep aside. I have used already roasted rava here, so I skipped the roasting part.

In the same pan, heat the oil. Splutter mustard seeds. Add ginger, green chillies and curry leaves, saute for a minute. Add carrot and saute for a couple of minutes until raw smell goes. Keep this aside.

Beat the yoghurt well and add it to rava. Mix well. Add some water (I added about 1/2 cup) so as to make a thick batter. Now add the carrot mixture, coconut, coriander leaves and salt to this and mix . Finally add  the baking soda and combine everything well. Keep this aside for 30 minutes.

Grease the idly stand with a little oil. Place a cashew in each of the mould. Place a coriander leaf on top of each cashew (These are for garnishing). Pour the batter into each mould now and lightly spread it. Steam for 12-15 minutes.

Remove the idlis. You can see the cashew and coriander garnishing on top of each idli. Serve hot with any chutney or sambhar.

Notes:
* You can directly add the carrots to the batter without sauting.
*You can add other veggies too.
* You can skip the garnishing part.

Chana Raita

I had some leftover chana and I thought of trying out a raita with it. This was the first time I tried this, so I was doubtful about how chana mixed with yoghurt would taste. But it tasted great and I added some chilli powder, chaat masala for a chatpata taste. It's so simple to make and a healthy raita can be made so quick. You can use green chillies instead of chilli powder and also add other veggies such as cucumber, carrots or onion. I have used only chana here and I am sure combo with other veggies would taste awesome. It's a healthy raita for those who are on a diet and can be served with rice or indian breads.

What you need?

1 cup cooked Chana/Chickpeas

1.5 cup Yogurt

1 tsp Chilli powder

1/2 tsp Chaat Masala

few Coriander leaves chopped

Salt

How to prepare?

Beat the yogurt well. Add all other ingredients to it and mix well. Serve chilled.

Enjoy this healthy raita !

Notes:

* It's better to use the chana cooked with little salt.

* You can add cucumber, onion or tomato with chana.

* You can also do tempering and add if you wish.

Sending this to Healthy Cooking Challenge - Lunch event hosted by Kavi, initiated by Smitha

Egg Spinach Bonda

Eggs and Spinach are a wonderful combination and we love it. I usually make Scrambled Eggs with Spinach.  I thought of making something different using this combo, so came up with an idea of trying bondas. I had made Paneer Spinach bonda inspired from Vardhinis recipe which I had posted few days back. I prepared Egg Spinach bondas a little similar to those. For this I used the eggs by hard boiling them and grating. I don't like deep frying, so here also I used the paniyaram pan which consumes very less oil and hot healthy snack was ready in minutes. The bondas were delicious and was perfect with hot cup of coffee for the cold climate here. My hubby loved them and appreciated my idea of making these bondas.

What you need?

3 Eggs

3/4 cup chopped Spinach

1/4 cup chopped Onion

1 tsp Chilli powder

1 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Garam masala

Salt

Oil

For batter:

1/2 cup Gram flour

1/4 cup Rice flour

1/2 tsp Chilli powder

Salt

How to prepare?

Hard boil the eggs and remove the shell. Grate the eggs.

Add spinach, onion, spices and salt to the grated eggs. Combine well. Make small balls out of it.

Mix all the ingredients under For batter along with some water to get a medium consistency batter.

Heat the paniyaram pan. Add 2-3 drops of oil in each hole. Dip each ball into the batter and place in each hole. Cover and cook for 2-3 minutes. Once the bottom part gets browned, flip it carefully. Let it brown on other side and then remove them.

Serve hot with tomato ketchup.

Makes about 12-14 bondas.

Notes:
*You can deep fry the bondas if you wish.
*You can also add chaat masala, amchur powder, green chillies to the filling.

Thanks a lot to Julie of Erivum Puliyum to pass on this award to me.

'Liebster' means favourite  or dearest in German. Rules for accepting the award :
- Thank the person who gave the award and link back to their blog.
- Copy and paste the award to your blog.
- Reveal the 5 blogs you have chosen to award and let them know by commenting on their blog.
- Hope they pass it forward by accepting and awarding it to bloggers they would like to honour.

I would like to pass it to few of my blogger friends:

Kaveri of  Palakkad Chamayal
Alpana of  SmartSnacks
Aparna of  Square Meals
Vineetha of  Ruchi
Ms.Wan of Cooking Varieties

Have a great week ahead friends !!


Sending to the ABC Series: Egg Recipes event by Ramya

Vermicelli Idli

I tasted the Vermicelli idlis for the first time when I was working in Bangalore. I stayed in a rental house with my friends at first floor and the owner aunty was staying at the ground floor. She was a very nice aunty, a little old and she was staying alone. So sometimes she used to invite us on weekends for breakfast or dinner. Once she made us these idlis and they were so delicious. I still can remember those soft and yummy idlis. I made these idlis few times later. Now it's been so long I prepared these and hence I made it for yesterday's breakfast. I prepared it just like how I make Rava Idly which I am yet to post.

The best part about these idlis are no worries of grinding and fermenting. These can be made so quick and can be prepared as breakfast or snack. Add vegetables you prefer to make it colourful and healthy. My son is very fond of Vermicelli upma and I knew he will love these too. I served these with sambhar and all enjoyed the breakfast !!

What you need?

1.5 cup Vermicelli

1 cup Yoghurt

1/2 cup grated Carrot

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

5-6 Curry leaves chopped

1" pc Ginger chopped

3-4 Green chillies chopped

a pinch Asafoetida

1/4 cup shredded Coconut (optional)

1 tsp Oil

Salt

How to prepare?

Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard seeds. Add asafoetida, ginger, green chillies and curry leaves, saute for a minute. Add carrot and saute for a couple of minutes until raw smell goes. Keep this aside to cool.

If you are using unroasted Vermicelli, then fry it in a little oil until golden brown. Use it once cooled.  If you have roasted Vermicelli,  you can use it directly.  I have used roasted Vermicelli here. 

Beat the yoghurt well and add it to vermicelli. Mix well. Add a little water (I added about 1/4 cup) if necessary so as to make the batter. This batter will be thick unlike the usual idly batter, so it won't have a flowing consistency. Now add the carrot mixture, coconut and salt to this and combine everything well. Keep this aside for 15-20 minutes, half an hour would be best.

Grease the idly stand with a little oil. Pour the vermicelli batter into each mould. Spread it a little using the ladle. Steam for 10-12 minutes.

Serve hot with sambhar or chutney.

Makes about 15 idlis.

Notes:

* Add vegetables as you prefer. You can also add some coriander leaves to the batter.

* The idlis taste best when served hot.

Savoury Semolina Cake

This is a bookmarked recipe from Neha's lovely space, From my heart. The moment I saw this post in her blog, I had decided to try it out because I love savoury stuff than the sweet ones. The recipe just mentioned semolina and I had already roasted semolina with  me. So I confirmed with Neha if I can use the roasted one for this recipe. I was happy when she responded quickly with a yes and I tried it out yesterday itself.  This was my first savoury bake and I loved it totally. I don't like semolina upma much and this was definitely a unique recipe with a different taste. The savoury cakes came out awesome and its sure a healthy breakfast/brunch/snack idea. I have followed the exact recipe with very slight changes and I didnt have sesame seeds as topping too, so I adjusted with some cashews. It's a lovely recipe and very easy to prepare.

Click here for the original recipe.

What you need?

1 cup Semolina

1 cup thick Yoghurt

1 cup mixed Vegetables of your choice

1/4 cup chopped Onion

1 tbsp chopped Ginger

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

3/4 tsp Chilli powder 

1/2 cup Water

Salt

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

5-6 Curry Leaves

2 tbsp Oil

1/2 tsp Baking soda

1/2 tsp Baking powder

1 tbsp  broken Cashews (optional)

How to prepare?

In a bowl, add semolina, vegetables, onion, ginger, turmeric powder, chilli powder and salt. Combine this well. Now add yoghurt to this and mix well. Add water to this to get a thick batter. ( I added only 1/2 cup, original recipe says 1 cup)

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a pan with oil.

Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard and cumin seeds. Add curry leaves and saute for few seconds. Now add this tempering to the batter. Finally add baking soda and powder to the batter. Combine everything well. 

Pour the batter to the pan. Throw some cashews on the top. Bake for about 35-40 minutes.

Serve hot with some ketchup or chutney.

Kadala Curry / Chana Curry

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and now energised for a great week ahead. Today's recipe is a Kadala or Chana curry which is a typical sidedish with Puttu (steamed rice flour). This combination is very popular in Kerala and makes an excellent breakfast. Another combo is Puttu and Cherupayar or Green gram curry which I have already explained here in the Oats Puttu recipe. Both the Kadala and Cherupayar curries are awesome combos with Puttu and we love them equally. This Kadala/Chana curry can also be served along with Chapathi or Dosas as well. The coconut is fried along with spices, then ground and added which gives a special flavour to this delicious curry. Usually black chana is used for this curry, but I have used Kabuli chana which is our family favourite.

What you need?

1.5 cup Chana/Kadala

1 Onion chopped

2 Tomatoes chopped

3/4 cup shredded Coconut

1 tsp Chilli powder

1.5 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Garam masala

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1 tsp Ginger garlic paste

5-6 Curry Leaves

2 tsp Oil

Salt

How to prepare?

Soak the chana or kadala overnight, pressure cook with sufficient water and keep aside.

Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan. Saute the coconut until light brown. Now add turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder and garam masala, saute on a low flame until raw smell goes. Allow this mixture to cool. Grind this to a smooth thick paste in a blender by adding a little water.

Heat again a tsp of oil in a pan. Splutter mustard seeds. Saute onions, ginger-garlic paste and curry leaves until the onions turn pink. Now add the tomatoes and cook till tender. Add the cooked chana and add some water ( can also use water in which chana was cooked). Now add salt and let this boil. On a low flame, add the coconut mixture and combine everything well. Cook for a couple of minutes and garnish with coriander leaves if you desire. Serve hot as a sidedish ideally for Puttu or with rotis, poori or dosa.

Sending this to Kerala Kitchen event hosted by Fajeeda , original event announcement here.

and also to Healthy Cooking Challenge - Lunch event hosted by Kavi, initiated by Smitha

Egg Kurma

Egg Kurma is a delicious curry or sidedish which makes a great combo with roti or rice. It can be also served for breakfast with dosa or appams. It's a simple and flavourful curry. The best part of a kurma is the grinding of  coconut and fennel seeds together. This gives a special taste to this delicious curry. I am not sure if this is the authentic egg kurma recipe, but this is how I make and we love this dish. I also make Vegetable Kurma similar to this. The main difference is that vegetables are cooked in coconut milk and cashews are also ground with coconut for Vegetable Kurma. You can also add cashews and coconut milk in this recipe too for extra richness and taste. Hope you all will try this out.

What you need?

3-4 Eggs

1 large Onion finely chopped

2 medium size Tomatoes chopped

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1 tsp Ginger Garlic paste

5-6 Curry Leaves

3-4 Green chillies chopped

Spices: 1 tsp Chilli powder, 1/2 tsp Coriander powder, 1/2 tsp Garam masala , A pinch Turmeric powder

3/4 cup shredded Coconut

1/2 tsp Fennel seeds

1 tsp Oil

few Coriander leaves

Salt

How to prepare?

Hard boil the eggs. Remove the shell, put slits in them and keep aside. 

Grind coconut and  fennel seeds to a smooth paste.

Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard seeds. Saute curry leaves, onion, green chillies and ginger garlic paste until the onions turn light brown. Add the tomatoes, saute until they are cooked. Now add the spices and salt, combine well. Add a little water to this and let it boil. Now keep this on a low flame and add coconut paste. Mix well and if required add water depending on the consistency you need. Cook for a few minutes and finally add the eggs. Mix well , cover and cook for a minute or two. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with roti, naan, appam, dosa or with rice.

Serves 2-3

Notes:

* You can grind green chillies and a few cashews along with coconut.

Now some Halloween pics....

The pumpkin carved by my hubby and son..

My lil Superman just before going to Trick or Treat....He had a great time knocking all the doors and when we came back home, he had planned his dinner - Candy n Chocolates he got :)

Have a great weekend friends....Cya all soon...:)

Rice Pongal

Pongal is a comfort food for us and I prepare it once a week. I have heard that it is prepared as a breakfast dish in Tamil nadu. But for us its always a lunch menu. It's a complete food with rice, dal and veggies, so you get your carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals in one go. The best part is it can be prepared so quick in a pressure cooker and its such a simple recipe. Pongal is my first choice whenever I am lazy to cook or if I don't have time to spend in the kitchen. I have already posted the recipes of Cracked Wheat pongal  and Oats Pongal earlier. I prepare all these pongals in the same way and we love all the varieties.

What you need?

1 cup Rice

1/2 cup Moong dal

1/2 cup Veggies of your choice

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

1 tsp crushed Peppercorns or ground Pepper

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

a pinch Asafoetida

4-5 Curry leaves

1/4 cup shredded Coconut (optional)

few Coriander leaves chopped

1 tsp Oil

4 cups Water

Salt

How to prepare?

Wash the rice and moong dal seperately, drain and keep aside.

Heat oil in pressure cooker. Splutter cumin seeds. Add crushed peppercorns or pepper powder and curry leaves, saute for few seconds. Add the moong dal and fry for a minute. Now add the rice and saute for a minute. Add vegetables to this and mix well. Pour in 4 cups of water. (I usually use 1:3 ratio for rice. Use your rice to water ratio and add an extra cup of water. It should work fine. Hence 4 cups of water here.) If you want it very mushy add more water.

Add salt, turmeric powder, asafoetida, coconut and corainder leaves. Mix well. Pressure cook for 3 whistles. Open when the pressure is completely released. Serve hot pongal with yogurt, pickle and papad.

Serves 3-4.