Soya Chunks Bhurji

I am so glad that many of my blogger friends are great fans of Soya chunks and it's really nice to see a variety of soya chunks recipes in your spaces. I am planning to try out a few soon :) I usually use soya chunks mostly in curries. But this time I thought of making a dry version and made this bhurji. Whenever there is leftover sabzi or masala, I use them to make filling for sandwiches later that day. This time also we enjoyed this bhurji with rice as well as in sandwiches. You can add other vegetables of your choice to make it more colourful and nutritious. These protein rich bhurji tasted delicious and I guess I will be making it often.

Serves: 3-4

You need...

1 cup Soya chunks

1 Onion chopped

1 Bell Pepper chopped

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1/2 tsp Fennel seeds

1 tsp Ginger- Garlic paste

1 tsp Chilli powder

1 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Garam masala

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

Kasoori methi (optional)

Lime (optional)

a few Coriander leaves

Salt

Oil

To prepare...

Boil about 3 cups of water in a vessel, add soya chunks and a little salt. Allow it to cook for 10 minutes. Switch off the stove, close the vessel with a lid and keep it aside for 15 minutes.Drain the water and once cooled, gently squeeze out the water from the soya chunks. Pulse the soya chunks in a blender 2-3 times to get a crumbled form. Keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard and fennel seeds. Saute onion and ginger-garlic paste until the onions turn slight brown. Add the bell pepper, sprinkle a little water, cover and cook until the bell pepper is completely cooked. Saute in between.

Now add turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder and salt. Saute well and add the crumbled soya chunks. Mix thoroughly and let it cook for a couple of minutes. If the mixture is too dry, sprinkle some water. Add garam masala and also add the kasoori methi if using by crushing between the hands. Combine everything well and finally add the coriander leaves and mix. If you desire, squeeze a lime on this.

Serve hot as a side dish with rice, chapathi or use as filling for sandwiches. Enjoy :)

Sending this to SYF and HWS series - Fennel seeds event, hosted by Kaveri , an event by Anu.

Spinach Chapathi ( version 2)

Hi all...hope you all enjoyed your weekend and we too had a wonderful one :).  I always make Spinach Chapathi by making a puree and then adding it to the flour. I have shared that recipe sometime back and can be viewed here. But today I am sharing another version of Spinach chapathi which I learnt from one of my friends here, Richa. She had made these in one of our potlucks and they got vanished in no time :).  I learnt the recipe that day itself and have made it a few times now. You can see beautiful patterns of spinach leaves in these chapathis, they are delicious and very easy to make. Thank you Richa for sharing this recipe and hope you all will try it out!!

You need..

1.5 cups Wheat flour

a small bunch of Spinach

2 tsp Ginger-Garlic paste

2-3 Green chillies finely chopped

3-4 tsp Kasoori methi (optional)

Salt

Oil

Water

To prepare..

Wash the spinach leaves and put them in a microwave safe bowl / plate. Microwave for 3-4 minutes or until wilted. It might leave out water which you can use while kneading. Allow it to cool.

Combine wheat flour, ginger-garlic paste, green chillies, kasoori methi (rub between palms n add), salt and a little oil. Now add the spinach to this, mash well and combine thoroughly. Add water as required and form a smooth dough. Cover with a damp cloth and leave it aside for 10-15 minutes.

Knead again the dough and make small lemon size balls out of the dough. Roll them out and fry the chapathis on the tawa by adding ghee or oil. Serve hot with any raita or sidedish. I served it with some whole moong and a simple onion raita :)

Notes:

* You can adjust the green chillies as per your preference. 

* You can also add red chilli powder or green chilli paste instead, especially if you have kids and they don't like biting the chillies.

Sending this to Show me your HITS - Iron Rich foods hosted by Julie, an event by Sangee
and CWF- Spinach hosted by Vardhini, an event by Kiran

Eggless Mango Icecream

When a baby is born, a mother is born too. Then starts a new world of learning and experiencing for both of them. Motherhood teach us a lot of things especially responsibility, patience, multi tasking.....and the list just goes on :). It's a 24*7 job where we get some special allowances such as kids driving us crazy most of the times, sleepless nights, cleaning house n number of times daily, lots of exercises such as running behind the naughty ones to make them eat n drink ;)..but still we enjoy this special role of our life rt :).  I would say each day is special just like the Mother's day for every mom. Wishing all the moms out there a very Happy Mother's Day. Hope you all have a great time with your family especially with kids :). 

We celebrated this day with a special dessert, Eggless Mango Ice cream. This is the first time I am making an ice cream and it turned out really yummy. It needs so less ingredients and delicious homemade ice cream can be cherished without much hassle.

You need...

2 ripe Mangoes

1/2 cup Sugar

1 cup sweetened Condensed milk

1.5 cup Whipping cream

a few Pistachio (optional)

To prepare...

Peel and cut the mangoes. Blend them along with sugar to get the mango pulp. It will be a very thick pulp. Add a little water and blend again to get a smooth pulp, but still thick.

Whisk gently the mango pulp, condensed milk and whipping cream to get a smooth consistency. Pour into a bowl and freeze it. After 2 hours, take the bowl out and mix or beat again. Keep the bowl back into the freezer for about 6-7 hours. Scoop out and serve with some nuts as topping.

Notes:

* You can adjust sugar depending on the ripeness of mangoes.

* You can also use canned mango pulp.

* You can add in the ice cream or garnish with some fresh mango pieces, nuts, tutti fruity etc.

* You can add more cream if you desire.

Sending this to the following events:

Mango Mania 99 at The Pumpkin Farm,
Kids Delight - Fruits at UK Rasoi,
Cooking made easy with Mango by Anjali
Showcase- Desserts by Divya and
Bon Vivant#4- Fruit Recipes by Sumee

Strawberry Lassi

It's Lassi time again !! I had made Sweet Mint Lassi a few days back. That was really  a flavourful one. If you haven't tried it, do try that lassi..you will surely love it :) The box of fresh strawberries I had, tempted me to try a lassi with them. It came out really tasty and the colour was just great :). It's a change from the usual Strawberry Milkshake / Smoothie. This lassi is a wonderful thrist quencher, so refreshing and yummy one...perfect to beat the heat. 

Serves 2

You need...

7-8 Strawberries

1 cup Yoghurt

2-3 tbsp Honey or Sugar

1/4 tsp Cardamom powder

To prepare..

Blend initially the strawberries to a smooth paste. Add other ingredients and blend again. Adjust the sweetness. Serve chilled.

Sending this to the following events:

Kids Delight - Fruits at UK Rasoi, Bon Vivant#4- Fruit Recipes by Sumee and Cool Summer Sips at Pages

Mango Avocado Salsa

Salsa is a mexican dip and there are so many varieties available. Mango salsa, a sweet and spicy dip,  is a delicious one which we tasted sometime back in a mexican restaurant. It is a seasonal dish, obviously as Mango is not available throughout the year. I saw the recipe of Mango Avocado salsa in the newspaper which inspired me to make it the very same day itself, though I modified the recipe a little. The ripe mangoes in this dip gives a unique taste and we can't just stop eating it. Guacamole is another mexican dip which is our favourite made using Avocado as main ingredient. You can have this salsa as a dip for tortilla chips or have it plain as a salad....in any way it will taste excellent. It's so simple to make and please do try this out :)

You need...

1 ripe Mango

1 ripe Avocado

1 Tomato chopped

1/2 of an Onion chopped

1 Jalapeno  or 2 Green chillies seeds removed and chopped finely

3-4 tbsp chopped Coriander leaves / Cilantro

Lime

Salt

Pepper

To prepare..

Peel the mango and chop into small pieces. Cut the avocado into two, remove the pit and chop the flesh. (or dice them)

Combine onion, tomato, green chillies / jalapeno, cilantro, salt and pepper. Squeeze some lime juice and mix thoroughly.

Now add the mango and avocado pieces, combine well. Add more salt, pepper or lime juice if required. Salsa is ready to enjoy. You can also chill this for about 30 minutes for a better taste and then serve.

Notes:
* You can also add crushed red chilli flakes instead of green chillies.
* You can skip avocado & onion and make a different version of Mango salsa.

Sending this to Healthy Diet- Vegetarian Side dishes , hosted by Vardhini, an event by Priya
Mango Mania 99 at The Pumpkin Farm,
Kids Delight - Fruits at UK Rasoi,
Cooking made easy with Mango by Anjali and
Bon Vivant#4- Fruit Recipes by Sumee

Baked Crispy French Fries

Who wouldn't love crispy French Fries? It was one of my childhood favourite snacks. But when we think of the oily deep fried ones now, we have to think a second time whether to enjoy them or not rt ? So we can always choose the baking option to eat it guilt free. But do they come as crispy as the deep fried ones? I guess no !! Recently I read somewhere that boiling the potato wedges before baking will give you the exact crispiness. Hence I tried it and it really worked for me. They were really crisp and yummy...most important is that its healthy and you can enjoy them guilt free. Add in any seasoning you prefer, do try these and enjoy the delicious fries.

Serves 2-3

You need...

3 medium size Potatoes

A pinch Turmeric powder

1-2 tsp Oil

Pepper

Salt

Any other seasoning if you wish

To prepare...

Preheat the oven to 450F. Line a tray with foil and apply some oil.

Peel the skin of the potatoes. Wash them in cold water. Cut them into wedges. 

Boil enough water (2-3 cups) with a little salt and turmeric powder in a vessel. When the water starts boiling, add the potato wedges. Let it boil for 3-4 minutes. Be careful not to overcook them, else they might become soft. They should be still firm, but slightly cooked. Drain all the water and pat them dry with a clean cloth or paper towel.

Once ready to handle, sprinkle on the potato wedges some salt, pepper and any other seasoning if you are using . Add the oil and thoroughly mix with hands. Alternatively, you can put the wedges in a vessel.  Then add oil, sprinkle salt and pepper. Close the vessel and toss it.

Spread the wedges on the tray without overlapping. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Then turn them to other side and bake for another 8-10 minutes or until they become golden brown. Please keep an eye on the oven as all ovens vary.

Serve immediately with some ketchup. Enjoy the baked crispy french fries guilt free :)

Sending this to Fast Food, not Fat Food event hosted by Kalyani, an event by Priya