Beetroot Raita

Simplicity and its best ......I have used simple ingredients in this and it tastes so very nice ....YUMMY! 

Ingredients

2 cups Beaten Yogurt

1/2 cup  Grated cooked Beetroot

2 tbsp finely chopped Coriander leaves

1 tbsp ghee/ clarified Butter

1 tsp Hing 

1/2 tsp pepper powder 

1/4 tsp Chat Masala

salt to taste

Method 

• In Pan add little ghee add jeera , hing add green coriander leaves fry in oil.
• When it cools a bit mix this with beaten yogurt add in grated beetroot mix well.
• Add pepper powder , Chat Masala , salt mix well .
• Serve Chilled….with Rice and Pickle , Humble meal which satisfies your body and soul. 

Soya chunks Curry

Soya chunks tastes so good in curries and it's such a good and healthy alternative for meat and it's really delicious as well ...this curry was the one the tried the other day when my fb friend Priya R Shenoy had posted it's was yumm and I simply loved it as a side dish for my chapathis ...So Do try this and don't forget to leave in your feedback as well !

Ingredients

1 cup of med sized soya chunks

1 onion (finely chopped)

1 tomato (finely chopped)

1 cup coconut

1' ginger

2 cloves of garlic 

1/4 tsp roasted Jeera Powder

1 tsp Red chilli powder

1/4 tsp Garam Masala powder

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

2 sprigs of curry leaves

2 tbsp coriander leaves

2 tbsp oil 

salt to taste

Method

• Add hot water to soya chunks and leave it aside for 30 mins. 
• Then squeeze out all the extra water from soya chunks and bring it to a boil till it is cooked.
• Grind coconut, ginger, garlic, Jeera powder and Red chilli powder.
• Heat oil add mustard seeds add in curry leaves then add chopped onion and fry till translucent then add in the tomato and fry well till oil then add the ground coconut and fry till it leaves out oil completely then add in little garam masala.
• Add in precooked soya chunks, Add in little water and cook till and the masala in well incorporated with the soya chunks and its coated beautifully with it.
• Add in coriander leaves . Serve it with chapathi / Poori .....it's yumm ! 

Til Gajak

This is one sweet which you can prepare in no minutes and its cherished in every household , likewise it used to be our favourite sweet too, you can use til, groundnuts, any nuts in this recipe, here I have used Til / sesame seeds which is such a good source of iron that one should incorporate in one's daily diet. Greasing the parat or a plate well in advance is very important as  once the mixture is prepared it just hardens really quickly. 

Ingredients

1 and 1/2 cups of  white roasted til / Sesame seeds

1 cup Jaggery (I have used Chikki Gud) if you find it hard to get hold of it then use Jaggery 

1 tsp ghee

1 tsp Green cardamom powder

2 tbsp water

1/4 tsp Soda Bi Carbonate / Cooking Soda

Method

• First Grease a thali or board and smear with ghee and keep it ready.
• Take a Deep pan add water then add jaggery and let it melt then lower the heat and allow jaggery to bubble. 
• Now add in White Sesame seeds and mix well. Add in Elaichi / Green Cardamom powder add in soda and mix well till becomes a mass.
• Pour on a Greased Thali  , grease a rolling pin and press and roll the mixture and and with the help of the greased knife just give it diamond shape cuts . 
• Store and Enjoy !!

 

Dry Fruits Overnight Porridge

                    

Ingredients

5-6 Whole Almonds

4-5 Walnuts

2 tbsp Cashew

3-4 Dates (I have used Medjool Dates)

1 cup Cold Milk / Vegan Milk 

3 tbsp Chia seeds

2 tbsp oats

1/2 tsp vanilla Essence

3-4 strands of Kesar/ Saffron

Method

• Wash and Soak all the dry fruits for 10 -15 mins and then discard all the water.
• Grind these dry fruits with milk and saffron . 
• Then take it out in a bowl add chia seeds, Oats, Vanilla Essence mix well.
• Leave it overnight to refrigerate.
• Next morning top it with your choice of fruits and extra nuts . 
• Here I have topped it up with pomegranate seeds and pumpkin seeds .

Pahadi Raita

 Pahadi Raita is cucumber raita which is Uttarakhand special raita . This raita went viral over the Instagram and so I thought of giving it a try , do try this yummy raita its lovely and unique in it's own way , this recipe calls for the addition of ground  and roughly pounded mustard seeds which hypes the taste and gives a lovely flavour . Do try this I am sure you are going to love it as a side when you pair it with Biryani or pulao. 

Ingredients 

Crush the following ingredients listed below in a mortar and pestle

2 Green chilli 

1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves

2 tsp finely chopped Mint leaves

4-6 small cloves of Garlic

small piece of ginger

salt to taste

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp Whole cumin /Jeera

Other Ingredients

1/4 cup grated cucumber

1/2 cup well beaten Yogurt

1/4 tsp Haldi/ turmeric 

1/4 tsp Red chilli Powder

Method

• Crush all the Ingredients listed above in the mortar and pestle to form a paste.
• Add this to the beaten yogurt , add haldi , red chilli powder.
• Squeeze the juice from the grated cucumber before adding to the yogurt/Dahi 
• You can add little water if you want a little free flowing / Runny consistency .
• Adjust the seasoning as per your taste and serve with Biryani / Pulao ...YUM !!

Beetroot Amla shots

 I lately tried this terrific combo for the first time and totally loved the refreshing taste, to be honest I was a little sceptical to try out but I was totally amazed by the taste and not to forget the health benefits these key ingredients  like Amla, beetroot give our body which is not only rich in Iron and is  proven to have great benefits for skin and hair care,  this  is definitely the one drink which I do think is a must in daily diet to detox your body . So without much delay let's go to the recipe.

Ingredients (serves 1 person )

2 med sized gooseberries (Amla) (chop and deseeded)

small piece of beetroot

2 tbsp desiccated coconut or could use fresh coconut

1 small piece of ginger

10-12 leaves of mint 

1/4 tsp of Jeera

Method 

• Blitz all the Ingredients mentioned above to a fine paste and 1 glass of water and blitz it one more time.
• Strain it with the help of the strainer and Serve.
  
  
  
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Biscoff Cheeesecake

 

This is my absolute favourite dessert , whenever I crave for something sweet this is the one I prepare to satiate my taste buds . take a bite ...hmm it's heaven in a bite :D , absolutely love it , if you do you fancy something sweet for this festive season  then do try this , you will surely love it :D , So here it is NO BAKE BISCOFF CHEESECAKE recipe 

Ingredients 

1 pack of store brought Biscoff biscuit (20 -25 biscuits )

1/2 cup butter

1 cup Cream cheese 

1/4 cup Biscoff spread (easily available in stores)

1 cup whipped cream (whip the whipping cream with the help of an electric beater till it forms peaks)

1/4 cup biscoff spread to top the cheese cake

Method

• Crush the biscoff biscuits in a food pro till fine crumb add in melted butter and mix well till it starts to resemble like a wet sand.
• Take a deep cake tin and press down this mixture till it forms a crusty base and cover and refrigerate for an hour till it sets
• In mixing bowl add in whipped cream , Biscoff spread, cream cheese and mix in till well incorporated.
• Layer this mixture on the biscuit base and top it with a generous layer of biscoff spread and refrigerate for about 4-5 hrs until firm and set.
• Cut into portions you desire to serve, I am sure you too won't settle with just one slice :D 

Awadhi Murg Masala

This is a one pot chicken curry which is so easy to cook and nevertheless it's truly delish , just put everything in a pot and cook on high flame and viola it gets done in no time . Thanks to chef  Dr. Izzat Hussein who shared such a lovely recipe which I and my readers who try this would absolutely treasure this recipe . So here goes the recipe 

Ingredients 
1 kg Chicken 
1/4 cup ghee
1/2 cup brown onion (slice 5-6 onions and deep fry it till nutty brown , drain and keep aside)
2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
2 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
juice of 1/2 lemon 
1/2 cup milk 
salt to taste

Method 

• In a cooking pot put all the Ingredients mentioned along with milk, lemon juice and cook on a medium heat till chicken gets cooked 
• Keep stirring occasionally till chicken gets cooked and oil starts getting separated.
• Garnish with Coriander leaves
• Serve as a side with Jeera rice or even Biryani....just too good .

Mangalore Buns (Low fat Version )

Here is low fat and lovely version of Mangalore Buns which is fab to taste so soft and spongy too that I love it :) 

Ingredients 

2 cups maida

2 banana (med sized  over ripened )

4-5 Green chillies

1 tbsp Jaggery 

1 tsp Jeera

1 tsp coarsely crushed black peppercorn 

2-3 tbsp curd

1/2 tsp Baking soda

salt to taste

oil for frying 

Method 

• Grind  over ripened banana in mixed grinder to a fine paste or you can even finely grate it.
• Mince green chillies finely . In Bowl add pureed Banana, minced green chillies. whole Jeera, coarsely crushed black peppercorn , Jaggery, curd , baking soda, salt to taste and whisk it well and leave it aside. After 2-3 mins you can see bubbles forming .
• Now add maida/ plain flour  and knead to a smooth dough . add more plain flour to knead into a smooth dough .
• Leave in to ferment overnight . If you intend to do this tomorrow it's pretty best knead the dough at night.
• Next morning knead it well again dusting with little maida/ plain flour ,  Pinch out a little dough make round balls of all the remaining dough .
• Roll it once with the help of rolling pin not more then the size of puri and then heat oil and deep fry in oil .
• Serve hot and serve with coriander chutney of your choice ...Perfect morning breakfast !

Cucumber Idli

This is one of my favourite idlis since Childhood days and there are two variations you can do one is sweet idli and other is the spicy one this is one of the no fermentation method of idlis so if u have a cucumber in hand can be made in a jiffy too :)

Ingredients

1 cucumber grated (use a fine grated and do not discard the water) (measure it to 1 cup)

1 cup Rice ( Prewashed then spread on a cloth till dry and grind to a mixie to a Coarse Rawa Semolina consistency)

1/2 cup freshly grated coconut

3 tbsp Jaggary or more if you prefer

 salt to taste

Ghee for greasing 

Method

• In Mixing bowl add grated cucumber,rice,coconut, jaggary,salt and mix well and then grease the idli moulds with ghee and then pour the idli mix into each mould and then steam it for 10-12 minutes on a medium flame and then serve hot with  fresh homemade butter .