Saturday, February 18, 2012

Strawberries & cream...

Whipped up some fresh cream & arranged alternate layers of red curacao, whipped cream & sliced strawberries. Served this in a champagne flute :D
Made this as a Valentine treat & T LUVd it! :) Flute-scraping yummmm! :D
The pik doesn't do justice since it was taken at night. Wish i'd clicked it earlier!

Cucumber & cottage cheese (/paneer) rolls...


I was browsing through Closetcooking & liked this. Had some French cucumbers & so thought that i'd try them out though cucumber was the only ingredient that i used from the original. I just added stuff in my kitchen as i went along. Makes for a really refreshing & light starter.. hmmmmm did i say quick & real easy? ;)
You need:
2 young cucumbers - seedy ones wont do
For the filling, i used-
cottage cheese/paneer (made this using 1 lemon for 0.5 lt of milk for extra flavor)
a handful on finely chopped mint leaves
1 or 2 fresh red chillies - finely chopped
zest of 1 lemon & more lemon juice if desired
salt & pepper to taste
toothpicks to secure the rolls
Optional...
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cheese spread

How to:
Wash & use a mandolin to slice the cucumber lengthwise, into strips. Keep aside.
Crumble the cottage cheese & mix all the ingredients mentioned above. Check for taste. Drop some filling (about a tsp or more depending on the breath of the cucumber strip) on one end of the strip. Start rolling along with the filling & secure with a toothpick at the end as seen in the pik. Once all the rolls are done, place them on a plate & sprinkle lightly with salt & pepper. SeRvE! :)

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Tangy rice with lemon,raw mangoes & cilantro...


I was trying to cook up something to go with the Thai-red-curry-based prawns that i made.. Plain rice or something tangy?? I settled for a little tangy experiment & screened the fridge for add-ons. Found some grated raw mangoes & of course, in they went! I just loved the way this turned out & couldn't stop eating it!:D You need:
1.5 cups rice - washed well till the water runs clear
3 cups water
3-4 tbsp oil
1 small onion - diced
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1/2 a lemon
salt to taste
a handful of cilantro/corriander leaves - finely chopped
2 tbsp raw mango - shredded (optional - added them on a whim)
1 tsp chilly flakes - optional
How to:
Heat oil in the vessel you cook rice in. Now add the onions & stir till they are transparent. Add the raw mango,lemon zest, salt & chilly flakes. Add the rice & stir for about a minute. Add water, check for seasoning & let the rice cook. Once done, add the chopped cilantro & mix well. Goes well with anything spicy & is as good on its own too! :)

Prawns cooked in Thai red curry paste... :)

This one gets done in a jiffy! Serves well with tangy rice or rice noodles. Plain ol' steamed rice should also do! :)
If you are inquisitive, here is a peek into what a thai red curry paste is usually made up of. You could make your own paste too - i couldn't get there since i couldn't find a source for galangal.
Served them with a tangy rice. :)
You need:
250gm prawns - cleaned & de-veined
(my version - prawns preferably marinated in salt,chilly powder & turmeric for 10min)
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 tbsp Thai red curry paste - i used the store bought one
1 cup fresh coconut ground into a really fine paste with 1 cup water
2 tsp brown sugar/jaggery
fresh corriander/cilantro roots - a handful, finely chopped
1 fresh red chilly - finely sliced
salt to taste

How to:
Heat the oil in a wok. Add the red curry paste, stirring for 1 to 2 minutes or until aromatic. Add in the prawns & mix well. Add the brown sugar/jaggery, finely ground coconut paste, chilly & salt. Simmer till the prawns are cooked. Add the corriander roots about 5min before you turn off the flame.

Pointers:
>> I added the corriander roots since my store bought mix did not show them in the ingredients list & Thai red curry paste recipes called for them. The roots did add a good texture too.
>> Originally, the curry calls for coconut milk. Since i ground fresh coconut into a really fine paste, i didn't bother sieving through.

Spiced brinjal circles (aubergine/eggplant)... :)

T came over when i was frying these & his first reaction was - "i know whom u learnt this from!!!"... & yeah, he did get it right - Sonali again!!!! :D :D You need:
brinjal/aubergine/eggplant - the bigger variety
---according to taste---
salt, chilly powder/flakes, turmeric, garam masala
How to:
Cut the brinjal horizontally in circles - about 0.5cm thickness or a little more should do. Marinate them in the above ingredients & let it rest for sometime. I had marinated it the previous day. So all i had to do was take it out of the fridge & start frying them when i wanted to.
Once the circles are marinated, shallow fry them in a little oil. Drain on a paper towel & serve. :)
Pointers:
Make sure you pick a young fruit so that you don't end up with a seedy circle. The seeds that you see in the pik are from the chilly flakes. :)
You need to cook this on a medium~low flame till the firmness gives way & the skin starts to shrink. This could take some time during which you need to ensure that it does not burn.

Banana Choco-chip muffins... :)

Our neighbor's mom sent over some yummy home-made goodies.. Looked around for something to send back in the box & found bananas staring at me.. so made some muffins... :) I just grabbed stuff & din't really measure since i was running late(alwaysss!!! ;)).. luckily, they turned out good enough to go in the box that i was returning.. ;)
Posting the pick 'coz i really LUV the cartooned muffin cup! :D The choco-chips on top melted when i tried to get some browning on the muffins.. :)

Monday, February 6, 2012

SuNdAy BrUnCh!... :)

Sunday lunch at home is like a blue moon - thatz our weekly off from the kitchen! ;) Herez what we tossed in this Sunday when we ran late & had to satiate our rumbling tummies... :)

a handful of shredded spinach leaves
a handful of croutons - fried
about 2tbsp of raw mango - shredded
2 small bell peppers - red & yellow
a few chicken nuggets - fried
carrots - sliced
a few olives & lemon wedges
cottage cheese (paneer) doused in lime
a drizzle of olive oil, salt & pepper... DoNe!!!! :D

Friday, February 3, 2012

Cashew nut Cookies... :)

Adapted from Nita Mehta's Cakes & Cookies...

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Prawns Masala...a basic prawn prep but yumm! :)

Diamond Cuts... :)

I walked over to a neighbor's place with some cookies & their mum who was visiting told me that she was frying something. I couldn't really place the local name & when she offered to show me what it was, i readily nodded along.. ;) Turns out they were diamond cuts (named so 'coz of the shape) made with wheat flour. It does involve frying but then, she was using wheat flour instead of AP flour. Yaaay!!! :) They turned out to be addictive... made some today so that T could take them to work & munch on.

You need:
1 cup wheat flour(atta)
2 tsps semolina (rava) - optional
1/2 to 3/4 cup powdered sugar - according to taste
2-3 tsp butter or clarified butter(ghee)
1/4 cup or more or warm water for kneading

How to:
Mix the wheat flour, semolina & sugar together. Add the butter & mix thoroughly. Using the warm water, knead to make a pliable dough.
Roll into chapatis and cut into desired shapes. These chapatis could be thicker.
Deep fry in oil on a medium flame. Drain on a paper towel when they are golden brown.
These are soft when just drained & will harden as they cool down after which you could devour them or store them in air tight containers. :)