Baked Tandoori Shrimp

Ingredients

1. 1 pound of peeled and deveined shrimp

2. 1 tbsp olive oil

3. 2 tbsp of lime juice

4. 2 tbsp of tandoori chicken masala

Directions

1. Preheat oven at 450 F

2. In a bowl make marinating sauce with oil, lemon juice and 1 tbsp of tandoori masala.

3. Mix well and toss the shrimp and let it sit for 5 minutes.

4. Now place all the shrimp in foiled baking tray.

5. Bake it till golden brown, keep checking in between.

6. Take it out and sprinkle some dry tandoori masala on all of them.

7. Plate them on serving tray with some marinating sauce on top and garnish with some salad leaves.

8. Quick and easy appetizer is ready.

-Chitra

Black Bean Dip

Ingredients
1. One can of black bean or red kidney beans if black bean is not available
2. 2 tsp olive oil
3. ½ medium onion
4. 1 clove of garlic
5. 1 tbsp of green chili
6. 2 tbsp of lime juice
7. ¼ tsp ground cumin powder
8. Salt and pepper to taste
9. 2 tbsp of chopped cilantro/dhaniya leaves
10. 1 tbsp water

Directions
1. Heat Oil in non stick skillet
2. While oil is heating up chop onions and green chili and mince the garlic.
3. Rinse the beans and keep them separate.
4. Now when the oil is ready add onions.
5. Saute them for two minutes and then add garlic and chili and sauté them for one more minute.
6. Cool down for 5 minutes.
7. Now in a food processor add Beans, Onions garlic mixture, salt pepper, lime juice, cumin powder.
8. Make a smooth mixture add water if required.
9. Now take it out in container and add cilantro leaves and mix it well.
10. Spread this easy mixture in tacos or burritos or use as a dip with nachos chips.
11. A very quick and easy dip for your party.
-Chitra

Cauliflower/Gobhi Tikka

Ingredients

1. 1 kg of cauliflower florets

2. ½ cup of hung curd

3. Salt and Red chili powder to taste

4. ½ tsp of cumin/jeera powder

5. ½ tsp of coriander/dhaniya powder

6. 2 tbsp of oil

7. ½ tsp of turmeric powder

8. ½ tsp of pomegranate/anardana powder

9. ½ tsp of mango/amchoor powder

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl add curd, oil and spices

2. Wash the florets and marinate them for at least 2-4 hours

3. Preheat the oven at 400 F or you can do this on grill

4. Take the skewers and dip into warm water for 10 minutes, by this way you will not burn the skewers. It’s fine if you are using iron skewers.

5. Put at least 3-4 florets in each skewer and bake them or grill them till they are golden brown.

6. Serve them hot with mango chutney or cucumber raita and pickled onions.

-Chitra

Roasted curry Brussels sprouts and Potato

Ingredients

1. ½ kg of Brussels sprouts

2. 2 red potatoes

3. 1 tsp of roasted cumin seeds

4. Salt and Red chili powder to taste

5. ½ tsp of turmeric powder

6. 2 tbsp canola Oil

7. 2 tbsp of fresh chopped parsley

8. 2 tbsp of lime juice

Directions

1. Preheat the oven at 400 F.

2. Cut the sprouts in quarter and potatoes also in almost same size as sprouts.

3. In a mixing bowl add oil, spices and toss it well.

4. Now add Sprouts and potatoes to it and toss so that they are covered with spices.

5. In a roasting pan add them and roast them for 30 minutes or till they are golden brown.

6. Serve hot and garnish with chopped parsley and lime juice.

-Chitra

Fried Cabbage

Ingredients

1. 1 Cabbage

2. 2 onions

3. 2 cloves of garlic

4. Salt and Red chili powder to taste

5. 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder

6. 2 green chilies

7. Oil

Directions

1. In a non stick pan add oil.

2. Heat it on medium and garlic add onions stir fry them.

3. Add cabbage and sauté it till little brown edges.

4. Now you can add salt, pepper and turmeric powder.

5. Toss the spices and put the green chilies and cook the cabbage with covered lid slowly for 10 minutes.

6. Serve with hot chapatti or as a side dish with any kind of protein.

-Chitra

Tip of the Day

When you are making potato cutlets add bread crumbs if your mixture is little wet.

When they are ready, keep them in refrigerator for 15-30 minutes before frying them, in this way they will not break apart.

- Chitra

Grilled Thai Chicken over Brown Rice Medley and Rosemary Roasted Vegetables

 
Ingredients

Grilled Thai Chicken
1. 1 chicken breast halved
2. 1 tsp of peanut butter
3. 1 tbsp of soy sauce
4. 2 tsp of red hot sauce
5. 1 tbsp of vegetable oil
6. 1 tsp of grilled seasoning
7. 1 tsp of red pepper flakes
Rosemary Roasted Vegetables
1. 1 Zucchini
2. 1 yellow squash
3. 2 big red potato
4. 2 cups of diced yellow, red and orange bell pepper
5. 2 tbsp of fresh rosemary
6. 3 cloves of garlic
7. Salt and pepper to taste
8. 1 tsp of grilled seasoning
9. 2 tbsp of olive oil
Brown Rice Medley
1. ½ cup of brown rice medley
2. 1 tbsp of olive oil
3. ¾ cup of yellow and red bell pepper
4. Salt to taste


Directions

Grilled Thai Chicken
1. In a mixing bowl add all ingredients except chicken and whisk it well.
2. After washing your chicken, pat it dry.
3. Now poke chicken and put the chicken in zip lock bag or marinating bowl/tray. Pour the marinating mixture over the chicken.
4. Shake it well and let it sit for at least 2-4 hours.
5. Heat the grilled pan and grilled the chicken till golden brown on each side. Do not flip in between otherwise the meat will tear.
6. Whenever it is ready cool down before cutting into slices so that juices can run over and chicken will remain moist.
Rosemary Roasted Vegetables
1. Dice all the vegetables in bite size pieces, not to small as they need to be roasted.
2. Preheat the oven at 400 F.
3. Mix all ingredients with garlic cloves and chopped rosemary, salt and pepper, grilled seasoning, olive oil.
4. In a roasting pan add these vegetables and roast them until golden brown.
Brown Rice Medley
1. In rice cooker add 1 tbsp of olive oil and add those vegetables.
2. Now add rice and roast them for 2 minutes before adding water.
3. Then add 1 cup of water and salt to taste to cook the rice.
For serving the whole dish make a bed of rice and lay the grilled chicken slices on top. On the side serve roasted vegetables.
-Chitra

Achaari Tikki / Pickle Potatoes Cutlets

These spicy, homemade, easy to cook cutlets are so tempting, that you can fall in love with them. You can serve them as party snack instead of those frozen cutlets you buy from market. You don’t need any fancy item here and you can make them as wraps next morning if you have nay leftovers or make extra. Fill them in pita bread with salad leaves and hummus.. Hope you guys enjoy them with your family and friends.

Ingredients

1. 3 Potatoes

2. 1 tsp of anaardana / pomegranate seeds

3. Salt to taste

4. 1 tsp of red chili powder

5. Oil for shallow frying

6. 4 tbsp of dry flour (used whole wheat)

For Filing

7. 3 tbsp of your favorite pickle (used spicy mango pickle in this recipe)

8. 1 cup of roasted moong daal (used Haldriam Moong daal packet)

9. 2 tbsp of fresh cilantro / dhaniya leaves

Directions

1. Boil potatoes and peel them.

2. In one mixing bowl mash potatoes and mix salt, red chili powder, anaardana and mix it well. If you think that mixture is little wet you can add little bit of flour.

3. In another mixing bowl add pickle, cilantro leaves and moong daal and mix it well.

4. Heat oil in a non stick pan.

5. Now start making small balls of potato mixture and flatten them in center.

6. Add mixture of pickle in center and close the cutlet carefully.

7. Now press the cutlet carefully, so that it does not break open. Use dry flour on counter table for this, in this way it will not slip from your hands.

8. Keep making the cutlets and then shallow fry them 4-5 minutes each side or until golden brown.

9. Now in a serving plate place this cutlet in centre, sprinkle cilantro leaves on top and tomato ketchup around the cutlet. Serve hot.

-Chitra

Dream come true :)

Long time dream come true. I have been so inspired by all the food network stars since long. Always thought of that day when I will meet them , what will I say, what will I do first or how will I react.

It’s a lifetime opportunity when you meet your stars, your favorite TV stars, Actors, Sports stars etc. Everybody has their own ideals who they want to be, who inspire them of doing something in their life, well for me they are Culinary Artists, Chefs anyone related to Food. So when I got to know that they are coming to NY, I could not stop myself. I had to go and see them, meet them, and had a great experience.

I have learnt so much from Rachel Ray (in Black T), her show Rachel Ray - 30 Minute Meal, Kelsey Nixon ( in check shirt) from her show Kelsey Essentials - Cooking Channel, Ben Sargent from his show Hook, Line and Dinner - Cooking Channel and last but not the least, my husband’s and mine favt, Nadia G (in Pink) her show Bitchin' Kitchen. Hope to see them more.

I wish everybody gets their dream come true and everybody can meet their stars one day soon.

Till then enjoy cooking

Chitra

Warm Medley Rice Salad

This warm Salad can be perfect combination with your grilled chicken, meat or fish. It has lots of fiber in it so its very good for health..

Ingredients

1. ½ cup of brown rice medley

2. 1 tbsp of butter

3. ½ cup of mix vegetable ( carrots, peas, corn and beans)

4. Salt to taste

5. One fresh bay leaf

6. 1 tbsp of olive oil

7. 1 ½ cup of vegetable broth or chicken broth

8. Cilantro/Dhaniya leaves to garnish

Directions

1. In rice cooker or pot adds butter and olive oil warm the oil and add bay leaf.

2. Do not wash the rice and add to the cooker and sauté them for 5 minutes just to roast them for some time.

3. Now add the mix vegetables and sauté them too.

4. After the vegetables are sautéed add salt and mix well.

5. Add the broth and let the rice cook after that take out the bay leaf.

6. Garnish with cilantro leaves or chives and serve it warm as a salad with grilled chicken breasts.

-Chitra

Oven Baked “No Oil” Onion Rings

These Crispy Onion Rings are my favorite. But whenever we order them from our favorite restaurants they are all fried or baked with oil. But these are low calorie, no fried, oven baked without oil Onion rings are so crispy delicious that you can have all without any guilt. Enjoy guys..

Ingredients

1. 1 large Onion sliced in rings ½ inch each

2. 1 cup of bread crumbs

3. 1 cup of baked pita chips or nacho chips

4. ½ tsp of red chili flakes

5. ½ tsp of cayenne pepper

6. Salt to taste

7. 1 1/2 cup of all purpose flour – 1/2 cup dry and 1 cup mixed with water to make a thick paste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven at 425 F.

2. Take the onion rings and separate they put them in brown grocery bag or ziplock bag.

3. Put the ½ cup of flour and little salt and cayenne pepper in the brown bag. Shake the bag very well so that onion rings are dusted/ coated with flour.

4. In another tray make the wet ingredient (flour and water) with no lumps.

5. In a chopper machine add bread crumbs, chips and cayenne pepper, salt and red chili flakes.

6. Run the machine so that it mixes well and turn into very smooth dry mixture. Put this in different tray.

7. Now take out the onion rings and dust the extra flour.

8. Keep them in baking sheet and pick them one by one now with tongs, dip them in the wet flour mixture and then dip at last in bread crumbs mixture.

9. Make sure all sides of onion rings are covered with bread crumbs.

10. In a baking sheet lay the aluminum foil so that onion rings do not stick to the sheet. Start layering the onion rings on it.

11. Bake them till golden brown. It took 20-25 minutes depending on different ovens and their temperature.

12. Serve them hot with mustard sauce and ketchup or lemon wedges. There is no oil, they are not fried so enjoy them without any guilt.

-Chitra

Marinara Mushroom and Peas

Ingredients

1. ½ bag of frozen peas (1/2 lb)

2. 1 bag of fresh mushrooms (any kind) (8-10 pieces) sliced

3. Salt to taste

4. 1 cup of marinara sauce/pasta sauce

5. Red pepper to taste

6. 1 garlic clove minced

7. 1 green chili sliced

8. 2 tbsp of olive oil / vegetable oil

Directions

1. In a non stick skillet add oil on medium heat.

2. Add the garlic and green chilies.

3. As soon as they turn pink, frozen peas and sauté it.

4. Now add mushrooms to them.

5. Sprinkle red pepper and toss.

6. Now add marinara sauce and stir well.

7. Now cook for about 5-8 minutes.

8. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves.

9. You can also fill this in taco or burrito with salad and cheese. It will be perfect lunch in the box.

-Chitra

Tip of the Week

Cold eggs are easier to separate than warm eggs.

To achieve maximum volume when beating eggs, have them at room temperature.

Potatoes Biscuits

Ingredients

1. 2 boiled Potatoes

2. 2 cups of all purpose flour / maida

3. 3 tsp of baking powder

4. ½ tsp of seasoned salt / ½ tsp of onion salt

5. 3 tbsp of butter

6. ½ cup of milk

7. ½ tsp of red pepper

8. ½ tsp of toasted cumin seeds

Directions

1. Preheat the oven at 450 F

2. In a chopper mash the potatoes with butter

3. Mix Flour, baking powder, salt, pepper and cumin seeds.

4. Mash them well and make the dough by adding milk little by little.

5. Now flatten the dough upto ½ inch thick sheet.

6. After that cut the small biscuits with cookie cutter.

7. Now lay them on greased sheet.

8. Bake them until they turn golden brown in sides or till 20-25 minutes.

9. Serve these crispy cookies with tea or coffee.

10. You can also make it as a little snack like spread the hummus on biscuits.

11. Garnish with cilantro leaves and sliced black olives.

-Chitra

Tip of the Week

Freshness Test for an egg: Place an egg in water mixed with a little salt. If the egg is fresh it will sink. The quicker or farther it sinks, the fresher it is. If the egg floats, it has spoiled.

Tip of the Week

For all of you bake a lot, this is useful one. Sometimes when you bake with egg, cakes or cookies smell like egg. For this add one tbsp. of honey while beating or making the flour dough. It will also be good substitute for sugar. If you want to use honey instead of sugar, you have to check the measurements.

Honey one of natural sweetener, consists of several components: fructose, glucose, maltose and sucrose. It is 25 to 50% sweeter than sugar, and has a distinctive flavor. The flavors and colors of honey can vary depending upon the bees' diet--buckwheat honey, for example, is darker and stronger than clover honey. Baked goods made with honey are moist and dense, and tend to brown faster than those made with granulated sugar. Use ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon honey in place of 1 cup sugar, and reduce the other liquid ingredients by 2 tablespoons. Unless the recipe includes sour cream or buttermilk, add a pinch of baking soda to neutralize the acidity.

Brownie Biscotti

This semi-homemade biscotti is worth a try. Its amazingly good with coffee and tea or even iced tea.

Ingredients

1. 1 Pack of Brownie Mix (Chocolate Cappuccino)

2. 2 eggs

3. ½ cup of sliced almonds

4. 1 ½ cup of all purpose flour

5. 1 stick i.e. ½ cup of butter or margarine melted (unsalted)

6. ½ cup of chocolate chips (optional)

7. 1 tsp of vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat the oven at 350.

2. In a mixing bowl add flour and brownie mix ( I used Archer Farm’s Chocolate Cappuccino flavor with chocolate chips)

3. Add chocolate chips and almonds, sift it.

4. Now in a separate bowl add butter and eggs and whisk.

5. Then add vanilla extract to egg mixture.

6. Now add wet ingredients in dry slowly and mix with hand or mixer.

7. Mix it well to the extent of firm dough.

8. Form it in a ball and cut in two halves.

9. Now take the first half and make it as vertical stick and press it lightly to form a long thin rectangle.

10. Do it for the second and place both of them on baking sheet on the parchment paper or foil.

12. After baking it for 30 minutes remove them from oven and let it cool for 6-8 minutes.

13. Now cut them diagonally for about 1 inch.

14. Place them on the baking sheet again and bake them for another 10 minutes.

15. Now turn off the oven and let the biscotti’s sit there in warm oven for about 30 minutes. This will crisp the biscotti’s.

16. Take them out now, and cool them for 2 hours before serving.

17. Store in air tight container and serve with coffee and milk.

-Chitra

Tip of the Week

Whenever you cook your red meat (mutton) add a piece of pineapple and a piece of raw papaya, in this way it will be cooking fast and soft and adds different natural sweet flavor to it.

Velvet Mashed Potatoes with Read Beans

Ingredients

1. ½ cup of medium boiling potatoes

2. ¾ cup milk

3. ½ pack of cream cheese (cubed and softened at room temperature)

4. ½ cup of butter (softened at room temperature)

5. ½ tsp of salt

6. ½ tsp of freshly grounded black pepper

7. 1 tbsp of finely chopped dill.

Directions

1. Peel the potatoes and cube them and keep them in bowl.

2. Heat 2 cups of water and boil it.

3. Add 1 tsp of salt and add potatoes.

4. Cook them on medium heat for 30 minutes or till tender.

5. In a large bowl add the boiled potatoes and mash them very well.

6. In a separate bowl add milk, butter, cream cheese, dill and salt and pepper.

7. Now start adding the wet ingredients in potatoes by stirring well in between to make the mashed potatoes light and fluffy.

8. Put the mashed potatoes in centre of plate and pour the beans soup all over it.

9. I used the beans soup which I had some leftover from my lunch; you can make any gravy item for this like chicken soup of vegetable soup or serve like that also as a side with grilled fish or chicken.

-Chitra