South Indian Style- Peanut Baingan/Eggplant

 

This is new version of eggplant, I ever made and tasted, but I have some of the ingredients used in south Indian cooking. When I bought this week to try something with this, I never found any recipes for green eggplant other than green bharta, which I don’t want to try. So I created my own version, I hope you will like it too like my family loved it.

Ingredients

1. 5 green round Eggplant/ Baingan cut in ¼ inch slices

2. One Onion (chopped roughly)

3. One tomato diced

4. 3-4 green chilies (according to you, you can also opt for dry red chilies)

5. 3-4 garlic cloves

6. ½ cup of peanut

7. 2 tbsp or 8-10 leaves of kaddipatta / curry leaves

8. 1 tsp of cumin seeds

9. 1 tsp of fennel / sauf seeds

10. ½ tsp of fenugreek seeds

11. ½ tsp of coriander seeds

12. Salt to taste

13. 1 tbsp of imli / tamarind concentrate

14. Oil

15. ½ tps pf turmeric, red chili powder, cumin and amchoor / mango powder each

Directions

1. Heat oil in a non stick pan and add slices of eggplant in it.

2. Stir fry them till both the sides are slightly brown.

3. Take them out and keep them aside in a bowl.

4. In the same pan add little bit oil again and add onion garlic and green chilies and saute them till light golden.

5. Add peanuts and curry leaves also now and keep on shaking the pan, so that they don’t burn.

6. Now with a spoon just shift all the onion aside and add the dry spices, let them stand for 2 minutes and then mix with onion mixture.

7. Now mix in the tomatoes and let the mixture cook for 5 minutes.

8. Add all the dry spices now, salt, red chili powder, turmeric, mango and cumin powder and cook for another 2 minutes. Let it cool down and take off the heat.

9. In a mixing bowl or cup add tamarind concentrate in little water.

10. In a mixer/grinder add the onion/peanut masala with tamarind water and blend it really well. The mixture will be turned out as little grainy, but this is what you are looking for.

11. Add the mixture in same pan and cook with ½ cup of water. Bring it to boil.

12. Add the sliced green eggplant and let it cook in low heat for 5-8 minutes.

13. Serve with hot roti or parantha , naan or rice.

- enjoy

Chitra

Valentine’s Day Special Chocolate and Hazelnut Cookies

 

I recently saw lots of recipes for Nutella cookies, which I absolutely love, but this time I picked up new Hershey’s Spread (chocolate and hazelnut flavor), so I thought why not try this recipe with a new ingredient.

Ingredients

1. 1 cup of Flour

2. 1 cup of Hershey’s spreads chocolate hazelnut (can use Nutella)

3. 1 Egg

4. Pinch of Salt

5. ¼ cup of M&M of your choice (I used Peanut)

6. 1 tbsp. of Thick yoghurt

7. 2 tbsp. of sugar

 

Directions

1. Preheat the oven for 350 degrees F.

2. Crush the M&M with help of any heavy spoon or kitchen tool. I used Peanut M&M as my valentine loves this one. You can use any M&M you want.

3. Mix all the dry ingredients first, Flour, crushed M&M , pinch of salt and sugar.

4. Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl, egg, yoghurt and Hershey’s spread (main ingredient), you can use Nutella also.

5. Whisk together well and then mix the dry and wet ingredients well.

6. Make your cookie sheet ready with parchment paper or foil paper.

7. Bake them for 8-10 minutes, depending on your oven.

Viola ! your delicious , sumptuous cookies are ready for your date night with your special someone.

Psst.. If you don’t have anyone for your valentines, make it for yourself and share with your friends and family and celebrate your day. You will soon get onesweet like this.

Please let me know if you try this and share this recipe with your friends and family.

-xoxo Chitra

Almond Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients

1. ½ cup of granulated sugar

2. ½ cup of brown sugar

3. ½ cup of peanut butter (chunky optional)

4. ¼ cup of shortening

5. ¼ cup butter softened

6. 1 egg

7. 1 ¼ cup of all purpose flour

8. ¾ tsp baking soda

9. ½ tsp baking powder

10. 1 cup of sliced almonds

11. ¼ tsp salt

Directions

1. Mix wet ingredients peanut butter, shortening and egg and butter in a bowl.

2. In a bigger bowl add sugar, salt and flour and almonds.

3. Add baking powder and baking soda into the dry ingredients.

4. Now mix all wet ingredients in dry ingredients, add slowly and mix well.

5. Form the dough, cover it and refrigerate for about 2 hours.

6. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

7. Take the dough in 1 tsp of round spoon and keep dropping on ungreased cookie sheet.

8. After all the balls are made, flatten with fork in crisscross pattern.

9. Bake the cookies for about 9 – 10 minutes or until the sides are golden brown.

10. Cool for 5 minutes and then remove from cookie sheet.

11. Store in air tight containers and serve with milk, tea or coffee

-Chitra

Chat Pate Peanuts

 

Ingredients

1. 1 bag of unsalted peanuts

2. 1 tsp of kosher /sea salt

3. ½ tsp of red chili powder

4. 1 tsp of chaat masala

5. 1 tbsp of sugar

6. 1 tsp of oil

Directions

1. Roast the peanuts in oven on gas in a non stick pan until it is golden brown

2. In a plastic bag or a brown bag (you can use same bag in which peanuts were packed) add salt, chaat masala, sugar and red chili powder.

3. Now put the warm peanuts and 1 tsp of oil in the same plastic bag or a brown bag.

4. Shake it well until the mixture is stick with peanuts.

5. Serve these as a snack with tea, coffee or cocktail.

-Chitra

Thai Chicken in Spicy Peanut Sauce

Ingredients

1. 3 chicken tenders (skinless) chopped in thin slices

2. 1 red chili chopped

3. 2 scallions / green onion chopped finely

4. 1 cup of vertically sliced red and yellow bell peppers

5. ½ cup of shredded cabbage

6. 1 onion (vertically) finely chopped

7. 2 tbsp of garlic minced and ginger minced

8. Salt and pepper to taste

9. 3 tbsp. smooth natural peanut butter

10. 2 tbsp. "light” coconut milk

11. 1 tbsp. lime juice

12. 3 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce

13. 1tbsp of brown sugar

Directions

1. In a heated wok add 1 tbsp of oil, and coat it well.

2. Add chicken tenders allow them to cook 4 minutes each side. Just browning, don’t burn them otherwise it will loosen their juices, now take out the chicken.

3. Deglaze the pan with 1 tsp of vinegar and add then 2 tbsp of oil again.

4. Now add the ginger garlic paste, onions, bell peppers, cabbage.

5. Satay them on medium heat. In the mean time in a bowl whisk peanut butter, coconut milk, lime juice, soy sauce and sugar until smooth.

6. When the vegetables are cooked add back the chicken.

7. Now add the peanut butter sauce you prepared. Let it simmer for 5 minutes till sauce is reduced.

8. Add red chili to the cooked chicken and stir.

9. Serve hot with steamed rice. Eat with chopsticks, you will love it.

Jaggery Peanut Brittle/Gur ki Gajak

 

Ingredients

1. 200 gms of jaggery / gur

2. 3 tbsp of saunf / fennel seeds

3. 2 cups of roasted peanuts

4. 3 tbsp of oil

Directions

1. In a non stick pan add 3 tbsp of oil.

2. Add Gur / Jaggery; keep the heat on slow flame.

3. Now let the gur melt until it is golden brown.

4. Add saunf / fennel seeds to the mixture along with peanuts.

5. On a foil paper spray oil and lay it down on the flat surface.

6. Remove it from heat and pour the mixture on foil paper and spread it well.

7. Cool down the mixture, until it is hard.

8. Break it down into pieces with some hard thing.

9. Enjoy in cool winters.

-Chitra

Quick and Easy Cole Slaw Stir fry with Peanuts

Ingredients

1. 1 small bag of Broccoli Cole Slaw

2. 2 tbsp. of low sodium of soy sauce

3. 2 tbsp. of Orange juice

4. ½ cup of chopped onion vertically

5. ½ tsp of garlic minced (optional)

6. 2 tsp of red hot sauce.

7. 2 tsp of sesame seeds

8. 1 cup of toasted or roasted peanuts without salt

9. 1 tbsp of olive oil

Directions

1. Heat the wok or non stick pan put oil

2. Now add onions let them turn to light brown.

3. Add Garlic to it and then let garlic infused it flavor in pan.

4. Now add all the Cole Slaw and keep on stirring with tongs so that it’s light sautéed / fried all over.

5. When it is thoroughly cooked add soy sauce, orange juice. Stir it till is coated with the juice and soy sauce.

6. Take it out of heat and add red hot sauce.

7. Plate it on the serving plate and garnish with roasted peanuts and some sesame seeds .

8. Enjoy warm salad with a twist, after this you will not only be full but also you will not be guilty of eating any extra calories in regular salads. This Salad is purely full of fiber and high nutritional value as it has very very less fat.

-Chitra

Bell Pepper Cup Cakes

This will be your favorite appetizer just try this...invite your girlfriends over or try it as a picnic snack.....everyone will love it


Ingredients

· One boiled potato
· Two Red Peppers, cut the top off
· ½ cup of roasted peanuts
· 2 tsp. of olives (black and green)
· Salt and pepper to taste
· 1 teaspoon of red chili flakes
· 1 cup of diced onions
· 1 tsp. of diced green chilies
· 3 tsp. of shredded skimmed Mozzarella Cheese
· 1 teaspoon of sesame seeds

Directions

· In a non stick skillet add 1 tsp. of oil.
· Add Onions and green chilies
· When onion turn golden brown add potatoes
· Now add Salt and pepper and red chili flakes
· Cool down the mixture for 5 minutes and olives to it.
· Add mozzarella cheese to the mixture now
· Now fill bell peppers with the mixture.
· Preheat the oven for ten minutes 350 degrees.
· Now bake the bell peppers until they are little soft from outside light brown color from
outside.
· Coat with sesame seeds and serve hot.

-Chitra Pal