Cucumber Raita

Ingredients: 3 cups of plain yogurt 1 small (9”) English cucumber 1 teaspoon of salt ½ Jalapeno pepper chopped 1 tablespoon of Cilantro chopped 2 teaspoons of Roasted cumin seeds (crushed) ¾ teaspoon of crushed mustard seeds (optional) ¼ - ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper ¼ teaspoon of black pepper coarsely ground ¼ teaspoon of paprika ¼ teaspoon of black salt (optional) Method: *Grate the...

Read More »

Falafel

Falafel is very popular in the Middle East as a fast food. As a main dish, it is served as a sandwich, stuffed in pita bread with lettuce, tomatoes, and Tahini.Traditional Falafel balls are made out of Chickpeas, sesame seeds and blend of spices. I find them very dry, and they soak lot of oil when you fry them, so I have modified this recipe using Indian pulses and beans mixed with the falafel...

Read More »

Green Hot Chili Pickle (Hari Mirch ka Aachar)

Thanks to our neighbors who let us plant few chili pepper plants in their vegetable garden, and before I knew it my husband brought these huge quantities of peppers that I did not know what to do with. I remember I used to make this pickle long time ago, but forgot all the ingredients, so I called my mom this morning and asked her for the recipe for this finger licking pickle that she taught me how...

Read More »

Stuffed Baby Eggplants without onions

Ingredients:8 baby eggplant white or purple3 table spoon coriander powder1 teaspoon cayenne pepper1 teaspoon paprika2 teaspoon salt2 teaspoon Mango powder2 teaspoon Cumin powder1 teaspoon Turmeric powder1 teaspoon Garam masala2 teaspoon Sambar powder (optional)¾ cup chick peas flour(besan)3 table spoon oil1 tsp cumin seeds½ tsp mustard seeds1/8 tsp asafoetida 1.5 cup of water¼ cup coriander/Cilantro...

Read More »

Home made Black Bean Salsa

Ingredients * 1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed * 1 11-15 oz can of corn kernels – frozen, canned or fresh cooked (may grill the corn on the cob and take the kernel off of corn to use it in this recipe) * 1/2 medium sweet red pepper, chopped * 1/2 medium green pepper, chopped * 1/2 yellow or orange pepper chopped * 1 medium red onion, chopped * 1/2 yellow or vidalia sweet onion chopped *...

Read More »

Golden Potatoes (Potato Sookhi Sabji)

Back home, when I used to come home from school/college, my mom used to have this sabji and hot off the stove chapaties ready for me...with plain yogurt, dal, pickle and rice....thinking about that meal.. still makes my mouth water...yummmmmmm.Ingredients:4 medium sized potatoes boiled, peeled and cut in to small cubes2 tbsp oil1 tsp cumin seeds½ tsp on black mustard seeds1 pod of dry red pepper (optional)1/8...

Read More »

Walnut Delight (Walnut Burfi)

Ingredients: 2 cups of Walnuts 1 can of evaporated milk (14 oza) 1 cup of sugar 1 can of condensed milk 1 stick of butter Crushed cardamoms and chopped pistachio for garnish. Method: * Grind walnuts in food processor to coarse powder form. * Add evaporated milk to it. * Cook in Microwave for 10 min. * Add sugar and condensed milk to it. * Cook additional 20 min in microwave stirring in...

Read More »

Homemade Plain Yogurt

Yogurt......yummm..... my favorite food of all...plain yogurt and rice was the first solid food that my father introduced to me, well okay...second solid food besides Parle Glucose biscuits :)Till this day yogurt and rice are my soul food. I consume yogurt in large quantity as you can tell by this picture. I eat plain yogurt, I use yogurt in my cooking and I make yogurt at home.. very often my local...

Read More »

Homemade Masala (spice mix) for Punjabi Chhole (Chickpeas)

4 tables spoon cumin seeds 4 tables spoon of coriander seeds 4 table spoon of Black cumin seeds 6 red chilies pods 4 table spoon of Mango powder 2 teaspoon black pepper corn 2 teas spoon kosher salt 1 tbsp. black salt 6 black cardamom 2 tea spoon cardamom seeds 2 tea spoon carom seeds 2 teaspoon pomegranate seeds 16 cloves 6 cinnamon thin 1" sticks 3 table spoon dry mint leaves...

Read More »

Edamame Pods snack/appetizer

Ingredients:Two 14 oz pack of frozen Edamame pods2 teaspoon of salt1 tbl spoon on olive oil2 tbl spoon of Cumin powder1 teaspoon of Cayenne pepper1 teaspoon of ground black pepper1 teaspoon of black salt (optional)Fresh juice on one limeMethod:* Empty pods in a baking dish* Sprinkle some water and 1 teaspoon of salt on the pods* Cover with plastic wrap and microwave them for 8-10 min mixing them...

Read More »

Baked Mexican Sant fe Hot Dip

Ingredients: 2 medium chopped tomatoes 2 medium Onion chopped 1 bunch green onions chopped 1 green pepper chopped 1 yellow pepper chopped 1 red pepper chopped 1 orange pepper chopped One bunch cilantro chopped 4 cloves garlic chopped 2 fresh Jalapenos chopped ¼ cup Jalapeno peppers (pickled) chopped) One 8 oz bottle of any chunky medium or mild salsa One 8 oz bottle of Ortega taco sauce mild one...

Read More »

Moist Banana Bread

Ingredients: ¾ cup butter or oil 2 ¾ cups flour ½ cup buttermilk or sour cream (optional) 2 eggs beaten 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 table spoon lemon juice 1½ cup mashed ripe banana (3 medium) 1 cup granulated sugar 3/4 cup light brown sugar 1 tsp vanilla (for variation can use amaretto if you like that flavor and if using almonds for nuts, personally I don't care for amaretto) 1...

Read More »

Peppers and Mushroom and Paneer Sabji

Ingredients:2-3 tablespoon of oil2 teaspoon of cumin seeds2 onions 4 cloves of garlic1” of gingerPinch of asafoetida3-4 big cardamoms2 bay leaves1 pod of red chili dried4 table spoon of coriander powder2 teaspoon of ground cumin1 teaspoon of mango powder1 teaspoon of garam masala2 teaspoon of paprika1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (or to taste)1 teaspoon of turmeric1 red pepper1 green pepper1 pack...

Read More »

Tamarind Sauce/Chutney (Imli ki Chutney)

This sweet and sour sauce is used to spruce up almost all the Indian snacks and chaat. You may adjust the amount of tamarind and jaggery/sugar to desired sweetness and tartness/tanginess. Ingredients: 1/2 cup seedless Tamarind or tamarind paste (available at local Indian grocers) 1 cup pitted Dates 1/4 cup of Jaggery ** 1 cup of water to soak above 1/4 cup of Brown sugar 1/2 cup of Apple butter...

Read More »

Golden Cauliflower

Golden Cauliflower This was and still is my all time favorite vegetable. This is my mom’s recipe, I love to eat this with chapatti and plain yogurt and also with rice and plain yogurt….Thanks mom:)1 whole cauliflower, cut into tiny florets 3 tbl spoon of vegetable oil1 teaspoon of cumin seeds1 teaspoon of mustard seeds2 red chilies dried1/8 teaspoon of asfoetida3 tomatoes chopped1 green pepper chopped1...

Read More »

Portobello Mush Raviolis with sundried tomatoes Marsala sauce

Okay, I cheated here a little: I bought Portobello Mush Raviolis from Costco and prepared them according to instructions on the package, but I did make the sauce and it came out delicious....and tasted very good with these raviolis. The following recipe is good for one of the two packs of ravioli that Costco sells together. Here is the recipe for the sauce.. Rich Marsala Sauce • 3 Tablespoons...

Read More »

Cappuccino Chocolate Chip Muffins

Serves/Makes: 6-10 Ready In: 30-60 minutes Ingredients: 1 3/4 cup unsifted all purpose flour 6 tablespoons butter, softened 1/4 cup Brown Sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/2 teaspoon Salt 1/2 cup Cocoa Powder 6 tablespoons Soft Butter 1 cup Sour Cream 1 cup Half And Half 2 Eggs 2 Oranges -- zest only 1/4 cup evaporated milk 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 tablespoon instant...

Read More »

Grilled/smoked Eggplant (Bharta)

This can be used as side vegetable dish or a dip.Serving 4-61 large eggplant purple or white (or 2 medium)1 medium onion chopped 4 spring onions chopped5 each Italian plum (Roma) tomatoes1 chopped green pepper2 green onions finely chopped2-4 each garlic cloves or more, to taste ½ inch piece of ginger grated2 tablespoon lemon juice 1-2 chopped hot green chili or jalapeno peppers 3-4-table spoon oil1-teaspoon...

Read More »

Hot Pepper Jelly

I am having lot of fun with peppers this summer. Our neighbors were gracious enough to let us plant some pepper plants in their garden, and Oh my...so many peppers are coming out that I don't know what to do with them... Fortunately our neighbors are not that pepper crazy, so I decided to experiment some of the my long lost recipes for my blog.. And here it is, another one of my favorite recipe,...

Read More »