Spiced Sesame Seeds Powder

Ingredients

1 cup  white sesame seeds
1/2 cup red chillies(add more or less depending upon the spice levels)
Salt to taste

Recipe

Dry roast sesame seeds till the color changes to very light brown.
Dry roast the red chillies for 1/2 a minute
Put the dry roasted sesame seeds,salt  and red chillies into a grinder.
Pulse until everything comes together in the form of a powder. Do not grind continuously. Use pulse mode,Otherwise the oil from the sesame seeds will make the powder mushy.
This powder can be mixed with hot plain white rice and ghee or can be added in curries. It can also be eaten with plain dosa, idli etc.

Masala dosa

Ingredients

For Dosa:

1 cup Urad Daal
3 cups Idli rice
1/2 tsp Fenugreek seeds
Salt to taste

For Potato Curry:

4 medium boiled potatoes
1 medium green chilli chopped finely
1 inch ginger grated
1 tsp urad daal
1 tsp chana daal
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 Tbsp oil
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1 medium onion sliced
1 sprig of curry leaves
salt to taste

Recipe

The batter:

Soak urad daal, Fenugreek seeds together in bowl of water and rice in another bowl for 4 hours. Grind them together into smooth paste, cover and leave it in a warm place to ferment(should double in volume) overnight. Once the batter ferments mix well and the batter should have the consistency as shown in the picture.

If the batter is too thick, add water. Finally add salt and mix well.Keep aside

The potato curry:

Take a pan and heat it up. 

Add oil,once the oil is warm, add the chana daal and fry till it changes color to light brown. Add urad daal,cumin seeds, mustard seeds. Once they Splutter, add curry leaves, ginger, green chilli, onion, and turmeric. Fry till the onions turn translucent. Add salt. Mash the potatoes and add it to the above mixture.Mix well. The potato curry should look something like in the picture.

The masala dosa:

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan.
Pour a ladle full of batter on the griddle and make a thin crepe.
Once the crepe has dried a bit, add oil all over the crepe and to the edges.
Once the crepe starts turning brown, remove it onto a plate.
Serve hot with the potato curry and chutney of your choice.

Italian Vegetable Soup

Ingredients

1/2 cup frozen mixed vegetables (carrots,peas,lima beans,corn etc)
1 medium Zucchini cut into bite size pieces
1 medium tomato cut into bite size pieces
1 medium onion chopped
2 Handfuls of Farfalle pasta(any pasta would do)
1/2 gallon water
3 Tbsp Tomato Paste
1 Tsp Italian seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste
Extra Virgin Olive Oil to drizzle on top
Parmesan/Romano cheese or mix of both for garnishing.
Chopped Parsley for garnishing.

Recipe

Add all vegetables,pasta,tomato paste in the water.
Cover and Cook on medium high till all vegetables are boiled thoroughly and the water reduces to a soupy consistency.
Add Salt and Pepper to taste.
Add Italian seasoning to taste
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on top
Transfer to a bowl and garnish with desired amount of the Parmesan/Romano cheese and  chopped parsley.
Serve with fresh Garlic bread.

Paneer Paratha

 

Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 and half cups of water
2 cups Grated Paneer
1 green chilli
1 medium size onion minced
4-5 mint leaves finely chopped
Finely chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp lime juice
salt to taste
1 teaspoon Garam masala powder
1 Tbsp grated ginger
1 tsp oil
1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Recipe

Prepare the dough

In a bowl take the whole wheat flour, add water slowly and make a dough. Refer to chapathi/phulka post to know how to make a dough. Keep the prepared dough aside for at least 10 minutes.

Prepare the filling

Heat a pan, add oil. Once the oil is hot add cumin seeds

After cumin seeds splutter, add grated paneer chilli, minced onion, mint leaves,cilantro,lime juice, salt garam masala powder and ginger.Keep sauteing till excess moisture gets evaporated.This is to make sure the paneer mixture is dry.

Prepare the paratha

Heat a Tawa/pan. Make equal number of balls of the dough and paneer mixture. The balls should be of same size. Take a dough ball and roll out a small chapathi. Stuff paneer into the chapathi and close the edges of the rolled chapathi together to make a ball again. Dust the stuffed ball in dry wheat flour and roll out gently to make a paratha. put the paratha on the tawa and wait till the paratha changes color. flip it to the other side and cook.keep pressing the paratha with the spatula. once brown spots appear, drizzle oil/butter on the paratha and cook till a golden brown color is seen on both sides. Serve hot with Raita and pickle or a curry