Mixed Greens Chutney

This is a rec which has been handed over generation by generation in my hubby's home... Its an excellent way of getting greens in the meals... I usually make it once in 2 weeks and freeze it in small pots and keep using as and when required...

It can be eaten with idly, dosa, used as a sandwich spread, in chapathi rolls, with rice... anything u wish to.. My 16 month old son has been eating this for a very long with great fondness and everyone who tastes it loves it...

Ingredients

• 1 bunch palak leaves
• 1 bunch methi leaves
• 2 bunches red leaves
• 1 bunch gongura leaves
• 1 bunch corriander leaves
• 1 bunch dill leaves
• handful of mint leaves
• handful of curry leaves
• (u can add any other green if u want too, I sometimes add mustard leaves, raddish leaves)
• 1 large onion chopped
• 1 large tomato chopped
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp urad dal
• 1 tsp channa dal
• 1 tbsp peanuts (optional, to be avoided in case of allergies)
• 2-3 dry red chillies (its yummy spicy so if kids are not eating it add more)
  
• Oil or ghee to fry

Method

• wash and chop all greens (incase u are adding mustard, boil it seperately before)
• Heat oil in a pan and then add mustard seeds
• once they crackle, add cumin seeds
• add dry red chillies, peanuts, urad dal and chana dal, fry for 3-4 mins till dasl turn little brown
  
• add onions and fry till they turn golden brown
• add tomatoes and fry for 2-3 minutes
  
• add all greens and fry for 7-8 minutes or till the leaves become little soft
  
• add 1.5 cup of water and let it simmer for 10 mins
  
• simmer till the desired consistency is achieved
  
• grind it a little in the mixer and its ready to relish
  

Nutrition Pack Parathas

Ojas these days is in a state where he wants to eat everything on his own, so I am trying to innovate in foods which he can eat on his own... the top of the list is Paranthas... here is one I figured out and everyone loved

Ingredients
1.5 cup atta (use whole wheat or I used the pillsbury multi grain atta)
1/2 cup sweet corn kernel parboiled and crushed
1/2 onion chopped
1 bunch palak leaves chopped
1 bunch methi leaves chopped
1/2 tsp ajwain seeds
1 tsp oil
salt to taste
pinch of red chilli powder
some mozzarella cheese
u can add green chillies if kids are not eating

Method
1. Knead all ingredients apart from cheese together to make dough
2. With the dough roll out small chapathi and stuff with cheese
3.fold and roll again
4. fry both sides using oil/ghee or butter whatever ur child prefers

serve with curd

this is very good dish for the dieting people too, just avoid the cheese and fry without oil...

My experiences with cooking and feeding my child

I did a post on my experiences with cooking and feeding my child. I did not do it here for its not about facts but only my views. Do take a look when you have time and let me know what you have to say.

Sabudana Khichdi

Ingredients
1.5 cup sagu/sabudana
1 large onion chopped
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp jeera
2-3 dry red chillies
3 green chillies chopped
2 tbsp peanuts
handful of curry leaves
coriander for garnishing
salt to taste

Method
1. wash and soak the sagu for 10-15 mins
2. roast the peanuts and grind them coarsely
3. heat oil add mustard seeds.
4. after they splutter add jeera
5. add chilies and onion and fry till golden brown
6. add the curry leaves and fry for 1 min
7. add salt and then add the sagu and peanut
8. cook till done
9. garnish with coriander and enjoy

some people also veggies in this but somehow i like it this way

Pasta with Sun dried tomatoes

I love the flavor that sun dried tomatoes bring in a dish, i often use them in my mix veg

This time I decided to spice up my pasta with it... so here it goes

Ingredients
100gm sun dried tomatoes
800 ml water
handful of jalapenos
1 small bunch fresh parsley
1 small bunch fresh thyme
1 small bunch fresh rosemary
1 medium onion chopped
2 tsp olive oil
500 gms pasta (any shape, my personal fav is fusilli)
salt and pepper to taste

Method
1. boil the water and soak the sun dried tomatoes in it for 10 mins
2. take about 1/3 of the tomatoes and chop
3. make the puree of the rest
4. boil pasta till done, clean and keep separately
5. heat olive oil in a pan and add onions and jalapenos
6. when the onions turn golden brown add the tomato puree and tomatoes
7. boil for 7-10 mins
8. add the chopped herbs and simmer for 2 mins
9. mix the pasta and the sauce

u can also sprinkle some cheese on top to make it more interesting and also some veggies can be added to this to make it more nutritious ... i made this as a quick fix when someone was coming over a short notice so didnt do that

enjoy folks... wish i could upload pics to salivate u guys but my camera's usb cable is yet again missing :(

Dahi Vada

Has to be my fave summer snack ever!

Ingredients:
Urad dal/split black gram - 100g
Adrak/Ginger - about 1/2 inch
Saunf/Fennel seeds or aniseed - 1 tsp
Dahi/Curd) - 300 gm
Imli/Tamarind syrup(sweetened with molasses or sugar)
Jeera/Cumin, roasted then powdered
Dhania-patta/Coriander leaves(optional)
Hari mirch/Green chillies (optional)
Lal mirch/Red chilli powder(optional)
Salt
Water

Process:

For the vadas(dumplings):

• Take about 100g split black gram seeds(urad dal) and soak overnight in about 250 mL water. It should swell up to over twice the original volume.
  
• Drain off excess water, then grind with a little ginger and fennel/aniseed. Some people add a green chilli, deseeded.
  
• Take the batter and shape it into flattish dumplings onto a damp muslin cloth.
• Heat salad oil for deep frying, and one by one dump the dumplings into the hot oil. Preferably, do not hold the dumplings in hand, but just overturn the cloth over the frying pan.
• Fry the dumplings till golden brown, and immediately soak in warm salt water. You can soak these for upto 24 hours, if you refrigerate once they cool down.

For the tamarind syrup:

• Take some ripe tamarind - 100g should do.
• Squish with water to extract a thick, dark juice.
• Squeeze the seeds and peels to get the maximum out of them, then separate the dry pulp from the juice.
  
• Sweeten to taste, preferably with molasses. Sugar will do too.
  

To serve, lift the dumplings out of the salt water and squeeze out the excess. Pour curd over them, then a generous amount of tamarind chutney, and sprinkle cumin powder on top.
Red chilli powder, chopped coriander leaves and green chillies are optional toppings.

I know this pic(courtesy www.manjulaskitchen.com) looks a bit like vanilla icecream with chocolate sauce. Trust me, it tastes different, but equally good! I really liked Manjula's recipes for Dahi Vada, and if you look up the comments on the post, they explore a number of variations on the recipe.

Cross-posted to my blog.

Oats and Veggie soup

Ingredients

Dry rolled oats: 1.5 cups
Vegetables: 1 cup (finely chopped carrot, potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, beans, peas)
Onion: 2 tbsp
Bay leaf: 1
Cinnamon stick: 1 inch
Salt and pepper to taste

Method for preparation:

1. Powder dry oats in a blender and keep aside.
2. Sauté onions in butter in a saucepan.
3. Add vegetables and cook until tender with bay leaf and cinnamon stick.
4. Remove bay leaf and cinnamon stick once the vegetables are cooked.
5. Cook oats to a dosa batter consistency.
6. Add the cooked vegetables into the oats.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste.
8. Drop a sprig of mint in the middle and a dash of cream while serving.

Healthy and yummy oats and veggie soup is ready.

Pasta in Green Sauce !

Few months back I read this recipe on one of the food blogs and wanted to try it then and there. But then it slipped away from my mind. Yesterday when I was looking to make something different forAryan and I saw spinach in fridge , this clicked to me again. But as usual I could not remember which blog was that and so I had to scratch my tiny brain to remember the best I could.
So I do not know the best way to make this pasta , but it tasted good in whatver way it was made :-)

Ingredients :

Macroni : 1.5 cups
Baby Spinach leaves : 1 cup (I used handful)
Frozen/Boiled Green Peas : 1/2 cup
Onion : 1
Garlic cloves :2-3 grinded ( I used 1/2 tsp garlic paste)
Grated Cheese : 1 cube
Olive Oil / Cooking Oil : 1 tsp
Black pepper : 1 pinch ( I use red chilli powder since hubby is allergic to black pepper)
Salt to taste

Steps :
1. Wash and grind the spinach into a paste
2. Boil and drain macroni.
3. In a pan , add the oil and saute the onion till translucent.
4. Add peas and saute further for sometime.
5. Add the spinach paste and garlic paste and bring to boil.
6. Mix with macroni and cheese.

Trust me it was yummy and three of us gobbled it within minutes.Here is a quick pic :

Apple Raisin Cake

Ingredients

1. 1 cup Flour
2. 1/2 cup Sugar (powdered)
   
3. 2 tsp Baking Powder
4. 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
5. a Pinch of Salt
6. 1/2 cup Milk
7. 1/2 cup Apple, peeled, cored and chopped finely
8. 1/4 cup Oil
9. 1 tsp Vanilla Essence
10. 1/4 cup Raisins
11. 1 Egg, beaten

Steps

1. Sift all the dry ingredients for the cake together and leave aside.
2. Pour in all the liquid ingredients and run the processor for 2 minutes.
   
3. Blend in the apple and raisins.
4. Fold the flour in this mixture.
   
5. Prepare an 8 inch round/square cake tin by spreading some oil/butter.
   
6. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 30 minutes at 180 C.

Personal Notes

1. Brown sugar instead of regular sugar would have given a better look and texture both.
2. I poured few drops of honey on the cake slices and it tasted even more yummier.

Pasta in White Sauce

Well, the brat loved it, so I thought why not share the joy in the blog!

For white sauce:

2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp flour (I used maida)
2 cups milk (add more depending on the consistency that you want)
salt and pepper to taste
Italian seasoning (optional, I used the small sachet from Pizza hut/Corner, whatever)

Thinly sliced vegetables (Red/green/yellow bell peppers, onions) - less than 2 cups
Pasta -200 gms
Cheese - for topping the pasta

Serves - 3 children

1. Cook pasta as per pack instructions. I cooked it a little softer, so that it is easy for the baby also to eat.
2. Drain pasta and keep aside.
3. Add butter to kadai and melt it.
4. Add flour and mix well.
5. Add milk little by little and whisk with ladle till the paste is smooth. Add more milk if you want the sauce runny.
6. Add salt and pepper and the seasoning.
7. Stir-fry vegetables.
8. Add the sauce and pasta to the veggies.
9. Grate cheese over it.

Serve and let the creamy yummy pasta work its magic.