Brussels Sprout Curry

I have always had oven roasted brussels sprout as a side with my fish, and now i am glad that i found out this fabulous Brussels Sprout Subzi recipe from Showmethecurry. Err..why didn't i try it before? Ah, never mind. I got to say, this is best curry i have tasted so far that goes fantastic with sambar rice or may be anything (didn't had any leftover to try with chapathi or dosa). The cute little cabbages were so tender and juicy, that we both devoured every bite of'em. Actually, i skipped using tomato paste and tamarind paste that the recipe calls for. I can keep on talking about the curry, so let me stop and you guys give it a try and talk about it. Here goes the recipe,

Ingredients:

15-18 Brussels Sprouts

1/2 Red Onion (finely chopped)

2 Ripe Roma Tomatoes (finely chopped)

4-5 Curry leaves

1/4tsp Turmeric powder

1tsp Chilli powder

2tsp Sambar powder

1/2tsp Mustard seeds

1/2tsp Urad dal

1/4tsp Fenugreek seeds

1 pinch Asafoetida (hing)

1tbsp Oil

Salt

How to:

• Remove the bruised, loose leaves from the brussels sprout, wash'em and cut into quarters.

• Heat oil in a skillet, add mustard seeds, when it splutters, add urad dal, fenugreek seeds and asafoetida followed by turmeric powder, onions and curry leaves.

• Sauté until onions are tender, then add the tomatoes and continue sautéing until its half-cooked.

• Now add the chilli powder and sambar powder and cook until tomatoes are completely mashed up.

• Add the quartered brussels sprout, mix well along with salt and cook with lid closed in a medium flame.

• Sprinkle some water every time you stir in between to avoid burning at the bottom.
• Cook until tender to bite, check salt for taste and switch off.

Serve hot with sambar or dal rice.

Hot Carrot Paneer Fried Rice

Ah! what a comfortable way to make one pot meal that too with your favorite 'paneer'. I had the paneer out from my fridge and was checking for other ingredients to make something quick and tasty. As i was browsing through various paneer recipes, i came across Priya's Easy N Tasty Recipes Carrot and Paneer Fried Rice. Thanks for the fantastic recipe, Priya. I loved the combination of carrot and paneer, as carrot gives nice color and paneer gives a meaty texture to your every bite. Once you add paneer, the grated carrot sticks to it and gives a beautiful roasted color and feel. Also, i added some extra chilli powder and pepper powder to make it hot. Give it a try and am sure you will love it, like we did.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Basmati Rice

3/4 cup Carrot (grated)

3/4 cup Paneer (diced)

1/2 Yellow Onion (diced)

2 Green Chilli (slit)

5-6 Curry leaves

1tsp Chilli powder

1/2tsp Cumin powder

1/2tsp Garam masala powder

1/2tsp Fennel seeds

1/2tsp Cumin seeds

2 Cloves

1 Cinnamon stick (1/2")

1tbsp + 1tsp Oil

Ground black pepper, to taste

Salt

How to:

• Pressure cook the basmati rice with 1tsp oil and salt. Fluff it and keep aside.
• Heat the remaining oil in a skillet, add the cumin seeds, fennel seeds, cloves and cinnamon.

• Add the onions and saute until tender.

• Then add the grated carrot, curry leaves and green chilli and saute for 4-5 mins in a medium flame along with some salt.

• Now add the paneer and mix gently. (Careful not to break'em.)

• Add the chilli powder, cumin powder and garam masala powder, and saute for 4 mins. Check salt for taste. (Also, remember there is some salt in the rice.)

•  Toss the cooked basmati rice and mix well, followed by ground black pepper to taste. 

• Finally switch off and garnish with cilantro.

Serve hot with chilli sauce or potato chips.

Spinach Soufflé

A perfect brunch for you and your better half. Home made soufflé is something i have been wanting to taste for a pretty long time. I have always thought its complicated to make one, until i checked out raspberry eggplant. I substituted olive oil for butter, other than that i just followed the recipe. It came out soft and fluffy after baking and we both savored every bite of it.
Soufflé is a light, puffed up, baked cake like texture which can be made sweet and savory. It involves beaten egg whites to give the fluffiness. Soufflé generally falls after 5 or 10 mins, when removed from oven after baking. (My final picture looks a bit sunken.) And here goes the recipe,

Ingredients:

1/4 cup Spinach (frozen and thawed)

1/4 cup Green bell pepper (diced & roasted)

2 Eggs (separated)

1/2 cup Milk

2/3 cup Mozzarella Cheese

2tsp Olive oil + more for greasing 

2tbsp APF + more for dusting 

Black Pepper (freshly ground)

Salt

Also required:

Soufflé dish or Ramekins

How to:

• Grease the soufflé dish or ramekins with olive oil and dust it with flour to evenly coat all the surface.

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan, add the flour and whisk for few seconds, pour milk and whisk continuously until it thickens.
• Switch off or remove from heat and add the egg yolks and whisk constantly and let cool. (Careful not to scramble the yolks.)

• Beat the egg whites with a handheld mixer until it holds soft peaks.

• Add the spinach and roasted bell pepper to the yolk mixture along with the cheese, salt and pepper.

• Now add half of the egg whites and gently fold into the mixture, followed by the remaining egg whites and incorporate'em completely.

• Then pour the final mixture into the greased and floured dishes and bake for 25-28 mins or until the top is golden brown. 

• Switch on the oven light to watch the soufflé rise and never open the oven door while baking, as the risen soufflé may fall.

Serve hot from the oven.

My 150th Post, Risotto with Mozzarella and an Award

I am very happy to be here right now with these many posts and i would like to thank all my blogger friends who had constantly contributed their support with their comments and sharing of awards. Also, i thank my hubby 'Senthil', who is also my food critic, for his never-ending encouragement which kept me going.  

My friend who had recently visited Italy, bought me this Risotto Mediterraneo, knowing my fondness towards Italian dishes. Thanks to her, i made a wonderful meal thats full of flavor and it eventually puts a smile with even more cheese.

Risotto is an Italian dish of rice cooked in any(chicken or veg) broth to a creamy consistency. The mix had extra fine Camroli rice and dried ingredients like olives, bell peppers, tomato, zucchini, aubergine, carrot and parsley. Its being cooked with the stock slowly added to the rice while it is stirred constantly. This way the rice releases its starch resulting in a creamy texture. I would say the main ingredient to make a perfect risotto would be 'patience'. Yep, it holds you for the whole cooking time and its totally worth it. So, say Cheese and have fun with risotto.

Ingredients:

1 cup Risotto Mediterraneo Mix / Any Risotto rice

3 cups Chicken broth (low sodium)

1/2 Yellow onion (chopped)

3-4 Garlic pods (minced)

1 1/2tbsp Tomato-Basil sauce (optional)

1tsp Crushed Pepper

2 Large Basil Leaves (Chiffonade)

2-3 Sun dried tomatoes (chopped)

1/4 cup or more Mozzarella Cheese (grated)

2tbsp Olive Oil

Salt

How to:

• Heat the chicken broth and let it simmer at low heat.

• Heat oil in a skillet at medium heat, add onions,saute for a couple of mins or until tender, then add garlic and saute until raw smell disappears.

• Now add the rice and toast it for a couple of mins, stirring continuously, so as to coat each grain of rice with olive oil. (Careful not to brown'em.)

• Add the tomato-basil sauce along with 1/2 a cup of chicken broth and cook with lid closed until the liquid is absorbed by the rice.

• Slowly add 1/2 cup at a time and cook the rice. Do not pour the broth if the rice hasn't absorbed all the previous liquid thats already cooking.
• Add salt and adjust to your taste, as the broth and sauce has already salt in them.
• Also, if you are out of broth, substitute it with hot water. (Pouring warm or cold water while cooking may slow down the cooking and make the rice hard.

• Pour more or less liquid and taste as you cook until the rice is 'al dente'.
• Then add the crushed pepper and sun dried tomatoes, mix well and cook for another min.

• Now switch off, add the basil chiffonade followed by mozzarella cheese and gently fold in. (Actually, i added more cheese just before serving.)

•  Serve hot with roasted asparagus.

Also, am very happy to receive this award from Shoba's Food Maaza. I recently started following her and found a wonderful collection of recipes. Do visit her, if you already haven't.

Thanks again Shoba.

Carrot-Beans-Peas Stir fry (Poriyal)

A very healthy and quick stir-fry that needs no long explanations and goes perfectly with plain steamed rice or sambar rice. I normally use carrot and beans for the stir fry, but today, i have also added green peas, which are mildly sweet and tender that gives nice texture to your every bite. Also, green peas helps in maintaining bone health and a very good source of folic acid and vitamin B6. 
If you wanna taste the veggies with its own mild sweetness, then skip adding the chilli powder and cumin powder. And here goes the simple recipe,

Ingredients:

1 cup Green Beans (finely chopped)

1 cup Carrot (finely chopped)

1/2 cup Green Peas (frozen & thawed)

1/2 Yellow onion (chopped)

1/4tsp Turmeric powder

1tsp Chilli powder

1tsp Cumin powder

3 Dry red Chilli

1/2tsp Cumin seeds

1/2tsp Mustard seeds

1/2tsp Urad dal

4-5 Curry leaves

2tsp Coconut (shredded)

3/4 Water

1tbsp Oil

Salt

How to:

• Heat oil in a skillet, add mustard seeds, when it pops, add urad dal, dry red chilli and cumin seeds.

• Then add onion and curry leaves and saute until onions are tender.

• Now add the carrot, green beans and peas along with salt and saute for a couple of mins.

• Add turmeric powder and pour the water, mix well and cook with lid closed until the veggies are tender.

• When the water is all evaporated, add chilli powder and cumin powder and saute for another couple of mins.

• Check salt for taste and add the shredded coconut and saute for a min in a medium-low flame.

Switch off and serve hot with sambar rice.