Artichoke Feta Frittata

Before i talk about frittata, i would like to let you friends know about my newly created Facebook page. Please visit and kindly support me by 'liking' my page AahaOho on Facebook. I would highly appreciate that. Thank you.

Frittata is prepared using eggs similar to an omelette or quiche. It is enriched with a variety of ingredients, such as vegetables, cheese, herbs or meat. It is a filling dish that can be eaten for breakfast or brunch. Leftover frittata can be refrigerated and will be perfect for your lunchbox the next day. It is very simple and easy to make that i just mixed all the ingredients and baked in the oven. Unlike an omelette, which is served whole, a frittata is divided and served in slices. Not bad for a weekday brunch huh? And here goes the recipe,

Ingredients:

2 Eggs + 1 Egg white

1/2 cup Artichoke hearts (frozen and thawed)

1/2 cup Feta Cheese

1 medium Garlic pod (minced)

1/2 cup Red onion (finely chopped)

1 tbsp Cilantro (chopped)

Crushed Black pepper

Salt

Oil Spray

How to:

Grease a baking pan with the oil spray. Keep aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Beat the eggs well along with the egg white in a big bowl.

Now add the cheese, garlic and cilantro, give a quick stir.

Add the artichokes, red onions, followed by salt and pepper.

Mix well and pour it into the greased pan. 

Bake for 20-25 mins or until the eggs are set and the edges pulls away from the sides. (you can leave it in the oven for another few mins for a crispy edge and golden brown top.)

Slice it up and serve warm with cut fruits.

And we emptied the frittata pan.

Quinoa Pulav

Quinoa doesn't need much of an introduction. A lot of us started replacing rice with quinoa and experimented different recipes. And one such is this pulav, a spiced and healthy one-pot meal that is so colorful and flavorful that will make you feel full and satisfied. It has a crunchy texture, nutty flavor and turns out very aromatic when cooked with Indian spices. I am sure this recipe is a KEEPER. Check this out and here goes the recipe,

Ingredients:

1 cup Quinoa (pre-rinsed)

1/2 cup Carrot (chopped)

1/2 cup Green beans (chopped)

1/2 cup Peas (frozen and thawed)

1 1/2tsp Garlic (minced)

1 1/2tsp Ginger (minced)

1 Spring Onion (chopped)

1/4tsp Turmeric powder

1tsp Coriander powder

1/2tsp Cumin powder

1/2tsp Garam masala powder

1 Black Cardamom

2 small Green Cardamom

4-5 Whole black peppercorns

1/2" Cinnamon stick

2 small Cloves

1 Bay leaf

1/2tsp Cumin seeds

1 1/2 cups Water

1 tsp Lemon juice (optional)

1tbsp Oil

Salt

 How to:

• Soak the quinoa for 30 mins, drain the water completely and keep aside.

• Heat oil in a deep skillet, at medium heat, add the bay leaf, cinnamon stick and cardamoms.

• After a few secs, add cumin seeds, cloves and black peppercorns.

• Then add the onions followed by turmeric powder and some salt and saute until translucent.

• Now add the ginger, garlic and half of the spring onions and cook until raw smell disappears. 

• Add the soaked quinoa and roast'em for 5 minutes.

• Then add the carrot, peas and beans, give it a quick mix and then add the coriander powder, cumin powder and garam masala powder.

• Mix well and pour the water and add salt for taste. 

• Bring water to a boil and then reduce the flame to low, close the lid and cook it for 30 mins.

• Switch off, open the lid, fluff the quinoa with a fork, add the lemon juice and garnish with the remaining spring onions.

• Serve hot with onion raita and chips.

Guest post at Nithu's Kitchen

Hi friends, find me today as a guest in Nithu's Kitchen. Thanking her for the opportunity to let everybody know more about me and my blog.

My featured recipe was Hot Peppery Mushroom Fry. I request you to check it and recommend to try it out sometime. Hope you will enjoy the post and the fry.

Baked Samosa

Samosa is a popular Indian snack, triangular shaped, made with all purpose flour, stuffed with a spicy (veg/non-veg) filling and deep fried to a golden brown color. 'Deep frying', thats actually banned in my kitchen. I don't wish to give up on my favorite snacks just because its deep fried. So, i tried baking my samosas and they tasted really good. Whenever i think about samosas, i remember my school days, where in most of the evenings my dad buys me crispy vadas, bajjis and samosas, from a local guy around the corner of our house in chennai, who makes it really fresh and hot. I devour the samosa, savoring the spicy and hot filling, mmmm good ol' days. Okey-dokey, lets get to the recipe,

Ingredients:

For dough:

1 cup All purpose flour (maida)

1 pinch Ajwain seeds

1tsp Oil

Water

Salt

How to:

• In a bowl, mix together the flour, ajwain, salt and oil.

• Then slowly add the water(takes less than 1/2cup) and start kneading, resulting a slightly sticky dough. 

• Wrap it up and let rest aside.

For filling:

3 medium Potatoes

1/2tsp Cumin seeds

4-5 small Green chilli (finely chopped)

1tsp Ginger (minced)

1/2tsp Garlic (minced)

1/4tsp Turmeric powder

2tsp Coriander powder

1tsp Chilli powder

1tsp Cumin powder

1/2tsp Chaat masala powder

1tbsp Cilantro (chopped)

Salt

1tbsp Oil

How to:

• Boil and peel the skin of the potatoes. Also cut'em into small cubes and keep aside.
• Dissolve the coriander powder, cumin powder, chilli powder and chaat masala in 2tbsp water.
• Heat oil in a skillet, add cumin seeds, followed by ginger and garlic. Saute for a min.

• Add green chillies, continue sautéing, then add turmeric powder.

• Now pour the masala water and cook for a min (this way, the dry masala powders won't get burnt) followed by cilantro.

• Then add the cubed potatoes along with salt and cook for a couple more mins.

• Switch off and let it cool.

How to stuff:

• Divide the dough into for equal size balls. On a slightly flour dusted surface, place a ball and roll the dough in to a flat, thin, oval shaped chapathi. With a knife, cut the rolled dough into half.

•  On one moon-shaped half, apply water along the edges and make a cone out of it. Press the dough with watered edges to bind.

• Now, stuff about a tbsp filling and start bringing the edges together and seal'em with a fork.

• Stuff the remaining filling into each of the moon-shaped half and arrange it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or sprayed with oil.

• Bake at 400 degrees for 15 mins, turn the other side and bake for another 5-6 mins or until browned.

Serve hot with ketchup, hot sauce or chutney.

Tips:

• Brush the samosa dough with egg wash(beat 1 egg with a tsp of water) just before baking for an even brown coloring.
• Bake for another 4-5 mins for extra crispier samosas.

Sending this dish to Guest hosting "Only" event with "Low Oil/Low Calorie" Theme
guest hosted by Priya, started by Pari (event announcement).

Brinjal (Indian Eggplant) Kothsu

I had some tender brinjals lying in the fridge for more than 5 days. Thats actually weird in my kitchen, because i cook brinjals the next day i buy it and the reason is, rarely i get good tender brinjals in our Indian store nearby. And this time it was fresh and  i bought a lot to try some different dish other than usual fry and making sambar. 

When i was looking for a recipe in my old note book, i found my MIL's kothsu recipe which i had written in a small paper. I remembered the day (after my marriage) my husband asked me to prepare the dish 'just like his mom' makes. That time i was not much of a brinjal person and i didn't care to try the recipe. But now, i buy brinjals every week and i really liked the taste of kothsu.

Kothsu is kind of a dip or chutney famous in Tamilnadu. It is made with simple ingredients in a quick time. I found other kothsu recipes made with tamarind for sourness, but MIL's recipe says' tomatoes'. Maybe next time i would try it with tamarind. Alright, here goes the recipe,

Ingredients:

15 tender Brinjals (bite-size pieces)

6 red Pearl onions

2 Green chilli (slit)

2 Roma Tomatoes (chopped)

1/2tsp Turmeric powder

1tbsp Sambar powder/Kuzhambu milagai podi

1/2tsp Cumin seeds

1/2tsp Mustard seeds

1/2tsp Urad dal

3 Dry red chilli (broken)

5-6 Curry leaves

2 pinches Asafoetida

1 cup Water

1tbsp Oil

Salt

How to:

• In a cooker add brinjals, pearl onions, green chilli, tomatoes, turmeric powder and salt along with water and pressure cook'em for two whistles.

• Coarsely mash the cooked brinjals with a hand masher and keep aside.

• Heat oil in a skillet, add mustard seeds, urad dal, dry red chillies, curry leaves and asafoetida.

• Then add sambar powder dissolved in some water and cook for 30 secs. (Water is added to prevent the sambar powder from burning.) (Sorry, don't have the pic.)
• Now, transfer the cooked brinjal mixture into the skillet and cook for 6-8 mins at medium flame or until it starts thickening a bit. (Do not overcook the mixture or it will turn into chutney consistency.)

• Switch off and garnish with cilantro.

Serve hot with idli, dosa or steamed rice.