Sweet Spicy Rice Paper Wrap

Ingredients

(Veg Filing)
6 Rice Papers
1/2 Cup Bell Peppers Julienne - Red & Yellow
1/2 Onion, cut lengthwise
1/2 Cup Carrot Julienne
1/2 Cup Zucchini Julienne
1 tsp Sesame Oil
Salt to taste
1 Cup water to moisten the Rice Paper

For Dressing

2 tsp Soy Sauce
1 tsp Honey
1 tsp Schezwan Sauce
2 tsp Rice Vinegar or regular vinegar
1 tsp Green Chill Sauce (optional)

Method

Heat Oil in a wok, add all vegetables to it. Stir fry for a min or two. Take it off the flame and empty the contents into a bowl.

In a separate bowl, combine all ingredients from Dressing section and whisk. Mix well. Pour it over the vegetables. Fold and Combine.

Pour water in a shallow plate, and place a rice paper sheet in it. Wait for a min. Pick up the rice paper and place it on a preparation surface. Spoon vegetable mixture on the rice paper and roll it carefully.

Enjoy it with Spring rolls Sauce or just like that

Cornbread with Caramelized Onions

To make a fabulous Cornbread remember few important things:

1. Sift the dry ingredients 2-3 times.

1. Never Over mix the batter,lumps are fine, just mix the dry portion stuck at the bottom of the bowl properly

Run a blunt knife along the cake tin soon after taking it out of the oven. Cornbread tends to shrink post "cool-off", it'll crack.

Happy Cooking CornBread :)

Ingredients:

3/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Yellow Cornmeal
1 Large Egg
1 1/4 Cup Buttermilk
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tbsp Sugar
1/4 Cup Butter (melted) or you may use Olive Oil/Vegetable Oil
Caramelized Onions - as per taste (ideally around 1-2 Yellow/Sweet Onions makes 1 Cup)

Method:
Take a bowl to mix Cornmeal, All Purpose Flour, baking soda, baking powder and sugar. Sift, Sift and Sift again. In another bowl, add Egg, Butter and Buttermilk. Mix well.

Pour the Egg, Butter and Buttermilk mixture into the sifted ingredients. Mix with a wooden spoon. Remember not to over mix. Some lumps are Ok.

Fold in the caramelized onions into the mixture.

Grease and dust the Cake tin. Pour in the mixture and bake in a Preheated Oven to 190 C or 375 F for 30 mins. It should have a nice brown color to it. You can do a toothpick test.

Run a blunt knife along the inside edge of Cake tin to loosen up the Cornbread. Let it wait to 5-10 mins, flip it out and let it cool on wire rack.

Enjoy :) Any comments and suggestions would be appreciated.

Lemon Coriander Soup

This is on request from Sudha :). Sudha, I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did few days back. Its simple and yet so full of health and comfort.

Ingredients:

For Stock:
Coriander Stalk and Leaves - 1/2 cup
few stalks of Lemon Grass
4 cups water

For Soup Vegetables:
Butter - to Saute
Carrots - Sliced in roundels - wafer thin or as thin as possible
Mushroom - sliced thinly
Beans: Sliced Thinly
Broccoli - Sliced
Scallions (spring Onions) - White & Green Portion chopped - 1/2 cup

For Soup Seasoning:
Salt - To Taste
Chili Flakes - 1 tsp
Lemon Juice - 1 tsp for each serving

Procedure: For Stock - boil all ingredients together till the stock is reduced to 3/4cups. Strain and store. Heat a teaspoon of butter in a skillet and add vegetables to it. Saute for a min or so. Add Stock and let it come to a boil. Simmer for 10 mins. Add salt and chili flakes and let it simmer for 1 more min.

Serve in soup bowls with lemon juice and chopped coriander leaves.

Aromatic Potatoes

I made this dish out of sheer love for Nutmeg!!! I love this spice. It uplifts my mood and gives flavor & aroma to food. Try and I can guarantee that you'll fall in love with this simple yet tasteful recipe. Of course you have to have love for potatoes too :)

Ingredients

Baby Potatoes 500gms (par boiled and peeled)or Regular Potatoes.
Cumin (Zeera) - 1 tsp
Green Chillies - 3 chopped finely (you can adjust this to taste)
Garlic - 5 chopped finely (again adjust to taste)
Turmeric - 1 tsp
Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup shredded
Nutmeg - 3 tsp grated
Salt - to taste
Cooking Oil - 2 tsp
Lemon - 2 tsp

Procedure

Heat Oil in a wok. Add Zeera and fry till it browns lightly.
Add Garlic and Green Chilies. Fry for a min. Add turmeric, saute for few seconds. Add Potatoes. If you are using regular ones then pls cut them into medium size.
Toss them nicely so that they are well coated with the mixture. Add salt, give a toss. Let potatoes cook for 20 mins on slow flame. Keep tossing every 5-10 mins. Add nutmeg powder and let it cook for another 5 mins. Add coriander leaves and lemon juice. Toss nicely and switch off the flame. Serve with light sprinkle of grated nutmeg.

Healthy Tortilla Wrap with Tofu & Stir Fried Veg

I made this wrap to cut the boredom of regular menu @ home and it turned out to be nice.

Ingredients:

3 Tortilla Wraps or 3 Rotis
Zucchini - 1 (deseeded & Chopped into cubes)
Bell Peppers (Red and Yellow) - 1 each (chopped into cubes)
Onion - 1 small (Chopped roughly)
Baby Corn - 5 (chopped)
Szechuan Sauce: 2 tsp
Sesame/Olive Oil - 3 tsp
Salt - to taste
Garlic - to taste
Green Chili - To Taste
Tofu - 150 gms - Cut into 1"square and pan fried lightly

Procedure:

In a wok pour the oil and saute garlic, green Chili and Onion for couple of mins. Add all vegetables and salt. Cover to cook till half done. Add Szechuan Sauce and mix it up nicely.
Now spread this mixture on a tortilla wrap and add a layer of pan fried tofu. Roll it up and Serve.

Lentil & Tomato Soup with Sweet Thai Basil

This is a thin soup and has high nutritional and health value.

This would serve 2

Ingredients:

Red Lentil (Masoor) - 50 gms
Tomato - 1 Big (washed and cut)
Ginger - 1/2" (juliennes)
black Pepper - few pods
Salt - to taste
Lemon Juice - 1 tsp for each serving
Fresh Sweet Thai Basil leaves - few sprigs Alternative: Regular Basil fresh or Dry
Water - 3 cups

Wash Red Lentil thoroughly. Put it in a pressure pan/cooker along with ginger, black pepper, tomato and salt. Give it 3 whistles and take it off the flame. Sieve it through and pour it in a pan. You can pick out the pepper and add to the soup later if you like. Bring it to a boil and add roughly shredded Sweet Thai Basil. Let it simmer for few more mins. Add Lemon Juice and serve hot.

Greens & Apple Salad with Honey-Mustard Dressing

I have this close friend of mine who has asked me for a Soup or Salad recipe which she would love to eat on a balmy rainy night!! Here you go Ash. This is one my fav and I hope you'll love it too. Easy to make. I will write Soup Recipe separately for you.

Ingredients:
Green or Golden Apple - 1 cored and diced Alternate - Red Apple
Cucumber - De seeded and Diced- 1
Shredded Lettuce - as much as you want :) Alternate - Finely Shredded Cabbage
Bell Pepper - 1 Optional

Dressing:

Lemon Juice - 1 lemon
Olive Oil - 2 tsp
White Pepper powder - to taste
Honey - 1 tsp
Crushed Mustard - 1 tsp
Choice of Herb (just 1) - Parsley/Oregano/Marjoram/Cilantro

Tip Shredded Lettuce/Cabbage, Apple and Cucumber in a Salad Bowl. Mix all ingredients of the "dressing" in a separate bowl and mix it nicely. Pour it over the salad and give it a decent toss. Eat as is or serve Chilled.