Onion Bhajji (Fries)

Onions - 3 medium sized
Powdered chick pea flour (Besan - is found in Indian stores)   - 1 1/2 cup
salt
cummin + coriander powder (optional) - 1/2 tea sp
Red chilli powder / fine red paprika powder - 11/2 tea sp
Rice flour (optional if you like a little crispness) - 11/2 tea sp
Turmeric powder (optional) - 1/4 tea sp
Oil for deep frying



Method One 

Mix all the powdered ingredients in a bowl, mix it with water till pancake consistency.Cut the onions into quarter inch rounds. Heat the oil read to fry. Carefully dip the Onion into the batter and fry at little more than medium so the batter and onion is cooked well.

Other options for vegetables that can be used in the batter : round slices of potatoes, aubergines, cauliflower

Method Two

Cut the onions into slices, add salt and other spices and leave for five minutes. Onions bring out water. Add the flour and start mixing them thoroughly. If required keep adding few spoons of water. It should not be watery like the earlier batter or too tight likr pizza dough, just enough to pick easily but the flour should be well stuck to the onions. Take a spoonful and drop it close to the oil and keeps it together. Fry well at medium.

Other options for vegetables that can be used similarly : Cut spinach, fresh dill

Serve hot with tomato sauce or the green coriander sauce. Enjoy!

Veg manchurian dry or vegetarian balls (Indian Chinese style)

One quarter of a medium sized cabbage (grated or run it in food processor)
one medium sized carrot  (grated or run it in food processor)
powdered pepper
all purpose flour - 4 table sp
Onions - 2 medium - long sliced
garlic pods - 3 diced
green chillies - 2 sliced
cummin - 1 tea sp
salt
soya sauce - 1 table sp
chilli sauce - 1 table sp
tomato sauce - 1 table sp
honey - 2 table sp (by choice)
food color - 1/4 tea sp
oil for deep frying

Take a shallow pan add two tea spoons of oil. Add the cummin, then the onions, green chillies and garlic and saute just a little. Add the sauces, honey and a quarter cup of water. Cook in medium , add salt , pepper, with about a little water left, add the food color and take it off the flame.

Heat oil for deep frying. Add the grated cabbage and carrot to a boil, add salt and pepper and mixed well. Keep adding the all purpose flour and knead it into a dough like for parathas. Make even small balls and just before frying roll them into a little flour and deep fry them. After all the balls are fried, keep adding them to the fried onions and nicely roll them up in the sauces carefully not breaking them.

Serve hot as appetizers or snacks...Enjoy!

Dal tadka (Lentils fry) with mixed beans.

One cup toor dal(split green lentils) - boiled and mashed
one cup mixed beans (black eyed, pink beans etc) - soaked overnight and boiled or canned
Garlic - 3-4 pods diced fine
Indian dry red chillies - as per taste and optional - 2
Onion - 1 medium - chopped
Cinnamon - 2 small pieces
cloves - 2-3
zeera / cummin - 1 tea sp
cummin + coriander powder - 1 tea sp
turmeric powder - 1 tea sp
mustard - 1 tea sp
coriander leaves for garnish
oil - 1 table spoon for seasoning

Take a deep pan. Heat the oil. Splutter cummin and mustard. Then add the chopped onions and garlic, then the chillies if interested. Fry a while not letting the onions turn brown, add the mashed toor dal (lentils), add a little water, then add the boiled mixed beans. Add salt, turmeric powder, cummin+ coriander powder. Bring to boil slowly keeping on medium so some water reduces and get it to a pancake dough consistency. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

Serve hot with plain white rice. enjoy! 

Egg less cake with chocolate chip cookies and almond flakes

Bananas - ripe and well mashed- 2
Vanilla essence
Milk - 1/3 cup
Canola oil - 1/3 cup ( butter - 1 stick = 125gms)
Sugar - 1 1/2 cup
All purpose flour - 1 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 1 tbs



Method :

Mash the bananas, add milk, vanilla essence and oil, Beat them till frothy. Add the sugar and continue beating. Keep adding the flour and baking powder mix spoon by spoon while folding it into a batter.

Grease a 9" round or square baking dish and dust it with some flour. Preheat the oven to 365 f. Pour the batter and then add the chocolate chips and then top it with a garnish of almond flakes. After 25 minutes check with a tooth pick if it cooked from inside. Keep checking every 5 minutes till the toothpick comes clean. Turn off the oven, leave it in for 5 mins on the top rack before getting out and leave it to cool for a while.

Zeera rice with onions and garlic

Ingredients:

Rice (basmati or sona masoori) - 3 glasses ,cooked and left with lid open for 10 minute to dry a bit

Ginger paste - 1 table spoon

Garlic pods - 5-6 , diced fine

curry leaves - 10

Cinnamon - 2 one inch

Zeera or cummin seeds - 2 teaspoons

Green chillies - 2 , slit

Bay leaves - 2-3

Oil - 2 - 3 teaspoons 

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves for garnish (optional)

Method:

Heat oil, maintain medium heat when hot, add cinnamon , diced garlic zeera, green chillies, bay leaves, paste and fry well. Reduce the heat to the minimum, add the boiled rice slowly, so to keep it dry. Add salt. Then gently but thoroughly mix the rice. Cover it and shut off the flame/heat. Keep it for 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

Zeera rice without onions and garlic

Ingredients:

Rice (basmati or sona masoori) - 3 glasses ,cooked and left with lid open for 10 minute to dry a bit

Ginger paste - 1 table spoon

Cloves - 3

Cinnamon - 2 one inch

Zeera or cummin seeds - 2 teaspoons

Green chillies - 2 , slit

Bay leaves - 2-3

Oil - 2 - 3 teaspoons 

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves for garnish (optional)

Method:

Heat oil, maintain medium heat when hot, add cloves and cinnamon , add zeera, green chillies, bay leaves, paste and fry well. Reduce the heat to the minimum, add the boiled rice slowly, so to keep it dry. Add salt. Then gently but thoroughly mix the rice. Cover it and shut off the flame/heat. Keep it for 10 minutes before serving.

Sabudaana Vada, Tapioca cutlets

Ingredients

Saabu dana / tapioca seeds - 2 cups, soaked over night with water reaching just up to the level of the seeds, if found extra water in the morning, drain and make it dry for used.
Potatoes - 2 medium sized , boiled and mashed
Green chillies  - 2-3
Coriander leaves - finely chopped about half cereal bowl
Peanuts - 1/4 bowl dry roasted and finely powdered
Salt to taste
Garlic - 3 cloves
Cummin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Rice flour - 2 table spoons for dusting just before frying
Vegetable or Canola oil for deep frying
Lemon juice - 1/2 teaspoon

Method

Blend chillies and  garlic cloves. Add them to the saabudana, along with one mashed potato, peanut powder, cummin seeds, coriander leaves, lime juice, salt. Mix well.Keep adding the other mashed potato, till the consistency is good enough to make round flat cookie size patties.

Heat oil, and then slowly pick each of the patties, dust lightly in the rice flour and fry them till nice golden brown. Tomato ketchup or hari chutney are good combination for this light spiced and tasty snack.

Enjoy!

Mint Coriander Flavoured Fusilli

Mint and Coriander flavoured Fusilli

Ingredients

1 pack Fusilli or Farfalle -boiled and ready to use
1 cereal bowl of mint leaves
1 cereal bowl of cilantro leaves (coriander leaves)
3  cloves of garlic
2 green chillies,  more if you like more spice or roasted pepper if you wish
1/4 cup of milk
1 spoon of canola or olive oil
1/3 cereal bowl of small cubes of carrot, tomato, peas, all mixed (can use as many varieties and quantity)
Firm tofu cut into small cubes and marinated with a drop of lime, salt and a little crushed paprika
or
200 gms of cheese curds or any other cheese for garnishing in the end if you like (I do not this taste, but can be used as per individual taste)

Blend the mint leaves, cilantro , garlic and green chillies into a paste. Add a little water and make a smooth paste.
Add a spoon of oil , in a heated medium sized pan. Add the vegetables and saute for 5 minutes add a little salt while they soften a bit. To that add the blended paste, when everything is warmed add the milk and keep stirring the paste in medium heat. Then take it off the heat and add the fusilli. After nicely mixing it with a laddle, add the tofu. Mix lightly and cover it and keep aside for 10 minutes, before the flavours blend in and is ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Poha

Ingredients

Broken rice (Poha) - 2 cups.
Onion - 1 medium diced small
potato - 1 medium - peeled and diced medium
tomato - 1/2 , only the outer hard part, take out the mushy seeds part inside, diced very small
green chillies - 2 cut small
Ginger - 1/2 inch - diced very small
chana dal - 1 tbs
mustard - 1/2 tsp
zeera  -1/2 tsp
fine sev - 1/2 cup
coriander - 1/2 cup
curry leaves
Oil, Turmeric, salt, half lemon

Heat oil , add mustard, zeera, chana dal, fry a  little and then add the onions, green chillies, ginger and curry leaves. When onions are translucent  add the potatoes, add turmeric and salt and cover and cook in medium heat till the potatoes are a little soft. Add tomatoes and fry a little, not letting it become soft.

Quickly wash the poha , sqeeze water between both palms and add to the onions and potatoes. Add a little turmeric and salt and nice mix, making sure not to making it a paste, reduce heat completely and cover and cook for 2 mins. Shut off the stove. After two minutes add the lemon juice.

While serving garnish with fresh coriander and sev. Goes well with some yogurt on the side or lime / tomato pickle.

Serve hot and enjoy!