I havent been cooking a whole lot due to my kitchen remodel but this has taught me to innovate dishes which can be whipped up with bare minimum and one such dish that I have been repeating is My Spinach Quiche. So here goes:
Serving Size: 4 people
Ingredients:
4 eggs
1/2 cup of whole milk
Onions chopped -1
Spinach-1/4 cup chopped fresh or frozen
Jalapeno- 1 whole with seeds
Seasoning -I used “Elote” seasoning you can use any
Dosas or crepes in India are savory and usually made from soaking rice and lentils overnight and grinding it to a batter and letting this batter ferment over night for it to rise. Once the batter rises, we make a thin crepe by pouring over an iron griddle.
Now I wish I had the time to do all these steps. Since I am a busy working full time mom, I am always pressed for time hence my latest Innovation- Protein packed lentil dosa with NO RICE and requires NO FERMENTATION!
Here goes –
Ingredients:
1 cup Red lentils also known as Masoor dal in India
1/2 cup skinned black gram (looks white) also known as Urad dal in India
1 inch fresh ginger -optional
5-6 peppercorns- optional
Salt to taste
Preparation:
Soak the 2 kinds of lentils in water for 2-4 hours.
Make sure to wash the lentils thoroughly atleast 3-4 times till the cloudiness in water disappears as you are rinsing them. The reason for this is to get rid of excess starch which causes gassiness later on.
After soaking for 2-4 hours, blend them in Vitamix or any blender with ginger, salt to taste and pepper corns. I dont add extra water while blending. I add the water in which lentils are soaking and the water level is usually just enough to cover the lentils in the bowl. The batter should not be too watery or thick in consistency. I figured that transferring the water which is already soaking the lentils was just right to get the right consistency.
Transfer in a container and ready to pour in a hot griddle or pan to make instant hot crispy protein packed dosas or crepes.
Enjoy!
PS: Quick contest- Anyone who tries this recipe and posts comments with or without pictures gets access to my next very healthy recipe!!!!coming soon!!!!!
Quinoa is one of the most healthy grains in this world 🙂
Quinoa is gluten-free, high in protein and one of the few plant foods that contain sufficient amounts of all nine essential amino acids. It is also high in fiber, magnesium, B vitamins, iron, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin E and various beneficial antioxidants.
I love this salad on any given day and the best thing is my kids eat it all up when I serve with a creamy guacamole.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup quinoa
5 Cloves of chopped garlic
1 can of black beans
1 small onion chopped
1 jalapeno chopped -optional
1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/2 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cayenne
Evoo
For Guacamole:
1/2 onion chopped
1 avocado mashed up (save the outer skin of the avocados)
lemon juice from 1 lemon
Cilantro for garnish
salt to taste
Preparation:
For Avocado Salad Boats:
This is such a forgiving recipe that you can add any veggies you like to it. Take a pan and add 1 tsp of EVOO and transfer the chopped garlic, onion, jalapeno and zucchini. Mix well and saute with salt, turmeric and curry powder. Add in the rinsed black beans and mix well for about 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup quinoa and toast for 3-4 minutes and mix. Now add 1 cup of water to the pan with all the ingredients and let it cook uncovered for about 10 minutes till all water evaporates. If quinoa seems uncooked, add another 1/2 cup water and let it cook uncovered. You want to cover it for the last 3 minutes with a lid so the quinoa turns out fluffy. Keep aside.
Cooked Quinoa with black beans, jalapenos, onions and zucchini
For Guacamole:
Take a bowl. Add mashed guacamole with salt and lemon juice and mix well to a creamy pulp. Then transfer chopped onions, salt to taste and garnish with Cilantro.
Plating:
For plating, transfer quinoa salad into the outer skins of avocados and place these boats with guacamole.
One of my favorite soups growing up was Asparagus soup. Growing up in India, Asparagus soup was only served in one upscale restaurant in town and so I had to earn my trip to that restaurant to order it.
When I moved to the US several years back, I was so happy and surprised that Asparagus was so easily available in the markets. Thus began my journey of making Asparagus soup at home.
Again, a very easy quick meal that you can whip up for the family.
Ingredients:
Asparagus- a bunch chopped up till the ends (where the hard part begins- discard the hard ends)
Garlic cloves-5
1/4 cup of sweet peas
1 large onion chopped roughly
Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
Cayenne powder depending on spice level
Salt to taste
Vegetable Broth or Water- 1/2 cup
Any oil
1 Tsp of sunflower seeds for garnish.
Preparation:
Place a pot under medium flame. Add oil, then garlic, chopped up onions and Asparagus and saute for 5 minutes.
Add salt to taste, turmeric powder, and cayenne depending on your spice level.
Add 1/4 cup sweet peas and mix well. Sweet Peas offers a very green and sweet flavor to the dish. I add sweet peas to keep the green color as opposed to blanching.
Add 1/2 cup of vegetable broth or water. Keep covered and cook for about 2-3 minutes .
Now transfer the contents to a blender and blend it to a smooth consistency.
Bread Upma is one of the most fun ways to make use of left over bread. It is simple and quick and can be made with as limited ingredients in the pantry as possible. Basic ingredients like bread, onion, tomato and garlic are ingredients used for this recipe.
Ingredients:
Left over bread chopped up into even cubes
Onion- 1 Large
Tomato- 1 medium
5-6 cloves of Garlic chopped fine
Fresh Ginger -optional
Green chilies- 2
Salt to taste
Any oil
Spices- a tsp of chili powder, turmeric, curry/ garam masala powder
Cilantro for garnish
Preparation:
Take a pan and place under low-medium flame and add 1 tablespoon of oil. Add cumin seeds and curry leaves and wait till they splutter.
Now add chopped ginger, garlic and onions to the pan.
Add salt to taste with all the spices – chili powder, turmeric and curry powder in it and mix well.
Now toss in chopped tomatoes. Mix well and add another tablespoon of oil. Add 100 ml water and cook by keeping covered till it gets to a soup or broth consistency.
Toss in chopped pieces of bread and mix gently
If you like it soft you only need to cook for another 4-5 minutes, if you like it crispy then you may want to leave it on for another 10 minutes while keeping a watch.
Transfer to a bowl and garnish with cilantro.
Enjoy!
Credits to this video goes to my beautiful daughter Ananya Vikram.
Credits to this Video goes to my beautiful daughter Ananya Vikram .
I have been getting so many requests from people for short food videos with recipes and finally I decided to give it a shot! I was hesitant only due to the amount of time and effort it takes to put together one of these videos:)
Looking at the bigger picture during lockdown days, I want to be able to contribute to my community and give back even if it is in the most tiniest way possible. So here goes my quick video on how you can cook absolutely pillow soft delicious homemade gnocchi in less than 20 minutes. My recipe is very easy and uses very limited basic pantry items to prepare the Gnocchi.
You may use any sauce with the homemade Gnocchi and it tastes delicious. In this video, I have a basil pesto white sauce combo that my kids love to eat so I have used that. But you can use something as simple as butter and cheese to a marinara or a white sauce depending on your family s preference.
Ingredients for Gnocchi:
1 Large potato
1 Egg whisked well
1/4 cup All Purpose Flour
Salt and Pepper
2 tablespoons of Semolina Flour/ Corn Flour/ AP Flour to roll out dough
Baking pan
Pot of boiling water
For the Sauce:
2 Tablespoons Basil Pesto Sauce
1 Tablespoon of Bechamel or White Sauce
Salt and Pepper
Parmesan Cheese for garnish
1 Teaspoon of EVOO
Preparation:
Microwave the potato for 5 minutes in a bowl covered to cook it completely. I prefer a microwave since it gives me a dry dough or a mash versus a potato steamed with lot of moisture in it.
Peel and Mash the potato well in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Add 1 egg that is whisked well to the dough and mix well.
Add 1/4 cup of AP Flour and mix and knead well to form a dough .
Take a baking pan sprinkled evenly with Semolina or Corn Flour. If you do not have either of these you may use All Purpose/ AP Flour.
Oil both the palms of your hands so the dough does not get sticky.
Roll out and spread the dough in the pan. The Semolina flour helps the dough not to stick to the pan and makes it easy to work with.
Cut the dough into 4 strips and chop these strips into small even pieces.
Take a pot of water and place it in medium flame and keep covered till it boils. Add salt to the boiling water.
Now take small pieces of the chopped dough and press down using a fork to give it some ridges. This step is so the sauces gets into the ridges and helps the gnocchi soak up the sauce it is cooked in.
Toss them in the pot of salted boiling water and cook for about a minute or two until the gnocchi rises up to the top of the pot. Now remove the gnocchi floating on top with a slotted spoon and transfer them to a bowl. Keep aside.
For the sauce, take a pan, add 2 teaspoons of EVOO, salt and pepper to taste, 2 tablespoons of Basil Pesto Sauce and 1 tablespoon of bechamel or white sauce. Mix well and add 1/4 cup of water and wait till the sauce simmers. You may use any sauce to cook your homemade gnocchi with.
Gently place the cooked gnocchi in the sauce when it simmers and cook for about 2 minutes before turning off the flame.
Garnish with Parmesan cheese -optional. You may use basil or pine nuts if you have some for the garnish too.
Bon Appetit!
Credits to this Video goes to my beautiful daughter Ananya Vikram .
