Nutty sesame cauliflower stir fry

This cauliflower preparation is with a bit of a twist. Along with the regular masalas there are some peanuts and sesame seeds as well, which jointly impart a rich flavor to this simple stir fried recipe .

Ingredients:

1.        One medium cauliflower about 500 grams

2.        Two medium onions sliced long

3.         Quarter cup peanuts

4.         Two tablespoons sesame seeds toasted

5.         One teaspoon ginger garlic paste

6.         ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
7.   one eighth cup water

8.         ½ teaspoon red chilli powder

9.         1 teaspoon cumin seeds

10.     3-4 cloves

11.    4 -5 tablespoons oil

Method:

1.         Make walnut sized florets of the cauliflower.

2.         Toast the peanuts , pound them to small pieces and remove the husk  and then powder them.

3.         Toast the sesame seeds in the same pan and keep aside.

4.         Take oil in a heavy bottomed pan and when it gets warm , add the cumin seeds and cloves.

5.         The moment they change colour in a few seconds add the sliced onions and stir fry till just turning golden brown.

6.         Add the ginger garlic paste , stir for two – three minutes .

7.        Add the peanut powder and give a stir and follow with the turmeric and the red chilli powders , stir a bit and then tumble in the cauliflorets.

8.         Add about one eight cup of water and sprinkle the salt, toss the vegetables so that they get evenly coated with the masala and cover.

9.         Toss the florets in between the cooking so that they get evenly cooked.

10.    When the florets are completely  cooked, sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds, give another toss and serve with rotis or plain paranthas.

cauliflower· peanuts· sesame seeds· stir fry· vegetables

Nutty sesame cauliflower stir fry

This cauliflower preparation is with a bit of a twist. Along with the regular masalas there are some peanuts and sesame seeds as well, which jointly impart a rich flavor to this simple stir fried recipe .

Ingredients:

1.        One medium cauliflower about 500 grams

2.        Two medium onions sliced long

3.         Quarter cup peanuts

4.         Two tablespoons sesame seeds toasted

5.         One teaspoon ginger garlic paste

6.         ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
7.   one eighth cup water

8.         ½ teaspoon red chilli powder

9.         1 teaspoon cumin seeds

10.     3-4 cloves

11.    4 -5 tablespoons oil

Method:

1.         Make walnut sized florets of the cauliflower.

2.         Toast the peanuts , pound them to small pieces and remove the husk  and then powder them.

3.         Toast the sesame seeds in the same pan and keep aside.

4.         Take oil in a heavy bottomed pan and when it gets warm , add the cumin seeds and cloves.

5.         The moment they change colour in a few seconds add the sliced onions and stir fry till just turning golden brown.

6.         Add the ginger garlic paste , stir for two – three minutes .

7.        Add the peanut powder and give a stir and follow with the turmeric and the red chilli powders , stir a bit and then tumble in the cauliflorets.

8.         Add about one eight cup of water and sprinkle the salt, toss the vegetables so that they get evenly coated with the masala and cover.

9.         Toss the florets in between the cooking so that they get evenly cooked.

10.    When the florets are completely  cooked, sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds, give another toss and serve with rotis or plain paranthas.

Baked spinach slice

What prompted me to come up with this recipe.Ok let me be honest with you. I have been reading this book by Rujuta Diwekar “Don't lose your mind, lose your weight”. The best thing about her diet is that firstly she promises you a zero figure like Kareena and secondly ,she not only lets you eat almost everything that you like but she lets you eat every two hours( of course there are some do’s and don’t’s there, but its fun).Now I said to myself that what can I eat in between as a healthy snack .Eureka ….Something like a baked slice which can be prepared in advance , kept in the fridge and warmed and eaten whenever the snack time comes.

       Now this recipe can be altered a bit , for example you could add a few mushrooms or boiled corn to give it an extra flavor.

I prefer using olive oil where it has to be used in abundance but you could use butter here. 

      Anyways, even if you follow the exact recipe I promise you a delicious and healthy snack time food.

This one is for strict vegetarians, I mean I haven't even put any eggs in it , though I will alter it a bit in a few days and bake with a few eggs and come up with the snaps soon.

     Well its also time that I explain to you how I make a thick spinach puree. The method that I follow seems the simplest and the least messy to me, thought the other methods of par boiling the spinach are equally good.

     All I do is that I wash a whole lot of spinach leaves in plenty of water and let the water drain off completely. Then I pile them up in the pressure cooker and give one whistle on medium flame. After the leaves come at room temperature I squeeze out all the liquid and keep it aside to either use in soups or dals. The squeezed out leaves I put into small steel containers and freeze .

So we are going to use this boiled spinach here.

Ingredients:

1.  One cup squeezed out spinach leaves 

2.   Two cups quick cooking quaker oats

3.   5 tablespoons tomato ketchup ( preferably the spicier one), I used the home made one here.

4.   Two tablespoons crushed garlic

5.    6 tablespoons olive oil

6.    One cup grated cheddar cheese.

7.    One teaspoon salt or to taste

8.    ¾ th teaspoon freshly gound black pepper

9.   Two generous pinches of grated nutmeg powder.

10.                 Two teaspoons sesame seeds

Method:

1.   Take olive oil in a pan and when it gets warm on the medium flame , add the crushed garlic and let it turn golden.

2.   Add the spinach and stir fry for about two- three minutes.

3.   Turn the gas off and add ¾ cup cheddar cheese and oats and the rest of the seasonings .

4.  Mix all the ingredients well and press the mixture into a greased loaf tin. Sprinkle the rest of the cheddar on top.

5.   Bake in a preheated oven at 180° for thirty minutes.

6.   Cool and slice and enjoy with tomato ketchup.

baked dishes· cheddar cheese· oats· savoury loaves· sesame seeds· spinach

Baked spinach slice

What prompted me to come up with this recipe.Ok let me be honest with you. I have been reading this book by Rujuta Diwekar “Don't lose your mind, lose your weight”. The best thing about her diet is that firstly she promises you a zero figure like Kareena and secondly ,she not only lets you eat almost everything that you like but she lets you eat every two hours( of course there are some do’s and don’t’s there, but its fun).Now I said to myself that what can I eat in between as a healthy snack .Eureka ….Something like a baked slice which can be prepared in advance , kept in the fridge and warmed and eaten whenever the snack time comes.

       Now this recipe can be altered a bit , for example you could add a few mushrooms or boiled corn to give it an extra flavor.

I prefer using olive oil where it has to be used in abundance but you could use butter here. 

      Anyways, even if you follow the exact recipe I promise you a delicious and healthy snack time food.

This one is for strict vegetarians, I mean I haven't even put any eggs in it , though I will alter it a bit in a few days and bake with a few eggs and come up with the snaps soon.

     Well its also time that I explain to you how I make a thick spinach puree. The method that I follow seems the simplest and the least messy to me, thought the other methods of par boiling the spinach are equally good.

     All I do is that I wash a whole lot of spinach leaves in plenty of water and let the water drain off completely. Then I pile them up in the pressure cooker and give one whistle on medium flame. After the leaves come at room temperature I squeeze out all the liquid and keep it aside to either use in soups or dals. The squeezed out leaves I put into small steel containers and freeze .

So we are going to use this boiled spinach here.

Ingredients:

1.  One cup squeezed out spinach leaves 

2.   Two cups quick cooking quaker oats

3.   5 tablespoons tomato ketchup ( preferably the spicier one), I used the home made one here.

4.   Two tablespoons crushed garlic

5.    6 tablespoons olive oil

6.    One cup grated cheddar cheese.

7.    One teaspoon salt or to taste

8.    ¾ th teaspoon freshly gound black pepper

9.   Two generous pinches of grated nutmeg powder.

10.                 Two teaspoons sesame seeds

Method:

1.   Take olive oil in a pan and when it gets warm on the medium flame , add the crushed garlic and let it turn golden.

2.   Add the spinach and stir fry for about two- three minutes.

3.   Turn the gas off and add ¾ cup cheddar cheese and oats and the rest of the seasonings .

4.  Mix all the ingredients well and press the mixture into a greased loaf tin. Sprinkle the rest of the cheddar on top.

5.   Bake in a preheated oven at 180° for thirty minutes.

6.   Cool and slice and enjoy with tomato ketchup.

Til chikki / sesame and jaggery candy

“The  thankful receiver bears a plentiful harvest”.

                                        William Blake

The golden  fields , galore with the promise of a good harvest , the winter season coming to an end , high spirits and festivity  in the air.

     Here comes lohri…the harvest festival of the Punjabis.

   Amongst the many sweets and delicacies prepared on this day , the one ubiquitous sweet is the “til chikki”. 
Til chikki is thrown in the bonfire while singing songs of celebration. Til chikki is made with sugar and jaggery both .It can be prepared in a matter of minutes.

Here is how you can make til chikki at home.

Ingredients for making til chikki:

1.    100 grams sesame seeds / til

2.    100 grams jaggery

3.     2 tablespoons pure ghee

 Method of making til chikki:

1.    Roast the sesame seeds / til in a heavy bottomed pan on a low flame for about five minutes till a few of them start to make a popping sound.

2.     Remove from the pan and transfer in another bowl.

3.    In the same pan add two tablesoons of ghee and the jaggery pieces.

4.     The jaggery will begin to melt , keep stirring till it melts completely.

5.     Add the sesame seeds / til and stir to mix evenly.

6.     Transfer on a greased aluminium plate or any flat dish lined with aluminium foil and liberally grease the surface. Now you must apply a lot of ghee on the aluminium foil so that the chikki comes off easily.

7.     Roll it flat with a rolling pin and cut into squares while the til chikki is still hot.

8.     As soon as the  til chikki cools , transfer into an airtight box. The til chikki can stay for weeks .Serve the delicious til chikki to friends and relatives on Lohri or after dinner .

Indian sweets· jaggery· sesame seeds

Til chikki / sesame and jaggery candy

“The  thankful receiver bears a plentiful harvest”.

                                        William Blake

The golden  fields , galore with the promise of a good harvest , the winter season coming to an end , high spirits and festivity  in the air.

     Here comes lohri…the harvest festival of the Punjabis.

   Amongst the many sweets and delicacies prepared on this day , the one ubiquitous sweet is the “til chikki”. 
Til chikki is thrown in the bonfire while singing songs of celebration. Til chikki is made with sugar and jaggery both .It can be prepared in a matter of minutes.

Here is how you can make til chikki at home.

Ingredients for making til chikki:

1.    100 grams sesame seeds / til

2.    100 grams jaggery

3.     2 tablespoons pure ghee

 Method of making til chikki:

1.    Roast the sesame seeds / til in a heavy bottomed pan on a low flame for about five minutes till a few of them start to make a popping sound.

2.     Remove from the pan and transfer in another bowl.

3.    In the same pan add two tablesoons of ghee and the jaggery pieces.

4.     The jaggery will begin to melt , keep stirring till it melts completely.

5.     Add the sesame seeds / til and stir to mix evenly.

6.     Transfer on a greased aluminium plate or any flat dish lined with aluminium foil and liberally grease the surface. Now you must apply a lot of ghee on the aluminium foil so that the chikki comes off easily.

7.     Roll it flat with a rolling pin and cut into squares while the til chikki is still hot.

8.     As soon as the  til chikki cools , transfer into an airtight box. The til chikki can stay for weeks .Serve the delicious til chikki to friends and relatives on Lohri or after dinner .