Butter Garlic Pepper prawns

Butter Garlic Prawns
So today we cooked some butter garlic prawns!!

Batter: 
Butter+ ground pepper+ cornflour + garlic paste and very little water and salt
I optionally added some fresh celery and thyme


Procedure :
Marinate de-veined cleaned prawns for 1-2 hours
Then just cook it on medium flame and smoke them on flame
Serve with roasted peppers, onion n ketchup 😍

Yummy Tacos

Well I got Tacos from outside..but the filling was easy to make and I just made it quickly

Ingredients for the filling :
Chopped onions
Boiled Mashed tomatoes
Tomato ketchup
Garlic finely chopped
Boiled sweet corn
Chopped Bell pepper
Jalapeno
Boiled kidney beans
Lots of fresh chopped Parsley( the flavour itself is beautiful)
Fresh basil leaves
Fresh thyme
Dried or fresh oregano
Chilly flakes
Salt to taste
Olive oil
Cheese

Procedure :
In a pan fry the onions , add garlic and half of the herbs.And add the tomato boiled and let it cook.Keep smashing it with a spoon or suitable instrument.Now add some ketchup.Let all this cook very well.

Now add all the vegetables and corns and bean.Add the chilly flakes and rest of the herbs.Top up with cheese and salt.Fill it in the tacos n serve hot

We are back

This is crazy..we are back after 3 years



We started this blog long ago around 2009 when me and my friend Naina were working for a huge MNC investment bank.The whole purpose of this blog was to record our kitchen experiments.We finished almost 200 posts together where in we used to hurry to finish our work and post our recipe on blog.

Naina contributed the most and I too contributed with my gourmet recipes.We also had our guest bloggers.Those were the days where we did not have mobile apps on blogs so we waited till we opened our huge bulky desktops to write a recipe

Times changed but the love of food did not.As I always say, I am passionate about 2 things in life : food and writing.Perhaps that is the reason I am putting this post at 1:00 am :-)

Reviving this blog after a long gap..We are coming up with many new recipes,restaurant food reviews, information on food ingredients, herbs, diet etc...So please stay tuned we love you all..and we love our food more!!

Bruschetta

Quick Bruschetta

Ingredients:

Slice Breads
Olive Oil
Finely Chopped Tomatoes
Olives
Boiled Sweet corn
Cheese
Mixed herbs (fresh or dried)
Salt Pepper to taste

Procedure:
Cut the Bread Slices in two,so that you get a rectangular shape.Polish both the sides with olive oil.Add Chopped tomatoes,Olives and corn to it.Season with salt paper and herbs.Roast till the cheese melts; serve hot 

Bon Appetit
Ash

Tzaziki/Chachik

Tzaziki is a traditional Greek dip which is made from cucumber and yogurt.It could be an accompaniment to food or a salad also.I had seen this recipe in Master chef Australia and had tried it in 2010.It was yummy

Cacık is a turkish form of dip which is a variation of Greek tzatziki,


Ingredients
yogurt (Supposed to be from goat's milk but u can try cow/buffalo milk too),
cucumber,
salt,
garlic peeled and finely chopped,
mint
honey
olive oil
lemon

Peel the cucumbers and grate it corsely on to a tray covered with a clean cloth so the liquid from the cucumber can drain in to the tray. Then sprinkle it with the salt and allow to sit for about 5 minutes. The extra liquid will get separated..so now squeeze it and transfer in a mixing bowl
Add the yogurt,garlic,lemon and honey.Season with mint leaves

Cool it in fridge before serving

Pasta in Pesto Sauce with Mushrooms

Ingredients:
Fresh Basil leaves
Pine nuts if available,if not walnuts and almonds
Garlic cloves peeled
Salt
Pepper
Grated cheese
Olive oil
Pasta cooked All dente
Mushrooms roasted in olive oil
Black olives pitted
Cream/milk
Additional oregano /thyme as per taste


Procedure:
For Pesto sauce,put fresh basil leaves,Nuts,cheese and garlic cloves in a blender.Add olive oil and puree till smooth.
Now mix the Roasted Mushrooms,Olives,Cooked pasta together.Add the above sauce to this mixture.Top it with Cream,grated cheese.Cook on medium flame till cheese melts.Add salt ,pepper additinal herbs.

Serve hot with garlic bread

Poha "Risotto Style"

Accidentally prepared this when had extra Poha left..turned out to be yummmy



Ingredients:
... Poha washed and a bit damp
Olive oil
Onion chopped
Garlic cloves peeled and cut
Boiled corn/baby corn
Mushroom stock
Chopped Vegetables like cabbage,capsicum,mushroom etc as per your choice
Herbs
Cheese Grated
Milk
Salt
Ground Pepper

Procedure
In olive oil fry onions and garlic..till golden brown
Add all vegetables
Add the poha now..let it fry a while
Now add vegetable stock
Add some milk
Let it gain the right consistency
Add salt pepper and herbs
Top up with grated cheese.
Cook till cheese melts

Serve hot..Enjoy this Italian version of Maharashtrian Poha

Rich Paneer in corn and peas

Paneer is the evergreen in my family.And its easy to cook too.Paneer has many health benefits too .Paneer is the storehouse of calcium and makes your bones stronger and helps men and women as they age against brittle bones.Including paneer in one’s daily diet helps to give protein required by the body for growth and renewal.

A simple recipe which tastes super freaky awesome and is easy to make

Ingredients
Sliced Paneeer
Chopped Onion
Maggie Hot and Sweet Tomato Ketchup
Garlic paste
Carom seeds(ajwain)
Turmeric
Red chilly powder
Kitchen King Masala
Corn boiled
Green peas boiled
Milk and Cream
Kasuri Methi rosated
Cashews and Dried brown grapes
Salt

Procedure:
Fry Onion in Oil.Add garlic paste.Fry till golden.Add carom seeds.Fry a bit.Now blend it in blender to make a paste.Fry this paste again.Add some tomato ketchup.Add salt,turmeric,chilly and Kitchen king Masala.Now add boiled Peas and Corns.let this fry a while.Now add some water and milk.Add the sliced Paneer.Let it boil a bit

Season with dried roasted Kasuri methi.Add Cashews and Dried Gapes and cream.

Serve with paratha/chapati/bread

Souper Soup Time : Broccoli Soup

The word broccoli, from the Italian plural of broccolo, refers to "the flowering top of a cabbage"Broccoli also has health benefits like prevention of heart disease ,cancer and is also proven being rich in Vitamin C.

This is a very easy soup to make and tastes yummy

Ingredients:
Chopped onions
Chopped Potatoes
Broccoli chopped
Garlic cloves
Mixed herbs
Pepper
Milk
Water
Salt


Procedure
Mix all ingredients except Milk and Cornflour.Pressure cook till approx 2-3 whilstles.
Now blend everything in blender.Take a pan and put blended mixture in it .Add Milk and Cornflour.Season with herbs .Serve pipping hot

Bon Appetit
Ash

Souper Soup -French Onion Soup - A quick approach

Its winter in Mumbai.Time to bid au revoir to the fans and ACs.This is a famous french soup called "Soupe à l'oignon" and is famous all over the world. I tried this simple French onion soup in this weather and it turned out to be fantastic.

Ingredients
Olive oil
Onions thinly sliced
Ginger Garlic paste
Pepper
Cornflour
Vegetable/Chicken stock
Croutons
Cheese
Salt to taste
Very little Brown Sugar
Additional seasoning herbs like thyme,rosemary,basil,oregano


Procedure:
Fry Sliced onions in olive oil.Add Ginger Garlic paste,pepper,brown sugar and salt.Fry till dark brown but not till burnt.

Add vegetable stock once the onion become brown.Add cornflour and let it boil for around half an hour.Keep stirring in between to avoid lumps.Once the miture boils well add croutons and cheeses on the top.

Cook till cheese melts.Serve hot.Add herbs for additional seasoning


Bon Appétit
Ash

Of Crumpets and Scones….With Love Great Britain

British food has not been discussed enough in media and in reality too.Infact if you ask a layman about British food, he would be clueless.So was I, til I visited UK in 2011 Summer

So far I had just heard about Fish and Chips.Which is like the vada pao of UK.The most commonly available. Basically it consists of fish (usually fried in a batter made of water and flour with a little baking soda).Chips refers to what the ameican call as” fries”Mind you..The British refer to fries (French fries) as chips and chips(like lays or wafers) as “crips”.This is staple dish of UK and you will get it at joints and outlets

Then comes macaroni cheese.The best food for vegeterians.Its a rather bland version of what we get here.Good to have as a side dish.

The next possible food which I ate without thinking was the baked beans.And I loved them .Somewhat like a westernized distant cousin of our home made Rajma .This particular dish is generally sold frozen.It is typically made in tomato puree and sugar is added for a little flavour.Tradtionally it is eaten with a bread

Next comes a famous English food item.”Crumpet”.This was completely new to me.This is a kind of pancake or a bread.It can be compared to a small uttapa. Usually the size of a small pancake.It is circular in shape having a flat top with many small pores. Crumpets are generally eaten hot with butter, , honey, jam, marmalade, peanut butter, cheese, Nutella. The Scottish variety of Crumpet is a little different.It may contain raisins in between

Scones as the English call it is pronounced as “Skawns”.Generally a favorite for afternoon tea time. These are light, buttery quickbreads made with flour, sugar, butter, milk or cream, and eggs, besides a leavening agent such as baking powder and are are usually round in shape,

My personal favorite was Hashbrowns .When I tasted them I thoughts it’s a cheese bread or something but actually they are cooked potatoes, fried until brown.The mixture is usually pressed down into a flat cake in the pan and browned on one side, then turned and browned on the other. It's sometimes only browned on one side. Other ingredients such as chopped onion and green pepper are often added for flavor excitement.

Think Scotland Think Haggis.
Haggis is a very old Scottish dish, which combines meats, spices and oatmeal to create a a delicious feast. Its description is a little weird and hence people may not experiment.
In fact, its simply delicious. If you haven't tried authentic Scottish Haggis...you must

The famous Scotsman Poet Robert Burns has made a special poem on Haggis”Address to Haggis” thus considering it an integral part of Scottish Culture

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the puddin-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place
(Translated as :Fair is your honest happy face,Great chieftain of the pudding race,Above them all you take your place)

Haggis is tradionally to be had with Neep and Tatties.”Neeps” is a shortened form of Turnip and “Tattties” is shortened for potatoes

Oh dear..last but not the least...Tea is an important part of the british cuisine.I couldn’t understand the difference between “builders tea” or “breakfast tea” and “afternoon tea”..but they really savoutr tea.They have it with meals and serve it either with milk and sugar or honey and lime.

All said and done..Just 10 days were not enough to know about this beautiful country and its lovely food.After eating all this I returned back home thinking that I will cook it sometime,but the day hasn’t dawned yet.Lets hope it happens soon

Whenever this happens will post the recipe on the blog

Babycorn Walnut salad

The most quickest and the yummiest salad known to humankind.
This is my sister's recipe and is a superhit in my ,mom's and sister's circle

Cut/slice babycorns to round small pieces. And boil them
For the dressing:
Olive oil+ Squeezed fresh lime juice+ sugar+ Salt+Pepper powder
Add the above dressing to boiled Babycorn
Break walnuts into small chunks and top them up on the Babycorn + dressing.

Fun with Cornflakes-Health recipes

Cornflakes as we know are the best kind of food which we can go for low cal food.
Some easy recipes for cornflakes

1)Mix dried raisins,almonds,walnuts,apricots,pitachios in cornflakes.Add cold milk n serve

2)Mix cornflakes with cut fresh strawberries,apples,peaches,kiwi basically any fruits you like and add cold milk

3)Mix cornflakes with boiled carrots, ,olives,babycorn.Add salt and pepper.

4) Add Cornflakes to oatmeal Porridge.Add nutmeg

5)Add Sweetcorn,corn,babycorn,chat masala,red chilly powder,salt and lemon juice .Add cornflakes.Top up with haldirams moong dal

6)Add some curd/yogurt..mix well and give a tadka of mustard,jeera and curry leaves

On having a pani puri

The excitement begins since the moment we are given plates to eat.This is just any other roadside stall where I have been with my 5 more foodie friends.But we have been eating here since we were very little.We all stand there with plates in our hands.My hearbeats start increasing as one by one we get one ‘puri’ each.It is filled with cooked white peas, tamarind chutney and a spicy warm liquid made of jeera ,chilly and black salt.As we all get the puri..our tastebuds rejoice.The sweet,tangy,spicy,salty,warm crunchy,crisp hits us.

Again and again we are served a more puris each..as if it’s a marathon.We all savour each and every puri..Finally the last puri comes..we all eat a little slow .as it is the last puri :-(..We still relish it..enjoy it ..but it hurts a bit because that’s the end of our pani puri marathon…Now we are just looking forward to only one last thing “the Masala Puri”

After we all had our six puris each..we get the last masala puri..it is a dry puri with the white peas,salt,chat masala and some dry sev..We relish it..we have almost reached “Gastronomic Nirvana”

We make the payment and with a heavy heart..walk home.But we ll soon come again for another plate of Pani Puri

Peanut Sauce

Recently I have become a fan of Thai/Malay food.This si a very simple recipe and taste yummmy with Thai Noodles or Satay dishes

Ingredients
Oil
Onions Chopped
Peanut powder
Brown sugar
Garlic
Soy Sauce
Tamarind sauce
Coconut milk
Salt to taste
Water

Heat oil in a pan. Add onion and . Add peanuts powder and water and cook. Add brown sugar, salt, crushed garlic,Taamrind sauce, coconut milk and mix. Add soy sauce and mix well. Add water and cook till the mixture gets a sauce consistency.Grind in a blender
Bon Appetit
Ash

Veracruz Sauce

Yes you all guessed it right.the latest fascination has been Mexican food.So for all Saynors and Senoritas reading this blog,this is the one.
I just tasted Mexican food last week and since then have been smitten.Yes you can call me smitten because inspite of the summer temperatures soaring high,nothing is stopping me from eating Mexican food.
I tried this simple sauce which is really tasty but also very spicy.It can be best used for meat and fish dishes as a sauce or as ad ip

The Veracruz Sauce is a traditional Mexican Gulf Coast sauce.Veracruz is a port situated in East Mexico and the cuisine of the state is unique


Ingredients:
Olive Oil
Garlic cloves
Tomatoes peeled and blanched
Green and Red bell peppers
Paprika dried
Capers
Green Olives
Jalapenos
Salt
Dried Thyme or Oregano

Procedure:
Heat Olive Oil in a pan. Add the garlic cloves.Let the he the aroma savour,now add tomatoes.Let it cook till tender.Add rest of the ingredients.Let it cook well.put it in a blender till smooth.

Serve with Roasted Chicken/Grilled fish or even with boiled vegetables like corn,cabbage etc.

Bon Appetit
Ash

Restaurant Recommendation -Peninsula Sion,Mumbai

I have been there before twice.But this time I found them having great international cuisinea nd had a great experience overall

I would recommend chicken dishes of any kind.The chicken was cooked extremely well.The Non veg Platter included Chicken Tikka,Chicken Reshmi,Chicken Pahari and Chicken Banjara with Mutton Seekh Kebab.Each and every item was finger licking good.We also tried the craem of Chicken soup which appealed to my Taste buds.

Dont forget to try mouth watering" Quesadillas"
It literally takes form from the word Queso meaning cheese in spanish.
A quesadilla is usually made with a corn tortilla and is filled primarily with cheese and other ingredients such as cooked meat, refried beans, and vegetablesThe filled tortilla is then toasted under a boiler or fried, usually until the cheese is melted. Once the quesadilla is cooked, it is traditionally cut into slices, or wedges.
We tried the chicken ones and it was just too good.Perhaps the best Mexican food item I had ever had.They served with 3 various mexican dips including sour cream.I unfortunately could not identify the other 2 dips..could be Guacamole and Veracruz..not very sure
The drinks Menu has both alchohol and non alchohol varieties.
In the Desserts,we tasted the Honey Noodles with Ice Cream which was good enough.They also have I ce Creams, Chocolate Mousse,Rabdi and Sizzling Brownie.

Ambience is fairly good but food overtakes all.
In short..its a must try place for all

Bon Appetit,
Ash

Prawns in Butter Garlic pepper

Ingredients: Prawns Cleaned and Deveined Garlic Paste Pepper Powder Salt Corn Flour/Maida for binding Rawa Lemon grass Sticks Mint Procedure Make a batter of Garlic paste Pepper Powder n salt. Add the Prawns and let it marinate for about 20 mins.Just before Frying apply the Cornflour/Maida and Rawa on the Marinated Prawns. In a heated frying pan add some butter.Add Mint leaves and lemon grass. Switch off the Flame and Cover the Pan for about 4-5 mins for getting the aroma. After 5 mins again switch on the flame and now place the prawns.Fry till golden. Serve on Toothpicks. Decorate with Mint leaves

Egg Bites

Make the same base you make for burji & instead of adding eggs into the onion-tomato-spices masala----
---boil eggs, cut into halves, mix the yolk into the onion-tomato-spices masala & fill the masala into the egg white.
Top each piece with coriander & Serve! Yummy Egg-bites!!!

Pongal

This is one of my most favorite South Indian dish.

I always had south Indian food during my college days in Matunga, a locality in Mumbai which is full of south Indian Restaurants.

The best Pongal I had was on my trip to Tirupati and Chennai and since then was hunting for a recipe.Finally a colleague of mine from Chennai shared a recipe and I modified it a little for my taste buds. It turned out to be successful.Here is it


Ingredients
Moong Daal and Rice (Equal Quantity)
Cumin Seeds
Pepper corns
Pepper Powder
Grated Ginger
Red dried chilly
Curry Leaves
Cashewnuts,Raisins 10-12
Grated Coconut
Ghee
Milk
Salt to taste
Water


Procedure

Cook the rice and moong dal together in a separate utensil

In another pan add ghee add Cumin Seeds,Pepper corns,Pepper Powder,Grated Ginger,
Red dried chilly and Curry Leaves.Let it fry for a while add cashews and raisins.Add salt to taste and grated coconut.Now add the boiled Moong dal+Rice.
Add some milk and water.Once it becomes soft add some ghee.

Serve hot with Sambhar

Chef's Tips:
1)Never Pressure Cook the Rice Moongdal Mixture as it becomes too soft.Cook it in an open utensil.Cook it 75-80% as later when you add it to mixture it gets perfectly cooked
2)When you add cumin and pepper corns to ghee, wait for pepper corns to pop and then add rest of the ingredients
3)You can substitute red chillies with green chillies depending on your taste.I recommend red chillies as it gives a wonderful aroma.
4)You can add coconut milk instead of grated coconut
Bon Appetit
Ash