Garlic Bread

We love garlic bread and its so ez to make-
All you need is-

• Crushed garlic
• Butter
• Bread

For ease of preparation I follow the ratio of 1:1:1! For 1 slice of bread you need 1 small flake of garlic and 1 small cube of butter(the amount normally used on a toast).

1. Mix crushed garlic into softened butter.
2. Spread on one side of bread.
3. Heat the griddle [tava] and cook each slice from both sides till crisp. 

Pasta [Dry]

Hi,
We eat pasta for dinner atleast once a week, its become our maggi! I prepare pasta in two ways- the 1st recipe is my sis-in-law's. It was voted as the best dish by the kids at an informal gathering at a friends house!

Ingredients:-

• 1 1/2cups          Uncooked pasta*
• 1                       Onion sliced thinly
• 1 small              Capsicum sliced lengthwise
• 7-8 pcs.            Baby corn sliced diagonally
• 2 small              Tomatoes chopped
• 1tsp                  Red chilli flakes
• to taste             Salt
• 1tbsp               Olive oil or any other
• 1/2 cup            Cheddar cheese grated

1. Boil the pasta in lots of salted water, strain it, apply a little oil to keep it from sticking and put aside.
2. Heat the oil, put in the onions, capsicum and cook for a minute. Add the baby corn and let cook till a light brown.
3. Add tomato and cook till nicely blended.
4. Mix in the boiled pasta, red chilli flakes and salt.
5. Transfer half of it into a serving bowl,  put a layer of grated cheese on top of the pasta covering the entire surface. Spread out evenly the remaining half of the pasta and put another layer of grated cheese.
6. Microwave for atleast 1 min. before serving, to melt the cheese.

* For this recipe I try to use smaller sized pasta so it gets wrapped nicely with the dry masala.

Serving suggestion: Garlic Bread goes great with pasta and makes it a fulfilling meal.
[Recipe for home made garlic bread is also given]

Pinwheels

Hallo,
 Pinwheels taste just like any other sandwich, its more about the presentation or the look of the sandwich! The normal sandwich bread or a full loaf can be used, just make sure its not dry and crumbly.

How to prepare the bread for a pinwheel:-

• Put some water in a pan and keep a flat strainer on the pan.
• When the water starts to simmer place the bread slices on the strainer for only a few seconds. The idea is to moisten the bread a little with the steam. [Alternatively cover the bread with a damp cloth.]
• One slice at a time flatten it out with rolling pin.
• Spread a stuffing* of your choice. 
• Starting from one side roll the slice as tightly as you can.
• Cut the rolls into 2 and trim off the edges for a neat look.

*Ideas for spreads for pinwheels:-

1. Combine some softened butter and ketchup. It may sound too simple, but believe you me - its very tasty.
2. If you love cheese then sprinkle grated cheddar on top of the spread [no. 1]
3. a)Mix butter, crushed garlic, red chilli flakes and spread it on the bread.  b) Put grated cheese. c)Make pinwheels.d)Refrigerate them for 15-20min. e) Either bake these rolls or toast them on the griddle[tava]
4. Peanut butter and jam pinwheels.
5. Create your own and do share with me!

Cucumber and Carrot Sandwich

I picked up this recipe from my mother in law's cook.Its great with the evening cold coffee. I am listing the quantity of each ingredient according to how I mostly use it- feel free to experiment to suit your taste or availability.
For 5 sandwiches:

• 1 med.      carrot grated
• 1/2            cucumber grated
• 2 tbsp       mayonnaise
• 1tbsp        fresh cream [malai] optional
• 1tsp          coriander chutney
• 1/2 tsp      black pepper powder
• 1 tsp app. salt
• white/brown bread

1. After grating the cucumber lightly squeeze out the excess liquid.
2. Mix all the ingrediends.
3. Chill the mix for 20 min.
4. Trim the bread slices from all sides.
5. Spread the mix on the bread and your sandwich is ready!

Tip: Cut each sandwich into 4 neat squares/ tiangles for a dainty look.
       Its good as a grilled sandwich too.

Veggies in White sauce

This is another ez and quite healthy sandwich for dinner or anytime you wanna grab a bite. Its also a good option for a picnic basket because its a cold sandwich.
The ingredients are:

• 2small         carrots diced
• 2-3 florets   cauliflower cut into small pcs.
• 12-15         french beens cut into small pcs.
• 4 loaves      6" bread

Boil the veggies for a minute till they become soft but are a litttle firm.  You can steam them in the microwave for 4min on high.

For white sauce:

• 1 1/2tbsp   butter
• 1 1/2tbsp   maida [refined flour]
• 2cups         milk
• 1                onion cut into 4
• 1                bayleaf
• 2                cloves
• white pepper powder and salt for seasoning

1. Heat a pan ,put butter, add maida and stir cook continously for 2-3 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and keep aside.
3. In a saucepan bring the milk to a boil with the onion,cloves and bayleaf and let simmer for 2 minutes.
4. Strain the milk and while it is still boiling hot  pour the milk into the butter- maida mix while stirring continuously [to avoid formation of lumps].
5. Put the pan back on heat , allow to simmer for another 2 min. ,add seasoning and a pinch of sugar.
6. Mix in the boiled vegetables and turn off the burner.
7. Slice each bread loaf horizontally.
8. Spoon out the white sauce mix onto the bread and enjoy!

Tip: Prepare this sandwich a little in advance to allow the bread to soak in the flavour.For later consumption wrap each piece in cling film.

Sandwich Unlimited - Onion and Capsicum

Hey,
This month I am going to post some very ez sandwich recipies. I love bread-  buttered, garlic bread, with dhal, subzi, chutney, even plain bread I can chew on. In hostel a friend of mine and I used to spread green chilli pickle on bread and devour it! So a lot of my breakfasts consist of sandwiches and mostly those that  can be quickly prepared with ingredients commonly stocked in the fridge.
The first recipe is Onion and capsicum sandwich. It can be done with either cheese or only butter.
Ingredients:

• 1             Onion finely chopped
• 1/2          Capsicum finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp     Black/White pepper powder
• to taste    Salt
• 1/4 tsp    Dry mango powder[amchur]
• butter  or cheese slices or grated processed cheddar

1. Mix the onion and capsicum and season it with salt,pepper, amchur.
2. If you are using only butter then spread it on one side of  the bread slice.
3. Put the onion capsicum mix on the buttered side and cover it with a second slice.
4. For making a 'cheesy' sandwich instead of butter keep a cheeese slice or the grated cheddar on the bread.
5. Grill it till crisp.

You now have a yummy sandwich!!
Health Tip: Use Brown bread (whole grain)

Making Paneer [Cottage Cheese]

Hi ,
The reason why I thought of sharing this simple way of making paneer is because many of us find it easier to pick it off the shelf. I did too... But now 8 out of 10 times I use home made paneer  primarily because its healthier, more hygienic. And we eat quite a bit of paneer in our meals so thats important for me. Also it is a great source of protein [for the health conscious]. Believe me , its really ez and once you've tried it a couple of times its a breeze!
One thing you need is a small muslin bag so that the process becomes really ez and non-messy. If you dont then a muslin/ thin cotton cloth will suffice.
Here goes...

•  2 1/2 litres of milk
• 1 tsp of citric acid or juice of two lemons

Bring the milk to a boil. Turn the burner knob to sim. Stir in either the powdered citric acid or the lemon juice. As soon as the milk curdles, turn off the gas. Transfer this into the bag and pour some cold[room temprature] water on it. Tighten the bag and keep it on a flat surface. Now place a weighty object for eg. your tava[griddle] or chakla on it for about 1 hr to press out the remaining water and get a neat slab of paneer.

Adding a Cocktail twist- To the curdled milk add some chopped onion, chopped tomato. red chilli or black pepper powder.  Then follow the same procedure. Once the paneer is set, cut it into cubes. You can dot each peice with coriander/mint chutney/ketchup and serve it for breakfast or with the evening drinks. Enjoy it.