Banana and Chikoo Shake !!

With the heat and humidity of Mumbai, one loses appetite for big meals and heavy food.  A wholesome fruit milkshake, had along with a few almonds/walnuts can be healthy and filling breakfast.

Method

Peel and cut 1 Banana/ Chikoo/ small mango. Put in a blender with 1 glass of chilled milk with 1/2 tspn of sugar (optional). Blend well. Serve chilled in a tall glass. Have it with 2 -3 walnut pieces and 5 almonds.

Left overs to Nothing Left .. !!

Most housewives are always confronted with the problem of storing  small quantities of left overs which no one feels like eating the next day. An easy way to make left over dry vegetables like potato bhaaji, aloo mattar, paneer bhurji etc interesting,  is to convert them to yummy filling  for toasts, Add one finely chopped onion, 1 to 2 green chilli, ginger, a little salt and pepper, 1 finely chopped tomato and a few chopped coriander leaves. Mix well. You may also add some grated cheese and and your filling is now ready. Place it between buttered slices of bread and grill/toast. Serve hot with chatni, ketchup, fries, chips, salad and it can become a full meal.

Turnip and Mint (Shalgam-Pudina) Soup

Ingredients
4-5 medium size turnips
1/2 cup mint leaves
1 small onion finely chopped
1 tspn butter
Salt and pepper to taste
1-2 tblspn lemon juice


Method

Peel wash and cut the turnips in small pieces. Add finely chopped onion, mint leaves to it and blend to form a smooth thick paste. Add 1 tspn to a pan and heat the pan on a medium flame. Pour the blended mixture in the pan and allow it to boil. add salt and pepper to taste. If the mixture is too thick dilute it with water to the required consistency. Add lemon juice to taste. Serve hot with bread sticks.

Summertime Salad

We are in the thick of summer, so time to share something cool and light on the stomach. Cool Summer salad fits the bill. You can make a meal of it along with a bowl of chilled watermelon/marsh melon or a glass of chilled watermelon juice.

Ingredients:

For salad dressing: ½ kg Curd
1 cup fresh cream

1” piece ginger

½ tsp citric acid or juice of one lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

1 medium sized cabbage

2 large carrots

2 onions/Spring onion
few slices of Tomato and Capsicum for 

Procedure:

Put curds in a muslin cloth and hang for about 2 hours.  Drain out all water.  Add fresh cream, ginger, salt pepper and lemon juice well.  Grate vegetables and mix well with dressing arrange in a salad dish and decorate with sliced tomatoes / capsicum etc.   

Melon Basil Smoothie

With the mercury rising there is a yearning for cool drinks that are healthy and wholesome as many of us don't feel hungry enough specially for lunch. Melon Basil Smoothie is to whip up in a minute, very refreshing and healthy!

Ingredients
1 medium size Marsh Melon peeled and cut into pieces
1 cup chilled yogurt
1/4 cup washed basil leaves
1/2 cup crushed ice


Method 
Put all ingredients in a blender and blend to a smoothie. If too thick, dilute with a little chilled water. Serve in a tall glass. You can add finely chopped pieces of marsh melon. You can also add a scoop of vanilla ice-cream if you feel like having a more sumptuous drink.

Chatpati Mathris

Exam Season is here and with it comes the need for late night snacking with hot cups of tea and coffee! Chatpati Mathris are the perfect savory snack for tea time, breakfast on the go or late night exam preparation. This is how you can make them.

Ingredients
1 cup wheat flour 
3/4 cup Maida
2 tblspn Ghee

For the filling
3/4 cup besan/gram flour
1/2 tspn red chilli powder
1/2 tspn ground ajwain
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

Method

Mix wheat flour, maida, ghee and salt to taste in a bowl and knead with warm water into a chapati like dough. Mix all the ingredients for the filling in a smaller bowl with just 1 tspn of oil and keep aside. Make small balls of the dough. Flatten each ball on your palm with fingers and place quarter tspn of the filling in the center. Close from all sides and gently roll with rolling pin to about 3  inch diameter size. Roll all mathris similarly. Heat Oil in a kadhai. When hot gently put in mathris 3-4 at a time and fry on low to medium flame till evenly golden brown. Drain out the excess oil and place on a tissue. allow to cool and store in an air-tight container. Serve with tea, pickle, yogurt or dip as convenient.

Tasty and Cooling Raita !!

Summer will soon be upon us and time to look for cool and light dishes that are easy on the stomach and ready in minutes. Dahi or yogurt is highly recommended in different forms : plain, lassi, a variety of raitas, dahi wada, dahi papdi chaat etc. A nutritious and tasty raita that is not very common is the cabbage and carrot raita!

Ingredients

1/2 cup of grated cabbage

1/2 cup grated carrot

2 cups yogurt

Salt and red chilli powder to taste

1 tblspn Oil

1/4 tspn mustard seeds

few curry leaves

Method

Blend the yogurt in a bowl. Add grated vegetables, salt and chilli powder. Mix well.

Heat oil in a small kadhai. When hot add mustard seeds and curry leaves and allow to splutter. Mix hot oil with the dahi and serve chilled.