Pizza sauce

The recipe is inspired from hebbers kitchen and yields pizza sauce good enough for 2-3 medium sized pizzas.

Recipe :

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp oil
• 6 tomatoes
• 3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/4 onion, finely chopped
• 3/4 tsp sugar
• 3/4 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder or paprika
• 1/2 tsp mixed Italian herbs
• 1/4 tsp red chili flakes
• Salt as per taste
• 1 tbsp tomato ketchup

Method:

1. Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water. Allow to boil till the skin starts to leave.
2. Once cooled, peel the skin of the tomatoes.
3. Purée 3 tomatoes in a blender and chop the remaining 3 discarding the seeds.
4. Heat oil in a saucepan.
5. Add the garlic and sauté till brown.
6. Then add the chopped onion and sauté till transparent.
7. Now add the chopped tomatoes and cook till mushy. Mash in between if required.
8. Add the tomato purée, sugar, chili flakes, herbs, chili powder, ketchup and salt.
9. Simmer for 5 mins.
10. Pizza sauce is ready.

Vegetable Cheese Burst Pizza

I am pizza fan for quite a long time now but am very fuzzy about the toppings. Also I like it to be a cheese overload with cheese oozing out from all sides. However most pizza specializing outlets sell pizzas in larger sizes which happen too much for th two of us – my hubby and me.

So we had been avoiding visits to pizza shops. But that’s not a solution. I just wanted to have a cheese burst pizza dominos style so decided to try it out myself at home. The attempt was a success and we both enjoyed the pizza.

Recipe :

Ingredients:

• 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1 pound frozen pizza dough
• 1 small tub cheese spread (8 oz)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup sliced onion
• 1/2 cup green, yellow, red, orange bell peppers, julienned
• 2-3 button mushrooms, sliced
• Zip lock bag

You can include more variety of veggies like olives, jalapeños, etc

Method :

1. Roll the dough into a log and divide into two equal parts. One part makes one medium-sized pizza.
2. Take one half and divide it in such way that one is slightly bigger than other (like 2/3 and 1/3).
3. Grease baking tray with oil and pre-heat oven to 350F.
4. Take the bigger dough piece and roll it into a thin disc. Place this on the greased tray and keep it covered for 10 mins.
5. Roll the other piece into a thin disc as well. Roast this very lightly on a tawa. 
6. Put half the cheese spread in a ziplock bag or piping bag and cut the tip.
7. Pipe out the cheese spread on the roasted disc leaving the edges. Spread if required.
8. Invert this on the other disc that was kept covered such that the cheese applied side faces the other disc and is at the center.
9. Now pipe out the a cheese border along the edge of the roasted disc.
10.  Then use the edge of the larger uncooked disc to cover and seal the piped out cheese.
11. Apply around half a cup of the pizza sauce on the prepared pizza base.
12. Next as per your liking put the cheese or veggies first. I put 1/4 of the shredded cheese.
13. Then sprinkled the veggies and over which spread another 1/4 cup of shredded cheese.
14. Bake the pizza in the preheated oven for 10-15 min.

 

Batata bhaji-Puri / Potato stir fry with flour-semolina mini tortillas

Batat bhaji or Aloo subji is one of my hubby’s favorite while I love the combination of batat bhaji with puri for breakfast or snacks. It had been quite some time now since we had it. My hubby had a craving for the subji.

As it was new year, I decided to prepare and start the year with something traditional. So was ready with puri bhaji for breakfast.

Recipe :

Ingredients :

For the puri –

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp semolina
• Salt as per taste
• 1 tbsp oil
• Water for kneading
• Oil for deep frying 

For the aloo bhaji –

• 4-6 medium sized potatoes, boiled, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
• 6-8green chillies, finely chopped 
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp asafoetida
• 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder 
• Salt as per taste
• 1 tbsp oil 
• 1 tbsp coriander leaves, chopped

Method :

1. For the puri, mix flour, oil, salt and water as required to knead into a soft dough.
2. Cover with a damp cloth and allow to rest for around 15-30 mins.
3. Mix potatoes, turmeric powder, cumin powder, green chillies and salt.
4. In the meanwhile, heat oil in a pan.
5. Add the mustard and cumin seeds. Once they flutter add the asafoetida.
6. Then add the potato mixture and mix well.
7. Add water as per consistency needed. Cover and allow to cook fo 5 minute but take care that it does not get burnt.
8. Put off the heat and garnish with coriander leaves.
9. Heat oil for deep frying. Keep on low to medium flame. Oil needs to be hot enough to fry the puris.
10. Divide the dough by pinching one inch balls of the dough.
11. Roll each into a slightly thick but not too thick disc. Too thin will not allow the puris to puff up. Apply oil as required instead of flour to aid in rolling.
12. Deep fry the puris till slight golden brown. Once you put the rolled puri in hot oil, gently keep pressing it in center into the oil using the ladle to help it to puff up.
13. Serve hot with batata bhaji. Enjoy!!

Classic rum cake

We were at a get together at our relative’s place. While talking about cuisines and various dishes, suddenly all were nostalgic about a rum cake which our aunt Usha Naik (family friend)  had baked and relished by all for some party in the past. As we had recently moved here, we were not obliged to relish it ☹️.

However, I was very eager to get hold of the recipe and try it out. Christmas was around the corner and I was planning to try it out then. So I grabbed the recipe from aunt Usha and was all ready with the ingredients in my pantry. But to my dismay my hubby was in no mood for any more cakes that month as be already had consumed our wedding anniversary cake by mid December.

I was just waiting for an occasion to seek an opportunity to bake it. Recently was my paternal grand dad’s 100th birthday remembrance. So I didn’t wait at all and just decided to try it out no matter what. My grand dad too was a foodie even at his old age. Though he was a doctor himself and health conscious, he did not give up on relishing delicious food.

Thanks Usha aunty for the recipe. We and many of our friends enjoyed the yummy cake. Let’s begin with the recipe. I have done very minor changes to the original.

Recipe :

Ingredients:

For the cake –

• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 box yellow cake mix (The recipe asked to use 18 1/2 oz box however I used the gluten free pack by Pillsbury 17 oz. You can use the regular packs of traditional yellow cake mix of 15.25 oz which would work well)
• 1 box instant pudding and pie filling (3.4 oz)
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup rum

For the rum glaze –

• 1/2 cup butter ( 1 stick or 1/4 pound)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup rum

Method :

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
2. Grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan or 12 cup bundt pan.
3. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup or less walnuts at the bottom of the pan.
4. Mix all the rest ingredients and then fold in the remaining walnuts.
5. Pour the mix into the greased pan and bake in the preheated oven for an hour or till cake doneness.
6. Remove the cake and allow it to cool completely on a cooling rack.
7. For the glaze, melt the butter in a saucepan.
8. Stir in the sugar and water and continue stirring till sugar dissolves.
9. Allow to boil for 5 mins and then remove from heat.
10. Stir in the rum.
11. Drizzle and smooth the glaze over the top and sides of the cake.
12. Allow the cake to absorb the glaze completely and then repeat till the entire glaze is used up.

Banana Loaf

This recipe is passed on to me by my mum. It’s nothing but sooji halwa or semolina dessert in cake or loaf form. I have always relished this since my childhood. So would like to share it with you.

Recipe :

Ingredients :

• 2 – 3 medium-sized bananas
• 1 tbsp ghee/ clarified butter
• 1 cup semolina (sooji)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp cardamom powder
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• salt as per taste

Method :

1. Heat ghee in a pan. Once hot, roast the semolina till slightly roasted but take care it doesn’t turn brown.
2. In a mixie, mash banana with sugar.
3. Once the semolina is cooled, add the mashed banana sugar mix into the roasted semolina.
4. Try to remove the left over banana mix from blender blending the milk. Then add this milk into the semolina.
5. Now add the cardamom powder, baking powder and salt and mix well.
6. Grease a loaf pan and pour the contents into it.
7. Bake this in an oven preheated at 350 F for around 25-30 mins or till a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Enjoy the cake for dessert or snack time.

Coriander Mint Sauce/ Hari Dhaniya-Pudina Chutney

I had made some paneer tikka and samosas recently as appetizers and so planned to make an accompaniment with it other than the normal tomato ketchup.

I decided to make hari chutney. So let’s quickly jump to the recipe.

Recipe :

Ingredients :

• 2 cups fresh coriander leaves, washed and cleaned
• 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
• 2 green chilies
• 1 inch ginger
• 1 tbsp roasted peanut powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp chat masala powder
• 1 tsp sugar
• salt as per taste
• Lime juice as per taste
• Water as required

Method :

1. Grind all the ingredients except salt and lime juice in a mixer/blender using water as required to make a fine paste.
2. Now add the lime juice and salt and mix well.
3. Chutney is ready to be relished with appetizers.

Shimla Mirchi Salan / Bell Pepper tangy curry

I wanted to prepare a gravy dish that would go well with roti/chapati and even with rice/biryani as a side dish as I had some left over chicken biryani.

I searched through my veggie storage in the refrigerator and found two medium – big sized bell peppers. Recently I had tried and posted Eggplant Salan recipe. I decided to follow same only replacing the eggplant with bell peppers and reducing a step or two. It turned out to be yum and my purpose was also met.

Recipe :

Ingredients :

• 3 medium-sized bell peppers (any color – green, red, yellow), cut into cubes
• 1 1/2 tbsp roasted coarse peanut powder
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1 1/2 tbsp desiccated coconut powder
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp cumin seeds(jeera)
• 1/4 tsp kalonji (onion seeds)
• 1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi)
• 3 dry red chillies
• 5-6 curry leaves
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• salt as per taste
• 2 green chillies
• 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1/ 4 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 heaped tsp red chili powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 2 tbsp yoghurt
• 1 tbsp fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped

Method :

1. In a pan, dry roast, peanut powder, sesame seeds and coconut powder.
2. Once cooled down, grind into fine paste using water as required. Keep aside.
3. In a pan heat the oil. Once hot, add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, methi, kalonji, red chillies and curry leaves.
4. Once they crackle, add the onion and green chillies and sprinkle little salt as this aids in cooking for the onion.
5. Once the onion become transparent, add the ginger garlic paste and sauté till the rawness of the paste is lost.
6. Now add the spice powders – turmeric powder, red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and mix well.
7. Now add the ground peanut-sesame-coconut paste and little water. Cover and cook till the oil separates.
8. Then add the yoghurt and salt as per taste and give it a good mix.
9. Now add the chopped, mint and coriander leaves and also the cubed bell peppers. Cover and cook till the bell peppers are well cooked and soft but not mushy.
10. Serve hot with roti/chapati or biryani. Enjoy!