Happy Birthday

My daughter turned 1 year old on the 26th of April 2008 :)

Time flies, but when i sit and think do i even have any time? Well Mommies are always on the run i believe.:)

Back to the topic.. Birthday cake :)

Well there was no party for her as i felt that she is too small to understand a birthday party so y not do something she loved, She loves animals so we took her to the zoo:) n it was the perfect decision to spend the day with her seeing her smile.

So it was a obvious fact that the cake had to be some animal. I have never done a deco cake ever in my life. Or say I've never done a icing cake in my life:) this was the first and i dint want it to be a disaster. It was her FIRST birthday, how could i ruin things... Well here is what i made for her ...

KOMATSUNA (japanese mustard)

KOMATSUNA

One thing common between JAPAN and PUNJAB?? GUESS??Sarson :)) can u believe it? Yes it true u do get green mustard here :) known as KOMATSUNA:)It has a lovely sharp flavour to it and recently its been in my weekly hit list :)its yum, easy, and low cal :)) like i want it to be.No pre-preps needed :)

2 bunch Komatsuna chopped and washed.
3 pods crushed garlic
1 tbs wheat flour
green chili lengthwise slit (acc to taste)
1 tomato chopped or 4 tbs canned tomato.
salt
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
pinch of asefodia
Heat oil in a pan and add cumin and asefodia. Once crackled add crushed garlic
and green chili, and saute for few seconds, then add the chopped komatsuna to it.
Add salt, turmeric and wheat flour to it. Mix well.Adding wheat flour will make a semi thick gravy for the veggie.Keep it covered on medium heat for about 5 min. As the green's simmer down add the tomatoes and cook on high flame :)
Serve with Hot chapatis :)

CHOCOLATE TART

CHOCOLATE TART

Yes yet another sinful treat. Just cant resist this one. NOTHING but chocolate again. This dessert is pretty simple. No pre preps required. The trick to the taste is using the best quality chocolate for a more intense taste.

Crust:
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup powder sugar

Mix the above ingredients, n knead the dough. the butter will warm up when in contact with your hands and will allow you to form the dough . Wrap in plastic and refrigerate
while you prepare the ganache.

Ganache filling:
1 cup dark chocolate (chopped finely or u could choco chips)
1/2 cup cream.

Heat the cream over low heat and wen hot remove from the stove and add in the chocolates, let stand then Stir to incorporate the chocolate and cream and let it stand in the
room temperature.
Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it gently. Fit the dough into the tart or pie molds, prick with a fork and bake until light gold in colour at about 170 deg. Let the shells cool completely. De mold and fill with the ganache. Refrigerate until the ganache is completely set.it ideally takes about 3-4 hours. i.e if u could resist :)
U could decorate it with fresh fruits like strawberries and kiwi.. or caramel. :)

FRUITY ALMOND HEART's

FRUITY ALMOND HEART'S

The Aphrodisiac food... "chocolate" Hardly know anyone who does not relish the taste of chocolate. I always have to have something nice in my fridge... so this quick n easy fudge is a blessing to me :) I love fruity flavours so i experimented this fudge with 2 diff juices, you could add the juice of your choice or not. Also traditionally fudge;s have walnuts in them.. but i love the combination of almond and chocolate :) so here;s my fruity fudge:)

2 cups bitter chocolate pieces
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 tablespoon mango juice
1/2 roasted chopped almonds.
1 teaspoon vanilla essence.

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine chocolate pieces, sweetened condensed milk, and juices.
Microwave high for 1 minute and stir well. If the chocolate pcs have not melted micro again for about 30 seconds. Add in the chopped almonds.
Pour this mix in greased moulds or a pan. Refrigerate it for about 1 hour or more :)
Sprinkle with powdered sugar to decorate.

Dal Khichdi,Indian,

Normally Khichdi sounds boring , but this one NOO! trust me it could do wonders for ur palate:)
This one pot meal, is eaten by my dad almost everyday. Its a Gujarati dinner tables must have.
If you are a spice lover! don't get scared to add in a extra kick, it will make it taste better. I would highly recommend you to prepare this dish with "ghee"only and while serving drizzle it with a spoon full of it whole heartedly.:)

MIX VEGI KHICDI
1/2 cup Tur dal
1 cup Basmati rice
2 cups Water
2 .Cloves
1"piece. Cinnamon
pinch of Turmeric powder
Salt To taste
pinch of red chili powder
pinch of garam masala
Ghee
asafoedita
1tsb cumin
few curry leaves
Mixed veggies cubed. (onion, potato, beans, carrot)1tbs crushed ginger garlic paste.
Rinse the dal and rice with enough water to clean and soak them for about an hour or more.
In a heated pan, add cumin seeds, asafoedita, and curry leaves, then throw in the
clove and cinnamon .As you smell the fragrance add ginger and garlic paste, saute for few seconds and
add all the mixed chopped veggies. stir them for a minute or more and add all the
dry spices.Let the spices cook for about a minute, then add rice and dal to the pan.
saute the mix well with the veggies and add salt.

Let all the water in the pan dry. As the rice starts to stick the pan add the measured quantity of water and cook on
low flame until cooked sprinkle some kasoori methi.garnish with coriander.
You could also do this in your rice cooker.
Just saute the veggies and rice and after that add the mix to your rice cooker with measured water. :)
enjoy it with curd n pickle:)

Tofu sandwich.

TOFU SANDWICHES

Another dish that i made on valentines day:) easy, low cal , tasty:)

Regular bread or long Parmesan bread sliced diagonally.

Salad mix. (you can throw in any greens u like)

Thin slices of Tomato.

Thin slices of red onion.

Jalapenos

Olives sliced.

Hummus.

One pack of hard tofu (momen tofu).

For tofu marinade.

4-5tbs Olive oil.(you could use less if you want it to be low-cal)

2 tbs finely chopped garlic

1 tbs vinegar

sprinkle of mixed herbs(fresh is better)

salt

black pepper

red chili flakes.

First cut your tofu into long rectangles and marinade them for about 2 hours or more.After its stayed on, heat a nonstick pan and put the tofu cubes on them carefully. You do not need oil in the pan because the marinade has enough oil. cook both sides until nice crisp brown.Assemble your sandwiches when you are ready to serve.Spread a good spoon full of hummus on the bread first, throw in your greens, keep a slice of tomato and onion, tofu, olives, jalapenos and cover with another slice of bread spreaded with hummus:)

p.s I love you :)

This post is due since valentines day. But something or the other is keeping me occupied enough to blog down.Well old saying's never go amiss:) "WAY TO MANS HEART IS THROUGH HIS STOMACH"It hold perfectly true for me. A dull day but some delectable food can bring smile on his face:)I could not do much for valentines day for him because of my on the run routine with kaira(my baby girl) . But i knew i had to make some nice food for him. It had to be something ITALIAN for sure. spaghetti was habitual, Lasagna was not too appealing.. It had to be something I've never made before, RAVIOLI:) yes! I've never made that before, always wanted to try it, had a can of mushrooms lying around since long, had some lovely basil and fresh spinach too:)It sure is time consuming and tedious to make it but WORTH it:) trust me!



SPINACH MUSHROOM RAVIOLI

For the raviolis:
1 cup flour
2 tsp. olive oil
water
pinch salt

For the filling:
1bunch of spinach,chopped
Half cup finely chopped mushrooms
2 tbs. bread crumbs (to make it more creamier)
1 tsp fresh basil chopped
1tbs cottage cheese or any other creamy cheese u like.
salt Red pepper (as per Ur taste)

For the sauce:
1 can tomatoes
1 onion minced or finely chopped
1 tbs olive oil
1 clove garlic crushed.
1 big basil leaf
salt and pepper to taste
dash of lemon
Red pepper according to taste

For the ravioli dough:In a bowl, combine the ingredients to make a dough. Wrap in a wet towel and let sit for 30 minutes.

For the sauce:
Saute the minced onion in the olive oil until the onion is pink.add garlic and saute. Add the tomatoes and reduce heat to simmer add basil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and continue to simmer on a low heat. Season to taste with additional salt, pepper and red pepper.

Making the ravioli:
Roll the dough into a big oval and cut out your ravioli shapes and fill with the filling. Place the top part of the sheet over the filling and close with a fork. Keep it aside fr 15 min.Put your ravioli into the salty water and cook. They are ready when they come floating to the top.When ready to serve, put a layer of sauce on the plate and lay the raviolis on top.
enjoy:)