Thursday, November 28, 2013

Vegetable Penne Pasta Recipe

I am not big fan of pasta. However since I tried creating rotini pasta with broccoli sauce and I liked it, I made this another simple pasta dish using Penne Pasta and vegetables. This recipe contains lots of vegetables. It works great for lunch box or simple and quick dinner. Most of the vegetables are available in freeze or you can just add any vegetables available. So it can made at minute's notice.

Penne Pasta with Vegetables


Ingredient

1. 1 cup broccoli florets, 1/2 cup mushroom, 1/3 cup carrot,1/4 cup corn, 2tbsp cut green bell pepper,2 tbsp cut red bell pepper,2 tbsp cut black olive (this was the combination I used. You can take any combination of vegetables)
2. 1/4 cup nicely cut onion
3  2 nicely cut garlic clove
4. 3 tbsp olive oil
5. salt to taste
6. 1 tsp dry parsley
7. 1 cup tomato pure
8. 1 big tomato nicely cut
9. 2 tbs fresh parsley
10. Vegan Parmesan cheese for serving (You can find Vegan Permasan Cheese Here or skip it in recipe to make it vegan)
11. 1 and 1/2 cup Penne pasta cooked as per package instruction

Method

1.In a big sauce pan heat olive oil. Add onion and pinch of salt. Put it on medium heat and stir until row smell of onion is gone. Add garlic and stir for a minute or so. Add tomato pieces and stir for few more minutes.
2. Now add vegetables one after the another. Add the carrots first since they take longest to cook, then mushroom and then broccoli and so on. (Do not add olives yet.)
3. Once vegetables are cooked but not mushy, add pasta, tomato puree, salt,  black olive and dry parsley powder. Mix it well.
4. Transfer in serving bowl and sprinkle with fresh parsley and cheese.

   Tip

  If you like spicy add crushed red pepper.

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Sending this entry to Pasta Please Event hosted by The Spicy Pear and Tinned Tomatoes.



and to no-waste food challenge @  Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary and Cooking Around the World.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Eggless Mini Apple Pie Recipe

My grand kids love apple pie. I made these mini apple pie for them. They were made into little pouches so it was just perfect for tiny hands to hold and eat without creating mess.

Just like my healthy bun bread or dinner roll  or healthy cinnamon raisin bread these pie are also eggless. This recipe makes melt in the mouth pie crust. It does not have much sugar either. Adding brown sugar to the filling it makes recipe healthier too.
eggless mini apple pie

Ingredients For Pie Crust:

1.1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
2.1/2 cup unsalted butter
3.1/2tsp salt
4. 3 and 1/2tbsp cold water

Method

1.In a mixing bowl combine flour and butter.  Mix the flour until it feels crumbling.
2.Slowly add cold water and make soft dough. Kneed dough well. Cover it with plastic wrap and put in freeze.

Ingredients For Apple Pie Filling:

1.2 Apple (I used red delicious but you can use any other sweet variety)
2.1/4tsp lemon juice
3. pinch of salt
4.1tbsp butter
5. 3tbsp brown sugar +3tbsp sugar
6. 1/2tsp cinnamon powder
7. 1tsp roasted  all purpose flour (with out butter)

Method for apple filing

 1.In a bowl sprinkle salt and lemon juice so that apple does not turn brown. Peal the apple skin and cut them in small cubes. Mix them with salt and lemon juice that is already sprinkled in the bowl.
2. In a sauce pan take butter and put it on medium high heat. After butter is melted, add apple cubes.
3. Stir apple cubes for a minute and then add sugar to it.
4.After apple is tender add cinnamon powder and mix it well.
5. Add all purpose flour and mix it well. Turn off stove top and lets the apple pie filling cool down.

Method for Small  Pie

1. Divide pie crust in 10 equal portions
2. Roll each portion about 3 and 1/2" circle.
3. Place each rolled portion at the bottom of mini pie pan. Add 2tsp Apple pie filling and top it with another rolled portion.
4. Press the edges. Make 2-3 slits using knife on the top layer of the pie. This allows for steam to release and make pie crispy.
5.Pre-heat oven at 400 F. Bake the pie for 20 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350 F bake again for 10 minute.

Pie is ready to serve. Verdict? - Both my grand kids absolutely loved it. For 5 minutes that they were eating the pie, there was no noise at all. My daughter called me about same time they were eating pie and she asked why there is no noise. Where are the kids !  Hope you love this mini apple pie recipe just as much as my grand kids. Do let us know.

Similar Recipes:

1. Wheat Flour Cinnamon Raisin Bread
2. Eggless Tutti-Fruity Bread
3. Eggless Sugar Cookie Recipe


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Sending this apple pie to bake fest event and flavors of US and Canada and
fruits and Veggie based sweets @ZestySouthIndianKitchen.
Sending this entry to Flavors of world
and Lets Cook Sweet Treats
and Healthy Diet - Berries @PriyasEasyAndTeastyRecipes

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Steamed Mix-Vegetable Manchurian Recipe

We were introduced to Chinese food when my daughter moved to Bangalore. Also known as silicon valley of Indian. Bangalore is such a cosmopolitan city and you can find there restaurants from many regions of the world. We loved Hakka noodles, fried rice and Manchurian from Chinese restaurants in Bangalore. It was when we came to USA we realized it was not Chinese food but fusion of Indian and Chinese food also popularly known as Indo-Chinese food. It is Chinese food adapted to suit Indian taste.

Since then we have tried many times to create same taste in our home cooking. Below is healthier version of Vegetable Manchurian. Dumplings or Vegetable Manchurian is steamed instead of deep-fry.

Vegetable Manchurian

Ingredient

For Manchurian Dumplings:

1.1/2 cup grated cauliflower
2.1/2 cup grated carrot
3.1/2 cup grated cabbage
4.1tsp white pepper powder
5.salt to taste
6.1 1/2tbsp corn starch

For Sauce:

1. 8 too 10 nicely cut garlic cloves
2. 2tsp nicely cut ginger
3. 2 nicely cut green chili
4. 2 spring onion white part
5. salt to taste
6. 1/2tsp white pepper powder
7. 2tbsp soya sauce
8. 1tsp sugar
9. 1tbsp oil
10. 1tbsp tomato ketchup ( Maggi tomato ketchup works best)
12. 1 1/2 cup water
13. 1tbsp corn starch
14. spring onion for garnishing

Method for Making Steamed Vegetable Manchurian: 


1.Combine all Manchurian ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix them well and make walnut size balls.
2. Steam Manchurian balls (dumplings) in steamer for about 7 to 10 minutes and they should be cooked well.

Method for making Sauce:

1.Combine oil and nicely cut garlic in a big sauce pan. Stir it for a minute .
2. Now add ginger, green chili, white part of spring onion and stir it for another minute. Add 1 1/2 cup water.
3.Add salt, sugar, soya sauce, tomato ketchup and white pepper powder and stir for a minute.
4.In 1tbsp water dissolve corn starch and add it in sauce. Let it cook for little bit until sauce looks oily.
5.Now add boiled Manchurian dumplings and cook for another minute or so.
6.Take off from stove top and transfer in a serving bowl.
7.Garnish with green onions.

Serve Vegetable Manchurian as appetizer or side dish with Chinese fried rice or to be more correct indo-Chinese fried rice. ! Do let us know how do you like this healthier version of Vegetable Manchurian.

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Sending this entry to Fabulous Fusion Food Event.

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Chocolate Burfi or Milk Halwa recipe using ricotta cheese

We used to make burfi scratch from milk in past. It would require stirring for hours on low flame to make fresh burfi or milk halwa. Using Ricotta cheese burfi or halwa making becomes very simple. You simply combine three basic ingredients in a heavy bottom pan and stir it until it starts leaving the pan. That's about it and burfi is ready.  Sweets or Desserts Recipe

Burfi is very versatile bite size dessert.You can add any flavor essence and color to suit your taste or occasion. I have added pink color and rose essence in past for a girl baby shower. You can add pistachio essence and green color for a Christmas time gift giving. Here I have used coco powder to make two layer chocolate burfi. Bottom half is white while top one is chocolate burfi layer. Here is list of ingredients and step by step instructions to make burfi using ricotta cheese.

Chocolate Burfi Milk Halwa

Ingredients:

1.2 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
2.2/3 cup sugar
3.1 1/2tsp coco powder
4.2tbsp ghee/ clarified butter (Make Ghee in slow cooker/crockpot)
5.1/4tsp cardamom powder
6.2 drop rose essence ( optional )

Step By Step Instructions:

1.In a sauce pan combine ricotta cheese, sugar and ghee. Put it on medium-high flame on gas stove.
2.Stir until mixture leaves the pan. (This should take about 30-45 minutes)
3.Now add cardamom powder and essence in a  half part. Mix it well and spread it in greased plate.
4.Add coco powder in other half part, add 1tsp milk and stir it well. Now spread chocolate part on white part.
5. Apply silver paper ( varakh ) if you have it available. It is optional though.
6 .Let it sit in freeze until it is cool. Cut the pieces and store it in air tight container.
7. If burfi is not for immediate consumption then keep it in freeze.

Above recipe will make about 20 pieces.This burfi can be made in microwave also very easily. I will post microwave recipe for burfi soon. Meanwhile please check out some other microwave recipes.

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Sending this recipe to Dish It Out - Diwali Event hosted by CooksJoy.




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