Fish Curry - Kerala style!

Kerala is a beautiful coastal state in the South of India abundant with food from the ocean, spices and coconut trees! Its cuisine is a unique combination of spices and coconut cooked in special earthenware combined with meat, fish or vegetables.
This is a most flavorful and aromatic fish curry which should ideally be cooked on an open flame in a mud pot on the beach! But oh well, not all dreams come true all the time, for now have this picture in your mind and create this magical dish in your very own kitchen!

For this you will need -
10 - 12 - Medium sized pieces of any fish (ideally ocean fish)
3 tbspns - Fresh grated coconut
1 tspn - Turmeric Powder
2 tspns - Red Chili Powder
3 tspns - Coriander Powder
1 tspn - Tamarind Concentrate diluted in water
1 tspn - Roasted fenugreek powder
A small piece of Onion or 2 pearl onions
Salt as per your taste
4 tspns - Coconut Oil


Method -

Take a teaspoon of oil in a small pan and roast the coconut till nice and golden. Make sure not to burn it :) It may take about 8 - 10 minutes.

To this add the turmeric, red chili and coriander powders and fry for a couple more minutes.

Allow to cool and grind to a fine paste with the onion.

Now take the vessel in which you want to make the curry and three teaspoons of oil. Once add the ground paste and fry for a minute. Add water to make it into a gravy consistency and let boil nicely. At least for about 10 minutes. Then add the fish pieces and cook for another 10 minutes. Once the fish is cooked and has taken in all the flavor from the gravy, add the tamarind water. Cook for a couple of minutes, add salt and the fenugreek powder. Allow the gravy to thicken to your liking. Turn off the heat and serve with hot rice.


 

Rave Dose

The last few months were absolutely divine for me. For a change, I didn't have to cook but could savor all the choicest delicacies. Thanks to my mom-in-law and then my mom. While all the eating was so good, I was so lazy to post anything.
Alas, now life is back to normal. Cooking by me and only me. However I have come up with a trick to ensure that I don't see cooking as a chore. Will talk about that in my next post.

After a long break, here's an out and out Karnataka special. So mouthwateringly delicious, no one can eat just one :)

For this you will need -

1 Cup - Fine Semolina (not roasted)
1/2 Cup - Yoghurt ( vary the quantity such that the semolina just gets coated with the yoghurt)
1 Cup - Rice Flour
3 Tbspn - Maida (All Purpose Flour)
2 Tspn - Cumin Seeds
1 - Green Chili (fine chopped)
1 Inch - Ginger (grated)
A handful of Coriander (Cilantro) leaves, fine chopped
Salt as to your taste
Lots of water
Oil - A couple of spoons
Optional - fine chopped onion

Pan - Tava or flat griddle


Method -

Mix the semolina with the yoghurt and let it rest for 10 - 15 minutes. Then add the rice flour and Maida and add water little by little. Keep mixing ensuring that no lumps are formed and bring it to the consistency of buttermilk. Now add the salt, cumin seeds, chili and ginger. If you like add the onions too. The batter is ready.

 

Heat the tava on medium heat. You can check if it is hot enough by sprinkling a few drops of water and it should sizzle and evaporate. Once hot, pour the batter from just above the tava without trying to spread the batter with the spoon. That will give the lacy look to the dose which is it's prime characteristic! Spread a teaspoon of oil all around the dosa. Once it begins to turn golden brown flip it and cook for about 30more seconds.

Serve hot, can be eaten as is, my son loves it! Or serve with coconut chutney and bisi bisi kaapi :)

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

This is a recipe I have been planning to try for almost two years. Somehow I never got around to doing it until a couple of weeks back. It was my father in law's birthday and he loves cakes, infact both my in laws are foodies, so I thought it's the perfect time to try it. Turned out to be so moist, fragrant and pleasingly sweet. Real comfort food! Give it a try if you love pineapples, warm cakes or just want to give yourself a cuddle.

For this you will need -

Butter - 50gms + 120 gms
Brown Sugar - 160 gms
Canned Pineapple or Fresh - 7 Slices ( I used canned)
Flour - 200 gms
White Sugar - 200 gms
Eggs - 2 large, separated
Milk - 120 ml
Baking Powder - 2 Tspn
Vanilla Extract - 1 Tspn
Salt - a pinch

Method -

Prepare a 9inch round cake pan by smearing butter and sprinkling a little flour.

Take the 50gm butter and brown sugar in a think bottom pan and allow to melt and dissolve. Now let it cook without stirring till bubbles just begin to appear along the edges. Turn off the heat and pour into the cake dish. Arrange the pineapple slices as shown. If using canned make sure to drain all the liquid.

Pre heat the oven to 350 degF.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt (if using unsalted butter). In another bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Scrape down the sides once in a while. Now add the vanilla extract, egg yolks and beat well. Add the flour mixture and milk alternatingly and fold into the batter.
In a third bowl, beat the egg whites till soft peaks formed and fold it into the batter. Pour this over the pineapple and bake for 45 - 55 minutes. A toothpick inserted should come out clean. Let it cool for 5 - 10 minutes and run a knife along the edge of the pan. Turn upside down and voila the cake is ready!

 

Palak Paratha with Cauliflower-Potato Sabji and Lima Bean Gravy

This is one of my favorites! The green in the paratha is so inviting and the spicy curries on the side served with a cup full of yoghurt and I'm in my sacred place.

For the Palak Paratha, you will need -

2 Cups - Whole wheat flour (Atta)
2-3 Handful - Spinach, washed and cleaned
Water as required
1 tspn - Salt
A pinch of sugar
1 tspn - Red Chili Powder (optional)
1 tspn - Turmeric Powder (optional)
1 tspn - Cumin - Coriander Powder (optional)
Ghee

Method -

Cook the spinach with as little water as possible. Add a pinch of sugar so it retains it color. After a couple of minutes turn the heat off and blanch the spinach. Drain the excess water but keep the water, don't throw it away. Grind the spinach to a fine paste.
In a bowl, mix the flour, salt, turmeric powder, cumin - coriander powder, red chili powder and salt. To this add the ground spinach and make it into a dough as shown. While making the dough, if required use the spinach water little by little, so as to not end up with excess water in your flour!

Make small balls and roll them out.

Heat a tava or a flat pan. Once hot put the paratha and cook evenly on both sides. Smear ghee on the cooked paratha for added flavor.

Cauliflower - Potato Sabji -

For this you will need -

1 Cauliflower cut into big florets
1 Medium Sized Potato cut into big chunks
1 Tomato quartered
2 tbspn Oil
A tspn cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
Salt
1 tspn turmeric powder

To grind -

A tspn cumin seeds
2 tspns coriander seeds
2 inches ginger root
2 garlic cloves
1/2 of a medium sized onion
1/2 inch cinnamon or 1 tspn cinnamon powder
3 cloves
1 pod cardamom
 
Method -

Keep the ground paste ready before starting.
Heat oil in a deep dish. Add the cumin seeds and once they splutter, add the bay leaf and the cauliflower florets. Fry till the florets turn slightly brown. Then add the ground paste and mix well. After a couple of minutes add the tomato, turmeric powder and salt. Cook for a few minutes.

Now add a glass of hot water, cover and simmer for a few minutes. That is till everything is cooked and the flavors have blended well.

 

 

Great Lima Bean Gravy

 

For this you will need -

 

About 100gms lima beans soaked overnight

 

 



1/2 an Onion
3-4 Dried red chilies
2 tspn ginger - garlic paste
2 cloves
1 tspn cinnamon powder
1 cardamom
2 tspn coriander seeds
1 tspn turmeric powder
Salt
1 tbspn Tomato Ketchup

Method -

Pressure cook the soaked lima beans till well cooked. In the meantime, lightly fry the rest of the ingredients that is onion, chilies, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and coriander seeds. Once cool, grind to a fine paste with ginger garlic paste. Fry this mixture in a couple of teaspoons of oil nicely, like really well. Add this, salt, turmeric powder to the cooked beans. Add the ketchup and give another whistle in the pressure cooker so the flavors are well blended. Garnish with coriander leaves.

 

Chilli Cheese Toast with Oven Roasted Veggies

Wow, it's been a month since my last post! Last month was busy and I haven't been cooking anything new. This is a staple in my house, really easy to make and there is something for everyone.

For the chilli cheese toast -

Whole wheat bread
Mozzarella cheese
Green Chillies ( Jalapeño, Serrano or any thing not too spicy) - fine chopped

Method -

Spread the chili and cheese on the bread and bake it in a pre heated oven at 350 deg F till the cheese melts. Serve hot.

For the Oven Roasted Veggies -

Veggies of your choice like cauliflower, broccoli, onions, butternut squash, cabbage, asparagus, peppers, egg plant, beans, carrots

Salt, pepper and a few herbs of your choice
A few pods of garlic, crushed
A tablespoon of olive oil
A teaspoon of brown sugar

Method -
Grease the baking dish with oil. Cut the veggies into big chunks. Sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic, brown sugar and herbs. Toss it all and bake in a pre heated oven at 350 deg F. Once the veggies char a little bit, they are done.

 

Lokumi

Yes, that is the name. It is a Mediterranean dessert. Simply put, it is a butter cookie coated with sugar :)
Food is my passion and I love trying different foods from all over the world. Moving to the United States has really made that dream come true. The more I eat, meet people and talk about their foods, I find it so interesting that a lot of dishes are common to many distinct parts of the world. There maybe slight variations and names are obviously different but the soul of the food is the same. Not to downplay the diversity but just trying to highlight how the same kinds of food are present in so many different corners of the world! I find that absolutely enchanting!
This Lokumi, is also made in Mexico, at weddings and is known as Mexican wedding cookies.

For this you will need -
1 Cup - Butter (Unsalted)
1/2 Cup - Icing Sugar or Powdered Sugar
1/2 Cup - Chopped Nuts (Almonds, Walnuts, Pistachios)
About 2 Cups - Flour
1 Tspn - Vanilla Extract
1/2 Tspn - Baking Powder
1/4 Tspn - Salt
Rind of 1 Yellow Lemon
Another 1 Cup - Icing Sugar (Powdered Sugar with Cornstarch)

Method -

Pre heat the oven to 350deg F. Beat the butter till light and fluffy, add the 1/2 cup sugar and mix well. In the meantime, add the salt, baking powder, rind and nuts to the flour and mix well. Add the flour mixture to the butter and make a soft dough. Adjust the amount of flour so as to get a soft firm dough. Sometimes you may need upto 2 1/2 cups. Allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes. Either roll out the dough and cut diagonals or make small balls and press flat. You can even make different shapes with a cookie cutter. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes till light brown only.
Take it out of the oven and when still warm, roll in the additions icing sugar, twice. This will ensure a nice sweet sugary layer on top of the cookie! Makes about 40 and these keep for days.

 

Mint Pulav with Tomato Peanut Salsa

Pudina (mint) pulav is like the yummiest food of all times! Yes, hands down it wins. All of you there who say you don't like mint, I challenge you to not like, oh no, not love this!!!
I am not bragging but this rice is sooo aromatic and flavorful that anyone I have served to simply could not get enough. So many of my friends who said mint is too strong now are big fans. All thanks to my mum's recipe 😊

For the mint rice, you will need -

Two Handfuls - Washed fresh mint leaves
5-6 Strands - Coriander leaves
2 Inch - Ginger
4-5 Cloves - Garlic
1-2  - Green Chilies
1-2 - Cloves
1/2 Inch - Cinnamon
1 Pod - Cardamom
1 Small or 1/2 of a Big - Onion
200 - 250gms - Basmati Rice soaked
A Cup - Green Peas or Corn or Paneer Cubes
A Tspn - Fennel Seeds
5 Tbspns - Oil + Butter
Salt
1 Tspn - Turmeric Powder (Optional)
1 Tspn - Red Chili Powder (Optional)
1 Tspn - Garam Masala (Optional)
2 Tspns - Vinegar or 1 Tbspn - Yoghurt or 1/4 of Lime Squeezed (any one for the tartness)

Method -
The ingredients list is long but it is really very easy to make. All the ingredients up until the rice, blend it to a fine paste. If cooking in a pressure cooker, heat the oil and the butter, add the fennel seeds. Then add the ground mixture and sauté really well, for about 8-10 mins. As you sauté add salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, if you want a little more spice or you can avoid it. If using yoghurt for tartness add now. Add the peas or corn if using, now. Once the color changes into dark green and the aroma is all over the house, add the rice, after draining the water. Mix well. Add the garam masala now if you want. If using lemon juice or vinegar for tartness, add that now. If your rice measures two cups, add two cups of water, basically rice to water is 1:1 ratio. Add salt as per your taste. Cover the lid, let it blow three whistles and turn off the gas. Once the pressure is released, open, mix well and if using paneer, add now. Cover and let the flavors infuse for a few minutes before serving.
If cooking in a pan, I would suggest you cook the rice separately. Follow the same steps for the initial part of the recipe. Add the cooked rice once the ground paste is sauted well, add salt. Mix well. Turn off the heat and then add lemon juice or vinegar and paneer. Mix and cover to let the flavors infuse.

For the Salsa -
1 - Onion
1 - Tomato
1 - Green Pepper
A small bunch - Coriander Leaves
A small cup - Roasted Peanuts
3-4 Tspns - Tomato Ketchup
Salt and Pepper

Method -
Fine chop onion, tomato, pepper and cilantro. Mix all the ingredients and serve!

 

Coriander Rice with Butternut Squash Palya

Rice is an all time favorite in my house. Between my husband and my son even twenty different recipes of rice won't suffice! So constant innovation of flavors with rice is always on my mind. Thanks to my Kannada lineage I have a good repertoire to fall back on but even then new ones are always welcome. So here is one, my friend Smita, taught me. Simple, authentically South Indian and bold in taste and color!

For Coriander Rice, you will need -

1 big bunch - Coriander/Cilantro Leaves
A tablespoon - Fresh/frozen grated coconut
2-3 - Red Chilies
3-4 - Curry Leaves (optional)
3 teaspoons - Oil
1 teaspoon - Mustard seeds
2 Cups - Cooked Rice (approx. 200gms rice that is cooked)

Method -
Grind the coriander leaves, curry leaves, coconut and red chilies, coarsely. Heat the oil in a wide bottom pan, add the mustard seeds and wait for them to crackle. Add the ground mixture and sauté for about five minutes, till it turns dark green and is cooked. Now add salt and the cooked rice. Turn off the heat and give it a good mix. My son loves colorful food and turns out one of his favorite colors is green. So he loved this and gobbled it with gusto.

This can be eaten with a bowl of curd/yoghurt if you make the rice itself a bit spicy by adding more chilies. If not, a simple squash side is a great accompaniment. With it's tender and sweet flavor it really compliments the hard hitting coriander's aroma and taste.

For the Butternut Squash playa (stir fry), you will need -

1/2 - Butternut Squash (peeled and diced)

If not this, you can use any kind of sweet pumpkin or squash.

2-3 teaspoons - Oil
A teaspoon - Mustard Seeds
2-3 - Red Chilies
1/2 teaspoon - Turmeric Powder
A small piece of - Jaggery or 2 teaspoons Sugar
Salt as per your liking

Method -
Heat oil in a wok or pan. Add the mustard, allow to crackle. Then add the chilies. To this add the diced squash, salt and turmeric. Cover and cook for ten to twelve minutes, till the squash is tender. Add the jaggery or sugar and cook till all the liquid evaporates. Serve with the rice.

Photo Source: http://foodcomas.com/2010/12/28/butternut-squash-soup/

 

Sicilian Style Eggplant Fritters

Bajji, bonda, hapla, sandige, pakoda - all different kinds of deep fried glory from my mom's kitchen. As humans, we share a deep connection to something fried and crispy. I recently borrowed a Mediterranean style cook book from the library (oh-so-awesome library!) and one glance at these fritters, I was in love. I had to try these, I love eggplants, in any form.

For these golden balls you will need -

1 - Big Eggplant
2 Cloves - Garlic (fine chopped)
About 30gm - Parmesan (about 3 tablespoons)
2 - Eggs (lightly beaten)
Herbs - Basil and Parsley (2 tspn each, dried) Or if using fresh herbs use wisely
Salt and pepper wisely!
3 Slices - Whole wheat bread (Turned into crumbs)

1/2 Cup - Oil for frying

Method -

Rub some olive oil on the eggplant. Slice lengthwise in half and bake on a baking sheet at 400 deg F for 20 - 25 minutes. That is till it is tender and golden.

 

In the meantime, mix the eggs, parsley, basil, garlic, salt and pepper.

 





Once the eggplants are done. Cool and scoop off the flesh. Add it to the mixture. Add about half or more of the bread crumbs to the mixture so you can form balls in your hand. Use the remaining crumbs to coat and deep fry till they turn golden brown.
Serve as it is, these are so flavorful and delicious!
Or serve it with fragrant, colorful rice and Indian style dal... coming soon!

Banana Chocolate Bread

When you have overripe bananas, you make banana bread. Once decided, why not add some dark gold to it and make it a treat!

You will need -

1 1/2 Cups - Flour
1/4 Cup - Vegetable Oil
2 Tablespoons - Cocoa Powder
1 Cup - Sugar
2-3 - Overripe, mashed bananas
2 - Eggs
1/4 Teaspoon - Salt
1 Teaspoon - Baking Soda

Method -

Mix the flour, sugar, salt, cocoa powder and baking soda. Mix well. Add the eggs, oil and the mashed bananas. Mix till you get a consistent brown batter, do not over mix.
Pour into a greased loaf pan, 8 1/2 inches x 4 1/2 inches or three small pans, like I did!

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 deg F for about 20 - 25 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Quinoa served two ways!

Quinoa as it is, has a slight nutty flavor but nothing spectacular. It is like rice or wheat or raagi. They have a subtle flavor which is enhanced by mixing it with the right ingredients.
Here are two actually three ways I have tried and we loved all of them. Of course my little one is not a big fan of quinoa but I am sure he will get there!

QUINOA with FRIED EGG

For this you will need -
2 Cups - Cooked Quinoa
3 Tablespoons - Olive Oil
2 Pods - Garlic (fine chopped)
1/2 - Red Onion (fine chopped)
1/2 Cup - Boiled and blanched Green Peas
1/2 Cup - Boiled and blanched Asparagus
1/4 Cup - Mushrooms (sliced)
2 Spoons - Olives (chopped)
A small chunk of Goat Cheese
1 Egg
Salt, pepper - As you desire
3 Teaspoons - Dried herbs (basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, rosemary)
Dash of Vinegar

Method -
Cook the quinoa as per the instructions on the package. In another pot, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and onion. Fry till the onion is translucent. Add in the mushrooms, sauté well with some salt. Once cooked, add the peas and the asparagus. Cook the peas and the asparagus in boiling water for a couple of minutes and then dunk them in ice cold water. This will make them retain their beautiful color while being just cooked right! Now, add some more salt, pepper and the herbs. Give it a good toss, add the quinoa. Toss it all again. Turn off the heat. Garnish with olives (I used preserved olives with pimiento from a bottle) and goat cheese ( I used one flavored with garlic and herbs). Being in this country has its advantages! So many things to choose from. If not using preserved olives, add a dash of vinegar too to add a little bit of zing!
Fry an egg with salt and pepper and making sure the yolk is only set on the outside. Top the quinoa with the egg, so when one cuts into it, it oozes the beautiful golden liquid!

 

QUINOA with STIR-FRIED SHRIMP

 

For this you will need -

1/2 Cup - Shrimp

1 Tablespoon - Butter

Salt and pepper

Half of a Lime

 

Melt butter in a pan. Add the shrimp, salt and pepper. Toss for a couple of minutes till the shrimp is just done. Turn off the heat, squeeze the lime and serve hot.

 

Or third way, serve with herb-crusted salmon!

 

 

Samosas!

Who doesn't love spicy potatoes wrapped in a golden crunchy exterior! This, Samosa, is the quintessential snack of Northern India. I have always wanted to try it and I can say it needs a bit of dexterity and patience. But it is all worth the effort.

This recipe makes about 8 - 10 Samosas.

For the outer covering, you will need -

1/2 cup - All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon - Salt
2 tablespoons - Oil
1/4 - 1/2 cup - Lukewarm Water

Method -
Take the flour and the salt in a mixing bowl. Mix well with your hands. Now add the oil and mix well again, so that lumps are formed. Add lukewarm water, little by little, till you get a firm and soft dough. Set aside this dough for 30 minutes.

For the potato-peas filling, you will need -

2 - Medium sized potatoes (boiled and peeled and crushed with hand)
1/2 cup - Boiled Peas
2 teaspoons - Coriander seeds
4-5 - Red Chillies
4 teaspoons - Jeers/Cumin Seeds
1 - Clove
1/4 inch - Cinnamon stick
1 - Cardamom pod
Salt to your taste

Method -
Grind coriander seeds, cumin, red chilies, clove, cinnamon and cardamom to a coarse powder.

Now, add a couple of spoons of this powder with salt to the crushed potato and peas. Mix well. Taste and add salt or the spice mixture if you feel it is not adequate. Remember that when you fry, the spiciness reduces, so you an make this mixture slightly spicy to start with.

Making the Samosas -
Divide the dough into 4 - 5 equal sized balls. Take one ball and roll it on a oiled surface to a circle that is about 8cm in diameter. Do not use flour while rolling, if it feels sticky, use oil. Try to make it as thin as possible. This is a bit tricky. If it is thick, the Samosa will have a thick covering and not taste very good, if it is too thin, the stuffing can come out in the oil while frying. So, use yurt best judgment.
Once rolled, cut in half. Take one half and join along the circumference, with the diameter now shaped as a circle. Basically making an ice cream cone that you can hold between your thumb and forefinger. I am sorry I didn't take a pic of this, I couldn't as both my hands were messy! Hope you got the drift, else watch a video on you tube like this -  http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/2007/04/19/samosa/

Stuff the cone with as much stuffing as possible, taking care not to overstuff. Close it on top too, making sure there is no opening anywhere.

Heat oil in a kadai, once hot (check by dropping a piece of the dough, it should sizzle), reduce the flame to medium - high and drop the Samosas one by one. Fry till they are golden brown and serve hot!

 

Mushroom Peas Paneer in a Rich Gravy

This used to be my favorite dish in restaurants back in India. This rich, creamy curry goes really well with roti, naans and even rice.

For this you will need -
1 Cup - Sliced or cut Mushrooms
1/2 Cup - Green Peas
1/2 Cup - Cubed Pander
1/2 - Onion (Sliced)
6 - 8 - Cashew Nuts (Soaked)
2 - Cloves
1 - Cardamom
1/4" - Cinnamon
2 tspn - Black pepper powder
1 tspn - Turmeric powder
1 tspn - Coriander and Cumin powder
1 tspn - Red Chili powder
1/2 tspn - Garam Masala Powder
1 tbspn - Yoghurt
1 Tbspn - Fresh Cream
Salt as you desire
2 Tbspn - Oil

Method -
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a thick bottom pot and fry the pander cubes. Drain on a paper towel and keep aside. Now add the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon. Stir fry and add the sliced onion with a pinch of salt. Fry till the onion turns golden brown. Allow to cool and grind this to a fine paste. Then grind the cashews to a fine paste too.
In the same pot, add the remaining oil. Add the mushroom, sauté for a bit. Add the peas and turmeric powder next and again sauté for a couple of minutes.

 

 

Now add the ground paste. And fry for a few minutes.

 



Then add the salt, cumin, coriander powder, red chili powder, black pepper powder, yoghurt and cream. Give it a good mix and turn off after five minutes. Garnish with garam masala powder.

F-R-I-T-T-A-T-A A A

Oh eggs! Oh so versatile eggs! From the time I saw Curtis Stone make frittata, I have been dying to make and eat it! Then I found these muffin shaped frittata and that's it, the deal was sealed. They look so adorable and are so delicious.
Here I have used spinach, parmesan and herbs. You can use anything from kale, goat cheese to mushrooms, bacon. Be as creative and impress everyone, including yourself!

For this you will need -
8 Nos - Eggs
2tspn - Olive Oil
2 pods - Garlic (fine chopped)
1/2 - Red Onion (fine chopped)
A handful - Chopped Spinach
1/4 cup - Milk
Salt and pepper as you desire
A couple of spoons of dried herbs
Grated parmesan as a garnish
2 tspn - Butter 

Muffin pans

Method -

Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add the chopped garlic, sauté a bit. Then add the chopped onion. Fry till it is pink and then add the spinach. I didn't add any salt to this. Sauté for a minute.

In the meantime, whisk eight eggs, salt, pepper and herbs. Don't add too much salt as parmesan is salty too. Pre heat the oven to 350deg F.

Also, grease the muffin pans with the butter.

Whisk the eggs really well. Add the milk and the veggies. Pour this mixture into the muffin pans, not filling more than half. They rise quite a bit.

 

 

Garnish with parmesan. And bake at 350deg F for 10 - 12 minutes. Take it off when it turns golden brown. Serve these hot but they are great to reheat and eat too. As breakfast, as brownbag lunch, as snack! Delicious!

 

 

This recipe makes about 20 of them.

Meringue Cookies with Strawberry Whipped Cream and Fresh Strawberries

This is the most gorgeous, sensuous, sophisticated dessert I have ever made! Hands down, it wins! The French are well known for their  sophistication and superior techniques and flavor combinations, so when my French friend served these at her house, I was blown over! So delicate and so enticing. I had to try them!

They are quite simple to make and contain the least of ingredients. But when I initially read the recipe on different websites I was a bit nervous because these can be ruined easily too. I don't know if it was beginner's luck but they turned out perfect! Here's to perfection every time! Chin-chin :)

Meringue is basically egg whites and sugar, slow baked to perfection. It can be used as a base for many different desserts especially fruit flavored. Remember, I promised to post more fruit recipes, here's a show stopper!

For the meringue cookies you will need
4 - Egg Whites
1 cup - Sugar (very fine or powdered, if using granulated)
A pinch of salt
1 tspn - Vanilla Extract

Method -

Separate the whites from the yellow when the egg is cold. In case any fragments of the shell fall, fish it out with the shell half itself and not with your fingers. Apparently the oils from our hand can ruin the meringue! Also make sure that all the vessels you are going to use are completely dry, no moisture whatsoever! Now, let the whites stand for half an hour, till they reach room temperature.

Once that is done, start beating at low to medium speed just till the begin to froth like this.

 

At this point, add a pinch of salt. It helps stabilize the whites. Now keep on beating, till you get soft peaks like this.

 

It's time to start adding the sugar.

That's how much I added. But I think a tad less is better. It was quite sweet!

Add the sugar, spoon by spoon. Add one spoon, beat for a few minutes, then add the next, more or less ensuring the sugar has dissolved at every stage. Beat till you get stiff peaks and the whole mixture turns shiny. (Oh-so-divine looking!)

 

Now add the vanilla and give it a good mix. You will know the meringue is done, when you take a pinch between your fingers and rub it. It shouldn't feel grainy. If it does, beat some more till it feels smooth between your fingers indicating the sugar has dissolved.
Prepare a cookie tray by lining it with parchment paper.

You can either pipe out the meringue or spoon out like I did, using two spoons.

 

 

Bake at 200deg F for about an hour or hour and a half. You will know it is done when the cookies easily lift off the paper. If they are sticking bake a little longer. Once done, these can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature for many days. Yes, these little puffs of cloud, so light, that crack on the outside and are soft and gooey inside!

 

For the strawberry whipped cream -

Approx. amount of whipping cream

A tspn vanilla extract

A tspn sugar if you want

Couple of strawberries blended

 

Method -

Keep whipping the cream till it begins to thicken. Then add the mashed up strawberries and vanilla. Beat well till you get stiff peaks and the color turns into that rose pink like the sky at dawn!

 

 

Now fill this in a piping bag or scoop it in a spoon on to the meringue cookies.

 



 

Top it with strawberry slices and serve immediately. Dress these up just before serving, else the meringue will get soggy. You can use different berries or mangoes or any fruit that has a tart taste.