Thursday, February 27, 2014

Herb-crusted Salmon

Aromatic, pink, succulent and flavorful - that's what you are aiming for in every mouthful! Tempting enough?



For this you will need -

2 - Big chunks of Salmon
3 Tblspns - Mixture of herbs like parsley, basil, rosemary, oregano (Sold as Italian herb mixture)
1 Tblspn - Bread Crumbs
Salt and Pepper as you desire
Wedge or Slice of Lemon

Method -

Mix the herbs, bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Adjust the flavor after tasting. Now wash the fish, lightly dry and coat the fish chunks with the mixture. You can dip it in cornstarch water or egg mixture but I don't like a thick coating because it takes away the flavor from the fish, according to me. So just plain old water does the trick. Bake in preheated oven at 350deg F till the center is light pink and hence perfectly cooked.
Serve with lemon slice and if you want a simple mayo-mint dip!

 

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Brinjal/Egglant and Tomato Appetizer

Tomato, mozzarella and basil is a combination made in heaven. Add the flavor of roasted eggplant and you will be transported to a place above heaven! :)
So what are you waiting for. The assembling of this dish takes five minutes and the roasting happens in the oven in only fifteen!


For this you will need -

1 - Eggplant (The big, fat variety)
1 - Tomato
1/4 - Green Pepper ( fine chopped)
Chunks of Mozzarella
Salt
Pepper
Herbs like basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary (I used a mixture of dried herbs but if you get fresh ones, then just use any one, preferably basil)
1 tbspn - Olive oil

Method -
Grease the pan with the 2 tspns of olive oil. Assemble the veggies, herbs, salt and pepper as shown and drizzle the rest of the oil on top. Bake in a preheated oven at 400deg F for 10 - 12 minutes or till veggies shrink a bit. Take out and top with chunks of mozzarella. Bake for another 3-4 minutes, till the cheese melts and slightly browns.


Serve hot and your main course can be some delicious pasta!
 

Thursday, February 13, 2014

No brainer Pistachio Cookies

So, I bought a big bag of salted pistachios when Aarvin was in the phase of enjoying those. After a few weeks, he lost the fad and the bag just remained! Neither Roshin nor me wanted to eat so many of them and that's how these cookies were born.


For this you will need -

225 gm - Butter
150 gm - Sugar
275 gm - Flour
1/2 cup - Powdered Pistachios

That's it!!

Method - Make sure the butter is at room temperature. Since I used salted pistachios, I rubbed them on a kitchen towel to take off the excess salt and then powdered them fine in a blender.


Beat the butter on low speed till light and airy. Then add sugar little by little and keep beating.


Now add the pistachios and give it a good mix. Finally add the flour, little by little. You will get a powdered mixture something like this.


You can put that on a rolling surface, make a dough and wrap it in a plastic wrap. This can be refrigerated for about 20 - 30 minutes. But I didn't have the time to do that and my son, who was my assistant, kept gobbling this powdered mixture. So I had to start quickly making cookies!
 

I made round and oval shaped ones. But is you refrigerate and then roll out the dough, you can make as many different shapes as you like.



Bake at 170deg C or 350deg F for 20 - 25 minutes.





 

 

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Oatmeal with berries and almond

This is almost a silly recipe! But I insist on posting it because I have decided to incorporate fruits and nuts in our food and this is a simple beginning. So, from when I was little, I have not shared the fascination and craving for fruits that I have for veggies. The main reason being that it is really hard to get the perfectly ripe fruit which taste like heaven but even a bit under or over ripe is so hard for me to eat. I am extremely sensitive to sour-ness and this makes me a real fussy girl when it comes to eating fruits. Now, here in the US, I am getting to try so many new fruits but most I don't like to eat on their own. Solution, I realized that cooking them cuts their tartness and they add a splendid flavor! I have tried apples and nuts in salads and now berries in oats and "sajjige" ( semolina pudding). Icing on the cake is my son loves it this way too. So next few recipes will be dedicated to fruits mainly and nuts too. Nuts for my son as he doesn't enjoy crunchiness in his food. So I have to come up with innovative ways to feed him nuts.
Oatmeal is Aarvin's favorite breakfast. To make it rich and delicious, I have added black berries, raisins and almonds.


For this you will need

1Cup - Oats (I have used traditional rolled oats)
A pinch of Cinnamon powder
5-6 - Blackberries
10-12 - Raisins
Two Spoons - Almond Powdered/ 4-5 whole almonds
3/4th Cup - Milk

Method
Heat the milk with the oats for a couple of minutes. Add all the above ingredients. I cut the berries so the whole porridge turns pink. Both Aarvin and me love colors in our food! Cook for about 8-10minutes and serve warm. For the little one, I add honey, generously on top!