Garlic Bread

I love this garlic bread, Shaunak and I eat it often with soups or even as a simple appetizer. Though i like this recipe better with butter, but cannot afford to eat so much butter all the time :(

But if you want to treat yourself just replace the oil with 3-4 Tbsp of cold butter.

1/2 Tsp Sea Salt
4-5 Garlic cloves chopped
2 Tbsp Parsley chopped
1/2 loaf Whole Wheat bread
1 Tbsp Olive oil


Pulse all ingredients in a small food processor or use a mortar and pestle to make a coarse mixture.

With a serrated knife make incisions in bread, do not cut through.

Insert the garlic mixture inside these cuts and put the bread in a aluminum foil. Cover it completely. This will help make the bread soft on the inside. Cook in the oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Open the foil and cook for another 5 minutes. This will make the bread crusty on the outside.

Asparagus Soup

1/2 cup chopped Onion
1/2 cup chopped Celery
1 bunch chopped Asparagus
2 cloves Garlic
3/4 cup Chicken Broth

Save the asparagus tips for blanching and garnishing the soup.

Saute the onion, celery and garlic in a little bit of olive oil. Once the onions and celery start to sweat add the chopped asparagus. Let them cook for 5 - 8 minutes. Add salt and pepper.

Then and the chicken broth and let it come to a simmer and let it boil for 8 -10 minutes.

Use a immersion blender to blend the soup. Garnish with the blanched tips.

Marinara Sauce

One of the easiest sauces to make and is also very versatile. This is the healthier version though, but still as tasty. You can add 2 Tbsps butter and parmesan cheese if you are not counting calories...


1/2 cup carrots chopped
1/2 cup celery chopped
1 medium onion chopped
2 garlic cloves chopped
1 bay leaf
Few twigs fresh thyme or 1/2 Tsp dried thyme
1 cup crushed tomatoes, better to use san marzano
Salt and Pepper to taste

Saute garlic, onions, carrots and celery in a little bit of olive oil for 10 minutes with little salt. Add bay leaf and thyme once the vegetables start to sweat and become translucent. Then add tomatoes, 1/4 cup of water and the rest of the salt and pepper and simmer for another 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and blend with immersion blender or in food processor. Marinara sauce is ready. It stores in the refrigerator for WEEKS!!! You can use it with pasta, meats, chicken, etc.

Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti

yay!! i am back :D after a long break...more than a year since i blogged..... Much has changed in a years time i must say, been eating a lot healthier and have started with yoga and aerobics. Feels great to be in some shape! Although i have a long way to go. Anyways, Turkey meatballs and spaghetti is on the menu tonight. Prepped my sauce and meatballs before hand cause i have school from 6-10 tonight. So here goes....

1/2 lb Extra Lean Ground Turkey
1/4 cup Bread Crumbs
sauteed together:
2 garlic cloves chopped
1 medium onion chopped
1 Tbsp Parsley
1 Egg
1 Tsp Italian seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste


Combine everything (but don't over mix) and form 12 meatballs.

These can be made in advance and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before cooking.

Spray a cooking sheet and the meatballs with cooking spray and roast them for about 15 minutes or until brown on the outside.

Drop them in the Marinara sauce and simmer for another 5-10 minutes.

Serve with whole wheat spaghetti. Garnish with parsley and freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Mushroom Soup

So, this is my third post in a weeks time, not bad :) I'm doing much better than i thought I would.
This time its a soup, I don't know why they say that if you can make a good soup you are a good chef. 'Cause this soup is so simple to make, than so many other things that I have tried my hand at. And it turned out so good, so delicious. I packed it up for Shaunak for his lunch at work, he enjoyed it so much, couldn't stop raving about it. So here you go...

Yields - 2 Servings

Ingredients :

1/2 pound assorted mushrooms stemmed and chopped(i just picked up few of each of the following from the grocery store - chanterelle, portobello(only 1 is enough), creminni, shiitake, oyster, etc. Its ok if you don't get one or two kinds of mushrooms)
1/2 c. Yellow Onion chopped
2-3 cloves Garlic
1/2 tsp. dried Thyme
1/2 tsp. dried Rosemary
3 c. low sodium Chicken Broth
1/2 c. Dry White Wine
1/2 c. Chopped Arugula
1/4 c. Walnuts
1/2 c. skimmed Milk
1 tbsp. Olive Oil

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large pot, add garlic and onions and saute until golden brown. Add mushrooms and saute for 2 mins. Add wine, chicken broth, milk and simmer for 10 mins. Add salt and pepper to taste. Blend the mixture in the pot itself, with an immersion blender. Add arugula and Walnuts. Serve Hot.

Eat healthy, stay healthy...
Dips.

Tips:

1. Do not wash the mushrooms in water, they become rubbery. Gently brush the dirt off with a damp kitchen towel.
2. If you do not have an immersion blender, blend the mixture before adding the chicken stock.

Thepla Wrap

I know i know, sounds deadly, like any other gujju dish. But this is a very healthy and nutritious snack/lite lunch dishes, at the same time very flavorful. Perfect dish to make in advance and can be a very good 'take to work' lunch. I highly recommend this dish for those who don't like to compromise on the taste while counting calories.

Yields: 5-6 wraps

Ingredients: For Thepla -

1 c. Wheat Flour
1 tsp. Red chilly powder
1 tsp. Coriander powder
1 tsp. Cumin powder
1 tsp. Salt

For Paste:
1/2 bunch spinach blanched (almost all the water wringed out)
2-3 cloves Garlic minced
1/2 small Red Onion chopped
1 medium Tomato chopped

For Stuffing:
2 medium Carrots grated
very small Cabbage grated
2 green chillies finely chopped
2 tbsp. oil
1 tbsp. cumin n mustard

Blend all the ingredients for the paste together and keep aside. Mix together the flour, salt, coriander cumin powder, and red chilly powder. Add the paste to this mixture little by little and start kneading. DO NOT ADD WATER. Put as much paste as needed, and form a dough, just like you would for a Roti. Keep covered.

Heat oil in a skillet and add the cumin n mustard when hot. Add green chillies, grated carrots and cabbage, saute for 2 min. The stuffing is ready.

Roll the theplas and cook on a griddle, until it has a few brown spots.
Put stuffing in each thepla and enjoy with salted dahi(Yogurt).

Shaunak loved these even for dinner, though he is not really a big fan of theplas.

Let me know how you liked them,
Dips.

Veggie Pizza

After contemplating it for several months, i finally gathered enough courage to venture into what can be considered "baking". Was looking for something simple to make for the evening, Khush was coming over for dinner. what could have been better than a pizza! Shaunak suggested the toppings and there i was...baking a pizza in my own humble kitchen!

Yields : 2 Large Pies

Ingredients:
For the dough -
2 c. Unbleached All-purpose Flour
1 Packet(4 oz.) Active Dry Yeast
1 Tbsp. Olive oil
1 Tsp. Salt
1 Tsp. Sugar
Warm water as required.

Toppings:
1/4 c. Pitted Kalamata Olives sliced
1/2 c. Yellow Onions thinly sliced
1/2 c. Green Bell Peppers thinly sliced
2 Tbsp. Garlic Finely Chopped
1 Pound Mozzarella Cheese, thickly shredded


Sauce:
2 Medium Plum Tomatoes chopped
2 Tbsp. chopped Basil
1 Tbsp. minced Garlic
1/2 Tbsp. Tomato Paste
1 Tsp. Salt
1 Tsp. Sugar

Dough :
Put the yeast in 1/2 c. water until it has dissolved, leave untouched for 5-7 mins. Combine the flour, salt, oil, salt, sugar & dissolved yeast mixture in a food processor, pulse while adding little water at a time. Pulse until the mixture forms a soft elastic dough, do not over process. Take the dough out on a floured working surface, and knead for 2-3 mins. Oil the dough and place it in a big container for rising, cover the container with plastic wrap. Leave it to rise, until it doubles in size, for about 30-45 mins.

Sauce : Combine all ingredients in a blender/food processor. Make as chunky/smooth as per your liking.

Making the pizza:
Pre - heat oven at 500 degrees.

After the dough has doubled in size, remove from container onto a floured working surface and punch and knead for 10 mins. Make two portions. Roll dough(one portion at a time), until it is 1/8th of an inch in thickness(I used a rolling pin, but you can use your hands). Spread half of the sauce over the flattened dough, and spread each of the toppings equally. Sprinkle half of the grated cheese over the toppings. Repeat the process for the other portion of the dough.

Bake for 15-20 minutes at 500 degrees.

Enjoy with your favorite wine! Ours was a 2008 Sonoma, Robert Strong(Thanks Kristin!)

Shaunak and Khush loooovvved the pies, it was not bad for a first attempt. We spent rest of the evening chatting(late into the night), after a lovely meal...

More recipes later,
Dips.

P.S: I used an inverted baking tray for baking the pies, worked out great!