Vegetarian burger

Ingredients for making the bun: ( for 8 burger sized buns)
Plain flour (maida) – 3 cups
Salt – 1 tsp
Dry yeast – 15 ml (1.5 tbsp)
Brown sugar – 1 tsp
Warm water – 1\2 cup
Warm milk – 1\2 cup
Oil – 1.5 tsp
Milk for brushing

Method:
1. Seive the flour and salt.
2. Mix sugar, oil, warm milk and warm water. Add yeast. Mix well. Allow the mixture to stand in an undisturbed place for ten minutes or until it has become frothy. If the water or milk is not warm, the yeast will not be activated. On the contrary, hot water or milk will kill the yeast. So use warm water and milk. 
3. Add the yeast mixture to the flour and knead it for a few minutes and make it into a ball. Sprinkle some flour on a plain working surface. Place the dough ball on it and knead it again. Place your left hand at the corner of the ball that is closest to you. Hold the diagonally opposite side of the ball using your right hand and pull the portion away from you. Now fold the pulled portion back into the rest of the dough. Turn the dough a little and repeat the pulling and folding. Keep doing this until one clockwise motion incorporating the whole of the ball is achieved. Repeat until the dough becomes smooth, soft and elastic. It should take around 10 minutes.
4. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, brush oil over the dough, cover the bowl with a plastic wrap or kitchen towel. Leave the bowl in a warm undisturbed place for an hour.
5. The dough would have now risen to double its size and the texture on top would be oily. Now punch into the risen dough to release the air.
6. Place the dough back into the floured working surface. Knead again for a minute. This would make it easier for cutting the dough into desired shapes.
7. Roll the dough into a long cylinder. Cut into 8 equal portions.
8. Knead each of the portion again and roll them into balls or any other desired shapes
9. Place the balls in a floured baking tray leaving enough space in between them as they will rise again. Cover loosely with kitchen cloth and allow them to rise for another 20 – 30 minutes. They would again double in size.
10. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celcius.
10. Once the buns have doubled in size, brush the top of the buns with milk to get a glazed texture.
11. Place the baking tray in the centre of the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until the top surface of the buns turn golden brown. It is better to remove the buns at around 15 minutes and tap the bottom of the buns. If a hollow sound is heard, they are done.
12. Cool them for about 10 minutes. The buns will be a little hard (like the ones they give in Indian airlines!) Spread butter and eat. Yummy!

Tips:

• To get chocolate buns, mix 1 tsp cocoa, 1 tsp butter, 2 tsp icing sugar and add to the dough. Well, use them for some sweet burgers
• If your baking tray cannot accomodate all the buns at one time, bake half of them firt. Cover the remaining buns with the kitchen cloth while the first batch is baking.

Ingredients for making the veg patties: ( for 8 patties)
Toor Dhal – 1 cup
Potato – 1 (Boiled and mashed)
Carrot – 1  (grated)
Mint leaves – 3 tbsp (finely chopped)
Curry leaves – 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
Coriander leaves – 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
Red chillies – 2
Salt – as required

Method:
1. Boil toor dhal with little salt and turmeric powder.
2. Add all the remaining ingredients to the toor dhal paste and mix well. Add a little water if required.
3. Divide the dough into balls, flatten them a little to make 8 burger size patties.
4. Either toast them on a pan like cutlets are done, or bake the patties in a preheated oven (180 degrees Celcius) for 20-30 minutes.

Burger arrangement:
1. Take a bun, cut horizontally in the middle.
2. Rub some pickle over the cut surfaces. Place some lettuce leaves and a cheese slice on the bottom half. Place a patty followed by another cheese slice and lettuce leaves on top. Cover with the top half of the bun. Microwave for a minute until the cheese melts.
3. Eat with tomato or chilli sauce!

Get creative and make any amount of variations to get different patties!

 

Baked potato

 

Ingredients:
Potatoes – 2 (cut into thin slices)
Onions – 2 (cut into thin rings)
Grated cheese – 1 tbsp
Garlic pods – 4 (finely chopped)
Oil – 3 tbsp
Small cinnamon stick – 1 small stick
Star anise – 1
Bay leaf – 1 small leaf
Thai red chillies – 2
Thai green curry paste – 1 tbsp
Kasoori methi – 1 tbsp
Salt – as required
pepper – as required

Method:
1. Take a mortar and pestle. Roughly mince the following – oil, 2 pods finely chopped garlic, red chillies, star anise, bay leaf, cinnamon and kasoori methi. The smell is heavenly!
2. Take a mixing bowl.Add the sliced ptatoes, the minced paste, green curry paste, salt and pepper. Mix well.
3. Grease a baking tray with oil. Arrange the sliced potatoes evenly on the tray.
4. Sprinkle across the remaining chopped garlic.
5. Arrange the onion rings over the potato base.
6. Sprinkle grated cheese, salt and pepper.
7. Bake in a preheated oven (180 degrees Celcius)for 20-25 minutes or until the potatoes turn light brown.
8. Remove from oven and serve hot.

Tip:
In case you dont like tasting the cinnamon stick, bay leaf or star anise, pick them out from the minced paste and place them in the middle of the baking tray while baking. Once the dish is taken out of the oven, scoop them out and discard.

 

Baked noodles casserole

 

Ingredients:
Bread slices – 4
Oil or butter – as required to toast the bread
Cooked maggi noodles / any other noodles – 1 packet
White sauce – 4 tbsp (Check this website on how to prepare white sauce – http://www.bawarchi.com/cookbook/italian3.html)
Tomato sauce – 4 tbsp
Onions – 2 (sliced into thin rings)
Capsicum  – 1 (sliced into thin rings)
Oyster mushrooms – 1/2 packet
Grated cheese – 1 tbsp
Salt – as required
Pepper – as required

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celcius.
2. Slightly toast the bread with butter or oil. Remove the edges and arrange them on a greased baking pan. I used an 8 inch square pan. So I needed 4 bread slices to cover the base of the pan.
3. Use readymade tomato sauce or prepare as follows. Heat oil in a pan. Add 1 finely chopped tomato, some salt and pepper. Saute well until the oil starts to leave the pan.
4. Check this website on how to prepare white sauce – http://www.bawarchi.com/cookbook/italian3.html.
5. Saute the chopped mushrooms in oil with little salt and pepper.
6. Spread half of the tomato sauce over the bread slices.
7. Spread the maggi noodles now.
8. Spread the remaining tomato sauce over the noodles.
9. Pour in the white sauce.
10. Sprinkle the sauted mushrooms. Arrange the onion and capsicum rings. Sprinkle the grated cheese, some salt and pepper.
11. Place the baking pan in the centre of the preheated oven. Bake for about 40 minutes. The base wont be very crisp because of the noodles and tomato sauce. So just remove from the oven when the onions start browning.
12. Serve it hot.

 

Dates oatmeal chewy breakfast bars

Ingredients:
Date sauce:
Seedless dates – 1 cup
Light brown sugar – 1/4 cup
Water – 1/2 cup

Boil water in a saucepan. Add sugar and dates. Bring the mixture to a boil and then simmer for 5 minutes. A thick smooth date syrup would be ready. If it is too thick, add more boiling water.

Oatmeal mixture:
Instant oats – 1.5 cup
Plain flour – 1 cup
Cocoa powder – 1 tbsp
Baking soda – 1/2 tsp
Baking powder – 1 tsp
Salt – 1 tsp
Honey – 3 tbsp
Butter – 1\2 cup (melted)

Method:
1. Sieve together oats, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
2. Mix butter and honey.
3. Add the butter mixture to the oats-flour mixture. Mix well in one direction. Add little milk if the mixture is too thick.
4. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
5. Spread one half of the oats mixture in a greased baking pan. On top this, spread the date sauce. Again spread the other half of the oats mixture over the date sauce.
6. Bake for about 35 to 45 minutes.
7. Remove, cool and cut into pieces.

 

Eggless nut cake

 

Ingredients:
Plain flour – 2 cups
Baking powder – 1.5 tsp
Baking soda – 1 tsp
Thinly sliced almonds, chopped cashwes, pistachios and raisins – 1/2 cup

Brown sugar – 1 cup
Water – 1 cup
Butter (salted/unsalted) – 1/3 cup (at room temperature)
Salt – 1/4 tsp if using salted butter; else 1/2 tsp
Almond essence- 1 tsp

Milk – 1 tbsp
Sprite or coke – 1 tbsp

Method:
1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celcius.
2. Grease the baking pan with butter or oil or use a non-stick cooking spray. I used a 8″ square pan.
3. Dry mixture: Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Add the broken nuts and mix.
4. Wet mixture: Mix butter, sugar and salt. Add hot water to the mixture. Transfer the mixture to a pan and simmer the mixture for 5 minutes.Switch off the gas and allow the mixture to cool.
5. Slowly add the dry mixture to the wet mixture while beating well in one direction. Add essence. Keep beating until the entire dry mixture is fully incorporated. If the mixture seems too dry, add the milk.
6. Now add the coke or sprite and beat for a minute.
7. Pour the mixture into the greased pan. You do not have to spread the mixture using a spoon, if the mixture is of the right consistency. Tap the cake tin to release any trapped air bubbles.
8. Place in the centre of the pre-heated oven and bake for 45 minutes. The temperature and baking time can vary from oven to oven. Hence, test the cake at around 35 minutes to see if it is done. To test, insert a toothpick inside the centre of the cake and if it comes out clean, the cake is ready.
9. Remove the pan and let the cake cool for 10 minutes. Invert it.
10. Cool the cake well before doing any icing.

Decoration:
Basic buttercream icing:
Ingredients:
Butter (preferably unsalted) – 250 g
Icing sugar – 500 g
Vannila essence (optional) – 1 tsp
Hot water – 1 tbsp

Mix all the above ingredients together. The basic white icing is ready! By using different edible colors, colored icing can be prepared. For chocolate icing, mix 1 or 2 tsp of cocoa powder with a little hot water to make a paste and mix this into the basic icing. For my cake, I used chocolate, pink and white icing. Use a cake decorator fitted with different nozzles and get creative! Sprinkled chopped pecans over the icing. The icing tasted like Ferrero Rocher!

 

 

Eggless Chocolate cake

Ingredients:
Plain flour – 150 g
Unsweetened cocoa powder – 50 g
Fine sugar - 100 g
Baking powder – 2 tsp
Cold water – 150 ml
Lemon juice or vinegar – 1/2 tbsp
Oil – 4 tbsp (Any oil would do; I used soy oil)
Sprite or coke – 1 tbsp

Method:
1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celcius.
2. Grease the baking pan with butter or oil or use a non-stick cooking spray. I used a 8″ square pan. 
3. Dry mixture: Sift all the dry ingredients except sugar together - flour, cocoa powder and baking powder.
4. Wet mixture: In another bowl mix water, lemon juice, oil and sugar.
5. Slowly add the dry mixture to the wet mixture while beating well in one direction. Keep beating until the entire dry mixture is fully incorporated.
6. Now add the coke or sprite and beat for a minute.
7. Pour the mixture into the greased pan. You do not have to spread the mixture using a spoon, if the mixture is of the right consistency. Tap the cake tin to release any trapped air bubbles.
8. Place in the centre of the pre-heated oven and bake for 30 minutes. The temperature and baking time can vary from oven to oven. Hence, test the cake at around 25 minutes to see if it is done. To test, insert a toothpick inside the centre of the cake and if it comes out clean, the cake is ready.
9. Remove the pan and let the cake cool for 10 minutes. Invert it.
10. A rich moist yummy eggless chocolate cake is ready! Serve it with icecream and fruits! Yummmmmy!

Shown in the picture is the guitar chocolate cake baked for one of my friends. I made two 8″ cakes and joined them together. This was my first time with icing and wanted to make eggless fondant based decoration but ended up messing it . Planning to decorate my next cake with buttercream icing! Hope it goes well! Will let you know soooon.

 

Baby corn palak gravy

Ingredients:
Baby corn – 4
Toor dhal – 1/2 cup
Onions – 2 medium sized
Tomatoes – 2 medium sized
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Green chillis – 1
Garlic – 6 cloves
Ginger – 1″ piece
Chilli powder -  1/2 Tbsp 
Coriander powder -  1/2 Tbsp
Garam masala – 1/2 tsp
Spinach leaves – 1 bunch 

Method:
1. Wash the spinach leaves and boil them with 1/4 cup of water for 2 minutes. Drain the water and allow the mixture to cool. Once the mixture cools, add it to a blender and blend it until smooth.
2. Boil the toor dhal with water and salt.
3. Heat oil in a pan. Fry finely chopped onions, chillis, ginger and garlic until they turn brown.
4. Add the finely chopped tomatoes and fry for 2 minutes.
5. Add the turmeric, chilli and coriander powders and salt and fry until oil separates from the mixture.
6. Add garam masala and allow the mixture to simmer for 2 minutes.
7. Add the blended spinach paste and boiled toor dhal and the sliced baby corns. Add the required amount of water, check for salt sufficiency and allow the gravy to simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.
8. Garnish with chopped onions, coriander leaves.

 

Mock meat gravy

Ingredients:
Onion – 1
Tomato – 1
Oil – 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Urad dhal – 1 tsp
Salt – as required
Mock meat or soya nuggets – as required.

To grind:
Shredded coconut – 2 tbsp
Jeera – 1 tsp
Green chillis – 2 small
Red chillis – 2 small
Garlic – 3 cloves
Ginger – 1″ piece
Cloves – 2
Cardamom – 1
Cinnamon stick – 1″ piece
Star anise – 1
Garam masala – 1/2 tsp

Method:
1. Add all the ingredients to be ground along with 2 teaspoons of water in a blender and grind them.
2. Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When they splutter add the urad dhal.
3. Once the dhal turns pink, add the finely chopped onion and fry for 2 minutes or until they turn pink.
4. Add the finely chopped tomato and fry for 3-4 mintues.
5. Next add the ground paste and keep frying until the raw smell goes.
6. Add the mock meat or already boiled soya nuggets and a cup of water. Close the lid and allow the gravy to simmer.
7. The gravy is done when oil separates from the mixture.

Variations:
Instead of soya or mock meat, south indian vadai pieces can be added to make a dish almost similar to the famous Andhra “Vada Curry”

 

Smile please :-)

Finallllly! Posting after a long time!

Well well, didnt cook any new dishes all these days except for a few dishes like aloo pudina gravy and coconut stuffed chapathi. But I was too lazy to take any pictures of them Even today am not posting any recipe. Lazy again Plus we all know know how to make noodles, don’t we? Mix any ingredient – veggies, sauces, pepper, paneer, tofu, mushroom and what not – with the basic noodles and relish it with tomato sauce!!!. Oh ya there is this 2-minute Maggi noodles. On behalf of all instant noodles fans (who are mostly we poor grad students who either dont have the time or a well set kitchen for making yummy food ), let me take immense pleasure in thanking all varieties of instant noodles*! Hey how about getting a little creative and making crispy noodles with fruits and nuts (gotta try that!). Maybe I could later on open up a Noodleberry chocolate factory and make Fruit ‘n Nut ‘n Noodle chocolates there

Ok ok. So what are the motives behind this post?
Firstly I felt like blabbering something . Achieved that!!!
Secondly I have been eating too much noodles off late that I felt an overwhelming feeling of thankfulness for this wonderful creation of God (Look at the respect noodles get ). So thanked it
And thirdly I wanted to add a smiley to my blog. Have been using too many of these smileys in chats these days. Got so addicted to them that I even type smileys at the end of a perfect sentences while writing journal papers! Hehe.. 

Gotcha! I saw you smile Cheers!

*Statutory warning: MSG (monsodium glutamate) is injurious to health or so I hear. Our dear instant noodles’ seasoning powder has this msg Better go in for plain noodles, boil it and show your creativity in making it spicy!

So how is my noodle smiley’s makeup? Hair dyed with Hershey’s chocolate syrup (expensive dye I say!), eyes made of silken tofu and black pepper, nose made of curry leaves and a sweeeet tomato saucy smile   

 

 

Beetroot rice

Ingredients:
Rice – 1 cup
Beetroot – 1
Chilli powder – 1 tsp
Cumin powder – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 2 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Capsicum – 1
Tomatoes – 2
Onions – 2
Ginger-garlic paste  – 1 tbsp
Green chillies – 2
Curd – 1/2 cup
Mint leaves – few
Coriander leaves – few
Curry leaves – few
Oil – 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Wash and soak rice for half an hour.
2. In the meantime, heat oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds and urad dhal.
3. Add finely chopped onion and fry till it turns golden brown.
4. Grind together 4 flakes or garlic and an inch of ginger with a few mint leaves. Add this paste to the onion and fry till the raw smell goes.
5. Add the diced capsicum pieces and fry for a minute.
6. Add all the powders and required amount of salt and fry for a minute.
7. Grind the tomatoes and add the paste to the fried mixture in the pan.
8. Add the diced beetroot pieces and fry for a few minutes.
9. Add in the curd, chopped coriander, curry and remaining mint leaves. Simmer for a few minutes.
10. Drain water from the rice. Add the fried mixture to the rice, add a cup of water and mix well. Cook this mixture in a pressure cooker or rice cooker.
11. Garnish with coriander leaves and fried onions.
12. Serve hot with raitha.