Egg Puffs

The thought of egg puffs brings back fond memories of my college days. The bakery near my hostel sold the tastiest puffs in the world. That too, egg puffs. An egg puff and Sharjah shake was always the popular combination at that hangout. It was just fantabulous. I was trying to recreate that aroma and taste. Though I couldn't match that taste, it was pretty close. :)

Ingredients

• Puff pastry sheets : 1 
• Eggs : 3 
• Chopped onions : 2 cups
• Ginger paste : 1 T 
• Garlic paste : 1 T 
• Coriander Powder : 1 t 
• Garam masala : 2 pinch 
• Turmeric powder : 1/4 t 
• Red chilli powder : 1 t 
• Salt as required 
• Oil : 3 T 

Method

Preparing

• Thaw the pastry sheet by leaving it out in room temperature for about an hour or so. 
• Boil the eggs and take the shell. 
• Cut each egg vertically(lengthwise)into two halves.

For the stuffing

• Heat oil in the pan. Fry onion until it gets brown. 
• Then add ginger and garlic paste. Fry till its smell goes. 
• Then add garam masala, coriander powder and red chilly powder.
• Add egg halves, fry for 2 minutes.
• Egg filling is ready now.

Setting everything

• Slowly unfold the sheet and cut into 6 square pieces. 
• Roll each piece with rolling pin to make it little thinner.
• Put egg half in each of them along with onion Gravy, bring two corners into middle and close them with help of little water.

• Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit. 
• Place the prepared puffs on a baking tray and bake for 30 to 45 minutes or till they turn golden brown. 

Fruit Punch

This drink is perfect to serve to guests at a party/get-together. Not only is it a refreshing drink but also a beautiful one. Really! Just look at the pics :) Dont you think so? I have to say thanks to my friends for introducing us to this drink. We had it a couple of times and fell in love with it. So when we had guests this time we thought this would be a winner. And it was.. Everybody loved it..  :)

Ingredients

• Pina Colada non alcoholic frozen fruit mix - 1 can
• Dacqri  (red color) - fruit/strawberry mix - 1 can 
• Pineapple flavor fanta soda - 1
• Ice cubes - 2 C
• Oranges, sliced -  2
• Mint leaves - a sprig
• Cold Water - a cup

Method 

(Prepare the drink right before the guests come - max15 mins before)

• Mix Pina Colada and Dacqri fruit mix in a large bowl or a beverage dispenser (as seen in the pic).
• Add the Pineapple soda to it and mix.
• To this, add the rest of the ingredients and give it a quick stir.
• Close the dispenser with the lid.
• Your fruit punch is ready to be served.

Parippu Vada (Lentil Fritters)

Ingredients

• Chana dal (split bengal gram/kadala parippu) – 2 C
• Onion – 1, finely chopped
• Green chilli – 3, finely chopped
• Ginger – 2 t, finely chopped
• Curry leaves – 2 sprigs
• Kayam (asafetida) – 1/8 t
• Salt - to taste
• Oil for deep frying

Method

• Wash and soak chana dal in water for 2 hours. 
• Drain the water completely and make sure that the dal is dry.
• Coarse grind the drained dal (do not add water) for a few seconds. Make sure not to grind it to a smooth paste. 
• Add rest of the ingredients except oil to the ground mix and gently mix together. 
• Make small balls with the ground mix.
• Heat oil for deep frying pan on high flame. 
• While the pan gets hot, flatten the balls in your palm.
• When oil is really hot, reduce the flame to low-medium and add the vada/fritter. 
• Fry till the vadas (fritters) become golden brown or if you like it extra crispy, fry till you get a darker shade. 
• Drain excess oil on a tissue paper. 
• Serve hot

Notes: Its always better to flatten the fritters just before you fry it. This will help it from getting broken.

Paneer Pizza

Ingredients

Pizza Dough: Makes enough dough for two 10-12 inch pizzas

• 1 1/2 cups warm water (105°F-115°F)
• 1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) of active dry yeast (check the expiration date on the package)
• 3 1/2 cups bread flour (can use all-purpose but bread flour will give you a crisper crust)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar

Pizza 

• Olive oil
• Cornmeal (to slide the pizza onto the pizza stone) 

Pizza Sauce  

• Garlic - 2 cloves, minced
• Onion - 1/4 chopped
• Green bell pepper - 2 T, chopped
• Tomatoes, crushed - 10/14 Oz can
• Italian seasoning (dried Basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano) -1 t
• Tandoori Masala - 1 t
• Red chilli flakes - to taste
• Pepper - 1 t
• Sugar - 1/4 t
• Salt - to taste
• Basil Leaves - Fresh

Topping

• Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese, shredded
• Bell peppers, stems and seeds removed, thinly sliced
• Onions, thinly sliced
• Cherry tomatoes, chopped
• Paneer 
• Corn
• Italian seasoning
• Jalapeno peppers

 

Method

Pizza Dough

• In a large bowl, add the warm water. Sprinkle on the yeast and let sit for 10 mins and rise.
• Mix in the olive oil, flour, salt and sugar and knead for about a minute.
• Continue kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
• If the dough seems a little too wet, sprinkle on a bit more flour.
• Place the dough in a bowl that has been coated lightly with olive oil.
• Turn the dough around in the bowl so that it gets coated with the oil.
• Cover with plastic wrap. Let sit in a warm place (75-85°F) until it doubles in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours (or several hours longer, a longer rise will improve the flavor). 
• If you don't have a warm spot in the house you can heat the oven to 150 degrees, and then turn off the oven. Let the oven cool till it is just a little warm, then place the bowl of dough in this warmed oven to rise.
• If you want to make ahead, you can freeze the dough in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Pizza Sauce

• Heat a pan with a tsp of olive oil.
• Add the garlic, onion, bell pepper and saute for a few mins.
• Add the crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper and italian seasoning along with the tandoori masala, sugar and red chilli flakes.
• Lower the heat and simmer cook for 30 mins.
• Add water (less than 1/4 of a cup) little by little if the sauce becomes too dry while cooking.
• Add a tsp of julienned basil leaves and mix.
• Keep the sauce aside.

Tomato Dosa

There are days when you want to eat something new but not put in a lot of work to it. :P  Yeah.. The fact is, I was lazy but in a mood to eat something other than the regular stuff. And so, here I was blog hopping, as usual, and there I go.. I land on this awesome recipe for Tomato dosa by Sharmis Passion. Thanks to her for this lovely recipe. :)

Yummy red colored dosas! Bliss :) We loved it.. Here is the recipe for you guys ..

Ingredients

• Dosa Batter - 2 C
• Tomato - 2 chopped
• Garlic - 4 chopped minced
• Coconut - 1 T
• Red Chillies - 2
• Jeera - 1 t
• Curry leaves - few chopped
• Red chilli powder - 1/2 t
• Oil - as needed

Method

• Saute the tomatoes in a tsp of oil until mushy and the raw smell goes.
• Once it cools, grind to a fine paste by adding coconut, garlic and red chillies and little water.
• Add jeera, curry leaves , red chilli powder and the tomato coconut paste to the dosa batter and mix well.
• Heat a dosa pan, keeping in low medium flame take a laddle full of the batter and spread it evenly starting form the center slowly outwards in circular motion.
• Drizzle lil' oil along the edges of the dosa and cook for 2 mins.
• Flip on the other side and cook until done (a min).
• Serve hot with any chutney.

PS: If you ask me, this does not even need any chutney. Its awesome just like that :)

Coconut Macaroon

Some days the mood to bake comes at odd times. Yesterday was one such day. I was done with cooking and cleaning up. It was almost 11 PM when I felt like baking something quick. That was when I thought of these yummy coconut macaroons. 

They came out so yummy too :D We loved em..

Source - Taste of Home

Ingredients

• 1-1/3 cups flaked coconut
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

• In a small bowl, combine the coconut, sugar, flour and salt. 
• Stir in egg whites and vanilla; mix well.
• Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto greased baking sheets. 
• I used the heart- shaped cookie cutter ;)
• Bake at 325° for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. 
• Cool on a wire rack. 

Yield: about 1-1/2 dozen.

Lemon Cake - by Barefoot Contessa

This is one yummy and perfect Lemon Cake recipe I found in the Food Network website. The recipe comes from none other than Food Network's famous program, Barefoot Contessa, hosted by Ina Garten. One bite into this cake and you will forget all about your diet ;)

And I thought why not bake such a yummy cake for our friends 25th wedding anniversary. And thats what I did.. :) What do you think? :)

Courtesy: Food Network

For the cake

• 1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 cupsgranulated sugar
• 4 extra-largeeggs, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup grated lemon zest (6 to 8 large lemons)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoonbaking powder
• 1/2 teaspoonbaking soda
• 1 teaspoonkosher salt
• 3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoonpure vanilla extract

Method

•  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Grease and flour 2 (8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch) loaf pans. You may also line the bottom with parchment paper, if desired.
• Cream the butter and 2 cups granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
• With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, and the lemon zest.
• Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
• In another bowl, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, the buttermilk, and vanilla.
• Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour.
• Divide the batter evenly between the pans, smooth the tops, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean.
• When the cakes are done, allow to cool for 10 minutes.
• Remove the cakes from the pans and set them on a rack set over a tray or sheet pan; 
• Allow the cakes to cool completely.
• Your yummy lemon cake is ready to be served :)