Caramelized Onion & Garlic Buns

I've learned quite a bit about the workings of yeast and the art of making bread, thanks to MasterChef Australia. I decided to put one of those tips to use. I've been thinking of making onion bread for quite sometime. But instead of adding the onion at the initial stages, I decided on caramelizing and adding after the dough has been prepared. Apparently, yeast doesn't like too much disturbance in the initial stage. Once you make the dough, you've incorporated your yeast and hence, adding any kind of spices, veggies or nuts would be okay.

Cold Pasta Salad

Disclaimer: The idea of a cold pasta is still weird for me. And even weirder is the dressing I used for this. I don't guarantee the 'taste' because I didn't eat this. However, my brother, who usually eats everything I make, relished every bite. So if you trust his opinion, then go ahead with it. :P

Cheesy Vegetable Sandwich

One of the reasons why I get to experiment a lot with food is because I am not responsible for ensuring that everybody at home is fed on time. That's Ma's job. So, I don't mind spending an hour or 2 for every recipe. But I can fathom how some don't like to spend more time in the kitchen than what's absolutely necessary. "There isn't enough time for making dinner, and you want me to make your fancy cakes?" - said a dear relative of mine to me. :-D That's when I realized the lack of simple and quick recipes on my blog. This sandwich, is my answer to all you people who have no time for themselves. Of course, it involves cheese, mayo or béchamel sauce. That's how it becomes tasty! ;-) Feel free to skip any ingredient while you make it.

Moist Carrot Cake

Visit www.foodomania.com for the recipe & step by step pictures.
Link to this recipe - http://foodomania.com/moist-carrot-cake/

Wholewheat Stuffed Buns

Who in the world doesn’t love the smell of fresh bread baking in the oven? It’s better than any smell my nose could possibly ... uh, smell. :D And mind you, my sense of smell is really strong. I can sniff food from far away and even guess what ingredients are boiling/ broiling/ baking/ frying away! :P But nothing like a loaf of bread, heh? Remember the Stuffed Bread Loaf I made sometime back? Well, this is pretty much like that. Same method, different output.

Grissini (Italian Breadsticks)

I think yeast is starting to love me. ;-) How else would you explain every yeast experiment succeeding? (touch wood!!!) In fact, I've already made them thrice, in varying sizes. Homemade breadsticks are delicious! Plus there's an added satisfaction of consuming what you made - from scratch! Grissini, commonly known as breadsticks are Italian appetizers. They are perfect sides for a bowl of soup.

Chocolate Cupcakes

Use this recipe for baking a cake or a batch of cupcakes. I swear they would turn out soft and spongy. This has, by far been THE most successful experiments with ingredients I've ever had. This recipe exemplifies the saying 'Simplicity is profound'. So simple and readily available are the ingredients that go into the making of these cupcakes that you'll want to bake them everyday!

Butterscotch Pudding

To show you how obsessed I was with writing recipes, here's a glimpse of what I usually did in the pretense of studying ... I managed to clear all exams so I don't think Ma should have a problem seeing this! :-D

Eggless Golden Yellow Cake > *Christmas 2011*

Merry Christmas Y'all! :-D

10 years ago, my neighbor, who also happens to be my best friend Jennybum (oops, Jennifer) and I were deciding what to ask Santa Claus. We were in 3rd grade then. We made big plans, kept milk & biscuits for Santa & wrote down our long list of gifts, seeing which, if Santa had been real, would surely have had a heart attack! :-D It was Selvi Aunty, Jenny's mom who was our *secret Santa*. We settled for pencil boxes & crayons. :-) Selvi aunty's yellow cake, strawberry swirl cake, cookies and so many more goodies made all my childhood Christmases.

Pizza Pinwheels

With every new dish you learn something new. And what did I learn this time? Always buy your YEAST fresh. Since I didn't have an oven for the past 4 months, I didn't use yeast at all. And today when I used it- well, it deceived me. The dough didn't rise at all! I knew there wasn't any problem with my yeast-proofing. (let me take a moment to boast here and say, I'm a pro when it comes to yeast :-D) But I didn't realize that the dry yeast that I bought in January this year wouldn't work its magic. But I went ahead and baked it anyway. Since the dough didn't rise, I could only make 4 pinwheels instead of the estimated 8. Next time, I'm gonna try it with fresh yeast.
Of course, I could have used assorted vegetables for the filling, but since my mood was deflated by yeast, I only used tomato ketchup, cheese, garlic & onions. The final dish looked and tasted really great. All my fears were put to a rest. :-)

 

Eggless Chocolate Pudding - Type 1

This is basically the boiled & then chilled version; texturally a custard set with starch. This is commonly eaten in US, Canada, Asia etc. There is another steamed/baked type of pudding texturally similar to a cake that is popular in Australia, New Zealand, UK etc. I'll be making that when I own an oven! ;-)

Vegetarian Hot dog (with a Kidney Beans Sausage)

Who says vegetarians can’t eat hot dogs?! :-D I was watching an episode of Friends & I saw Joey eat a hot dog. And even though I knew it had some dead-stuff, I couldn’t help admiring the sausage! :-P I also love watching Food-Food channel. I had seen this recipe on Firangi Tadka. I didn’t know the exact ingredients, but I did a decent job of making the hot dogs! :-) Also, this one is full of proteins because of the kidney beans (Rajma) So eat it guilt free! ;-D

Ingredients- (makes 4 hot dogs)

For the veggie sausage:

Kidney Beans – 1 cup (I put 4 palm-fuls)

Potato – 2 medium sized

Tofu – 50-80 grams (optional) [[Use cottage cheese as alternative]]

Paprika – 3 teaspoons

Pepper Powder – 1 teaspoon

Salt – as per taste – 1 teaspoon

Cilantro – chopped – 2 tablespoons (optional)

Others:

Hot Dog Buns

Tomato Ketchup

Mustard Sauce (optional)

Tomato Slices

Onion Slices

Cabbage / Lettuce leaves

Method –

STEP 1: Soak the Kidney beans in water overnight. (For around 6 hours)

STEP 2: Boil the Kidney beans (with a little bit of salt) to make them soft & mashable! :-) (In a cooker, microwave etc.)

STEP 3: Completely filter the water from the kidney beans. Use a clean cloth or towel to remove some excess water from the kidney beans.

STEP 4: Boil, peel & mash the potatoes. (& also mash the tofu if you are using it)

STEP 5: In a large mixing bowl, mash the kidney beans with your hands. Don’t use a blender. We just need to mash the beans roughly.

STEP 6: Add the mashed potatoes & mashed tofu to it & mix well.

STEP 7: Add the chopped cilantro, green chilis,

Salt

Paprika

Pepper powder

Bread Crumbs

STEP 8: Mix everything well. Taste and adjust the spices. If the mixture is sticky or doesn’t seem thick enough, add more bread crumbs.

STEP 9: Divide the mixture to large balls.

STEP 10: Take a part of the mixture on a flat surface.

STEP 11: Imagine how a sausage looks like. Slowly, start rolling the dough evenly as if it were a rolling pin. 

STEP 12: Make adjustments & your final veggie sausage should look like this –

STEP 13: Again, coat them with very little bread crumbs.

STEP 14: You can DEEP FRY these sausages. But I didn’t. Heat the oil on a flat pan.

STEP 15: Very gently, place 1 or 2 sausages on the pan. Let it cook on one side on medium heat for about 3-4 minutes or until it is crisp.

STEP 16: Then gently, with the help of a spoon, turn the sausage so that the other side gets cooker. Again, on medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Repeat the same in all for sides. You have to be careful and give support to the sausages while the smaller side is cooking coz they easily disintegrate!

STEP 17: Remove them on a tissue paper. There you go! Your vegetarian sausages are ready! :-)

Making the hot dog –

STEP 1: If the bun is not fresh, you may want to warm it a little bit to make it soft.

STEP 2: Cut the bun into 2 halves.

STEP 3: Apply butter (optional) and tomato sauce generously on the lower half.

STEP 4: Place the sausage we prepared above on the lower half.

STEP 5: If you want, add mustard sauce too. But we don’t like it so we skipped. Also, you could arrange slices of tomatoes, onions, lettuce leaves here.

STEP 6: I also added some more paprika on top of the sausage to give it some extra hotness! ;-)

STEP 7: Apply sauce on the other half of the bun.

STEP 8: Close the lower half with the other half of the bun.

That’s it. Enjoy! :-)

Macaroni and Cheese

Also known as Mac and Cheese. I'm not really gonna elaborate. I guess most of you must know what it is. You can read about it here.

This particular dish has no sauces to be mixed with it. Hence, it takes very little time to make it. I'm not exaggerating! It is very simple! Although I'm not a big fan of pasta or anything to do with it, my brother loved it! SO it must be good! :-D


Even if you don't know the ABC of cooking, you'll find this easy & delightful! The actual recipe calls for baking in the oven. But I tried it on the stove & the results were quite good.

You'll need - 
Pasta/ Macaroni shells like Annie's Macaroni
Salt - 2 teaspoons
Pepper - 1 teaspoon
Butter - 2 tablespoons
Mozzarella Cheese - 1 cup
Processed cheese/ Cheddar cheese - 1 cup
Or just use Mozzarella 2 cups
Light fresh cream - 2 tablespoons (substitute with quarter cup milk)
Water - for boiling & cooking Macaroni shells

Method -
1. Boil the macaroni shells according to the instructions given in the box. (boil it in salt water for about 10-15 minutes)
2. In a pan, melt the butter, add salt & pepper & then add 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. you could sauté some onions if you want.
3. Immediately add the Macaroni & mix it all well.
4. Add the fresh cream & the other cup of cheese & let it cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes.

Your Mac n Cheese is ready! ☺

Onion Rings

Onion rings are a form of fast food commonly found in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and some parts of Asia. They generally consist of a small or big ring of onion (whose ring-like structure lends itself well to this mode of preparation) dipped in batter or breading and then deep fried. Okay.. Okay.. If you want o know more, read about it in Wikipedia.

Now, there are so many ways of making Onion Rings. Each brings out a different flavor! Hence, what I'm posting here may not be the rule. You can experiment! ;-) But what I tried was scrumptious! Just a bit too oily. :-) So, if you're on some diet, don't eat more than 2-3 pieces! :-D


So, let us begin.....

Adapted from Tarla Dalal's site
Ingredients (for 2 servings)
100 grams (3/4 cup plain flour (maida))
1 tsp cornflour
1/2 cup buttermilk (mix 2 tablespoons curd with water & beat well)
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
A pinch of baking soda
Salt to taste - 2 teaspoons
2 onions , cut into rings
Oil for deep-frying


Method
Combine the plain flour, cornflour, buttermilk, pepper powder, soda-bi-carb and salt in a bowl and mix well to make a batter of pouring consistency. Cut onion into 1 inch slices & separate the rings.

 

Heat the oil in a kadhai, dip the onion rings in the batter, a few at a time, and deep-fry till they are golden brown in colour from both the sides.

 

Drain on absorbent paper and serve immediately with tomato ketchup or your favorite dipping.

For some reason, how many ever times I upload the picture, it doesn't upload straight!!! :'(

Veggie Burger (with potato patties)

So, after trying foods of Mexico, Germany, France, Italy & India - I'm finally making something that Americans (& others) LOVE! ☺ Yep - BURGERS! :-) I don't think it needs any introduction. There is SO much you can do with a tiny burger bun & some vegetables! I'm going to post about one of my favorite burgers: The McAloo Tikki Burger. (Aaloo = Potato) It is widely famous in India. McDonald's truly is the Burger God! I love the burger! So I set about trying to imitate the Burger that they sell. And to an extent, I have been successful! :-D

 And it doesn't require great skills to make a burger. Like always, keep the ingredients ready before you start cooking & you're all set! :-D Impress your friends & family with this very simple, McDonald's style burger....

Ingredients -
For the Potato Patties (aloo tikki)
Stuffing...
Boiled & Mashed Potato - 2 medium sized
Onion - 1 onion finely chopped
Corn Kernels - 1 cup BOILED
Carrot - 1 (Use more if you like)
Coriander leaves - 2 tablespoons
Turmeric Powder - 1 teaspoon
Red Chilli Powder - 2 teaspoons
Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon (OPTIONAL)
Flax-seed - 1 teaspoon (OPTIONAL)
Salt - 2-4 teaspoons (or as per taste)
Oil - 2 teaspoons


Other ingredients...
Bread Crumbs - 3 breads
Cornflour - 1-2 tablespoon
Semolina - 2 tablespoons (optional)
Oil - for deep fry (or shallow fry)

For the Burger
Burger Buns - 4
Tomato Slices - to decorate
Lettuce/Cabbage Leaves - to decorate
Mayonnaise - as per taste (around 1 tablespoon per bun)
Tomato Ketchup - as per taste

Method -
For the Potato Patties (aloo tikki)
1. In a deep pan, add 2 teaspoons of oil, cumin seeds, turmeric, chili powder, salt, green chili & the onions & sauté for 2 minutes until the onions turn translucent.

2. Add the grated carrot, potatoes & mix well & let it cook of medium flame for about 2 minutes. Finally add the corn kernels & coriander leaves & mix well. Let it cool.

3. Add the bread crumbs, cornflour & semolina/Rava & mix well. I add the Semolina so that it gets a crispiness when I fry! :-D

4. Make medium sized balls out of the veggie mixture, press it slightly all over to get a round shaped patty.

 

5. Finally, fry the patties well & let the excess oil leave.

For the Burger
1. Slice the bun in 2 halves. Apply butter on both sides (optional).

2. Apply Mayonnaise on both the sides. {It can be bought at the store or made at home. There are different ways of making mayonnaise. I used the white sauce I had made previously.}

3. Apply Tomato ketchup as much as you want on both sides.

don't look at my half worn out nail polish :-P

4. Keep 2 slices of tomato, a lettuce leaf & some onion ring on the base of the burger. (its optional)

5. Keep the PATTY we made on top of the tomato.

6. Again, place 2 tomato slices on top of the patty & a CHEESE slice if you want. :-D

7. Close the burger with the upper half. Heat it for maybe 20 seconds if you want. Or enjoy it just like that!

8. Serve burger with ketchup & fries! ☺