This is our Sunday lunch and believe me its not a typical one. Usually on Sundays, its just simple dal-rice or vegetable pulao for lunch and at night its noodles. Our system is  accustomed to this diet. This Sunday however, we enjoyed a North Indian Spread which I am sending to Srivalli’s Indian Thali Mela. She is celebrating 5 years of blogging and here is wishing her many more such years ahead.

In the North Indian thali you will find (clockwise) :

• Dal tadka
• Paneer Capsicum Masala
• Stuffed Capsicum
• Long beans sabzi
• Dhania pudina chutney
• Salad

along with rotis in the center.

Dal tadka is the usual toor dal which has been cooked with some vegetables (keeping in mind that its for the baby). In the Paneer Capsicum sabzi, I have also added baby corn as my older kid likes it very much. As you can see, alterations in traditional recipes have been done has per the likes of our special family members – the children.

I thought of sharing the recipe of paneer capsicum masala in detail, as its one of the tastiest dishes in this thali. Its also really easy to make and I often end up making it  when I have guests over.

Ingredients :

• 2 cups of paneer cubes
• 50 g Maggi Bhuna Masala
• 4-5 garlic cloves
• 1 capsicum chopped into cubes
• 1 onion cut into cubes
• 5 baby corns cut into chunks
• 1 cup curd
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon dhania / coriander seed powder
• 1 teaspoon jeera / cumin seed powder
• 1 teaspoon of oil
• Salt

Procedure :

1. Heat oil in a kadai. Add jeera powder, dhania powder, haldi powder and garam masala.
2. Before masalas get brown quickly add chopped garlic.
3. Fry for a minute and add maggie bhuna masala.
4. Once the bhuna masala leaves oil from the sides add curd, stirring continuously.
5. Now add the vegetables- onion, baby corn and capsicum.
6. Add paneer cubes and salt. Continue to cook over sim heat for 5-10 minutes.
7. Turn off the heat, garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with rotis.

Please Note :

If you don’t have maggie bhuna masala you can make the bhuna masala at home. Just fry 1 teaspoon of ginger-garlic paste in 1 tablespoon of oil. Then fry the paste of 1 onion. Once that browns, fry the puree of two tomatoes. This will give you fresh bhuna (or roasted) masala.

Now I know why this cake is called Devil’s Food Cake. It’s simply sinful ! It’s made with a combination of rich molten chocolate and butter. The taste of this cake is determined by the quality of cooking chocolate used. It can be as delicious as you like. I suggest, you go for the best brand of dark chocolate available near your place. When we are sinning anyway, might as well go all the way

You will find several different recipes for this cake. I have myself seen so many varieties that it was difficult to freeze on any one. Finally I just went through all of them, made some changes and came up with one recipe as per my taste. Anyway, left to myself I would bake a cake everyday. Moreover, chocolate being my favorite flavor I dont think I would bake many different flavors. It would at the most change to a mocha one, once in a way. I could get into a business of selling cakes. Just that, once its done I would give it away to my friends and family members after eating half myself. That way there would be nothing left to sell, so I could run into a loss. Hmm… this cake has allowed the devil inside me out. My imagination is running wild and now I am thinking of living in a cake house with the devil himself. I think I should stop. Go ahead and try making some yourself. Indulge!!

Ingredients :

• 1.5 cups all purpose flour (maida)
• 1 teaspoon Baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon soda
• pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup cooking chocolate (dark)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Procedure :

1. Cream the butter and sugar together till it reaches ribbon-like consistency. Separately, beat eggs.
2. Sieve the dry ingredients – flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder.
3. Alternately add the beaten sugar and beaten eggs to the dry ingredients.
4. Boil the water. Turn off the heat, add the chocolate and cover it.
5. Once the chocolate melts, stir well to make a chocolate sauce.
6. Allow this sauce to cool. Add it to the cake mix prepared in step 3.
7. Also, add the vanilla essence, lime juice and milk. Mix well so no lumps are formed.
8. Grease and dust a cake tin. Pour in the batter and bake for 180 deg C for 35 minutes.

On Friday, late at night around 11.30 pm, I published my eBook on Baby food recipes. The book is hosted by amazon and is available for a short preview on their site.

Writing this book has been a long journey. I started more than 4 years ago when I introduced Raina (older daughter) to solids. The book was set aside only to be taken out 3 years later when I had Trisha. This time I thought I should document the information well and release it so all moms, like me, could benefit from it. (Trisha is definitely more fussy about food than Raina. So I must thank her for making me put on my thinking cap long enough to write a book )

It was difficult to work with both kids. I would ‘steal’ time to write notes here and there. I had help from people at home. The help came in bursts so I had to align to their available time and try to work at my best pace. Its been nearly 4 years, working off and on , on this book. I love you all too much to bore you with the details of the journey

Now all of a sudden, I am so free that it feels weird. Everyday, my hands automatically open the baby food directory. I am habituated to reviewing my book, first thing in the morning. Now that the book is published it feels like my final exam is over and summer holidays have begun. I am enjoying that feeling after ages.

I want to thank all the people who helped me put this book together. Mom, who helped me review the book and even cooked many of the dishes I shot. Mayank, who worked late nights formatting and styling the book. He created a website for the book’s promotion. He has guided me at every step and this book was not possible without him. My help Aravind, who worked religiously for a month helping me cook and shoot the food for the book. Also thanks to Priyank Sharma (my brother-in-law) and Archana Suresh (my friend & neighbor) for reviewing the book and giving me their useful suggestions. There are countless friends who also contributed their ideas for this book. I am so grateful to all. Now I must stop. Its not like I have won the Oscar or anything

Hope you will pass on the message to all your friends with babies. I will be thrilled to get any feedback on my work.

Happy Holidays!

India is filled with so many different versions of rice cooked with vegetables. There is one called tairi in UP which is more like a pulao. Its rice infused with vegetables and cooked without any spicy ground paste. Then there is kashmiri pulao which contains sweet elements like pomegranate seeds and kesar milk. Finally the well-known Hyderabadi Dum Biryani which is heavy due to the addition of curds and spices. In South India, we have masala bhath which also contains the known elements of pulao along with freshly ground coconut.

When it comes to making lunch on a Sunday I prefer these one-pot dishes like Pulao, Biryani or Khichdi. They are filling and delicious. Sometimes we also enjoy Mayank’s yummy dal chawal which is actually comfort food for the entire family.

The biryani I made yesterday for our Sunday lunch is one I learnt from my friend and neighbor Cecilia. Its called ‘red biryani’ as it does come out quite red. Mine was orange as I added a little less of the secret ingredient. I didnt want to make it too spicy for the kids. Whats the secret ingredient? Well, its this amazing sambar powder she makes at home. I happen to have a pouch of it which I carefully hide in my kitchen and use for special dishes like this one.

Ingredients :

• 2 teaspoons Butter
• 2-3 teaspoons refined oil
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 4 tomatoes, finely chopped
• 2 cups Basmati rice
• 1.5 cups finely chopped mixed vegetables (capsicum, carrot, beans, peas)
• 2 potatoes, peeled and cut in cubes
• 1 inch piece of ginger
• 7-8 cloves of garlic
• 2 green chillies
• 3-4 cloves
• 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
• Few pods of cardamom
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoons sambar powder
• 1 lemon
• salt

Procedure :

1. Soak rice for 5 minutes and wash till milkiness goes away.
2. Heat butter with a teaspoon of oil in a cooker. Saute onion till translucent.
3. Add whole spices like cinnamon, cloves and cardamom.
4. Grind green chillies with ginger, garlic with a pinch of salt. Fry this masala in the oil.
5. Add tomatoes and cook till they leave oil from the sides.
6. Add finely chopped vegetables, potatoes and continue cooking for 5 minutes on medium heat.
7. Mash the vegetables and add 2 teaspoons of oil more, if necessary.
8. Add finely chopped pudina leaves and coriander leaves.
9. Add turmeric powder and sambar powder.
10. Mix in the washed rice. Add salt as per taste (approximately one teaspoon per cup of rice will be required).
11. Add water to the rice in the ratio 2:1. That means 2 cups of water for every cup of rice.
12. Add juice of one lime.
13. Cover the lid of the cooker and allow it to cook on medium heat for 7-8 minutes.
14. Take the cooker off the heat and cover it with a wet cloth.
15. Serve piping hot with mixed vegetable raita.

I have missed the blogging world for the longest time now. After I had my second baby about one and a half years ago I got really busy with baby care. This time around it was more difficult than last time as now I even had the elder one to take care of. However, being a true foodie at heart, whenever I found the time I would continue to bake. I couldn’t share it with you all as with an infant I did not find the time to shoot or blog about whatever I made. I remember when my baby was a month old I ran into the kitchen and baked a yummy cake for myself. I was bored of all the bland, post-natal care food and stuffed my face with big chunks of chocolate cake

Besides having the baby there is another reason that’s kept me busy. I have been writing a book on Indian Baby Food recipes. What else would I do with all the baby food I have been making? I started writing them down when I introduced solids to my first kid. That was when I shared some of those recipes on my blog. Today with another baby and going through the same phase again I thought its a good idea to compile whatever information I have into a book so its helpful to other mothers like me.

I got my information over the last few years from my mother and grandmother. My baby’s pediatrician also helped me understand what ingredients were permitted for my baby at each stage. I put all this information down into an eBook which will soon be available on amazon. (Update: Book published on Amazon on 13th Apr. Do check it out!)

Do visit my site on Indian Baby food Recipes and leave your mail ID if you would like to receive more information on Baby Food.

We celebrated our 7th Wedding anniversary yesterday. It being a Saturday we managed to have a long, lazy breakfast. Thankfully the kids slept on and we woke early so we could eat our breakfast blissfully. We chatted over some black forest pastries, Chocolate mousse, paneer rolls, mushroom buns and tea. Dont get me wrong, we dont eat so much everyday!  :-)

After breakfast Mayank headed off to work. He returned by 3 pm, by then I had fallen alseep with the baby. Finally in the evening we thought of making up for the lost time and we really did. We left the kids with mom and went to UB city to dine. As usual, Mayank didnt tell me where we were going. I had taken out a new saree, matching bangles and jewellery to go with it. As soon as I was going to start getting ready he said ‘Get ready soon…aur please saree mat pehen lena” I was like OMIGAWD! What to wear now? Then I took out a Benetton top and a pair of jeans. Since I wasnt going to be carrying the baby everywhere I wore my high heels (finally those poor things got a ride out of the shoe rack!)

As we were walking into UB City I was constantly trying to recall the name of that place which has a big buddha statue. I knew it was in UB City and was kind of sure Mayank was taking me there. Just minutes before we entered the lobby I exclaimed ‘I remember, its called SHIRO!’ The smile on his face was an indicative that I was right. As we entered we found pretty Jap-looking ladies ready to seat us. They gave us our table and said ‘There is another booking for this table at 9.30pm’ Hmmm….thats not so polite I thought :-/ Anyway, the ambiance was perfect. There were these carved statues on the walls sort of reminding us of the Ajanta-Ellora caves. Not to mention the big buddha Face, right under which we were seated. There was also a 15-feet tall statue of a lady holding a pot that was pouring out water all evening. Phew! Thats a boring job

We were greeted by a pleasant person who served us with great enthusiasm all evening. I actually liked the knowledge he had on all he served. We ended up having -

I loved the stylish font in which the chef had managed to write ‘Happy Anniversary’ on the plate along with presenting us with two chocolate sushis.

I cant begin to describe how delicious the chocolate sushis were. I am sure they used the best Belgium Dark chocolate ever. They were small, round chocolate cylinders filled with three different types of chocolate cream. It tasted somewhat like chocolate whipped with fresh cream. I have not had anything like it before!

After our dinner we took a walk around the place. There were crowded pubs, eateries, live bands and water fountains. God! I havent seen so many short skirts altogether in my entire life.

We returned home around mid-night. It was a great day and one of the most memorable anniversaries ever!

Here is the recipe of the coffee cake I baked for the occasion. Its nice though a bit heavy. I tried using a coffee essence for the first time and I think it made all the difference.

Here comes the Chinese version of the desi samosa! We saw the recipe on Tata sky cookery videos and my help Sunil managed to make these for us. He quickly converted something I have always wanted to eat into something stunning right on my plate.

Wontons remind me of that movie ‘Zinda’. Omigawd! What a movie. A poor guy was kept captivated for 14 years and was given only wontons to eat everyday. The taste hung onto him so much that after he escaped he ate only wontons at every street in Bangkok to find the place from where his wontons were got. Thats how he managed to finally track the person who did this to him. Why would someone hold anyone hostage for 14 years? I don’t want to say more, please see the movie. I saw it with only one eye open, other was squeezed in fear. I felt like I was inside that box… gasping for freedom. May be we all are in that box in some way. Think about it while you munch on these wontons.

Ingredients :

• 2 cups of all purpose flour / maida
• 3 cups of grated mixed vegetables (carrot, beans, capsicum, cabbage, spring onion)
• 3 teaspoons of oil
• 2 teaspoons Tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon chilly sauce
• 1 teaspoon dark soya sauce
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• Pinch of salt and black pepper powder
• Oil for frying

Procedure :

For the Dough

1. Mix 1.5 teaspoons of oil and salt into maida till it resembles the texture of bread crumbs.
2. Add luke warm water and knead the dough to medium stiffness.
3. Allow it to rest for at least half an hour.

For the filling :

1. Heat  1.5 teaspoons of oil. Fry the grated vegetables till they are half cooked.
2. Add black pepper powder and all the sauces to the vegetables and turn off the heat  (Do not add salt as the sauces are quite salty by themselves)

For the Wontons :

1. Take a ball-sized piece of dough. Roll it out with a rolling pin into a round-shaped roti.
2. Fill it with a teaspoon of filling. Apply water on the inner edges of the roti.
3. Fold over and press the edges slightly extending outwards.
4. Hold the two extreme ends and fold over. Apply water and press again to make a wonton (like that in the picture).
5. Deep fry on medium heat till it turns golden brown.

My baby doll is nearly a year old. She shows off two tiny teeth every time she laughs. I cant seem to get enough of it. Although its really cute to look at I know her gums itch quite a bit. No wonder she is always putting things in her mouth. So I thought its time I tried my hand at some teething biscuits. Now she has something home-made to sooth her gums. I was happy with the firmness of these biscuits but like any other teething biscuits they have a potential choking hazard. You need to constantly monitor the baby while eating so he doesnt bite off too big a piece (He heee… now I sound like a baby product company )

Yesterday we got the baby’s head tonsured at a temple in Bangalore. What a sad sight it was. She was too sleepy and got really cranky when we tried to hold her hands and legs firmly. She cried her head off and by the end of the ritual I was feeling dizzy. That brings us to the end of the series of events- her naming ceremony, annaprashan (giving food for the first time), ear piercing and head tonsuring. Of these, I really like the first two but the ear piercing and head shaving is not for the faint hearted. Now the baby’s first year is almost complete. Phew! What a year it has been. We are now looking forward to her birthday. Its just round the corner. Here is to many more….

Ingredients :

2 tablespoons Roasted rice powder

3 tablespoons Roasted wheat flour

4 tablespoons cold apple juice

1 teaspoon ghee

Procedure :

To make roasted rice powder:

Roast a cup of rice for 15 minutes on medium flame, stirring constantly.

Let this cool down and grind it in a mixer grinder. Use 2 tablespoons of this powder to make the biscuits and store the rest in an air tight container.

To make roasted wheat flour powder:

Roast 3 tablespoons of whole wheat flour (aata) in a thick bottom pan at medium flame stirring constantly.

In about 15 minutes you will get the aroma of roasted wheat. You can turn off the heat at this point.

To make the teething biscuits :

Mix the rice powder and whole wheat flour with the ghee.

Now knead the flour with cold apple juice till you get a soft dough. Add more juice if necessary.

Dust the dough with wheat flour and roll into a flat layer 1/4 inch thick, with the help of a rolling pin.

Cut out finger length pieces from this dough.

Place these biscuits on a butter paper and bake in a preheated oven at 175 Deg C for 25-30 minutes.

POTENTIAL CHOKING HAZARD : Please monitor the baby while he is chewing on these biscuits as he might bite off too big a piece that could cause choking.

Crunchy Soya Toasts

I love Tata Sky- it has made my life jhin ga la la! Simply because we get new recipe videos everyday. These are typically 4 videos recorded for NDTV Good times and some other regional channels earlier. The set of 4 videos is called ‘Menu for the day’ and it has a starter, a salad/ beverage, a main course dish and a dessert. Some times the combination varies, like if its raining too much outside they have only hot snacks. They even have festival special videos where they demonstrate how to make delicacies specific to each occasion.

Aravind, the younger brother of the house help we had after my delivery is very interested in trying his hand at new dishes. He had come home to stay with us for a couple of days and watched the recipe for crunchy soya toasts on Tata Sky. He didnt realize that the video repeats itself all day. I found it really cute when he said ‘Didi, I have understood the recipe, when is it going to stop?’

Few days later he soaked the soya beans on his own and started making these toasts in the evening. It was such a pleasant surprise and I ran for my camera to share it with you guys. I liked the way this little 15-year old was making a unique snack smartly on his own. I watched as he deep fried the toasts and thought to myself ‘This guy is like I was years ago’ (I wont tell you how many years ago, or you will know my age! ;-p)

Ingredients :

• 1 cup soya beans
• 1 onion , few springs of Coriander leaves, 2 green chillies (all fine chopped)
• 1 teaspoon Coriander powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Dried mango powder (amchur)
• 2 teaspoon All purpose flour / Maida
• 1/2 teaspoon Red chilly powder
• Pinch of Ajwain

Procedure :

1. Soak Soya beans for 2-3 hours.
2. Pressure cook in sufficient water for 15 mins.
3. Drain and cool. Grind coarsely.
4. Mix fine chopped onion, coriander leaves and green chillies.
5. Also mix salt, coriander powder and amchur powder. Keep this mixture aside.
6. Dissolve the maida in water and make a runny paste out of it.
7. Now mix salt, pinch of coriander powder, red chilly powder and ajwain.
8. Take a bread slice. Cut it in half. Place the soya paste over it.
9. Dip these slices into the maida paste and deep fry.
10. Serve hot, crunchy soya toasts with pudina chutney and sweet chutney.

How I love these chilly Christmas mornings. We had a great evening yesterday at my sister’s house. Kids played games, danced and got gifts from their dear Santa Claus. My 3 month old was tired after the festivities and slept through the night. I got a well deserved break from the night long baby sitting routine. So instead of being busy Santa just had to keep gifts on the bed side and go to sleep

Santa spreads the cheer

The fruit cake I baked uses all things I found running around in the kitchen. I havent picked the recipe from anywhere, its concocted on the run. I am happy with the result. I have been receiving cakes from my neighbors as well. Its like as if there is a dry fruit cake fest going on in our apartment. Well, all of us have our own version and thats what makes it interesting. It would be so boring if we all baked the exact same recipe.

Our Christmas Tree is all dressed up

My 3 year old daughter is attending 3 christmas parties this season. One at her school, one with family and one with friends. The party at school required her to go in a fancy dress. I made her into corn. Here is a picture of her – Oh Sweet Corn!

Dressed as Corn for Fancy Dress @ School

Here is the recipe of the cake I baked. I bake round the year but Christmas Cake always tastes the best (honestly, something in the air!)

Ingredients for Fruit Mix :

• 4 cashew nuts, 4 almonds : roasted and ground into a powder
• 4 cashew nuts, 4 almonds: roasted and fine chopped
• 6 yellow raisins, chopped
• 6 black raisins, de-seeded and chopped
• ½ teaspoon ginger peel chopped
• 1 teaspoon orange peel chopped (inner white skin removed)
• 1 fresh date

for the marinate :

• 1 tablespoon black currant
• 1 tablespoon grape squash

dry ingredients :

• 2 cups white flour (maida)
• 1 ½ baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda

other ingredients :

• 2 eggs ( beaten)
• ¾ cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup milk
• ½ teaspoon vanilla essence
• ½ almond essence

Procedure:

1. Soak the ingredients of the fruit mix in the marinate for 2-3 hours.
2. Sift the dry ingredients.
3. Cream the butter with the sugar. Alternately add the dry ingredients and the beaten eggs and fold in (do not beat!). Add the marinated dry fruit mix to this.
4. Now add both essences and milk till the mixture reaches dropping consistency.
5. Once the mixture blends well and comes together pour into a greased and dusted pan. (you can grease with butter and dust it with white flour)
6. Bake in a preheated oven for 180 Deg C for 40 mins.