For the love of cooking

Hi all,

I am a housewife and I love (obsessed with) food and fitness. I enjoy cooking and experimenting with food. I am starting this thread to share my recipes and findings and to connect with fellow food enthusiasts. I will update the thread regularly with pictures and recipes of my trials. All kinds of suggestions,questions and advices are welcome.


Disclaimer: I am in no way an expert of any kind when it comes to food. Everything I post here is from my personal experience.

Thanks,
Misc

 

Roasted Vegetables

This is a very easy and nutritious side dish for any meal.

Ingredients

1/2 head of a small Cauliflower
1/2 cup edamame
1/2 cup Finger potatoes
1/2 Tomato
1 or 2 green chillies
1 inch ginger/garlic
lime

Instructions

Pre heat your oven to 400
1.Cut your vegetables any size you like but make sure they are all approx. the same size
2. Chop chillies,ginger and garlic into small pieces
3. Mix everything in a large bowl and spray or drizzle with about a teaspoon or more of olive oil
4. Add seasoning* of your choice and mix well along with ginger and green chillies. I used garam masala in the picture below.
5. Spray a baking tray with olive oil and spread out your vegetables (use aluminum foil for less cleaning)
6. Cook for 20-25 minutes
7. To add that extra something, heat up a teaspoon of oil and splutter some mustard and cumin seeds along with curry leaves and mix well with the cooked vegetables. Add lime juice before serving.

Serving Instructions

Serve with brown rice and chapati and leafy dal for a very filling and nutritious meal. Leftovers keep well in the fridge for a couple of days.

Notes:
You can use any assortment of vegetables like carrots,peas,broccoli etc.
You can use any kind of seasoning like gram masala or just salt and pepper or herbs like oregano etc.
Bake time depends on the level of crunchiness you like in your vegetables

 

Hi Hema,

Thankyou...I enjoy experimenting with all cusines. My current obsession is baking bread though...hopefully I will be able to share some good ones soon.

Misc

 

Spinach Salad

This is an easy and nutritious meal.
Recipe serves 1.

Ingredients

2 cups Spinach
1/2 Green Apple
1 Carrot
Olives
Almonds (any nuts of your preference)
Baked Tofu (recipe to follow)
Ranch Dressing (recipe to follow)
Boiled Egg (optional)
Bacon (optional)

Instructions

1. Slice the apple and carrot into thin slices.
2. Toss together apple,carrot, spinach,baked tofu and olives.
3. Sprinkle with chopped almonds.
4. Mix in dressing or serve it on the side

Serving Instructions

I served this salad with a dinner roll(recipe to follow) and used baked tofu in place of croutons for added protein. Another way to serve this salad is with a chopped boiled egg or with a sprinkle of some crumbled bacon for that added flavor.

Notes:
Apples add the required crunch and tartness to this salad. They can be substituted with beets.

 

Ranch Dressing

Ranch dressing is easy to make and tastes so much better than store bought. The base is a mix of mayonnaise and buttermilk and you can play with the flavors by using different combinations of herbs.

Ingredients
1 clove Garlic or 1/4 tsp garlic powder
Salt To Taste
1/4 cup Italian Flat-leaf Parsley
2 Tablespoons Fresh Chives
1 to 1/2 cup Mayonnaise (adjust according to desired thickness)
1/2 cup Sour Cream
1 cup to 3/4 cup Buttermilk
White Vinegar (optional)
Dill (optional)
Oregano (optional)

Instructions
1. Chop all the herbs finely
2. Mince garlic , if using
3. Mix all the above ingredients until you get the desired consistency

Serving Instructions
Serve with crunchy iceberg lettuce, hot wings, raw veggies or any salad of your choice.

Notes:
1. To make the dressing low fat, use low fat or fat free sour cream and mayonnaise. Also you can substitute part of mayonnaise or sour cream with greek yogurt.
2. Raw garlic can impart a pretty strong flavor and may cause heart burn.
3. I used dried herbs dill and oregano and fresh parsley.
4. I substituted chives with finely chopped green onions.
5. Use vinegar if your buttermilk is not acidic enough(for added tang).

 

No Knead Bread

Today I tried my luck at baking the very famous "no knead bread". It takes minimal effort but a lot of patience. I think its a good,clean and simple recipe for novice bakers like me.

Ingredients
3 Cups Bread Flour or AP Flour
15/8 Cups Warm Water (a little more than 1.5 cups)
1/4 tsp Active Yeast
11/4 tsp Salt

Instructions
1. Add salt and yeast to the flour and gradually mix in water.
2. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula and cover the bowl with a plastic wrap.
2. Leave the bowl on the countertop and let the dough rise for about 12-20 hrs.
3. Place the dough on a floured surface and fold it over itself a couple of times.
4. Loosely cover and let rest for 15 mins
5. Roughly shape the dough into a ball and place it in a cotton kitchen towel dusted with corn meal or flour.Cover with another cotton kitchen towel and let it rest for about 2 hours.
6. 30 mins before baking the bread ,preheat the oven to 450 and place the dutch oven inside.
7. Place your hand below the towel and drop the dough into the hot dutch oven very carefully.
8. Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on and then bake for another 15 minutes without the lid(or until the crust turns brown)

Serving Instructions
Serve with soups or just eat warm with butter.

Notes:
1. I let the dough rest in a mixing bowl for the last two hours as I did not have a cotton kitchen towel.
2. I baked the bread in a lodge cast iron dutch oven, but you can use any container that doesn't have plastic parts and you can cover with a foil if the container doesn't have a lid.
3. This bread has a beautiful crunchy crust and is soft and yeasty inside.

 

Hi Jaya,

Edamame is nothing but fresh soy beans.

Misc