Today's post is going to be simple, short and sweet ;) On a Monday, as I am gearing up for the week, I am going through Monday blues with piles of work load and stress at work. Honestly, I am not in a mood to post much here, except for a good recipe to keep your week going good. Hopefully, healthy too with these Whole Wheat Sugar cookies.

I baked a batch of these earlier today and they turned out really good. With a cup of my morning milk, I munched on these to satisfy my sweet cravings. These are effortlessly made simple vanilla flavored cookies. I am not sure if I should say these are cookies or biscuits? Since I like them very crisp, just like what a biscuit would be, I should rather call them biscuits!

I made 2 batches of these. One with plain white granulated sugar and another with brown sugar. Also, using of whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour was to make it more healthier. Just being experimental at it. The plain white sugar came out the best. The brown sugar wasn't bad too and had a slightly lower tones of sweetness. Give it a try.

Whole Wheat Sugar Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
A pinch of salt
1/4 cup veg oil
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp cold water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Sift together whole wheat flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and keep it aside. Cream together the oil and sugar. It will not turn as light and fluffy as butter. Introduce the vanilla extract to it.

Add the flour mixture gradually until the flour is fully incorporated and the dough is smooth and uniform. Wrap up dough and refrigerate for 2 hours if you are using butter instead of oil (can be skipped as no butter is involved). Remove when you are ready to bake the cookies.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease the cookie tray. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and dust with more flour. Gently roll out the dough using a dusted rolling pin to 1/8" thickness.

Using a cookie cutter, cut out cookies and place on sheets about an inch apart. Bake for 10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden brown. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. Once cookies are cooled, you may dust them with icing sugar or serve as is.

Sometime simple flavors can really give out the best, just like these cookies. I love that mild flavor emitting from vanilla. You may opt to leave them and keep them even simpler. Try lemon zest instead, would work great with citrus flavors.

I like the flecks of granulated sugar on these cookies. They look really nice, like that on Bourbon biscuits. These are light on sweetness and the hints of vanilla flavor is the binge take-away on these. If you need a company with a cup of tea or coffee or simple plain milk, then these can be your best bet.

Since my previous posts on cookies and success with egg-less ones, I have been splurging with more and more of them in my little kitchen. A lots more awaits in future to come. After having tried the healthy Granola bars for breakfast, I hadn't experimented much with the good old oats for long now. So it was time for these Oatmeal & Raisin Cookies.

Rolled oats have been very popular with people on diet, given that oatmeal is well known to lower the cholesterol levels, thus control cardiovascular diseases to an extent. It has high content of carbohydrates, is a good source of protein and fiber which encourages slow digestion and stabilizes blood-glucose levels. Considering so many health benefits, it's a good idea to consume a cup of it a day. Raisins too have a good nutritional properties. They have antioxidant properties and being high in calories, but not fats, raisins are very good source of energy. I have seen my mom, aunts and grandma soak few raisins in water overnight and consume them the following morning. It is said to boost blood generation process.

Oatmeal & Raisin Cookies has been traditional and quite popular in America. I have used Quaker oats, which are the regular rolled oats used for porridge or breakfast muesli. If you find difficulty in fetching brown sugar, use jaggery or honey instead. The flavor would change a little, but it's still fine that way.

Oatmeal & Raisin Cookies

INGREDIENTS

2 cups Quaker Oats (uncooked)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup raisins
3/4 cup butter/margarine, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp flax-meal
3 tsp water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Mix flax-meal with water and allow it to stand for about 30 mins to an hour. It will result in an egg-like gooey mix.

Whisk the butter/margarine and both the sugars in a bowl till they are frothy and creamy. Add in flax-meal water and vanilla and beat them well.

In another bowl, mix the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add this to the above wet mixture. Next add the raisins and fold all together till they come together to a rough dough. Drop the dough by teaspoonfuls onto baking tray and bake at 180 deg C for 15 mins or till they brown. Bake them longer if you prefer crispy cookies.

I love oats in this form. They are my best bet! Not being too sweet, they suit my taste way too well. I relished about 4-5 cookies in one go! They were damn good. A big batch of these freshly baked goodies disappeared in no time.

A few crispy edges, a few chewy middles, this bake filled with the goodness of healthy oats and raisins made up a good pair for my breakfast tea and the sunny noon snack. Truly a vegan treat!

I have always wondered why there is battle of minds when it comes to bread-making. Is it really such an anxious or a tedious art? Till I started taking baking seriously, I never thought of baking breads at home really. I had always visualized breads were meant to be made in bakeries with massive oven chambers, not something commonly known to be baked at home, till recently, when I saw a couple of good television cookery shows which showed how simple bread making can be. Not something that one should detest giving a try. Worth an attempt.

Even in the recent past, I have had good results making Foccacia or be it the Deep pan pizza, both using bread base. From these, I learn that the art of bread making is far simpler than baking cakes, cookies or muffins! Puzzled? Baked goods require exact measurements, restricting much scope to play around with ingredients and measurements of your choice. However, recipes involving making dough can be flippant with not so exact measurements required. They can be altered and ingredients adjusted to taste. Just a little time consuming, but with practically most commonly feasible ingredients in any kitchen home, one can bring out a healthy meal, which does always pose a temptation.

Apart from Indian breads, like Roti, Naan, Kulchas, which are fairly simple and faster, Western breads need ample time for proofing, a process where the yeast needs to rise to form ample air pockets in the bread. The dough is made in advance, which has active yeast added that assist in the process of rising. So plan ahead. Warmth is another essential factor for good proofing. It's similar to making yogurt from milk where the yeast plays a dominant role.

So for someone who is used to making Indian breads like rotis or parathas, making yeast breads at home will be a breeze. I have attempted this bread solely with Whole wheat flour instead of the all purpose flour along with honey and sesame combination.

Honey Sesame Whole Wheat Breakfast Buns

INGREDIENTS

25 g active dry yeast
50 ml warm milk/ water
1 tsp sugar
200 g whole wheat flour
50 ml warm water
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp oil

Topping:

1/2 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp sesame seeds

DIRECTIONS

Dissolve dry yeast in warm water with sugar. Leave for 5-10 mins to dissolve and become frothy.

Next mix the wheat flour with salt to taste. Add in the yeast, water and oil till a soft pliable dough is formed. Cover with a warm towel or cling film and leave it to rest for 4-5 hours or overnight in a warm place.

Next morning, the dough should have risen and doubled in size after about 5 hours of proofing. Punch it down. Roughly divide into round fist-sized dough. Grease and dust the bread tin or a roasting tray with some oil and flour. Transfer the dough gently to the baking dish. Allow to rest there for about an hour for the dough to rise again. I push the tray into a warm oven (not hot, else they will not rise, but bake!) After an hour, they will rise again. Brush the tops of the dough buns with honey and sprinkle some sesame seeds.

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees C. Bake the bread for 50 mins to an hour till the top looks crusty and brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the rack for sometime. Slice them as preferred. I sliced them horizontally in the center and spread a good amount of Nutella. They were great to go with the morning tea.

The rolls are good as is as they have a mild sweetness from honey. You can substitute the honey with sugar if you don't like the honey taste. Sesame seeds can be avoided if you prefer. The bread itself is not sweet, so it's the honey topped wheat crust that imparts a sweet and mild flavor to it. End result is a mild honey flavored, nutty sesame, healthy wheat breakfast buns. Way to go for a healthy start!

I am sending these healthy breakfast buns to Rachel of Tangerine's Kitchen as she is hosting an event titled 'Bread Baking Day'.

A nice big bar of bitter-sweet dark chocolate has been catching my dire attention for a while to be used. Never takes me too long for me to decide on how to use when it comes to chocolates ;) Often, it's consumed as is. Biting into a bar of bittersweet chocolate is quite therapeutic for me. Or do I call it an addiction???

I am so immorally self-indulgent in chocolate mesmerism that my husband recently got a nice catchy magnetic sticker that read, "Chocolates can make your clothes shrink!". It was meant for me to cut down on my on-going affair with chocolates and desserts. Poor guy deals with it all the time. Probably he's fed so liberally with my sweet tit-bits that he's now fed up being the experimental guinea pig!

The magnetic sticker is now stuck on the door of our refrigerator for my undue attention. So every time I walk towards or even pass by the fridge, I am supposed to take a conscious effort to understand it's implications on my waist-line. But that least catches my eye! That's me I say! It probably did for a day or two when I would hear voice from my back telling me it's time I should resist. Now it barely gets a glance, forget the second look!

These truffles are not just for chocolate addicts, they have a subtle hint of coffee flavors emitting from coffee liquor. We both don't consume liquor. Surprised! Strangely, I don't hesitate to buy them if it requires for any recipe! These were purchased to recreate my Tiramisu again. Instead, they have been rapidly poured and pampered on several desserts which I have been stirring up unendingly in my kitchen these days. I have lot more recipes to come forward which use coffee liquor. I am hoping they stay for least a helping of Tiramisu!

Chocolate and coffee combo flavors blend and compliment each other well. These are simple treats which can be whipped in minutes. They require no-bake and are great as take-aways for picnics, parties or even pot-lucks. It requires preparing the chocolate ganache, then chilling, rolling and the final coating.

Chocolate Truffles (With Coffee Liquor)

INGREDIENTS

125g bittersweet dark chocolate
30 ml single cream
10 ml coffee liquor

Coat:

About 40g unsweetened cocoa powder

DIRECTIONS

Chop the dark chocolates into small pieces. Melt it in a pan on a double boiler with hot water. Allow the chocolate to melt gracefully. Avoid overheating the chocolate as it loses it luster. Let it come to a stage where it just begins to melt. Now add coffee liquor to the chocolate.

Meanwhile, heat the cream over medium heat until the cream just comes to a boil. Add the molten chocolate to the cream and stir well till well combined. Now transfer this mixture to the refrigerator to chill for few hours. The mass should solidify on chilling.

Sometimes, the ganache may be soft and semi-solid in state. Mine did, probably because I used single fat cream instead of double fat one. In that case, rolling into balls may become quite a challenging task. You may add a little ground digestive biscuits for crunch and denser texture which will help in easy rolling. Adding almond or pistachio powder would also ease binding and add to nutty flavors.

Decorating is optional, but if done will surely give a wow factor to your creations. Roll these truffles well in unsweetened cocoa powder. Coat them completely. Serve.

You can play a around a lot with ingredients. While the ganache remains the base of this recipe, add in complimenting flavors to enhance it's rich base. Mocha, orange, mint, rum, apple vodka flavors or even chopped nuts can do justice to these. Even the coats can be of your choice. Glaze them with molten dark chocolate or get whacky with white chocolate coats for these tots.

I'll be coming out with more chocolate recipes, so keep watching this space for more to come.

I had a can of Amul condensed milk which had been lying in the fridge for few days. It was an open can which just needed to be finished. I was wondering how I could experiment with the little left over sweetened condensed milk. I knew I had many options of using it in halwa or probably ice-cream or may be a kheer. But I had other intentions for these.

I have been eying at some Dulce de Leche recipes for some time now. I like David Lebovitz's website where he not only masters the art of cooking, but brilliant photography. The photos are so good and tempting that I would lick them off from my monitor screen!!!

David, in his recipe says that the first time he had Dulce de Leche he began spooning it directly from the jar into his mouth and before he knew it, he had made it almost all the way through the jar. I too am in the same state whenever I open a can of sweetened condensed milk. I see myself indulging way too much directly from the can. This sweet temptation is just not too resisting. So I can imagine what Dulce de Leches can do to someone when offered!

I made these a few days ago. Before making them, I did a little research on how to go about achieving good results. Most common method was to set the can in a tub of water and bake in oven for 2-3 hrs. Well, that was too much of an effort for me. Not my types, as I have the least patience to carry out such tedious cooking tasks. Another great option was to use a pressure cooker with some water at the bottom of the cooker. Then place the tin in water and cook on pressure. This seemed easier. Since I had a little left over condensed milk, I went ahead with the third option, that's directly heating it on a thick bottomed pan. They were sticky and perfectly toffee like.

However, I find them way too sweet for my little dentures. So I added some crushed milk biscuits into these, shaped them to bite sized biscuits and chilled them for a while. Believe me, they were great. Fantastic!

There is a striking similarity between these with our very own Indian sweets. After all, a lot of our Indian milk sweets and burfis are made from boiling and reducing the milk which forms Khova and is later used in burfis, gulab jamuns, etc. Western countries use Dulce de leches in preparations like cakes, cookies, ice cream, creme caramel, banofee pies, etc. It is also a popular spread on bread toast.

Dulce de Leche

INGREDIENTS

100 g of sweetened condensed milk
1 thick bottomed pan
A wooden spoon to stir

DIRECTIONS

Pour the sweetened condensed milk into a thick bottomed pan. Heat up the pan with the condensed milk till the mixture begins to bubble through. Do this process on a medium low flame with continuous stirring as it's easily susceptible to burning, if left unattended. It took about 10-12 minutes for the milk to turn into toffee.

Once the Dulce de Leche is lightly browned and looks caramelized, turn off the flame and allow to cool. Dulce de Leche will thicken further when allowed to cool. Store in the refrigerator if you are not ready to use immediately. Warm if required before serving.

I would be making these again in future, but probably using the pressure cooker method. The next time, it would be the entire can. Is a Banofee pie waiting? Possible!

Since my purpose of making Dulce de Leche was just experimental, I headed towards experimenting a little more. I made and savored these little bites with my evening cup of tea. These are real quick No Bake Bites which we enjoyed.

No Bake Bites

INGREDIENTS

A packet of milk biscuits
A spoon-full of Dulce de Leche
A few chopped nuts

DIRECTIONS

In a freezer bag, throw a few milk biscuits and nuts. Beat them with a rolling pin. Transfer to a bowl and add the Dulce de Leche to it. The toffee texture is good for it to bind. Bring them all together and shape them as desired. The sole reason I used Dulce de Leche was because I found them way too sweet. This way, the intensity of sweetness was far reduced. Perfect for my taste.

I had a neighbor aunt drop into my home the same evening and she too savored these wholeheartedly. She said it was so good that she would love to re-create the same for her grand-daughter. Now, wasn't that sweet? And of course, she did come back to me for the recipe.

Yippie! Veg Bowl has been awarded! I am extremely delighted to have received this award from Suma of Cakes and More!!! Thanks a ton Suma! This is also my first award for this blog, so there is sheer happiness receiving it!

Suma from Cakes and More!!! churns out amazing cakes and bakes and that intrudes me to go back to her blog again and again for more to come. With her blog being a little more than a month old, she has whipped a number of cakes (as much has 20 odd in a month!), a cake for a day I say! With a sweet tooth myself and love for cakes and it's likes, her blog is quite an inspiration. Do take time out to peek into her blog.

As I receive this award, I would also like to share this award with Asha of FoodiesHope. Asha has a great collection of traditional Konkani & Mangalorean cuisines, contemporary food and several other delicacies with her blog updated from time to time. Well deserved! Please accept this award. Congratulations!!!

Valentine day is fast around the corner and the entire world seems to be enticed by it's mood. I see the world painted in red almost everywhere I go. Looks like the Valentine swings have set in weeks before the day arrives. Shops are filled with red hearts, pillows, greetings, balloons, tinsel items, etc. Even bakeries have not left a step behind. Heart shaped cakes and cookies adorn their display shelves. These were hardly seen few years ago when this Cupid day was hardly known.

I have never taken Valentine day seriously. Simple because you don't need a special day to love someone. But, it is still a good idea to celebrate a day that signifies love. Love can break all boundaries. It's a basic instinct of tender affection and compassion. Then, doesn't it deserve a day to be marked? An occasion to commemorate? A day of significance? It's nice to make someone feel special or be felt special by someone!

The other day a newspaper read that 'Young guys and gals heading to be hooked up before Valentines'. Not my take. I don't understand why! Anyways, why should I step a foot behind when the world is celebrating? I made this wonderful, rich, moist and vegetarian chocolate cake to surprise my sweetheart.

If all the restaurants are packed and you don't find a space for yourself or if a Ram Sena or Shiv Sena or any other Sena terrorizes you to go out with your loved one, don't stop yourself from making this cake and rejoicing it with your cupid love. Dim the lights, fragrant the romance with scented candles, pour the wines, mellow the music, bring the cake out and let the hearts speak!

I was clear that I wanted chocolate cake for the occasion. Also, as mentioned on my previous posts, I am experimenting on egg-less versions. After the recent success with cookies, I looked forward to some more recipes with potential variations. This one is with milk and milk powder and has been a success. This cake is simply good. So eat your heart out without any guilt.

Death by Chocolate

INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 cup plain flour (125 g)
1/2 cup milk powder (50 g)
1/2 cup milk (60 ml)
1 cup sugar (100 g)
A little more than 3/4th cup cocoa powder (80 g)
1/2 cup veg oil/ melted butter (50 g)
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp soda bi-carbonate
A pinch of salt
1/5th cup coffee liquor (20 ml)

DIRECTIONS

Pre-heat the oven. Warm the plain milk. Add the milk powder to it and stir well till it dissolves completely. Use soy milk powder to make it vegan. Add in the oil/butter, the liquor, (if using) and vanilla essence and whisk well.

In another bowl, mix the flour, the baking powder, soda and salt along with sugar and cocoa powder. Combine well. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and fold them.

Grease and flour a baking tin and transfer the above cake batter to the baking tin. Bake for more or less 30-40 min on 180 deg C (depending on your oven). Test with toothpick for done.

Remove and allow to cool. Slice the cake across into half horizontally. Drizzle the coffee liquor on both the sides of cake slices allowing them to absorb well.

Prepare the frosting:

125 g dark chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup heavy cream (20 ml)

Heat heavy cream or whipping cream in a sauce pan. Remove from heat and add 100 g of finely chopped bittersweet dark chocolate. Stir well until smooth. Allow to cool a bit.

Spread about 1/3 of the frosting between the two layers. Lay the other slice of cake over this. Frost the top of the cake with and the sides with the remaining frosting. Chill the cake for an hour or more for the frosting to set well.

Garnish the cake with shavings of white chocolate. You may use dark chocolate for the same. I used white chocolate garnish for aesthetic purpose only. The white strikes the cord well against the deep dark background.

This cake is a little on the heavier side. It's a sure delight for a true chocolate lover. A small helping is sufficient to satisfy the craving needs. Warm the cake for a minute in microwave before serving. Pair it with vanilla ice-cream.

Slip into the eternal world of this decadent chocolate cake. These will surely leave you unresistingly indulgent with every bite you'll savor. Eat your heart out on a piece or two! Share it with your loved ones and get showered with loads of pampering this Valentine. Truly a delightful treat!

It was 10 years ago that I made Bangalore my home. I was introduced to this city by my dad who moved here on course of his transferable job. Back then, I was a young girl in my teens who had just completed 12th grade, having given Common Entrance Test (CET), I was on an ambitious lookout for an engineering seat in a prestigious college.

Those were the days when dad was staying alone in Bangalore, before we moved with him later. It was post the CET exams during the holidays that dad would take us around the fairly novel city, showing us the city with passionate enthusiasm. Malls were limited, but we had stretches of Brigade and MGs to stroll, Cubbons and Lalbaugs for weekends, Bannerghatta zoos to spend the entire day... Coming to this city, it was with high hopes and ambitions to build a good education and career. Both happened and succeeded.

I loved the city the very first instance for a few reasons which I still hold close to my heart. One of the best weathers throughout the year, which no other city in this country enjoys as much we do. The tranquility and sereneness is truly a paradise which makes it called as 'the pensioner's city'. This is also a city of youngsters with a lot of life, enthusiasm, energy and spirit.

Those were the days when Bangalore was on the brink of development. IT was springing to boom. Today it's a different scene all together. Bangalore has changed and is seeing changes at a galloping pace. Weather is changing steadily and it's alarming to see the rate at which the city is massively growing. With the decrease in number of trees and the invariable increase in traffic, noise and pollution, we really need to ponder where we are heading to. Bangalore is my home. It pains to see the city and the lifestyle changing rapidly. It's just a hope that this change would decelerate in unhurried and dawdling manner.

These were a few heavy words from my grave thoughts. The weather these days is very foggy and chill and I love to cozy myself in the warmth of the quilt. As I wake up every morning, the first thing I look forward to is a cup of steaming hot tea to warm up ourselves. These Raisin n' Walnut Cookies were made for these mornings and evenings to sip with the hot tea. They are just lovely with good crunch on the crust and chewy centers. You'll like them too.

Raisin n' Walnut Cookies

Dry Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour (150 g)
1/2 cups all purpose flour (50 g)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup brown sugar (50 gm)
A pinch of salt

Wet Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted cold butter (100 g)
1/2 tbsp ground flax seeds
3 tbsp warm water
1 tsp vanilla extract

Add in:

1/2 cup raisins (50 g)
1/2 cup chopped walnut kernels (50 g)

DIRECTIONS

First grind the flax seeds with warm water till they become a mushy egg-like paste. Set aside for later use.

Mix in all the dry ingredients, both the flours, baking powder, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl. Add in cold butter. Using your fingers, work the flour–sugar mixture into butter until dough resembles coarse breadcrumbs.

Next, add the ground flax meal paste along with vanilla extract to this. Fold in gently. Add the raisins and walnuts. Knead gently to form a smooth dough. Chill in fridge. Unlike last time where I was impatient to wait, I allowed the dough to chill for an hour in the fridge. Shape the cookies to rounds and flatten them a little. Place them on the baking tray and bake them a 180 deg C for about 10-15 minutes or till they brown. Remove and allow to cool before serving.

The nutty whole wheat flour combined with all purpose flour is a healthy permutation. Flax seeds have nutty flavors too. Raisins have a tangy sweetness and paired with these deeply wrinkled walnuts, all combined together bring out the best in them in form of these cookies. I have made these a little plumper this time, but the next time I may try to flatten them more for solely crispy baked cookies.

Indian curries are not as difficult to make as it is often assumed. There are few basic and common ingredients which you may have to stock in your pantry, like the coriander powder, cumin powder, garam masala (mélange of different spices), turmeric powder and chilli powder. You can win a crowd with just these basic stuffs. If one is a spice lover, then do not hesitate to extend yourself to add whole spices like cinnamon, cloves and cardamom, which can further add piquancy to the dishes.

Mutter Paneer is one such aromatic, spicy Punjabi curry made from Indian cottage. Paneer is just a simple homemade Indian cottage cheese which made without any aging. It's also a good alternative to use left over milk. Simple method to prepare it is by curdling heated milk with lemon juice or other food acids like vinegar. Curd and whey are allowed to stand and separate after which it is strained and squeezed from whey to form a colloidal solid curd mass.

This dish is probably one of the most frequently ordered dish in Indian restaurants. Most restaurants use full cream and mono-sodium glutamate, making the dish creamy and heavy. Although the taste would differ a little when made at home, it is still adorable and endearing delectable.

Mutter Paneer

INGREDIENTS

200 gms paneer cubed
250 gms shelled peas
3 medium tomatoes, pureed

Whole Spices:

1 tsp cumin seeds
2 bay leaves
A stick of cinammon
2 cloves
2 cardamoms

Dry spice powders:

1 tsps coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder

2 tbsps of oil
1 1/2 cups water
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves chopped fine to garnish

Grind to paste:

2 medium onions
1 tbsp ginger
1 tsps garlic
1 green chilli

DIRECTIONS

Fry or roast the cottage cheese (paneer) for few minutes till it has browned lightly on both sides. Drain and keep aside.

Heat the oil and fry the cumin seeds, bay leaves, stick of cinammon, cardamoms and cloves for few mins. Next add the ground onions paste for a minute or two till lightly brown. Now add the tomato puree and fry for a little while till you see oil leaving on the sides. Add in the dry powders, the salt and fresh cream (if required) and let it simmer for a few minutes. Now add the green peas and the fried paneer. Garnish mutter paneer with freshly chopped coriander leaves.

This recipe may look complicated, but it is not at all. It is just about having a stock of all the right ingredients. As I mentioned, since we love spices, I tend to use whole spices to add more spicy flavors to the dish. You may avoid them if preferred. In case you do not have the whole spices, increase the quantity of garam masala for spice. They would still be good. Addition of about 2 tbsps of heavy cream to this dish makes it rich and creamy. I skip on fresh cream and only use it occasionally. This dish is good with roti or basmati rice.

I recently made a batch of Strawberry Muffins again. A pot of strawberry preserve was almost seeing it's end and what could have been a better way for me than using them in muffins? Well, this time it wasn't butter-less, but yet low in fat as I substituted butter to vegetable oil. A kind of an experiment with cooking, which worked good. Blame it on my fridge which had no stock of butter as we used them all for breakfast breads! I had made quite a lot, which seemed to be lasting for a few days.

I don't generally enjoy eating the same over a period of days. As we usually get bored, it was the same case with these muffins as well. We loved them for a day or two, but then it seemed to last in the fridge for longer this time. So instead of discarding these precious sweet treats, I made muffin biscottis out of these.

I removed them from the fridge during the mid-day. Allowed them to come to room temperature and baked them early evening for our tea. As these were being baked, we could smell the warmth coming from the soft scented vanilla and fruity strawberry, gently drifting through the house, ditto like freshly baked biscuits right out of oven. As they cooled, they crisped well. Every gentle bite into these were wonderfully crusty, fresh and invigorating. Perfect to enjoy during our tea time.

No one can say these were made from left over muffins. Why don't you give them a try too?

Strawberry Muffin Biscotti

INGREDIENTS:

About 4-5 strawberry muffins
A little oil or butter to wax the baking tray

DIRECTIONS:

Gently remove the muffins from their paper cover base. Slice them thinly to about 1/2 cm or 0.2 inches thins if you prefer crisp biscotti, or about 1 cm thick if you want chewy treats.

Lightly oil the base of baking tray. You may avoid this step if required. Spread the muffin wafers on the tray. You can place them close and side by side as these won't rise any further. Bake them for 10 mins, more or less (depending on your oven) till the biscotti have browned lightly.

These simple and easy biscotti go really well with tea or evening coffee. Crisp and light, so easy that they can be done in less than 10 mins.

I am hell bent on not trying the Indian cuisine when we dine out at restaurants. Although most Indian restaurants expertise in good Indian food, I opine that we dine out for a change in the regular food we eat. It doesn't make sense to me to eat Tadka dal or Chole or Palak Paneer, unless if the hotel offers great Indian food and is known for that... On the other hand, I have come across people who just love to stick on to the same menu every time they eat out. I wonder how one never gets bored! For me it's a BIG NO NO! I love my life and food with a difference... be it Chinese, Italian, Mexican or even Middle Eastern food... Since we do not make them home very often, it's a pleasant change to dine outside once a while. And whenever we do, we love to explore different cuisines.

Being vegetarian does not limit our options. And that does not stop us from eating good food either. We even love and enjoy even basic stuffs like salads! One common kind of food that Indians often love to eat out is Indo-Chinese food. I am not sure where and how this concept evolved, but it definitely is a hit in this country with a large population of people loving street side food. Though I have never been hooked by street food considering cleanliness factors, most people would beg to disagree me on that.

Whenever we have such cravings, I make them home with much lesser oil and salt than what we get outside. One such food favorite of mine is simple flavorsome Chinese Hakka Noodles. I adore them truly. I made them over the weekend and they tasted wonderfully good.

Chinese Hakka Noodles

INGREDIENTS

2 cups Hakka Noodles, boiled and strained
2 tsp Garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp Red chilly flakes
1 small bunch Spring Onion
1 onion, diced
1 small capsicum, diced
1 tbsp shredded cabbage
1-2 green chilly, slit vertically
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp tomato sauce
1 1/2 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Cook noodles in boiling water as per the instructions on the pack.

In a wide mouthed pan/kadai, heat oil. Add garlic and green chillies and fry for a minute. Add onions and fry till transparent Now add capsicum and fry till it tenders. Next add shredded cabbage and fry for another minute. Add spring onions and continue frying for 2-3 minutes more. Now add boiled and strained noodles and salt (to taste) and mix well. Add soy sauce and tomato and mix it well. Top with red chilly flakes for spice. Hakka Noodles is ready to be served hot.

Making pizzas have never been tedious task. In fact, they are one of the simplest and the easiest to make, especially if you have the base ready. They make a complete meal by themselves. We love indulging in pizzas quite often. And I ensure I make them all home, including the base.

I generally use whole wheat flour crust base to give them a healthy touch. For me pizza is all about the toppings! So with loads of toppings on them, one can hardly identify the difference in taste between the wheat flour crust against the all purpose flour crust. I am a huge fan of thin crust pizzas, but for a change I decided to go for a deep pan pizza this time. They were actually good for the heavy topping that I use often as they hold them very well. The thick base against the heavy toppings. Perfect to hold the toppings even after they are cut to pieces. I consider to continue making deep pan pizzas again in future for sure.

I realize that I have been loving thin crusts, because pizzas from restaurants offer with light toppings and sauce on a heavy crust. Feels as if we are biting into bread more than the mild sauce and light toppings they come with. My pizzas hold loads of vegetables and good dose of cheese to complete them.

To make the pizza crust at home follow my previous post here. Just double the quantity of ingredients to be used. Infact I used three times the amount mentioned as I made a bigger batch. Also substitute the all purpose flour to whole wheat flour if you want to go the healthier way.

Roll the dough and transfer it to a pizza pan. A deep dish pizza would mean the dough is about 3/4 inch thick in height which would rise a little more on baking.

Tomato Basil Pizza Sauce

INGREDIENTS

8-10 pods of garlic, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 cup tomato puree
1/4 cup tomato sauce, optional
Salt and paprika to taste
1/4 cup of fresh basil leaves, torn
Italian herbs, such as oregano / basil (optional)
2 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Saute finely chopped garlic and onions in oil for 2 mins till they turn transparent. Add the tomato puree and stir well. Cook for atleast 15-20 minutes till it reduces and leaves oil from the sides of the pan. Add in the tomato sauce and stir well. Cook for another 5 minutes. Add in the freshly torn basil leaves, herbs (optional) and spices. Stir well. Turn off the flame and set aside to cool. Use this sauce to spread over the pizza base.

Deep Dish Pizza

Ingredients for Toppings:

50 gm mushrooms
50 gm onions
50 gm baby corn
50 gm yellow capsicum
50 gm red capsicum
50 gm cherry tomatoes
20 gm jalapenos

All the vegetables were chopped to small-medium sized chunks. Spread them on the sauce on the pizza base. You may choose vegetables of your choice. I did not have olives at hand, else they can be added too. If you dislike vegetables, then skip them and go for a Classic Margherita style pizza with just the sauce and cheese toppings.

For the cheese topping:

100 gm cheddar cheese
100 gm mozzarella cheese

No pizza is complete without cheese!!! Load your pizzas with dollops of cheese. I like my pizzas low on cheese. But if you are a cheese lover and calories don't bother you much, then don't stop your self to add more cheese. Pizzas can take them and they taste best when loaded with good amounts of cheese.

Bake them in oven for 20 minutes or till the crust has baked well and the cheese turns golden brown. Remove and garnish the top with oregano and chilli flakes. Using a pizza cutter, slice to pieces and serve hot.

This pizza was a delight to our afternoon lunch. Served with simple coleslaw, every bite into the pizza was flavored with combination of healthy vegetables sandwiched between the crusty whole wheat base and the baked cheesy top. A delight to a pizza lover's heart.

I bake cakes and cookies with no eggs or no butter with a lot of hesitation. You see, I have not had convincing results without these in the past. So my hesitation is valid. I do not have eggs at hand most often. I buy them only with an intention of making a dessert which I have planned in advance on my mind. Else, I never extend myself to cooking anything with eggs apart from desserts.

I am a perfectionist. I love my bakes to be perfect... rich in flavors and heavenly in mouth. When I follow a recipe, I ensure I stick to what measurements and ingredients the recipe asks for. I am always in dilemma when cooking with alternatives as they may not result to what they should be.

My search for alternatives to eggs haven't yielded good results either. Most common alternatives being agave nectar, unsweetened apple sauce, soy yogurt, silken tofu, flax seed powder, ener-g egg replacer, etc.. etc... etc... Most of these, or must I say, none of these are even available easily in Bangalore. Though off late, a few supermarkets have these imported stuffs on their racks, but the prices of imported goods are way too sky-rocketing that purchasing them at exorbitant prices makes no sense. I would rather enjoy them eating outside with no efforts at all!

Flax seeds were hardly available earlier. But they seem to be getting a little popular in bigger super markets. On one occasion when I had seen them in stock in the nearby Foodworld, I got my hands on them. I had been using them in muesli and granola, but never used them as an egg replacer. So when I came across reviews that flax seed can make good alternatives to eggs, I decided to use them in my chocolate-chip cookie recipe.

Chocolate-Chip Cookies

Dry Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (200 g)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup brown sugar (50 gm)
1/4 cup white sugar (50 gm)
A pinch of salt

Wet Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted cold butter (100 g)
1/2 tbsp ground flax seeds
1 tbsp warm water
1 tsp vanilla extract

Add-ons:

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (100 g)

First grind the flax seeds with warm water till they become a mushy egg-like paste. Set aside for later use.

Mix in all the dry ingredients from the list above in a mixing bowl. Add in cold butter. Using your fingers, work the flour–sugar mixture into butter until dough resembles breadcrumbs.

Next, add the ground flax meal paste along with vanilla extract to this. Fold in gently. Add the chocolate chips. Knead gently to form a smooth dough. Chill in fridge if necessary. I was impatient to wait though. So I headed to bake them. Shape the cookies to rounds and flatten them a little. Place them on the baking tray and bake them a 180 deg C for about 10-15 minutes or till they brown. Remove and allow to cool before serving.

I am glad I tried this. The flax seed can hardly be noticed or even tasted. One would never imagine that the cookies contained them. They were great. Loved and enjoyed by all. Every bite into the freshly baked warm cookie was decadent and heavenly. It just made our day complete.

It's hard to believe that these are truly eggless! They were crunchy on the outside and chewy in the center. Way to go for a perfect cookie to be mastered!

I have a simple post today. Nothing much on my thoughts to pen down. I am back from a short, but adventurous holiday break and it feels great to unwind and refresh during the trip. Wish to have more of these often. Some simple pleasures are truly adorable!

Pumpkins have never worked well with me. Neither as a dessert nor in a curry. Apart from the Pumpkin Walnut Bread, which was certainly loved and adored by all, they haven't suited our tastes much though. I rarely bring them and whenever I do, they last for months in my freezer, finally ending to throw away half of it. I have almost stopped bringing them home. It's like a resolution. Pains to see so much of it being wasted.

One recent occasion saw me bringing pumpkin home again. Don't blame me - it's a temptation to buy when the prices hit low! The nearby store has a routine Wednesday sale on vegetables and fruits. So I ensure that I fill my crates and baskets to the brim every time I shop here on Wednesdays. As I unpacked the stuffs back home, I could see the dire look on my husband's face as he stared at that yellow vegetable as an evil thing.

I hoped to use them in pumpkin pies or make muffins, but even this time we were not in a mood for pumpkins. We need to kind of mentally prepare ourselves to enjoy yellow pumpkins. Wondering why! I doubt these can ever be my good friend! I ended up discarding a lot of it this time too and have resolved never to bring them again. Well, not even for an attempt!

Although, I did enjoy this simple roasted pumpkin seeds which I made a couple of days ago. Simple and nutty. Good for a lazy evening or a simple snack to munch on.

Simple Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

INGREDIENTS

Seeds from one pumpkin
Salt to taste
Chilli powder to taste

DIRECTIONS

Cut the yellow pumpkin to half. De-seed the pumpkin carefully. It can be very slimy to hold. So scoop them to a bowl. Tender seeds taste the best. Remove aged seeds if possible. They may be hard and too nutty to chew on.

Next, wash them thoroughly in running water till the slimy flesh on the seeds are removed. It may take some time, but it is worth the effort. Allow them to dry.

On a roasting pan, spread the pumpkin seeds and roast them on medium-low flame till they are lightly golden brown and crisp. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Season with salt and chilli powder to taste. You may also bake them in oven on 180 deg C for about 15 mins, tossing them on between.

They make a great healthy snack to munch on. Enjoy a healthy treat!

"Firstly, wishing all a Happy and Prosperous New Year 2010"

Initially, the sole purpose of this blog was to publish simple, easy, home cooked vegetarian recipes. However, I have been cooking and posting more desserts and bakes than what the blog originally called for. I see myself deviating from what was meant to be a simple Veg Bowl, love for life and simple good food... going the vegetarian way. I think I should reconsider renaming this blog for another one. Probably a Dessert Bowl or a Bake Bowl, yeah?

This blog has unfolded new facets of cooking to me and I am enjoying it thoroughly with every passing day. It has been fun working in kitchen trying new stuffs which were tried and tested by my mum long back but not by me. She is taken by surprise the way I have been evolving into a daring baker! I ought to continue with the bouquet of surprises for her :)

Recently, we were craving for some simple food. The Christmas gala and the New Year bash must have seen most of us diving into an array of heavy fat loaded food and creamy, fancy desserts, that now we ought to give rest to our tummies. So I made these simple yet, flavorsome ginger tambli/tambuli to accompany rice for our afternoon meal today.

Tambli or Tambulis are supposedly coolants and are commonly made in summers to beat the South Indian heat. They are best had with steaming hot rice. They are had as starters over steaming hot rice accompanied with pickles and papads. Varieties of these tamblis can be made from different ingredients ranging from ginger, garlic, various herbs, asafeotida or even methi seeds (fenugreek seeds). They are simple and easy to prepare and are generally coconut and yogurt based.

These were very common at home. Amma makes varieties of these. I am an ardent lover of these and can have them as is, even as a refreshing drink. Amma generally makes another gravy curry and a dry subzi whenever she makes tambli. They make great food for patients suffering from fever as they are very easily digestible. This will make you hungry within few hours if not accompanied by side dishes.

Shunti Tambli

INGREDIENTS

3/4 inch ginger pod
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 cup thin yogurt/buttermilk
2 Green chillies
1 tbsp Grated Coconut
Salt to taste

For tempering:

1 tsp oil
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
2 Red chillies
A pinch of asafoetida

DIRECTIONS

Grind the ginger, green chilli, coconut & cumin seeds to a smooth paste. Add thin curd or buttermilk along with salt to this & mix it well. Adjust the consistency by adding more water to this. Tamblis have a thin consistency. So add water if preferred.

For tempering, heat oil in a temper pan. Add mustard Seeds, 2 whole red chillies and a pinch of asafoetida. Fry till it begins to splutter. Add this tempering over the prepared tambli and close immediately.

Serve with steaming hot rice, papads and pickles. Enjoy!