Organic Grilled Whole Wheat Pizza

International Vegetarian Main Course Special
Italian Cuisine
Organic Grilled Whole Wheat Pizza

Serves 2

Ingredients:

For Toppings:

Onions: 1/2 cup, finely sliced

Green Bell Pepper: 1/2 cup, finely sliced

Red Bell Pepper: 1/2 cup, finely sliced

Yellow Bell Pepper: 1/2 cup, finely sliced

Baby Corn: 6 No's., finely sliced

Zucchini: 1 small, finely sliced

Tomatoes (optional): 1 medium, finely sliced

Extra Virgin Olive Oil- 1 Tbsp.

Pizza Base:
Whole Wheat/Multi Grain Pizza Base- 2 No's.

Mozzarella Cheese- 1 to 2 Cups

Black Olives: 8 No's., Finely Sliced

Dried Italian Seasoning
Jalapenos (optional): 3 nos

Pizza Topping/Spread- 2 Tbsp.
Red Chilli Flakes

Method:

In this recipe, we have used a Microwave with Grill option to make the Pizza at home

Apply some olive oil on the back of the Pizza Base, and grill it for 3 to 4 minutes facing this side

In a pan, add some Olive Oil and roast the Bell Peppers, Onions, Zucchini, and Baby Corn, saute til you get the desired roasted color and keep aside

(We can directly grill the vegetables in the microwave, but it will take more time)

Meanwhile, on the Pizza Base add the Pizza Spread and spread it evenly

Then add about 1/4 cup of Mozzarella Cheese on top of the spread

Add the Grilled Vegetables, Olives, Jalapenos, and a small amount of Italian Seasoning to the base

On top of the Pizza Base, add the 1/2-1 cup of Grated Mozzarella Cheese

Bake the Pizza for 7 to minutes

Slice it with a Pizza Cutter and serve hot with Chips/Garlic Bread and a chilled Soda!

Feel free to share your views & do let us know how this one turned out :)

Grilled Hearty Thousand Island Salad

International Vegetarian Salad Special 

‘Fresh from the Garden’

Grilled Hearty Thousand Island Salad

Serves 2 

Ingredients:

Iceberg Lettuce- 4 to 5 Large Leaves

Tomato- 1 Medium size, Cut into Quarter Inch slices

Zucchini/Cucumber- 5 to 6, Cut into Quarter Inch slices

Green Bell Pepper- 4 to 5, Cut into Quarter Inch slices

Red Bell Pepper- 4 to 5, Cut into Quarter Inch slices

Yellow Bell Pepper- 4 to 5, Cut into Quarter Inch slices

Black Olives- 4 No’s, Finely Sliced

Purple Cabbage- 1 Small Leaf

For Dressing:

Thousand Island Dressing- 2 to 3 Tbsp.

Lemon Juice- 2 Tsp.

Dry Fruits (Walnuts, Pistachio, Raisins)- Finely Sliced

Red Cherries

Garlic Bread/Toast

Method:

Cut the Tomato into 4 to 8 Pieces

Grill/Roast the Tomato, Zucchini, Bell Peppers for about5 Minutes in a Grill (I use a Grill Microwave with stand)

Check to see till the Veggies are Crisp on the Outside & still stay soft on the inside

Break the Lettuce Leaves in to small pieces (preferably by hand), thinly slice the Purple Cabbage Leaves and slice the Black Olives

Put the grilled Vegetables, Lettuce, Purple Cabbage, and Black Olives in a bowl

Add 2 to 3 tablespoon of Thousand Island Salad Dressing, 2 teaspoon of Lemon Juice, a pinch of Salt (if needed) and mix all these properly

Place the Salad in a bowl, and garnish it with the finely sliced Dry Fruits and Cherries

Serve the Salad with hot Garlic Bread or Toast

Tips:

For a Healthier Version, just Few Tsp. of Extra Virgin Olive Oil can be used as per Personal Preference

Feel free to share your views & do let us know how this one turned out :)

Organic Beaten Rice Flakes (Indori Poha) Saatvik/Jain Breakfast/Snack

Indian Vegetarian Breakfast Special

Organic Beaten Rice Flakes (Indori Poha)
Try this Saatvik/Jain Version of the Classic Indori Poha!

Serves 2

Ingredients:

Organic Beaten Rice Flakes (Thick Poha) - 3 Cups 

Green Chillies (Hari Mirch)- 3-4, Finely Chopped

Potatoes (Aloo)- 2 Medium, Finely Chopped (optional if making it according to Strict Jain Standards)

Carrot (Gajar)- 3 Tbsp. Finely Chopped

Green Peas (Matar)- 2 Tbsp.

French/Green Beans- 2 Tbsp. Finely Chopped

Extra Light Olive Oil/Olive Pomace Oil- 1 Tbsp.

Organic Fennel Seeds (Saunf)- 1Tsp.

 

 Organic Mustard Seeds (Rai)- 1 Tsp.

Salt (Namak)- To Taste

Organic Turmeric Powder (Haldi)- 1/4 Tsp.

Sugar (Cheeni)- 1/2 Tsp.

Ratlami Sev- To Garnish

Chopped Coriander (Dhaniya)- To Garnish

Pomegranate Seeds (Anar Dana)- To Garnish

Lemon Juice (Nimbu ka Ras)- To Taste

Jeeravan Powder

Method:

Wash the Poha in a strainer 2 times till the water comes out clean

Sprinkle some Salt, Turmeric, Sugar and little oil while mixing the Poha

Keep it aside for about 8-10 Minutes

Heat Oil in a Wide Non Stick Pan

Add Peanuts, Mustard Seeds, Cover & Saute till the Seeds start to Splutter

Add Fennel Seeds, Green Chilies & Sauté

Add the Poha, sprinkle Salt, Sugar & Mix thoroughly

Sprinkle some more Water, mix and cover it for 5-10 minutes to let it cook in its own steam

Serve Hot garnished with Coriander, Sev and Pomegranate sprinkled with Jeeravan Powder & Strong Indian Tea (Kadak Chai)!

For Kadak Chai:
Wagh Bakri Tea- 

Water-
Milk-
Sugar-

TIPS:
If needed, feel free to decrease/increase the Poha quantity (according to personal preference) 
Be very careful while washing the Thin Poha as it becomes mushy easily. Try to change the water and wash Poha till water comes out clean and keep the Poha dry.

The majority of recipes in Andhra, Tamilnadu and North India are prepared from 2 types of Poha:
Thick Poha- Used for Chivda and they puff when deep fried
Semi Thick Poha- Used for Kanda/Batata/Indori Poha
The other 2 varieties like Medium Poha and Paper Poha are easily available & more often used in Western Indian cuisine.
Poha is a simple to prepare, high calorie yet nutritious, low fat and low calorie breakfast, snack or brunch enjoyed by people of all age groups!

During our stay in Vadodara, some of the best Poha (with Chai) was always from the Tea Shops (Chai-Poha Stall)
 

For a fasting/festival day meal, my Mom prefers to have a light meal like Upma, Poha, Dosa, ideally without Onion Garlic. Ideally this recipe can be made by using pure ghee to enhance the flavours (and provide instant energy to a person who has been working out/fasting all day!)
For a healthy yet authentic dish, try using Olive oil, Brown Rice Flakes (Poha/Atukulu/ Aval), Fresh Assorted Vegetables, Roasted Sev and multi-coloured fruits
 

One other Poha variety uses Mustard Seeds, Cumin Seeds, and Coriander Seeds as Tempering
To make this recipe as it is made with Onions, just add 3 medium finely chopped onions
Ratlami Sev is specifically mentioned here as it gives the perfect authentic taste of our Indore’s ‘world famous’ Poha :D
Seedless Grapes and/or Raisins (Kismish) can be used just before turning the stove off or at the time of serving as well
 

Overall, Indori or as we may say Indori Poha SHOULD HAVE Fennel seeds, Sugar, Chopped Coriander, Choppeed Onions, Pomegranate seeds, Ratlami Sev and Jeeravan Powder along with Strong Tea (Kadak Chai) and Indian dessert Jalebi!!
 

For more information on Tea and Jalebi:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masala_chai
http://www.rediff.com/getahead/2006/oct/31tea.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jalebi

Feel free to share your views & do let us know how this one turned out :)

Fresh Spinach and Fenugreek with Potatoes (Aloo Palak Methi)

Winter Indian Vegetarian Main Course Special
Punjabi Cuisine
Potatoes cooked in Spinach Gravy with Fresh Spinach and Fenugreek Leaves (Aloo Palak Methi)

Serves

Ingredients:

Potatoes (Aloo)- 2 Medium, Boiled

Spinach Leaves (Palak)- 1 Medium Bunch, about half a Bunch Chopped and Rest made into Spinach Puree- 1/4 cup

Fenugreek Leaves (Methi)-1 Medium Bunch, Chopped

Extra Light Olive Oil/Olive Pomace Oil-1 Tbsp.

Cumin Seeds (Jeera)-  1 Tsp.

Onion- 1 Chopped

Fresh Ginger- 1 Inch, Chopped

Fresh Garlic-  4-5 Small Cloves, Chopped

Salt- To Taste

Green Chillies- 1 Tsp., Chopped

Turmeric Powder (Haldi)- ½ Tsp.

Red Chilli Powder- 1 Tbsp.

Whipped Yoghurt- 3 Tbsp

Method:

-          - Peel and cut the boiled Potatoes in small cubes 

-          - Clean, wash and chop Spinach

-          - With the rest of the bunch, clean, wash, blanch, and make Spinach puree

-          - In a Non-Stick pan, Heat Oil and Cumin seeds

-          - As Cumin start to crackle, put onions and cook till they become soft

-          - Put Ginger- Garlic and Sauté

-          - Put Potato, Spinach, Fenugreek and Mix well

-          - Put Salt, Turmeric and Green chillies

-          - Put Spinach puree, cover and cook on low flame for about 4-5 minutes

-          - Put Yoghurt just before taking off the flame

-          - Serve hot with Indian Bread (Phulka, Parantha) or Rice

Tip:

-          - Stack few Spinach leaves together so they become easy to chop

-          - The onions shouldn't be overcooked but just soft in this recipe

-          - For this recipe try to use fresh ginger and garlic or their paste can be used if chopped pieces aren’t preferred

-          - The classic combination of Garlic and Spinach go together beautifully and give a nice flavor to this dish as well

-          - Green leafy vegetable like Spinach and Fenugreek tend to have salt of their own so for the dish use extra salt carefully’

-          - Blanching or ‘Refreshing of Green Vegetables’ is a precooking process by which greens (Spinach, Asparagus, Cauliflower, Green Beans, Broccoli) are dipped in hot water for few minutes and immediately transferred in ice cold water so that they are semi cooked and retain their bright colors. This method is great for cutting and preparing vegetables in advance by freezing and used for further cooking like sauteing or stir frying

          - Turmeric gives a nice color to any green vegetables dish

          - Low Fat Yoghurt is an excellent substitute for Full Fat Fresh cream in most of the dishes especially for our own Indian dishes as a healthy meal option; so in this dish it gives the required sour taste as well as blends well in a creamy texture with the Greens 

    Feel free to share your views & do let us know how this one turned out :) 

Classic Debate 'When to Eat?'

http://in.lifestyle.yahoo.com/whats-perfect-time-dinner-095945841.html