VEGETARIAN MEXICAN TACOS

Ingredients:

12 tacos shells (home made or ready made)

For The Rajma Topping:

3/4 cup red rajma (kidney beans) , soaked for 8 hours and boiled
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
1/2 tomato chopped
1/2 capsicum chopped
1/2-1 green chili chopped
1/2 tsp garlic finely chopped
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera) powder
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tbsp schezwan sauce or chili sauce


Other ingredients:
sour cream or hung yogurt add salt to taste
thinly sliced onion,shreaded carrots and cabbage with some salt to taste
pomegranate seeds

Method:

1. Heat oil in a  pan, add garlic,onions and capsicum and sauté on a medium flame for 1 minute.
2. Add green chilies, tomato puree, tomato ketchup,schezwan sauce, chilli powder, cumin seeds powder and salt, mix well and cook on a medium flame for 2 minutes, while stirring occasionally.
3. Add the cooked rajma with some water, mix well, mash a bit using a potato masher and cook on a medium flame for 4 to 5 minutes, , while stirring occasionally till the water evaporates. 
4. Add chopped tomatoes, mix well and keep aside.
5. Place crisp tacos on a clean, dry surface, place a portion each of the rajma topping evenly over each taco.
6. Place some sliced onion, shreaded carrots and cabbage over rajma topping then some sour cream and finely garnish with some pomegranate seeds and coriander leaves and serve immediately.

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TACO SHELLS FOR CANAPES

Ingredients:

1 cup maize flour
1 cup maida + for dusting
salt to taste
2 tbsp oil
oil for deep frying

Method:

1. Sieve maize flour and all purpose flour together.
2. Add salt and 2 tbsp oil and mix.
3. Knead a soft dough using warm water.
4. Take out a ball of the dough,dust it with some flour and roll a thin chapati with the help of a rolling pin.
5. Take a muffin mold and cut as much round disks as possible.
6. Now gather the left out dough and mix some more dough and repeat the process.
7. Prick with a fork or knife randomly, to avoid the canapes puffing up while frying.
8. Meanwhile, heat oil in a wide and deep-bottomed frying pan or kadahi(wok).
9. Add the circular discs to the hot oil gently. Without crowding, fry as many discs as the pan could fit.
10. Keep turning them around and fry on low flame till they turn golden brown and crisp throughout. Remove them with a slotted spoon and drain them on absorbent towel. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.

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LAUKI KOFTA CURRY

Ingredients:

For making the koftas:
2 cups grated lauki (ghia or bottle gourd or doodhi)
3 to 4 tablespoon besan (gram flour)
1/4 teaspoon catch sabzi masala
1/4teaspoon degi mirch powder (lal mirch powder)
1 green chili (hari mirch) - finely chopped
1/8 tsp. or a pinch of baking powder
1/2 tsp salt or as per taste
oil for deep frying the koftas

For Curry:
2 large tomatoes pured
1 medium sized onion finely chopped
1 green chili finely chopped
1 inch ginger grated or finely chopped
4 to 5 garlic finely chopped
2 tablespoon broken cashews ground to paste(optional)
1/2 teaspoon cumin (jeera)
1/2 teaspoon degi mirch powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
1 teaspoon coriander powder (dhania powder)
1 teaspoon catch sabzi masala 
2 tablespoon oil  or desi ghee
salt as per taste

Method (vidhi):

1. Wash and peel the lauki/bottle gourd and  grate it. 
2. Squeeze the grated lauki  by pressing it between both of your palms and discard the juice or collect the juice and use it in curry. 
3. Mix grated lauki,gram flour, catch sabzi masala  degi mirch powder  green chili,baking powder and salt in a bowl and make lemon sized balls out of it. 
4. Deep fry the balls in medium hot oil till golden brown. drain on absorbent paper. 
5. Heat  2 tbsp oil in a pan or kadahi and crackle the cumin seeds then add finely chopped ginger,garlic,green chilies and onions and stir and continue to fry the masala paste till it starts leaving oil from the sides. 
6. Add tomato puree and all the spices and salt and cook further till the water evaporates.(At this stage you can add cashew paste if you like a thick gravy but I don't prefer to use it in this dish).
7. Now add about 1.5 cup water to the paste. stir and simmer for 10-12 minutes. lastly add the fried lauki koftas and let them be in the lauki curry for a few minutes. 
8. Switch off the gas, garnish with coriander leaves and serve lauki kofta hot with rotis, naan or jeera rice.

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PANEER TIKKA MASALA

Ingredients:
paneer tikka

2 tbsp refined oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 medium sized onions
1 cup tomato paste/puree
1 green chili
1/4 cup cashew paste
½tsp red chili powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 inch ginger
4-5 cloves garlic
2 cups water
½ cup fresh cream
1 tsp salt or as per taste
1 tsp sugar /2 tsp tomato sauce(optional)
1 tsp kitchen king masala or catch sabzi masala
1 tsp coriander powder
2 green cardamoms

Method:

1. Put sliced onions, green chili,ginger and garlic in a mixer and make a fine paste 
2. Take oil in a pan. 
3. Add cumin seeds and cardamoms and fry till the oil becomes fragrant. 
4. Add the onion ginger and garlic paste and cook till it become brown. 
5. Add the tomato puree and saute for 2-3 minutes. 
6. Add the turmeric powder, red chili powder, kitchen king masala powder, coriander powder and mix well. 
7. Add cashew paste. 
8. Stir and saute till the oil starts to leave the sides of the masala paste. 
9. Add water and stir. 
10. Simmer and cook on low flame for 10-15 minutes till the gravy becomes thick. 
11. Add half the cream and salt. 
12. You can also add sugar or tomato sauce if you want a light sweet taste in the curry.
13. Add paneer tikka pieces along with the veges and serve hot with chapati, parantha or naan.

 

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MOONG DAL HALWA

Ingredients:

250 gms, dhuli moong dal(split green gram without skin)

4 cups cup, full cream milk

300 gms, ghee
300 gms, sugar 

a pinch of saffron

1 tbsp, cardamom powder

cashews,pistachios and almonds, chopped for garnishing 

Method:-

1. Wash and soak the moong dal for 6 to 7 hours.
2. Soak saffron in 1/4^th cup of warm milk.  Keep it aside.
3. Drain and blend it in a blender to a coarse paste without water
4. In a heavy bottom pan or kadhai, add ghee and moong dal paste, mix.  Cook on a low heat till the dal turns light golden brown. Stir constantly.
5. Once the dal turns golden brown, add milk and mix well.
6. Cook on low heat till 3/4^th of the milk quantity dries up.  Keep stirring intermittently.
7. Add cardamom powder, sugar, saffron milk, chopped cashew and almonds. Combine well.
8. Cook on a low flame, stirring continuously throughout till the halwa takes a beautiful dark brown color and releases all the ghee flowing in the pan.
9. Dish out in a serving bowl, garnish with chopped almonds, pistachios, saffron and silver worq.
10. Serve hot. 

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VRAT KE AALU / JEERA AALU

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time : 15-20 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

4 large potatoes
2 tbsp desi ghee or oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1" ginger grated
1-2 green chilies finely chopped
salt to taste
1/2 tsp dhania powder
1/2 tsp garm masala powder or sabzi masala
1/4 tsp chili powder or degi mirch powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder (optional)
coriander leaves for garnishing

Method:

1. Boil potatoes in a pressure cooker till they become soft.
2. Peel the potatoes and then chop them in desired shape and size.
3. Heat ghee in a kadahi and crackle cumin seeds then add grated ginger and chopped green chilies and stir for a while.
4. Add salt, all the spices and the chopped potatoes and mix well.
5. Cook on low flame for 5-7 minutes till salt is absorbed in the potatoes and all the spices cat the potatoes well.
6. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with plain curd or vrat ke chawal ki kheer or sabudana kheer or kuttu ke aate ka cheela or kuttu ke aate ki puri or kuttu ke aate ki roti. 
7. You can simply enjoy this with poori or parantha even if you are not fasting. 

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HOME MADE SPRING ROLL SHEETS / SAMOSA PATTI

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

For spring roll sheets

1 cup all purpose flour (maida) 1/2 cup for dusting and making paste

3 tbsp refined oil

 salt to taste

- See more at: http://www.paakvidhi.com/2013/11/spring-rolls.html#sthash.T6WBjKMa.dpuf

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

For spring roll sheets

1 cup all purpose flour (maida) 1/2 cup for dusting and making paste

3 tbsp refined oil

 salt to taste

- See more at: http://www.paakvidhi.com/2013/11/spring-rolls.html#sthash.T6WBjKMa.dpuf

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

For spring roll sheets

1 cup all purpose flour (maida) 1/2 cup for dusting and making paste

3 tbsp refined oil

 salt to taste

- See more at: http://www.paakvidhi.com/2013/11/spring-rolls.html#sthash.T6WBjKMa.dpuf

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

For spring roll sheets

1 cup all purpose flour (maida) 1/2 cup for dusting and making paste

3 tbsp refined oil + oil for brushing

 salt to taste

Method:

1. Sift flour and salt and gradually add water and make a smooth dough.
2. Keep the dough on rest for 10-15 minutes under damp cloth.
3. Now take two lemon sized balls of dough and roll out each into a really thin translucent roti using maida for dusting. Keep aside.
4. Now roll out another part in the same way.
5. Brush with oil, sprinkle lightly with all purpose flour and place the first roti on top of the second one.
6. Roll out both the rotis together again and spread them to the maximum with the help of rolling pin.
7. Now, cook this roti on a medium hot Tawa/pan for 10 seconds on one side then flip the side and cook the other side as well for 10 seconds.
8. Lift off from tava and carefully peel open to separate the two rotis that were earlier stuck together. 
9. Make rest of the sheets the same way. 
10. You can use them for spring rolls or for making samosas. You can make them one or two days before using and keep them in fridge wrapped in a foil or cling film.

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STRAWBERRY MOUSSE PUDDING

Preparation time : 30 minutes
Cooking time : 5-10 minutes
Serves : 10-12

Ingredients:

400 gms non dairy whipping cream
2 packs strawberry jelly
1 sponge cake (home made cake or store bought) (I used Pillsbury eggless cake mix)
1 can fruit cocktail
fruits for decorating the pudding

Method:

1. Whip the whipping cream with the help of an electric beater till you get stiff peaks. Keep it in the refrigerator.
2. Make one pack of jelly as per the instructions on the pack and keep it aside till half set.
3. When the jelly becomes cool enough ,  mix the jelly with 3/4 th of the whipped cream and keep aside. 
4. Take a serving bowl and place half of the cake sponge as the base layer.
5. Drizzle syrup of the  canned fruit cocktail over the sponge and spread half of the canned fruits  all over on the cake ( cut them into small pieces).
6. Then spread a thick layer of whipped cream and jelly mix i.e. the mousse.
7. Now repeat the layers i.e cake then surup and fruits and then mousse.
8. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours. 
9. Make the other pack of the jelly and let it get a little cool and spread it over the mousse.
10. Garnish with fruit slices and remaining whipped cream. 
11. Keep it in fridge till the time of serving.

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SPINACH SQUARES

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time : 10 minutes
Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:

1 cup finely chopped spinach leaves
2 cups chick pea flour / besan
1/2 tsp sabzi masala or garam msala
1/4 tsp degi mirch
salt to taste
1 tsp eno fruit salt
oil for frying

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl except oil.
2. Add 1/2 to 1 cup water to make a thick batter like you make for dhokla.
3. Mix well so that there are no lumps in it.
4. Grease a tupperware box with little oil and pour the batter in it.
5. Keep the box in microwave on high for 4-5 minutes till all the water evaporates and you get a firm sponge. Let it get cool then take it out.
6. Cut in desired shape and size and deep fry in hot oil till it is crisp from both the sides. You can make it hours before serving and fry at the time of serving.

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PUNJABI RAITA

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
2 cups hung curd
1/2 cup milk or water
1 onion medium sized
1 tomato medium sized
1/2 cucumber
1-2 green chilies
5-6 mint leaves
salt  and degi mirch to taste
1/2 tsp roasted cumin powder

Method: 

1. Beat hung curd along with milk or water till it becomes smooth. 
2. Peel, wash and finely chop onion.
3. De- seed tomato,cucumber and chili and chop them as well.
4. Add chopped veges to the curd and mix well.
5. Add chopped mint leaves.
6. Keep the curd in the fridge till the time of serving.
7. Add salt while serving and mix well.
8. Sprinkle roasted cumin powder and degi mirch powder and serve chilled.

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