Hearty Spices

Preparation - Peel and slice ½ an English seedless Cucumber into thin slices. Cut the sides off 8 slices of white or soft wheat bread and keep aside. Leave 8 tbsp of Cream Cheese outside till it reaches room temperature.  Prepare the ½ cup of cilantro mint chutney in advance.  Cilantro Mint Chutney -  Take a cup of Cilantro Leaves, ½ cup of Mint leaves, ½ fresh minced Green Chili,  1/8 tsp of Cumin seeds, a Garlic clove, ½ tbsp of Lemon Juice, Salt and 2 tbsp of Water , if needed into a food processor and process into smooth sauce. Store the chutney in an air tight container in the fridge. Sandwich -  Spread a tbsp of Cream Cheese on one slice and spread tsp chutney over the cream cheese. Arrange 6-7 slices of cucumber on top. Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the cucumbers. Spread a tbsp of Cream Cheese and then one tsp of chutney on the other slice of bread. Place this on top of the cucumbers, to make a sandwich. Repeat...

Veg filling: Heat 2 tsp of Oil in a pan, sauté an inch of minced Ginger, 2 sliced Garlic pods until light brown.  Add a thinly sliced small Onion or 3 thinly sliced Spring Onion Whites , sauteing till translucent. Add 1½ cup of julienne Carrots, Cabbage, Beans and Capsicum (optional) , sauteing on high for 3-4 minutes. Add a tsp of Tomato Sauce, ¾ tsp of Chili Sauce, ¾ tsp of Soya Sauce, a tsp of Vinegar, ½ tsp of Pepper Powder, Salt to taste and mix well. Remove from heat. Dosa: Prep the tawa for dosa on medium heat. Pour a ladle full of batter in the middle of the pan and spread in a circular motion to form a 9 " thin dosa and pour some oil (a tbsp) all over the edges and in the center cover it with a lid. Spread a tbsp of Butter on the dosa and increase the heat to high. Once golden brown and crispy, place the veg filling in one corner and roll to the other side. Remove it from the tawa and cut it diagonally using a...

Prep - Preheat oven to 325°F. Toast 1/2 cup of shredded Coconut and keep aside. Melt a cup of Butter and keep aside.  Add toasted Coconut, 1/2 cup Sugar, 2 tbsp of Lime Zest, a tsp of Vanilla Extract to a bowl and mix well. Add 2 1/2 cups of All Purpose Flour , butter and combine till dough is incorporated. Knead the dough until smooth and add few tsps of Water till it comes together.    On a lightly floured surface, roll out one of the dough portions to about 1/4-inch thickness and using desired cookie cutters, cut out dough. Place cutouts 1" apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough. Bake for 15-17 minutes, Transfer cookies to a wire rack, and let cool to room temperature.  Drizzle each cookie with the lime glaze, adding extra lime zest on top if desired. Lime Glaze -  In a small bowl, whisk together 2 cups of Powdered Sugar, a tsp of Lime Peel, and a tbsp of Lime Juice until combined. Add in 2-3 tbsp of Water , and whis...

Aloo Ki Taari - Grind 2 medium diced Onion, 2 big diced Tomatoes, 4 cloves of Garlic, ½ inch minced Ginger  into smooth paste and keep aside. Heat a tbsp of Oil in a pan and crackle a tsp of Cumin Seeds . On low heat, add  ½ tsp of Turmeric powder, 1 tsp of Red Chilli powder and stir once. Add the onion-tomato paste and cook for 7 minutes, adding Salt to taste . Mix well and add 4 medium Potatoes (previously peeled, boiled and diced) and 2 cups of Water . Mix and cover cook for 15 minutes on low heat. Remove from heat and serve hot with Kachori (Puri) Kachori - Mix a cup of Maida / Wheat Flour, a pinch of Salt and a tbsp of Ghee in a bowl (looks like bread crumbs). Add enough  water to make soft dough and leave it covered for 10-30 minutes. Make small puris out of the dough and deep fry till golden brown in a hot oil. Serve with Aloo ki Taari. 

Heat a tbsp of Oil in a pan. Add and saute a medium Onion, finely chopped, 2-3 Green Chillies finely chopped till the onions turn pink. Add a tsp of Ginger Garlic paste and saute for 2 minutes. Now add a small finely chopped Capsicum and fry for a minute. Add and saute a finely chopped Tomato until it is slightly mushy. Now add  ¼ tsp of G aram Masala Powder, a tsp of Pav Bhaji Masala,  ½ tsp of R ed Chilli  Powder and a pinch of Turmeric Powder and fry for a minute. Add a cup of Crumbled Paneer, Salt  to taste and give a good mix and saute for a couple of minutes.The mixture should be moist and not dry,add a tbsp of water if required and cook for a minute. Add 2 tbsp of Butter and mix well, removing from the heat. Garnish with a tbsp of Lemon Juice, 2 tbsp of Chopped Coriander Leaves,  ½” of  chopped Ginger . Serve hot along with butter toasted Pav and sliced onion and lemon wedges.

Grind a medium sized ripened Banana along with 2-3 tbsp of Sugar (as needed) and take it into a bowl. Slowly start mixing  1½ cups of All purpose flour along with a big pinch of Baking Soda, Salt to taste,  ½ tsp of Cumin seeds (optional) to the puree. Mix in 3-4 tbsp of Yogurt to the mixture and make into thick sticky dough. Add 2 tsp of Oil and knead it for 3-4 minutes. Cover and refrigerate it overnight / 24 hours allowing it to ferment. Remove it from the fridge 2-3 hours before cooking.  Heat Oil in a kadai / deep pan for frying. Slightly knead the dough and divide the dough into 8-9 big lemon sized portions. Roll each portion by dusting it with flour into a 3-4" diameter thick disc (thicker than the poori). Remove the extra dusting of flour by gently patting on the discs. Gently slide the rolled discs into the hot oil and after few seconds try to press the middle portion of the disc gently with a slotted spoon. Turn to the other side and fry unti...

Preheat oven to 350 and line a 8 by 8 inch square baking pan with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick spray. Crust -  Soften  ⅔ cup of Butter   in a bowl and whisk it with  ½ cup of Sugar,  ⅔ cup Brown Sugar,  ½ tsp of Baking Soda , ½ tsp of Salt, 2 tsp of Vanilla  and  an Egg.   When incorporated, add in  2 cups of All Purpose Flour  and milk well. Fold in  2 cups of C hocolate Chips  and keep aside.  Filling -  Soften  8 oz of Cream Cheese  in a bowl and whisk in  ½ cup of Sugar, an Egg and  1 tsp of Vanilla   till smooth .  Press ⅔ of the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan to form an even layer. Spread the filling over the cookie dough layer and level again. Crumble remaining crust dough over the filling layer. Bake for 40 minutes, or until cheesecake is set and cookie dough has browned. Allow to cool completely and chill before slicing.