Recipes From My Kitchen

There are days when you don't have a good vegetable in the refrigerator and you are forced to think "out of the box" ....literally. I usually alternate a day of vegetable and a day of legume since dinner is the only meal the whole family has together. I want to make sure its healthy, nutritious, but ofcourse...suits everybody's taste buds :) I stack up a whole set of legumes in my little pantry and they are real life savers I must say!!! Black-eyed beans or Lobiya as its commonly called in India, is not a very common dish at home. However, I try and include it in some form or the other. I prefer it in my salads..it adds a beautiful crunch apart from the fact that they are low in fat!!! Black-eyed beans are rich in soluble fiber which helps to eliminate cholestrol from the body. As a high-potassium, low-sodium food they help reduce blood pressure too. When combined with grains, beans supply high quality proteins which provides a healthy alternative to meat and an...

For breakfast today I decided to make Corn Croquettes. Corn is high on proteins and carbohydrates which makes it an ideal ingredient for kids. They are a good source of Vitamin C and yellow corn has a small percentage of Vitamin A in the form of beta carotene. Corn is also rich in fiber so its a great way to start your day..it keeps your stomach full for a long time. Ingredients: Makes 16 medium sized croquettes approx 2 cups fresh corn kernels , cleaned, par boiled, 2 medium sized onions , very finely chopped, 1 cup boiled potatoes , grated, 2 tbsp, green coriander , finely chopped, 2 tbsp, cornflour , 1 green chilly , very finely chopped, 1 tsp lemon juice , 2 tbsp oil , Salt as per taste, Method: 1.) Boil the corn kernels (par boil) and potatoes and set aside. This can be done well in advance which saves a lot of cooking time. 2.) Coarsely grind the corn kernels in the mixer. Grate the potatoes. Chop the onions, green chilly, and coriander finely. 3.) In a bowl, mi...

I'm a big muffin fan..and I love them completely..They are so easy to make..and can be made within minutes. I've baked Banana muffins before..but this time I wanted to add something more.. I didn't have walnuts..which is the ideal combination..so I thought of trying out with raisins. As I started off with the preparation, a bunch of friends pleasantly surprised me by turning up for lunch!!! I wasn't prepared for this..and obviously there wasn't much I could offer them. So we decided to cook some rice and rasam at home. Everybody lend a helping hand. We all chatted..giggled..and ofcourse discussed lots of ideas in the kitchen..Kitchen conversations are great bonding agents :-). It was an absolutely ideal time for some hot muffins..and what a coincidence..the muffins were in the oven already!!! Here's how I made them... Ingredients: Makes 16 big muffins approx 150 gms flour , 150 gms unsalted butter , softened, 150 gms or 2 ripe bananas , mashed, 100 ...

Strawberries are all over in the market now. My son loves them. He loves the taste and especially the milkshake. He's quite hungry once he's back from school, and a good glass full of this milkshake just does the trick. Its an instant energizer and at the same time fills up the stomach. How to find that perfect strawberry? Well here are some things that I follow..A good strawberry must be bright red in color, particularly on the shoulder and at the cap of leaflets around the stem. The cap should be green (indicates its been plucked a couple of days ago), and the berry should have a distinct strawberry aroma. The flesh should be firm but not mushy, with an even sprinkling of seeds. Large and showy strawberries are beautiful to look at, while smaller strawberries are always more flavorful. Look for a strawberry with evenly spaced seeds along the bottom tip. Most importantly, no dark spots. While buying a container/box of strawberries, discard any that are seeping strawberr...

I've been looking for a good chocochip cookie recipe for quite some time. Last time I followed a recipe from a magazine..and needless to say..was an outright disaster!!! They turned out quite dark in color on top and almost burnt at the bottom. The only feel good factor at that time was I had halved all the ingredients..so the damage was minimized and we managed to finish the cookies fast. I recently read the post on Chocolate Chip Cookies by Deesha . I wanted to give it a shot...though was quite skeptical, courtesy the previous disaster. As always I halved the ingredients. I did make some changes to the sweetness..since I have a diabetic FIL, who, given a chance would lap up any sweet in top gear :). The results were stunning!!! I must thank Deesha for her tips which indeed were quite helpful. Ingredients : (Halved and slightly changed from Deesha's recipe ) Makes Approx 15-18 1 cup + 2 tbsps flour , 1/2 cup butter , softened, 1/2 cup granulated sugar , 1/2 cup D...