Tomato Jam

Right now Tomato is at Rs.12/- for 1.5kgs near our place. Since its the season of Tomatoes I decided I should make Tomato jam. My mother used to make this when I was a kid and as far as I remember, it was the simple version of the tomato jam with just sugar & lemon juice in it. But I chose the recipe from Swapna's blog.

Makes about 500gms of Tomato Jam

 

Ingredients:

Tomato- Ripe- 1 kg

Water- 5 cups

Sugar- original recipe calls for 1kg, but I added about 4 small cups of sugar

Cinnamon stick- 3x1 inch stick

Clove- 8

Lemon juice- from 1 large lemon

Method:

Chop the tomatoes and cook them in 5 cups of water till they are tender

Let the mixture cool and puree it in a blender.

Strain it to remove all the left over seeds/ skin.

Take a heavy bottom pan, add sugar, cloves, cinnamon & lemon juice and cook the mixture on medium flame.

Stir continuously till the mixture thickens. You will know the jam is ready when you pour a drop of jam into water and the jam jellies. 

Dont over cook and else you will not be able to spread the jam.

The stirring will be needed for close to an hour on medium or low flame..so ensure you have that much time in hand before you start.

Soya Granules Sabji

Sunday night dinner was supposed to be Methi paratha & Curds, but I added in the Soya Granules sabji into the menu and convinced my mum-in-law that this has the goodness of Eggs without eating egg :-D

Ingredients:
Soya Granules- 2 cups
Onion- 1 large finely chopped
Green chilly- 1 large finely chopped
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tbsp
Peas- 1/2 cup
Carrot- Chopped small preferably but I had some leftover grated carrot from my raita so added it.
Oil- 2 tbsp
Jeera- 1/2 tbsp
Lemon juice- 1/2 lemon
Coriander leaves  chopped finely for garnishing

Dry Powder:
Coriander Powder- 1 tbsp
Jeera Powder- 1/2 tsp
Turmeric Powder- 1/2 tsp
Garam masala (optional)- I did not add
Salt to taste


Method:
Add the soya granules into boiling water and keep it soaked for 10 mins. Discard the hot water and wash the granules in fresh water 2-3 times till it loses the odd smell. Squeeze out water from the soya well and keep aside
In a kadai, heat oil. Add Jeera and let it splutter. 
Add chooped onions, green chilly & ginger garlic paste. Saute it till onion is cooked.
Add in the dry masala powder and mix to remove the raw smell. 
Add in your chopped vegetables and mix well and close the kadai for sometime till the vegetables are atleast half cooked. Keep stirring in between, just to ensure you dont up burning your veggie. 
Add in the soaked soya granules, mix well and again cook on low flame with the kadai closed.
Once the vegetables are cooked completely, the sabji is ready. 
Remove from fire and add the lemon juice & Coriander leaves.
Serve hot.
Best goes with hot phulkas.

Veggie pudina Pulav

Sunday lunch special was Veggie pudina pulav & boondi raita.

Veggie Pudina Pulav

Serves 4 people

Ingredients:
Basmati Rice- 1 1/2 cups
Carrot- 2 (diced small)
Long Beans- 15 pieces (finely chopped)
Fresh Peas- 1/2 cup
Onion- 1 Large chopped fine-length-wise
Ginger Garlic paste- 1 tbsp
Cinnamon
Bay leaf
Clove
Pepper crushed
Water- 3 cups
Jeera- 1 tbsp
Oil- 2 tbsp
Ghee- 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Pudina chutney if you have it ready at home, else chop pudina leaves, grind it along with some greeen chillies & lemon juice in a mixie and keep the mixture aside.
Coriander leaves- finely chopped for garnishing

 I prepared my pulav directly in a pressure cooker

Method:
In your cooker, add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the jeera and let it splutter. 
Add onion, ginger garlic paste, Cinnamon, bay leaf, clove, crushed pepper and cook till the raw smell goes and the onion turns transparent pink.
Add the cut beans & carrot and cook it for another 2-3 mins. 
Add the fresh peas and mix till it is covered with oil, at this stage you can add salt, pudina chutney/ mix and the washed rice and mix well again till the rice is covered well with the mixture.
Add water and cook the rice. (2 whistles on high flame, simmer it for another 7-10 mins). 
Once the pressure comes down, add the chopped coriander and lightly mix the Pulav with a ladle. Serve hot with Raita.

We like our rice to be not too spicy and soft, hence I have not added too much spice and cooked the rice additionally on simmer for 10 mins.

Veggie Raita
prepared this for saturday night dinner.

Ingredients :
Grated Carrot- 1/2 cup
Grated Cucumber- 1/2 cup
Pomegranate- 1/4 cup (optional)
Salt to taste
Sugar- 1/2 tsp
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Jeera powder- 1/4 tsp
Curd- 2 large cups

Method:
Beat the curd well and add rest of the ingredients 
 
Raita is ready to serve with your pulav.

Boondi Raita
 
Ingredients :
Curd- 2 large cupsSalt to taste
Sugar- 1/2 tsp
Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp
Jeera powder- 1/4 tsp
MTR Khara Boondi- 1/2 cup

Method:
Beat the curd with salt, sugar, chilly powder & Jeera powder. Just before serving add the MTR Khara Boondi to the curd, mix and serve.

Eggless Chocolate Brownie

This was a part of my anniversary gift to my hubby dear. Original recipe is from Jyotibabel's blog, I added milk instead of water..and I am thrilled with the consistency, texture & taste of my brownie. 

Ingredients:

Maida/ All purpose flour- 1 cup

Cocoa Powder- 1/4 cup

Sugar- 1 cu

Butter (unsalted)- 1/2 cup minus 2 tbsp

Baking powder- 2 tsp

Salt- 1/2 tsp

Curd- 1/2 cup +2 tbsp

Milk- 3 tbsp

Chocolate chip- Handful

Vanilla essence- 1 tsp

Walnuts- optional

Method:

1. Preheat the microwave at 160C.

2. Sieve the maida, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and salt together.

3. In a separate bowl whisk together butter, curd and vanilla till the butter is soft and blends with the curd.

4. Add the maida mix to the butter curd mix. Add 1 tbsp milk at a time until you reach the thick flowy consistency. 

5. Add the chocolate chips & Walnuts at this stage. I didnt have walnuts at home so added only the chocolate chips.

6. Prepare your baking tin by applying some oiling and dusting it with maida.

7. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared tin and bake it for 30-35 minutes at 160C. 

8. Check your brownie at 25 mins & 30 mins by inserting a skewer. Once the skewer comes out clean your brownie is ready to be pulled out.

9. Let it cool down at least for for a few minutes and move the brownie to a wire rack

10. Slice it up and it is ready to eat as it is, or you could do some simple chocolate frosting or have it with a scoop of icecream. I prepared some chocolate frosting for my brownie :)

Note: this does not rise up like other cakes..so dont keep waiting for it to rise and burn up your brownie ;-)

This was a midnight surprise I gifted along with my home made ginger wine to my husband on our 13th anniversary :) And he's loved every bit of it...

Cookies & Ginger Wine

Key chain & bead bracelet gifted by my dear daughter to us on our Anniversary

 

Whole wheat choco chip cookie

The original recipe is from Food.com. But I modified it and have added milk, cocoa powder and baking soda.

Ingredients: 
Whole wheat flour- 3/4 Cup
Unsalted Butter- 1/2 Cup
Powdered Sugar- 6 tbsp
Vanilla Essence- 1/2 tsp
Baking Powder- 1/2 tsp
Baking Soda- 1/2 tsp
Chocolate Chips- handful
Milk- 1 tsp (optional)
Cocoa Powder- 1 1/2 tbsp

Method:
1. Sieve together Flour, baking soda and baking powder.
2. In another bowl mix butter and sugar in a bowl and add Vanilla essence into it.
3. Now the flour into the butter mixture and add the chocochip and mix well.
4. You could add in milk at this point to be able to mix your dough wel.
5. Cover the dough and refrigerate for about 30 mins.
6. Preheat the microwave oven at 180C.
7. Once out of refrigeration, make small balls of the dough, spread on oven tray and press a little.

8. Bake the cookies in Microwave convection mode at 180C for 18-20 mins.
9. Once done, rest it for a while and then move to wire rack and let it cool.
10. Store in an airtight container.

Choco Chip Cookies

Wifey's bakes in progress...trying out choco chip cookies today..

Saw through many recipes on the net, but finalized on the one posted by Raks Kitchen

Ingredients:
Maida- 1 cup
Choco chip- about handful.
Sugar- Powdered 6 tbsp
Unsalted Butter- 1/4 cup in original recipe, I put almost 1/2 a cup.
Baking soda- 1/4 tsp
Baking powder- 1/2 tsp
Milk- 1 tblsp
Vanilla essence- 1/2 tsp

Method:
Preheat the microwave at 180C.
Sieve together Maida, Baking Powder and Baking Soda in a bowl. 
In another bowl mix butter, sugar, vanilla essence. 
Once this mixture is ready add in the chocochip and the maida mixture and mix it into a dough. 
Add the milk at this stage to help you with mixing.
Make small balls of this dough and place on the baking tray and flatten it out.
Bake in Microwave Convection model at 180C for 20mins. 
Check your cookies between 15-18 mins, just in case yours gets done(golden) faster.
Let it on the tray for a while and cool it on wire rack.

yyaayy, I was worried that the extra butter I had added might make my cookie soft. But no...it looks perfectly done. 
My daughter telling me I should have added cocoa powder also into the dough :-) The love for chocolate is endless...

Peanut Butter Cookies

Since I was excited about the success with the outcome of Nankathais, I thought I could try one more and I ended up preparing Peanut Butter Cookies for my kids. In comparison I would prefer the nankathai because of the ghee flavour it has, but I would say as a standalone this also is amazing.

I used the Eggless recipe from Gayathri's Blog. Gayathri's recipe had peanuts roasted and put in. The lazy me decided I would do without it and used the Crunchy peanut butter instead and I ended up baking the cookies for 30 mins!!

Ingredients: Maida-3/4 cup
Butter-1/4 cup Crunchy Peanut Butter-3/4 cup+1 tbsp Light Brown Sugar-1/2 cup Baking Powder-1/2 tsp Milk-1/8 cup
Method: 1. In a bowl mix together flour, baking powder. 2. In another bowl mix together butter, peanut butter and brown sugar until soft. 3. Add milk and beat. 4. Add the flour mixture and mix well 5. Cover the dough and refrigerate it for 30 minutes. The dough will become firmer and it will be very easy to shape the cookies. 6. Preheat microwave at 160C. 7. Pinch out small lemon sized balls out of the dough, roll it and place it on the tray. Arrange the balls leaving atleast 1" gap giving the cookies place to spread. 8. With a fork, press the ball into flat round cookie shape and get a criss cross pattern. 9. Bake in Convection mode for 30 minutes at 160C 10. Remove from oven and let it sit on counter until the cookies are firm. Incase you feel that cookies are not getting firm, bake for another 2-3 mins. 15. Carefully remove the cookies from the tray and transfer to a wire rack. Allow it to cool completely.