Mango Cucumber Salsa

Hi! Trying to compensate my absence with back to back posts. I need to blog all the summer recipes I’ve made before the rainy season officially starts and I am really lagging behind. I thought at least I’ll give you this mango salsa recipe before mango season is ends. This salsa is a perfect accompaniment to your chips and a great side to grilled chicken or lamb chops.

I don’t remember how many bowls of this sunshine I have devoured this summer. It is my absolute favorite. I eat chips just so that I can have salsa (or any other dips/condiment for that matter!!) and end up having it by spoonfuls in lieu of chips! I have a couple of peaches sitting in my fridge, waiting to be used up & I most certainly plan of turning them in to this salsa sans cucumber this evening (with mint of course!).

Enjoy& be patient.
Weekend is almost here! 😉

Mango Cucumber Salsa:

Serves: 2 | Prep time: 5 minutes | Cook time: 0 minute | Total time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded & finely chopped
• 1 cucumber, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1 ripe mango, sliced, pitted & finely chopped (about 1 1/4 cup)
• Salt & freshly cracked pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chiffonade (can be subbed with coriander leaves)
• Juice from 1 lemon

Don’t know what is basil chiffonade? – Pioneer woman tells you here!

Directions:

Toss all of the ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve (about 3-4 hours max otherwise it turns mushy). Serve with your favorite chips or a meat of choice.

Leeks, Fennel, Apple + Walnuts Warm Salad

 

Just popping in to say Hi as it’s been two weeks since we last talked! I am feeling unbelievably lazy and  don’t want to write much so I’ll leave you guys with this quick recipe. I hope you guys’ll understand.

Salads are usually underrated but this one right here is a total stunner. Perfect for spring! It was my first time using fennel in my home kitchen so I was quite excited in terms of what to make with it. I’m a salad person so that is what I wanted to experiment first. The combination of leek, fennel, apple and walnuts works so beautifully and sounds quite exotic but mostly they are all simple, earthy ingredients bound together by a simple dressing. I can’t wait to turn these ingredients in to a soup once the rainy days arrive in full swing(which I hope will be soon!).

Enjoy!
xx

 

 

Leeks, Fennel, Apple + Walnut Warm Salad

Serves: as a side for 2/a hearty meal for 1 | Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 10 minutes | Total: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 apple, cored & sliced (peeling is optional, I didn’t)
• 1 + 1 tsp lemon juice, divided
• 10-12 walnuts
• 1 Tbsp Olive oil
• 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 leeks
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves removed
• 1 fennel, small bulb, sliced
• 3-4 lettuce leaves

Dressing:

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 and 1/2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp honey
• freshly cracked pepper, to taste
• salt, to taste

Directions:

*Preparing Leek : Cut the ends off the leek and discard. Quarter the leek lengthwise, wash under running water to remove all the grit and cut them into slices.
*Preparing Fennel : Check this easy tutorial on The Kitchn

1. Wash, core and slice an apple. Toss with 1 tsp of lemon juice to prevent discoloration and set aside.
2. In a fry pan, add the walnuts and toast them on a medium-low heat until fragrant. Set aside.
3. In the same fry pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add garlic, leeks and thyme leaves to the pan and sauté for about 3-4 minutes stirring occasionally. Add sliced fennel, cook for another minute or so and remove it from the heat. Immediately stir in sliced apples and splash remaining 1 tsp lemon juice.
4. In a small jar, add all the ingredients for the salad dressing. Close the lid tightly and shake the jar vigorously until completely combined. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss.
5. In a serving plate, make a bed of lettuce leaves and top with salad. Garnish with toasted walnuts. Serve immediately.

‘Breakfast For Two’ ~ Savory Pear & Apple Dutch Baby

 

Good Morning & Happy Valentine’s Day ♥ Friends!

Roshni & I are back with our second installment of monthly cook-off. Keeping today’s lovey-dovey holiday in mind, the theme was a no-brainer – ‘Breakfast for Two’. So if you’ve still not thought of V-day breakfast for your sweetie then let us come to your rescue. I come bearing freshly baked savory German Pancake. Convenient without having to stand flipping pancakes on stove one by one and ready in 30 minutes! Slide it in the oven, go about your work (make coffee or arrange breakfast tray) and after 20 minutes, poof!, breakfast is served. No burnt sides too! 😉

Blogosphere is scattered with chocolates, berries and sprinkles for the occasion. Red and pink is so much in the air! I joined  the  bandwagon  too but if you’re not into sweet stuff then this recipe is just perfect for you.

 

 

Pear, apple, some leeks and smoked Gouda… The fruit is cooked in a pan with some butter and thyme. Heavenly smell to wake up to, if you ask me! The fruit is then arranged in cast-iron skillet or baking pan. Egg and flour mixture is poured over the fruit followed by cheese. The prep requires mere 10 minutes of time and then whole business is taken care of by your beloved oven. It is baked until golden for about 20-25 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve immediately.

This dutch baby is perfect as a Brunch/Brinner too and should be made on any day, not only on V-day. Make this NOW & thank me later. If you want to make a sweet dutch baby, then try this recipe of mine. And now go to Roshni‘s blog for a great ‘Breakfast For Two’ idea! Let’s check out what she has in store for us all! 🙂

Have a great day all you happy lovers out there! ♥ ♥ ♥

Savory Pear & Apple Dutch Baby

Serves: 2 | Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 20-25 minutes | Total time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp butter (salted works too)
• 2 Tbsp leeks, washed & thinly sliced
• Half pear, peeled, cored & sliced
• Half green apple, peeled, cored & sliced
• few sprigs of thyme
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup milk
• Salt, to taste
• 1/4 tsp lack pepper (or more)
• 1/2 cup grated smoked Gouda cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 210ºC / 425ºF.
2. Heat a small pan on a medium heat and add 1 Tbsp of butter to it. Once butter has melted, add leek, pear, apple slices and thyme leaves to the pan and let cook on a medium heat for about 3-4 minutes stirring occasionally. Set aside.
3. Mix the eggs, flour, milk, salt and pepper in a blender on a medium speed until just blended, 5-10 seconds.
4. Add rest of the 1 Tbsp butter in to a 9-inch cast-iron skillet/baking pan and put it in the oven. Wait until the butter has melted completely and sizzling then carefully take the pan out and swirl the butter around coating the pan completely.
5. Spread the cooked mixture of leek, fruits and thyme to the bottom of the pan. Pour the egg mixture on top. Finally, sprinkle the cheese all over and slide it back into the oven to be baked for 20-25 minutes, until slightly browned on top. Cut the dutch baby into 4 or 6 wedges and serve immediately.

Strawberry Jalapeño Salsa

 

This salsa is so so good. I made it the other night when few friends came over and I knew after the first bite that I had a winner. Thankfully I had clicked few pics beforehand (food blogger problems!) so I decided to make it a post.

Actually, it is quite silly of me to be presenting this as a recipe with strict measurements because, really, you can just chop, drop and taste as you go! So consider this as a rough guideline. You may substitute orange juice in the recipe with lime or make it using pineapple instead of strawberries. Summer on your plate!

 

 

This recipe here works so perfectly and you can use it on chicken, fish, meats, tacos, bruschetta, or just scoop it up with chips! Pretty versatile. Bring it to a pot-luck or a party and I bet no one has had it before! It is sweet, tangy, spicy and has a lot going on. Strawberries are in abundance right now, so go for it!

Brighten up your Monday with this simple yet cracking dish!
Have a great week ahead! 🙂

 

 

Strawberry Jalapeño Salsa

Serves: 3-4 | Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeño pepper, seeds removed and finely chopped
• Zest and juice from 1 medium orange
• Around 20 fresh strawberries, chopped into small even dice
• Fresh cracked black peppers
• Handful of cilantro, rinsed and finely chopped

Directions:

In a large bowl, let onion, jalapeño, orange juice and zest steep till you prepare strawberries.
Add strawberries, pepper, cilantro and toss. Chill until ready to serve.

Note: Don’t make this much more than an hour or so before serving. Like all salsas, it will wilt and the fruit may get a little mushy. An hour is the optical amount of time for the flavors to meld and the juices to start flowing. Longer than that salsa will slowly start to lose its fresh appearance.

Skinny Zesty Salad

 

After hogging lots and lots of sweets and fried stuff during 5 days of festivities in the past week, believe it or not, but my digestive system needed a break. So I am doing a cleanse/detox for few days.

I made this skinny salad for lunch one day and have fallen in love with it since then. It is so versatile, protein-packed and healthy even for people with diet restrictions. Yes! It is suitable for all the vegetarians and vegans out there! A complete meal in itself.

Add any or all of the ingredients mentioned below or whatever you have in your refrigerator. Don’t like uncooked Paneer/tofu? Don’t worry! You can grill it with a bit of olive oil and some seasoning before adding it to your salad or skip it. I once made this with just apple, pear, pomegranate and it was still lip-smacking!

So do your body a favor, give yourself a break from cooking and make this hearty salad! 🙂

Skinny Zesty Salad

Serves: 2 as a side and 1 as a main-course

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 3-4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 200 gm Paneer/extra-firm tofu, cut into 2 inch-long thin strips
• 1 small red bell pepper, chopped into thin strips
• 1 small yellow zucchini, cut into semicircles
• 1 small apple, thin slices
• 4 Tbsp black olives
• Bunch of lettuce
• few sprigs of parsley, finely chopped

For dressing:

• 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 Tbsp white wine vinegar
• Juice from 1 lemon, or more to taste
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat a small pan on stove and add 1/2 Tbsp oil to it. Add garlic and broccoli florets. Stir fry till cooked, approximately for 4-5 minutes. Be careful not to burn garlic. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients for dressing.
3. In a medium bowl, add stir-fried garlic and broccoli florets. To this, add prepared paneer/tofu, bell pepper, zucchini, apple and black olives. Pour dressing over it and toss nicely.
4. In a salad serving bowl, arrange lettuce at the bottom. Add salad on top. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve immediately*.

*If serving later, refrigerate the salad and add apple just before serving.

Oven Roasted Asparagus & Potatoes with PeanutButter & Buttermilk Dressing

Past 10 days were a blur at our house.. Between Karva Chauth party and my girl gang gathered at the house for the wedding, I hardly had time to squeeze in a blog-post. Those were such good days and in all honesty, I didn’t want them to end! Exciting times filled with fun, laughter and so much joy!! I’m going to cherish the precious memories of this time spent with friends and family forever. Moments like these is what makes our life worthwhile.

Between all the festivities of the past weekend and coming weekend, I am doing a detox of my own with fruits, soups, stir-fries and salads. Gearing up for the next big weekend, you see! You won’t believe how many great recipes I have lined up for you all! But before that enjoy this humble dish which truly deserves a place in your repertoire! 🙂

Today’s recipe is simple but totally lip-smacking.

I mean it has potatoes & peanut butter in it so of course! 😉

Just some roasted veggies with healthy yet delicious dressing. Perfect for the ‘touch of cold’ weather we are experiencing here.. It is great as a side dish or as a whole meal in itself.. I had it for dinner and could not finish it entirely. The recipe can easily be doubled, tripled or quadrupled as per your needs. I used regular potatoes but baby potatoes would be amazing too!

Roasted Asparagus & Potatoes with Peanut Butter & Buttermilk Dressing

Serves: 2 as a side-dish or 1 as a lunch/dinner

Ingredients:

Roasted vegetables:

• 4 small potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes or 12 baby potatoes, halved
• 20 spears of asparagus cut into 5-inch pieces, hard woody ends discarded
• 1 tsp olive oil
• Salt & pepper, to taste

Dressing:

• 4 Tbsp buttermilk
• 1 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp crunchy peanut butter
• 1/4 tsp honey
• 1/4 tsp red chilli flakes
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice
• salt & pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF. Arrange prepared potatoes and asparagus on the baking tray. Sprinkle with oil, salt and pepper and toss together. Let it bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes. Remove the asparagus from baking tray and return the tray to oven. Let the potatoes bake for another 15 to 20 minutes till fork-tender.
2. In a small bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the dressing.
3. Serve the roasted vegetables smothered with the dressing.

Enjoy!!

Caprese Pasta Salad

 

It’s my Mother’s Birthday today! She is the most special woman in my life. She is my first best friend and I have had heaps of special moments with her. She handed down so many traits of hers to me… We both love bags, shoes, clothes and FOOD! She is such an awesome cook!

As already confessed in my intro page, I never learnt to cook before I got married and being such a great cook that she is, my mom was quite concerned about that part. She sincerely wrote down all her recipes in a diary for my convenience and gifted it to me on my D-day. That is my most prized possession and a lovely gesture on my mom’s part! I should soon get down to posting few of her special recipes!

Among many things my mother and I share, we both LOVE pasta! So aptly, I am posting a very simple pasta salad which is very refreshing and flavorful. I’m sure my mom would have enjoyed this thoroughly if I could make this for her at home for tonight’s celebration. But we are distanced by miles hence a virtual birthday dish will have to suffice! 😦

 

 

I love Caprese in any and every form!

You must remember I once created this unusual ice-cream with it and these skewers served with pesto!

This time I brought together 2 of my favorites and created this dee-lish caprese pasta salad. Of course with a twist… I added capers for a little tang! And it really did wonders. This salad is so beautiful, adorned with pear tomatoes and bursting with basil! Hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Happiest of Birthday Mother! Cheers!!!

Caprese Pasta Salad

Servings: 4-5 as a side and 2-3 as a light lunch/dinner

Ingredients:

For salad:

• 2 heaping cups bow-tie pasta
• Around 20-25 pear tomatoes, sliced
• 25-30 small cubes of Mozzarella
• 2 Tbsp capers, drained & washed
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced basil leaves

For dressing:

• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• A pinch of red chili flakes
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Cook pasta in generously salted boiling water according to package directions till al-dante. Drain and rinse with cold water.
2. In a large bowl, add pasta, sliced tomatoes, Mozzarella cheese cubes, capers and toss.
3. In a small bowl, take all the ingredients mentioned under dressing and whisk.
4. Add the dressing to the large bowl of salad ingredients and toss well. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Let it chill in refrigerator for half an hour. Top with sliced basil leaves just before serving.

Caprese Skewers & Spinach Walnut Pesto

So I made some Caprese skewers.. They are so dang cute! Of course there is absolutely no need of a recipe to make them. It’s just cherry tomatoes, basil leaves and Mozzarella cheese on thrown together on a stick seasoned with salt, pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. That simple! Making these is a child’s play and they’ll rock any party! It can be served as an appetizer or as a last course with favorite cocktail or wine! 😉

I served these skewers with spinach walnut pesto.. Hmm… seems interesting?! Require a recipe for another quick pesto? Then read on.. I have told time and again that pesto is my fave. It is so versatile. I made a big enough batch for only 2 of us in the house and served it with these skewers, made dinner with some spaghetti, threw some in my breakfast omelet and made some grilled cheese for lunch. Phew!

So let’s get down to the recipe business!

Caprese Skewers:

Ingredients:

• cherry tomatoes, halved
• fresh Mozzarella balls
• basil leaves
• extra-virgin olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper, as per taste

Directions:

Skewer the cherry tomatoes alternating with basil leaves and Mozzarella balls. Once they are all skewered, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and serve alongside spinach walnut pesto.

Spinach Walnut Pesto

Ingredients:

• 3 cups spinach leaves
• 2 cloves fresh garlic
• 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted or untoasted (I’m lazy & used untoasted)
• 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 3/4 cup olive oil to begin with, add more as and if required

Directions:

Blend all the ingredients in a food processor till smooth puree is formed. Add more olive oil as and if required. Store in an air-tight container and refrigerate up to 4-5 days.

Mediterranean Couscous Salad

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” ~ Leonardo da Vinci

This salad is just that. Simple yet flavorful. Hearty yet sophisticated. Perfect lunch/dinner for those lazy, laid back days. Even better when you have only 15-20 minutes to put up a dinner and have scarce produce in your pantry. You just need couscous and throw in as many or as less veggies you have and you’re all set!

You know I’m a sucker for those lazy, quick recipes and this one here ticks all the boxes for me. And ignore my reflection in a spoon in a pic below.. Thank you! 😛

Mediterranean Couscous Salad

Serves: 2 | Prep time: 10 mins | Cook time: 5 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup couscous (I used Barilla Cous Cous)
• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 1 tomato, finely chopped or 1/2 cup halved cherry tomatoes
• 1 small English cucumber, finely chopped
• 2 Tbsp sliced black olives (If using canned, drain and wash)
• 2 Tbsp grated cottage cheese (can be substituted with Feta)
• 1 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

For dressing:

• 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp oregano
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Make couscous according to the package instruction. Transfer the couscous to a large bowl and fluff with a fork. Add onion, tomato, cucumber, olives, cottage cheese and cilantro.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for dressing. Season it with salt and pepper.
3. Pour the dressing over the couscous salad and toss until well combined. Adjust the seasoning and serve.

*This salad can be made in advance and will keep fresh in refrigerator for up to 3 days.
*You can make this salad vegan by replacing cottage cheese with tofu or simply omit it.

Skinny Zucchini Boats

My favorite vegetable of all-time! Such a versatile little thing… So much to create and experiment with! It was about time to get more creative and make these beautiful zucchini boats… Stuffed… Stuffed with cottage cheese filling and freshly prepared Marinara sauce! Oh yeah… you’re in for a treat!

Like I always say.. very easy and quick to prepare and perfect as a side or main course!

There are two parts to this dish – 1> filling and 2>fresh marinara sauce

Shucking the zucchini is lots of fun! If using medium sized zucchini then you can part them in middle and then divide them in half, lengthwise. If using smaller zucchinis then just divide them lengthwise. After this zucchinis are hollowed-out and stuffed with the prepared filling and topped with Marinara sauce. All the elements here are raw so it all comes together in no time! Bake them and they are ready to be gobbled!

Eat as many as you want as they are pretty light and low-cal! 😉

Skinny Zucchini Boats

Yields: 8 zucchini boats | Serves: 2 for lunch/dinner and 4 as side-dish

Ingredients:

Marinara Sauce:

• 4-5 tomatoes, blanched, skin peeled and chopped
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely chopped
• 1 large bay leaf
• 1/2 tsp red chili flakes
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Skinny Zucchini Boats:

• 2 medium zucchinis, halved and cut lengthwise
• 100 gm cottage cheese, grated
• 1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp fresh parsley, diced
• 1/2 tsp red chili flakes
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

For Marinara sauce: 

• In a small pot, heat olive oil over medium heat and saute garlic. Be careful not to burn.
• Add tomatoes, bay leaf, chili flakes, oregano, salt and pepper. Stir and reduce heat to low. Cover and let simmer for about 10 minutes.
• Remove the bay leaf and mash tomatoes nicely. Remove from heat and stir in parsley.

For Skinny Zucchini Boats:

• Preheat oven to 200 C/400 F. After cutting zucchini in half lengthwise, use a spoon or melon baller to scoop out flesh, leaving 1/4″ thick. Discard the flesh or use it in your next veggie recipe.
• In a small bowl, mix together cottage cheese, red bell pepper, parsley, chilli flakes, salt and pepper.
• Place scooped out side up on the baking sheet and season it with salt and pepper. With spoon, fill each hollowed-out zucchini with about 2 Tbsp of cottage cheese stuffing and press firmly. Top it generously with marinara sauce.
• Bake for 25 minutes or till zucchini is cooked through. Serve hot!

*Cheese-lovers don’t be disappointed! ~ Top zucchini boats with mix of grated Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese before baking. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes or till cheese melts completely.
*Basil-lovers can replace parsley with basil leaves, both in filling and Marinara sauce.