Yummy Cheesy Potato and Corn Chowder soup for cheese lovers in winter season

Cheesy Potato and Corn Chowder

  

INGREDIENTS                                              

• 2 tablespoons margarine
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 3 cups peeled and cubed potatoes

• 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn
• 1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles
• 1 (2.5 ounce) package country style gravy mix
• 2 cups milk
• 1 cup shredded Mexican-style processed cheese food
• 
  

• DIRECTIONS   
• In large saucepan, melt margarine over medium high heat. Add celery and onion; cook and stir until tender, about 5 minutes.
• Add chicken broth; bring to a boil. Add potatoes; cook over low heat for 20 to 25 minutes or until potatoes are soft, stirring occasionally.
• 
  Stir in corn and chiles; return to boiling. Dissolve gravy mix in milk; stir into boiling mixture. Add cheese; cook and stir over low heat until cheese is melted..Add chicken broth; bring to a boil. Add potatoes; cook over low heat for 20 to 25 minutes or until potatoes are soft, stirring occasionally.

VEG RECIPES veg soups

Pottukadalai Murukku-Rice Flour Chakli Recipe-Easy Murukku Recipes-diwali snacks

pottukadalai Murukku-Rice Flour Chakli Recipe-Easy Murukku Recipes

As Janmashtami/Gokulashtami and many other festivals are nearing, I wanted to post traditional murukku recipes which was due for a long time. Every time I post murukku recipes, I get lot of questions, asking me, if we can do murukku with store bought flour. As those who are living abroad have no access to flour mills/rice mills, I made this murukku with store bought flour and it turned out very delicious. Today we will learn how to make murukku with split roasted gram dal flour, rice flour and urad dal flour following this easy recipe with step wise pictures.

Pottukadalai Murukku
 Prep Time : 15 mins
 Cook Time : 30 mins
 Yields: 25 Murukkus
 Recipe Category: Snacks-Murukku
 Recipe Cuisine: South Indian
 Author:kusuma

   Ingredients needed

   Rice flour - 2 cups
   Whole skinned Urad dal flour -1/2 cup
   Roasted gram dal/pottukadalai flour - 3/4 cup
   Cumin seeds/Jeera - 1 tsp
   Hing/asafoetida - a pinch
   Melted Ghee - 1 tsp
   Hot oil - 1 tsp
   Salt to taste

   Oil for deep frying
   Murukku maker

Preparation

In a pan/kadai, dry roast whole urad dal until it turns very light brown. Do not over roast it. Remove from the pan and switch off the flame. In the heat of the pan, dry roast the roasted gram dal (pottukadalai in Tamil and bhuna chana in Hindi) slightly.

After it cools, powder both separately to a fine powder and sieve it. Powder the remains again and sieve it. Do this for both urad dal and roasted gram dal.

Sieve rice flour (buy good quality rice flour. I have used store bought rice flour for making this murukku) and keep it aside.

preparations for pottukadalai murukku

roasted gram dal

Method 

In a bowl, mix together rice flour, urad dal flour and roasted gram dal flour well with your fingers.

preparation for murukku

Add cumin seeds, melted ghee, hot oil and mix well.

pottukadalai murukku recipe

In a bowl, mix together salt, hing and 1/2 cup of water (this is done so that the salt will get mixed with the dough evenly). Add the salted water and more water, little at a time to the flour and make a dough. Once you can gather the dough, stop adding water. Do not add too much water as the murukku will keep breaking when squeezed through the murukku maker. Taste the dough and check for salt.

murukku dough

I used the 3 holes disc in the murukku maker for making this murukku.

murukku maker

Now take a portion of the dough and put it inside the murukku maker. Press it and check it. If you find it hard to press, you can  add 2 or 3 drops of water and mix the dough well again.

Grease 2 or 3 ladles or small plate with oil for placing the squeezed out murukku. Place the dough inside the murukku maker and press the dough through the 3 hole disc on the ladle or small plate, in a circle to form murukkus as shown in the picture below. You can also press the dough through the 3 hole disc directly into the hot oil. I am more comfortable with this method.

Making murukkus

Heat oil in a kadai (To check if the oil is hot, drop a piece of dough into the hot oil, if it raises to the surface immediately, the oil is hot enough to fry the murukkus). When the oil is hot, reduce the heat to medium and slide the murukku from the ladle into the hot oil gently. You can fry 3 or 4 murukkus depending on the quantity of oil and the size of your kadai.

After dropping the murukku into the hot oil, let it cook for a few seconds, then flip it over to the other side.

Fry the murukku until golden brown. When the murukku is done (or cooked), you will not see bubbles on the surface. Compare the picture above and the picture below to have a better idea. The picture above has bubbles and in the picture below there are no bubbles and you can see the murukku well as they are cooked.

Rice Flour Chakli

Once done, remove from the oil with a slotted laddle and place it in a colander or paper towel to drain off excess oil if any.

After frying the first batch, you can taste and see. If you feel it is too hard, you can add a tsp of hot oil to the dough, mix it well again and then continue to make murukku. If you feel, you need more salt, you can add to the dough, mix well and then continue.

Repeat the process for the rest of the dough.

Enjoy with a cup of hot ginger cardamom tea or South Indian Filter Coffee.

Storage and Shelf life - Once it cools, store it in an air tight container at room temperature. Stays good for a month.

snacks VEG RECIPES

Italian Leafy Green Salad for foodies

Italian green leafy salad in 5 minutes

Ingredients

15 miutes

6 servings

110 calories

es

(uses your loc

• 2 cups romaine lettuce - torn, washed and dried
• 1 cup torn escarole
• 1 cup torn radicchio
• 1 cup torn red leaf lettuce
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 1/2 red bell pepper, sliced into rings


• 1/2 green bell pepper, sliced in rings

• 12 cherry tomatoes
• 1/4 cup grapeseed oil
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

•  prep time 15 m
• Ready In
  15 m

1. In a large bowl, combine the romaine, escarole, radicchio, red-leaf, scallions, red pepper, green pepper and cherry tomatoes.
2. Whisk together the grapeseed oil, basil, vinegar, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Pour over salad, toss and serve immediately.

salads VEG RECIPES

chole masala receipe

As one of the most popular dishes in the world, both in and out of India and Pakistan, channa masala (or chana masala, chole masala, or chholay, depending on where you're from)—chickpeas cooked in a spicy and tangy tomato-based sauce—is the kind of dish that stirs passions in the recipe-writing community. My version might not taste like your grandmother's, but I promise that it tastes damn good.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 medium cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 (1-inch) knob ginger, peeled, roughly chopped
• 1 to 6 green Thai chilies (to taste), roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) juice from 1 lemon, divided
• Kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) vegetable oil or ghee
• 2 teaspoons (8g) black mustard seed
• 1 teaspoon (4g) whole cumin seed
• 1 large onion, finely diced (about 1 1/2 cups; 300g)
• 1/4 teaspoon (1g) baking soda
• 2 teaspoons (8g) ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon (2g) freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon (2g) ground turmeric
• 1 1/2 teaspoons (6g) store-bought or homemade garam masala, divided
• 1 (14-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes
• 2 (14-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped (1 ounce; 25g)

• DIRECTIONS

  1. 1.
     Combine garlic, ginger, chilies, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt in a mortar and pestle or in the small work bowl of a food processor and pound or process until a fine paste is produced. Set aside.
  2. 2.
     Heat oil or ghee in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. All at once, add mustard seed and cumin. They will sputter and spit for a few seconds. As soon as they are aromatic (about 15 seconds), add onion all at once, along with baking soda. Cook, stirring frequently, until onions start to leave a brown coating on bottom of pan, 3 to 4 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon water, scrape up browned bits from pan, and continue cooking. Repeat this process until onions are a deep brown, about 10 minutes total.
  3. 3.
     Immediately add garlic/ginger/chili paste all at once and stir to combine. Add coriander, black pepper, turmeric, and 1 teaspoon garam masala. Stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomatoes and crush them using a whisk or potato masher. Add drained, rinsed chickpeas and cilantro, reserving a little cilantro for garnish. Add 1/2 cup water.
  4. 4.
     Bring to a simmer, cover with lid slightly cracked, and reduce heat to maintain a gentle bubbling. Cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has reduced into a thick stew and spices have melded, about 30 minutes.
  5. 5.
     Stir in remaining garam masala and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt. Serve with rice and/or naan, sprinkling additional cilantro on top.

  6. checkout this vieo 
     

VEG RECIPES

curd rice receipe

Curd Rice Recipe

Prep & Cooking Time: 25 mts

Cuisine: Andhra

Serves 4 persons

.

Ingredients:
1 cup raw rice, washed, cooked till soft and lightly mashed

3 cups fresh curd/yogurt

2 green chillies, slit length wise

1″ ginger piece, finely chopped

chopped coriander for garnish

few pomegranate seeds for garnish (optional)

Tempering/Poppu/Tadka:

2 tsps oil

1/2 tsp mustard

1/2 tsp black gram dal/minapa pappu (optional)

1 dry red chili, tear

8-10 curry leaves

1/4 tsp asafoetida/inguva/hing

salt to taste

PREPARATION

1 Mix the yogurt and salt with the cooled cooked rice. Mix well.
2 Add chopped ginger and green chilies. Mix with the curd rice.
3 Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add the black gram dal, red chilies and curry leaves. Allow the dal to turn lightly red, approx a mt. Add asafoetida and turn off heat and immediately add to the curd rice. Stir the tempering into the rice and mix. Adjust salt if required. If the curd rice consistency is too thick, add a few tbsps of water or boiled milk and mix.
4 Garnish with coriander leaves and pomegranate seeds. Serve chilled or at room temperature with pickle or papad.

Kitchen Tips:

If you have prepared the curd rice well in advance, add 1/4 cup milk to the curd rice 10 minutes before serving as milk removes any sourness of the curd. If you eat the curd rice immediately on preparation then there is no need to add milk. You can garnish with finely chopped onions or fruits of your choice like pomegrante or grapes.

By kusuma

Published: September 7, 2016


Curd Rice is a comforting South Indian rice recipe that makes for a filling complete meal with pickle. During Navratri, Daddojanam (the name Yogurt rice goes by in Andhra) is prepared as a festival food and offered to Goddess Durga.


kusuma

I'm a food blogger, food photographer and organic gardener based out of India. I enjoy cooking for my family using fresh produce from my vegetable garden and farmer's market. I love to try out various cuisines and perfect my cooking skills. I believe that hard work, self-discipline, and a positive attitude cannot help but reap a harvest of fantastic results. Say hello and join me on Pinterest, Google Plus, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

VEG RECIPES

PANEER BUTTER MASALA FOR FOODIES

paneer butter masala is one of the most famous paneer dish along with palak paneer, kadai paneer, chilli paneer and matar paneer. paneer butter masala is served in almost all indian restaurants and is loved by many people. no wonder, this recipe is one of most popular recipe in the blog and made by many readers. you can read the comments below which has lot of tips from readers as well as myself.

paneer butter masala

this recipe of paneer butter masala is similar to the way i would make butter chicken many years back. for the first time i had learnt how to make butter chicken during my home science days. later i used to use the same recipe for making paneer butter masala. some adaptations and improvisations have happened throughout the years.

the paneer butter masala gravy is made of tomato puree and the regular indian herbs-spices. it has a slight sweet taste and very mildly spiced. thus making it an excellent gravy with chapatis for kids.

generally in butter chicken or butter paneer, cream is added. in this paneer butter masala recipe to give a creamy consistency and a sweet tinge, i have added cashew paste.

i never use any coloring agents in the food i make at home. what you see in the pics, is the way the paneer butter masala gravy actually looked. the organic tomatoes had such a beautiful red color and the final curry had beautiful tones of orangish red.

so when making paneer butter masala, make sure to use ripe, red and firm tomatoes. also use good quality fresh paneer or make your own homemade paneer. making paneer at home is easy and i always use homemade paneer for my dishes. vegans can make the same recipe with tofu and vegan butter as substitutes for paneer and butter respectively.

there are some variations in the genre of gravy recipes made with paneer and butter. below are some of the paneer recipes posted which come in this category:

paneer makhanwala recipe made with onions, tomatoes, cashews, cream and spices.
paneer makhani recipe made with tomato puree and cream. no cashews and onions added.
paneer lababdar recipe made with onions, tomatoes, cashew paste and cream.
paneer butter masala recipe made without onion and garlic.
restaurant style paneer butter masala recipe below:

paneer butter masala recipe | how to make paneer butter masala recipe

prep time

10 mins
cook time
30 mins
total time
40 mins

paneer butter masala recipe - soft succulent cottage cheese cubes in a creamy tomato based gravy.

author: kusuma
recipe type: main
cuisine: north indian
serves: 4 servings

ingredients (measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)

200 or 250 gms paneer/cottage cheese, cubed or diced
2 tbsp cashew or 18 to 20 cashews- soaked if you have time and then ground with some water to a smooth paste. if less time, then just grind the cashews to a smooth paste.
4-5 medium size tomatoes/tamatar or 300 grams or 2 cups of diced tomatoes - pureed
1 or 2 green chili/hari mirch, slit (reserve a few for garnishing)
1 inch ginger/adrak and 3-4 garlic/lahsun - crushed or ground in a mortar & pestle
1 inch ginger/adrak - julienned (reserve a few for garnishing)
1 tej patta/indian bay leaf
1 tsp kasuri methi/dry methi leaves
1 tsp garam masala or tandoori masala
½ tsp red chili powder/lal mirch powder or deghi mirch or kashmiri mirch powder
1 tbsp oil + 1 or 2 tbsp butter
1.5 cups water
a few coriander/cilantro/dhania leaves for garnishing (optional)
salt and sugar as required - check notes below for adding sugar
how to make the recipe:
heat oil and butter in a pan. add bay leaf and saute for some 10-15 seconds or till the oil become fragrant.
add ginger-garlic paste and saute till the raw aroma disappears.
add the tomato puree and stir well. add red chili powder after 2-3 mins and stir again. saute till the oil starts to leave the sides of the tomato paste.
add cashew paste and stir well. saute the cashew paste till the oil begins to leave the sides of the masala paste.
add water and stir. simmer on a low flame.
add julienned ginger and green chilies, salt and sugar and simmer till the curry begins to thicken.
add the paneer cubes and cook them for 2 to 3 minutes till they become soft.
don't cook for a long time as the paneer will become dense.
lastly add crushed kasuri methi/dry fenugreek leaves & garam masala. stir.
garnish paneer butter masala with coriander leaves. serve paneer butter masala hot with plain naan, garlic naan, rotis or steamed basmati or jeera rice. side accompaniments can be onion-lemon salad or some pickle.

notes
tips for making paneer butter masala recipe:

1. addition of sugar depends upon your taste as well as the tanginess present in the tomatoes. if you add cream in the recipe then you might have to add less sugar.
2. for this recipe, its best to use fresh, ripe red tomatoes.
3. best to use homemade soft paneer.
4. the amount of cream can be adjusted as per your taste.

how to make paneer butter masala recipe:

1: soak 18 to 20 cashews in a hot water for 20 to 30 minutes. when the cashews are soaking, you can prep the other ingredients like chopping tomatoes, preparing ginger-garlic paste, slicing paneer etc.

cashews soaking for paneer butter masala

2: then drain and add the soaked cashews in a blender or grinder.

cashews to be ground for tomato puree for paneer butter masala

3: add 2 to 3 tbsp water and grind to a smooth paste without any tiny bits or pieces of cashews.

ground cashew paste for tomato puree for paneer butter masala

4. remove the cashew paste in a bowl and keep aside.

cashew paste for tomato puree for paneer butter masala

5. in the same blender add 2 cups of diced or roughly chopped tomatoes. no need to blanch the tomatoes before blending.

chopped tomatoes for tomato puree for paneer butter masala

6. blend to a smooth tomato puree. keep aside. don’t add any water while blending the tomatoes.

tomato puree for paneer butter masala

7. add 1 tbsp oil and 1 or 2 tbsp butter in a pan. adding oil prevents the butter from browning too quickly.

adding butter in pan for paneer butter masala dish

8: add tej patta and fry for some seconds till the oil becomes fragrant.

add bay leaf for paneer masala

9: add ginger-garlic paste or crushed ginger-garlic (1 inch ginger + 3-4 garlic crushed to a paste in a mortar pestle). fry till the raw aroma of the ginger-garlic disappears.

add ginger garlic paste to paneer masala

10: pour the tomato puree.

tomato puree for paneer butter masala

11: when the puree begins to cook, after 5 to 6 minutes, add ½ tsp red chili powder.

red chilli powder for paneer masala

12: stir and continue to saute till the oil starts leaving the sides of the pan. the whole sauteing takes about 12-13 minutes on a low flame.

preparing tomato puree for paneer butter masala

13: add the cashew paste.

cashew paste for paneer masala

14: saute till the cashew paste is cooked and again the oil will start to leave the sides of the masala. the cashew will begin to cook fast. approx 3-4 minutes on a low flame. keep on stirring.

sauting cashew paste for paneer butter masala dish

15: add 1.5 cups water.

making cashew paste for paneer butter masala recipe

16: let the curry simmer and come to a boil. after 2-3 mins, add ginger julienne (about 1 inch ginger – julienne). reserve a few for garnishing. the curry will begin to thicken.

preparing paneer butter masala curry

17: after 3 to 4 minutes, add the 1 or 2 slit green chilies, salt and sugar (optional) and stir. you can add sugar from ¼ tsp to 1 tsp depending on the sourness of the tomatoes. sugar is optional and you can skip it too. if you add cream, then you will need to add less sugar.

paneer butter masala preparation

18: after a minute, add the diced or cubed paneer (200 or 250 grams). keep in mind the consistency you want before you add paneer as you will be cooking the paneer for a few minutes. you can also fry the paneer and then add the paneer once the gravy has become creamy.

adding paneer cubes in paneer butter masala


19: stir gently and let the paneer cook in the gravy for 2-3 minutes or till they become soft and cooked. lastly add 1 tsp kasuri methi leaves, crushed. also add 1 tsp garam masala. stir very well and switch off the flame. you can also add 2 to 3 tbsp of low fat cream or 1 to 2 tbsp of whipping cream at this stage. addition of crushed kasuri methi gives a restaurant flavor and i add them in most of my restaurant style recipes like rajma masala, dal tadka and bhindi masala.

paneer butter masala gravy

20: stir and serve paneer butter masala hot garnished with 1 to 2 tbsp of chopped coriander leaves, the remaining ginger julienne and dotted with butter or cream. good combo for paneer butter masala is garlic naan or butter naan.

paneer butter masala also goes well with steamed basmati rice or jeera rice. i served with whole wheat rotis accompanied with onion-lemon salad and pickled carrot-beetroot from the kanji drink.



.

VEG RECIPES

avocado salad receipe

                HOW TO MAKE AVOCADO SALAD:

Wash all the vegetables well.
Peel the carrot and cucumber. Cut them into small pieces.
Cut onion and tomatoes into small pieces.
Deserted capsicum and cut it into small pieces.
Deseed and cut avocado into small pieces.

From simple to sumptuous, avocados add flair to any salad recipe. We have avocado salad recipes to suit any taste or occasion. Delight in our light salads like tangy Raspberry Avocado Salad recipe or our Tropical Salad recipe with Grilled Shrimp and Hass Avocado. We also have a collection of richer, side-dish salads like the Mason Jar Green Salad with avocado and a creamy dressing or stimulate your taste buds with the flavorful Hass Avocado Potato Salad recipe.

Create your best salads with Hass Avocados; find ways to add them to your favorite fresh salad recipes or savor some of our avocado salad recipes below. Discover how avocados can change the nutritional value of your salad

Put all the cut vegetables into a salad bowl and add olives.
Then mix pepper, salt, mustard, lime juice and olive oil and toss well.

INGREDIENTS

1 - Avocado
1 - Onion
1 - Tomato
1 - Capsicum (small)
1 - Carrot
1 - Cucumber
2 tsp - Olive oil
1 tsp - Lime juice
1 tsp - salt
1/2 tsp - black pepper
1/4 tsp - mustard powder
A few black Olives

HOW TO MAKE AVOCADO SALAD:

Wash all the vegetables well.
Peel the carrot and cucumber. Cut them into small pieces.
Cut onion and tomatoes into small pieces.
Deseed capsicum and cut it into small pieces.
Deseed and cut avocado into small pieces.
Put all the cut vegetables into a salad bowl and add olives.
Then mix pepper, salt, mustard, lime juice and olive oil and toss well.

salads VEG RECIPES