Sour sweet potatoes

1 Pack of cubed sweet potatoes – microwave for 5 minutes
In a pan take some oil. Add two pinches heeng and 1 tbspn panch phoron.
When the seeds splutter add coriander powder, turmeric, and cayenne powder to the oil.

When the spices sizzle, add the sweet potato. Add salt. Cook till done and deglaze the pan with tamarind water.

Perfect Grill Cheese Sandwich

Take a table spoon of butter and add a pinch of paprika. Microwave for a minute.
Heat grill to medium.
Grate ¼ cup of smoked cheddar and ¼ cup of gruyere or gouda and 1 tbspn parmesan. Alternatively use two slices of your favorite cheese. However, this does not taste as well as the above mentioned grated cheeses.
Brush one side of each slice of bread with the butter. Toast the butter side on the grill; add half the cheese on each slice. When the cheese starts to melt, cover one slice with the other. Grill on both sides till done.

Cheese Chutney Sandwich- single serving

Two slices of multigrain bread
Two slices of cheddar cheese or grated cheddar
Green chutney
Two slices of tomato
Two slices of Cucumber
Little paprika
Oil

1. Mix the paprika in the oil.
2. Heat the grill to medium.
3. Brush the slices of bread with oil – one side. Put this side on the grill.
4. Put the cheese on top of each slice of bread.
5. Brush the chutney on one side of bread.
6. When the bread is almost done, add the tomato and cucumber slices. The vegetables are best at room temperature.
7. Make the sandwich.

Plum and Avocado Salad

I found this recipe on Huffington Post.

3 ripe plums- peeled
A firm avocado
1 dry red chilly
1 clove of garlic
Salt black pepper
Juice of one lime
Plenty of chopped cilantro

In a mortar and pestle grind the chilly, garlic, black pepper, lime juice and some of the cilantro.
Chop the plums and avocado into chunky bites. Add the dressing. Garnish with coriander.

Shahsuka – Serves two

The first time I had shashuka was in Mumbai where the chef had close ties with Israel. Shahsuka is one of my favorite ways to eat eggs. The spicy tomato base goes very well with a runny egg on the top. I like to keep my shashuka simple- no onions or bell pepper. For each portion of Shahsuka, you need two medium tomatoes and one egg. You can make it in your skillet, but I like to make individual portions in my 13 oz gratin pans.

You need

4-5 tomatoes (chopped in chunky pieces)
3 cloves of garlic (finely minced)
2 green chilies – finely chopped (I use Thai)
1 tspn coriander powder
1 tspn cumin powder
2 tbspn olive oil
Salt to taste
Parsley or coriander for garnish (chopped)
Black pepper
2 eggs

Preheat broiler to 400 F.

Heat the oil. Add the tomatoes, garlic and chilies. Add the spices. Cook the tomatoes, till most of the juice evaporates. Make sure the tomato base is not soupy.

Now ladle the tomato mixture in the gratin dishes. Break an egg on each dish. Cook in the broiler till done. When the egg is half cooked, break the yolk. The yolk should be slightly runny.

You could make the tomato base a few days in advance. Serve with warm pita bread.

Pancakes with a twist – Makes 8

You can make pancakes from scratch. For this recipe you would need 2 cups of all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons of baking soda, 2 pinches of salt, and 2 teaspoons of sugar. If you want to use a boxed mixture, use Bisquick or something very basic. I strongly advise against using one of the pancake mixes that asks you to just add water. Instead of the above mixture you could use 2 cups of Bisquick.

To the mixture add 2 cups of milk, 2 eggs, the juice of half a lime, a teaspoon of vanilla essence, ½ tspn baking powder, and ½ cup of ricotta cheese. Stir to get rid of lumps.

Mix the following for the topping – ½ cup of ricotta cheese, zest of half a lime, ½ tspn vanilla essence, 1 tspn sugar, few drops of lime juice.

Another toppping idea is applesauce, cinnamon, and ricotta cheese.

Toast ½ cup of walnuts.

In a non stick skillet, heat 1 tspn butter or vegetable oil. Add less than ¼ cup of batter or more if you want thicker pancakes. When you see bubbles on the top, time to flip. Serve with butter, maple syrup, and ricotta topping.

Broccoli Cauliflower Coconut Curry

To some oil in a pan, add one clove, a little cinnamon, and mustard seeds. When the seeds splutter, add two dry red chilies. Now add cumin powder, coriander,cayenne pepper, and some turmeric. Roast the spices. Sauté the onions. Add curry leaves. Add a small tin of coconut milk.

Add any vegetables of your choice. I added cauliflower and broccoli. Add tamarind water. Add peas. Add garam masala when done. Garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice.

Achari Paneer Wrap

This is a simple flavorful quick recipe.
I took a pack of paneer and cubed it. I took some oil in a pan and added loads of asafetida. To this I added mustard seeds, cumin seeds, nigella seeds, fennel seeds, and fenugreek seeds. In retrospect, I could have used panch phoron. I added a teaspoon of garlic. Once then seeds sizzled, I add turmeric and cayenne pepper. When the spices are done, add around 1 cup of thick yoghurt to the pan and whisk slowly. At this stage I added two teaspoonfuls of hot mango pickle. Add the paneer and cook till dry.

Now add some ghee to a pan. Spread out a roti or parantha. Add some of the paneer mixture. Add cilantro chutney, chopped tomatoes, onions (pickled in vinegar), and cream cheese (Optional).

Serve with cucumber raita.

Tomato Salad

For the Vinaigrette
½ cup olive oil, 2 tbspn finely chopped onion, 1 tbspn chili garlic paste, coriander leaves, and a squirt of sriracha sauce, salt, black pepper

Mix and refrigerate for two days for the flavors to seep in.

Add juice of ½ lemon and pour over halved plum tomatoes. Add salt to taste.

Mac and Cheese (serves 4)

I use three cheeses- sharp white cheddar, gruyere, and parmesan for the topping. The sharpness of the cheddar is balanced by the nutty sweet creaminess of gruyere. However, make sure you use a young gruyere, since aged gruyere is more earthy and complex. I also like to compliment the sharpness of the cheese with the heat of cayenne pepper, pepper flakes, black pepper, and mustard powder. This version of Mac and cheese has a kick! I like a crusty topping, so I use panko bread crumbs. Panko crumbs are used in Japanese cuisine and are lighter, airier, and crisper than western bread crumbs.

Ingredients

3 cups of milk (at least 2%)
½ pound of Barilla elbow macaroni (half a pack or 2 1/2cups of pasta)
2 cups of grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup of grated gruyere
¼ to ½ cup of parmesan
¼ cup of flour
4 tbspn butter (1/2 stick)
1 bay leaf
1 tspn cayenne pepper
½ tspn mustard
Nutmeg
Salt to taste (1 tspn)
Black pepper
2/3 cup of panko bread crumbs

1. Heat the broiler to 400 degrees.
2. Heat the milk in a saucepan with the bay leaf.
3. Boil water and then add the noodles. If you are using Barilla pasta, boil for 4-5 minutes. You want to boil the noodles for a time period that is 3 minutes lesser than the manufacturer’s instructions. You want the pasta to cook to a lesser extent than the normal al dente. When you drain the pasta, immediately shock it with cold water to stop the cooking. Run it under cold tap water till it cools down.
4. Take 3 tbspn butter and heat on a pan. When the butter is frothy add the flour. Sauté the flour for around 2minutes, till it turns blonde and smells buttery.
5. Add the cayenne pepper and mustard. Sauté for a few seconds. The flour will turn a red, and turn pink when you add milk.
6. Add a little milk slowly while you keep whisking the flour and the milk in the pan. Slowly add all the milk and remove the bay leaf. Keep whisking to make sure you do not end up with clumps.
7. Cook the sauce till it bubbles and become thick.
8. Now remove the sauce from the heat and add the cheddar and gruyere.
9. Add black pepper. Grate some nutmeg on the top and stir in.
10. Adjust the thickness of the sauce. I end up using a little pasta water to get the right consistency.
11. Add the noodles to the sauce and adjust the salt. I prefer to add salt only after I add the cheese and the noodles to avoid over salting.
12. Pour the needles to four mini gratin dishes. I use 13 oz gratin dishes because I get a better crust with these and the presentation is better. Alternatively you could use a 1.5 quarts casserole dish. Butter the dishes/dish with the remaining (1tbspn) butter.
13. Sprinkle the panko bread crumbs and the parmesan on the top. Cover a sheet pan with tin foil to catch any spills from the mini gratin pans/ casserole dish.
14. Bake till the crust turns golden brown. Should take 15-20 minutes.