Chicken & Spinach Tartlets

The one of its kind of snack that has drawn my attention is tartlets. All thanks to my sister's frequent visits to Denmark am getting many new ideas for evening snacks. She bought me few packets of readymade mini tarts. She roughly explained me what kind of stuffing I can come up with. 

They not only are in varied taste and looks ( as per different flavors), but they gel with any kind of occasion. Be it during evening treat  or a picnic at a nature spot, you can take them out of the basket, spread the happiness with a thermos of tea or coffee. As I mentioned before the flavor, stuffing can have various options  that you may like to add. Make it vegetarian by skipping chicken !

Ingredients:
8 Readymade tarts
1 Small bunch of Spinach 
3 tbsp Corns
2 medium size Boiled Potatoes, chop into 1 inch chunks
1/2 grated Mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup boneless shredded Chicken 
3-4 green chillis
1/2 cup red and yellow capsicum
1/2 tsp Oregano 
7-8 drops chilly oil (optional)
Salt and some coriander leaves.

Method:
 Wash and chop spinach leaves dab a kitchen towel to absorb remaining water from the leaves.

Our stuffing is ready...

In a mixing bowl put corn, potato chunks, chopped capsicums, chopped chillies, shredded chicken, chopped coriander leaves, de seeded chopped tomato, grated cheese and mix with a fork thoroughly. 

Ready to go inside the Oven...

Season with salt, oregano, chilli flakes and chilli oil. Pre heat oven to 170 Degree Celsius. Take a cupcake pan and place the readymade small tart inside the case. Spoon 3 tbsp filling inside each tartlets Bake for 8-9 mins. Stand for 5 minutes and serve.  

read more.. "Chicken & Spinach Tartlets"

Aloo-Paneer Kulcha -Stove Top Method | Yeast Free

Eleven years ago, as a bride, when I was asked to make my first presence in my Hubby's kitchen pad I had noticed few plates, brand new Belan- Chakla (Rolling pin- Board) and few utensils. Rest of the kitchen was looking like a storage boxes go down. He was practically living on Home Delivery service. So all the plastic containers were scattered around, I quickly started cleaning and arranging the white plastic containers. Many went out of the window within an hour. Hubby sheepishly asked if I can make chapatis? I assured him he will get it on the table soon but not tonight ! Next day I took my maid's help who was a very good cook. I learnt the art of making round chapatis from her. Thank you Kohinoor :-) 

Today I have come a long way as I am good at making many stuffed flatbreads /parathas and kulchas too. I had asked my friends on Facebook what should I post next guess what ?? 90% said Kulcha Stove Top Method !! I just did a minor change after watching a television show ( Sanjeev Kapoor ke Kitchen Khiladi) where once the chef added Soda instead of baking soda for instant fizz. 

Ingredients:
2 cups All purpose flour
3 tbsp Curd
1/2 cup Club Soda ( Kinley's) 
1/4 Carom seeds
3 tbsp cooking Oil
Water to knead the dough
1/2 tsp Salt

Filling ingredients:
1 cup grated Paneer /Cottage cheese
2 Boiled Potatoes, grated
2 Green chillies, finely chopped
1 1/2 tsp Chat Masala
1/2 tsp Red chilly powder
1/4 tsp chopped Ginger
1/4 cup fresh Mint leaves, chopped
Salt to taste

Method:
Sieve together flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Add curd, carom seeds, cooking oil and mix thoroughly. Add soda (be sure to see lots of small bubbles or else you have to add baking soda), water little by little and start kneading the dough.

 If the dough is little sticky you may have to add another tbsp of oil to make it a soft dough. Knead it for another 5 mins as it would yield softer kulchas. Let this rest for 1/2 hour by covering it with a damp cloth.
Mix crumbled paneer along with all the items under "filling ingredients". Combine well and keep aside.

Divide the dough into 10 -12 equal parts and dust the kitchen counter with flour. Roll each dough between your hands to form a smooth ball. Make a depression in the center  of each ball of dough, add 2 tps of paneer mixture, shape into a round ball and making sure the stuffing is not exposed.
Now flatten it slightly by pressing down on it with the palms of your hand (if you are unable to stretch it by your hands then you can use rolling pin). Remember the size of kulchas are small. Sprinkle some carom seeds and chopped mint leaves and press gently. Repeat with remaining dough. 

Heat a wide mouth, heavy and round based Kadhai, wet your hand and pat a little water on one side of the kulcha and stick it to the inner side of the Kadhai.

 Flip the Kadhai upside down so that kulcha is exposed to direct flame. Within seconds you will see tiny browns spots on top, just when you see it is cooked evenly, remove from the fire and keep aside.

Brush the piping hot  Kulchas with melted desi ghee /butter for instant serving or transfer to a cloth lined casserole for later use. Kulcha is at its best when hot. 

read more.. "Aloo-Paneer Kulcha -Stove Top Method | Yeast Free"

How To Make Almond Cupcakes

Two days back was my 11^th Marriage Anniversary that left me wondering how quickly time flies! Here I was the eldest daughter in my family in a close knit North Indian town and now I am in the southern part of the country after moving across 3 metro cities. I remember a quote from the movie Forrest Gump " Life’s like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’ll find.” But when I look back in hindsight the one thing that I got most is exposure and experience which I could pass on to my child for his better future with a word of advice to go out and play away from your comfort zone. As a woman this characteristic is inherent to us don’t you agree. Well, as far as my husband is concerned he’s like an oil in water, always in the surface and calm which is opposite to me who is very restless. But don’t we know that opposite attract? So in this anniversary I am posting these pretty, light cupcakes as a sweet reminder of our togetherness.

Check out some other cupcakes from Hamaree Rasoi

• Eggless Chocolate Cupcakes with White Frosting
• Basic Vanilla Cupcakes
• Mini Cream Cheese Cupcakes
• Red Velvet Cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 cup toasted Almonds
1/2 cup All purpose flour
3/4 cup Brown sugar, light
1/3 cup Oil
2 Eggs, room temperature
1 tsp Almond extract
1/2 tsp Baking powder
1/4 tsp Salt

Method:
Preheat the Oven to 325 Degrees and place the wire rack in the middle section. Line a cupcake pan with 12 liners and set aside.
In a coffee blender put all the toasted almonds and grind until they are fine powder. The finer you grind the flour the closer you will be for that perfect texture. In between push the almonds down for even grinding. If you let this grind further you will end up making delicious Almond Butter !

Sift together flour + Almond flour + Salt and Baking powder. In a mixing bowl add oil and brown sugar and beat with a hand blender until smooth. Add one egg at a time and beat well.  Mix in almond extract and add dry ingredients. Combined well. Pour or scoop the batter into the lined cupcake tin. Bake for 20-22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean from the center. Remove from the pan and let cool completely before frosting. Frost the cooled almond cupcakes as desired.

read more.. "How To Make Almond Cupcakes"

Kolkata Style Egg Chicken Roll | A Famous Street Food

As we are arriving at the close of 2013, I look back with amazement that I have almost touched 400 number of recipes . How time flies and even Y2009 looks just like yesterday when I stared posting my recipes along with my sister. Moreover, it’s only fair that I always remember that encouragement for me to carry on food blogging has always been due to patronage from my readers and co bloggers. It keeps me motivated to post newer recipes with an objective to keep it simple yet tasteful.

 Today I am posting a time tasted street food which is hugely popular in Kolkata. Every citizen of Kolkata has his loyalty fixed with his or hers favourite joint which caters to these rolls. From students who shuttle between schools and tuitions, Lovers finding a quiet place to chit chat with a single chicken roll in their hands to office returned executives, everyone have a craving for it. You can increase or decrease the dosage of veggies , chicken or egg depending upon your intake. But the universal truth is that you have not completely seen Kolkata unless you have tasted the chicken rolls. Hope you like it.  
Looking for varieties of Roll Recipes? Then have a look at few recipes which I had posted earlier:-

• Paneer Kathi Rolls
• Bread Roll
• Vegetable Kathi Roll with Soya
• Kolkata Style Egg Roll

Ingredients:
Outer Shell:
1 1/2 cups All purpose flour
3 tbsp Oil
1 tsp Salt
Water to knead the dough

To make the filling:-
{400 gms Chicken Boneless cut into small pieces 
2 tbsp Chicken Tandoori Masala
2 tbsp hung Curd
3 tsp Ginger-Garlic paste
mix everything well and keep this aside for 2 hours}
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 medium size Onions, thinly slice
1 Cucumber, chopped
2 Green chillies, finely chopped
Tomato ketchup
1/4 cup Coriander leaves
Lemon juice as required                                                                                                                         
Salt and Pepper powder to taste
White Oil
Chaat masala (optional)

Method:
Add flour to a large bowl and sprinkle some salt. Now make a well in the center, add 2 tbsp oil and add water little by little. Mix well to make a soft dough ball. Cover with dough and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.
Take the marinated chicken and fry in a pan with 3 tbsp oil on low flame. Add in some onion rings (I like the idea of frying onions with chicken with every bite). You can skip this if you want.Stir the chicken pieces till cooked. Keep aside.                                                                          

Divide the dough into 4 equal parts and shape into round balls. Using a rolling pin, roll into thin chapatis (approx 6 inch).  In a bowl, whisk one egg at a time and salt as per taste. Keep aside.
Heat a dosa pan, place a chapati and cook on the griddle for 30 seconds then flip it.

 Pour 1 tsp oil on one side of the paratha and cook for a minute. Then remove the paratha from the griddle and pour 2 tsp oil on pan. Pour beaten egg, tilt and rotate slightly to spread and place that paratha's no-oil side back on the egg mixture so that it sticks to the paratha.

 To stick better slightly press the paratha with the back of a spatula. Cook for 2 minutes and flip. Remove from the pan and follow the same steps for the remaining parathas.

To assemble the roll:                                                                                                                                
Place the paratha on a platform (egg side up)pour some tomato sauce over it and add some chicken pieces along with green chillies, cucumber, onion, coriander leaves.
 Add in some fried chicken pieces in the center and season with salt and some lemon juice. Sprinkle some chaat masala.

 Roll the paratha with the chicken stuffing tightly so that while eating the chicken pieces shouldn't fall. Wrap the bottom half of the chicken roll in a tissue paper and tuck the remaining tissue inside the roll at the bottom. Your Chicken roll is ready to devour. 

read more.. "Kolkata Style Egg Chicken Roll | A Famous Street Food"

Radhaballabhi With Alu Dom / Dal Poori (Lentil Stuffed Flat bread) | Bengali Style

I have a confession to make. Whenever in Kolkata I see my Father back from market, carrying a bag full of veggies and fish in one hand and a box of sweet on the other hand, I wish I could go back fifty years ago when Bengalis used to eat without caring a little for all the health conscious jargon invented now a days. One of the main attraction was to have gorom gorom Radhaballabhi with Alu'r dom which is still rated number one breakfast item.  It’s a poori which has a lentil stuffing and comparatively bigger in size than 'luchis'.As it is favorite among all you are sure to find these at roadside stall as well as sweet shops.  By the way I forgot to add that I wish to see my Father go to the market like a quintessential Bengali Bhadralok attired in a dhoti and kurta which he never did ! Wow, It would be a sight to watch ;-)

Ingredients:
For Dough-
500 gms All purpose flour
1/2 tsp Salt
3 tbsp Oil or Ghee
1 cup Warm water

For Filling:
1 1/4 cups Chholar Dal (Bengal Gram) Washed and soaked overnight
1.5 tsp Jeera (Cumin seeds)
3-4 Dry Red chillies
1 small Dalchini (Cinnamon)
1/2 tsp Saunf (Aniseed)
1 tsp Ginger, grated
1 Green chilli
1 tsp Sugar
Salt to taste
Ghee or Oil for frying

Method:
In a pan dry roast Cinnamon + Red chillies on low flame till they are darker (approx 2 mins). Remove from the pan and add Cumin seeds till it releases nice aroma.

We are dry roasting cumin seeds separately because cumin takes less time to turn brown so for even results separate roasting is best solution. Cool down completely and grind to a fine powder. Keep aside.*

Drain water from dal and grind with a green chilli to make a fine paste. While grinding try to add very little water ( I would suggest adding 1 or 2 tbsp water at a time). Use a butter knife to scrape the paste from the sides and blades and run again for smooth paste. Once the mixture cools down grind it again for smooth texture.

Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a pan, add saunf and grated ginger. Fry on low flame, let it sizzle and then add dal paste into it. Mix in prepared masala powder* and season with salt. Keep stirring till water / moisture evaporates.

 When it appears completely dry add sugar and mix well. Let this mixture cool down. And grind the mixture again for the extra smooth powder texture. Like shown in the picture below. 

In between sieve together the flour and salt for the dough. Make a well in between and pour 3 tbsp oil or ghee and water little by little to form a pliable dough. Knead well until soft. Cover and let it rest for 1/2 hour. 

Make small portions of the dough, give them a shape of discs and pour 2 tbps filling in center, bring pooris edges together to seal it. Dust the kitchen counter, flatten it and roll it uniformly. Make sure the size of disc is bigger  and thicker than normal pooris. At a time you can fry only one or may be two pooris as these are bigger in size. Repeat the same steps for the rest of the day and stuffing.

Deep fry the pooris on high flame initially  then turn the heat to low once the poori is fully puffed on one side, flip and fry from both the sides. Drain off excess oil and serve with Aloo'r Dom.

Aloo'r Dom

Ingredients:
1/2 kg Potatoes, wash and peeled
3 Onions, chopped
2 tbsp Garlic
1 large Bay leaf
1 tsp Cumin seeds
3-4 Green chillies (adjust according to your taste)
3 big Tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp Coriander paste
1 tsp Red chilly powder
1/2 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Garam masala
1/2 tsp Turmeric paste
3-4 tbsp Oil
Chopped coriander
Salt to taste

Method:
Prick potatoes with a fork and sprinkle some salt. Fry the potatoes in oil till lightly brown and keep aside. 
In the same pan add cumin seeds, when seeds sizzle add onions and fry on medium flame. 
Saute the onions till the raw smell goes away then add garlic paste and fry for 2 minutes. Add red chilly powder, coriander and turmeric powder and mix well. Cook masala for 2 minutes and then add tomatotes and let it simmer on low heat until the masala is cooked. Next add in the fried potatoes and mix thoroughly with the spices. 

Cook till the potatoes are tender. In between sprinkle some water, cover and cook. Throw in some green chillies. Adjust the seasonings and lastly add garam masala and dum the potatoes on low flame for about 15 minutes. By now the masala will be very thick and oil will float on top. The gravy should not be runny but thick and potatoes are nicely coated with thick gravy. Turn off the heat and garnish with fresh chopped leaves. Serve this delicious, spicy aloo dom with Radhaballavi. Well traditionally finish it off with a sweet at the end. 

read more.. "Radhaballabhi With Alu Dom / Dal Poori (Lentil Stuffed Flat bread) | Bengali Style"

Dal Fry(No Onion No Garlic)

In case all of you were wondering where was I in these days, just to inform all you friends that I was in Pondicherry with family and friends and before that . It’s a heritage city with a distinct influence of the French culture. We were moving places of Interest and had authentic French breakfast in a café. The intriguing part is that we took direction from tourists instead of locals. It’s the tourists who seemed to know better. The café called Baker’s street was a delightful place with awesome breakfast meal such as croissants, pizza, pies, omlettes,toasts etc. 

Now coming back to this lentil it’s called as Jain or satvik dal without any onions or garlic. Soothing for the stomach and energizing. Much needed after a feast of meals in Pondicherry..

Few Recipes without Onion-Garlic from past:

• Toor Dal/ Arhar Dal
• Aamer Dal/ Red Lentil with Raw Mangoes
• Sheem Diye Moong Dal /Broad Beans and Lentils
• Cholar Dal/ Chana Dal

Ingredients:
3/4 cup Masoor dal (red lentil)
1/4 cup Arhar Dal
1 big Tomato, deseed, diced
1/2 tsp Asafetida (hing)
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
1/4 tsp finely chopped Ginger
1/2 tsp Kasmiri Red Chilly powder
2 tbsp Coconut silver/ slices
2 Dry Red chillies
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Lemon juice (optional)
3 tbsp Ghee
Salt to taste

Method:
Wash both the dals and soak in water for about 2 hours. Pressure cook dal with 2 cups of water with salt, turmeric powder till 2-3 whistles. Lightly mash the dal with a laddle and keep aside. In a non-stick pan add ghee on low flame. Fry coconut silvers till light brown and keep aside.In the same pan add cumin seeds and let them crackle. 

Add hing, red chillies, ginger and diced tomatoes. Cook covered until tomatoes leave oil and add this tempering to the cooked dal and if you find the dal too thick then add some hot water and check the seasoning. And simmer on medium heat for 5 minutes. Serve this dal with some ghee for more flavour and garnish with golden coconut silvers. Ideal for a light lunch. We had this with Peas-Carrot poriyal, fried Bori and plain rice. 

read more.. "Dal Fry(No Onion No Garlic)"

Beet-Carrot Soup | Healthy Soup Recipe

Yes, I am the person who loves beets as not only it is healthy but loves the perfect sweetness and color to any dish. I make beetroot-carrot soup in pressure cooker. Making this in pressure cooker not only reduces cooking time but retains the nutritive value also. Just imagine the sweetness of beets incorporated with ginger ummm delicious. This bright colored soup doesn't have any fat not even butter !

Some more Beetroot recipes from past:

• Beetroot Soup
• Beetroot Lolipops

Ingredients:
2 Beetroots, stem removed
2 Carrots
1 big Tomato
1 Onion
1/2 inch Ginger
3 Garlic pods
5-6 Black pepper balls
1 tsp Cornflour (if required)
Salt as required
3 glasses of water

Lemon juice (optional) while garnishing with some chopped coriander leaves

Method:
Peel the beetroots, carrots and wash under running water.  Cut the beets in half and cut them in large chunks. Chop roughly the carrots also. In a pressure cooker add everything except cornflour and stir well. Close the lid of the cooker and cook on low flame till 2 whistles. Once the steam is released, then strain it. Puree the content in a blender once it is cool down completely. 

If you want your soup to be free of any remaining skins of tomato or seeds then strain again. Put it back on burner and cook on slow flame for next 3-4 minutes. If the soup is having thin consistency then add cornflour in 2 tsp milk and make it lump free. Add this to the soup and remove from heat. Taste and season with salt and black pepper powder accordingly. Serve the soup hot by adding some lemon juice and chopped coriander leaves. Enjoy this delicious and healthy soup !

read more.. "Beet-Carrot Soup | Healthy Soup Recipe"

Sukhe Aloo | Baby Potatoes in Spices

Sukhe Aloo ki sabji (dry potato gravy) is our family's favorite during winters. We never had issues in finding these baby potatoes during season. But finding these cuties in Chennai was a big surprise !These little babies soak up any spices quite well. I add dry mango powder at the end of the cooking procedure so give a nice tangy kick. You can make this dish with normal size potatoes also.

More Potato recipe from Hamaree Rasoi:

• Jhatpat Aloo
• Roasted Baby Potatoes 
• Spicy Baby Potatoes Curry

Ingredients:

500 gms Baby potatoes

1 tsp Cumin seeds

2 big Tomatoes, grated

Big pinch of Asafotida (hing)

1 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1 tsp Dry mango powder

2 Green chillies

1/2 tsp Red chilly powder

1 Tej patta

Water to sprinkle

Salt to taste

4 tbsp Oil

Method:

Wash the potatoes under running water and put them in pressure cooker. On low heat cook till 1st whistle and remove the lid, let them cool down and peel the skin or you can use with skin also.  Prick them with a fork. Shallow fry potatoes in pan till they are light brown. Keep aside.

In the same pan add cumin seeds, tej patta and let them crackle. Add some chopped green chilies  hing and stir well. Add tomato paste and stir continuously on medium flame until the oil floats on top of the gravy. Add turmeric, red chilly powder and mix well. 

Sprinkle some water and add the fried potatoes. Cover and cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat and add dry mango powder. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with naan or chapati.

We had with Matar Pulao...

read more.. "Sukhe Aloo | Baby Potatoes in Spices"