Kids Favourite Paav Bhaji Recipe

I'm enjoying the messages that I'm receiving for kids special recipes which I'm posting these days :) Last night, I cooked Paav Bhaji for dinner and here is my version of this kids special recipe that I'm sure they won't be able to resist.

Ingredients:

2 onions (finely chopped) 

1 capsicum  (finely chopped)

4 tomatoes (finely chopped)

2 potatoes (boiled, peeled and mashed )

garlic (finely chopped)

1 tbsp paav bhaji masala

1 tsp red chilli powder

4 tbsp butter

1 tbsp cumin seeds (jeera)

salt to taste

2 rbsp fresh lemon juice

6 paav

water

Method:

Heat butter in a pan and add cumin seeds. 

When the seeds crackle, add chopped onions and garlic. Sauté till light brown while stirring occasionally.

Add chopped capsicum and again sauté for 2 minutes on medium flame. 

Add tomatoes before the onion/capsicum in the pan get tender to retain its crispiness. Cover the pan and cook on low flame for 3 to 4 minutes. 

Sprinkle the dry spices over the cooked vegetables including salt, chilli powder and paav bhaji masala and stir to mix it evenly.

Add mashed potatoes, mix well using potato masher and cook for few minutes. You may add some water if you don't prefer thick consistency of bhaji. Keep aside the cooked bhaji.

Now, heat the flat griddle (tawa). Pour some butter on it, slit a paav into two halves and place over melted butter. Bake the paav from both sides till they turn light brown and crisp. 

Garnish the bhaji with chopped onion (like I mostly do) with a dash of some fresh lemon juice. Serve with hot paav. 

Hope all the kids there would love this tasty dish :) 

Homemade Khatta Meetha Aam Papad - Recipe for Kids

Its the season of King of Fruits..Mangoes. While most people of every age or gender are crazy about mangoes, you will be surprised to know that I rarely eat it. But one mango dish that I love is Aam Papad. The aam papad that I always bought from market in my childhood days is now prepared by me in my kitchen. I always relished its tangy, spicy variant more than sweeter variant. So here is my version of the Chatpata Aam Papad for our little kids.

Ingredients:

3 Ripe Mangoes

1/2 Cup Sugar

2 Green Cardamom (Powdered)

1/2 tsp Black pepper powder

2-3 pinch ginger powder

1/2 tsp Black Salt

1 tbsp Cooking Oil/Ghee

Method:

Peel and slice mangoes.

Make smooth paste of mango pulp in the blender mixed with cardamom powder.

Pour the mango paste in a pan on medium flame and bring it to boil. Now add sugar, pepper powder, black salt, ginger powder in the paste and stir continuously until thickened. Turn the flame off when the paste turns dark yellow in color and more viscose.

Grease a flat steel tray with oil or ghee and spread a think layer of cooked mango paste in it.

Cover the tray with a thin muslin cloth or net and keep it under the sun to dry. Depending on the heat of sunlight, the time to get the aam papad ready may vary. (it may even let it dry inside the room in night)

Peel off the dried aam papad from tray using sharp tip of a knife and cut into shape you like.

The spicy, tangy homemade aam papad is ready to enjoy with kids without worries of hygiene ;)

P.S. You may use any type of mangoes and can adjust the quantity of sugar and salt as per your taste or according to the original sweetness of mangoes. The aam papad can last for a month or so if stored in an air tight container and refrigerated. 

Potato Stuffed Idli - Recipe for Kids

Hi Mommies

One more quick recipe for your little ones that you can offer them without compromising in nutritional value. Its Potato stuffed Idli with only few ingredients that need not be purchased exclusively and are available in our kitchen all the time.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Moong Daal (soaked overnight)
• 1 cup Chana Daal (soaked overnight)
• 3-4 Boiled and Mashed Potatoes 
• 1 Onion (finely chopped)
• 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves
• 1 cup Curd/buttermilk
• Salt to taste
• Cooking Oil
• ENO salt- 1 pouch 
• Water

Method:
1. Heat oil in a pan. Add chopped onions and saute it for 2-3 minutes. Don't let its crispiness lost. Add chilli powder, salt, turmeric powder and fenugreek leaves & mix well. Now add the mashed potatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes. The stuffing is ready.

2. Grind the soaked moong daal and chana daal together with some curd or buttermilk to prepare thick batter out of it. Add salt and chilli powder to taste. Grind it once more to blend uniformly.

3. Keep the Idli-mould ready by oiling it generously.

4. Now add one pouch of Eno salt to the batter prepared and stir it to instantly ferment the batter. Pour the batter on the idli moulds upto half its depth. Place a spoonful of stuffing over the batter and pour one more layer of batter to cover the stuffing.

5. Place the Idli stand in the steaming hot water in cooker and let the Idlis cook for around 10-15 minutes. Before you serve it, check by piercing a fork in idli if the batter doesn't stick to fork, its cooked properly.

6. Serve with green chutney or tomato ketchup.

P.S. you may make stuffing of vegetables of kids liking or can give it a different twist every time by adding or removing some veggies.

Hope the kids and mommies are enjoying!! Happy Cooking!!

Taste Ka Naya Magic With McCain

The pure bond of brothers and sisters is being celebrated tomorrow. Each one of us would be busy dressing up, setting up the center stage for your sibling and ofcourse making a list of gifts you gonna demand from your loving bro ;) Whats better than to please your sibling with some homemade recipes instead of going out. Many Rakhi recipes can be prepared a day or two in advance so that you may spend quality time with your brother or sister.
My li'l brother who is actually 'little' for me because he came to this world more than a decade later after I did ;) Now treating him like my baby is much obvious. This boy I am talking about is so fond of spicy food that he gives me no chance to prepare some homemade sweets for him. That's why this time I have decided to surprise him with the kind of snacks he enjoys...

I have got my hands on some tasteful products from McCain which would replace the tradition dishes on my menu to celebrate #RakhiWithMcCain. 

Ingredients:
McCain Veggie Finger 1 pc.
McCain Aloo Tikki 1 pc.
McCain Potato Cheese Shotz 6 pcs.
Corns 1/4 cup (Boiled)
Tomato 1 (small sized)
Green Capsicum 1 (small sized)
Oil to fry

Steps:
Heat oil in a pan and deep fry all variants of McCain products till they turn golden brown. It will take almost 3 minutes to get ready. Now place the McCain Aloo Tikki in the center of the plate and McCain Potato Cheese Shotz as its petals. McCain Veggie Finger can be used as the stem of the plant. Now decorate this cute McCain flower with tomato slice cut into semi-circles, corns and capsicum slices slit lengthwise.

Ingredients for Cocktail Sauce
1 tbps tomato ketchup
3 tbsp mayonnaise
2 cloves of garlic (peeled and pressed)
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
Oregano to taste

Mint Leaves (as per liking)

Steps:

Mix ketchup and mayonnaise in a bowl. Add salt, pressed garlic, pepper powder and oregano in the mixture as per your taste. Chop mint leaves finely and add in the bowl.(You may grind the mint leaves as per your preference). Blend evenly all the ingredients for bringing out the taste and aroma. Pour the cocktail sauce in a clean bowl and garnish with mint leaves. 

Serve the beautifully decorated McCain floral snack preparation  to your sibling with yummy sauce.

Now why I picked only McCain products...My brother is very choosy about food items and runs away from most veggies. He avoids even tasting food with aromatic ingredients like garlic. But with McCain, he felt simply irresistible to refuse this delicious combination of mashed potatoes, chopped veggies seasoned lightly with spices of his fav flavours.

The quick snacks recipes indeed succeeded me winning my sibling's heart by giving preference to his taste and choice. I am feeling special to give a twist to my celebration of #RakhiWithMcCain.

  

Summer Corn Creamy Pasta: Cooking for Del Monte #ItalianEscapades

"Life is a combination of Magic and Pasta..."

Entertaining yourself with a flavourful Pasta at home is one thing that you may gift yourself on a holiday. Today I got an unexpected holiday in lieu of 15 August celebrations, and I knew that the best reason to treat my family with creamy Pasta.

I had been wanting to write for Del Monte India's #ItalianEscapades campaign since many days and here is my version of homemade SUMMER CORN CREAMY PASTA recipe....

1. Boiling the pasta:

· Penne Pasta – 200 gms
· Thin Noodles – ½ Cup
· Olive Oil – 2 tsp
· Water
· Salt – ½ tsp

Steps:

In a wok pan, add 6 cups of water and bring it to boil. Add some salt and few drops of oil while its boiling. Wait for minute till the water returns to a boil and then add the pasta and noodles into boiling water. Let it cook till it gets tender. (Do not overcook to avoid pasta break into pieces and lose its shape). Stir the pasta often to avoid it sticking at the bottom of the pan. Drain the pasta, and keep some boiling water aside.

2. Frying the vegetables:

· 1 Onion – finally chopped lengthwise
· 1 Green Bell Pepper – Cut into ½ inch pieces

· Frozen Corn Kernels – ½ Cup (Bolied)
· Garlic Paste – ½ tsp
· Salt to taste
· Olive Oil - 1 ½ tsp
· Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce – 3-4 tsp
· Fresh whipped Cream – ¼ cup
· Dried Chilli Flakes
· Dried Oregano
· Black Pepper

Fresh Cream whipped already

Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce by Del Monte

Dry Oregano Leaves

Dry Chilli Flakes

 Heat olive oil in a flat bottomed pan.

Add chopped onion, bell pepper in the oil and sauté till they turn slightly soft, but let them remain crunchy by not overcooking. 

Add the boiled corns, garlic paste and salt to the vegetables and mix well. Then add fresh cream to the vegetables and stir it till the moment the cream gives out its rich shine to the preparation. (It may lighten the color of the vegetables for a moment, but worry not). 

Now pour the Arrabbiata pasta sauce in the cooked vegetables for the flavor and color you expect. Sprinkle some oregano and dry chilli flakes so that the aroma of herb gets absorbed by the vegetables at this stage.

3. Mixing the pasta in Veggies:
· Boiled Pasta
· Cooked Veggies
· Dried Chilli Flakes
· Dried Oregano
· Black Pepper

Steps: 

If you think the recipe is at its final stage, and I have no secret tip to share at this point; you are not reading my mind then. As you are about to mix the pasta into saucy veggies, remember to splash few spoonful of reserved boiling water in the pan and then transfer pasta into it. Cook it for next two minutes more and then put off the pan from stove.

4. Serving the pasta:

By now, my pasta developed the starch and got evenly merged with saucy veggies. So the final toss and it’s the time to serve the flavourful pasta garnished with oregano, chilli flakes and black pepper powder on the top.

You may like to add a dash of ketchup before you taste it, then go for authentic tangy tomato taste of  Del Monte.

Expert Tips:

• Do not add salt in water before its boiled. It won’t affect the taste of pasta, but would take longer to reach its boiling point and getting the pasta tender.
• The boiling water is added to the vegetable because pasta absorbs the fluid in which it is being cooked. If you give immerse it in slightly liquid saucy veggies, it will be flavoured by sauces from inside as well.
• I have added thin noodles for a variation that help the ingredients stick a bit better.
• You may add other vegetables in pasta like olives, mushrooms, different colored bell pepper etc. for authentic Italian taste, but I cooked it the way my family likes it.

My junior has spared your share to relish my humble dish :) 

Serving Pasta With Love

Everyone in the family loved the final dish. How do you like it? Do let me know your variations in comments below :)   

IHA Lavender Detoxifying Bathing Bar Review

If you love lavender, this soap is for you ;) Made from Lavender essential oil with multiple skin benefits ..Its a soap from one of the most trusted brand i.e. IHA Lavender Detoxifying Bathing Bar.

Product Info:

IHA Lavender Bathing Bar is a natural and powerful yet gentle antiseptic bathing bar that thoroughly cleanses, purifies and detoxifies your skin of all the germs and infectious materials. The antiseptic and cleansing properties of lavender, thyme and rosemary help to unclog skin pores and deeply cleanse the skin on a cellular level, leaving you feeling fresh and scrupulously clean with a revitalizing aroma of lavender that exudes from your body throughout the day.

Ingredients:
Each gram contains Dadrughana Leaf (Cassia Alata) 50mg, Dharu Oil (Lavendula Angustifolia) 20mg, Grape Seed Extract (Vitis Vinifera) 30mg, Ajawain Oil (Thymus Vulgaris) 10mg, Rusmari Oil (Rosmarinus Officinalis) 30mg, Jhandupushp (Tegetes Patula) 20mg, C.I.14720, C.I.142090, fragrance.

Price: Rs 140

Weight: 125 gms.

Packaging:
The soap bar comes in cardboard carton with every possible detail on how to use it, what has gone into its formulation, price n quantity etc. The soap bar itself is neatly wrapped in clear sheet and has a label stuck on it with the brand logo with name of variant written along.

My take on the product:
I have been using many of IHA products and truly loved every single product. So when I was looking for a supermild soap for my junior's sensitive skin, I came across this Lavender Soap Bar which mentioned 'antiseptic' on it. So here is how this soap bar worked...

The Lavender Antiseptic soap bar is a solution for those who want to ditch synthetic blends in bathing products and leave their skin feel cared. Its a square shape soap bar unlike usual rectangular ones. The purple hued soap indeed adds up like a decor item placed in your bathroom ;)

As I tried to smell the fragrance of a packed soap, I felt its a fragrance free soap with no perfume added to it. But as soon as I unwrapped the soap bar, a rich lavender blend with echoes of deep woods made me feel mesmerized. I knew its made to reverberate in the heart and is so cheering :) The texture of the soap is not exactly smooth, but it looks like the canvas of a painter with some modern art painted on it in deep purple.

A shower with IHA Lavender soap bar enriches your morning with uplifting scent and thoroughly cleanses, purifies and detoxifies the irritated skin. As I mentioned, my junior has sensitive skin, using this soap comforted his prickled skin long way. The hydrating lather renewed skin's moisture and escaped the skin from producing germs.

The soap is not only to be used by sensitive skinned people, but suits every skin type. Specially during hot summer days, you should use this soap bar while taking a shower before going to bed after a tiring day and I bet it would relax your aching, sore muscles with its aromatic formulation. The lavender essential oil is said to improve quality of sleep, so I ensure using it in the night as well. There is nothing that I disliked about this soap.

Pros:
Made of all natural ingredients.
Uplifting aroma.
Relaxes mind and body.
Controls prickles and germs formation on skin.
Helps renew skin moisture.
Attractive color.
Skin friendly texture.
Cruelty free.
Priced reasonable as of its constituents.
Easily available online.

Cons:
Not sure of finding it in offline stores.

Simply put, IHA Lavender Soap Bar is a must-have for every home and is a great asset in treating a number of skin concerns such as eczema, itchy skin, sunburn, inflammation etc. After using this soap bar, I can simply make out why Lavender Soap is the most popular among all. A strong recommendation from my side for this magical formula ...