Bow-tie pasta

Ingredients

Bow tie pasta (farfalle) - 1 1/2 cups

Tomato - 1 hand full size

Edamame (green soy beans frozen) - 1 cup

Cumin - 1/2 tsp

mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

dried red chilli - 1 small

Garlic - 1 pod chopped

EV Olive Oil - 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Cook the pasta in salted hot boiling water until done.
2. Meanwhile in another pan add oil and let the mustard crackle first and then add cumin, garlic, broken red chilli and fry.
3. Then add chopped tomatoes, thawed soy beans and cover with a lid and cook them until well done.
4. Once pasta is cooked drain the water, but not till the last drop...retain about half a cup of water in the pasta, which will let the pasta freely falling and moist, rather than sticking and lumping up.
5. Add this pasta to the gravy pan and mix well, check salt and adjust according to your taste.

Chicken with Vegetables

Ingredients:
Chicken minced – 1 lb
Bell Pepper(thinly sliced) – 1
Purple Cabbage(thinly shredded) – ¼ head
Carrot (thinly shaved like chips) – 1
Baby Corn – 1 can or 2 hand fulls
Mushrooms(sliced) – 10 ct
Onion(long slices) or scallions(2) – 1 onion
Garlic – 2 pods
Red Pepper flakes – 1 tbsp (optional)
Green chilli Sauce – 2 Tbsps
Soy Sauce – 2 Tbsps
Corn Starch(flour) – 2 Tbsps
Olive Oil – 3 Tbsps
Salt – upto ur taste level.

Method:

1. In a wide skillet, add 2 Tbsps oil and toss in purple cabbage, cook for a minute and add onions, bell peppers, carrots, baby corn, mushrooms and stir fry until they are almost cooked, but not too mushy. Salt the veggies up to your taste level and save in a bowl.
2. In the same pan, add another tbsp oil and sauté the chicken with enough salt, chopped garlic, red pepper flakes(optional).
3. In a small soup bowl thoroughly mix corn starch, soy sauce, chilli sauce and a cup of water. Add this mix to the chicken and let the starch cook into a thick gravy for a min or two.
   Now add the veggies to this chicken gravy and let all the flavors blend in.
4. Add more soy sauce or chilli sauce according to your taste levels.
5. Serves 3 approximately.

Zucchini Pan Fry

This is an easy healthy recipe you can eat anytime just like a snack or also as a side dish.

FYI: The zucchini vegetable is low in calories (approximately 15 food calories per 100 g fresh zucchini) and contains useful amounts of folate (24 mcg/100 g), potassium (280 mg/100 g) and vitamin A (384 IU [115 mcg]/100 g. 1/2 cup of zucchini also contains 19% of the recommended amount of manganese.

Ingredients:
Zucchini - 4 tender banana sized ones
Garlic - 1 Tbsp chopped
Red pepper flakes - 1 tsp
Dark Soy sauce - 1 Tbsp
Oil - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp (according to your taste)

Method:

• Cut the zucchinis into half and then slice each piece length wise into 4 slices of 1cm thickness approx.
• In a wide pan that can accomadate all the slices to be spread, add the oil and place the slices one after another. Let the vegetable cook nice and brown on one side and be patient to flip each one of them and let the other side also brown.
• Finally add salt, chopped garlic, red pepper flakes, soy sauce and keep flipping until all flavours are absorbed by the zucchini. Garlic need not be cooked all through.
• I dont like zucchini well cooked, there has to be a little crunch left in it for the right taste.
• You can make this dish a full meal by adding your other favourite vegetables along with the zucchini with some cooked rice or noodles.

Vegetable Sandwich

Ingredients:

Bread slices - 2
Onion thinly sliced - 3
Bell Pepper slices - 3
Tomato - 2 (hard one, not ripe n oozy)
Lettuce - few shreds or leaves
Mayonaise - 1 Tbsp
Olives - 3 (optional)
Jalopeno chopped/Cucumber pickles/chilli sauce-1 tsp approx(any 1)
salt n pepper - a pinch (optional)

Method:

• Toast the bread slices
• Apply mayonnaise with a knife on both the slices, just 1 side.
• Sprinkle the spicy pickle pieces on top of it, i like them chopped because the spice will be distributed evenly in low amounts, rather having a big chilli piece in the mouth to yell at.
• Spread all the veggies one over the other and give a dash of salt n pepper if you like, cured olives have salt and if you r using them, dont put salt.
• Cover the other bread on top of this stuff and cut it diagonally to get 2 triangles.
• This is a refreshing sandwich which can be eaten anytime of the day, breakfast, brunch, as a light meal. Can make it 3 tier too, with another layer of bread and stuff.

Tips: I have a container to store all the leftover portions of vegs, which can be used next day, it can be named as sandwich box.

Guacamole with Ciabatta toast

Ingredients:

Avacados - 1 Big

Tomatoes - 1/2 cup pieces

Onion - 1/4 cup pieces

Corriander/Cilantro - 1/4 cup chopped

Yogurt - 2 Tbsps

Lemon juice - 1 Tbsp

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Pepper - 1/2 tsp

Green chillies - 2 small chopped

Ciabatta Rolls(hand full size) - 2 per person

Method:

• The avacodo has to be ripe and soft to make a creamy guacamole, Pressing with a finger should leave an impression on the skin to ensure its ripe. Cut it into half, pit out and scoop out all the soft stuff into a bowl, can make it chunky by pressing with a fork or knife.
• Add lemom juice and salt, pepper, cilantro, tomatoes, onions, chillies and yogurt and mix well.

Ciabatta toast:

• Cut the ciabatta into half like a burger bread..drizzle little olive oil and toast in a toaster or toaster oven until they turn nice brown.
• Rub each slice of bread with a raw garlic clove to infuse an intense garlic smell to the bread.
• This crunchy and chewy toast goes good with the guacamole.

Cucumber yogurt Salad

This is an Indian style salad, which is very pleasing to the toungue with a touch of crunchy tempering.

Ingredients:

Cucumbers - 2

Carrot - 1 long

Chick peas - 1 15 oz can (425 gms)

Yogurt - 1 cup

Tempering:

Mustard - 1/2 tsp

Cumin - 1/2 tsp

Chana dal - 1 tsp

Red chillies - 2 long

Green chillies - 2-3 chopped finely

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Spring onions/onions - a hand full chopped

Oil - 1 tbsp

salt to taste

Method:

• Chop cucumbers and carrots into thin slices and save them in an easy to mix big bowl.
• In a tempering pan heat the oil, add mustard and let them crackle, then add cumin, half split red chillies and chana dal, let them fry in low flame. Now add the chopped scallions, green chillies and curry leaves, fry for 5 mins until they wilt/cook.
• Let the tempering cool and add it to the big bowl of vegetables, salt them and mix thoroughly. At this stage its kind of ready to eat.
• Add the chick peas and yogurt for an extra creamy taste.

Stuffed Chilli peppers

This is one of my own creations. I always get this long n thick chilli peppers during my vegs shopping, because of my craving for that nostalgic street food in India called "Mirchi bajji". This dish kind of replicates taste of the sour chillies inside the bhajjis. Here is what all u need to do..

Ingredients:
Long n thick chilli peppers - 6/7
Sesame seeds - 2 Tbsps
Peanuts - 2 Tbsps
Cumin - 1/2 tsp
Tamarind - a fist full
Onion pieces - hand full
salt - 1 tsp
Oil - 1 Tbsp

Method

• Toast peanuts, sesame seeds and cumin and grind to a chunky mix. Then add the tamarind and salt to make a thick paste.
• Cut the chillies into 2 inch pieces and make slit lenth wise to stuff. With a sharp spoon or knife try to remove the seeds and extra flesh that might be very spicy to eat.
• Stuff the peppers and drop them into an oiled flat pan that can accomadate all the chillies.
• Let them fry in medium to simmer flame...turn the chillies to other side after they are done one side. Now sprinkle onion pieces all over the pan and close the lid, let the onions too wilt/fry.
• Now the dish smells like the street bajjis pack you open.
• Can eat this as a side dish for chapathis or rice with rasam/sambar/dal.