Cheesy Spinach Dip

Here's one more from the Party Menu - an easy & quick Spinach Dip. I like serving baked appetizers as it's convenient. It's easy to store in the oven until your guests arrive, and the dish will stay warm even when prepared hours in advance. Turn the temperature up for a few minutes before serving, and its as good as it gets!

Warning: This one is for those who indulge and don't count calories
Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart's

• Olive Oil - 2 teaspoons, plus more for baking dish
• 1 Onion - chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 pack Spinach
• 1/2 cup milk
• Reduced-fat bar cream cheese - 5 oz
• Soy Sauce - 2 tbsp
• Chilli Sauce - 3 tbsp
• Mozzarella - 3/4 cup
• Ground Pepper

Here's How:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 
2. In a non-stick pan, heat oil and add onion and garlic; cook until lightly browned, 5 to 8 minutes.
3. Add spinach in small proportions and ensure they are completely wilted, 5 to 8 minutes.
4. Transfer to a colander; drain, pressing to release all excess liquid. This might take time, but is important if you need your dip to be the right consistency.
5. In the same pan, warm milk over high heat and whisk in cream cheese until melted (about 5 minutes) 
6. Add spinach, soy sauce, chilli sauce, and 1/4 cup mozzarella; stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. 
7. Pour the mix into shallow baking dish; top with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella.
8. Bake until bubbly and golden brown, 20 minutes. 
9. Serve with mini bagel bites or onion/sesame crackers and enjoy!

Paneer Tikka

Did I tell you already that I love to host parties? It gives me such pleasure to be able to plan a party in my head and execute it exactly the way I planned. My closes friends and S (am sure) are convinced that its some form of OCD. They call me Monica, and I actually like that! 

I have to make elaborate plans.
I have to send out atleast a 100 mails in the process of preparation.
I have to be able to make as many things to eat as I possibly can, and in record time.
I have to photograph them before anyone digs into it. And it naturally ends up here and on facebook.

I tried to grill Paneer Tikkas for one such party recently, and here it is:

To make 12 Skewers, with 3-4 Paneers in each.

Marinade: Prep previous night and soak in the refrigerator.

• Yogurt - 1 cup
• Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tbsp
• Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
• Oil - 1 tbsp, 1 more for brushing (later)
• Garam Masala - 1 tbsp
• Red Chilli Powder - 1 tbsp
• Coriander Powder - 1 tbsp
• Jeera Powder - 1 tbsp
• Methi, crushed - 1 pinch
• Salt - 2 tbsp

Mix all of the above and pour into a wide bottom vessel.

Veggies

• Cut Paneer into cubes (~45 pieces)
• Chop Onions and Bell Peppers into similar sized pieces. They need to be big enough to thread in the skewers.
• Cherry Tomatoes

Soak the veggies in the marinade overnight. Keep this in the refrigerator.

Threading & Grilling

1. Line the bottom of your oven with an Aluminum Foil or parchment paper. This is done in order to prevent the Oven from steaming/sizzling when the marinade drips from the skewers.
   
2. Preheat the oven to 350F. If you like a smoked taste to the Paneer, broil instead.
   
3. You would need a pack of Bamboo skewers. Soak these in water for 10-15 mins, so they don't char instantly upon grilling. 
4. Carefully thread the pre-soaked veggies in the pre-soaked bamboo skewers in order: Onions - Capsicum - Paneer - Tomato, and repeat!
5. Take a cooking brush (a new paint brush washed well) and dip in oil. Brush the veggie threaded in the skewer slightly.
6. Place these in a cookie baking tray and keep them in the oven for 20 mins total, turning the skewers every 5 mins to have all sides evenly grilled.
7. The marinade is lip-smackingly-delish and can be used as a dip!

 Enjoy!

Let's go Cuckoo !

You know... it's summer n all ?

It's super hot on the east coast... so, I had picked up lots of cucumbers and watermelons when I shopped 2 weeks ago.

I chopped up the first one, and sprinkled some salt, pepper and chilli powder and made an evening snack out of it. But then, I came across a cocktail recipe on Pottery Barn and decided to try a variant at the party we were hosting on July 3.

Presenting to you - Let's go Cuckoo ! :)

• Take 5-10 Cucumber slices and mash them up using a muddler to extract the juice.
• Toss them in the cocktail shaker
• Add 1 small measure of sugar syrup
• Add 2 measures of Tequila
• Add 1.5 measure of Soda or Water
• Stir them up a bit and keep aside
• Add in just a pinch of lemon pepper powder
• On a small side plate - Add some salt, lemon pepper, chilli powder 
• Take a nice cocktail glass and dip it rim first on the side plate so that the rim gets lined with the spice mix
• Then carefully pour the mixed drink into the glass, through a cocktail strainer that holds back the cucumbers and seeds (you can let the cucumbers fall through if you want)
• Decorate with a slice, and serve it like a pro!

I loved it, and so did a bunch of my friends :)

My Pink Lady

I found this amazing recipe on Pinterest recently. A recipe for a fresh fruit cocktail... with a strawberry and watermelon base. What better time that July 4 to experiment with it? Our friends gifted us a cocktail mixer kit for our first wedding anniversary... and it seemed like the stars had aligned and the time had arrived :)

I modified that recipe a lil bit and made my own first fresh fruit cocktail. I must admit, though the first glass tasted a lot more like watermelon juice than a cocktail... it got progressively better and became S's favorite before the night ended.

Here's what I mixed in together:

Use a standard measure, whatever you have on hand. Doesn't have to be something that comes with a cocktail shaker kit. The following makes 1 tall glass.

• Puree watermelon and strawberry in equal parts and then strain it through a colander to get a pure seedless puree. Add 2 spoonfuls to a cocktail shaker/glass where you will mix more.
• Drop 1-2 mint leaves into the container.
• 1/4 fresh lemon squeezed. Drop the lemon wedge as well into the shaker. You may use bottled lemon as an alternative.
• Give it a stir and add 1 measure of Vodka
• Keep stirring while adding 1.5 measure of Soda
• Finally add 1 measure of Simple Syrup (Sugar Syrup). I used a store bought bottle.
• I added a lil bit of the spice mix that I describe in 'Prepping the Glass' section below and that adds some kick!

Caution - if you add water instead of Soda, you may close the shaker lid and shake the cocktail container. It is believed to deliver a better taste. However, with Soda in the glass - shaking will only create fizz and consequently a messy bar table !

Prepping the Glass
In a shallow plate - add some salt, and lemon pepper powder and some red chili powder (or cayenne paper). Hold the semi wet glass upside down and dip into the plate with the powder so that the rim is evenly lined with the mix.

There you go, stir it all up and pour into a glass. Let the mint leaves fall through, but hold the lemon wedge. Decorate by adding tiny slices of Strawberries and Blueberries into the glass. I used a portion of a bamboo skewer to thread the fruits and served a pro-drink!

PS: I made a small cut on the strawberry in the skewer to balance it on the glass.

Sour Cream Blueberry Bread

Everybody's first choice when it comes to home baked bread defaults to the Banana Bread. I'd have done the same, but then it has been tried and tested and I've gotten bored of it already.

I love the flavor and texture that Sour Cream adds to breads/cakes. After slow-cooking several recipes that I found online in my head... I decided to try a Banana-Blueberry-SourCream bread this afternoon. The bread is baking and the house has this wonderful aroma. I cannot wait to slice them, drizzle butter on top and have them with some coffee! S is away for his Sunday cricket, and I hope the bread 'll last till he is back :)

Here's the recipe I followed:

Bowl 1

2 Cups All Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Sugar
1 tbsp Baking Soda
1/4 tbsp Salt
1 tbsp Cinnamon

Bowl 2

2 Eggs
2 Oz Butter
1 Cup Sour Cream
1 tbsp Vanilla Essence

Fruit Bowl

1 Banana Mashed up
3/4 Cup of Blueberries

• Preheat the oven to 350 F, and grease a bread loaf pan with butter spray.
• Mix Bowl 1 together. Beat Bowl 2 together. Add in Bowl 1 to Bowl 2 and beat until smooth.
• Further, add Banana mash into the mix and top with Blueberries and fold into the batter
• Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 40-50 mins or until brown on sides and baked fully.

Plum Buckle

After a very hectic vacation in India and a fairly busy weekend, I needed to do something therapeutic. Some paint and some garden. My mom used to read and I tend to cook.

I went to the market yesterday evening... I like to shop for fruits and vegetables on Saturdays. That's when the fresh farm produce is displayed in aisles, the smell of cinnamon and baked bread fills the air at the local Wegmans Supermarket... the cilantro bunches get a fresh cold sprinkle and wait to be picked up! I usually end up buying more than my fridge can hold. This time, I brought home fresh plums, black berries and straw berries. I also picked up a bunch of asparagus on my way out, thanks to my friend S's recipes on her blog.

Anyway, the berries are likely to end up in the processor along with a few bananas and some milk or yogurt. But, the plums - I had to make something with the plums.  A Buckle? Maybe.. the recipe from William Sonoma sure looked easy!

Bowl 1

1 and 1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
1/4 tbsp Salt
1 tbsp Baking Powder

Bowl 2

2 Cups Butter (8 Oz)
1 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs

To Sprinkle

1 tbsp Cinnamon Powder
1 tbsp Sugar

• Preheat the Oven to 350F
• Take a round pan, and spray cooking butter on it
• Layer with parchment / baking paper and once again grease with butter flavored spray
• Mix Bowl 1, Beat Bowl 2. Add in Bowl 1 to Bowl 2 until smooth.
• Pour the batter on to the prepared pan.

• Now slice up the plums into tiny pieces and place on top of the batter. Apply slight pressure so as to push them halfway into the pan.
• Sprinkle the cinnamon + sugar mix on top of the batter and bake until sides turn golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes clean.

Transfer to a tray, let it cool and enjoy with Tea !

Applesauce Muffins

Hola !
Am back after a long and much needed vacation @ Puerto Rico. So stepping in here with a quick update, before the next one to India!

Ever gone overboard with buying a dozen apples and then not know what to do with it? Here's a lil something you can try.


AppleSauce

Peel and core 2-3 apples (McIntosh or any semi-tart apple), then chop them up into lil cubes and toss them into a small vessel with hot boiling water. Simmer, and cook partially closed until the cut apples becomes soft and tender. Cool and transfer to a blended and blend until you get it to a sauce like consistency. You may add sugar as you feel necessary.

In an air tight container in the fridge - the sauce will keep up for about 2 weeks.

Apple Sauce Muffin

Bowl 1
2 cups All Purpose Flour
2/3rd cup Sugar
1.5 tbsp Cinnamon
1 tbsp All Spice (Tastes like a mixture of Cinnamon, Nutmeg and Cloves)
2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tbsp baking soda
1/2 tbsp salt
1 cup dark or golden raisins

Bowl 2
1/3 cup walnut / almond or canola oil
1 large egg
1 cup applesauce

• Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease your muffin tray. Note, this recipe does not contain butter, so grease well.
• Mix Bowl 1 ingredients and set aside
• Mix Bowl 2 ingredients until blended well
• Add in Bowl 1 to Bowl 2 in portions, mixing well each time until you get a smooth batter. The batter will loosen as you keep beating.
• Spoon the batter into muffin trays up to the brim. (This muffin does not rise a lot, so you will be alright filling up to the brim)
• Bake till golden dry and springy to touch (about 20 mins), cool and serve at room temperature!

Hope you enjoy a healthy, no butter all fruit recipe ;)
This one, is modified from a William Sonoma recipe. I used fewer apples, lesser oil, no butter and did not add in walnuts.