CREAMY EGG AND POTATO CURRY

Life always has its own plans for us and sadly we can never alter these plans. Three weeks earlier I was all excited to met my parents and enjoy my long awaited vacation.....but. Its true I spent three weeks with my parents but I never want to spend those days again.......shocked. Well my Baba(father) is very ill and was here for check-up, he had been suffering since many years but he never told anyone.....its only when Mamoni(mother) saw all the visible symptoms that I got to know about it. After his check-up we were told of all the physical aliment he is suffering from.....now he has loads of medicine through out the day....I am still shocked with his attitude toward himself. Parents get worried when we neglect about ourself or we don't tell them about our problems, I don't know why they don't realize that we feel the same.....even we are worried about them and if they fall ill it affects us so much. I hope now my parents understand that they should just tell me everything directly.                                                                                                                             very old pic of my parents Anyway,the changing of my plans by life didn't stop with this, I planned for my parents to stay with me for a month so that both of them can rest and relax a bit as doctors said he needs a lot of rest. And even that plan could not work out.....why? Well life planned something more horrible.....one of my uncle, my Baba's sister's husband, expired and I knew that Baba had to go else that would hurt him more. So he left and I know when he goes home he will start his routine and wont get the most required rest....all this worries me, then again that's what life has planned and I can just play my part in it. As it has been planned for me,  again I am alone with the same routine life and the only real fun time is when I am blogging. As I was alone and not in a very good mood, so I didn't feel like shopping or cooking anything special. So last Sunday was perfect for a easy , simple curry and the Creamy Egg & Potato Curry was part of the menu. Gravies are often the star of any Indian meals and a good creamy gravy can make the meal a perfect one. This is an awesome gravy......full of flavors with all the simple spices and coconut cream. Its a perfect dish that goes well with rice, chapati and paratha. Great for those lazy days..!!!

Eggs	6 numbers
Potato	2 medium sized
Onion	1large
Ginger-garlic paste	1 tablespoon
Green Chilly	2 numbers
Tomato	2 numbers
Coconut milk	100 ml
Turmeric powder	1/2 teaspoon
Red Chilly powder	1/2 teaspoon
Roasted Cumin powder	1/2 teaspoon
Oil	2-3 tablespoons
Salt	As per taste
Pepper	As per taste
Cilantro Leaves	1 cup

1. Hard boil the eggs and remove the covering. Marinate the eggs with little salt, tumeric powder & red chilly powder.
2. Cut the potato lengthwise like the wedges. Soak it in water with some salt.
3. Cut the onion in large blocks. Place the cut onions in a baking dish and drizzle slight oil on top. 
4. Season with some salt, pepper and give it a mix. Roast it at 180C for about 15 minutes.
5. When the onions are done, let it cool and then blend it to a smooth paste.
6. Blanch tomotoes in hot water and let it boil till they get soften. Remove the skin and blend that to a smooth paste to make tomato puree.
7. Heat little oil in a kadhai and fry the eggs and potatoes separetely. Remove them and set aside separately.
8. In the same kadhai, add ginger-garlic paste fry for some time and then add the roasted onion paste.
9. Fry the mixture for 5-6 min. Then add tomato puree and cook under cover and low flames till the oil separetes out.
10. Mix the spices - tumeric powder, red chilly powder and roasted cumin powder with little water till it forms a paste.
11. Add the spice mixture to the kadhai and mix all the cooking ingredients together.
12. Then add the fried potatoes and eggs to the kadhai and cook for 6-7 min.
13. Mix the coconut milk with 1/2 cup of warm milk and pour in the kadhai.
14. Cook the dish in low flame and under cover till the water is soaked.
15. Finally garnish with chopped cilantro leaves.

I tried the dish with rice and paratha and enjoyed it with both. 

1st BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION WITH 'SALAD RICE WITH SWEET & SPICY CHICKEN'

A year has passed by and along came in 2012 with lot of new hopes and dreams. Wishing you all a Great New Year Ahead.......may every moment be filled with joy and hope all your dreams come true....!!!! It’s been more than a month that I wrote anything. Did I lose the excitement......No way; rather I was caught in the hands of faith. I met with an accident and was in bed-rest all this time. Sadly I missed a lot of important and fun occasions in the process --- I missed to celebrate my blog's birthday, SORRY BUON APPETITO :( , I missed the new year celebration and I even spent my birthday lying in bed. Well no use crying over spilt milk, today I started cooking and I decided to making something that celebrates my cooking experiments and it’s my way of saying sorry to my blog for missing out on her birthday :) . Do join me to wish BUON APPETITO a very Happy 1st Birthday. I just cannot believe that one year has passed by and I had a lot of fun with you (BUON APPETITO). Before I begin with the recipe I want to share the story behind my blog. I was always interested in cooking since childhood but I have started serious cooking some 6-7 years back ---after I moved out of my home and I was tired of eating out. Over the years I had treated my friends & family now and they would always encourage me a lot. My friends would often ask for my recipes and it got me thinking that I should have a space where I could note down my recipes and everyone could access it. During the same time, my younger brother started blogging and he explained me all about it and it seemed to be a great idea........and I started my first blogs -VERSATILITY. In a few days I realized that blog could be a great way of noting my recipes and anyone could access them easily if they wanted. With this thought in head I came to office on December 18th, 2010 and I determined to start my recipe blog. However I didn’t know what to name it and the whole day in office I kept thinking about it, I even involved my younger sister in the process. At night 11:00pm it struck me.......I had read an article sometime back, that Italians never start their meal without wishing "BUON APPETITO" meaning 'Enjoy your Meal' to all and it felt just perfect. I have some fascination with everything Italian---the architecture, food, men everything stands out in my eyes :) . And I want everyone to enjoy my dishes.....so my blog is named "BUON APPETITO". I started blogging with no knowledge about it. I thought blog is only for personal entries---that’s what I saw in Movies, I didn’t even know that there are other peoples who blog about recipes. Over the last year I discovered the blogger community; I met many wonderful people and loved the experience. Now let’s move to the recipe---SALAD RICE with SWEET & SPICY CHICKEN. I wanted to make something special to celebrate the birthday......however I was torn between trying something new or revisiting an old recipe. Finally I decided to make this dish.....it has a great importance to me. This is the dish that marked the beginning of my journey with kitchen. The first time I made it was some 4 years back just for me.....and then I had it again for my parents some 2 years back. Today when I made the dish I had made a few changes and I liked the variation.

FOR SWEET & SPICY CHICKEN
Chicken thighs	8 pieces
Potatoes	2 medium sized
Carrots	2 medium sized
Red Onion	1 large
Ginger-garlic paste	2 teaspoons
Grape Juice	1 cup
Lime Juice	1/2 of a Lime
Honey	1 tablespoon
Tomato puree	1/2 tablespoon
Paprika	3 teaspoons
Salt	As per taste
Ground-Nut Oil	2 tablespoons

FOR SALAD RICE
Basmati Rice	2 cups
Onion	1 large sized
Carrot	1 large sized
Cucumber	1 medium sized
Tomato	2 medium sized
Yogurt	4-5 tablespoons
Lime Juice	1 number
Turmeric powder	1/2 teaspoon
Paprika	1 teaspoon
Salt	As per taste
Ground-Nut Oil	2 tablespoons

    SWEET & SPICY CHICKEN:-

1. Marinate the chicken thighs in a bowl with salt, 1 teaspoon paprika and lime juice. Let it stand for 15-20 min.
2. Chop the vegetables --potato, carrot and onion, in medium sized cubes.
3. In a large pan, add oil and fry the chicken till it get golden. Remove the pieces in a foil and fold the foil so that the chicken pieces stay warm.
4. In the same pan, add the ginger-garlic paste and fry. Add the cubed vegetables and lightly fry them.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together paprika, tomato puree, honey and line juice. Pour the liquid mixture in the pan. 
6. Add the warm, fried chicken pieces to the cooking pan and cooking again for 4-5 minutes; see that every vegetable and chicken are properly coated with the liquid mixture.
7. Pour the grape juice to the pan; let it cook on medium heat till the chicken and vegetable are cooked and the liquid is a evaporated.

    SALAD RICE:-

1. Heat oil in a large pot; add the rice to the pot and fry it for 5-6 min.
2. Whisk together the yogurt, turmeric powder, paprika and salt in a bowl.
3. Pour the yogurt mixture to the frying rice, mix well and let it cool for 6-7 min.
4. Add water to the pot and let the rice cook.
5. Chop the onion, carrot, cucumber and tomato into small cubes. 
6. Add lime zest. lime juice and salt to the chopped vegetables and let it stand for 10 min.
7. Mix the tangy vegetables to the cooked rice.

         

The tangy Salad Rice with Sweet and Spicy Chicken makes a great combination.

MULLIGATAWNY SOUP WITH TOASTED BREAD AND PEA PESTO

OCTOBER.....this is the most festive month of the year. There are endless number for festival from all around the world and I have decided to celebrate them all-----HOW??? With food for sure. :) .  My month long festivity started with Durga Puja----a festival most awaited by bengalis. We actually wait for 361 days to celebrate the 4 days of Puja. The beautiful statues of the goddess in the midst of light shows , dak(drums) and aromatic foods is breath-taking. This is the first time in years that I have been away from my family and I was sad, but that didnt stop me from Pandal-hopping. It was a refreshing feeling and the sound of dhak(drums) just suppressed all sorrows :). I tried out a lots of lovely food but the one street food without which Durga Puja seems incomplete for me is Egg Roll. Since my childhood during all the days of Durga Puja we would litterally bug my father till he bought us the super delicious Egg Rolls :) and I still have the same craving. The last day of Durga Puja is called Dashami, when the statues are paraded around the city before being submerged in the lakes or rivers. With all the missed feeling in heart, we spend the rest of the day feasting with all the wonderful dishes --- both savory and sweet. This year, although away from home, I had a feast in my house here ... not on the Dashami day but on the following Sunday :) . Ya I was alone but food kept me accompanied and at the end of the week I was feeling better :D . I will be sharing all the recipes with you all.Lets start with the starter -- Mulligatawny soup with Toasted Bread and Pea Pesto.   Mulligatawny means "pepper water" or "pepper broth" in Tamil. The became popular with the British stationed in India during colonial times, during the late 18th century and later.  They took the recipe back to England and made variations to suit their tastes and it became a well-loved classic. There are many versions to the original recipe and I tried my own twig to the classic. Pesto originated in Genoa, North Italy. Its a sauce traditionally made with garlic,basil and pine nuts grounded along with olive oil and cheese. Currently there are many different types of pesto sauces made all around the world. My pesto had Pea as the main ingredient another small change to classic. Shared my recipe with My City Cuisine

FOR MULLIGATAWNY SOUP
Apple	2 numbers
Pineapple	1/2 of a medium sized
Carrot	2 number
Potato	2 number
Baby onion	1 cup
Red Bell Pepper	1 medium sized
Peas	1 cup
Corns	1 cup
Ginger grated	1 teaspoon
All purpose Floor	1/3 cup
Curry Powder	1 teaspoon
Milk	1 cup
Salt	As per taste
Pepper	1/3 teaspoon
Oil	1/2 tablespoon

FOR TOASTED BREAD AND PEA PESTO
Peas	2 cups
Cilantro	1 bunch
Pine Nuts	1/2 cup
Garlic cloves	2 numbers
Salt	As per taste
Oil	1 teaspoon

  MULLIGATAWNY SOUP:-

1. Boil corn till its a little soft but still having a slight crunch.
2. Cut the carrot , potato and red bell pepper into cubes.The fruits are also cut into cubes.
3. The baby onions are only peeled and the shape is kept intact.
4. Heat oil in a large pan, add the ginger and saute till the oil get a gingery smell.
5. Add the  potatoes , carrot , red bell pepper and baby onion to the pan. Saute for 5 -6 min.Then add the peas , corns , apples and pineapple and saute for 5-6 min again.
6. Add curry powder, black pepper and salt to the pan and cook for 2-3 min.
7. Finally stir in the flour and gradually add milk to the pan, keep stiring so that no lump is created.
8. If needed add hot water(I needed it :) ) and let it boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes.

  TOASTED BREAD AND PEA PESTO:-

1. To toast the bread, grill the bread slices in a sandwich maker.
2. For the pea pesto : boil the peas till it slightly soft and remove it instantly and cool under running water
3. In the food processor pulse together the soften peas , cilantro , pine nuts and garlic cloves. When done add salt and pulse for a few seconds only.
4. In a pan, add oil and add the pea-cilantro mash. Stir for 3 min max.

                   

A hot toast with a dab of pesto along with the warm,sweet and sour soup.. :)       

STUFFED BOTTLE GOURD

This Tuesday was a very relaxing day.I had lesser work in the office so I was very happy.... :D. I also got to leave early from office hence had time to do some shopping all in all it was a nice day. I bought bottle gourd this time , I have rarely heard anyone say that they like this vegetable however I genuinely like this vegetable and the credit for this , undoubtedly, goes to my mom.Her creations even with this bland vegetable was so awesome. The bottle gourd has various name calabash or opo squash or long melon or dudhi but its commonly known as Lauki in Hindi and Bottle Gourd in English.Have read about the healthy benefits of Bottle Gourd in a few sites so I have summarized them and decided to share it with all. HEALTH BENEFITS : --> Bottle Gourd has attracted a lot of attention due to its importance in treatment of Blood Pressure and Heart disease. --> Bottle gourd is very valuable in treating urinary disorders.  --> This vegetable is very good for balancing liver function. It is often recommended by ayurvedic physicians when the liver is inflamed. --> Ayurveda suggests Bottle gourd juice once daily in the early morning for treating Graying Hair. --> Mixture of bottle gourd juice a sesame oil acts as an effective medicine for insomnia. --> The bitter variety is prescribed as a cardiac tonic, as an antidote to poisoning and for alleviating bronchitis, cough, asthma affections. --> The dietary fiber present in the bottle gourd makes it a very useful vegetable in preventing digestive disorders such as constipation, flatulence, and piles. --> Bottle gourd juice is also considered to be beneficial in insanity, epilepsy, and other nervous diseases. Well forgetting about the healthy aspect I had prepared an deep-fried appetizer with bottle gourd , its called Stuffed Bottle Gourd and it tastes very good with some spicy tomato chutney :)

Bottle Gourd (Lauki)	1 number(500 gms)
Onion	1 medium-sized
Garlic	3 medium-sized cloves
Ginger	20 gms
Paneer(Cottage Cheese)	100 gms
Potatoes	2 medium sized
Red Chilli Powder	1 tablespoon
Turmeric Powder	Half tablespoon
Cumin Powder	Half tablespoon
Lemon	1 piece
Raisins	1 Tablespoon
Cashew nut	3-4 numbers
Vegetable Oil	Half cup
Salt	As per taste

FOR BATTER
Gram Flour	1/2 cup
Flour(Maida)	1/2 cup
Corn Flour	1 tablespoon
Baking Powder	2 tablespoon
Red Chili Powder	1 tablespoon
Turmeric Powder	Half tablespoon
Oregano	1 tablespoon
Dried Basil	1 tablespoon

   STUFFING THE BOTTLE GOURD:-

1. Peel the top skin of the bottle gourd and cut off the ends.
2. Heat water in a rice cooker with a teaspoon of salt and add the bottle gourd. Let it boil till the gourd becomes soft. Generally one whistle of the rice cooker is enough ,if the gourd is fresh, to cook the gourd to the required limit.
3. Remove the soften gourd from the cooker and scoop out the inside pulp of the gourd and keep it aside.
4. Place the hollowed gourd in the cold water so that the green color is maintained.
5. Finely chop the onions, garlic and ginger . Separately chop the raisins and cashew nut as finely as possible.
6. Boil the potatoes in  the rice cooker till they become very soft and then mash them.
7. Mash the scooped pulp and mix well with mashed potatoes. Mash the paneer separately.
8. Heat oil in a pan and add the chopped onions.
9. As the onions turn translucent, add in the ginger and garlic. Cook till the color turn light brown.
10. Add the mashed pulp and potato mixture and cook for 7-8 minutes.
11. Add the mashed panner and cook this the moister is all soaked up.
12. Add the red chilli powder and turmeric powder and cook till the spices are properly incorporated in the mashed mixture.
13. Just 2 min before removing the pan from pan , add the cashew nut and rasins and let it cool slightly.
14. Remove the hollowed out gourd from cold water and cut it into small rings and pat it dry using a paper towel.
15. Stuff the mashed and cooked mixture in the bottle gourd rings.

PREPARING THE STUFFED GOURD FOR FRYING:-

1. In a deep bowl , mix together all the batter ingredients using cold water. See the the batter is not very thin.
2. Soak the stuffed bottle gourd in the batter .
3. Heat oil in a deep-dish pan and deep fry the stuffed gourds till the turn brown from all sides.
4. Remove the fried stuffed gourd in a paper towel so that the excess oil is soaked by the towel.
5. The Stuffed Bottle Gourd is ready to be served with the Spicy Tomato Chutney :) .

The same can be done by cooking them in a oven, but my oven was not working so I had to fry them :)  .

POTATO , EGG & CHICKEN SALAD

Yesterday was the last day for my exams for this semester , so since morning I was all excited thinking that this is it after this paper I would not need to study for 1 month at least :D  . I had gone to the examination center at ten in the morning thats when I learned that the server was down so we had to wait. And so I waited and waited , finally I had my exam at 4:30 in the evening....... all my excitement had died down by then and I was tired and hungry   :( .  I was so tired that I didn't feel like getting down and packing food coz then getting a transportation to my house would be another big struggle , so cooking something at home seemed to be a better option.  People you know me would right-away tell you that I enjoy having good salads. And I make one every weekend , don't really know why I have not posted any of my salad ideas so far but as the saying goes better late then never, so sharing with you the Potato & Egg Salad I had this Friday after all the waiting. I have shared the salad with Favorite Things Friday - No. 13 hosted by Kristi , FoodTripFriday#100 in Food Trip Friday  and  Fun w/ Food Friday Linky Party in Paisley Passions

FOR THE SALAD
Potatoes	4 numbers medium sized
Eggs	2 large eggs
Onion	1 medium sized
Vinegar	1 tablespoon
White Pepper	1 teaspoon
Salt	As per taste

FOR SALAD DRESSING
Cream	1/2 cup
Butter	Half tablespoon
Mayonnaise	2 tablespoon
Red Chilli Powder	Half teaspoon
Dried Parsley	1 tablespoon
Black Pepper	1 tablespoon
Salt	As per taste

FOR CHICKEN TOPPINGS
Chicken breast	1 slice
Soya Sauce	1 teaspoon
Tomato Sauce	1 tablespoon
Red Chilli Powder	1 teaspoon
Black Pepper	1 tablespoon
Salt	As per taste

    SALAD:-

1. In a large pan , boil water add salt and vinegar and potatoes and cook till the potatoes are soften.
2. In another pan , boil water with some salt and hard boil the eggs.
3. Chop the onions as finely as possible. Cut the potatoes and eggs in small size cubes
4. In a large bowl place all the main ingredients and add the salt and white pepper. Keep it for at times.

SALAD DRESSING:-

1. In a bowl , place butter, cream , mayonnaise , red chilli powder , dried parsley , salt and pepper. Mix them thoroughly till it forms a smooth paste.
2. Spread the dressing on the salad mixture and mix it properly and let it stand for 10 min.

CHICKEN TOPPING:-

1. Cut the chicken breast into thin strips.
2. Marinate the strips with soya sauce , tomato sauce , red chilli powder , black pepper and salt and keep it for 30 min.
3. Heat a bit of oil in a pan , and fry the marinated chicken strips till they are golden on all sides.

To serve , place the salad in a bowl and top it with the fried chicken strips. I felt great after having the salad. Hope you do too  :)  .

SOYA BIRYANI WITH VEGETABLES

It was Monday a new week had started and along with that loads of works :) . Its was  very hot in the morning and by evening we had experienced the first rain of the year. It was raining cats and dogs but everyone seems to be enjoying the rain and so was I. I just love the smell of the land after the first rain..... :)  I also love to see the rain through the window with some pakoda and ginger tea....... somehow it feels just awesome :D . For dinner , if its raining, I love to have khichdi with pickle and brijal fry . Yesterday being a Monday , is the day of the week when I fast and eat vegetarian dishes only, so while I was in office I had already made up my mind to prepare khichdi for dinner. When I reached home and saw all the vegetables I had at home....my plans had changed. Inspite of being tired and hungry I still decided to make spinach rice with vegetable and crunchy brinjal fry.  I had got everything prepared and suddenly the electricity went off....I generally happens here when there is heavy rain , so I thought of waiting for some time. Finally after one hour of patience , I started preparing the dish under the flickering candle light. I hate to do anything in the dark but it was an experience......not a very good one really :) . I have shared the dish with Midnight Maniac Meatless Mondays {No.21} hosted by Rebecca , Meatless Mondays in My Sweet and Savory , Just another Meatless Monday #48 in Hey What's For Dinner Mom

Rice	2 cups
Potatoes	2 medium sized
Carrot	2 medium sized
Spinach	2 bunches
Soya Nuggets	2 cups
Red Chilli Powder	1 teaspoon
Cherry tomatoes	1 cup
Green Chilly	3 numbers
Onion	1 medium sized
Garlic	5-6 cloves
Refined Oil	Half cup
Salt	As per taste

1. Soak the rice in water for 5-10 min. This allows the rice to cook faster.
2. Soak the soya nuggets in water till they soften. Then squeeze out the water for each of the nuggets. 
3. Cut the potatoes and onions in cubes , the carrots in julienne. 
4. Makes a smooth paste of spinach with the garlic.
5. Heat oil in a wok , add half teaspoon red chilli powder in the oil and then add the soya nuggets and fry till they are brown on all sides, remove and set aside.
6. In the wok, add oil and fry the vegetables. I fried the vegetable separately because I wanted then to keep their color intact.
7. Heat oil in a cooker, and add the rice and salt. After stirring for 5 min add the spinach puree to the cooker and cook till the water evaporates and the spinach no longer smells raw, at this point just beware that the rice does not stick in the bottom.
8. And cherry tomatoes and the fried vegetables to the rice and mix them properly.
9. Add some water and pressure cook the rice. The dish is ready to be served. It tastes awesome with Crunchy Brinjal Fry , the crunchy brinjal fry was prepared the same way as the Crunchy Fish Fry :)