Indian vegetarian recipes

Millet Upma, a healthy breakfast!

Home grown microgreens

Home grown mushrooms!!

Afternoon lunch be like 🥗🥗

Yummy veggie pasta topped with healthy Microgreens 😇

Chia Microgreens!

Tricolor pasta with palak microgreens! Treat your tastebuds with this yummy, nutritious pasta with a twist by adding crunchy palak microgreens :)
Sautee all the veggies, onions, and add pasta sauce as you usually do. Just as you add cooked tricolor pasta to it add a bunch of palak microgreens and give it a good stir. Add grated cheese and serve yummy pasta with healthy palak microgreens when it is hot!!

Microgreens sandwich
Required ingredients - Brown bread, microgreens, onion, tomato, sauce of your choice, cheese slice/grated, butter.
Toast your bread and apply sauce (chili/Mayonaise/chipotle) evenly on one side of bread. stuff in thinly sliced onion, tomato, cucumber, cheese, and your homegrown microgreens (methi/mustard/raddish). Enjoy your hot and healthy sandwich with a cup of tea or coffee!!
Alternately you can grill the sandwich too!
Happy cooking and eating :)

The first thing you need to make a yummy dish is fresh veggies! Grow them on your own as much possible even if its in a single pot at home. The happiness it brings in your life is immeasurable!!

Grow your own microgreens at home! Something meaningful to do during COVID lockdown. Microgreens, you could call them toddler plants are harvested when the plants are about 2inches. You can grow them fro various seeds that you use in the kitchen including methi, dill, sesame, mustard, peas, channa, coriander, and whatnot. It usually takes about 3-4 days to harvest after planting the seeds. They can be grown even without soil, just in water. You can use them in salad and use them for garnishing any dishes you make. Highly nutritious and gives your food a wonderful flavor and aroma!

Spinach dal kichdi
It is always a big deal to figure out how to feed your infant/toddler healthy food as they could get very picky. This recipe tastes yum and is rich in proteins and my son loves it!
Required ingredients
Spinach - sliced
Dal, I use moong dal or toor dal
Rice rava or wheat rava or oats
Salt
Pepper - 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder - 1/4 tsp
Butter or clarified butter/ghee

Method
Cook dal with a bit of turmeric and butter. In a different pan sauté spinach with a bit of butter. Add water to it and when it is boiling add rava to it. After it is cooked well add cooked dal, salt, pepper powder, cumin powder and give it a stir. Top up with butter and feed your kid when it’s warm. Ideal for all seasons and highly nutritious.
Happy cooking and eating 😋

Vegetable Hakka noodles 🍝
Yummy 😋

Required ingredients
Hakka noodles
Mixed veggies - carrots, beans, bell peppers of different color, cabbage - thinly sliced
Onion 1 - thinly sliced
Ginger garlic paste
Olive oil - 5tsp
Soy sauce - 1tsp
Tomato ketchup - 2tsp
Vinegar - 1tsp
Hot sauce - 2tsp
Salt - according to taste

Method
Bring excess water to boil and cook noodles with salt and tsp oil. Once cooked drain all the water, run cold water through it and add a tsp oil to make sure they don’t stick to each other. Thinly slice all the vegetables and onion. Add 3tsp oil in a big pan placing it on medium-high heat. Fry ginger garlic paste and add all the vegetables/onion. Cook for 5-10mins. DoNot overcook and let the veggies be crisp. At this stage add salt, hot sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, tomato ketchup and mix well. Now add noodles and give a thorough mix on high flame. Serve hot with sauce of your choice! Enjoy cooking and eating 😋

Steamed chickpeas vada ❤️ -eating

Required ingredients
Chickpeas 100g
Onion 1 medium sized
Ginger garlic paste - 1tsp
Chilly - 2
Cilantro/ dill
Salt
Butter - 1/2 tsp

Method
1. Soak chickpeas in water for 8hrs. Drain all the water and grind it coarse with very little water
2. To the ground chickpeas add finely chopped onion, cilantro, dill, chilli, ginger garlic paste and required amount of salt
3. Mix thoroughly and make medium sized balls. Slightly pat them on your hand and steam cook for 20mins either in idly pan or cooker.
4. Serve them hot with green chutney and cucumber/pickle

This is a very healthy protein rich dish and can be enjoyed with evening coffee as a snack or as a breakfast. You could add greens of your choice! Try adding shredded vegetables as well if you want variety. Happy cooking 🥘

Eating healthy!!
Moong sprouts dosa/pesarattu/whole moong chila

Sunday breakfast 😋
Healthy and tasty! Upma, kesari with cucumber and banana 🙂

See my previous post for upma recipe. For sooji halwa or kesari, roast rava/sooji with ghee. Boil water in a pan, add two tsp of ghee and saffron. Then add sooji and let it cook well. Add sugar to it with some more ghee and finally add cardamom for flavor and garnish it with cashew/raisins. Serve hot or refrigerate it and cut into slices before serving.

Tomato chutney - a quick yummy side dish for dosa, idly, chapathi ....

Ingredients required
Tomato - 4
Channa dal - 1tsp
Urad dal - 1tsp
Peanuts - 1tsp

There are several varieties out there for Murukku. This one I have used is just a 7 ingredients simple recipe and can be done under 30mins!

Req ingredients
Rice flour - 1 cup
Gram flour/ besan - 1 cup
Butter - 3tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2tsp
Salt
Chilli powder - 1tsp
Oil - for frying

Method
In a pan add rice flour, besan Flour and butter and fry till you get aroma. Cool the mixture, add salt and chilli powder. Using water make a dough of chapathi consistency. Leave it covered for 10mins. Grease the mound with oil and using dough make chakkuli. Carefully take one by one and deep fry in oil on medium flame. Remove them and drain the oil once they turn golden brown. Enjoy spicy and crispy murukku wit coffee ☕️
Happy cooking and eating folks

Minion cookies - best DIY for kids parties

We are doing a minion theme for my little ones birthday party and I decided to try out minion cookies at home. It’s super easy and they look so cute. It took me around 30-40mins to make them and its totally worth your time.

Required ingredients
Oreo cookies or any cookies of your choice.
White chocolate
Food colors - yellow and black
Butter paper for coning
Candy sticks

Method
Melt part of your white chocolate. Dip one end of stick in melted chocolate and stick in between the cookie on cream. Stick them together and refrigerate for 30min. Meanwhile melt the rest of the white chocolate,make into three portions and add yellow food color to major portion. For the rest two add a bit of black to one to make grey color and a lot of black to the other to get black. Fill these two in cone and keep them ready. Also keep the chocolate cookie frosting in another cone. Now take out the cookies and dip them completely in yellow melted chocolate, tap the excess and stick it into a styrofoam. Let it dry for a couple of mins. Use the other three frosting to draw eyes, hairs and mouth for the cookie. Make single eyed ones and also different expressions.. decorate your styrofoam and exhibit your DIY cookies in your party!!

Dry Jamoon- my all time favorite 😋

Happy Rakshabandhan 🎊
Badushah or Balushahi - yummy sweet

Cook time - 20mins
Prep time - 10mins

Required ingredients
All purpose flour/ maida - 2 cups
Ghee - 4tsp
Youghurt/curd - 4tsp
Baking powder - 1/2tsp
Sugar - 2cups
Elaichi -2
Dry fruits/coconut

Method
In a bowl mix maida, ghee, curd, baking powder and a tsp if sugar well. Now add a bit by bit of water and make dough with chapathi dough consistency. Make sure not to knead it. Let it rest for 20-30mins. For sugar syrup add sugar and water just to cover it in a separate bowl. Let it boil till you get thread consistency. Now heat oil in a pan on a medium flame and deep fry the dough by making them into small doughnut shape. Fry them until golden brown and transfer them into sugar syrup. Let them rest for 3-4mins by turning on both the sides. Remove them and strain excess sugar syrup. Garnish them with dry fruits/coconut. Enjoy hot and sweet badushah with your loved ones in this festive season.
Happy cooking and eating!

Healthy quinoa kichdi 💪🏻 This is the easiest breakfast recipe and is keeps you energized throughout the day. Hardly takes 10mins of your time. Prefer homemade breakfast over readymade stuff including Cheerios, flavored stuff.
You could use steel cut oats instead of quinoa as well.


Required ingredients
Moong dal - 1cup
Quinoa - 1cup
For tempering - 2tsp butter, mustard seeds, curry leaves, cumin seeds, pepper
Red or green chili - 3
For garnishing - cilantro, a few fried cashew

Method
In a cooker add butter and all the tempering ingredients. Once fried add washed dal and quinoa. Add 4cups of water, salt according to taste and close the lid. Let it for 2-3 whistles. Garnish with cilantro, cashew and serve hot with raita/plain yoghurt.

Happy cooking and eating 🍛

Eggplant 🍆 curry 🍛

Yet another easy yummy side dish for you! Super easy, super tasty and ready in less than 30mins. Tastes best with all kinds of breads, roti and rice.

Again there are several recipes out there. This version is unlike bhaingan bharta where I use a lot less oil and masala. Ennegai is another name south where small eggplants are sliced and the masala is filled in to fry. This is a slight different version. Give it a try and I bet you’ll love it.

Required ingredients
Eggplant 🍆 - sliced into medium cubes
Onion - 1small sliced thin
Oil - 3tsp
Curry leaves - 2
Mustard seeds - 1/2tsp
For masala - 1 onion, 1/2 tomato, cilantro a few, 1tsp chili powder, 1tsp ginger garlic paste, 1/2tsp garam masala, 1/4tsp turmeric, 1/8tsp clove-cinnamon powder, 3tsp grated coconut. Grind all this into a smooth paste

Method
In a pan heat 3tsp oil and add mustard seeds, curry leaves, onion. Once onions are fried add cubes eggplant and sauté for 5mins on med flame. Now add ground masala and simmer it for 15mins. Don’t overlook the eggplant. Adjust the consistency according to your taste and savor it with your choice of bread or rice.

Happy cooking and eating!!

Carrot halwa 😋 there are several recipes for carrot halwa. The one am sharing is simple, under 30 mins with a very few ingredients


Required ingredients
Carrot - grated - 2cups
Sugar - 1cup
Ghee/butter - 1/2cup
Cardamom -2
Dry fruits - for dressing
Milk/khova - optional - 1/2 cup

Method
In a thick bottom pan add grated carrot and half of ghee. Roast it well for atleast 15mins. At this stage add 1/2 cup water or khova/milk and let it cook for 10mins. Now add sugar, cardamom powder and dry fruits fried in rest of ghee and give a good mix. Let it sit on a stove for 5mins in summer mode. Yummy carrot halwa is ready to serve!!
You could serve it hot alone or along with payasam as a dessert. Tastes heavenly when served cold with ice cream. Happy cooking and eating 😍

Super healthy, super tasty, super easy!! Mixed fruit smoothie 😋 perfect for breakfast


Req ingredients
Chia seeds - 2tsp - soak overnight
Walnuts, dates, cashews - 3 each
Mixed fruits of your choice
I have used
Banana - gives smooth texture
Strawberries
Orange
Plum
Watermelon
Cantaloupe
Mango!
Use whatever fruits you like or whatever you have at home!
Use a nutribullet and make your yummy smoothie!
It’s heavenly 😍

Channa masala - one of my favorite side dish 😋

Moong sprouts salad 🥗 this simple and quick salad hardly takes 5mins to prepare! Very tasty and healthy. Eat as a side dish or as such for snack, bf, lunch or dinner!


Required ingredients
Moong dal - wash thoroughly and soak in water for 8hrs. Drain the water and store moongdal in a airtight container for 24hrs - sprouts ready!
Carrot - 2 medium sized, grated
Cilantro and coconut shredded for garnishing
Chili - 1-2
Lemon juice - 1tsp
Black Pepper powder - 1/4tsp
Salt - to taste

Method
Mix grated carrot, sprouts in a bowl. Add thin sliced chilli, black pepper powder, salt and lemon juice to it and mix well. Finally add cilantro and shredded coconut. Yummy and healthy moong dal salad ready to eat!!
Tips - You could add pomegranate or dry grapes/cranberries to it if you like.. if you do not like to eat raw sprouts microwave sprouts for a couple of mins before mixing it with the rest.

Happy cooking and eating 🥗

Traditional Karnataka food - Ragi ball, rasam, papad, payasam, rice and sprouts and greens pallya😋

Easy and everyone’s favorite dry aloo pallya!
Eat it with your choice of bread, chapathi, poori, roti, perfect for dosa, sandwich, filling for samosas, what not...

Aloo Pallya - Tastes brilliant with all kinds of breads!!

Aloo pallya - Made with potatoes with mild spices, this is a south Indian dish. 'Pallya'in general is dry without gravy. Aloo pallya tastes great with Poori, Chapathi, paratha, naan and even bread! Enjoy the recipe!!
1. Boil potatoes in a cooker or in microwave with plenty of water
2. Peel the skin of potato and cut the potato into small pieces and keep it aside
3. In a pan heat two tsp oil. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves, cumin seeds, urad dal, channa dal, cashew, green chilli and fry well. Then add onions and fry till it turns golden brown.
4. Add required amount of salt and cover the lid for 30 sec on medium flame. Add shredded coconut, cilantro and turmeric powder at his stage and mix well. To this add potato and mix well. Leave it on the stove/hot plate for a minute and serve the pallya with hot pooris or chapathis!!

Required ingredients

1. Potato - medium sized 3-4
2. Oil - 2-3 tsp
3. Mustard seed, Urad dal, Channa dal, cumin seed and turmeric powder
4. Chili - 3-4
5. Salt - for taste
6. shredded coconut and cilantro - for garnishing