Baghare Baingan
Been long that posted anything on my lovely blog. Don’t know where all the motivation has gone. Not that I’ve stopped cooking, …
Been long that posted anything on my lovely blog. Don’t know where all the motivation has gone. Not that I’ve stopped cooking, …
It’s not the first time I made this gorgeous snack of potatoes, but it’s really the first time I am writing a blog for this. We often take things for granted and potatoes is one of those humble things. Me and Abhisek often end up saying, potatoes can never fail you, while we enjoy one of the potato dishes.
Hasselback Potatoes or Hasselback Potatis, as they say in Swedish, was created in 1953 by Leif Elisson from Varmland, who was chef student at Restaurant Hasselbacken on Djurgården in Stockholm. I have seen versions of this snack and I am writing down my version of it. I can’t beat the original creator, but I can atleast make an effort to create something similar.
I never fancied Thai food, but may be because of multiple trials (read forced by friends to try it) I started liking it. And, when I like something I want to try it at home. Bah! What’s new in there (wink)? The first experiment was Thai Red curry and it was successful. I promised myself, I am gonna make it more often now.Actually, it seemed trickier than it actually is. Everything is, once you try it, isn’t it? Well, I am gonna try more Thai food, that’s for sure. Both in restaurants and then at home! Now, without much ado, I’ll get back to the recipe. Here’s how I did it. I made the vegetarian version, so the fish oil (otherwise important ingredient) didn’t cut into my recipe; have used sesame oil and soy sauce instead. Hope you all like it.
This is a long due post! About a month ago, I did a Greek cuisine day at home. I like celebrating cuisines, so I try and span the dishes through the day starting from the breakfast. So, on this day, I started my day with the No knead Filmjölk olive bread and black bean hummus. I will post the recipe some day. (I am a lazy bitch ;))
Anyways! for the lunch, I wanted to do something simple as I was expecting some guests for the dinner and I obviously had to focus more on the dinner. But, that doesn’t mean I will compromise on the lunch. More because I had to prepare something for the cuisine of the month going on a group of blogger friends where the host selects a cuisine and we all make one dish from that kitchen. I was the host this month and I decided on Greek as the cuisine of the month. So, here it is, a very humble Greek dish. Simple and from the everyday life of Greek kitchen: Spanakorizo – Greek Spinach Rice.
Friday’s have always been a pasta/pizza day at my home, so far. Not that my loyalties have changed, but I felt like eating something different and give a surprise to Friday. I looked up the Internet and did find something interesting stuff, but I didn’t have some or the other item in my pantry.
And, then I had an idea, bling!! Why not make something with whatever I have. I have anyways wanted to try Potato au gratin, and they were there in my pantry as well. They are always there, like the best friend who always stays by your side, no matter what. So, I looked up some recipes and I knew what I wanted to make finally. A mix of potato au gratin and a humble casserole. Well, since that day I have made it thrice; me and Abhishek love it so much. This Potato and Broccoli Casserole is my new found love.
It’s the festive season when I miss India the most. There is something special about each festival there. The smell of the air, the crowd in the market, the decorations, the social gatherings, and above all food. It is absolutely unbeatable. But, I am so so far from there. Can’t smell anything in the air, there is no festivity around. All I can do to get the feel is to make some traditional food and connect with the roots. And, so I did.
Sometimes you need a small push to get back on track. This post is a result of the push that I got from a group of talented bloggers, who have come together to try new cuisines. So, this is the post of the month where I take the Spatula Force monthly challenge given by my very talented friend Anshu, who blogs at The Secret Ingredient. The theme of this month is Kashmiri and if you know me, you know how I love paneer. I have been meaning to put some paneer dishes on the blog since a long time now. So, this gives me a chance to take care of both the things. Smart, eh? 😉
My hunger pangs bring out the best of me in the kitchen. Abhisek doesn’t like mushrooms at all, but I love them. That leaves me with only a few opportunities to experiment with mushrooms. He won’t let me pick them from the grocery store unless I promise using them only in pasta or pizza. But, I generally use that as an excuse to sneak in the whole pack. So, I had them on the shelf waiting for me to experiment with them instead of throwing them into yet another pasta. And, then there were evening snack requests from my always hungry stomach. The result? Well, no prize for guessing, a yummy side dish that you will never stop making. It is super yummy and super easy.
Pasta is a staple in my kitchen. Especially, when it’s weekend. But, I’ve mostly been making pasta in white sauces; alfredo and bechamel. Have tried pesto and a few red sauce variations too, but darling husband has always preferred white sauces over anything else. However, his requests for pasta with a different taste never ended. That gave me enough motivation to experiment with pasta again and again. For I believe, pastas never fail. And, it didn’t this time as well. Tried a new combination of lemon, garlic and cream and I am super impressed with the result, so was my husband.
All my friends and relatives know that I am a paneer lover. A die hard fan. It is one thing that never fails me. But, strange enough that I haven’t posted any of paneer recipe’s on the blog. May be I take it for granted. Well, that is the first sign of how much I love it. The sign of it being an integral part of my life.
The trigger for this recipe, however, is the regular complaints from the love of my life. He has been complaining that the food at our home is getting boring day by day. Well, the real reason is that he has not been given the chance to be my guinea pig since a few weeks. So, it is obvious that things would look dull and boring, won’t they? 🙂