Koshimbir is just another word in Marathi for raita or salad. Though "Raita" is always made with yogurt, "Koshimbir" can be made with or without yogurt. It is a good way of eating raw veggies, you get more nutrients. Koshimbir is quite common in marathi menu, it can be made with cucumber, tomatoes, onions, cauliflower etc or mixture of different veggies. Ingredients 1 Cup finely chopped cauliflower 1 Small tomato finely chopped 1/2 tbsp Peanut Powder Salt as per taste 1/4 tsp Chili powder 1/4 tsp Sugar Fresh coriander chopped For Tempering 1/8 tsp Mustard Seeds 1/2 tsp Canola Oil A pinch of turmeric powder Method Mix all the ingredients,except for tempering in a bowl. Heat oil, add mustard seeds. When they splutter add turmeric powder. Add this tempering to the above mixture and mix again. Your koshimbir is ready.

I love Italian Cuisine. It is nice and simple yet elegant. Most of the recipes have 5-10 ingredients, that's why it is gaining popularity worldwide. The most popular Italian Food is pasta. Pasta comes in various length, width and shapes. Each pasta has a different name depending on it's shape and size. So today's recipe is Fettuccine Alfredo. Fettuccine is a flat thick noodle shaped pasta. It is cooked in rich and creamy Alfredo Sauce. Usually made with heavy cream, I use half and half instead to cut the calories. Ingredients 8 oz Fettuccine  1 garlic clove crushed 3 tbsp butter 1 pint half and half 3 tbsp Cream Cheese 1/3 Cup grated Parmesan Cheese 1 Cup chopped spinach 1 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil 2 tbsp Sun-dried tomato pesto(recipe follows) Couple of pinches of nutmeg powder For Sun-dried tomato and basil pesto 1/4 Cup Sun-dried tomatoes(I like to buy tomatoes packed in olive oil) 1/4 Cup Kalamata Olives(Green olives are fine too) 1/4 Cup Fresh Basil L

Paratha's itself are wholesome meal. Paratha's are usually stuffed although they can also be made by adding finely chopped/grated veggies into the dough and then rolling it to make a paratha. Paratha's are most popular for breakfast but they make a nice meal for brunch, lunch and dinner. They taste good with yogurt,some pickle or just with a blob of butter. We have a beautiful garden in our backyard. It is easy to grow mint(pudina) plants. They grow in such a short time. They can simply grow in a large pot too. We have lots of mint plants and therefore made these delicious paratha's. I served these paratha's with paneer curry, recipe for which I will share in coming posts. But it can also be served with Yougurt or nice cool Cucumber raita. Ingredients (Makes approximately 10-12 Parathas) 2 Cups Pudina washed and chopped finely 2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour Salt as per taste 1 Cup water 1/2 tsp oil 1/2 tsp Chili powder Canola oil as required to shallow fry

Paneer, also known as Indian cheese is quite a delicacy. Though it is called as cheese it doesn't melt like one. I remember eating fresh Paneer with some salt and pepper outside US consulate office in Mumbai, it tasted heavenly. I have never known anyone who doesn't like Paneer. It is soft and silky in texture. I know you might think, why make paneer at home when it is easily available in market? But trust me, once you make it at home you won't go back for the store bought one. You don't have to go into lot of trouble to make Paneer,  just boil some milk, add some acidity to it and that's it. Paneer is a great substitute for vegetarians. You will see lot of paneer recipes in coming posts. I use 2% milk which we get here in US, that way you can enjoy eating it without any guilt :-). Ingredients 1 gallon of  2% milk 1/4 to 1/3 Cup Distilled White Vineger That's it you need only 2 ingredients to make Paneer :-) Method Boil milk in a thick bottom pot. Once b

Originated in Italy, Pizza is now famous all over the world. I love to make pizza at home, there are endless toppings once you know how to make a Pizza. "Bread Pizza" is just a different kind of pizza. I use regular wheat or white bread instead of traditional crust and use different kind of toppings. It is quick and easy to make. Serve it with Spring Mix Salad for a complete meal. Ingredients For Pizza 10 Bread slices 1 Cup finely diced red and green bell peppers 1/2 onion finely diced 1 small tomato finely chopped(pulp removed) Fresh Basil(optional) 1/8 tsp Pizza seasoning or Italian seasoning. Shredded Mozzarella Cheese(Approximately one 8oz package) Salt and Pepper Ketchup as required Ingredients for Spring Mix Salad 1 8-10 oz package of Spring Mix Salad(ready to eat ones) 1/3 Cup Croutons 10-12 Grapes(cut in halves) 8 Toasted Walnut halves 1/2 Cup Cucumber diced into big chunks Balsamic Vinaigrette (recipe follows) Ingredients for Balsamic Vinaigrette

Chutney can be made, wet or dry. Chutney come in so many varieties, here in US wet chutney's are more popular than dry one. Wet ones are made with combination of vegetables, fruits, vinegar and different spices. The recipe that I am sharing with you today is a dry one. This recipe is great when you have extra Curry leaves on hand and don't know what to do with it. It goes well with Rice, Parathas or Rotis. Overall it's a great condiment to have on your dinner table.It is easy to make and come together in minutes. Ingredients 1 1/2 Cup Curry leaves 1/3 Cup Sesame seeds 1/3 Cup Dry shredded coconut 1/3 cup Powdered Peanuts 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp oil 1/2 tsp Sugar Salt as per taste Method Wash and pat dry Curry leaves. Fry them in 1 tsp of oil until crisp. Dry roast shredded coconut and sesame seeds until light brown. Grind together all the ingredients except peanut powder in a mixer. Lastly add powdered peanuts and grind it once again. I like a little co

Gatte ki Kadhi is a Rajasthani Dish. I had this at my friend's place for first time and instantly loved it. My husband is big fan of gatte ki kadhi, he never gets tired eating it. This recipe calls for buttermilk, I made buttermilk at home by mixing yogurt and water used for boiling gatte together.  Buttermilk that we get here in US is thick, so if you are using it make sure you add lots of water to make it thin. Ingredients   For Gatte 1 1/2 Cup Chickpea Flour 4 tbsp oil 1/2 tsp Chili powder 1/4 tsp Salt 1/3 Cup luke warm water For Kadhi 4 Cups Buttermilk 1 tbsp Chickpea flour Salt as per taste Chopped Coriander for garnish For tempering 2-3 tbsp oil 1 tsp Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds 1/4 tsp Asafoetida 1 tsp Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp chili powder 2 Green Chilies Curry Leaves Method For gatte, heat oil until smoking hot. Mix together Chickpea flour, oil, chili powder, salt. Pour water and knead it into a medium soft dough. Roll it on a flat surface like cutting board

My friends parents were visiting from India and so I invited them over for lunch this weekend, thought of making a nice Maharashtrian meal for them. So I put together bunch of dishes. But I wanted some spicy vegetable to go with lunch menu. I came across a recipe in Sanjeev Kapoor's book made a few changes in recipe and it turned out good. Though this is not a typical "Maharashtrian" style vegetable but it went nice with the menu. And as the name suggest they are nice and spicy. Ingredients 5 medium Potatoes 2 medium Onions 1 tsp Lime juice 1/2 cup water Salt as per taste Coriander leaves chopped for garnishing. For tempering Mustard seeds 2 1/2 tbsp oil Spice Mixture 2 tsp Chili powder 1 tsp Coriander powder 1 tsp Cumin powder 1/2 tsp Turmeric  powder 1/4 tsp Kasoori Methi(dry fenugreek) 1/4 tsp Garam Masala Method Wash and peel Potatoes, cut them into cubes(little bigger than usual). Blend together all the Ingredients in Spice Mixture with little

Quesadilla is a Mexican dish.  Savory mixture and cheese is stuffed inside tortilla and folded in half to make a half-moon shape. Quesadilla's are quite easy to make as all the ingredients are readily available in stores. I love watching Food Network and one day I saw recipe for meat Quesadilla's and I thought why not make it at home with Veggies. So I made it and my husband liked it, it has become a family favorite ever since, even my kids love it . Ingredients 4 Medium size flour tortilla's 1/3 Cup sliced Green Pepper 1/4 Cup sliced Red Bell Pepper 1 Small Onion sliced 3 tbsp frozen Corn 1/2 Cup canned Black Beans 1/2 Jalapeno cut into semi circles(remove seeds if it's too spicy for you) 1 Cup + 1/4 cup  Mexican blend Cheese 1/2 tsp oil Salt and Pepper as required Butter as required Mango Salsa (Recipe follows) Hot sauce as required(I prefer Cholula but any brand is fine) Mango Salsa 1 Mango diced finely 1/3 Cup chopped Red Onion 1/4 Cup chopped Tomatoes 1 tbsp

Kothimbir Vadi is another Maharashtrian delicacy. It works great as an appetizer or even for snacking. Kothimbir Vadi tastes especially good when they are hot. It feels so good to eat them when it's raining outside with some tea or coffee. Now, my mom used to steam Kothimbir vadi in pressure cooker but I steam them in microwave, it's fast. Ingredients 4 Cups chopped Coriander (about 4 bunches) 1/2 tbsp Chili powder 1 1/2 Cup Chickpea Flour(बेसन) 1/4 Cup Rice flour(तांदुळाचे पीठ) 1 tsp Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp Asafoetida  1/2 tbsp salt 1 tbsp Sesame seeds(तिळ) 1 tsp Sugar 1/2 tsp Cumin powder(जिरे पूड) 1 Cup water 1/2 tsp Oil 1/4 tsp baking soda Oil for deep frying Method Mix all the above ingredients together except Oil for frying. This mixture should not be too thick or too thin.  Spray microwave safe baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and pour the mixture in it.  Microwave it for 3 minutes and then again for 3-4 minutes