Dilly Ranch Crackers

This crackers will forever make me think of my childhood and Christmastime. My mom would make these for a big Christmas party my parents hosted for years and years.  I would love eating these after their party was over and I got to munch on all the yummy leftovers! These are super easy and make a great gift in a cute little tin.

1 box oyster crackers
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 pkg ranch seasoning mix
3/4 dried dill weed
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Mix the oyster crackers with vegetable oil.  Add the seasonings and mix until all the crackers are coated well.

Tailgating Food

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Dahi ka Shorba

This recipe is a tribute to my long distance Guru and my inspiration Mrs. Tarla Dalal.  I have seen her many a times in Girgaon at Golden Star Thali, during Khetwadi festival, at Central Plaza,... but never had the daring to talk to her or obtain her autograph. Thereafter, I started visiting her website, participated in online Recipe contest and won many of her Cookbooks with her autograph on it.  I have created this recipe from one of her cookbooks 'Healthy Soups & Salads' received by me as a Prize for my recipe 'Tomato Kadhi'. Dahi ka Shorba is inspired from her recipe 'Curd Shorba'...

Servings: 2 Servings

Approx. Time: 15 -20 mins

Ingredients:
1 cup Curds (Dahi)
1 cup Water
1 tbsn All purpose flour (Maida)
Salt to taste
2 tbspns finely chopped Cucumber 
2 tbspns finely chopped tomato
1 tbspn chopped Coriander leaves
1/2 tspn Rock salt (Kala Namak)

For Tempering:
1 tspn Butter
1/2 tspn Cumin Seeds
1/2 tspn Ginger Paste
2  finely chopped cloves of Garlic
1 tspn chopped Green Chillies

For Garnishing:
Chopped Coriander 

Method:

Take Curds in a mixing jar. Add Water, All Purpose Flour and Salt to it. Blend it together for a minute.

Heat Butter in a pan. Add Cumin Seeds, Ginger Paste, chopped Garlic and chopped Green Chillies and saute it for a minute. Then pour the Curd mixture into the pan. Cook till the mixture starts boiling i.e. approx. 3-4 minutes.  Once it is boiled, add Rock Salt, chopped Cucumber, chopped Tomato and chopped Coriander Leaves. Immediately switch off the flame. 

Garnish it with chopped Corriander leaves and serve hot.

Notes:
Do not overheat the mixture as it may curdle.
You may also add a pinch of Turmeric Powder to get colour.

Soups

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Watermelon Cold Soup

Watermelon Cold Soup is a quick ten minute recipe. This can be served as an appetizer before meals.

Yield: 1 Serving

Approx. time: 10 min.

Ingredients:

1 Bowl Water melon Pieces

1/4 tspn Pepper Powder

1/2 tspn Ginger Paste

1/2 Chopped Green Chilly

1 tbspn Honey

1 tspn Tobasco Sauce

Salt to taste

2-3 Mint leaves

Method:

Take Water-melon pieces in a blender and blend it. Pass the mixture through a Siever. Then add all the balance ingredients and mix. Refrigerate it for an hour. Serve Chilled.

Note:

You may also add Orange Juice to enhance the taste.

Stepwise Pictures:

Soups

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Mango Kadhi

Sweet Kadhi  is a Gujarati speciality, which has a sweet, sour and pungent taste. Gujarati kadhi itself has a wonderful taste and adding mango pulp only it makes it more rich and aromatic. Mango Kadhi is very simple to make and can be served with plain roti, khichadi or steamed rice.

Servings :
4 persons along with main course 

Ingredients :

For chickpea slurry :
2 tspns chickpea flour (Besan)
4-5 tspns water

For Tempering :
1 tspn ghee 
1 tspn cumin seeds (Jeera)
1/4 tspn fenugreek seeds (Methi)
1/4 tspn asafoetida powder (Hing)
1/2 tspn ginger paste
1-2 green chillies  (Chopped)
7-8 curry leaves

For Mango Kadhi :
1 cup alphanso mango pulp
1 cup semi-sour curds
1/2 cup water
2 tbspns sugar (or as per taste)
Chickpea slurry (as above)
1/2 tspn turmeric powder
Salt to taste

For Garnishing :
Chopped fresh coriander leaves

Method :

To make chickpea slurry :
Take chickpea flour in a bowl. Add some water to it. whisk it to form smooth paste. 

To make Mango Kadhi :
Take curd in a bowl. Whisk it with the help of blender. Add some water and again whisk it. Then add chickpea slurry to the curds and blend it. Also whisk the Mango pulp separately and set it aside. 

Now heat ghee in a pan. Then add cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida powder, ginger paste, green chillies and curry leaves to the ghee. Pour curd mixture and stir it. After a minute, add mango pulp to the mixture and mix it. Thereafter add turmeric powder, sugar and salt. Simmer it for 4-5 minutes. Garnish it to chopped fresh corriander leaves.

Serve hot with roti, rice or khichadi. 

Notes :

1. You may also add clove powder to enhance the taste of Kadhi. 
2. If you remove the key ingredient - Mango pulp, then it becomes regular Gujarati Kadhi

Soups

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Sol Kadhi

Sol Kadhi (kokam in coconut milk) is a well known dish from the Konkan area of Maharashtra. It is a cooling drinking and acts as an appitizer. It is also good for digestion and is traditionally served with steamed rice.  If served as an appetizer, you can avoid tempering. Tempering brings in additional flavor when this dish is served with main course. This dish is also known as 'Kokam Kadhi'.

Ingredients :
For Sol Kadhi
12-15 Kokam /Aamsula (Garcinia Indica)
2 cups Thin Coconut Milk
1 tspn Green Chili paste (for finely chopped green chilly)
1 tspn Garlic paste (or finely chopped garlic)
1 tbspn Sugar
2-3 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander leaves
Salt to taste

For Tempering :
1 tspn Ghee
1/2 tspn Cumin seeds
1/4 tspn Asafoetida
6-7 curry leaves

Method :
For tempering :
Heat ghee in a small kadai. Add cumin seeds and saute till it crackles. Lastly, add curry leaves and asafoetida. Turn off the gas and allow it to cool. 

To make Sol Kadhi :
Soak Kokam in hot water (about cupful) for about half an hour. Alternatively, it can be soaked for 5-6 hours in normal water. Squeeze the soaked kokam to extract juice out of it. Pass it through a strainer. Now add green chilly paste, garlic paste, salt and sugar to it. Mix it well.

Then, add coconut milk and stir it in the kokam mixture. Then, add chopped corriander leaves.  Lastly, pour the tempering over it. Serve at room temperature or chilled. 

Notes :

1. I have used ready made coconut milk. However it tastes divine with freshly extracted coconut milk. In that case grind three cups of freshly grated coconut with green chillies, garlic and water in a grinder and pass it through siever. More coconut milk can be extracted by repeating the process for the remaining coconut paste.

2. If you want to avoid the tempering, then you may add dry roasted crushed cumin to this kadhi

3. Do not heat the Sol kadhi as it gets curdled on overheating.

Traditional Marathi

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Bhune Bhutte Aur Mirch ka Shorba

Bhunne Bhutte aur Mirch ka Shorba (Roasted Corn & Bellpepper Soup) is a part of the ethnic Mughlai menu. In India, shorba means gravy or broth and it is served as main course with rotis or pulaos. 

However, I prefer this Shorba as an appetizer. Roasting of ingredients gives a nice smoky flavour and aroma to this Shorba. I am sure you will love this classic Indian soup. 

Wish you all a very happy holi!!!!

Ingredients :

For the Shorba :
2 Corncobs
1 Yellow Bellpepper
1/2 tspn butter
2 tbspns Oil
1 small cinnamon stick
1 Bay leaf
4-5 cloves
5-6 black peppercorns
1 tspn garlic paste
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 tspn turmeric powder 
1 tspn corriander-cumin powder
3 cups water
1 cup milk
Salt to taste

For Garnishing :
Sprigs of Corriander 

Method :

Pre-preparation :
Grease Corncob and bellpepper with butter. Roast it on direct flame till it gets some black patches. After roasting the Corncob, scrape the corns with the help of a knife to get the corn kernels. Chop the roasted bell peppers and set it aside.

To make Shorba :
Heat oil in a pan. Add cinnamon stick, bay leaf, cloves, black peppercorns and saute it for a minute. Then add garlic paste and chopped onion and saute till the onion is transculent. 

Thereafter, add roasted corn kernels and roasted bellpepper pieces into it. Cook it for 3-4 minutes. Then add turmeric powder, corriander-cumin powder, salt and saute it. Then add some water and simmer for approximately 10 minutes. Turn off the flame and let it cool for some time.

After cooling, remove the whole spices from the mixture and transfer it into a blender. Blend the mixture into smooth puree. If required, pass the puree through a strainer. 

Transfer the puree back into a pan. Re-heat the mixture on low flame. Add some salt to taste. Lastly, add a cup of milk and stir. Cook it for 5-6 minutes again. 

Garnish it with a sprig of corriander. Serve hot with Garlic bread.

Notes :

You may add cream instead of milk to make it more rich
You may use the Indian corn or American corn as per your preference

Stepwise Pictures :

Soups

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