Cajun grilled Tilapia

The last couple of times I made fish it didn't taste good. My brother The Cook thinks it may be because the market people may be thawing frozen fish and selling it as fresh. So I stopped buying fish from that particular store. I got Tilapia fillets from Costco today and I wanted to make Cajun seasoned grilled tilapia. Since I did not have any store bought seasoning hence I searched for the recipe and made the Cajun seasoning myself and it turned out pretty good. The original recipe is from Allrecipes website . I did not add salt to the mix and also the red pepper flakes. So that I CBS make my fish/ chicken with how much salt and spice I want

Cajun seasoning mix

Cajun Seasoning

Ingredients:

1. 2 teaspoons garlic powder
2. 21/2 teaspoons paprika
3. 1 teaspoon each of black pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper
4. 11/4 teaspoon each of fried oregano, dried Thyme

Mix all the ingredients together and store in an air tight container


Cajun Grilled Tilapia (Tilapia grilled with homemade Cajun seasoning)

Cajun Seasoned Tilapia

Ingredients:

1. 4 Tilapia fillets washed and wiped dry
2. 1 heaped tablespoon Cajun Seasoning
3. 3/4 teaspoon salt
4. 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Divide the seasoning, salt and red pepper flakes among the fish fillets for both sides. Let me marinate for 30 minutes. Heat a stove top grill and spray it with cooking spray. Grill for 5 minutes on each side. Serve with brown rice and steamed broccoli

Cajun Tilapia Dinner

Focaccia with Bisquick

The first time at came across Focaccia , I didn't know what to make of it. I found it in Trader Joe's store and I got it. Pretty expensive but I loved it. Last night  we went out for dinner and guess what I had. A Focaccia sandwich with Steak. It was delicious.

I have been thinking of making Focaccia for a long time now and today I found a recipe using Bisquick. Since I already have a big box of Bisquick which I am not using for pancakes cause the pancakes with bisquick are too dry for my taste, I have to somehow use the mix. I tried the recipe and its super easy and fast and super delicious. I think I found a way to use up my Original Bisquick Mix

Focaccia with Bisquick (Pizza like bread with original Bisquick Mix)

Unbaked Focaccia

Olive and Sundried Bisquick Focaccia

Focaccia with Bisquick

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups original Bisquick mix
2. 2 teaspoons garlic powder
3. 1/2 cup hot water
4. 2 tablespoons spicy burgundy olives (or any color you like/have)
5. 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary crushed
6. 1 heaped teaspoon sun-dried tomatoes chopped fine
7. 2 teaspoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 400°F.

 In medium bowl, stir Bisquick mix, garlic powder and sun-dried tomatoes and water until stiff dough forms. Let stand 5 minutes.

Knead the dough for 60 times

Press or roll dough into a 10X7 inch oval or 8 inch circle. Press the olive pieces into the dough and sprinkle with rosemary. Bake for 12-14 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes. 

Brush with olive oil and serve as an appetizer or with a soup for a hearty dinner

Imitation Olive garden Salad Dressing

Its been quite some time hat we have been to Olive garden-the Italian Restaurant. The main reason being that all the dishes there are so high in Calories. But I Looooooooooovvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeee their salad dressing , like everyone else.
I was just searching for the imitation recipe for it and Copykat's website came up. And man did they get it right. I followed the recipe except that I did not have Romano Cheese on hand so I skipped it. But still the dressing turned out De-Vine. I love it. Here it is again without the Romano Cheese in it and a little bit less Mayo

Imitation Olive garden Salad Dressing

Imitation Olive garden Salad Dressing

Ingredients:

1. 1/3 cup light mayonnaise
2. 1/3 cup white vinegar
3. 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
4. 2 tablespoon dark corn syrup
5. 2 tablespoon Parmesan cheese
6. 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt, or one clove garlic, minced
7. 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
8. 1/2 teaspoon parsley flakes
9. 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Blend everything in a blender until well incorporated. Store it in an air tight container and use within 10 days. Enjoy your salad

Cajun seasoned country potatoes

From my previous post you might have noted that made Cajun seasoning at home and I am in love with it. I used this seasoning to make Cajun seasoned country potatoes and every body just loved it

Cajun seasoned country potatoes

Cajun seasoned country potatoes

Ingredients
1. 2 large russet potatoes cubed
2. 2 tablespoons oil
3. 3/4 teaspoon or more salt
4. 1 tablespoon home made Cajun seasoning

In a non stick pan heat the oil and fry the potatoes covered on medium high heat for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the seasoning and stir to combine. Fry 5 more minutes. Enjoy hot

Cabbage with Peas

Today was a day that I wanted to make vegetarian but not too many vegetables in my fridge. So I made one of the most easiest , yummiest and fastest vegetarian dishes ever. Cabbage with Peas. I also make Cabbage with Black Eyed Peas curry. This one is with a little bit of gravy and it is soooo creamy and delicious

I served this Cabbage with peas with white rice and Kaccha Khatta. You could also try a different version of it called Till ka Khatta

Cabbage with Peas (Stir fried cabbage with Peas)

Cabbage with peas

Ingredients:

1. 4 cups of cabbage slice into fine long shreds
2. 1 1/4  cup frozen peas
3. 1 tablespoons oil
4. 2 cloves garlic minced fine
5. Pinch of asafetida 
6. 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin seeds, mustard seeds and urad dal
7. 2 red chilis broken
8. 1/4  teaspoon ground turmeric 
9. 3/4  teaspoon salt
10. 1 tablespoons chopped cilantro 

In a pan heat the oil and fry the cumin, mustard seeds and urad dal and dried red chillies till they start to splutter. Add the garlic and asafetida and fry for 30 seconds. Add cabbage and stir to combine. Add turmeric and cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add peas and salt and stir to combine. Cook further for 5 more minutes. garnish with cilantro and enjoy with white rice or roti

Dondakaaya masala Kura

• DondaKaaya Masala Kura (Ivy Gourd and Potato in a Gravy)
• Ingredients:
• 
  
• 1)1/2 lb dondakaaya cut into 6 pieces each lengthwise
• 2)2 tablespoons oil
• 3)1 medium potato cut into finger-fry like
• 4)1 small onion chopped
• 5)1 big or 2 small green chillies sliced
• 6)1/2 teaspoon salt, chilly powder, turmeric

• Gring into powder :
• 1)1 tablespoon roasted decicatted coconut, peanuts
• 2)1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 3)1 teaspoon poppy seeds

In a pan heat the oil and fry the onions till tender. Add dondakaaya and potato pieces, cover and cook till they become tender. Add all the other ingredients stir to combine and add a cup of water and simmer till the gravy thickens. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy

Chicken Pulao

Today is a day to make something special as we have time to sit and eat a hearty lunch at home. On popular demand I made Chicken Pulao. And to serve with it, I made a simple cucumber raita and some vinegar onions.
Enjoy!

Chicken Pulao (One pot Rice and Chicken Dish)

Chicken Pulao

Ingredients:

1. 1 whole chicken cut into 12 pieces (about 2-3 lbs)
2. 3 cups basmati rice
3. 1 medium red onion sliced
4. 2 tablespoons oil
5. 2 cloves and 1 inch cinnamon bark
6. 1 teaspoon each of salt, chilly powder, cumin powder, coriander powder
7. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
8. 1 heaped teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
9. 1 tablespoon yogurt
10. 1 tablespoon each of chopped mint and coriander and fresh squeezed lemon juice

Marinate the chicken with all the powder ingredients and set aside for 30 minutes. Add yogurt and set aside 10 more minutes.

In a pressure cooker heat the oil and fry the onions till they become dark brown. Add cloves and cinnamon and the ginger-garlic paste and fry for a minute. Add the chicken and fry for 5-7 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water and cook for 1 whistle. 

After the steam escapes, open the cooker and add 4-5 cups of water depending on how much water is left in the cooker. Bring to a boil. Add salt if needed. Add the rice and simmer for 20 minutes or until the rice is cooked through and the water is all absorbed. Mix in mint, cilantro and lemon juice. Serve with cucumber raita and vinegar onions

Cucumber Raita (Yogurt and cucumber condiment)

Cucumber Raita

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups grated cucumber
2. 1 cup plain yogurt
3. 1 small green chilly finely chopped
4. 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt depending on your taste
5. 1 tablespoon red onions chopped fine

Mix all the ingredients together but hold on the salt till you are ready to serve. Mix the salt right before your serve else the cucumber will loose water.

Vinegar Onions

Vinegar Onions

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 cup finely chopped red onions
2. 1/2 cup white vinegar
3. 1 or less chopped green onion
4. 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all the ingredients together and serve. (I was out of green chillies so you can't see them in the picture. But do add them. They are yummy)

All so try Chicken Biryani

Tomato Soup with Butternut Squash

Butternut Squash

Today has been a super tiring day. I went and finished a 5K run. It was not the run but the excitement and everything that followed tired me up. And since we had a big lunch I wanted to have some soup. I already made home made tomato soup but I wanted something different. The other day when I went shopping I found this nice looking butternut squash and its been sitting on my counter for a few days. So today I made a soup of tomato and butternut squash. The recipe is from Bon Appetit website

Tomato Soup with Butternut Squash

Tomato Butternut Squash soup

Ingredients

1. 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2. 1 medium butternut squash, halved, seeded
3. 2 garlic cloves, peeled
4. 1 onion, chopped
5. 2 teaspoons kosher salt plus more for seasoning
6. 1 14 oz can stewed tomatos with oregano and garlic
7. 1 1/2 cups cups low-sodium chicken broth
8. Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 400°. Brush a baking sheet with 1 Tbsp. oil. Place squash halves, cut side down, on baking sheet and tuck a garlic clove under the hollow of each half. Roast until squash is tender all the way through, about 45 minutes. When cool, scoop out squash flesh and reserve, along with roasted garlic. Discard squash skins.
• Heat remaining 1 Tbsp. oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion; cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add roasted squash and garlic cloves and stir to coat. Add tomatoes and chicken broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Using an immersion blender, purée soup until smooth. (Alternatively, allow soup to cool slightly and purée in small batches in a blender.) Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with garlic bread

Kolhapuri Egg Curry

Kolhapuri Egg Curry (Boiled egg curry in a spicy tomato sauce)

Kolhapuri Egg curry

Ingredients

1. 6 hard-boiled eggs peeled
2. 4 cloves
3. 8 peppercorns
4. 2 dry red chillies 
5. 1 Teaspoon poppy seeds (Khaskhas)
6. 1 Teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf)
7. 1 Large Onion chopped
8. 2 Medium Tomatoes chopped
9. 1 Cup fresh grated Coconut
10. 1 teaspoon each of Ginger, Garlic
11. 2 tablespoosn oil divided
12. ½ Teaspoon turmeric
13. Salt to taste
14. 2 Tablespoon chopped coriander

Instructions:
>Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan. Add cloves, peppercorns, chillies, poppy seeds and fennel seeds and saute till the spices start to crackle. >Add the chopped Onion and fry for 5 minutes. Add Ginger and Garlic and stir well and cook till its browned. Add the grated Coconut and fry till it turns light brown. Add the Tomatoes and cook covered for 5 more minutes. Let it cool.
Grind it to a fine paste with some water.
Heat the remaining oil in a pan. Slit the eggs in about 4-5 places and fry them for 5-6 minutes. Be very careful because they love to splutter. Drain and set aside. Pour in the paste and cook for a minute.Add little salt and turmeric. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the eggs in to the curry and simmer for 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander and serve hot with Chapati or Phulka or Jeera Rice

Refried White beans

I usually have a can of Refried beans had home for times when I crave Mexican food. I like to eat Refried beans with finely sliced cabbage and jalapeños and today that's what I am eating. Only difference being, the Refried beans are home made and with what I have at hand- namely the white beans and yum yum yum

Refried white beans
Ingredients
1. 1 can white beans drained
2. 1 cup or less of chicken stock (low sodium)
3. 1/2 cup finely chopped onions
4. 2 garlic pods finely grated
5. 1/4 teaspoon cumin
6. 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
7. 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
8. 2 tablespoons lemon juice
9. Lemon pepper as needed

In a heavy bottomed pan heat the oil and fry the cumin for a minute. Add the onions and fry till they turn translucent . Add drained beans and mash them adding chicken stock as needed. Cut the heat and add the cilantro and lemon juice. Serve in a bean cheese burrito and thinly sliced cabbage