Renus Kitchen

Ingredients: Carrot -  2-3 medium size Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Fennel seeds - 1 tsp Methi (Fenugreek) - 1/4 tsp Cumin seeds - 1 tsp Turmeric powder - 1/8 tsp Red chili powder - optional Asafoetida - pinch Salt - to taste Mustard oil - 2 tbsp Method: Wash carrots and pat dry completely. Slice into thin pieces and keep aside.  Dry roast the whole spices and grind into fine powder. Add salt, turmeric and asafoetoda to the sliced carrots. Heat mustard oil and pour it over the mixture.   Store the pickle in a airtight jar and refrigerate.  Note: Use within 2-3 days. 

Ingredients Rava (sooji or semolina) - 1/2 ccup Yogurt - 1/2 cup Chopped onion - 2 tbsp Green chili - to taste Cilantro - 2-3 sprigs Salt - to taste Vegetable oil Method Mix rava, yogurt, chopped onion, green chilies, cilantro leaves, salt. Keep the mixture aside. Spread the mixture on the slice of bread. Heat the tava (griddle). Spread some oil. Place bread with filing side down on the tava and cook till the filling side is golden brown in color.  Flip and toast the other side. Slice in desired shape ad serve with ketchup.

Healthy version of fried dahi vada Ingredients white urad daal - 1 cup yellow moong daal - 1 cup Fresh ginger - 1 inch Whole black pepper - to taste Green pepper - to taste Heeng - few dashes Salt - to taste Method Soak daal for 4 hours or more. Grind black pepper, ginger, green pepper in the grinder and then add the soaked daals. Add salt, heeng and grind to make smooth paste. Don't add too much of water. Pour the batter in greased muffin tray and bake for 20-30 minutes at 350 F. Baking time may vary with different oven settings. When vadas turn golden, take it out. Prick the vadas with fork and dump them in yogurt sauce. Sprinkle salt, red pepper, roasted cumin powder and tamarind sauce. Wait for sometime before taking the first bite.

Ingredient: Whole wheat flour - 1 cup Semolina - 3/4 cup Gram flour (besan) - 1/2 cup Rice flour - 1/4 cup Nuts of choice (cashew, raisins, makhana) Cashews Cardamon Resins Ghee -  5tbsp and more Method: Roast nuts, raisins and makhana in ghee an keep it aside Mix all the flours and roast in ghee till it gives out nice aroma. Add roasted nuts and mix well. Turn off the heat and once it cools down, start making balls.  Add more ghee to bind the laddos. Cool and pack in air tight container. 

This is very moist and very yummylicious ! Ingredients: Ripe banana - 3 Butter - 1/4 cup Brown sugar - 3/4 cup Egg - 1 large Vanilla extract - 1 tsp Baking soda - 1 tsp Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp, ground Salt - 1/4 tsp All purpose flour - 1 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder - 1/2 cup Chocolate chips - 1 cup Method: Heat oven at 350°F. Grease 9x5-inch loaf pan. Mash banana and keep it aside.  Whisk melted butter, sugar, egg and vanilla extract. Mix baking soda, salt, flour, cocoa powder in a sieve.  Mix all the ingredients from step 2, 3 and 4 very gently with a spoon.  Stir in chocolate chips Pour the batter in the greased pan and bake for 55 to 65 minutes or until the tester comes out clean.  Cool the cake and run the knife around the pan and invert the pan. Cool the cake on the cooling rack before slicing.   Source: Smitten Kitchen 

For the very long time I was confused between phirni and kheer. They both are made of rice and almost cooked the same way. The only difference is how you process rice for cooking. Phirni is made from ground rice and served chilled. Kheer is made from whole rice and can be served chilled or warm. Ingredients: Basmati ice (or any other rice of your choice)- 3 tbsp Whole milk - 1.5 cups Sugar - 1/2 cup Silvered almond - handful Saffron - 3-4 strands Ground cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp Method: Soak saffron in 2 tbsp warm milk.  Soak rice in water to 10-15 minutes. Drain and pat dry rice on a paper towel. Grind in a mixer to make coarse powder. Boil milk, add ground rice and sugar. Cook till rice is completely cooked.  Add saffron, cardamom powder. Portion it in small serving bowls. Garnish with almonds and chill before serving.  Note: Normally phirni is of a thicker consistency than rice kheer. You can also garnish with pistachios and other nuts.

This is a easy breezy recipe for making naan at home and requires bare minimum ingredients. This does not require tandoor or any other fancy equipment to cook naan. The secret is in the dough that makes it different from a regular roti. Ingredients: Wheat flour - 1 cup All purpose flour - 1/4 cup Yogurt - 1/2 cup Baking powder - 1/8 tsp Salt  - pinch Warm water - as needed Method: Mix all the ingredients and prepare a soft dough. Leave the dough covered at room temperature for 2 h. Punch the dough and knead it again. Pinch small balls and roll it like a typical roti (circle) or shape it like a naan (triangle). Cook on medium heat on hot griddle. Flip naan to cook evenly on both sides. Cook till you see brown spots and then do the final cooking on the flame. If you don't have gas stove, then finish cooking on the griddle. Smear ghee on hot naans and serve with your favorite curry .

Daal Amritasri, is the new addition in my menu of things I cook regularly. It is very easy to make and tastes lie heaven. The flavors come out best when cooked slow in an open pot. I don't have luxury to cook slow due to time constraints, but I have tied this cooking in rice cooker and it came out awesome. For everyday purposes, I cook in pressure cooker and simmer for 20-30 minutes on very low heat. Ingredients: Whole black / urad daal - 1 cup Chana daal - 1/4 cup Water - 4 cups Red onions - 1 small, finely chopped Ripe tomatoes - 1 small, finely chopped Green chillies - 1-2 chopped (optional) Ginger - 1 tbsp, finely chopped Garlic - 1 tbsp, minced Bay leaf - 1-2, medium Garam masala - 1tbsp Coriander powder - 1 tbsp Salt - to taste Turmeric powder - 1 tsp Cilantro - handful for garnish Ghee - 1 tbsp (optional) Vegetable oil - 2 - 3 tbsp Cumin seeds (jeera) - 1.5 tsp Method: Soak urad and chana daal overnight or at least for 4-5 hours. Rinse the daal ...

Ingredients: Tofu slices Burger buns Butter Ketchup Mustard sauce Sliced onions and tomatoes Olive oil (optional) Method: You can use tofu in two different ways.  slice tofu in to thick pieces and grill on a stove top griller with some oil or regular flat pan. or marinate tofu in some olive oil, honey, vinegar, salt and pepper mixture and then grill. Toast buns with butter Spread ketchup, mustard sauce on the buns. Layer with onion, tomato and grilled tofu.   Serve with salad.