Gram Flour Fritters (Baysan k Pakoray )

Gram flour recipes are very popular in Asian countries. Origin is actually Utar pardesh. I have noticed people from some countries don't know about gram flour. It is a flour which is made from ground chick peas :) 

Pakora is basically a mixture of some vegetables mixed in gram flour (Baysin in urdu) and deeply fried. Mostly I love to have it on a rainy day accompanied with hot teaa.. <3 Everyone no matter at which age they are love them :P

Before I have introduced u to simple Onion Fritters and Veggie Pakoras. Here is another variety I have discussed :) Hope u will love them. <3. Here is the recipe:

Fried Bread Potato balls/Fritters

Have some leftover bread?? Use it by making this wonderful snack!

Bread balls are delightful, mouth watering, fluffy snacks that groups of all age will love to have. It is basically a snack which is made by leftover bread filled with a mashed potato filling and coated by eggs and bread crumbs and then fried. They can be best served with yougurt dip/raita. I learned this snack from my mother in law after I got married. Just yumm!! I am in love with it since then. You can have them occasionally with tea. It is not actually that heavy, cox the egg coating on the bread prevents the bread from absorbing oil while frying and hence is light and tasty. Its a quick recipe and u can serve it in any of the evening parties. 

Here is its simple and easy recipe:

Ingredients:

You will need:

Potatoes                                             3-4 (boiled, peeled and mashed)
Black pepper                                      1/2 tsp.
Salt                                                     1/2 - 1 tsp.
Red chilli powder                                1/2 tsp.
Chaat masala                                       1 tsp.
Onion                                                  1 chopped finely
Cumin powder                                     1 tsp.

Coriander Leaves (dhanyia)                Few chopped
Bread                                                  8-10 slices (preferably leftover)

Beaten Egg                                         For Frying
Bread Crumbs                                    For frying
Oil                                                      For frying 

Procedure:

Mix boiled potatoes, all spices, onion and coriander leaves thoroughly. Adjust salt acc to ur taste.

Take a slice of bread; soak it in water and immediately take it out and drain its water by pressing very gently between your hands.

 Then take some mixture of potatoes, place it in the center and mold it in the form of a ball very very gently. You will end up into 10-12 bread balls. Its really easy. (You can also freeze them for future use :) )

When ready heat some oil, coat your bread balls first with the egg and then bread crumbs and fry them on medium heat. Take them out when they turn into light golden brown.

Delicious bread balls or pakoras are readyy!!! :) Serve them with any chutney/ketchup or raita, whatever you like :)

Linking to: Eat vegetables & Stay healthy & Just eat, Dish it out by Beulah, 

Kebab/ Mince Patties/ Shami kabab

Who said kebabs/Patties are very difficult to make?? I have a veryyyy easy recipe, yet so satisfying and mouth-watering recipe to make kebabs. What you have to do is to only gather things in a cooking pot, put some water in it, and put on medium heat and forget. :P

Kebabs are of many types. I have told u the recipes of Chapli kebabs, Potato Kebabs & Beef Kebabs. Now I will introduce u to simple shami kebabs or mince patties. They are mostly popular in Asian & subcontinent countries. They are made of cooked minced meat mixed with spices. Different spices in it gives it an awesome taste. These delicious kebabs serve perfect as a snack, appetizers or starters. It can be served with mint chutney, raita or ketchup. They can also be used to make sandwiches & burgers. My hubby is just crazy about them :P It is also one of the favorite dishes made during Eid ul azha or bakra eid days, cox they end up in a lot of meat at end even after distributing to relatives & poor :) I mostly have them with rice. Here is its recipe! Enjoy :)

Mince balls

Minced meat also called ground meat, is mostly cooked with peas and potatoes. It is one of the most popular and scrumptious non- vegetarian recipe all over the world. It is best served with naan/roti/plain basmati rice/chapati. The mince curry made has a splendid texture, when cooked with spices & ginger garlic paste. Kids or old loved ones who can't chew the meat pieces, mince is the best alternative for them.

Chocolate Coffee Shake

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

Cold Strong Coffee                              1 cup

Chocolate Ice cream                            1 large scoop

Crushed Nuts                                       Few 

Chocolate Syrup                                  2 tbsp.
Crushed Ice                                         1 cup
        

Procedure:

Add all the above ingredients in a blender and blend. Pour in glasses and drizzle garnish with chocolate chips and Enjoy!! Woow yummy!! :)

Macaroni (Pasta)

Macaroni is a variety of dry pasta made with durum wheat. I love elbow macaroni noodles that usually do not contain eggs. They are normally cut in hollow short tube shapes with holes in the middle. They are used in variety of dishes. It is also used in milk pudding. Everyone has its own way of cooking macaronis and so is mine... This recipe is just soo perfect and delicious. It has been cooked with traditional spices. The boiled macaroni is tossed with chicken, some veggies and yummy spices. And most ingredient is ketchup... woo... A true fusion of Italian pasta tossed with traditional Paki spices..  Hope u will like it this way too!! :) Here is the recipe :)

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

Boneless Chicken                             5-6 pc. (boiled, shred)

Carrot                                                1 (chopped finely)

Macaroni (Pasta)                              1 cup (boiled in little salty water)

Peas                                                  1/2 cup (boiled)

Cabbage                                            1 small sized (chopped)

Tomato                                               1 medium sized (Diced)
Potatoes                                             1 medium sized (boiled,peeled
                                                           and chopped)
Capsicum                                           1 small (chopped)
Corns                                                 1/2 cup boiled (optional)            

Black Pepper                                     1/2 tsp.

Salt                                                     2 Pinches

Ketchup                                              5-6 tbsp. or to ur taste

Onion                                                  1 big (sliced)

Green chili                                           2

Garlic Ginger paste                             1 tsp.

Soya and Chili sauce                          Optional

Oil                                                        2-3 tbsp.
                       

Procedure:

First of all boil macaroni, chicken, peas, corns, carrot and potatoes and set aside.

Next heat the oil and fry the sliced onions until they loose their strength. DON'T turn them golden brown. Then add garlic and ginger paste, chopped cabbage, capsicum, green chili and fry for few more minutes or until they start losing their strength. Then add boiled chicken, peas, carrot and corns and fry. Add salt and black pepper. Then add ketchup, sauces, boiled potatoes and macaroni and toss them and then cover the pan's lid on low heat for 10-15 minutes. And u r doneee!! They taste extremely yummacious!! Enjoy! :)

P.S. u can add chicken mince instead of boneless one. It also tastes great!

Perfect Gulab Jamun (Pakistani Sweet)

Gulab Jamun is an ever famous delicious and popular traditional Pakistani/Indian dessert. Gulab means rose & Jamun is the name of purple colored fruit called "Jambul"! This rich dessert delicacy is traditionally made with solid dry powdered milk, shaped into balls of ur choice & then deep fried in oil & added in sugar syrup flavored with cardamom and saffron to make a sinful rich dessert. Sorry diet conscious friends :P  Gulab Jamun are an enjoyable treat. These syrupy, doughnut like scrumptious juicy dumplings can be made at any occasion. The traditional method of making gulab jamuns is from khoya. But cox of unavailability of khoya in my little town, I haven't tried it yet. And that one is a complex recipe too. 

Minced Chicken (Aalo Matar Qeema)

Minced meat is also called ground meat, is most popularly cooked with peas and potatoes. It is one of the most widely known and yummacious non- vegetarian recipe all around the world. It is best served with naan/roti/plain basmati rice/chapati. The curry has a splendid texture, especially when cooked with spices & ginger garlic paste. Kids or old loved ones who can't chew the meat pieces, mince is the best alternative for them. Now lets proceed to its detailed recipe :)

Chicken Cheese Balls/Cheesy Nuggets/Chciken Chuks

Want some mouth-watering, quick snack recipe to be served with evening tea on weekends? Look no more & just give a try to these easy, elegant & tasty chicken cheese balls!! Few weeks ago I came across my friends profile, in which she had posted the pic of Chicken cheese balls. I could hardly believe that I could ever make them as they were shown in her pic! The appealing look of cheese oozing out of the ball made me hungry and I couldn't wait to try them. So, I gathered the ingredients & decided to try them the very next day & yeesss!!! The result was exactly what I had saw in my frnds pic!! Here it is!! (Hang on... Control ur drooolls mann!! :P )

It is certainly one of the simplest recipes to toss together when compelling. I seriously get excited when it's at last time to serve chicken cheesy meesy yummmacious balls :P I usually prepare it in the evening before, or even earlier, and freeze it, and there they are, taunting me in the refrigerator until time to serve. Talk about tempting!! My chicken cheese ball recipes are well- known among my friends. I'll share some other chicken cheese balls recipes shortly so that you can give them an attempt, too. They are definitely out of this world!!

Here are some instructions for making chicken cheese balls in advance. Assemble all of the ingredients sat room temperature, prior to mixing them. Then, you can simply blend all of the ingredients simultaneously with a wooden spoon/spatula. Take a large bit of plastic wrap or simply a plate, all set for covering the chicken cheese balls for chilling as you start mixing ur ingredients together. Then, just transfer your cheese mixture onto the middle of the chicken mixture and shape it into a ball. 

So, be sure to pick up the ingredients for this recipe if you don't already have them in your store room, so that you can make this over the holidays/any occasion/parties/in ramadan for Iftaar. etc. It's even perfect to pull out of the refrigerator to snack on anytime of the day!

Enough of chit chat now haffa!! Lets proceed to the recipe :P 

Russian Macaroni Salad/ Olivier Salad

Salads are of many types. Here is a healthy, nutritious n different from green salads. Olivier/ Russian Macaroni Salad... Olivier Salad is a traditional salad dish from Russia, which is also popular in Asian & sub continent countries! It is a seriously such a healthy salad that u would never regret making it. Takes bits extra time as compared to other salads as u have to boil eggs & potatoes & macaroni lol. This salad is dressed with mayonnaise, its special ingredient! Sorry diet conscious ppl! Of course its not for u!  :) The table looks so colorful & yuummyyy cox of this salad! The ingredients have been altered bit according to taste compared to the original recipe :P It can also be served as a complete meal itself! It looks creamy & refreshing salad! Here is its simple recipe :)

Tamarind Sauce (Imli ki chutney)

Tamarind is an edible, pod like fruit, which are used extensively in all the cuisines throughout the world. It seems to be sour but it is often used as a component of savoury dishes and even as a pickling agent. It is used in desserts, jams, drinks, juices. It is used to make a chutney that is a great dip for samosas and is also integral ingredient in chaat and dahi baray <3 This exotic chutney is a great condiment in Paki cuisine.It can be called the Ketchup of the East. It is also known as saunth chutney in India. It has the sourness of tamarind seeds, balanced with the sweetness of jiggery and the earthiness of dried ginger and mild hotness coming from red chilli and cumin seeds :) u can store it in an air tight container and use it for months. Here goes the recipe :

Chocolate Cake

Chocolate cake is a rich, moist and incredibly mouth-watering dessert which I love to bake.  This was one of the best chocolate cakes I’ve ever made, which had a tender crumb, with precise amount of sweetness, flawlessly moist and had a powerful flavor of chocolate. The timing is really tricky while u r planning to bake a chocolate cake. Always remember to use ingredients at room temperature and do not over-bake it. This might result in a dry & messy cake. Follow the instructions word to word and you will find yourself on the winning side in baking a cake. If u find urself drooling over your keyboard & unable to control your chocolate cravings, why don’t you urself a favor? Just get into your kitchen and bake this fabulous cake. Best for special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries and festivals etc.

To bake cake at home is not a difficult task! Here is an easy recipe. Don't hesitate to try :)

Chick pea chaat (Chana Chaat)

Chick Peas Chaat.. is one of the simple snacks. Once u have boiled the chickpeas in ample amount u can freeze them n make variety of things. :) This recipe is esp. for weight watchers :) Now a days every second person is on diet and is highly curious on what u goona have when on diet. This is one of the simples recipes.. that u can have cooked in minutes.. Boiled chickpeas.. tossed with onion, tomato and potato cubes and tossed with diffrent spices.. taste extremely yum. I love to have them with Yogurt/Dahi bara too :) Lets move on to the recipe:

Serves: 2-3

Calories per serving: 168

Ingredients:

Chick Peas (Chanay)                         1 big mug (boiled)

Onions                                               1 medium sized (chopped finely)

Tomato                                              1 medium sized (Diced)
Potatoes                                             1 medium sized (boiled,peeled and chopped)

Green Chili                                         2-3 chopped

Red Chili powder                               1 tsp.           

Black Pepper                                     1/2 tsp.

Red Chili Flakes                                 ¼ tsp

Salt                                                    ½ tsp. or to taste

Cumin Powder (Zeera)                       1 tsp.

Chaat Masaala                                    1/2 tsp.
Lemon Juice                                        1 tbsp.

Coriander Leaves (dhanyia)                 Few chopped

Sweet tamarind sauce Imli ki chutney) 1/2 to 3/4 cup  

Procedure:

Mix all the above ingredients and garnish with chopped fresh coriander and serve :)  P.S. Following is the recipe for the Tamarind sauce.

Sweet Vermicelli (colored, sawayia)

Vermicelli /Seyvian/Semyia is a delicious and quick dessert. When u have nothing available in emergency, it will take few minutes to get ready. It is best served chilled but can also be served hot. Seviyan is an Urdu word. In Indian Cuisine it has come from Mughal period. In this recipe, colored vermicelli have been prepared in milk with dry fruits! This pudding is full of texture flavored of cardamom. U can also add nuts in it of ur desired choice. They are extremely nutritious. Vermicelli (Wheat Noodles) Pudding is a very delicious, easy to make, quick sweet that u can make it in very little time. This recipe uses vermicelli as its main essential ingredient. Vermicelli is a traditional type of pasta, made from semolina, and is known as Seviyan in Urdu and Hindi, and semiya in Tamil. Before I have told u some varieties of vermicelli like;

Sheer Khorma
Vermicelli Pudding/zarda

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:

Milk (w/ sugar 8-10 tbsp.)                               3-4 cups
Oil                                                                   2 tbsp.

Vermicelli (colored)                                          50-75gm

Cashew nuts                                                     Few crushed

Almonds                                                           Few crushed

Chawaray (Dry dates)                                      1-2 chopped
Currants (kishmish)                                           5-6

Choti Ilaychi (Green cardamom pods)               4

Procedure:

Fry colored vermicelli along with crushed nuts until it turns bit golden brown or gives a pleasant fragrance. Next boil the milk & Pour them into the milk & let them boil until the vermicelli are cooked and eatable. Refrigerate the vermicelli and serve cold. :) It tastes yummyyy!!

Cauliflower with potatoes (Aalo Gobi)

Cauliflower is one of the dry Pakistani/Indian/Nepali cuisines dish. It is made with potatoes, cauliflower and diffrent spices. It has a yellowish tinge due to the turmeric powder added in it. It is one of the vegetables my hubby loves the most. Anything with cauliflower, he would never ever say no lol.. Guess what? I never liked to eat it. But hubby has at last made me habitual of eating it n even cooking it :P n now I kinda love ittttt! oh myy, I wonder how come I am saying that! This vegetable is easy to cook n healthy for u! Another variety of it which I have discussed is 

Cheese Omelette

Eggs are one of the dishes that one can have in any way, sweet or spicy version. And there is no special time to have it, whether it be breakfast; (Omelettes, half fry, hosh posh, boiled eggs etc). Or lunch, supper, or dinner like Egg curry, Fried egg rice, variety of salads or in sweets like cakes, cookies etc. They are one of the commonly eaten food groups in the world. Eggs are high in protein & calcium. Hence healthy & nutritious. 

Omelette is a dish that is made with eggs blended properly, mostly cooked in heated butter or oil in a frying pan. It is of different varieties like, it can be simple, or can be folded around some cheese, meat or vegetables or some mixture of these. To obtain a fluffy appearance, the egg is beaten with milk, cream or sometimes even water. The water vapors trapped with in the rapidly cooked omelette gives it a fluffy bubbly appearance. Some people even add baking powder to give it a more fluffier appearance but I personally dislike it :/ 

Today I am going to discuss with u a rather yummy variety of omelette; Cheese Omelette. It is one of the delicious omelettes and perfect for breakfast.

Serves: 1

Ingredients:

Eggs (Lightly Beaten)                               1

Onion (chopped)                                     1 (small)

Tomato (chopped)                                  1 (small)

Green Chili (chopped)                             1

Salt                                                         1/4 tsp.

Red Chili powder                                   1/4 tsp.

Black Pepper                                         1/4 tsp.

Oil                                                          1 tbsp.

Cheddar Cheese                                     1 slice

                                           

Procedure:

Beat all the above ingredients lightly except cheese and fry it in oil until golden brown and solid from both sides. Then fold the omelette and keep a slice of cheddar cheese in between. And enjoy the delicious cheese omelette with toast/parathas and tea! :)

Other types of Omelette I have discussed before are:

Simple Quick Omelette
Cheese Omelette
Veggie Omelette
Kebab Omelette

Banana Nutella Shake

Many people say that milkshakes are one of the most delicious and appealing beverages all around the world. A milkshake is a scrumptious drink which is generally made from milk blended with fruits of ur choice. It can also be made with milk blended with desired ice cream & flavoring agents such as fruit syrup or chocolate sauce. Milkshakes have been enjoyed by people all over the world since the invention of the blender in the early 1900's. Today there are many different varieties of milkshakes, which have a variety of ingredients. 

Nutella is a luscious hazelnut spread, originally from Italy! And can be used in different dishes. I mostly use it in different drinks & shakes. It tastes extra delicious.You must give it a try. In this shake, I have mixed banana & nutella with it in blender until foamy.. yumm! The rich & bold taste of banana combined with the creamy vanilla ice cream and chocolaty bits of nutella is a winning combination. Kids will love it! Here are step - by- step instructions to create ur own!

Gram Lentil (Chanay ki daal)

Lentils (Daal) are one of the most vital elements, and me and my hubby love them eating with boiled rice. It is one of the well known dishes prepared in the South Asian countries. The tempering at the end of cooking gives the pulses an excellent mouth watering buttery taste, which makes one to eat more. Its a light meal. You can also have them with naan/chapatis. There are over 50 different type of pulses in Pakistan & India. Examples are, red lentil, white lentil, gram lentil, black lentil, green lentil, yellow lentils etc. Lentil is low in fat and high in protein, hence totally nutritious & healthy. 

Today I am going to discuss with u Gram lentil. Chana daal - It is small, split-ed and half of a chickpea size. Here goes its recipe :) 

Semolina Pudding (Sooji ki kheer)

This recipe is just soo simple n tasty that u won’t believe. It’s a good one to win hearts of ur hubby lol :P (not kidding :D )

Semolina called sooji in Urdu, can be used in variety of ways. Like making halwa, pudding/kheer etc. It can be served at parties, Eid etc. Semolina Pudding is a traditional German type dessert that your kids will love to have!! Milk is boiled and semolina + sugar is added. Cardamom can be added for flavor. Sugar can be adjusted according to ur flavor. It is a porridge type pudding. It is good for babies who are being introduced to food, because it is easy to swallow and digest. Best recipe for working ladies, because it is a quick and easy recipe.

Semolina in India, also known as Bombay rava, which is coarse and purified wheat middlings of wheat used in making pasta used in breakfast and cereals.
  Here goes the recipe - 

Serves: 1-2

Ingredients:

Boiled Milk                                          1 cup

Fine Sooji (semolina)                           1 heaped tbsp. mixed in some milk to form a paste

Sugar                                                    2-3 tbsp.

Red food color/ Rooh afza                   A few drops

Vanilla Ice cream                                  1 scoop

Crushed Nuts                                        Few

Choti Ilaychi (Green cardamom pods)    2                       

              

Procedure:

Add sugar, few crushed nuts & cardamom pods in milk and bring it to boil. Add few drops of food color to give it a nice pink color. Then add the semolina (sooji) mixture slowly to the boiled milk and cook on low flame until thick. It will take about 10 min. You can add more semolina, if u prefer to make the pudding thick. Turn off the heat. Add the vanilla ice cream in the mixture and stir slowly until it has melted. Pour it into the serving bowls, garnish with nuts and allow to cool. Refrigerate until cold and serve. :)

Fried Okra - Lady Finger - Bhindi

This is my favorite veggie and no doubt its a terrific vegetarian meal. It is a semi dry curry. It is best served with soft chapatis. Here is its recipe :)

2 minute Chocolate Chip Cookie

Baking is in now a days. But it can be hectic at times especially if the oven is not available or the only oven with u is a microwave.  In this busy world, u don't want to spend much of the time in the kitchen waiting for cakes n cookies to get baked. Chocolate chip cookie is a super quick dessert & there is no need to bake it for hours. When I had it for the first time I could barely believe that it has not been baked. Lol. It is a cookie that kids will love to have & so easy to make that they can even make it themselves.

Chocolate chip cookie is one of the microwave oven all time favorite recipes & can be cooked in almost no time. It actually takes 2 minutes in microwave oven!! Yeshhhh.. The preparation is beyond easy. Just give it a try :)

Mango Smoothie

A smoothie is a sweetened and a yummacious beverage made from fresh fruits and in some cases can contain chocolate, maple syrup & peanut butter. In addition to fruits, many smoothies contain crushed ice, yogurt, milk, ice cream, frozen fruit, honey, cream, nuts or can contain ice ingredients & syrup. They have actually  milk-shake like consistency that is thicker than slush drinks.

Banana Date Smoothie

A smoothie is a sweetened and a blended beverage made from fresh fruit and in special cases can contain chocolate syrup & peanut butter. In addition to fruits, many smoothies contain crushed ice, yogurt, milk, ice cream, frozen fruit, honey, or can contain ice ingredients & syrup. They have milk-shake like consistency that is thicker than slush drinks.
Today I am going to discuss with u Banana Date Smoothie. It is naturally sweet and has unique characteristic taste. A frozen banana, creamy yogurt and a handful of dates give it a rounded flavor.U can add nuts too. Small pieces of dates are left at the end in the drink, giving a nice little treat for each bite. This smoothie may be simple, the flavors are unexpectedly sophisticated and perfect for an early morning or sunny afternoon. Creamy, nutritious and sustaining smoothie, Indeed. Here goes its recipe: