Love and Calories!!

I realised that its been a long time since I made any good beverage. The summer is still soaring and will be at its peak for the next 2 more months over here. So I thought why not I make a drink which is chilled, tasty & healthy too at the same time. As am not a big fruit fan, I preferred using almonds for my drink. Badam Milk, was a popular choice at my College Canteen days. The chilled bottle of a Badam Milk made my whole day so good & refreshing. Hence I made this refreshing drink yesterday just to re live my College Canteen days with my friends. And its a "Fit & Fabulous Friday" too, and Almonds/Badam is super rich in vitamins & dietary fiber. The Vitamin E in it helps to improve the skin complexion, which I think all the ladies will be happy to know. In India, Almond drink is served in almost all the regions at different festive occasions because, Milk is considered to be very auspicious & with Almonds in it, makes the simple milk, "droolwo...

This recipe of "Minced Meat Pasta with Rum & Cheese" is brought to you by my very good friend Simran Wahan, who has tried & tasted herself at her home & recommended the same to be published on my blog. I was also super excited as this is the very first "Guest" Recipe & that too from a non blogger. So excuse the clarity of the photographs as she had no intention of sending this recipe to me but later changed her mind. Thank You Simran for your lovely recipe, and am sure your recipe will be seen world wide & will be tried out by some foodies at their respective kitchens, including me. ;) Ingredients: 200 gm pasta (Any of your choice) 500 gm minced meat 20 ml rum (Simran says, if you can handle it, add more ;) ) 200 gm sweet corn soup powder (any corn based soup) 5-6 cloves of garlic (crushed) 10 gm sugar loads of grated cheese (preferably mozzarella or cheddar) fresh sprig of thyme or dried thyme to sprinkle at the end salt & pepper to season M...

Its been months, since I bought some fresh fish from a fishmonger. I always opt for the easy to clean & cook shrimps or prawns. But last Saturday, I saw this fresh sardines butterfly fillets, fully cleaned, scaled & bones removed. That was specially kept for Barbeques. My heart skipped a beat & asked me "You miss Kerala, Don't you? My mouth was salivating uncontrollably & my brain had already decided the menu for the day. "Malabar Fish Curry" & "Sardines Fry" with plain white Rice. I wanted it to be a "Pukka Malayalee lunch" with an hour long nap after that. The only reason why I avoid Sardines is, the more it tastes good, the more it makes the whole house smelly. And I just pray to god that no neighbours or friends turn up for a few days after my Sardine cooking. It is so very embarrassing when they sniff their nose frequently. :( Anyway, this will not stop me making some delicious fish curry & fry. The "...

Have you got loads of left over rice from yesterday? Don't know what to do with it apart from the usual curd rice, lemon rice or tomato rice? Why not try making "Nasi Goreng" with it for a change. I had a similar situation last night. So just took out my cold rice from the refrigerator, improvised it by mixing some vegies, eggs, garlic, onion & some soy sauce. And served a spicy hot fresh dinner in minutes. :) Nasi Goreng, is the National dish of Indonesia. It is popular in most of the South Asian countries & has got a Chinese influence to it if you see the use of the ingredients. It actually means fried rice where pre-cooked rice is mixed with any combination of veggies, chicken, prawns or eggs with the rice. You can cook fresh rice but should be done before hand & cooled for a long period of time. Or else, like me, use the left over rice to make this tasty & colourful Indonesian fried rice, if it has been kept well chilled. I didn't have plans ...

Every one knows to make a simple French Toast, so this won't be difficult at all. Am just adding up some cinnamon into the original version. This was our quicky breakfast today morning, because I got up a little late than usual. This is a sweet version of eggy bread that's wonderful for a lazy weekday breakfast making. Have a bite & off you go for your work. :) Ingredients: 4 eggs 4 tbsp milk 6 slices of bread 1 tsp ground cinnamon 4 tsp sugar 1 tsp oil (or a cooking oil spray) Method: Mix half the ground cinnamon with the sugar & set aside. Beat the remaining cinnamon together with the eggs & milk in a shallow dish. Cut the bread into triangles & dip into the egg mixture. Heat a non-stick frying pan & spray some oil. Cook the eggy bread one by one, cooking both sides for 2 minutes, over a medium heat, until crisp. Sprinkle the french toast with some cinnamon sugar. Wanna make it healthy?? Try substituting skimmed milk, wholemeal bread & low fat...

I just had to put this recipe before I forget it, because this recipe is so easy that it will get lost amidst the other mighty dishes on the blog. I first learnt this recipe from Arun's mom. She used to make this dish when she had no mood of cooking & wanted to close the kitchen soon, to be with us in the living room for a game of cards. :) Last week, this recipe came handy when we wanted to watch a movie on the television & I had to quickly finish off the kitchen chores. I have used "Lincolnshire Sausages", cos its the tastiest of all sausages what you get here in the UK. You can use any type of sausages or frankfurters. This can be had as a quick under 20 minute dinner or even as an appetizer. I suggest, you use the cocktail sausages when it is made as an appetizer. It will be a change from the usual "just roast the sausages" recipe. Take your notes and pen down this one fast. :) Ingredients : a pack of sausages (6-7 sausages approx) 1 medium onio...

"Padharo Mharo Des", Thats right!! It was a Rajasthani lunch for us today. The popular phrase of the land of the Desert means, Welcome to our land! And What a beautiful land it is...So rich in culture, heritage, FOOD of course. This West Indian State boasts some of the amazing touring spots. I have been travelling all over India with my dad, all my life but never got a chance to visit this wonderful place & I regret that. So now I always pester Arun to make a trip to Rajasthan during our Indian Holidays. If I was the Brand Ambassador of Rajasthan Tourism, I would be promoting the wonderful sight of Sand Dunes, the Desert Festival of Jaisalmer, The Palace on Wheels, The Ghoomar Dance, The Bandini (Tie & Dye) Salwars & Sarees, the Grand Palaces & obviously the yummy food (Lal Maas & Ghevar). So much to see & experience & just one life!! mmph!! Anyway, so today I share a popular Rajasthani Roti (Indian Bread) recipe, which is called Missi Roti. When t...

Am getting ready for the "Fit & Fabulous Friday", so this is yet another healthy Pasta dish coming up. I love all kinds and shapes of Pasta. I also do love stocking up different pastas in my so called Pantry (cupboard). When I get bored, I go to the pasta cupboard and run my hands through it thinking which shape should I use for today's dinner? ;) (yeah, the pasta obsessed me!!) I made this dish in the morning for Arun's Lunchbox menu to take it to his office. This recipe is inspired by Nigella Lawson's "Curly Pasta with Feta, Spinach & Pine Nuts". Instead of the curly pasta, I have used "Dischi Volanti" & I have avoided the Feta cheese as well as the "allspice" seasoning. Why? for the simple reason that I didn't have those. :) I loved this dish & and am sure you too will like it as the Spinach does make the difference here. So here goes the recipe: Ingredients : 250 g dischi volanti pasta (or any kind /shape ...

"A new home(the pic below), a new kitchen and a new oven as well". :) I am almost settled in my new home and getting used to the daily routine like before. Well, as usual the kitchen is small (well...any kitchen is small for an Indian cook) as it suits the typical English cooking. And I also dread the "HOT PLATE". It spoils my entire cooking pace and makes me do things in a hurry....oh oh look ...there goes another burnt chapathi....Hurry up, u got to match with the heat of the plate!! But the more I hate the Hot Plate, the more am loving the oven. The owners have installed a brand new oven in this house (Oh! Bless them!!). And today I actually wanted to try out the very simple chocolate chip cookies in it to see how it turned out. And I got a tear in my eye when I saw those little scoops of dough, forming into crispy big round cookies, just like you get in a good bakery shop. So to celebrate my house warming with all you foodie lovers, here's my simple rec...