Broccoli Stem Chips + A Campaign to Inspire Action

This post is dedicated to the Bloggers Against Hunger Campaign.

We are working collectively to raise awareness about the hunger issues in America. In America, where food is available in plenty it is an irony that 1 out of 5 kids go without proper food everyday. Today, I urge you to take action and play a small but significant role in solving the hunger problem in America. Here's what you can do

• Click Here to write to your Representative, Senator or elected official emphasizing that you want to end hunger in America by maintaining and prioritizing anti-hunger initiatives in Congress.
• I also encourage you to watch " A place at the table" with your family and friends to spread more awareness of this issue. It is available online on youtube.

In my effort to find budget & health friendly recipes, I decided to try something different by using stuff in our kitchen which we discard and never use. Broccoli stems for example have been one item in my list that usually land up in the trash. So I decided it was time to look into what I could do with those stems. Surprisingly there are many options. I liked one which was a quick and easy snack - Broccoli Stem Chips. These chips are best if eaten fresh out of the oven. It does not cost anything as you are using left overs and pantry staples.

Ready to eat broccoli stem chips

Sliced broccoli stem

Broccoli Stem Chips:

Ingredients:

Broccoli stems
1 Egg
Splash of milk
Bread crumbs
Any kind of Paprika, Cayenne Pepper
Garlic Powder.

- Preheat oven to 350.

- Peel the Broccoli stems and slice into every thin slices.

- Prepare the egg wash, by breaking the egg and adding a splash of milk.

- In another bowl, add the breadcrumbs, paprika and garlic powder.

- Dip the slices in egg wash and then in breadcrumb mixture and place on baking sheet.

Ready to be baked.

- Bake in the oven for 10 mins or until golden brown.

- These are crispiest when eaten fresh out of the oven.

Chips ready to be eaten.

- Enjoy !!!

Yoghurt Parfait

The weather has been funny here in Portland. On one side there are dark heavy clouds and then on the other side there is the sun shining in all its glory. And when you have dary heavy clouds and a bright sun, there is a rainbow somewhere. In the past few days I have seen at least around 4 rainbows in a week ! They are indeed beautiful and exciting. Rainbows have the power to make you believe in the good and beautiful.

Well with the funny weather, comes my hunger pangs :). I get really hungry, when the clock strikes three and I go on a hunt into my refrigerator and pantry, and sometimes eat nothing or just wait till I feel really hungry. Yesterday I noticed I had some mangoes, Yoghurt and frozen blueberries and decided to make a Parfait ! It's so easy and oh so filling. And well , I assume everyone has some fruit, cereal and yoghurt lying around at home. It's an easy dish to make and comes together in a few minutes.

Yummy Yoghurt Parfait

I am sure you'll have fun making and eating it too.

* Yoghurt - 1/4 cup
* 2-3 tbps chopped fruit ( mangoes, strawberries, apples) fresh or frozen.
* Crushed cookies or sweetened cereal flakes.

Take a glass, add your chopped fruit. I had mangoes so i filled 1/4 of my cup with mangoes, Then on top of that goes the yoghurt again around 1/4 cup. I had some frozen wild blue berries, I add some of those on top of the yoghurt. For the final crunch you want to add either crushed cookies or some sweetened cereal that you might have at home !

Cereal Crunch, is awesome..

That's it now,  Sit , eat and ENJOY !!!

I am already hungry , looking at this pic .

All DONE !! :D

- Yanka

Spicy Healthy Indian Cookies ( Chai Poori)

After the relaxing long weekend, I cant wait to blog :).. I am enjoying the entire process of cooking, taking pictures , editing and finally blogging. Today's entry is for the Blogging contest by Nags, of the famous Edible Garden and Megha of The Balance Mantra. Before I start off my recipe, I want to say a little bit about Nags, I started my cooking blog because I loved cooking and also to keep me busy . But after reading about Nags and her success with her blog has given me more motivation in blogging and food photography. Thank you Nags for being such a great inspiration!

Spicy baked cookies

Well so when I was thinking about what is the healthy snack I like the most, I couldn think of a lot of things. I like having something spicy and light to go with my evening cup of coffee. This is a recipe of Tarla Dalal, which I have modified just a little bit.

The joys of simple things :)

These cookies ( puris) are easy to make, baked in the oven and really spicy. Here's what you ll need to make them

1/4 cup Bajri flour (Black millet flour)
1/4 cup Jowar flour ( White millet flour)
1/4 cup Irish oatmeal, roasted and blended coarsely.
1/3 cup wheat flour + extra

2 serrano peppers
1/2 inch piece ginger
2 tbsp yoghurt
salt to taste

1 cup palak
1/2 cup dried or fresh methi


Chop your palak and methi and sprinkle salt on top and leave for around 10 mins. The salt will help remove the water, which we will squeeze out and use to make the dough. In the meanwhile, with the peppers and ginger make a paste using a small blender or a mortar and pestel.

Take all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl, add the ginger-green chilli paste and mix. Now add the palak and methi, with the water removed from them. After you mix for a while, slowly add the water to make a dough like consistency. At the end add 1 tbsp yoghurt and mix into the dough, you might not need more so add 1tbsp at a time. Once the dough is ready you can cover and keep aside for a few minutes.

Cookies ready to be baked !!

Preheat your oven to 360F. Make small balls out of the dough and either roll out or press with the palms of your hands to form small discs. I used my hands as it was easier. Make sure that each disc is of even thickness and not too thick in the center. Place the discs on to a baking sheet and make folk marks on it. Place your discs 2-3 cms apart and bake in the oven for around 20 minutes or until done. They should be a little browned around the edges.

Ready to be eaten now !!!

These cookies are crispy on the edges and soft and chewy in the middle, I really enjoyed their spicy flavor along with some chamomile tea and my favourite book ! I hope you enjoy making these for yourself and your family ! Happy Baking and let me know how they turned out



 As my husband says, " Chai Poori ho jaye !! " .




P.S: I have had butterflies in my stomach while I wrote this blog, have been wanting to write this entry for so long and being so excited about this :) Wohoo finally done : D and supper excited for all of you to read it ..

Cookies, tea and a great book for company, what more can you ask for !!!