Cottage cheese & veggie skewers

It's been a while since I blogged , the arrival of summer and a whole range of activities to do outside has set me on my sluggish button , so write now all I do is read a book, enjoy the sun and take a lazy nap in the afternoon... What are summers for ;) ???

Well summers also means lots of BBQ's we have had two pool party's already with loads of food and being so filled up with it, that its too hard to leave the comfort of the chair and hit the pool... :D . I made these skewers at one such BBQ and they turned out to be tasty and delicious. These skewers are also a great way to incorporate veggies in your diet and eat them with less oil and more flavor.

Heres what you ll need to get from the grocery store to make the skewers, better yet if you have them at home

2 cups Greek Yogurt
2 tbsp Ginger-garlic paste
3 tbsp onion flakes
1 tsp   chat masala
red chilli powder to taste
1/4 tsp gharam masala
1/8 tsp Cajun seasoning


salt to taste

The reason I said greek yogurt was the marinade will be thick and will stick to the paneer and veggies.

400gms Paneer for around 5 skewer
2 bell peppers ( red, green)
1 large onion

Chop all the veggies into square shaped bites, making sure they are all of the same size so that they cook evenly. Mix all the ingredients with the greek yoghurt to make the marinade.
Once the marinade is ready, rub the paneer on all sides with the marinade and place on a clean plate. Do the same with the bell peppers. I did not marinate the onions as I wanted the sweet and caramelized flavor of the onions to remain. Use a cling wrap to cover the plate with the marinated paneer and bell peppers and refrigerate with 6 to 8 hours.

If you are using an oven:

Set it to broil at around 400F , Place the skewers on a baking plate with a parchment sheet  and spray with a cooking oil spray. And cook for around 10 to 15 mins or till the panner and veggies are browned a little bit.


If you are using a griller:

Place the skewers on the grill , spraying some cooking oil and close the lid of the grill to help it cook faster. Make sure that all sides of the veggies are cooked by turning the skewers round every few minutes.

We cooked our skewers on the grill, they turned out really delicious and we enjoyed our BBQ. I hope you do have a great BBQ and do serve your skewers with some pudina or coriander chutney !!

My next post is yet another great healthy recipe for the summer, using only fruits to make a "Fruit" Cake !!! See you soon

Yogurt dip with Fava Beans ( Fava Raita)

Summers in Oregon are pretty crazy. This week it went from being rainy and cold to being sunny and hot. Its become so hard to depend on the weather to plan a party or go outdoors. But one thing I do enjoy about the summer-spring season are the arrival of Farmer's markets all across the town. My favorite part of going to one is looking at fresh spring fare and getting know and see vegetables that I have either seen in cookbooks or only heard off. 

Fresh Fava Beans 

On one such visit, I got to see Fava beans, used in middle-eastern cooking very frequently. I got really excited and picked up a bunch of those not knowing, what I was up for. When I went home and researched them I found out how much I needed to put in to enjoy these beans. Though these beans are a lot of work , the sheer joy of eating the fava beans is far greater than the pain involved in cooking them.

This is my favorite way to cook fava, which keeps the natural nutty taste of the beans and also gives a crunchy feel. I made up this raitha one morning to pack for lunch along with some rotis. Its rather easy to cook these in the morning, if you do a little planning the previous night. Here's what you 'll need to make the fava raita.

1- 1 1/2  cups - Greek Yogurt 

2- Serrano peppers  - cut lengthwise into 4 pieces

1 cup shelled Fava beans -( do this the previous night itself)

1/2 onion ( chopped finely)

1 tbsp Lemon juice 

5-6 stalks coriander (washed and chopped finally)

Ground Cumin - to taste

Salt - to taste.

Fava raita

Shell the fava beans and refrigerate them in an airtight box, so the first thing you do when you need to do when you want to cook the fava is, fill a pot with water a pinch of salt and set it to boil. Once the water is boiling add the fava beans and let cook for 5 minutes. Drain the beans and shock them in cold water. Now you can pinch the beans between your thumb and finger and the fava beans will pop out... This is a lot of fun to do. 

In a mixing bowl, add chopped onions, Serrano peppers, lemon juice, salt, ground cumin, fava beans and yogurt. Mix all of this together. If the mixture is too thick add 2-3 tbsp of water to make it easier to mix. Garnish with coriander leaves and your Fava raita is ready to be either eaten with roti or as a dip with your favorite crackers :)..

Fava bean raita

This entry is for Kirthi's and Denny's  " Serve it raw " blogging contest.

C'est Magnifique !!!!

Have u had goose bumps and felt sexy speaking a language. Well, I am sure if you did it must be French. There is something about Paris and France that gives me goose bumps . The language, the food and the culture, so romantic and beautiful.. I have been obsessed off late with everything and anything French. I have been reading a book Lunch in Paris - A love story with recipes by Elizabeth Bard and its one of the best books because it is set in France, has a love story and even better has great recipes !!! Isn't that just "C'est Magnifique !!!"

I couldn help but write about it. In each chapter the author talks about her rendezvous with Pairs, her boyfriend-fiance-husband and with french food. After each chapter follow the tried and tested recipes, my favorite is the Moroccan Mint Tea . I know this is not typical french, but I do promise to cook up some other recipes ( typical french) in a few days. For now , lets get on with the Moroccan Mint Tea

I tried this recipe , after a tiring long hike and I absolutely enjoyed the flavors. Here's what you'll need to make it
2 tbsp loose gunpowder green tea
1 bunch of mint on stem ( 7 to 8 sprigs)
4-5 sugar cubes
2 cups boiling water
Pine nuts to serve
A few drops of orange flower extract (optional)

Place loose tea at the bottom of a teapot. Add some boiling water swish around the pot and rinse the tea. Drain out the water through the sprout slowly. Wash the mint thoroughly, place it in the teapot along with the sugar cubes and add the 2 cups of boiling water. Let it seep for around 5 minutes. In a crystal/glass teacup place pine nuts at the bottom, with a few drops of orange flower extract. I did not have the extract so I made it without, but if you do go ahead and add it, just a drop as it is very strong. Pour your tea high above the glass slowly into the glass. You might want to use a tea strainer while doing this.

I learnt from Elizabeth Bard that pouring tea slowly from high above is not only a gimmick for impressing your husband :), but also this process aerates the tea allowing it cool and release the sweet flavor of the mint.  I did not take a picture of the tea, but I will make it again in the next few weeks and will update soon. But I do hope you enjoy the sweetness of the mint and the crunchiness of the pine nuts while drinking the tea.

As a bonus, I have included a video I found on New York Times today about an American food cart in Paris, I hope you enjoy ( at least in video) the smell, sights, sounds and visuals of Pairs and food.

As the french say Bon Appétit et Au Revoir..