Cheesy Sweet Peppers

Stuffed peppers have always been my favorite. Mummy used to stuff peppers with boiled potatoes and spices, and then grill or pan fry them. It was such a delicious appetizer or a side dish with simple dal and rice. While in the US these colorful peppers are so appealing and delicious. Mummy would always buy a bag from Sprouts market an create a stuffing of potatoes and then pan fry them. You might have seen some pictures on my Facebook page.

Check out all the sweet pepper recipes:

So while my mom enjoys it stuffed with boiled potatoes and spices, Snehanshu likes it with paneer or cheese. Almost 2 years back, if you remember, I had created finger food for a campaign party for our friend who was running for Santa Clara elections. It was cream cheese over crackers: Cream cheese whipped with garlic powder, salt, pepper, and finely chopped onion greens. It was topped with a slice of olive and few chopped onion green. Everyone loved it!!

So while it was made in bulk, I had some of this cream cheese mixture remaining. So yes, I did use it to stuff the peppers. This time it was cream cheese with Indian Amul cheese.

Here are the pictures of cream cheese over crackers.

Ingredients to make Cheesy Peppers.

10-12 sweet peppers
1/2 cup grated amul cheese
1/4 cup grated amul cheese for garnish
1/2 cup softened cream cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 cup chopped onion greens.

• Mix amul cheese with cream cheese. Add salt., pepper, chopped green onions, and garlic power. Mix well.
• Wash peppers with water. wipe and slit them. Remove veins or seeds from inside if any.
• Stuff creamcheese stuffing inside each of the peppers.
• Garnish with some grated amul cheese.
• Bake in a 400 F preheated oven till it grated cheese gets crisp.
• Serve immediately.

Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

Mix amul cheese with cream cheese. Add salt., pepper, chopped green onions, and garlic power. Mix well.

Wash peppers with water. wipe and slit them. Remove veins or seeds from inside if any.

Stuff creamcheese stuffing inside each of the peppers.

Garnish with some grated amul cheese.

Bake in a 400 F preheated oven till it grated cheese gets crisp.

Enjoy these fun appetizers!!

Sesame Triangles

It is fun to serve simple food in style, and this recipe is a perfect example of that. 

Few weeks back, we had our friends over and I presented a platter of this easy appetizer. It was a hit... everyone loved it and with some bean sprouts served on the side, gave some healthy crunch to it.My homemade schezwan sauce spiced it up to suit our palate.

This is not a new recipe; if you are grown up in India, specially in Mumbai, this is a very common Indo-Chinese appetizer by the name of 'Gold Coin'. Bread as a base in normally cut in a circular shape using a cookie cutter, veggies dough is spread on it, dipped in sesame seeds, and then deep fried. My recipe is almost the same, except that I cut the bread into triangles to avoid any wastage. You can make these in shapes of your choice!

Ingredients (Serves 4-5)

4 slices of bread of your choice

2 cups of minced veggies of your choice (onions, bell pepper, cabbage, carrots, green beans)

2 cloves garlic 

1/2 inch ginger

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper powder

1 tbsp. corn starch

2-3 tbsp all-purpose flour

1/4- 1/2 cup sesame seeds 

Oil fry frying

• Mince all veggies of your choice with garlic cloves and ginger. Remove in a bowl. Add salt and pepper. Mix and let the veggies rest for 15 minutes.
• Gently remove the sides of the bread and cut into fourths. Leave it aside.
• Add corn starch and all purpose flour to veggies and mix well. It should form a soft and sticky dough.
• Spread around 1+1/2 tbsp. mixture on each piece of bread. Spread it evenly so that it sticks well to the bread piece. 
• Dip veggie side into sesame seeds and gently press for sesame seeds to stick on it.
• Deep fry each triangle in medium hot oil OR spray some oil and bake in 400F oven for 15-20 minutes.
• Remove on a paper towel to absorb excess oil.
• Serve with spicy schezwan sauce.

Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

Mince all veggies of your choice with garlic cloves and ginger. Remove in a bowl. Add salt and pepper. Mix and let the veggies rest for 15 minutes.

Gently remove the sides of the bread and cut into fourths. Leave it aside.

Add corn starch and all purpose flour to veggies and mix well. It should form a soft and sticky dough.

Spread around 1+1/2 tbsp. mixture on each piece of bread. Spread it evenly so that it sticks well to the bread piece.

Dip veggie side into sesame seeds and gently press for sesame seeds to stick on it.

Deep fry each traingle in medium hot oil OR spray some oil and bake in 400F oven for 15-20 minutes.

Remove on a paper towel to absorb excess oil.

Serve with homemade spicy chili!

Click on the photo for the recipe.

Crispy Sesame Triangles!!

Mushroom Tikka

My friends came over.. they wanted to see my Tandoor and try some food made in it. Now that I have gotten enough practice of using it well, I was more confident to invite them over and show off my Tnadoor skills. They all came, all excited and with their signature dish to share. I was in charge on only few of the Tandoori items. It was a feast... paneer makhni, signature karela, masala rice, yummy kheer and icecream. OMG it was a blast. We sat in my backyard, under the shade of my Avocado tree and enjoyed all the delicious food while I bragged about our homemade DIY Tandoor. :)

My friends are my guinea pigs. :) There are so many recipes that I try out for the first time, and only after it is approved by the panel of judges (my friends) that it lands up as a post on my blog. Some of the recipes are still to be typed and published. This one was a hit...an instant hit... It was all gone before I could click a picture. Luckily I had my friends send few pictures that they took and wow they are so brilliantly captured, that I am pleased and thrilled to say that I have wonderful friends and will be glad to host them again :)

While I have grilled mushrooms a lot with paneer tikka, and we love it...this time it was a new marinade and grilling over charcoal heat of my Tandoor. Thanks to SV for sending me the picture that I have used as a cover photo. Brilliant isn't it? This marinate for mushrooms is mint flavored...yogurt and mint with mushrooms is a delicious combination and super easy to make too.

Ingredients
10-15 button mushroom.
1/2 cup mint leaves
1-2 green chillies
1/4 inch ginger
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 cup hung plain yogurt or Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp. salt

Thinly sliced onion rings or onion spirals so serve mushroom tikka.

• In a blender blend mint leaves, green chilies, ginger, salt, cumin seeds with little water.
• Add the mint paste to hung yogurt and mix well.
• Clean wipe mushrooms and remove the stalk. 
• Mix mushrooms well into the marinade. If left for a long time, mushrooms will sweat moisture and that is all right.
• Use a 2 prong skewers and gently insert mushrooms in it. One prong skewer is not very easy to turn to cook mushrooms well. as mushrooms shrink, they can break from the skewer and fall off. 2 prong skewers hold mushrooms well and can cook well on all sides.
• Grill mushrooms over charcoal heat or in the oven. If placing in an oven, put skewers on a high pan so that mushrooms do not touch the bottom of the pan. If they touch the bottom of the pan, they can get soggy. Heat the oven to 500F temperature and grill mushrooms till done and golden brown. You might need to flip it too. 
• When done, place on a bed of sliced or spiral onions.
• Also, sprinkle a bit with chaat masala. and then serve. 

In a blender blend mint leaves, green chilies, ginger, salt, cumin seeds with little water.

Add the mint paste to hung yogurt and mix well.

Clean wipe mushrooms and remove the stalk. 

Mix mushrooms well into the marinade.

Two prong skewers for Mushroom tikka. 

Check this Amazon link http://amzn.to/2ufqvrr

Use a 2 prong skewers and gently insert mushrooms in it. One prong skewer is not very easy to turn to cook mushrooms well. as mushrooms shrink, they can break from the skewer and fall off. 2 prong skewers hold mushrooms well and can cook well on all sides.

Grill mushrooms over chacoal heat and flip it when it gets slight color.

Spiralizer to make onion spirals.

 When done, place on a bed of sliced or spiral onions.

Let's get grilling!!!