Grilled Paneer

 This is one of my favorite barbeque recipe. It’s simple, easy to make and has a very rich taste. I got the recipe for the marinade from my friend Smita . I made very little variation to the original recipe I got from her. You can also broil paneer if you dont have a grill. I dont have a grill at home, so I broil the paneer at high for about 15 min. I add red,yellow and green bell pepper along with paneer while broiling and this makes the dish so much more colorful and yummm.I add garlic salt instead of normal salt that adds an extra flavor to the marinade.

Ingredients for Paneer Marinade

• Paneer - 250gm cut into small cubes
• Sour yogurt - 2 cups
• Tandoori masala powder - 5 tsps
• Dhania powder - 2 tsps
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Chilli powder - depending on tast
• Ginger paste - 1/4 tsp (optional)
• Garlic Salt - 1 tsp

Ingredients for Bell Pepper Marinade

• Grilled barbeque seasonings - 5 tsps
• Olive oil - 2 tsps
• Garlic salt - 1 tsp
• Bamboo sticks  for grilling 
 

Method

Mix all the ingredients for Paneer Marinade . Marinate paneer for at least two hours before grilling. I usually marinate it over night  and the paneer absorbs the masala really well.  Mix all the Bell Pepper marinade about 30 min before grilling. Arrange  the paneer and bell pepper alternatively on the bamboo sticks and grill /broil them for 15 min .

Serve this hot with chutney. I sometimes use the marinade as the chutney (with some tadka) and it tastes very  good .

Methi Pulav

I got this recipe from my mother who is awesome at cooking rice dishes. I wish I could cook my pulav as well as she does. I have cut down the amount of garlic ,spice and ghee from the original recipe to cater to my husband's palate :-).

Ingredients

Rice - 2 cups
Onions - 2 medium sized
Tomato - 1 : diced
Cloves - 2
Cinnamon - 1 inch stick
Star anise - 2
Bay leaves - 2
Garlic -  3 cloves
Ginger paste - 1 tsp
Green thai chilli - 4
Coriander powder - 1tsp
Methi leaves -1 bunch
Beans - 1 cup cut vertically
Fresh peas - 1/2 cup (optional)
Turmeric - 1 tsp
Vegetable/Olive oil - 2 tbsp
Ghee - 2 tsp
Salt to taste

Method

• Grind 1 onion and  garlic in a mixer.
• Heat 2 tbsp of oil  in a pressure cooker.After the oil is heated ,add cloves,cinnamon,star anise and bay leaves.Wait for about a minute till the oil absorbs the flavor from the spices.
• Add 1 onion cut into small pieces and fry till the onion turns translucent.Add the ground mixture and green chilli and roast it for some more time till the onion smell goes away.
• Add tomato ,veggies ,coriander powder, turmeric ,salt and methi leaves .Fry for some time
• Wash rice and add to the mixture above.Fry this mixture for 5 min.
• Add 4 cups of water(2 cups of water for each cup of rice) and close the pressure cooker.Pressure cook on medium heat till 1 whistle and wait for the pressure cooker to let out the steam.
• Remove the pressure cooker lid, add 2 tsp of ghee and mix the pulav. 

Serve hot with raita or lemon and onion slices.

Veggie Pesto Pasta

The first time I tasted Pesto, I fell in love with it. I have been adding Pesto to lot of my recipes since then.I was inspired by my friend Smita to try this recipe and it has been a huge hit especially with kids.This pasta is extremely easy to cook when you are not making pesto from scratch. I cook this dish when I am pressed for time.I use Pesto sauce from Costco or Trader Joes.You can get as creative as you want  with the veggies and garnishing.I use a traditional mortar and pestle for crushing black pepper and red chilli.

Ingredients

5 tbl spoons of Pesto
1 packet Penne whole wheat pasta
crushed black pepper – according to taste
crushed red chilli flakes  – according to taste – optional
2 zucchini sliced in rounds
Red /green/yellow bell  pepper - I buy a frozen bag from trader joes
2 tbsp sun dried tomatoes - optional
Grated cheese of your choice
1 tsp olive oil or use the oil from pesto
Salt to taste

You can add your choice of veggies. Sometimes I add olives, pine nuts ,cherry tomatoes and sun dried tomatoes.

Method

• Boil whole wheat pasta in water with little salt till its cooked. Drain the  water from the pasta after its boiled and let it cool.

• On a wide pan, add 1 tsp olive oil(I take the oil from pesto bottle) and saute  zucchini  and bell peppers . 

• Add the  cooked pasta, 3 tbl spoon of pesto  and mix them.Let it cook for about 3 min.

• Add crushed black pepper, red chilli flakes and the remaining pesto. Cook for 3 more min.

• Remove from stove. Garnish with grated cheese before serving.