Methi leaves Pulao (Vendhaya Keerai Pulao)

Category: Rice Varieties
Preparation Time: 10 mins 
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Servings: 3-4 servings

Methi Leaves Pulao with Green peas

This is an easy pulao recipe using Methi leaves or Vendhaya keerai. There will be slight bitterness in these leaves  so while making for kids, I prefer to add other vegetables like green peas, carrots or potatoes along with it. 

Methi leaves Pulao

This is a quick recipe and goes well with any raita or plain curd.

Ingredients:

• Rice - 1 cup (I used Sona masoori rice)
• Methi leaves / Vendhaya keerai - 1 cup, tightly packed
• Oil / Ghee - 2 tsp
• Cinnamon - 1 inch stick
• Cloves - 3 
• Green Cardamom - 1
• Star anise - 1 
• Bay leaf - 1
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Onion - 1, thinly sliced
• Green chillies - 2 (adjust to taste)
• Ginger-Garlic paste - 1/2 Tbsp  or Finely chopped garlic - 1/2 Tbsp
• Frozen green peas - 3/4 cup (Optional - Can substitute with 1 small carrot or potato)
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Spicy Cornflakes Mixture (No-deep fry Mixture)

Category: Snacks
Preparation Time: 5 mins  
Cooking Time: 10 mins 
Servings: About 4-5 servings

Spicy Cornflakes Mixture!

Let's Spice up the cornflakes!!!!

This is a very easy and quick mixture we can make using the breakfast cereal - corn flakes. We usually wont eat cereals for breakfast but at time we buy the unsweetened and unflavored corn flakes just to make this mixture :)

Mixture without Deep frying

There are no hard and fast rules for this recipe, we can alter the ingredients and flavors as per our taste. We can also add other nuts and seeds as per our liking.

Crispy Corn flakes Mixture!

When I make for kids, I prefer to add the ghee and cashews since it gives a good flavour to it.

Ingredients:

• Corn flakes - 4 cups (unsweetened & unflavored)
• Raw Peanuts - 1/2 cup
• Roasted gram/Dalia/Pottukadalai - 1/4 cup
• Cashews, broken - 2 Tbsp
• Raisins - 2 Tbsp
• Salt - to taste
• Red chilly powder - to taste
• Curry leaves - 2-3 sprigs

Dry Fruits & Nuts Laddoo (Dry Fruit & Nut Balls without any sweeteners)

Category: Kids Special
Preparation Time: 10 mins  
Cooking Time: 5 mins (for toasting)
Servings: yields around 18 laddoos

Healthy Treats!!!

Dry Fruits and Nuts Laddoo is a healthy sugar-free, and nutrient dense snack for kids. Its not only healthy, its tasty and very easy to make.

Dry Fruits & Nuts Laddoo

If we are having unsalted roasted nuts in hand, we can make this within 10-15 mins. These are perfect for the mid-morning snacks for the kids an also can go well in their lunch box.

We can add any of our favourite nuts into it and its sure a way to make kids eat these healthy foods. We can alter the ingredients according to our taste, but dates /  figs are the must for getting the right consistency. We can use either roasted nuts or the unroasted ones. 

Ingredients:

• Figs - 1 cup (I used around 9-10 dried whole Organic, unsulphured figs)
• Dates - 1 cup (I used around 20 Organic dates)
• Raisins - 2 Tbsp
• Almonds - 1/4 cup
• Cashews - 1/4 cup
• Pistachios - 1/4 cup

Broccoli - Sweet corn stir fry

Category: Stir fried veggies
Cooking Time: 10-12 mins
Servings: 2-3 Servings

Preparation Time: 10 mins 

Broccoli - Sweet corn stir fry is a very easy & versatile recipe and we make it often. This is very much kid-friendly and we can adjust the spices as per our taste and recipe. 

Broccoli - Sweet corn Stir Fry!

If we are using as a side dish for Indian rice varieties or kathi rolls, I use Garam masala and lime juice; for sandwich filling I prefer Italian seasoning and will add cheese along with it. Also we can just add cooked rice and mix it up to have a quick veggie rice :) Choice is up to us:)

Tasty & Healthy :)

Ingredients:

• Broccoli florets - 2 cups
• Sweet corn kernels - 1 cup (I used frozen)
• Extra virgin Olive Oil / any cooking oil - 2 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Garlic - 1 Tbsp, finely chopped
• ٭Spice Powder - 1/2 tsp

Mushrooms and Black Olives Omelette

Category: Breakfast / Kids Recipes
Preparation Time: 5 mins  
Cooking Time: 10 mins
Servings: 1-2 servings

With eggs on hand, we can make a quick and easy breakfast on week days or a filling brunch for weekends. I have already posted mini omlette muffins here: Mini Omlette muffins. 

Omlette with Mushrooms & Black Olives

If  your kids love mushrooms and black olives combination, they will surely love it. This is a very easy recipe and I'm posting this just to give an idea or an option for a quick-fix breakfast :) 

Hot & Tasty

In this one, we can also just mix the sauted mushrooms and olives into the egg mixture and cook it to make it easier. We can also add some sweet corns or spinach to look more colourful:) 

Since eggs & milk products dont go well together as per the food compatibility, I am not using cheese here.

 Ingredients:

• Eggs - 3 nos (at room temperature)
• Mushrooms - 1/2 cup, sliced
• Whole Black Olives - 4, sliced
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
• Pepper powder- to taste
• Garlic powder - to taste
• Italian seasoning - to taste

Guacamole with Pinto Beans

 Category: Dip / Salad 
Preparation Time: 10 mins 
Cooking time: 15-20 mins for cooking the beans           
Servings: 2 Servings

Avocados are a great source of vitamins C, E, K, and B-6, as well as riboflavin, niacin, folate, pantothenic acid, magnesium, and potassium. They also provide lutein, beta-carotene, and omega-3 fatty acids. Avocados are full of healthy, beneficial fats that help to keep you full and satiated. Pinto beans are extremely nutritious. They're an excellent source of protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals and also rich in various antioxidants. 

Guacamole with Pinto beans!!

Guacamole is a dip made from ripe avocados and is originally from Mexico. There are so many variations for this recipe. I have already posted the Guacamole recipe here.

Lets give our guacamole a protein boost!!

This recipe is a very easy one, I have just added pressure cooked Pinto Beans into the guacamole to make it more nutritious and filling. 

We can have it as such as a salad or as a dip for tortilla chips, as a sandwich or taco filling. We have it as a side dish for roti this time :) This is also a quick-fix lunch option when we have the cooked beans ready.

Pinto beans Guacamole

Ingredients:

• Avocado, ripen - 1 big or 2 small
• Pinto beans - 1/2 cup (dry)
• Lime juice - from 1 lime / lemon
• Red Onion - 1 medium sized, finely chopped
• Tomato  - 1 medium sized, finely chopped

Vegetable Mini Dosa for kids (Colourful Coin Dosa)

Category: Breakfast / Tiffin /Kids Recipes
Cooking Time: 1-2 mins / dosa

Veggie Mini Dosa!!!!

These vegetable mini dosas are not actually a recipe but its a great way to make kids eat their meal:)  We can add any preferred vegetables to get those vibrant colours. 

In the same way, we can make mini Idlis too and serve it using skewers :) Also we can make delicious podi idlis as a snack.

With the dosa, the one advantage is that we can even make these into any fun shapes our kids like.

I'm sure it puts a smile on your kids face :)

Here I used my Sponge dosa batter so I didn't flip and cook the other side. You can find the recipe for the batter here: Sponge Dosa

So Colourful & Healthy!!

Ingredients:

• Sponge Dosa batter - 2 cups
• Baby Spinach - 1 cup, loosely packed
• Carrot - 1 small, grated
• Beet root - 2 small wedges, grated
• Salt - if needed
• Sesame oil - for cooking dosa

Variations:

Cranberry Puliodharai (Spiced Cranberry rice)

Category: Rice Varieties
Preparation Time: 10 mins 
Cooking Time: 15 to 20 mins
Servings: 3 servings

Eating Seasonally is healthier!  Seasonal eating means that we're eating fresh produce at a time of year when it's naturally ready for harvest. During Thanks giving season, we can get fresh cranberries in the markets. 

Cranberry Puliodharai

Cranberries are small, hard, round, red fruits with a flavor of both bitterness and sourness. I was never used to these beautiful cute fruits but I tried incorporating in our usual cooking.  I usually used them for preparing our South Indian dishes like sambar, rasam, pickle or a quick rice. 

I tried replacing tamarind with cranberry in our traditional puliodharai / Tamarind rice and it tastes great :) 

Ingredients:

• Rice - 1 cup

• Fresh / Frozen Cranberries - 2 cups (Adjust as per taste)

• Sesame Oil -  2 Tbsp

• Mustard seeds -  1/2 tsp

• Channa Dhal -  3/4 Tbsp

• Split Urad dhal -  1/2 Tbsp

• Raw Peanuts  - 3 Tbsp

• Curry leaves -  few

• Red chilly, broken -  1 (adjust as per spice level)

• Salt -  to taste

To roast & grind:

• Chana dal - 3/4 Tbsp

Avocado - Spinach Chapathi (Avocado-Spinach Flatbread)

Category: Chapathi / Paratha
Preparation Time: 10 mins 
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Servings:3 to 4 servings

Avocado-Spinach Chapathis

Avocado and Spinach both are very nutritious and very versatile. I regularly make avocado rotis and sometimes will add spinach into it:) Avocado-Spinach Chapathi has the goodness of whole wheat flour, avocado and spinach in a single dish. 

Super Soft!

Kids will surely like this and the color of the parathas are very appealing - Isn't it? These are super soft and can be packed for lunch boxes as well. These can also be used as wraps.

Ingredients: 

• Wheat flour / Atta - 2 to 3 cups as required
• Avocado, ripen - 1 big
• Spinach leaves, cleaned - 2 cups tightly packed
• Salt - to taste
• Ghee - for spreading on cooked chapathis,  if needed 
• Wheat Flour - for dusting
• Method:
• Wash and drain the spinach leaves

Whole Wheat Cheesy Garlic Bread sticks

Category: Kids Recipes 
Preparation Time: 15 mins   

Waiting time: 1 to 2 hours rising time
Cooking Time: 12-15 mins      
Servings: 3-4 servings

Whole Wheat Cheesy Garlic Bread sticks

                               

Cheesy Garlic bread sticks are always kids favourite:) These garlic bread sticks are made with whole wheat flour and they are always great for a weekend dinner along with a soup. Also these are soft enough for the toddlers to munch on :)

Soft & Cheesy!!

 Ingredients:

For Dough:

• Whole wheat flour / Atta - 2 cups
• Instant yeast  - 1 1/2 tsp
• Salt - 1/2 Tbsp
• Sugar - 1 Tbsp
• Olive oil - 1 Tbsp
• Warm water - 3/4 to 1 cup (adjust as required)

For Garlic Butter:

• Butter, softened - 2 to 3 Tbsp
• Garlic, finely grated / minced - 2 Tbsp

Zucchini & Sweet corn Quesadilla (With Whole Wheat Tortillas / Rotis)

 Category: Kids Recipes 
Preparation Time: 15 mins        
Cooking Time: 20 mins      
Servings: 2-3 servings

Quesadilla: A quesadilla is a Mexican dish and type of taco, consisting of a tortilla that is filled primarily with cheese, and sometimes meats and spices, and then cooked on a griddle. Traditionally, a corn tortilla is used, but it can also be made with a flour tortilla, particularly in northern Mexico and the United States (Source: Wikipedia) 

Zucchini & Sweet corn Quesadilla

Quesadilla is a very easy recipe and perfect for busy weekday dinners. Also kids love them so much since it has Cheese in it :) It also makes a good lunch-box option. For this recipe, I  make tortillas from whole wheat flour, we can also use our regular rotis / chapathis.

So Cheesy!!!!

Ingredients:

• Whole Wheat Tortillas / Rotis - 5 
• Zucchini / Italian squash - 1 (2 cups sliced)
• Sweet corn, steamed - 1 cup
• Garlic, chopped - 1 Tbsp
• Mozzarella cheese, shredded - 1/2 cup to 1 cup (use as required)
• Olive oil - 2 tsp

Pumpkin Poori

Category: Kids Recipes / Poori
Preparation Time: 15 mins      
Cooking Time: 20 mins      
Servings: 2 servings

                October is the national Pumpkin month in US and during this season we can find a lot of varieties of Pumpkins, gourds and squash available in the market. 

Happy Halloween!!!

                 It's not Halloween without Pumpkin, here comes an easy and yummy recipe using Pumpkin on this Halloween day:) 

Pumpkin Pooris for Halloween!!

       

Poori is a fried Indian flatbread made with Whole Wheat flour. 

For this I have used the small pie pumpkin available here.

Pie Pumpkin (used in this recipe)

Usually I would sneak veggies in Poori, Roti, Paratha and dals so the kids will have them without any fuss. This is an another easy way to make kids eat Pumpkin:)

Tindora fry / Ivy Gourd fry / Kovakkai Fry

Category: Stir fried Vegetables / Poriyal
Preparation Time: 5-8 mins 
Cooking Time: 10-12 mins
Servings: 2-3 Servings

Tindora / Kovakkai Fry

                            

Ivy gourd is a small green vegetable and is commonly known as Tindora or Kovakkai. Stir fried tindora is so tasty and also its very easy to cook. I prefer to cook in the cast iron pan since it gives the best tasting crispy veggies :)

Ingredients:

• Ivy gourd / Tindora / Kovakkai - 25-30 nos
• Oil - 1 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
• Sambar powder - 1 Tbsp 
• Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)
• Salt - to taste