Cheddar Cheese PopCorn

For the last 'Cheese' post this week, I wanted to showcase something that my kids really enjoy, the cheddar cheese popcorn. This is a simple and quick dish to put together and can be a great homemade gift to give others during holiday season. My daughter crazily loves cheese and eats in some form or other everyday for at least one of her meals. One of those happily devoured forms is this yummy, cheddar cheese coated popcorn. I indulge her though I cannot understand her addiction. :)

If you don't have the cheese powder, then the processed cheese powder that comes in the macaroni & cheese box can be substituted. I keep our popcorn just cheesy but chili powder / mustard powder / or any other flavors can be added as well in the recipe. Mix them with the cheese powder and proceed as directed.

 Ingredients:
About 6 cups / 1.5 quarts Popped corn
5 - 6 tbsp. Cheddar cheese powder 
3 to 4 tbsp. Melted butter

Method:
* Preheat the oven to 120 deg C / 250 deg F.
* Pop the corn kernels in whichever method you choose to pop - on the stove top, microwave or the popcorn maker. 
To microwave, put about a handful of corn kernels in a brown bag, fold the bag twice at the top edges and put it in the microwave. Pop them for about a minute, shake the bag once vigorously and microwave again for another half a minute or so. It took about 90 to 95 seconds for me but the time varies depending upon the strength of a microwave. Remove the bag once you stop hearing the popping noise or else it may get burnt easily if cooked for longer than the required amount of time. 

* Separate out the corn kernels that were not popped. You may try to pop them once more as some of them do pop the second time.
* Transfer the popcorn to a wide mixing bowl. Pour the butter over it and shake to coat. Then add the cheese mixture and again shake the bowl for the cheese to coat evenly.
* Pour the cheese coated popcorn onto a baking sheet evenly and bake in the pre-heated oven, stirring once in between. Bake for about 8- 10 minutes or until the cheese dries up and the pop corn is crunchy. 
(I prefer baking after the cheese mixture is poured over the popped corn. Baking gives a uniformly crunchy popcorn without burning. The baking part can be skipped and the cheese coated pop corn can be again put in a brown bag and popped for about 25 - 30 seconds. It will turn crisp in a short time compared to baking but gets burnt quickly.)
* Enjoy it immediately or cool the popcorn and store it in an airtight container.

This goes to 
1. Blogging Marathon #49, with the theme "Cheese".
2. 'Kids Delight' event, with the theme 'Cheese'.

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Cauliflower - Cheese Soup

I had so many fancy ideas for this 'Cheese' theme but when it came to execution, I ended up preparing simple everyday dishes that are loved by my kids. My husband and son love soups and so they get frequently made in my kitchen. The one showcased today is loosely based on the broccoli - cheese soup, I make regularly. This creamy, yummy soup was a hit in my home going by the comments I got. I also ended up adding finely minced, cooked carrot at the final stages of cooking.

Ingredients: (2 servings)
1 tbsp. oil / butter
1 onion, finely minced
Cauliflower florets from half a cauliflower head (About 1 & 1/2 cup florets)
2& 1/2 cups vegetable broth / water
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese (white / yellow)
Salt and ground pepper to taste

Method:
* Heat oil in a sauce pan and add onion. Fry until the onion softens and then add cauliflower florets. Fry them until they start to turn golden or about 6 - 7 minutes.
* Add broth / water and cook until cauliflower is tender.
* Puree the mixture until smooth. Use caution if using a blender to puree the hot soup.
* Add the cheese and heat through until it melts.
* Check the taste and then add salt and pepper. Stir and serve warm.

This goes to 
1. Blogging Marathon #49, with the theme "Cheese".
2. 'Kids Delight' event, with the theme 'Cheese'.

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Paneer Bhurji

Paner bhurji is a side dish prepared with paneer, the rennet-free Indian cheese. This protein rich dish is very quick and simple to prepare and is an apt dish for the morning rush hours. It can be served with breads, buns or rotis to make a wholesome, filling breakfast. One can of course omit or add spices they prefer or use in lesser quantities if serving kids. Using cilantro leaves is optional or it can be replaced by kasuri methi/dried fenugreek leaves to add a different flavor. Homemade or store bought paneer can be used. The following ingredients would be sufficient to fill 4 sandwiches or about 3 rotis. 

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 onion, finely chopped
1 small tomato, finely chopped
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp. red chili powder or according to taste
1/8 tsp. cumin powder
1/8 tsp. coriander powder
1/4 tsp. garam masala
1 cup crumbled paneer (I used homemade paneer.)
1 tsp. finely minced cilantro to garnish

Method:
* Heat oil in a saute pan and add cumin seeds. When they start to sizzle and turn brown, add onion. Fry until the onion turns translucent and add tomato pieces. Cook until they turn mushy.
* Add salt, turmeric and all the spice powders to the pan. Stir and cook for few seconds.
* Next add the crumbled paneer, mix and cook for about a minute.
* Turn off the stove. garnish with cilantro and serve warm.

This goes to 
1. Blogging Marathon #49, with the theme "Cheese".
2. 'Kids Delight' event, with the theme 'Cheese'.

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Hot Buttered Soft Pretzels

 When I was planning for the "accompaniments" or the "complimentary starters" themed dishes for this week's BM, I automatically had to rule out the Indian restaurants since the only complimentary stuff they offer is papads or poppadums, the thin lentil wafers. I don't care much about them and in fact feel like gagging to eat them alone. My initial ideas were revolving around 'Olive Garden's salad and bread sticks and the breads at American restaurants. 
And so I had prepared in advance some bread sticks as planned but the various breads I had bookmarked earlier from here kept tempting me to try one more bread recipe for today. Many American restaurants are trying to do away with the complimentary bread basket as a cost cutting measure but I gather there are still plenty of places that offer good varieties of bread. I read somewhere that a restaurant offers hot, soft pretzels and that prompted me to try this recipe.

 As the name suggests these pretzels hot from the oven are generously buttered. They taste delicious with a soft and chewy texture and we enjoyed them thoroughly. We generally don't like the salt on pretzels and so I omitted it. 

Ingredients for the pretzel dough:
2 & 1/2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 & 1/4 tsp. rapid rise yeast 
7/8 to 1 cup water
Ingredients for the topping:
1 cup boiling water
2 tbsp. baking soda
Coarse / pretzel salt (optional)
3 tbsp. melted butter 

Dough Preparation:
* The dough can be prepared by hand or by using a mixer or a bread machine or food processor. Add all the dry ingredients in a bowl and beat until combined if using a mixer or preparing manually. Knead the dough for about five minutes, by hand or mixer, until it's soft and smooth. 

If using a bread machine, place the ingredients in the pan of the bread machine and program the the machine for dough / manual and start. Proceed through the kneading cycle and stop the machine.
* Flour the dough and place it in a bowl. Cover and allow it to rest for about 30 minutes.

Prep work before baking:
* Prepare the topping at the final stages of the resting period. Combine boiling water and baking soda, stirring until the soda is completely dissolved. Let it cool to lukewarm. Pour the mixture into a 9 inch square pan.
* Prepare the baking sheet by greasing or lining with parchment paper.

* Transfer the mixture onto a greased work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces of about 70 grams or 2.5 oz each. (I divided the mixture into 16 portions instead.) Allow the pieces to rest for about five minutes, uncovered.
* Preheat the oven to 475 deg F / 250 deg C
* Roll each piece of dough into a thin, long rope (about 28 inches or so) and twist each one into a pretzel. Place the pretzels in the pan with baking soda solution, working with four pretzels at a time. Spoon the water over their tops and leave them in the water for about 2 minutes. 

* Gently remove and place them on the prepared baking sheet. 
* Sprinkle lightly coarse / pretzel salt over the tops, if desired. allow them to rest, uncovered for 10 minutes.

* Bake them for about 8 to 9 minutes or until they are golden brown.
* Remove them from the oven and brush them thoroughly with melted butter, until you use up all the butter.
* Serve them warm or reheat them in the oven or a microwave.


Notes:
* I used active dry yeast and so initially did the yeast proofing before the dough preparation. If using active dry yeast, add salt, sugar, yeast and water in a bowl. Allow it to sit for about 5 minutes, or until it foams. Add flour and prepare the dough as instructed. Allow it to rise it until the dough doubled in volume.
* The final dough should be on the softer side. Use the lesser amount water mentioned in the summer and the greater amount in winter.
* I didn't sprinkle any salt on pretzels as I don't personally prefer it.
* The baking soda "bath" is supposed to give the pretzels a nice golden brown color. I have baked earlier stuff involving 'baking soda bath' and I think why my pretzels are not uniformly browned is because either the quantity of baking soda water prepared
here was not enough or a smaller pan should have been used for the baking soda solution. A smaller pan would allow the pretzels to completely dip in the solution. 

Check here to know what other marathoners are cooking during this blogging marathon.

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No Knead Artisan Free Form Loaf / No Knead Crusty White Bread

 Many American restaurants offer a complimentary bread basket when lunch / dinner is ordered. In our area, it is mostly in the form of baguette / rolls and so I thought of trying a baguette with a make-shift pan for this week's 'complimentary starters' theme. Somehow the plan did not go accordingly and I chose to go with this no knead crusty loaf. I found this recipe on the all purpose flour packet, which in turn was inspired from the book 'Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day'. The idea behind this bread is that each loaf takes about 5 minutes of active preparation excluding the rising and baking periods. You prepare or rather mix the dough in bulk, refrigerate it and use it later when needed. When ready to bake, a portion of the dough is allowed to rise at room temperature for about an hour and then baked.  

As the title suggests, it is a no knead bread and very easy and quick to put together. It tastes amazing with soft chewy interior and a crisp crust. Flour, salt, yeast and water are the only ingredients needed to make this bread. The prepared dough is allowed to rise and then left in the refrigerator until ready to bake. You can dump everything into a bowl and just mix to combine using a wooden spoon if you are not looking forward for a cleanup job later. My dough was prepared in no time as I quartered the recipe for this loaf. The dough can be refrigerated anywhere from a couple of hours to couple of weeks. It can be shaped round or in form of a loaf . 

 Ingredients: (Yields 3 or 4 loaves)
3 cups lukewarm water
1 tbsp. rapid rise / active dry yeast
1 tbsp. salt
6 & 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour (measured by 'scoop and sweep' method)
Cornmeal / parchment paper for the pizza peel or baking sheet

Preparing the bread dough:
* Mix yeast, water and salt. Add all the flour and mix until uniformly moist, using a wooden spoon or a stand mixer. The dough is going to be sticky and loose. Transfer the dough to a bowl and cover it with a lid or a plastic wrap and allow it to rise for about 2 hours at room temperature. 
(If preparing the dough using the above proportions, use a 5 quart container or bowl to mix and store the dough. The dough is going to double or rise some more. And so use a container accordingly to store the dough.)
* Refrigerate the dough for at least three hours. (It would be easier to work with the dough if refrigerated.)
* The dough can be shaped and baked the same day it's mixed or can be left in a lidded container (not air-tight) or a loosely covered bowl for up to 14 days. The longer the dough sits in the refrigerator, the tangier it gets.
(I prepared the dough in the evening and didn't take any pictures.)

Preparation for baking:
* When ready to bake the bread, keep the work surface floured.
* Sprinkle some flour over the surface of the bread dough. This makes it easier to grab a chunk of the dough. Cut off about 1 pound piece or 1/4 to 1/3rd portion (or about a grape fruit size) of the dough. Alternately you can grease your palms and pull out the required piece of dough. Cover the remaining dough and refrigerate again, to use it later.
* Plop the sticky dough onto the floured work surface and shape it it into a smooth ball or a log. There is no need to fuss about shaping it perfectly. Slight imperfection is ok since it is going to look rustic anyway.

* Prepare a pizza peel with cornmeal or parchment, if using . Place the shaped dough on it (if a baking stone is going to be used) or onto a greased / parchment lined baking sheet. Sift a light coating of flour over the top. (It is to keep the dough moist during the resting period before baking.) 
* Allow the dough to rise for about 60 minutes. (There is no need to cover the dough at this point but I covered it anyway with a thin cotton towel.) The dough may not rise much during this time but may expand. 

Baking:
* At the final stages of rising, preheat the oven (and baking stone if using) to 450 deg F. Place a metal broiler pan / shallow metal pan or a cast iron pan on the lowest oven rack. Keep a cup of hot water ready.
* Slash the bread crosswise at 2 -3 places with a sharp knife, about 1/2 inch deep. 

* Place the bread in the oven, carefully pour the hot water into the shallow pan on the rack beneath and close the oven door quickly.
* Bake the bread until it develops a golden brown crust, about 25 - 35 minutes.
* Remove the bread and allow it cool completely. Store the leftover bread in a plastic bag at room temperature.

Check here to see what other marathoners are cooking during BM #49.

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Baked Tortilla Chips

Chips and salsa is the most common complimentary stuff offered at Mexican restaurants and I chose to go with it for today's BM under the theme 'Accompaniments'. I went ahead with baked version though traditionally tortilla wedges are deep fried. One can keep it simple just sprinkling some salt or customize them with preferred   spices. They go great with salsa / guacamole and we had them with chunky salsa. I have already posted salsa recipe before and so today it's turn for the chips.

Ingredients: (For 2 servings)
4 - 6 corn tortillas (Flour tortillas can be substituted. I used whole wheat flour tortillas.)
1 - 2 tbsp. oil (I used canola oil.)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp. chili powder (optional)
1 tsp. roasted cumin powder (optional)

Method:
* Preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
* Mix salt, chili powder and ground cumin if using, in a small bowl.
* Cut each tortilla into 6 or 8 wedges using a sharp knife or scissors. (I cut each tortilla into 8 pieces and so totally had 32 wedges.)

* Generously brush each side of the tortilla piece with oil. On one side, sprinkle a little quantity of plain salt or the spice mixture whichever you are using.
* Or you can brush the tortillas with oil on both sides, sprinkle salt or the spice mixture and then cut them into desired number of wedges.

* Arrange the wedges in a single layer on a baking tray. Bake them until they turn crisp and turn not too brown. Rotate the tray midway once for uniform crisping. I had mine done in about 6 - 7 minutes. They browned at around 8 minutes.

Check here to see what other marathoners are cooking during BM #49.

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Palak Chaat

Most of the popular and mouthwatering chaats from the Indian subcontinent involve a fried base - like puffy pooris, crispy papdis, stuffed kachori or samosas, yummy potato patties and so on. Pure indulgence, some may argue but still these remain popular in spite of novel twists the health conscious people keep coming up with. Today's recipe is a similar kind which involves fried fritters made with tender, spinach leaves. The leaves are lightly coated with a spicy chickpea flour batter and then deep fried. These yummy fritters are the center attraction of today's lip smacking chaat. This chaat was inspired from a recipe I saw in a cookbook sometime back.
The chaat can be served individually as one bite snacks or regularly as shown in the image below. I got the one bite snack idea after seeing how my husband assembled the chaat for himself. It would have been a cute presentation if I did in a similar fashion. But by that time, I already plated, pictured and even consumed my chaat portion. I was in no mood to grab his plate and start clicking again. :)
 
Ingredients for making spinach fritters / palak pakode:
3/4 cup gram flour / garbanzo flour / besan
2 tbsp. rice flour
1/2 tsp carom seeds / cumin seeds
Red chili powder to taste
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp. baking soda
15 tender spinach leaves
Oil for frying

Method:
* Wash the spinach leaves and gently pat them dry.
* Combine all the above ingredients except spinach leaves and oil in a mixing bowl. Add water and make a batter of dropping 
consistency.
 
* Heat oil for deep frying in a small kadai / frying pan.
* Dip a spinach leaf in the besan batter so that the leaf is lightly coated with batter on both sides.
* Gently drop the batter dipped spinach leaf in to the hot oil. Add as many spinach leaves as the pan can fit without overcrowding.
* Fry them on low medium flame setting until they turn light golden brown on both sides, flipping them intermittently. When done, remove them with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
* Repeat the steps with the remaining leaves and the batter.


Ingredients for the palak chaat:
15 Palak pakode from above recipe
1 cup peeled and cubed potatoes, cooked until tender
Green chutney as needed
Sweet chutney as needed
1 cup lightly whisked fresh yogurt
Salt to taste
Red chili powder to taste
Roasted cumin powder to taste
Thin sev to garnish
Minced cilantro leaves to garnish

Method:
* Combine potatoes and salt in a mixing bowl.
* If planning to serve each piece individually, place fritters on a serving platter. Place about 2 tsp. boiled potatoes on each spinach fritter. Pour about 1 tsp. green chutney, 1 tsp. sweet chutney and 2 tbsp. yogurt over each fritter and gently mix. Next sprinkle a pinch of chili powder and cumin powder on each fritter. Finally garnish with sev and cilantro. Add some more quantity of chutneys if desired.
* Or place 2 - 3 fritters on a serving plate. If the pakode are bigger in size then break each one into two pieces. And add the other ingredients and assemble the chaat as required.

This goes to BM #48, under "Chaats" theme. Check here to see what my fellow marathoners are cooking during Blogging Marath on #48.

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Aloo - Chana Chaat

 

The next one in the 'Chaat' series is going to be this lip-smacking aloo chana chaat that can be a wholesome meal on it's own. This can be turned into an oil-free dish if you skip the garnishing of sev and puri / papdi. Some planning is ready if you are planning to make this dish from scratch since this chaat's star ingredient is cooked garbanzo beans. In case if you have some cooked beans handy or a can of garbanzo beans lying in your pantry then it can be prepared quickly. The below recipe can just be used as a reference point. One can omit or add ingredients as per their choice. And of course the seasonings and chutneys that go into the dish depends upon one's taste buds and so use them accordingly. 

Ingredients:
1.5 to 2 cups cooked garbanzo beans / Kabuli chana
1 potato / aloo
1 tomato (optional)
1 onion (preferably red onion.)
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp chaat masala
Black salt to taste (optional)
1 tsp lemon juice
Green chutney to taste
Sweet chutney to taste
4 to 6 crushed papdi / poories
2 to 3 tbsp. minced cilantro to garnish
Fine sev to garnish

Preparation:
1. Soak chana / garbanzo beans overnight and boil until tender. Drain and keep it aside. (Indians usually cook the beans in a pressure cooker to quicken the process.) Drain and rinse the beans thoroughly if using canned beans.
2. I peel the potato, cut into small cubes and cook it in the microwave adding a little water. It takes around 5 - 7 minutes to cook potato in the microwave depending upon it's strength. One can cook the potato in a pressure cooker or in a sauce pan on stove top too. Just cook until fork tender.
3. Finely chop onion. Usually red onion is used for chaats as that is the commonly available onion variety in India. However white onion can be used if you don't have red ones handy.  
4. Finely chop tomato and keep it aside. Mince cilantro finely.
5. If you are preparing chutneys, papdi/pooris and sev at home then keep them ready before assembling the chaat. Store-bought sev, papdi / pooris and chutneys can be lifesavers during time crunches. I used the store bought sev, sweet chutney and ready to fry pooris for this recipe. I haven't posted the green chutney recipe yet. I grind cilantro leaves, mint leaves, green chillies, salt and lemon juice.
 
Click the links below if you are looking for these recipes.
Date-Tamarind chutney 
Papdi 
Sev

Assembling the Chaat:
* Combine garbanzo beans, potato, onion, tomato, salt, chaat masala, black salt if using and lemon juice in a mixing bowl.
* Add green chutney and sweet chutney as per taste and mix gently.
* Divide the mixture in individual serving bowls.
* Garnish each bowl with crushed papdis / pooris, minced cilantro and sev. Add some more sweet chutney and green chutney if desired.
* This can be served as a starter at parties, an evening snack or as dinner.

This goes to BM #48, under "Chaats" theme. Check here to see what my fellow marathoners are cooking during Blogging Marath on #48.

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Biscuit - Corn Chaat

This recipe is inspired from a 'Khana Khazana' episode, aired long ago. The idea of using a non fried base like these salty crackers makes this chaat more attractive and guilt free. The crackers add a nice, crispy texture to this chaat and this chaat variation make great one bite snacks. These can be assembled in a jiffy, if you have chutneys and sev ready beforehand or using store-bought stuff.

Ingredients:
15 round salty biscuits (I used Ritz crackers.)
1 boiled and mashed potato
1/4 blanched corn kernels
1 onion, finely chopped (Preferably red onion but I used white onion here.)
Salt to taste
Chaat masala as required
2 tsp. red garlic chutney (I didn't use any.)
3 to 4 tsp. green chutney (Keep it on thicker side.)
2 to 3 Tbsp. date -tamarind chutney
1/4 cup chopped raw mango
1/4 to 1/2 cup fine sev
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
Minced cilantro to garnish
 
Method:
* Mix mashed potato, corn, onion, salt and chaat masala. (I added red chili powder also in this step.)
* Arrange biscuits / crackers in a single layer on a serving platter. Place about a tbsp.of potato mixture and 1 tsp. of mango pieces over each biscuit / cracker. 
* Next, spoon a little quantity of three chutneys over the mixture. (The quantity of chutneys used depends upon one's preference.) Finally garnish with sev, red chili powder (if it was not used in the first step) and cilantro.
* Serve immediately. 

Click the links below for the recipes.
Date-Tamarind Chutney'
Sev (Omit carom seeds from the recipe.)

This goes to BM #48, under "Chaats" theme. Check here to see what my fellow marathoners are cooking during Blogging Marath on #48.

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Umm Ali

Umm Ali is one of the cherished desserts in the Middle East, that was supposedly originated in Egypt. This delicious bread pudding uses puff pastry or phyllo pastry or some stale bread, milk, nuts and coconut. One can use / omit whatever nuts they prefer in this recipe. The creamy bread pudding, crunchy nuts and sweetened cream - milk base, make this an irresistible treat. I came across this lighter version using croissants at Nestle website and had prepared it some time back, scaling down the ingredients to serve two. 

Umm Ali literally means mother of Ali and I came across a couple of legendary stories behind the origin of this delicious dessert. One refers to a woman named, Umm Ali who happened to be the first wife of a Sultan named Aybek. His second wife Shajar al-Durr prevented him from seeing his first wife and son and the king happily obliged. However when he got ready to marry another woman, the second wife got so jealous and raving mad that she killed him and proved that he died in his sleep. The first wife who already had a dispute with Umm Ali, got her brutally killed by Shajar's own servants. And then, she celebrated her victory by preparing this pudding and distributing it among the people of the land.

The second one, a less violent version is that it was invented during the reign of Ottoman Turks. A sultan who was on a hunting trip got hungry and stopped by a small village. Umm Ali, the best cook of the village, filled a pan with the ingredients she had - dried wheat flakes (probably leftovers from some stale bread), nuts, sultanas and coconut. She covered it with milk and sugar, put in the community oven and cooked something akin to this pudding.
 
Ingredients for 2 servings:
3 croissants (I used small size ones.)
1 cup water
1/4 cup condensed milk
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup whipped cream
1 tbsp. each - coconut, pistachios, almonds and raisins

Method:
* Preheat the oven to 200 deg C / 400 deg F.

* Combine croissant pieces, coconut, pistachio, almonds and raisins in a ovenproof dish. Or divide the mixture among 2 oven proof bowls if you are planning to serve two, individually. 

* Bring condensed milk, water and vanilla to a boil in a sauce pan. Pour it over the croissant mixture and set it aside for five minutes or until the croissant mixture absorbs the maximum of the liquid.

* Place whipping cream in a piping bag and pipe the cream over the mixture. (I didn't use a piping bag and just spooned the cream into the bowls.)

* Place the baking dish in the preheated oven using the grilling part of the oven and grill for 5 minutes or until the cream topping is golden in color. (I turned off the oven and forgot to remove the bowls immediately and hence the darker hue of the cream.)
* Serve it immediately.

This goes to BM #48 for under "1 Cuisine - 3 Dishes" - Arabian Cuisine theme. Check here to see what my fellow marathoners are cooking during Blogging Marath on #48.

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