Irresistible Eggless Whole Wheat Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients

3/4 cup whole wheat flour(see note)
1/2 cup instant oats
1/4 cup butter,melted
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp powdered cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1-2 tbsp milk

What you need to do

• Sift the whole wheat flour,baking soda,cinnamon and baking soda.Add the oats.
• In a large bowl,cream the butter and sugar.
• Slowly fold in the flour mixture the creamed butter.
• Add the milk as required so that the mixture comes together and can be rolled in ball.
• Take 1 tbsp of the mixture and roll it between your palms to make a ball and slightly flatten it.
• Place the balls on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Bake in a preheated oven at 350 deg F for 18-20 mins.
• Let it cool for atleast 15 mins before you handle it for either serving or storing.

Note:

• I have used Indian atta to make these cookies.
• Cooking time will vary as per the thickness of the cookies.

Variation:

• Add chocolate chips  to the cookies to make them instant hit among kids.
• We like it with nuts and raisins too.
• You can replace whole wheat flour with plain flour for lighter cookies.

Makes 12-14 cookies

Whole Wheat Pizza from Scratch

Ingredients:

For dough

3 1/2 Cups Whole wheat flour (I used king Arthur Brand)
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp oil (EVOO works best)
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups water room temperature

For the sauce

5-6 large red tomatoes, blanched
1 tbsp oil
1/2 shallot
5-6 large garlic cloves minced
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
salt to taste
1 tbsp chopped parsley/cilantro

Toppings

1 1/2 -2 cups Pizza cheese blend
veggies of your choice-onion,bell pepper,spinach,tomatoes,olives
2-3 large basil leaves (optional)

What you need to do

  For the Dough

• In a glass bowl add 1/4 cup of water and microwave for 10 sec.
• Add sugar and yeast ,mix well and set aside for 10 mins.
• In a large bowl mix whole wheat flour and salt.
• After 10 mins,the yeast will turn frothy,now make a well in the flour mixture and add the yeast mixture.
• Microwave the remaining 1 1/4 cup water for 10 sec and use it as necessary to form the mixture in a dough.
• Smear the top of the dough with oil and knead it for 10-12 mins until it turns into a smooth non sticky dough.
• Place it in a greased bowl and cover with a damp towel.Set aside till it doubles,about 1 1/2-2 hours.
• Punch the dough down and divide it in 2 parts.Roll each part of the dough as thin as possible to the desired shape.Place it on a greased pizza pan or cookie sheet and set aside for 45 mins.

For the sauce

• Remove the skin of the blanched tomatoes and puree it.
• Heat oil in a saucepan,when hot add in the chopped shallot and saute till its color changes.
• Add the minced garlic and let it cook for 3-4 mins.
• add the puree,salt,seasoning,paprika & pepper and let the mixture come to a boil.Now reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer till the sauce thickens.Turn off the heat and garnish with cilantro/parsley.Let the sauce cool.

Assembling the pizza

• Preheat the oven to 500 deg F for 10 mins.Lightly coat the roll dough with oil spray and bake for 4-5 mins.
• Spread the sauce evenly on the baked dough,leaving 1 inch off the edge.Don't add too much sauce or else the dough will turn soggy.
• Spread the veggies uniformly on the sauce.Now spread the cheese all over the veggies.
• I usually bake my pizza such that 1/2 portion of it includes veggies and cheese while the other half is just basil and cheese.My kid enjoys the cheese pizza while we grab our share of veggie pizza.
• Reduce the oven temp to 425 deg F and bake the pizza for 12-15 mins until the top is bubbly and light golden.
• Whe

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Homemade Pasta sauce

Ingredients

1 lb red ripe tomatoes,blanched and pureed
15 fresh basil leaves,chopped
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 1/2 tbsp pepper
8 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp tomato paste (substitute:2 tbsp ketchup)
1 tsp crushed red pepper(optional)
salt

What you need to do

1. In a heavy bottom pan.add oil.When hot drop in the crushed garlic cloves.
2. After a min,add the basil leaves.Let them cook for 30 secs.
3. Pour in the puree d tomatoes.
4. Place the lid and let the sauce simmer for 10 mins.
5. Add in the pepper,seasoning,salt,red pepper and tomato paste.Simmer covered for 10 more minutes.
6. Cool and store refrigerated in sterilize glass bottle.Stay good for a month.

Low Calories Szechwan Baby Corn

Ingredients

1 15 oz canned Baby corn
2 1/2 TBSP Ginger Garlic paste
4 dry red chillies,stems removed
1 cup Mix peppers-red,yellow,green and orange,cut into 1" pieces
1 small red onion,cut into 4 pieces-layers separated
1 Maggi Vegetable Bouillon cube
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp vinegar
3 TBSP Ketchup
a pinch ajinomoto(optional)
1/2 tsp Kashmiri Chili powder
3/4 cup water
1 1/2 tbsp cornflour dissolved in 1/2 cup water
salt

For garnishing
2 tbsp green onion
1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro


What you need to do

• Cut the baby corns lengthwise if they are thick,else leave whole.
• Add bouillon cube,ginger garlic paste,red chilies to water and bring it to one boil.
• Add the baby corns and simmer for 5 mins.
• Add the soya sauce,ketchup,vinegar,ajinomoto and kashmiri chili powder to the cornflour water mixture.
• Add this mixture to the baby corns in water.Also add the onion and peppers.
• Cook till the sauce thickens and coats the baby corns.
• Check for salt and adjust as per liking.
• Garnish with cilantro and green onion.
• Serve hot with fried rice or noodles.

Instant Dhokla

Ingredients

1 cup Besan (sieved)
1 1/2 tbsp Sooji
1 tbsp ginger chili paste
1 cup water
a pinch of turmeric
1 tsp salt
3 tsp sugar
1 tbsp oil
1 1/2 tbsp eno fruit salt

For tempering

1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp hing
1 tsp sesame seeds
5 -6 curry leaves torn into pieces
2 tbsp oil
1/8 cup water
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice

Method

• Get the steamer ready for steaming-Fill it with enough water,place an inverted thali at the bottom cover the lid and turn the heat on.
• Grease a 8 -10 in deep thali for the dhokla.
• In a bowl,add the besan sugar,salt,turmeric and then add water little at a time to form a smmoth mixture.
• When the steamer is ready add the oil , the fruit salt,lemon juice and mix well.Immediately pour in the grease thali and steam for 10 mins.
• Remove from the steamer.Let it cool for 5 mins.
• Heat oil.when hot add hing mustard seeds when they splutter add sesame seeds,curry leaves and turn off the heat.
• Add the water,sugar,and salt. Mix and turn on the heat and bring it to a rolling boil.
• Turn off the heat and add the lemon juice.Pour this mixture evenly on the dhokla.
• After 5 mins cut the dhokla and garnish it with cilantro before serving.Serve hot.

Dosa batter

What do you need

2 cups Sona masoori rice
1/2 cup urad gota
1/3 cup channa dal
1 tsp fenugreek seeds(methi dana)

What you need to do

• Wash and soak the ingredients for 5-6 hours or overnight.
• Take small amount and grind the blender.Just sprinkle water as needed while grinding.
• Do not use lot of water while grinding and do not run the blender continuously for more than a min.
• Make a smooth batter and cover and ferment for 10-12 hours in a warm spot.
• Add salt before making dosas.