Muesli Peanut butter Smoothie Bowl

Start the morning with a quick, tasty & nourishing breakfast that will help you stay fit and happy throughout the day.

Ingredients:

1. Muesli - 1 cup
2. Yogurt (any flavor of your choice) - 1/2 cup
3. Milk - 1/2 cup
4. Milk powder - 1 tsp
5. Banana - 1
6. Strawberries - 5-6
7. Chia seeds - 1 tsp (soaked for an hour)
8. Peanut butter - 1 1/2 tsp

Process

1. Blend everything together in a blender, except chia seeds and muesli. Then add chia seeds and mix well.

2. Pour into a smoothie bowl, add layer of muesli on the top of the bowl and garnish with some more fresh fruits.

QUINOA PULAO

QUINOA PULAO is one of my favorite go to meals. If you are looking for a healthy, delicious and perfect meal, this recipe is a great way to work more veggies into your meals with quinoa. I have garnished with some "not so ripe mango" pieces, to give a tangy twist. QUINOA is a healthier substitute for rice. 

Ingredients

1.  Boiled quinoa - 1/2 cup
2.  Chopped onion
3. Grated garlic and ginger
4.  Green chilli chopped
5.  Green peas (boiled)
6.  Beans
7. Dry masala (salt, turmeric, coriander powder, dry mango powder)

Process

1. Add cumin seeds in a hot oil, when it starts crackle add onions and grated ginger and garlic. Saute for 1 minute.

2. Now add all the veggies and cook on low flame for 2-3 minutes till the veggies gets soft. 

3. Add dry masala and mix well. And finally add boiled quinoa to veggies and mix well. Garnish with fresh coriander. I have added some sweet mango pieces to give a spicy and sweet taste.

CHERRY CHIA PUDDING

Chia pudding is always healthy, delicious and a great option for breakfast. And when cherries are in the season and you want to give a twist on the breakfast table, then why not make this yummy CHERRY CHIA PUDDING!!

Chia pudding is a super quick to make and also healthy. We enjoyed this version of Red & White Cherry chia pudding. This can be served as dessert also. 

Ingredients

1. Fresh cherry - 1/2 cups
2. White chia seeds - 5 tsp (for serving 2)
3. Almond milk - 1 cup
4. Honey or Maple syrup - 4-5 tsp
5. Almond - 4-5 pieces to garnish

Process

1. In a large bowl, add almond milk. Add honey or maple syrup to the milk and mix well with a spoon. 

2. Now add chia seeds to this mixture and mix till everything is well combined.

3. In a small blender jar, add few cherries and grind to a good mix. Your cherry paste / sauce is ready. You can add little sugar or honey if the cherries are not very sweet.

4. Pour the chia seeds mixture into serving glassed / bowls and refrigerate overnight or minimum 5-6 hours. When ready to eat, take out of the refrigerator, top with cherry sauce and  serve immediately.

BEETROOT Appe with Sambar

Paniyaram or Appe are ball shaped dumplings made with fermented rice and urad dal batter. These are one of the everyday breakfast foods from South Indian Cuisine. To make these, a special pan is used, known as Paniyaram pan or Aebleskiver Pan. Paniyaram is very easy to make if you already have leftover idli or dosa batter at home. I had leftover Dosa batter at home and I just added a few spices in the batter and made these. Also, there are versions where the spices are tempered and then added to the batter. I have used grated beetroot to make it more healthy along with of a different color. Though the color did not came out so dark, but it was yummy.

Ingredients

1. Dosa batter - 2 cup
2. Onion - 1 finely chopped
3. Beetroot - 1 cup grated
4. Green chillies - 1-2 finely chopped
5. Ginger - 1 inch finely chopped
6. Asafetida (hing) 1 pinch
7. Black pepper (crushed) - 1/2 tea spoon
8. Salt to taste
9. Red chilli powder - 1/3 tea spoon
10. Curry leaves - 2 tsp - chopped
11. Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
12. Oil - as required

Process

1. For making the batter, take the dosa batter in a bowl. Add chopped onions, chillies, coconut and other spices and mix well. Add salt if required. Add the grated beetroot. If the batter looks thick you can add some water. Combine well.

2. Heat the appe pan, add few drops of oil on each mould. Pour spoonful of batter occupying 3/4 of the mould. Allow the batter to cook for 2-3 minutes on low medium heat. Then turn each appe with the help of wooden skewer or spoon and allow the other side to get cooked and crisp.

3. Repeat the same process with the remaining batter.

4. Serve hot with hot Sambar. 

BLUEBERRY BANANA SMOOTHIE

Smoothies are all the craze these days. Not that smoothies have not always been popular, but honestly, growing up I never really made smoothies. This blueberry banana smoothie is very healthy and easy and quick breakfast option. 

Ingredients

1. Blueberries - 1 cup frozen
2. Banana - 1 cup sliced frozen
3. Almond Milk - 1 cup
4. Chia seeds - 1 tsp soaked over night (optional)
5. Honey / Maple syrup / Sugar - as per taste

Process

1. Please all the ingredients on a blender jar and blend until smooth.

2. If the smoothie is too thick, you can add more milk at the time until the smoothie reaches your desired consistency.

3. If you are using chia seeds, dont put that in the blender. You can add the soaked chia seeds once the blender paste is ready.

4. Serve chilled.

PANIYARAM or PADDU

Paniyaram are ball shaped dumplings made with fermented rice and urad dal batter. These are one of the everyday breakfast foods from South Indian Cuisine. To make these, a special pan is used, known as Paniyaram pan or Aebleskiver Pan. Paniyaram is very easy to make if you already have leftover idli or dosa batter at home. I had leftover Dosa batter at home and I just added a few spices in the batter and made these. Also, there are versions where the spices are tempered and then added to the batter. 

Ingredients

1. Dosa batter - 2 cup
2. Onion - 1 finely chopped
3. Green chillies - 1-2 finely chopped
4. Ginger - 1 inch finely chopped
5. Asafetida (hing) 1 pinch
6. Black pepper (crushed) - 1/2 tea spoon
7. Salt to taste
8. Red chilli powder - 1/3 tea spoon
9. Curry leaves - 2 tsp - chopped
10. Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
11. Oil - as required

Process

1. For making the batter, take the dosa batter in a bowl. Add chopped onions, chillies, coconut and other spices and mix well. Add salt if required. If the batter looks thick you can add some water. Combine well.

2. Heat the paniyaram pan, add few drops of oil on each mould. Pour spoonful of batter occupying 3/4 of the mould. Allow the batter to cook for 2-3 minutes on low medium heat. Then turn each paniyaram with the help of wooden skewer or spoon and allow the other side to get cooked and crisp.

3. Repeat the same process with the remaining batter.

4. Serve hot with coconut chutney. 

PAPAYA BANANA SMOOTHIE

A smoothie is a drink made with pureed fruits or vegetables just using a blender. Smoothie has a liquid base like fruit juice, milk or curd or any other dairy product of your choice. The topping and ingredients are totally based on personal choice. I have made this smoothie with papaya banana and milk with my favorite fruits as toppings. This is so healthy and power packed smoothie bowl to start your day with. Smoothies are always good for breakfast and tastes amazing. Do try this and I am sure you are going to love this.

Ingredients

1. Papaya - 1 cup (frozen)
2. Banana - 1/2 cup (frozen)
3. Almond milk -1/3 cup
4. Honey or sugar (optional)
5. Toppings as per your choice (I have used banana, strawberry, kiwi, cashew and sunflower seeds)

Process

1. Add all the ingredients in a blender a make a good paste.

2. You can use sugar or honey if you want to make it more sweet. The papaya I have used was already very sweet, so I have not used any additional sweets.

Rose & Almond Chia Pudding

Rose and Almond Chia pudding is healthy, delicious and a great option for breakfast. Chia seeds pudding is super quick to make and also healthy. Here I have used rose water and rose petals to make this delicious chia pudding. Its one of the most commonly used flavor in Indian Desserts along with cardamom and saffron. And if you love the amazing rose flavor, just you need to add almonds for this chia pudding. We enjoyed this pudding as our breakfast, can also be served as desserts. 

Ingredients

1. Almond milk - 1.5 cups
2. White chia seeds - 5 tsp (for serving 2)
3. Rose water - 1 tsp
4. Honey or Maple syrup - 4-5 tsp
5. Almond - 4-5 pieces to garnish
6. Rose petals - to get the pinkish color and garnishing

Process

1. In a large bowl, add almond milk. Add honey or maple syrup to the milk and mix well with a spoon. Add rose water.

2. Now add chia seeds to this mixture and mix till everything is well combined.

3. In a small bowl, add 2 tsp almond milk and put some dry rose petals, grind to a good mix, and add this pink mixture to the chia seeds bowl. You can also use pink color to get the color (Optional)

4. Pour this mixture into serving glassed / bowls and refrigerate overnight or minimum 5-6 hours. When ready to eat, take out of the refrigerator, top with chopped almonds and rose petals and serve immediately.

Koraishuti r Kochuri || Matar Kachori || Green peas Kachori

Koraishutir Kochuri - as it is called in the Bengali language and is one of the most beloved Bong  breakfast menu, specially during winter. This is made with green peas stuffing. The stuffing is very mildly spiced so that the flavors of the green peas come through, and the outer covering of the kachori is not flaky or khasta like khasta kachori. The dough that is used is similar to the luchi dough and is made with Maida. These goes very well with Alu'r Dom or Chola'r Dal. 

Ingredients:

(For the dough)

1. Maida (all purpose flour)  - 150 grams
2. Salt - to taste
3. Baking powder - a pinch (optional)
4. Ghee - 2 tea spoon
5. Warm water - to prepare soft dough

(For the filling)

1. Shelled green peas  - 100 grams
2. Salt - to taste
3. Sugar - a pinch
4. Green chillies - 2 / or as per taste
5. Kalo jeera (nigella) - 1/4 tsp/2 tsp
6. Ginger paste - 1/2 tsp
7. Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
8. Coriander powder - 1/3 tsp
9. Oil - for frying

Process:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine maida, salt, sugar and ghee and mix well. Then add warm water and knead for 5 minutes into a smooth dough. Cover and allow to rest for 30 minutes.

2. In another pan, drop the green peas with boiling water, cover and cook until the peas are soft (2 to 3 minutes approx.). Strain and transfer to a grinder jar adding green chillies, little bit of salt and sugar and grind to a fine paste. You can add little water in this paste, if needed.

3. In a small bowl, add ginger paste, cumin powder and coriander powder and make a paste adding 1 tsp of warm water and set aside to use later.

4. Now, we are ready with the spices ready, so lets make the stuffing. Heat 1 tsp oil or ghee in a pan, and temper it with kalo jeera and hing. Add the paste we have prepared with ginger and other powder spices and fry for 2 minutes. Now add the ground peas and saute on medium hear for 5-7 minutes until the mixture dries out and gathers around the spatula in a lump. Set the filling aside to cool. 

5. Divide the Maida dough into 10-12 portions and the pea paste also with same portion. You are ready with 10-12 white balls and 10-12 green small balls. Now the main part of making the kachoris. The same way we do the stuffing part for other parathas, take one green ball and stuff the same inside the Maida dough, cover it properly and set aside. Using the same way, do all the kachori ready.

6. Oil the roiling pin and surface well. Roll the kochuri's with a gentle hand, applying even pressure to a diameter of 13-14 cm. Almost same size we do for Luchi or Poori. 

7. On a frying pan, add oil and lower it into hot oil by pressing gently to allow the kochuri's to puff up. Fry both sides evenly until golden. Drain from the oil and serve hot with Chola'r dal or Alu'r Dom. We have enjoyed with Alu'r Dom.