Whole Wheat Pita Bread Pockets

Nothing can ever beat the soft, fluffy, chewy, healthier pita bread that is made at home. I guarantee you that you wont go back to the store- bought pita. The dough is made using basic ingredients and rolled to thin discs and baked till done. A soft, fluffy golden colored pita breads are ready within no time.

Puffed Pita in the oven

I have been seeing homemade Pita bread recipe from a long time, but always thought it as  difficult  to make. Once you start making this, the process will end soon and delicious and healthy pita bread is ready.

There are some points you should notice while making this pita bread.To get the puffed pita bread, use a preheated tray or pizza stone, The dough should be soft and hold shape, shouldn't open the oven during the first 4 minutes of the process.

Pita bread is best consumed fresh out of the oven but can be freeze in an air tight pack and can be had for quick meals. I hope you will give this a try and please let me know how it turned out.

Ingredients:

1. Whole Wheat flour- 3 Cups
2. Lukewarm water - 1 1/4 Cup
3. Honey- 1 tbsp
4. Active Yeast- 1 packet
5. Salt- as required
6. Olive Oil- 1 tbsp

Method:

1. In a mixing bowl add the yeast, honey, oil, lukewarm water and salt. Mix and let it stand for 5 minutes till it becomes foamy.
2. Gradually add the whole wheat flour into the yeast mixture, mix and sprinkle little bit flour on to a clean surface and turn out the dough. Knead for about 5 minutes until it's smooth and elastic, adding more flour if necessary.
3. Place this in an oiled bowl, covered with a cling wrap in a bowl till it doubles the size. 
4. gently deflate the dough by punching down and shape it into 12 equal dough balls. Roll these balls using a rolling pin into a circle about 1/2 cm thick.
5. Place these rolled discs on a baking sheet and cover using a damp towel for about 30 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place 3 rolled discs on a baking stone for about 5- 8 minutes, till puffed.
7. Remove and repeat with the remaining discs and allow them to cool and serve as desired.

• I filled the pockets with a salad of boiled chickpeas, boiled beans, chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, chopped red peppers, chopped lettuce, lemon juice and salt and topped with a dollop of hummus.

Baked Buffalo Wings and Hot sauce- Twice the celebration, double the joy!!!

                                                      Happy New Year my friends!!!!!!

There are two things to celebrate in my post today. First it's a new year, new beginnings and the second one which I am more excited is that last year it was my blog's 9th anniversary.  Never in my wildest dreams I thought that this space which I have started to share my recipes with family and friends would become a space where I got many friends, a space to share all my dreams and a space to experiment new recipes.

 Once I started blogging, I never thought i'd still be doing it 9 years later. I never thought that through this space I will be able to reach and connect with so many of you and to have the chance to share my ideas with the world. THANK YOU for being here no matter how long or short you have been following.

These buffalo chicken wings are every meat lovers favorite. This finger licking popular creation came out of New York restaurant in the 60's Teressa Bellissimo, who covered the chicken wings in her own special sauce. From then on this has become a popular snack or an appetizer.

Chicken wings are one of our family favorites. These juicy chicken wings tossed in a classic spicy sauce and are enjoyed along with the hot sauce. Snack away with less guilt. The marinade for the chicken is a combination of garlicky, sweet and spicy which will make you reach for more. Even though these are baked they are crispy and delicious just like the ones from the restaurant.

Ingredients:

1. Chicken Wings- 12- 15 pieces
2. Garlic Powder- 2 tsp
3. Salt- as required
4. Honey- 2 tbsp
5. Baking Powder- 1 tsp
6. Hot Sauce- 2 tbsp
7. Black pepper Powder- 1 tsp
8. Red Chili powder- 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Meanwhile pour all the ingredients (except chicken pieces)in a bowl and mix well until everything gets well blended.
3. Mix the chicken pieces in the above mixture and arrange them on a baking tray. Bake the coated chicken pieces for about 25- 30 minutes.
4. Serve the chicken wings along with the hot sauce.

Hot sauce recipe:

1. Hot sauce- 1/4 Cup
2. Soy sauce- 1 tbsp
3. Garlic Powder- 2 tbsp
4. Honey- 1 tbsp
5. Oil- 1 tbsp
6. Butter- 1 tbsp

Method:

• Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan and let it simmer for about 8- 10 minutes. 
• Switch it off and cool and enjoy along with the buffalo wings.

Mango Lassi and Rose Lassi- to beat the heat!!!!

Lassi refers to any yogurt based drink. The traditional ones are the sweet lassi and the spicy lassi. Now a days people are getting creative and varieties of lassi are introduced using different fruits. Today I am here with two lassi ideas which I am sure you all will like and try.

We can see the mango lassi in almost all the Indian restaurants. Kids to elders, everyone likes this a lot. The perfect combination of mango slices along with curd and milk with required amount of honey is what it makes an amazing thirst quencher which gives a cooling effect.

To make mango lassi , we can either use canned mangoes or mango pulp or frozen mangoes. During the fasting time this used to be a filler. These days as it is very hot, this is an amazing drink to make. Adding a dash of cardamom powder will take this lassi to another level. With the mango season and the soaring heat, this is the perfect time to make mango lassi.
Here I have used my Moscow mule mugs, which I used previously for dry ginger coffee post. Doesn't it look beautiful???

Ingredients:
For Mango Lassi:

1. Mango Pieces- 1 Cup
2. Curd- 1 Cup
3. Milk- 1/4 Cup
4. Honey- 3 tbsp
5. Cardamom Powder- 1 tsp (optional)

Method:

• Blend all  the ingredients in a blender and serve in tall glasses, garnish with slivered nuts and enjoy.

Rose Lassi is a another variety, that is made using rose syrup, which is homemade or store bought. I made this using a homemade rose syrup which I made for falooda. We can make the rose syrup and can be stored in air tight jars in refrigerator. This can be used later for making rose milkshakes, lassi and many other drinks. We can also use roohafza, which is easily available, instead of rose syrup. The nice aroma of the rose will enhance the flavors and makes you feel refreshing. Garnish with some fresh or dried rose petals.

For Rose Lassi:

1. Homemade Rose Syrup- 3 tbsp
2. Curd- 1 Cup
3. Milk- 2 tbsp
4. Honey- 2 tbsp (optional)

Method:

• Blend all the ingredients in a blender and enjoy on a hot summer day.

These drinks will be enjoyed by the guests and will be a super hit if served in a party. Just sprinkle some almonds and pistachios on top for the crunchiness, which makes it simply irresistible. Hope you all enjoyed today's post and please try this and let me know.

Home Made Easy Granola Recipe with Yogurt- Granola Bowls- A healthy Valentine's Day Gift

This granola recipe is so easy and a simple version, that you can make any time of the day. This is a perfect snack to munch on without thinking about calories. An ideal one to carry to work and to school. This will make an excellent healthy gift for someone special which is homemade and with lots of love and care.

In this granola, we can add chocolate chips, dried berries, a variety of nuts or anything of your choice or eat it plain. it's tasty any of the ways. These are so addictive and delicious that I made 3 batches in the last week. I make this and store them in airtight jars, but we don't know when it gets over as they are so scrumptious and yummy that we simply munch on. Kids will love them for breakfast or as a healthy snack.

I have added these granolas in the Greek yogurt along with blueberry compote and they were heavenly.

Nowadays I am so obsessed with the beautiful, cute pink flowers that have bloomed all over the town. In this valentines season, these flowers are a perfect feast for the eyes. As soon as the winter is over, there won't be any leaves and these cute little flowers will take over the trees. Such a wonderful sight it is, that they fill your hearts and you forget about all your worries. For my food photography, I have used these flowers as a prop along with my favorite granola and they both well blended together. Hope you all like this. try this out and let me know.

Ingredients:

1. Oats- 4 Cups
2. Dried Raspberries- 1 cup
3. Almond - a handful
4. Cinnamon powder- 1 Tsp
5. Honey- 1/3 Cup
6. Coconut Oil- 1/4 Cup
7. Vanilla Essence- 1 tsp

Method:

1. Take the oats, dried raspberries, almonds, cinnamon powder in a mixing bowl. Add the honey, coconut oil and vanilla essence in this and mix well using the hand, so that everything gets well blended with each other.
2. meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the above mixture on a baking tray evenly and bake for about 10- 15 minutes. Using a wooden spatula, stir the mixture in between the baking time.
3. Take it out of the oven and when cool, enjoy along with your favorite yogurt or have it just like that.

Chicken and Potato Bolani/ Afghan Flat breads along with Carrot Curd and Healthy Mango Milkshake

These days during fasting, I am so much into cooking that I will be searching each and every website or youtube video for a different variety of dishes during iftar. One such recipe is this afghan dish which can be prepared using chicken or with vegetables. But I used both chicken and potatoes to make the filling for bolani, which tasted yumm along with carrot raita.

Bolani is a traditional Afghani flatbread stuffed and baked. Bolani is low in carbohydrates, calories and rich in protein, fiber, and vitamins. We can have a choice of fillings like the chicken, potatoes, spinach and so on. Here I used chicken along with potatoes which were amazingly delectable.

In this the dough is stuffed with chicken- potato filling and then shallow fried to crispy golden brown. In these spring onions are used instead of onions, but I used regular onions. These can be shaped in semi-circle or triangle like I did. These taste good along with curd or any raita. I made carrot raita, which was appetizing.

These bolani, I tasted them for the first time in Costco, where they give samples of food on Saturdays and Sundays. These were so delicious that we ended up buying a couple of packets of bolani. Everybody will like them including the kids. A perfect for guests and during parties. Along with this, I made mango milkshake, in which I added honey instead of sugar which makes it healthy and for a small twist I added cardamom powder, which gave a different and unique taste. Try this out and let me know.

Ingredients:

For dough:

1. All Purpose Flour- 1 Cup
2. Wheat Flour- 1 Cup
3. Salt- as Required
4. Water- for kneading

For Filling:

1. Boneless Chicken- 1 Cup
2. Potatoes- 2 nos
3. Onions- 1 no
4. Garlic Cloves- 3 nos
5. Coriander powder- 1 tsp
6. Turmeric Powder- ½ tsp
7. Pepper Powder- 1 tsp
8. Salt- as required
9. Red Chilli flakes- 1 tsp
10. Coriander Leaves- a bunch

Method:

1. Knead the all-purpose flour, wheat flour and salt using water until the dough forms a ball. The dough should be neither sticky nor dry. Keep this covered with a damp cloth.
2. Boil potatoes and boil chicken. Shred the chicken into small pieces, keep this aside. Mash the boiled potatoes and add this along with the shredded chicken.
3. Add chopped onions, grated garlic, coriander powder, red chili flakes, turmeric powder, pepper powder, salt and chopped coriander leave.
4. Mix well using the hand. Add a little water to make it sticky.
5. Divide the dough into 8- 10 equal balls.
6. Roll the dough into a round disc, scoop 2 tbsp of the chicken- potato filling and spread it on the dough disc leaving the edges.
7. Fold the three sides in the form of a triangle and seal well. Pat well to remove any air pockets. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
8. Heat a pan, smear 1 tbsp of oil and shallow fry on both the sides and enjoy with carrot curd.

Carrot Curd:

1. Carrot- 2 nos
2. Pepper Powder- 1 tsp
3. Salt- as required
4. Beaten Curd- 2 Cups
5. Cumin Powder- 1 tsp
6. Red Chilli Powder- 1 tsp

Method:

• Grate the carrots, add these grated carrots along with cumin powder, red chili powder, pepper powder, salt. Mix these in the beaten curd and serve.

Healthy Mango milkshake:

1. Mangoes- 2 nos
2. Milk- 2 Cups
3. Cardamom Powder- ½ tsp
4. Honey- 4 tbsp

Method:

• Blend everything together in a blender and serve them in big glasses and enjoy.

Eggless Honey Cake

This eggless honey cake I have seen in many blogs and wanted to try the unique taste of honey which in cakes is new to me. I have never tasted a honey cake before, but this cake is most popular in almost all the bakeries across India.

Basically, it is a vanilla sponge cake, soaked in honey syrup which is spread with mixed jam with a sprinkle of desiccated coconut. This cake is so moist, juicy, soft and cool. The cake absorbs all the honey syrup and gets soaked well. Though this cake has condensed milk and honey, we won’t feel the cake to be sweeter. It is just perfect.

Today for my husband’s birthday I baked this honey cake and as he is not a big coconut lover, instead of desiccated coconut I sprinkled slivered almond, which also tasted yumm. This cake turned out perfectly delicious and so they got finished as soon as the cake is cut.

Usually, this cake gets the red color because of the mixed jam, but for my cake, as I didn’t have the jam at home, I prepared the strawberry jam instantly and when it is cooled, I spread it on top of the cake. So everything is freshly made and I am sure that this will be a show stopper in any parties or birthdays. Just serve them cut into squares and this cake will be enjoyed by all and kids will love this as the cake is soaked in honey and spread with jam which is sprinkled with almonds or coconut. Try this out and let me now.

Ingredients:

Eggless Vanilla Cake

For Syrup

1. Water- ½ Cup
2. Sugar- 2 tbsp
3. Honey- ¼ Cup

For topping:

1. Strawberry jam-4 tbsp
2. Slivered Almonds- As needed

Method:

1. Prepare the eggless vanilla cake. When the cake is cooled down, prick the whole cake using a toothpick.
2. Prepare the sugar syrup by boiling the water along with sugar. When the sugar dissolves, mix and switch off the flame.
3. When it is slightly warm add the honey and mix till it dissolves. Pour this all over the pricked cake.
4. Over this cake, spread the jam using a spoon and cover it fully. Sprinkle the slivered almonds on top of the cake and cut into required pieces and enjoy.