Spicy Paneer Wraps

This is a recipe I came up with one fine evening.  I knew I had something very specific in mind.  Without giving it too much thought, I set out cooking - luckily I had all the ingredients I wanted - and just followed my instincts.  Very much like Remy in Ratatouille, if you will.  Voila, here is the result:

PANEER STUFFING

Ingredients

400 gms paneer - cut into small cubes

1 big onion

1 green capsicum (bell pepper)

2 tomatoes

1/2 tsp garlic paste

1/2 tsp ginger paste

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp garam masala

1 1/2 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp chilli powder

1 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Method

Heat a generous amount of oil in a  wide bottomed pan - to give you an idea, pour oil to coat the entire bottom of the pan.  On medium high heat, saute onion until it turns translucent, add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell dissipates.  Add capsicum, then tomatoes, masala powders and salt.  Cook on medium high heat.  Finally, add the paneer, toss well and cook for a few more minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves.

This has been quite a success.  The above quantity takes about 20 minutes flat from start to finish including preparation time.  Only the ginger-garlic paste needs to be cooked thoroughly, everything else can be a little raw - it gives a delicious crunch.  If you cook on low heat, it takes longer to make, comes out juicier, but equally delicious.

To make wraps:

Lay out a chapathi, spread a ladle full of the paneer stuffing along a line in the middle.  Fold the edges over or roll it up.

I am terrible at making chapathis, so I get Desi Roti from the Indian store.  I highly recommend it.

Non-spicy Vegetarian Spaghetti

This is one of my husband's biggest favorites.  My mother-in-law learnt to make this during their stay in Jeddah.  I do not know who this recipe originally belongs to, in order to give them due credit.  But since my mother-in-law is the source I got the recipe from, I give my thanks to her.

Here is my modified version:

SPAGHETTI

Ingredients

*  16 oz spaghetti
*  1/3 cup raw/dry kidney beans (or 2 cups of cooked/canned beans and/or vegetables)

*  3 tbsp vegetable oil
*  1 big onion
*  4 cloves garlic
*  1 capsicum/bell pepper

(for the red sauce)
*  8 tomatoes
*  1/4 cup tomato sauce or ketchup
*  2 tsp sugar
*  1 tsp salt

(for the white sauce)
*  1 tbsp butter
*  1 tbsp all purpose flour
*  1 1/2 cups milk
*  1/2 tsp salt
*  1/2 tsp pepper

(for the topping)
*  12 oz grated mozzarella

Method

(to cook spaghetti)
Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil, add 1 1/2 salt and 1 tsp olive oil.
Add 16 oz spaghetti and let it boil for 9 minutes.
Rinse in cold water, drain and keep aside.

(to cook kidney beans)
Immerse 1/3 cup kidney beans in water and let it soak overnight.
Pressure cook with 1 cup of water for 10 minutes or 5 whistles.

(to make tomato sauce)
Boil 8 tomatoes immersed in water for 10 minutes.
Cool and puree tomatoes.
Add tomato puree back in water along with 1/4 cup tomato sauce (or ketchup), 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp sugar.
Boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

(to make pasta)
Heat 3 tbsp olive oil, add chopped onion and garlic cloves.  Saute until onion turns translucent.  Add chopped capsicum, cooked kidney beans and 1 tsp salt (or according to taste).  Saute for 5 minutes.  Add tomato sauce, cooked spaghetti and cook for 10 minutes or until sauce thickens.  Turn off stove.

(to make white sauce)
Melt 1 tbsp butter, add 1 tbsp all-purpose flour and mix for 2 minutes on low flame until raw smell of flour dissipates.  Do not let flour brown.
Gradually add 1 1/2 cups milk while stirring constantly until mixture becomes smooth.
Add 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper.
Turn heat to medium, stir constantly, bring mixture to a slow boil and take it off the stove when sauce begins to thicken.

(to assemble)
In an oven safe oblong pan, spread out the pasta evenly.  With the back of a spoon, make holes here and there.  Pour the white sauce into these holes, the sides and all over the pasta.  Spread the mozzarella on top, covering the entire dish.  Garnish with ketchup.

Bake in the oven at 350 F for 15 minutes or until the cheese melts and begins to bubble.

Lemonade

To make lemonade, just mix the following and refrigerate:

*  Sugar syrup - dissolve 2 cups sugar in 1 cup water and bring it to a boil

*  13 cups water

*  2 cups lemon juice

*  1/2 tsp salt

Lemonade

Modified from the following recipes:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/lemonade-recipe/index.html

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/best-lemonade-ever/

Krish's Third Birthday - Menu

Party means food.  That is the school of thought, I come from.  Even the grandest of affairs, meticulously planned and executed, with every comfort of the guests catered to, have been branded as dismal failures for the food being below par.  I know, you are better of not knowing that part of the world!  But, from experience, I have concluded that food, in general, can make or break a party.

Therefore, I paid special attention to planning my son Krish's birthday party menu.  He was turning 3 and to me, it was more special than any of the parties we have thrown so far, because this time he was old enough to be aware that it was being thrown on his behalf and in his honor.

Things that I kept in mind:

1. I was going to make the food myself.  (This was not to save money - to be frank, cooking the food yourself sometimes exceeds the cost you might pay should you have the food catered.  I have the time, the inclination and the interest.  Therefore, I do it.)
2. The party was as much for adults as it was for kids.
3. The guests were all Indians, but the kids might prefer bland, non-spicy food.
4. I was not going to order pizza, or nuggets.  I was particular about making some items that would appeal to adults and children alike.
5. I wanted to keep it vegetarian.
6. I did not want to waste food.  I tried to get as approximate a head count as I could, but still allowed for guests who did not RSVP or had to make last minute changes.
7. I wanted the choice of food to be such that it could be made before the day of the party and ensure that it would keep through the duration of the party without going bad.
8.  Allow enough time to warm up the food on the day of the party.  If possible, plan ahead to make effective use of oven, microwave and/or stove for warming up the food in time.
9. It was an outdoor party on a summer day.  Last time, we had the party in a park and leaves fell into the food from trees.  So I wanted to make some wraps, cut each wrap in half and cover it individually in aluminium foil.

THE MENU

Starter
*  Vegetable Puffs (Mildly Spicy)

Main
*  Paneer Wraps (Spicy)
*  Tortilla Wraps (Cheese, Tomato, Onion)
*  Spaghetti
*  Curd Rice

Sides
*  Fruit Platter (Grapes, Cantaloupe)
*  Salad Platter (Cucumber, Carrot, Tomato)

Drinks
* Homemade Lemonade
* Homemade Sangria (Alcoholic)
* Beer
* Water

Dessert
* Birthday Cake - Gateau Fraise from Chantilly

Quantity:

Here is how much food I made:

Headcount when I started making the food two days before the party : 25 adults + 12 kids  + 8 adults who had not RSVPed or said maybe

Actual : 27 adults 11 kids

1. 48 vegetable puffs - minimum one starter per head (included those who had not RSVPed or said maybe).
2. 72 halves of paneer wraps - 2 per head (counted only those who said yes in their RSVP, making 2 per head allowed for any unexpected guests and also so that guests could come back for seconds).
3. 40 halves of tortilla wrap - minimum one wrap per head (included those who had not RSVPed or said maybe).
4. 16 oz uncooked spaghetti, 1/3 cup uncooked kidney beans
5. 2 cups of uncooked rice to make curd rice
6. 4 litres of lemonade (should have made 6)
7. 3 litres of sangria
8. 24 pack beer
9. 16 oz of grapes and 1 cantaloupe to make fruit platter
10. 2 tomatoes, 8 small cucumbers,  2 carrots to make salad platter
11. Quarter sheet rectangular cake + 16 cm round cake (should have ordered a smaller round cake)

There was still considerable food left over, but that tided us over for a couple of days, since none went bad!  But next time, I would make a little less food.

Preparation:

It took me 2 days to prepare the food.  2 days before the party, I made the spaghetti (except for the last step to be done in the oven), the fruit platter, the curd rice and the puff stuffing.  The day before the party, I made the wraps, lemonade, sangria and rolled out the puffs.

On the day of the party, I took all the food except the fruits and the vegetable salad from the refrigerator, and left them out for about an hour and a half.  I cooked the puffs in the oven, followed by the spaghetti.  Then, I warmed up the wraps in the oven at 350 F for 25 minutes.

The best compliments I received - my son's 1 1/2 year old friend loved the spaghetti and my 80 year old grand-aunt (she is an excellent cook) said the food was great!