Jap Chae

This was delicious! If only we hadn't gotten greedy and tried to sauce 2lbs. of noodles with the sauce intended for 12 oz. of noodles... Yeah, maybe try following the recipe to the letter on this one, and you'll have better luck. Ours tasted pretty good, just that we had to keep adding soy sauce and sugar at the end when we were running out of the regular sauce that we'd mixed beforehand. :-P

Ingredients:

12 oz dan myun (sweet potato starch noodles)

3/4 cup tamari (wheat-free sauce from refined soy)

4 tbsps Asian sesame oil

6 tbsps sugar

2 tbsps finely chopped garlic (4 cloves)

2 tbsps olive oil

1 large onion, sliced lengthwise 1/8-inch thick (3 cups)

5 medium carrots, grated into 1/8-inch thick matchsticks (2 in. long)

2 tsps toasted sesame seeds

1/2 lb fresh shitake mushrooms, trimmed and sliced 1/8-inch thick (3 cups)

6 cups baby spinach

Method:

1. Cook the sweet potato noodles in a large pot of boiling water for 4 to 5 minutes. Immediately drain and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Be sure not to overcook the noodles, or they will lose their chewy texture.

2. Whisk together tamari, sesame oil, sugar, and garlic.

3. Heat olive oil in a deep 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until it just begins to smoke, then stir-fry onion and carrots until onion is softened, about 3 minutes. Add sesame seeds and mushrooms and stir-fry until softened, about 3 minutes. Add spinach and stir-fry 30 seconds, then add noodles and tamari mixture and toss to coat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of liquid is absorbed, 3 to 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning to taste. Transfer to a shallow serving dish and sprinkle with more toasted sesame seeds. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pecan Tarts

This recipe came from my mom, and I've been using it frequently to win over friends - everyone loves it! The tart shells do take a bit of time to make; they're probably the most time-intensive part of the recipe. However, you won't be sorry you tried them: they are absolutely scrumptious, with a flaky crust and just the right amount of filling to make you want that second, third, and fourth one. :)

Makes 24.

Crust Ingredients:

1/3 package (8oz) cream cheese

6 tbs softened/melted butter

1 cup flour

Crust Instructions:

1. Knead ingredients together. Make sure the ingredients are incorporated and the dough is smooth.

2. Cut the dough into 24 even pieces and place the pieces in the tart trays.

3. Form each tart shell by lightly pressing the dough down and up the sides.

Filling Ingredients:

1 egg

2/3 cup dark brown sugar

2 tbsp melted butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 chopped pecans

Filling Instructions:

1. Whisk all ingredients except for the pecans together. Once the mixture is smooth, stir in the pecans. Make sure the pecan pieces are coated evenly.

Baking Instructions:

1. Before you begin filling each tart shell, pre-heat the oven at 350 degrees. Make sure the rack is on the middle level of your oven.

2. Fill each tart shell with 1 tsp of the filling.

3. When the oven reaches 350 degrees, place the tart trays into the oven. Bake for 20-23 minutes, until the crust is lightly golden.

Ratatouille

Ratatouille, from all accounts, takes a really long time if you want to do it right. It is a simple dish in that it doesn't require a huge amount of kitchen know-how and technique; however, it is quite complicated in the number of times you need to chop vegetables, add things to the pot, take things out of the pot, let the ingredients boil, etc. This dish takes time! Thus, though I truly wanted to try ratatouille in the traditional sense, I settled on this particular recipe because it looked like I could get something on the table in less than two hours. The flavors were delicious, but I think it could have used that additional time on the stove were we not in a rush to eat.

This recipe I took from www.epicurious.com: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Ratatouille-354344

Potato Latkes

It's been a long time since my last post - apologies! I'm finding time now, as the holiday season starts up, to post these recipes from a month ago. You have here a potato latkes recipe that I first tried for a quick dinner. I later introduced this to the Dinner Meet crowd. Quick, delicious, and with a short list of vital ingredients - I think I might start putting this into my regular cooking rotation! The below recipe serves 2-3 people.

Ingredients:

2 cups peeled and grated potatoes

3 tbsp grated onion

1 egg, beaten

2 tbsp all-purpose flour or Matzo ball flour

1 tsp salt (slightly less than a full tsp)

1/2 cup canola or peanut oil

Method:

1. In a medium bowl, stir potatoes, onion, egg, flour, and salt together.

2. In a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium high heat, heat the oil until hot. Place large spoonfuls of the potato mixture into the hot oil, pressing down on them to form quarter-inch to half-inch thick patties. Brown on one side, flip, and brown the other side. Let the finished patties drain on paper towels. Serve hot with applesauce, chopped chives, and/or sour cream

Mochi Cupcakes

[An EurJean post, since I wasn't at their Dinner Meet.]

It helps to use two spoons to ball the an and scoop it into the middle of each cupcake. This cupcake does not rise as much as traditional cupcakes, so feel free to fill almost to the top. I bake them until the tops are very lightly golden brown. I also usually make a handful of no-an cupcakes for those who do not like red bean. I'm experimenting with making flavored mochi versions, like chocolate.

Ingredients:

1 box Mochiko (rice flour)
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 can soft or coarse an (Japanese sweet red beans)

Method:
Thoroughly mix the first six ingredients. Place cupcake paper in cupcake pan and fill half way with mix. Place one heaping tsp of an into center of each cupcake. Use remaining mixture to fill cupcake - about 80% full.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes or until done. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Note: If mochi cupcakes get hard or dried, place in microwave or wrap individually and heat. Can also be stored in freezer for later use.

Spinach (Korean inspired)

[Another post from EurJean since I wasn't at their Dinner Meet.]

I got this recipe online, since I don't measure anything when I make it myself (just eyeball to taste). I prefer my spinach with less soy sauce (only one tbsp) and more garlic. It is also good with a dash of mirin, red pepper powder, and ginger powder.

Ingredients:

1 lb spinach (preferably organic baby spinach, pre-washed)
3 tbsp soy sauce (preferably low-sodium)
1 tbsp sesame oil (preferably toasted)
2 cloves finely chopped garlic (pressed works as well)
2 tsp sugar (preferably brown sugar)
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional, preferably toasted)

Method:

Mix non-spinach ingredients together in a medium bowl. Blanch spinach in boiling water for 30 seconds (mix until entire bunch is mostly wilted). Squeeze excess water. Mix warm spinach with remaining ingredients in bowl.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Garlic Oil and Fried Sage

This is a great recipe for Thanksgiving if you're still looking for a solid sweet potatoes recipe. It's simple, and the roasted sweet potatoes are delicious with a slightly crusty exterior and the soft centers. Again, the recipe hails from Epicurious. Check out the recipe here.

Spinach Salad with Bosc Pears, Cranberries, Red Onion, and Toasted Hazelnuts

You can't go wrong with recipes from Epicurious, I say. We've tried a couple already from this illustrative site at this Dinner Meet and previous ones, and the dishes have been fantastic. I was particularly enamored of this salad because the various ingredients truly contributed to the overall tastiness. A true test of a successful salad is when people go back for seconds... and thirds... That happened for this salad. :) I won't bother reposting the recipe here when we followed the recipe to a T. Check out the recipe here.

Tiramisu

This is one of those dishes that gets better with age. The ladyfingers require some time to soak in all the wonderful goodness of the cream and liquor. Sure, it's good when you've left it refrigerating overnight, but it's even better if it's been refrigerating for two days. Give it a try - you won't be disappointed!

Ingredients:

5 egg yolks

1 cup sugar

8 oz. mascarpone cheese

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 (12 oz) packages of lady fingers

1 cup coffee liquor

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Method:

1. Start boiling water for double boiler.

2. Put chocolate chips in food processor and pulse until chocolate becomes bits. Do not chop until chocolate is powdered.

3. Combine egg yolks and sugar in top of double boiler over boiling water. Reduce heat to low and cook until mixture reaches 160°, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and transfer to mixing bowl.

4. Whip yolks until thick and lemon-colored. Add mascarpone and beat until combined.

5. In separate bowl, whip cream to stiff peaks. Gently fold into yolk mixture and refrigerate.

6. Dip lady fingers in liquor and line bottom of large glass bowl. Spoon cream filling over lady fingers. Sprinkle chocolate bits over cream. Repeat until out of ingredients.

7. Optional garnishes to consider: cocoa powder, chocolate curls, whipped cream rosettes. Refrigerate overnight and serve chilled.

Fresh Pasta

The pasta was delicious! It also didn't take as much effort as I thought. (Perhaps I'm only saying that cuz I wasn't the responsible party in charge of making pasta - Bhumi and Nelly were.) It was especially easy due to Trang's pasta roller/cutter attachment that she purchased for her KitchenAid stand mixer. All we had to do was roll out the dough with a rolling pin, and then run it through the stand mixer attachment a couple of times to get it to the desired thinness. Then we ran it through the cutter attachment to create fettuccine noodles. These fresh noodles cook a lot faster than the store bought ones, so you'll want to keep an eye on them as they're boiling away on the stove. You won't be sorry you tried this though - fresh pasta is far superior than that store bought stuff. I guarantee it! :) The below recipe serves six.

Ingredients:

1 lb white flour

2 tsp salt

4 eggs, beaten

2 tbsp olive oil

Method:

1. Sift the flour into a large bowl and stir in the salt.

2. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and add the eggs and 2 tbsp of oil. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the eggs, gradually drawing in the flour. After a few minutes, the dough will be too stiff to use a spoon, and you will need to use your fingers.

3. Once all the flour has been incorporated, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. If you find the dough to be too wet, add a little more flour and continue to knead. Cover with cling film and leave to rest for at least 15 minutes.

4. The basic dough is now ready. Roll out the pasta thinly and create the pasta shapes required.

** For us, we used Trang's handy KitchenAid stand mixer's pasta roller and cutter set. This made the process much, much, MUCH easier. Totally worth a buy if you like fresh pasta, and you have a stand mixer.

Bruschetta

What's one of the best combinations in the world? Tomato and basil. Love that stuff. Especially love it in the form of a caprese salad with fresh mozzarella, balsamic vinegar, and fine olive oil... But that's another recipe altogether. Tonight, we made bruschetta. Rather, Trang made bruschetta the night before, and we simply toasted bread and spooned her prepared mixture onto the baguette slices. Deliciousness. Give it a try and you'll see how simple it is. I think having it sit overnight really allows the flavors to mingle and develop into something addictively good. Yum!

Ingredients:

2 tomatoes, cubed

½ cup fresh basil, julienned

4 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

Salt, to taste

Ground black pepper, to taste

Method:

1. In a medium bowl, mix oil, garlic, and basil, to help infuse the oil with the garlic and basil flavors. Set aside while preparing tomatoes or other dishes.

2. Mix in tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, seasoning salt, and ground black pepper. Cover and chill in the refrigerator 8 hours, or overnight, before serving.

3. Serve mixture on top of toasted French baguette slices.

**If time constrained, all ingredients can be mixed in all at once before chilling.

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

I don't know if we were super hungry or it were just too darn tasty (or perhaps both!), but this dip lasted maybe 10 minutes once it came out of the oven. I've always been a huge fan of a good spinach-artichoke dip, and this recipe makes it easy for me to have it everyday if I wanted! (That is probably not a good idea if I were keeping an eye on my girlish figure.) Give this one a try. Too bad my picture of it is so poor - it really is quite marvelous!

Ingredients:

1 bunch of spinach (make sure to rinse before steaming)

1 ½ cups of frozen or canned artichoke hearts (make sure to rinse before steaming)

6 oz. cream cheese (reduced fat is fine)

¼ cup sour cream (lite is fine)

¼ cup mayonnaise (lite is fine)

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

½ tablespoon red pepper flakes (it really does need this to add flavor; you can't really taste the spiciness)

4 cloves of garlic, minced

Tabasco sauce (optional)

Salt, to taste

Method:

1. Steam spinach and artichokes until cooked (drain any water). Once the spinach leaves are limp, remove both, and cut them up. You can leave them chunky or chop them up finely.

2. Sauté garlic with red pepper flakes and a bit of oil over medium heat. Don’t allow the garlic to brown; you’re just trying to take out the raw bite of the garlic.

3. Preheat the oven to 350°.

4. Soften the cream cheese by heating it in the microwave. Once heated, stir in the spinach, artichoke hearts, the sautéed garlic and red pepper flakes, the sour cream, mayonnaise, about 8/10 of the Parmesan cheese, and Tabasco sauce, in an oven-safe dish. The Tabasco sauce doesn’t make it spicy as much as it adds an interesting tang to the dip. At this time, you’ll also want to taste test and see if the dip requires some salt. Add salt to taste. Once the taste has been adjusted, sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese on top.

5. Bake the dish for about 10 minutes to warm the dip. We didn’t do this next step, but I would recommend turning the oven setting to broil for another 2-3 minutes while leaving the oven door open a crack. I think that would brown the Parmesan cheese on top and add a nice crust to it.

6. Serve with chips or crusty baguette bread. Delicious!

Sauteed Pea Shoots with Garlic

This is one dish that I make fairly often whenever I cook at home. It's not limited to pea shoots either; feel free to substitute with whatever Chinese veggie you like. I'm a personal fan of making this dish with baby bok choy. When you see how easy (and cheap) this dish is to make, you'll hate having to pay so much at a Chinese restaurant for it. Ugh. :) Candace's recipe below.

INGREDIENTS:
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb pea shoots (dou miao), washed and drained

Salt, optional

METHOD:
1- Saute garlic until fragrant, about 30 sec.
2- Add pea shoots and stir fry until cooked through. Pea shoots will reduce greatly in size.
3- Add salt, if desired.

Cinnamon Sugar Biscotti

I have never made biscotti before, but then again I don't bake much. I've also been of the mind that biscotti is hard to make, but I think I might have just been intimidated by the exotic sounding name. Either way, the boys proved to me that baking is perhaps not as much a science as everyone else makes it out to be. (Don't hold me to this statement for baked goods that are not biscotti!) They totally forgot to cream the butter and sugar in a separate bowl prior to adding the dry ingredients. They somehow also managed to add eggs before the recipe called for them to add eggs. I was worried, but the biscotti turned out just fine in the end. It smells wonderful as it's baking - like churros!

Here's another recipe from allrecipes.com; check it out.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Ingredients:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, baking powder and salt, set aside. In a medium bowl, cream together the 2/3 cup sugar and butter. Beat in 1 egg, egg yolk and vanilla. Stir in the dry ingredients.
3. On a lightly floured surface, divide dough into two pieces. Roll each piece into a log about 9 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. Place logs on the prepared baking sheet and flatten slightly. Brush with the beaten egg.
4. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden and firm to the touch. Cool for 15 minutes.
5. On a cutting board, slice each log crosswise at a diagonal into 1/2 inch slices, using a serrated knife. Place back on the baking sheet, cut side down, and sprinkle with a mixture of the remaining cinnamon and sugar. Return to the oven for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, until toasted. Cool on wire racks, and store in an airtight container.

Gnocchi with Cherry Tomato Sauce

This cherry tomato sauce was my favorite out of all the recipes from last night. It was super flavorful, and the combination of the naturally sweet tomatoes with the distinctive saltiness of the olives was pure perfection. Again, the recipe comes from allrecipes.com; the one change we made was substituting half of the cherry tomatoes required with chopped Roma tomatoes since Mike's cherry tomato plants couldn't give us more. :-) I always thought gnocchi would be hard to make, but what do you know - they sell them premade at the supermarket. We just cooked them like regular pasta. This sauce will go well with other pasta, too, so you should give it a try even if you can't find gnocchi. The below recipe serves four.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large red onion, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 minced red chile pepper
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 1/2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
• 1 cup chopped fresh basil
• 2/3 cup kalamata olives, sliced
• 1 (16 ounce) package fresh gnocchi
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion, garlic, and chile pepper; cook until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high, and stir in the cherry tomatoes. Cook until the tomatoes have lost their form and are beginning to make a sauce, about 5 minutes. Stir in the crushed tomatoes, bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes.
2. While the sauce is simmering, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the fresh gnocchi, and cook until the gnocchi float to the surface, 2 to 3 minutes. Gently strain out the gnocchi and place into a serving dish.
3. Stir the basil and olives into the simmering sauce, and cook for one minute. Pour the sauce over the drained gnocchi and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to serve.

Grits with Corn and Vidalia Onion

Comfort food at its best - who knew grits could be so good? I certainly didn't, but then again, I've never had grits before. (Unless you're one of those folks who call grits "polenta" and polenta "grits", in which case, I have had polenta before.) I think this is one of those dishes I'd be perfectly happy eating on its own, but with the andouille sausage and the shrimp, the grits were elevated to another level entirely. The recipe below serves six.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp canola oil

1 onion, preferably Vidalia, grated on a box grater

Scraped kernels from 2-3 ears of corn (about 1 cup)

2 cups milk

2 cups water

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup stone-ground or coarse-ground grits (a.k.a. polenta)

2 tbsp unsalted butter

¾ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (about 3 ounces)

1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 tbsp chopped fresh chives

Instructions:

1. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring until transparent, about 2 min. Add the corn and continue to stir occasionally, until the kernels become soft, about 5 min.

2. Add the milk, water, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Whisk in the grits, decrease the heat to low, and simmer. Whisk occasionally until the grits are creamy and thick, 45 to 60 min. (Actually, when I was making this, it took about 25-30 min.) Stir in the butter, cheese, parsley, and chives. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Saffron Pistachio Kulfi

Wow. This was AMAZINGLY good, and Bhumi guarantees that it's super simple to prepare as well. I wasn't sure what to expect with this dessert, but I think the closest I can come to describing it is "Indian ice cream". The saffron and pistachios really added a nice touch to the creaminess of the dessert, and on such a warm night, the dessert was an instant hit. Bhumi says that the kulfi is traditionally made with a popsicle stick stuck in it so that you can eat it like a popsicle, but since she didn't have any, we just used some spoons and had the kulfi directly out of the Dixie cups. Delish!

I suppose I should add that the below method is the "quick" way; there's apparently a longer, more traditional way to go about this, but of course we're all about the quick wins here!

Ingredients:

Sweetened condensed milk - 14 oz.

Evaporated milk - 12 oz.

Heavy whipping cream - 16 oz.

Cool Whip whipped topping - 16 oz.

Saffron - 1 big pinch

Sugar – 1 tsp

Cashews, Pistachios, Almonds - 1/2 cup, coarsely ground (I think she only used pistachios in ours)

Instructions:

1. With a mortar and pestle, grind together Sugar and Saffron.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine Sweetened Condensed Milk, Evaporated Milk, Heavy Whipping Cream and Cool Whip.
3. Using an electric hand blender, gently mix all ingredients together.
4. Add in Saffron and Sugar mixture and Nuts. Mix well.
5. Pour mixture into small dixie style plastic cups. Cover cups with foil and insert a wooden popsicle stick into the center (or use a popsicle maker).
6. Freeze Kulfi for at least 4 – 6 hours, preferably overnight. Serves 20-25.

Chaana Masala

This is one of my favorite dishes whenever I go out for an Indian lunch buffet. I love the way the tomatoes complement the chickpeas; it's a perfect dish to serve over basmati rice or with some warm naan to wrap around it. The list of ingredients is long, but as I was watching Bhumi prepare this dish, it looks like you don't really need to know any super fancy cooking technique to prepare it. Just keep an eye on it, stir things around, and add things as stated in the recipe. :) Bhumi's recipe below:

Ingredients:

Kabuli Channas/Garbanzo Beans – 2 cup
Water – 8 cups
Black Cardamom – 1
Bay Leaf – 1
Cinnamon Stick 1″ pc
Salt – to taste
Oil – 1.5 tbsp
Hing/Asafoetida – 1/8 tsp
Crushed Tomatoes – 14.5 oz can/400 gms
Channa/Chole Masala – 1 tbsp
Anardana – 1/2 tsp
Red Chili Powder – 1/2 tsp
Chaat Masala – 1/2 tsp
Amchur/Dry Mango Powder – 1/2 tsp
Onions & Lemon/Lime – for garnishing

Instructions:

1. Soak the Chick Peas overnight (this could potentially be done away with canned garbanzo beans but I’ve never tried this).
2. Transfer the Chick Peas and the water it has been soaking in into a Pressure Cooker.
3. Add in Cinnamon Stick, Bay Leaf, Black Cardamom & Salt and cook Chick Peas in the Pressure Cooker.
4. Seperate the water and the Channas, do not discard the water.
5. In a pan, heat Oil on medium heat. Once hot, add in the Asafoetida and right after that add in the Crushed Tomatoes. Cook till the Tomatoes seperate from the Oil.
6. Add in the Channa Masala, Chaat Masala, Red Chilli Powder, Dry Mango Powder & Anardana Powder. Mix well.
7. Add in the Chick Peas and mix again.
8. Add in the Water that had been set aside, little at a time.
9. Mix occasionally and cover and allow the Chick Peas to cook.
10. Repeat the process till the water is all consumed and the consistency of the gravy looks good.
11. Garnish with Onions and Lemon/Lime.
12. Serve hot with Puris, Bhaturas, Bread, Chapati, Parathas or Naan.

Palak Paneer

To be honest, we cheated a little with this dish. Most of it was already prepared by Bhumi prior to our arrival at her place, and the only thing left to do was to dice up and sautee the paneer. I was surprised that the cheese could be sauteed like that without it melting, but it turned out great. Bhumi says that this dish usually requires the cheese to be deep fried, but sauteeing it works just fine without adding a heapload more grease to the dish. I approve! Anyway, try out Bhumi's recipe, and let me know how it goes. :)

Ingredients:

1 Onion (finely chopped)

1 Tomato (finely chopped)

1 Tsp Ginger Garlic Paste

½ Tsp Chilli Powder

½ Tsp Green Chili Paste or 1 fresh Green Chili

1 Tsp Cumin Powder

1 Tsp Coriander Powder

1 Tsp Fenugreek Powder

Turmeric a pinch

Salt to taste

Paneer as desired

Fresh Spinach – 1 bunch

Whipping Cream (optional) – I didn’t add this but most restaurants do

Whole Garam Masala (Cloves, Cardamom, Cinnamon) or Garam Masala Powder

1 or 2 Garlic cloves minced (optional)

Instructions:

1. Clean and wash spinach and immerse in boiling water for 2 min, puree it in a blender and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a deep pan, add garam masala. Now add onions and fry till golden brown, add turmeric and ginger garlic paste, cook for a minute. Add all spices and red chili powder, cook for a minute or two.
3. Now add the spinach (palak) and cook until the gravy oozes with little bubbles.
4. Cut Paneer into 2-3 cm cubes, sauté it in shallow oil (it can also be deep fried if desired but it’s not necessary). Add Paneer pieces to the gravy and simmer in for few minutes.
5. Add some heavy cream to the spinach gravy and mix well (optional).
6. Serve with Roti or Naan

Chaat

This was a suprisingly easy appetizer packed with a lot of flavor. Beware - those little balls are quite spicy, but paired with the cool yogurt on the side, the taste has your mouth coming back for more. Yummy yummy in my tummy. I think I might have filled up my tummy with a lot of this before I even got to the entrees!

Here's Bhumi's recipe below (with my own comments in parentheses):

Ingredients:

1 large Potato, boiled and diced

1 small red onion, chopped

1 tomato, chopped

1 cup yogurt

Chaat Masala to taste, optional (this comes in a package in powder form)

Chaat (the little ball things; I thought they looked like mini-Kix)

Instructions:

1. Mix all the ingredients together except yogurt and chaat masala.

2. Blend yogurt with ½ cup of water and add some chaat masala. Serve the chaat with yogurt sauce as a dressing on top.