Isha's Kitchen

Foodie Bloggers Unite

Hi

This is a call to all Food bloggers in and around Los angeles.

All thanks to the trio : Sanyukta Gaur (Bayes) from Creative Sanyukta, Lavanya from The Diary of a disaPlaced HouseWife and Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal (Mharo Rajasthan's Recipes), a foodies meet is being planned during the upcoming 2010 holidays,though the date is not fixed yet.This meet can be a great way to network if you enjoy meeting other people, showcase your exclusive recipes and share/meet fellow bloggers and enjoy a day filled with food and fun.

I am happy to be a part of this group and would love to see u all there. So check out the Foodiebloggers meet blog for more information and hope to see u in the group soon.

Luv,
Hetal (Isha)

My recipe is in top 10......vote for me!!!!!

Vote for me.....

Hi friends,I am so happy that my Healthy soup recipe has been selected in the top 10 in the Eat healthy:Fight Diabetes contest organised by Sangeeth of Art of cooking Indian food blog. So please vote for my recipe here(the poll is on the right hand side bar). You can check out the Healthy Soup recipe here. Don't forget to check out the wonderful healthy recipes in the round up.

Looking forward for your votes.....

*Yummy Carrot Salad

Salads

..........For me salads are a healthy addition to our diet. Normally a Green salad is low in calories, low in fats and nutritionally very rich but the addition of wrong ingredients can make it unhealthy. Salads are often neglected in our diets,they should be an integral part of our meals,. A salad can even make a healthy low calorie meal by itself with the combination of proper ingredients.

These are some ways you can make your salads nutritionally rich:

Instead of using canned and frozen vegetables,use fresh fruits and vegetables (including green leafy vegetables).

Instead of the adding too much salad dressings which are high in calories and fat , ust squeeze a fresh lime juice and put in some herbs like basil which improve the flavour of the salad.

Avoid adding croutons and other extra toppings, instead add some nuts or flax seeds which make a better nutritional choice.

Cheese are a rich source of Calcium and Protein,so just take care on how much cheese you are using. Adding too much of cheese adds many extra calories.
(Source: About.com)

You can make a variety of salads, try adding a different healthy ingredients every time you make a salad.

Here's a salad recipe for you.

Carrot Salad

Ingredients

Grated carrot- 2 cups
Olive oil- 1 tsp
Green chillies- 2, cut into small pieces
Cilantro/Coriander, finely chopped- 1 tbsp
Curry leaves- 3-4
Lime juice- 2 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1-2 tsp
Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Method

Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds.Once they splutter add curry leaves and green chillies.
Then add grated carrot,turmeric powder and salt (add very little).Cook for about a minute not much.
Put off the flame and add lime juice. Mix again.
Garnish it with cilantro and serve.
See, its so easy.Salad is ready.

Serves 2

** Carrots are an excellent source of antioxidant compounds, and the richest vegetable source of the pro-vitamin A carotenes. Carrots' antioxidant compounds help protect against cardiovascular disease and cancer and also promote good vision, especially night vision.
(Source WHFoods.org)

I am sending this yummy carrot salad recipe to JFI - Carrots hosted by The Cooker.

*For All My Blogger Friends

I know that I have not been regular since I came back but thanks to my blogger friends who with their awards and wonderful comments motivate and encourage me to be regular enough in the blogging world. I have so much to share with you all but something or the other keeps coming in between. Anyways a big thanks to all those bloggers who appreciate me and my work by showering me with awards.

My friends Arundhati of Gourmet Affair and Ramya of Memory archieved passed me this Hard Working Food Blogger award- Thanks a ton,I will definitely try to be more hardworking and be regular :)

My another good friend Ivy of Kopiaste passed me the Yum-Yum Blog award. I really appreciate it.

I also got the lovely Butterfly Award from Sudeshna of Bengalicuisine and Kitchen Flavours .

Here are some rules for the Butterfly award.

Add the logo in your blog.
Add a link to the person who gave you the award.
Nominate 10 other blogs of your choice.
Don’t forget to add links to those blogs in yours.
Also leave a message for your nominees in their blogs, informing them about the award.

I know its a rule to pass the Butterfly award to 10 bloggers, but I would really like to pass the above awards to all my fellow bloggers with their lovely blogs. You all deserve these awards..

*Happy Diwali And Prosperous New YearTo You All

Hi friends,Diwali is a festival of lights and happiness.On this auspicious occasion I wish you all a very Happy Diwali and a Great New Year.May all your dreams come true and may God bless you all.

Have a wonderful Diwali.....Enjoy!!

*Celebrating my 50th post with Bread Pizza

Yeeeeee!!!!!! My 50th post

(Image source:Google images)

Hi friends, sorry I couldn't post any recipes since last week.There was some problem with my laptop. I am so happy and excited,this is my 50th post. This is just a beginning for me , hope to get your love and support in the future also. I want to share many more recipes and food tips with you all.

Celebrating my 50th post with a wonderful, yummy recipe my mom makes. It is a favorite at my place. This recipe is a different version of a pizza,you can say a low fat version as it does not have any cheese.Weight conscious people,you can eat this dish without any guilt. You will love this sweet and spicy combination.

Bread Pizza

I have seen and heard about many bread pizza recipes, this is a bit different from those.So lets give this recipe a try.

Ingredients:

Bread (of your choice) - 4 slices
Onion- 1 medium ,finely chopped
Capsicum- 1 medium, finely chopped
Tomato (optional) - 1 medium, finely chopped
Tomato Ketchup
Butter ( low-fat)/Ghee (for toasting bread)

For Chutney:

Cilantro(Coriander) - 1 bunch (use the stems also)
Mint leaves - 8-10 no.
Ginger - 1 small piece
Green chillies - 2, small
Lime juice- 2 tsp
Salt to taste

To garnish:

Fine sev

Method:

For chutney:

Clean the coriander.Peel ginger and remove stems from green chillies .Wash all these ingredients thoroughly.
Grind these along with the remaining ingredients into a smooth paste in a food processor.
Store in a bowl.

For pizza:

Apply a tbsp. of chutney,then a tbsp. of ketchup on a slice of bread. (The amount of chutney and ketchup can vary as per your taste.)
Heat a girdle or tawa and toast the bread slice,chutney side up with little butter till the downside becomes brownish and little crispy.
Top the toasted bread slice with little chopped onion,capsicum and tomato.
Garnish it with sev and serve hot.

Serves 2

Note: Start making the pizza when you are about to serve or else it will become soft and soggy.

I am sending this recipe to the WYF: Party Food event hosted by easycrafts of Simple Indian food blog.

*Semolina(Sooji/Rava) Sheera

Semolina(Sooji/Rava) Sheera

Semolina sheera is a favorite in our Indian households,mostly prepared during festivals and puja. But for those who love it,they don't need to wait for either of these to eat it...... :) Such is the case in my house,my hubby likes this sheera very much. So Rava sheera is made more often compared to any other sweet.

It is basically made from semolina and milk. Its a bit heavy because of the added ghee,but sometimes you should just forget about your weight and enjoy such delicacies...hehehe!!! So what are we waiting for,lets get to work.

Ingredients :

Semolina (Sooji/Rava) - 2 cups
Ghee - 3 tbsp
Sugar - 2 cups
Milk - 2 cups
Water- 1 cup
Cardamom powder - 1 tsp
Cashewnuts -1 tbsp

Method:

Take Ghee in a non stick pan and add Semolina to it. Roast until semolina turns golden brown. (Take care not to burn semolina).
Continue for 2-3 minutes on a low flame.
Remove the roasted semolina in a plate.

In the same pan roast the cashewnuts and keep them aside.

Now take milk and sugar in a pan and bring to a boil.Add cardamom powder and keep it on a low flame.

Slowly add semolina to the above milk mixture, stir the mixture well with a spatula and avoid any lump formation.

Add the cashews to this mixture and cook it till the ghee separates from the semolina.

Serve in a bowl.You can decorate it as per your liking.