Baked Honey Mustard Chicken

Simple and light. Perfect for the summer!!

Baked Honey Mustard Chicken

Ingredients

4 Chicken Breasts (boneless & skinless)

1 ½ tbsp Dijon Mustard

2 tsp brown sugar

2 tbsp Honey

4-6  tbsp Virgin Olive Oil

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp crushed red chili flakes

½  tsp salt (marinade) + ½ tsp (vegetables)

¼ tsp dried basil

½ tsp dried rosemary

1-2 tsp crushed black pepper

a pinch of ground nutmeg

1 yellow bell pepper (cut length wise)

1 red bell pepper (cut length wise)

1 green bell pepper (cut length wise)

5-6 baby onions (cut in halves)

3- 4 small tomatoes (seeds removed & cut in quarters)

8-10 pitted black olives

1. To marinade the chicken, in large bowl add the dijon mustard, brown sugar, honey, paprika, garlic powder, crushed red chili flakes, ½ tsp salt, 1 tsp black pepper, 4 tbsp virgin olive oil, nutmeg, lemon juice, dried basil and garlic powder. Mix these well. Taste the marinade to check if you are satisfied with the taste.

2. Take the chicken breast pieces and pierce the chicken in three to four places and add them to the marinade. Rub the marinade well onto the chicken and place it in the fridge for 10 to 15 hours. If you are in a hurry, then let it marinade for at least an hour.

3. Preheat the oven to 230 C.

4. Grease a baking dish with olive oil and place the bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, olives and the chicken pieces.

5. Sprinkle salt, pepper, rosemary and cover the dish with aluminum foil. Place it in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

6. Take out the chicken and remove the foil.

7. Arrange the oven rack closer to the top and set the oven to broiler on high.

8. Leave the chicken in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until the top is brown.

9. Take out the chicken and let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

10. Collect the juice left behind in the baking dish. Heat it in a small pan until it is reduced in quantity.

11. Pour this on the chicken when you serve.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies

I got back from work today and thought of making brownies. However I did not want just chocolate in it. I mean, just chocolate brownies do taste good but sometimes we want something more??  

Anyway I thought why don't I give the chocolate and peanut butter combination a try? They turned out good. If you like your brownies fudgy and gooey then you must give this one a try! 

Goodies you need:

3 eggs

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

2/3 cup white (or more if you like it sweeter)

1/2 cup butter (113 grams) at room temperature

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup chunky peanut butter 

1 tbs vanilla extract

1/4th tsp baking powder

3 tbs milk

3 tbs hot black coffee

1/3 cup chocolate chips (optional)

 Pinch of salt

8 x 8 or 9 x 9 inch baking tin

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C. 

2. Mix butter, brown sugar, white sugar, vanilla extract, eggs and milk together in a n bowl until it is smooth and creamy.

3. Now sift in the flour and baking powder into the batter and gently fold it in until the flour has mixed in well.

4. Transfer 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons of this batter into a separate bowl.

5. Add the peanut butter into the batter of the second bowl, mix well and keep it aside.

6. Into the first bowl, add cocoa powder, chocolate chips and the hot coffee. Mix it and keep it aside.

7. Take your baking tin and line it with aluminium foil. This makes it easier to take out the brownies. Grease the foil with butter.

8. Now the fun part!! Take an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon and place a dollop of the chocolate batter and then add a dollop of the peanut butter batter next to it. Basically the idea is to make a pattern that resembles a chess board. 

It should look somewhat like the picture on the right. I messed my one because I am clumsy like that. But hey, you can get all fancy and creative.

9. Now take a knife and gently create swirls in the batter by making circles in clockwise and anti clockwise motion. Don't mix it too much or you may lose the pattern.

10. Once you are satisfied, let it bake in the oven until it's done. It should take around 40 to 50 minutes. Please do check up on the brownies exactly after 35 minutes. If you see that it is still too runny then don't panic. Just let it sit in the oven for some time more. You will know it's done if you poke the center with a knife or tooth pick and it comes out with some moist crumbs and not wet batter.

11. Once done, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely and then cut it into pieces.

Just keep a a few things in mind. The batter is not supposed to be too runny and the brownies will not rise too much. 

Hope you guys like it. Do try it out and let me know how it turned out. 

                                                                GOOD LUCK!!!! :D

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

I am posting this after a very long break. I have been so caught up with everything that I had absolutely no time or energy to post anything.
So anyway... after a push from a friend or two I finally got around to posting a dish. Nothing fancy but hopefully will make your tummy and taste buds happy.
I actually learnt this from my sister Nadia.. so all the credit goes to her. Hope you guys like it.

Ingredients

1. 300g - 350g spaghetti
2.1/2 kg minced beef/mutton
3. 300ml tomato paste
4. 1/4th of beef/vegetable stock cube (optional)
5. 4-5 tbs olive oil
6. 2 tbs garlic paste
7. 5 tbs onion paste
8. 2 tsp fresh ground pepper
9. 1 small size capsicum, chopped
10. 1 tsp dried basil
11. 1/2 tsp dried oregano
12. 1/4 tsp dried thyme
13. 2 1/2 cup water (around 500- 550 ml)
14. 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese (or more if you like it extra cheesy)
15. 1 tsp sugar
16. salt, according to taste
17. fresh mint leaves, chopped

1. Boil water and add a tablespoon of salt and a tablespoon of oil in it and then add the spaghetti. Cook it according to the instructions given behind the spaghetti packet.The timings vary according to the brands.Just make sure you do not over cook the spaghetti to the point it is too soft or else they break easily or turn into mush. After it is done, reserve 1 cup of the starchy water and drain the rest. Keep the spaghetti aside.

2. In a deep non stick pan, heat the oil on a medium flame and fry the capsicum in it for 4 to 5 minutes.Then add onion paste and garlic paste. Cook it for 3 to 4 minutes and add the minced beef and fry it for sometime.  At this point you will notice that the beef starts to give out water. So cook it until you see that most of the water has evaporated.

3. Now add the tomato paste, the beef/ vegetable stock, dried oregano, dried basil, dried thyme, sugar, salt and water. (Don't add too much salt because after adding the cheese it will become more salty) Stir it, close the lid and cook it on a low flame for the next 10 to 15 minutes or until the water reduces and the sauce thickens.

4. Now add the grated cheddar cheese and let it melt into the sauce. In case you think that your sauce is less compared to your spaghetti then add some of that spaghetti water that you reserved and heat it until you get the desired consistency. If the sauce is too much then you can always heat it up a bit more until the water reduces more.

5. Check the level of salt.If you feel like there is less salt you can always go ahead and add a bit more. If the sauce is a little sour you may add a dash of sugar to it just to balance it out.

6. Add ground pepper and chopped mint leaves into the sauce. You may mix the spaghetti with the sauce or serve it separately.

Try it and let me know how it turned out!! ;)

Semolina Fudge

Just another simple and quick recipe for those with a sweet tooth. It tastes a bit like Semolina Halwa but then these are a bit more chewy. I have heard from a few people that these are called Aflatoon but then I wasn't sure because the Aflatoon I tasted in most shops, tasted very very different and had a different texture as well. Anyway this still tastes nice and is very very quick and easy to make.

What you need:
1 cup semolina
1 cup powder milk
1 cup whole milk
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter / ghee
1/4 cup Almonds/Cashews
pinch of salt
pinch of saffron soaked in few tbs milk

1. In a non stick pan  mix semolina, milk powder, salt, sugar and butter/ghee properly and then switch on the flame on low heat.
2. Roast this until it changes its color a very light brown. Make sure you keep an eye on it because it gets burnt easily.
3. Now add the whole milk and stir it until it starts to get dry. Once you notice that it is beginning to get dry add the saffron and cook it a bit more.
4. Once this starts to leave the sides of the pan and you see that it is giving out the butter/ ghee, then you know it is ready.
5. Spread it out evenly on a flat plate greased with some butter. wait for it to cool down slightly and only then  start cutting. Garnish it with the nuts of your choice.. I decided to add cashews but you can add any other of your choice.
6. Put this int he fridge for an hour and then serve.

Chocolate Banana & Walnut Cake

So Ramadan has come to an end and it's Eid so I wanted to post something sweet for this occasion.  I always thought the combination of chocolate and banana is interesting. I went ahead and tried out this cake and OMG it turned out oooeeeyyy gooeeyyy and so moist. My parents and friends absolutely loved it and want me to make it again. So if you love bananas and chocolate, you would definitely love this cake. It is simply amazing. Try it out!

Stuff you need:
2 eggs
1 ripe medium size Banana, mashed ( Bananas that have turned dark brown or almost black from outside is the best choice)
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 3/4 cup flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup warm water mixed with 1/2 tsp instant coffee powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup crushed walnuts ( if you don't have walnuts you may use almonds or even experiment with cashew nuts)

1. Preheat your oven to 180 degree Celsius, grease your cake tin and keep two large bowls handy.
2. In one bowl sift and  mix all the dry ingredients( except sugar) :- Flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa powder.
3. In the second bowl add the wet ingredients- eggs, milk, oil, warm coffee mixture, vanilla extract, mashed bananas and sugar. Mix this very well with a whisk or an egg beater until it is very smooth and has no lumps.
4. Now pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and gently fold it in using a rubber spatula. And then add the walnuts. Do not use a whisk to mix this or the cake will end up very dense.
5. Pour the batter into your greased cake tin. I used a 9 inch round cake tin that was around 3 to 4 inches deep.
6. Put the cake tin in the oven and check on it after 40 to 45 minutes. If you use a larger cake tin that is wide  it would be ready within 40 minutes or so. It took me 50 minutes to bake this cake. You know the cake is ready when you insert a toothpick in middle of the cake and it comes out clean.
7. Take it out of the oven and let it cool down completely before you add the frosting of your choice.

So this is how it turned out.. It tastes great even without frosting. I love having this cake as it is but frosting does add the extra lift. :) Eid Mubarak everyone! Have a wonderful day!

Chana Chaat

So I decided to make Iftar today for a change. Preparing snacks is the least of my favorites but anyway, decided to make Chaat today. This is just a simple and basic recipe. Hope you guys like it..

Stuff you need:
1 1/2 cup Garbanzo beans/Chickpeas; (soaked for 24 hours and then boiled)
3 medium sized potatoes, boiled and diced
5 medium tomatoes, diced
1 large onion, finely sliced
1 tsp chopped ginger
2 tbs chopped coriander leaves
4-5 green chilies, chopped
1 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp red chili powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Chaat masala (or according to taste)
a pinch of sugar
1/4 cup Tamarind water
5-6 tbs oil
4-5 tbs water

1. Heat oil in a wok or non stick pan on medium heat and then add the mustard and cumin seeds and wait until it pops. Then add the diced tomatoes and chopped ginger and fry it in the oil until the tomatoes become very soft.
2. Now mix in the red chili powder to the tomatoes and cover the pan on low heat till the tomatoes becomes almost liquid and the oil starts to separate.
3. Add the garbanzo beans, potatoes, sugar, salt and 2 or 3 tbs water and cook this on medium heat with lid closed for 4- 5 minutes.
4.Add the tamarind water (reserve some to serve), onions, coriander, chaat masala & green chilies. Give it a mix and let it sit on the stove on low heat for a couple of minutes. And then serve.

Oreo Blizzard

All I can say is that it's yummy, quick and very very easy to make. You hardly need to do anything to make this.. But don't get too used to it.. :)
(serves 1 person)

All you need is
1/4 cup cold milk
5-6 Oreo cookies
4 scoops of vanilla ice cream or chocolate ice cream (depending on your preference)
1/2 tsp vanilla essence


1. In a blender add the Oreo cookies, milk, vanilla essence and ice cream.
2. Pulse the blender a few times until everything mixes well. Avoid blending it for long because this would make it too runny.
3. Pour it in a glass and add another scoop of ice cream if you want and add some roughly crushed oreo on top and enjoy!