Banoffie Pie

For the caramel (To save time, use bought dulce de leche instead of making your own caramel)

• 100g/3½oz unsalted butter
• 100g/3½oz caster sugar
• 400g/14fl oz can condensed milk

For the banoffee pie

• 150g/5 oz digestive biscuits, crushed
• 230g/8oz pecans, halved
• 75g/3oz butter, melted
• 3 large bananas, chopped
• 250ml/10½oz double cream, whipped until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed
• cocoa powder, for dusting

1. For the caramel, place the butter and sugar into a non-stick pan over a low heat, stirring until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves.
2. Add the condensed milk and slowly bring to the boil, stirring continuously, to make the caramel. As soon as the mixture thickens and begins to smell of caramel, remove from the heat and allow to cool.
3. Meanwhile, for the banoffee pie, place the crushed biscuits and 115g/4oz of the pecans into a bowl. Add the butter and mix well.
4. Transfer the mixture to a 25cm/10in cake tin. Press in to pack the mixture evenly into the base.
5. Add the chopped bananas to the caramel mixture and mix well, then spread the mixture over the biscuit base.
6. Transfer to the refrigerator to cool for 30 minutes.
7. Remove from the fridge and spread the whipped cream evenly over the top of the banoffee layer.
8. Place the remaining pecans over the top in a circular arrangement and dust with cocoa powder.
9. For the caramel sauce, place the butter, sugar and coconut milk into a heavy-based pan over a medium heat. Bring to the boil and cook for 3-4 minutes, until it forms a thick, light golden-brown sauce.
10. To serve, cut out slices of the banoffee pie, place onto plates and pour over the caramel sauce.

Thai Grilled Fish

Ingredients

1.5 lbs red snapper or tilapia
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 TB olive oil
1 TB fish sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
2 limes, juiced
2 tsp crushed garlic
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Sauce
3 TB lime juice
2 TB fish sauce
2 TB sugar
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp minced jalapeno
1 TB chopped fresh cilantro leaves


Instructions

1. Remove any bones from the fish.

2. In a resealable plastic bag, combing cilantro leaves, olive oil, fish sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Swish it around so it mixes, and place the fish in. Let marinate in the fridge for 30-60 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, make the sauce by combining the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, garlic, jalapeno, and cilantro in a small mixing bowl. Stir together until combined.

4. Preheat an outdoor gas grill to high heat. Lay down a piece of foil to cook your fish on.

5. Remove fish from bag and discard marinade. Cook fish for 3-5 minutes per side until it flakes easily from a fork. 

6. Serve hot with sauce drizzled over. 

Mutton Rogan Josh

Ingredients: Mutton: 500 gm Onions (very thinly sliced): 500 gm Saffron: Pinch (optional) Salt: To Taste Hing: Pinch Oil or Ghee: 2Tablespoons To mix and make a paste with water Fennel Seed Powder: 1/4Tablespoons Ginger Powder: 1/2Tablespoons Kashmiri or Deghi Red Chilly Powder: 1 1/2Tablespoons (I prefer Deghi, also this amount makes a pretty spicy sauce. If you want you can reduce the amount and add a drop of red color if you want.) To grind in a spice grinder Cumin Seeds: 1/4Teaspoons Mace (Javitri): 2Numbers Green Cardamom: 6Numbers Cinnamon Sticks (small): 4Pieces Black Cardamom: 4Numbers Directions: Take a bowl add hing, Kashmir chilly powder, ginger powder, fennel seed powder, water, mix it well. In a coffee grinder or spice grinder coarsely grind cinnamon sticks, green cardamom, mace, cumin seeds. Heat ghee in a pan add black cardamom, and then add the onion. Fry the onions until lightly brown and sweetly caramelized. Next add the meat pieces, and sear until the meat is brown in colour. Then add mixture of Kashmir chilly, saffron, water, salt, mix this well, put the lid on let it cook until about half to three-fourth done (about 45 minutes). Then add the ground masala powder, mix it well and let it cook for about 30 mins or more until done. Rogan josh is usually cooked until the meat is very tender that melts in the mouth (vs. chewy like in some other dishes).

Healthy Butter Chicken - yes, that's possible!!

I love butter chicken, but I don't love the calories! So this is my recipe for perfect restaurant style butter chicken (minus the calories).

A note - There's 3 things to Butter chicken - 2 marinades, and then the gravy itself.
Most butter chicken recipes I've read talk about marinating and leaving for a while. However, while educating myself about the process of marination, I've read that marinating anything beyond 20 mins does little to add additional flavor. That's why I don't bother marinating anything for hours. Usually it's just minutes, while I'm cooking the gravy, and because I'm a lazy cook who doesn't plan in advance :P
All spices/herbs are as per taste. Where needed, the recipe has specific measures.

Recipe:

The chicken -

Marinade 1
Defrost the chicken, take it out of the package and put in a bowl.
Add juice of 1 lemon, turmeric powder, and red chili powder (non-spicy, for color - It's called degi mirch in India. In US, it's paprika).
Optional - add a tsp of mustard oil if you have it on hand (to add more complexity to the flavors). Let it sit for 5-30 mins, however long you have. I left it for 5 mins.

Marinade 2
Add 2 giant tbsp of yogurt - hung curd/Greek yogurt (since it's thick!! You want as little water as possible), 1 tbsp of dry roasted kasuri methi (crushed between your palms), ginger, garlic paste. Let it sit for as long as u have in refrigerator. I let it sit for 10 mins on the kitchen counter while I made the gravy (like I said, I'm a super lazy cook!).

Now all you have to do is roast it.
Lay it on a foil lined baking tray & use the broiler setting in the oven in US; highest setting possible in ovens in India. For those who don't have access to an oven, you could cook it in a pan on high flame (sear it, so that it seals and has a nice brown layer outside - no need to cook through & through).
We want a char/brown layer on it (called the Maillard reaction - read on this for more insights into flavorful cooking). Take it out even if it's not cooked fully. So long as you have that char (oven cooked) like in tandoori chicken or the browning of the meat on the outside (pan seared), it's ready to be tossed into the gravy.

Gravy -

1tbsp Butter/oil, add 2/3 cardamom, a bit of cinnamon, some grated nutmeg, more ginger, garlic & lots of tomato purée (1 large can for a lb chicken)
Keep stirring & cooking till its dry (really really dry) until there's absolutely no liquid left (since this is the 'lean' version of butter chicken, we will be adding milk instead of cream and that will be the liquid base).
Add turmeric, more paprika/degi Mirch, salt. Add the roasted chicken and cook for 3-5 mins or until chicken is done. Switch off, add 2 heaping tbsp of dry roasted kasuri methi (crushed between your palms). Add whole milk until you get the perfect sweet/tangy flavor and color of butter chicken (I had to add about 200ml, and could have added more).
Add a tiny bit of butter if you haven't already added it before. Cilantro/coriander leaves for garnish. Serve with naan/rice.

Taboulah salad (Arabic salad)

Ingredients:-
Couscous
Olive oil
Parsley
Cucumbers
Capsicum
Tomatoes
Finely chop all ingredients n couscous jus soak for 10 minutes in boil water
N strain it
Make dressing wid olive oil lemon salt n pepper mix well n add the above ingredients n ready

Broccoli with Garlic Butter and Cashews

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds fresh broccoli, cut into bite size pieces (I used one broccoli)
1/3 cup butter (I used Olive oil)
1 tablespoon brown sugar (I didn't use this)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup chopped salted cashews (I used unsalted ones)

Method:

Place the broccoli into a large pot with about 1 inch of water in the bottom. Bring to a boil, and cook for 7 minutes, or until tender but still crisp. Drain, and arrange broccoli on a serving platter.

While the broccoli is cooking, melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Mix in the brown sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper and garlic. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat.

Mix in the cashews, and pour the sauce over the broccoli.

Serve immediately.

Bharwa Baingan

Ingredients

Brinjal - 4
Oil - 4 tblsp
Curry Leaves - few

For stuffing*
Channa Dal - 1 tblsp
Urad Dal - 1 tblsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Corriander Powder - 2 tsp
Chilly Powder - 1 tsp
Shakthi Curry Masala - 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt - as needed
Coconut - 1/2

Method
1. Make a slit in the brinjals. The slits should be made on the side opposite to the stem. It should be deep enough to hold the stuffing but at the same time the brinjal should hold its shape

2. Dry roast the channa dal, urad dal, cumin seeds and coconut for about 5-8 minutes till a nice aroma comes and everything has been roasted

3. Make a powder of the above ingredients along with salt, curry masala, corriander powder, chilly powder and turmeric powder. If it is difficult to make a powder, just add a little water and grind it to a paste

4. Stuff the brinjals with the powder/paste

5. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan, add some chopped curry leaves. Gently place the stuffed brinjals in the hot oil

6. Add any leftover stuffing to the pan too Cover and cook on medium heat

7. Keep turning every now and then so that all sides are evenly cooked

8. Cook for about 10- 15 minutes till the brinjals are nicely cooked and the oil oozes from the masala

9. Serve this with white rice, chappatti, biriyani or pulao.