Vegetarian Rice and Cheese Manicotti

Today we got manicotti shells from the store, and tried to cook these. I looked up some recipes on the Internet, and settled to try one of our own.

This recipe is for 6 manicotti shells.
For the filling:
1/2 cup boiled rice
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 red onion finely chopped
1 tomato chopped
1/4 cup steamed peas
1/2 bell pepper finely chopped
1/2 tsp Italian herb seasoning

Also you will need Pasta sauce (I used store bought tomato and basil, but you can make your own - or mix, more on that in another post!), 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese and extra virgin olive oil.

Mix the ingredients, and add about 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, and salt to taste. I noticed that most manicotti recipes suggest adding egg in the filling, but I think the rice does a great job of holding the filling together too.

First boil the manicotti shells for 5-6 minutes, or as per instructions on the box. Strain and keep aside. Stuff the shells with the filling prepared earlier.

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a sheet-lined baking dish, first spread a layer of pasta sauce. The lay down the stuffed manicottis side by side. Cover with a layer of pasta sauce, shredded cheese and drizzle some extra virgin olive oil on the top. Bake for 20 minutes.

Serve with bread sticks or as is.

Bottle Gourd dumplings in tomato and onion curry

We are trying to add more vegetable to our 5 year old's diet. And he is such a picky eater. This is one recipe of bottle gourd which he eats happily. So I am sharing it on the blog.

A note about bottle gourd: It is a greenish vegetable (the peel is greenish), usually in the shape of a bottle. It has a white pulp and white seeds embedded in the spongy flesh. It is low in fat and cholesterol and high in dietary fibre. It is rich in iron and has vitamins C and B complex. For more nutritional information, visit www.tips4net/2008/11/health-benefits-of-bottle-gourd-lauki.html

Serving size: Serves 3 people
Can be served with Indian roti or naan.

For the dumplings:
1/2 medium sized bottle gourd grated finely
2 tablespoons on chickpea flour
Salt, garam masala and paprika to taste

Bottle gourd releases some of its own juices while grating. Adding the chickpea flour and the spices to the grated bitter gourd will make the mixture a semi-liquid paste, which can be made into dumplings and shallow fried in a pan with vegetable/ sun flower oil. (Add more chick-pea flour if the mixture seems too wet). The dumplings should be fried till they are golden-brown in colour.
1/2 medium sized bottle gourd should give you about 17-20 dumplings.

For the curry
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
2 medium sized tomatoes pureed
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp roasted cumin powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
Paprika and Salt to taste
1 tbsp whisked yogurt

Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan and fry the onions till they are golden brown. Add the tomatoes and the spices, and cook till the oil seems to be separating from the gravy. Add yogurt and cook for 2 more minutes. Then add 1 and a 1/2 cups of water and bring to boil. Add the dumplings to the gravy, and cook for 4-5 minutes on low heat.

Pav Bhaji

Pav Bhaji is a spicy medley of vegetables, eaten with dinner rolls/ buns. It is from the Western part of India, put now popular as a snack or even as a main course entree.

Serves 3
3 boiled potatoes
1 cup chopped onions
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/2 cup chopped bell peppers
1/2 cup peas
1 cup tomato puree (or 3 large tomatoes grated)
Pav Bhaji masala (you can buy this in any store)
Salt to taste
2 tablespoons cooking oil

For garnishing:
1/2 tablespoon Melted butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
Chopped cilantro
Juice of 1 and a 1/2 lemons

Heat oil in a wok, and add chopped onions. Saute till they are golden brown, and then add the ginger. All the finely chopped bell peppers, carrots and peas, and cover and cook for 10 minutes, or till they are tender. Mash the boiled potatoes, and add to the wok. Add the tomato puree, 2 teaspoons of pav bhaji masala and salt to taste. If you want the medley to be more spicy, you can add another teaspoon of the Pav Bhaji masala. Cover and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, till all the vegetables are mixed and a little like a paste.

Remove from the wok, and garnish with chopped onions, cilantro, lemon juice and melted butter.

Serve with toasted and buttered buns (pav).

Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

So now that we have all the baking ingredients readily available, I decided to try out Chocolate Chip Cupcakes for breakfast. This recipe is from Martha Stewart Living, and needless to say, we worked around the instructions. But the results were soft and delicious, great recipe!


Serves : 6 cupcakes
1/2 cup enriched flour
1/4 spoon baking powder
A pinch of salt
1/4 cup softened butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 spoon vanilla extract
Almost 1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1 Large egg
Chocolate frosting (if you want it)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the muffin tin with paper liners

Beat the sugar and butter at low, so they mix. Add milk and vanilla extract, and beat a little more. Add the egg, and beat at medium for 1 minute, or till it looks a little frothy

Mix together the enriched flour and baking powder. Then add to the batter, and fold together. Add the chocolate chips and fold it into the batter.

Bake at 350 for 22-24 minutes. Check with tester, it should come out clean.