Category Archives: Healthy foods

May15

Pulled Jackfruit Taco with Sugarcane tortilla

Posted on May 15, 2018 by Anagha

As you know I love cooking with what’s in season, go visit the local markets, pick up some produce, get some inspiration, bring it back to the kitchen and make something fun. This time when I visited India in Summer, although it was ultra blistering hot, I mean we are talking 108F and 90F at night, it did not stop me from going to the market.

I picked up some raw jackfruit, mangoes from the market and on the way home stopped off to grab a drink of fresh sugar cane juice. As I was driving home, I started thinking about my summer vacations growing up.

It used to be super hot where I grew up, but we still enjoyed our afternoons. A everlasting game of monopoly, carom board, playing cards and endless conversations were so much fun. Every summer we also visited my Nani (maternal grandma). She lived in Mumbai and the train ride to her place used to be another event we looked forward to every summer.

My Mom is a great cook and an amazing planner. So she would pack perfect food for all our train journeys. One of the dishes was this roti/poli/tortilla made from sugar cane juice, called ‘Rasachi Dashmi’. It not only tasted awesome but was perfect for the train journey as it stayed good without any refrigeration and tasted great cold.

My nani would always have alphonso mangoes waiting for us along with other things from konkan and she would make the best Poli in the world. We would devour the mangoes with poli and ghee.

Kokam, Tadgola and so much more. Fragrant yellow jackfruit would fill the air. I will share more recipes using the ripe or yellow jackfruit soon.

One of those things was raw/green jackfruit. She would make the best bhaji with it, with lots of red chilies and tender cashews.

My nani is no more, but her memories I cherish through various foods. My kids are not so lucky to just hop on a train and visit their Nani, my Mom. The 10K miles is a long distance to cover. But we always take family trips in vacations, sometimes local, sometimes even staycations but always make time for family.

I know how important it is to spend time and make memories. We are all big time foodies so more often than not the destinations are picked based on the variety of food we get to eat. We love to explore local cuisines and produce, always a local market visit is included in the vacation plan.

One of the favorite destinations is Mexico, I just love Mexico. Its nice and warm, people are very friendly, I can speak the language and most of all, amazing food. I can visit Mexico many times and nto get tired.

Mexican food is probably my second most favorite food after Indian food. Whenever we visit Mexico, II make sure we go to the local markets and try some amazing dishes. Last time we visited this restaurant in Maztlan, El Precidio and everything there was incredible.

I love Mexican food as it highlights seasonal produce, perfect balance of spice, sweet, savory and just satisfying meal. I love the use chilies in many ways, I love how they use traditional cooking methods to get some complex flavors in dishes like Mole.

One of the most commonly known Mexican foods is Tacos. Simple yet flavorful, incredibly versatile.

Today’s dish is inspired by the summer vacations, both mine and my kids’s and its tribute to the local produce.

Pulled Jackfruit Taco with Sugarcane juice tortilla

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I would love to know about your summer memories and foods. Please share in comments.

Chicken tikka vietnamese Spring Rolls

Posted on August 5, 2015 by Anagha

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When I have an idea in mind, I can not rest easy until I execute on it. One such idea was variations on the Vietnamese Spring rolls. I wanted to try making an Indian version, I thought it would go really well with the concept.But before we talk about that recipe, let me tell you my first encounter with these spring rolls.

The first time I ate these spring rolls when I was pregnant with my first child. I had a terrible time with the morning sickness and could not keep anything down. Around that time we were invited to my husband’s colleagues wedding reception. The bride and groom both were of Vietnamese origin and so at the celebrations the food served was Vietnamese.

Forget eating and enjoying, I could not even stand the smell of most of those things. It had a lot of fish sauce,and all kinds of meat. Everyone tried to see what I can eat, offered so many things but nothing felt right at that time. Then someone got these interesting looking things that they called ‘Spring rolls’. They were nothing like the ones I knew from back in India. They did not look fried and almost looked transparent. I loved those..I loved the fresh basil and mint and the crunchy bean sprouts… it was perfect.

I have been making these for a while now and love making variations.

Today’s variation has a Indian touch. The meat used is the pickled chicken, I think it compliments the fresh mint and cilantro.

This recipe for the Achari chicken is a perfect addition to the fresh ingredients of the spring roll. You can also use chicken tikka or any other nicely seasoned meat. I have made this with marinated Tofu/Paneer to make the vegetarian/vegan version. It tastes just as well.

Achari chicken spring roll

Ingredients:

Chicken:

3/4 lb boneless Chicken ( for vegetarian option use Tofu/Paneer)
2 ½ tablespoons Achari Masala
1/4 lb Hung Yogurt (this is basically yogurt hung in a cheese cloth)
1 tablespoon refined flour
2 tablespoons Mustard Oil

Other ingredients

Bean Sprouts
Few green lettuce leaves
Thin rice noodles, cooked according to the packet
Julienned carrot
Few mint leaves
Few cilantro leaves
Few Rice paper sheets

Method:

Heat Mustard Oil in a 10 inch nonstick pan until it smokes.
Add Achari Masala to the pan. Cook the spice mix for 20 seconds, then remove from heat. Let cool for 10 minutes.
In a glass bowl, mix yogurt and cooked spices well. Make sure to include the oil.
Cut cubes of chicken & marinate it with the pickled curd marinade for minimum 60 mins.

Now cook the chicken on medium flame, add refined flour and cook for 8-10 mins. Once cooked evenly, keep it aside.

Assembly

Dip the rice paper in cold water for 5 seconds. Take it out and shake off the excess water. Make sure you use cold water and also don’s leave the rice paper in the water for too long. Although when you take it out, it might still feel stiff but it does soften up.

Lay the wet rice paper flat on a board. Layer all the ingredients. In works the best to start with a piece of lettuce, this helps provide a base and stability to the roll. Now continue with the rice noodles, Chicken, sprouts, carrots, cilantro, mint.

Now roll like a burrito making sure that no vegetables are poking out. We want our spring roll to look pretty.

Make sure that you keep these covered so they don’t dry out.

Cut in half and serve. Depending on the flavor of the chicken you can pair with the right sauce. For example when I make it with an indian flavored chicken, I serve it with a Tamarind-date chutney.

Aug3

Roasted Cauliflower salad with lentils & dates

Posted on August 3, 2015 by Anagha

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Many times we just keep getting different magazines and don’t even bother reading it. I get a couple of food magazines, I scanned through, plan to make a couple of recipes but very rarely get to it. It was different this time. When I got this issue of Food and Wine, I was in love with this recipe. I had to make it. So a friend of mine was coming over for lunch and I decided to try this recipe on her. She is not a hard-core vegan but prefers not having dairy products. This recipe was perfect. I made a few changes and the result was great. I like making this since it does not need me to stand over the stove and cook forever. Especially when my friends are visiting I like to make meals that are easy to make so I can spend more time with my friends.

Ingredients

1/2 cup raw almonds
1 cup beluga or green lentils, rinsed
1 head of cauliflower, cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch florets
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of cayenne
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons tahini
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey
10 dates, pitted and chopped
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
2 cups loosely packed spinach
2 cups loosely packed arugula

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 350°. Spread the almonds in a pie plate and toast for 3 to 4 minutes, until golden. Let cool, then coarsely chop. Increase the oven temperature to 425°.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine the lentils with 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat until tender, 20 minutes. Drain well and let cool. These lentils are called Beluga lentils since they resemble the ‘beluga caviar’. 🙂 On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss the cauliflower with the 1/4 cup of olive oil and the cumin, cinnamon, ginger and cayenne; season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes, turning, until the cauliflower is tender and golden brown. I must warn you this cauliflower is addictive. I always make one extra since I finish half of the roasted cauliflower before it makes it to the salad. 🙂

In a large bowl, whisk the tahini with the lemon juice, honey, the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of water until smooth. If you want to make it vegan, you can use Agave in place of the honey.

Very often found in the Lebanese cuisine, tahini is a power food. It is a fine paste made from sesame seeds which are rich in protein, calcium and minerals. Sesame seeds are used very commonly in the southern and western regions of India. It has a beautiful nutty flavor. You can now mix in the lentil and cauliflower to the dressing if you want or you can leave the dressing on the side. Add the lentils and season with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Scrape the roasted cauliflower into the bowl and add the toasted almonds, dates, onion and spinach. Toss the salad, transfer to a platter and serve.

Cauliflower salad 2

Jul29

Grilled Harissa shrimps

Posted on July 29, 2015 by Anagha

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I love spicy food. When I go the farmers market, I am always looking for the spiciest chili. So in summer when we get the fresh red thai chili in the market, I make at least a couple of batches of Harissa. It can perk up any dish pretty quickly.

I like to make these shrimps using Harissa, the dish comes together very quickly and can be served as a main dish or a salad.

Shrimps don’t need a lot of marination so this dish can be made in 20 minutes.

Although Harissa is Tunisian I feel that the Mediterranean flavors compliment it well. So I decide to bring those along.I also brought in some more Mediterranean flavors with a quick salad. I took some yellow and Red cherry tomatoes, chopped Persian cucumbers and mix them with fresh chopped mint and topped with feta cheese.

Here is the recipe.

Ingredients

20 large shrimps
1 large clove of garlic crushed
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
1 tbsp Harissa
1 tbsp oil

Method

Mix all the ingredients except to form a paste. Now add shrimps and mix well. Make sure all the shrimps are coated evenly with the paste.

Let them marinate for 20 mins or so.

Pomegranate molasses not only provides the sweetness to balance the heat from Harissa but also add a tangy flavor & color to the shrimps.

Grill on a grill plate or bbq. Brush the shrimps with some oil of needed to prevent them from sticking to the grill.

I like to thread some tomatoes or large zucchini pieces along with the shrimps, I feel it adds a Pop of color and texture.

You can serve the shrimps as a side with brown rice and some grilled fruit. Today I grilled some nectarines, the sweetness of the grilled fruit complimented the spice of harissa.

You can mix them with a lot of chopped herbs like basil and cilantro and serve as an appetizer. I love making this version in summer when the herbs are in abundance in the market.

I use Harissa in many dishes, like Pumpkin Shrimp curry, or Cheddar Muffins. Enjoy!

Jul27

Simple Buttermilk Spinach curry

Posted on July 27, 2015 by Anagha

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As you learn more and more about Indian cuisine, you will notice that not only every region has its own cuisine and delicacies but also different food is made at different occasions.t is believed that different food bring in different qualities to your body and mind.For e.g. whenever there is a religious occasion, typically food is cooked without onion and garlic.

Yesterday was one such special day, it is believed that Lord Vishnu the creator goes to sleep on this day. A lot of Indians keep a fast on this day.

Today I decided to make a meal which had no onion or garlic. My kids love Indian food, so decided to make their favorites.

This particular curry is very typical of a brahmin household. In brahmin cuisine, you will see heavy usage of milk products along with ginger and Cumin. This recipe can be made with any of the greens except Fenugreek, I feel that it tastes way too bitter.

Ingredients

2 cups of cleaned washed and chopped Spinach leaves

1/4 cup raw peanuts

2 tbsp Chana daal

1 cup Buttermilk ( If you don’t have buttermilk you can use Yogurt blended with some water)

2 tsp Besan ( Chick pea flour)

1 green chili, split in two pieces

1 clove of Garlic ( optional)

1 pinch of Asafoetida

1/2 tsp Jeera ( Cumin Seeds)

1 pinch of Sugar

Salt to taste

Oil or Ghee for tempering

Method

Soak the peanuts and Chana daal in water for 30-40 mins. Add some salt and set aside.

In a pressure cooker add some water. In a steel pot add the chopped spinach with 2 tbsp of water and the bowl with soaked peanuts and daal.

Pressure cook for 2 whistles.

When the cooker is cooled down, take out the spinach and mash with a ladle or your hand.

Mix in the cooked Peanuts and Chana Daal.

In a separate bowl, mix the buttermilk with the chickpea flour, sugar and salt. Make sure there are no lumps of chickpea flour. Add water if needed to make a mixture that is like a thin smoothie.

Add this mixture to the spinach mixture.
Now you can make it two ways. You can make Tadka ( tempering) in a pot and add the spinach mixture and cook. Or, cook the spinach mixture and then temper it later. Both work great.

First method:

Heat oil or ghee in a sauce pan. When the oil is hot, add the cumin seeds and saute for 10 sec. Add green chilies, and chopped garlic( if using). If you add garlic, leave out the Asafoetida.

Saute till the Garlic is a little browned.

Add the Spinach mixture and cook on a really low flame, stirring frequently. Cooking on a low flame ensure that the buttermilk does not curdle and allows the Chickpea flour to cook completely.

Here is the second method:

Cook the spinach mixture in a pot.

Make the tempering in a ladle. I use the iron one. I love it since it has a long handle and does not get hot, and it helps me get some extra iron in my diet.

Add the tempering ( oil mixture) to the cooked Spinach mixture

Add chopped cilantro and serve.

If you want to serve it with rice, you can make it a bit thinner. If you want to serve it with Roti/bread, you can make it a bit thicker.

I love eating it even on its own. It tastes great hot or cold.

Tonight I served it with whole wheat roti( Indian bread), sautéd Tondli and home made cultured butter.

Jul20

Indian Pickled chicken in lettuce cups

Posted on July 20, 2015 by Anagha

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My first take on Saransh Goila’s recipe, ‘Achari Tikka Bread cones’ turned out yummy, everyone loved it. I made it for dinner and paired it with a soup and it was a hit. That night I had my friend over for dinner and he is sort of doing a Paleo diet, so I decided to make a variation for him that was not as carb heavy.

This has all the flavor of the original minus the bread. I kept the croutons on the side so he could add a few if he wanted. I loved how pretty it looked. I also made a vegetarian version with ‘Paneer’ for a vegetarian friend and that turned out yummy as well.

Achari Chicken lettuce cup with garlic crouton

Ingredients:
3/4 lb Boneless Chicken
2 ½ tablespoons Achari Masala ( I used ready made Indian pickle masala)
100 grams Hung Curd
1 tablespoon refined flour
2 tablespoons Mustard Oil
2 Thick bread slices, cubed
2 tbsp butter melted
1 clove of garlic crushed

Chopped carrots, cilantro, green bell pepper

Bean sprouts
Endive leaves separated

Method:

Chicken:

Heat Mustard Oil to a smoking point & then add Achari Masala to it. Cook the spice mix nicely. Take it off heat, let it cool down for 10 minutes.

Add this spice mix into hung curd. Mix nicely.

Cut cubes of chicken & marinade it with the pickled curd marinade for minimum 60 mins.

Now cook the chicken on medium flame, add refined flour and cook for 8-10 mins. Once cooked evenly, keep it aside.

Croutons

Preheat the oven at 325 F

Toast the bread cubes in the oven till they are crisp.
Take them out and pour the garlic butter and toss them well. Bake them again for 5-6 mins to get them golden brown.

Mix with chicken with the croutons, chopped carrot, sprouts, and cilantro.

Now, take the endive leaves and fill them up with the mixture. And serve.

Achari Chicken lettuce cup with garlic crouton

Jul16

Achari Chicken Tikka cones

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Anagha

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Chicken pickled with Indian spices is used as a prime ingredient in making an Open Canape.

You read in my previous post that there was a challenge/ healthy competition on a facebook group, where a very famous chef Saransh Goila has shared some of his amazing recipes, and the members of the group are trying to recreate those. The second recipe was Achari Chicken Tikka Canape.

I thought it was genius..I love the pickle flavor and to combine that with a crispy buttery toast, and topped with crunchy sprouts. I could totally see myself making this quite often as an appetizer in summer.

Back to the competition, we were supposed to follow the recipe but it was ok to put a twist on it. So I decided to make it three ways. The chicken was the same, but I varied the bread used and also presented it in three different ways.

Variation 1- Bread Cones

Achari Chicken in garlic bread cone

Ingredients

300 grams Chicken
2 ½ tablespoons Achari Masala ( I used a ready made masala)
100 grams Hung Curd
20 grams Bean Sprouts
1/4 cup shredded cabbage
1 tablespoon refined flour
2 tablespoons Mustard Oil

1 can of crescent roll dough

1 tsp soft butter mixed with some crushed garlic

few thick papers

Few aluminium foil

Method:

Chicken:

Heat Mustard Oil to a smoking point & then add Achari Masala to it. Cook the spice mix nicely. Take it off heat, let it cool down for 10 minutes.

Add this spice mix into hung curd. Mix nicely.

Cut cubes of chicken & marinade it with the pickled curd marinade for minimum 60 mins.

Now cook the chicken on medium flame, add refined flour and cook for 8-10 mins. Once cooked evenly, keep it aside.

Mix with shredded cabbage and set aside.

Bread cone

While the chicken is marinating, you can start the preparation for the bread cones.

Preheat the oven at 350 F.

Make a cone with a thick paper and cover it entirely with an aluminum foil.

Spray with a cooking spray.

Take the crescent roll dough out and cut in 1 inch strip. Wrap around the aluminum cone. Bake for 9-10 mins.

The cones won’t be completely baked, take them out of the oven and take out the foil cone.

Now brush them inside and out with garlic butter and sprinkle with panch phoran.

Bake for a few more minutes.

Fill up with the chicken mixture and top with some sprouts.

Achari Chicken in garlic bread cone

Ingredients:
300 grams Chicken
2 ½ tablespoons Achari Masala
100 grams Hung Curd
20 grams Bean Sprouts
1 pcs. Iceberg Lettuce
50 grams Butter
30 grams Peeled Garlic
6 pcs. Bread buns
1 tablespoon refined flour
2 tablespoons Mustard Oil

Method:
Heat Mustard Oil to a smoking point & then add Achari Masala to it. Cook the spice mix nicely. Take it off heat, let it cool down for 10 minutes.

Add this spice mix into hung curd. Mix nicely.

Cut cubes of chicken & marinade it with the pickled curd marinade for minimum 60 mins.

Shred the lettuce & store it in chilled water.

Now cook the chicken on medium flame, add refined flour and cook for 8-10 mins. Once cooked evenly, keep it aside.

Add chopped garlic to softened butter. Now spread this butter on half sliced buns.

Toast these buns on a non stick pan or in the oven.

Assemble the canapé – Take the toasted bread. Place lettuce leaves on it. Add the pickled Chicken on the top.

Garnish with sprouts & serve.

Jun30

Strawberry fruit roll up with a kiss of spice

Posted on June 30, 2015 by Anagha

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There is something special about the fruits in season. Although you get strawberries pretty much throughout the year in the supermarket, the ones you get in the Farmers market right in middle of june are just out of this world. Super sweet, juicy and red to the core, they are perfect to make many dishes. I always make Strawberry preserve and of course strawberry ice-cream & milkshake. I also dehydrate the strawberries for a later use.

Yesterday when I went to market I got a large flat of berries, when I got home I realized that they had to be eaten today. Since that was practically impossible, I decided to try something fun, decided to make a fruit leather with half of the berries.

Whenever we talk about Fruit leather, I think of the summers in India. I fondly remember my mom making fruit leather with jackfruit and mango pulp. She would make the pulp and pour in the steel plates. Those plates would go out on the terrace and in the 90-110 F , the fruit leather would be ready in a day or two. Many times before my mom could bring the dried fruit leather inside, we would already picked a few pieces, it was just too hard to resist.

Today I decided to make the fruit leather but as many other dishes I decided to add a little spice to it. One of the favorite things I recall from summers growing up is the ‘Kokum’ drink. Kokum is a fruit, very tart in taste, very pretty color and had amazing medicinal properties. It is known to aid in weight loss and also has a cooling effect on the body.

When my Mom makes a sherbet/drink with Kokum, she always add a pinch of roasted cumin and some rock salt. The Kokum color is a pretty pink, just like the strawberries so I decided to bring in those flavors in my fruit leather.

Ingredients

1 lb of ripe strawberries

1-2 tbsp of sugar

1/2 tsp lime juice

1/4 tsp rock salt/black salt

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Method

Grind the strawberries in a blender, add sugar & lime juice and grind again. Now stir in all the dry ingredients.

If you have dehydrator you can use that or just go with good old sun dried method.

Depending on the method you are using and the thickness of the leather, it will be ready in 6-24 hours.

Now lay the dried leather on a parchment paper. Cut in strips 2-3 inch wide and roll it up. Your Strawberry fruit leather is ready to enjoy.

Jun29

Veggies on the barbecue

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Anagha

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Stuffed peppers

I love making this pepper, they are so colorful and appetizing. They are almost sweet in taste and pair well with spicy fillings. They are perfect bite size, you can just pick it up with the stem and pop it in your mouth. I try to make a couple of varieties, one with the vegetarian filling and the other with some meat.

Take 1: Vegetarian

Ingredients

2 potatoes boiled and mashed

1/4 red onion finely chopped

1/2 tbsp chopped mint

1 tbsp chopped cilantro

1 serrano pepper finely chopped

1/2 tsp Saunf, roasted

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

1/4 tsp Coriander seeds

1/2 tsp Black salt

1/2 cup grated paneer

1 pinch of Kasoori Methi

Method

Take all the dry spices, roast lightly & pound it in a mortar & pestle. I feel grinding fresh spices make a huge difference in the taste of the dish.

Mix everything together.

Make slits in the pepper and fill it with the stuffing.

You can pan fry them but I think I like them the most when they are grilled. I have this pan that you can use on the grill, I love it. You get the flavors of the charcoal grill and can easily cook the peppers & flip them easily. I also use it to grill the fish, make Paneer Tikka.

http://www.worldmarket.com/product/nonstick+metal+grill+grid.do?&from=fn

Brush the peppers with some oil, and cook till you see some nice black spots.

Spiced Cauliflower

I am one of those people who love, love cauliflower. I make Cauliflower soup which is a perfect beginning for a winter meal. I can eat a whole head of cauliflower for a snack, roasted, steamed all of it. So I decided to try the cauliflower on the grill..my favorite way of cooking.

This is so simple to make but turned out really great.

Ingredients

1 head of Cauliflower broken into bite size pieces

Oil to cover all the pieces

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp Chili powder

1/2 tsp dry ginger powder

salt to taste

2 tbsp Chickpea flour ( Besan)

Method

Make sure all the pieces are of similar size, that way when you cook them, they will get cooked at the same time.

Mix the cauliflower pieces with oil, and toss it very well. You dont want to be stingy when it comes to oil, it is needed to make these pieces crispy. And most of it will burn off on the grill.

Mix in all the dry spices including salt.

Now add besan and mix well.

Cook it in a basket. I love this idea since it is easy to keep tossing as it is cooking.

Cook until crispy. Make sure you keep the heat medium, if it is too hot, the pieces will be burnt but not cooked through.

Marinated Vegetables

BBQ Basket

You can not go wrong with this recipe. The vegetables are so flavorful and the grill adds an additional layer of flavor. I use whatever I have on hand, though it always has some sort of peppers and mushroom. This time I used, red bell pepper and shishito peppers and some zucchini. I love adding large pieces of onions, they taste amazing when they are nicely caramelized on the grill.

Basically you make a vinaigrette and toss whatever you have on hand in it.

Ingredients

6 cups Mushrooms whole

2 cups Shishito peppers

1 red onion quartered and then separated into single layers

1 zucchini cut into bite size pieces

1 red bell pepper cut into large square

2 cloves of garlic crushed

1/3 cup olive oil

2-3 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar

Fresh crushed black pepper

salt

4 tbsp chopped fresh herbs like Parsley, mint, basil

Method

Mix all the ingredients except the vegetables in a large bowl, whisk it well. Toss in all the vegetables and keep aside for at least 2 hour.

Grill it in the basket, tossing to make sure it is grilled from all the side.

Grilled cherries

When I first read about it, I thought it was completely crazy but decided to give it a try. It is a painful process to pit the cherries but I think this recipe makes it worth it.

Ingredients

4 cups of pitted Cherries

1 tbsp Agave nectar

2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar

1 tbsp butter

Method

Layer the cherries on an aluminum foil on the grill tray on the grill. This will ensure that all the juices stay inside. Cook for 7-8 mins. While it is cooking mix the rest of ingredients.Pour over the cherries and cover the cherries to make a packet.

Cook for another 10-12 mins. Take the whole packet on a plate, open carefully. What you will see inside is a ooey gooey yummy fruity topping. 🙂

You can serve with vanilla ice cream..but I think it tastes the yummiest with ‘sweetened ricotta cheese’.

Jun27

Grilled trout with herbs

Posted on June 27, 2015 by Anagha

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I love summers especially since we can enjoy barbeque outside. There is something special about this time of the year when you get abundant vegetables and fresh herbs in the farmers market, all the produce is at its peak and taste great.

I love summers also because we can grill out side. You can just have meats and veggies ready and when everyone gathers, just throw them on the grill and you got yourself a meal. There are two camps when it comes to grill, the coal one and the non-coal one, we for sure belong to the first one. In my opinion nothing beats the taste of fresh corn on the cob just grilled to perfection on the coals. The chicken tikka with the smoky flavor of the coal tastes amazing. So as you can see we love grilling with coals.

So today we had a few friends over for BBQ. I had marinated a lot of veggies, made some stuffed pepper , there was fresh corn on the cob, some couscous, masala chicken and my son decided to make some fish.

When it comes to fish I am very picky, not because I want to be but because of the fact that I can only eat fresh water fish. I am ok with catfish, bass etc but can not eat salmon.

So when my son decided to make trout and that too whole fish, I was a little skeptical but decided to go along. He went and bought the trout from Whole Foods, and made it with very simple ingredients..but man it tasted so yummy. It was delicate yet flavorful.

Ingredients

4 whole fresh water trouts

few sprigs of dill

few leaves of sage

few sprigs of parsley

few taregon leaves

2 lemons sliced

salt & pepper

Olive oil

Method

With a sharp boning knife slice the fish horizontally.

Apply some olive oil both inside & outside.

Sprinkle with salt & pepper.

Layer the inside with some herbs and lemon slices.

Let it sit for 10-15 mins covered.

Brush the grill with olive oil. And place the fish gently on the grill.Cook for 3-4 mins on the first side and then a couple of minutes on the other side.

To serve

Take the main bone out, take the fins, head and tail off. Make into fillet and serve. My son did an amazing job of taking the main bone out and filleting the cooked fish.