Matar Paneer Methi Maar ke !

Winter vegetables give me childhood nostalgia. The crispy Mooli paranthas, aromatic Methi malai, tender Gobhi aloo. Of course now these vegetables are perennial in Bangalore, but their aroma still give me the winter warmth.

Dad gifted me these uber cool storage bags which keep the leaves and fruits fresh for days together! So I wanted to use this Methi for as long as I could.

As my dear friend T was coming home for lunch and I made this!

The major components of the dish were ; home made malai paneer, green peas, methi (fenugreek) leaves.

Serves : 4 

Ingredients:

Onion - 2 big ones

Tomato - 3 big ones

Ginger garlic paste

Fresh/ Dried Methi (fenugreek) leaves

Dry Red Chillies

Set Curd - 3 heaped spoons

Green Peas - 1 cup full

Cottage cheese - 200 gms

Procedure

1. Saute onions till golden brown, add salt, chili powder, turmeric.

Add chopped methi leaves and tomatoes. Cover with a lid and cook til they turn orange-ish. 

 2. Take this off the flame. Use a blender and make this gravy into a coarse paste (this is purely optional).
Add set curd to this and mix to give a smooth creamy texture.

3. Add a little oil to the pressure pan. Temper some red chillies (for that lip-smacking red color) and add cottage cheese to this. Add green peas and the gravy made earlier. 

Close the lid and steam cook for 2 whistles. Your Matar Paneer Methi Maar ke is ready!

 Since I went all the way on the food festivities, I topped it with Ajwain (Carom seeds) puris! 

( A little fun with the dough meanwhile )

Droolicious!

Creamy Cottage Cheese Sunrise

So this one's a delicacy according to me, for my veg friends. :)
Creamy Cottage Cheese Sunrise.

Why did I name it that.. you'll know soon!

Ingredients:
Onion, Tomatoes, Garlic Pods, Ginger
Cottage Cheese  ( Paneer)
Corn kernels & Green Peas ( Frozen ones available in market)
Milk / Fresh Cream
Corn Flour; Mix about two table spoons of cornflour in few spoons of water.
Salt, pepper, chilli to taste
Pasta Seasoning / Oregano
Oil / Butter for seasoning
Cheese for Garnish.

Procedure:


1. Grind ginger-garlic in fine paste. Chop onions and tomatoes in fine cubes.
2. Saute the garlic, ginger and onion in some oil / butter.




3. After the onion turn golden brown, add tomatoes.

Cover this and cook until the tomatoes are cooked completely. You might want to mash this mixture into a fine paste or use a hand blender.

4. Add Salt, Chilli & Pepper to this. Add the corn and peas to this mixture.




5. Add milk on top. Pour the cornflour mix in this, stir and cover the lid and cook well till the peas and corn are soft. In few minutes this sauce will have a smooth thick texture and a beautiful creamy orange 'sunrise' shade. Hence, the name. :)






6. Saute paneer ( Cottage cheese) in some butter. Add salt, pepper and oregano seasoning to this. Remove as soon as the paneer is soft.

7. Spread the paneer on a flat dish. Pour the red sauce that you've prepared on top of this.

8. Garnish with Cheese. Go on, be a little generous ;)

9. Place this dish into a preheated oven for about 10 mins at 180 degrees.




Tada! Tell me if this doesn't get people kissing your hands in sheer joy!