Spanakopita (Greek Spinach Pie)

Tags

Baked Foods, Blogging Marathon, Greek dishes, side dishes

Spanakopita is a famous Greek Pie. It’s flaky on the top with a delicious spinach, feta cheese filling. Pastry sheet gives a nice crispness to the dish. This can be served as a side dish with meat or a main dish with some salad.

I called a friend when I chose to do Greek dishes as she always made her family Greek dishes for potlucks. She shared me this delicious recipe.

Simply replace egg with flax meal to make this a vegetarian dish. (1 tablespoon flax meal and 3tablespoons water for each egg)

Sending this recipe to our BM #109, week 3 day 2 under Countries by Alphabet where I’m doing Greek dishes.

Preparation Time: 2o minutes

Cook Time : 1 hour

Makes : 6 pieces

Ingredients:

For the Crust:

Puff Pastry sheet : 1 package thawed

Extra virgin Olive oil : 1/2 cup

For Filling:

Baby Spinach : 2 cups

Parsley : 1 cup finely chopped

Onion : 1 large finely chopped

Garlic : 2 cloves minced

Extra virgin olive oil : 1 tablespoon

Eggs : 3

Feta Cheese: 1 1/4 cups crumbled

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, add all the ingredients listed under for filling and mix well to combine.

Unroll the pastry sheet, roll it a little. Line a baking pan with parchment paper and place the pastry sheet in the pan, apply olive oil generously, evenly spread the filling over the sheet. fold rest of the sheet and cover the filling.

Gently press the sheet to close the edges. Bake for 1 hour or until the crust is golden. Let it rest for 5 minutes before cutting.

Serve immediately. The left overs can be refrigerated for 2-3 days.

 

 

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#109

Paneer Tikka

Tags

paneer, side dishes, Starters

Paneer Tikka is a famous veg appetizer. Paneer and veggies are marinated, put on skewers and grilled in a tandoor (a traditional clay oven). Here we are going to make the tikka stove top. It can be made in the convection oven too.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time : 15 minutes

Serves : 3-4

Ingredients :

Paneer : 2 cups cubed

Onion : 1 large cut in 1 inch cubes

Peppers (Green, red and yellow): 2 cups cut into 1 inch cubes

For Marinade:

Peanut oil : 2 tablespoons

Ginger garlic paste : 2 teaspoons

Yogurt : 1/2 cup

Red chilli powder : 2 teaspoons

Coriander powder : 1 tablespoon

Amchur/dry mango powder : 1/2 teaspoon

Garam Masala : 1/2 teaspoon

Kasuri methi : 1/2 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Method:

Add all ingredients listed under for marinade and mix well.

Add paneer, onion, peppers and toss well to coat. Let it sit for 15-30 minutes.

Heat oil in a pan, spread the paneer and veggies single layer and cook for 3 minutes each side until completely cooked.

You can put the marinated pieces on skewers and cook on all sides too.

Squeeze some lemon juice and serve immediately.

 

 

 

 

 

 

D – Deviled Eggs

Tags

30 minutes or less, Blogging Marathon, side dishes

Deviled eggs are also known as stuffed eggs. Hard boiled eggs are shelled, cut in half and filled with a stuffing made with the egg yolks. They are served cold as a side dish, appetizer or even main course. It’s a popular dish in Europe and North America.

The original stuffing is made with mayonnaise and mustard but I added hot sauce instead of mustard to give a nice kick to the dish and family loved it.

Made this dish as part of our A to Z series where I’m doing 30 minutes or less meals. Today is letter D. BM#109, week 2 day 1.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Serves : 4

Ingredients:

Eggs : 4

Mayonnaise : 1 tablespoon

Red hot sauce: 1 teaspoon

Salt : 1/4 teaspoon

Red chilli powder : to garnish

Method:

Boil the eggs, let them cool a little and shell them and cut in half. take the yolks into a bowl.

Add mayonnaise, salt, hot sauce and mix well. Put the mixture into a ziplock bag, cut the corner and squeeze the mixture into the egg whites.

Garnish with red chilli powder and serve. Eggs can be refrigerated for a day before serving too.

 

 

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#109

Sautéed peppers and cauliflower

Tags

30 minutes or less, side dishes

These simple sautéed peppers and cauliflower is a flavourful dish that goes well with any meal as a side dish. Any vegetable can be used as per your choice using the same spice blend. I served it with some sautéed fish but tofu or pasta works well too.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Serves : 2

Ingredients:

Red bell pepper : 1 large diced

Yellow bell pepper : 1 large diced

Cauliflower florets: 2 cups

Seasoning:

Red chilli flakes: 1 teaspoon

Dried Oregano : 1/2 teaspoon

Dried sage : 1/2 teaspoon

Ground black pepper : 1/4 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Method:

Blanch cauliflower florets in boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain water and keep aside.

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, add diced peppers, blanched cauliflower florets and sauté for 3 minutes.

Add the ingredients listed under seasoning, stir and sauté for 3 minutes or until the veggies are little soft but still crunchy.

Turn off the stove and serve immediately.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bendakaya/Okra Pakodi

Tags

Andhra Recipes, side dishes, Veg Curries

Bendakaya/okra pakodi is a simple to make side dish that goes well rice and rasam or sambar. The pakodi is spicy and crispy. Kids actually ate it as a starter once and loved it.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time : 20 minutes

Serves : 3-4

Ingredients:

Bendakaya : 250 grams chopped

Besan/gram flour : 1/2 cup

Rice flour : 1/4 cup

Ginger garlic paste : 1 teaspoon

Turmeric : 1/4 tespoon

Red chilli powder : 1 1/2 teaspoons

Coriander powder : 1 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Water : 1/4 cup

Method:

Take all the ingredients except water in a medium bowl and mix well. Now, add water and mix well so the spices are nicely coated to the okra.

Heat oil for deep frying and fry the coated okra in batches.

Serve hot with rice and rasam/sambar or as is.

 

 

 

Buttermilk Biscuits

Tags

Baked Foods, Blogging Marathon, Breakfast dishes, eggless, side dishes

These buttermilk biscuits are soft, buttery and flaky. Serve them with some jam, honey or any other topping of your choice. This biscuit dough works well as a topping for pot pies.

I always used to buy the refrigerated dough for biscuits when I lived in US, but I couldn’t find that in India. So, I tried several recipes to make them but not every one suited the kids taste buds. After so many alterations, I was able to get a recipe that they loved. My friends loved these flaky biscuits too.

Couple tips to get perfect tips is you should be working with cold butter and buttermilk. Do not over mix. Only use hands to make the dough. The faster you work, the better the texture of the biscuits will be. As, this helps the butter not to melt (especially during hot weather).

Sending this recipe to our annual baking event bake-a-thon 2019.

Preparation Time: 8 minutes

Bake Time: 15 minutes

Makes : 12 biscuits

Ingredients:

All purpose flour : 2 cups

Baking powder : 1 tablespoon

Baking soda : 1/4 teaspoon

Salt : 1 teaspoon

Sugar : 1 tablespoon

Unsalted Butter : 6 tablespoons cold diced

Buttermilk : 3/4 cup cold

Method :

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Line a cookie tray with parchment paper and keep aside.

In a large bowl, add all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar and butter. Gently mix everything to make a crumble where butter is still pea sized.

Add buttermilk and fold everything gently. Take the mixture onto floured surface and pat to 1/2 inch thickness. Fold it twice and pat to 1/2 inch thickness again.

Now cut the dough with a cookie cutter and place them on the lined cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.

Once the biscuits are out of the oven, brush them with melted butter. Serve hot with any topping of your choice.

 

 

 

 

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Sauteed Sweet Potatoes

Tags

side dishes

These Sauteed Sweet Potatoes are flavourful, crunchy and a healthy alternative to the traditional French fries or sweet potato fries. They make a yummy side dish for any meal. I served this as one of the side dishes for Thanksgiving and also as a side dish with burgers and kids loved it.

Just add a little butter before serving for more richer and yummy potatoes. But, not necessary though.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time : 15 minutes

Serves : 4-5

Ingredients:

Sweet Potatoes or yams : 3

Garlic Powder: 1/2 teaspoon

Ginger powder : 1/2 teaspoon

Curry powder : 1/2 teaspoon

Ground black pepper : 1/4 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Olive oil : 2 teaspoons

Method:

Wash and slice the sweet potatoes into 1/2 inch thick rounds. If the sweet potatoes are really big, cut the round into 2 or 4 pieces as needed.

Heat olive oil in a frying pan and lay the potatoes without crowding the pan.

Mix all the spices in a bowl and sprinkle it over the potatoes.

Cook the potatoes for about 2-3 minutes, turn them, sprinkle spices and cook for another 2-3 minutes until the potatoes are soft in the middle and crunchy on the out.

Turn off the stove and serve hot as a side dish.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Caramelized Apples

Tags

Blogging Marathon, desserts, side dishes

It’s week 3 day 3 of our blogging marathon 105. I picked Pennsylvania Dutch side dishes under pick one country and one category theme.

Pennsylvania Dutch style Caramelized Apples are super easy to make with just 3 ingredients. Cooking apples or any apple that is not on the sweeter side are used for this dish. Even though the dish is made with apples and brown sugar, it’s not their dessert. The dish traditionally is served as a side with their main meal.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time : 10 minutes

Serves : 2

Ingredients:

Cooking Apples: 3

Butter : 2 tablespoons

Brown Sugar : 2 tablespoons

Method:

Wash, core and cut the apples as shown in the picture.

Heat butter in a pan, place the apple pieces skin side down, add brown sugar and 1/4 cup of water, Don’t stir now, just close the lid and cook for 7-8 minutes or until the apples are soft and sugar is melted.

Take the lid off and gently stir so the caramel is coated on all sides of the apple pieces. Cook for 2 more minutes and turn off the stove.

Serve hot with any meal.

Note: These apples taste delicious so you can serve the hot caramelised apples with a scoop of ice cream as a dessert.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sour Green Beans

Tags

Blogging Marathon, side dishes

It’s week 3 day 2 of our Blogging Marathon 105. Under pick one country and one category, I picked Pennsylvania Dutch side dishes.

Green beans is cultivated on a large scale by the locals in the area. We can say corn is number one and green beans comes next. So, they use lots of green beans in their daily cooking.

This Sour green beans is actually a sweet and sour dish that tastes delicious. Even kids will enjoy the flavours. I tasted these beans in a restaurant but could get the recipe from a Woman’s Day cook book that was published in 1966. A dear friend of mine gifted me these books.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Serves : 6-8

Ingredients:

Cooked Green beans : 4 cups cut into 1 inch pieces

Cider Vinegar : 1/3 cup

Water : 1/3 cup

Packed Light brown sugar : 1/3 cup

Salt : 1/2 teaspoon

Ground Pepper : 1/2 teaspoon

Method:

Drain the cooked beans.

Add the rest of the ingredients in a pan and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add beans and mix well. Bring it to a boil and turn off the stove.

Serve immediately with any main dish.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stewed Potatoes

Tags

Blogging Marathon, side dishes

This week which is week 3 of BM#105, the them I picked is One country one category. We have the luxury to choose any country and category of our choice. I picked US and Pennsylvania Dutch side dishes.

I lived in Pennsylvania for 17 years and that too close to the Lancaster county where most of the Amish people lived. I was always taken by their lifestyle and humble attitude. Most Pennsylvania Dutch emigrated in the 17th and 18th centuries to America. They spoke Palantine German, over time, the various dialects spoken by these immigrants fused into a unique of German known as Pennsylvania Dutch. Their lifestyle is very much connected to their roots for example using a horse buggy, sticking their own clothes, farming etc..

Their food is made with simple ingredients like veggies, dairy products and meat which they cultivate and raise. Food is very rich as a lot of butter and shortening is used. So, lets explore a couple dishes this week. I got these recipes from a couple local friends.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cook time : 20 minutes

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:

Onion: 1 medium sliced

Butter or Margarine: 2 tablespoons

Potato : 2 cups diced

Pepper : 1 1/2 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Boiling water : 1 1/2 cups

All purpose flour : 2 teaspoons

Method:

Heat a pan and add butter to it. Add the sliced onions and sauce them for 3 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients except flour, bring it to a boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

Thicken the stew with the flour mixed with a little cold water. Add more salt and pepper if needed and mix well.

Serve hot as a side dish with any meal.