Zaiqa

The secret to a juicy chicken is to marinate and let it brine well. Enjoy this sweet and spicy grilled chicken along with mango salsa or a cold pasta salad on a lazy weekend afternoon.

Ingredients:

• Chicken drumsticks/Chicken wings – 8 pieces
• Butter – 6 tbsp
• Soy sauce – 3 tbsp
• Honey – 2 tbsp
• Maggi Chilli Sauce – 2 tbsp
• Turmeric – 1 tsp
• Coriander powder – 1 tsp
• Vinegar – 1 tbsp
• Ginger-Garlic Paste – 3 tsp
• Crushed chili flakes – 1 tbsp
• Black pepper – 1/2 tsp
• BBQ Sauce- for basting

Method:

• If you are planning to grill your chicken indoors in your oven, take a roasting pan with higher walls and line it on the base with aluminium foil folded twice. And if you have an outdoor gas or charcoal grill its all the more better.
• Make small slit marks on the chicken drumsticks or chicken wings, whatever you plan to prepare for the day.
• Mix all the ingredients well and coat the chicken the chicken with it. Let it refrigerate for 3 hours preferably. Let the chicken come back to room temperature again just before when you begin to grill it.
• Pour all the contents of the marinate with the chicken in the roasting pan if using an indoor grill oven, or place the individual marinated chicken on the charcoal or gas grill and begin grilling it. Remember to keep the grill temperature on low heat so that the chicken cooks properly.
• Let it grill for an hour time, until it is thoroughly cooked. Keep turning and basting the drumsticks with any of your favourite BBQ sauce.
• Griil it until it is perfectly cooked, and make sure you do not burn it. You can test if it is nicely cooked by piercing it with a fork at the thickest portion of the drumstick. Once done, Serve it hot.

Luv,
Mona

This is one of my favourite salads I had got hold of sometime back. I actually found the recipe in one of the Sun-Maid recipe books and thought of sharing with you guys. There are a lot of proteins in a contrast of textures in this recipe. The raisins add a sweet, chewy accent to crisp apples, and almonds add crunch to the whole grain pasta. A hearty, all in one salad perfect for a summer lunch or dinner. Enjoy the Salad.

Raisin and Red Apple Chicken Pasta Salad

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

Whole wheat pasta – (any of your choice) 2 1/2 cups
Chicken breast – 2 cups, cooked and cubed
Raisins – 1 cup
Red Apple – 1, cored, cubed
Green Onions – 2, sliced
Mayonnaise – 1/3 cup
Honey – 2 tbsp
Dijon Mustard – 1 tbsp
Almonds – silvered and toasted, 1/4 cup

Method:

• Cook pasta as directed on box, drain and rince with cold water.
• Combine cooked pasta, chicken, raisins, apple and onions in a large bowl.
• Combine mayonnaise, honey, and mustard in a small bowl.
• Add to pasta and toss to coat. Serve immediately or refrigerate 1 hour or unto overnight to bleand flavours.
• Top with almonds just before serving.

Luv,
Mona

One of my addictions, this refreshing drink has and irresistible flavor, and works well as both a drink or a pudding.

Makes : 1 glass

Ingredients:

• Cappuccino/Coffee powder, which you like – 2 tsp
• Milk – 1/2 cup
• Granulated sugar – 2 tsp
• Chocolate Ice Cream – 2 scoops
• Vanilla Ice Cream – 2 scoops
• Broken Ice Cubes – 2 tbsp

Method:

• Add milk, cappuccino and sugar powder to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir it to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and let it cool down. Once cool, chill in the refrigerator for an hour.
• Pour the chilled milk coffee into a blender container, add the chocolate and vanilla ice cream and blend it until smooth and frothy.  Add broken ice-cubes and serve it chilled.

Enjoy this lovely cold refreshing drink.

Luv,
Mona

Jellies are translucent spreads made from strained fruit juice. I had learnt this process while studying Nutrition during my graduation in Hyderabad. We were taught to prepare few jams and jellies using local fruits and this jelly was one of them. Recreating it today in my kitchen brought back all those fun memories during that time of my life.

Banana Jelly

Jelly making a two-step process. First the juice is to be extracted, then strained. Then, the clear juice is cooked along with sugar and acid until the perfect jelly consistency is reached. Ripe bananas which have a naturally sweet taste are perfect for jelly preparation. Do prepare it and try at least once.

Banana Jelly

Ingredients:

Ripe Banana/Pake huwe Mauz – 6
Sugar – 2 cups
Lemon juice – 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Wash and peel the bananas. Cut them into small pieces.

2. Take a pressure cooker and add cut banana pieces into it. Add water just enough to cover the banana pieces and let it pressure cook for just a few minutes till the banana are very soft. Mash the banana mixture and sieve through a strainer so that no pulp fiber should come into the extract. Discard the residue.

3. Pour the obtained clear extract into a measuring glass, and add equal amounts of sugar to it. ( I adapted because the bananas that I used were very sweet. I added 2 cups of sugar for 2 1/2 cups of obtained clear extract)
4. Cook the extract again in a heavy bottom pan by stirring continuously till the consistency of a jelly is obtained. Make sure that you do not to over cook it, else it will crystallize and harden. Pour the jelly into sterilized glass jars and let it cool. Store in the refrigerator.

Tangy Chutneys and sauces go very well with fried bhajiya’s and crisp pakodas (Indian snacks) in cold weather when it is raining outside. You can also use this pungent chutney along with Indian chaats.

Store this sweet, sour and hot chutney in air-tight glass jars in the refrigerator. Use in within a month.

Imli Ki Chutney – Tamarind Sauce source

Imli Ki Chutney – Tamarind Sauce

Ingredients:

Tamarind – 250 gms
Jaggery/Gud – 300 gms (you can also use sugar instead)
Red Chilli Powder – 1 tsp
Cumin seed/Zeera powder – 1 tsp
Black salt/Kala Namak – a pinch

Method:

1. Soak the tamarind in a small bowl with warm/hot water just enoughg to cover ir for 1 hour. Then extract a thick pulp from the tamarind by pressing it down a sieve to remove all the fibres.
2. Take a heavy bottom pan and cook the pulp. Add sugar and keep stirring till it becomes thick. Add spices and salt and cook it 3 mins more Remove from heat. Pour into sterlised bottle and store upto 1 month in a refrigerator.

Luv,
Mona