Chocolate Chip Cookies - Crispy and Crunchy

You won't believe it when I say that I still say Biscuits for Cookies every once in a while :) Yes, the term that we used since childhood (BRI english) doesn't go away easily :) Now I have a kid who corrects me instantly so I am getting better by the day :) Here in USA, biscuits are buttery fluffy bread made with buttermilk, butter and flour.

My kid is my motivation when it comes to baking cookies of any kind. He loves all sorts of cookies- crunchy, chewy, soft, brittle, shortbread- just about any kind. He can live on Oreos for all I know. So yesterday before he went to sleep he tells me, "mom will you please bake me some yummy chocolate chip cookies tomorrow?" Now who can deny that sweet little request? Right?? And as a ritual I have to save a little dough for him to taste. :)

The aroma of freshly baked cookies have a way of melting your stress and giving your brain that instant dose of happiness! House smells fantastic. I have made C C C many times before using store bought packets. But in the past couple of years have been making it at home with fresh ingredients. So here is one such crispy and crunchy recipe of chocolate chip cookies. Just realised the title of my post has 5 C's :)

Let us take a look at the recipe of Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
• 3/4 cup fine sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 400F/200C. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Whisk the flour, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl.
• In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with a hand held mixer until light and fluffy, about 4 to 5 minutes. 
• Beat in the egg and then the vanilla. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, to make a soft dough. Fold in the chocolate chips.
• Either spoon a heaping tablespoon of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 3-inches apart or make a small balls of the dough and press gently to form a disc of 2-3 inches.
• Bake the cookies until brown around the edges, about 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool. Repeat with the remaining dough.

njoY!! happY bakinG!!

You may also like:

Eggless Coconut Cookies

Eggless Saffron Cookies

Nankatai

Crinkled Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies made by Scooping with a spoon

And I have a happy little camper at home enjoying these bites from chocolate chip cookies with his milk :)
Thank you for stopping by this post!

Varai Upma (Cracked Wheat/Bulgar/Dalia/Lapsi) - fasting dish

Varai or Barnyard Millet are tiny, white, round grains belonging to the millet family. In India, cereal grains are not consumed during fasts. Hence, samvat or varai is a popular ingredient during fasting (Upwas) days. Instead of cooking any rice based dish during fasts, samvat or sama or varai grains are used instead, as they belong to millet family and act as a healthy alternative to rice. It looks and tastes so much like couscous. One can also cook it with other grains like broken wheat/dalia/bulgar even couscous using the same recipe.

While growing up my Mom made Varai upma without fail on fasting days of Mahashivaratri, Angarika Sankashti and Navratri- as the whole family used to fast on these days. I was not a big fan of Rava Upma then. But used to like having Varai Upma a lot! It has a fantastic nutty feel and taste to it. When you prepare this dish using little ghee, the taste definitely goes up a notch :)

You can keep it as simple as you like or make it more interesting by adding few vegetables. Gets done in no time. It also serves as a good filling breakfast. A nice variation to have instead of oats and cereal everyday for breakfast. Everyone loves it in my house! I give the credit to my MIL, who makes it often whenever she is visiting us. She basically taught me how to make that nice and fluffy Varai Upma :) Whenever I make it, I go down the memory lane of those fasting days :) which was a welcome change for us as kids hogging on other stuff than regular meals :)

So let us take a look at this recipe of Varai Upma (Samvat) or Broken Wheat Upma

Ingredients:

• 1 cup varai (barnyard millet) OR cracked wheat will do too.
• 1 tbsp ghee (or oil)
• 12 curry leaves
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• pinch of asafoetida
• 2 green chillies slit 
• 1/4 cup grated carrots (optional)
• 1/4 cup green peas (optional)
• 1 1/2 cup water (approx)
• 2 packets of truvia or stevia (or 1 tbsp of sugar)
• salt as per taste
• 2 tbsp grated coconut 
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro for garnish

Preparation:

• In a thick bottom pan or a nonstick pan, heat oil or ghee, add mustard seeds, once it starts spluttering add green chillies, asafoetida, stir immediately, add curry leaves.
• Then add vegetables if you are using. Saute for few seconds. Now add 1 cup of varai and on med-low heat keep stirring for couple of minutes, roast it nicely but do not let it burn, keep stirring continuously.
• Add sugar, salt, grated coconut and mix everything, then add water slowly. 
• Mix and cover the lid. Let it cook for 3-4 minutes on low flame. Open and stir everything if water has evaporated your Upma is done. if not let it cook till water evaporates and Upma becomes nice and fluffy! 
• Garnish with cilantro and have it with a hot cup of Chai or Coffee! 

njoY!! happy cookinG!!

You may also like other healthy breakfast options:

Thalipeeth (Rava Bhakri)
Tomato Omelette (Besan Chilla)
Sabudana Khichdi

  Health Benefits:

Broken wheat, Varai or Barnyard Millet is high in fibre, a very good source of zinc and manganese. It helps to maintain body temperature, is rich antioxidants. The bran layer has fat (good fat) and minerals. It is a good source of B-complex vitamins. It is a good source for diabetic patients, helps accelerate weight loss. Barnyard millet has the lowest carbohydrates content and energy value among all the varieties of millets. It is also gluten-free and has low-GI (Glycemic index)

Grilled Salmon with Homemade Masala (Spice Rub)

Salmon Steak Grilled with Quinoa/Zucchini Salad and Grilled Beans.

 Fresh Salmon is the most loved fish in my household which comes from both Atlantic and Pacific oceans :) When I first came to USA, I used to miss eating all the local fish from India (I miss it even now, but atleast it is available in few stores here) I could see only 2-3 fish variety in the market which I thought I could manage eating- Salmon, Tilapia and Catfish.

I fell in love with this pink fleshy wild salmon the moment I had it in a restaurant (don't recollect the restaurant name). It doesn't need lots of spices to enjoy its natural flavors. Our Indian spices would not suit on it either (is what I thought :)). So mostly I baked it and simply grilled it with butter/lemon/herbs. But the wicked Indianness in me of having spices in someway just wouldn't go away :)

Once I grilled Salmon with tandoori masala and it came out nice and tasted really good, so I kept repeating the recipe. Then my sister came visiting me and she came up with this recipe of applying coarse powdered mix of few spice ingredients along with ginger garlic and lemon juice! Bingo...it tasted so fantastic! So every once in a while, my kitchen sees this majestic Salmon fillets slathered in this homemade rub and grilled to perfection! You can enjoy it with a simple salad, quinoa, brown rice, wild rice or some grilled beans or asparagus.

You can also use this spice rub on other fish like bland Tilapia or Pompano to make it more interesting. Also goes well with king fish steaks. I have Grilled Salmon with Quinoa/Zucchini salad and Grilled Beans on the side on my display plate... Trust me it super Yummzzz and you will feel like you just brought the 5 star restaurant at your table :) <winks>

Let us take a look at this grilled Salmon with homemade masala( spice rub):

Ingredients:

• 2-3 big Salmon steaks (or fillets)
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds pwd
• 1/2 tsp coriander seeds pwd
• 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1-2 tsp lemon juice
• salt to taste
• 1 green chili chopped (optional)

-For the coarse powder (spice rub)-

• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp ajwain (carrom seeds)
• pinch of fenugreek seeds (methi seeds)
• oil to grill/fry

Preparation:

• Clean the fillets and keep aside.
• In a blender, take the ingredients under coarse powder and make a coarse mixture.
• Take all other ingredients and slather it over the fillets. Keep aside for atleast an hour to marinate.
• Heat a grill pan on high heat and lower the flame to medium. Add 2 tbsp of oil. Place the fillets/steaks and add little oil over the fish. Let it cook for couple of minutes.
• Gently flip and let it cook till done. To test the doneness, prick a fork and nudge a little, you should see the flesh is flaky and done.
• Serve hot grilled Salmon with your choice of sides. 

njoY!! happY grillinG!!

You may also like:

Baked Salmon
Tandoori Salmon
Quinoa salad
Coastal Fish Fry
Goan Racheado Stuffed Fish

Health Benefits:


Eating salmon is beneficial in the treatment of osteoarthritis and other inflammatory joint conditions. This salmon-found protein also improves bone density and strength.
Eating salmon reduces risk of depression. Eating salmon regularly has been associated with reducing the risk and incidence of depression, hostility in young adults and cognitive decline in the elderly.
Eating salmon increases your cardiovascular health. It contains high levels of the omega-3 fats, EPA and DHA. When eaten two to three times per week, salmon can protect you from problems such as heart attack, stroke, arrhythmia, high blood pressure and high triglycerides.
Salmon helps build children’s brains. Feeding salmon to preschool children also aids in the prevention of ADHD and can even boost academic performance.
Salmon’s an excellent source of vitamin D. Salmon brings out the best in fresh greens. The proteins, B vitamins and omega 3 fatty acids in salmon complement the antioxidants and vitamin C in greens such as spinach and kale.

(source of health benefits: chatelaine.com)

Moong Dal Dosa

We all know that South Indian kitchens are always bursting with different kinds of fermented batters :) The steel containers filled with white flowy liquid, the sizzle on the griddle/tava when you dump a ladle full of batter is a nostalgic view or sound that we experience every now and then in our kitchens. I love my weekend mornings where we have a stomach full of yumilicious breakfasts!

Since most of us have become healthy eaters and conscious about our food choices, we are constantly looking to substitute our authentic traditional recipes with more healthy ingredients. So here is one of the dosa recipes that does not make use of Rice ingredient but uses only Lentils! The outcome is delicious crispy Dosas. Another advantage being, this recipe call for no fermentation, only soaking of lentils is required.

Yellow moong dal and black split dal(urad dal) are the only 2 ingredients needed. Soak it, grind it and make dosas. It is easy and satisfying! I am so glad that my husband likes it more than I do :) I usually compliment it with spicy chutneys! I like garlic red coconut chutney with it! You can serve it with regular cilantro coconut chutney, red peanut chutney or any vegetable curry too.

So without any further ado, let us take a quick look at this Moong dal Dosa recipe!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup yellow moong dal
• 1 cup urad dal (black split gram dal)
• handful chopped onion and cilantro (optional)
• salt to taste

Preparation:

• Soak the dals for 4-5 hours. Grind in a blender with just enough water to make it a smooth flowing paste.(not too thin) Add salt and mix everything. 
• Heat a dosa pan/non-stick pan/cast iron pan, add few drops of oil gingerly and spread it on the pan. 
• Drop 1 big spoon/ladle of dosa batter on the dosa pan, and using the back of the spoon/ladle go in circular motions to spread it evenly and uniformly over a high flame.
• This step is optional: You can sprinkle cilantro leaves and onions on the dosa.
• Add drops of oil around the edges of the dosa and some in the center in circular motion.
• Let it cook for a minute or so, you can see it browning slowly and the edges start lifting. Some like to cook(brown) the dosa on both sides, I prefer it on one side.
• Now fold it and put it on a serving plate. Serve hot with Chutneys/Sambar/Any vegetable curry.

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

You may also like: 

Red Peanut Chutney

Idli and Vegetable Sambar

Plain Dosa

Besan Chillas

Oats Idli

Health Benefits:

Yellow Moong dal

Yellow Moong Dal: Split Moong Dal is a type of lentil, specially used in India with rice or roti. Split Moong dal is prepared from Mung beans only. The outer skin is being removed and split. It makes this lentil in yellow color. It is good source of protein and dietary fiber. It is low in fat and rich in potassium, calcium and B complex vitamins. It is easy to digest and not like other pulses which are heavy for digestion.

Urad Dal

Black Split Gram Dal: Urad dal has protein, fat, and carbohydrates which is required by the body. This dal is one of the richest sources of proteins and Vitamin B. Urad dal is also good for women as it has iron, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, potassium which makes it a healthy pulse. It is also rich in fibre which makes it easy to digest. Some types of dals are good for the heart as well. Consuming urad dal helps to reduce cholesterol and improves cardiovascular health.