Pasta Salad with Shrimp, Peppers, and Olives

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups cooked angel hair (about 5 ounces uncooked pasta)
3/4 cup chopped plum tomato
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1/3 cup chopped green onions
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped pitted kalamata olives
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 pound cooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Preparation
Combine the first 13 ingredients in a large bowl. Sprinkle with cheese and parsley.

Nutritional Information
Calories:
252 (26% from fat)
Fat:
7.2g (sat 2.4g,mono 2.9g,poly 1.1g)
Protein:
19.8g
Carbohydrate:
26.7g
Fiber:
1.8g
Cholesterol:
114mg
Iron:
3.6mg
Sodium:
249mg
Calcium:
111mg

Sheer khorma

Ingredients
100 gms thin Vermicelli
1500 ml milk
250 gms sugar
50 gms cashew nuts chopped
50 gms almonds (soaked and chopped)
50 gms dates chopped
6 cardamom powdered
4 tsp ghee/clarified butter
250 ml water
Method
Fry the nuts in 2 tsp of clarified butter. Make a sugar syrup (one string consistency). Fry the vermicelli in the remaining clarified butter until golden brown. Boil the milk until it is thickened to half the quantity. Add the fried vermicelli to the milk and cook. Do not allow lumps to form. Add sugar syrup and cook for a while until it comes to a homogeneous consistency. Sprinkle cardamom powder. Garnish with fried nuts. Serve hot or refrigerated.

Kitchen and cooking tips

1-To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

2- To prevent egg shells from cracking, add a pinch of salt to the water before hard-boiling.

3-To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature & roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing.

4. To easily remove burnt-on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on stovetop-skillet will be much easier to clean.

5. When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead-no white mess on the outside of the cake.

6. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it's still cooking, drop in a peeled potato-it absorbs the excess salt for an instant "fix me up."

7. Brush beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.
Place a slice of apple in hardened brown sugar to soften it back up.

8. To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh-if it rises to the surface, throw it away.

9. Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.

10. If you have a problem opening jars: Try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.

11. Potatoes will take food stains off your fingers. Just slice and rub raw potato on the stains and rinse with water.

12. To get rid of itch from mosquito bite: try applying soap on the area, instant relief.

13. Ants, ants, ants everywhere ... Well, they are said to never cross a chalk line. So get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march-see for yourself.

14. When you get a splinter, reach for the scotch tape before resorting to tweezers or a needle. Simply put the scotch tape over the splinter, then pull it off. Scotch tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily.

Ghulab jamun

Ingredients
1 cup milk powder
1/4 cup maida
3 tbsp butter at room temperature
1/4 cup milk at room temperature
a pinch of baking soda
for syrup
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 cup water
1/2 tsp cardomam powder
few threads of Saffron (optional)

Directions
Mix milk powder, maida, salt and soda
Then add butter, mix again
Add milk mix again
leave for 10 mins
divide into 10 equal parts make small balls
heat the oil and keep ready
fry it in a low heat, at least for 7 to 8 mins into golden brown color
for syrup
combine all the ingredients and make it boil leave for 1 min and close the heat
pour the balls (jamuns) in syrup
serve warm

Palak Paneer

Ingredients
4 cups Palak
1 cup water
salt
1 cup Paneer(cubes)
2 tsps jeera
3 sticks cinnamon
2 tbsp butter
1 big onion (sliced)
1/4 cup milk
2 tsps garlic(finely chopped)

Directions
Wash palak, put it in a pot,add salt and water, boil until just soft. Keep aside.
Heat 1 tbsp butter in a another pot, add jeera, garlic, cinnamon, green chillies, and onions, braise till garlic and onions turn golden brown. Put this in grinder with boiled palak (dont throw away the water in which the palak is boiled, you can use it for grinding or cooking). Grind into smooth paste.
Heat the remaining butter in a pot, add palak and paneer cubes, reduce the heat and cook for 15 mins.
Add milk, and cook again for 10 mins till thick.
Garnish with onion rings and slitted green chillies.
Serve with jeera rice or parathas

Daal Gosht

Ingredients
1/2 kg mutton or chicken.
1 cup chana dal.
3 tbsps of ginger ,garlic paste.
1 tsp turmeric powder.
2 tbsp canned Tomato puree.
4 fresh tomatoes
salt to taste
Whole Spices ( 3 sticks cinnamon, 5 pods cardamon, 3 tsps jeera)
5 green chillies.
1 tbsp green chilly paste.
1 1/2 tsps garam masala.
chopped corriander leaves for garnishing.
2 big onions(sliced)
3 tbsps oil
1 lemon.
2 potatoes (cut into pieces and deep fry them)

Directions
Boil meat in 2 cups water, half of ginger, garlic paste and salt, until tender.
Boil dal seperately in little water and salt. The dal shouldnt be mushy.
Take oil in pan ,add whole spices, and green chillies,when they splutter add onions and fry till golden brown.
Peel and chop the tomatoes, add to the onions .add tomato puree, remaining ginger ,garlic paste, turmeric powder and salt. Braise for 10 mins on medium heat.
Add meat ( not the soup ) dal and potatoes, cover and cook for 15 mins on low heat,till all spices blend properly with meat.
Open the cover , add soup , garam masala pwd and lemon.
Cook for few mins on low heat .
Garnish with chopped corriander.
Serve with jeera rice or parathas.

Kandhari gosht

Ingredients
500 gm boneless mutton
1/2 Ltr. fresh Anar (pomgrenate juice)
1 tbsp whole garam masala (whole clove, cardamom, mace, cinnamon etc)
3 tbsp veg oil/ghee
3 large onion chopped
2 tbsp ginger+garlic paste
1tsp cumin seed
1tsp red chilly powder
1 1/2 tbsp coriender powder
1/2 tsp mace+ cardamom powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
1 cup curd
1 cup milk
few saffron threads
salt to taste
few leaves of mint and coriander chopped for garnish

Directions
Soak mutton in Anar juice for six hours.
Soak saffron threads in one cup of milk and keep aside
Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan, put whole garam masala with cumin seeds.
When garam masala starts to crackle put chopped onions and fry till golden brown.
Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for two more minutes.
Add coriander powder, red chilly powder and stir fry for a minutes. Now add mutton with Anar/pomegrate juice and stir fry for two more minutes.
Add garam masala,mace-cardamom powder and salt, mix well.
Add curd and one cup of water and bring it to a boil.
Now we will cook it on Dum or with closed and sealed lid for 30 minutes.
We can seal the lid using dough.
When cooked garnish with chopped coriander and mint leaves.
Dish goes well with naan and Roti.

Balti gosht

Ingredients
½ Kg Mutton (boiled in ½ litre of water)
½ cup Ghee
¼ tsp jeera
¼ tsp methi
¼ tsp kalonji
1 tsp garlic (chopped)
2 chopped onions
½ tsp kasoori methi
1 tsp balti garam masala
2 tbsp coriander leaves (chopped)
salt to taste
BALTI MASALA PASTE;
2 tbsp. dhania seeds
1 tbsp. white jeera seeds
7 gms. dalchini
1 tsp. saunf
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1 tsp. cardamom seeds
½ tsp. methi seeds
½ tsp. ajwain
¼ tsp. kalonji seeds
3 cloves
1 tsp. kasoori methi
2 bay leaves
10 curry leaves
Roast, cool and grind the whole spices. mix well with:
2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ginger powder
1 tsp. chilli powder

Directions
Heat ghee. Stir fry jeera, methi and kalonji. Add chopped garlic and fry.
Add chopped onions and fry till brown.
Add balti masala paste and the boiled meat. Stir fry for 5 min.
Now add kasoori methi and the mutton with stock. Simmer till done. Add balti garam masala, coriander leaves and salt to taste.
Simmer for 10 min. (till mutton is soft) and serve hot with bread of your choice.

Thandai

Ingredients
• 1 liter Milk
• 2-3 cup Water
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1/2 tbsp Aniseed
• 1 tbsp Almonds
• 10-12 Peppercorns
• A few Saffron Strands
• 1/2 tsp Cardamom powder
• 1 tbsp Dried watermelon seeds
• 1/2 tbsp Poppy seeds
• 1/4 Cup fresh rose petals
How to make Thandai:
•
Boil the milk in a pan and allow it to cool.
•
Meanwhile soak aniseed, almonds, watermelon seeds, poppy seeds and rose petals in 2 cups of water.
•
Grind soaked ingredients to make a smooth paste.
•
Pour remaining water into this paste and strain through muslin strainer.
•
Extract the liquid into a vessel. Add the sugar, peppercorns, powdered cardamom, saffron and mix well.
•
Now blend the above-made mix with milk

•
Chill for about an hour before serving.

Strawberry Lemonade Slush

Ingredients:
1 (16 ounce) Container fresh strawberries, sliced
• 3/4 Cup sugar (or to taste)
• 1 Cup cold water
• 3/4 Cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 Cups ice cubes
How to make Strawberry Lemonade Slush:
•
In a bowl stir together sliced strawberries with sugar; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
•
In a blender process the strawberry/sugar mixture with cold water, lemon juice and ice cubes until smooth.
•
Pour into 2 large glasses.
•
Strawberry Lemonade Slush is ready.