Khakra with Salsa

Cruncy, munchy snack without the guilt of deep fry - that is Khakra for me.  Plain Khakra served with fresh and spicy tomato salsa made for a quick tea time snack. The salsa was made without onion, garlic and coriander because I did not have the patience to peel and chop on a growling stomach.

Soy Chunks Manchurian and Macaroni - Lunch Box

Fried rice style Macaroni and soya chunks manchurian for a special lunch. This was S's request for his special lunch box treat on his birthday. I packed it for my lunch too and was surprised that it tasted pretty good even when the food was luke warm. It is a pretty healthy too as no deep frying is involved.

Mung and Matki Sprout Snack - Manchurian Flavor

Bananas

It took longer to type the title of the post than making dish. Faster than 3 minute maggi noodles, finger licking tasty and high on nutrition. Our neighbor's 10 yr old asked for 2nds and 3rds. Please do try it and let me know how you liked it.

Pressure Cooker Fusili

One pot meal that can be completed from start to finish in 20 mins with only 5 mins of prep time. Cooking pasta in a pressure cooker is not for puritans but it drastically reduces the cooking time. Can be made kid/spice/diet friendly without any additional effort. We have all the three groups represented in the house - so this gets done regularly. The glorious yellow color, not properly captured, is because of addition of turmeric powder.

Disclaimer: This method does not work for all types of pasta. At least I have not tried it.

Spinach and Paneer Paratha

Quest for an all in one paratha and having to make something tasty for dinner led to this. Veggies, protein and carb all in one dish. Good option for a breakfast, snack, lunch box, dinner - yep anytime anywhere dish. High on taste, high on health.

Sesame and Oregano Paratha

This is an effort to get more sesame seeds incorporated into our diet. There are quite a lot of benefits of eating sesame. There are quite a few traditional south indian foods that incorporated sesame. This dish has the oregano spice mix that is used in pizzas and the goodness of sesame rolled into a paratha. Anytime snack or a meal in itself if served with a bowl of dal/sabzi and curd. This is a picture when the paratha is rolled and the filling is spread. Will take a picture of the final product and publish next time.

Hash browns/ Latke/ Potato Pancake

Grated potatoes and sweet potatoes, pan fried in butter, seasoned with salt and fresh pepper. Simple, tasty and filling - whatever the name may be. Adding sweet potatoes boosts the nutrition and replacing butter with oil will make it adult friendly too. S loves it so much that he wants me to make it when his friends come for a sleep over.

Macaroni with Tofu and Spinach

Quick one pot meal for kids and adults too. Protein from Tofu, Spinach for vegetables, Pasta for Carbs - all in one. Time taken - 10 minutes total if you prep the vegetables while pasta is getting cooked. When cooked with oil, the pasta is equally good when cold and can be packed lunch/snack.

Sprouts Ponganalu

Ingredients:

1. Dosa/Idli Batter - 2 cups
2. Sprouts - 1/2 cup
3. Diced Onion - 1/2 cup
4. 1 Chilli/ to taste