Spicy Italian Salad

• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup tarragon vinegar
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (8 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
• 5 cups romaine lettuce - rinsed, dried, and chopped

• 1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
• 1 carrot, grated
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup black olives
• 1/4 cup pitted green olives
• 1/2 cucumber, sliced
• 2 tablespoons grated Romano cheese
• ground black pepper to taste
• 1. n a medium container with a lid, mix canola oil, tarragon vinegar, sugar, thyme, dry mustard, and garlic. Cover, and shake until well blended. Place artichoke hearts into the mixture, cover, and marinate in the refrigerator 4 hours, or overnight.
  2. In a large bowl, toss together lettuce, red bell pepper, carrot, red onion, black olives, green olives, cucumber, and Romano cheese. Season with pepper. Pour in the artichoke and marinade mixture, and toss to coat.

Pani Puri 

Ingredients

other ingredients:

• 24-30 puris ( you could buy these puris readymade or make them at home)
• 1 small bowl of tamarind chutney or tamarind dates chutney

For the stuffing - * check notes for other options

• 2 to 3 medium potatoes
• 1 small to medium onion
• 1 to 1.5 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
• 1 tsp roasted cumin powder
• 1 tsp chaat masala powder
• ¼ tsp red chili powder (optional)
• black salt as required

For the Pani Recipe:

• ½ cup chopped mint leaves
• ¾ cup chopped coriander leaves
• 1 inch ginger, chopped
• 1 green chili, chopped
• 1 tbsp seedless tamarind, tightly packed
• 3 to 3.5 tbsp crumbled or powdered jaggery/sugar or as required
• 1 tsp roasted cumin powder (bhuna jeera powder)
• 1 tsp chaat masala powder
• 2 to 3 cups of water
• 1 to 1.5 tbsp boondi/fried tiny gram flour balls (optional)
• black salt as required

Instructions

Preparing the Stuffing:

1. Boil the potatoes till they are cooked completely.
2. Peel them and then chop them.
3. Finely chop the onion.
4. In a small bowl, mix the potatoes, onions, coriander leaves, cumin powder, chaat masala powder and black salt. Mix well and keep aside.

Method to make the Pani:

1. In a blender add all the ingredients mentioned above for the pani.
2. Add little water and grind to a fine chutney.
3. Remove the green chutney in a large bowl. Add 2 to 3 cups water. Mix well. Check the seasoning. Add more black salt or jeera powder or chaat masala if required. If you want a thin pani, you could add some water. But keep on checking the seasoning, as per your taste.
4. Add the boondi to the pani.
5. You can chill the pani in the fridge or add some ice cubes to it..

Assembling Pani Puri:

1. Crack the top of the puri with a spoon.
2. Add 2 to 3 tsp of the boiled potato-onion filling in the poori.
3. Stir the green pani first and then it and the sweet chutney as per your taste.
4. Serve the pani puri immediately.
5. You can also make individual portions with the puris, potato-onion mixture and the pani. Let the individual assemble the pani puri for himself/herself as per his/her taste.

tomato sauce or tomato ketchup 

Ingredients 

• 2.5 kg or approx 5.4 lbs tomatoes
• 3 to 4 grams garlic - 15 to 16 medium garlic cloves
• 3 to 4 grams ginger - 3 pieces of about 3 inch ginger
• 5 to 7 dry red chilies - deseeded and halved
• ½ cup golden raisins
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
• 1 tbsp rock salt
• 6 to 7 tbsp organic unrefined cane sugar
• ¼ tsp sodium benzoate dissolved in 1 tsp hot water

Instructions

1. rinse the tomatoes well in water.
2. slice the top eye parts of the tomatoes. roughly chop the tomatoes.
3. discard spotted parts or peels.
4. peel and rinse the garlic, ginger. later roughly chop them.
5. halve and deseed the dry red chilies.
6. rinse the raisins and keep aside.
7. in a huge pot or casserole or a 4 to 5 litre pressure cooker, take all the chopped tomatoes.
8. add the ginger, garlic, red chilies, raisins, vinegar, salt and sugar.
9. mix well and keep the pot or cooker on a low to medium flame on the stove top.
10. keep on stirring at intervals.
11. when the tomatoes soften, switch off the fire. the softening takes about 25 to 27 minutes.
12. when the mixture is slightly hot or warm, blend the puree with an immersion blender or in a regular blender. if using a regular blender, then don't add too hot of the tomato mixture.
13. make a smooth puree.
14. with a strainer which is not very fine, strain the puree very well directly into a pot or a large sauce pan.
15. strain very well.
16. now you can sterilize the jar.
17. first rinse the jar.
18. in a large sauce pan heat water till it reaches its boiling point... meaning it has begun to boil.
19. immerse the jar and its lid in the hot water.
20. continue to boil the water along with jar for 8 to 10 minutes.
21. remove the jar with the help of clean tongs and place the jar inverted on a thick towel kept on the kitchen tabletop.
22. let the jar dry naturally.
23. keep the pot or pan with the strained tomato pulp on the stove top,
24. on a low to medium flame, simmer the pulp till it starts thickening and reaches a ketchup like consistency. takes about 35 to 40 minutes.
25. heat 1 tsp of water in a small bowl.
26. add ¼ tsp of sodium benzoate to the hot water.
27. stir and dissolve the sodium benzoate.
28. the preservative should be dissolved in the water.
29. pour the sodium benzoate solution to the hot tomato ketchup.
30. stir very well.
31. pour the hot tomato ketchup in the sterilized jar.
32. close tightly with the lid.
33. let the ketchup cool and be kept aside for some hours or a day.
34. then keep in the refrigerator and use after 1 or 2 days.
35. serve tomato ketchup with any snack or appetizer.

CHICKEN CHEESE SAMOSA

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup refined flour  
• 1 tbsp oil 
• ½ tsp carom seeds  

For filling

• 2 tbsp oil  
• 1 cup finely chopped chicken 
• 1 cup finely chopped red, yellow and green bell pepper  
• 1 cup finely chopped green stalk of spring onion  
• Salt to taste
• Black pepper powder to taste
• Refined flour as required
• ½ cup grated cheese  
• Oil to fry

METHOD

• For the dough; in a bowl add refined flour, oil, carom seeds and water and knead. Cover with a wet muslin cloth.
• To make the filling; in a pan add oil, finely chopped chicken, finely chopped red, yellow and green bell pepper, finely chopped green stalk of spring onion, salt and black pepper powder and cook.
• Sprinkle refined flour on a board and with small round parts of the dough make rotis.
• Cut the rotis from the center and with one half make a cone and add the cooked filling and grated cheese in it. Seal the cone with water. Make some more of these samosas.
• Fry them in hot oil and remove on a tissue paper.
• Serve them on a plate with tamarind chutney.
• Chicken Cheese Samosa is ready to eat.

Fried Chicken Tikka Kabab

Recipe Ingredients

• Boneless chicken cubes ½ kg
• Salt 1 tsp
• Allspice ½ tsp
• Crushed red pepper 1 tsp
• Yogurt ½ cup
• Roasted cumin crushed 1 tsp
• Orange red color pinch
• Ginger garlic paste 1 tsp
• Lemon juice 2 tbsp
• Ingredients for batter
• Rice flour 2 tbsp
• Gram Flour 2 tbsp
• Salt ½ tsp
• Chili powder  ½ tsp
• Thick yogurt 3 tbsp
• Water as required to make batter.

Recipe Method

1. Marinate boneless chicken cubes with Salt 1 tsp,Allspice½ tsp, Crushed red pepper 1 tsp, Yogurt ½ cup, Roasted cumin crushed 1 tsp, Orange red color pinch, Ginger garlic paste 1 tsp, Lemon juice 2 tbsp.
2. Method for batter In a bowl mix together Rice flour 2 tbsp, Gram Flour 2 tbsp, Salt ½ tsp, Chili powder ½ tsp, Thick yogurt 3 tbsp, make into a thick batter, put chicken pieces on skewers, dip skewers in prepared batter, deep fry light golden, serve sprinkle with chat masala.

Chicken and Black Bean Chili   

INGREDIENTS

• PAM® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 2 cans (8 oz each) Hunt's® Tomato Sauce-No Salt Added
• 1 can (15 oz each) Rosarita® Premium Whole Black Beans, drained, rinsed
• 1 can (15 oz each) Van Camp's® Pork and Beans
• 2 tablespoons (1/2 of 1.25-oz pkg) 30% less sodium taco seasoning 
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DIRECTIONS

1. Spray large nonstick saucepan or Dutch oven with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Add chicken and onion; cook 5 to 7 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink, stirring occasionally.
2. Add remaining ingredients. Cook 10 minutes or until hot and bubbly, stirring occasionally.

Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup

Ingredients

• 5 lbs tomatoes halved and seeded if desired
• 1 head garlic
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp marjoram(or oregano)
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 C vegetable stock or water plus more as desired to thin
• 2 tsp honey
• a small handful fresh basil(or 2 tbsp pesto)
• sea salt to taste
• 
  

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange tomatoes cut side up on a baking sheet lined with foil. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil, sprinkle generously with salt and herbs and place in the oven to roast for 35-45 minutes until shriveled. Once the tomatoes are in the oven, slice the top of the garlic off exposing the tops of all of the cloves. Drizzle with a little olive oil then wrap in foil and place in the oven to roast for 35-40 minutes.
2. Once everything is done roasting quickly remove the tomato skins and remove the garlic cloves from the head and set aside until ready to use.
3. In a medium sized pot heat the other tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until soft. Add in the already roasted tomatoes and garlic and add vegetable stock or water and bring to a boil. Once boiling turn down to a simmer for a few minutes before blending with an immersion blender or in a regular blender, until completely smooth. Once smooth, taste the soup and add honey if needed(if the tomatoes are particularly acidic) and the fresh basil or pesto if no fresh basil is available. Salt to taste and enjoy!