Roasted Red Pepper Bread

by

I got tagged!

Well, this is something that has been going around food blogs for a while and is called the Seven Links Challenge, where bloggers choose 7 of their posts that deserve to be recognized and talk about them.

Sawsan of Chef in Disguise tagged me.

Firstly, I want to thank Sawsan for thinking of me for this challenge and secondly, for taking me back on sort of a walk down the memory lane of all my posts.

By the way Sawsan has a great blog and some amazing recipes and stories. Do check her out.

Now the rules for being tagged are simple. The first thing you have to do once you are tagged is to list out 7 of the following things from your blog:

1. THE MOST BEAUTIFUL POST:

It has to be the post I did on my brother and my mom’s famous chocolate balls. Why is it beautiful? Well, because it was dedicated to one of the most beautiful persons I know (and I am talking about the inner beauty here) and it talks about a recipe by another beautiful person in my life (here I am talking about both inner and outer beauty)- my mom.

2.THE MOST POPULAR POST:

According to site stats, its the Macaron Cake post I did. And rightly so that it is the most popular one. It is also one post I am really proud of because I turned a complete failure into a great tasting delight!

3.THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL POST:

I don’t think I write anything too controversial; well, at least I try not to. But I guess the one on Mooli Parantha is the only post that comes to my mind. Well, at least my mom thought it was controversial as I was really heavy worded in that post! The post is also an example of my previous photography!

4. THE MOST HELPFUL POST:

Hopefully, my GMT posts are the most helpful ones because I really do put a lot of research in them. But I guess, if I had to pick one it would be the carrot cake truffle post I did. Again a failure that turned into something really delicious!

5. THE POST THAT WAS SURPRISINGLY SUCCESSFUL:

It has to be the coconut ice cream post. And the surprise has to be more from my Mom’s side than mine’s. She was sure that I would fail in making a nice creamy ice cream. She tried her best to convince me not to make it, but I did and she was pleasantly surprised by the taste, the texture and the fact it was made without an ice cream maker!

6. THE POST THAT DID NOT GET THE ATTENTION IT DESERVED:

I think the Caesar Salad post. It was one of the earlier posts I did and I actually can’t complain about the lack of hits on that post because I did not even put a picture up for it. Plus, hardly people viewed my blog then- my blog and its existence was only known to a few of my close friends and family. But, the recipe that I used has always been a hit with everyone. And that’s why I feel I wish it should have gotten more attention.

7. THE POST I AM PROUD OF:

It has to be my April Daring Bakers’ Challenge because of the creativity involved. I love those vegetable bowls even though I would most probably use them as decoration pieces (as they do get a little chewy when you dehydrate them). It was also the first time I tried my go at fried ice cream and noodle bowls.

Now that that is done. As part of being tagged, the second thing you have to do is to carry the tagging on and tag 5 more bloggers.

I would like to see what the following bloggers have to say about their posts:

And since all of you were kind enough to read through this (and even if you weren’t), I will leave you with the recipe for this Roasted Red Pepper Bread I had made the other day.


Read More →

REALLY,REALLY HEARTY SUNDRIED TOMATO BREAD

by

Two days prior to my India journey, I am down with a cough! Great! I took precautions- covered myself- head to toe- but the Denver cold got to me. Its the walk we took near the Cherry Creek Mall that’s the culprit. Well, it’s not that bad yet. That’s the key word- yet! The last time I got down with a bad cold- it started out as not being that bad- just a sore throat- nothing big. The starting symptoms are the same this time, but hopefully it won’t get any worse- there’s a slight fever but I’m hoping some rest will take care of it!

The first day in Denver, we had amazing bread at the hotel restaurant, The Lift, while waiting for our main course. It was a white bread with a hint of garlic and presumably, a lot of parmesan cheese. But one bite into it and you could taste the cheese and all its goodness. I love white bread and even though whole-wheat is supposedly more healthy, etc etc I still miss an all white bread at times.

But, the other day, back at home I made this really hearty and flavorful sundried tomato bread. I cooked up this recipe or would it be baked up (?!). Thought of adding herbs but decided against it, since I did not want too many flavors playing in the bread. I also restrained myself from adding cheese- though instead its better to grill it with cheese instead. I did add dill for some added flavor.

By the way, this bread is full of goodies for your body! The Wheat germ is rich in nutrients, Vitamin E (good for anti-aging and your reproductive organs) and fiber. Fiber helps in digestive cleansing, cleaning your system off toxins and bacteria. Another benefit of having fiber-enriched food is that you feel full sooner- that ways you don’t overeat. (and thus, helps you in keeping your waist slim!)

Flaxseeds too are rich in fiber, besides they are a good source of Omega-3 fatty acids which are good for lowering cholesterol and heart related diseases. They are rich in antioxidants too.

Besides the seeds, the flours used also have their health benefits. Everyone knows the benefits of whole-wheat flour.  Soy Flour is a great source of high quality soy protein, dietary fiber and important bio-active components which provide a good source of iron, B vitamins and potassium.

I wanted to add 1/2 cup rolled oats, and make it even more healthy, but I had the quick one minutes ones (never buying them again after reading they have the hulls removed), and wasn’st sure how they will work and also did not know how healthy they would be after the hull is removed. (Any info would be appreciated for the uninitiated me!) If you do decide to add oats reduce the bread flour quantity by the same amount and you might need to add/reduce water.

I did add a tablespoon more of water even though it did not look dry, but I know that soy absorbs a lot of water so the dough might need that extra tbsp- when making bread, its always better to err on more water and have a sticky dough than to have a dry dough. But, I ended up adding more flour, so guess the earlier proportions might have been perfect. (Have mentioned the initial proportions in the ingredients list- but if more water is required, add a tablespoon at a time).

Hope you enjoy this bread and its benefits as much as we did!

Read More →

COUNTRY SEED BREAD

by

Homemade whole wheat bread loaded with the goodness of flax seeds, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds.

Country seed whole wheat bread

Update: The pictures on this post were updated on May 14, 2017. The original post went live in August 2010 and was the first bread post of the blog. This country seed whole wheat bread recipe is one of my favorites and have made it several times in the last seven years. I have updated the recipe a bit and also added a printable version. Like with all my other updated posts I have left one image from the original post to show where my photography started at.

ORIGINAL POST

FACT- brownies, deep fried kachoris, cakes, muffins- all are fattening! No matter how much you want to escape from this fact, it somehow finds its way to get to you. For me, it found its way through the weighing machine. Now, all this while I have been in the US, I was without a weighing scale and the two times I got my weight checked- orientation at the gym and a doctor’s appointment- I was told the weight in pounds. And, well, I’m used to hearing it in kgs. So, conveniently, I used to convert pounds to a figure in kgs I thought was good enough- not too little but not too much either- a number close to what I used to be in India. For me, that was acceptable- of course, there is always scope to lose more- but it wasn’t a number to raise alarms.

The other day, we went to Ikea during our stay in Phoenix. And there sitting in the Home Decorations section was a weighing scale. We had been planning of getting one, though I have never been the weighing scale type. I generally go by my stomach- if its not tight- I have to work out harder. But, for a while now I had not weighed myself (atleast not where I got a figure in the metric system I was comfortable with), so when I saw a weighing machine that showed the weight in kgs, I thought it was time to get one. We got it home and I decided to check my weight. And, well, as my first line read–brownies, cakes, muffins, and the likes are FATTENING!! VERY FATTENING!!!! So, I decided enough of these (let’s see how long it lasts though- baking and I have a very strong bond- some numbers aren’t enough to break them!)!

So, I have decided to go for a run everyday from now, barring the two days I have Zumba. I will also try making healthier food and have resolved that whatever rich dessert I make- it is going to be distributed. The latter, I have, more or less, been doing.

Read More →