Carrot & Zucchini Soup

I haven't cooked anything new recently since my husband keeps travelling on business trips..This weekend he happened to be in town and I decided to make this soup as a healthy lunch for him on lazy Sunday !

Ingredients:

1kg peeled carrots (diced)

2 peeled zucchini (~640g)

3 potatoes

2 celery branches

1 onion (diced)

3 garlic cloves (diced)

2 teaspoon cumin (powder)

1 teaspoons coriander (powder)

1/2 teaspoon ginger powder

1 teaspoon paprika (powder)

3l water

salt

pepper

a splash of Worcestershire sauce

Method:

Heat oil in a large pot on medium heat. Add garlic, onion & celery. Saute until onions are slightly browned, about 3 minutes.

Add carrots, potatoes, zucchini and all the spices. Mix and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the broth and bay leaf then bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until veggies are soft and fully cooked.

Turn off heat . In a blender, puree the broth and the veggies until creamy. Return to pot and mix well. Add worcestershire sauce.

Taste check for additional salt if needed.

Baked Mac & Cheese

I've made mac&cheese a few times but all of those are stove top version. This is the first time that I made a baked version which is similar to the one my friend always makes for her when we go to our farm in England!


The recipe which I asked my friend for it and the following is what she told me..


A basic cheese sauce , butter and flour made into a roux then milk added in slowly , with cheddar and Parmesan , I also put 1 tsp of mustard in either French or English , whichever you have, make it rather thick( I keep a cup of the pasta water aside  In case it's too thick , add a little if you need to ) Mix them well then lots of cheese on top into a warm oven (160) for 30 mins.


And below is what I used for the cheese sauce. ( For 5 oz. of macaroni )

30 g butter
1.5 tbsp flour
2 cups milk plus some water from cooking macaroni ( to loosen the sauce )
1 cups cheddar cheese plus more + some parmesan for topping
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp English mustard powder

I baked at 170c for 20 minutes..

  

Indian Spicy Dry-Fried Prawns

My husband has been eating more seafood & chicken than red meat since he started being on diet. And I chose to make this spicy prawn instead of salad or roasted dish to jazz things up for him !


The recipe 

Prawns / Shrimp -1 lb
Ginger garlic paste-1 tsp
Turmeric powder-1 tsp
Chilly Powder-3 tsp
Coriander powder-2 tsp
Pepper powder-1 tsp
Garam masala powder-1 tsp
Required salt
Oil-4 tbsp
Onion-1/2 thinly sliced
Curry leaves
Green Chillies-5

In a bowl,take the cleaned prawns.To that add ginger garlic paste,turmeric powder,chilly powder,coriander powder,garam masala,pepper powder and required salt and marinate for at least 30 minutes.

In a pan,add the marinated prawns.Cover and cook the prawns  without adding water.The prawns will cook in its own water.Cook until all moisture evaporates completely.

In a pan,add oil ,curry leaves and green chillies and sauté for a minute
Add sliced onions and sauté until translucent
Add the prawns and stir to mix everything well for a few minutes until done.