I'm starting the new year with a new segment called Recipe Watch. Over the course of visiting all my favorite blogs, I always come across recipes that I instantly want to try out, and over the past weeks I have actually managed to try out quite a few of them. In the style of Cathy's "Dining with the Bloggers", I thought I would share these my favorite "discoveries" with you all. Every time I have 5 recipes that I have tried and loved, I will post about them.
This time I have three Indian entrees (two eggplant preparations and one dal) and two Italian entrees. All made for wonderful hearty suppers.
1. Stuffed Baby Eggplants from Indira of "Mahanandi". This is a must-read post for two reasons: (a) Indira shares her family recipe for stuffed eggplants, and it is a recipe to die for! The creamy richness of sesame and peanuts smothering the velvety eggplants is simply phenomenal. Indira also gives a great tip for cooking the eggplants to perfection. (b) Indira also links to other recipes for stuffed eggplants and lists variations on the theme. This post is your one destination for gathering many many recipes for this favorite Indian entree.
2. Eggplant with Wadi: From Mika of "The Green Jackfruit" I finally learnt about those mysterious dried "wadis" that I had seen in Indian stores for so long without knowing what they are. It turns out that the dried wadis are perfect for jazzing up humdrum subzis. They make the vegetable taste even better the next day.
3. Kara Sambar: This recipe from Shammi of "Food in the Main" illustrates the world of difference between using pre-made sambar mixes and making your own. The few extra minutes one spends are so worth it. This sambar was simply a flavor explosion, and also the first time I used shallots.
4. Instant Potato Gnocchi: Whenever I eat out at Italian restaurants, I invariably order gnocchi. Amy of "Cooking with Amy" makes it easy to try this comforting dish at home. It worked very well and the gnocchi turned out tender and absolutely melt-in-the-mouth. An impressive entree that can be thrown together using simple pantry ingredients.
5. Penne a la Vodka: Another classic Italian favorite. Mona of "Mona's Apple" shares a versatile and simple tomato sauce recipe, and the penne a la vodka turned out to be a memorable supper for us. Another keeper recipe.
See y'all soon...Happy New Year!
Happy new year! I'm so glad the gnocchi recipe was a success! I look forward to reading more of your recipe discoveries.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy that you liked and enjoyed the stuffed brinjal recipe, Nupur. It's one of my favorites too. I can't control myself around that curry, and eat lot of rice or roti along with that curry.:)
ReplyDeleteI tried and liked Mika's suggestion, I've yet to try Shammi's kara sambhar. and I tried making gnochhi once, lot of work and disastrous results.:) May be I'll follow Amy's next time.
Thanks for sharing your experiences. I miss reading Katy's 'dining with bloggers' series. I so wanted to participate in that event and I did once. May be I'll post along with you.:)
Nupur, Wish you a very happy new year! May this year bring tons of Love, Luck and Laughter to all of us.
ReplyDeleteHappy new year Nupur..
ReplyDeleteand what a nice way to start a year with such a post..anthonyskitchen
Sorry for misspelling Cathy's name.
ReplyDeleteHope your knee is healing, Nupur! And thanks for including me in Recipe Watch :)
ReplyDeleteHey Nupur,
ReplyDeleteGreat idea... Neat complilation of new things to try out in the new year.
Happy New Year!
Amy, thanks for stopping by...your blog is always an inspiration.
ReplyDeleteIndira, we should totally post together! With so many great blogs out there, its great hearing about others' experiences with the recipes.
Hi Kay, thanks and wishing you the same :)
Anthony, thanks and happy new year to you too!
Shammi, yes, the knee is healing slowly! Are you still in India, you lucky thing?
Hi Garam Masala, thanks for stopping by, and happy new year to you too!