Soni's Food

Indian Inspiration!

Carrot and Coriander Soup

16 | 10 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

Autumn brings with it this craving for comforting foods!Foods that simmer on the stove tops or in the oven, foods that develop those lovely flavors that warms you up,foods like soups, stews  and warm desserts!I have a soup for you that not only warms you up, but is rich in anti-oxidants and beta carotene!

My Carrot and Coriander Soup is the most satisfying, flavorful, extremely easy to make and so vibrant!Its reminiscent of the time when were in England.Its easily available in all the supermarkets over there and when I couldn’t find it here in America I started making my own!Its earthy, sweet, a little spicy, a perfect autumn food~

Carrot and Coriander Soup

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 6 Carrots-peeled and cubed
  • 1 medium Onion-chopped
  • Olive oil or butter- 1tbsp
  • Ground Coriander-1 tbsp
  • Orange Juice- 1/4 cup
  • Water -3 cups
  • Salt-to taste
  • Pepper-1 tsp
  • Fresh Coriander-for garnish

Instructions
 

  • In a deep pot, heat oil or butter and add the chopped onions until soft.
  • Add the carrots and saute for a few minutes.
  • Add the water, salt and pepper .
  • Cover and cook until the carrots are done.
  • Now add the orange juice and the ground coriander.Let it cook for 2 more minutes.
  • Puree the soup in a blender and garnish with fresh coriander.Serve hot!

 

 

 

Rigatoni with Pumpkin Ricotta Sauce ~ All things Orange #SundaySupper

07 | 10 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

Autumn colors are indeed magical.Nature seems like a canvas painted with beautiful warm colors.Pumpkin patches, halloween, trick-or-treating all the fun and the excitement has begun! Autumn also brings along with it some glorious orange colored foods from pumpkins to squash to sweet potatoes and its no surprise then that our friend Pam chose ‘All things Orange’ for today’s SundaySupper!

pumpkin ricotta rigatoni

My entry for this event is an easy Rigatoni with Pumpkin Ricotta Sauce that captures the essence of fall colors and flavors into a gorgeous creamy pasta dish.I found a Martha Stewart recipe and tweaked it by going for the Ricotta instead of heavy cream and adding nutmeg!The result is an elegant pasta dish that takes no effort to prepare and yet makes a strong statement in terms of flavors and texture.

pumpkin+ricotta+rigatoni3

The sage adds this sweet lemony touch and fragrance to the dish and the pumpkin with the ricotta is pure magic.The nutmeg is essential in enhancing the creamy flavors and the grated parmesan is all you need to finish off this gorgeous sauce.I was so happy to see my kids enjoy the dinner as much as we did :).They were very excited to know that there was pumpkin in the sauce. Something about Pumpkins and Halloween that gets them all excited 🙂

Rigatoni with Pumpkin Ricotta Sauce ~ All things Orange #SundaySupper

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • Rigatoni-3 cups uncooked
  • Pumpkin Puree-3/4 cup I used canned
  • Ricotta Cheese-1/2 cup
  • Milk-1/4 cup
  • Grated Nutmeg-1 tsp
  • Sage leaves-10 cut into strips
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil-1 tbsp
  • Grated Parmesan Cheese-1/4 cup
  • Salt-to taste
  • Pepper-1 tsp

Instructions
 

  • Cook the Rigatoni in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente.
  • In a bowl mix together the pumpkin puree, ricotta,milk, sage leaves.
  • In a pan on medium heat, add the Olive Oil followed by the pumpkin sauce.
  • Gently mix together until all creamy.You can add more milk to reach the desired consistency.Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper.
  • Add the cooked pasta into the sauce and add freshly grated parmesan cheese to finish off.Serve hot!
 

The #SundaySupper family is using the spirit of the season to inspire you and will be sharing some fabulous dishes at the #SundaySupper table this week, and we do hope that you’ll join us!

Just look at all of the fabulous dishes being offered up this week:

Sunrise (Breakfast and Brunch)

Sunset (Dinner and Main Dishes)

By The Bonfire (Sweets, Snacks and Sips)

That is one great list of orange culinary delights. What a way to brighten up a meal. A feast for the eyes and the tummy!

Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter each Sunday. We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET and you do not want to miss out on the fun. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. Check our our #SundaySupper Pinterest board for more fabulous recipes and food photos.

 

Apple Ricotta Cake-Guest Post at The German Foodie

22 | 07 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

Today its my great pleasure to be guest posting over at my friend Sofie’s blog The German Foodie!!Sofie and I met through one of our facebook groups and I just love her German recipes.She is a great friend and extremely helpful! She is also well versed in photography skills and I enjoyed her little workshop on the same topic some time back!So when Sofie wanted me to guest post for her while she was on vacation I was thrilled! 🙂
I decided to make an Apple Ricotta Cake for this post mainly because it uses two of my favorite ingredients apples and ricotta!I found a simple recipe at All Recipes and just added some ricotta into the mixture!The result was a creamy, moist and delicious cake with a great personality coming from the juicy apples with cinnamon!

Apple Ricotta Cake

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 2 medium apples-peeled cored and chopped or sliced
  • Cinnamon-2 tsp
  • Ricotta-1/4 cup
  • Eggs-2
  • Sugar-1 cup
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil-1 cup
  • All purpose flour-1 ½ cup
  • Baking Powder-1 ½ tsp
  • Vanilla extract-1 tsp
  • Kosher salt-1/4 tsp

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Grease a 9-inch spring form pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle some flour all over.
  • Cream the sugar and oil in a mixing bowl using an electric mixer until creamy.
  • Add the ricotta and vanilla and mix. Add the eggs and continue to mix until well combined.
  • Mix the flour, salt, baking powder and ground cinnamon in a separate bowl and add to the liquid mixture. Mix until well combined.
  • Fold in the apples and pour the batter into the greased pan.
  • Bake for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
  • Once done cool on a wire rack and serve warm

Strawberry Ricotta Yoghurt Mousse ~Blue Ribbon Challenge

20 | 06 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

I’m just loving the days with the kids at home and the fact that I don’t have to wake them up, get them ready, deal with the crankiness of my 4 year old while making breakfast for my 8 year old. All the chaos that’s part of a school day is now gone replaced by calm serene mornings, where I can enjoy an extra cup of tea and relax! Summer how I love you J

strawberry ricotta mousse

I’m also enjoying the various blog events that I’m a part of beginning with Blue Ribbon Challenge initiated by Anna of Crunchy Creamy Sweet!!A challenge where all of us make the same dish with our own twists and vote for our favorite.This event will be followed by another exciting one on Sunday!Will keep you posted on that too J
strawberry ricotta mousse 1
I looked all over the web for inspiration for my mousse recipe and incorporated all my favorite flavors to create a healthy Mousse that I’m sure you’re going to love JThe light airy texture of the mousse, with the sweet strawberries and creaminess of the Lemony Ricotta and Greek Yoghurt just makes it a delectable indulgence. The fact that its healthy makes it even more enjoyable J

Strawberry Ricotta Yoghurt Mousse

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • Strawberry Jam-1/2 cup
  • Greek Yoghurt-1 cup
  • Powdered Sugar-4 tbsp
  • Low fat Ricotta –1/2 Cup
  • Egg White-1/2 cup
  • Lemon Zest-1 tbsp

Instructions
 

  • In a food processor blend together ricotta and the
  • strawberry jam until smooth. Mix the lemon zest and keep aside in a bowl.
  • Using a hand mixer whip together the Greek Yoghurt with 3
  • tbsp of sugar until creamy.
  • In another bowl using the hand mixer whip the egg white
  • until foamy and beginning to hold shape.
  • Sprinkle in a tbsp of sugar and whip
  • until soft peaks begin to form.
  • Now take the ricotta mixture and gently fold in half of the
  • Greek Yoghurt.
  • Fold in half of the egg whites into the mix. Gently fold in
  • the rest of the Greek yoghurt followed by the rest of the egg whites until
  • nicely combined.
  • Your strawberry mousse is ready! Pour the mixture into
  • serving cups or glasses and chill in the refrigerator. Garnish with sliced
  • strawberries and serve!
 

 
 

Berry Strudel with Chocolate Drizzle

26 | 04 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

One of the most versatile products available in the stores is the Puff Pastry!Great with sweet or savory, you can create gorgeous recipes using these store-bought packets of convenience.The reason I always have them in my freezer! This recipe is one of the easiest and easily feeds a crowd.

berry strudel

I recently made these for a party.The recipe is fairly simple, yet delicious without too much effort.It was a hit with my guests and the kids alike.I also made a chocolate sauce to drizzle over the top that my guests loved!

Berry Strudel 4

The berries ooze out their juices and mix in with the Cinnamon Sugar and every bite is filled with the deliciousness!

Berry Strudel with Chocolate Drizzle

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

For the Strudel

  • Store bought Puff Pastry-1 sheet thawed
  • Strawberries slicedand Blackberries-1 1/2 cup mixed together
  • Brown Sugar-2 tbsp plus 2 tbsp for dusting
  • All Purpose Flour-1 tbsp
  • Cinnamon-1 tsp
  • Egg -1
  • Water-1 tbsp

For the Chocolate Drizzle

  • 14 oz can of Sweetened Condensed Milk-1
  • Semisweet chocolate chips-1 cup
  • Butter-2 tbsp
  • Vanilla extract-1/2 tsp
  • Salt-1/8 tsp

Instructions
 

Chocolate Drizzle:

  • In a saucepan combine all the ingredients for the sauce and cook on low heat until the chocolate melts.Add a tsp of vanilla.You can freeze any leftover sauce for later use.

Streudel

  • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.Mix the berries along with the 2 tbsp of brown sugar, flour and the cinnamon.
  • Unfold the puff pastry.Flour your surface and roll out the puff pastry into a 16 by12 inch rectangle.
  • Dust the remaining brown sugar all over.
  • With the side facing you spread the strawberry mixture at the bottom half about 2 inches from the edge.Roll up the dough till you reach the end making sure to secure the filling inside and place seam side down on a greased baking tray.
  • Mix the egg with water and brush the top with the egg mixture.Make slits all along the pastry.
  • Bake for 35 minutes or until the pastry is golden.Let it cool on a wire rack.Once cool drizzle the chocolate sauce all over.Your Strudel is ready!

 

Sending this to our #Berrylove bloghop co-hosted by these fabulous bloggers!Please visit their pages while you’re here!

A Little bit of everything ~ Roxana GreenGirl ~ @RoxanaGreenGirl,Baker Street ~ Anuradha ~ @bakerstreet29,Baking and Cooking, A Tale of Two Loves ~ Becky Higgins,BigFatBaker ~ Erin ~ @BigFatBaker,Bon à croquer ~ Valerie ~ @Valouth,Cake Duchess ~ Lora ~ @Cakeduchess,Easily Good Eats ~ Three Cookies,Elephant Eats ~ Amy,GeorgieCakes ~ Georgie ~ @georgiecakes,Hobby and More ~ Richa ~ @betit19,Java Cupcake ~ Betsy Eves ~ @JavaCupcake,Mis Pensamientos ~ Junia ~ @juniakk,No One Likes Crumbley Cookies ~ TR ~ @TRCrumbley,Oh Cake ~ Jessica ~ @jesshose,Queen’s Notebook ~ Elizabeth ~ @Mango_Queen,Rico sin Azúcar ~ Helena ~ @ricosinazucar,Simply Reem ~ Reem ~ @simplyreem,Soni’s Food for Thought ~ Soni ~ @sonisfood,Teaspoon of Spice ~ Deanna ~ @tspbasil,That Skinny Chick Can Bake!!! ~ Liz ~ @Thatskinnychick,The Art of Cooking Real Food ~ Laura ~@TAofCRF,The Wimpy Vegetarian ~ Susan ~ @wimpyvegetarian,Vegan Yack Attack! ~ Jackie ~ @veganyackattack,Vegetarian Mamma ~ Cindy ~ @VegetarianMamma