Soni's Food

Indian Inspiration!

Leek and Mushroom Puff Pastry Tarts

13 | 12 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

No party is complete without some appetizing appetizers!I so look forward to appetizers in any party and for the hubby, they’re the most important part of a meal!I made these some time ago for our friends and they turned out really good. Easy to use and inexpensive,Puff Pastry Sheets are a freezer staple in my house.Not being much of a baker, it comes in really handy for me for creating dishes like these that look professional! The buttery layers of the puff pastry gives a richness to anything you add into it and transforms it into something special!

My Leek and Mushroom tarts make for an easy and quick appetizer for any party or potluck.The mushrooms are golden and meaty.The leeks give a sweet subtle flavor and for me they’re a classic combination.These also look great on any table and I top these with some Crumbled Feta for a delicious finish!

Leek and Mushroom Puff Pastry Tarts

Delicious puff pastry tarts with leeks and mushrooms for an easy party appetizer!
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Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • Frozen Puff Pastry Sheet-1
  • Leeks-2 stalks chopped
  • Baby Bella Mushrooms-4 cups chopped
  • Butter- 1 tbsp
  • Salt-to taste
  • Pepper-1 tsp
  • Crumbled Feta-3 tbsp

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
  • Thaw the frozen Puff Pastry for about 30 minutes.Flour your surface and unfold the sheet.Prick all over with a fork.
  • Cut through the middle of the puff pastry lengthwise (you can also roll it to make a bigger square and then cut through the middle) and bake in the oven for 15 minutes until puff pastry is golden.
  • In a pan heat the butter and saute the leeks for about a minute.Add the mushrooms and cook until golden.
  • Add salt and pepper.Keep aside.
  • Spoon the vegetable mixture evenly all over the baked sheets and put it back into the oven for about 5-6 minutes.
  • Sprinkle feta all over.Cut into small rectangles/squares and serve warm or at room temperature!

 

 

 

 

 

leek mushroom tart2

For an easy Holiday Cookie idea try my No Bake Date Coconut Snowballs and don’t forget to enter my Tropical Traditions Giveaway to win a Quart of Organic Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil which runs until 12/16!!!Enjoy 🙂

 

Sweet Potato Cranberry Casserole with Almond Coconut Streusel #CookedInTranslation

20 | 11 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

Today I’ve got for you a recipe that I could easily call one of the ‘best things I ever made and ate’ :).It can be made ahead and frozen or refrigerated to be baked at the last minute to get all lovely and golden.The secret to my recipe here is ginger that adds a great depth of flavor to this dish.

The streusel consists of Almond Flour and some shredded coconuts for a crunchy nutty topping and boy was it good!!I’m so glad I used Almond Flour instead of all purpose flour since it gave it so much more body and flavor.The sweet aroma of coconut filled my kitchen as it was baking in the oven.It tasted phenomenal and had the perfect amount of sweetness!

The cranberries gave it the perfect tartness and the coconut worked like magic!! A lovely Casserole that’s easy, healthy and the most delicious!

Sweet Potato Cranberry Casserole with Almond Coconut Streusel #CookedInTranslation

A delicious Casserole using Sweet Potatoes and Cranberries topped with an Almond and Coconut Streusel makes for a great Holiday Side Dish or even Dessert!
Print Recipe
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • Sweet Potatoes-2 lbs
  • Dried Sweetened Cranberries-1 cup
  • Packed Brown Sugar-1/2 cup
  • Freshly Crushed Ginger-2 tsp
  • Sea Salt-1 tsp
  • For the Streusel
  • Almond Flour-1 cup
  • Unsweetened Shredded Coconut-1/2 cup
  • Packed Brown Sugar-1/4 cup

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Wrap the sweet potatoes in foil and bake in the oven for 50 min-1 hr until cooked.Let cool.
  • Peel off the skins and mash the sweet potatoes with the next 4 ingredients and mix.
  • Mix the Streusel ingredients and keep aside.
  • Coat a medium sized square or rectangular baking dish with cooking spray and spread the Sweet potato mixture evenly.
  • Cover with the Almond coconut mixture and bake it in the oven for about 40 minutes until golden.

 

Our Cooked In Translation group is celebrating a Fusion Thanksgiving and this event is hosted by the lovely Stacy @ Food Lust People Love!! We’re recreating traditional Thansgiving dishes but with our own little twists :)Please check out other interesting recipes on the table!!


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Easy Wonton Soup #SundaySupper

04 | 11 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

This past week, Hurricane Sandy ripped through New York and New Jersey and we were left with no power or heating for four days.There were trees uprooted all across our neighborhood and we were extremely lucky that none fell on our house or on our neighbors’!The help and offers from friends and well wishers to come and stay was really touching and we’re very thankful to all our friends for their hospitality in such times.The amount of destruction is massive and my heart goes out to the families who’ve suffered to the extent that’s unimaginable and I only hope that their lives return back to normal sooner than later.

In order to keep us warm I often made soups for lunch and this easy Wonton soup was just perfect since it didn’t require any effort.I used a pack of Chicken Wontons sold at Trader Joe’s.Just added a few veggies with some stock and we had one tasty soup. You can easily make a vegetarian version of this soup by using vegetable wontons and vegetable stock!

Easy Wonton Soup #SundaySupper

Easy Wonton Soup to keep you warm!
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 18 minutes
Total Time 28 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • Chicken Wontons-14-16 pieces
  • Carrots-2 large peeled and cubed
  • Celery- 2 stalks washed and chopped
  • Broccoli- 1/2 cut into florets
  • Low Sodium Chicken Broth-3-4 cups
  • Soy Sauce-1 tbsp
  • Ginger-1/2 inch freshly crushed
  • Salt-to taste
  • Pepper-1 tsp

Instructions
 

  • In a pot heat the stock and add the carrot,celery,soy sauce,ginger and pepper.Bring to a boil and let it cook on medium for about 10-15 minutes.Add the wontons and broccoli and cook for about 2-3 minutes.Check the seasonings.Serve hot!

Our friend Susan from The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen is hosting this week’s SundaySupper with foods that keep you warm!Scroll down for some ‘warm you up’ dishes from our group!

Main Entrees: 

Chili/Stews:

Soups:

Desserts/Beverages:

Join on us on Twitter throughout the day during #SundaySupper.  In the evening we will meet at 7pm EST for our weekly #SundaySupper live chat.

All you have to do is follow the #SundaySupper hashtag or you can follow us through TweetChat.

We’d also love to feature your Sunday Supper Soul Warming Recipes on our #SundaySupper Pinterest board and share them with all of our followers, too.

 

Pumpkin Masala-Spiced Pumpkin

22 | 10 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

With the abundance of Pumpkins this season, its always a challenge to come up with new and exciting recipes that are easy to make, yet different and of course taste delicious.My recipe today is the result of exactly that, an experiment that was successful and received a thumbs up from the taste testers aka hubby and kids 🙂 We recently went Pumpkin picking and got ourselves some gorgeous looking pumpkins in two different sizes one large and one small.The smaller pumpkin is what I’ve used here today.It was unripe and I would recommend using unripe Pumpkins for this preparation, since they are not overly sweet.

On a recent twitter chat when some friends asked about some good pumpkin recipes to try, I recommended Pumpkin Curry!My friends immediately wanted recipes and that gave me the idea to come up with an Indian inspired Pumpkin recipe on my blog.So here is a savory Pumpkin recipe that will totally blow you away with all the different layers of delicious flavors.Its savory, spicy, tangy all in one and its totally different from the sweet creations thats normally associated with Pumpkins.

 

Indian Spiced Masala Pumpkin

Print Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • Small Unripe Pumpkin- 2 cups Cubed
  • Onions-1 cup chopped
  • Crushed Ginger-1 tsp
  • Crushed Garlic-1 tsp
  • Jalapenos/Green Chili-1 chopped
  • Large Tomatoes-2 pureed
  • Ground Coriander-2 tsp
  • Ground Cumin-2 tsp
  • Garam Masala-1 tsp
  • Turmeric-1/2 tsp
  • Red Chili Powder Cayenne-1 tsp
  • Water-2 cups
  • Salt- to taste
  • Oil-3 tbsp

Instructions
 

  • In a skillet, heat oil and add the onions.
  • Saute until slightly golden and add the ginger and garlic.
  • Add the spices and saute on low heat for about 2 minutes stirring constantly.Add the jalapeno/green chili
  • Add the tomato puree and continue to cook on medium heat, until the oil begins to separate from the sides (about 8 minutes)
  • Add the pumpkin pieces.Stir and mix well.Add salt and water.Mix well, cover and cook on medium until fully cooked (about 10-15 minutes)
  • Serve hot!

Curried Apple and Leek Soup ~ Autumn Apple Party #SundaySupper

23 | 09 | 2012
By Soni Sinha

Come autumn and the crisp cool air just feels so good in the mornings.I’m enjoying this transition of the weather and the lovely warm and comforting foods that come along with it!Talking about autumn, its also the season of Apples!.This lovely fruit is one of my most favorite things to cook/bake with and I can think of so many ways to use them in my sweet and savory creations.So when my friend Cindy from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings suggested ‘Autumn Apple Party’ as the title for this #SundaySupper I jumped with excitement 🙂
apple soup2
I’m bringing a savory item for this event and its already becoming a family favorite, going by the verdict of my 4 and 9 year olds :)Its my creamy Curried Apple and Leek Soup that has so many varied flavors that tickle your tastebuds in just the right way.I found the original recipe at All Recipes and added my own twist with the bacon and paprika! The soup is slightly acidic from the Granny Smith Apples,with a slight hint and heat of the spices combined with the creaminess of the potatoes. The flavors further elevate with the garnish of the salty, crisp bacon!One bowl full of goodness for this Fall~

Curried Apple and Leek Soup

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • Granny Smith Apples-2 peeled cored and chopped
  • Leeks-2 stalks cleaned and chopped
  • Potato-1 medium peeled and chopped
  • Curry Powder-2 tsp
  • Paprika-1 tsp
  • Salt-to taste
  • Pepper-2 tsp
  • Water-2 cups
  • Bacon-2 slices
  • Butter-2 tbsp

Instructions
 

  • Heat butter in a sauce pan and add the chopped leeks.Saute for about a minute until translucent.Add the curry powder and saute for another minute.Add the potatoes,apples,all the other spices and water.Bring to a boil.Reduce the heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes.Adjust the seasonings.
  • Crisp up the bacon in a pan and break it by hand.
  • Once cooked blend the soup until all smooth and creamy.Garnish with the bacon bits and serve hot with crusty bread!

Check out the scrumptious creations of my blogger friends using Apples and don’t forget to join our twitter chat at 7pm est!Soups, Salads, Starters and Breads