Salmon with Curry Yogurt Sauce Recipe

Recipe Ingredients

4 salmon steaks or pieces of fillet (about 1 in. thick and 6 oz each) 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper Nonstick cooking spray 1 cup lowfat plain yogurt 2 Tbsp each chopped cilantro and sliced scallions 1 Tbsp each honey and curry powder

Recipe Preparation

1. Heat broiler. Line a baking pan with nonstick foil. Place salmon on pan; sprinkle with salt and pepper and coat with nonstick spray. Broil 8 to 10 minutes or just until cooked through. 

2. Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients and serve with salmon.

Note: Salmon (rich in vitamin D) helps your body absorb the calcium in dairy foods like yogurt.

Chaas - A Yogurt Based Indian Recipe

Ingredients:

Yogurt/Curd - 1 cup (well-beaten)
Water - 1 cup
Roasted Cumin Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Salt - to taste
Oil - 2 teaspoon
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Cloves - 4
Cinnamon Stick - 1'' piece
Dry Red Chili - 1 to taste
Curry Leaves - few
Garlic - 2 cloves (finely chopped)
Green Chillies - to taste (finely chopped)
Cilantro/Coriander Leaves - for garnish


Method:

1. While whisking the well-beaten Yogurt, add in the Water to desired consistency.

2. Add in the Roasted Cumin Powder and Salt and mix well. Keep aside.

3. In a small skillet, heat Oil on medium heat.

4. Add in the Cumin Seeds and allow them to sizzle for a few seconds.

Cucumber-Radish Raita

Raita is a simple yogurt-based sauce that can be served with almost any Indian meal. It makes a cooling condiment when a curry gets a little too spicy.

• 2 cups plain yogurt (I prefer the thicker Greek style such as Fage, Greek Gods, or Oikos)
• 1/2 to 1 whole medium cucumber, peeled, halved, seeded and grated
• 6 medium radishes, grated
• 1 handful cilantro leaves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

1. Put the yogurt in a bowl with plenty of extra room. Beat it thoroughly with a spoon or whisk (about 1 minute, until you see the texture thin out).
2. Add all of the remaining ingredients and mix.
3. If needed, add a tablespoon of water at a time until you have a thick but liquid, pourable sauce.
4. Taste and adjust seasonings; it may need more salt or lemon juice to make the flavor zing.

Minty Lemonade

Serves 4.
Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 8 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black salt optional
• 1/2 teaspoon grounded black pepper
• 32 oz cold water
• 1/8 teaspoon roasted ground cumin powder to garnish
• Mint leaves to garnish
• Ice cubes

Method

• Blend the mint leaves.
• Add lemon juice, sugar, salt, black salt, and black pepper.
• Blend together.
• Mix the mixture with water and pour the lemonade over ice.
• Garnish with mint leaves and cumin powder.

Tips
Every ingredient in this recipe can be adjusted to your taste.
Variations
Replace water with soda water. Add 1 tablespoon of fresh ginger juice.

Mango Lassi

Serves 2.
Ingredients:

• 2 cups peeled and chopped mangoes
• 1 cup yogurt
• 3 tablespoons sugar (Adjust to taste)
• 1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves (Optional)
• 6 to 10 ice cubes (As needed)

Method

1. Blend the mangoes, yogurt, and sugar into a puree.
2. Add chopped mint leaves.
3. Add the ice cubes.
4. You can adjust the thickness of the lassi.
5. Serve chilled.

Tips
For lassi it’s better if mangoes do not have any fibers. Using very ripe mangoes are best. The sugar can be adjusted to taste and it depends on the taste of the mangoes and yogurt.
Variation
Replace the mint with rose water or a generous pinch of cardamom powder.

Seafood and Bean Salad

Ingredients

• 3/4 lb fresh calamari, cleaned
• 1/2 lb of crawfish, lobster and / or shrimp, cooked
• 2 cups white beans, cooked and drained, 
• 1/2 cup shredded red cabbage
• 1/2 cup parsley, coarsely chopped
• 1/3 cup good olive oil
• Juice from one large lemon, 
• sea salt and pepper, to taste, 

1. For the calamari, rinse in salt water. On a cutting board, take the tubes and slice thinly into rings. Once done, place the sliced calamari and tentacles into a medium (2 QT) sauce pan and add enough cold water to submerge well. Season the water generously with salt, and heat the stove to medium.  Allow the cold water to gently rise in temperature, and the calamari to cook slowly, to ensure that the flesh remains tender. This should take between 20-30 minutes. If the calamari appears to be cooking too, then turn down the heat a notch, and proceed. Pull a ring out after 15-20 minutes to check on doneness. Once done, drain water completely, and add the calamari to a large salad bowl.
2. In the meantime, slice the crawfish, lobster and or shrimp into 1-inch chunks, and place in a large salad bowl. Add the beans, cabbage, parsley and olive oil. Squeeze fresh lemon juice, toss, and salt and pepper, to taste. 

This salad can be prepared a day ahead of time. 

Hot and Cold Bean Salad in Lettuce Cups

Ingredients:

• 1 Can of Cannellini beans (400gm)
• 2 Celery sticks
• 1 Red bell pepper
• 1 Yellow bell pepper
• 1 Ripe avocado
• 1 Cucumber (medium)
• Mint leaves (handful)
• Coriander leaves (handful)

Salad dressing:

• 70 ml Ready made tomato juice
• 25-30 ml Lime juice
• 1-2 tbsp Flax seed oil
• Lemon thyme (few sprigs)
• 2 Garlic pods (small)
• 1 Thai red chili
• Salt (to taste)
• Pepper powder (to taste)

Lettuce Prep:

• Whole iceberg lettuce leaves or gem lettuce leaves : 3-4
• Wash and trim the edges of the leaves.
• 1/2 hour before serving time, take a large bowl of cold water and add ice cubes.
• Plunge the lettuce leaves in this ice cold water.

Method

1. Wash and chop the veggies. Keep the chopped avacado in a seperate bowl. Refrigerate rest of the veggies.
2. Wash the mint and coriander leaves and chop coarsely
3. Grate the garlic finely.
4. De-seed and chop the red chili.
5. Finely chop the lemon thyme sprigs.
6. Mix all the ingredients given for the salad dressing and refrigerate.

Assemble and serve:

1. In a large bowl add the chopped veggies except avocado, mint and coriander leaves.
2. Add half the dressing and mix two to three times.
3. Drain and rinse the beans to get rid of the excessive salt. Add fresh water (just enough to barely cover the beans).
4. Cook in microwave high for 4-5 mins until pipping hot.
5. Add this to the veggie mix along with the avacado and toss once.
6. Serve immediately in the chilled lettuce cups along with the reserved salad dressing.

Notes:

• Avocado can turn mushy if mixed at the beginning and will not look and taste nice.
• It is important to serve the dressing chilled even if the salad is at room temperature. The reason being, flax seed oil contains more than 50% of good fats (omega 3 and omega 6) which gets destroyed when heated. Even though this is a healthy oil,1-2 tbsp is enough as it does comes with more or less the same amount of calories as the others. If this oil is unavailable, use olive oil or peanut oil for a smoky tasty.

Points to remember:

• Buy fresh vegetables and cut them before 20 minutes or so before serving time.
• Refrigerate all the vegetables added in this salad before and after cutting them until serving time.
• Add as many colorful vegetables as possible.

veggie pops

Ingredients:

• 1 medium Yellow Potato
• 2 inch piece of Carrot
• 2 inch piece of Celery
• 3-4 florets Broccoli
• 1 tbsp finely chopped Cilantro
• 1 chopped Green Chilli
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• Salt to taste
• ~ 1 cup Bread crumbs

Method

1. Microwave the potato after piercing it a couple times. Use the potato setting on the microwave or microwave on high until soft about 5mins. Roughly chop the carrot, celery and broccoli. Take in a microwave safe bowl along with about 3 tbsp of water and microwave on High for 4 minutes.
2. Mash up the potato after removing its skin and keep aside. Drain the other veggies and grate them up. Combine with the potatos. Add the remaining ingredients except bread crumbs and knead.
3. Make bite size balls of the mixture and flatten on palm to about 1cm thickness. Roll in bread crumbs.
4. Heat a skillet on medium and coat with oil or oil-spray. Place the flattened balls on the skillet and cook until golden brown. Flip over and cook until the other side is golden brown too. Drizzle oil as needed. Remove on a paper towel. Veggie bites are ready.

Green apple chutney (Serves 2)
Ingredients:

• Green Apple – 1/4th skinned and shredded
• Jaggery – 2tbsp
• Tamarind Paste – 1/2 tbsp
• Red chili powder – 1tsp
• Cumin powder – 1tsp
• Water – 3/4cup
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Combine jaggery and water and heat on med-hi until the jaggery dissolves.
2. Add tamarind paste and shredded green apple and cook for 1 minuite.
3. Reduce heat to medium and add the red chili powder, cumin powder and salt.
4. Let it simmer for about 5 mins and until it thickens to sauce like consistency then turn off the heat.

Putting it all together

1. Cut about 3 inch piece of cucumber from one end to make the cucumber vase.
2. Flatten out the narrow end so that the cucumber can rest on the narrow end.
3. Scoop out the interior fully.
4. Make V-shaped incisions on the wider end as pictured.
5. Now cut out about 3 inch long firm sticks out of a carrot. It should be thick enough to hold the veggie bites.
6. Gently pierce the carrot sticks into the veggie bites and place in the cucumber vase. Decorate with mint leaves.
7. To serve the chutney, cut about 2 inch piece of cucmber. Slice vertically in half and scoop out the interior. Pat dry and spoon the green apple chutney on it.

strawberry trifle on a stick

Yield: 20 skewers

Prep Time: 25 min

Here's a fun way to serve up a strawberry trifle- on a stick!

Ingredients:

20 mid-sized skewers
40 mint leaves
40 bite-sized chunks of pound cake or angel food cake
40 bite sized strawberries, tops cut off
1 (8 ounce) tub whipped cream cheese
1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped

Directions:

1. Assemble skewers- string mint leaf, cake cube, strawberry, another mint leaf, and then another cake cube. You can also alternate and put two strawberries and one cake cube on some of the skewers, if you'd like.

2. Prepare whipped cream- In a medium bowl, whisk together cream cheese and powdered sugar. Fold in whipped cream.

3. Serve Trifle Skewers on a platter along with a bowl of the sweetened whipped cream.

Tips:

*Use strawberries that are bite-sized.
*Leave mint leaves out if you'd like.
*And if you're making these for Memorial Day or July 4th, go ahead and sprinkle some blueberries in and around your platter to make it red, white and blue.

crab and cream cheese wontons

Yield: About 20 wontons

Prep Time: 35 min

Cook Time: 15 min

Ingredients:

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 green onions, minced
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1/4 pound lump dungeness crab meat
kosher salt, to taste
20 wonton wrappers
2 cups canola oil (for frying)

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, use a sturdy spoon to mix cream cheese, onions, fresh ginger, crab meat and salt.

2. Assemble the wontons: Place a wonton wrapper on a work surface. Dip your finger in a bowl of water and then rub edges of the wonton wrapper to dampen. Place a heaping teaspoonful of the crab mixure into the center of the wonton wrapper. Fold the bottom corner of the wonton wrapper over the filling to meet the opposite corner (you'll end up with a triangle). Press the edges lightly to seal. Bring the left and right corners up to the center and seal those together. Place on a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Continue with remaining wonton wrappers- an assembly line of doing 3 or 4 at a time works well.

3. Heat oil in a medium to large saucepan over medium-high heat. Oil is hot enough when a drop of water flicked into the oil creates a crackling sound. Fry wontons in hot oil until golden brown and crispy, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

4. Serve immediately.

Tips:

 Serve these with plum sauce (Asian aisle in the market) for dipping.

 Can also be re-heated in the oven the same day that you make them.