Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Underwater


~ The Sea Calls ~

The best part of making fun foods for lil ones is that you can 
run your imagination wild and  become a kid once again . You get full
 liberty to  play with the myriad colors , textures & flavors  creatively . 
The magic by which a simple plate transforms into a work of art and  
 wins the attention of even the most pickiest and  fussiest eaters 
is defiantly the best part of playing with food !!

Turn a watermelon slice into a jelly fish  and happily watch the little
sea monsters gobble , gobble,gobble .............


Jelly fish on my plate !!!!


Halved slice of a small watermelon, cucumber , carrot, grapes,  dill, & cheese. 

Don't forget to use  a blue napkin, an underwater themed  fork/ pick 
 &  a  blue glass of water  to make the sea come alive !!!! 



Thursday, February 21, 2013

Dips ......


~ Hearty Hummus ~ 
(Let the kids  dip , eat , lick as much a they can!!

The sudden boom in the international cuisine and the  doting multi 
cuisine  menus of cities' famous restaurants and food joints has 
given the gourmets a perfect excuse to pamper their taste buds 
with varied gastronomical delights. A beautiful appreciation and warm 
welcome towards  these  new flavors from friends and families , easy
 availability of ingredients have made the new aroma and  flavors an
integral part of our home cooked menus too. The best part of cooking
 at home is you have the reins of  customization in your hands . 




As per Wiki- Hummus is a Middle Eastern and Arabic food dip made from
cooked , mashed chickpeas blended with sesame paste , olive oil , lemon
 juice , salt and garlic. 


Hummus is my favorite dip !!! The rustic nutty flavor pairs
beautifully with pita chips,crackers, crudities , bread sticks, potato 
crisps ,fritters,  our very own humble banana chips and mathris ( fried 
Indian crackers) too . A wonderful spread of this on to regular 
sandwiches , wraps ( roti too) with some garden fresh veggies is a
wonderful treat to our taste buds. And the best part of this dip is that 
kids  can dip , eat , lick , slurp as much a they can for its high protein , 
high fiber and low fat  too !!!!

Red Pepper Hummus 


Ingredients 
Ingredients- 1 cup boiled chick peas ( chole/ garbanzo beans) , 2 large red 
 bell peppers , 2 tsp white sesame seeds ( til), 1/4 cup water/chick pea water
 ( left after boiling ), 2-3 garlic cloves,1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ( or kashmiri mirch 
powder ) 2 tsp lemon juice, some sumac (opt - for sprinkling )
1 tsp olive oil , salt to taste. 


Method-  
1. Roast the bell peppers on open flame till black and  charred , wrap in a damp
 kitchen towel and keep aside for 5-6 mins.  Peel the black skin and keep aside. 
2. Blend together chickpeas, roasted bell peppers and sesame till smooth (keep 
mixing and  adding some pea water for easier grinding) 
3. Mix in salt , cayenne powder, lemon juice ,  olive oil and whip again. 
4. Place in a serving bowl , drizzle some olive oil .Sprinkle sumac 
and  1/4 tsp sesame seeds (opt)
5. Garnish with some slices of red chillies  (achari mirch). 





Hummus 
( the traditional way )

Tahini or sesame seeds paste is an integral part of the traditional recipe , 
I always love to make my own version ( by grinding  together 1 cup lightly 
toasted sesesame seeds with 2 tbsp olive oil and some salt till smooth) but 
often just replace it with sesame seeds for a chunkier taste.



Ingredients
1 cup boiled chick peas ( chole/ garbanzo beans) ,  1 tbsp tahini ( or 2 tsp
 sesame seeds), 1/4 cup water/chick  pea water  ( left after boiling ), 2-3 garlic
 cloves, 2 tsp lemon juice, some sumac and zahtar (opt - for sprinkling )
 1 tsp olive oil , salt to taste. 


Method-  

1. Blend together chickpeas& tahini  till smooth (keep mixing / adding some
 chickpea water for easier grinding) 
2. Mix in salt , lemon juice and whip for another 30 secs. 
3. Place in a serving bowl , drizzle olive oil and sprinkle 
 sumac , zahtar and  1/4 tsp sesame (opt)
4. Garnish with a sprig of parsley and some boiled chickpeas. 


 So next time you soak some chickpeas for making  chole ..... don't forget to 
go international with this dip !!!! 


Thursday, February 14, 2013

Valentine Giveaway



~ Valentine -Lets celebrate Love ~
( and a CupoNation giveaway ) 

Valentines  day is all about love , red and hearts . 
Its the time of the year when love is in the air . The 
gentle warm breeze wafting through the colorful 
flowers  beautifully signify the advent of love and spring 
The shops, malls and the markets  all seem to be 
silently competing with each other  to be the hottest 
and  happening topic of the town . The most amazing 
of these beautiful exhibits of red is the florist shop 
( not to forget the vegetable n fruits shops too) that
 display  the widest and the most enchanting reds of
 the season . Lets bring in that little bit of red to our 
homes too and   make this Valentine  special 
for our lil cupids ..........

Choco Love 

Whole wheat bread , topped with chocolate spread / nutella , sprinkles n 
strawberries - to make strawberry hearts gently slit a V on top and slice. 

These quick yummy treats ensure that you just don't make 
special treat for everyone but also spend maximum time with 
them too..... After all love is all about joy , happiness & bonding.  
This choco sandwich is perfect to say "Mommy loves you  my 
Little sweetheart !!!!" If you lil one loves savories try out 
the greener version . 

Sandwich Love 


Whole wheat bread topped with cheese , lettuce and red pepper hearts.
Use a cookie cutter to cut hearts from red peppers.



Did I tell you about my Facebook page and my photography love-
check out my album- 'Red white and All things nice ' , its all about 
the our humble red foods. I look forward to your feedback on the
 other albums too !!!! 



 From the sparkling reds of the tomatoes to the bewitching reds of 
strawberries, from the juicy red of watermelons  to the hot red of 
chillies or the spicy sweet of bell peppers , the Reds have their own 
divine charm !!!! 



Giveaway by CupoNation 

The season of love and the joy of celebration is incomplete without 
gifts and shopping , and additional discounts truly make shopping 
much more fun . CupoNation is a new destination to your world of 
savings- with thousands of deals backed with expert market analysis 
CupoNation provides its users the latest and the most lucrative deals 
offering huge discounts from leading brands asnd retailers ( Jabong, 
Snap Deal, Flipkart, First cry , Zansaar, e-bay, Dominos, Future 
bazaar, Homeshop 18, Makemytrip, Myntra , Yatra , Zansaar 
and Zivame many more ) Just sign up at their website and get
 all the deals  right in your  inbox .So the next time you plan
to shop something online don't forget to pick your discount 
coupons and reduce your shopping bills ..........




All you have to do to win this Rs 500 e-gift  voucher from

flipkart by CupoNation  is to
 leave a comment telling - Which is your favorite e- store
 (online shopping store)

To increase your chances of winning  jus leave an additional 
comment for each 
1. Like Little Food Junction  on Face Book 
2. Like CupoNation on Facebook 
3. Blog about the giveaway on your blog/ page 


Giveaway ends on 21st Feb '13 IST . Open to Indian residents
 only. If you are a non blogger pl make sure to include your e-mail 
id in the comment , so that we can contact you if you win. 
Results will be announced on my Facebook page .
Good Luck !!!!! 


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