Paneer Momos

Ingredients:

• 1 cup  Maida
• 1 cup Paneer crumble
• 1 Onion
• 2 teaspoon Ginger garlic paste
• ¾ teaspoon Red chilli powder
• ½ teaspoon Garam masala powder
• ¼ teaspoon Turmeric
• Salt – As needed
• 3 tablespoon Coriander leaves
• 2 teaspoon Oil
• Water – as needed

Method:

• First prepare the outer dough with flour, salt and water. 
• The dough should be non sticky. 
• To prepare the filling. Take oil in a pan, fry the chopped onions and ginger and garlic paste.
• Followed by red chilli powder, garam masala powder, turmeric and salt. Give it a stir.
• Add the paneer and fry for a few minutes. 
• Add finely chopped coriander leaves and mix well. Switch off the flame. Let it cool down.
• Now take out the dough from cover and knead well for couple of mins or until smooth.
• Roll out the dough into small discs. Place the paneer mixture in the centre and shape into momos.
• Steam the prepared momos for 5-6 minutes.  Serve hot with chilli sauce.  

Cheese Quesadilla

Last weekend we had a few friends over for lunch.  We really loved hosting these lovely friends whom we lost to Ireland 10 years back! It was so much fun catching up…and we chatted till our jaws hurt! This was a pretty last minute lunch date so I didn't have time for any elaborate south Indian style lunch menu. But there were 4 kids coming, so I wanted to make something quick and yummy.

I made some marshmallow pops (recipe to be posted soon) and these quesadillas. And I couldn't believe how fast these got gobbled up! The quesadillas where slathered with sauce filled with cheese which are always a super hit! For the recipe post I added some chicken sausages. But if your guests are vegetarians like mine were, then you can totally omit the chicken and just go with the veggies.

So now you have this super quick appetizer recipe to wow you “mini” guests! Tried and tested! The kids loved the quesadillas so much that they forgot the rest of the dishes on the table!

Cheese Quesadillas

Serves: 4

Recipe Adapted from budgetbytes.com

Ingredients:

Tortillas – 4 (I used MISSION Multi-grain Tortillas)

Mozzarella Cheese – 2 cups (shredded)

Pasta Sauce – 2 cups (I used PREGO Pasta Sauce)

Onion – 1 Med Size (thinly sliced)

Capsicum – 1 Med Size (thinly sliced)

Olives (black or green) – 1 cup (sliced)

Chicken Sausage (optional) – 2 (thinly sliced)

Oil – for sauteing

Directions:

• Slice all the veggies, drain the olives and keep aside.
• Add a little oil to a pan and saute the thinly sliced chicken sausage for a few minutes until cooked. Drain on paper napkins.
• Take one tortilla wrap and spread ½ cup of pasta sauce on it.
• To this add a little capsicum, onions, olives and the sauteed chicken sausage. Then add ½ cup of mozzarella cheese and fold the tortilla in half.
• Heat a flat based pan with a little oil and cook the tortilla until brown and crispy on both sides.
• Cut into wedges and serve warm.

 NOTE:

• You can prepare the tortillas a couple of hours beforehand. When your guests are ready to eat, cook and serve the quesadillas immediately, otherwise they tend to get soggy.
• You can add or omit any of the toppings you want to suit your needs. 

Veggie Cheese Balls

 This is a great choice as a appetizer when your hosting a party. I made these cheese balls a few months back when we had a game night at our place. Deep fried cheese is always a hit among guests. The panner and cheese makes this a yummy appetizer, so I often make this just when we have guests over. 

The usual cheese ball recipe sounded too plain for me. So I added some spaghetti and grated veggies to give a nice texture to the otherwise rich cheese balls. The breadcrumb coating is so crispy which complements the smoothness of the cheese filling.

When we have guests over for dinner, I usually prepare the cheese balls with the bread crumb coating in the morning, store in an air-tight container and freeze it. And when the guests arrive, I just take out the prepared balls and deep fry them and serve it hot. This way it is hassle free and piping hot.

Veggie Cheese Balls:

Makes: 25 small balls

Ingredients:
Spaghetti  Pasta – 100gms (cooked and strained)
Cheese – ¼ cup (grated)
Paneer – ½ cup (crumbled)
Beans – ¼ cup (finely chopped)
Carrots – ¼ cup (grated)
Green chillies – 5 (finely chopped)
Ginger garlic paste – 1 teaspoon
Milk – 1 ½ cups
Corn flour – 2 tablespoon
Maida – 2 tablespoon + more for coating
Breadcrumbs – 1 ½ cups
Salt – 2 teaspoon (or as needed)
Oil – for frying

Directions:

• Heat some oil in a pan.  Add the green chilies, beans, carrots and ginger garlic paste, and fry for a few minutes.
• Then add the crumbled paneer, grated cheese and salt to the vegetables, and fry. To this, add the cooked spaghetti and mix everything together.
• Mix the corn flour with the milk and add to the pasta and vegetable mixture. Cook until the mixture becomes thick.
• Add 2 tblsp of maida to the mixture and mix until well incorporated. Remove from flame and let it cool down.
• After the mixture cools down, roll into small bite sized balls.
• In a bowl mix water and maida to form a very thin paste. In another bowl take the breadcrumbs.
• Take the vegetable cheese ball and dip it into the maida paste and then coat it with the breadcrumbs.
• Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the balls until golden brown. Serve hot.