Snacks – Page 3 – Smriti "Simmi" D. Isaac

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Simmi D. Isaac — 1 Comment

Finger Foods For A Sleepover

So, we recently had an old-fashioned birthday sleepover party at the house– for a bunch of teenage girls (one of whom belongs to me) with not-so-bird-like appetites. Which is actually terrific, because I am never at a loss for ready-made-pop-in-the-oven-finger-lickin’-good finger foods. Here’s what took about 45 minutes to make, and about as much time to finish off. See for yourself in the slideshow below. Details on the items is below the show.

What you see is what you get: Pizza, Toquitos, Mushroom Fritters, Chili-Lime Chicken Wings, two kinds of Quiche, Potato Wedges, and Sun Chips. The cake goes without saying, of course, and can only be imagined (because it was so divine!), and what do you wash this all down with? Pop, of course!

Posted on February 12, 2011 by Simmi D. Isaac — Leave a comment

Dosai, Podimas & Garlic-Chilli Chutney

So, for the uninitiated, Dosai or Dosas as they are more commonly known are the most delectable crepe-like pancakes made of fermented rice and lentils. They’re served any time of the day, and could be breakfast, lunch, dinner, or a snack. Check out the slideshow above for how they look while they’re cooking in a dosa tava and later when they’re served on a plate.

And so these Dosais, they go with just about anything. The classic accompaniments are a variety of chutneys, and a seasoned mashed-potato filling. The not-so-classic accompaniments include two that I served up this morning: Eggs Podimas and Garlic-Chili Chutney.

The Podimas is a simple way of breaking the eggs directly into the pan of finely-chopped sauteeing onions. Only, I gave it a twist by adding a Mexican seasoning of cilantro and annato available in a popular brand called Sazon Goya.

The Garlic-Chilli Chutney is a home-made staple you will find in my refrigerator at all times.

And what better beverage to wash it all down than home-made Cappucinos?

Mmmm! Mmmm! Mmmm!

Yep, that’s how we roll sometimes on a Saturday morning!

Oh, and just in case you’re wondering, mine is the larger cup!

Posted on February 1, 2011 by Simmi D. Isaac — Leave a comment

Pie-like Omelettes

I had recently put up a lovely post on all things quiche: the lovely delicate pastry shells, both regular and mini size that contain all sorts of fillings.

Well, this is no quiche, but it sure looks like one. It could be called a frittata of sorts, but it contains no potatoes. And it’s certainly not a quiche because there’s no pastry holding its contents.

What it is, is a stand-alone omelette. Only it’s cooked on a stove-top but on so low a flame and with a covered lid that the egg mixture sets beautifully. Also, the onions, tomatoes, green chillies and cilantro are finely chopped and sauteed first, folded into the frothy beaten eggs, and then transferred into a sturdy pan.

What you’ll have fifteen minutes later is a gorgeous omelette that looks like a quiche or a pie. Ideally, there must be nothing sticking to the bottom and it ought to slide off onto a plate with ease, or at the very least must be able to cut firmly into wedges or squares.

Serve with toast, pitas or rotis. Makes a hearty entree any day. This was my slice from last evening. There were three more where that came from, BTW!

Posted on January 21, 2011 by Simmi D. Isaac — Leave a comment

(Birthday) Samosas From Scratch

So, what’s as special as cake on your birthday? Well, if you’ve got a thing for samosas– homemade ones at that– then you’d probably want those for your birthday!

Which is what a friend of my firstborn asked for as a birthday present!

So, next thing I knew, I was being recruited to “help” make them!

We made two kinds: one batch with a traditional potatoes-and-peas filling, and the other with a keema-and-peas filling.

And when I say scratch, I mean scratch from the very scratchiest scratch. That included kneading the dough, rolling it for the wrappers, making the two fillings, preparing each samosa in the traditional triangular shape, crimping the edges, and finally frying them to a golden brown.

See the slideshow below if you’re in the mood for a DIY. And good luck!

Posted on January 17, 2011 by Simmi D. Isaac — Leave a comment

Open-Faced Brunch Sandwiches

Thanks to the MLK holiday, these open-faced brunch sandwiches seemed to materialize out of nowhere. Well, out of the left-overs from within the fridge, to be precise.

The main ingredients were: a loaf of french-bread, pepper-jack cheese, four boiled eggs, and some rotisserie chicken. Salt, pepper, dijon mustard and butter are staples that almost go unmentioned.

Thick slices of the bread got a thin spread of Olivio butter, followed by the cheese, eggs and the shredded chicken, and finally topped off with a swirl of dijon mustard and a thin slice of butter.

Bake at 400 in a pre-heated oven for five mins; then, broil for another 5.

Serve with love.

A slideshow follows. Note: this is our variation of the Danish open-faced sandwiches mentioned in this blog a couple weeks ago.

Posted on January 9, 2011 by Simmi D. Isaac — 1 Comment

Christmas 2010 Eats and Treats

I would be remiss to not have a blogpost devoted solely to all the sweet and savory snacks that my mother made during her brief visit with me over the holidays.

And so, the objective of this post is to highlight via pictures all the many goodies that were made– many of them typically made during the Christmas holidays in India: karjakais, kalkals, ladoos, chudva, murukus, fruitcakes, the list goes on. Back in the old country, you made them in large quantities so as to have them ready on hand to serve when guests came calling for a friendly holiday visit, or to serve to the carolers after they caroled outside your house, or to serve with tea and coffee during the holiday season. And then for a few weeks after Christmas and New Years’, you’d still have boxes and tins of these goodies neatly stored in your pantry that would tide you over at least the month of January.

Well, my mother came to visit for Christmas, and she did exactly this: she made all these yummy sweet and savory eats that we’re now nibbling on even two weeks later!

Here are some of the pictures in the slideshow below. If you’re familiar with these eats, you wouldn’t care to read the captions that go with each photo, but you’re not, you might find it interesting.