Summer Recipes That Make Cooking Fun During the COVID-19 Lockdown

Summer is here, and due to the Coronavirus lockdown, you’ve got some time on your hands. How can you stay busy, and handle the heat? Through these soothing and cooling summer recipes. In the heat and boredom, it might feel hard to eat too much. However, the scent and sight of these fantastic dishes will help stir that appetite.

Today, we present 5 different summer recipes fresh from the kitchen! Get your pots and pans ready!

Mor Kozhumbu

A little sour, a hint of spice and whole lot of soothing.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp tuvar dal (or pigeon pea lentils or arhar dal) 1 tsp coriander seeds ½ tsp cumin seeds ½ tsp raw rice ¼ cup of hot water (for soaking purposes) 34 green chillies 56 curry leaves ½ inch ginger ¼ cup grated coconut 1.5 cups chopped white pumpkin (or ash gourd, winter melon) 1 cup water (to add as required) ¼ tspn turmeric 1 cup thick curd (slightly sour, beaten) Salt to taste

Garnish

1 – 1 ½ tbsp of oil ½ tsp mustard seeds ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds 12 dry red chillies (broken and deseeded) A generous pinch of asafoetida (hing) 78 curry leaves

Instructions

Take the tuvar dal, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and raw rice and rinse them using a tea strainer Place them in a bowl, fill the bowl with hot water and let the ingredients soak for twenty minutes Collect the soaked ingredients and blitz them in a grinder or mixer Add green chillies, chopped ginger, curry leaves and the grated coconut and grind to a paste. Set it aside Beat the curd and add the ground paste. Mix well and set aside. Rinse, peel and chop the ash gourd. Place it in a pan over the fire, add turmeric and 1 cup water. Stir it well. Cover the pan and keep it on mediumlow flame. Keeping checking and stirring. Simmer till the pumpkin is mostly cooked Reduce or switch off the flame and add the curd coconut mix Season with salt and stir together Simmer on a low flame and keep stirring Once the entire curry comes to a boil, switch off the flame, cover it and keep it aside

For the garnish

Heat the oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds and let them crackle. Once that is done, add the fenugreek seeds Swiftly add the red chillies, curry leaves and hing, stir and switch off the flame Pour the mixture over the more kozhumbu and let the flavours infuse for the next 5 minutes Serve the more kozhumbu with steamed rice

Kaccha Aam Chutney

Tangy, spicy and a favoutie summer recipe!

Ingredients

1 tbsp oil 1 tbsp fenugreek seeds ½ tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp saunf A small pinch of hing 1 grated mango Salt to taste (approx. ½ tsp) 1/8th tsp turmeric 1 cup jaggery powder 1 cup water 2 tsp red chilli powder 4 cloves (crushed) 5 tsp ginger powder

Instructions

Add the oil to a pan, add fenugreek, cumin, saunf and hing Sauté them and add the grated mango Mix in the salt, turmeric and jaggery powder and mix well Add water to this mix and stir Add red chilli powder, crushed cloves and the ginger powder. Stir the entire mix together Let it cool, pour into a jar and serve with lunch or dinner

Chicken Momos

Perfect when you don’t want to eat a heavy meal in the heat and feel bloated.

Ingredients

Dough
Refined flour (120 gms) ¼ tsp baking powder ½ tsp water (for when you knead the dough)

For the filling

1 cup minced chicken ½ cup onions chopped finely ¼ tsp black pepper powder 1 tbsp oil Garlic paste (1/2 tsp) Soya sauce (1/2 tsp) Salt Vinegar (1/4 tsp)

Chill sauce

25 gm garlic (peeled) 6 gm whole red chillies 3 tsp vinegar 1 tsp oil Salt to taste Sugar to taste

Instructions

Mix all the ingredients for the filling into a bowl and set aside Knead the flour, baking powder, salt and water into a firm dough. Cover it and let it rest for 30 mins Roll the dough out into 45-inch thin rounds Take each circle of dough and place the minced filling in the centre Bring the edges together and seal with a twist of the dough Steam for about 10 minutes and serve with your chilli sauce

Cabbage Thoran

A nice, light accompaniment to your dal and rice.

Ingredients

1 cabbage (medium sized) 1 onion, finely chopped (medium sized) 1012 curry leaves 1 tsp black mustard seeds 1 tsp cumin seeds A pinch of asafoetida (hing) 1 green chilli, chopped ½ tsp turmeric powder ½ cup of coconut, grated 12 tbsp coconut oil Salt to taste Chopped coriander for garnish

Instructions

Wash the cabbage, grate, shred or slice the cabbage finely  Chop the onions Heat coconut oil in the pan, add the mustard seeds and let them crackle Add cumin and sauté till the mixture changes colour Add the onions, sauté until translucent Add green chillies and curry leaves – sauté for a minute Add the turmeric, asafoetida and mix well Add the cabbage, salt, stir for a minute Cover your pan and keep on a low flame to let the cabbage cook. Keep checking and stirring from time to time Steam cook till the cabbage turns tender (cook till the moisture in the pan reduces) Now add the coconut, stir for another 23 minutes Garnish with coriander Serve hot with steamed rice and dal or chapati

Lemon Cheesecake

We all need a little decadence, particularly during the strain of the Covid-19 lockdown. Let this dessert recipe sweeten your summer.

Ingredients

4 tbsp unsalted butter 3 tbsp sugar A pinch of salt 198 gms crisp cookies 900 gms softened cream cheese 1 cup sour cream 4 eggs (large) 200 gms sugar  12 lemon zest

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 167 degrees Celsius Place a sheet of aluminium foil on a baking sheet (make sure both are large enough to wrap around the outside of your spring form pan). Keep it aside To make the base, put the cookies into a food processor and crush till you get fine crumbs Mix the cookie crumbs with unsalted melted butter and salt until the consistency resembles fine sand. Squeeze a small amount of mixture into a clump to test its readiness.  Press the cookie mixture into the bottom of your pan and smooth into an even layer Bake it for 15 minutes, set it aside to cool Place a baking dish on the bottom rack of your oven and fill with boiling water (this creates the steam that bakes the cheesecake) In a mixer bowl, beat the cream cheese until it is smooth and creamy. Beat in the lemon zest, sugar, salt and scrape the sides to make sure it is evenly mixed Beat the eggs in – one at a time. Mix well, ensuring that there are no clumps or scrapings on the side of the bowl Do not overmix the mixture too much. Beat in each egg until it has mixed sufficiently Overbeating introduces air into the batter and your cheesecake will crack On a low speed, beat the sour cream until it combines Spread the filling on the crust. Put the cheesecake on the foillined baking sheet. Now shape the foil until it covers the outside walls of your cheesecake pan Place the baking sheet with the cheesecake on the centre rack of your oven (above the boiling water) for 1 hour until the cheesecake looks set on top but wobbles in the centre Turn off the oven and let the cheesecake cool with the oven door closed Crack open the door and allow the cheesecake to cool for another 45 minutes (keep the oven door cracked and not fully open). Remove it from the oven and let it cool on a baking rack, till it reaches room temperature The cheesecake will deflate slightly in the centre as it cools Remove the foil once the cheesecake has reached room temperature and has separated from the pan Chill in a refrigerator for 6 hours before serving

So, there you have it. 5 fantastic recipes to beat the summer heat and the lockdown blues. These are some favourite summer dishes on our summer menu that we wanted to share with you. Take pictures of your final dishes and tag us on social media so we can see your efforts.

Have a safe and sweet summer!

About Mahindra Holidays

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