Carrot cookies

Mixing butter and sugar

Beating the egg white until stiff peaks form

Sieving the dry ingredients before combining with the wet ingredients

Combining flour to the wet ingredients

Adding shredded carrots

Mixing everything

The final dough

The cookie after baking

After decoration

The final product :)

Well, carrot has always fascinated me be it in terms of its color or its taste or the different dishes you can make with it. When I was a child, I never knew that carrot could be used to prepare other dishes apart from the dishes of "thoran" , "avial", "sambhar", "ghassi", in which my mom used carrot along with other veggies. It was our neighbour who made me interested when she prepared "Carrot payasam" one day. It was soo.. tasty that I wanted more and made one myself shortly. So when I came upon Carrot cookies, I thought why not give a try. Here is the recipe: My cookies turned out to be soft when I was expecting the harder version. If anyone knows how to make these cookies hard, please share it with me.

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup butter
2. 1 cup sugar
3. 2 tablespoons orange or lemon zest
4. 1 egg
5. 1 1/2 cups grated carrot
6. 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
7. 2 teaspoons baking powder
8. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
9. 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Method

• Preheat 375 deg F. Grease the baking vessel
• Cream butter and sugar
• To this add the orange or lemon zest
• Combine together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, cinnamon) in a seperate bowl
• Seperate the egg yolk and white. This step is optional. You can add egg just like that. Adding the egg white at a later stage after its beaten until stiff, incorporates air into the dough
• Add the egg yolk to the butter-sugar mix
• Add to this a little of the grated carrot. Mix using a stirring spoon used for cooking
• Add some flour. Mix again
• Repeat the above 2 steps in the same order until all of the carrot and flour is used and combined well. Take care not to stirr too well as this might cause the air bubbles to escape
• Beat the egg white using a electric beater until stiff peaks form
• Blend it with the rest of the cookie dough gently
• Combine vanilla
• Make small cookie shapes out of the dough and place them on the baking vessel
• Bake for 12 minutes or until the cookie is done
• Let it cool completly

Carrot cake

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups grated carrots

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

Method

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon in a bowl. In a seperate bowl, beat eggs, sugar, and oil. Slowly ad flour. Blend in vanilla, and carrots. Bake in 325 deg F for 35 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a knife which should come out clean.

Frittata (Italian omelet)

Well, the first time I heard of Frittata was in a sitcom on TV called "Everybody Loves Raymond" which I started watching after I came to US. I didnt give much thought to it as the humour part of the sitcom was way too good hehe ....It was one of my husband's cousin who got me interested. She told me it was really easy to prepare it. I searched on internet to see how it looks and that got me determined to make it. It may not look always the same as the above pic as its not always made in oven. Its made on the same pan, u make omelette. But I wanted a reason to start using my new silicon baking pan. So I made frittata in the oven. And it came out really well as you can see above. Almost looks like a pizza right? ;)

Let me share the recipe: This is for a chicken-brocolli-potato frittata. You can omit chicken if you dont like. But the egg should not be skipped (maybe u can use a substitute, i haven't tried though), else it wont be a frittata (italian "omelette") . The time taken may be more, but worth waiting :)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup diced potato
• 3/4 teaspoon butter
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic (i add more coz i like the taste of garlic in the dish)
• 1/2 onions diced
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup chopped brocolli
• 1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese (you can skip it if you dont have cheese or if you dont like it)
• 1/4 cup cooked chicken (optional) , you can use cooked ground turkey too if you are on a diet plan to avoid chicken

Method

• Preheat oven to 350 degree F
• Cook potato until firm
• Melt butter in oil
• Saute garlic, and onion
• Mix flour, milk, and eggs in a bowl
• In another bowl, mix potato, garlic, onion, flourmix, mushroom, cheese , and chicken
• Transfer to baking dish
• Bake for around 55 minutes till eggs are properly cooked or a knife inserted in the frittata comes out clean

Your frittata is ready!