Tomato Biriyani | Easy Rice Cooker Recipes

Repeating a recipe twice or thrice after trying it out for the first time,that too in a span of 10 days does say a lot about the recipe isn't it?I had bookmarked this recipe from Yummy Tummy a while back but never got a chance to try because mention Tomato rice or in this case Biriyani Ajay makes a face.He likes vegetables in his biriyani or else it has to be a non-vegetarian one.

One day when I was alone for lunch,I made this.These days getting everything ready for cooking seems to occupy a lot of my time.I have to keep a tab on Arjun who is now too anxious to know what is inside my kitchen cabinets :) All cooking happens when he is asleep and I schedule everything around that time.
Once you have everything ready,cooking this one is a breeze.Primarily because it is made in rice cooker.You can try making it on stove-top too or pressure cooker as well.

The best part is that Ajay loved this one.He tasted whatever was leftover for dinner and the flavors were spot on.I made this again for a ladies lunch potluck and they loved it too.I feel the recipe is a good base for adding core ingredients of your choice,maybe mushrooms or even paneer and green peas!

If you are a Biriyani lover like me,don't forget to check out some of my favorite Biriyani recipes

Cauliflower Biriyani
Mushroom Biriyani
Baby Potato Biriyani

Tomato Biriyani
Recipe source - Yummy Tummy

Ingredients

Basmati Rice - 1 cup
Ghee/Oil - 1 tbsp
Fennel seeds/perumjeeragam - 1 tsp
Cinnamon - 1' piece
Cloves - 2
Cardamom - 2
Onion - 1 medium,sliced
Green chilly - 1
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Red chilly powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Haldi powder - 1/4 tsp
Sugar - 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Tomato - 2 medium,chopped finely
Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup,chopped
Mint leaves - 1/4 cup,chopped
Thick coconut milk - 1/2 cup
Water - 1 1/2 cups
Bread cubes fried - optional

Method

 
Wash the rice well in running water twice or thrice and soak in enough water for 30 minutes.
 
In a kadai add oil/ghee and splutter fennel seeds.Add cinnamon,clove and cardamom and stir for a minute.
 
Mix in the onions and green chilly and stir till the onion starts changing colour.
Add ginger garlic paste and stir for a minute after which add the spice powders - chilly powder,garam masala and haldi.
 
Mix in the sugar and salt to taste and give a good stir.
Add the tomatoes and mix well so that the masala coats the tomato pieces.Let it cook till the tomatoes turn mushy.Mix in coriander and mint leaves and switch off the flame.
 
Add this into the rice cooker,top with soaked and drained rice and mix in coconut milk and water.Check the seasoning and switch on the rice cooker.
 
Fry some bread cubes in oil(if you are using)till golden brown and drain on a kitchen towel.
 
Once the rice is cooked,fluff it up using a fork and add the fried bread.

Serve with raita and pickle.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've been baking for about 7 years now and it is strange that I have not yet tried "the" chocolate chip cookie.I love it actually,so many new variants available in the market these days.But I've never tried making it on my own.Long back I did try an eggless version and liked it but the fact is,it never crossed my mind to try the original recipe.

It could be due to one reason,for a long time I was averse to baking cookies with eggs.I was okay with adding eggs to my cake batter but not cookies.Over a period of time however I realized that I shouldn't have such preconceived notions if I am to try/better a recipe.It was when I tasted homemade chocolate chip cookies made by a friend that I felt I should make some too.Yup,as easy as that I decided I should make it myself.Aversion goes out of the window:)

I looked around for recipes which did not call for copious amount of butter and chocolate chips and zeroed in on this recipe from JoB.As always,the recipe didn't disappoint.The cookies were chewy in the middle and crisp on the edges and loaded with chocolate chips.I messed up with the size the first time I made it though.My ice-cream scoop yielded massive palm sized cookies which in turn required more baking time.But I tried it again and used a spoon to measure out the dough and it gave me perfect sized cookies.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe source - JoB

Ingredients

Butter - 1 cup/ 2 sticks /226 gms

Granulated white sugar - 3/4 cup / 150gms

Brown sugar - 3/4 cup /160gms

Eggs - 2

Vanilla - 1 1/2 tsp

All purpose flour - 2 1/4 cup/295gms

Baking soda - 1 tsp

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Chocolate chips - 1 1/2 cups

Method

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) with rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

 
In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the white and brown sugars and beat until fluffy (about 2 minutes). 

 
Beat in eggs, one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat until incorporated.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

 
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until incorporated, adding the chocolate chips and nuts (if using) about half way through mixing. If you find the dough very soft, cover and refrigerate until firm (from 30 minutes to two hours).

 
For large cookies, use about a 2 tablespoon ice cream scoop or with two spoons, drop about 2 tablespoons of dough (35 grams) onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake about 10 -14 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. Cool completely on wire rack.

 
Makes about 4 dozen - 3 inch round cookies.

Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce and Roasted Vegetables

It's been a while isn't it,well every time I blog I hope it isn't a one-time thing and plan to continue with it at least once in a week but life has other plans.I've decided to take it as it is and post as and when when time permits :)

We love having Pasta for dinner at least once in a week.I make it the same way every time,with lots of vegetables,white sauce and very less cheese.So when we were dining out once and I saw Pasta with tomato and cream sauce in a restaurant,I was anxious to try it and see how it tasted.I love having a blob of marinara sauce on my plate when I have pasta anyway,so I was sure I'd like it.

I wasn't wrong,the pasta was delicious.I wanted to try it at home and decided to go by my taste buds while adding the ingredients.To give it a healthy twist,I added some roasted vegetables as well.Paired with a cheesy garlic bread,this was a meal I was very eager to serve and eat :)

Check out other Pasta recipes here

Pasta with vegetables in white sauce
Whole-wheat Pasta in Roasted Red bell pepper sauce
Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce and Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients

Mixed Vegetables - loosely 2 cups (I used Broccoli,Baby corn,Capsicum,Mushroom)
Onion - 1,cubed
Garlic - 2-3 cloves
Salt and Pepper to taste
Italian seasoning to taste
Olive Oil - 1 tbsp
Pasta - 1 cup,cooked al dente
Butter - 1 tbsp
Marinara sauce - 4 tbsp
Cream - 200 ml
Water-1 cup ( I used the water in which pasta was cooked)
Cheese - 1 cube (Amul)

For the garlic bread

Bread slices - 5-6
Garlic butter - 2-3 tsp
Grated cheese - 1 cube(Amul)

Method

Preheat oven to 200C.
In a baking tray mix together onion,garlic and the mixed vegetables.Add salt,pepper and Italian seasoning with Olive oil.Roast the vegetables for 20-25 minutes.
In a pan add butter and marinara sauce.
Mix well and add cream.Add enough water to make thin it down(I used about a cup).Add salt to taste.
Mix in the cooked pasta, roasted vegetables and cheese.

For the garlic bread - smear the garlic butter on each bread slice,top with grated cheese and bake for 5-7 minutes.