Vegetarian Sheperd's Pie

I was looking for a dish that is easy to make and transport and also would be a  crowd pleaser to take for potlucks. It was thus I found this recipe for Sheperd's Pie. I gave it a try as I wanted to make sure that it was indeed a good one as it sounded.When I was cooking this for lunch today my little girl, who was enjoying her spring break, asked me what I was making for lunch. When I told her it was Sheperd's pie she was very happy as she thought it was a  sweet pie like the ones which she is used to. When the Pie was done and I called her for lunch she was not a happy camper knowing that it was not sweet but still gave it a try  as it smelled good. She had one piece and ended up having a second helping. And she even insisted that I save her a piece for dinner. I was  a bit surprised at this coming from her, because she is a girl who doesn't like leftovers or even having the same dish repeated within a week . So,  my friends, in short what I intented to say was this dish was well liked by my family and I am sure this will be liked by yours too. Even though I have made the vegetarian version of Sherperd's Pie, those of you who eat and love meat can substitute the meal starters with ground meat.
Recipe Source:Simply Recipes
Serves:4
Ingredients:
Morningstar meal starters/Soy granules -1 cup-1 1/2 lbs
Onion chopped-1
Vegetables - chopped carrots, corn, peas-1-2 cups
Potatoes (3 big ones)-1 1/2 - 2 lbs
Butter (1 stick)-8 tablespoons
Broth-1/2 cup
Worcestershire sauce-1 teaspoon
Salt, pepper, other seasonings of choice
Method:
Peel and quarter potatoes, boil in salted water until tender (about 20 minutes).While the potatoes are cooking, melt 4 Tablespoons butter (1/2 a stick) in large frying pan.Sauté onions in butter until tender over medium heat (10 mins). If you are adding vegetables, add them according to cooking time. Put any carrots in with the onions. Add corn or peas either at the end of the cooking of the onions, or after the meat has initially cooked.
Add Soy granules Morningstar meal starters and sauté for about a minute. Add salt and pepper. Add worcesterchire sauce. Add half a cup of vegtable broth and cook, uncovered, over low heat for 10minutes.
Mash potatoes in bowl with remainder of butter, season to taste.Place soy and veggies in baking dish. Distribute mashed potatoes on top. Rough up with a fork so that there are peaks that will brown nicely. You can use the fork to make some designs in the potatoes as well.Cook in 400 degree oven until bubbling and brown (about 30 minutes). Broil for last few minutes if necessary to brown.

Spicy Chocolate'N Fruit Biscuit

When I think of making appetizers for any party or gathering, I think of something that I can make with very little effort, and which won't need much of my attention. Thus I can focus more on making the other courses to serve for the occasion. So typically for appetizers, I try not to make something from scratch, but would prefer to use some off the shelf ingredient that would reduce my cooking time and effort. This is one such recipe that meets all these criteria as I have used the Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated biscuits, which are available at the refrigerated section of any supermarket. I have used apple and bananas for this recipe, primarily because these are the two fruits that are always there at our house. But you can substitute them for any of the seasonal fruits, as long as they are firm and not watery, or you may use only one of them.
Ingredients:
Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated biscuits (any variety)-1 can (16.3 oz)
Semi-sweet Chocolate chips-1/2 cup or to taste
Chilli powder-1/2 tsp
Banana- 1
Apple- 1
Salt - 1/8 tsp
Milk -2 tbs
Method:
Peel the apple and banana and cut it into little pieces. Mix in the salt, chilli powder and the chocolate chips. Roll out each biscuit into 6" rounds; fill it with the fruit mix. Fold dough over the filling and seal it well. Apply a thin glaze of milk over each biscuit. Bake this in a pre-heated oven at 375 degrees F for 12-14 minutes or till the biscuits turn golden.

Vishu Katta

Wish You all a Happy and prosperous Vishu! For us people from Thrissur  in Kerala Vishu is not complete without Vishu Katta for breakfast. This is my moms recipe which I have simplified without any change to the original taste.
Ingredients:
Sona masoori/Raw rice-1 cup
Coconut Milk (thick milk)-2 cups + 2 cups
Water-1 cup
Cumin powder-1/4 tsp
Salt-1/4tsp or to taste
Method:
Pressure cook the rice along with 2 cups of coconut milk ,1 cup water ,cumin powder and salt   (putting the weight on after the steam comes and cook at low  for 6 minutes ). Once the pressure is released, open the pressure cooker and add the remaining milk and stir it along with the cooked rice and cook till the coconut milk starts to leave out oil. Transfer the vishu katta to a plate and level the top with a spoon. When the Katta cools cut into desired shape.
Serve it with Jaggery syrup

For the Jaggery Syrup
Ingrdients:
Jaggery-1 cup
Water-3/4 cup
Dried ginger powder-1/8tsp
Coconut milk-1/2 tsp
Cumin powder-1/8tsp(optional)
Method:
Make a syrup using jaggery and water. Sieve the syrup and add the remaining ingredients and cook it till it just begins to boil.

Tomato Orzo Soup

I had some left over tomato soup in the refrigerator, but that was not sufficient for the three of us for a full meal. Then I thought of this recipe that I had book-marked some time back and gave it a try as I was too lazy to make anything else. Lucky for me and my family who ate this, this turned out quite good.
Recipe Source:Taste of home
Ingredients
1/2 cup each chopped carrot, celery and onion
1/8 teaspoon each dried basil, oregano and thyme
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 can (19 ounces or 2 1/2 cups)Tomato soup or ready-to-serve tomato basil or hearty tomato soup
1 cup Vegetable broth or chicken broth
1/3 cup uncooked orzo pasta
Method:
Saute the carrot, celery, onion, basil, oregano and thyme in oil for 8-10 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender.
Add soup and broth. Bring to a boil. Stir in orzo. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10-12 minutes or until orzo and vegetables are tender.