Monday 30 December 2013

A Menu Plan for Celebrating the Cuisine of India

Hello folks! I hope you are having a wonderful break!  If your family is anything like mine, you are probably very tired of turkey right about now! It's around New Years when a craving for some spicy or ethnic cuisine starts to hit our family and we like to create a menu plan that is fun, spicy and rocks our palate a little bit! We love having a theme or ethnic food night as a way of escaping the same old-same old.This year we are all about mixing in a little India!

One thing I love about mixing in a little India is that it is so easy to create with the help of Patak's Sauces & Chutneys. Patak's has a whole line of products that can lend just the right amount of spice, and at the heat level you desire. I love making great tasting meals that take less time in the kitchen. I really want to share with you some great menu ideas so you can create your own little Indian cuisine evening for your family!
With the help of Patak's Mild Curry Paste, I created this really yummy Spicy Lentil Salad for our Indian Cuisine Night, to go with other hot dishes like Butter Chicken and Creamy Curried Vegetables. Any leftover salad is delicious the next day for packed lunches. And with canned chick peas and lentils, it takes 10 minutes to put together! If you add some yummy  Pappadums, a whole vegetarian meal is complete.
Spicy Lentil Salad
{serves 6-8 as a side dish}

Ingredients:
1 can of chick peas, drained
1 can of lentils, drained
1/2 cup minced red onion
1/2-3/4 cup diced celery
3/4 cup red & yellow pepper, diced
1/4 cup oil
2-3 teaspoons mild curry paste
1 tablespoon curry powder

Directions:
1. To a salad bowl, add chicken peas, lentils, onion, celery and peppers. Stir to mix.
 2. In small bowl, add oil, curry paste and curry powder. Combine with whisk. Pour over lentil and chick pea mixture. Mix gently. Taste and adjust seasoning by adding more curry paste or powder if desired. Cover and refrigerate until serving time.
 3. Using a frying pan and oil, cook pappadums according to package directions....which is super easy and only takes seconds!
This is a tasty meal by itself, but for an Indian cuisine night, serving a few more dishes adds to the fun!
Creamy Curried Vegetables with basmati rice is a great hot veggie dish to serve!
 And Butter Chicken is super easy to create with the help of Patak's Butter Chicken Sauce.
And for help in creating a family night of Indian Cuisine of your very own, the Patak's site is full of tasty dishes that not only look amazing, but can serve the needs of any hungry group!
Here are some of my favourites from Patak's:
Easy Indian-Style Cheese Platter
 a Naanwich Bar...perfect for relaxed cooking and introducing Indian cuisine to kids...
Naanwich
 and this super easy Strawberry Milk Dessert.
Strawberry Milk Dessert (Strawberry Rabadi)
As a busy mom, I really appreciate how Patak's products can be a great meal helper and assist me in creating a fun and flavourful menu plan for my family in under half an hour! Everyone agrees that these sauces taste great and can make almost any dish a favourite meal!
I invite you to visit Patak's and mix in a little India

Disclosure: I am part of the Patak's Ambassador Program with Mom Central Canada and receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

This post is linked to:
Inspire Me Please,

Top 10 Posts for 2013

So as we get ready to welcome a new year, I am taking some time to reflect on the most popular posts of 2013. I absolutely had a phenomenal year this year in terms of blogging opportunities, and I can only thank YOU, my readers, for making all of this possible with your kindness, visits, comments and encouragement! I thank you from the very bottom of my heart for everything that you have given to me as a reader! You are all so special and I want you to know how much I appreciate you!

As I look back over my posts for 2013, I see a healthy mix of creative ideas, organizing projects, recipes and handmade gift ideas were the most popular. That makes me happy because I love mixing things up here at Echoes of Laughter!

Here are the top 10 for 2013:


So please tell me, do you have a favourite project from 2013?

Sunday 29 December 2013

23 Delicious Appetizers & Dips for New Years Eve

Hello everyone! I hope you are well!
With all of the yummy sit down meals for the holidays complete, our family is really looking forward to more casual and fun food for New Years Eve that we can eat with fingers, napkins or even a small plate.
We usually enjoy a small get together with friends or family for the evening and we love to make and serve some of our favourite appetizers & dips.
With help from my archives and Life Made Delicious, I have rounded up a whole collection of delicious and tasty dips, hot & cold appetizers, along with easy dessert treats to make any gathering sparkle!

Here are just a few of our favourites:

Coconut Shrimp
Southwestern Dip
Spicy Chinese Pizza made with ready-to-serve pizza crust.
Spicy Chinese Pizza
Beer Queso Nachos made with a yummy beer and cheese sauce.
Beer Queso Nachos
Grilled Barbecue Pork Bites
Turkey Club Tortilla Roll-Ups...a great way to use up leftover turkey!
Turkey Club Tortilla Roll-Ups
Cranberry-Glazed Appetizer Meatballs
Crescent Spinach & Cheese Bake
Greek Hummus Nachos

Shrimp and Dill Toasts
And enjoy these super easy dips & treats  for dessert:
White Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries
Sugar and Spice Dip (Gluten Free)
Fruit Kabobs with Pineapple Dip Recipe (Gluten Free)

Looking for more ideas? You will find an amazing collection of recipes for every food event at Life Made Delicious! There are so many to choose from that you will end up with a long list of ideas!

Wishing you a wonderful New Year!

Disclosure: I am a part of the Life Made Delicious Blogger Program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

This post is linked to:
Inspiration Monday, The DIY Showoff, Craft-0-O-Maniac,
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