Aubergines in Bechamel Sauce

Ingredients:

1. Aubergine - 1 big vegetable - 200 gm
2. Butter - 50 gm
3. All purpose flour - 50 gm
4. Milk - 100-150 ml
5. Salt
6. Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 50 ml
7. Garlic Cloves - 3, minced
8. Fresh ground black pepper (optional)

Procedure:

1. Cut the aubergine into flat pieces, to be grilled
2. In a tray, pour in about 1/4th of the oil and mix about 1/4th of the minced garlic. Stir well, so that it is mixed evenly
3. Place your aubergine slices in the tray and coat them well with the oil. I dont add salt at this stage, as i feel the aubergines tend to become softer than usual and more soggy if I add salt already
4. Heat a griddle on the stove, and when the oil is smoking hot, place each slice on the griddle and start searing 
5. the vegetable should turn deep brown on the edges and will turn soft in the center. Griddle on a medium flame. 
6. after griddling all the vegetable slices, keep them aside.

 Meanwhile, start making your bechamel sauce. 

1. in a heavy saucepan, add the butter and place it on heat, to melt. 
2. after it melts, add in the flour, stir to make a paste
3. Take it off the heat and add in the milk gradually. 
4. stir to get a thick consistency, without lumps. 

Place all your aubergines in a big bowl, and add in the bechamel sauce. Coat all the slices with the sauce. Serve warm with a bowl of red chilli Crackers ! 

Broccoli and Green Peas Stew

Today's lunch was Moroccan fusion..

Ingredients:

1. Broccoli - 200 gm- florets boiled for 5 min.
2. Sweet Green Peas - a handful or 80 gm
3. Onion - 1 medium, sliced roughly
4. Cherry Tomatoes - 200 gm
5. Green Chillies - 3, slit
6. 1 inch minced ginger
7. Salt
8. Cumin Powder - 2 tspns
9. Olive Oil - 1 tbspn or 25 ml
10. Fresh Thyme leaves - a handful
11. Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Procedure

1. In a heavy saucepan, heat the oil and add the minced ginger and cook for about a min.
2. add in the onions and cook till they are soft
3. add the cherry tomatoes and cook for another min
4. add the chopped broccoli and cook till they are softer 
5. add the green peas, and cook for 2 min. 
6. Do not squish your tomatoes, keep them hardy and firm even while cooking. This is the beauty of this dish. 
7. Add salt and pepper 

Serve hot with some bread, or a Bulgar wheat salad! 

Cappelini with Tomato Ragout`

Ingredients:

1. Cappellini - 300 gm
2. Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 5 tbspns
3. Water
4. Salt
5. Fresh ground Pepper (optional)
6. Balsamic Vinegar - 2 tbspns
7. Fresh ripe tomatoes - 5
8. Scallions or Leeks - 3, if using both, then just take about 1 of each
9. Black Olives - 6 (pitted)
10. Fresh Thyme leaves- 150 gm
11. Cayenne Pepper - 2 tbspns
12. Garlic Cloves- 5

Procedure:

1. chop the scallions/leeks/both and tomatoes into cubes
2. in a big pot, boil the water, add salt, and cook Cappelini as per instructions on the packet
3. Meanwhile, in another heavy saucepan, add about 1 tbspn olive oil and add the garlic, scallions/leeks and tomatoes, and about 75 gm of the thyme, and cook till they are reasonably soft, but not exactly mash-able with your spoon. Add in the balsamic vinegar at this stage. I dont add salt to this mixture yet. 
4. Take it off the heat, let it cool down a bit.
5. now add this mixture to your food processor (not mixer), and process in the first level for about 45 seconds, check for the lumpiness, and then process again. This time process for about 1 min again. 
6. now, with the processor running, add in about 2 tbspns of olive oil to the mixture, through the funnel. This emulsifies the whole mixture beautifully!
7. Switch off, and again, relocate the whole mixture to the saucepan you have used before. 
8. Add the remaining thyme leaves and continue to cook the mixture for about 3 min more. Add salt if necessary. 

Serve hot - the Italian style!! :)

Punjabi Dal Tadka

Ingredients:

1. Toor Dal - 2 cups or 200 gm, cooked in the pressure cooker, and partly mashed
2. Garlic cloves- about 6-7, finely chopped
3. Green Chillies - 4 - slit length-wise
4. Salt
5. Dry Mango powder - 1/2 tspn
6. Red Chilli Powder - 1 tspn
7. Garam Masala - 1/2 tspn
8. Cumin Seeds - 1 tbspn
9. Veg Oil - 1-2 tbspn

Procedure:

1. Add salt to the cooked Dal and keep it aside.
2. To make the tadka, pour the oil in a heavy saucepan
3. after the oil is hot enough, add in the cumin seeds, and after they have started to splutter, add in the garlic
4. after the garlic has almost browned, add in the green chillies, dry mango powder and garam masala
5. stir in well and then take out all the ingredients except the oil, for the next step.
6. take the ingredients and add it to the Dal. Stir well to mix
7. now to the hot oil, add the chilli powder and stir about 2 times.
8. now add this also to the dal and just stir in once, so that there are just red streaks to the dal, and the dal does not change its rich yellow color.

Serve hot with rice, roti or naan. But it works best with roti!

Tandoori Pears

Ingredients:

1. Pears - cut into flat pieces, avoiding the center with seeds
2. yogurt - 1/2 cup
3. roasted cumin powder - 1 tspn
4. garlic paste - 1 tspn
5. ginger paste - 1/2 tspn
6. juice of half a lemon
7. salt
8. pepper/red chilli powder - 1 tspn
9. turmeric - a pinch
10. vegetable oil - 2 tspn

Procedure:

1. In a big mixing bowl, add the yogurt, cumin powder, garlic paste, ginger paste, lemon juice, salt, chilli powder, turmeric and oil and mix well
2. take your pears and dip in them and let them be coated completely with this mixture
3. marinate them for 30 min., so that all the flavors are imbibed by the fruit
4. on a hot grill-griddle, place your pears one by one and char them till they turn dark golden brown. 

serve hot! 

Whole Wheat Penne and Fusili Aglio Olio

Ingredients:

1. Penne and Fusili pasta  - together, about 300 gm
2. Black Kalammata Olives - 100 gm, chopped roughly
3. Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 60 - 80 ml
4. Garlic - 80 gm , chopped roughly
5. Chilli Flakes - 20 gm
6. Vinegar - 2 tspns

Procedure:

1. in a big vessel of boiling water and salt, add the uncooked pasta. Cook for 11.5 min. 
2. In another pan, while the pasta is at the end of cooking, add about 1 tspn of oil and add the garlic.
3. wait till they are slightly brown and then add the olives. cook for about 2 min
4. add the vinegar and all the chilli flakes. 
5. cook for another 3 min. 
6. switch off and then drain your pasta, and mix in this with the cooked pasta. 

Serve hot !

Leek and Herb Soup

Ingredients:

1. Leeks - 200 gm , chopped roughly
2. Garlic - 4 cloves - crushed
3. Herbs like Fresh Marjoram, Thyme and Basil - a handful
4. Salt
5. Pepper
6. Water - 2 cups
7. Corn Flour - 1 tbspn
8. Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1 tspn

Procedure:

1. cook the leeks, herbs and garlic in the olive oil on stove, for about 7 min, till they are almost tender.(you can add a little salt at this stage, if you like)
2. then take it off the heat and let it cool for about a minute
3. then add all of them to a blender, add the water and blend till it is a fine puree
4. strain the whole mixture

Serve Hot !! 

Tomato Sage Soup

Ingredients:


• Tomatoes – 4, cut into halves

• honey – 2 tbspn

• Garlic Cloves – 4-5

• Red Onion - ½ (or 1, depending on the intensity you want)

• Water – 75 ml (3 to 4 tbspsn)

• Olive Oil – 50 ml or a little less

• Fresh Sage Leaves – 4-5

• Salt, Pepper

Procedure:

1. In a heavy bottomed dish, pour in about a tbspn of olive oil and cook the tomatoes, sage and honey for about 10 min, till all moisture starts to release. Take it off the heat and let it cool

2. Peel off the skins and chop the tomatoes and the leaves finely.

3. Now in the same dish, pour the remaining oil and start cooking your garlic and onions. Don't burn or brown your garlic or onion. They just need to be cooked till soft and translucent.

4. Put your tomatoes, most of the sage leaves, and the onion garlic mixture into your food processor and blend till about 95 percent is crushed and blended.

5. Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste, combine well.

6. Dish it up in your soup bowl and drizzle a little more olive oil and the remaining sage leaves.

Serve hot !!

Insalata Greca

Ingredients:

1. Green and Purple Lettuce Leaves – 6 – torn up into bite size pieces

2. Greek feta cheese – 60 gm – crumbled

3. Pine Nuts – a handful, toasted dry

4. Black Olives – pitted and chopped

5. Red Onion – 1//2 – chopped up into thin rings

6. Olive Oil – 2 tspns

7. Balsamic Vinegar – 1 tspn

8. Salt, Pepper

Procedure:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add the lettuce leaves and vegetables

2. In another bowl add the dressing ingredients – olive oil and Balsamic Vinegar.

3. Whisk well until well combined

4. Now pour this dressing on the vegetables and toss well

5. add the pine nuts

6. sprinkle salt and pepper to taste

Serve at room temperature..

Fettuccine with Pesto

Ingredients

1. Fettuccine pasta – 250 gm

2. Garlic – 4-5 cloves

3. Mint leaves – 30 gm

4. Italian basil leaves – 50 gm

5. Parmesan cheese – 20 gm (optional)

6. Salt, pepper

7. Olive oil – 1 tbspn

Procedure:

1. Cook the pasta as per the instructions on the pack

2. Drain the pasta, keep some cooking water aside

3. In a blender, add the leaves, cheese and the garlic and a few drops of olive oil, and make into a liquidy paste. (If you r doing it in a blender, then put all the ingredients, except oil and process it until crushed, and then, while the motor is running, pour oil down the funnel and blend thoroughly. Personally, for pesto or any pasta dressing, the food processor method is the best. )

4. When the pasta is cooked, add in the pesto dressing and combine throughly and well coated

5. Now a few more drops of olive oil if necessary

Serve warm/hot

Carrot Risotto

Ingredients:

1. Italian Risotto Rice – 200 gm

2. Water/Vegetable Stock with about 2 tspns good quality wine – 600 ml

3. Salt

4. Pepper

5. Carrot – 1 , chopped into small pieces

6. Spring Onions – 2, chopped up finely

7. Garlic lcoves – 5 – chopped finely

8. Olive Oil – 1 tspn

9. Parmesan cheese – grated – about 1/4 cup

Procedure:

1. In a heavy bottomed dish, heat olive oil and throw in your onions and garlic

2. let the onions get transparent and garlic get brown, and then add the carrots

3. after about 2 min of cooking, add the rice.

4. Let it turn glossy with the oil and the vegetables.

5. Meanwhile in another big bowl, keep boiling your vegetable stock.

6. When the rice turns glossy and well coated with the oil and vegetables, start adding your water, ladle by ladle

7. each ladle should be fully absorbed by the rice. And then add the next ladle full

8. Towards the end, the rice will turn soft and very yielding.

9. Add salt and pepper

10. The whole process will take about 20 min. Don't move away from the stove, keep stirring your rice all the while, so that it does not stick to the vessel. (This rice sticks to the bottom of even a non-stick dish!)

Serve with grated parmesan cheese, hot and delicious !

Spaghetti with Paprika and Olives

Ingredients:

1. Spaghetti pasta boiled and cooked according to instructions on the pack – 250 gm

2. Chillie Flakes – 3 tbspns

3. Green Stuffed Olives – pitted and in brine – 100 gm (about 12 of them) (chopping them - optional)

4. Garlic cloves – 6 of them, chopped finely

5. Olive Oil – 1 tbspn

6. Salt

7. Italian Basil Leaves – Some torn by hand and some chopped up rather finely

Procedure:

1. In a heavy bottomed dosh, heat up the oil and add the chopped garlic.

2. Let the garlic brown up a little and add in the chillie flakes

3. Let the mixture smoke, and then add the olives and cook for about 3 min

4. Take the mixture off the heat and now work on your pasta.

5. Keep some pasta water aside and drain the pasta

6. Add the mixture to the pasta and mix well with your salad spoons, so that everything combines well.

7. Next, garnish with the torn basil leaves

Leave the pasta to be gorged down by everybody !!

Tomato Olive Salad

This is the healthy version of a greek salad.

Ingredients:

1.    Tomatoes – the hybrid ones, that have less juice in them - 5

2.    Black Olives – pitted and cut, stored in brine

3.    Salt

4.    Pepper

5.    Red Onions – pinely chopped

6.    Fresh Mint Leaves – 2, 3 sprigs

Procedure:

1.    Cut the tomatoes into 8 pieces each, removing the seeds

2.    Take a big mixing bowl and add the tomatoes to it.

3.    Take out the olives from the brine solution and add them to the tomatoes

4.    next add in your chopped onions and mix well.

5.    Sprinkle salt and grind pepper on.

6.    Garnish with mint sprigs

Serve cold/room temperature

Walnut Cream Fusili with Garlic Bread

Ingredients:

1. Fusili Pasta – Boiled and cooked according to instructions on the packet – 250 gm

2. Walnuts – 100 gm

3. Garlic – 5 cloves, chopped finely

4. Olive Oil – 1 tbspn

5. Garlic infused olive oil/Herbed Garlic Butter – 1.5 tbspns

6. Fresh Coriander – 5 to 6 tender leaves

7. Salt

8. Fresh Ground Black Pepper

9. Milk – 5 tbspns

10. Whole Wheat Bread Slices - 2

Procedure:

1. Heat a heavy bottomed dish on the stove, and toast the walnuts, till they release their fragrance.

2. Let them cool down and then put them in a blender along with few of the garlic cloves and the milk and blend into an almost fine paste. (it should still be about 5% coarse)

3. Drain your Pasta and keep some pasta water for later.

4. Add the walnut paste to the pasta.

5. Add some salt, and grind some pepper on.

6. Mix well and garnish with the tender coriander leaves

Garlic Bread

1. Heat another pan and pour little of the garlic butter/garlic infused olive oil on it and let it smoke.

2. Put your whole wheat bread slices on it and let it brown on both sides

Eat your pasta with the garlic bread !!

Spicy Macaroni

Ingredients:
Macaroni – 2 cups
Mixed Vegetables – ¾ Cup (carrot, beans & babycorns)
Onion – 1 chopped
Tomato – 1 chopped
Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder – ½ tsp
Garam Masala powder – 1 tsp
Red Chili powder - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method

1. Heat water in a pan and add salt. Add macaroni and boil till macaroni become soft. Drain and keep it aside. Save ½ cup of the cooked water used to boil the macaroni.
2. Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and onion. Saute till pink.
3. Add Chilli powder, Gram masala powder and cumin powders and mix well. Add tomatoes and salt and cook till oil separates. You can add cooked vegetables at this point.
4. Now add cooked macaroni and mix well. Add some macaroni cooked water 1/2 cup and cook till it become thick.
5. Serve hot with garnishing.
   You can add all your favorite vege in that.