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!! :)

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 !

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

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 !!

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.

Veggie Pasta

Experimented Pasta with Mayonnaise...

Ingredients

Pasta - 250 gms
Carrot - 2
Tomato - 2
Peas - handful
Sweet Corn - handful
Onion - 2 medium sized
Oregano, Chilli Flakes
Mayonnaise - 2 to 3 tsp
(I used Vegetable Mayonnaise)

1. Boil pasta and keep it aside
2. Dice carrot and onion into tiny pieces and boil them with peas and sweet corn
3. In a pan, add in little fat of your choice , boiled veggies and diced tomatoes and fry well.
4. Once done, add salt, chilli flakes and oregano powder. Mix and stir for few minutes.
5. Add in mayonaisse and mix well and remove from heat.
6. Add boiled pasta to this and mix so that it gets coated well.
7. Heat for few mins before serving.

Pepper can also be used for more spice...

Sesame Peanut Noodles

Ingredients:
For the dressing:
1. Sesame oil – 15ml
2. Garlic cloves – minced – 3-4 cloves
3. Soy sauce – 15 ml
4. Juice of one lemon
5. Crunchy peanut butter – 100 gm
6. Chilli sauce – 30 ml
For the pasta:
1. Spaghetti – 500 gm
2. Bean sprouts – 100 gm
3. Capsicum/Red Pepper – 75 gm
4. French beans – 75 gm
5. Carrots – 75 gm
6. Spring Onions – 1 or 2 – sliced
7. Sesame seeds – for garnish
8. Fresh Coriander – chopped – for garnish
Procedure:
1. Cook the Pasta in a vessel of boiling water, with adequate amount of salt.
2. Meanwhile sauté the vegetables and sprouts in vegetable oil/olive oil and keep ready.
3. Prepare the dressing by combining all the dressing ingredients and whisking with a whisker or fork, either way, by hand.
4. By now, the pasta would have been cooked; so mix it with the vegetables and toss and turn.
5. Switch off and pour the dressing over.
6. Toss and turn till all pasta is covered with the dressing
Serve hot !!

Lazy Spaghetti

This is classic lazy pasta! Think of all your lonely suppers when you did not know if you wanted to really cook and eat at all. Put in everything you find in the fridge, and there is your Pasta – Ready to eat !
Ingredients:
1. Spaghetti – 150 gm
2. Garlic – 5-6 cloves chopped into fine pieces
3. Chilli flakes – 10 gm
4. Sprouts – 10 gm
5. Spring onions- 2 – coarsely chopped
6. 1 Big carrot – sliced into fine circles
7. 7-8 french beans – cut into long ½ inch pieces
8. Olive oil – 1 tbspn
9. Unsalted Butter – 2 – 2 ½ tbspns
10. Salt
Procedure:
1. In a vessel of boiling water put in the pasta and let it cook aldante. You can do this while chopping up the vegetables.
2. Pour the olive oil in a pan and let it heat up.
3. Toss in the finely chopped garlic and let it brown
4. Now toss in the spring onion, sprouts and other vegetables, in that order.
5. After about 2 min, add in about half the butter, and let it cook till the vegetables are soft enough, but do not lose color.
6. Toss in the cooked pasta (which should be ready by now) and toss and turn till every strand is coated in all the vegetable essence.
7. Add in the other half of the butter and chilli flakes and toss and turn till it is thoroughly mixed.
Serve Hot!!

Chilli Butter Spaghetti

This is an all time quick solution to a hungry stomach. Easy, healthy and tasty! Pasta, the Chinese style !
Ingredients:
1. Spaghetti – 250 gm - cooked in a big vessel of water with necessary amount of salt
2. Chilli flakes – 30 gm
3. Unsalted butter – 50 gm + extra for garnishing
4. Vegetable oil – 2 tspns
5. Garlic – 3-5 cloves minced
6. Black Soy sauce
7. White chilli vinegar
8. Chinese cooking wine
9. Salt
Procedure:
1. Heat the oil in a pan, and add the 50gm of butter.
2. Let the butter melt and then add the chilli flakes and minced garlic, and cook for 2-3 min
3. Now add a splash of the black soy vinegar and Chinese cooking wine
4. Add noodles and cook for another 3 min
5. Garnish with a little more butter
Serve hot!