A Pampering Pasta Soup for the Home Home comfort

Gomiti Rigati Pasta  Soup with carrots, Green Beans, Tomatoes,Fresh Coriander n Parmesan cheese

I'm back from a fantastic journey! It took me to a new city, MUMBAI, it made me stand among-st the crowd of enthusiast food lovers from all across India, I met n made fantastic foody friends, there were food gossip in the air, a lot of laughter n the happiness of sharing, the feeling of togetherness n finding comfort among-st total strangers…all of that. This will explain my delay in the blog. To my readers :Dear Reader , my sincere apologies to you , in the last couple of weeks I could barely use the internet , so to make you smile I have this really good pasta soup, I wish you good health and may you read on.

Christmas is 2 days away, in fact it’s not away at all, I feel it looking around me n in the small cake bites I plunge in. Today I decided rather to tell you about this simple Pasta soup with green beans, onions, tomatoes, carrots, fresh coriander leaves , the pasta I used was gomiti rigati. When I tasted it a on certain morning about a month ago it stuck in my heart for some reason, it was simple, heart-warming, full of flavors and now that its winter I feel it is such a comfort on cold winter mornings or evenings, it can literally bring a smile to everyone you serve.

You know how it came into being! It was around 9.30 in the morning, I entered the kitchen wondering what to make for breakfast, I wanted to have something rather than oats that day, so I found green beans n parmesan cheese, I spotted the pasta in the table. and this dish came into being. The wonderful thing about this soup is the pasta gets done inside the soup, so no draining the pasta, the flavors in the pot gets mixed with each other, getting the flavors to new heights, it is nutritious n filling.

Today is the Birthday of my Blog J  A big hug to all of you n BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR BLOG !

So now I will tell you about what all we need for re-creating this pasta soup.

For The Recipe:  We will need

Gomiti Rigati or any pasta you like- 150 gm

Carrot- 1 medium, peeled and  chopped into 1 inch slices

Onion – 1 medium, chopped

Green Beans-100 gms, chopped into  1 inch pieces

Garlic – 5 medium cloves, slightly smashed

Tomatoes- 1 medium, chopped

Fresh coriander leaves n stalks- 3 tbsp, chopped

Black Pepper- freshly grounded

Red chili powder- ¼ tsp

Nutmeg- 2  pinches, freshly grated

Sugar- a pinch

Parmesan cheese- 2 -3 tbsp

Butter- 1 ½   tbsp

Vegetable oil- 1 tbsp

Water/vegetable stock/chicken stock- 3-4 cups

Pink rock salt- a pinch

Salt

1. In a shallow frying pan add ½ tsp of butter n 4 tbsp of water n add the green bean slices, put the pan on low heat, cover it , give it about 5-7 minutes when the beans will be tender but still crunchy, stir the beans in between and if the water dries up add little more water, when the beans are a bit tender, take them off the pan with any juices with them.

2.  In a deep pan, heat the remaining butter with the vegetable oil, when it is moderately hot add the smashed garlic cloves, give them 30 secs then add the chopped carrots, onion, toss them in the pan. In a low heat give them 5 minutes, don’t let them  brown much, only slightly, we are sweating them, after 5 minutes add the chopped tomato and the chopped coriander stalks n 2 tbsp of leaves. Mix well n give them 2 minutes, add a pinch of sugar, mix, then add salt n a pinch of pink rock salt, mix well. Then add the red chili powder, sprinkle a little water , give it 30 secs, after that add the water or stock. Cover the pan  and keep the heat to low. When the water comes to simmer add the pasta and cover again, give it around 10 minutes, the pasta will be done in 10 minutes. For this recipe we are not looking for AL-Dante pasta i.e pasta with a bite, we want pasta to be soft.

3.  After 10-12 minutes when the pasta is soft,  grate fresh pepper into the soup,  add the green beans, add a little blob of butter or skip it, then grate the parmesan cheese into the soup, check for seasoning. Lastly grate a tiny amount of nutmeg and sprinkle the rest of the fresh coriander leaves. Put the flame off, give the pan 3 minutes of standing time. After that remove the pan  and serve in bowls with a little more grated parmesan n fresh coriander. And now you will see the magic of this soup. Lets smile n say Yummmm… together.  Bon Appetit.

Fresh Coconut-Banana pancakes with raisins for raising your smile

Decadent Indian Pancakes with whole-wheat flour, Banana, fresh Coconut

Sometimes when I look deep inside the culinary traditions of India, I often try to remember what I used to eat when I was a kid, back then some 15-20 years ago the food culture was different, at home and at restaurants. Things were changing as always has happened with time, this time it changed rapidly, specially the fast food scene changed drastically and it is still a very controversial change. So I remember as a kid what food was cooked in our kitchen at our homes by our moms, dads and now so many of them have faded in time, not that we have forgotten about them but they rarely appear.

           

               I am so surprised at times thinking about those dishes that faded but finding they were so healthy and tasty-a perfect blend. It is such a good balance, isn't it! Eating something tasty is important but eating healthy perhaps is more important, imagine eating something tasty but mostly harmful day after day and what it will do to our health! I know what you are thinking of? Fast-food, Right? So was I. Our body is a mirror reflection of what we eat and eating is supposed to be nutritious and fun. At times there is a gap and that’s where exactly these pancakes come in to fill that gap.

                                  When I made these pancakes recently I was so happy because of 3 reasons, it tasted scrumptious, it took me back to childhood n they are so healthy. It’s a complete win-win situation you see!

                                                                 For anyone who loves pancake and haven’t tried these banana-fresh coconut pancakes yet, this is your jewel pancake that will shine relentlessly. Made from sweet bananas, grated fresh coconut and whole-wheat durum flour, they thrive on the goodness of all these 3 star ingredients and you can’t eat just one. Unlike most pancakes that are made from flour which isn't a very healthy option, these ones are made from ‘ATTA’- the Indian whole-wheat durum flour. Atta is made from semi-hard wheat variety known as durum wheat. Since the whole-wheat contains the bran, the germ, it is much nutritious. 

          

                                                                                           The bananas add sweetness and flavor, so does the fresh coconut, so literally there is no need to add sugar in these pancakes, but then you can add it a little bit if you want to, since most of the sweetness comes from the banana n coconut in the form of natural sugar. 

            

 There is something pampering n fulfilling about these pancakes, easy to make, literally delicious to eat and a bundle of health. I mean when I made them and kept them on the plate, and within an hour they vanished! Perhaps the same thing will happen when you will make them, in fact I start eating even before I finish making all the pancakes which takes a little patience. As you fry them in the pan you will see how slowly the pancake will start to caramelize and get crispy slowly on a low heat, yummy.

                                     And all of this comes from old traditional cuisine! I can’t believe this was getting forgotten! Seriously! This pancake is the answer to the question ‘Can pancakes be healthy?’ So naturally this pancake has to be made n eaten very often in our kitchen and once you start it you won’t stop. And the old unhealthy pancakes need to be forgotten for all the good reasons. Hahah! May they rest in pancake-y peace.

             

                                                    I have added raisins in the pancakes, they are slightly sweet n sour and so when we bite into a raisin chunk in the sweet pancakes, they provide another depth of flavor.

So now I will tell you about the recipe. Here you go…

For The Recipe:  You will need

3-4 medium bananas, peeled and smashed with a fork to quite smooth

6-7 tbsp of freshly grated coconut

3 tbsp of rice flour

7-8 tbsp of whole-wheat flour/Atta

1-2 tsp of sugar

1 tbsp of raisins, chopped

2 Pinches of salt

180 ml of water, it will vary

Vegetable oil to fry the pancakes, about 1½ tbsp oil for each pancake

This will make about 7-8 pancakes.

Consistency- It is supposed to be fairly thick and not on the runny side or thinner side. Start adding the water in small amounts, first add half the water, mix, add some more water, there will come a point of time when the consistency is such that the batter just begins to pour from a spoon, at this point add 1-2 tbsp of water and the consistency will be such that the batter now starts to pour or fall relatively easily than the previous time. The batter will still be on the thicker side and in the pan when we will fry them we will be able to spread the batter with a ladle since it will be fairly thick. So to keep in mind the batter will be on the thicker side but still will pour easily from the ladle.

1. In a flat plate, smash the bananas with a fork smash them until no big chunky pieces are left.

2. In a bowl add the bananas with all the other ingredients excepting the water and mix everything with a whisk or spoon. Add half of the water and mix, then add some more and make the batter smooth, then add a little more until the batter reaches the aforementioned consistency, which is fairly thick and begins to pour fairly easily from a spoon.

3. Rest the batter for 30 minutes.

4. After 30 minutes heat 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan and add it to the batter, mix. Now heat the pan back on medium flame until the pan is quite hot, then add 1 tbsp of oil and let the oil get quite hot, then take a ladle-full of the batter, which is around 3 ½ tbsp, and pour it in the middle of the frying pan, bring the heat to low flame, then with the back of the ladle spread the batter in the pan into a circle of around 6 inch diameter. You will see as you begin to spread the batter with the ladle that the batter will try to stick a bit with the ladle if you try to spread the batter quickly, so work slowly as you spread the batter and you will see it will spread nicely. Once you have spread the batter, turn the heat up to medium for 1 minute, then put the heat back to low and give around 3 minutes on this side.

5. Sprinkle a little oil on the top surface of the pancake and smear it with a spoon. After 3 minutes with a spatula lift the pancake a little to see how much it has browned, if it is brown, give it 1 more minute and it will get a darker shade of brown, this will be crispy when cold, specially the sides. Lift the pancake slowly, if you find the pancake has stuck a little in the pan, with the spatula scratch that place in the pan carefully and it will come off. Turn the pancake to the other side and sprinkle some oil around the pan and give it 2-3 minutes until it starts to get brown. Once browned take it off the pan on a plate. The last side which got fried will have to less brown than the 1^st side, keep that in mind.

6. Fry all the pancakes like this one by one, when done serve them with freshly grated coconut or honey or maple syrup or on their own. 

Now when you are biting into one, tell me aren't they really so delicious! I told you! Bon appétit.

Aloo ke Parathe ban ke taiyaar hein… Sound of everybody running………………………………………

Flavorful mashed potato stuffed fried flat-bread-the classic Aloo Paratha

Now if you haven’t tried this reader, yes I am talking to you, you have missed something amazing and until you try it you can’t even guess what you are missing! Once you make them or try them somewhere you will make them again n again or go back to them time n time again. Yes they are indeed so lovely.

                                                              Hearty potatoes treated in the healthiest way, boiled, flavored with herbs, onion and spices and stuffed inside flat bread which then shallow fried on a pan and they are a heavenly delight to eat. Eating them is such a fulfilling experience in it.

 

                                            A classic Indian staple dish that has stood the test of time and has made numerous men, women, children n dogs(;)) happy throughout hundreds of years and will keep on doing so. Aloo is potato in Hindi, Urdu n Bengali, in Marathi it is Batata. Undoubtedly one of the most popular breakfast or snack dishes served in homes across the western, central and the northern part of the Indian sub-continent. They are mostly served with yogurt or chutney of mango/radishes/mix-vegetables/tomato or with butter. To eat them hot while the blob of butter melts on their surface is a sight to watch and to eat! So often these flat-breads/parathas are fried in butter and then again served with butter! But also they are equally delicious fried in vegetable oil. Eating them with lots of butter day by day has its own effects on you…you can get fat! How will I forget to tell you they are simply amazing with tomato ketchup! Sometimes I add a touch of chaat masala in the tomato ketchup and it is mouth watering. The combination with yogurt is also to cherish, lovely creamy yogurt adds tang and so refreshing.  With chutneys it’s a beautiful moment. Now tell me that you are making them tomorrow.

                                                                                                      Potato is such a beautiful vegetable, healthy, nutritious and amazingly versatile! No wonder they are a staple food across many nations. We can have them in breakfast, lunch, dinner, in between meals and they are used both in savory and sweet dishes. Of all the stuffed fried breads found across the corners of India, I think aloo paratha is the most popular; the other popular ones will be mooli paratha, paneer paratha and recently cheese paratha.

                                                             If you are making them for the first time, which you must do, you can find them a bit challenging, like every new thing. Making the dough is easy, preparing the mashed potato is easy, when it comes to stuffing the mashed potato into the dough and rolling them out, it becomes challenging. All you need is soft hands, a bit of delicacy and a dose of confidence. That’s all n you are literally ready to roll.

                                                                                                                                                                         Once the mashed potato and the dough is done, you take a ball of dough , flatten it, make a dent in it and then stuff them with the mashed potato and then enclose the mashed potato with the dough, it will like a ball of dough with mashed potato inside it. All you need next is a soft hand when you roll them, because if you with heavy hand you will be spilling the potato mixture from the dough from everywhere. Remember that the mashed potato is very soft, so handle them softly.

Now I will tell you about the recipe, get ready with you rolling pin.

For The Recipe: You will need

For the Mashed Potato

4-5 medium potato in skin, halved and put a cross mark on top of both the halves with knife

Water to boil the potatoes

1 tbsp of salt

I medium onion, finely chopped

2 green chilies, finely chopped

1 tbsp of fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped

1 tsp of Cumin seeds

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Salt to taste

1 tsp of oil

For the Dough

200 gm plain flour or 100 gm of whole-wheat flour+100 gm of plain flour

Pinch of salt

85-90 ml of water

1 tsp of vegetable oil

For Frying

Around 2 tbsp of oil for each paratha/flat bread

1. Let’s make the dough first, mix the 2 flours if using 2 flours, then add the salt, 1 tsp vegetable oil and rub it in the flour, make a well in the center and add half of the water in the well, then slowly incorporate the flour, add half of the remaining water and do the same, then add the rest of the water and make the whole dough come together.  Start kneading the dough from this point until the dough becomes smooth n elastic which will take about 6-8 minutes. The dough will be moderately tight, not very soft neither very stiff. When the dough is smooth, divide the dough in 4 balls, smooth them out , then place them in a bowl, sprinkle 1 tsp of vegetable oil on them, coat them in the oil n rest them for 30 minutes.

2. Wash the potatoes, then cut them in half across the length, then with the knife put shallow cross mark on the top of all the halves, then heat the water in pan, add salt in the water and add the potatoes. After about 10 minutes check with the knife, if the knife goes smoothly inside the potatoes, they are done. Drain the water, cool them in normal water, then peel the potatoes and then smash them with a fork.

3. Put a pan on low heat, add the whole cumin seeds and toss them in the pan for about 2 minutes, then put them in a mortal n pestle and grind them to a powder, put the black pepper corns in the heat for 1 minute and similarly grind them.

4. Add 1 tsp of vegetable oil in the pan and put it on medium heat, when the oil is hot add the chopped onion, the chopped green chilies and toss them for 2 minutes, reduce the flame to low, add the chopped coriander leaves, give them 1 minute, add a little salt to them, then add the mashed potato in the pan and mix everything well. Next add the crushed cumin powder, the crushed black pepper, salt to taste and mix well, give them 3 minutes in low heat in the pan, take them out in a bowl and let it cool.

5.  Now when the dough has rested for about half an hour, on a dry surface sprinkle some flour, then pick one ball of dough and sprinkle that ball with a little flour and cover it lightly with flour, then place it on the surface and press gently with your palm to flatten it slightly with your three tallest fingers. After that pick that flatten ball in your palm and start pushing the dough along the circumference to the center with your thumb while you go around doing that all across the circumference. What you are basically doing is creating a little dent in the middle region of the ball by pushing the dough and stretching the dough around the sides towards the center. This dent will be the space for the stuffing.

6. So pick about 1 tbsp of the mashed potato stuffing and place it in the dent, put such an amount that you still have about 1 inch side above it, now with your fingers stretch the sides slightly and put all the sides together so that the stuffing is covered, now twist the gathered edges lightly to seal them, then press the twisted edges on to the ball so that it again looks like a leveled flatten ball. Here the images will help you understand.

7. Now is the time for soft hands, a crucial point. Place the ball back on to the  floured surface and press lightly with your hands to flatten it even more, then with your rolling pin do the same, press on it gently to flatten it uniformly, then start rolling with a very light hand and give it a round shape. Don’t try to roll this ball very thin because in that case the stuffing will tend to leak from the sides. So roll it to a thickness when the stuffing is just about to come out, it will be around 1 cm thickness when this will begin to happen. Stop there and aloo parathas are always thick simple because they have stuffing. Do the same with the rest of the dough balls.

8. Put a pan on medium heat and let it get hot, don’t let it get very hot, when the pan is moderately hot, place on paratha on the pan and put I tbsp of vegetable oil on the surface and with the back of a spoon smear it, then flip that side over so that it begins to fry, take 1 tsp of butter and place on top of the paratha while the lower side is getting fried.  After about 2 minutes the lower side will be starting to brown. Keep the heat medium and let it develop some brown color, then flip it over and let this side also get light brown. Once done take it off the pan and do the same with the other parathas. Done!

Since they are very hot give them some minutes and then jump in, tear them off and eat them warm. Aren't they just amazingly yummy? I know, I know…..Bon appétit.