Pasta Pesto salad

This is a cold salad I made the other day using capsicums, sweet corn, pasta and pesto.
You can use any pasta that you may have at home, even spaghetti will do! But I wanted to use something small...almost the same size as sweet corn kernels..so it could be scooped up with or served in endive salad leaves. I found this pasta called cocciolette at the store....small shell-shaped pasta which is perfect.


Very easy to make, and delicious to eat on a hot and humid summer day!

Ingredients

1 cup cocciolette pasta (or any other)
1 can of sweet corn, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup or 1 small-sized red capsicum, washed and chopped small (about the size of sweet corn)
1/2 cup of 1 small-sized green capsicum, washed and chopped small (about the size of sweet corn)
1/2 cup or 1 small-sized yellow capsicum, washed and chopped small (about the size of sweet corn)
1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped
6-7 leaves of fresh basil
4 tbsp of pesto, or to taste (store-bought)
1 tbsp of peri-peri sauce (optional), or to taste
1 tsp of tabasco sauce, or to taste
2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method

1. Bring to boil 6 cups of salted water (should taste like sea-water) in a big pot. 
2. When the water comes to a boil, lower the flame and add pasta a little at a time. Stir it and then add some more and then all of it. If you add all of it at once to boiling water, it tends to boil over instantly so be careful. 
3. Boil the pasta for 8 minutes until almost done. Do not cover the lid. 
4. Now, drain the pasta into a colander and rinse it under cold water to bring its temperature down and wash off the starch. Transfer into a bowl, add 1-2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil and toss. This will prevent the pasta from sticking together. Let it cool down. 
5. Chop the capsicums and onion. 
6. Reserving one or two basil leaves for garnish, roughly tear the rest into small pieces. 
7. If you are not eating the salad right away, then you can prepare it up to this stage and store pasta and vegetables separately in the refrigerator. You can prepare this up to 1 day in advance. 
8. When ready to eat, mix the vegetables and pasta in a bowl.  
9. Drain 1 can of sweet corn into a colander, rinse under cold running water. 
10. Add sweet corn, pesto, peri-peri sauce, tabasco sauce, salt, black pepper, basil leaves and toss/mix well.  
11. Give it a taste and adjust the seasonings and sauces.  
12. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with fresh basil leaves. It can be chilled in the fridge for a few hours before serving. 

• There are many different ingredients that you can use. Lima beans and cannellini beans are easy choices since they are available canned. Black eyes peas or lobia would be great too only they need to soaked for several hours before being cooked for 10-15 minutes. 
• Cucumbers, semi-dried tomatoes, olives, asparagus, artichokes, mango and thai red chillies are some others.

Pictures coming soon.....

Poha

The most basic recipe ever except for the use of lima beans in place of green peas. Lima beans are a good source of complete protein. Read all about them on WH Foods website.

Ingredients

2 cups thick poha
1 cup diced potatoes (1 medium size potato)
1/2 cup lima beans
1/2 cup cauliflower cut into small pieces (roughly the size of diced potato)
1/2 cup chopped onions
2-3 tsp olive oil
a pinch of hint (asafetida)
2 tsp mustard seeds
1-2 tsp skinless split udad dal (optional)
4-5 curry leaves
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
2 tsp salt (adjust to taste)
2 tsp lemon juice (or, juice of half a lemon)
1/4 to 1/3 cup water (60-80ml) water
Fresh coriander, chopped for garnish

Method

1. Put the poha into a colander and rinse under running water 1-2 times, drain all water and keep aside. Poha will absorb water and fluff up by the time you are ready to add it to the dish.Some people would like to season the poha at this stage with salt, turmeric and lemon juice but I prefer to leave it alone. 
2. Heat oil in a wide-pan (like a skillet or frying pan).
3. Add a pinch of hing, mustard seeds, udad dal and cover with a lid for up to a minute. Otherwise, you'll have only a few mustard seeds left inside the pan with the rest of it all over the kitchen. So have a lid ready in one hand. Or, take the pan off the heat for a minute. 
4. Next, add the curry leaves and onions and stir for a minute or two. 
5. Add the potatoes, lima beans, cauliflower, turmeric, chill powder, and fry for one two minutes. 
6. Add 1/4 cup water and salt. 
7. Cover with lid and cook on a slow flame until water has evaporated and potatoes are done. Add more water if needed. This should take about 10 minutes.  
8. Once done, add lemon juice and poha and stir gently to mix it in. 
9. Sprinkle chopped fresh coriander and give it a gentle mix. 

Thick poha

Thick poha, fluffed up 

Lima beans

All veggies in

Along with the spices

Just after adding water

Ready to eat!

Notes:

1. I would love to add finely chopped fresh green chillies instead of red chill powder if I were making it just for myself. 
2. The other ingredients I like to see in poha are carrots, sprouted mung beans and sprouted kale chane (black chickpeas, or whole bengal gram). But these will require extra cooking time, especially kala chana. 
3. Its fine to use frozen mixed veggies too which normally include peas, sweet corn, carrots and green beans. 

Experiments with pizza

Experiments with pizza are fun when you have a bread machine. Dough is the hardest part of pizza and a bread machine does that for you. 

For the pizza dough

Ingredients

250ml Water (room temperature)

1 tbsp Olive oil

150g Very Strong wholemeal flour (for bread)

300g Extra strong unbleached plain flour (for bread and pizza dough)

1 ½ tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp active dry yeast

Method

1. Add 250ml water to the bread pan. 
2. Add 1 tbsp olive oil.
3. In a bowl, mix together 150g of Very Strong wholemeal flour and 300g of Extra strong unbleached plain flour. 
4. Now, sprinkle this flour on top of the water to cover it completely.
5. Add salt and sugar. 
6. Next, make a well in the center of the flour not going all the way down to the water.
7. Add yeast in the center and cover with flour.
8. Insert the pan back into the machine, and close the lid.
9. Switch power on.
10. Select program 13. You cannot set a delay start timer on this program setting.
11. Press start. Dough will be ready in 1 hour and 30 minutes.

For the pizza sauce

Ingredients

1 big brown onion, peeled and chopped

1 can of chopped tomato

2 tbsp of tomato puree (from the tube)

1 clove of garlic, chopped/minced/grated (optional)

1 tbsp, mixed Italian herbs/oregano/

1-2 tbsp red wine/white wine vinegar

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp olive oil

Method

1. In a deep saucepan with a lid, heat one tablespoon of olive oil.
2. Add chopped onions and fry for one minute until translucent.
3. Add the garlic and fry for another minute.
4. Add the whole can of chopped tomatoes.
5. Add 2 tbsp of tomato puree.
6. Add the herbs, vinegar, salt and sugar, and mix together.
7. Cover the lid and cook for 5 minutes.
8. Cook without lid for another 10-15 minutes until the sauce is thick and spreadable. It should not have too much liquid in it. Nor be to dry. Thicker than pasta sauce.
9. If there is no tomato puree, substitute tomato ketchup.
10. Just before it is done, taste and adjust seasoning as required.  Sugar, Salt or vinegar.
11. Let it cool down for 30 minutes or so. This can be prepared up to a week in advance.

Roll out pizza

1. Take the dough out the pan onto a floured tray. (could be any surface).
2. Keep some extra plain flour out for dusting, if needed.
3. Pre-heat the oven for 10 minutes at 250 degrees Celsius.
4. Leave the baking tray on which you intend to bake the pizza in the oven to heat up. This will give a crispier pizza base.
5. Now, divide the dough into two balls. Cover one with cling-wrap and put it in the fridge. If using it same day and few hours later. If not, you can freeze it for up to one week.
6. Punch the dough that you are using a few times. And then shape it anyway you like…. square, round, or oblong. Use a rolling pin, or your knuckles and back of the hand or just lay it on the tray keep stretching and working it into desired shape.
7. Take the baking tray out of the oven and place it on a heatproof surface. Be careful it will be very hot.
8. Place the pizza base on top of the baking tray.
9. Brush with olive oil up to an inch of the edge of the pizza. This will help to crisp and brown the edges nicely. 

Toppings

There are so many toppings to choose from. Sometimes, I just use whatever ingredients I have at home. I love Spinach and know that it is healthy. So I use it as frequently as possible to rid myself of the guilt of having a pizza:) Below, I will note down all the various combinations as and when I try them out, which won't be often as we have pizza only once a week or in two weeks, and again I may not be feeling experimental every week. 

Number One

4-5 baby potatoes

4 fistfuls of baby spinach

half an onion sliced

½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese, or mix of cheddar, parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Increase or decrease the quanity of cheese, as you like it.

1-2 cups of pizza sauce

Prepare the toppings as follows:

1. Peel and wash 3-4 small potatoes.
2. Cut them into thin round slices and soak them in salty water for 30 minutes.
3. Drain off the water, rinse and squeeze out excess water or pat dry with kitchen towel.
4. Wash the baby spinach, spin it dry and keep aside.
5. Slice half and onion. (Optional)

Continuing from step 9 of Roll Out Pizza, assemble as follows:

1. Spread up to a cup and half of the sauce on top evenly.
2. Sprinkle with cheese.
3. Spread baby spinach. The spinach will settle down as it wilts in the oven.
4. Spread some onion slices.
5. Arrange slices of potatoes on top.
6. Sprinkle crushed black pepper on top.
7. Sprinkle some more cheese.
8. Put the pizza in the oven and cook for 9-10 minutes or until done. Cheese melted and crisp and brown edges.
9. Take the pizza out and let it rest for 5 minutes.
10. Transfer onto wooden chopping board and slice with pizza cutter.

Number Two:

4 fistfuls of baby spinach

2-4 eggs

half an onion sliced

½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese, or mix of cheddar, parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Increase or decrease the quantity of cheese, as you like it.

1-2 cups of pizza sauce

Prepare the toppings as follows:

1) Wash and spin-dry baby spinach.

Continuing from step 9 of Roll Out Pizza, assemble as follows:

1. Spread up to a cup and half of the sauce on top evenly.
2. Sprinkle with cheese.
3. Spread baby spinach. The spinach will settle down as it wilts in the oven.
4. Spread some onion slices.
5. Make a slight well in two or four places on the pizza. Break an egg into each well.
6. Sprinkle crushed black pepper on top.
7. Sprinkle some more cheese.
8. Put the pizza in the oven and cook for 9-10 minutes or until done. Eggs cooked. Cheese melted, crisp and brown edges. You can insert a toothpick into the egg yolk to check if it is done.
9. Take the pizza out and let it rest for 5 minutes.
10. Transfer onto wooden chopping board and slice with pizza cutter.

Number Three:

1 cup of white mushrooms, sliced

1 cup of green capsicum, sliced

½ cup of kalamata or black olives, halved or sliced

½ cup baby tomatoes, halved

½ cup onion, sliced

1 cup grated mozzarella cheese, or a mix of cheddar, parmesan and mozzarella cheese, OR,
   1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese and 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1-2 cups of pizza sauce or you could even use basil-almond pesto (store-bought)

Prepare the toppings as follows:

1. Wash mushrooms or wipe them clean with a kitchen towel. Slice them thin, and keep aside. 
2. Wash green capsicum, cut them into quarters lengthwise. Slice them thin horizontally. 
3. Rinse the olives in water to rid of excess brine and either cut each into half lengthwise or slice them thin.
4. Rinse the baby tomatoes, and cut them into half lengthwise. 
5. Slice the onion thinly. 

Continuing from step 9 of Roll Out Pizza, assemble as follows:

1. Spread up to a cup and half of the sauce on top evenly.
2. Sprinkle with cheese.
3. Arrange mushroom slices.  
4. Arrange some onion slices.
5. Spread green capsicum, olives, and baby tomatoes.
6. Sprinkle some more cheese.
7. Put the pizza in the oven and cook for 9-10 minutes or until done. Eggs cooked. Cheese melted, crisp and brown edges. You can insert a toothpick into the egg yolk to check if it is done.
8. Take the pizza out and let it rest for 5 minutes.
9. Transfer onto wooden chopping board and slice with a pizza cutter. 

Number Four