A "BIG WIN" & Eggless Mango Tiramisu

 Blogging is lot of fun! I like all about it- making the food, sorting the recipes, shooting the pictures, editing it all into a post etc. And when we don't do any of these, we are planning for the next innumerous recipes to be attempted. This is the only problem I find in blogging that it takes whole lot of time.   So at times, it becomes crucial to take a break in between to sort out our life and routines.  Taking a break is more frequent these days as kids are grown up. they need more of my time unlike before. And now, being a member of Indian Association Ladies Wing, I've to attend meetings and functions more often. etc.etc. To sort it all I had thought of taking a break from social media-fb and blogging for quite a few weeks; but never did I think that it would end up in more than a month. 

Life has been busy.Many things happened in between like the Mango themed competition in Home Chef Guild. I wanted to badly participate in it and I was late . Only a few hours left to close the entries. But still I thought of trying something.. Dug into my kitchen cabinets and started creating a dish. I had very little time left and somehow managed to post the pictures to the Guild in time. To my surprise, I won the whole competition 'The Big Win' and soon after that one more win for the most hits on their blog . I was so happy and wanted to share with the world; but my exams stress stopped me from doing that then. It took me more than a month to share my win with the world. :) Better be late than never and here I share this recipe with all my readers.

This recipe has then been tried by many of the Guild members. Happy that they all liked it and this require very less effort compared to the original tiramisu. I wanted to add glaze to the top but lack of time didn't allow me to do so. White chocolate shavings and coffee sprinkle on top(which I added later after the picture got clicked) could defenitely do justice to the recipe. 

Ingredients:

Custard made with readymade powder and 500ml of milk according to the package instructions.
Mascarpone Cheese 400g(Click here for homemade recipe)
Double Cream 200g
Icing sugar 7tbsp or to taste
Saviordi/Sponge Fingers 1 packet
Graham crackers4-5
Mangoes 1 big
Instant Coffee 1 tsp or more for garnish
White Chocolate Shavings for garnish
gelatin 1 sachet

Method:

Prepare by lining a pan with baking sheets on sides. Layer the base with sponge fingers/saviordi. I didn't soak them in coffee syrup as I didn't want too much of its flavor.so just sprinkled on top while serving. It's upto u , if u want, u can soak them in coffee and then layer

Beat heavy cream alongwith icing sugar and half a teaspoon of vanilla essence till soft peaks form. Fold mascarpone cheese into it.

Fold in warm custard already made.

Double boil gelatin in 3 tbsp of water and fold nicely to this cream mixture.

Pour 1/3 of the cream mixture on the saviordi layer. Cut graham crackers and mangoes into squares and then layer them on top of this cream layer.

Pour the remaining cream mixture on top. Garnish with mangoes and white chocolate shavings. Sprinkle coffee powder on top.(optional)

Home Made Spinach & Ricotta Ravioli

Pasta is something that you can crave for in any lazy morning. Shop bought pastas have always been my family's favourite since years; but never had the guts to try out home made pastas. Always heard that it is really tough and time consuming to make pastas at home. But for Indians who roll out rotis and especially for us who hails from  Malabar, its not a tedious task to roll out pasta dough. I felt the same as rolling out for Irachi Ada or Irachi Pathiri. Buying Pasta Machine makes your task easier. But the confusion, whether I will use it in regular basis , led me to use rolling pin for the same.

This pasta can either be served with white sauce or thyme butter. 

Ingredients:

All purpose flour/ Pasta flour 50gm

Semolina flour 50gm

pinch of salt

Eggs 1

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil

1-2 tbsp cold water

Olive oil 1/2 tbsp

Garlic - 1 clove, chopped

Spinach- 130gms

Ricotta- 125 gms

Zest of 1/2 a lemon

Ground nutmeg- a pinch

Grated parmesan- 2 tbsp

salt and freshly ground pepper

1 and 1/2tbsp butter

Fresh thyme- 5 sprigs

freshly grated pepper

grated parmesan, to serve

Method:

Sift together the pasta flour and semolina flour, add pinch of salt.

 Make a well in the middle, add the eggs and olive oil and start mixing with a fork to incorporate the eggs and flour mixture. 

When the dough begins to come together, start kneading the dough with both hands, pouring in a little bit of water until soft and smooth. It takes about 10 minutes. The dough should be elastic and not sticky. Wrap it in plastic wrap and let rest for about 30 minutes.

Filling:

In the meantime, prepare the filling. Heat oil in a pan, add the garlic and saute for a minute. Add the spinach and cook for 2-3 minutes just until wilted. Transfer it to a colander and let cool slightly, then squeeze out any excess liquid. Roughly chop the spinach. In a medium bowl, mix the ricotta, lemon zest, nutmeg, cheese and spinach, add salt and pepper to taste.

Cut the dough in half and start rolling it with your rolling pin/pasta machine. Each time you run the dough through, fold it and run it through again on the same thickness setting. Roll it until it's paper thin. 

Place the pasta sheet on a floured surface and spoon the spinach mixture on top, making sure there is at least a 3cm space around each spoonful. Lightly wet the dough around the filling. 

Place the second sheet of pasta over the filling, press the dough down gently with your fingers to seal the dough around the filling. Cut out the individual ravioli pieces with a pasta wheel/zigzag cutter and place on a floured surface. Repeat with the remaining pasta sheets and filling.

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add a tablespoon of oil, reduce the heat and gently cook the ravioli in batches for 4-5 minutes. Remove from the water, drain and keep warm.

For the thyme butter, melt the butter in a pan, add the thyme and fry for less than one minute. Remove from the heat and add some freshly grated pepper.

Serve the ravioli on a warmed plate, pour over some thyme butter and sprinkle with the parmesan.

Ravioli in white sauce:

Add 1 tbsp of butter in a hot pan. Saute a tbsp of white flour in it for a few seconds until it slightly turn into brown or till the raw smell disappears. Pour in 1 glass of milk . Mix thoroughly so that no lumps remains. Add half a tsp of dry basil and a pinch of oregano. Once it is thickened, switch off the flame and mix in the raviolis. Serve hot.

Spicy Prawns Spaghetti

A Spicy and Tangy Spaghetti is something that can make an evening special for the family. How about some prawns in it? The tomato based sauce in this recipe, gets its seasoning from the spicy prawns in it.You can substitute sausages for prawns here.

Pasta recipes are simple to make and delectable. You can play with your own choice of pasta in any of the recipes found here.  I've already posted a few of pasta recipes while some are there pending in my folders. A few of the ones in the upcoming lists are home made Raviolis, Pasta in pesto and Penne arabiatta.




Ingredients:

Tiger Prawns 6 or more
Red chilli powder 1 tsp
Onion 1 1/2
Tomato 7
Spaghetti 300gm
Garlic 4 cloves
Chilli flakes 1 1/2 tsp
Pepper 1 + 1/2 tsp
Basil leaves 1 sprig or 1 tsp of dry basil
Cheese (optional)
Parsley/coriander leaves 2-3 tbsp
Tomato ketchup 1-2 tbsp

Method:


Boil spaghetti for 3-4 mts. Then switch off the flame. Keep it covered for 8-10more minutes and your spaghetti is done. This is the way I cook my pasta. I know this is not the right way; but it prevents me from over-cooking them.

Marinate prawns with a tsp of red chilli powder and 1/2 tsp of pepper powder alongwith salt and then shallow fry in a deep bottomed pan. Take the prawns out and then add garlic to it and saute till the raw smell goes and the color changes a bit. ie; 30-60 seconds. Add chopped onions to it and saute till it turns transparent. You can use the same oil in which u fried the prawns or use fresh oil. If you are using the same oil, don't leave it for smoking. Saute onions immediately.

Blend tomatoes in a blender and add to it. Always choose fresh and ripe tomatoes for pastas.

Season with all the spices. Simmer till the sauce is done. 8- 10 mts. Add tomato ketchup to it. Mix it well and add prawns. Simmer for 2-3 mts. Your sauce is done. Throw in the parsley.


Now you can serve it in two ways. Either plate your spaghetti and top with the sauce individually or Mix the entire spaghetti in sauce nicely; but don't break the spaghetti. Use two spatulas or spoons to mix it well nicely.

Pasta with olives, tomatoes and chilli

We Indians always wanted our dish to be so complicated, oily and spicy. We had an assumption that these are the factors which turn our dish to tasty. But these days, as international cuisine stepped into every kitchen, we love to be lazy and experiment with pastas, noodles or the same. But these can be healthy too with little of fat and spices; but damn tasty.

This is a simple pasta tossed with vegetables and olives.

Ingredients:

Penne or any other pasta 500 gm
Olive oil
Baby tomatoes
garlic cloves 4 chopped
chilli 1
salt and pepper, to taste
eggplant 1
Bell peppers (yellow & red) 1/4 cup
black olives, pitted
parsley 2 tbsp, chopped

Method:

1. Cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until al dente.

2. In the meantime, heat oil in a frying pan and cook tomatoes, garlic, eggplants, peppers and chilli until tomatoes begin to burst.

3. Drain pasta and add to tomato mixture and toss. Add olives and toss again. Garnish with parsley

Pasta spinach and meat sauce

'A cheesy and tangy pasta' - yes, that's the exact description  for this dish. Though cheese used depends entirely upon your choice, this is a healthy option. The taste of white sauce with spinach stand out in this. The minced meat sauce  gives it a tangy and spicy non-veg. touch . You can use non-minced meat (cubed in small pieces) for this dish too... or you may omit this one. The spinach and white sauce may itself give a complete taste.

Ingredients:

Penne pasta, cooked 400 gms
Spinach 250gms
Onion 45gms
Garlic 30gms
Cheddar cheese 35gms
Butter 25 gms



For white sauce:

Milk 300gms
Plain flour 30gms
Butter 30gms
Nutmeg 2 gms
Salt & Pepper to taste


For Meat Sauce:


Beef Mince 200gms
Chopped Onion 35gms
Chopped Garlic 15gms
Chopped celery 15 gms
Chopped tomato 65 gms
Tomato paste 25gms
Bay Leaf 1
Salt & Pepper to taste
Beef stock or water as required

Method:


White Sauce:

1.Heat a thick-bottomed pan and add butter.

2.When the butter melts, add flour. Keep stirring till the raw smell of the flour is gone. Ensure that the flour does not brown.

3.Now add milk gradually whisking continously so that lumps do not form. Cook on a simmer till the sauce begins to thicken. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and keep aside.

4.In a thick bottomed frying pan add butter and saute onions and garlic till translucent. Now add spinach and cook for few minutes. Add white sauce and stir well. Correct seasoning, if required.

Meat Sauce:

1.In a thick bottomed pan, heat oil and saute onion, garlic, celery and bay leaf, until the onions are translucent.
2.Add minced beef and saute till the juices released dry up.

3.Now add tomatoes and tomato paste. Cook for a few minutes.

4.Add enough stock or water to allow the mince to cook. Check for seasoning and cook till it is almost dry.

5.To serve, in a deep serving dish, spoon pasta, meat sauce and stir fried spinach side by side. Top with cheese and gratinate in an oven for 10-15 mts. Serve hot

Tiramisu (without Alcohol)

Tiramisu is an Italian dessert layered with savoirdi biscuits dipped in coffee and mascarpone cheese flavored with cocoa. This picture is taken over a year ago; that is ; during last year's eid; wanted to take a better picture to post it in my blog; but I donno why I had turned to be lazy these days that I couldn't click one yet .:(

Tiramisu is usually flavored with liquor, but this recipe is one without it. I did try two other recipes before this, but this one is my favorite and so sharing with you all. This is adapted from Shabs Cuisine a blog owned by one of my friend, of whom I had been inspired of. I had tried almost all of her dessert recipes and Masha Allah ,they turned out to be good too...

Ingredients:

4 eggs separated
500 gms mascarpone cheese
2 cups heavy cream/double cream
2 packets of sponge fingers/savioardi/lady's fingers (It depends on the dish u use)
14 tbs powdered sugar
2 tbsp coffee
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tbs cocoa powder

Method:

1. Prepare 2 cups of coffee by adding boiling water to 2 tbs of coffee+2 tbs of sugar. Let it cool.

2.Beat the egg yolk with half the sugar. Double boil this mixture for about 10 mts.that is, boil some water in a pan & keep the bowl of egg yolk mixture on top of it & go stirring the mixture for 10 mts while the flame is simmering; ie; till the mixture turns pale yellow. Add vanilla essence to this and keep it aside to cool.
5. Whip the Cream along with the remaining sugar until peaks form and keep it aside. Don’t whip it for too long because it will start forming into butter. You can use wire whisk or egg beater for this.

6. Mix the mascarpone cheese in this whipped cream and mix well until no lumps appear.

7. Whip the egg whites until peaks form.

8.Fold in egg whites and whipped cream into the egg yolk mixture. Dont over mix it..

9.Soak half the biscuits in the espresso and layer it at the bottom of a springform cake tin or a pudding dish. Don’t keep the sponge fingers in coffee for long time since they tend to absorb liquid too quickly. Just dab both sides in coffee and that should be more than enough.

10.Add half the egg-cream mixture to the soaked biscuits. You can add chocolate shavings here.

11.Then layer again with savoirdi biscuits dipped in coffee and then remaining egg cream mixture.Refrigerate for atleast 2 hrs.

12.Dust cocoa powder over and decorate Tiramisu with grated chocolate,garnish tiles and biscuits. Serve immediately.

Cheesy Bites Pizza (Creamy Chicken Mushroom Pizza)

Here comes my post for this month's Sweet Punch challenge. Like always a bit late. :)  The crust was really superb one. Turned out delicious. Creamy chicken mushroom pizza is one among the four new flavors from different parts of the world introduced here in UAE recently.  This is ma first attempt on cheesy bites pizza too (baked a month ago). I did add some corn flakes on the top to make it crunchy...

The rich smoothness of French creamy mushroom chicken ,with a creamy Pesto Sauce ,along wth heart helping of tenderchicken breast wth mushroom,,

Recipe source(crust)-Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

FOR THE CRUST (MAKES TWO CRUSTS):

1 teaspoon Active Dry Or Instant Yeast

4 cups All-purpose Flour

1 teaspoon Kosher Salt

⅓ cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil

_____

TO MAKE THE CRUST:

Sprinkle yeast over 1 1/2 cups warm (not lukewarm) water.
In a mixer, combine flour and salt. With the mixer running on low speed (with paddle attachment), drizzle in olive oil until combined with flour. Next, pour in yeast/water mixture and mix until just combined.

Coat a separate mixing bowl with a light drizzle of olive oil, and form the dough into a ball. Toss to coat dough in olive oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and store in the fridge until you need it. ***It’s best to make the 

dough at least 24 hours in advance, and 3 or 4 days is even better.

Here is a video which would help u guys to stretch the cheesy bites. its not that tough. All you need is String Cheese

Topping

Mozarella cheese

Creamy chicken mushroom sauce

Pesto Sauce

CREAMY MUSHROOM SAUCE 

Recipe (Shami A Gafoor)
Things You'll Need:
1 skinless chicken breast cut into strips or chunks
1 cup fresh mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 onion, sliced and separated into rings
1 Tbsp. olive oil
Pint heavy or light cream depending on preference

Tbsp. corn starch (if needed)



1.Heat oil in large skillet.MARINADE CHICKEN WTH PEPPER AND SALT THEN COAT IN FLOUR. Add chicken and cook until browned and no longer pink on the inside. Remove and set on a plate. Keep warm.MAKE SLICE


To the same skillet, add onions and saute. When onions are cooked, slightly browned and limp, add mushrooms and saute together.

When mushrooms and onions are cooked and tender, return chicken to skillet and heat through. Add cream and bring to a simmer, stirring often to keep from burning and/or scalding.

Sauce shouldn't be too thick, but it shouldn't be runny, either. If you want a thicker sauce, add a little of the corn starch, a sprinkle at a time until you reach desired consistency.

Place Pizza Dough first, then 2-3 tbsp of Pesto sauce , Creamy Mushroom Sauce, Bell peppers and Cheese on top.

If you are using a Microwave Convection oven, bake your dough first & then top with your sauces & cheese and bake again. 

You can use any topping for cheesy bites... some varieties of pizzas which were shared before are:-

Pesto Paneer Pizza in wholewheat (atta) crust

Seafood Pizza

Pizza Roll

Sausage Stuffed Pizza

Pizza with Garlic Bread

Pesto Paneer Pizza in wholewheat crust

This post was pending with me since many weeks.. Now when I saw the Fast Food Not Fat Food Event hosted by Priya of Now Serving, I thought of posting this soon as this one suits the theme aptly. This event is about presenting a healthier version of our favourite fast food. My son is very fond of pizzas that I had to do something to turn it healthy & to pack  his tiffin.


The base of this pizza is made with whole wheat flour topped with pesto sauce & paneer...& is completely vegetarian.

 I love Pesto sauce a lot....but to find Basil leaves near ma house is pretty tough...so used to go for the pesto sauce recipe posted by Super Yummy Recipes using cilantro (coriander leaves) and walnuts.




Here it goes: ( Pesto sauce using coriander leaves)


Ingredients:

• 1 cup chopped cilantro (coriander)
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional)
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp chopped garlic
• 3 tbsp chopped walnuts
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp finely grated cheese(any one)
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
• 1/8 tsp pepper powder
• salt to taste

Method

In a grinder or blender, combine garlic ,walnut ,salt ,coriander ,parsely,oil,chilli flakes and cheese and blend until finely chopped into a coarse paste .

Mix milk with pesto sauce in a large pan and boil .Simmer for 1 min .

Let it cool

Pesto sauce using Basil leaves:


Ingredients

 garlic 3 cloves
 Basil leaves 1 large bunch (about 2 cups)
 pine nuts1/3 cup
 black pepper fresh ground,
 extra virgin olive oil 1 cup
Parmesan cheese 1/2 cup 
salt

Method:

Add the garlic to the foodprocessor and mince.

 Next, add the basil leaves, pine nuts, and a dash of salt and pepper to the bowl of the processor. While the processor is running, slowly drizzle in olive oil through the feed tube until all the ingredients are pureed.

You may need to stop the processor at this point and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula to get every mixed together. Now add Parmesan cheese and mix it into the rest of the mixture. If the pesto is too thick, add a tablespoon of water.

Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to use it. This should keep for 2 - 3 days in the fridge but freezes well if you want to keep it longer. 

PIZZA DOUGH: (from Vegbowl)

Ingredients:

1 tsp dry yeast
1/4 cup sour yogurt or warm milk
A tsp of sugar
Salt to taste
1 cup all purpose flour / wheat flour
Water, if required
1 tsp Olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

In a small bowl, mix some dry yeast in warm milk, add a tsp of sugar and salt and stir to dissolve it. Set aside for about 5 minutes so that the yeast dissolves well.

Heap the flour into a large bowl and make a hole in the center. Pour the yeast mixture, extra salt (if needed) and 1 tbsp of olive oil. Mix the well and form a soft dough. Add water if its stiff to bind, add more flour if its too wet. Knead the dough well and pat with a tsp of oil to cover the dough from all sides. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and set aside in a warm place for an hour.

After an hour or two, the dough would have doubled in size. Now punch the dough down and divide into 2 balls. Roll into thin crust or thick crust as per your preference. Poke a few holes into the dough using fork to prevent the dough from rising from the center. Pizza base is ready!

If u are using Microwave, bake the base first & then layer the toppings & cheese... Or else u can put the toppings altogether if using gas /electric oven.

Toppings:

Pesto sauce 3-4 tbsp
Mozeralla cheese
Paneer
Mushroom
Bell pepper -Red & Yellow
Black olives..

Method:

Top the base in the same order as mentioned the ingredients... first pesto, then cheese & then the veggies... U can add your own variations in toppings... Add enough pesto as needed...I luv pesto ,so added more... You can add 2-3 tbsp of the sauce

Sending this to the event hosted by Now Serving

Seafood Pizza (Prawns)

This time ,decided to bake a healthier version of pizza just by trying out Whole wheat flour instead of White Flour. My son is now so fond of pizzas that he need it every now and then. As I'm very health & nutritious conscious regarding kids,(like any other mom), thought of baking whole wheat flour crust so that it may not affect him badly.This recipe for the base is from Veg Bowl . Just copy pasted as it is as she had explained it really well.

Seafood pizza is a nice alternative to the traditional cheese and tomato pie, and there are so many different options. This one features shrimp, mushrooms and capsicum as seafood pizza toppings, as well as sliced black olives. If you are concerned about fat content, consider using low fat cheeses - just make sure that they melt well. Imitation crab meat can also be used, but will not have the same kind of flavor.

Use this pizza with your favorite medium thickness crust recipe, or simply purchase a premade crust from the grocery store. While fresh is certainly better, these can be extremely convenient. You will love this delicious seafood pizza recipe!

Ingredients -

For the base: (From Veg Bowl (blog)

1 tsp dry yeast
1/4 cup sour yogurt or warm milk
A tsp of sugar
Salt to taste
1 cup all purpose flour / wheat flour
Water, if required
1 tsp Olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

In a small bowl, mix some dry yeast in warm milk, add a tsp of sugar and salt and stir to dissolve it. Set aside for about 5 minutes so that the yeast dissolves well.

Heap the flour into a large bowl and make a hole in the center. Pour the yeast mixture, extra salt (if needed) and 1 tbsp of olive oil. Mix the well and form a soft dough. Add water if its stiff to bind, add more flour if its too wet. Knead the dough well and pat with a tsp of oil to cover the dough from all sides. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and set aside in a warm place for an hour.

After an hour or two, the dough would have doubled in size. Now punch the dough down and divide into 2 balls. Roll into thin crust or thick crust as per your preference. Poke a few holes into the dough using fork to prevent the dough from rising from the center. Pizza base is ready!

For the Toppings:
 
1 twelve inch unbaked pizza crust
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
¾ cup crab meat
¾ cup small shrimp (I've used only prawns)
½ cup fresh or canned pineapple, drained and chopped
5 white mushrooms - sliced
4 ½ ounces sliced black olives
¼ cup diced green bell pepper
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 cup white cheddar cheese, shredded 
 
Preparation:
 
Pat dough into a greased pizza pan or place on pizza stone.
Brush with olive oil and top with all other ingredients, starting with seafood and finishing with cheese.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F or 200C and bake pizza until cheese bubbles.
(Serves 3-4)

Pizza Roll

Recipe Courtesy: Chef Zakir (Masala tv)



There was pizza dough left with me already when I saw this show & so I used the same dough. It was a Whole wheat flour dough & used sausages as I was too lazy to defrost ma chicken for a single roll. But still it tasted awesome...It was spicy, tangy & cheezyyy.....


Ingredients:

For the dough:

Plain Flour 1/2 kg
Yeast 20 gm
White Butter 20gms
Salt 20 gms
Sugar 15 gms
Water to knead the dough

Sauce and chicken

Chicken breast 300 gms/I used sausage here..
Tomato paste 1 cup
Garlic paste 1 tbsp
Red chilli flakes 1 tbsp
Oregano 1/2 tsp
Thyme 1/2 tsp
Oil 3 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method

Combine all the dough ingredients & knead to a fine dough .Place the kneaded dough in a bowl & cover it with a plastic foil.

For the sauce and chicken, heat oil in a pan & saute garlic.

Add all other sauce ingredients & allow to cook chicken on low flame. Turn off the fire once your sauce is thick.

Roll the prepared dough with a rolling pin & top it with the chicken & sauce. Use mozeralla cheese to top it & seal the corners. You can place a tbsp of cheese on top of the roll.

Bake in preheated oven at 180C for 10-15 mts.



 You can check the video to clear your doubts: Pizza Roll Video

Rotini Cilantro Pesto Pasta

 Was always fond of Pastas..easy to prepare & yummy to eat...I saw this one from Super Yummy Recipes a day before & i just knew it that I had to make it...;checked ma fridge..saw all those ingredients ther in it...didn't wait for a second...made this pasta ,the same day !!
I used to try out pastas with different sauces, among which bolognese & white sauces are ma favorites. I had tried Pesto sauce with Spinach also; but never with cilantro (coriander)... this time it tasted delicious...a gud way to make our kids eat leafy vegetables. I took the pictures the next day (a plate of pasta ws reserved for that..:) that the sauces were seen a bit dry in these pictures. But these were delicious whether dry or wet !! Can have it at any time of the day without much a trouble...So friends, go ahead & try this... Here's the link for the recipe...

Rotini Cilantro Pesto Pasta

Sausage stuffed Pizza

Ingredients: (For the dough)

Flour (Maida)  250 g

garlic powder 1/4 tsp

onion powder 1/4tsp

Ajinomotto a pinch

Yeast 7 g

Sugar 1 tbsp

Oil 2 tbsp

Salt 1/2 tsp

Water 150ml


Method:

Combine a flour, yeast, sugar, salt and warm water.

Add oil and knead the batter.

Keep this in a warm place covered for a minimum of 1 hr.  or you can heat the batter in Microwave at Power 20% for 1 to 1 1/2 min & let stand the batter covered for 10-15 mts.

 

 

Pizza  Sauce**

Ingredients -
15 oz tomato sauce/420 gms..approx.
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ cup water
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon lemon juice
1 bay leaf
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon garlic powder 
 
Preparation:
Combine everything in a pan and cook over a medium heat until the sauce comes to the boil.
Turn the heat down and simmer the sauce, covered, for 35 to 45 minutes or until it has thickened.
Remove the bay leaf and let the sauce cool for a few minutes before using it.
(Enough for 2 Pizzas)

Toppings:

8 oz abt 230gms shredded mozzarella
½ green bell pepper, chopped
Pepperoni
Pizza Sauce **
Onion 1/2, chopped
Fresh basil ¼ cup or 1 teaspoon dried
Button mushrooms-6 sliced 

 
Method:
Grease the oil on the metal tray.Spread the batter on the metal tray. Let it stand for 15 mts again. Poke with a fork all over the pie so that it won't raise too high.
Cut the sausages into halves. Keep each sausage  around the edge of the pan ,then roll up the dough to seal it in .

Heat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Spread the Pizza sauce over the pizza crust, followed by half the cheese and then the other toppings and basil.

Scatter the rest of the cheese on top. Bake for 5 to 10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is golden brown.

Stand for a few minutes to cool down, then slice and serve.



For Microwave users:(Panasonic)

You can bake the bread first & then add the toppings and bake again. Bake the bread for about 20 mts in 180C. Then remove it from the oven & add the toppings alongwith cheese and then bake till it turns brown.
Or else, if you feel that the bottom part remains uncooked, you can flip over the base after 10mts & bake again for another 10 mts.



This recipe is going to the Suma's Anniwersary Event

Pizza with Garlic Bread

 Pizzas are nowadays found in all parts of the world with different toppings & flavors depending upon their traditional cuisines;eventhough it was originally introduced by the Italians to the outer world.. In India we can see varieties like Tandoori chicken or Paneer on top ...I don't think ,pizzas need any  description as these are familiar to everyone these days..This is a simple recipe with basic ingredients . This picture was taken a bit late so that the melting cheese s not seen in this pic...later I had to microwave it again before eating...:))

Ingredients: (For the dough)

Flour (Maida)  250 g
Yeast 7g
Sugar 1 tbsp
Oil 2 tbsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Water 150ml

For toppings:

Capsicum
Mushroom
Tomato soup -1 can or tomato puree
Pepperoni or sausage or chicken shredded
Black olives sliced
Oregano
Tomato ketchup

Method:

Combine a flour, yeast, sugar, salt and warm water.

Add oil and knead the batter.

Keep this in a warm place or you can heat the batter in Microwave at Power 20% for 1 to 1 1/2 min.

Let stand the batter covered for 10 -15 min.

Grease the oil on the metal tray.Spread the batter on the metal tray. Let it stand for 15 mts again. Poke with a fork all over the pie so that it won't raise too high.

Place the tomato soup/puree on it.

Place the other ingredients on the pie. You can add toppings based on your taste. tomatoes, onions, paneer etc.

Sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese on the pizza. Then sprinkle oregano on the top ;about 1 - 1 1/2 tsp is enough.

Place pepperoni on top.

You can add 2-3 tbsp of tomato ketchup over it.

Preheat the oven to Convection 180-200 C

Cook for 25-40 min. until browned.

For Microwave users:

You can bake the bread first & then add the toppings and bake again. Bake the bread for about 20 mts in 180C. Then remove it from the oven & add the toppings alongwith cheese and then bake till it turns brown.

Garlic Bread:(crispy)

French Bread/Italian Bread / Sammoon

Garlic 3 cloves

Unsalted Butter 1/2 cup

1 heaped Tbsp of Freshly chopped parsley  or 1 tsp of Oregano

1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese (optional)( I didn't use)

Make 1 inch thick slices of the loaf. Mix butter, garlic paste and parsley or oregano. Spread this mixture on both sides of the loaf & Grill it for 3-5 mts in Grill 2 (if using microwave with convection) 

If you are using cheese,  Grill it for 2-3 mts, then sprinkle grated cheese over it and bake again till it turns brown.

Or you can bake it in 170C  for 10 mts, sprinkle grated cheese & then bake for 2-3 mts on high heat till it turns brown.