One Pot Ham and Peas Fusilli Pasta

Kolkata Food Bloggers encourages new and interactive events where its members can showcase versatility and passion. Our new ongoing event is featuring one member for a week where the chosen one gets to decide on a theme of their choice. For this week, our featured blogger is Chitrangada Kundu who blogs from Color and Spices, a blog with wonderful recipes and amazing breath-taking food photography. 

Recently, KFB held a demo workshop where Chitrangada tried explaining us a thing or two about Food photography. I was lucky to get an opportunity to attend the same and was enthralled at her knowledge and passion. With the limited time, she tried to pack in as much information as possible and shared lots of her hard-learned tips. 

For this week, our event showcases One Pot meal wonders. I have been elusive of this fuss free way of cooking and decided to try an easy pasta recipe. This is literally a dump in kind of a recipe where everything is just put in the pan and then allowed to cook. Simple and easy as a breeze, it is a quick way to beat some sudden hunger pangs.

Ingredients : Serves 2

• 1/2 cup Fusilli Pasta
• 1/4 cup chicken ham, cubed
• handful of green peas
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium sized onion, chopped
• 3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped
• salt to taste
• black pepper to taste
• 1 tsp of mixed dried herbs
• 1 tbsp all purpose flour
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup milk
• parmesan cheese for sprinkling

Procedure : 

Heat oil in a pan and saute onions till translucent. Add chopped garlic and ham cubes. Stir for a minute.

Add flour and the fusilli pasta and mix.

Stir in water and milk. 

Add salt and pepper.

Cook for 10-15 minutes and then stir in the peas.

Cook for another 5 minutes or till the pasta is done. 

Sprinkle parmesan cheese and dried herbs on top and serve. 

This recipe is part of Kolkata Food Bloggers ongoing event One Pot meals which features our blogger Chitrangada Kundu who blogs from Color and Spices

Happy Enjoying a fuss free One Pot meal

Amrita

Cheesy twists

I have been writing about my missing act for a long time now. And the truth is that I am still struggling to find enough enthusiasm to get back to what I love doing. With Vaanya growing up, I guess my energy level is getting depleted faster. But that does not equal to no experiments in the kitchen. My love for baking continues and I keep finding personal little time to experiment with some bake or the other.
The cheesy twists were made some time in November when the winters was just setting its foot in Kolkata. The warm gooey cheesy bread was a perfect accompaniment to the light nip in the air and a steaming cup of tea. I made a homemade pizza sauce as a dip to go with it where I just did a gentle saute of garlic, chopped onions and tomatoes with seasoning and it paired really well with my cheesy delights. 
With most of the ingredients easily available in the kitchen, this recipe can work as an interesting and an innovative appetizer.  

Recipe : King Arthur Flour

Ingredients : Yields 10 twists

Dough : 

• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp lukewarm water
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp instant yeast
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup all purpose flour

Filling : 

• 2 tbsp grated processed cheese/cheese powder
• 1/2 tsp dried herbs
• 1/2 tbsp melted butter
• 1/2 tbsp water
• 1/4 cup grated mozarella cheese
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil

Procedure : 

Dough : 

Take a bowl and add all ingredients. Knead to a smooth dough adding as much lukewarm water required. 

Transfer the dough to a well oiled bowl and cover with a damp muslin cloth. Keep in a warm place and allow to rise for an hour till it doubles in volume. 

Filling : 

In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients except mozarella cheese and olive oil and set aside. 

Roll the dough to a rough 10x10"

Spread the filling mixture all over the dough leaving a 1/2 " border on all sides.

Sprinkle mozarella cheese all over. 

Fold dough in half and press the edges.

Using a pizza cutter/knife slice dough into 1" wide fingers.

Twist strips and lay them on a parchment/aluminium foil lined baking tray.

I did not use a parchment paper on the baking tray and ended up with a cheesy mess on the tray

Brush them with olive oil and allow to rise for an hour.

Preheat oven to 180 degree Celsius 10 minutes before the rising time gets over.

Bake the twists for 20-25 minutes or till they have browned well. 

Serve with tomato ketchup or homemade Pizza sauce.

Happy cheesy twisting
Amrita

Gibassier-Orange flavoured bread

Baking is healing, baking is fun, baking is very enriching. 
One of my reason to join various baking groups is to get the opportunity to experiment with bakes from around the world and to learn different techniques and methods. 

We knead to bake #19 is a sweet bread from France called Gibassier (zee-bah-see-ay) which is a breakfast bread and is from the Provence region. This bread is flavoured with orange candied peel, orange blossom water and aniseed. It is a decorative bread with snippets on it and is one of the 13 traditional French Christmas desserts that are traditionally served after Midnight Mass to signify Christ and his 12 apostles at the Last Supper. 

Gibassier is simple to make but only requires time as there is a pre ferment which needs to be made a night before. I had to substitute one of its main ingredient, the orange blossom water because of its unavailability and had fun making the candied orange peel from scratch. I even replaced aniseed with fennel seeds which went extremely well with the orange flavour. 

The dominant smell of the orange flavour while baking will certainly make you want to pair it with your cup of tea. I personally loved the tiny specks of orange candied peel peeping from the bread along with the fennel seeds. 

Recipe source : Aparna from My Diverse Kitchen. Adapted from CirilHitz’s Baking Artisan Pastries and Breads

Ingredients : Yields 4 

Biga (pre ferment)

• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp milk
• a pinch of Instant yeast

Dough

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/8 tsp orange essence
• 1 1/2 tsp warm water
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp instant yeast
• 20 gms butter, softened
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 tbsp chopped candied orange peels
• 1/4 tsp orange zest
• All the Biga from above

Glazing : 

• Ghee for brushing
• granulated sugar for sprinkling

Procedure : 

Biga : 

The previous night, you start baking, mix all the ingredients in a bowl to a smooth dough. Add more milk if required. 

Put the dough in a well oiled bowl, turning to coat all sides. 

Cover loosely with a muslin cloth and let it stand at room temperature fro 14-16 hours. 

The dough next morning will have a fermented look.

Dough:

The next morning mix olive oil and orange essence in a big bowl.

Add warm water and mix. 

Now, add the pre ferment by tearing it into chunks and adding to the bowl. 

Add all purpose flour, sugar, salt, yeast and knead till dough is smooth.

Add butter and knead again till it gets incorporated well.

Add the chopped candied orange peels and fennel seeds and mix in the dough.

Shape the dough in a round and place in a well oiled bowl. Cover and allow to double in size for about 2 hours.

Divide into 4 equal parts and shape each into a round and let the dough rest for 15-20 minutes.

Take one round at a time and shape into a semi circle. Make three slits, one in the center and two on each sides, in the middle of the semi circle with a knife. Make sure that the slits are clean.

Now with the help of scissors, make four snips along the arched side at equal distance.

Lift and transfer to a lined baking tray stretching a little to open the slits. 

Repeat the same for the rest of the dough.

Let it rise for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180 degree Celsius, 10 minutes before the completion of the resting time.

Put the baking tray in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or till they attain a brownish tinge.

While still hot from the oven brush them liberally with ghee and sprinkle sugar on top.

Notes : 

• You can make your own candied orange peels like I did from here.
• This bread is just about sweet. If you want your bread a little more sweeter, add a tbsp more in the dough.
• The bread is enjoyed best the same day, esp fresh out from the oven

Happy Orange bread enjoying

Amrita

Roasted Beetroot Chaas

Summers is not really my favourite month but Summers have a lot of sweet memory attached to it and remind me of the fun filled and careless childhood days. Summers then meant packing up our bags and traveling by the Sleeper class for 2 nights and reach our heaven haven in Punjab. The Summer vacations was spent running out and playing in the scorching sun and enjoying yummy delicacies made by Nani and Masi's. In those days we had no distraction from the television or the internet and enjoyed our silly games with all cousins. Summer Vacations will truly be the best days of my life!

With Vaanya, my daughter, growing up and soon to join a school, I look forward to give Vaanya a truly wonderful and memorable Summer vacation experience. I hope when she grows up, she will fondly recollect her best days of life with equal enthusiasm.

Summers are also synonymous with cool drinks. Being a Sikh, Lassi was a drink that was always ready at home. My grandmother would ensure that she uses enough milk to set homemade curd which was used generously in Summers. While I always loved my Lassi sweet and thick, others at home loved to gulp down a salty and thin version along with lunch. My grandmothers 'Madhani' was always ready to churn up a yummy cooling Lassi. 

My grandmother also made homemade white butter which now my mother continues to make very diligently. The top layer on milk called 'Malai' collected for a few days was churned to get the pristine white unsalted butter. The water remaining while churning butter was used in her salty lassi which I learnt later is called 'Chaas' in Hindi. Extremely popular esp in the northern part of the country because of its scorching heat in Summers, Chaas is a drink that is not only loved for its taste but for its health benefits too as it cools the body.

This chaas is normally made with boiled beetroot puree but the Baker in me made me experiment with a roasted beetroot version.

Recipe source : Adapted from GoodFood magazine 

Ingredients : For 3-4 servings

• 1 small beetroot, peeled and quartered
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup curd (I used homemade)
• 2 cups water (or more)
• 1 tsp oil
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• few curry leaves 8-10
• 1/4 tsp grated ginger
• 1 green chilly chopped (optional)
• salt to taste

Procedure : 

Preheat oven to 180 degree Celsius. Take a baking tray and line it with aluminium foil. 

Toss the quartered beetroots with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. 

Place on the baking tray and loosely cover with the foil. Let the beetroots roast for 30 minutes. 

Take them out carefully and allow to cool.

When they have cooled down, pulse them in the mixer to make a smooth paste.

Whisk curd and water in a bowl to make a thin chaas. 

Add the beetroot paste to it and mix it well.

Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds. As they splutter, add curry leaves, grated ginger and chopped green chilly. Cook for a minute and then add this to the chaas.

Refrigerate the chaas and serve chilled. 

Notes : 

• You can use buttermilk in place of curd and water.
• You may boil the beetroot in boiling water or pressure cook it, peel the skin and puree it. 

This recipe is part of the exciting ongoing event at Kolkata Food Bloggers called 'Beat the Heat'.

 Enjoy Summers
Amrita 

Chicken Valentine

 

Each one of us have a story to tell

And there is one that I have too

Of our tales through numerous spell

Each season marked with different hue

'Midst turn and bends, highs and lows 

Our discretion of life clearer grows.

One of the mediums through which I tried to impress my wife during our courtship was poetry. Today much of poetry has turned into passion for cooking and food that we commonly share. This Valentine week friends from Kolkata Food Bloggers decided to celebrate it through the theme 'Love on the Plate-Dinner for Two' where we were supposed to make dinner for two (two of us ofcourse). Coincidentally Valentine Day also happens to be our marriage anniversary so the idea of 'dinner for two' particularly intrigued me. 

Its been four amazing years with my wonderful wife and certainly I do not need a Valentine Day to remind me how fortunate I have been to have her in my life. She complements and completes, encourages and appreciates, ignores my shortcomings, bears my complacency, forgives my inadequacies and loves unconditionally. 

Like cooking, sometime life begins to sing in a monotonic song.  Some of my cooking style, like the chicken roast, became very monotonic and predictable to Amrita in the sense that she more or less knew what group of ingredients and spices I would be use in the process. Therefore I mustered up enough courage to try something different this time. I had conceptualized this myself and hoped it to be edible. Thankfully it did impress her. I, naturally, could think of no better name for it but 'Chicken Valentine'.

Ingredients : 

Roast Chicken:

• Chicken breast boneless 2 pieces about 500 gm
• Balsamic Vinegar- 2 tbsp
• Worcestershire Sauce- 1 tbsp
• Red wine (I used a homemade one)- 100 ml
• Vegetable Oil- 2 tbsp
• Salt to Taste

Sautéed Vegetables:

• Broccoli- 25gm
• Baby Corn- 3 sticks
• Green Capsicum- 1/2 Capsicum
• Garlic- 2 Cloves
• Olive Oil-1 tbsp
• Salt to Taste
• Freshly crackled black pepper
• Cherry Tomatoes- 6 Pcs

Procedure:

Wash and clean chicken.

Marinate it in Balsamic Vinegar and Worcestershire Sauce and salt for 1/2 hr.

Chop Capsicum, Baby Corn and Broccoli very finely. Crush and chop garlic.

In a pan warm olive oil and put garlic. Cook for few second till it releases the aroma.

Place the finely chopped veggies and whole cherry tomatoes. Sauté slightly, not overcooking it and at the same time maintaining the crispness of the veggies. Season with salt and freshly crackled pepper. Set aside.

In another pan heat oil and pan roast the marinated chicken. Cook for about 6 minutes each side or till done. Set aside.

Deglaze the fond in the pan with wine and reduce to a medium consistency.

To deglaze a pan means adding liquid such as stock or wine to a pan to loosen and dissolve food particles (called fond) that are stuck to the bottom. The flavorful mixture produced by deglazing can then be used to make a sauce. (Source:About.com)

Plating

Place the  sauté vegetables on one side and place the chicken breast slightly on the inner side towards the center. Drizzle with wine sauce.

Serve with toasted garlic bread and choice of wine.

Happy Valentine

Vishal

Foccacia Caprese

We at 'We Knead to Bake' have completed a year of baking amazing yeasted goodies together and have now entered another year where we are joined by some more members. I have missed on two bakes and plan to catch up on them very soon. 

The bake for this month was chosen by popular demand and after baking and devouring it, has become one of my favourite ones. I plan to make this again and also experiment with the toppings. 

Foccacia Caprese is basically a flatbread where the toppings are Caprese style where fresh tomatoes, basil and fresh buffalo mozzarella is used. 

Since buffalo mozzarella is not easy to get here, we have substituted it with the one we get readily in the markets. 

The Foccacia came out super soft and yummy and was over in no time. I had baked this for tea time and had to hide 2 slices for Vishal as me and Vaanya were all over it. 

The best compliment was from Vaanya when she in her toddler pronunciation exclaimed that the thing was 'Nummy Nummy' and 'So Taesty'. 

Here is Vaanya enjoying the Foccacia with her winsome facial expressions.

This is a super easy recipe where all you need to do is put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix them and then top with the easily and readily available toppings.

It resembles a pizza in appearance but the dough is pretty thick giving it a bready texture. 

Eaten best as it is, this Foccacia can be also paired with soup or salad. 

Recipe source : Kitchen Whisperer and adapted by Aparna

Ingredients : I reduced the recipe to 1/4 to get a 6 1/2"x4 1/2" oval Foccacia which serves 2 

Dough:

• 1/2 tsp instant yeast
• 1/2 tbsp sugar
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 cup warm water 

Topping:

• 4 slices of a tomato
• Mozarella cheese in 1/4" slices
• 4-5 basil leaves, chopped

Herb Oil:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp dries basil
• a pinch of red chilli flakes
• 2 garlic pods, finely chopped
• salt to taste

Procedure :

Herb Oil : 

Mix all in a small bowl and keep aside.

Dough : 

Take a large bowl and put flour, salt, sugar, yeast and oil. Mix well. 

Add warm water, little by little, and knead till you get a smooth dough.

Shape into a ball and place in a well oiled bowl, turning to coat all sides. 

Cover with a damp muslin cloth and allow to double in size in a warm place for an hour. 

(I place in my microwave oven and keep the light on)
Spread the dough to fit the lined oval baking tray.

Instead you may make a rough oval/round shape and place on a lined baking tray.

Allow to rise for 20 mins.

Lightly oil your fingers and make dimples on the dough.

Brush generously with olive oil.

Preheat oven to 210 degree Celsius.

Bake the bread for 18-20 mins.

Take the bread out and increase heat of the oven to 230 degree Celsius.

Drizzle half of the herb oil on the bread and arrange slices of mozzarella cheese on it. Top with tomato slices and sprinkle chopped basil leaves.

Drizzle the remaining herb oil.

Bake for 5-8 mins or till the cheese just melts.

Remove and garnish with fresh basil leaves.

Notes :

• If you want to make it little healthy, try substituting the quantity of flour with half whole wheat and half all purpose flour. 
• You may try other toppings but then it will no longer be a Caprese. 

This recipe is being sent to the amazing ongoing event called 'Yeasty Feasty' by Kolkata Food Bloggers where all the members are going to present their droolworthy yeasty bread creations. To make this event more exciting, food bloggers all over are invited to send in their yeasty bakes. Please read the rules and other details here to participate. 

Happy Foccacia enjoying
Amrita

Pumpkin Carrot Soup

'Know your Kolkata Food Bloggers' event has literally made us search each others blog in depth and check exciting recipes and lovely reads. This week, it is my pleasure to introduce a lovely and passionate person, Antara Ray. I met her very recently when we got together with other members for a restaurant review. 

She works for a consultancy firm and finds cooking and experimenting very interesting and joyous. Her blog Antypasti has some amazing recipes that are quick, simple and delicious. 

Frankly speaking, the first list I checked was her bakes and then the desserts. But I was determined to steer away from usual stuff I keep doing and find something that is simple and quick, though her Lazy tart kept calling me back. I decided on this very healthy soup called Creamy Pumpkin carrot soup. I loved the idea of using these two vegetables and turning them into a soup and made some basic changes. Vaanya, my daughter is a big fan of soups and this was definitely meant for her.

The soup was made in a jiffy and plated for the picture taking ritual. Vaanya eyed the soup and I had the most difficult time trying to keep her away from dunking the carrot flowers in the soup and wanting to have it. The pictures were hurriedly taken as I could no longer bear my 2 year old wanting her bowl of soup so badly. It brought me so much satisfaction to see her love the soup and have her fill. Thank you Antara for introducing such an easy and healthy soup to us. This will definitely become our family favourite. 

Ingredients : Serves 2 

• 150 gms pumpkin, peeled and chopped
• 1 medium sized carrot, peeled and chopped(save a little peeled carrot to make the flowers by making 4 'V' shaped incisions equally)
• 2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 medium sized onion, chopped
• salt to taste
• black pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• a little cream for garnishing

Procedure :

Take olive oil in a deep pan/kadai and add garlic and onions. Let them cook till onions turn pink in colour. Add the diced carrots and pumpkin and season with salt and black pepper. Cook them for 4-5 mins on low heat. Turn off the heat and allow to cool.

Transfer to a blender and blend to a smooth paste. 

Heat the pan again and pour the paste in it through a sieve. Add some water to make the soup reach a  consistency to your liking. 

Serve warm with some cream and carrot flowers.

My daughter enjoying her healthy soup

Happy healthy Soup drinking

Amrita

Choco-Cappuccino Biscotti with Roasted Almonds

Biscotti (plural for biscotto) are Italian biscuits and are described as dry, hard and twice baked cookies. The name is derived from 'bis' meaning twice in Italian and 'cotto' meaning baked or cooked. 
Traditionally Biscotti are almond flavoured and do not use butter or oil. The sticky dough is first shaped in a log and baked till firm. After a short cooling period, the log is sliced into diagonal slices and baked again to draw out the moisture and thus giving the characteristic crisp and dry texture. These biscuits thus have a long shelf life. 
Modern recipes use butter or oil to attain a softer texture and use endless variations. You can add any flavour, dried fruits, nuts, seeds  spices etc and can even frost with melted chocolate and top with nuts or coloured sprinkles.
Baking Partners challenged us with four different types of cookies from around the world. My instant pick was Biscotti from Italy being on my list for a long time. This was suggested by Sandhya who blogs from My Cooking Journey. I went wild in my flavorings and decided to add both chocolate(being my weakness) and coffee. I added some roasted almonds for that beautiful crunch in these cookies which are basically an avatar of our desi Rusks.
Enjoy them with your cup of tea or coffee as crunchy biscuits or dunk them in to soften them. These are such super simple and impressive biscuits mainly because of the variation you can bring into them.

Ingredients : I reduced the recipe by 1/4 to yield about 10 Biscotti

• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour(atta)
• 1/4 cup sugar, powdered
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp strong coffee, cooled(I diluted 1 1/2 tsp instant coffee in 1 tbsp of hot water)
• 1/2 egg
• 1/4 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp choco-chips
• 2 tbsp roasted almonds, chopped

Procedure :

Roasted almonds : 

Boil some water in a pan and blanch the almonds for a min. Remove from heat and let it cool. Rub the skin off and pat dry the almonds with a kitchen towel.

Dry roast the almonds in a pan. 

Allow to cool and then chop.

Biscotti :

Preheat the oven to 170 degree Celsius.

Prepare a baking tin lined with parchment/butter paper.

Whisk together coffee, egg, vanilla and olive oil in a small bowl.

In another bowl, sift both the flours, baking soda, baking powder, sugar and cocoa powder.

Add the coffee mixture to the flour mixture and mix till incorporated.

Mix in the choco-chips and roasted almonds.

The mixture will be very sticky. Avoid adding any more flour.

Transfer this to the prepared tin and shape into a log with wet hands. (I pulled the ends of my butter paper and tied above to maintain the log shape.)

Bake for 25-30 mins.

Reduce the oven temperature to 150 degree Celsius.

My Biscotti after the first bake

Allow the Biscotti log to cool for 15 mins. 

Cut diagonal slices with a sharp serrated knife carefully, so as not to break the slices.

Arrange the slices on the baking tray and bake each side for 5-10 mins or till crisp and brown.

This recipe is also part of the KFB (Kolkata Food Bloggers) Blogging Marathon. Check out what my other lovely Blogger friends have to share at these links:
A Homemaker's Diary
Silence Sings
My Food My Life
Recipe Junction
Jayati's Food Journey
 
This post is also linked to Little Thumbs Up   hosted by Yen from Eat your heart out

 

This post is also linked to the event, Little Thumbs up organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and me, Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Yen from Eat your heart out, at this post. - See more at: http://bakeforhappykids.blogspot.in/2013/08/quadruple-chocolate-loaf-nigella-lawson.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+BakeForHappyKids+(Bake+for+happy+kids)#sthash.QLcusnQ4.dpuf

This post is also linked to the event, Little Thumbs up organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and me, Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Yen from Eat your heart out, at this post. - See more at: http://bakeforhappykids.blogspot.in/2013/08/quadruple-chocolate-loaf-nigella-lawson.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+BakeForHappyKids+(Bake+for+happy+kids)#sthash.QLcusnQ4.dpuf

organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and me, Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Yen from Eat your heart out - See more at: http://bakeforhappykids.blogspot.in/2013/08/quadruple-chocolate-loaf-nigella-lawson.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+BakeForHappyKids+(Bake+for+happy+kids)#sthash.QLcusnQ4.dpuf

This post is also linked to the event, Little Thumbs up organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and me, Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Yen from Eat your heart out, at this post. - See more at: http://bakeforhappykids.blogspot.in/2013/08/quadruple-chocolate-loaf-nigella-lawson.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+BakeForHappyKids+(Bake+for+happy+kids)#sthash.QLcusnQ4.dpuf

Happy Biscotti Eating

Amrita