Year: 2010

Chicken Steak with Mushrooms in a Brown Sauce

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This is the kind of steak I remember eating as a kid, when there were no fancy restaurants in Bangalore and Chicken pepper steak was a special treat. You will still get this type of food in a Tiffany’s or Juke Box, but other restaurants have upgraded to more sophisticated versions. I found this recipe on a homely site – wholesome food, no pretence. It sounded very similar to the days of yore, so I gave it a shot and here’s the result. (Sorry for the pictures, I was too hungry and dint bother about appropriate lighting!) The brown sauce is great, I salted it a bit too much though. So just add your seasoning at the end. And don’t forget to go back in time to some childhood foods you can never forget! Happy Reminiscing! Chicken Steak with Mushrooms in Brown Sauce Prep time: 10 mins Cooking time: 40 mins Serves: 4 What you need:   4 X 200 gms Chicken breast pieces Marinade: 1/2 tsp crushed Black Pepper 1/2 tsp Salt 1/2 tsp …

Baked Eggs with Tomatoes

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First of all I would like to apologize to my beloved food – The Egg. I’m surprised I haven’t done a post on it as yet! Eggs are so versatile and so tasty and kind of a staple in the diet, so it’s easy to overlook them. Egg whites are often considered the perfect source of protein because the body uses 100 percent of the nutrients they provide. Plus they are free of saturated fats and excess carbohydrates. The egg yolk (the best part according to me) is jam packed with nutrients. There is a controversy with the cholesterol bit, but the doctors are changing their stance now to saying its OK to have about 4 yolks in a week. So there, we’ve tackled that bit. Remember when we were kids and we had half boiled eggs in a cup? Well, this is the more sophisticated adult version. According to me, serving anything in a mini ramekin is très chic 🙂 Baked Eggs with Tomatoes Prep time: 5 mins Cooking time: 15 mins Serves: 4 What …

Fusili in a Garlic Mushroom Sauce

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I’ve already extolled the virtues of mushrooms in another blog post, so it would be a waste of space to do it here. So let’s talk about the much maligned garlic. People shy away from garlic-flavored-anything cause of the strong smell. Even a big wad of gum can’t get rid of it easily. But if you knew that garlic is fantastic for a healthy heart and even ups your immunity, you would probably give it a second chance. I on the other hand, am a lover of garlic. Give me stinky garlicky nosh every day. 🙂 Actually this isn’t a stinky dish at all. It’s so earthy and comforting that it reminds you of rain on a hot summer day. Poetic huh? The fusili on the other hand adds the ‘twist’ to the tale. The End. Fusili in a Garlic Mushroom Sauce Prep time: 5 mins Cooking time: 30 mins Serves: 4 What you need: 200 gms Mushrooms (diced) 10 cloves of Garlic (chopped) 11/2 Tbsp Butter 1 Tbsp Olive Oil 2 cups Milk 2 Tbsp …

Spaghetti Chicken Bolognaise

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Bolognaise Sauce is a thick meat and tomato sauce served with pasta (usually spaghetti), originally from the city of Bologna in Northern Italy. The sauce is also known as Ragũ and traditionally contains chopped ham, beef, lean pork, chicken livers, several vegetables and white wine. The recipe I have is a special hand crafted one. (So let’s put it this way…I’ve tweaked the recipe to suit what was there at home and it turned out just fine). My star ingredient was the humble chicken (substituting the ham, beef and pork). I deserve credit for making the bolognaise sauce friendly for people who don’t eat red meat 🙂 Spaghetti Chicken Bolognaise Prep time: 15 mins Cooking time: 40 mins Serves: 4-6 What you need: 400 gms Chicken Mince 4 Tbsp Olive Oil 2 Onions (finely chopped) 2 Carrots (diced small) 8 Garlic cloves (finely chopped) 1 Celery Stem (finely chopped) 4 Tomatoes (finely chopped) 8 Tbsp Tomato Puree 2 Tbsp Ketchup 2 tsps Chili flakes 1 tsp Sugar 1 tsp Oregano 1 tsp Parsley 400 gms …

Bacon and Mushroom Quiche

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Anyone who’s not a bacon fan can sign off at the moment because this recipe extols the virtues of fat … Pork fat… interspersed between salty pork meat…which melts and crackles on a hot pan… which curls into a heavenly roll… and then when you bite into it, just melts into your mouth.. sigh! See.. Dint I say anyone who’s not a bacon fan can sign off? A quiche is an open tart with a thin pastry shell (shortcrust) filled with a rich savory egg custard. I made the shortcrust pastry of the quiche at home, so will pat myself on the back. But you can buy the dough from any supermarket. Bacon and mushrooms top this one, but you can add anything you like. They say the original quiche din’t contain cheese… but for me a quiche is not a quiche without liberal amounts of cheese! You can eat this hot or cold, I prefer my quiche cold as the flavors mould in well after some sitting time. The co-resident loved this one and …

Grilled Red Pepper Pate Crostini

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Better late than never I say.. So here’s my grilled pepper pate recipe which I promised to share last month. Pâtè is a fine textured spread or paste. The term also applies to mixtures that have been baked or sautéed, then pureed to a creamy consistency. Pâtè is generally served at room temperature either spread on bread or crackers as finger food. Here we use the pate liberally on French bread and grill with cheese to produce a colorful and bursting with flavor starter. This pate will keep in an airtight container for upto three weeks. So Bon Appétit! Grilled Red Pepper Pate Crostini Prep time: 10 mins Cooking time: 35 mins Makes 1 cup What you need: 4 large Red Peppers 3 cloves Garlic, unpeeled 2 Tbsps Balsamic Vinegar 1 Tbsp Sweet Chilli Sauce 150gm Butter (melted) Pinch of Sugar 2 tsps finely chopped Parsley 1 loaf French bread 100 gms Cheddar cheese Handful of Basil leaves to garnish What to do: Preheat oven to hot 240ºC. Line an oven tray with foil. Cut …

Char Grilled Red Peppers with Balsamic Dressing

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Summer times call for grilling. While most people can’t think of anything other than meat to toss onto a grill, I say give some veggies a chance – especially red peppers. Don’t worry if you don’t have an outdoor grill, I make mine on an indoor one (with the window open!) and it tastes just as fine. Its funny how the heat makes peppers change their nature – they go from pungent to sweet! Just peppers for dinner might not sound satisfying right now, but I assure you – serve it with some mashed potato, feta and green salad and you have the most refreshing summer meal! Char Grilled Red Peppers with Balsamic Dressing Prep time: 20 minsMarinating time: 1 hrServes: 4 What you need: 6 Red Peppers11/2 Tbsp Olive Oil3 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar200 gms FetaGreen Salad What to do:Cut each pepper into quarters; remove seeds and stems. Place skin side up under a preheated grill. Cook until skin blisters and turns black (about 15 mins). Cover peppers with a clean damp tea-towel and allow to …

Penne with Broccoli

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I honestly don’t know why so many people have an aversion to Broccoli. Is it because it looks too green (almost alien green) and healthy? Or is it because no one has ever thought of serving it deep fried? I really can’t fathom the reason, as the only time my palate was exposed to broccoli, was when I had already crossed the fussy food period in my life. In some ways I’m glad, because I do adore the vegetable. Whenever I include broccoli in my food I feel my health quotient going up a couple of notches! Did you know it’s a minus calorie food? – It takes more calories for our body to digest broccoli than the calories it provides. It also has a really high antioxidant and folic acid level. Come on! The little bugger is just rooting for a slimmer and more beautiful you! Need I give you any more reasons to include Broccoli in your meal plans?? Penne with Broccoli Prep time: 30 mins Serves: 4 What you need: 1 head …