Stromboli

Stromboli has become one of my go to meals when it comes to entertaining. It is traditionally made with Italian bread dough. However, making it with pizza dough works just fine.Stromboli is stuffed with various meats/cheeses or almost anything else, rolled and baked. Make a big batch of pizza dough and this will become your favorite too.
           I am sharing the recipe for stuffing of Paneer tikka masala. Some of my other favorites for stuffing are tomato, basil and mozzarella cheese or mutter paneer or even pear and blue cheese. Stuff these with whatever you like and you will have a sure hit!

From left to right- Mutter paneer stuffing, baked stromboli ready to serve, tomato basil mozarella stuffed stromboli, paneer tikka masala stuffed stromboli

Ingredients:

Pizza dough (refer here for dough recipe)

For Paneer tikka masala

Paneer 1 cup, cubed
onion 1/3 cup, cubed
green bell pepper 1/3 cup, cubed
chaat masala 2 tea spoon
garam masala 1 tea spoon
kashmiri mirch 2 tea spoon
kasoori methi 1 tea spoon
thick yogurt 1 and 1/2 cups
besan (gram flour) 1/4 cups
ginger garlic paste 2 tea spoon
salt to taste


Method:

Make pizza dough per instructions and keep aside.
    To make paneer tikka masala, start with marinade. To make marinade, mix together yogurt, gram flour,spices, ginger garlic paste and salt. Add cubed paneer , bell pepper and onion and mix well. Set aside for half an hour.Heat oil in a pan. Add marinated paneer mixture along with the marinade and fry for couple minutes on medium heat. Season with salt and keep aside to cool completely.
        To make Stromboli, roll pizza dough 1/4 inch thick. Spread cooled paneer mixture onto the dough and roll the dough tightly to make a log. Make incisions on the log to help the steam escape.Bake in 375 F oven for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Cut and serve warm.
       For this particular Stromboli , serve with mint chutney or tamarind chutney.


 

Biscotti

Holiday season brings out the 'baker' in me. A big reason for that is with so many people visiting, I can bake in big batches and don't have to worry about 1/4 cup and tablespoons measurements (which I normally use when baking for 2).
                     Biscotti is unique in the sense that it is a twice baked cookie. An added advantage is that it is vegan! Once I found this recipe, I just had to try it and am glad that I did.

Thank you for photo Evolving Tastes!

Ingredients:

1 and 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tea spoon baking powder

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 tea spoon salt

1 tea spoon vanilla extract

1 tea spoon ground cinnamon

1/2 tea spoon ground cloves

2 tb spoon oil

1/4 cup apple sauce

1 cup chopped dried fruits and nuts ( cranberry, crystallized ginger,apricots,pecans and walnuts soaked in 1/3 cup orange juice,pinch of salt and 1 tb spoon sugar for at-least 48 hours)

1 tb spoon each orange and lemon zest (optional but tastes so good!)

Method:

Sieve together flour,baking powder,salt,ground cinnamon,ground cloves and set aside. In a mixing bowl, mix oil and sugar and stir well until combined. Add apple sauce,orange and lemon zest and vanilla extract and mix well. Add dry mixture and knead lightly until a loose dough comes together. Add fruit and nut mixture along with the juice and knead lightly again to thoroughly combine and form a loose dough. (Do not over-work the dough). Rest the dough for 15 minutes. Pre-heat oven on 350F. Divide dough in 2 equal size balls and form a log of about 1 inch thickness (flour your hands before doing this) out of each ball. Place the logs on oiled baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes or until firm to touch.Oven timings may vary from oven to oven ,so  keep an eye while the logs bake. Once they feel firm, remove from oven and let them cool for 10 minutes. Turn the oven temperature to 300F. Cut each log diagonally into 1/2 inch thick pieces using serrated knife. Arrange these pieces in a single layer (cut side down) and bake for 5-6 minutes. Again remove from oven, flip the pieces and bake again for another 5-6 minutes. Remove from oven, transfer to cooling rack and cool to room temperature. This will give a crunchy biscotti , if you want an extra crunch, bake for another 2-3 minutes on each side.

           Store in an air tight container at room temperature. They will last for about a week.

Note: If after adding the fruit and nut mixture along with orange juice dough is dry, add more apple sauce 1 table spoon at a time. In any case, you will not need more than 1/4 cup extra apple sauce.

Rotolo

Jamie Oliver does it again! If you have some spare time on hand and are ready for an experiment, here is the one! This is a must try. It does require little more time to make it but it looks stunning and tastes amazing.
              In his book 'Jamie's Italy', he has given rotolo recipe for butter-nut squash and spinach. However, I read the book in summer when farmers markets were overflowing with tomatoes and basil. So here is the summer version of rotolo adopted from Jamie's Italy.

 

Ingredients:

 For Pasta dough

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup semolina flour

1/4  tea spoon salt

2 tb spoon extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup lukewarm water

For Filling

2 cups cherry tomatoes,halved (marinated in 1tb spoon balsamic vinegar,salt and 1 tea spoon sugar for at least 1 hour)

1 cup pesto (has to be thick)

1/2 cup asiago cheese , cubed into bite size pieces

1/4 cup parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Method:

Start with pasta dough because it needs time to rest. To make the dough, mix together all ingredients except for water and mix well. Add little water at a time to make a stiff dough. You may have to adjust the amount of water required. Knead the dough for 3-4 minutes,wrap in plastic wrap and set aside to rest for half an hour. Divide pasta dough in 2 balls. Roll out each ball (using rolling pin) as thin as possible in a rectangular shape.

      Before building rotolo, make sure you have a clean dish towel and kitchen twine ready.Carefully transfer one of the pasta sheets on a clean dish towel. Make sure to take a bigger dish towel than the pasta sheet. Arrange 2 rows of cherry tomatoes on the long side of pasta sheet closest to you. arrange pieces of asiago cheese next and spread half pesto and sprinkle half of parmigiano-reggiano cheese on pesto,leaving 1 inch margin on all 4 sides (as shown in photo). Brush the sides of pasta sheets with water and start rolling pasta sheet from nearest side to you. Roll the sheet up and away from you. Wrap the pasta sheet log in kitchen towel and seal both ends of the kitchen towel with kitchen twine. You can secure it more by tying twine around the middle of the roll.Make sure to seal it properly otherwise, you will have a big mess in boiling water!

       To cook rotolo, fill a big pot with water coming up-to half of the height of the pot. Bring this to boil, season generously with salt and 1 tb spoon oil.Gently transfer rotolo (wrapped in kitchen towel) into the boiling water and make sure to keep it submerged in water while it is cooking.Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Check if pasta is cooked by squeezing rotolo between your fingers,if it feels like a marshmallow it is done! If not, continue cooking. Once cooked, remove from water and cut all the strings and roll it out of the kitchen towel. Cut in 1/2 inch thick pieces with a serrated knife. Serve hot with the mixture of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar!

Tomatoes overload !

It is almost end of summer here but farmers markets are still buzzing with beautiful coloured tomatoes and basil. I am using these 2 things in as many ways as possible! Usual preparations being caprese salad and pasta. Summer version of Jamie Oliver's Rotolo is my addition this summer (more on that coming up soon)  and so is this pizza. Although, making pizza was an impulsive decision but a really  tasty one.
            Addition of lemon and basil flavoured ricotta cheese acts almost like 'pizza sauce' with goat's cheese on top. A new combination but now my favourite!

Ingredients:
1 8" pizza base ( refer here)
1 tb balsamic vinegar mixed with 1 tb spoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup ricotta cheese
1 tb spoon lemon juice
1/2 tea spoon lemon zest
1 tb spoon finely chopped basil
1 cup baby heirloom tomatoes of different colours,halved
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 tb spoon pine nuts (optional)
1 tb chopped basil to sprinkle on top of pizza

Method:
Make the pizza base first (refer here.). Once you have a rolled pizza dough, transfer dough onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Brush the top of pizza base with the mixture of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Bake the base in a 450 F pre-heated oven for 12-15 minutes. The base should almost be cooked at this point.
    To make the 'sauce', mix ricotta cheese with lemon juice,lemon zest,chopped basil and season with salt and pepper and set aside. Remove the base from the oven and spread the ricotta mixture on a hot, almost baked dough. Arrange the tomatoes in a single layer and top it up with crumbled goat cheese. Season with salt and pepper again and put tray back in the oven for another 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and sprinkle chopped basil and pine nuts on top. Serve immediately.

Note- Add 1/2 tea spoon chilli flakes on tomatoes if like!

Pizza

I always thought making pizza from scratch could be daunting. But when you have Ina Garten to teach you , all you say is "how easy is that"! Follow the recipe as it is and you will have a nice,soft pizza dough. Get the recipe for the pizza dough here.  Addition of garlic in the dough was  not bad either! Pesto and mozzarella cheese made fabulous topping.

                 
Ingredients for the base
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tea spoon active dry yeast
pinch of salt
1 tea spoon minced garlic
1/2 tb spoon honey
1 tb spoon olive oil.

1 cup pesto
2 oz fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced

Method:
To make the base, mix dry yeast,honey and olive oil with 1/4 cup warm water and set aside. Mixture will foam up (if it doesn't, that means yeast is not active. Discard the mix and start again after changing the yeast). Add 3/4 cup all purpose flour and minced garlic in food processor and pulse a few times. Add yeast mixture to the flour and pulse a few times until the mixture comes together. Add remaining 1/4 cup flour and salt to the processor while the processor is running to make a smooth ball. Transfer the dough onto a plate and knead for 3-5 minutes. Dough should be elastic and soft. Coat the dough with oil and transfer into a bowl. Keep the bowl in a warm place for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes the dough will be double the size.Punch down the dough,form a ball and let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes by covering with a damp towel. At this point, you can make the pizza. If you want to wait for a while , keep the dough in the refrigerator.
                  To make the pizza, roll the dough into a circle. Transfer rolled dough (base) onto a baking sheet sprinkled with semolina or cornmeal.  Brush the base with olive oil and bake for 5-7 minutes in a 450 F oven. Remove the base from oven after 5-7 minutes, top it with pesto and cheese and bake again for 10 minutes or until the base is cooked and cheese is melted. Serve hot!

Note:
To make the base, add lukewarm water spoon by spoon to form a ball if the yeast mixture is not enough.You may need maximum 1-2 tablespoon extra water.

Ministrone soup and Jamie's Italy

Jamie Oliver is becoming my favourite for Italian food. Jamie's Italy is the book I am talking about. I borrowed it from library and read it in about 2 days! He has some wonderful recipes. Although I have limitations on how much I can try as I am a vegetarian. Still it is one of the best books I have ever read.
                 He has described minestrone soup in such a good way that I could almost smell it from the book. As he says, use seasonal ingredients to get the best taste. My version is summer minestrone with peppers,roasted corn and fresh basil! It was de-le-ci-ous.

Ingredients:
1 tb spoon olive oil
2 medium size multi colour bell pepprs, roasted and sliced (I had red and green)
1 medium sized onion,sliced.
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 cup roasted corn (1 big corn ear)
5-6 medium size tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
2 tb spoons finely chopped basil
4 cups vegetable stock
1 cup dried pasta (any short pasta would work or even broken noodles)
parmigiano reggiano  cheese to garnish

Method:
Before starting to make soup, roast the peppers,corn on the cob and tomatoes in 350F oven for 30 minutes or until tomatoes are soft and peppers are charred. Corn on the cob needs about 25 minutes , but 5 extra minutes wouldn't hurt. See here for how to roast corn in the oven. Cool everything to room temperature. Add olive oil to the pan. Add sliced onion and chopped garlic and fry until golden brown.Add 2 cups vegetable stock and let the mixture come to boil. While the mixture is boiling, purée the roasted tomatoes and set aside. Add puréed tomatoes and sliced bell peppers to the pan and let it boil for a minute. Add remaining vegetable stock and pasta and let the soup boil again until the pasta is done (about 8-9 minutes depending upon the size of pasta). Add roasted corn and chopped basil. Stir everything to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.Garnish with parmigiano reggiano and serve hot. A side of garlic bread would be perfect!

Risotto n Rasam

You read it right!! Risotto is an Italian dish cooked by slowly adding hot water/stock to uncooked rice until you get the creamy texture. Adding rasam instead of the usual 'veg stock' gives risotto very nice taste.

       Rasam recipe came form a dear friend of mine. I did change it a bit because once the risotto is cooked , the flavour gets concentrated and if you use the usual ratio of rasam masala to water, you will end up with very spicy risotto.This may not be my everyday rice dish but its a pure comfort food!

       

Ingredients :
1 cup arborio rice
1 tb spoon chopped onion
1 tea spoon minced garlic (optional)
1 tb spoon oil

For the Rasam:
4 cups water
1 chopped tomato
1/4 tea spoon turmeric powder
1 tb spoon rasam masala (use as per taste)
1/2 tb spoon tamarind paste
1/4 cup cooked toor dal
salt to taste
1/2 tea spoon oil
1 tea spoon mustard seeds
1 spoon cumin seeds (optional)

chopped cilantro (as per taste)

Method:

To make rasam, bring 4 cups water to boil with chopped tomato,turmeric and tamarind. Let the mixture boil for 5 minutes, then add rasam masala,cooked dal and salt and let it boil for another 5 minutes. Make the tadka (tempering) by heating oil, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds and let them pop. Add tadka to the rasam and let the rasam stay warm on a very low heat. Add oil to a different pan (for cooking risotto) and add chopped onion and garlic and sauté until tender. Add the arborio rice and stir everything together and toast the rice on medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of rasam at a time and stir occasionally until the rasam gets absorbed into the rice. Keep adding the rasam in 1/2 cup intervals stirring almost every other minute to cook the rice. It will take about 20-25 minutes for risotto to cook. Add chopped cilantro at the end. Serve hot with a spoonful of desi ghee!

Note: The ingredients for the rasam are just a guideline. Adjust rasam to suit your taste.
Strain rasam and then add to the rice if you don't want tomato in your risotto.

I have got the broccolini!

Broccolini is my latest love affair! These tender strands are very simple to cook and are good as a side dish or as a main course tossed with pasta like this.
        This is easily available in summer and makes a quick and wonderful meal. The thing that I like the most about broccolini is that you don't have to clean it or cut it like broccoli. The entire strand is edible!

Ingredients:
1 bunch broccolini ( or 1/3 pound by weight)
1/2 pound angel hair pasta (I use whole grain)
1 table spoon finely chopped garlic
pinch of chili flakes
salt and pepper to taste
5-6 olives (preferably from the olive bar and not canned) sliced
2 tb spoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano / romano cheese
1 tea spoon lemon zest (optional)

Method:
Bring a big pot of water to boil. Once water starts to boil, add the washed broccolini and cook for 2-3 minutes until just tender. Remove broccilini from hot water and transfer it to the bowl filled with ice to stop the cooking process.
           Add salt to the boiling water and add angel hair pasta. Cook according to the package directions. Angel hair pasta cooks very fast so start the sauce once the pasta is cooking. To make the sauce, heat the olive oil into the skillet. Add chopped garlic and chili flakes and fry until fragrant. Add broccolini and toss everything together. Add cooked pasta and olives and season with salt and pepper as per taste. Add lemon zest and mix everything together. Add cheese in the end and serve hot/warm.

Insalata Caprese

Couple of years ago, I tasted this salad for the first time (thanks to her!). I am making it ever since. Caprese salad is made with tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese,basil and seasoned with salt,pepper and olive oil.
        I love to make this salad in summer when tomatoes are at their best. Although various varieties of tomato are available throughout summer, heirloom tomatoes are my favorite.

Ingredients
2 medium sized heirloom tomatoes
2 oz fresh mozzarella cheese (1 small ball)
7-8 basil leaves
big pinch of salt
big pinch of cracked black pepper
1/2 tb spoon extra virgin olive oil

Method:
Slice the tomatoes into rounds. Slice the mozzarella cheese into rounds. On a serving plate, arrange tomatoes,fresh mozzarella and basil leaves. Season with salt,pepper and drizzle with olive oil just before serving.

Tomatoes,Basil and PASTA

This is one of Ina Garten's gems. I found the recipe here. I had cherry tomatoes from my trip to farmers market so decided to give this a try and am glad that I did.This is the easiest summer meal ever.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb cherry tomatoes, halved
handful basil leaves, chopped
1 tb spoon minced garlic
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tea spoon crushed red chili flakes (adjust according to your taste)
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (adjust according to your taste)
salt and pepper to season
1/2 pound dried angel hair pasta

Method:
Combine tomatoes,oilve oil,chili flakes,salt,pepper,garlic and basil in a bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for at least 4 hours.
         Cook the pasta according to package directions. Toss together cooked pasta and tomato mixture. Add extra cheese and more basil just before serving.