Roasted Cauliflower Pasta

Roasted Cauliflower Pasta is a very simple, delicious pasta and if you are a cauliflower lover then this recipe is going to be a treat! My husband loves cauliflower. He always makes sure that I have a head of cauliflower in the refrigerator at any point of time! 

Few months back, I tried this recipe and we liked it a lot. I have been making it since then, with couple of variations. Recently my husband suggested to roast the cauliflower instead of cooking it in water (or stock). He wanted the florets to remain crispy. I did as suggested and to our surprise it turned out awesome and we enjoyed it a lot. Hence I decided to share this recipe. This pasta always reminds us of the awesome Cauliflower pizza of "Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza".

Ingredients:

• Penne Pasta(or any desired shape) - 1/2 lb
• Cauliflower, medium sized - 1 head
• Garlic pods- 6-7
• Red Chilli flakes- 1/2 tsp
• Parsley, chopped- 1 Tbsp
• Parmesan Cheese, grated - 1/4 cup
• Butter- 1/2 Tbsp
• Olive Oil- 3-4 Tbsp
• Salt & Pepper - To taste

Procedure:

Peel the garlic pods and slice it. Then wash the cauliflower and cut it into small sized florets.

Now heat 1 tsp of olive oil in a pan and fry sliced garlic until it turns golden brown. Then transfer it to a plate.

Now add the remaining olive oil in the same pan and add cauliflower florets, salt, pepper and red chilli flakes.

Mix well and fry it on medium flame until it turns golden brown.

While the cauliflower is getting roasted, heat a big pot of water with salt. Cook the pasta as per the package instructions.

Once the pasta looks cooked, take 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water and set it aside. Drain the pasta. Now add drained pasta, fried garlic to the roasted cauliflower.

Then add butter, little pasta cooked water, chopped parsley and grated parmesan cheese.

Mix it well and cook the mixture for a minute or until everything comes together. Turn off the heat. Roasted Cauliflower Pasta is ready!!

Serve it hot. Above measurement serves two people generously.

March 28, 2016 Update: Fry 3-4 Tbsp of 'Panko' breadcrumbs in a tsp of oil until it turns golden brown. Then sprinkle it right before serving. The bread crumbs adds a wonderful crunch and the pasta tastes much better. 

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Idli Tawa Fry

Idli Tawa Fry is a quick snack. It is one of the best recipe to convert left over boring idlis into colorful, tasty ones. This recipe is inspired from Vahrehvah. I made few variations to the original recipe and the outcome was very good. This makes a good 'after school snack' for kids. Do try it and enjoy!

Ingredients:

• Leftover Idlis - 3
• Butter- 3-4 tsp
• Onion, small sized - 1/2
• Cilantro (coriander leaves) - 4-5 sprigs
• Flaxseed Chutney powder *- 3 Tbsp

*You can use any chutney powder. The original recipe called for gun powder (or Idli podi).

Procedure:

Chop onion and cilantro. Chop the idli roughly.

Now heat a pan and add butter. Once it melts, add flaxseed chutney powder, chopped onion and cilantro. Mix well and let it fry for 2-3 minutes on low flame.

Then finally add the chopped idli. 

Mix gently until all the idli pieces gets a good coating and is heated through well. Then turn off the heat.

Idli Tawa Fry is ready!!

Serve it immediately. Above measurement serves one.

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Beetroot Kurma

Beetroot Kurma is a very flavorful dish and makes a good accompaniment to Indian flat bread like roti, parota etc. This dish is inspired from Vahrehvah. First time when I saw his video recipe, I was very eager to try. I was not very confident of the outcome but I trust all his recipes. They never disappoint me and same happened with this too. We polished off our plates and that tells how tasty it was! I have made this so many times after that.

Making this curry is little involved but its worth at the end. I have omitted few of the ingredients from the original recipe. Don't get intimidated by looking at the list of ingredients required. Try making it and enjoy!

Ingredients:

• Beetroot, cubed - 1 cup
• Potato, big sized - 1
• Tomato, medium sized- 1
• Frozen Green Peas - 1/2 cup
• Onion, medium sized- 1
• Oil - 2-3 tsp
• Bay leaf - 1-2
• Curry leaves - 1 sprig
• Ginger- garlic paste- 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
• Yogurt (curd)- 1/4 cup
• Cilantro (Coriander leaves) - 4-5 sprigs
• Salt- To taste

For Masala:

• Dry Red chilli - 4-5
• Whole Garam Masala*
• Coriander seeds- 1 Tbsp
• Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
• Fennel seeds (Saunf)- 1/2 tsp
• Cashew pieces - 2 Tbsp
• Grated Coconut, Fresh/frozen - 1/4 cup

*I added cloves- 3, cardamom- 2, cinnamon- 1 inch piece, star anise- 2 petals

Procedure:

Dry roast all the ingredients mentioned under 'For Masala', except grated coconut. Once you get a nice aroma turn off the heat. 

Allow it to cool. Then grind them along with coconut to get a smooth paste (add little water while grinding).

Wash the veggies (beetroot, potato, onion, tomato, cilantro) and chop them (The beetroot cubes should be smaller than potato as they take more time to cook).

Heat oil in a kadai. Add bay leaf. Then add chopped onions. Fry until translucent. 

Then add curry leaves, ginger-garlic paste and turmeric powder. Fry until the rawness of ginger- garlic goes away. Then add beetroot cubes and potato cubes.Mix well.

Then add ground masala, curd, salt and enough water. Mix well. 

Finally add chopped tomato and green peas (at this point you can also add red chilli powder, if needed).

Mix it well and close the lid. Cook it for 30 minutes on a medium- low flame or until the beetroot is cooked. Stir the mixture in between and add water if it thickens. Once cooked turn off the heat and sprinkle chopped cilantro. 

Beetroot Kurma is ready!!

Serve it hot with roti or any Indian flat bread. Above measurement serves 3-4 people.

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Flour Tortillas

Flour Tortilla is a popular Mexican flat bread. It is similar to 'Indian Roti'. It is generally used for fajitas, quesadillas, burritos etc. The addition of baking powder makes it very light and soft. I adapted the recipe from here.

Tortillas are very popular in US. It is available in every grocery store. We get tortillas made of flour, whole wheat, corn etc. I used to buy them once in a while as we love Mexican food. But once I started making at home, I never bought it from the stores. Homemade tortillas taste so much better and they don't require any fancy ingredients.Do try making them to know the difference!!

Ingredients:

• All Purpose flour (Maida) - 1 cup
• Baking powder- 3/4 tsp
• Oil - 1 tsp
• Salt- 1/2 tsp
• Warm water - As required

Procedure:

Take a large mixing bowl and add all the ingredients except water. Mix well. Now add water little at a time to get a soft, non- sticky dough. Knead for few minutes and let it rest for half an hour, covered.

Then divide it into 4-5 smooth balls and let it rest again for 5 minutes, covered.

Now dip one of the ball in little flour and start rolling it until you get a 6-7 inch circle.

Continue with the rest of the dough balls.

Then place one of the rolled dough on a pre heated skillet. Fry it until you get golden brown spots on both sides.

See how it puffs up-

Continue with rest of them. Put them in a container lined with paper towel to avoid them from getting soggy. Flour Tortillas are ready!!

Serve them hot. Above measurement makes 4-5 tortillas.

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Jeev Kadgi Gashi (Bread Fruit Curry) ~ Coconut Based

Jeev Kadgi Gashi is a very flavorful, rich gravy. In Konkani, Jeevkadgi means breadfruit. I got this recipe from a cook book written by Jaya V Shenoy. In this recipe, the bread fruit, chickpeas and cashew nuts are simmered in a wonderful roasted coconut gravy. This is the first time I making this dish and it tasted very good. 

I am very fortunate to find bread fruit in the farmer's market that too year round. It is one of my favorite veggie and making  fritters  is my favorite way of using it. 

Ingredients:

• Dry Chick peas (Chana) - 1/2 cup
• Bread fruit (Jeev Kadgi) - 1/4 th of a medium sized
• Tender Cashew nuts* - 1/2 cup, heaping
• Oil - 2-3 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 3/4 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 sprig
• Salt- To taste

For Masala:

• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen - 3/4 cup
• Dry Red chilli - 5-6
• Tamarind - A small piece
• Turmeric powder- 1/8 tsp
• Coriander seeds- 2 tsp
• Urad dal (Split black gram)- 1 tsp
• Oil - 1 tsp

*I used the dried tender cashews. You can also substitute with regular whole cashew nut.

Procedure:

Wash and soak chickpeas overnight. Discard the soaked water and transfer it into a pressure cooker along with water, just enough to cook it.
Now add the dried tender cashew nuts in hot water.

Let it sit for a while so that the skin gets softened (skip this step if you are using fresh tender cashew nut). Then discard the skin and add it along with chickpeas in the cooker. Add little salt and pressure cook it for three whistles.

While the chickpeas are cooking, prepare the breadfruit. Discard the skin and cut it into small pieces.

Then cook it in little water along with salt until tender but it should still hold its shape.

For masala: Roast the coriander seeds and urad dal in few drops of oil until they turn light brown. Transfer it to a plate. In the same pan add grated coconut and fry them until they turn light brown. Transfer it to the same plate. In the same pan, roast the dry red chillies in few drops of oil. Transfer to the same plate and allow them to cool.
Now transfer all the roasted ingredients along with turmeric powder and tamarind into a blender.

Grind to get a smooth paste. Add water as required to get a thick, smooth paste.

Now transfer the cooked bread fruit pieces to the cooked chickpeas - cashew nut mixture.

Then add the ground masala.

Mix it well and bring it to a boil. Once it starts boiling, continue heating for 3-4 minutes on a medium heat. Then turn off the heat. Finally mix in the seasoning.

For Seasoning - Heat oil. Once hot, add mustard seeds. Once it splutters, add curry leaves. Then turn off the heat. Add this to the prepared gravy and mix well. Jeev Kadgi Gashi is ready!!

Serve it hot along with rice. Above measurement serves 3-4 people.

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