Sauteed Mushrooms and Tomato Soup

I have been extremely busy at work lately. After a hard day in the office, what I crave for is a good home-made meal. But long work hours can really dampen my cooking spirits. The solution then, at least for me, is to come up with something quick but nutritive enough to liven me up for the evening. Soups and salads work well under this category. Here's a soup recipe that I tried recently. Let me know if it refreshes you up!

Ingredients:

3 cups sliced baby bella mushrooms
1 diced tomato (medium)
2 tbs chopped white onion
1 medium garlic clove
1 tbs corn flour for medium thickness of soup; 1 1/2 tbs for a thicker consistency
3 cups of vegetable stock
3/4 cup water
3/4 tbs dry parsley
1 tsp olive or vegetable oil
Salt and Pepper

Some suggestions:

1. You can use chicken or beef stock to fit your taste.
2. You can use any herb of choice. I prefer limiting the use to one herb of choice, that way the soup will have a distinct taste and flavor. Too many flavors get lost in themselves.

Method:

1. In a pan, saute the mushrooms, tomato, onion and garlic over some oil. Saute until the smell of the mushrooms stands out.
2. Add the parsley, pepper and salt. Saute for another minute.
3. Remove the mixture from the heat and set it aside to cool.
4. In a pot, heat the vegetable stock. Keep stirring occasionally.
5. Take half of the prepared mushroom mixture and puree it in a blender using water.
6. Once the vegetable stock starts boiling, add the corn starch paste, stirring continuously.
7. Add the mushroom puree and the remaining mixture. Continue stirring for another 5 minutes.
8. Add salt as per taste.

Serving:

Serve hot with some cream and top with chopped cilantro or parsley. Serve with a side of french baguette or whole grain bread.

Roasted Stuffed Red Bell Pepper with Saffron Cream Sauce

While roaming the streets of Paris, we treated our taste buds with all the good food from the cafes and pastry shops along our way. Having both lunch and dinner in fancy restaurants would get pretty expensive, but crepes made on little stands on the side of the street filled our tummy well within budget. So during the day, when we used to be on the run, we mostly ate those savory crepes and sandwiches. For dinner though, we made it a point to eat at some nice restaurants in the city. While we enjoyed all the food that we ate, the menu and the food at one such restaurant is worth mentioning. The dinner menu was diligently designed by the chef and included a mouth watering salad and entree for everybody, no matter what one's preference: vegetarian, seafood or meat. Pratik ordered the following at this restaurant, but I just happened to like it so much, that I ended up eating most of it. Try it out and let me know whether I was being mean :-)

Ingredients:

For the stuffing-
5 red bell peppers
1 cup basmati rice
2 cups water
1 tsp olive oil
3 tbs chopped fresh basil
1 pkg (~ 400 g) extra firm tofu
1 tbs Gochujang (Korean) sauce (Alternately, you can use chopped green or red chillies. The intention is to make the stuffing spicy to complement the slightly sweet saffron sauce)
Salt to taste
Few cilantro leaves for topping the stuffed pepper
Cooking oil spray

For the sauce-
2 cups milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbs sugar
2 tsp saffron strands
1 tsp clarified butter

Method:

For the stuffing-
1. Pressure cook 1 cup of basmati rice with 2 cups of water.
2. Cut the tofu into thin slabs and fry them on some oil until both the sides are crisp.
3. Mince the fried tofu coarsely.
4. In a skillet, heat 1 tsp of oil and add 3 tbs of chopped basil. Fry for about a minute and then add the minced tofu. Fry for another 2 minutes and add the Gochujang sauce. Mix all these ingredients well and add the mixture to the cooked rice. Add salt as per taste. Cover and let this sit for half hour to allow the flavors to combine.
5. Remove the stem of the red peppers and clean the inside.
6. Stuff the peppers with this mixture. Line them on a baking tray and spray some cooking oil on them.
7. Broil them, turning the peppers around until all the sides are evenly browned.

For the sauce:
1. In a sauce pan, heat the clarified butter. Add the milk and heavy cream and simmer.
2. Add the saffron and sugar when the milk is hot.
3. Continue stirring until reduced to half.

Serving:
1. In a plate serve one stuffed red pepper and pour about 1/2 cup saffron sauce on the top. Top with some leaves of cilantro.

Have fun!

Fruit & Nut Cake

Pratik and I were in France recently and though I would love to write a separate post about the details of our trip, for now, here's a quick one line summary: Marseille is beautiful, Cassis is paradise, we didnt even know places like Aigues-Mortes and Les Baux existed, the Eiffel Tower is all worth the hype and the Arc de Triomphe was our favorite tourist attraction. The reason I mentioned our trip was that if you happen to visit Paris (or for that matter any other city in France) you cannot miss the many cafes and boulangeries (bakeries) that line every street of this fascinating city. That's the first thing that I noticed when I got there (obviously!). I wish I could experiment every single cake I ate during my stay in France, but here is a recipe which I can say turned out to be quite close to the taste of one that I had during my cake-and-pastry-filled vacation.

Ingredients:
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup hot water
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup dried tropical mix
1/2 cup coarsely chopped unsalted cashews
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Method:
1. Butter a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 325 deg F.
3. In a sauce pan (over medium heat), mix the sugar, water, butter, spices, cranberries, tropical mix. Boil for 5 minutes and set aside to cool until luke warm. Add the cashews.
4. Stir the flour (seived twice), baking soda and vanilla extract into this mixture.
5. Pour the batter into the buttered pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean (About 30-45 minutes, depending on your oven).
6. Remove the from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack.
7. Cover and store the cake for few days if possible before serving.
8. Say hello to Paris from the comfort of your home!

Friday Night Barbeque

Pratik and I love being outdoors. That's why summers are great because you can spend a lot of time outside: gardening, going on a hike, relaxing by the pool and when it comes to food, having barbeques. Barbeques are special in that you can be outside but still be around home if you dont feel like getting away.

For me, the best part of having a barbeque party at home is that everyone involved has something to contribute. I love experimenting with the different inputs that I get from the guests in terms of what to and what not to add and then coming up with my own concoction. One common notion however, is that barbeques are not for vegetarians. Now, read the recipe that follows and you will realize why that might be the biggest myth in the world.

Ingredients:

For the basil pesto sauce (Used as marinade):
2 cups basil
2 large garlic cloves
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
Salt and pepper as per taste

Vegetables and other ingredients for grilling (Cut into cubes):
Choice of red, green, yellow peppers
Zuccini
Pineapple
Mushrooms
Indian Paneer
Tofu
Any other vegetables of choice

Method:
1. In a food processor, combine the garlic, walnuts, cheese, salt and pepper and process until a coarse mixture is formed.
2. Slowly add olive oil with the machine running and combine until the desired consistency is reached.
3. Let the sauce stand for 10-15 minutes before using as a marinade for grilling vegetables.
4. In a large bowl, mix the vegetables, paneer, tofu etc. with an appropriate proportion of sauce such that all the pieces are coated with the sauce. Cover and store the mixture for an hour before grilling.
5.At the time of grilling, arrange the pieces on skewers and grill them evenly on all sides.

My favorite salad in the whole world....

That I post all my recipes as a blog was originally Pratik's idea. But suddenly I found myself on this blogging spree. Today evening I made this very special salad that is almost irresistible. I ate it first at this restaurant called Chocolate Avenue Grill that opened recently in Hershey. Of course the salad that I ate in the restaurant is out of this world but my little changes (as usual) still kept the taste pretty neat and lovable. What I like most about it is the dressing and the selection of fruit s that make this salad so colorful. Try it sometime and I can assure you that it will brighten up your evening...

Ingredients:
2 tbs poppy seed dressing
1 orange, cubed
10-15 strawberries depending on their size, cut into halves
Field greens
10 whole almonds

Method:
1. Mix the field greens, oranges, strawberries and almonds
2. Drizzle the poppy seed dressing on top of the salad.

Now is that difficult??

Add a grilled veggie burger or grilled portabello mushroom or for meat lovers, any grilled meat for added flavor. But even without all this topping, the salad is deliciously crisp, juicy, sweet as well as tangy. Making time is no more than 5 minutes!!!

Enjoy!!!!!

Portabello Mushroom Caps Grilled in Balsamic Vingeratte and Sandwiched between toasty Sesame Semolina bread smeared with …yeah tangy Horseradish sauce

One thing worth mentioning while cooking is the "taste". I watch Rachael Ray's 30 minute meals almost everyday. Most of the times all these celebrity chefs present mouth watering dishes. I never remember a time when something that was seen on the TV screen did not appeal to me. (Except Alton Brown's show.....I just find this guy way too disgusting.....his food even worse).

Anyway, one day I decided to try out one of Rachael's recipes at home. I followed exactly the same procedure, same measurement, same vegetables, same sauces, same everything....but unfortunately the recipe did not taste as great as I thought it would. That was when I realized that while I was watching her cook, I was slowly and unknowingly developing a taste of the same recipe in my mind, which was different than what it turned out to be eventually. I kept wondering why my recipe didn't "feel" the same as the original, although I never really had tasted the original recipe in the first place. Wondering where I am going with all this?? ......This is the thing...Cooking is an art. You need to experiment a whole lot with what you cook. You will never get it right in the first shot. And that doesn't mean you shouldn't try. Remember your cooking pots could be different, your cooking oil might be different, the sauces you use could be altogether different brand and therefore different taste, your vegetables and meat are possibly from a different producer. All these factors contribute a great deal to the taste of anything you make. So just continue playing with the quantity of ingredients, cooking times, oven temperatures or any other factors which you think might have turned the taste of your entree' down. I am sure with some little tricks here and there everybody could become great cooks as long as you put your heart into it! With all this said here is a recipe for a delicious sandwich which will leave your family and friends licking their plates.

Portabello Mushroom Caps Grilled in Balsamic Vinaigrette and Sandwiched between Toasty Sesame Semolina bread smeared with …yeah tangy Horseradish sauce!!!

Ingredients:
1 loaf sesame semolina bread
1 large cap of portabello mushroom cut into long strips
2 spring onions cut lengthwise
1/4 red onion cut into thin strips
1/2 red tomato diced or cut into strips
1 tbs balsamic vinaigrette
1 tbs maple syrup
1 tbs horseradish sauce
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbs grated cheese of choice
Handful of field greens or crisp lettuce

Method:
1. Mix the mushroom, spring onions, onions, tomatoes in a dish. Add the balsamic vinaigrette, maple syrup and salt and mix well. Broil this mixture until the mushrooms and veggies are slightly crispy. (You can also leave them juicy and moist if you like it that way).
2. Grill 8 slices of bread in a panini grill or any stove top griddle.
3. Once the bread and the vegetables are ready, arrange the slices on your platter. On one side, spread some cheese, field greens and the prepared mixture. On the other side, spread very little horseradish sauce. Put the horseradish spread side on top of the other side. Arrange on the platter and serve hot with some chips or fries or fruit!!!

Remember to alter the quantity of balsamic vinaigrette and horseradish sauce according to your likes. Like I said earlier, cooking is an art, there is no right or wrong.....happy cooking!!!!

Grilled Vegan Sandwich

Here is a real quick fix sandwich for some fast after work dinners........I made this from some left over red peppers, mushrooms and hot dog rolls.

Grilled Vegan Sandwich

Ingredients: You would need the following ingredients for stuffing in one hot dog roll-
1/2 red pepper cut into strips
1/4 red onion cut into strips
1/4 cup mushrooms of choice cut into strips
2 tbs barbecue sauce
Salt per taste
Red chilli power or flakes per taste
1 hot dog roll
Butter

Method:
1. Mix the peppers, onions, mushrooms, barbecue sauce, salt, red chilli power together in an oven proof dish. Let it sit for 5 minutes.
2. Broil the above mixture until the veggies start to turn slightly brown. Remove from the oven.
3. Either broil the bread smeared with butter or grill it until the sides are toasty.
4. Stuff the veggies in the hot dog roll and serve them hot with any chilled drink.

Variations:
1. Smear some poppyseed dressing on the bread after grilling it and then stuff the veggies.
2. Use some other vegetables like broccoli, tomatoes, green pepper, spinach etc.

All in all, cooking is about your instincts. I just love to experiment with different flavors that make any dish. I start with a basic flavor that I would like to taste in the recipe. Then I decide the other ingredients that would complement the basic flavor. It is important though to achieve a balance of all the ingredients in your final product, at the same time you should let your basic flavor dominate!!! That's how I keep my taste buds on the prowl all the time.....

Ohhhhhh...one last thing before I end this blog.... I watched Spiderman 3 last Friday....It is soooo packed with some stunning graphic effects and actions scenes. I especially liked the new Spidey clone and the Sandman. It would have been even better, if there were some more goody Spidey action shots. There were moments when I got desperate to see Spidey instead of the villains but nevertheless, Spidey 3 undoubtedly is worth seeing!!!