Roasted Corn & Vegetable Soup

It was a beautiful evening. I felt like walking and walking and walking and walking. Pratik and I recently found out about this trail, less than a mile from home! For approximately 3 miles it runs through a dense wooded patch and the rest continues through open corn fields. On one side is a small fishing pond which is equally calm to sit at. This past weekend, we walked hand in hand through these tranquil woods and corn fields. This was probably one of the most relaxing weekend walks we have had in a long time.

Coming back from the walk, we just decided to spend the rest of the evening in our backyard, grilling some sweet corn. And dinner simply turned into a delicious feast, yet another quick barbecue between the two of us. The sweet corn on the cob, chunky burgers topped with sharp cheddar cheese bought fresh from the farm market that morning, and our favorite freshly baked bread were the stars of the evening. The added zing was this roasted corn and vegetable soup which I had attempted the previous evening. I have to admit that this was also one of the recipes which just turned out superb inspite of not following any fixed proportions. Just a handful of this and a fistful of that worked really well!

Ingredients:
2 sweet corn
3-4 different varieties of sweet and hot pepper
1 inch hot paprika
2 medium carrots
2-3 different varieties of zucchini
3/4 pint cherry tomatoes
1-2 cups of water or vegetable stock
2 cloves of garlic
1tbs chopped cilantro

Method:
1. Arrange the tomatoes closely on skewers. Brush with some olive oil.
2. Cut the vegetables lengthwise in to strips of medium thickness. Brush with some olive oil.
3. Arrange all the vegetables, tomatoes and corn on the grill. Roast on all sides until grill marks appear.
4. Remove from the grill and let cool completely. Remove the kernels of corn.
5. Blend through a food processor with some garlic & paparika. Leave some kernels of corn as is if you wish and add them while you simmer the soup.
6. Add water up to desired consistency to this mixture and simmer for 15-20 minutes in a soup pot. Add salt and pepper as per taste.

Serving:
Serve hot with some crusty Parmesan cheese bread or any baguette toasted with cheese. Sprinkle some chopped cilantro on top.

Note: If you desire, you can roast the garlic too. Just keep a close eye if you decide to do this because nothing as bad as the taste of burnt garlic.

Saffron Rice Pudding

It's been a blissful summer so far. Not only did we get to spend some memorable time with our family but Pratik and I were also able to complete several of the ever lingering things on the "to do" list. And it feels great to be back with more time to cook and blog!!

My parents and my in-laws visited us in Hershey during the months of May and June. We spent most of our time away, vacationing in Texas, California and Canada. I must say, it was a one-of-a-kind vacation, not only because we all had fun, but also because every single one of us was craving for this time together. And oh yes, these days were not just fun filled, but also calorie filled. Tons of tasty food cooked in "ghee" at home, greasy pizzas and creamy pastas while on vacation, topped with zero exercise. Yeah, I neither cared nor dared to stand on the weighing scale.

Besides all these good things happening this summer, I am now also working some flexible hours at work. I get to take off early on Fridays and that means more time to try new recipes on Friday afternoons. This creamy saffron rice pudding was an outcome of my first such Friday. It is nutty and creamy and above all it is original! The saffron gives this dessert a rich color and perfect taste. An exquisite recipe to leave an everlasting impression on your guests.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup long grained rice
2 cups of milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp saffron threads
1 tbs of milk for soaking the saffron threads
2-3 tbs raisins

Method:

1. Wash the rice with tap water and blanch in boiling water for two minutes. Drain all the water.
2. Add 1 cup of milk to the rice and bring it to a slow simmer. Add the sugar. Continue to add the remaining milk in small proportions just like while making a risotto. Stir the mixture to ensure that the rice does not stick to the bottom of the pan. You can add more milk depending on the desired thickness of the pudding.
3. Warm 1 tbs of hot milk in the microwave and soak the saffron threads. Stir with a spoon until the milk turns to a bright yellow color.
4. Add this to the pudding. Add raisins and stir the pudding.
5. The rice pudding is ready when the grains of rice are cooked completely. I kept the rice very very slightly undercooked to give it a nutty texture.
6. Place the pudding in small ramekins or dessert bowls and bring it to a room temperature. Chill for two hours before serving.

Serve:

Serve chilled (preferably) with some more saffron threads and raisin topping.

Note: Basmati rice will make the most flavorful pudding. But if you want to keep the dollars low, any long grained rice would do just fine.

Lemon Yogurt Semolina Cake

With the temperatures in the upper 70's and the sun shining bright, it was time to get our grills out and have some friends over for a barbeque. I pulled out a cookbook with some recipes of Greek food to get a few ideas on kebabs for the barbeque party. While I was flipping through the book I stumbled upon this dessert cake. It called for a different ingredient "semolina" in place of our regular "all purpose flour". The picture in the book was so tempting that I had to try it out. It also reminded me of a similar wonderful semolina cake that my Mom bakes at home. I was lost in the past, thinking of the sweet smell of this cake which surrounded the entire house as it baked on a stove top....yeah, stove top. That's how Mom made this cake back then.

What excited me even more was that I had everything that the recipe required in my kitchen! That doesn't happen too often! I considered this as my lucky charm and put my apron on. 40 minutes later, this is what came out of my oven....

Ingredients:

For the Cake-

2 tbs unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tbs lemon rind
1 egg
1/4 cup fine semolina
1/4 cup ground almonds
1/4 cup black raisins
1/2 tsp baking powder
4 tbs plain yogurt

For the Syrup-

4 tbs sugar
2 tbs lemon juice, fresh
2tbs honey

Method:

1. Cream the sugar, butter and lemon rind with an electric beater until light and fluffy.
2. Crack the egg and beat into this mixture until well incorporated.
3. Lightly fold in the semolina, ground almonds, baking power, raisins and yogurt.
4. Line a 5 inch springform with parchment paper. Pour the mixture in it and bake at 350 deg F oven for 25-30 minutes. The cake is done when a tooth pick inserted at the center comes out clean. The top should turn golden brown.
5. Mix the ingredients for the syrup in a sauce pan. Heat it until the sugar melts but do not boil the mixture.
6. Drizzle the syrup on the cake as soon as it comes out of the oven.
7. Cool the cake completely and cut into triangular pieces. Serves 2-3.

Serving:

What??? Just dig in..

Vegetable & Corn Chowder

I had been planning on trying this recipe throughout winter. But for some reason or the other, it kept getting pushed for later. Soon it was Spring and I forgot all about this chowder and instead went in for a cold Summer Beetroot Soup. However, the cold weather got back to tease us again. Now was my opportunity to check out this chowder that I had been thinking of all through the winter. So here you go...I hope you enjoy this vegetable corn chowder loaded with healthy fats, starch, fiber and protein.

Ingredients:
1 tbs vegetable oil
1-2 cloves of garlic
1 small red onion, diced
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1 medium potato, diced
1/3 cups broccoli florets
1 cup sweet corn
1/2 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated
2 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/4 cups vegetable stock
2 tbs all purpose flour
2 tbs fresh cilantro, chopped finely
Salt and pepper


Method:

1. Cook the broccoli florets until tender in boiling water with some salt. Remove and keep aside.
2. Heat the oil in a large soup pot and add the garlic. Saute for a minute and then add the onions, potatoes and red bell pepper. Stir for about 5 minutes.
3. Add the flour and cook for about a minute.
4. Stir in the stock and milk and bring it to a boil stirring continuously.
5. Add the sweet corn and simmer for about 15-20 minutes over low heat until all the vegetables get cooked.
6. Add the broccoli florets, heavy cream and cheese.
7. Stir for 2 minutes and season with salt and pepper.

Serving:

Serve in a warm soup bowl with a crusty baguette. Garnish with finely chopped cilantro.

Ahh....Creme Brulee'

Creme Brulee'! I really believe that this delicious creamy dessert has the power to break many diets. I call it the "calorie bomb". However, if I see this on the menu, then yes, creme brulee is what I order for dessert. I love it so much that if I were eating this in a closed room with nobody around, I would lick the ramekin clean! (Shh.....don't spread this around now )

Until a few months back, it was a restaurant-only dessert for us. But I recently conquered the wide spread fear of making creme brulee at home and was ready to serve it to our friends for a farewell dinner. Creamy, smooth and delicious, this classic French dessert left a lasting impression on their minds!

Try out this in your own kitchen and experience the "wow" effect for yourself....


Ingredients:

1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 whole egg
3 egg yolks
1 tbs vanilla extract
Brown sugar

Method:

1. Combine the heavy cream, milk and vanilla extract and bring it to a boil. Cool for about 10 minutes while you prepare the egg mixture.
2. Mix the egg yolks, egg and sugar in a bowl. Beat the mixture with an electric beater just until well incorporated. Do not over beat.
3. Now comes the slightly difficult part. You have to add the hot milk mixture to the eggs without curdling it. Add the milk in a slow and steady stream into the eggs while continuously whisking the egg mixture. Remember that you should not over whisk the eggs as you do not want to add air into the mixture. By slowly adding the milk to the eggs, you will ensure that at any time the temperature of the eggs is almost the same as that of the milk.
4. Strain the mixture through a fine strainer to remove the foam.
5. Divide the mixture into four small ramekins (about 4 ozs each). Pour hot water in a baking dish and set the ramekins such that the water comes half way up the sides. This is a water bath which will ensure even baking.
6. Place in a 325 deg oven for about 25 minutes or until the centers are just wobbly.
7. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the counter.
8. Cover the ramekins and keep them in the refrigerator overnight.

Servings:

Before serving , sprinkle brown sugar on top and caramamelize the tops with a torch or under the broiler. You have to be very careful if you are caramelizing the tops under the broiler. Set the broiler to 300 deg F. Place the ramekins in a baking dish under the broiler. The caramelization will take only about 10-15 seconds.

Summer Beetroot Soup

I remember liking this vibrant root vegetable, beetroot from the day my mom introduced it to me. This luscious red bulb looks very unattractive on the outside. However, once cut open the lively red color will never go unnoticed.

I always ate beetroot in some salad form when I was young. My mom either served it as a raw shredded salad on the side with crushed peanuts and lemon juice or partially cooked and mixed with yogurt, salt and pepper. Either way, it was fantastic!

With an intention to give a tweak to these two favorite recipes, I recently bought these lovely red beetroots from the farmers market. The inspiration for this recipe came from the “Summer Borscht” televised on Ina Garten’s show on Food Network. Whether you like beetroots or not, try this recipe and you will find yourself appreciating the inner beauty of this delicious and nutritive root vegetable.

Ingredients:

2 cups low fat buttermilk
½ cup vegetable broth
¼ cup plain yogurt
1 cup cooked beets, cubed
½ cup cucumbers, cubed
Juice of 1 lemon
Chives
Salt & Pepper

Method:

1. Mix the buttermilk, vegetable broth and yogurt with a whisk.
2. Add the beets, cucumber, salt and pepper and mix well with a spoon.
3. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.

Serving:

Just before serving, add the lemon juice in the soup and mix well. Serve in individual soup bowls or cups and garnish with chopped chives.

Goat Cheese Pizza with Arugula and Mushrooms

It had been a merry evening so far inside The Venetian, Las Vegas. We had walked through the gigantic casino and hotel at the pace of a tortoise, a pace we fail to appreciate during our routine workdays. We peeped inside every shop and read the menu at all restaurants. We strolled everywhere and eventually came to St. Marks Square. There were people singing, dancing, eating and laughing. It was perfect!!!

However, it became a little confusing when we had to pick one of two fascinating restaurants for dinner. The choice was between one headed by Mario Batali and the other by Wolfgang Puck. We checked the menu on both and picked Wolfgang Puck’s. A few minutes later, we watched this lovely goat cheese pizza vanish from the platter, bite by bite. I couldn't wait to get home and try it out. So here you go.....

Oh, and one more thing! Eli Manning, I love you! That was an amazing victory… Kudos!

Ingredients:

1 packet Betty Crocker's Pizza Crust
1 1/2 cups crumbled goat cheese
Handful of arugula leaves
1 cup sliced baby bella mushrooms
Salt, pepper & Olive oil

Method:

1. Prepare the pizza dough as per the instructions on the packet.
2. Brush the top of the prepared pizza base with some olive oil.
3. Spread the arugula, mushrooms and the goat cheese on the top.
4. Drizzle some olive oil, salt and pepper.
5. Bake in the oven as per the instructions on the packet.

Serving:

As you wish!