Basil Pesto - Simply Italian - Made in 5 minutes

I instantly fell in love with Pesto when I tasted it for the first time - in Rome! Yes, the most authentic Pesto one could ever get! Earlier, I knew that pesto is analogous to Indian "thogayal" and that, it is very simple to make. But when I tried it myself, I was really amazed at the wonderful flavor that comes when we put together fresh basil leaves, olive oil, pine nuts and some parmesan!  It is one easy recipe that even a beginner could get right easily! :-)

Ingredients -

 1/2 cup basil leaves
 3 tbsp pine nuts
 3 tbsp pure olive oil
 1 garlic clove
 1 tsp lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
 3 tbsp Parmesan cheese
 a pinch each of sugar, salt and pepper

Method -

Blend basil leaves, pinenuts and garlic in a food processor.

Add olive oil, lemon juice, salt, sugar and pepper and blend again. You can freeze this paste at this stage if you're not planning to eat pesto today.

When required, bring close to room temperature and blend with parmesan cheese! Voila! All you now need is to cook some pasta. Saute the prepared pesto with a little bit (~ 2 tsp) of olive oil and let pesto coat the pasta well! Bon Appetit! :-)

Elbow pasta with Pesto

Reference : http://www.pickyourown.org/pesto.php

Healthy Minestrone Soup - Vegetarian

If you love Italian food, if you're a fan of Olive Garden, you're sure to love Minestrone Soup. It's very flexible in that you can add whatever veggies you have in hand, just add macaroni cooked al dente and don't forget the red beans and/or white beans. Very healthy and delicious. Bon Appetit!

Vegetarian Minestrone Soup

What I Used -

Elbow Macaroni - 2 handfuls
Red Kidney beans / Rajma - 2 handfuls (Soak overnight with triple the volume of water)
Olive Oil - 2 tsp
Red Onion - 1
Garlic - 2 cloves
Carrot - 1
Frozen Mixed vegetables (Beans, Peas, Corn and it had carrots of course!) - 2 handfuls
Celery - 4 stalks (chopped)
Ripe Tomatoes - 4
Mixed Italian herbs (dried) - 1 tbsp
Ground Black Pepper - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste (~ 3/4 tsp + 3/4 tsp)
Water - as required


Feel free to add -

Navy beans/White beans - a handful or 2
Potato -1 (small cubes)
Zucchini -1 (half lengthwise and slice)
Bell pepper/capsicum - 1 (diced)
Baby spinach (finely chopped)

How I Made Minestrone Soup -

• In a large pot (Small pressure cooker pan works for me! ), sauté chopped onions and garlic in olive oil for 3 minutes on medium flame. 
• When the onions are a little softer, add celery, carrots, beans, peas and corn  (all chopped vegegies) and sauté for 2 minutes. 
• Finely chop 1 tomato and add to the pan.
• Extract the juice of 3 tomatoes in a blender and add to the pan.
• Add the soaked Red kidney beans, salt, pepper, Italian herbs and pour about 1 1/2 to2 cups of water.
• Pressure cook for 3 whistles and switch off. 
• If you do not have a pressure-cooker, use a slow cooker, so that the flavors evolve and mix well.

• In the mean time, cook pasta (Elbow macaroni or other) in salted water until al dente. Don't overcook the pasta. This is precisely why we did not add the pasta to the pressure-cooker!

• Add the cooked pasta to the veggies sauce and heat on medium flame for 3-5 minutes (Need not boil). 

Minestrone Soup

Serve your minestrone soup with some fresh Garlic bread :)

Variation : You could use alphabet-shaped pasta and your kids can have some fun while they eat nutritious food!

This is my entry to Soups and Salads Mela hosted by Srivalli and Global Food Festival at Sizzling Tastebuds

Roasted Red Pepper/Capsicum Soup - Italian style - Step-By-Step Recipe

My hands have been itching to try this soup ever-since we relished it at a restaurant in Trastevere in Rome.  This is a hearty soup that fills you up so much that half-a-sandwich is good enough to complete your meal. There is no cream or milk added, so this is absolutely vegan and really really healthy and low in fat!

Roasted Red Pepper Soup - Hearty Italian Soup

I tried to re-create the taste with whatever tools and ingredients I had in hand and it was delicious and fulfilling! The quantities I have given below are good for 2 adults.

Ingredients -

Red peppers - 2 medium/big
Garlic - 8 pods
Onion - 1 medium
Tomato - 1 medium
Italian spices - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Pepper pods - 8, to be crushed
Red Chilli flakes - 1 tsp (from 3 dry chillies)
Sugar - 1/2 tsp (optional)
Olive oil - 3 tsp
Water / Vegetable stock- 1 cup

Procedure -

• Wash and clean red peppers with water. 

• Roast one-by-one by placing them directly on the flame. (Folks who have an oven might find it easier to grill/broil them). 

• Turn them around so that the whole surface turns black and you can spot blisters. 

• Carefully transfer the blackened pepper/capsicum into a bowl and close it with a lid. In 5 minutes, the condensed water will soften the skin and you can easily peel off the black skin by showing it under running water. Trust me, it worked perfectly for me, even the very first time!

• Take a pan, heat olive oil and fry chopped onions and garlic till onions turn pink.

• Tear the soft capsicum/red pepper into big pieces and fry them together with onions and garlic. Remember to de-seed the core.

• Add salt, crushed pepper, Italian spices and chilli flakes. Add 1/2 tsp sugar if you want to.

• Cube tomato and add to this. Fry for 2 minutes.

• Add 1 cup of water or vegetable stock and keep covered with a lid for 10 minutes.

• Use a hand blender or an electric mixer to blend them all together into a puree. I used the versatile Indian mixer that my mom gave me.

• If too thick, add 1/2 cup water and boil again for 3 minutes et Voila!

• Add toasted bread to the soup, if you like!

Bon Appetit! :)

This is my entry to Soups and Salads Mela hosted by Srivalli

Tomato and Basil Soup

I didn't know for a long time that Holy basil is our own Thulasi.  Yes! :)  Did you know that? ;)  No wonder it is called the 'king of herbs'. However, there are different varieties of basil and the one used in Italian cuisine is called sweet basil.  Soups are good for health any time of the day and helps to keep your calorie count down.  Let's make it healthier by adding some herbs to it!

Difficulty level - Easy
Time - 10 minutes

Ingredients -

Ripe tomatoes - 4
Red Onion - 1 (or 1/2 if its too big)
Olive Oil - 2 tsp
Basil leaves - 5
Sugar - 1 tsp
Salt
Pepper

3 Easy Steps -

1. Blend together the tomatoes and onion with 1 tsp of sugar.
2. Pour the juice into a pot and season with salt and pepper. Add olive oil to it. Bring to a boil.
3. Sprinkle basil leaves before turning off the fire. 

Note: You may also add a mixture of Italian herbs in lieu of just basil.

Cream of Broccoli Soup

Broccoli belongs to the cauliflower family and tastes great even when just steamed with salt and pepper sprinkled over it. It is said to be a good source of Vitamin C and dietary fiber. Research also says that broccoli consumption can prevent heart disease.

I am now a big fan of broccoli, given that it is inevitable in Chinese Vegetarian food, which is the easiest, most commonly available option for vegetarians living in Singapore.

I've seen my mom add milk to soups in order to give it a creamy texture. I wanted to try how broccoli puree would taste when mixed with milk and finally came up with this recipe.

Ingredients -

Broccoli florets - 1 bunch
Yellow onion (I prefer it to red onion as it is sweeter) - 1/2 , chopped
Half of a Boiled potato (This is used as a thickener)

Milk - 2 cups
White Pepper - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Butter - 2 tbsp
Italian herbs (optional) -1/2 tsp
Fresh Cream (optional) - 1 tbsp



How I Made It -

1. Melt butter in a pan.
2. Add chopped onions and fry for a while.
3. Add broccoli florets of a medium sized bunch, mash and add the boiled potato and add enough water to cover the veggies. Add salt. Cover and let them cook.

4. Once cooked, let them cool.
5. Add white pepper and blend them in a mixer to a nice paste. Add water if it's too thick.

6. Pour the blended creamy mix back into the pan and add milk to it.
7. Add a pinch or two of mixed Italian herbs like Thyme, Rosemary, Basil, Oregano. This is entirely optional but I like to use this.

8. Boil the mixture and stir for a few mins and Voila! your cream of broccoli soup is ready.
9. Finally, you can stir in 1 tbsp of fresh cream, but that's optional again.

Creamy Cheesy Pasta

I spent a good amount of time thinking about my first recipe and thought it should be something special that's not eaten everyday, but yummy yet simple! I was quite generous with the quantity of cheese and cream and my hubby just loved it :)

Creamy Cheesy Pasta

Here's what you need for the sauce:

Olive Oil - 3 tbsp
Butter - 1 tbsp
Onion - 1 (chopped)
Garlic - 3 pods, chopped
Sun-dried tomatoes (can substitute with honey sweet tomatoes) - 10
Gouda cheese - 300 g
Heavy cream - 200 ml
Salt - as required
Parsley

Method:

Let's start with cooking the pasta (I made it with Farfalle and used 350 g for 2 people) with water and salt by following the packet instructions.
One tip is to drain the water after the pasta is cooked al-dente and immediately dunk it in cold water and then rinse. This is to prevent pasta from getting over-cooked.


Now, for the creamy-cheesy sauce...

• Take a non-stick frying pan and heat olive oil and melt the butter
• Sauté chopped onions and garlic for a minute or two
• Add about half of sun-dried or honey-sweet tomatoes
• Pour the cream and add a pinch of nutmeg, if you like it
• Add salt (adjust salt as we have cooked our pasta with salt)
• Give it a boil and then add the cheese (if you don't get Gouda, just add any sweeter variety of cheese, avoid cheddar, if you can).
• Keep stirring till the sauce is smooth. Take care to see that the cheese doesn't stick to the pan.
• Add the cooked pasta and coat it gently with all the cream and cheese....ummm, that sounds delicious, doesn't it?
• Garnish with some more tomatoes and parsley
• Serve immediately!

Tip: If you think the cost of cheese and heavy cream is gonna pinch your pocket everytime, you can go easy on cheese and cream, save some of them for the next time and add Alfredo sauce bought from the stores.