Tomato, Mozzarella And Basil Bruschetta

Bruschetta is grilled bread seasoned with garlic and topped with extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Variations may include toppings of spicy red pepper, tomato, vegetables, beans, cured meat, and/or cheese; the most popular American recipe involves basil, fresh mozzarella, and tomato. Bruschetta is usually served as a snack or appetizer. This dish is popular all over the world, although it originated in Italy.
(Source: Wikipedia)

I had a few of these for breakfast the other day. As with most things Italian that I make, this one too is a recipe from my favorite Food Network chef, Giada De Laurentiis’ kitchen.

Ingredients:
1 tomato, chopped
A good handful of fresh basil
2 garlic cloves
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
A loaf of Italian bread, sliced 1-inch thick
Fresh mozzarella, sliced ¼ inch thick

Method:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In the bowl of a food processor, add chopped tomato pieces, basil leaves, 1 garlic clove and olive oil. Pulse a couple of times to get a coarse, but somewhat chunky mixture. Season with salt and pepper.

On a baking sheet lined with foil, line up bread slices. Toast in oven for about 5 minutes or until light golden brown. Working quickly, rub the garlic clove on each slice and then lay a piece of mozzarella cheese on top. Sprinkle a little salt on each slice. Place bread back in oven and melt cheese slightly. Remove from oven and spread one tablespoon of the tomato mixture on each piece. Serve warm.

Pan-Fried Tofu With Peanut Dipping Sauce

This is a recipe from Laavanya's Cookery Corner that I have made many, many times since I first came across it nearly 2 years back. I'm not too crazy about tofu but I do buy it very often. I would usually make a tofu scramble, a stir-fry with vegetables or a smoothie depending on the kind of tofu I'd purchased. Ever since Laavanya posted this recipe, I have been making this regularly and this is now my favorite way to eat tofu.

For preparing the tofu, first drain the water out of the tub. Next, wrap the tofu up in a clean kitchen towel or a few paper towels. Place the wrapped tofu in a colander and put a weight (I used my pressure cooker) on top of the tofu. Let this sit for at least 30 minutes, or until the paper towels are soaked through. This makes the tofu easier to cut; it is less watery, and more receptive to absorbing the flavors added in the next step.

Pan-fried tofu
Ingredients:
15.5 oz firm tofu (I used Soga's twin-pack)
Red chilli powder
Garlic powder (optional)
Salt
2-3 Tbsp oil for pan-frying

Method:
Cut the tofu into relatively thick strips (see picture for size). Heat oil in a large pan. When the oil is hot, place the tofu pieces in the pan.

Sprinkle salt and red chilli powder all over the pieces and shallow fry. Cook till golden brown on the bottom (takes about 4-5 minutes). Flip over, sprinkle salt and chilli powder on the other side, and cook similarly.

Serve with peanut dipping sauce.



Peanut Dipping Sauce
For the sauce, I have only listed the ingredients I used. I do not have exact measurements since I was just adding the ingredients till it tasted right. I did not use many of the ingredients mentioned in the original recipe and the sauce still tasted great. You can find Laavanya's version of the sauce here.

Here's what went into my dipping sauce-
Creamy peanut butter
Soy sauce
Honey
Garlic powder
Red pepper flakes
Lemon juice
Hot water to thin out the sauce
Sesame seeds

Mix all the ingredients well. Add hot water as required to get a thick sauce-like consistency.

I've also put the tofu and peanut sauce together to form a nice dish that goes well with white rice. For this, I just thinned out the sauce a bit, added the tofu pieces and mixed everything together. I let that simmer for a couple of minutes to allow the tofu pieces to get nicely coated with the peanut sauce.

Fudgy Brownies

When Aparna announced that she was hosting Tried and Tasted featuring Lisa's Kitchen this month, I knew I wanted to participate in this one. For once, I knew exactly what to make too. I have been following Lisa's blog for almost two years now and had bookmarked this recipe, among a few others, from her blog a while ago.

I have made a lot of brownies since I first "discovered" the world of food blogs since I find that few desserts are more satisfying than rich and warm gooey brownies. I've tried out different recipes over time and have had satisfactory results for the most part. This recipe in particular interested me since it had no added fat - not that there's anything wrong with a bit of fat- but I was a bit curious to find out for myself the final product's taste and texture.

I made a few additions to Lisa's recipe though. I threw some toasted hazelnuts into the brownie batter. Also, since chocolate and orange is one of my all time flavor combinations, I added some orange zest.

Ingredients:
1 egg
1 cup sugar (I would decrease this a bit the next time I make this- it was a little too sweet for me)
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
6 Tbsp yogurt
Zest of an orange
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup all-purpose flour
A handful of chopped hazelnuts, toasted in the oven at 350 degrees F for 7-10 minutes
A pinch of salt
½ tsp baking powder

Method:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8x8-inch baking dish with foil and grease with oil/butter.

In a bowl, beat the egg with sugar till light in color and fluffy.

Add cocoa powder, yogurt, orange zest (optional), vanilla extract and mix well. Incorporate the flour, salt and baking powder into the mixture and mix gently until well combined.

Add toasted hazelnuts and fold into the batter. This is optional, but if adding please toast them since it brings out their incredibly rich nutty flavor.

Bake in the oven for about 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out relatively clean. Cool and cut into squares.
These fudgy brownies taste best when they're fresh, warm and straight from the oven. This recipe is fantastic and I will keep going back to it when I'm in the mood for a simple and delicious treat.

Orange-Oat Bars

I made these bars a while back when I was going through a phase- one that I usually go through at the beginning of every year, where I try to watch what I eat and be good. Unfortunately for me, this is a phase that does not last very long! I was looking for some healthy eats then and I came across these bars on Sunita’s blog. Her orange and date bars seemed to be just what I was looking for. I had a huge canister of oats and some prunes that had to be used up and her recipe looked perfect.

I did not make too many changes to the original recipe except that I substituted the dates in the original recipe with prunes and also added a handful of walnuts.

Ingredients:
(For about 8 bars)
2 cups + 2 Tbsp uncooked oats (I used old-fashioned oats)
1 orange (mine was the seedless kind), peeled and pureed in the blender
Zest of an orange
8-10 prunes, chopped
5 Tbsp honey
¼ c oil
7 Tbsp yogurt
½ tsp cinnamon powder
½ cup chopped walnuts
A pinch of salt
Powdered sugar for dusting the tops of the bars

Method:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8x8-inch baking pan/dish with foil and grease with oil/butter.

Mix all the ingredients (listed above) together and place in the baking dish. Spread it around as evenly as possible.

Bake for 35-40 minutes. Cool for a bit and then cut into bars. Dust the bars with powdered sugar. I had to do this since the bars were not sweet at all in spite of the honey and the naturally sweet orange juice, and it was too late to incorporate sugar! If I make these again, I would definitely add some sugar and maybe toast the oats and nuts in the oven for a few minutes for a better flavor.

These bars do make for a great breakfast/snack on the go and are healthy and filling.

Pappa al Pomodoro (Tomato And Bread Soup)

Pappa al Pomodoro is a thick and hearty tomato based Tuscan soup, thickened with bread. It makes use of the simplest of ingredients- tomatoes, bread, garlic and olive oil- yet it’s so rich and full of flavor. This is easily one of the most delicious soups I’ve tasted in a long time.

I only wish I’d had fresh basil while making the soup as it would have taken the flavors to a whole new level, but it was not too bad even without basil leaves. I did not want to use the dried basil that I had for this recipe.

This soup is the outcome of the recipes I saw here here and here, and is a great way to use up leftover bread.

Ingredients:
(For 3-4 servings)
1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes (mine also had basil, garlic and oregano)
½ onion, sliced
4-5 cloves of garlic, peeled
3 cups stale bread, cut into cubes (I used the Italian bread that I had)
4 tbsp olive oil
Red pepper flakes
Salt
Pepper
3 cups water or as required

Method:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Spread the cherry tomatoes (no need to halve these), the sliced onions and the garlic cloves on a baking sheet lined with foil. Add 2 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix well to coat the vegetables. Bake at 375 degrees F for 25-30 minutes until vegetables are soft and caramelized.

In a large saucepan, add the can of diced tomatoes. Cook for a few minutes and then add the roasted vegetables to it. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.
Add 2 cups of water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and then simmer for 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile, spread the bread cubes on a baking sheet lined with foil. I used the same baking sheet from above, just replaced the foil. Toss the bread cubes around in 2 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Toast for 15-20 minutes at 250 degrees F.

Toss the toasted bread cubes into the soup and mix well. The bread absorbs all the liquid in the soup as it cooks. Add the rest of the water. Mix well and continue to cook for some more time. Adjust the seasoning as required and keep checking and stirring the soup every now and then.

I did not like having large pieces of tomatoes in my soup, so I used my immersion blender and pureed everything just a little bit. Simmer on low-medium heat for another 5-10 minutes till the soup develops a texture similar to that of a thick and creamy porridge. Add more water or stock, if necessary, to achieve desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

The soup tastes even better the next day but it becomes very thick, so you would need to add some water or stock (I used milk) to thin it out. Also adjust the salt and pepper. Simmer for a few minutes and serve.

This soup is my entry for No Croutons Required: The Birthday Edition, hosted this month by Holler who is celebrating her birthday the entire month.
Here’s a predominantly Italian menu to go with the soup.
Parmesan Popovers
Parmesan cups with mango salsa
Potato gratin
Cannellini beans with cheese and basil
Ricotta and Nutella phyllo shells

Happy Birthday, Holler!

Celery Soup

I had a bunch of celery that needed to be used up quickly and a soup seemed to be a good way to do just that. I adapted a recipe I saw on Everyday Food. I think the soup turned out very well and I just wanted to document it here.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
4-5 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
3 cups chopped celery
½ onion, sliced
1 potato, peeled and cubed
½ tsp red pepper flakes
¼ tsp powdered cloves
1 ½ cups milk
Salt
Pepper
Water

Method:
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, celery, and potato cubes; stir and cook for a minute each after every addition.

Add red pepper flakes and powdered cloves. Mix well. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to soften.

Add 2-3 cups water to saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer until vegetables are very tender. Puree soup until smooth. (I used my immersion blender.) Add milk. Continue to cook till thick and creamy. Season with salt and pepper.

Taro Root Fry

We recently discovered an Indian grocery store very close to H's workplace. We've been living in this part of the world for almost 2 years now and H has been at the same office too for the same length of time, yet we had no idea that a store like this even existed! I was very happy to see a few vegetables here that I haven’t been seeing in the stores we normally go to. I bought a few taro root tubers from this place the other day.

Growing up, I don’t really remember my mother ever buying/cooking taro root (arbi in Hindi, chembu in Malayalam). I do however remember eating some kind of a sabji made with it by T maushi (aunty). T maushi was a lovely Maharashtrian lady who took good care of our family and cooked many a meal for us a long time back when my mother couldn't do much around the house since she was still recovering after a major surgery. T maushi was an excellent cook and made very simple, yet tasty Maharashtrian fare in no time at all. The arbi sabji, one of her signature preparations, was something I just loved. Since then, every time I’ve seen arbi, I’ve always associated it with T maushi.

This particular recipe that I followed is not T maushi’s, but just something I came across on Shyamala’s blog. It sounded really good and I wanted to try it out.
I have only listed the ingredients I used. You can find the original recipe along with the exact amounts of the ingredients used here.

Ingredients:
7-8 big taro tubers (arbi/chembu)
3-4 tbsp oil
Cumin seeds
Garlic powder
Asafoetida

For the spice mix:
3 Tbsp chickpea flour (besan)
2 Tbsp rice flour
Red chilli powder
Coriander powder
Turmeric powder
Salt

Method:
Cook and peel the taro tubers. Slice into 1/4-inch thick rounds.

In a large vessel, add the flours and the spices. Mix well.

Throw in the taro root rounds and coat with the dry spice mix. Dust off the excess.

In a large pan, heat oil. Add cumin seeds followed by asafoetida and garlic powder.

Place the spice-coated rounds in the pan and shallow-fry. Cook till a nice crust is formed and the rounds are crispy and golden brown on one side (takes about 4-5 minutes), and then flip over and cook the other side similarly.

Serve hot. This tastes great as a side dish with some steaming hot rice and sambar or rasam.