Pasta & Prawn Bake-A New Start and a New Bake!

As I type this post, the lyrics of the Bryan Adams' song, Here I Am (incidentally from one of my favorite movies, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron) keeps looping around in my mind. Especially the lines "It's a new day...a new world...a new start". Maybe because this is my first proper post this year after my "new year wishes" one.

This year, several things are new for me. One, I've changed the template on this blog...how do you like it? Two, I'm typing this on my new netbook, which is so goodlooking and comfy-to-use and sleek that I frankly can't keep my hands off of it! Three, I've got a new wireless internet connection. Just these two things, which were very timely "new year" gifts, are the things I absolutely can't live without-yes, a computer and the internet! So now hopefully I can blog and work whenever and wherever I want to (subject to my son's nap and sleeptime, that is!) Thanks a lot to my mom and dad....


Also, in a previous post, I had mentioned winning the giveaway hamper on Katerina's blog. She sent the hamper immediately and it reached me here in India, all the way from Athens, in just under a week! The hamper was not only thoughtfully packed with wonderful little Greek foodstuffs, but also packed in a lovely box with a nice bow string, with a sweet little note included. There was a packet of organic handmade pasta (made in a 200-year-old mill), a pack of specially grown Greek saffron, a jar of organic eggplant and pinenut chutney, a packet of a special Greek resin called Mastic which is used for flavoring, and a pack of organic Greek mountain tea.

Spaghetti Bolognese

Have you ever felt an inexplicable attraction for a place you've never actually been to? A strange feeling of comforting familiarity with the people, food, language, customs of a country you've never visited but nevertheless feels like home? For me, the answer is yes...and the place has always been Italy. I just feel like I should have been born there or should be living there! There could be so many explanations for this, from the mundane (maybe I got this feeling from watching certain movies or reading certain books, although I don't remember any such things from childhood) to the metaphysical (past life memories?!). Eight years ago, I drew up a list of "Things to do before I die". Visiting Italy, specifically the Tuscan region, was very high on that list. I still have that printout with me and I periodically strike things from the list...hoping I'd be able to strike off my Italian rendezvous soon! Until then, I'll have to feed my Italian love affair by ordering lasagna in restaurants and making spaghetti bolognese at home!

Bolognese (in French its called Bolognaise) is a sauce, meat and tomato based, that originated in the city of Bologna in Italy. You could make it with beef, mutton, or chicken mince, or even soya granules if you like a vegetarian version. There are so many variations out there, but this is my amalgamated version from various recipes. You could make this in a pressure cooker or in just a saucepan.

To serve 4

1. 500 g spaghetti
2. 250 g minced meat
3. 2 tablespoon olive oil
4. 2 bacon rashers, chopped fine
5. 1 large onion, chopped finely
6. 4 cloves of garlic, crushed coarsely
7. 1 medium carrot, grated or chopped finely
8. 200 ml tomato puree
9. One glass red wine (skip this, obviously, if you're a teetotaller)
10. 1 teaspoon dried oregano
11. 1 teaspoon dried thyme
12. A handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped finely
13. Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
14. Salt to taste

• Follow directions on your packet of spaghetti and cook. Drain under cold water and keep aside, drizzled with olive oil.
• In a saucepan or pressure cooker, heat the olive oil.
• Add the bacon rashers and fry till golden (if you are on a calorie-counting spree, omit the bacon, but let me just say that it would be a pity if you did!).
• Now add the garlic cloves and when the lovely aroma wafts through the oil, put in the onions and fry till translucent.
• Now add the carrots, minced meat and salt and saute till the meat loses its white raw color and all the water already in the meat evaporates.
• Now pour in the wine and simmer for 2 to 4 minutes or until half the wine evaporates.
• Add the tomato puree, oregano, thyme, basil, and simmer for 2 minutes.
• Check for salt again and add as needed. Season with pepper.
• Cook, covered, on low heat until the meat is well cooked. Or, pressure cook for 20 minutes.
• When it is ready, serve as a gravy over the spaghetti.
• Garnish with a basil leaf (in the picture above, I used coriander leaves as basil wasn't available).
• You could also grate some cheese on top of the spaghetti before ladling the sauce on top.

TIPS:
It would be better if you cooked the spaghetti when the sauce is just about ready.

Mixed Macaroni Stir-Fry

This is a recipe I made up tonight, on the spur of the moment. I'd initially decided not to cook dinner, having had a late lunch (recipe for that, tomorrow!). But by 10 pm, it became obvious that hunger pangs were looming on the horizon...a quick scan of the pantry shelf and fridge revealed macaroni, mushrooms, boneless chicken....and a new recipe was born!

I think this dish is perfect for all those evenings/nights when you return home tired and weary, don't feel like eating or ordering out, and yet don't want to do any elaborate cooking either-but still want a substantial meal with the right amount of carbs, proteins, and vegetables!

     To serve 2 hungry, impatient souls:

1. 200 g elbow macaroni
2. 1 chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces (or 100 g boneless chicken, cut likewise)
3. 50 g button mushrooms, cut into similar-size pieces
4. 1 large onion, chopped fine
5. 1 green chilly, chopped fine
6. 1 small tomato, diced roughly
7. 1 teaspoon crushed red chillies
8. 1 teaspoon dried oregano
9. 1 tablespoon fresh cream (I used Amul)
10. 1 tablespoon cheese grated (or half a cube of Britannia cheese)
11. 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves
12. Salt and pepper (freshly ground) to taste
13. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or butter

• In a saucepan, boil water and add the macaroni, with salt. When cooked, drain the water and keep the macaroni aside, drizzled with a little oil to keep it from sticking (or just follow instructions on the pack for cooking if you're not sure).
• In a pan, heat the oil/butter.
• Add the chicken pieces, salt and pepper and stir-fry on high heat for 5 minutes.
• Reduce the heat and add the mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes. Cover and cook till both mushrooms and chicken pieces are well done.
• Now add the onions and green chillies and saute on low heat till the onions soften.
• Then add the tomatoes and stir around till well mixed.
• Season with the crushed red chillies and oregano.
• Now add the macaroni, cheese and cream and combine everything well.
• Taste for salt and pepper and add more if necessary.
• Garnish with the coriander leaves and serve ASAP!

TIPS:

If you've read the TimeSavers/Tips section (tip #4), you'll know that I buy button mushrooms in bulk (at least half a kilo), saute them in oil with a little salt, covered on low heat, until all the water has evaporated, then cool and store it in airtight containers in the fridge. This way, they can be added to dishes instantly and do not require cooking from scratch each time, as they are already cooked. This is great if you are a mushroom-lover like me and like adding them to omelettes, pizzas, pies, noodles, or use them as toppings on toast, or even just curries. This can halve the cooking time considerably, as it did for me when cooking this dish!

While the macaroni is boiling, start frying the vegetables, chicken and mushrooms so that it will be ready by the time the macaroni is cooked.