Pesto Chicken Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

450g/1lb dried spiral pasta such as fusilli
125ml/4fl oz olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped pine nuts
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
900g/2lb skinless chicken thigh fillet, cubed
125ml/4fl oz red wine
1 tomato, diced
2 small carrots, chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

• Cook the pasta in lightly salted boiling water until al dente. Drain, retaining a little of the cooking
water to keep moist. Cool while you make the rest of the salad.
• To make the dressing, mix the olive oil, pine nuts, basil, onion and garlic in a bowl. Season with salt
and pepper. Refrigerate while you cook the chicken.
• Simmer the chicken cubes over a medium-high heat with 1 teaspoon salt and the red wine, stirring
constantly, for about 10 minutes.When done, drain off the liquid.
• Toss together the chicken, dressing,tomato, carrots and pasta to serve.

Pasta Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

450g/1lb penne
100g/4oz fresh basil leaves
2 garlic cloves, crushed
50g/2oz Parmesan cheese,freshly grated
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
75ml/3fl oz olive oil
250g/9oz cherry tomatoes,halved
1 small red onion, sliced into thin wedges
150g/5oz pitted black olives

Preparation:

• Cook the pasta in lightly salted boiling water until al dente. Drain, retaining a very little of the cooking water to keep moist. Set aside to cool while you make the pesto.
• Blend or process the basil, garlic, Parmesan and pine nuts until roughly chopped. With the motor running, add the oil in a thin stream until well combined.
• Put the pasta in a large bowl, stir in the pesto and mix well. Add the
tomatoes, onion and olives. Stir gently. Chill for 1 hour, then serve.

Spinach Tagliatelle with Veal Recipe

Ingredients:

450g/1lb thin veal escalopes, cut into thin strips
plain flour, seasoned
50g/2oz butter
1 onion, sliced
125ml/4fl oz dry white wine
4 tablespoons chicken stock
175ml/6fl oz double cream
600g/11⁄4lb fresh spinach
tagliatelle
3 tablespoons freshly grated
Parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground
black pepper

Preparation:

• Dredge the veal strips with the seasoned flour. Melt the butter in a frying
pan. Add the veal strips and sauté until browned. Remove with a slotted
spoon, and set aside.
• Add the onion to the pan and sauté until soft and golden. Pour in the
wine and cook rapidly to reduce the liquid. Add the stock and cream,
and season with salt and pepper. Reduce the sauce again until it is thick
and creamy, adding the veal towards the end.
• Meanwhile, cook the tagliatelle in a large pan of lightly salted boiling
water until al dente. Drain and transfer to a warm serving dish.
• Stir 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan through the sauce, then pour the
sauce over the pasta and toss gently to mix through. Serve immediately,
sprinkled with the remaining Parmesan.

Vegetarian Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

Ingredients:

4 carrots, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
400g/14oz canned cooked kidney
beans, drained
400g/14oz canned cooked
cannellini beans, drained
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
2 x 400g/14oz cans chopped
plum tomatoes
50ml/2fl oz tomato purée
100g/4oz mushrooms, sliced
275g/10oz broccoli
1⁄4 teaspoon freshly ground
black pepper

Preparation:

• Sweat the carrots and onion in the oil in a large non-stick saucepan for 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and sweat for a further 30 seconds.
• Add the kidney and cannellini beans, basil, oregano, tomatoes, tomato purée and mushrooms. Simmer, covered, for 25 minutes. Add the broccoli and pepper, and cook for about 5 minutes until the broccoli is
tender but still with a bite.
• Serve hot over freshly cooked spaghetti.

Menudo Recipe

 Ingredients:

2 1/2 Pound Tripe
1/2 Calf's foot
1/3 Cup Vinegar
Cold water
2 Cloves garlic
1/2 Small Onion
3 Quart Water (approx.)
Salt
1−1/2 Cup Hominy
Red Chile Puree (see below) OR 1 cup canned red chile sauce
Finely chopped green onions
Chopped cilantro leaves
Lemon wedges
Corn tortillas, heated
Red Chile Puree:
8 California chiles (1/4 lb)
2/3 Cup Water

Preparation:

Scrape off any fat from tripe. Cut tripe into 1−inch squares. Place tripe
and calf's foot in a large bowl. Add vinegar and cold water to cover
generously. Let stand 3 hours. Drain. Rinse tripe and calf's foot
thoroughly. Place in a large pot. Add garlic and onion. Pour in water to
cover ingredients plus 1 to 1 1/2 inches, about 3 quarts. Add salt to taste.
Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 6 hours or until tripe
is tender. After 1 hour, skim foam from surface of soup. Skim again as
needed. Add more water if liquid evaporates. Prepare Red Chile Puree. Add
hominy and Red Chile Puree during last hour of cooking. Ladle into large
bowls. Serve chopped green onions, cilantro, lemon wedges and hot corn
tortillas separately. Makes 10 to 15 servings. Red Chile Puree: Remove stems
from chiles. Break chiles open and rinse out seeds. Place in a saucepan with
water to cover. Bring to a boil. Continue to boil until chiles are softened,
about 5 minutes. Drain; discard water. Place chiles in blender; puree. Add
enough water to make puree the consistency of tomato sauce. Press pureed
chiles through a sieve to remove bits of peel. Makes about 1 cup. Variation:
Substitute 1 1/2 cups nixtamal (cooked dried corn) for canned hominy.
Combine with soaked tripe and calf's foot, garlic, onion and water. Cook as
directed above.

Pasta with Caviar Recipe

Ingredients:

225g/8oz fresh vermicelli
75g/3oz unsalted butter
100g/4oz good-quality caviar
8 fresh chives, chopped
8 quail’s eggs, soft-boiled and
peeled
1 lemon, thinly sliced

Preparation:

• Cook the pasta in lightly salted boiling water until al dente, then drain, retaining a very little of the
cooking water, and toss in the butter. Arrange in swirls on four small serving plates.
• Put a dollop of caviar in the centre of each mound of pasta, and sprinkle the chives over the top.
• Garnish each serving with two quail’s eggs and lemon slices.

Pani Puri Recipe

Pani puri is a very famous Indian and Pakistani food availabe at various food streets. It is very spicy food and the exciting part about pani puri is the way it is eaten. It is eaten in a typical fashion which makes it look even more interesting and tasty. To eat pani puri, make a small hole in the center of the puri and put few pieces of boiled chick pea and potato then pour 2-3 tbspn of sour liquid mixture in it and eat it in one whole bite. This is very interesting way of eating food with little bit of enjoyment.!

Ingredients:
For Dough:
1 cup semolina
1/3 cup plain flour
Pinch of salt
water as required
Oil for frying For Sour Liquid Mixture:
1 cup tamarind paste
Salt to taste
4-5 green chilies
1/2 cup coriander leaves

1/4 tspn dry ginger powder
1 tbspn black salt
2 cup water
1 tspn sugar

For Serving:
Boiled potatoes (cut in cubes)
Boiled chick pea

 

Preparation:

 

1. In a deep bowl, mix semolina, flour and salt. Add water gradually to knead the dough, don’t put much water at once because we want to make the dough slightly hard as compare to normal dough. You will have to knead it properly so that it would not become too much hard. Leave the dough for 30 mins. [ Tip : set 30 mins time on your digital timer so that you get notified immediately]
2. After that make very small pieces of dough like small lemon size and roll it to make circular shape flat bread but it would be very very much thin like paper. Otherwise it will not remain crispy after frying. After rolling each piece of dough pu it in a tray and cover with moisted muslin cloth (this is very important).
3. Now deep fry all the rolled pieces one by one. You have to fry in such a way that after dipping in pre heated oil, slightly press the bread using your strainer or spatula and when the bread comes on the surface turn it and take out from the oil just after getting it golden color. Make sure the flame should remain high while frying.
4. Now to make Sour liquid mixture, in a deep pan, add tamarind paste, black salt, water, sugar and green paste (make paste of green chilies and coriander using hand blender).
5. Boil this mixture and add more flavors according to your taste like crushed red pepper etc.
6. Serve the pani puri in a main serving plate, with boiled potatoes and boiled chick pea and put a small bowl of sour liquid mixture on the plate which looks very attractive and traditional.

How to Eat Pani Puri:
It is not necessary that pani puri is served with only chick pea and potatoes. It is served in various styles with many other sauces too. Here is a video which demostrates how pani puri should be eaten the right way..

 

Best Lasagna Recipe

Lasagna is an Italian food which is cooked in a variety of methods. This is a healthy cooking recipe of lasagna and its cooking has to be done in slightly different manner.

Ingredients:

For Chicken Marination:
1/2 kg chicken boneless (cut in small cubes)
1/2 tbspn ginger paste
1/2 tsbpn garlic paste
1 tbspn red chili powder (or as you required)
1/2 tspn turmeric powder
Salt to taste
3 tbspn lemon juice
500 gm yogurt
1 tbspn hot mix spices powder
1/2 tspn nutmeg and mace powder
1/2 cup cream

For Lasagna Assembling:
Pizza sauce as required
BBQ sauce as required
Cheddar cheese as required
Lasagna sheets as required

Procedure:
1. Marinate chicken pieces in the ingredients mentioned for marination and leave the marinated chicken pieces for half an hour so that all spices are absorbed in the chicken.
2. On the preheated grill pan, put the skewed chicken pieces and cook them on slow heat until they become tender and brown in color. Keep brushing the chicken pieces while grilling otherwise they will become dark from outside.
3. Now its time to assemble the lasagna dish, first place the boiled lasagna strips on the base of the baking dish so that all the base is covered, then place grilled chicken pieces on the strips and spread some pizza sauce and cheddar cheese over it. In the same way again make layer of lasagna strips, chicken pieces, BBQ sauce. In the end, cover the whole dish with lasagna strips and spread cheddar cheese as much as you like and put the dish in the preheated oven for just 5 mins at 180oC.

Note:
Turn on the upper flame of oven which is used for grilling purpose because we don’t need to bake the dish all of the ingredients are cooked we only place it in the oven just to melt cheese and give the light golden color on the top.

Chiles Rellenos Recipe

Ingredients:

12 Large Mild, green chiles w/stems
1/2 Pound Jack cheese cut into long narrow, strips.
BATTER:
1 Cup All purpose flour
1 Teaspoon Baking powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
3/4 Cup Yellow or white cornmeal
1 Cup Buttermilk
2 Eggs, slightly beaten

Preparation:

Parch and peel chiles leaving stems on. Cut small slit below the stem,
removing seeds if desired. Insert strips of Jack cheese being careful not to
split chile.
Prepare batter: Sift flour with baking powder and salt, then add cornmeal.
Blend buttermilk and slightly beaten eggs, then combine milk mixture with
dry mixture and blend together. Slightly moisten each chile with water dip
in plain flour, then in batter. Allow to drain slightly and drop in deep fat
which has been heated to 375 F.
Fry until golden. Drain on paper towels. Keep warm on platter in 300 F. oven
while completing frying and serve immediately.

Chalupas Recipe

Ingredients:

Vegetable oil
12 Corn tortillas (the thinner the better)
6 Cups Refried Beans (or less)
1/2 Pound Cheddar cheese (sharp), grated
1 Large Tomato, chopped
3 Cup Lettuce, shredded

Preparation:

In a small skillet, heat about 1/2 inch of vegetable oil. Test the oil for
proper temperature by putting in a small piece of tortilla. When the oil
reaches the temperature where it immediately begins to bubble frantically
over the tortilla as soon as it is put in the oil and the tortilla piece
becomes crisp quite quickly, you are ready to cook the chalupa shells. This
is important because there is nothing worse than a soggy chalupa shell which
results from the oil not being hot enough.
Fry tortillas completely flat on both sides until very crisp. Drain and keep
warm on a newspaper covered cookie sheet in a warm oven.
Spread about 1/4 inch thick layer of refried beans on each fried tortilla.
Top with a generous amount of grated sharp Cheddar cheese and about 1 T
chopped onion.
Place assembled chalupas on a cookie sheet and brown under broiler until
cheese melts. Watch them carefully under the broiler, they can burn quite
quickly. Top with shredded lettuce and tomato and serve.

Honey Spiced Barbecue Sauce Recipe

Ingredients:

1 1/4 Cup Catchup
2/3 Cup Salad oil
3/4 Cup Vinegar
5 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 Cup Honey
2 Tablespoon Dry mustard
3 Teaspoon Ginger, fresh grated
1 Lemon, sliced thinly
3 Tablespoons Butter

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and heat to blend together.
Remove lemon peel before basting.

Carne Asada Recipe

Ingredients:

1 20 Ounce top sirloin steak
2 Tablespoon Vegetable oil
1/2 Teaspoon Dried leaf oregano, crushed
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Coarsely ground pepper
1/4 Cup Orange juice
1 Tablespoon Lime juice
2 Teaspoon Cider vinegar
2 Orange slices, 1/2" thick

Preparation:

Place steak in a shallow glass baking dish. Rub with oil on each side.
Sprinkle with oregano, salt and pepper. Sprinkle orange juice, lime juice,
and vinegar over the steak. Cover and refrigerate overnight for best flavor
or several hours, turning occasionally. To cook, bring meat to room
temperature. Prepare and preheat charcoal grill (or gas grill). Drain meat,
reserving marinade. Place steak on grill. Top with orange slices.
Occasionally spoon reserved marinade over steaks as they cook. Grill 3−4
minutes on each side, or until medium− rare. Cook longer if desired. Remove
orange slices to turn steak. Replace orange slices on top of steak.

Arroz Blanco Recipe

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ cups long grain rice
1/4 cup minced white onion
1 clove garlic, minced
3 cups chicken, turkey or pork broth, or water
1 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

Place the oil in a heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, add the rice
and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 − 4 minutes. The rice should not be
allowed to brown. Add the onion and garlic and cook one minute more,
stirring almost constantly. Stir the salt intothe broth, add it to the rice,
bring to a boil, cover the pot, turn the heat to very low, and cook for 15
minutes. Stir the rice, carefully, replace the top, turn off the heat and
allow the rice to steam for 10 − 15 minutes.

Broccoli Balls Recipe

 Ingredients:

3 eggs beaten
6 oz shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
6 oz shredded Colby cheese
1 16 oz box frozen chopped broccoli thawed, drained and patted dry
2 1/2 oz bacon pieces
1/2 oz diced onion
1 oz flour
bread crumbs as needed.

Preparation:

Place all ingredients except bread crumbs in a bowl and stir until thoroughly combined. Chill one hour.

Heat about 4 c of oil in a fryer to 350. Put bread crumbs into a pie plate. Scoop about 1/2 oz portion up and form into ball, roll into a ball and coat with breadcrumbs. Fry for one minute, drain on paper towels and serve with dressing below:

Honey Mustard Dressing
3/4 c sour cream
1/3 c mayonnaise
1/3 c dijon mustard
1/3 c honey
1 Tbsp lemon juice.

Whisk all together until smooth.

Veal Roll Recipe

This dish can be prepared the day before.

Ingredients:

1 veal flank
2 eggs
1 bag of washed spinach, cooked and squeezed by hand
4 or 5 slices of Italian mortadella
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt, pepper, garlic, carrot, celery, onion, sage, marjoram, parsley
White wine

Preparation:

Butterfly the veal flank, without dividing it fully.
Place over it a thin 2-egg omelette made with the cooked spinach. Make it large enough to cover most of the meat
Place the mortadella over the omelette.
Roll the whole like a log and tie with kitchen strings.
Place the oil in a fairly deep pot over the stove elements, and a bouquet of the listed herbs and vegetables (placed in some gauze, if possible).
Place the meat in the pot and roll it in the pot to coat with oil.
Over medium heat move the meat every once a while so that it is nicely browned all over ( it takes about 10-15 minutes). If the meat sticks to the bottom, add a little hot water or some wine, but not too much otherwise the taste will be that of boiled meat. Also you may have to put in a new bouquet if the first one burns too much.
Then reduce the heat to simmer, cover and cook for 1 hr or 1 hr 15 min.
When at room temperature, slice 1/2" thick.
Before serving, make a gravy with the pan juices by adding about just 1/2 glass of white wine. Pass it to the blender, together with the contents of the bouquet. Pour this sauce over the meat before serving.

Beer Barbecue Sauce Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup Prepared barbecue sauce
1 cup Ketchup
2/3 cup Beer
1/4 cup Honey or Molasses
2 tablespoons Lemon juice
2 tablespoons Red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon Pepper
2 Garlic cloves, minced
2 Onions, finely chopped

Preparation:

In large bowl, combine barbecue sauce, ketchup, beer, honey, lemon juice,
vinegar, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce, pepper, garlic
and onions. Place food in marinade and let stand at room tepmerature for
up to 2 hours or in refrigerator overnight. When ready to cook, remove food
and place marinade in saucepan and cook for 10 minutes or until thickened.
Use as sauce for basting or serving with cooked food.

Cook-a-leekie Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

450g/1lb prunes, stoned
1.3kg/3lb boiling chicken
2.4 litres/4pt chicken stock
900g/2lb leeks, well rinsed
1 bouquet garni
salt and ground black pepper

Preparation:

• Put the prunes in a bowl, cover with cold water and soak overnight.
• Set the chicken, breast-side down, in a large casserole dish. Pour in the
stock and bring to the boil, skimming off any scum from the surface.
• Using string, tie half the leeks in a bundle; thinly slice the remainder.
Add the bundle of leeks to the casserole dish with the bouquet garni and
a pinch of salt. Reduce the heat, part-cover and simmer for 2 hours.
• Lift out the chicken and keep to one side to cool slightly. Remove and
discard the bundle of leeks and bouquet garni. Drain the prunes, add
them to the casserole dish and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Shred the meat from the cooled chicken, discarding any skin and bones,
and add the meat to the soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then
add the sliced leeks. Simmer for a further 10 minutes, then serve.

Clam Chowder Recipe

Ingredients:

8 celery sticks, chopped
700g/11⁄2lb onions, chopped
1.8kg/4lb red potatoes, diced
900g/2lb canned clams with juice
3 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried basil
225ml/8fl oz fish bouillon
2 teaspoons ground white pepper
225g/8oz butter
250g/9oz plain flour
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1.2 litres/2pt milk

Preparation:

• Put the celery, onions, potatoes, clams, thyme, oregano, basil, bouillon and pepper in a large heavy saucepan. Gently cook for 30–45 minutes until the vegetables and potatoes are soft.
• To make a roux, melt the butter in a small heavy pan, add the flour
and garlic, and stir constantly with a wooden spoon for a few minutes
until slightly brown.
• Combine the roux with the vegetable mixture and add the milk. Stir well and cook for 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Chicken Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

1 roast chicken carcass with meat left on
225g/8oz chicken wings
1 onion, diced
1 leek, diced
1 parsnip, diced
6 whole black peppercorns

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F/ Gas mark 2. Put in a large heavy saucepan with the chicken wings.
• Add the onion, leek and parsnip,and bring to the boil. While the water is heating, add the whole peppercorns.
• Once the stock has boiled, transfer to an ovenproof dish and cook in the oven for 2 hours. Skim off any scum from the surface using a slotted spoon, and strain the stock you have created. Discard everything except for the chicken.
• When cool enough to handle, take out the carcass and shred the chicken before returning it to the stock. Serve hot.

Brinjal Curry Recipe

Ingredients:

300g/11oz aubergine, cut into 2.5cm/1in cubes
75ml/3fl oz vegetable oil
a little salt
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
20 curry leaves
1 teaspoon skinned and split urad dal
150g/5oz onions, finely sliced
200g/7oz tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato purée
1⁄2 teaspoon chilli powder
1⁄2 teaspoon ground coriander
1⁄2 teaspoon ground turmeric

Preparation:

• Soak the aubergine in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry with
kitchen paper.
• In a large frying pan, heat 4 tablespoons of the oil over a medium heat.
Add the aubergine and a little salt, and cook for 10 minutes or until the
aubergine is brown and soft. Drain the aubergine on kitchen paper, and
set aside in a warm place.
• Heat the remaining oil in the same pan. Add the mustard seeds and, as
they begin to pop, add the curry leaves and urad dal. Cook, stirring, for
a few minutes or until the dal is golden, then add the onions and a little
salt and cook until the onions are starting to colour, stirring occasionally.
• Add the tomatoes, tomato purée, chilli powder, coriander and turmeric,
and mix well. Add the aubergine and cook for a further 5 minutes,
stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down. Transfer the mixture
to a serving dish, and serve immediately.