Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo

Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo with Patty Pan Sauté

 

Gudiya loves Italian food more than anything else. So I try to recreate her favorite restaurant dishes at home.

 

Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo

Ingredients

2 1/2 Servings Fettuccine Noodles,

 

15 shrimp, deveined, cleaned

1 tbsp. pesto (store bought or home made)

salt and black pepper as needed

 

Tempering

1 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. spring onions, chopped

1/2 tbsp. garlic, minced

 

Whisk

2 tbsp. all purpose flour

1 cup milk

 

Method

1. Clean and devein shrimp. Marinate with pesto, salt and pepper

2. Cook fettuccine according to the directions. Set aside.

3. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan.

4. Add garlic and spring onion. Sauté till soft. Let it not burn.

5. Add all purpose flour and keep on stirring till it turns a shade darker.

6. Add marinated shrimp and stir fry for a minute.

7. Add milk. Keep on stirring till it reaches thick sauce consistency.

8. Add cooked pasta. Mix well till the sauce coats the pasta.

9. Serve warm.

 

Note -

1. I use my trusty pasta ladle that has circles which indicate 1, 2 or 1/2 servings. I measure my pasta before putting in the boiling water to get the exact serving size.

 

 

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Ratatouille Pizza

 

Every fortnight or so, I make  pizza dinner. Generally, it happens when I am working from home. I use my trusty bread maker to knead the dough at around 3 PM. After the ingredients are measured and added to the bread maker, I don't even look at it till the remaining work day is over. As I come down from my home office,  well risen pizza dough awaits.

Since Gudiya loves Pizza, I take this opportunity to sneak in as many veggies as I possibly can. Every time, Gudiya suggests patiently that I should make just cheese pizza without any vegetables. [Nice try, Baby Girl! It ain't happening anytime soon!] I overlook this suggestion and go my way anyway!

Last week, I made a hodgepodge pizza adding eggplants, bell peppers, mushrooms and corn niblets. I called it "Ratatouille Pizza"!


Ratatouille Pizza
Ingredients
1 recipe pizza dough for making a large pizza, homemade or store-bought


For vegetables "Ratatouille" mixture
1 tbsp. Olive oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1/4 cup minced onion
1 small eggplant, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1/3 cup corn niblets
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
Salt and crushed black pepper to taste

For Pizza
2 tbsp. Pesto sauce - home made or ready made
6 slices fresh Mozzarella cheese
Italian seasoning

Garnish
Crushed Red Pepper

Method
1. For making Pizza Dough, follow this link.

2.  Preheat oven 400 F

3. Heat oil in a saucepan. Sauté onion and garlic till soft. Add vegetables and Italian seasoning. Keep sautéing till they are cooked. Add salt and black pepper to taste. Set aside to cool down completely.

4. Take out well risen pizza dough. Spray some oil onto the baking tray. Stretch pizza dough in a rectangular fashion on the baking tray. Spray some cooking oil.

5. Bake in the preheated oven for about 5 minutes. Take out.

5. Spread some pesto sauce evenly, leaving  out about 1" border around the rectangle.

6. Spread the vegetables "ratatouille" mixture.

7. Place fresh mozzarella slices on top.

8. Sprinkle some Italian seasoning.

9. Bake for about 12 minutes or so till the cheese has melted.

10. Take out of the oven. Using a sharp knife, cut into squares. Serve immediately.

Note -
1. You can most certainly make individual pizzas or circular pizzas.

2. For best taste, use only all purpose flour.

3. For health benefits, use half of all purpose flour and half of wheat flour.

4. Dice eggplants into very tiny pieces so it gets cooked easily.

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Potato Pizza

 

 

Today's recipe is inspired by "Pizza Blanco" that we had at an Italian Pizza restaurant. This unique restaurant had a variety of pizzas. Potato and pizza sounded very different. We did make a special request to hold off the bacon.

Potato Pizza
Ingredients
1 pizza crust  - homemade or ready made
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
1 potato, very thinly sliced
1-2 garlic cloves, peeled & thinly sliced
1 mozzarella cheese stick, cut into rounds

Oil spray

Garnish
chopped chives or spring onions
salt and crushed black pepper

Method
1. Preheat oven 500F
2. Bake pizza stone for at least 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, let's assemble the pizza. Spread ricotta cheese uniformly over the crust.
4. Arrange potato slices around the pizza crust.
5. Place thinly sliced garlic between two potato slices.
6. Spray cooking spray on the potato and garlic slices.
7. Arrange mozzarella rounds on top.

8. Bake for about 9 - 10 minutes till the tops of potatoes, garlic and mozzarella cheese are lightly browned.
9. Garnish with chives or spring onions, salt and pepper.

Note -
1. Depending on the size of the pizza crust, the proportion of ricotta cheese, potato slice etc. may vary.
2. Increase or decrease the quantity of garlic cloves based on personal preference.


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Pesto Shrimp Farfalle

Shrimp and pesto is a wonderful combination. I used it with farfalle pasta for the weeknight dinner the other day.

Pesto Shrimp Farfalle

Ingredients
1/4 cup Basil Pesto (Homemade or readymade)
2 cups cooked farfalle pasta
salt to taste

Marinate
15 shrimp with 1 tbsp. basil pesto

Tempering
1 tsp. oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper

Garnish
Freshly ground black pepper
Freshly squeezed lemon juice of 1/2 lemon

Method
1. Marinate cleaned, deveined shrimp with spoonful of basil pesto
2. Cook farfalle pasta per package instructions.
3. Prepare basil pesto or use a readymade one.
4. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan.
5. Add garlic and bell pepper. Sauté for a minute without letting garlic burn or turn brown.
6. Add shrimp and sauté till cooked.
7. Add basil pesto and cooked farfalle. Mix well.
8. Add salt to taste.
9. Sprinkle freshly ground black pepper and lemon juice.

Note -
1. I use less oil since pesto already has oil in it.
2. Do not overcook pasta. Make sure that it's al dente!

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Salad Caprese

After using fresh Mozzarella cheese for Pizza Margherita, I am almost always left with a chunk of cheese. I use it for making "Salad Caprese". This is the simplest salad of them all. Just make sure that all the ingredients are super fresh.

Salad Caprese
Ingredients
About 6-7 pieces of fresh Mozzarella cheese
1 ripe yet firm tomato, cut into circles
few fresh basil leaves, torn
1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Method
1. Arrange fresh cheese, tomatoes and basil leaves as shown above.
2. Sprinkle salt and black pepper
3. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil.

Note -
1. Tomato has to be very fresh and firm.


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Spinach Fusilli Pasta

 

Like all mothers everywhere, when I cook dinner on the weekdays, I look for a recipe that is quick, nutritious and kid-friendly. Gudiya seems to love pasta. So I sneak in as many vegetables as possible. I even add turmeric to my pasta!

 

Spinach Fusilli Pasta

Ingredients

 1 cup whole wheat fusilli, cook according to the packet directions

1 red bell pepper, cored, sliced

1 cup baby portabella mushrooms, sliced

1 ½ cup frozen spinach

1 tsp Italian seasoning

Salt to taste

Tempering

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. minced garlic (fresh)

½ tsp turmeric powder

Method

1.     Cook pasta according to the instructions.

2.    Heat oil. Add garlic. Sauté for a minute.

3.    Add mushrooms. Let the moisture evaporate.

4.    Add bell peppers, turmeric powder and Italian seasoning.

5.    Add spinach. Allow it to thaw.

6.    Add cooked pasta and salt to taste.

7.    Mix and serve – if needed sprinkle cheese of your choice.

Note –

Since turmeric powder is full of antioxidant properties, I even add it in my pasta.

 

 

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Grape Tomato Pizza

 

 

My Pizzeria adventure continues...


Grape Tomato Pizza (Makes 1 pizza)

Ingredients

1 readymade pizza crust (See note below)

1 tbsp. homemade or readymade basil pesto

5 Grape Tomatoes, halved

1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded

 

Garnish(Optional)

Crushed red pepper

 

Method

1. Preheat oven 400F.

2. Place readymade pizza crust on a baking or pizza tray.

3. Spread basil pesto around the crust leaving about 2" border around the circumference of the crust.

4. Scatter grape tomato halves over the pesto.

5. Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese over.

6. Bake for about 5-6 minutes or till the cheese is melted.

7. Cut into wedges.

8. Garnish with crushed red pepper if using.

 

Note -

1. I used Whole Foods Brand Whole Wheat Pita for this recipe.

2. In summer, when there is abundant Italian Basil growing in backyard, I use homemade pesto. But here, I used Costco brand Basil Pesto.

3. You can most certainly make homemade pizza crust.

 Grape Tomato Pizza & Arugula Pizza

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Arugula Pizza

 

Arugula is leafy greens with peppery bite. It also goes by the name "Rocket" due to the unique shape of its leaves. Arugula pizza is baked first and then you add fresh Arugula on top. In my Pizza escapades so far, this is my husband's most favorite pizza.

Arugula Pizza (Makes 1 pizza)

Ingredients

1 readymade pizza crust (See note below)

1 tbsp. readymade oven roasted tomatoes with Italian seasoning

A handful of Arugula

1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded

 

Garnish(Optional)

Crushed red pepper

 

Method

1. Preheat oven 400F.

2. Place readymade pizza crust on a baking or pizza tray.

3. Spread Oven roasted tomatoes around the crust leaving about 2" border around the circumference of the crust.

4. Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese over.

6. Bake for about 5 minutes or till the cheese is melted.

7. Cut into wedges.

8. Garnish with crushed red pepper if using.

 

Note -

1. I used Whole Foods Brand Whole Wheat Pita for this recipe.

2. I used Costco brand oven roasted tomatoes. It has lots of oil. So try to use only tomatoes, shaking off as much excess oil as possible, before spreading on the crust.

3. You can most certainly make homemade pizza crust.

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Chicken Pesto Pizza

 

 

Have you ever met those annoying people who wonder & ponder over every bite they put in their mouth at restaurants? They want to know what ingredients may have gone in that morsel? Well, then you have met either me or people just like me. My husband thinks that I eat less and wonder more about the recipe.  Oh well, that's just the way it is! Recently we went to a Pizza place that serve a variety of pizza (potato pizza, anyone?). So it's very natural that you will now see a plethora of Pizza recipes at Enjoy Indian Food!;-)

 

Since most of the ingredients below were store bought, this pizza appeared even on a very hectic week night dinner table.

 

 

Chicken Pesto Pizza (Makes 1 pizza)

Ingredients

1 readymade pizza crust (See note below)

1 tbsp. homemade or readymade basil pesto

2 strips  grilled/baked/roasted boneless, skinless chicken, cut into cubes

1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded

 

Garnish(Optional)

Crushed red pepper

 

Method

1. Preheat oven 400F.

2. Place readymade pizza crust on a baking or pizza tray.

3. Spread basil pesto around the crust leaving about 2" border around the circumference of the crust.

4. Scatter chicken cubes over the pesto.

5. Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese over.

6. Bake for about 5-6 minutes or till the cheese is melted.

7. Cut into wedges.

8. Garnish with crushed red pepper if using.

 

Note -

1. I used Whole Foods Brand Whole Wheat Pita for this recipe.

2. In summer, when there is abundant Italian Basil growing in backyard, I use homemade pesto. But here, I used Costco brand Basil Pesto.

3. You can most certainly make homemade pizza crust.

 

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Eggplant Pasta

I make this simplest possible eggplant pasta which is immensely enjoyed by my family. I don't bother to peel off eggplant. I don't even salt it to remove the bitter juices as it's recommended in the traditional Italian cuisine. But if desired, you can most certainly peel the eggplant and/or salt it and drain the eggplant cubes before adding to the saucepan.

It does need lot more oil than my usual recipes. But eggplant seems to drink up the oil so more oil is needed for cooking it uniformly.

Eggplant Pasta
Ingredients

3 cups raw farfalle pasta, cook according to the package directions
salt to taste
1 tsp Italian seasoning

Tempering
1/4 cup Olive oil
3-5 garlic cloves, peeled & minced
1 red bell pepper, cored, diced
2 Italian eggplants, diced

Garnish
2 tbsp. minced Italian Parsley (Optional)

Method
1. Cook pasta according to the packet instructions.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a wide saucepan. Add garlic cloves. Sauté till they leave an aroma, making sure that they don't get burnt. Add bell pepper and sauté for 2 minutes.
3. Add eggplant pieces, preferably in a single layer.
4. Sauté till they are cooked.
5. Add salt to taste & Italian seasoning.
6. Now add drained pasta along with about 1/4 cup pasta water.
7. Incorporate pasta and eggplant.
8. Garnish with Italian parsley - if using.

Note -
1. You can peel eggplants before adding to the pot.
2. Italian eggplants are like Indian Bhurta type eggplants.



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Black Beans Pizza

 

This pizza is inspired by the recipe featured in WebMD. If you find Barbeque sauce too sweet, add a dash of Sriracha.

 

Black Beans Pizza

Ingredients

Mix

1 cup cooked black beans

1 cup yellow corn kernels

1/2 cup red bell peppers, diced

 

1 recipe pizza crust, readymade okay.

 

1/3 cup barbeque sauce                     

                          

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese             

Garnish

Avocado slices

Cilantro

 

Method

 1. Preheat oven to 400F

2. Spread some barbeque sauce over the prepared pizza crust.

3. Spoon black beans mixture.

4. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese.

5. Bake for about 7 minutes.

6. Garnish with avocado slices and cilantro before serving.

 

Note -

1. Barbeque sauce has a Smokey flavor and it's sweetish in taste.

 

Credits

http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/smoky-corn-and-black-bean-pizza

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Stuffed Shells

 This recipe is inspired by the Costco Connection issue. I didn't use any meat to suit to out palette.

 

Jumbo Stuffed Shells

Ingredients

15-16 Jumbo shells

1 jar marinara sauce (readymade ok)

 

For stuffing

2 cup frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed

15 oz ricotta cheese

1 egg

salt and pepper

 

Tempering

1 tbsp. olive oil

A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

2 tbsp. minced onions

1 tbsp. minced garlic

 

Garnish

1/2 tbsp. minced fresh basil leaves

1 tbsp. minced fresh Italian parsley

Parmesan cheese (optional)

 

Method

1. Thaw spinach and squeeze out all the moisture. Set aside.

2. Heat olive oil. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes, onion, garlic. Sauté till onion is soft.

3. Add spinach and sauté for few minutes till it is cooked. Switch off the gas. Set aside to cool down.

4. Mix ricotta cheese with egg, salt and pepper.

5. Add cooled spinach mixture. Mix well. This is your stuffing.

6. Meanwhile, cook jumbo pasta according to the packet instructions.

7. Stuff each pasta shell with ricotta-spinach mixture.

8. Spread some marinara sauce on the bottom of a deep baking tray - I use Pyrex glass baking tray.

9. Place stuffed shells on top.

10. Spread remaining marinara sauce on top.

11. Preheat oven 350 F.

12. Cover baking tray with Aluminum foil. Bake for about 40 minutes.

13. Garnish with basil and parsley.

14. Sprinkle some parmesan cheese if desired.

 

Note -

1. I like Mur Glenn brand Marinara sauce.

 

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Roasted Tomato Pasta

 

I had discovered this recipe at the "Cooking Light" website and since then it has become one of  my "go to" pasta recipes. I have modified the recipe. Angel Hair Pasta works the best for this recipe.

 

Roasted Tomato Pasta

Ingredients

1/2 packet Angel Hair Pasta

Salt to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

 

Roast

4 cups cherry tomatoes

2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

10 cloves of garlic, sliced

 

Garnish

1 tbsp fresh Italian Basil, shredded

1 tbsp fresh Italian Parsley, shredded

 

Method

1. Oil your baking dish using cooking spray. Mix tomatoes, oil and garlic cloves and spread in a single layer on the baking tray. Bake in a preheated oven (400F) for 20 minutes.

2. Cook Angel Hair Pasta according to the packet instructions. Set aside.

3. With a back of a spatula or spoon, crush the roasted garlic cloves. Add cooked pasta to the tomato mixture to coat evenly.

4. Add salt, black pepper.

5. Garnish with minced fresh herbs, just before serving.

 

Note -

1. Do not use curly parsley for this recipe. Use flat leaf Italian parsley.

2. If you love spicier version, sprinkle crushed red pepper on the individual serving bowl.

3. Angel hair pasta takes much less cooking time than other pasta. Cook accordingly.

 

Italian Flat Leaf Parsley

 

 

Credits

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/pasta-roasted-tomatoes-50400000122474/

 

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Pizza Margherita

The most important ingredient for making pizza margherita is fresh mozzarella cheese. Fresh basil from your own backyard  makes a perfect garnish.

 

Pizza Margherita

Ingredients

1 recipe Pizza crust

Marinara or Pizza sauce (homemade or store bought)

A ball of fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced

 

A handful of shredded Italian cheese (optional)

 

Garnish

12-15 Fresh Basil leaves, rinsed and patted

 

Method

1. Follow the method to make pizza dough. Preheat oven 500F

 

 2. Stretch into a flatbread.

3. Add some twists around the border, if you like.

4. Apply a spoonful of olive oil.

3. Scatter some cornmeal over the pizza pan. If using pizza stone, heat it in the oven.

4. Transfer pizza crust onto the pizza stone.

5. Bake for 7 minutes.

5. Spread the marinara sauce leaving at least 1" border around the circumference.

6. Place sliced cheese pieces in the middle. Add more Italian cheese if you prefer.

7. Bake in a preheated oven (500F) for about 9 minutes.

8. Garnish with fresh basil leaves only before serving.

 

Note -

1. Do not add Basil leaves too much in advance as they will turn dark and get wilted.

2. Fresh Mozzarella cheese is readily available in most of the super markets.

 

 

Credits for Pizza dough

http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes_detail.php?rid=1074

 

Italian Basil

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Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza

Chicago style deep dish pizza is every cheese pizza lovers' dream come true! It's more like a pie than a pizza. There are various pizza crusts in the United States. NY style pizza has a thin crust, St. Louis style pizza has a cracker like crust and Chicago style pizza has a thick crust with lots of stuffing and cheese and another layer of crust on top.

I followed my usual Bob's Red Mill recipe for making pizza crust but I made 2 stuffed pizzas using a pie plate. I made my own veggie stuffing. This recipe is entirely my experiment so there are no claims for authenticity. It is based on my take on the famous Chicago style Deep Dish Pizza that we tasted in Chicago. This pizza - unlike my version below - had a thin layer of tomato paste on the top crust along with some sliced tomatoes and black olives. Also, it was lot deeper than mine![Scroll below to see the picture of the famous Chicago style pizza right from Chicago!]

Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza
Ingredients
Pizza Dough

For the stuffing
1 tbsp oil
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp turmeric powder (optional)
1/3 cup finely chopped bell pepper
9-10 white button mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 cup shredded fresh spinach
 pizza sauce in a jar [I used classico 14oz jar]
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp shredded fresh basil leaves
salt to taste
Shredded Mozzarella cheese, as needed
or
Shredded Pizza cheese, as needed

Method
1. Proceed to make pizza dough as described here. Cover and let it rise. Punch the dough down and cut it into 4 parts. Cover and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a saucepan. Saute garlic and onion till they are soft. Add turmeric powder - if using
3. Add bell peppers. Saute for about 5 minutes.
4. Add mushroom & spinach. Saute for 10 minutes.
5. Add Italian seasoning, pizza sauce and salt to taste - remember that the pizza sauce already has salt.
6. Simmer the sauce on a low flame till it thickens up.

7. Add basil leaves. Let it cool down completely before using
8. Spray some oil onto a pie plate. Preheat oven 350F
9.  Roll one ball of dough so its diameter is larger than that of the pie plate. Make sure that the remaining balls are covered so they do not dry up.
10. Place the rolled dough onto the pie plate, taking care to cover the sides of the pie plate.
11. Spread some cheese on top.
12. Now spread about half of the stuffing. Spread more cheese on top. Make sure that the stuffing and cheese do not overcrowd the sides of the pie plate.

13. Roll another dough ball. Plate it carefully on the stuffing.
14. Pinch the rolled dough around the circumference so the stuffing is completely enclosed.

15. Prick some holes in the center of the pizza top so there is some way the steam escapes.
16. Bake in preheated oven for about 30 - 45 minutes. Keep a close eye after 30 minutes.
17. Take out pizza. Let it cool down a bit before cutting into "pie" slices using a sharp knife.

18. Serve immediately.
19. Repeat steps 9 - 18 for the second pizza "pie".

Note -
1. If you prefer a spicier version, you could add some crushed red peppers into the stuffing.
2.  Turmeric powder is obviously an Indian touch, which is added for its antioxidant properties. It is completely optional.
3. This recipe gives 2 deep dish pizzas of usual pie size diameter.
4. For authentic flavor, spread some pizza sauce without vegetables on the pizza pie after it comes out of the oven. Place some sliced tomatoes and black olives before serving.
5. In order to get a glaze for the crust, whisk 1 egg white and 1 tbsp water. Paint it on the top of the pizza pie using a pastry brush, before baking.

Chicago Style Deep Dish veggie Pizza from Chicago

 

Credits

Giovanni's Chicago Style Pizza

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