Thursday, March 15, 2012

Gnocchi With Roasted Vegetables

What can I say...I am on a roll!
Dinner tonight was golden roasted Gnocchi served on a bed of colorful vegetables. We were in the mood for something light and easy and this dish totally fit the bill. Considering the alternate plan of "Maggi", this was an upgrade and a delicious one at that. So here goes...



Ingredients:
8-10 colorful Jalapenos
1 Bell Pepper
1 small Onion
8-10 Cherry Tomatoes
1 tbsp crushed Garlic
7-8 Sage Leaves
Dried Oregano
Gnocchi
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Butter
Parmesan Cheese



Method:
Bring a pot of water to boil. Add some salt.
Cook the gnocchi for 4-6 minutes until they float on top.
Drain the gnocchi.
In a pan, add a tbsp of butter and toss in the gnocchi.
Roast on a medium low flame until golden.

Roughly chop up the vegetables.
Heat a skillet with a couple tbsps of Olive Oil.
Add the Onions and saute on medium for a few minutes.
Add the garlic, herbs, salt and pepper.
Add in the chopped vegetables and roast until cooked but still retaining their crunch.
Add in the roasted Gnocchi and toss for a minute.
Garnish with Parmesan and serve warm with a side of some warm bread.

Back from the Break with...Veg Kofta

After absconding from the blogosphere for almost 2 years, I am back with one of my all time favorite dishes...Kofta!
First a quick update on the last couple years...
Soon after my last post on Ciabatta, we found out that we have another precious munchkin on his way into our family. Siddhant came into our lives on the morning of Ganesh Chaturthi...Sept 1st 2011.In fact all my nausea and morning(and noon and night and midnight) sickness was the reason I didn't cook much and therefore blog much. Once he was born, I had my hands so full with the 4 yr old and the newborn that blogging pretty much was off my to-do list. Also, since both Shekhar's mom and my mom were here last year, I was barely cooking. I was just basking myself in their immense affection and pampering...
After that we had a 3 month period of nomadic lifestyle while we remodeled our house. We had some water damage in the kitchen that lead to a complete remodel of the entire first floor of our home. As painful as the 3 months were, I now have a brand new kitchen....built custom to my needs and taste and most of all EXTREMELY FUNCTIONAL. I will do a separate post soon showing off my dream kitchen...
Now life is back to normal and the routine with the kids is a like a well oiled machine. Its a priceless delight watching Anirudh and Siddhant grow up and I don't intend to miss a minute of it....

Coming to the recipe of the day....



Ingredients: 1 large Onion
2 large Tomatoes
1/4 cup Grated paneer
1 large Potato
1/4 cup Peas
1/4 cup Carrots
1/4 cup Beans

2 tsp Turmeric
2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
3 small Green Chillies
1 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Kitchen King
1 tsp Kitchen King
2 pc Bay Leaf
2 pc Moti Elaichi
1 tbsp Fresh Cream
1 pinch Kasoori Methi
2-3 tbsp Maida
Dhania for Garnish
Oil, Ghee, Salt, Sugar


Method
For the Kofta:
Pressure cook or steam and mash all the vegetables and mix in the grated paneer.
Add salt, a pinch of turmeric, 1 finely chopped green chilli, 1 tsp red chilli powder and some finely chopped dhania leaves.
Mix all the ingredients into a thick dough and make small balls with the palm of your hand.
Dissolve the maida in about 1/2 cup of water and remove any lumps. Add a pinch of salt.
Heat a cup of oil in a small kadhai for frying the koftas.
Dip each kofta inside the maida mixture and coat all sides. Let it sit in the maida for about 30 seconds.
Slowly drop them one by one into the hot oil. Make sure there is sufficient room in the oil.
Frying too many koftas at once could make them break in the oil.
Once they are fried to a golden brown color, remove and set in a paper towel.



For the gravy:
Finely chop the onions, tomatoes, green chillies.
In a skillet, heat about 2 tsp of ghee or white butter and let the jeera splutter in it.
Add the onions, green chillies and a tsp of sugar and saute until it caramelizes.
Add the kasoori methi, Garam Masala Turmeric, Kitchen King, Bay Leaf, Elaichi and 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder and saute until the raw smell disappears.
Add the tomatoes and cook until they are pulpy. Add salt.
Simmer for about 5-8 minutes.
Take about 3 Tbsp of this gravy and grind into a fine paste in the processor and add it back to the skillet.
Drop in the crisp Koftas in to the gravy, season with fresh Dhania and a dash of cream, and serve.