Caprese on a stick - perfect for Summer!

Something about food on a stick appeals to me, and this caprese salad tastes so much better served on a stick. It also helps that the recipe is so simple. It's the perfect Summer salad to impress your friends! :)




Serves many

Basil leaves
Grape tomatoes
Perline (pearl size) Mozzarella cheese - I used the Crave Brothers brand available in Whole Foods
Salt & pepper to season
Olive oil - one turn of the bottle
Toothpicks

Take a toothpick, and thread it through one grape tomato, one basil leaf and two mozzarella pearls. Place on a plate, and repeat until you have as many as you need ot run out of ingredients. Season the caprese sticks with salt, pepper and good quality EVOO before serving. That's it! :)

Chutney Pomfret - Do you smell home yet?

Do you know how certain foods and smells have a way of transporting you back in time? This recipe did the same for my husband, Lakshman. A wave of nostalgia hit him reminding him of time spent with friends in cheap, seedy food joints in Bombay, living it up with finger lickin' good food and "quarter" bottle alcohol shared amongst best buddies... :)



Serves 2

2 whole Pomfrets - cleaned (a type of fish popular in India - You can find it in the Asian markets/fish stores in Chicago)
Haldi or Turmeric - 1 tsp
Red chilli poweder - 1.5 tsp
Salt to season
Oil - 1 tbs

For Green Chutney, you need -
1 bunch Cilantro
A couple of sprigs of Mint
1 green chilli - serrano or Thai (you can add more if you like it spicy)
Salt
Juice of half a lime
Hing/Asafoetida - Optional

I got the fish cleaned and prepped at the fish store like in the following picture Make sure there are multiple slits on the body.



Marinate the fish with salt, haldi, red chilli pwd for about 30 minutes.

Make the Green chutney by grinding cilantro, mint, green chilli , salt, lime juice and hing to a thick paste in a blender. Add very little water only if necessary during the grinding process.

After the fish has marinated for 30 minutes, generously spread the green chutney into the slits and body of fish. Let marinate for an additional 5 minutes.

In a skillet, add some oil (I used EVOO). As soon as the oil gets hot, add the fish (one at a time)and let it cook/brown for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Pomfret is a very bony fish with very little flesh - so cooking time is usually quick.

Serve with more fresh green chutney on top, and a side salad. I served mine with some quinoa salad.

Enjoy!!!

Lima beans with dried wild mushrooms

I got fresh lima beans in my produce box last week and finally cooked myself a bowl yesterday. Source: Vegetables, James Peterson

Serves 2

1.5 cups of shelled lima beans

1 cup dried mushrooms, the original recipe calls for porcini and I used wild mushroom mix

1 tsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to season

• Soak mushrooms in 1/2 cup of luke warm water for 30 mins. Move the musrooms around in the bowl every few minutes to ensure that all of the mushrooms are well soaked.

• With 15 mins left on the soak. Bring 3 cups of water to a rolling boil, add the beans and let cook for 10 mins. Drain and toss with olive oil.
• Heat a wok, toss in the beans and chopped mushrooms with the water. Careful to keep the grit and sand in the bowl. Cook over medium high heat until the water cooks off.
• Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Trout en papillote

Serves 2

2 Trouts, gutted and cleaned
1/2 bulb of fennel, thinly sliced
4 thin slices of lime
1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves
1 tomato, chopped
1/4 cup white wine
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp crushed red pepper
1 crushed and minced clove of garlic
Salt and pepper

• Preheat oven at 375 deg and saute fennel in olive oil and garlic until tender and lightly browned. Season with salt.
• Cut about a foot of parchment paper, fold it into half and cut into shape of a heart.

• Place the fish closer to the center of the paper, season with salt and pepper. Place half of the following - fennel, coriander leaves, chopped tomatoes, red pepper and sliced lime.

• Fold the paper over the fish and fold the edges with short, overlapping folds. Leave a small opening, spoon in half the white wine and olive oil. Carefully, complete folding the packet.

• Place it in a baking sheet and bake for 15 mins.

• Remove and serve with a pair of scissors :)

Sauteed Swiss Chard

1 bunch swiss chard, remove the center vein
3-4 red chillies, broken into pieces
3 pods garlic, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil


Cut the swiss chard into ribbons and put into a bowl of cold water. Heat olive oil in a pan, and add the red chillies and garlic. Saute for 3 minutes and then remove swiss chard from water and place into pan. Dont shake off the water from the chard, this will allow it to steam in the pan. Cover and cook for 3 minutes, and then cook with cover off for 3-4 minutes more. Serve as a side.

Ultimate Couscous

This recipe was part of the "food lover's cleanse" on Bon Appetit

It had delicious Moroccan flavors and was fairly easily to put together for a weekday dinner. Adapted with minor changes from the original recipe

FOR THE VEGETABLES:
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch chunks
1 onion, chopped
2 1/2 cups cubed butternut squash
1 cup cooked chickpeas (canned)
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 tsp hot paprika
1/4 tsp chile flakes
2 cinnamon sticks
4 star anise
3 bay leaves
5 tbsp olive oil
some cilantro leaves for garnish
Salt


FOR THE COUSCOUS:
1 cup couscous
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 cup boiling vegetable stock
1/2 tsp coriander pwdr

Mix together all the ingredients for the vegetables, leaving out the chick peas and the cilantro leaves. Put this mix into an overproof dish and cook at 350F for about 30 minutes. By this time the vegetables should be cooked, while still retaining a bite. Now stir in the cooked chick peas and put into the over for 5 minutes.

In another bowl, put the dry couscous with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, the frozen peas, 1/2 tsp coriander pwdr, and ½ teaspoon salt. Pour the boiling stock over the couscous. Cover the bowl with a tight lid and leave for about 10 minutes. Fluff up the couscous with a fork, cover again and leave somewhere warm.

To serve, serve the couscous onto a plate, spoon the vegetable mixture on top and sprinkle cilantro leaves.

Vanilla Date Smothie

1/2 cup almond milk (vanilla flavored)
3 medjool dates, remove seeds
4 tbsp greek yoghurt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Whirr everything in a blender to a thick puree. Add ice cubes as needed. It was simply delicious!