Vegetarian Recipe: Green Risotto

I made this a few days ago, and overdid on the homemade pesto, resulting in a pretty green risotto. But I am a huge fan of the greens, so I liked it that way! I had been wanting to try risotto for some time now. This article on gourmettravel.com helped me figure out how to cook a basic risotto, and I added more stuff like sundried tomatoes, fresh veggies and pesto to give it a nice twist.

I was also wondering how I would know when the risotto is cooked, and I found this wikipedia entry on "al dente", meaning to the tooth- still offering resistance to the bite, but cooked through.

Prep Time: 45 min

Serves: 3-4

You'll need:

Colored peppers: red, yellow and green- 1 of each

1 Zucchini

Fresh basil and parsley: a handful of each

1/2 cup broccoli florets

Extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup Arborio rice

Truffle salt

Sundried tomatoes

1 small Onion

2 big cloves of garlic

1 cup vegetable stock

2 spoons butter

Prep:

1. Heat butter in a wide pot. 

2. Add finely chopped onion and minced garlic and cook until they are soft and translucent.

3. Chop colored peppers and zucchini into thin rings. 

4. Add broccoli florets in a microwavable bowl and fill with water. Microwave for three minutes. Set aside.

5. Add the colored peppers and zucchini to the pot when the onions are cooked. Save half the green pepper. Stir until soft.

6. At this point, take out the peppers from the pot and set aside to be added at a later stage.

7. Add the rice and stir for about a minute.

8. Add 2 tbsp of vegetable stock and stir continuously on medium-low heat until the water evaporates, before adding more. Add salt and seasoning to taste.

9. Keep adding a ladleful of vegetable stock at a time, stirring continuously.

10. Drain the water from the broccoli, without discarding it. Also coarsley chop basil and parsley. Save a leaf of parsley for garnishing.

11. Add parsley, basil and 1/2 green pepper to a blender, with the broccoli stock. Blend until it becomes a smooth paste. Add the sundried tomatoes and blend a little more, until the tomatoes are coarsley chopped within it.

12. When the rice is softer, and about half cooked, add the pesto and broccoli florets. 

13. Keep cooking until the rice is al dente. 

14. Remove from heat and add the cooked peppers. Serve in a shallow bowl. Garnish with the parsley leaf and sprinkle some truffle salt.

Italian Oven-Roasted Vegetables

Wow! I am so excited to post my favorite and most frequently used recipe- roasted vegetables. It takes so long to make, and I have tried many different ways to do it faster (such as using dry minced garlic (ugh) or frozen veggies (so not fresh)), but it never tastes the same. So I stick to the longer method. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I do.

I first tried it I guess in 2010 when I used to be in grad school dorms experimenting with new foods every weekend. The idea came when I wanted to find out the difference between grilled, baked and roasted veggies, so I thought why not try them all and see! I tried it many many times with different combinations of herbs and veggies and spices, with different oven temperatures and (why did I) even without oven mitts!, before I settled on this version and just loved it, got so addicted that I used to make it every night for dinner (my dorm floor mates can vouch for that!)

As far as the selection of veggies is concerned, I use a bunch of them. Peppers of all colors, green beans, baby carrots, cauliflower and broccoli, corn and onions and sometime potatoes and rarely tomatoes(although I haven't shown them here in this recipe). The image also features olives that could have been marinated, asparagus soup (yummy too, I'll post about it sometime with its own story), le roulé cheese and Fontezoppa Verdicchio, which goes very well with the roasted veggies. 

Time: 1.5 hours 

Serves: 2

You'll need: 

Thin baby carrots, green beans, quantity is variable, but a cup of each is good.

1/2 small onion, 2 cloves of garlic

1/2 cauliflower, broccoli

2 green peppers
A handful of frozen corn (thawed)

½ red peppers, orange/ yellow can also be used

1 green chili (optional)

1 twig of fresh rosemary (or parsley)

Dry oregano flakes

Salt, black pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp truffle oil (optional)

Baking dish, oven and mittens (so important).

Prep:

1. Halve the carrots vertically or slantwise. Transfer to a microwave safe bowl and add some water. Microwave for 4 minutes.

2. Cut 1- 1-1/2" pieces of green beans, also slant-wise. When the carrots are done, add the green beans to the same bowl (keep carrots in) and microwave for 2 more minutes. Set aside when done. Don't drain yet.

3. Preheat oven to 430 degrees.

4. Take out the membrane of green peppers, and wash. Make 1" x 1" pieces and keep them in the baking dish. Try for whatever that goes in the baking dish to be as dry as possible. Also make sure you're not layering the veggies one on top of the other. They should touch the baking dish surface as much as possible.

5. Cut the cauliflower and broccoli into 1" florets and wash in a colander.

6. Drain and also keep inside the baking dish.

7. Make thin long pieces or circular of the red peppers and lay them on the baking dish. It's okay to layer these on top of the green pepper pieces.

8. Drain the carrots and beans and also put them inside the baking dish.

9. Chop onion into small pieces about 1/2" and also lay them and corn over the rest of the veggies. You can also make them bigger per preference.

10. In a small container, pour out 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil. 

11. Crush 2 medium sized cloves of garlic (or mince if you don't have a crusher). Add to the olive oil.

12. Chop parsley or rosemary finely and add to oil.

13. Add black pepper powder and lots of salt. It should taste slightly saltier than what you're used to. Trust me, it'll come out just fine later. You can also add red chili powder if you like it hotter.

14. Chop green chili and also add to the oil.

15. Mix well and pour evenly over the veggies in the tray. All these ingredients can also be added separately before you pour the oil, in case you were using an oil spray. Make sure all the veggies have been covered with oil, but don't overdo it either. 

16. Keep the dish in the oven. Make sure to use mittens.

17. Keep for 15 minutes and then check. You can turn the veggies upside down if they have started to brown. You can reduce or increase the heat from 420 to 450 depending on the situation. The brown level is upto you, but I usually want them properly cooked, which takes extra time. Keep checking every 10 minutes or so. 

18. You may take out the veggies that are already done and leave the rest for a few more minutes.

19. When all are done, add a spoonful or half of truffle oil. Serve hot.

20. I usually eat them as is, but you can have soup or rice to accompany.

Enjoy!!!

Easy Veg Clear Soup Recipe

Clear Vegetable Soup, or more commonly known as Veg Clear Soup is something I make when I don't have any time or can't give too much thought into what to cook. I first tried it on the first day I moved to grad school in Cambridge, MA, just because I had very limited groceries, no rice or bread and was too tired to go out to eat. It was a total experiment at the time, but since then I stuck to the same recipe, though I am sure there are fancier ways to make it. I like to keep mine mild, but you can make it spicier if you like.

You’ll need:

Flour and/or cornflour

1 clove of garlic

Soy sauce

Salt and black pepper

1/3 cup of your choice of veggies (Baby carrots, cabbage, pepper, green beans, broccoli, green peas, corn)

A couple of tofu cubes (optional)

1 tbsp butter

Prep:
1. Wash and chop baby carrots into ¼-inch pieces. Put in a microwavable bowl with a cup of water and microwave for 2 minutes.
2. Also wash and chop green beans into ¼-inch pieces. When the carrots are microwaved, add the beans to the same bowl and microwave for a minute more. Set aside, do not discard the water.
3.  Chop green peppers, cabbage and broccoli in same sized pieces and set aside. 
4.  Mince garlic.
5. In a small bowl, add 1 tbsp of cornflour and/or flour and mix with ½ cup water to create a smooth consistent paste.
6. Heat butter in a pan. Add garlic and sauté until lightly golden brown.
7. Add chopped peppers, cabbage and broccoli and sauté for a minute. Add green peas and corn and sauté for another minute.
8.  Add ½ cup water and the thickened cornflour paste and bring it to a boil. Turn the heat to medium-low.
9. Add 1 tsp soy sauce, salt and pepper powder to taste. Add the rest of the veggies, tofu with the water and mix well. Serve hot.

Vegetarian Cream of Mushroom and Almond Soup

I learned to make almond soup three years ago from my very talented cook in Hyderabad. But before I could try it myself, I wanted to add a spicy twist to it. So I thought why not add a bunch of whole spices and see if they can blend well. And I also wanted to recreate mushroom soup I had in Kebab Factory once in Somerville, MA. So I guess when I first made this soup, everything came together and I created this hot appetizer I love having in the winter.

Serves: 3-4

Prep time: 20 mins

You'll need:
Whole almonds (8-12)
1 cup milk (I prefer whole milk)
1 small onion (I prefer white)
2-3 cloves of garlic

6-8 button mushrooms
Salt, black pepper powder

1/2 green chili pepper (optional)

Spices (1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1 bay leaf, 2 whole cardamom seeds, a small portion of cinnamon stick and star anise, 2 cloves)

Extra virgin olive oil

Prep:
1. Wash almonds and soak them in water in a microwavable bowl.
2. Microwave them for 2 minutes.
3. In the meantime, chop onion into medium-sized pieces and mince the garlic and green chili.
4. When almonds are microwaved, separate them but do not throw the water.
5. Peel the skins of almonds and halve them. Set one or two aside for garnishing and cut them into thin long pieces.

6. Rinse or wipe mushrooms with a wet cloth and cut into thin long pieces.
7. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet. Add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon, star anise and cloves. Break the cardamom seeds and also add those.

8. When the cumin seeds start to splutter, add onions, garlic and green chili. Sauté them until they are
lightly golden brown.
9. Add the mushrooms and almonds. Continue stirring.

10. Add black pepper powder and salt to taste. Stir until the mushrooms are slightly brown. Turn off the heat.

11. Add 1 tbsp milk and mix.

12. Transfer the contents of the skillet to a blender and blend into a smooth paste.

13. In the meanwhile, heat the rest of the milk in a pot. Also add the water saved from the almond bowl.

14. Keep adding a tablespoon of warm milk to the blender to make a consistent paste so that all the whole spices are well blended.

15. When the milk in the pot begins to boil, turn the heat to medium-low and add the paste to it. Be careful while transferring hot beverages.

16. Add more salt and black pepper to taste. Thicken the soup to desired consistency. If it is too thick, add more water and bring to a boil. Mix well and garnish with the remaining almonds.