Fettuccine with Tomato-Basil sauce –

Igredients -

Extra virgin olive oil – 1 tb-spoon

Onion – 1 large, chopped

 Garlic cloves – 3-4, minced

Freshly ground black pepper - 1/4^th t-spoon

Crushed red pepper - 1/4^th t-spoon

ripe tomatoes – 2 pounds (0.9 kg. approximately), coarsely chopped

tomato paste - 3 tb-spoons

Fettuccine pasta – 1 pound/ ½ kg. approximately

Freshly chopped basil - 3/4^th cup + basil sprigs for garnish

Parmesan cheese - 2 tb-spoon, coarsely grated

Salt to taste

Procedure -

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large, heavy bottomed pan over high heat. Add the onions and garlic, and sauté for 3-4 minutes, or until tender. Add the salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes and sauté.

3. Stir in the tomatoes and tomato paste, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until the tomatoes begin to cook down into the sauce.

3. While the sauce simmers, add the pasta and some salt to the boiling water, return to a boil and cook for 9-11 minutes. Reserving 1/4^th cup of the cooking liquid, drain the pasta in a colander. Sprinkle few drops of olive oil on pasta so that they won’t stick together. Transfer the pasta to a serving bowl and toss with the reserved cooking liquid.

4. Add the chopped basil into the sauce and spoon the sauce over the pasta. Top with the Parmesan and garnish with the basil sprigs.

Note :

Serve this fettuccine with mixed salad tossed with lemon juice and garlic or a red-wine vinaigrette.

Rajma (kidney beans curry) -

Ingredients -

Rajma| kidney beans – 1 Cup, dry

Onions – 2 medium, roughly chopped

Tomatoes – 3 medium, chopped

Ginger - 1” chopped

Garlic cloves – 2-3, chopped

Green chilies – 2, chopped

Rajma masala - 3-4 Cloves, 2-3 Green Cardamom, 1” Cinnamon, 4-5 black pepper

 Bay leaves – 2

Cumin seeds – ½ t-spoon

Turmeric powder – ½ t-spoon

Red Chili powder – 1 tb-spoon OR to taste (use kashmiri red chili powder)

Coriander powder – 1 tb-spoon

Cumin seeds powder – ½ t-spoon

Amachoor powder – 1 t-spoon

Salt to taste

1 tbsp ghee + 1 tsp Oil

Chopped coriander leaves and 1 t-spoon butter for garnishing

Procedure -

1. Wash and soak Rajma overnight or 5-6 hours in hot water.

2. Drain and pressure cook with 2 cup fresh water until the Rajma is cooked soft yet hold it’s shape – for about 15 minutes. Keep it aside.

3. Heat oil and ghee combination in a pan, add cumin seeds and bay leaves and sauté. Add onions and Sauté it for 3-4 mins until the onions become light brown. Add ginger-garlic and sauté for a minute. Add chopped tomatoes and cook for 2 -3 minutes, till they become little mushy.

4. Grind all the whole spices in a mixer grinder. Add all the spice powders to the onion-tomato mixture. To this, add cooked Rajma along with the stalk. Adjust the consistency to your choice and let it cook for 10-15 mins on low heat. Stir occasionally.

5. Finally add salt to taste. Cook for 2 mins more. Remove from the heat. Check for seasoning. Let it sit for 10-15 mins before serve. Let blend all the spices with Rajma.

6. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or paratha.

Note:

1. Rajma-chawal is a very popular Punjabi meal. Rajma is also regularly cooked in Kashmir. While making Rajma in Kashmiri style, use 1/8 t-spoon of funnel seeds powder and 1/8^th t-spoon of nutmeg powder and skip the cumin seeds powder.

2. Rajama should be mildly spiced and little sour in taste. If you don’t like sour taste, you can skip amchoor powder, but don’t add sugar.

3. Here I am using pressure cooker, but traditionally rajma is cooked on a low-medium flame for a longer duration. You can use slow cooker for this recipe.

4. You can use ghee as much as you want, here I tried reducing ghee/oil as much as I can.

Dum Aloo Kashmiri –

Ingredients -

Small potatoes – 1 pound/ ½ kg

Tomatoes – 2 medium

Red chili powder – 1 t-spoon

Cumin seeds – 1/4^th t-spoon

Turmeric powder – 1/4^th t-spoon

Dry ginger powder – 1/4^th t-spoon

Funnel seeds powder – 1/8^th t-spoon

Bay leaves – 2

Garlic cloves – 5-6

Ginger – ½ ‘’

Curd – 1/4^th cup

Water – 2 cups

Oil – 1 tb-spoon + for frying potatoes

Chopped coriander leaves for garnishing

Procedure –

1. Boil the potatoes and peel them off. Punch some holes in potatoes by using fork. Make fine paste of tomato and keep aside.

2. Heat oil in a kadai and deep fry potatoes. Make a paste of ginger and garlic.

3. Heat oil in another pan and add bay leaves and cumin seeds. Let the seeds splutter.

4. Add ginger-garlic paste, all dry spices, red chili powder, turmeric powder, dry ginger powder, funnel seeds powder and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add beaten curd and sauté till the mixer is completely cooked and oil starts leaving the mixture.

5. Add tomato paste and sauté till tomatoes are cooked.

6. Then add fried potatoes, 2 cups of water and mix well. Cover the pan with lid. Give dum or cook for 5 to 10 minutes.

7. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with paratha or jeera rice.

Avocado and lettuce salad with lemon and garlic dressing –

Ingredients -

Avocado – 2

Iceberg lettuce – ½ or 1 small

Scallions/spring onions with onion greens – 1 bunch/ 4-5 onions and greens

Tomatoes – 2 medium

Cilantro/coriander – 2-3 tb-spoons finely chopped

For dressing –

Juice of 2 lemons/limes

Garlic cloves – 4, finely chopped

Extra virgin olive oil – 3 tb-spoons

Freshly crushed black peppercorns – 6-8

Mustard powder – 1/4^th t-spoon (optional)

Salt to taste

Procedure –

1. Chop the avocado in bite size chunks. Shred iceberg lettuce. Slice onions and greens. Slice tomatoes.

2. Mix in lemon/lime juice, garlic, black pepper powder, mustard powder, salt and EVOO.

3. Arrange iceberg lettuce in plate. Arrange tomato slices around the corners over the bedding of lettuce. Keep avocado pieces and onions in the center. Sprinkle onion greens and chopped cilantro/coriander.

4. Drizzle the dressing on salad and eat little cold for that crunch of lettuce and fresh taste and color of avocado.