Vegetable Hakka Noodles

          This is my first noodles dish here, though I have made it a couple of times, I wanted to get it perfectly before I blogged about it. A very easy dish, if you get your noodles cooked perfectly, just follow the instructions on the noodles packet, you should be fine. With the vegetables and tofu added, this makes a complete meal..

Need To Have

• Ching's Vegetarian Noodles - 1 packet
• Cubed Tofu - 1 cup
• Carrot - 1/2 cup, sliced into thin strips
• Capsicum - 1 cup, sliced 
• Shredded Cabbage - 2 cups
• Onion - 1 small, sliced
• Spring Onions - 1 cup, chopped
• Garlic - 3 cloves
• Soy Sauce - 21/2 teaspoons
• Ching's Red Chilli Sauce - 31/2 teaspoons
• Black Pepper Powder - 1 teaspoon

Method

          Saute the cubed tofu in a little oil, till it turns golden brown.

          Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the packet, in boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain, mix in some oil and separate the noodles and let it cool.

          Heat some oil, add the garlic, toast till it's golden, remove it. To the same oil, add the onion and spring onions ( saving a little of the green part for garnishing). Saute for 2 minutes, then add the carrots and capsicum, saute again for another 2 minutes. Then add the cabbage and keep sauteing for 2 more minutes.

          Now add the soy sauce, the red chilly sauce and salt, mix it , add the cooked noodles and tofu. Mix it gently, finally add the pepper powder, mix it well, garnish with the spring onions and serve it hot.

Note
Don't overcook the noodles, then it'll be a mushy dish.
Serve it with some soy sauce, chilly flakes and black pepper on the side, so that you can add them according to your level of spiciness.
Be a little generous with the oil.
Always make in small batches, it's easy to mix in the noodles and it comes out perfect.
Serves 2 to 3 people.

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Minty Creamy Vegan Pasta

          My daughter loves Italian food, I send her pasta for lunch at least once a week, but since I make it in the morning in a hurry, it's mostly pasta mixed with some pasta sauce and cheese. Only when I make pasta during the weekends, that I try out something different. Though I like cheese, I try to avoid it owing to the high fat, at the same time I try to bring the creaminess using other ingredients, this Minty Creamy Pasta is one such effort and it tasted really delicious. Since mint gives such a lovely flavor to pasta I  have added it, but guess what I have used for the sauce..

Need To Have

• Multi Grain Elbows - 11/4 cup
• Button Mushrooms - 3 cups, sliced
• Garlic - 2 cloves, chopped finely
• Ground Black Pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
• Chopped Mint - 2 tablespoons
• Salt - to taste

For The Sauce

• Quaker Quick Cooking Oats - 2 tablespoons
• Cashews - 8
• Dry Oregano - 1/2 teaspoon
• Dry Basil - 1/2 teaspoon

Method

          Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the box. Grind together all the ingredients given for the sauce, adding a little water.

          Heat some olive oil, add the chopped garlic and saute till it starts turning golden and gives a nice smell. Now add the mushrooms and salt and keep sauteing on medium heat, till all the water released by the mushrooms dries up and they are cooked.

          Now add the ground paste and mix, add about 1/2 cup or more of the water used for cooking the pasta and the pepper powder. Keep mixing for about 2 or 3 minutes, if it dries up, add some more water.

          Then add the cooked pasta and mix well. Finally mix in the chopped mint and serve it warm.

Note
Don't overcook the pasta, otherwise the whole dish will be mushy.
Always the final dish should have a slightly thin sauce, otherwise, as it cools the pasta will become too thick and dry.
If you want more sauce and less pasta, increase the sauce ingredients.
You can also add some red chilly flakes if you like.

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Three Cheese Elbow Pasta

          My daughter's favorite restaurant is the Olive Gardens (back in US), and the dish that she orders almost every time we went there is the Five Cheese Ziti Pasta. Now we are in India and she misses the Italian food. This week she is getting her braces done, and one of the foods that she cannot have much after that is cheese, which she loves. So, for the past few days it has been all pasta and pizza. I made her this Three Cheese Elbow Pasta, named so, because I had used multi grain elbow pasta and the three variety of cheese that I had. It is a very easy dish, even kids can put it together, tasted very good, my daughter's verdict was, ' tastes close to the Five Cheese Pasta', well, what more can I ask for..

Need To Have

• Multi Grain Elbow Pasta - 1 + 1/2 cup
• Pasta Sauce - 5 to 6 tablespoon
• Grated Parmesan Cheese - 3 tablespoons
• Grated Cheddar Cheese - 3 tablespoons
• Mozarella Cheese - same amount as the above cheese
• Dried Oregano - 1/2 teaspoon
• Salt & Pepper - to taste

Method

          Cook the pasta as per the instructions on the box. Drain, mix in the pasta sauce, microwave for 2 minutes. Remove, add the oregano powder, pepper, salt, the grated parmesan and cheddar, mix, add the mozarella slices on the top and microwave for another 2 minutes or till the cheese melts. Serve it warm.

Note
Once the pasta is cooked, you can do the last part- mixing in the cheese and microwaving in separate bowls and serve them.
The amount of cheese added depends on individual preference, I had added a little more of each cheese and microwaved it separately for my daughter.
You can use any kind of pasta.
I had used Kraft Parmesan, local Cheddar from Auroville and Amul Frozen Mozarella.

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Pasta Briyani

         Though I do pasta at least once a week for my daughter, it's mostly with pesto or the pasta sauce, this is the first time I tried something Indian with it. I used fusili pasta, made a briyani with it, lightly flavored with the garam masala, it tasted very good. It was a nice variation to the regular pasta, with all the vegetables in it, a filling one pot meal..

Need To Have

• Fusili Pasta - 3 cups
• Carrot - 1 medium chopped
• Red Capsicum - 1/2 chopped
• Green Capsicum - 1/2 chopped
• Fresh Or Frozen Green Peas - 1/4 cup
• Onion - 1 medium chopped
• Tomato - 1 chopped
• Garam Masala - 1/2 teaspoon
• Chopped Coriander Leaves - 1/4 cup

To Grind

• Garlic Cloves - 4
• Chopped Ginger - 1 tablespoon
• Cashews - 6
• Chilli Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Coriander Powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Method 

         Cook the pasta as per instructions with some salt and a teaspoon of oil, drain the water and keep and grind the ingredients given under to grind without adding any water. Heat some oil, add the onions, saute for 2 minutes, then add the ground mixture, saute for 2 more minutes.

         Now add both the capsicums and carrot, saute for a couple of minutes, then add the peas and tomatoes, mix for a minute, add half a cup of water, cover and cook till the vegetables are done. Then add the garam masala, mix and finally add the cooked pasta, mix for a few minutes on reduced heat. Lastly mix in the coriander, serve it warm.

Note
Cook the pasta al dente, can use even pasta shells.
It does not require any side dish, if needed can serve a raitha on the side.

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Vegan Creamy Pasta

          I love pasta with the alfredo sauce, but most of the time, avoid it because of the amount of calories and fat in the sauce. When thinking about an alternative, I came up with the idea of using mustard seeds and cashews in the place of butter and all purpose flour. I know many of you would make a face at the thought of using mustard seeds, even I had my doubts, but went ahead with the idea and believe me, it tasted really good, creamy and rich, finger lickin' good or should I say fork lickin'..

Need To Have

• Whole Grain Shells (Pasta) - 4 cups
• Red Pepper ( Capsicum) - 1 diced
• Mushrooms - 8 oz diced
• Zucchini - 1 diced
• Dry Basil - 3 teaspoons
• Red Chilli Flakes - 1 teaspoon
• Cashew Pieces - 2 tablespoons
• Yellow Mustard Seeds - 2 teaspoons
• Black Pepper - to taste

Method 
         Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the box ( for about 10 mins). Make a paste with the cashews and the mustard seeds. Heat some olive oil, add the red pepper, mushroom and the zucchini, saute for a few minutes. The vegetables should be half cooked but not mushy. Now add the basil, red chilly flakes and the paste, saute for a few more mins till the raw smell of the mustard seeds goes ( for about 5 mins). Finally mix in the pasta and serve warm with a dash of black pepper.

Note
The vegetables and pasta should not be over cooked.
I don't know whether you can use the store bought mustard sauce, because it contains ingredients other than mustard, try it and let me know.

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Penne Pasta With Pesto And Lime

          Whenever I make pasta, either it is with some tomato sauce or pesto and tomatoes or the white sauce, nobody likes it dry. Even when I make it dry, it's like pasta with pesto, some vegetable, tomatoes and cheese. Last time, when I was in New York, I tasted the most delicious lasagna, with pesto and lemon or lime flavor. It was not much cheesy and I loved the refreshing citrus flavor. I wanted to try it at home, the lasagna has to wait, but I made it with penne pasta, my own home made basil pesto and broccoli, it came out very well..

Need To Have

• Whole Grain Penne Pasta - 2 cups
• Basil Pesto - 4 teaspoons
• Broccoli - 2 cups
• Parmesan Cheese - 2 teaspoon
• Salt & Pepper - to taste
• Olive Oil - 1 or 2 teaspoons
• Lime Juice - from 1/2 a lime

Method
          Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet. Microwave the broccoli till done but crisp. You can also do this by adding broccoli to boiling water for 2 mins, then washing in cold water. To the pasta, add the pesto, broccoli, mix, add the oil, cheese, lime juice, salt and pepper mix everything well and serve. The pasta tastes great either warm or cold.

Note
You can use any pasta of your choice.
Pepper and lime juice are as per your taste, best to serve it with a wedge of lime and pepper on the side.
You can use store bought pesto too, and also any other vegetable, I used broccoli as I wanted to maintain the green color of the pesto.

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Pasta with Kumato Tomatoes

          Ever since I read about these tomatoes in Priya's Now Serving, I had wanted to try them. Couple of weeks back when I saw them, I picked a whole pack of them.These tomatoes are a reddish brown in color and have a unique taste, not too sour and not too sweet. Well, I was thinking of ways to use it, of course not in the regular Indian way but where you can taste the tomatoes in the dish. I couldn't come up with anything, except for eating it raw, so I finally decided to use it in a pasta dish. It turned out to be really.. good, I had also added some roasted eggplants and asparagus to it. If you find these tomatoes at your grocer's, do give it a try, you will love it..

Need To Have

• Whole Grain Medium Shells Pasta - the full box (375g or approximately 5 cups)
• Kumato Tomatoes - 4 medium sized, chopped
• Asparagus - 1 + 1/2 cup chopped into 1" pieces
• Big Eggplant - 1/2 of it diced
• Chilli Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Dry Basil - 1 + 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt & Pepper - as per taste

Method
          Cook the pasta according to the instructions in the box. Mix the eggplant, asparagus, 1 teaspoon basil, salt and a dash of freshly ground pepper and spread in a oven proof dish and roast them for 20 mins at 400F, turning them in between. Once the pasta and the vegetables are done, you can put together the dish in a jiffy. Heat some olive oil, add the chopped tomatoes, saute till mushy, add the roasted vegetables and salt, mix, finally add the pasta and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon basil. Mix everything together, check for salt and pepper and serve it warm.

Sending it to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event,
                to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event,
                to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                to Spicy Treats for the Show Me The Hits - Fiber Rich Foods event,
                to Sumee's Culinary Bites for the Bon Vivant event,
                 to Taste Of Pearl City for the Healthy Morsels - Pregnancy event,
                to Srav's Cooking Concepts for the Vegan Diet - Only Plant Based event and
                to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event.

Note
Don't overcook the shells, you want the shells to be separate not sticking to each other.
Can drizzle some more olive oil in the end, before serving.

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