Monday 21 July 2014

 Multi Layered Bruschetta

Bruschetta
An amazing preparation with veg or non-veg topping on bread slices bruschetta is best for breakfast or snacks. My daughter in-law is an enthusiast cook and modifies each and every recipe according to our taste. This version of bruschetta is her creation. We love to have it in our weekend brunch menu. It is a variation keeping in mind our love for mushrooms.

Preparation Time: 20-30 min.
Cooking Time: 30-40 minutes
Servings: 10-12 Bruschetta

Ingredients Required For Making Bruschetta:
  • 400 gm. Fresh Mushrooms
  • Sliced Bread (Multigrain/Whole Wheat)
  • 4-5 Leaves of Basil
  • 100 ml. Thick Coconut milk/100 gm. Coconut milk Powder
  • Salt to taste
  • 10-15 gm. Walnuts
  • 1 capsicum (small)
  • 1 Tomato
  • Pizza spread
  • Butter

Direction For Making Fresh Coconut Milk:
  • Grate fresh coconut after removing the kernel from the shell.
  • Grind the grated coconut to fine paste by adding 100 ml. water in little amounts.
  • Sieve the thick liquid from the paste.
  • To the remaining solid add 50 ml. of water and grind again. Sieve the paste. This will give thinner liquid.
  • Mix the two milky liquid obtained. Fresh coconut milk is ready.
  • If you are using coconut milk powder then add the coconut milk powder to 100 ml. of luke warm water and stir till it dissolves. Heat for 1 min. on low flame with continuous stirring to ensure it dissolves completely.

Direction For Making Bruschetta:
  • Wash the mushrooms nicely.
  • Drain all water and pat dry them with a cloth.
Cleaned Mushrooms
  • Cut the mushrooms to small pieces.
Chopped Mushrooms
  • Remove seeds from capsicum and tomatoes and cut then to fine pieces and keep aside in separate bowl.
Finely chopped Capsicum
  • Cut the walnut kernels to small pieces (size of pieces may vary as per liking).
  • Put the chopped mushrooms in a thick bottom wok and cook on low flame. Mushrooms will start losing water and shrinking. Keep cooking with regular stirring.
Mushrooms cooking in thick bottom wok on low flame
  • Once the water reduces considerably the total amount of material in the wok will reduce to half.
Mushrooms ready for Coconut milk to be added
  • Add
    • Coconut milk
    • Salt to taste
    • Shredded Basil leaves
  • Cook on low flame with regular stirring till all liquid dries off and a thick mass of mushrooms is left. 
Mushrooms cooking in Coconut milk along with herb 
Mushrooms ready for Bruschetta
  • Remove the mushroom cooked in coconut milk.
Mushrooms Cooked in Coconut milk
  • Butter one side of bread slice and toast it on a pan till light brown repeat same on the other side also.
Crisp toasted slices  and coated with Pizza spread
  • Apply pizza spread on one side and keep the slice of bread on hot pan/tawa with the side having pizza spread facing down.
  • Toast for just one minute on low flame. Remove from pan and spread a liberal coat of cooked mushrooms above the pizza spread on the toasted bread slice.
Slice Toasted on Both Side 
Toasted Slice With Pizza Spread
Mushroom spread over toasted slice with Pizza spread
  • Sprinkle
    • 5-10 pieces of capsicum
    • 5-10 pieces of tomato
      Capsicun and Tomatoes sprinkled over Mushrooms
  • Sprinkle pieces of walnuts.
  • Enjoy Hot, crisp juicy Bruschetta with tea/coffee/milk/fruit juices
Bruschetta
Tips:
Do not use butter too much slices are supposed to become crisp not full with butter.
Make sure the side with pizza spread should be cooked with care on low flame otherwise they will get burnt and the taste will get spoiled. It has happened with me so be doubly sure that the heat is on low while toasting the slice.
Burnt and blackned slices along with correctly cooked slices
  • Basil should be always shredded not chopped with knife.
  • Mushroom should not become dry and retain the moisture.
  • Multigrain bread is best as the nutritive value as well as the taste gets enhanced.
  • Fresh herb give the best flavor.
Alternative Suggestions:
  • Sautee one medium size finely cut 100 gm. onion in olive oil till they turn transparent. Add finely chopped 150 gm. tomatoes till they get cooked completely and the mixture become mushy. Add salt to taste. Cook till the liquid start drying and the mixture starts leaving the edge of pan. Add one teaspoon oregano, 1 teaspoon red chili flakes (or to taste), 1 teaspoon soy sauce and one teaspoon ginger-garlic powder. Cook for just one minute. Cool the cooked mixture and make a fine paste.
  • Walnuts can be replaced with Almonds or 1:1 ratio of walnuts and almonds.
  • Red bell pepper/yellow bell pepper can be chopped and mixed with capsicum for toppings.
  • Basil can be replaced with fresh parsley/celery for change of taste.
  • Each slice can be cut to four pieces before making bruschetta. It makes very good appetizer.
  • Walnuts can be roasted before adding to toppings.

Friday 11 July 2014

Chicken-Coriander Soup



Chicken-Coriander Soup
Chicken soup is very rich in nutrients and when mixed with coriander and lemon it becomes rich in vitamin C and Iron also. This gives it an edge over rest of the soups in taste as well as its therapeutic value. For a person suffering from cough, cold, and sore throat or is feeling low in energy this is the soup which helps tremendously and rejuvenating the system completely.  The lemony flavor along with the coriander makes it not only tasty but very appealing to our olfactory system. In simpler words the flavor of coriander and lemon make it very tempting and second helping is always called. If I am making the soup while my children are not well then I do not remove the fat otherwise fat is removed before dicing the chicken. It is very easy to make and does not require big preparations or long intricate steps.

Preparation Time: 5-10 min.
Cooking Time: 10-15 min
Servings: 4 Large helpings

Ingredients Required To Make Chicken-Coriander Soup:
  • 150 gm. Bone less chicken
  • 800 ml. Water
  • 10 ml. Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
  • Small bunch of Fresh Green Coriander Leaves
  • Salt to taste
Directions For making Chicken-Coriander Soup:
  • Wash chicken thoroughly and drain all water from it.
  • Dice chicken to small (1cm. approx.) pieces.
Diced Chicken
  • Clean and wash the coriander leaves thoroughly.
Coriander Leaves
  • Cut the coriander leaves to small pieces. It is not required to be cut finely.
  • Squeeze lemon and store the juice in the fridge.
  • Take water in a big cooking bowl and add salt to taste. Put it on the heat and let it boil.
  • Once water starts boiling lower the heat and add diced chicken in it and keep stirring while it is being cooked.
Chicken being Added To Boiling Water
  • Cook on low medium flame for 5 minutes with constant stirring. Chicken will turn to pinkish white and will become soft.
Chicken pieces after 5 Min. of Cooking
  • Switch off the heat and add the coriander.
  • Cover and allow it to stand for 2-3 minutes for coriander flavor to mix nicely with the soup and chicken pieces.
  • Take required amount of pieces and liquid in a soup bowl/Cup and add freshly squeezed lemon juice as per the taste.
  • Serve hot. It is healthy tasty and taken with crisp toast/ garlic bread makes full meal.
Chicken-Coriander soup
Tips:
  • Chicken fat provides much needed energy and need not be removed but if it is being taken for watching the weight then it is suggested that fat be removed completely before dicing.
  • Wash coriander in flowing water even if it looks clean. Herbs grow nearest to the soil thus require utmost care during cleaning.
  • If the stalk of the coriander are hard then take only top green leafy part otherwise just remove the root and use rest, Why waste?
  • Do not cook the chicken for a long time as it will become chewy surely an unwelcome thing.
  • Keep stirring the chicken while it is cooking to avoid formation of chicken lump 
  • Add less salt to water during cooking the chicken more can be added after tasting the soup as per requirement. Excess salt will spoil the taste.
  • Do not add lemon juice while the chicken is cooking it will impart bitter taste to the soup. Add lemon juice to hot soup just before serving to get full flavor and taste.
Suggested Variations:
  • Few coriander leaves can be diced fine and added after adding lemon juice.
  • Cilantro which is one of the variety of coriander does not impart as good flavor as coriander leaves thus I prefer Coriander leaves (Dhaniya patta).

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