Vegetable Platter

Spaghetti in a Super Quick Tomato & Cashew Sauce

I didn't intend to take such a long break from blogging but juggling hazaar things with an active toddler is by no means an easy task. Whenever I take a look at some of my favorite blogs/cookbooks or even food shows, I realize, how much I miss food photography & blogging. I do plan to work on that soon.

Pasta is not my Dad's favorite dish but this post is for him because every time I visit him, he makes it a point to ask me about my long forgotten blog. And Every Single time, I make a mental note to come back home & then it never happens. He asked me the very same question last evening so this afternoon I made this simple pasta for lunch & quickly did all the photography & the recipe is here.

Thanks Dad, for being the first one to read my posts, every single time :)

Ok so, Pasta does feature in my list of comfort foods. And, this super quick sauce made with tomatoes & cashews is my go to recipe. I picked up the recipe from VeganYumYum many moons ago & it has been a favourite since then.

Spaghetti in a simple Tomato Sauce with Red Peppers & Olives

The sauce uses very few ingredients that are easily available in the pantry & is very very quick to whip up. The weather in Bangalore is at it's awesome best currently & the weather does demand for a bowl of nice & creamy pasta

You Will Need:

1 Packet Spaghetti

3 large ripe Tomatoes

1 tbsp tomato puree

4 cloves of Garlic

A handful of cashews

1 tsp cracked pepper

Salt as per taste

Black Olives

1 red Bell pepper - diced

Fresh Parsley or Basil for garnish

1 tbsp Olive Oil

How To:

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil & cook paste according to package instructions. While the pasta is cooking, Add roughly chopped tomatoes, garlic, tomato puree, garlic & cashews in a blender & blend until smooth.

In a heavy bottomed pan, Heat olive oil & saute diced peppers for a couple of minutes. Later, pour the sauce from the blender into the pan. Add some salt & let it simmer for about 5-6 mins, stirring occasionally. Add some water or milk to get the desired consistency, if the sauce thickens too much

Once pasta is cooked, drain water & set aside. Add drained pasta into the pan, add some freshly cracked pepper & olives. Add chopped Basil or Parsley ( I used parsley) & toss to coat

Serve Immediately

Note:

Replace Spaghetti with any other pasta of your liking
You may replace cashews with almonds or even fresh cream
Use whole Wheat Spaghetti for a healthier option

3 comments

, by Deepthi Shankar

Dal Fare

Raw Mango Dal

6 comments

, by Deepthi Shankar

Gravy

Matar Paneer | Cottage Cheese & Fresh Green Peas Simmered in a Tomato Based Gravy

2 comments

, by Deepthi Shankar

Soup

Smoky Black Bean Soup

I know I am too late to be wishing Merry Christmas but all the festivity is still in air & I hope everyone's enjoying the holiday season. We haven't been able to take off due to some work commitments & also that Kedar is still small we have to think twice before any plans are made. But we are enjoying some quite time at home.

I haven't baked much this season apart for the Masala Biscuits I made over the last weekend to go with some chai, I have been eating this really yummy Plum Cake that the husband bought from the bakery in his office campus. Yumm de Yumm I tell you.

The weather in Bangalore is Brrrr right now which makes it perfect for a nice Soup like this. Full of flavor & packed with a punch. This was what I made on Christmas Night & we enjoyed it with some nice garlic bread.

You Will Need:

1 cup Black Beans - soaked overnight or for a min of 6 hrs
1 onion - chopped
2 large tomatoes
3-4 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
1 bell pepper - chopped I used half a red & half a yellow
Salt as per taste
2 tbsp salsa - I used store bought
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp cooking oil
Fresh Parsley for garnish
2 1/2 cups or more of Vegetable stock

How To:

Pressure cook black beans until tender. Allow it to cool & mash with a potato masher & set aside. Over a gas flame, fire roast the tomatoes until cooked. Fire roast the onion as well. once cool, blend into a smooth paste.

Heat oil in a soup pot, add chopped bell peppers, garlic, cumin & oregano & saute until the bell peppers are tender. Add black beans, 2 1/2 cups of vegetable stock or water, salsa & some salt. Add the onion & tomato paste as well & Bring it to a gentle boil while stirring at regular intervals. simmer for about 6-8 mins.

If you find the soup too thick add some more stock or water to adjust the consistency. Pour into individual soup bowls & garnish with Parsley & serve Hot with a crusty bread

NOTE:

Use Canned Black Beans to save cooking time
Since Salsa already has some salt, go easy on salt

7 comments

, by Deepthi Shankar

Breakfast Dishes

Quinoa Khichdi | Sabudana Khichdi Style

4 comments

, by Deepthi Shankar

General

Gusto D'Italia @ Spaghetti Kitchen & Bar

Spaghetti Kitchen & Bar is a lovely little Italian restaurant tucked in the by lanes of Koramangala & I ate the most scrumptious Italian fare at Spaghetti Kitchen last week. I was invited to review their newly introduced Lunch & Dinner Buffet menu starting from the 24th of September.

Gusto D'Italia as the buffet is called boasts of 30 different dishes on their buffet menu which includes everything from starters to soups to yummy pastas & desserts.

Spaghetti Kitchen has a lovely ambiance with Mediterranean influence. The restaurant is divided into two segments. One segment is painted blue & has colored glass lanterns & the other segment is more airy with large windows & loads of sunshine

We started off with some smoked tomato soup along with some breads & dips and some stuffed olives.

Next came in the Parmesan Cream Cheese Potatoes & Sicilian Cottage Cheese. There was also some Corn Fritters with Labneh. We also had some lovely Peach & Strawberry Martini for company.

They also had a lovely spread of Pastas. But the highlight was the Ricotta & Spinach stuffed Ravioli & the Vegetable Lasagna. The Thin crust Veggie Pizza was great too.

Wherever there is Italian food, there Ought to be Tiramisu :) then of course there were some Hot Brownies & of course choice of Gelato.

The vegetarian Lunch Buffet is Priced at Rs 399 & the Non Vegetarian Lunch Buffet is priced at Rs 499

The vegetarian Dinner Buffet is Priced at Rs 449 & the Non Vegetarian Dinner Buffet is priced at Rs 499 A whole lot of Italian food at this price is definitely a steal.

And, there was more .. Chef Bill Marchetti - Corporate Chef for Spaghetti Kitchen was also present at the venue. He not only saw to it that his guests ate well but also cooked some Pasta for us. He made his signature Penne Arrabiata with Vodka & Fettuccine con Pesto. It definitely was a pleasure to watch the Masterchef cook for us. Not only that, He gave us loads of food tips & great stories about Italian food all along ( which I will be sharing in my future posts )

After being stuffed with good food unlimited Martinis, we had some Italian Espresso from the Cafe located inside the restaurant

I loved the buffet spread. Not a single dish that was bad. The Sicilian Cottage Cheese could have been better though, But everything else was spot on. For Rs 399 + it is a lot of food & you are guaranteed to have a good time.

SPAGHETTI KITCHEN AND BAR – KORAMANGALA is located at

No 1, SJR Primus,

1st Floor, Adjacent to Raheja Arcade,

Koramangala,

Bangalore – 560095.

Tel No: (080) 4116 0500 / 4099 0500