Pasta – Veg – Recipes for the regular homecook

Macaroni and Cheese Without Milk & Flour

Macaroni and Cheese is a classic recipe and everyone’s favourite. There are a thousand ways to make this recipe and this is mine. I no way do I claim this recipe to be an authentic version. This macaroni and cheese recipe is very personal and I have been making this for as long as I can remember. I usually skip the milk and the flour in this recipe, as I feel it makes the entire meal way too heavy. For a home cooked meal, I like to keep it simple, and use a little bit of cream and hot water as the binding agent, and there is absolutely no compromise on the amount of cheese!

What makes this macaroni and cheese recipe so special?

There are several reasons why this macaroni and cheese recipe is special.

-Probably the easiest mac and cheese recipe there is!

It cannot get easier than this. This recipe is made straight in a skillet and there is no oven needed whatsoever. You can always put some extra cheese on the top and bake it until golden brown to make it a little more special. But if you want to skip that part, it is fine too!

-The best topping (other than cheese)

The second best part about this macaroni and cheese recipe is that delicious topping of panko breadcrumbs, seasoned with salt and pepper. This topping makes a world of a difference to the flavour profile and elevates this recipe to a whole new level. It is a must if you make this, as the recipe is otherwise pretty simple.

Good quality macaroni is a must!

The market has a wide variety of macaroni, but this recipe requires for one that is sturdy and does not melt too quickly. Go for a brand that has superior quality elbow macaroni, and skip the flimsy ones that you might make for an Indian style macaroni pasta. This is because the macaroni will cook in the base of cream and hot water, and it needs to maintain its shape and not disintegrate into the sauce. Clumpy or mashed macaroni is a nightmare when it comes to a good macaroni and cheese.

Here’s a look at the recipe.

Preparation time – 15 minutes

Cook time – 35-40 minutes

Serves – 4

[ingredients title=”Ingredients”]

1 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 tsp black pepper powder (for flavouring the breadcrumbs)
1 cup elbow macaroni
2 tbsp cooking oil (any neutral oil like Sunflower/Canola etc.)
2 tbsp butter (25 grams)
1 cup finely chopped onions
3 medium cloves of garlic, finely chopped
6 cups of boiling hot water
3 cups elbow macaroni
1/2 cup fresh cream
1/2 tbsp freshly ground black pepper powder
1/2 tsp Oregano
1/2 tsp chilli flakes (optional)
1 tsp dried mix herbs (if any)
Salt to taste
150 g grated processed cheese [/ingredients]

[directions title=”Directions”]

Heat a skillet and add the breadcrumbs. Keep stirring the breadcrumbs on medium to low flame till they start to turn golden brown. Do not burn.
Season the breadcrumbs with salt and black pepper powder. Set aside for later.
Heat oil in a skillet or pot. Add the butter and mix the two fats. Add the chopped onions and saute till they turn aromatic and slightly golden brown.
Once the onions are soft, add the garlic and saute till it assimilates with the oils and the onion.
Once the onions and garlic is cooked and do not contain any rawness, add the hot water and the cream. Mix well and let it come to a boil.
Add the elbow macaroni into the boiling base and stir well.
Season with salt, black pepper powder, and the herbs. I like to add chilli flakes for some heat, you can skip it if you do not want it.
Once everything is well combined, cover and let the macaroni cook on medium to low flame for 10-15 minutes (or till soft). Keep checking from time to time to prevent it from burning.
Take lid off and stir till you get a creamy consistency. Add in the rest of the cream and cheese and mix well.
Serve hot with a generous topping of the toasted breadcrumbs. Enjoy! [/directions]

I hope you try this delicious macaroni and cheese recipe soon. It is a slight deviation from the traditional recipe, but tastes lighter and extremely delicious!

If you have any doubts, comments, or feedback, please reach out to me in comments or my social media handles.

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Happy cooking!

Roasted Bell Pepper Pasta

So the other day I had to use two bell peppers that were in my fridge. All of us at home wanted to eat some pasta so I thought of combining the peppers with some spaghetti. But it had to be interesting too. So I charred one each of red and yellow bell peppers on my gas stove, along with two tomatoes. I removed the seeds and the char and blended it all to a bright paste with salt. I started cooking the pasta in lots of salt and water by this time. I then put some olive oil and butter in a pan in very low heat, added lots of garlic and allowed it to cook together. The garlic released its oils into the butter and EVOO, filling my kitchen with an appetising aroma. I then added the blended roasted bell peppers and tomato sauce and cooked it on low flame will oil started to accumulate on the sides. And in went the al dente pasta, along with salted pasta water (the secret weapon to any great pasta).

For this recipe, I didn’t have any fancy cheese or fresh herbs, so I added whatever I had – Amul cheese blocks grated on top and dried herbs (it was the second week of Lockdown). Chilli flakes is a must! Well, all I can say is we licked everything off our plates and the effort was worth it. I hope you try this recipe to see what I’m talking about. Also, special thanks to the husband who has been helping me with all the pictures. Be prepared to see some of me in the coming days 😀

Here’s the recipe:

Preparation time – 30 minutes

Cook time – 30 minutes

Serves – 4

[ingredients title=”Ingredients”]

1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
3 medium sized tomatoes
300 g spaghetti
Salt to taste
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
20 g butter (1 1/2 tbsp approx)
8-10 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tbsp dried basil/fresh Italian basil leaves
1 tbsp dried Oregano
2 tsp chili flakes
1 tbsp black pepper powder
Fresh herbs, if any (basil/cilantro)
Grated cheese [/ingredients]

[directions title=”Directions”]

Wash the bell peppers tomatoes and pat them dry with a kitchen towel or cloth. Rub oil on them. Char them directly on fire till they blacken. Let them cool down.
Once cooled down, remove the blackened parts of the bell peppers and tomatoes. Don’t worry if a few tidbits are left. De seed the bell peppers and roughly chop them with a knife. Do the same with the tomatoes.
Blend all the vegetables together to a fine and thick paste.
Heat water in a wide mouthed pot. Allow it to boil. Add enough salt to it so that it tastes saline.
Cook the spaghetti in this pot as per package instructions till al dente. Reserve some of this hot and starchy pasta water for later use.
While the pasta is cooking, start the sauce simultaneously. Heat olive oil and butter in a skillet on very low heat. Add the thinly sliced garlic and let it cook slowly. Let the garlic release its aroma and juices into the oil.
Once the butter starts to brown and the flavour of the garlic is assimilated into the oil, add the blended bell pepper and tomato puree. Stir on high heat for two to three minutes.
Season with dried basil, oregano, salt, black pepper powder and chilli flakes. Mix well.
Cover and cook on low flame for seven to eight minutes till the oil starts to release from the sides.
Add the cooked spaghetti into the sauce along with a ladle or two of reserved pasta water. Mix well on low flame till it all comes together. Add more starchy water if required. It helps keep the noodles soft and glazy.
Garnish with any fresh herbs of choice like basil, parsley or cilantro.
Garnish with grated Parmesan cheese (or cheddar if you’re out of Parmesan) [/directions]

I hope you try this delicious roasted bell pepper pasta super soon! If you have any doubts, comments, or feedback, please reach out to me in comments or my social media handles.

Find me on Instagram – www.instagram.com/slurrpilicious

Find me on Facebook – www.facebook.com/slurrpilicious

Find me on Youtube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA-cJoo27OLSCswI4sy6lzA?

Happy cooking!

Fettuccine Alfredo With Broccoli & Cherry Tomatoes

Alfredo sauce is love! Anything with Alfredo in it makes life better. Don’t you agree?

But usually, Alfredo makes people think of a thick and heavy sauce that makes you full till your neck. Fear not! This fettuccine alfredo is light, yet creamy. Believe it or not, a major part of the sauce is the reserved pasta water.

It is one of the simplest dishes that comes together in 20 minutes tops, and it tastes heavenly even in its most basic form. Unlike most Alfredo recipes, the sauce for this one is quite thin, yet super luxurious. The secret is the pasta water and very little cream. So what you end up eating is a very light pasta that does not leave you gasping for breath. It is not overloaded with cream or cheese, but tastes just beautiful in all its simple glory. I went ahead and added some broccoli and cherry tomatoes.

You can seriously throw in whatever vegetables or protein you like. If you get the basic technique right, there is no way this is going to taste any less delicious. Or maybe you can come up with your own version and let me know about it someday!

So let’s get straight into the secret of this delightful pasta dish.

Preparation time – 20 minutes

Cook time – 30 minutes

Serves – 3 people

[ingredients title=”Ingredients”]

Fettuccine pasta, 300 gms
Steamed broccoli florets, 300 g, steamed for five minutes.
Cherry tomatoes, 200 g
Garlic, 3 cloves
30 g butter
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp fresh cream
1/2 cup Italian Basil leaves
1 tbsp pepper
100 g grated Parmesan cheese
Salt to taste [/ingredients]

[directions title=”Directions”]

Boil water in a wide pot. Add two tablespoons of salt to the water and let it bubble.
Add the fettuccine pasta to the water and let it cook it is al dente (80% cooked). See the package for exact instructions.
While the pasta is boiling, start making the sauce simultaneously. Heat olive oil in a pan. Keep the flame at low intensity.
Throw in the butter and lightly stir, allowing the butter to melt softly and assimilate with the olive oil.
Finely chop the garlic and add it to the olive oil and butter. The heat has to be low at all times so that nothing is burnt. What you want is to let the garlic and its juices get infused into the fat of the oils. Let this remain for five minutes.
After five minutes of letting the garlic sweat into the oil, add one cup of boiling pasta water into the pan and stir. Let it come to a boil.
Add the heavy cream to the water and keep stirring in low flame till you get a thick consistency.
Throw in the fresh cherry tomatoes right before you add the al dente pasta into the sauce. Stir gently.
Add the boiled pasta to this sauce and cook till it is completely softened. Keep adding more boiling pasta water as and when required.
Once you get your desired consistency and the fettuccine is cooked completely, turn off the heat.
Season with freshly ground black pepper powder.
Put the steamed broccoli florets into the pan and stir.
Garnish with grated Parmesan cheese and stir.
Serve immediately with fresh Italian basil leaves as garnish. Enjoy! [/directions]

I do hope you try this pasta recipe. It will truly change the way you look at, feel about or cook Alfredo in the future. Happy cooking!

If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to reach out to me with a comment or connect with me on Instagram or Facebook.

Penne with Pesto Sauce

The first time I ever made pesto pasta was at a friend’s place a few years ago. He had fresh Italian basil leaves growing in his campus, all green, healthy and beautiful. That was the first time I also realized it is possible to grow Italian basil in Indian soil as well.

So we grabbed some fresh basil from the garden and went home to make some spaghetti with pesto. The results absolutely amazed me! I had no idea something so simple could taste so good!

The traditional recipe for pesto is combining basil with pine nuts. Since it is almost impossible to find pine nuts at a regular store in India, we decided to go with walnuts. My friend dry-roasted some walnuts and ground it along with the fresh basil, garlic, salt, and olive oil. Now that was a magical combination.

It has been a couple of years since I got exposed to pesto and I have adapted it into my life quite well. I end up making pesto almost every fortnight. To be honest, it is one of my favorite dinner recipes. It is especially great on those tiring days where you want to get done with dinner in 15 minutes. Trust me, it will become your favorite too.

Preparation time – 15 minutes

Cook time – 20 minutes

Serves – 2 to 3 people

[ingredients title=”Ingredients”]

500 g Italian basil leaves
12 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
500 g penne pasta
200 g walnuts
80 g garlic
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper powder
100 g grated parmesan cheese
Salt to taste [/ingredients]

[directions title=”Directions”]

Cook the penne as per package instructions till al dente. You can also use any kind of pasta like fusilli, spaghetti or fettuccine.
Dry roast the walnuts in a pan. Do not burn them. The roasting will help the walnuts from turning bitter in the final pesto sauce.
In a grinder, put the washed basil leaves, salt, garlic cloves, and olive oil. Blend this together till you get a fine and thick paste.
In a pot, add the cooked pasta. Pour the pesto on top and give it a good stir, making sure every strand of the pasta is covered in the pesto sauce. Make sure you don’t cook the pesto so remove the pot from the stove when you do this step.
Garnish with black pepper powder and grated parmesan cheese. Serve immediately. [/directions]

This pesto pasta is such a simple and classic dish. I hope you try it and enjoy it as much as I do. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me with a comment or we can connect on Instagram or Facebook.

Want more such pasta recipes? Find them all here – https://bit.ly/2vXeBFt

Happy cooking!

Slurrp tip – Make sure the black pepper powder is freshly ground. It will make a lot of difference!

Cacio e Pepe With Caramelised Mushrooms and Onions | Dinner Recipes | Slurrp

The first time I actually heard about Cacio e Pepe was sometime in 2016 when I stumbled upon a YouTube video about the rage going on. I was so intrigued by it that I kept myself updated with everything I could lay my hands on about this new recipe on the block.

Turns out, Cacio e Pepe is very common in Roman households and is one of the most favorite homecooked recipes for Romans. It had just not entered the world of restaurants yet.

Not the case anymore, though.

Back then, I read about how Cacio e Pepe had taken over social media, with all the biggies in the food world talking about it, and also introducing it in their restaurants. This very same dish was termed New York’s “trendiest dish of 2016!”

2016 was still a formative year in pasta learning for me, so it was hard for me to believe that a pasta with three ingredients can become so popular. But all my doubts were erased when I started making it for myself.

I know I make a LOT of pasta, and I cannot get enough of it. Having said that, I can also very comfortably now express that Cacio e Pepe is one of my favorite ways to make pasta. And oh boy, is it delicious!

The sharpness of the freshly ground pepper, the magic of the reserved pasta water, the juicy spaghetti and the sinfulness of the cheese – what’s not to like? And to top it off, it goes with my constant need for tasty food that gets ready in the least amount of time and effort. And the usage of super fresh ingredients for that extra punch. A perfect dinner recipe indeed.

Coming back to facts about its origin, Cacio e Pepe is actually a Roman pasta recipe, cacio referring to cheese and pepe, to pepper.

It is traditionally served with square cut spaghetti or tonnarelli in Rome. Some chefs also prefer using rigatoni. I have used thick spaghetti, and it made a perfect recipe for me as I could slur(r)p up the cheesy goodness. Get the pun?

It is absolutely necessary that the pepper is fresh. So grind some fresh peppercorns into a powder to use here. Store bought black pepper powder will not bring out the taste freshly ground pepper will. The cheese used in the original Cacio E Pepe is Pecorino Romano. If you do not have this particular variety, you can use parmesan too.

So here is my version of Cacio e Pepe as a home cook, with no knowledge of culinary technicalities of the restaurant world. But I do have a lot of practice of making it a vital part of my dinner recipes.

[ingredients title=”Ingredients”]

100 g spaghetti
15 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
80 g butter
2 medium onions, finely chopped
200 g button mushroom, each cut in half
2 tbsp finely chopped garlic
2 tbsp freshly crushed black pepper powder
1-liter water
100 g grated parmesan cheese
Salt to taste [/ingredients]

[directions title=”Directions”]

Heat water in a pot. Add half a handful of salt to it. Addition of salt is very important in making pasta, and experts say that enough salt should be added to the water, and it should almost taste like saline water. Once the water comes to a boil, add the spaghetti and cook as per package instructions till al dente. Reserve about 100 ml of this hot, salty pasta water to be used later.
While the spaghetti is cooking away, heat about 3 tbsp olive oil in a pan. Add 1 tbsp butter to it so that it doesn’t burn. Place the chopped onions on one side of the pan and the button mushrooms on the other. Fry this while stirring occasionally till the mushrooms and onions caramelize and turn into a beautiful brown color. Season with salt.
In another pot, add almost 12 tbsp olive oil (remember this is going to be the base of this simple dish, and therefore the oil required is quite a lot). To this, add the finely chopped garlic and freshly ground pepper powder. Make sure you add the ingredients before the oil is too hot, as the flavors need to get infused into the oil. Keep the flame on low, and turn it to medium once the flavor assimilates into the olive oil.
At this point, add the reserved salty pasta water, followed by 20 g butter to the olive oil infused with garlic and black pepper. Give it a good stir to mix everything together.
Add the cooked spaghetti into this mixture, and stir. Let the spaghetti take in the flavors in that fluid. Switch off the fire once you see a good consistency. Add a generous helping of the parmesan cheese and mix it into the pasta. And serve hot! You may garnish with some parsley if you like.

[/directions]

Want more such pasta secrets? Grab them all here.

If you like this, do try it. You can follow the video along with the instructions as well. Always love hearing from you so do drop me a comment! 🙂