It was one fine boring day in the office when I was doing my
favorite time pass by browsing IndiBlogger website. I was reading here and
there, indulging in random-thoughts-activation-thereby-killing-boredum on
reading various posts when I came across the Indiblogger contest from Delmonte.
Now, not everyone knows that I have always loved pasta, to
the extent that I have heroically blackmailed (read indulged in emotional
appeals/shamelessly bribed) my wife to prepare the same for me many a times. It
is another story that, that brave soul had been unflinching to these
blackmailing attempts by her sheer willpower till our pasta adventure. I
analyzed all pros and cons of participating in this contest judiciously, lazily
while scratching my head. “This blog contest is a golden opportunity buddy” –
This was the thought when I clicked on the harmless Register button after one
and half hours of brainstorming. I completed registration and after two days my
beloved wife received an attractive Del Monte pasta package. I made her read
all about this contest. Lo and behold, IndiBlogger convinced her in 10 minutes;
something in which I was unsuccessful since past 6 months!
We selected a relatively free Sunday to carry out our joint
pasta adventure. She instructed and I bought the ingredients. She arranged the
artifacts and I clicked the pictures. She cooked, I assisted. She stirred the
sauce and I smelled it to provide my expert comments. She took out the final cooking
result in the bowl and I garnished it. (Random resultant thought: Cooking can
be the best activity to know each other as a person)
We had invited my sister and her husband for the grand pasta
tasting ceremony. Reception to our baby pasta dish was amazing; it was finished
in few minutes flat contrary to our fear of creating something gastronomically
unappealing. Their praise and our pasta’s endearing fragrance motivated me to
submit our entry finally. Our recipe is given below, try it yourself. Hope you discover
the magic of pasta!
Presenting you with ‘The Mintadian’: Fresh Mint Pasta – ‘Where
Italian meets Indian’
How many lucky ones
can enjoy this preparation: 4
How much time you
need to devote: 45 minutes
Ingredients for
Innovation:
Let's Begin!
What?
|
Ugh What?? Come again..
|
How Much?
|
Any alternative?
|
Del Monte Pasta
|
Pasta
|
100 Gms
|
Nope!
|
Capsicum
|
Shimla Mirch or
Capsico
|
2 Medium Sized
|
Nope!
|
Onion
|
Pyaz or Cipolla
|
2 Medium Sized
|
Nope!
|
Tomatoes
|
Tamatar or Pomodori
|
6 Medium Sized
|
Tomato Ketchup
– 100 ml
|
Green Chilies
|
Hari Mirch or Green
chili
|
2
|
Green chili
paste – 1 teaspoon
|
Ginger
|
Adrak or Zenzero
|
2 Cloves
|
Ginger Paste –
½ teaspoon
|
Curry Leaves
|
Kari Patta or foglie di curry |
10-15 leaves
|
Oregano – 1
teaspoon
|
Dry Mint Leaves
|
Pudina or foglie di menta |
15-20 Leaves
|
Nope!
|
Salt
|
Namak or Sale
|
2 teaspoon
|
Of course not!
|
Butter
|
Makhkhan or
Burro
|
Olive oil
|
|
Carom Seeds
|
Ajwain/Carom
Seeds
|
1 teaspoon
|
Dry herbs
|
Black pepper
|
Kali mirch/Pepe
Nero
|
½ teaspoon
|
Nope!
|
Lemon Juice
|
Neembu Juice or succo di limone |
½ teaspoon
|
Nope!
|
Apple
|
Come on, you
must be joking if you are actually looking at this column!
|
1
|
Up to you! You
may / may not add apple to your final preparation, I added it though.
|
Pomegranate
|
Same thoughts
as for ‘Apple’ column above :D
|
1
|
Up to you! You
may / may not add apple to your final preparation; I ended up not adding it.
|
Cheese
|
formaggio
|
2 Dices
|
Up to you! You
may / may not add cheese to your final preparation; I ended up not adding it.
|
Water
|
Same thoughts
as for ‘Apple’ column above :D
|
1 ½ Liters
|
Absolutely not!
|
Let's Begin!
Dummy’s guide to Greatness:
- Take 1ltr of water in a pot and bring it to boil. Add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 dice of butter in it.
- Add Del Monte’s pasta to above boiling water and cook it on high flame for 15 minutes, stirring continuously to avoid sticking of pasta.
Tip: Remove starchy foam occasionally from the top of the pan while the pasta is boiling.
- Drain water from Pasta by using sieve and then grease it with butter to avoid stickiness. Keep it aside. Butter will add to the flavor of the pasta.
- Make a paste of capsicum and onion. Keep it aside.
- Make a paste of tomatoes, green chilies, ginger, mint leaves and curry leaves. Keep it aside
- Put 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan and heat it on low flame
- Add carom seeds to it and stir it.
- Add salt and freshly grounded black pepper to the sauce, once it starts boiling. Stir it for 2 more minutes.
- Add cooked pasta to this sauce and take it out in a glass bowl.
- Add a dash of lemon juice to this pasta along with a dollop of butter and garnish it with apple slices and/or pomegranate seeds. Your pasta is ready to be served!
PS: Not happy how it looks, but it was a yummy treat. A bowl of pasta was over in exactly 4:30 mins.
Thank you Delmonte India for this wonderful contest. Shout out to https://www.facebook.com/DelMonteIndia
Thank you Delmonte India for this wonderful contest. Shout out to https://www.facebook.com/DelMonteIndia
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