Oregano Omelet

Are you puzzled or startled? Or may be even shriek at the very thought of oregano in Omelet?
No...No...No! Don't worry...go ahead and read. Believe me. It is one beautiful, humble but tasty recipe.
It was weekend. Of course it was, as that is the only time I prepare eggs for breakfast, or eat eggs for that matter. All three of us got up and I saw these pink flowers of oregano blooming in my kitchen garden, looking so beautiful. Since I knew that these flowers are edible, my first thought was " why not make an omelet with these flowers?!" I asked Rishab, if he wanted eat an omelet with oregano flowers and he was so happy to hear that "Yaaaa....I want to eat it. Yaaa! with oregano flowers!...."I went and cut a few sprigs, before they all wilt and cannot be used anymore.
Servings: 3-4 servings
Preparation: 10 minutes
Baking: 3-5 minutes

Ingredients:

4 eggs
2 tbsp milk
salt to taste
1/4 tsp black pepper from the mill, or to taste
1 tbsp butter
8-10 fresh oregano leaves
6-8 fresh oregano flowers (bunches)

Method:

• Beat the eggs with the milk and salt till light and frothy. Ideally it should become quite stiff
  
• heat a fry pan on medium heat and add butter, spread evenly on the base and the sides by tipping it and swirling it
• place the leaves and flowers evenly on the surface
  
• add the egg froth over it carefully with a spoon or gently letting the froth to flow down while moving the and sprinkle with pepper
• reduce heat a little, add a little more butter, if required from the sides to prevent it from sticking to the pan, and cover the pan with a lid until the omelet is almost not fluid anymore
• turn the omelet carefully but quickly with a large spatula and switch off the heat and leave the pan on the stove for another minute before serving with bread rolls or toast
  

Added later: I forgot to mention about how it tasted. This was a wonderful taste, very new to me in an omelet and still was the right instinct to use it an omelet. Even my son enjoyed eating it. It is a very mild taste, nothing to be compared with dried oregano. I love this taste of fresh oregano in food and anybody who likes fresh oregano would surely love it in an omelet too.

This is my entry to the event 101 Recipes #1: Omelets I found just a couple of days back at the wonderful blog of Sangeeth.
Right now there are about 33 recipes and if nobody else has already submitted, mine is the 34th, so those still interested, go ahead and post your favorite omelet recipes.

cauliflower broccoli soup

I was looking for a good recipe with cauliflower, something simple but still to fill up the stomach and satiate the soul too. And I was also in the mood of trying a soup. But, didn't really know what. I had already bought some nice hazelnut bread rolls too. So, I googled with Food Blog Search and came upon this recipe from her blog. I think most of you know her. I had seen the name of her blog listed at quite many places (blogs), but never had a chance to really go through it. But this time I did it and found a number of wonderful recipes. Yes, I'm talking about 101 Cookbooks !
And this recipe really caught my fascination, and I knew that this would be our meal that evening. I followed the recipe as truly possible. Since I had bought one small cauliflower and one small broccoli , both being organic, I also added broccoli to the recipe and instead of using Gorgonzola - for two reasons - I didn't have any and secondly it would have made the flavour for us, at least for my sonny boy, too strong, I opted for some alpine cheese and some Grana padano instead, which she had also talked about in her post - of substituting the cheese. And I used lactose free sour cream (10% fat) instead of creme fraiche. And I also added a chopped potato and a piece of ginger to the soup.For the garnishing, parsley had been suggested, which I think is a wonderful combination.
But, I wasn't keen on cutting the parsley in my pot on the terrace yet, which wasn't as optimal in its size - it was still growing. So, I thought of giving the recipe another PG-twist! I made a totally different garnishing - with an Indian touch. I cut up one large potato into fine cubes and fried it in olive oil along with cumin seeds and finely cut onion rings. For hubby and myself, I also fried a couple of whole red chillies in the oil at the end. And served it with the flavourful hazelnut bread rolls, which is a speciality of a bakery nearby.
Now i have made broccoli and cauliflower soups and usually don't even look for recipes for that. But this time it just so happened. And it was very good change to our regular meals, as I am not so much into soups generally, but every now and then I do feel like it. And this was a new recipe for me. Rishab, like always ate up all the bread and had to be practically blackmailed to eat his soup. NO soup - NO "Princessin" (author Tony Ross), a 10 minutes programme he is allowed to watch along with the 10 minutes "Sandmännchen" which follows it where Sandmännchen carrys a bag of "sleep-sand" and at the end of the cartoon he throws out a handful to make the children sleepy (at least in the cartoon!).
Usually he does try the food and a lot of times he realises that it wasn't bad at all, and he ate a little bit of the soup in fact, which means it has to be a good one.
The meal made a wonderful combination in my opinion and I can recommend it further to all, especially who are on the look out for simple and quick but tasty meals.

Trying my hand at Badane Ennegai

This was fun to do. Since I discovered this Tried &Tasted event of the beautiful Zlamushka (I guess she needs no introduction..) with her wonderful blog Zlamushka's Spicy Kitchen the last time, I was on the look out for the next event too.
And again, she features a wonderful blog this month "Monsoon Spice" with an amazing collection of very original and very tasty vegetarian Indian recipes by Sia. I went through Sia's blog and couldn't decide on any particular recipe as each was better than other and each more tempting than the other. But, then when the desire for a good recipe with aubergines arose, it solved my problems. I knew where to go, and I found this lovely recipe, where , I think, for the first time I really had everything I needed, well....as perfectly as possible :). And I even had the tamarind paste, which i used for the very first time. Until now I always used the pulp with its seeds, and got a bit too over-excited and used a wee bit too much, that I had to add a pinch of sugar to optimise its taste, but it tasted just wonderful! It will surely go into my recipe book of "tried, tasted and passed" recipes!

I did have to substitute the baby brinjals with the regular large elongated aubergines, the only kinds I get here. And as you see it wasn't as easy to handle them. I had to use a number of thoothpicks to hold them together, and turned them while cooking wasn't as easy either. But, once they were done , I just took out the toothpicks and let it simmer for a few minutes.
And because of allergies (my son's, I've just go to know of it) I had to replace the peanuts with cashews. And at the very end, I couldn't resist adding two small tomatoes from my very own kitchen garden. :)
The recipe is just the kinds I thought it would be. I am so happy to have tried it, as this was the firt of its kind that I have made, with dessicated coconut. And infact, since I had a lot of it left for the next day, I simply added some water to it and cooked it again to make a curry out of it. Sia, I hope I'm not making you tear your hair out with this experiment, but it tasted so good!












So, here goes my entry to Zlamushka's T&T Event!
And this one also goes to a wonderful Event: Sas Bahu aur Sensax Contest at Edible Garden.

Wholewheat bread, another trial

...and it was the most successful one I have had so far. The bread was soft inside, just the way it should be, but the crust was a bit too hard. But, this was surely one time where the results, partly expected, were so good that you actually almost enjoyed the crust in the thinly sliced bread sandwitches I made, or when eaten with my home made jams. Yes, it was so thoroughly enjoyable.
It was partly expected, because I used equal amount of type 550 to the whole wheat unlike in my previous efforts, like here, any many others which I haven't posted here (waiting for the prefection to take place...!) where the amount of wholegrain flour or the type number was much higher.
But, still this was surely not bad at all. I just have to figure out how to prevent the crust from getting too hard. I think I baked it for too long. Or was it the temperature?....Or did I brush too much of milk on it?.... does that make the dough hard?....... No idea. But, next time I'll be more watchfull of the time I keep the bread in the oven. And the temperature too!
But, as I said, we enjoyed eating a healthy bread whose pleasure was added by the wonderful garnishings of jams, cheeses and once the corn-potato pattie -sandwitch which I made. The Rucola (Arugula in English) leaves and the red onion (not so matter-of-factly available here, but in season now) in the corn-potato patties sandwitch made it taste superb! Now, I'm sorry for not posting a picture of these, these were gobbled up so fast that I just didn't get theopportunity to take pictures. Infact, I was happy that at least I could take one picture with my home made jams, whose recipes I'll be posting soon.
Now, this recipe is actually a mixture of different recipes from my cookbook. Though I'm beginning to feel that I need to buy a good book on bread baking.
Ingredients:

Starter:
100 ml leuke warm water
1 packet (1 cube; 42 g) fresh yeast
1 tsp sugar

400 g whole wheat flour
400 g Type 550 flour
1 cup shredded flax seeds
2 tbsp salt (amount can also be reduced to make it not too salty)

400-650 ml leuke warm water
milk to brush the surface of bread once in the baking pan

Method:

• crumble the yeast in a bowl and mix with the sugar and add the water to it to mix gently and keep asie for 15 minutes.
• mix together the flours and flax in a deep bowl
• make a well and add the starter in the middle and adding small quantities of the remaining water knead to make a soft dough. Be careful not to addd too much especially at the end.
• Let it proof, covered, in a warm place (* see note below) untill it has almost become double the size - about 2 hours.
• Punch it down after that and divide into two portions and put one in a bread pan and with another just form a round or oval loaf on the baking try and let both the loafs proof (rise) again for 45 minutes
• Preheat oven to 220 °C (I did it with convection, therefore at 200°C), and bake the breads: the loaf in the pan for 50 minutes and the one on the tray for 35 to 40 minutes

I used my bread pan and one small pan which I bought for my son, as I prepared it with him together, and with the rest I made a round loaf. So, now you know why the bread slices on top look so small, as they are the ones from my son's pan. They looked really cute! And I finished off my breakfast with these cute and heavely slices of bread with two different mango pineapple jams (recipe will follow soon!)

*Note: For those living in cold climates, to let the dough rise at a "warm place "I usually switch on the oven at 50 °C, the minimum temperature possible, and switch it off after 10 minutes or so, before I put the dough inside. Cover the dough in the bowl with a kitchen towel.

Now this recipe goes to the WBB event: Grains in my Breakfast , an event initiated by Nandita of Saffron Trail and being hosted this month by Aparna at My Diverse Kitchen.

Rheinish Apple tart

I was doing my regular shopping at the local drugstore Budnikowsky and found this rack of books donated by people living locally for a good cause. These books are given away for 1 Euro each as a donation and the money goes to Budnianer Hilfe e.V., helping children and their families of the socially and economically unprivileged.
Usually I do like to have a glance over them. This time one book lying in the front attracted my attention and I just couldn't resist not looking into this book with an old but attractive cover. After glancing through it I found a number of interesting recipes and a number of tempting photos. It was a cookbook from the early 70's in quite a good condition. It was a hard bound book with a nice cover photo of a grape tart and, on opening it, I found, though a bit pale, but really thick and strong pages with a number of photos in between.
While going through the book, I came across this delicious and tempting picture of a traditional Rheinish apple tart I liked immediately after seeing the simple recipe. Coming from a historical region Rheinland , earlier a Prussian Province during 1822 till 1946, and is still more or less a defined region which is now a part of the German state North Rhein-Westphalia (in German: Nordrhein-Westfalen) and includes some famous cities like Cologne and Bonn or the historic city of Aachen, to mention just a few.
The whole region including its neighbouring regions are well known for their historical and natural beauty and the castles found apparently on almost every hill there.
Rheinland also happens to be the birthplace of many famous people. To name a few, Beethovan (does he need introduction?!), Adenauer - the first Chancellor of Germany, Heinrich Böll - a Nobel price winning writer, and the more recent ones which many of you might know: Michael Schumacher (Formula 1? Ferrari? For more details, go here) and Heidi Klum!

So, it is not surprising that the region is well known for its culinary specialities as well. One of them being this simple, yet delicate, recipe of an apple tart I found in this book. It is called Rheinische Apfeltorte in German and "Appeltaat" in the region of its origin - Rheinland.

Servings : 12
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Baking time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

Shortcrust pastry:
300 g all purpose flour
100 g sugar
1 packet vanilla sugar ( or 1 tsp vanilla essence)
1 pinch salt
1 egg
200 g butter or margerine, cold and cut into small cubes
flour to roll out the pastry

Filling:
100 g currents
750 g tart apples (I used james grieves)
3 tbsp sugar (60 g)
1/2 tsp cinnamon (I left it out)
















Method:

• add the flour in a large bowl, make a well in the center and add the remaining ingredients
  
• knead the ingredients of the pastry together into a ball and keep in the refrigerator covered for 30 minutes
• in the mean time prepare the filling: cover the currents in boiling water and soak for 5 minutes in a bowl and drain
  
• peel, core and slice the apples, cover with sugar and cinnamon mixture (I simply mixed sugar with the apples)
  
• roll out the dough on a floured surface into a 1 cm thick pastry
• line the bottom and sides of the spring form with the shortcrust pastry
• put the currents in a layer over the pastry , leaving out a small portion to mix with the apples
  
• arrange the apples on top either in circles or in parallel rows or as per liking
  
• bake for 30 minutes in a preheated oven at 200°C
• take it out of oven, once done, and let it cool down a bit beofre cutting into pieces
• serve warm or cold, which tastes equally good.

I had a small portion of the pastry left which I sprinkled on top of the fruits.

See Rheinish Apple Tart on Key Ingredient.

We ate the first round of the tart immidiately after taking it out of the oven. I have no words to describe how good it was. The apples just melted in the mouth. It is a wonderful variety of tart apples especially good for baking, but that it was that good was totally unexpected for me. The currents rounded up the taste of the apples so well. I was happy later that I had just the right amount left, as I don't always have them at home. But a much better choice than raisins. And equally good was my decision to soak them properly till they became softer.

This tart eaten cold tasted as good. And my verdict: It was hea.........venly!

The details of the Book:
"Backen leicht gemacht"
Kochkunst Bibliothek
(Sonderausgabe)

Chicken makkhan..... and an Award!

Chicken, as many of you might know, I make quite often. So, this time I started with a whim, I felt like using fenugreek and then slowly the dish took its form in my mind until I knew I was going to make chicken makkhan, also called butter chicken in English.
Since I have made this dish a couple of times I really don't need a recipe book, but still I went through many different versions online, to make sure I was going to make it as true to its name, but at the end it has to be MY recipe, isn't it?
Since I was in the mood of fenugreek leaves, I didn't hesitate to add a nice portion of it into the dish, and it tasted delicious. Usually I also add some heavy cream, but this time I didn't have any (purposefully! need I explain why? the name itself says it all: HEAVY cream). I have found that even though I plan to add a little bit of butter and only a little bit of cream, ultimately things get out of hand, and though the dish turns our good, but you are worried about those calories. But then to do justice to this dish , the name of this dish, I had to make sure to add enough butter, not that i wouldn't have done it otherwise. And as you see I just couldn't resist adding some chopped carrots either. It does the dish full justice.

For the recipe, read on...

Ingredients:

400 g chicken fillet (boneless and skin less), washed, pat dried and cubed

Marinade:
mix together
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp red chili powder
2 tsp coriander seeds, ground

1 tsp salt, or to taste
1 tsp oil

Onion paste:
1 inch ginger, peeled and chopped coarsely
1 garlic, chopped coarsely
1 onion, chopped coarsely

whole spices:
1 tsp cumin
10 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
2 star anis
1 two inch piece of cinnamon

3 tomatoes, pureed
2 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves
1 large carrot, chopped
2 heaped tablespoons, ground almonds
2 heaped tbsp cold butter
1 tbsp oil
salt, to taste

Method:

• Marinate chicken pieces for 15 to 30 minutes with the spices in the refrigerator covered, or until required
  
• Prepare the onion paste by grinding the ingredients together in a blender
• heat oil in a saute pan, fry the chicken on medium to high heat and take out and set aside
• roast the whole spices in 1 tbsp butter
• add the onion paste and 1 more tbsp butter and fry on medium heat till golden brown
• add carrots fry for short and then add the tomato puree and some salt, cook till it thickens
• add the ground almonds and fenugreek leaves
• return the chicken into the sauce
  
• cook further till done, adjust salt to taste
• take out the whole cinnamon, bay leaves and star anise, if desired
  
• serve warm with plain basmati rice or rotis (indian bread)

This was a total pleasure to have made this dish, which we all enjoyed eating equally well. The flavours of the wonderful spices each of which blended together in this dish to give it a wonderful, harmonious and rich taste. The best way to eat it is either with hot Indian rotis or simply with plain basmati rice which compliment its flavours wonderfully.

This recipe goes to the Event Think Spice, think Fenugreek at Kittens in the Kitchen.

And, it also goes to Srilekha's Event "Chicken" taking place this month and the following month of Oktober.

******************************************************

Now, about something very very special. Something which has made me so very happy. I have got this award from the lovely and smart Aparna Inguva of Three Mangoes. This is my very first at this blog, which has grown from a my simple effort to just collect my tried and tested recipes to a new passion. Thank you so much Aparna!
I would like to pass on this award to :

Aparna of Sumi's weblog
Ivy of Kopiaste
Sunshine mom of Tongueticklers
RC of Redchillies
Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen

If I could I would make an "Excellent " out of it.
Gals, you deserve it!

Arugula Tomato Raita (stirred yoghurt with arugula and tomatoes)

...with home grown tomatoes!

Now this is such a simple dish that you might wonder why I'm posting it here.
Well, for two reasons. First of all it contains my very first ever home grown pesticide-free organically manured garden tomatoes. Secondly, because I just love this creation of mine, however simple it may be.
Now, if you have eaten arugula, then you know what I'm talking about. If not, these are a wonderful variety of salad leaves with a wonderfully pleasant pungent and spicy flavour, similar, but only similar, to that of radish beans (beans of the radish plants), if you have eaten them.
Although since my visit to Italy last year I know arugola is not always arugola. I knew about the difference between the varieties available in the US, which were much milder in taste than those available here in Germany, but after having eaten those wildly growing spicy and pungent arugola leaves and flowers in a village near Bari, I was so overwhelmed by its rich flavours that I needed time to get adjusted to these varieties available in the markets back here which almost tasted bland in comparison to those I ate in Italy last September.
And that brings me back to the second reason of my writing this post. These arugola leaves I bought this time tasted the nearest to those from Italy and since I love this green salad I had just chopped some leaves into the yoghurt and added one tomato from my garden into my Raita and I had a delicious side to the paranthas in no time.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
serves 2-4 people

Ingredients:

300 -450 g probiotic Yoghurt
1/2 tsp ground roasted cumin seeds
1/4 tsp black salt (available in Indian and Asian shops)
1/4 tsp table salt (regular salt), or to taste
1 pinch chilli powder (or even more; optional)
1 nice bunch of Arugola leaves, chopped coarsely into large pieces
1 large tomato, chopped


Method:

• Stir yoghurt throughly along with the salt and roasted cumin
  
• just before serving, add the chopped leaves and tomatoes and stir gently
• eat it plain, as it is, or served with other Indian savourys like paranthas or rotis or even rice (check previous post for it too!)