Mini Aubergine Tomato and Mozzarella appetizer

I love this super easy party dish and since it's the season of parties, let's go for it!

What you need is:

6 mini aubergines
1 packet buffalo mozzarella
2 tbsp basil leaves chopped
Some basil leaves for decoration
Parmesan Cheese
Salt, pepper to taste
Tomato Concasse (when i don't feel like making it, i use the ready made pasta Arrabiata sauce that comes in jars

For the tomato Concasse if you want to make it:
Puree of 3 tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic chopped
half an onion chopped (2 tbsp)
2 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp (or one nice dollop) tomato ketchup
1 cup old white wine (optional)
Paprica Powder
Salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 tsp mixed Italian herbs

Method for the concasse:
take olive oil and heat in a non stick pan
Put in the chopped onions and saute
Add the Chopped Garlic and Sautee for a bit
Optional step - add the white wine
Add the tomato puree and mix in the tomato ketchup, paprica and a little bit of salt and put on a slow flame
Let this cook slowly till the mixture starts to thicken the flavours will all concentrate once it thickens so watch out how much salt you put in
Stir it occasionaly until it becomes really nice and thick
so you see why I just simply buy the stuff right?

Ok, the aubergines also need to be sliced and salted and put in a collander so that all the excess water drains out of it
Once that's done, take kitchen tissues or towels and just dab the aubergines dry completely

Other stuff you will need: Oven, Oven Proof dish, Vegetable oil for lining the oven dish. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees centigrade

So the assembling:

Take your aubergine and lightly put salt and pepper on it.
on top of that put a small piece of mozzarella on each of the aubergine pieces
Top with a dollop of Tomato Concasse
Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese (be generous!)
Top with finely chopped basil leaves
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes till the aubergine is cooked through but not soft and mushy and the cheese has all melted
Top with a fresh sprig of Basil and enjoyyy!

This may not be something that can be picked up with a toothpick or something but is great for an appetizer when you want to sit down and eat with a fork.

Sometimes I make a full layered baked dish with this by repeating the layers twice:
Aubergine, Mozzarella, Tomato concasse, Parmesan, Aubergine, Mozzarella, tomato Concasse and Parmesan with Basil on top and bake the whole thing for around 30 minutes in the oven. this can totally be served as one of the main courses in a buffet style party

Ladies Night - Orange Juice Fish

Just made this totally healthy and totally awesome baked fish. Unfortunately don't have pictures to show you how it turned out but it was delicious!! I love the subtle sweet and tanginess of the Oranges as the base for this dish. I've used a white fish (Basa) as my base as it has the mildest flavour of it's own and goes very well with the tangy and vibrant flavours in this dish.

Ingredients:
1 fillet of Basa or Surmai (around 200gm)

For the Marinade:
Juice of 2 oranges (you need around 1 cup or 200ml)
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
1/4tsp pepper powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil

To Garnish:
A good handful of chopped coriander - like 3 tbsp full

Others: you will need an oven, oven dish, aluminium foil and some oil spray or like 2 drops of oil to line the dish

Method:
I took an oven tray, put an oven proof dish on top of the tray and line the tray with a little bit of oil. on top of that put a big chunk of aluminium foil and put the fish on top of that foil.
Put the marinade on top of the fish and top with coriander
Wrap the foil completely around the fish so that it is completely sealed
Keep marinated for around 15 minutes or even overnight in the refrigerator
Preheat your oven at 160 degrees and once the oven is hot, put the oven dish with your fish wrapped in aluminium foil and bake for 20 minutes

Once you Have baked it, keep it closed only until the time you need to serve it so hen you open the foil, you will be embraced by the hot and fresh tangy and sweet and salty aroma of this lovely fish.

I had this fish with some sauteed spinach, the recipe of which I will share with you soon and some baked potatoes which I baked at the same time as the fish.

Voila, fancy meal in minutes!

Tuesday Quick Tip: Taking food stains.odors off your hands

Sometimes when you are working with beetroots and other such super coloured veggies the stains just simply do not come off. It's the most horrid look in the world. You almost look like you've murdered someone and the blood is still on your hands!!!

In these cases, add lemon juice straight on your hands and just keep for a few seconds and watch the magic. It just absolutely disappears!

I also always try and avoid being in direct contact with garlic or fish when chopping or cutting them and would highly recommend you to use gloves when dealing with this stuff as well. But I've found that if you are in the most dire of situations in terms of stinky hands, soak your hands in a mixture of vinegar and soda and it seriously helps. You have to wash your hands thoroughly after that but it will take off the horrid garlicy or fishy smell from your hands for sure!

Pick me up Salad - Strawberry Yogurt

This is such a comfort dish for me and I Love to have it anytime of the day. Especially now in the winters where I have to motivate myself to get to work and actually do some work when all I want to do is laze around and just watch tv this provides a little bit of "pep" to help me get through the day.

Since it is Strawberry season I love to put loads of Strawberries and put less of yogurt simply because I love the tartness and tanginess of the strawberries. This can also double up as a dessert if you add a little sugar to it.

Ingredients for 1 cup:
10 Strawberries
4 tbsp Yogurt
Walnuts

Method:
Clean and Chop the Strawberries
Crush the walnuts with your hand
Whisk the Yogurt separately with a pinch of salt, half a tsp honey/sugar till smooth
Add the chopped strawberries and crushed walnuts
Mix and enjoy!

Quick note: Mint leaves do really good with this and look great as well if you like

Sorry I have been busy

So sorry guys I've been really crazy busy lately, have had absolutely no time to think and do anything for the blog and I'm really sorry for that.

i'm leaving for a wedding to Bikaner (YAY!) on the 9th coming back on monday evening the 12th December 2011 and will resume writing from then on.

Until then, have fun and keep me posted on all your fun New Year's plans coz now it is time for feasting until new year's when resolutions will be started and kept!! :)