Recipe - Chicken Cacciatore Pasta

Easy to make, this simple pasta is delicious to eat.

Ingredients:

Boneless chicken - 200 gms

Pasta - 2 cups

Finely chopped garlic - 2tsp

Finely chopped onions - 1 cup

Tomato puree - 1/2 cup

Strained pasta water - 1/4 cup

Vinegar - 1 tsp

Bay leaf/ Tej patta - 1

Dried oregano - 2 tsp
Dried thyme - 1 tsp

Sugar - 1 tsp
Oil (preferably olive oil) - 4 tbsp

Salt to taste

Chopped parsley or coriander -1 tbsp

• Boil 8-10 cups of water in a large pan. Add some salt and 1 tbsp of oil. Drop pasta in boiling water. Boil till pasta turns soft but is still firm. Remove from flame. Strain, reserving the water. Refresh pasta in cold water and strain again. Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp olive oil in the pasta and toss well. Keep it aside.
• Heat some oil. Add the chicken pieces and cook on moderate heat till about 3-4 minutes. Remove the chicken and keep it aside.
• To the same oil, add chopped garlic and fry till it starts to change color. Add chopped onions and cook till translucent.
• Add fresh tomato puree, strained pasta water, vinegar, bay leaf, oregano, thyme, sugar, pepper & salt. Boil. Lower heat and simmer for 10 mins till sauce becomes thick. Keep it aside.
• While serving, heat the sauce, add chicken, boiled pasta and chopped parsley. Mix well. Sprinkle some crushed peppercorns and serve hot with bread.

Shepherd Pie (includes spinach)

This dish is a favorite among my kids - especially during winters. To make it more healthy and interesting, I include spinach and sweet corn as a part of the recipe. The dish is a complete meal in itself and can be had alone or with toasted garlic bread.

Ingredients:

Boiled potatoes - 4
Blanched spinach leaves - 12-15
Boiled sweet corn - 3/4 cups
Macaroni or any other pasta of your choice - 300 gms
Minced chicken - 400 gms
Finely chopped onions - 2
Finely chopped green chillis - 2-3
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Milk - 1/4 cup
Cheese or cottage cheese - 1/2 cup (grated)
Sliced tomatoes - 1
Black pepper powder
Salt to taste
Cooking oil

• Mash the boiled potatoes with some milk to make it moist. Sprinkle black pepper powder and add some salt. Mix well. Take a glass dish which is microwave safe and add a layer of this mixture.
• Mix the blanched spinach and sweet corn. Layer this on top of the mashed potato layer.
• Cook the macaroni/pasta as per the instructions given in the pack. Once cooked, drain the water completely and add a few drops of oil so that the pasta doesn't clump together. Allow it to cool for 10 minutes. Now add a layer of this pasta on top of the spinach & sweetcorn layer.
• Heat some oil in a cooking pan and add the onions and green chillies. Cook the onions till they turn brown. Transfer the onions to a pressure cooker.
• Wash the minced chicken and add it to the onions in a pressure cooker. Add the salt and rest of the dry spices along with 1/4 cup water. Cook it to one whistle. Once cooked, you can transfer the chicken to a cooking pan and continue cooking till the water evaporates.
• Spread this minced chicken on top of the pasta layer and add tomato slices. Garnish with either grated cheese or paneer. In this case, I have garnished it with grated paneer.
• Microwave it for 30-60 seconds till the cheese melts and serve hot.