Thick Crust Pizza (with Yeast)

Ingredients

For the pizza base:

White flour………..……..…….1 ½ cup
Sugar…..……...…………..…....½   tea spoon
Salt…………………………..…….½ tea spoon
Yeast…………………….......….1 tea spoon
Water……………..……………..½ cup
Oil………..……………………..…2 table spoon
 
For the toppings:
Tomato ketchup………….…..6 table spoon
Grated mozzarella cheese.…2 cup
Garlic……………………….……..2 (large, finely chopped)
Mixed herbs…………..………..1 ½ tea spoon
Chestnut mushrooms…...….175g (diced)
Bell pepper…......………………1 (cut in juliennes)
Or any other topping/s as required
Salt to taste

Method

For the pizza base:

• Mix the water and sugar in a mixing bowl.
• Add the yeast to the mixture (do not mix). Keep it aside for 15 min to check if the yeast is active.
• Mix in the flour, salt and oil and make dough.
• Knead the dough for 2-3 min.
• Keep the dough aside for an hour or until it doubles in size in a warm place. Cover with a cloth.
• Divide it into 3 equal parts.
• Dust the balls with flour and roll each ball into the required pizza base shape (circle/square) with a rolling pin or by hand. Keep the edges (crust) thicker than the centre.
• Place on a baking paper.
• Pierce each pizza base with a fork at random place to keep it from puffing up while it cooks.

For the toppings:

• Apply 2 table spoon of tomato ketchup on each base.
• Sprinkle the garlic and add the toppings on the pizza base.
• Sprinkle some mixed herbs and salt on the toppings.
• Lastly top the pizza with the cheese.

To cook the pizza:

• Pre heat the oven on convection mode at 225° C along with a baking tray. 
• Once the oven is hot enough remove the hot baking tray and place the pizza on the tray along with the baking paper it is placed on and put the tray back in the oven.
• Cook for 10-15 min or until pizza base is cooked and cheese has melted. 

Cut the pizza as required with a pizza cutter and serve hot.

Makes: 3

Ginger Vegetable Soup

Ingredients

Closed cup mushroom…250gm (chopped vertically)

Ginger…..….....……….......1 tablespoon (finely chopped)
Garlic……….....……….......1 clove (finely chopped)
Green chilli…………………1 (cut lengthwise)
Tomato……………….........2 (quartered and each quarter cut in half)
French beans……….........75g (with ends cut out)
Onion………………….........1 (small, cut in thick juliennes)
Beef stock cube……..……1 (15g)
Water………………………..3 cups
Salt to taste
Oil to cook

Method

• Heat some oil in a pan. Add the mushrooms; sprinkle some salt and cook with the lid on until they are half cooked.
• Add the ginger, garlic and chillies, mix and cook for 2 min.
• Now adds the tomatoes and French beans, mix and cook with the lid on for 4 min.
• Crush the beef stock cube and add to the pan along with the water and more salt if required. Mix well.
• Simmer the soup for 15 min and then add in the onions. Simmer for more 5 min.
• Serve hot.

Serves: 2

Mushroom Stuffed Eggplant

Ingredients

Eggplant……………..…1

Onion…………………….1 (small, chopped)
Tomato……………..…..1 (large, roughly chopped)
Garlic……………..........2 cloves (large, roughly chopped)
Chilli powder………….½ tea spoon
Button mushrooms…275 g (chopped in thin slices)
Fresh rosemary…..….2 stems (roughly broken with hand)
Cheese slices……….…2
Salt to taste

Method

• Cut the eggplant lengthwise into 2 pieces. Now using a spoon carefully scoop out the flesh of the eggplant from the middle of the 2 slices leaving 1 centimetre border. Rough chop the flesh and keep aside.
• Heat the oil in a pan. Add onions and cook until transparent.
• Add the tomato and garlic cook for 1 min.
• Mix in the chilli powder and then add the eggplant flesh just chopped. Add in the salt enough for all the ingredients in the pan and mix well. Cover with a lid and let it cook for 3 min.
• Now add the mushrooms, salt for the mushrooms, mix well and cover with a lid. Cook for 20 min. Stir every 5 min to make sure it doesn’t stich to the bottom of the pan.
• Place the scooped eggplant shells on a baking tray. Sprinkle salt and drizzle about 2 tablespoons of oil on each of them.  Stuff the eggplant with the mushroom filling just prepared.
• Pre-heat the oven at 230°C. Place the tray in the oven and bake for 30 min.
• Meanwhile cut each cheese slice in the middle into 2, lengthwise. Remove the tray and place the 2 pieces of the sliced cheese in the middle of the eggplant on the stiffing. Garnish with fresh rosemary.  Place the tray back in the oven and cook for 10 min.
• Serve hot. 

Chicken and Mushroom Soup

Ingredients

Closed cup mushroom…250gm (chopped vertically)

Chicken breast piece......1 (large, cut in chunks)
Potato………………………..1 (small, peeled & grated)
Onion………………….........1 (small, chopped)
Garlic……….....……….......1 clove (finely chopped)
Chicken broth………..……5 cups
Salt to taste
Oil to cook

Method

• Heat oil in pan and sauté the chicken until cooked, sprinkle salt on the chicken pieces while it is cooking. Keep aside once cooked.
• Similarly sauté ½ of the chopped mushrooms until cooked and keep aside.
• Heat oil in a soup pan. Add the onions and sauté for 1 min.
• Add the garlic, cook for 1 min.
• Now add the remaining ½ of the mushrooms, grated potato and the salt and cook for 3 min.
• Finally add the chicken broth and let the mushroom and potato simmer in the broth until cooked.
• Once cooked, let it cool down slightly. Then add the entire soup mixture in a blender and blend. (You can use a hand blender directly in the soup pan if you like)
• Pour the thick soup mixture back in the soup pan to heat/cook it again for 3 min. Now turn off the heat.
• Serve the soup in the soup bowls and drop half the sautéed chicken pieces and mushrooms at the centre of each of the bowls.
• Garnish with parsley (if required). Serve hot.

Serves: 2

Note:

I you like watery soup and do not prefer thick textured soup or if you do not find the colour of the chicken and mushroom soup appetising does not blend the soup. A watery chicken and mushroom soup is equally delicious.