Penne with Homemade tomato sauce

This is a quick and easy recipe, or a non-recipe really. This is just a notch above boiling ramen noodles or maggi, I think, something that can easily be made even in a dorm room or during Exams week when time is really 'of the essence'. I seem to be caught in a nostalgic moment here, since I am shooting off analogies about the good old school days:).

The star of this recipe is the tomatoes. I have used fresh desi tomatoes or 'Indian' or 'gavran' tomatoes, as some people are wont to call them. This is the original variety of tomato, I think, that we grew up eating, and is miles away from the roma, vine ripe, heirloom or any other western variety. This is also totally different from the Italian 'sweet' tomatoes. I am using these for a slightly different taste/flavour and also because I found them very cheap like 10 rupees a kilo, which a very rare occurrence. Needless to say, this recipe can be followed exactly using Any available tomato, or canned crushed tomatoes or Italian stewed tomatoes that you get in a can. It will remain as easy, or perhaps easier. I use a little milk and some sugar to reduce the acid/tang, since these particular tomatoes tend to be quite sour. Any dry spice mix can be used, like Mrs. Dash Tomato Basil Garlic, one of my favourite blends, or just plain dried basil/orgeno/rosemary. I am using Herb de Provence. The recipe or method follows.

This is simple sans veggies, but feel free to add any vegetable etc. that you like to up the ante here.

Ingredients -

10-12 fresh tomatoes

1 onion diced

1 Tbsp garlic chopped

1 tsp dried herbs

2 cups dry penne

1 Tbsp EVOO or olive oil

salt and pepper

Method -

1) Stew, boil or pressure cook the tomatoes until they are completely cooked and the skin starts to come off.

2) After they cool a bit, pull off the skins and squash the tomatoes with hand, or with a masher. You can strain this if you want a super fine sauce, but I like it chunky and rustic, and so leave it the way it is.

3) Chop the onion and garlic. Heat the oil in a pan and add the garlic first. The heat should be very low so that the garlic does not burn. The lower the temperature, the more flavour is released by the garlic. As the garlic starts changing colour, add the onions.

4) Saute until onions soften and add the squashed tomatoes. **This is where you add your can of crushed or italian tomatoes if you are using canned ones.

5) Season the sauce with the dried herbs of choice, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer. 6) Simmer the sauce until it thickens and coats the spoon. Taste and guage the level of sourness. Add about half cup milk and 1-2 tsp of sugar or any sweetener. The amount of tang or sourness you want here is to your taste.

7) Boil water, salt it and add dry pasta. Cook according to given directions until al dente or slightly undercooked.

8) Drain the pasta and pour sauce over it a little at a time and mix. Add sauce until all the pasta is evenly coated but not to create a gravy like consistency. * If sauce remains, keep it on the side to add on top while eating as needed.

9) Serve hot with more fresh black pepper, and some fresh grated parmesan if desired.

10) I think adding crushed red pepper to this sauce will liken it to an Arrabiata, but I want to keep it simple and call it plain old tomato sauce. This sauce can be used as base for any kind of pasta.

I hope you try this simple recipe the next time you start defrosting that Lean Cuisine or open yet another pack of Ramen noodles.

BaTaTyacha Rassa - Potatoes in a tomato curry

'BaTaTa'( buh'Ta'Tah) in marathi means potato, that humble vegetable that none of us can really ever have enough of. 'BaTaTyacha' literally means 'of potato', 'Rassa' means gravy or curry, so this means potato gravy.

This dish is ubiquitous in all homes and perhaps the go-to dish when either you are out of vegetables, or need something in a jiffy, or want to pacify a fussy kid ( young or old). This curry with hot steaming rice is a perfect lunch or dinner when you are at a lose end and want something comforting and simple.

Now that I have waxed enough over this wonder, lets get down to the basics. There are some ways of doing this, and depending on regional and cultural differences, each family recipe could be slightly different. Like in our own home, I prefer a thick tomatoey version using boiled potatoes, while the older ones prefer starting with raw potatoes that cook in a watery stock.

Tomatoes seem to be very economical nowadays and we are getting the local or 'gavran' version, which are big on taste. Adding a few or more peas easily turns this into Alu Matar, another favourite. Roasted peanut powder or 'DaNyacha KooT' adds thickness and some nutty rich flavour.

So without any further introductions, this quick and easy recipe follows. And if this is a carbfest, who cares? My tummy's happy and so am I.

Ingredients -

5-6 medium potatoes

1 green chili pepper optional

1-2 medium onions

3-4 fresh tomatoes

2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

1 tsp goDa masala or garam masala

or

1 tsp each cumin coriander powder

green peas handful

1 TBsp Peanut powder

oil and salt

Turmeric

Mustard seeds or cumin seeds

Cayenne pepper

Method -

1) Boil the potatoes, preferably in a pressure cooker, or microwave until cooked. Peel and chop them roughly and set aside.

2) Chop the onions and tomatoes, and the green chili if using.

3) For the peanut powder - this is something that is widely used in Marathi homes, and there is almost always a jar of this powder ready to be used in vegetables, salads etc. To make this in a jiffy, dry roast some peanuts - about 1-2 Tbsp in a pan until they are toasty and give out an aroma. Let cool for some time, and then either powder in a 1) spice grinder or 2) mortar and pestle or 3) place in a ziplock bag and beat with a rolling pin or some heavy weight, until coarsely powdered.

4) The process of preparing this dish starts with the 'tempering', the initial sequence that is followed generally while making most Indian style vegetables.

- heat 1 Tbsp oil of choice ( clear oil such as vegetable or canola)

- once the oil is hot, add mustard/cumin seeds, Hing or asfoetida(optional), turmeric

5) Immediately add the onions. There should not be a lag between the above step and adding stuff to the pan, otherwise the oil will burn. Fry onion till tranlucent.

6) Add the green chili if using and then add tomatoes. Fry the tomatoes till they are cooked and give out juices. A rough paste should be formed by this time.

7) Add the cooked potatoes and stir it all together. Now add 2-3 cups of water and mix everything. Adjust so that you have the desired thickness. Please note that this sauce or curry will thicken slightly as it cooks, plus the starchy potatoes and the peanuts will add to the thickness.

8) Now add all the masalas or spices needed. Add salt, pinch of sugar, the goda/garam masala or the cumin or coriander powder. These are all optional and you can use any or all of these. The 'goDa masala' is a traditional spice mix used in marathi cooking and is slightly different from the Garam Masala. If you don't have these, you can either just use cumin powder and that will work fine, or a readymade curry powder if you have it.

9) Add the powdered peanuts at this point.

10) Bring everything to a boil and then simmer for a few minutes till the gravy is thick enough.

11) Add frozen peas a few minutes before switching off the heat.

12) Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with steamed rice or with rotis - Naan or pita bread will also work fine here.

This is a simple recipe that does not use too much oil or any dairy etc. So how do you like your potatoes??