Stuffed Capsicum (Bell Peppers)

A complete meal in a couple capsicums!! I like 'stuffed capsicum' for two reasons. One is pure convenience, each stuffed capsicum incorporates all the food components. The second reason is that the flavours are utterly irresistable :-)

As per my promise, an easy to follow recipe, minimum preparation with maximum result. 

Ingredients :
4 Capsicums (Bell Peppers) in your colour of choice
1 cup Cooked Rice 
2 tablespoons finely chopped Onion 
1 clove finely chopped Garlic
350-400g of Tomato puree (If not available use finely chopped tomatoes)
3/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese (or whichever cheese is available easily)
Dried Basil, Chilli flakes and Salt as per taste.

Method : 
Wash and pat dry the capsicums. Cut a thin slice from the stem end of each capsicum. Hold on to these 'caps', set them aside.
Remove the seeds and empty out the capsicum of all the membranes. Stand the capsicums in a plate / tray. If they tip over, cut a thin slice off the bottom so that they are able to stand without tipping over. This is important for when the capsicum is stuffed. Set these aside.
In a wok/pan/skillet, lightly spray some cooking oil (or about 1/2 a teaspoon, if you don't have a spray). Add the onion and garlic and cook on medium heat, stirring occassionally, till the onion is lightly brown. 
Next add the cooked rice, tomato puree, dried basil, chilli flakes and salt. Cook for 2-3 minutes, just so the added ingredients warm up.
Remove from the heat.
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C (Fan-forced). In a glass baking dish (I used a Pyrex roaster) stand the capsicums. Spoon the rice stuffing firmly into each capsicum, fill it to the top. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the stuffing.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes or till the cheese shows a pale brown. The capsicums too will show hints of brown near the top edge. 
Remove from the oven and let stand for a couple minutes. Garnish with some more cheese and some dried basil.

The capsicums will have a little bite to them when you cut them open. Place the cut tops back on the capsicum when you serve them :-) They look so cute and when you take your first bite, it's all 'yummy'ness :-):-)

For a non-vegetarian option you could add your choice of meat along with the onion. 

Enjoy!!

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This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.

Pistachio-Almond and Chocolate cookies

Going along the thread of the basic butter cookie, here are two different flavours you can try. The outer ring of cookies are a combination of Pistachio, almonds and cashewnuts. The centre is a chocolate cookie.

Incredibly easy to make, once you have the basic butter cookie recipe :-)

Ingredients :
1 measure Basic Butter Cookie dough recipe 
2 teaspoons 'Icecream' essence or Vanilla essence
2 tablespoons crushed mixed nuts (Pistachio, almonds and Cashewnuts) [For those with access to 'Everest' brand milk masala, you can use this in place of the crushed mixed nuts. The flavour is amazing]
1 teaspoon cocoa powder 

Method : 
Make one measure of the basic butter cookie dough. Add the essence to the dough. Knead the dough just enough so as to incorporate the essence. 
Divide the dough into two portions. 
To one portion, add the crushed nuts and ensure the nuts get spread evenly through the dough.
To the second portion add the cocoa powder ensuring an even colour. If the cocoa does not mix through evenly, fret not, the cookies will have a beautiful marbled look.
Divide the two doughs into small equal sized balls. Flatten each ball on the palm of your hand while leaving it about 1/2 centimeter thick. 
Space the cookies out on a baking tray lined with a baking sheet.
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C (for a fan-forced oven). Place the tray in the middle rack of the oven. It will take between 20-25 mins for the cookies to be done. 
We are looking for a 'gold - just a hint of brown' colour for the pistachio-almond cookies. For the chocolate cookies, it is difficult to note any major colour difference. They will take the same amount of time as the other cookies if they are being done together. 

The cookies will be 'soft touch' initially when you remove them from the oven. Transfer them to a cooling rack. As they cool, the cookies will loose the 'soft touch' and become crispy. 

Same as the Basic Butter Cookies, this recipe makes 84.

Notes : You can add chocolate chips to the chocolate cookie dough and make double chocolate cookies.

Add a dash of pink food colouring to the nuts cookie dough and make 'special' cookies for kids! I used a butterfly cookie cutter for these ones and the girls had a ball, decorating them.

Let your imagination run wild!!


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This blog does not accept any form of advertising, sponsorship, or paid insertions. We write for our own purposes. However, we may be influenced by our background, occupation, religion, political affiliation or experience.The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog owners.
This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.

Basic Butter Cookies

Here is a recipe for basic butter cookies. This one is my trusted recipe which I always keep handy. It's versatile, in that if you make one measure of this cookie dough, you can make several different flavour combinations. 
As you can see in the picture, these were for a birthday hence the writing and smiley.

Ingredients :
250g Unsalted butter
1 Cup plain sugar
2 1/2 cups All purpose flour / Maida
Salt to taste

Method : 
Cream the butter and sugar till the butter changes colour (looks paler than when you started)
Add the flour little at a time making sure the batter is getting mixed as you go along. Add the salt. 
As you add the flour, the batter will thicken and you will need to use your hands to mix it. Ensure that all the flour gets incorporated. The result should be a soft pliable dough. 
Divide the dough into tiny balls about 1 inch in diameter. Gently flatten them on the palm of your hand while leaving them about 1/2 centimeter thick.
Line a baking tray with baking paper. Space the cookies about 2-3 centimeters apart, just so they don't stick together once they get cooking.
Preheat oven to 175 degrees C (if using fan-forced oven). Check the conversion for temperature in degrees F and for gas mark.
Make an imprint on the surface of each cookie (I have used a fork) so that the cookie doesn't puff up. 
Place the tray in the middle rack of your oven. 
The time required for the cookies to get done will vary from oven to oven. It will take between 20-25 mins. Go by the colour though. A 'gold - very pale brown' colour is what we are aiming for. Once you have got that, remove the tray from the oven and transfer cookies to a cooling rack. 
At this stage the cookies may feel slightly soft to touch. As they cool down they loose the soft touch and become crispy. The colour also darkens a little once the cookies are out of the oven (hence the 'gold-very pale brown')

This recipe makes about 84 cookies. 

Hope you enjoy making them as much as I enjoyed bringing it to you!!

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This blog does not accept any form of advertising, sponsorship, or paid insertions. We write for our own purposes. However, we may be influenced by our background, occupation, religion, political affiliation or experience.The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog owners.
This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.