Tag: Family food

Homemade Pizza Recipe

Since the time I have learnt how to make a Pizza 🍕 at home, trust me! This recipe will make your jaw-dropping 😵😱 once you learn the technique of how its done. The pizza crust is soft and crisp on the edges. A great motivation to learn how to make homemade pizza with customized toppings.

Making a pizza dough from scratch seems a bit tricky for first timers but its encouraging and promotes opportunities to learn the art of cooking. One can prepare the dough at least one day ahead and freeze them.

 

Preparation time: 20 minutes + rising 1 hour

Cooking time: 25-30 minutes

Makes : 10 to 11-inch / 26 to 28-cm

Serves: 1-2

Appliance: Oven

 

Ingredients

For the dough

Bread Flour – 1 cup / 175 g

All-Purpose flour for dusting

Salt – 1/4 tsp

Water – 1/4 cup / 100 ml

Yeast – 1 tsp

Sugar – 1/2 tsp

Olive oil – 1 tbsp

Parchment paper of 12 cm

 

Toppings

Tomato sauce – 3 to 4 tbsp

Mozzarella cheese balls / Bocconcini cheese – 125 g

Chicken breasts – 200 g , pan-fried (if using prawns – less than 250 g shelled, raw)

Chicken breast IMG_9191

Capers – 7

Jalapeno (non-spicy) – 7

Shallots -2 , cut into round thin slices

Nando’s Peri-Peri Sauce (medium) – 3 tbsp

Cherry tomato – 7, halved

Mini peppers / Bell pepper – few pieces, chopped

Olives – 3, pitted

Garlic paste – 1/2 tsp

 

Directions

Making the Dough:

1. In a cup with warm water dissolve sugar and yeast. Mix and let stand for 5 minutes at the kitchen counter or in a warm place until it turns frothy. Add Olive oil and mix.

Yeast mixture

2. In a bowl with bread flour and salt, make 2 wells and pour the yeast mixture. Stir in the flour using your hands to combine the dough. If its dry just add 3-4 tbsp more water till all the flour comes together.

Dust a work surface or large wooden cutting board with all-purpose flour and remove the dough. Knead the dough by rolling it forward and backward to push and pull using the heels of your hands. Do this for 5 minutes, it must be elastic and non-sticky.

Kneading

3. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl of oil. Cover with double layered towel to proof for 45 minutes(*see notes). The dough will double in size.

4. Dust the work surface with all-purpose flour and remove the dough from the bowl. Give it a good punch to let any air out and work on it for 5 minutes (you can separate the extra dough at this point and freeze)

kneading 2

Place it in the greased bowl just as in step 3, covered with towel or cling film and proof or rise for another 15 minutes.

 

Roll out the dough:

5. Lightly dust the work surface/board with all-purpose flour, then roll it out using your hands or rolling-pin into a rough circle. When it gets unmanageable transfer to a parchment paper of 10-cm depending on the size of pizza.

Making Pizza

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Roll the dough into 1/4 inch thick or less. Prick the pizza base all over with a fork.

roll the dough

Topping the Pizza:

7. Spoon few tablespoons of tomato sauce into the center of pizza and spread it throughout the base to the edges using the back of the spoon.

Then, top it with thin slices of cheese. Add other toppings of choice as mentioned above along with thin strips of chicken.

Pizza toppings | Mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce

 

8. Preheat oven to 200 degree Celsius (400 degree F) for 5 -10 minutes. Place the pizza on parchment paper carefully on the low rack. Bake on convection mode for 25 – 30 minutes or until the sides have turned slightly brown (*see notes).

IMG_9220

IMG_9222

IMG_9225

The first pizza I made was the Prawn Pizza with mozzarella cheese, some greens, capers, olives and peri-peri sauce. Delicious soft and crisp crust which I would recommend for all the seafood lovers.

IMG_8598

 

 

 

Notes:

*You can use all kinds of toppings for your pizza. But, it is best not to load it with too much of toppings otherwise the pizza base might get underdone.

* If you live in a colder climate, place the covered bowl in a larger bowl of warm water (not too hot) or near the heater. It might take a longer time to rise.

*I have used Bocconcini  cheese i.e mini mozzarella cheese in my chicken pizza, the size of an egg, hence one wouldn’t notice the cheese. My prawn pizza is topped with large mozzarella cheese balls which I would always prefer using.

*Chicken breasts can be pan-fried while waiting for the dough to rise.

* In case the temperature is too high reduce temperature to 175 degree Celsius (350 degree F) after 10 minutes.

*For more servings, double or triple the dough ingredients and portion the dough in Step 4 depending on the size of pizza. Wrap it with clingfirm and freeze for another day.

 

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✍ Sherryl

 

 

 

 

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Semolina Pancake / Dosa

Apart from being a delicious Semolina dosa or crepe one thing I like when I prepare this recipe is never have to think about soaking rice for 3 hrs, making a paste by blending it or going through my pantry to check if I have enough rice stocked up. Most recipes of Indian crepe or dosa needs to go through a fermentation process for a fluffy batter and this is one of the recipes which can be prepared within minutes, without going through the hassle of what kind of rice grain is required for it.

If you are trying this for the first time, make sure you have the right appliance or griddle with even heating. My first attempt was a hit and was on a portable hotplate which later got damaged over time and thereafter my pancakes were not cooking evenly.  That’s when I realized my pan was also damaged (thus pancakes turning sticky on the base). However, I managed to get a good tawa made for induction cooking (fits perfectly on my induction hob) after browsing through stores.

When I made my first beautiful semolina crepe with a dip of Asafoetida chutney and tomato rasam (my hubby prepared this – I wished I had taken pictures but I guess will have to wait for the recipe until he does it again 😋)

first pancake_IMG_7608

 

Appliance needed: Crepe pan/Tawa with tight-fitting lid, 25 cm non-stick

Preparation time: 10 – 15 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Makes: 10 – 12

Ingredients

Olive oil / Veg oil / Ghee 

All-purpose flour / Maida – 1 cup 

Semolina (fine) – 2/3 cup 

Salt – 1/2 tsp

Water – 2 1/2 cup 

Yogurt – 1/2 cup

Milk (pastuerised) – 1/2 cup

Shallot for coating the pan with ghee (*see here) – cut through the belly into half / through its root

Seasoning:

Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp

Curry leaves – 1 long strand

Cumin Seeds – 1/2 tsp

Kashmiri red dry Chili – 2, halved

 

 

Directions

Preparing batter:

1. In a large bowl, Mix together flour, semolina and salt. Add water stirring between each addition until it is smooth without lumps.

Pour yogurt and milk . The batter must have a pouring consistency. Mix well and set aside.

Ingredients

Seasoning:

2. Heat a small container until hot coated with 1 tbsp veg oil , add mustard seeds. Once they sputter, add cumin, curry leaves and dry chilies. Toss it for half a minute and pour it into the batter.

Seasoning- semolina dosa

Mix the batter. Unfortunately I missed taking picture after seasoning but will update it the next time I make it. 🙂

Crepe Preparation:

3. Heat a crepe pan or omelette pan until hot, then rub around the inside of the pan using the shallot pierced onto a fork.

4. Using a large ladle pour about 100 ml or 1/4 cup (depending on the size of your griddle) into the center, then immediately tip the pan to coat the base evenly to form a thin base.  Drizzle some ghee along the sides. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook the pancake for 6 minutes on medium-high heat (induction  stove 6).

The pancake or dosa must be set entirely on the top and the sides must turn slightly brown.

pancake on a griddle_IMG_8963

5. Using a spatula, loosen the pancake off the griddle. Lift it off and place it on a flat/serving plate (*see notes).

Repeat with the remaining batter from step 4 to make as many pancakes needed.

lifting off crepe IMG_8962

Serve hot with any dip. My husband prepared coriander chutney to accompany the Semolina Dosa. I make this quiet often on weekends when we can relax and not use too much of our time in the kitchen. You can double the recipe for more pancakes and store left-over batter in the fridge to be used the following day.

semolina dosa IMG_8980

If you add more flour the pancakes become less brown in colour.

Semolina crepe_IMG_8982

 

 

Notes:

* To grease the pan with oil or ghee click here and check under directions 3-4.

* If your making the pancakes in advance, fold them in quarters and place them in an insulated box to keep them warm.

pancake in a insulated box _IMG_8954

*While lifting off or removing the pancake decrease heat and when pouring batter increase heat.

 

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Parmesan Stuffed Chicken

There is no reason why one cannot try this recipe of Parmesan Stuffed Chicken. It doesn’t require fancy ingredients to make a phenomenal delicious filling dinner/lunch.

 

Preparation time: 15 – 20 minutes

Cooking/Baking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

Chicken Breasts / Boneless chicken – 4

Baking tray 13-in. × 9-in.

Olive oil for greasing

couple of toothpicks

 

Filling:

Spring onions – 4 bulbs, only greens finely chopped

Garlic cloves – 2, finely chopped

dried Oregano leaves – 1/2 tsp

Cheddar cheese – 2 tbsp

Parmesan cheese – 1/2 cup

 

Coating:

Flour – 1/2 cup

Butter/Eggs – 50 g / 2 eggs lightly whipped

Mixed together —> Bread crumbs 1/2 cup, salt 1/2 tsp, chili powder 1 tbsp, parmesan cheese 1/2 cup, Cumin powder 3/4 tsp

 

Directions

1. Prepare the filling by mixing all the ingredients mentioned under filling. Set it aside.

stuffing of cheese mixture | Chicken

2. Place a plastic wrap on the cutting board and place the chicken breasts over it. Place a second layer of the plastic wrap over the chicken of equal length.

Now, flatten the chicken  to 1/8-in. thickness. Do the same for the rest of the pieces.

Place the filling (about 2 tbsp) in the center and roll up. Roll up the other end and secure with toothpicks. Check link here on how to do the filling.

Chicken stuffed Parmesan cheese mix | Delicious Sweet Aroma

3. Prepare  a bowl or plate, combine bread crumbs, salt, chili powder, Parmesan cheese and cumin. Mix together. Place flour in another plate. Place whipped egg or butter in a third bowl. Meantime, preheat oven to 200 degree Celsius (400 deg F)

Coat all sides of each chicken roll-up with flour, then dip in butter and toss it in bread crumb mixture.

Coated chicken roll-ups | Hungry?! That's what I made!

Place roll-ups in a baking tray, seem side down, lined with butter paper and greased with olive oil. Place it on a low oven rack uncovered at 200 deg C for 25 minutes.

Remove the toothpicks before serving.

Parmesan Stuffed Chicken (2)

 

I almost forgot to take a picture right after baking. Was too excited that I got hungry and couldn’t wait to grab a bite. We enjoyed the stuffed chicken with tomato rice. The stuffing was CHEESE-LICIOUS!

 

Hope you enjoy this delicious chicken roll-ups. Thank you for sharing and being supportive!

 

 

Note: 

If you do not have an oven consider deep-frying to get a golden crispy texture.

 

Related recipes of Chicken:

Chicken Schnitzel

Cream of Chicken Soup

Crispy Chicken Fry

Chicken Bites

 

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