Layered salad with yogurt dressing

 "I love this cooling salad in the summer months, its yogurt- garlic dressing flavours the entire bowl. Its perfect for when you have guests, as you can make it 2-3 hours before dinner, and just mix and serve when time comes...

Ingredients:

• 1 slice of bread cut into 1 inch size squares for making croutons
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp oregano
• 5 tbsp thick yogurt
• 2 tbsp grated parmesan or pecorino cheese
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic (crushed)
• Lemon juice
• Tobasco 
• Salt
• 1 large or 2 small potatoes
• 50 grams beans (cut into 2 inch pieces)
• 2 handfulls of iceberg lettuce or mixed greens

Method:

1. Croutons - Mix the first 4 ingredients (bread + olive oil + oregano + salt) layer on a baking tray and bake them for 10 minutes, at 200 degrees till they are golden and crispy
2.  Dressing - Mix the next 7 ingredients (yogurt + cheese + oil +garlic + lemon + tobasco + salt) in a transparent glass salad bowl
3. Peel the potato, cut it in thin rounds and boil in salted water
4. Once the potatoes are almost done add the beans and cook for 2-3 minutes till crunchy. Put it under cold water immediately to stop the cooking process
5. Assembling the salad - In the glass bowl, on top of the dressing layer all the potatoes, then the beans.Top with the lettuce or mixed greens
6. Cover the bowl with cling film and chill till it is needed (2-3 hours is fine)
7. At serving time add the croutons and mix the entire salad 

Notes:

• In the dressing, you can use as much tobasco or lemon or garlic as you like
• This salad has to be made ahead so that the dressing ingredients perfume the salad leaves

Molten chocolate cakes

" These are the yummiest cakes ever, my sons favorite. Use good quality chocolate, and avoid over-cooking, to be rewarded by crispy exteriors and meltingly soft centers. Its worth making them, just to see the joy in my kids faces ..."

   

Servings : 12 small cakes, enough for 12 people

Ingredients:

•  200 grams dark cooking chocolate
• 200 grams butter
• 4 eggs
• 125 grams castor sugar
• 60 grams flour

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C
2. In a double boiler, melt chocolate and butter (for double boiling, put chocolate and butter in a stainless steel bowl placed over a saucepan of shimmering water (a double boiler), making sure that the water does not touch the chocolate bowl. So the chocolate is melted only by the steam).
3. Take it off heat and add sugar to the chocolate/butter mix, in a slow stream, while whisking well, for almost 5 minutes (use a beater if you have)
4. Whisk eggs slightly with a fork.
5. When the chocolate mixture is at room temperature, add the eggs in 4 parts, whisking well after each addition 
6. Fold the flour slowly, a little at a time,till it is incorporated. (to fold add a spoonful of flour at a time,mixing gently with a spatula or a metal spoon in a cut and turn motion, check web for technique)
7. Pour the mixture into single cup-cake molds, till half of the mold is covered 
8. Put the cakes in the oven for 7 - 10 minutes and take it out once the outside is done and the center is still soft and gooey ( when u check the center with toothpick, should be gooey and not dry)
9. Eat immediately for the yummiest molten cake ever .......

Notes:

• Incase you want to eat the cakes later half cook the cakes initially and then put them back in the oven just before serving
• You could use coffee or Kahlua liqueur for added flavor 
• Folding, basically implies, as little mixing as possible, to ensure the lightest batter possible
• Over cooking is a big possibility, so take out when center is really really gooey and you think its undercooked. If you wait for cake center to feel cooked, then the center will not be gooey, still tasty though)

Steamed fish

" A subtle steam fish recipe, which I make, whenever I am sure that my fish is really really fresh. Its light and the juices are so yummy that we have to portion them out equally to avoid any friction. Best eaten with steamed or boiled rice accompanied with stir fried vegetables"

Ingredients:

• 1/2 kg fish whole (or Fillets)
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp light soya sauce
• 1 spring onion (Green and white)
• 1 1/2 inc piece of ginger
• 2 red chillies
• 2 tbsp soya sauce (Dark or light)
• 2 tbsp rice wine

Method: 

1. If you are using whole fish, scour the fish on 1 side making 3 diagonal cuts and a pocket on the other side
2.  Make a marinade of salt, sesame oil and the 2 tbsp of light soya sauce and marinate the fish for 30 minutes
3. Finely shread the spring onion,ginger and the red chilly
4. In the plate which you are going to use for steaming, layer some of the spring onion,ginger and red chilly mixture, place the marinated fish over it
5. Divide the remaining spring onion,ginger and red chilly mixture, stuffing some in the pockets and the balance on top of the fish
6. Mix together the 2 tbsp soya sauce and 2 tbsp rice wine with the left over marinade and pour over the fish
7. Steam the fish on medium heat preferably in a bamboo steamer, for 7-10 minutes till done

Notes:

• Use any small sized fish, so that the fish is flavoured well ( grouper, red snapper, pomfret all work well)
• Make this fish recipe only if you have fresh fish
• You could use 2 bamboo steamers, one on top of the other, if the fish quantity does not fit in one layer. Do switch the steamers, upper one down and vice-versa half way through cooking time