Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Runners Pasta - In Pesto and Garlic dressing.




Went out running 10kms on a rolling terrain, with the Run Guru Amit Ojha. All I had to do today was to not leave his shadow, and he made me drop full 7 minutes from my previous 10km best. And it sure left me amply hungry. Reached home to find Ritu rushing to the Farm, and I was promptly deputed to make the smoothie and fix breakfast for all.
The net neutrality issue and Baba Ramdev have a lot to do with the post today. Because if it gets implemented, and FB or Blogger, get on to the receiving end, we soon will be posting a lot less of these food pictures. Anyway the pasta turned out to be super. The proof is the empty dishes in sink. 

pasta remains one of the favourite post workout meals. Others being Idlis, dosa, or a millet khichdi. Of course, it is vegan and made with homemade Pesto and home grown herbs.
And Ramdev... He added a lot of comic relief. Kudos! (can you believe it, he is been accorded the Cabinet Minister Status)


Recipe -
What all you need?

  1. Half pack whole grain pasta
  2. Onions - 2
  3. Spring onion - 4 chopped
  4. Seasonal veggies, I used Gobhi and Kale (grown at Upavan by Ritu )
  5. Cold pressed groundnut oil 2 table spoons for cooking
  6. EV olive oil for dressing
  7. Cashews - handful
  8. Garlic - 4-5
  9. Grainny's Vitalitea - Realised that major herbs in this, like oregano, thyme, and rosemary, are also used in Mediterranean cooking.
  10. Frozen Pesto - 2 cubes (made with home-grown  basil)
  11. What else?... ya salt, red and black pepper. 

Method -
  • Boil pasta in 2x water in pressure cooker. Drain water and rinse with cold water.
  • Switch on music and start playing the leftover playlist. I had Harry Belafonte in the kitchen.
  • Take a deep pan, oil it and cook onions and gobhi. Add spring onions cook a bit more. Nothing harsh, just ‘Belafonte’ the stuff.
  • In the grinder put the cashew and some water, make paste, and add to the pan. Taste, now add salt and peppers. Cook a bit more. But you want to keep the veggies fresh and crunchy (remember)
  • Now throw the pasta in the pan, add kale, toss it a bit with half a spoon of Vitalitea, and cover the pan for a minute.
  • Feed the cat.
  • Crush garlics in olive oil. Switch off the stove.
  • Time for quick 10 pushups. 
  • Add the garlic dressing to the pasta.
  • optional - Sprinkle 2 spoons of Grainny's Seed Mix.


Time to eat and scoot to work

Total time taken – 10-12 mins.
Note - 
No animal was hurt in the entire process of cooking and eating.

Resemblance to any Professionally cooked Pasta is coincidental and entirely unintentional.
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The Author - Manas Arvind, Chief Ecovation officer - Grainny's.
After 18 'interesting years' in creative communication strategy and design, is - pursuing his interests in world cuisine, fighting for animal rights, advocating growing food at home, helping set a local farmer-citizen community, teaching photography, digital marketing, and Haiku writing, planning for the next Tour of Tigers for cyclists, besides spending countless hours in the bakery, researching and making food which is safe, healthy, and cool for us, next generation, and environment.

Learn about Grainny's at www.grainnys.com