Sneha's Recipe: Tricolour

Freedom Haiku Poem

I hear patriotic voices

Makes my heart cheer

Our Constitution give us

The right to freedom

If Freedom was a dish of Pasta

I would cook the way I like it.

And would eat it any time or all the time.

Thank you Stacy for making me rack my brains and write a poem, which is not my forte.

This Tricolor Pasta , represents the color of our national flag. The best thing about this Tri Color Pasta it that you can assemble it and cover with a foil. Just before serving place it in the air fryer or a preheated oven and bake it 180°C for 20 minutes or till it is heated through, I, used the air fryer.

You also add how ever much cheese you want between the layers, I have used the minimum amount of cheese since, am, health conscious.

Serves 2 -3
Ingredients
3 Cups Penne Pasta
For The Carrot Pesto
4 Medium Ooty Carrots - peeled
2 Dried Red Chilly - chopped
1 Tablespoon Yellow Bell Pepper - chopped
1 Tablespoon Heaped Toasted Pine nuts
2 Cloves Garlic
1 Tablespoon Heaped Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Salt to taste
For the Spinach Pesto
½ Cup Packed Blanched Spinach
1 Green Chilly
1 Tablespoon Heaped Toasted Pine nuts
2 Cloves Garlic
1 Tablespoon Heaped Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

Salt to taste
A Pinch of Black pepper powder
For the White Sauce/Bechamel Sauce
3 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Heaped Homemade Cream Of Soup Mix
3 Cups Milk
2 Tablespoons Heaped Shredded Cheddar Cheese
2 Tablespoons Heaped Shredded Processed Cheese
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
A Pinch of Nutmeg powder
Extra Butter as required
Extra Cheese as required

Method

Boil the pasta as per package instructions. Drain, reserve the pasta water and keep both aside. Divide the pasta into three equal parts.

For The Carrot Pesto

In a pressure pan add the carrot, red chillies, yellow bell pepper and ¼ cup water, cover and cook them on high flame for 2 whistles. Cool the cooker completely, then open it. Remove the carrot and red chillies from the cooker, if there is any water, keep it aside.

Add the carrot, red chillies and rest of the ingredients for the carrot pesto and blend to a smooth paste, if necessary add the water that the carrot were cooked in. Remove this into a bowl and keep aside.

Carrot Pesto is ready!!
For the Spinach Pesto

Add the spinach (squeeze out all the water), red chillies and rest of the ingredients for the spinach pesto and blend to a smooth paste. Remove this into a bowl and keep aside.

Spinach Pesto is ready!!

For the White Sauce Pasta

Melt butter in a pan. Add Homemade Cream Of Soup Mix and sauté, stirring continuously till the raw smell disappears, remove from flame and add milk gradually, whisking continuously. Once the mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat and let it simmer. Continue to whisk for 10-12 minutes or till the sauce is smooth and slightly thick.
Add cheddar and processed cheese and keep whisking. Add salt, pepper powder, and nutmeg powder. Divide the sauce into 3 pots/pans.

For The Spinach Pesto Pasta

In one pan add a tablespoon of butter, all of the spinach pesto and one part of the pasta and the white sauce, cook till it thickens a little.

Do not dry this completely, because we want a saucy pasta. Keep aside
For The Carrot Pesto Pasta

Similarly do the same in seperate pots/pan for the carrot pesto and

keep this aside too.
For The White Sauce Pasta

In the same white sauce pan add a additional tablespoon of butter, add one part of pasta, taste for salt and pepper powder and add according to your taste.
Now all our Tri Color pasta is ready.

Let's Assemble - Tri Color Pasta

In a large baking big soufflé dish, butter the dish well. Add the spinach pesto pasta, sprinkle cheese

then top it with the white sauce pasta, then again sprinkle cheese on top,

lastly top it with the carrot pesto pasta and again sprinkle cheese.

It's ready for the air fryer.. see all the layers

Place this foiled covered dish in the Air Fryer basket @ 180°C for 20 minutes. Let it sit in the air fryer for 3 minutes. Remove and un mold it.

I could have turned it into another serving dish, but, since I sprinkled little cheese in between layers, was apprehensive that it would crumble.

This was a truly delicious, worth the effort and time taken to make it.

Labels: Tri Color, Spinach Pesto, Carrot Pesto, White Sauce ,Vegetarian, Main course, Sunday Funday, Pasta & Noodles, Italian, Air Fryer

April is National Poetry Month. Our Host for Sunday Funday is Stacy - https://www.foodlustpeoplelove.com asked us to "Share a recipe and a poem about your chosen recipe or motivational ingredient".

An Ode to Kung Pao Tacos by A Day in the Life on the Farm
Bacon Queso from Amy's Cooking Adventures
Chicken Parmesan Pizza by Making Miracles
Foraging-Shy, a Haiku + Mushroom Ragù from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
I Cooked for Pleasure: Chicken Fried Bacon by Palatable Pastime
Tri Color Pasta & Freedom Haiku Poem from Sneha's Recipe
Vegan Thai Iced Tea by Mayuri's Jikoni

Happy Independence Day!! This a a tribute to my country - Tri Colour Sandwich. I have used three veggies in each layer to make the sandwich and they are also healthy. These sandwiches were made of 3 Large sandwich breads, I doubled the quantity for the layers. These went for our trekkers outing and they were finished in a jiffy.

Ingredients:
1 Large Sandwich bread

For Saffron layer:
3 Carrots - thinly sliced
2 Red chillies - broken into pieces
3 Garlic Cloves
1 Teaspoon Mustard sauce
3 Tablespoons Fresh grated Coconut
3 Tablespoon Cream cheese
3 Tablespoon Butter
Salt to taste

For White Layer:

3 Large Potatoes
3 Tablespoon Butter
1 Cup Milk
3 Tablespoon Cream cheese
1 Teaspoon White Pepper powder
Salt to taste

For Green layer:

1 Cucumber
3 Cups Coriander leaves
4 Green chillies
3/4 Cup Freshly Grated Coconut
1 Teaspoon heaped Cumin seeds
1 Teaspoon heaped Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
3 Tablespoon heaped Butter

Method:

For Saffron Layer:

In a pan add the red chilli and the carrot, boil till the carrot it soft. Allow to cool.

When cooled add this along with rest of the ingredients and grind to a fine paste - spreadable consistency.

For White Layer:

Pressure cook the potato till soft peel the potatoes and mash it.

In a pan add the butter and when it starts to melt add the milk and bring it to boil. Now add the mashed potatoes and mix well, stir continuously to make a smooth consistency. Season this mixture with pepper and salt, add the cream cheese, mix well till ingredients are well blended. Take off the flame and allow it to cool.

For Green Layer:

In a blender jar add the all the ingredients and grind to a fine paste adding little water if necessary to make a fine paste.

Now all the layer's are ready, let's assemble the sandwich.

Assembling the Sandwich:

Arrange three slices of bread on board, apply the one colour chutney on each bread slices. The fourth slice is for covering.

On the green layer slice of bread, place the potato layer slice of bread with the filling on the top side, in the same way place the carrot layer and cover with the plain slice of bread.

Slightly press the sandwich and trim the edges. Diagonally cut the slices to get triangular shape or cut rectangle shape as you wish.

Enjoy...!

My Notes:

Wrap the sandwhiches in a clean damp cloth and then place them in a plastic bag and refrigerate them overnight before triming the sides and cutting into triangles, they will cut evenly and the filling will not ooze out, it will set nicely.

I. finished making these sandwiches at 12.30 pm, had to pack them in the night itself, since we were leaving in the morning at 5 am. Hence, you can see the layer oozing out a little.

Linking this to Valli's 'Cookingfrom Cookbook Challenge: August -- Week 3 .