Monday, July 6, 2009

Yay ! I did it - A.W.E.D- Switzerland !!

Ive been excited since I saw the announcement here - Experiments,Emotions,Experiences with food: A.W.E.D- Switzerland ..
Switzerland...a faraway dream land...snowy peaks...cheeses...chocolates..all things glorious !!

And since actual journey to Swiss seems far-fetched in these recession times, I could atleast do a culinary journey there..I searched for some good vegetarian recipes and though lot of cakes and cookies enticed me , I zeroed in on this one - Aelplermagronen (the Alpine Farmer's Macaroni with Applesauce) .. a pasta with potatoes and cheese...what's not to like ??

I did gather my ingredients over the weekend, a baby swiss cheese (gruyere is quite expensive , and I wasnt sure if I
would like it ) , pasta (Orecchiette instead of conventional macaroni) and thought I would make it for a quick lunch box some evening...Sunday eve , after cooking up all my potatoes I realized that its 5th and tomorrow is the last date for my swiss trial !! So much for advance planning ;(

So today eve, I had to do a quick stop to get some potatoes and put everything together - (makes for 2 people)


4 medium sized potatoes (cut in halves and microwaved till cooked but firm(6-8 mins)
1 medium sized onion , cut thinly
2 garlic pods , minced
some milk to caramelize (instead of cream)
2 cups Pasta, cooked as directed
1/2 cup shredded swiss cheese
1 tbsp butter

In a large frying pan heat the butter and saute the onions until a light brown. Moisten with milk, add the garlic and bring to boil. Stir in the (cooked) pasta, slice the potatoes and stir into pan. Reheat. Stir in the grated cheese.
Season with salt and pepper. Grate cheese on top as desired.
This came out to be a very full-bodied , rich but not-overly so pasta. I tried it with the prescribed combination ,i.e applesauce and though it provides a nice sweet touch to the base pasta, a sweet pasta didnt really appeal .. I can imagine it better with some veggies added in ...

There ! So I added some saute-ed mushrooms and sprinkled red pepper to make a nice lunch for DH :

I know, last minute.. but at least I didn't miss the train to the Alps :)

5 comments:

  1. Hey dear to be frank i too wanted to prepare this for AWED but didnt get time and i missed the event, glad you made it and it sounds fantastic!

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  2. Wow Parita,

    Have to say you are more adventurous in the kitchen than I am. :) Would not have tried to cook pasta with potatoes. But now that you have (and also added mushrooms) I must say it sounds good.

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  3. You did not miss the train to Alps,the dish looks so perfect that a first class ticket is reserved.
    Nice way you adapted the dish using orecchiette and mushrooms.I know its perfect since I too made it - with extra pepper/chilliflakes and never with applesauce.Thanks for the heart entry.

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  4. Looks so gud..sure you did it ;)

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  5. This pasta sounds incredibly interesting and very unique, good one !

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