March 23, 2009

Clicking Wooden Rice Mould/Mold, Roasted veg and Artichoke Pasta, Mac and Cheese Casserole with Italian sausage.

My Japanese wooden Rice Mold, goes to Jugalbadi's ever popular visual candy event "CLICK-WOOD".

Pasta with roasted Bell pepper, Artichoke hearts and Tomato,
goes to Soma of "ecurry" who is guest hosting "Hay Hay, it's Donna's day #26" event. Roma has chosen Donna Hay's this recipe for us to try. This event's original host is Bron Marshall.

Mac and cheese with Italian sausage,
goes to Srivalli of "Cooking for 4 all seasons", who is guest hosting "Monthly Mingle" this month with "Kids lunches" as a theme and Meeta started this MM event. Thanks to all hosts, enjoy! :)

Macaroni and cheese with Italian sausage casserole,
also goes to Aquadaze of "Served with love", who is guest hosting this month's "Presto Pasta Nights #106", an event started by Ruth of "Once upon a feast".

Japanese Rice mould/mold:

Any kind of "mould" in India is called "Mold" here in USA, just like "colour" and "color" etc, just a little clarification about the spelling! :D

This beautiful Japanese rice mold is specially designed to pour and serve the sauce in the center. Spoon the cooked rice into the mold, press gently to fill the gaps, place on a serving plate and tap gently to release the rice. Pour any sauce into the middle of the rice and serve. I had made Egg butter masala, placed an egg in the center of the mold.

Japanese Rice Mould/Mold

Another "clear" look:


Sony Cyber-Shot: 8.1pxl, Macro mode.

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Chicken and Capsicum Pasta recipe is the choice of Soma's who is hosting "Hay Hay, it's Donna's day" from Donna Hay's blog. Although I followed the original recipe mostly, I had to make this with Artichoke Hearts with lots of fresh herbs from my herb pots since I made Butter chicken for kids few days ago and ran out of Chicken! So here is my chicken less version;

Artichoke Hearts and roasted Bell Peppers Farfalle Pasta!

Another look:

Here is how I made it:
1. Cooked Butterfly/Farfalle Pasta al-Dente, drained and added to a bowl.
2. Roasted green and red Bell peppers, few Tomato slices, drained canned Artichoke Hearts, cooled them for 10mins.
3. Mixed Pasta, roasted veggies, 1 tbsp Parmesan cheese, few slices of bottled Vinegary Jalapenos, 2 tbsp mixed fresh herbs like Basil, Oregano, Thyme and Parsley along with Donna's dressing and VOILA!!
Beautiful Pasta is ready to dig in. Enjoy! :)

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Everybody's favorite food, Macaroni and cheese with sweet Italian Sausage:
My kids always like to have Mac and cheese whenever my husband doesn't come home for dinner and I don't feel like cooking! Usually kids like to add add chopped up Hot dogs for a quick version, I had some Italian sausage this time to add to this Nac and Cheese. You can make plain Mac and cheese without adding anything or may be some veggies to make it healthier. I made a Casserole of Mac and cheese with crunchy Panko breadcrumbs on top!

Macaroni and Cheese with Italian sausage Casserole:

Here is how to make Mac and cheese Casserole:

Preheat the oven at 350F to bake this casserole for 30-40mins.

Pasta:
Boil water, add 2 cups of dry Elbow Macaroni with some salt and 1 tsp oil until almost done, drain and pour it in a casserole dish.
Sausage:
Cut up Hot dog if you using those or take out and crumble Italian sausage links out of it's skin and saute the sausage for a while in a pan until light brown and set aside to add this to the sauce later)
For cheese sauce:
1. Heat a non-stick pan, add 2tbsp olive oil or butter, add 2 tbsp plain flour, stir fry until slightly golden or until flour is cooked. Now pour in about 2 1/4 cups of milk, gently heat.
2. When sauce is hot, grate a Nutmeg to add few pinches, sausage and take the sauce off of the heat. Add 1 tsp yellow ground Mustard, 1 cup of grated Cheddar cheese and stir gently and quickly until cheese dissolves. Add some pepper and salt if needed. I added 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 tsp each of mixed spices and herbs.
3. Pour this sauce over the Macaroni, sprinkle some Parmesan and 1/4 cup seasoned Panko (or Italian) breadcrumbs on top and bake for 30 to 40mins until sauce is thickish.
Sauce thickens as the caserrole cools, so don't bake until Pasta and sauce is very dry. To get some color on the breadcrumbs, I broiled/grilled for 5 mins or just until crumbs get golden. DO NOT burn the crumbs!
You can Microwave this dish too to make it faster, bread crumbs will be whitish but it's quite tasty to eat anyway.

Enjoy, see you next time! :)

69 comments:

amna said...

That rice mould is so interesting! love the idea!

Chutneytales said...

The Wooden rice mould is just amazing..Wish I could get that someday.Great click and love the idea of spiced egg in rice.
I love Mac n cheese and so does my sis and we make this at least once in a week..Its looking very very yummy :)

Anonymous said...

Great Recipe, Great CLICK!! love that mold. I love artichokes. Nice Entry Asha..

Hehehee u have my name(R[S]oma) wrong up there:-)

Srikitchen said...

wooden rice mould is so cute and good asha mam!
second recipe click was awesome ad the plate u have used is really very nice!
third recipe is superb and as usual u r rocking!

EC said...

Pics are so beautiful,never seen the rice mould before. .looks cool

FH said...

Nagu, I found it in the World Market, love it!:)

Thanks Madhu, Mac and cheese is always yummy!:)

Oops! Sorry about that, was in a hurry to send you today ASAP! ;D
I will correct it, loved the Pasta btw :)

Thanks Sri, your cookie is coming in a week!:)

EC, it's really unique mold, works well to! :)

krystyna said...

So nice to be with you Asha today.
It is always my great time being here. I can see your art-food, it is inspiring.
My favorite today is this Japanese rice mold. Really great, healthy and beautiful.
I try to avoid pasta. Only sometimes.

Take care and good luck!

Finla said...

I have never seen a rice mould like this, looks beautiful.
I would love to have mac and cheese casserole.

Divya Kudua said...

Ooh..that rice mo(u)ld is so lovely..looks almost like a mini-bundt cake tin;-).Love the way you've placed an egg right on top..;-).Pasta is looking delicious and so does the Casserole..waiting to see your version of Banana muffin;-)!!!

bee said...

gorgeous pasta. that japanese mould would make a great hat, dontcha think?

FH said...

Thanks Krystyna, molds are fun to use. Take care, hugs to you! :)

F, S would love this Mac and cheese with Italian sweet sausage, try it. You can also skip all the meat but some Protein is always great! :)

KonkaniBlogger said...

Great looking mould and lovely Click! Loved the pasta platter!

FH said...

Divya, that mould is cute, great to serve thick gravies poured on it. We are still eating that Muffin, need to type in the recipe, will post at FH next week! :)

Haha!! True, if you have a head that small to fit in that thing and then a bonus dent in the skull too!
Bee, you will be amazed what I can find in that cabin of mine, I wasn't looking for it but there it was. WOOD! Flashed in mind! ;D

Sunshinemom said...

The rice mould is new to me and I like the idea. Esp. since I know my son will find food interesting when served like this!! Great idea for click wood. I somehow don't like farfelle very much, probably because it can't hold the gravy as much as penne! My daughter would love that:)

Arundathi said...

love the rice mold and the pasta looks fantastic!

Vibaas said...

Rice mould looks so cute. the pics are both beautiful.

Pasta is yum! Would love to try it. Never used artichokes before...some kinda mental block that i'll mess it :)

Deepthi Shankar said...

the mould looks very cute .. Loved the pasta. I love artichoke

Cham said...

What a gogeous colorful pasta & mc cheese Asha! The rice mold is quiet interesting!

Laavanya said...

What a nice concept for the rice mould. The pasta dish looks so colorful and i prefer baked mac and cheese to the stovetop one.. of course i could try w/o the sausage.

Raks said...

Have never seen wooden rice mold before! Thanks for sharing!
Pasta dish looks pretty as well!

FH said...

Thanks Maya and Arundhati! :)

H, same here. We like pasta with sauce too rather than dry ones like this although it tastes good and Penne pasta holds the sauce well! :)

Vibaas, not everybody like ArtIchoke ANYWAY but sauteed lightly in salt and butter will make it tastes better! :D

FH said...

Thanks Deesha, Cham, Laavanya and Raks. Rice mold is cute but doesn't help much in every day dishes, something fancy kids would love it on the table! :)

Ashwini said...

Wow nice spread everytime Asha ..That is one cute mould. Loved that pasta with roasted veggies...Nice click Asha.

Yasmeen said...

Love the neat click,the delicious pasta dish and the scrumptious mac & cheese:)

sra said...

Interesting, didn't know there was something like a rice mould - just thought everyone inserted a katori and that was that! :-D

Lavanya said...

pasta looks colorful n mouthwatering..rice mould is really cute..nice clicks!!

FH said...

Thanks Ashwini,Yasmeen and Lavanya! :)

sra, I used to do that too with Katoris before. Japanese make a very sticky rice, so I guess this works better for them. I have to really press our regular rice harder to shape but it's cuter with dent in the middle! :)

AnuSriram said...

Rice mold looks wonderful! Perfect click! Gr8! Pasta and the casserole both looks gorgeous!

FH said...

Thanks Anu, Casserole was yummy, kids loved it! :)

Pavithra Kodical said...

Nice click Asha akka.Love that mould looks cute :)

Roasted veggies in pasta sounds great.Delicious!!

Gita Jaishankar said...

The mold is cool, lovely presentation too! Both the dishes look delicious, the pasta new to me. I should try your delicious version with artichikes soon :)

Recipeswap said...

I've never seen such a rice mould before....I love italian sausage and with mac and cheese its outa the world.......wowwwwwww.
yes you can send your kids over anytime,I love to cook for ppl who love chicken.

jayasree said...

Rice mould is nice and it surely helps to serve rice in an appealing way to the kids. Nice click for the event.
Both pasts and Mac N cheese beautifully presented.

sunita said...

The pasta looks lovely, and I've never seen a rice mould like that :-)

Jaya M said...

Asha,
amzing click with that rice mould, never knew rice can be moulded with a unique wooden piece also ..nice one ..
Its being ages I have tried making any Italian dishes and , I am just craving it now , both these are so delicious ...
hugs and smiles

Neha said...

Lovely click.., n a yummy pasta..

Rajitha said...

the mould is adorable!!...i really have to go and search for one like it...it would make a fun presentation!

Purva Desai said...

The rice mould is sooo cute :)
Pasta and cheese casserole both looks tempting dear

Saritha said...

Nice snaps asha,rice moulds are quite different and unique

FH said...

Thanks Pavithra, Gita, Neema, Jaya, Sunita, Jaya, Neha, Rajitha and Purva. Rice mould is fun, can't really use it everyday but nice to have it! :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Asha,
loved the rice mould.pictures are great.

shalini

Preety said...

rice in rice mould sounds interesting..

Love the flavour of roasted bell pepper n artichoke in pasta..i used canned ones only..

i never had mac n cheese b4 but looks so yummy

Srivalli said...

Thats one great looking mould Asha...thanks for the lovely entry!..

FH said...

Thanks Shalini! :)

Preety, canned Artichoke is fine, drain well and saute a bit with salt and pepper to add to Pasta! :)

You are welcome Sri, glad you liked it! :)

Jayashree said...

Nice rice mould....will definitely appeal to kids....

FH said...

Yes, kids would love the rice with sauce poured in the middle. Thanks jaya! :)

Beyond Curries said...

I love the pasta picture very much. I didn't know that there was a rice mould. We usually use some cups.

Reg. the logo for my event. I don't have one. I'm eagerly awaiting for your entry. Thanks Asha.

Red Chillies said...

Very nice pictures, came at the wrong time as I was very hungry. Vegetarian or not liked the recipes.

Padma Gopinath said...

rice mould is interesting..!! yummy pasta :-)

FH said...

Thanks Madhu, RC and Padma! :)

Madhu, I will post for you next week at FH. I took the photo of Yogurt carton picture in your post, thinking that it's the logo! :D

Unknown said...

Ooh the rice mould is such a nice kitchen tool! Where can I buy one? You go, girl!

Sharon

Indian Khana said...

Nice clicks and the mold is pity interesting to think of....both the recipes looks yum

Usha said...

Loved the rice mold ! Your farfalle pasta looks very colorful and inviting...

FH said...

Hi Sharon. I bought that in mould World market store nearby here. Sometimes they sell exotic stuff like this, not always available. Gourmet kitchen stores or Asian stores might have them! :)

Thanks Priti and Usha. Nice mould for serving kids indeed, they will eat up without a fuss! :D

Raaga said...

nice mould... if someone gave me rice like that I'd love it :)

lovely recipes and pics too :)

FH said...

Arvind loved it too, saw him grabbing two of those rice lumps to eat with egg curry! :D

Vishali said...

Lovely Farfelle.....I simply adore the wooden mould :D....as always hats off to all recipes...!!

UjjU said...

Ugadi Pachadi recipe illa. Nodana online hudki try maadthini. Mavina kayi kaali maadbittidhini. :)

FH said...

Thanks Vaishali, it's not very practical for everyday use but it is cute! :)

Ujju, try looking for Vah Chef videos, he has one too. I just made it as my mom makes but didn't have Bevu though! :)

Varsha Vipins said...

wow..I loved that rice mould n Pasta dish..:) Which did u send for Click?I hope 2nd..cos first one is lil blurred I guess..The pasta looks yum n cute..The pasta looks to me like chicken feet..hehe..The cheese caserole is definitely my kinda dish..looks yum everything Ashakka..:)

FH said...

Sent the first one, blurred on purpose to show the mould better! ;D

Yes, it does look like chicken feet, never thought of that! HeHe! Pasta tastes great, with or without chicken. Happy Ugadi if you have it! :)

Unknown said...

The rice mould looks v.v.nice,but how did u place the egg there,even though digged ;)yesterday for a egg kurma picture I was trying damn hard,before I could click,it was falling down :(
and farfelle recipe is awesome..

Joanne said...

I love this mac'n'cheese recipe. The idea of adding worcestershire sauce is so interesting...gives it a nice little kick. I will definitely be trying this soon.

FH said...

Ramya, that mould makes pretty deep groove, easy to just drop the egg carefully! :)

Thanks Joanne. Worcestershire gives a little tang indeed,but too much of it would spoil the taste of Mac and Cheese.Hope you try! :)

Unknown said...

Nice clicks & looks awesome dear...

FH said...

Thanks Srikar, mould something different than usual! :)

Rajee said...

Rice mould is amazing and so cute. So brilliant colorful pasta. Macaroni and Cheese with Italian sausage Casserole is so inviting and gorgeous.

Ruth Daniels said...

Thanks for sharing with Presto Pasta Nights and even though it's not for pasta, I love the rice mold!

FH said...

Thank you Rajee.
I think rice mould is cute too, nice way to serve rice for a change.

You know Ruth, you might be able to shape the Mac and cheese in that mould too, if you make the pasta dish thicker! Worth a try, right? :)