Pasta (Macaroni) Salad

Serves                         : 4/5 adults
Time for preparation : 40-45 minutes 
Could serve as a side dish or a salad/dessert

Ingredients:

1. Macaroni (200 g)
2. Mayonaise (150 g)
3. Cucumber (1 No.s medium sized)
4. Green capsicum (small sized/half big sized)
5. Red capsicum ( -- " --)
6. Yellow capsicum ( -- " --)
7. Carrots (2 small sized)
8. Black Olives (80 g) (preferred, but could rid them if not available)
9. Mushroom (3 big ones or 4-5 small ones)
10. Ripe tomatoes (150 g / 2-3 medium sized)
11. Paneer (80 g)
12. Cheese (80 g / Two standard cheese cubes)
13. Sugar (100 g/ Add to taste)
14. Green peas (Optional. 80 g)
15. Cauliflower (Optional. About 50g by weight)
    
16. Purple capsicum (Optional. Half small sized)
17. Baby corn (Optional. 4-5 small sized)

Procedure:
Dice the cucumber, Green/Red/Yellow/Purple capsicum, mushroom, babycorn, tomato, paneer, cheese to small size (cubes of about 1/2 cm size). Cut olives into rings/pieces of medium dimensions. Pour in 1 1/2 L tap water into a vessel. Vessel should be large enough to leave half of it empty after pouring in the water. Add ample amount of salt to it (40-50 g). Bring the water to a boil. Add macaroni to the boiling water. Stir it once and cover it partially with a lid. Do not cover the vessel completely at any time, or else it will spill. Stir it twice at an interval of a minute between each stir. Macaroni tends to stick  to the bottom of the vessel initially. Stirring will avoid that. Once it begins to cook, stirring is not required. Cook the macaroni in boiling water on medium flame for about 15 minutes. Turn off the flame once the macaroni becomes (as they say in Italian) 'al dente', that is, cooked enough not to feel hard to break with teeth, but not boiled fluffy. Macaroni start breaking into boiled pieces, if overcooked, so if you see a few cooked and broken inside the vessel, that is a sure sign to turn off the flame.

Now take a large enough sieve and pour the contents from the vessel into it, and do not forget to collect the hot water in a separate container. Hold the sieve under running cold water (to stop further cooking of pasta instantly by lowering their temperature).  Now put the previously diced baby corn (optional), cauliflower (optional) and carrots, green peas (if are not frozen ones) (mushrooms as well, if preferred) into the hot water drained from the macaroni. and cover it with lid. Let it be for another 10 minutes or so.

In the meantime, take a large enough bowl that could carry all these ingredients and you could be used to mix them. Dump the 'al dente' macaroni into this bowl along with other diced ingredients (the diced capsicums, cucumber, tomato, paneer, cheese, cut olives) and add the mayonnaise to it. Mix it initially for 10-20 sec adding 3-4 medium sized spoons of sugar. By this time carrot, diced mushroom, (cauliflower, baby corn,) green peas, will be semi boiled. Remove them from hot water using the sieve, and put them inside the mix. Add some more sugar and begin mixing it. More mayonnaise could be added if one likes. Mix it for a minute or two (the bottoms up way) thoroughly. Let it stand for more minute or so, then taste the mix. Add sugar if desired and mix again then.

Once it tastes alright to you, place this bowl inside the refrigerator for about 20 minutes and let it cool. Serve chilled (do not over cool of freeze it).

It forms a great and delightful dessert/salad.

Above quantity could easily serve 4-5 adults.

TIPS:
No need to add any salt while or after mixing, since macaroni is salty enough already.
Addition of basil (तुळस) leaves while serving, adds a different taste to the salad.

SUGGESTION:
DO NOT add onion/garlic to any of its variants, since their flavour will be too strong, giving it a complete onion/garlic taste. (Suggestion comes from someone who loves garlic very much himself).