An Ode to 2013

What a year it's been! From start to finish, it has been a complete roller coaster, and the last 5 months have been additionally so, partly why I have been missing in action from this space (Now, now, I am not providing pretexts for complacency, for I have been far from lazy. I am simply elaborating on why there have been no new posts, while there has been a lot of new food, and also to explain where today's recipe comes from). 

I started school once again, this time to get a post grad degree, and the month preceding to the start of the program was pure mayhem - I ensured I was present for the two new store openings at my beloved DLF Emporio, I moved cities twice, and finally shifted base to the South East Asian neighbourhood that basks in the glory of international food scene (or so it claims!). 

Back to the Classroom

The next four months were a blur. I was back in the classroom, meeting people from over 75 nationalities; went for parties, barbecues, dinners galore, cooked some Indian food on and off, learnt lots, hopefully taught some, and basically went from a happy earning individual to a happier student. Part of this four month journey included working with a "diverse" study group, and because this particular school tries to take diversity beyond a marketing buzzword, my group had this "straddling, dashing" American who was, in his day, a REAL master chef (Dan, dinner on you for this one :p)

Now, any prudent B-School student MUST be an opportunist. Therefore you must self-invite yourself for dinner at your cheffy group mate's place, and considering Americans are generous (rich) by nature, you  must expect to be fed a meal that can fetch our man a Michelin star. The recipe I am going to share (Note: It has also been tested and tried on desi grounds, so no worries on ingredient front) has been stolen out of his kitchen, and is an original. 

Before further ado, and just in time for New Year celebrations, find the recipe of Apple Beignets with Vanilla Rum Mousseline below:

Ingredients:

For Beignets

Flour - 3/4 cup

Baking Powder - 1 tsp

Egg - 1

Salt - A pinch

Beer (at room temperature) - 2/3 cup

Apples - 2 (peeled, cored and cut in 1/4" rings)

Cinnamon & Sugar Powder - For dusting

Vegetable Oil - For deep frying

For Vanilla Mousseline

Egg yolks - 3

Butter - 50 to 75 gms, melted

Vanilla Rum - 1 tsp 

Sugar - 1 tbsp

Whipped Cream - 1/2 cup

Method:

• Start with the Mousseline: Combine the egg yolks and sugar in a stainless steel bowl and beat over a double boiler for 2 minutes until it begins to thicken.
• Ensure butter is  melted simultaneously. Add the melted butter into the mixture above, whisking all the while, careful not to overheat this mixture. 
• When this mixture is thick, add in the vanilla rum (substitute with regular, locally available rum and 2-3 drops of vanilla essence, if needed). Set aside and keep warm.
• Now for the Beignets: Combine the flour, baking powder and salt.
• Beat the whole egg in a bowl and mix in the beer. 
• Stir in the flour mix. You should have a thick, smooth batter.
• Dip the apple slices in the batter above, and fry until golden brown (about 2 minutes on each side) in 375 degrees oil.
• Drain the beignets on paper towels and dust with the cinnamon and ground sugar.
• Move back to the sauce. Fold in the whipped cream into the sauce and your mousseline is ready.
• Now plate this simple, scrumptious dessert by first placing a spoonful of the mousseline on the dessert plate and placing a gorgeous, crisp apple on top.

The gorgeous

I once claimed I am a chocolate dessert fanatic. The one time I wavered was when I ate the absolutely divine pecan pie served with vanilla ice cream at the Cavalli Caffè. And then I converted, thanks to my dear group mate. An apple hater such as I now propagates a non-chocolate, apple dessert on her own blog! Strange are the ways of the world, dear friends, so while I muse on life's bungee jumps and enjoy a piping hot beignet, go create this ode to the wonderful 2013…

ATTRAVERSIAMO - Let's cross over (to an even better 2014!) and go DIG IN!!! 

Something Sweet

When one is back in the valley, surrounded by mountains that have recently seen a spurt of the worst possible devastation, one must search for reasons to rejoice, to keep the faith and to live through one more day -- and one such reason is the tremendous effort the locals have put in to assist those in need. Another reason is simply that one is ALIVE. And finally, my most favorite reason is that being back in the valley implies access to an oven, and thus a chance to rustle up something in the baking department.

So, in order to celebrate those that survived and to pay a tribute to those who departed, even as we move on, let us do something sweet...

Let us prepare a baked version of the childhood bread pudding! Recipe below:

Ingredients:

Bread slices - 8 slices (brown/ white/ multigrain -- leave the choice to you, dear reader!)

Milk - 300 mls

Sweetened Condensed Milk - 200 gms 

Eggs - 2, at room temperature

Cinnamon - A pinch

Butter - Enough to smear both sides of you bread slices with

Method:

• Pre set the oven at 160 degrees celsius. In the mean time, trim the edges of your bread slices and butter them lavishly on both sides. Line these up in layers in your baking dish (Note: The original recipe asks for raisins to be sprinkled between layers, but my aversion to the same was reason enough to completely omit them from my version of the dessert. Please feel free to add these and/ or any other dry fruit that pleases your taste buds)
• In another bowl break the eggs and beat them lightly, adding the sweetened condensed milk, milk and cinnamon (Note: The original recipe asks for nutmeg but I personally LOVE cinnamon and thus the twist)
• Now pour this gorgeous sunrise colored mixture over your layered, buttered bread slices, drowning them completely
• Bake for about 20-25 minutes in a moderately hot oven (160 to 170 degrees celsius) till the mixture has ensconced the bread and risen over the same as a beautiful golden brown crown. Ah! And the lovely scent... Sigh!
• Serve hot (as I did) or eat cold (as I did). It works both ways, trust me!

Look how deliciously well it turns out. And how quickly too!

Why I simply loved this particular dish was for two major reasons:

a) How quickly I was able to forage from the kitchen back at home and put something together that was absolutely delish, and

b) It was completely reminiscent of my childhood breakfasts when Mom used to make me fresh "meethi" bread. This was simply a sophisticated version of the same that all the Aunties will love over a cup of chai, coffee, or even just chit-chat in the rain... Lovely! :D

So go, don't just sit and read. Cook in the next thirty, and DIG IN!!!

Paris Dreams. Thai palate.

Thunder growling in a distance. Humid winds, an overcast sky.
The promise of rain and perfect music. Ah, my soul's sigh!

 I dream of Paris, and a café -- a page in cursive -- billets doux.
And Thai flavors -- palm sugar, holy basil, phrik ki nu...


Yea, yea, I seem to be in such a romantic, poetic mood, but blame the weather!!!!

And what is romance, if it is not coupled with the idea of some simple, hearty, good, home made food?

So bursting with Paris dreams, and a Thai palate, I went a-cooking. For Pad Kapgraow Gai, please find the recipe below:

Ingredients:

Minced chicken - 320 grams
Thai Holy Basil - about 30 odd grams, torn (keep a sprig aside as garnish)
Garlic - 2 to 3 cloves, minced
Phrik Ki Nu or Bird eye chillies - 3, thinly sliced
Peppercorns - 3 to 4, crushed
Dark Soy Sauce - 3 tbsp
Fish Sauce - 1 tsp
Chicken stock - a little more than half a cup
Palm Sugar - 1 tbsp
Oil - 6 tbsp

Method:

• Heat the oil in a wok and add the garlic + chillies, allowing them to lightly fry till they are fragrant and tender
• Add the minced chicken to the wok and cook for about 5 to 7 minutes on medium flame 
• Now pour in the chicken stock, cooking for another 5 minutes or till some of the stock has evaporated, and season with the fish sauce, soy sauce (I only had a light one, so used that, with no apparent difference in taste) and the crushed peppercorns. Allow to cook till most of the chicken stock seems to have evaporated and the chicken is tender. [The original recipe asks for oyster sauce, but I decided to skip this addition as the dish was already well seasoned. If you wish to, you can add a teaspoon of the same]
• Add the freshly torn basil leaves and palm sugar. Turn off the heat and rest the wok
• YOUR DELICIOUS PAD KAPGRAOW GAI IS READDDYYYY!!! 
• Serve immediately with steamed rice and fried eggs or if you prefer it my way, as a meal in a bowl. Do garnish with your sprig of the basil ;)

Pad Kapgraow Gai

Now, I understand that I have been M.I.A for some months in blogosphere and since I have no valid explanation for the same except for lack of inspiration, (although, in my defense, I have been cooking and concocting, only not writing) I shall compensate with another recipe of twisting the standard fried egg and making it more Asian. 

So for Asian style fried eggs, recipe below:

Ingredients:

Eggs - 1 or 2 or as many as you wish to consume (my recipe is for a single fried egg)

Scallion - 1/2, thinly sliced, including the green shoots

Red Onion - 1/2 small, finely chopped

Green chili - 1, finely chopped

Ginger - 1/2 tsp, minced

Oil - 1 tsp

Sweet chili sauce - 1 to 2 tbsp, depending on your personal preference

Method:

• Break the egg into a bowl and in the mean time, heat oil on a non-stick pan
• Toss the green chillies, chopped red onion and ginger to the oil and fry lightly, till fragrant
• Now add the egg on top of this mixture and fry as you would for a regular fried egg
• When the egg is slightly firm and opaque, add the sliced scallions on top 
• The egg should be ready within 3 to 4 minutes on a medium flame
• Serve with a generous garnish of the sweet chili sauce

Asian Style Fried Egg

Now you could either serve this along with the Pad Kapgraow Gai or rustle these up for the self for Sunday breakfast and enjoy with toast and coffee. Either way, GO DIG IN!!!

And, before I forget, both these recipes are courtesy the Good Food India magazine, so read on, cook on!

Ah, the joys of cooking *lovestruck smiley*

Wedding Fervor

Wedding season is on and how... Ask parlor owners or farm-house p***s, florists or halwais, and they will each recount with delightful rapture just how happy this season is and how they are literally raking in the moolah...

And talking of weddings, I had the good fortune of attending the wedding of a dear old, AST (read Bhabha) who is now a certain Mrs. Goel with all beauty and grace *hoot hoot*. But weddings mean a lot of dressing up and strutting, even for the sahelis of the bride, with as little as 4 hours of sleep the previous night, and with all the backless blouses and endless dancing, one is bound to fall prey to the Great Indian Wedding Fever.

In this post I help you combat that fever with an energy pumped, delicious, yet simple dish: the Wedding Fervor. Recipe below:

Ingredients:

Moong dal (Green gram) or mixed sprout - 100 gms
Chicken (boneless) - 50 to 75 gms
Olive Oil - 1 tbsp (to rub onto the chicken)
Tomatoes - 1 medium sized, deseeded and diced
Onion - 1 medium sized, diced
Cucumber - 1/2, diced
Salt, Pepper and Red Chilli Powder - To taste
Lemon - 1

Method:

• Take the boneless chicken and make gashes on it with a sharp knife. Now rub olive oil, a little pepper, salt and juice of half a lemon on it and allow to marinate for a couple of hours before micro-grilling it for approximately ten minutes or till the chicken has turned opaque. 
• Cook the sprouts in a cup of water in a cooker, till you hear a single whistle. Take it off the gas and drain almost all of the liquid.
• Now mix the sprouts, shredded grilled chicken, diced tomatoes, onions and cucumber  in a bowl.
• Add the seasoning (as per taste) and the juice of half a lemon and toss.
• You could serve immediately if you like it warm or allow it to cool in the refrigerator for an hour before consuming it chilled, depending on the weather and your personal preference. I enjoy it either ways.

This simple dish is packed with protein and Vitamin C and is perfect to re-vitalize the exhausted you, allowing you to bounce back from wedding fever straight into wedding fervor. You can make variations of the same by looking up last month's Good Food magazine. 

Now for god's sake, don't flaff around, GO DIG IN....

I know that my name ain't Sarah, but I still love the Carbonara

So the world didn't quite end as expected (and even hoped by many!), and here we are, fat in the middle of the second month of Twenty13 -- yea, already! Middle? Not quite! Fat? Oh, completely... But then again, why wouldn't we be, given all the winter gorging like there would be no tomorrow, thanks to the Mayan indicators, but lo and behold, we are (read I am) FAT and ALIVE, and that my dearies, is reason enough to celebrate...

Another reason to celebrate is to mark the small somethings that happen to us while we are busy trying to live and make a living, small achievements that could possibly lead to big dreams and HOPE...

And finally, a celebration: to mark the brightness of today's sunshine after days of dreariness, and despite the nip, that smell in the air -- it's nothing short of a harbinger of Spring!!!

'Nuff justification for the cooking... Celebrations are mere pretexts, I cook because I can... And so, before I waste another waking minute of your beautiful life, let me jump straight to what was a-cooking in that kitchenette...

Penne all carrrbonaraaa (the carnivore in me grins endlessly!)... Recipe below:

Ingredients:

Penne pasta - 200 grams (Note: Although a typical carbonara uses spaghetti, I am a personal fan of the penne, but you could use the exact quantity of the spaghetti, or any other pasta that suits your fancy)

Eggs - 2
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1 tsp
Garlic - 2 cloves, finely chopped
Cream - 2 tbsp
Bacon - 100 grams, but if you are a pure meat-eater alla Anka, as much as you want :p
Parmesan Cheese - 1/2 cup grated, but you know with cheeses, more is less
Freshly Ground Black Pepper - To taste
Salt - To taste

Method:

Of the various recipes I read online, I only came across one note, and that is to prep the pasta and the sauce simultaneously so that the fresh, piping hot, al dente pasta can cook the raw eggs in the sauce. Oh, and this recipe is so darn simple, that were it not for the fat around my middle, or the rising temperature, I would indulge in this yummilicous dish day on day... 'Cause I know that my name ain't Sarah, but I still love the Carbonara :p

• Fill a large pot with water and add a dash of salt. Add the pasta to this pot once the water is boiling, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or as per packet instructions, until al dente.
• At the same time, sauté your bacon, cut into thin strips on a non-stick skillet, and allow it to crisp up till the fat is rendered. Place on a paper towel, once crisp, in order to drain. 
• Now, on the same skillet, add your finely chopped garlic and allow it to cook in the bacon juices and fat for a minute or so, until soft.
• While the pasta still cooks, don your super-chef hat and combine the eggs, olive oil, garlic, cream and cheese in a bowl and whisk till everything is mixed. 
• Drain the pasta (reserving the starchy pasta water to thin out the sauce, if required) into a wok on medium flame and quickly add the sauce to this. 
• Whisk together, and add some reserved water to bring the sauce to a desired consistency.
• Add the bacon and freshly ground pepper to the wok and combine, while also enjoying the heady aroma of this divine concoction... *salivates*
• Now serve in a bowl and drizzle some more grated parmesan and black pepper on top
• VOILA, la mia cara, now you can enjoy your home-made carbonara... teehee!

Okay, okay, and no mocking the sad attempt at poetry in the title or the line above... Remember, I am a self-claimed poet too :p

Now what are you waiting for? Its still almost-dinner time in many parts of the world... GO DIG IN!!!

While I, I mentally prepare myself for 500 crunches tomorrow and overmorrow... *facepalm*

Angelic glow -- oh carbonara!