all about food

The restaurant at Empress Garden

2011-12-04T23:14:00.001+05:30

Empress Garden is one of those old picturesque gardens in Pune with beautiful shady trees. Take a meandering path from the nursery and you come to rest at a quiet nook. This is where you can also find some grub at the only cafe for some miles around. According to its owner Mr.Bedi, this place was closed for a few months but had reopened only this week. Lucky me! The omelette sandwich I

Eggless Muffins

2011-11-06T21:38:00.003+05:30

At times I find that eggs added to cake batter tend to leave an 'eggy' (what else) taste or smell. Hence cake recipes without eggs are always welcome. Came across this recipe for eggless muffins by Pamela Timms, in Mint Lounge. And - it worked well! In fact I even left out the baking powder as I had run out of it. Bowing to dietary divinities, I opted for refined oil instead of butter or

Deepavali Wishes

2011-10-23T11:24:00.002+05:30

From top to bottom: Shankarpali, Chakli, Karanji It's that time of the year again... a nip in the air, holidays, twinkling lights, colorful lamps, crackers,.. and most important- the aroma of Diwali Faraal. Wishing all my readers a fun-filled Diwali!

Onion Pakoda (Khekada Bhaji)

2011-09-24T21:03:00.000+05:30

If there is a snack that could find its place in the list of national integrators the pakoda would surely be it. Called by various names in different parts of India, it is a kind of fried spicy dumpling made of vegetables and Chana dal flour. The onion pakoda is the king amongst them all and my personal favorite. An anytime snack, it is most attractive on rainy grey afternoons, cold winter days,

Summer crunchy koshimbir

2011-08-20T20:02:00.003+05:30

This delicious looking gazpacho soup reminds me of a koshimbir (kind of salad cum dip) that we make in India. Endowed with a beautiful crunchy texture, it is raw, and like the gazpacho, best relished in summer. To make this summery salad you need: TomatoesOnionsCucumber (Indian variety with light peel which is to be removed)Cauliflower CorianderFresh green chillies All above chopped finely.

Apples

2011-08-15T18:39:00.000+05:30

At times I also like to sketch the ingredients. Here is one such. These apples were literally calling out to be drawn. The translucence of the carry bag added the 'different' touch. Color pencils on grey ingres paper

Leftover bread ideas

2011-04-25T20:30:00.000+05:30

If you have leftover bread slices, cut them into fingers. Leave to dry in sun. Store. Ideally consume in 10 days. Toasted, fried, or buttered, these fingers go well with soups A snack just by themselves with cheese spread or a yogurt dip Instead of cutting up the bread slices, sun dry them whole and put through a grinder to get breadcrumbs. Leave this powder in the sun for another day. This

Summer drink

2011-04-09T23:52:00.000+05:30

Ok, summer has set in with a bang, in lands closer to the equator than.. well lands far away from it. In order to make the heat more bearable, here is a must try refreshing summer drink recipe. Quick to make and tastes yumm. Liquidize strawberries. Add a squeeze of lemon, salt & sugar to taste. Load with ice cubes or crushed ice.

Indian Basil (Tulsi) Lemonade

2010-11-22T20:16:00.000+05:30

My Tulsi (Indian Basil) plant has grown rather well. In fact it needed pruning. The leaves and even the stem have juice with medicinal value. Throwing it away is wasteful. So instead of just chewing on a bunch of leaves like sheep, I decided to try something different. Here is the recipe of lemonade, full of goodness of basil. It has that heavenly cool taste of.. camphor? Ingredients: Tulsi (

Puffed Puries

2010-06-01T21:26:00.000+05:30

Just made these puries (poories, poorees) a while ago. These puries taste delicious eaten by themselves, or with gravied vegetables or meat. In India these are usually prepared on festive occasions to be eaten with sweet dishes such as shrikhand (sweetened whipped cream cheese) or aamras (fresh squeezed mango juice). Recipe: Take two cupfuls of whole wheat flour. Add a pinch of salt to the

Stuffed Chillies

2008-06-29T19:22:00.002+05:30

Ask any Indian to think ‘hot’ and chillies will find a place right next to Bipasha Basu and Gisele Bundchen! Chillies and monsoon contrast rather well. India grows a variety of chillies – plump, thin, hot, sweet and spicy. You can make chutneys, pakodas, dried stuffed chillies, add diced chillies to various preparations. Then there is stuffed chillies, cooked and eaten as accompaniment to rice or

Celebrate this Holi with Dry Fruit Kulfi

2008-03-21T10:25:00.001+05:30

Traditionally Maharashtrians celebrate Holi with a festive lunch whose piéce de resistance is Puran Poli, a delicious bread made with refined wheat flour, stuffed with boiled jaggery and Chana dal and roasted on a girdle. This poli is eaten hot with dollops of ghee (clarified butter) or cold with milk. However it is not as easy to make as it sounds; one needs to actually watch it being prepared

Marathi cuisine, and green tomato koshimbir

2008-02-16T21:12:00.002+05:30

Marathi vegetarian cuisine is essentially non oily, quick to make and uses freshly available ingredients. Of course there are variations based on which part of Maharashtra you are from. The konkan coast is rich fertile land. The main crop is rice. Coconuts are available in plenty. So are fruits like mango, jackfruit and banana. Kokam or 'amsul' are used in sour preparations. On the other hand

cabbage salad

2008-01-29T16:12:00.001+05:30

Kobi is Marathi for cabbage, called as patta gobi in Hindi. Kobi chi koshimbir is a typical maharashtrian recipe. Ingredients and method: Grate cabbage or chop into thin shreds. Add some soaked moong dal to this. Squeeze some lemon juice. Add salt and sugar to taste.Add chopped coriander. Make the normal tadka to which you add chopped green chillies. Pour this tadka over all the above and

Indian Fruit Fusion

2008-01-04T14:00:00.001+05:30

Here's my favorite fruit recipe for winter. Can be served as dessert or eaten with chapati, roti or puri. The beauty of this recipe is there is no specific proportion in which the fruits are to be taken. Curds should be sufficient to cover the fruits. Method Take any of the following fruits- Apples, bananas, chikoo, guava - diced oranges, sweet limes – peel off the thin skin off the

Barbeque the winter

2007-12-05T23:10:00.000+05:30

A fun way to chill out on a cold wintry night! Include a wine selection to wash down the food.

Crisp fluffy Dosa

2007-11-25T20:03:00.002+05:30

Most foreign visitors to India are fascinated by the spectrum of ingredients, flavours and textures in Indian cuisine. Recently one such friend visited India for the first time and was quite taken up with the Dosa. In appearance it's a bit like the pancake – batter spread in a round and cooked. But there the resemblance ends. The Dosa is made of fermented rice and urad daal, whereas the pancake

Shankarpalé or Salty Flour Crisps

2007-11-11T20:17:00.001+05:30

Shankarpalé or Shankarpali, is a traditional Indian Diwali snack. Usually these are sweet, crisp, small squares made using wheat flour and jaggery. These days however most people prefer something salty or savory to sweet. So here's a recipe for salty shankarpalé Ingredients: 1 cup maida (or refined wheat flour) 2 tblsp vanaspati (hydrogenated vegetable oil) 1 tsp cumin seed powder

nutty about coconut

2007-10-21T20:32:00.000+05:30

Coconut is an integral part of Indian cuisine, festivals and religious occasions. The fresh coconut is broken into two halves, the sweet water drunk immediately. Then the white flesh is scraped. Almost every Indian home has a coconut desiccating instrument. Fresh, desiccated coconut stored in deep freeze can stay good for a week or more. Celebrate this festive season with a quick sweet

Tomato pasta

2007-10-21T19:59:00.005+05:30

Think global act local! What an apt catchphrase, for cuisine picked up from other countries and customized according to locally available ingredients and tastes. Pasta is one of these. I wonder if Italians ever add cumin seeds to their pasta. Indians do. Ok, here's one pasta dish I enjoy making and eating, especially on cold winter evenings. What would you need? 200 grams dried pasta 2

koshimbir - the marathi version of salad

2007-09-28T16:30:00.001+05:30

In Maharashtrian cooking, we have a range of what is known as koshimbir - these can be loosely termed as salads. Made from fresh vegetables and fruits, they usually have a splash of tadka (described in a previous post). Items like ground paste of seeds or nuts or dessicated coconut are used to add consistency and bring the items together. The koshimbir is a side dish and can be eaten as

spicy dry daal

2007-09-20T00:18:00.000+05:30

Monsoon in the west coast of India typically means a lack of decent variety in vegetables. A vegetarian ends up alternating between potatoes, onions and tomatoes with a gourd or two thrown in. This is when we resort to the variety of pulses, lentils, and daal. A favorite of mine, is this quick dish made from ‘gram’ or ‘harbhara’ daal (split chick pea). For this you need – a cupful of daal soaked

Sweet Corn salad

2007-08-01T14:39:00.000+05:30

Come monsoon and Indian roadsides are sprinkled with small covered carts. The owners are usually to be found fanning the embers in a coal scuttle, from which emanate smoke and a very appetizing aroma – that of freshly roasting corn. A dash of lime and some spices are expertly brushed on, and violá! A tasty concoction which no self respecting foodie in India would want to miss.The Indian variety

getting the better of a bitter gourd

2007-07-19T15:27:00.000+05:30

This humble vegetable immortalised in the bollywood number, 'Bambai se aaya mera dost..' as kadva karela, makes an excellent dish.Some fry it. Others stew it. Either way, the bitter taste may act as a major block to convincing people to eat it.Tip -After chopping the bitter gourd, rub the pieces with salt and keep for a while. Squeeze the juice out between palms and then add them to the vessel

A date with dessert

2007-07-12T16:09:00.001+05:30

A real quickie, this - Take a cupful of dates (the red-brownish variety). Clean and chop into quarters. Fry in pure ghee (clarified butter) so the dates are crisp. Let it cool to room temperature. The dish tastes heavenly as it is. Can be eaten as an energy snack. You can also add these dates to gajjar halwa, kheer, or as topping for vanilla ice cream! © Alaka

Masala rules!

2007-06-10T22:59:00.000+05:30

Pop into any Indian kitchen in the morning and your nostrils will be assailed with aromas that make your mouth water. The appetizing smells are released by the oils in spices used in the cooking. The word 'Masala' refers to a spice. For example whole cloves are a masala.Many north Indian dishes are flavored using a combination of dry spices that is widely known as garam masala. There are many

Paneer Pakoda

2007-05-23T20:16:00.001+05:30

A simple and quick snack dish with paneer, which can be had at teatime or as a side dish at meals; Ingredients: Fresh Paneer 200 gms; few pods garlic, small ginger piece, 1 – 2 chillies; chilli powder; oil for frying; ¼ tsp turmeric powder; ¼ tsp ground ajwain; salt to taste. Preparation: Cut Paneer into small cubes. Grind ginger, chillies and a few garlic pods with salt. Apply the

Fruits & Udupi

2007-05-21T20:17:00.000+05:30

Am just back from a wonderful trip to jungles of Karnataka.This fruit stall was in a vegetable market at Udupi, a small town. The owner saw my camera and was insistent that I photograph his stall. Jackfruit and bananas are a staple out here. The bananas are small but very sweet.For those not in the know, jackfruit is a huge green fruit with a tough, prickly rind. It turns yellow on ripening.

back on 17th May

2007-05-09T16:23:00.000+05:30

with more posts.. so visit my blog after 17th folks!cheers,

The tastefully dressed vegetable

2007-04-28T11:53:00.001+05:30

India has a large vegetarian population. Vegetables and pulses therefore form a substantial part of the diet. Somewhere in the glorious past, motivated chefs of maharajas and mothers with finicky kids worked on making these dishes simple to cook, yet tasty and palatable. Enter the Indian version of dressing – better known as tadka, phodani or baghaar. (I call it as 'dressing' for want of a

2 recipes for raw mango chutney

2007-04-20T22:35:00.000+05:30

Before the summer and kairis vanish, here are a few recipes for raw mango chutney.Recipe 1.Ingredients:Raw mangoes – peeled and diced into small cubes to fit 2 cups.Jaggery (gur) - 4 cups; crumbled/ sliced thin depending on hardnessFor the tempering (tadka):Oil – 2-3 teaspoonsWhole Mustard seeds – ½ teaspoonFenugreek (methi) seeds - 1 teaspoonAsafoetida (hing)- ¼ teaspoonTurmeric powder (haldi) –

delicious dahi

2007-04-13T13:31:00.001+05:30

Gosh! I have just downed the third glass in a straight row – of this heavenly drink called water. At this rate I shall soon burst like the waterfilled balloon of Rang Panchami. The Indian summer is to blame for this… But. But. Wait. Summer also means juicy watermelons, luscious jackfruit, tangy pineapples, mangoes, khus flavored water – and bowls of dahi for breakfast, lunch and dinner!

5 flavorful options to replace after-dinner mints

2007-04-09T15:11:00.001+05:30

A heavy meal replete with spices and fried foodstuff is bound to leave the palate and the tummy yearning for some digestive aid and a freshening taste. Think about these options in mouth fresheners before resorting to the chewing gum or coolmints. 1) Fennel / saunf – The seeds are chewed raw. They can also be eaten roasted and salted or candied. Aid in digestion and act as a mild

How to make an Omelette

2007-04-07T12:20:00.001+05:30

For anyone who's never been near a frying pan and uses the kitchen implements for carpentry work, this recipe should be mighty useful. Take 2 eggs. Take a deep breath. Break each egg over a bowl and drop the contents into it. Throw the shells away. Or turn them into fertilizer for your plants. Chop one green chilli into itsy bitsy pieces. Do the same for a small onion, tomato and capsicum.

3 varieties of Indian unleavened bread

2007-04-03T13:26:00.001+05:30

My first memory of cooking - i.e. real cooking - is of helping my mom with the chapatis. To make these, whole-wheat dough is kneaded with water to a stiffish but pliable consistency. A touch of oil added in the final knead imparts a smoothness to the dough. Small chunks are pulled off it and rolled between the palms to make small balls. These balls are rolled on a board, usually wooden,

preparing ghee the traditional way

2007-03-29T18:26:00.000+05:30

A response to a previous post brought on this topic.Ghee or clarified butter is the result of a very interesting process.Milk is first boiled and cooled. The cream in the milk collects on top like a pancake. This ‘saay’ is mixed in a vessel along with a spoonful of curd and kept for about 8 – 12 hours. The curd that is formed is then briskly churned with a little cold water. Lo and behold, you

the mango seduction

2007-03-28T23:28:00.000+05:30

Universally, the month of March heralds the onset of spring. In the western parts of India, especially Maharashtra, it brings the song of the Koel – and the fragrance of mangoes. In fact, the annual love affair with mango starts early

a lazy morning snack

2007-03-24T13:59:00.001+05:30

Early mornings are for enjoying the freshness in the air, walk on dewy grass, listen to birdsong . So I'm impatient when it comes to breakfasts. Here's a recipe for a quick breakfast. You can pick up the eggs and bread on your morning walk. Egg DropPut a thick bottomed pan with a little oil / butter, on the gas hob. Take an egg.Once the oil heats, break the egg over the pan and chuck in all its

ginger remedies - raw and fresh

2007-03-21T14:07:00.001+05:30

Speaking of ginger – Slice a small piece of fresh ginger. Dunk it in common salt and chew on it. Helps work up a good appetite if consumed an hour or two before lunch. When feeling tired or feverish, the following recipe does a good job of bringing taste back. Grate raw ginger. Squeeze in a goodish amount of fresh lemon juice. Add a spoonful of sugar. A dash of salt. (Rock salt if possible).

Tea and good mornings

2007-03-16T12:14:00.001+05:30

What topic should I inaugurate this blog with? That was the million dollar question on my mind as I woke up early morning. A few cups of tea later, I have the answer. Let's talk of tea. Tea reminds me of physics. As studied in school. It's got something to do with the boiling point of water. A technically correct teacher told us how any impurity added to water raised the boiling point. Ergo,