Shravan recipes from my Granmothers and where you can find Shravan Foods in Mumbai!

It's time to Feast errr Fast again! The month of Shravan is here and words like Faral and Upvaas are being bandied about amongst Mumbai's gastronomically inclined. Eateries big and small around the city have also introduced fasting foods to their menu. If you are gastronomically inclined do take the trouble to find out what all the fuss is about.

With all the things that have been happening, more than ever this year I am filled with nostalgia for the past. As a child I remember waiting with anticipation for days when my Grandmother fasted. i was blissfully ignorant of the religious connotations of those days then, we just looked forward to the leftovers. She would sit apart from the rest of the family for her one meal of the day that comprised of a variety of “treats” we grew to love and look forward to at those times. Fluffy deliciously textured Sabudana khichdi - soft globules of sago, steam-cooked so each particle was separate, generously studded with chunks of savory potato and fragments of peanut.

You will find an article I did on Shravan for Savvy cookbook years ago here, and modern fasting recipes that can be served as a five course meal using allowed ingredients such as Shravan Almond and Coconut milk soup, Shravan Minted Sago salad, Shravan Baked Potato with Coriander salsa, Shravan Saffron Sama “Risotto” and Shravan Pomegranate squares here.
And here is a rather nice article in Midday for some interesting Faraal picks from around Mumbai. 
Here are traditional recipes from both my grandmothers.






Moriyo /Morio / Sama ni Khichadi /Sama Ni khatti Ghensh from my Dadi (Paternal grandmother) (Serves – 1-2, Time 30 mins)
My personal favorite was the Morio. A a dish made from a granular flour called Morio by the Gujaratis and Veru Arisi in Tamil. Cooked like a khichdi in sour yogurt with potatoes and peanuts and seasoned with green chillies, it retained it’s grainy texture on cooking and the chunks of potatoes in it absorbed the sourness of the yoghurt and the spicyness of the chilies most deliciously! 
 Ingredients
200 gms Samo/Morio
150 gms potatoes (Boiled, peeled and diced)
1 cup /200 ml sour buttermilk/sour yoghurt
2 sprigs of curry leaves
400 ml water
½ tsp rock salt or to taste
1 inch piece ginger, grated
2-3 green chilles, chopped
1 tsp roasted jeera powder (roasted cumin seed powder)
For the tempering
2 tbsp oil
½ tsp cumin seeds
2 dry red chilli

Method
Wash and clean Sama thoroughly. Strain of water and set damp Sama aside for 30 minutes in the same wet condition. In a large wide mouthed Kadhai add the rock salt chillies, ginger and cumin. Add all three of them to water in a wide mouth kadhai. Add salt and heat it to boil. To temper heat the oil in a small pan, add the Cumin seeds, allow to crackle and add the Curry leaves and Red chilles. Add tempering to the seasoned and spiced water. Add the damp Samo to the flavoured liquid and llow it to cook properly on a medium flame for 10 - 12 minutes. Add the buttermilk/sour yoghurt at this stage along with boiled potatoes. Mix thoroughly. At this point the consistency should be that of a loose runny porridge. If the water has dried out, add a little more and simmer for an additional 2 minutes. Take of flame, cover and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Stuffed Pattice from my Nani (maternal grandmother) (Serves 2 Cooking time 1 hour)
Ingredients
½ kg potatoes, boiled
100 gm fresh coconut grated,
½ bunch coriander, finely chopped
½ lemon juice
rock salt to taste
½ tsp cumin powder
1 tsp ginger and green chilli paste
2 tbsp arrowroot flour
peanut oil for frying

Method
In a bowl, mash the potatoes well. Add in the salt and 1 tbsp of the arrowroot flour. Mix well and set aside. In another bowl, mix together the coconut, cumin powder, coriander, salt, lemon and ginger and green chilli paste. Dust hands with a bit of arrowroot flour. Make a thin disk of the potato mash on your hand. Place ½ a tsp of the coconut filling in it. Bring the potato disk together around the filling to make a small ball. Roll in a little arrowroot flour and fry in peanut oil till golden. Do not stir it too much as it might burst.

Maharashtrian fasting food
To get a taste of Maharashtrian fasting food, try places like Panchshikar Ahaar at Girgaum, Aaswad Upahar and Mithai Griha in Dadar and Kutir Udyog in Thane, look for Upvaas Thalipeeth (shallow fried pancakes made of Bhajani or fasting flour; a special mix of Vari, Sabudana and Rajgira flours), Sabudana Thalipeeth (shallow fried Sago, potato pancakes), Peanut Curry or Danyachi Aamati (curry made of ground peanuts and flavoured with chillies and cumin),  Batatyacha Kees (A Spicy Maharashtrian take on hash browns) and its Sweet Potato Avatar tossed with crushed peanuts; Ratalyacha kees), Ratalyache kaap (Sweet Potato Slices and Sago chips coated in Sugar and the creamy Sago Sabudana Kheer.

Dadar offers a range of popular eateries such as Aaswad, Prakash and Gypsy Corner for Maharashtrian Shravan Food. But my favourite is Vinay Health Home in Girgaon. Their Faraali Missal, Thalipeeth, Sabudana Vada are to die for. ALso try thier regular menu.

Gujarati Fasting dishes
Gujarati Fasting dishes use almost the same ingredients but interpret them into Gujarati style dishes like Kutti na dhokla (dhoklas made of Buckwheat flour), Farali handvo (Potato and Buchwheat flour savory cake) Farali Pattice, Rajgira Puris, Dahi Bateka Kela Nu Raitu (Banana, Potato Raita),  Rajgira Thepla (a special version of Thepla made with Amaranths flour), Kand na bhajia (Yam Fritters), Suran Bateka nu shak (Yam and Potato Subzi). For between meal snacks they have a lot to pick from Bateka no Chevdo (Patato Chivda) Bateka ni katri (Potato wafers), Masallawalla Makhana (spiced, fried Lotus seeds) Guvar ni Sukavni (Fried Guvar that has been dried first.   For dessert there are Doodhi Halwa, Shrikhand and Kopra Pak (coconut halwa).

Soam, the 12 year old establishment at Babulnath has been celebrating Shravan every year since its opening. This year the menu  is bigger then ever! Featuring dishes starting from snacks, like Faraali Pakodi Chaat, Sabudana patties, Faraali Dahi Bhalla, to main course including Faraali Kofta curry with Rajgira Paratha, Faraali Sama Pulav, stuffed puri and Singdana Usal. desserts include faraali malpua, kesar kopra paak and Sweet potato Gulab Jamun. Check out the Faraali Gold Coin Faraali Daal Dhokli and Faraali Idli and sweet potato Sambhar.

Soam Faraal Utsav for the season of Shravan till August end.
Sadguru Sadan, Chowpatty, Mumbai, Soam
Meal for two: Rs 700

Ginger-Pineapple Chicken

 From adrak valli chai we down by the gallon to almost every dish we eat, ginger is an indelible part of the Indian kitchen. No surprise then that India is one of the largest producers of ginger! Chefs and cooks especially understand the value of our farmers! Where would we be without the fabulous fresh produce that is the cornerstone of our cooking? And it is up to cooks and chefs like us to support farmers. 

Today I have chosen to partner with Mahindra’s # SeedTheRiseChallenge that's doing such amazing work for people who need it the most - our farmers!

90% (if not more) Indian recipes will call for ginger in some form; as a paste, grated, chopped fine, julienned, dried or powdered. It is part of the triumvirate of flavor along with garlic and chilies that is at the base of all dishes. In fact many cuisines and dishes that avoid garlic and onion might still use ginger.

There is no doubt that ginger can work in conjunction with other flavours. But why relegate this ingredient to always being the extra and never the hero? Bring it out of the shadow of other ingredients and given the chance, ginger can be a dominant flavour with elaan, offering limitless options as an ingredient. The spicy aromatic notes of ginger can hold their own with any flavour profile from savoury to sweet. In fact I can safely say there are very few fruits or vegetables that do not pair well with ginger in some form. And ginger also has a natural affinity to meats, poultry, and fish.

The first of the tender young ginger is now available in the market, I just pickled some with Amba Haldi and chilies in salt and lime juice. Young ginger with its tangy citrussy freshness has a light spiciness and mellow sweetness that makes it gently warming and ideal to complement a range of raw and lightly cooked dishes. Either finely julienne or dice and sprinkle a little over north Indian chaats, salads or add at the end of cooking to stir-fries, light broths and soups and fruit fillings for desserts. At this stage it is also ideal to candy and nibble on through the coming winter. Trust me and candy some; chopped candied ginger will be handy in a myriad ways through the Christmas baking month! 

As it matures, ginger gets harder, more fibrous and spicier. At this stage it might be too stringy to candy, and too spicy to eat raw but is ideal for long cooking. Chop, crush, grate or puree and add to marinades, long cooking soups, stews, curries and roasts, giving its flavours a chance to truly open up into the dishes. It is also ideal to make a spicy ginger cordial to refresh you in the summer and spike cocktails and monsoon/winter warmers with as required.

Ginger is also available dried, either as whole roots or powdered. The roots retain flavours longer so buy those and powder as required. In its powdered form, dried ginger is at its spiciest best and a little goes a long way. Intrinsic to the saunth chutney of the North and the chai masala that spices the famed Gujarati masala chai, powdered ginger is ideal for adding warming spicy notes to meat rubs, chutneys, baked treats, and slow cooked dishes. Ginger can also be infused into milk and cream to make moreish custards, crème brulee  or ice creams.

PINEAPPLE GINGER CHICKEN

Serves: 4-6

Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 Chicken breast, pounded thin, cut into bite size pieces

1/4 cup Cornstarch

1tsp Garlic powder

½ tsp Red chili powder

1tsp Ginger powder

½ tsp White pepper powder

½tsp Salt

2tbsp Oil

Pineapple Ginger Sauce

¼ cup Pineapple juice

3tbsp White wine vinegar

1tsp Brown sugar

3 Garlic cloves, minced

½  cup Ginger juice (grate 1 cup ginger, squeeze for juice. Gratings can be used later.)

1tsp Red chili powder

½ tsp Salt

2tsp Cornstarch

3tbsp Sesame seeds, toasted

2tbsp Spring onion greens, chopped

Method

Combine cornstarch, garlic powder, red chili powder, ginger powder, pepper  and salt in a large zip lock bag and mix well to combine.

Add the chicken pieces and toss until evenly coated.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large nonstick pan.

Add the coated chicken and cook for 2 minutes undisturbed then continue to stir fry until cooked through, about 5-7 minutes.

For the Sauce

Heat the oil in a small pan over medium heat.

Add the garlic and ginger and sauté for 30 seconds.

Add the remaining ingredients and whisk to combine.

Bring sauce to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until sauce thickens (approximately 3 minutes).

In a large bowl, toss the cooked chicken with the sauce using a spatula until evenly coated.

Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and chopped spring onion.

Serve immediately over rice.

Gyaan and Legends

#SeedTheRise is a crowd-funding campaign set up by Mahindra to help improve the lives of our country’s farmers. Working with 5 NGO-led projects across India, that strategically aim at bettering the farmers' lives in varied ways including setting up drip irrigation, sustainable farming units and educating the girl child. The campaign is looking to raise Rs. 2 crores in public donations, an amount that will be matched by Mahindra to double the benefit for the farmers. 

For more info watch this video: http://bit.ly/1Nu87KX and to contribute towards the cause, donate here: http://bit.ly/1ROiYCC.

Around Town with Arina - In a Soup!

The concept of cold weather is somewhat alien to Mumbai but thankfully it does get a little cool during monsoons and winter which is when the focus shifts from cold refreshing drinks and salads to big bowls of hot soup. There’s nothing like a hearty soup to brighten up a gloomy rainy day and one doesn’t necessarily have to be on a diet to have soup. There are a lot of soups that are rich and high on the calories. What I love about soup is that it can be as simple or elaborate, light or heavy as one may wish. A simple tomato soup with one or two basic ingredients or a noodle soup with lots of veggies and/or meat both are equally satisfying and comforting on a cold gloomy day.

Every restaurant or cafe has at least a few soups on the menu but one place that has caught my attention recently is a chain of mall food court kiosks is The Soup Bowl. It serves only soups and breadsticks to accompany. They have a variety of soups from different cuisines with vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. But sadly they’re only in the suburbs as of now, at Mega Mall, Oshiwara, In Orbit Malad, and Oberoi Mall, Goregaon East. But I make it a point to have a bowl of soup from there whenever I visit either of these malls.

Sometimes when I’m lazy I resort to the ready to eat soup packets, some variants of which are actually quite nice. But since I was a kid I’ve always preferred and loved home made soups made from scratch. And I can gladly make a meal of it especially when I’m feeling under the weather. The fondest memory I have of soup is the Spicy Veggie Clear soup my father made for me when I had a cold or sore throat, it works better than any antibiotic in the world. I call it my “Chicken Soup” because it really works for me just like chicken soup does for non-vegetarians who are unwell. It is the ultimate comfort food and the people I have shared the recipe with have also said the same and it has become their family remedy for a cold or soar throat.

SPICY VEGGIE CLEAR SOUP

1 tsp Garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp Ginger, finely chopped
1 tsp Green Chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1/4th Carrot, cut into thin strips
3-4 French Beans, diagonally sliced thin
3-4 Baby Corn, thinly sliced
1/4th Capsicum, cut into thin strips
Some shredded cabbage
1/4th Onion, thinly sliced
2 pinches White Pepper
Salt to taste
Spring onion leaves, sliced
2-3 Cups Water or vegetable/noodle or rice stock
1-2 tsp Soya sauce
1 tsp Oil

Heat oil in a wok, add the garlic, ginger, green chillies, and sauté, add the onions, carrot, French beans, baby corn, capsicum and sauté till the sides and base of the wok start browning a little. Add cabbage and sauté a bit; add salt and white pepper and soya sauce. Add water and bring to boil, simmer for a few minute. (Can add a handful of noodles at this stage if desired to make it more filling). Add the spring onion leaves and let it simmer for few minutes. Serve piping hot for best results!

We at APB would love to know your favourite soup so do share it via comments here or on the APB Facebook Fanpage.

A Corn(y) Affair

During the monsoons, one craves for different kinds of food: chai, pakodas/bhajiyas, hot soups, and a favourite of most, corn. Corn can be had in many forms; boiled or roasted with different seasonings like salt, pepper, chaat masala, red chilli powder, lemon juice to name a few but each person has their preference so it can be pretty much anything. Corn is used in a lot of cuisines for different dishes, salads, soups, fritters, chaats, baked dishes, pasta, pizzas, pancakes, in rice dishes , the options are endless.

With the local bhutta (roasted corn cobs) walas by the sea side diminished over the past few years luckily there are a lot of places in the city corn can be found in different disguises. The simplest form of corn can be found in movie theatres and malls at the boiled corn stalls that serve fresh hot boiled corn with different seasoning as per your choice. Soam serves delicious corn khichdi and corn panki. All time favourites of a lot of Mumbai-ites, New Yorker and Cream Center offer amazing creamed corn enchiladas, corn-capsicum quesadillas and cheese corn balls. Samrat at Churchgate have chatpatta corn bhel for the corn lovers. Blue waters at Oshiwara serves one of the best tandoori makkai (corn) in the city.

Corn is such a thing that can be had as a light snack or be used to make a hearty filling dish depending on the time of the day or one’s mood. It tastes equally good hot or cold and goes well with a lot of other ingredients. Here is one of my all time favourite recipe I came up with when I was in one of my experimenting moods and was looking for a fresh change from the usual. It was also featured in Me magazine a couple of months back.

Tri Coloured Corn Soup

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
2 ears American Corn
1 small Red Bell Pepper
1/4th Cup Spring onion leaves
4 Cups Vegetable/Rice/Noodle Stock
Salt to taste

Method:
De-seed bell pepper and cut into squares, place in baking tray, drizzle with olive oil. Roast in a preheated oven at 150 degrees C for about 10-15 minutes.
Meanwhile boil the corn and remove the kernels. Keep a handful aside.
Puree the rest till completely smooth adding stock as required.
Take the corn puree in a thick bottomed sauce pan and add stock to get desired consistency. Add salt to taste and boil.

While the soup is boiling. Make a paste of the roasted bell pepper. Keep aside.

Make a paste of the spring onion leaves and keep aside.

Remove 2/3rd and keep aside in a bowl or sauce pan.

In the remaining 1/3rd add the bell pepper paste and mix well and let it simmer for few minutes. Keep aside.

Take another 1/3rd in the sauce pan and mix the spring onion paste and simmer for few minutes.

Can be served in 3 small glasses as shots or small bowls in a platter.

Rushina's Recipes - Happy Father's Day, Dad!

I made Spinach soup for the first time in 13 years on the day I wrote my chapter o my father in my book. It was the hardest chapter to write in the book. Just like I had circumvented making the soup, I had been postponing the writing of it, not because I didn’t know what to write, there was a lot, but for once, the words would not come out.

14 years to today, I lost him, suddenly and quickly while we were on the most idyllic holiday in South Africa. At the Ullusaba Lodge in Kruger National park he suffered a fatal heart attack. As deaths go it was a grand one, standing up until the last moment, at which point he lay down looked around at most of his family and closed his eyes. Forever.I was the only one that was not there. I stepped out of the room exactly 2 minutes before he died. Ironically it was fathers day that day too. There is an inevitable melonchaly in memories that are edged with the keen sadness of lost time. Inevitability had been the atmosphere all of the preceding week. More urgently that morning when my mother had us kids brought down. But finality had not been a possibility. It was inconceivable ….”the end”. They transferred him to a secluded spot to lie in peace until the embalmer was able to come down from Johannesberg to pick him up and I sat with him as he lay there. Perhaps to make up for not being there those last two minutes or perhaps just not wanting him to be alone. So I sat on the floor next to him his body in repose, like he was sleeping, the counterpane neatly stretched over him. Running my fingers through his hair I talked to him for hours, telling him things I had never been able to say before. 

A sense of loss was slowly pervading me. Images flashed through my mind, like a film reel gone wild, its end flapping in the air, accelerating as it reached “the end”. I knew the tears would come eventually, likely in great spates and the cleansing would take place. The bright colors of experience would be wash down to the sepia tinted monochromes of memory. But it could wait …for a while. I could not bring myself to move just yet. And then I suddenly reared up in almost physical pain! I realised I had never told my dad I loved him. Funny how three silly words from a foreign culture can come to become so important... we certainly do not have them in India! But in those moments I realized that I had never EVER said I love you Papa in as many words. And niether had he. 

But he did love us, he had shown us in so many ways that last week almost like he wanted to leave us with the best of himself. And in doing so he gave each of us memories that would last a lifetime. There had been an increasing bittersweet air to things as we did them all of that last week. Statements he had made came back. His being in some idyllic family pictures at breathtaking locations, something that had never happened because he would be taking the pictures usually. His warm hug a couple of days into our trip when I was missing Shekhar (who was my boyfriend then and so sore a point that we never spoke about him) and Dad’s quiet affirmation, “Why don’t you enjoy me while I am here, you will have the rest of your life with him? And then when I was crying a few days later because of some silly reason his exasperated question “Why must you cry every time? You have to learn to face odds, I will not always be there to protect you!” and then that last night, at dinner, as we finished the soup course (Spinach soup) he turned around and said,  “This is good, but not as good as yours, you make the best Spinach soup.” His last words to me, EVER!!

I like to think my dad is up in Heavan, having a drink with my father in law with our dogs Alex and Nonnie at their feet. And I like to think that every time my son comes back to me with one of his clever rejoinders or my daughter gives me a naughty smile before she shocks me by saying something unheard of from a two year old, they raise their glasses and cheer.

Please celebrate your father this Father's day, tell him you love him and if you don't have a special recipe for him, I will lend you ours...

Love you Dad. Always and forever!

Spinach Soup
     
Cooking Time : 15 Minutes, Serves : 4

1 kg spinach, cleaned, washed and chopped coarsely 
2 onions quartered
8 cloves garlic
Salt to taste
2 tbsp butter
1 onion, diced fine
2 tbsp wheat flour
2 cups milk
Pepper to taste
1/2 cup cheese, grated

Method
Place all the spinach leaves, the quartered onions, 6 cloves of garlic in a preassure cooker with 1/2 a cup of water and cook. Alternatively microave untill Spinach is a dark dense mossy green. Grind to a smooth paste. Heat a pan and add the butter. Once melted add the onion and stir fry unill transperant, add the wheat flour and stir for few minutes till it turns light brown in color and smells cooked. Add the milk and stir briskly to avoid lumps. Allow to cook untill the mixture thickens. Add the spinach paste and stir continuously till smooth. Add salt pepper and cheese. If it is too thick add milk, water or stock to thin to soup consitency.

Tuna Olive Salad and Fabio Cannavaro

Dear Rushina,

So Italy plays Paraguay today. For those of us who only follow football during the world cup, a great way to get an idea of how well the teams are matched out is to go to the FIFA website and check the ‘Head to Head’ box. You pair the teams playing against each other, and the box gives you the statistics (http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/statisticsandrecords/headtohead/team1=ita/team2=par/index.html). Judging from this box, Italy seems to be the stronger team. Of course that won’t be why I’m supporting them. I’ve had a crush on Italian captain Fabio Cannavaro since he galloped onto the TV screen and into my heart at the 1998 World Cup. (He had chin length hair which flew in the wind when he ran…sigh!).
Ok, before I digress, I think what I’m trying to say is that I’m really looking forward to this match. Since I’ve been trying to eat healthy, I’ve been trying to think of a salad I had munch on throughout the game without feeling (too guilty). Here’s what I plan to eat tonight.

Tuna, Olive and Corn Salad
1 can of Tuna
1 can of Sweet Corn
½ Cup of Black Olives, rinsed and halved
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 yellow bell pepper. Diced
1 small raddichio, cut into small square pieces.

For Dressing
1 tsp Saveurs deSapalisse Almond flavoured oil
1 tsp White wine vinegar
1 tsp Garlic flavoured Olive oil
1 tsp Salt
½ tsp Black pepper

Mix salad ingredients in salad bowl. Mix ingredients for salad dressing in bottle, shake vigorously and pour over salad ingredients. Toss and serve.

Beer Flavoured Spicy Pork Slices

Mad About Meat
As you know I can’t stand beer. But I have more than a few friends who would grow gills and live in a sea of beer given the chance. So whenever I make a meat snack, it is not unusual for them to take a bite and comment that a chilled bottle of beer would be the best accompaniment. Sometimes when I’m cooking for my friends and they’re already drinking beer, I steal some to marinate meat or pour some into the pan as I fry the meat. The beer infuses the meat with a subtly nutty flavor. Here’s an easy tried and tested recipe.
For Marinade
1 Cup of Beer
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2tbsp Sweet and Spicy Tobasco Sauce
1 tsp Salt
Mix ingredients and pour marinade over pork slice. Leave for two hours.
For Pork Slices
1 kg Pork, thin slices (If you’re making it super spicy like I do, choose loin cuts nearer the shoulder, it has more fat and balances well with the chilli. If you want it bland, choose leaner cuts from the center)
4 clove of Garlic, minced
1 tbsp of freshly ground ginger
3 tbsp Dried Red Chilli Flakes
1tbsp Refined oil
2 cups of Beer
1 cup of Bell peppers, cut into squares
Directions
Heat oil in deep non stick pan, add garlic, ginger and chilli flakes and fry on low flame. Add Pork along with marinade sauce. Close lid and cook on high flame for 30 mins or until dry. Add 1 cup of Beer, close lid and cook for another 30 mins on medium flame.
Check to see if pork is cooked, add bell peppers and 1 cup of beer and stir fry on hight heat until peppers are cooked.
Serve hot with beer.

Chew on this - travelling throught the Rice bowls of the world...

Having grown up in India, rice has been the center of my culinary experience for as long as I can remember. But as I discovered world cuisine, I also came to marvel at the universality and diversity symbolized by this grain!

Universal as it is, rice is simultaneously intensely personal as well. Every rice based cuisine in the world has its own indigenous rice, its own traditional manner of cooking it, celebrating it and eating it. From the better known Italian risotti, Thai Jasmine and Japanese Sushi rice, to rarer Senegalese Ceebu Jën (red rice) and Bhutanese Black rice, each is cooked and eaten differently. Join me as I travel the rice bowls of the world.

The next time you dig into a plate of Berry Polov at Britania you will be happy to recall that rice is an integral part of Iranian culture, rice dishes or Polows play an important role in marriage ceremonies and parties (Zereshk Polow), funerals (Kishmish Polow) and New Year celebrations (Sabzi Polow, with fried fish). Iran is home to the fragrant, aromatic Sadri rice that is unique to that part of the world and in high demand among Iranians, who give great importance to the quality of their cooked rice.

But the rice dish that has made the biggest mark on India's menus comes from China. Fried rice. Legend has it Fried rice originated in China some 4000 years ago as a means to use up leftover rice. Finely diced vegetables and meat were stirfried with cooked rice and served for breakfast. It is still a means of using up leftovers that is made all over the world but who would have thought that the same Fried rice would one day be a dish in its own right, here in India? Fried rice is to be found in every South East Asian cuisine but the most famous version of it is the Indonesian Nasi Goreng.

While rice based cuisines have a lot of dishes in common there are a many distinct indigenous rice preparations awaiting sampling as well. Indonesian cuisine is home to another particularly noteworthy meal as well, The Rijsttafel or "rice table". A legacy of the Dutch plantation owners - who liked to sample selectively from Indonesian cuisine - a practice that evolved into a traditional meal in which a rice dish and numerous side dishes are laid out to pick from at will. The Dutch carried it back to the Netherlands with them and it is today enjoyed in both Indonesia, and the Netherlands.

Rice is also used as an ingredient in many forms. Perhaps as widespread as steamed rice is the home-style rice gruel, best known as the Chinese Conjee. This dish in which rice is cooked down to a porridge is found under various guises in many world cuisines. Most Asian countries also use rice flour to make a staggering variety of dishes; noodles, translucent skins for dumplings and steaming hot stuffed buns.

Perhaps the most famous Japanese offerings to world menus from are Sushi and Sake. Considered one of the healthiest dishes in the world, Sushi are rice cakes flavored with rice vinegar, combined with a variety of ingredients - raw fish and fresh or pickled vegetables and are served with Japanese Wasabi. Sake is Japanese rice wine, an acquired taste.

Outside Asia, Africa, was the other place where rice was domesticated. A number of rice dishes hail from this part of the world Senegalese Cebbu Jen - or rice-fish - is the most popular. Many rice dishes have also been perfected by the Egyptians. The Ruzz mu'ammar bi-I-tuyur, or baked rice with milk and pigeon, is regularly served in restaurants in major cities such as Alexandria.

Rice is not as prevalent in wheat eating Europe but there are a few regions where rice is celebrated. The Lombardy and Piedmont regions comprise Italy's rice bowl and while the Italians do not eat too much rice, Italy is famous for its aromatic, slow cooked risottos. The other hub for rice in Europe is the French Camargue region where rice cultivation began in the 18th Century. Taking advantage of the rich French cuisine, farmers in Camargue have turned to producing high quality rice for special dishes and the Roulé de Feuilles de riz au thon, or "rolled rice with tuna fish", is an example of Camargue's specialty cuisine.

One thing is for sure, wherever you go in the world; you can find comfort in a bowl of rice and as the Chinese philosopher Confucious said "In the eating of coarse rice and the drinking of water, the using of one's elbow for a pillow, joy is to be found."

Mushroom and Brown Rice bowl

The first monsoon showers are here and I had the last of Mausaji's mushrooms left from Dehra Dun so I cooked up this favorite recipe for dinner yesterday. Its easy, healthy and FULL of flavour, always managing to charm the worst eater! Brown rice is an excellent substitute to your regular white rice. It is rich in fibre and carbohydrates. The bran and rice germ in the grains also help control blood sugar, cholesterol and let you  remain alert even after a rice meal! Mushrooms are counted as one of the lowest calorie vegetables and yet they are extremely high in protein lending themselves excellently to all sorts of dishes! The garlic and pepper are warming for the coming monsoons and will help ward of cold and sore throats...

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups celery, coarsely chopped

1 large onion, chopped coarse

handfull of garlic cloves, crushed

2 tbsp olive oil

3 cups water

1 cup brown rice

2 cups mushrooms quartered

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon red chilli flakes

1/2 tbsp crushed peppercorns

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions
In a large skillet, saute celery, onions and garlic in olive oil until tender-crisp (about 5 minutes). Add chilli flakes and crushed peppercorns. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Cover and allow to cook on a low flame untill rice is tender and liquid is absorbed (about 45 mins). Allow to stand covered for 10 minutes before serving. Fluff rice lightly with fork and serve.

GYAN and legends 

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You can find brown rice and all sorts of local rice varieties at Navdanya stores in Mumbai and Delhi.  

Mad About Meat - Pork

Duna’s Pork Ribs

If there is someone who is more mad about meat than I am, it has to be my sister Duna. She also happens to be the most fantastic cook I know. Her dishes are never overly elaborate or complicated. Yet she possesses that rare ability to draw out the flavour of the meat and other ingredients. I admire her most for her egg curry. I know that sounds simple, and I have tried more than once to recreate her bamboo shoot, egg and tomato curry with a fair degree of success. But I always return to her version. Perhaps good cooks are condiments in themselves.

Ingredients for Marinade
6 tbsp of Oyster sauce
2 tbsp of Kikkoman Roasted Garlic Marinade & Sauce
1 tbsp of Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp of Soyabean Sauce
11/2 of tbsp of Salt
2 tbsp of freshly ground garlic
1 tbsp of freshly ground ginger
11/2 tbsp of red chilli powder

Mix ingredients, brush pork ribs with marinade and leave for 2 hours

Ingredients for Pork Ribs
6 medium sized pork ribs
2 tbsp of Garlic
1 tbsp of Ginger
2 tbsp of Sesame Oil
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
10 roasted dried red chillies
4 Cups of Water



Heat Non-Stick Wok, place pork ribs and cook on high flame with lid closed. Let pork ribs cook for 15 minutes.
Add garlic and ginger, add 2 cup of water, close lid and cook on high flame for another 15 minutes.

Add red chillies, 1 cup of water, close lid and cook on high flame for another 15 minutes.
Add tomatoes, 1 cup of water, close lid and cook on medium flame for another 15 minutes till water has evaporated.
Add sesame oil and braise ribs on medium flame for 15 minutes.



Serve Hot with Rice.

Mad About Meat - Beef

Beef Momos

I’ve always wondered about foodies who love to eat but can’t cook. How much they must suffer. Especially when restaurants do not serve the kind of food that you crave. That dreadful allegory of Hell being a place where people cook delicious food using spoons with such long handles that they can’t bring the food to their lips comes to mind (Shudder!!!) Such was my predicament when I landed in Mumbai and discovered that there were no Momos to be found. The obvious solution was to simply learn to make them (Rushina suggested when she saw my suffering).
So imagine my delight when my sister-in-law Azung invited me and my sisters over to her place for a Momo-making party! Ani Azung had invited her Tibetan tenant to come teach us how to make momos. Here’s what I learnt.

Momo Dough
500 g of Maida flour
100 ml of Water
1 egg (Optional)

Mix ingredients, knead until dough is smooth and consistent. The egg apparently makes the dough less likely to tear when you’re wrapping the meat in it.



Stuffing
1kg of Beef, Choose a portion with meat and bones so that the bones can be boiled for the soup
4 large onions, finely chopped
6 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp Salt

Mince the beef and mix with the other ingredients.



To make the Wrapper
Roll the dough into a sausage about 2 inches in diameter. Cut into cross sections about an inch wide. Use a rolling pin to flatten and roll the dough until it is about 4 inches in diameter.

Wrapping Momos
Place a tablespoon of the mince meat in the middle of the wrapper


Gently pinch together one edge of the wrapper and fold the edges of the wrapper toward you until the stuffing is completely enclosed.






Thanks to the expert guidance we had, we learnt some different wrapping styles.







Steaming
Place Momos in the steamer and cook for forty minutes.




Momo Soup
Take bones of the beef, add 3ltrs of water, place lid and cook for 30-40mins.


Add coriander, onion grass or spring onion leaves as garnish and serve hot with the Momos.

Rushina's Recipes - Confetti Salad

I have always loved salads and regularly make a meal of them. Research has proven that just adding a single salad to you diet daily can significantly improve your nutritional status and also protect against disease and weight gain, in fact those who eat raw vegetables daily show and higher levels of folic acid, vitamins C and E, lycopene and alpha- and beta-carotene. So add a bowlful of goodness to your day… use every excuse to Toss! One of my favourite salads is this simple Confetti Salad. Ideal for hot summer days like we are having and perfect to toss up using whatever you have to hand. Just remember keep it fresh colorful and finely chopped!

Serves: 4-6
Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cooked small size pasta (macaroni, orzo, fussili, tiny alphabet pasta)
1/2 cup mixed coloured peppers, finely chopped
1/2 cup boiled sweet corn
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup tomatoes, finely chopped
1/2 cup broccoli, cut in tiny florets
Juice of 1 lime
2 tbsp Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce
2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
A few leaves ice berg lettuce, shredded
Salt to taste

Method:

Combine everything in a large glass bowl and mix well. Can be served immediately or chill for a while and serve cold.

Variation:

Add finely diced cooked chicken or or small prawns.

Rushina's recipes - Essential Ingredient – Yoghurt

Today’s post was inspired by my friend the Knife musing aloud for light summer recipes on Facebook.
Whether you call it thayir or dahi or doi or mosiru or any other regional name, wether it makes its presence felt as a side dish, an ingredient or impromptu dessert with a bit of sugar stirred in, there is no doubt that Curd or yoghurt is an indispensible part of Indian cuisine. Nowhere in the world is yoghurt as indispensible at the table as it is in India.

Yoghurt is the one omnipresent ingredient that is part of any Indian kitchen from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. As a side dish in its natural form it holds its own on the thali across india, but it also balances the spicy flavours of Biryanis and Curries in the form of raitas, is drunk as a cooling drink in the summeras chaas in Gujarat, ginger-spiked majjige in Karnataka or thick, sweetened lassi in Punjab.

As an ingredient it makes itself useful in a myriad ways from tenderizing mutton for succulent dishes such as the Kashmiri yakhni or enveloping slices of fish in the delicate Bengali doi machch, it also, brings piquancy to the palate in the form of the slightly sour-mostly sweet shrikhand in Gujarat and Maharashtra, or the vegetable rich Avial in Kerela and signifies the end of a fabulous traditional Tamil meal as thayir saadam or curd rice.

But it does not stop at being an ingredient added to a dish, dishes that are made from yoghurt alone are also many like the savoury karhi and chaawal that comes to the plate in a variety of ways as you travel through India, or those dahi vadas we all love. Even the royal kitchens of yore used yoghurt in a myriad ways, from shaping hung curd into the meltingly soft dahi kebabs flavoured with Saffron to Burhani a digestive, drink of curds spiced with garlic and chilli prescribed by the royal hakim, or doctor.

Or so I thought until a trip to Turkey last year.

We were dining at a fabulous restaurant called Ciya that specializes in regional Turkish food, particularly that of south-eastern Anatolia that is justly famous in Istanbul. My local food guide and I were having a delicious dialogue on the many similarities between Turkish and Indian food words (peynir/panir, corba/shorba) when I was offered Ayran, a drink made by mixing yoghurt with water, and salt. In other words namkeen lassi! I was just about to comment on that similarity when we are served siveydiz, a soup of lamb, yogurt, and green garlic shoots. So unfolded another fascinating aspect of similarity between Turkish and Indian cuisine; the importance of yoghurt at the table!

For thousands of years, yogurt has been an important part of the Turkish meal. In Turkey like in India, a dish yogurt is a must on any traditional Turkish table – either accompanying another dish or in a dish as the main ingredient. Yogurt is also used to make soups and even sweets. Another reason why Turks hold yogurt dearly is that all over the world it is consumed and known as “yogurt,” which is a word of Turkish origin. The word derives from Turkish yoğurt,[2] and is related to yoğurmak 'to knead' and yoğun 'dense' or 'thick
It is not possible to pin down where yoghurt originated, possible it was discovered in different places simultaneously. But discovering its importance at the Turkish table, brought home to me the fact that there is so much you can do with yoghurt that it is tough to fit into the space of one post. That said however, a bit of yoghurt can make life in the kitchen easier and allow you to add immense variety to the meals you serve.

Yoghurt and sesame gratinated Potatoes
This recipe is a sexed up version of a traditional Garhwali recipe – Khatte Aloo. It was a big hit at my health special workshops at nature’s basket recently. Do it as a summer casserole, add a salad on the side some sweet wine and you are set…

Time taken: 30 mins. Serves: 1

Ingredients
2 potatoes, boiled with very little water
1 c yoghurt, hung for ½ hour
½ c toasted sesame seeds (or 3 tbsp Tahini)
1-2 green chilies
1 tsp oil
Salt

Directions
Place toasted Sesame in a blender and process to a paste. Add green chilies and process until incorporated. Add yoghurt and process again until incorporated completely (You should end up with a batter the consistency of dosa batter so add a little milk if it is too thick). Set aside. Place a non stick frying an on a medium flame and brush with oil. Slice the boiled potatoes into ½ inch thick rounds, arrange in a single layer in the frying pan as you slice. Pour the Yoghurt over the potato layer spreading with a spatula so everything is evenly covered. Raise flame to high and allow cook until the moisture has completely evaporated (about 10 minutes).

Yayla Chorba
Yayla means ‘mountain pastures’, which is where this popular yoghurt soup originates from. Since milk spoilt easy during summer, the nomadic herdsmen and the earliest settler’s of Anatolia (Asia Minor) converted the milk into yoghurt and prepared this dish. Chorba is Turkish for ‘soup’, a corruption of the Persian word ‘shuraba’, which is derived from shur (salty) and aba (food). In Arabic, ‘shuraba’ means ‘meat broth’. And in India, the Mughlai cuisine calls soup ‘shorba’!

Recipe courtesy Selin Rozanes of Turkish Flavours1 litre/ 4 cups beef stock (substitute: chicken/ vegetable stock)
1/2 cup rice, rinsed and drained
2 cups yoghurt
2 tbsp flour
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
Salt to taste
4 tbsp black pepper, freshly ground
4 tbsp butter
4 tsp dried mint
Paprika flakes to serve (optional)
Place rice in saucepan with stock; simmer for 25 to 30 minutes or until rice is tender and has released its starch to thicken soup. In a bowl, combine yoghurt, flour and egg yolk; mix well. Stir in boiling soup, a little at a time, mixing thoroughly. Slowly, add this mixture to rice, stirring constantly. Taste; adjust seasoning. Simmer gently for 10 minutes. To serve, melt butter in skillet, add crushed mint, stir and drizzle over soup. Serve hot, garnished with a sprinkling of paprika flakes.





ADDITIONAL WAYS WITH YOGHURT
Here are some ways in which I use yoghurt in my kitchen.
Hang yoghurt for a while and then combine with finely chopped green garlic, spring onion or coriander, salt and crushed peppercorns and serve as a dip, salad dressing or topping for crackers.
The Tzatziki is a middle Eastern version of the Cucumber raita. To make it slice a couple of Cucumbers in half lengthwise, scoop out seeds and slice white flesh into ¼ inch crescents. Combine with a cup of yoghurt, a handful of fresh Dill (Sowa) and a crushed clove of Raw Garlic. You can serve this with toothpicks as a starter, in a bowl as a side dish to grilled paneer or chicken with naan.
Shred ½ a cabbage and steam or blanche lightly. Strain and squeeze gently. Combine with a couple of sliced onions and tomatoes and a cup of yoghurt and salt. Temper with garlic and red chillies and eat as is or as a side dish.
Combine 1 cup yoghurt with ½ cup fruit chunks (grapes, bananas or strawberries), add a sprinkle of cardamom powder, a tsp or two of fresh cream and a little sugar. Have over Meusli as a filling breakfast or by itself for a quick snack or light dessert

A recipe from my Mother's Mother for Mother's day

Apologies, i do not have a picture for this recipe because I just got this recipe. In one of those timely occaisions that life throws our way, I happen to be with my mother and grandmother today on the eve of mother's day working on the chapters on them for my book.

My book, which some of you may know about and others might not is a memoir that explores the things that shaped me as a cook. If you observe a weeks worth of meals cooked in my home, they are a blend of cuisines, ingredients and cooking styles that have come from various places. My book was concieved as a result of one of my biggest regrets. I kept telling myself I would spend time with my paternal grandmother to write down her recipes and never did. And this book has been a journey of discovery. Many instance in its writing have made me stop short to thank my stars for all the good things I have inherited. But today was one of those goose bump inducing experiences - having two generations of my family sharing my living culinary heritage with me.

So as Nani told me about coming to Mumbai as a new bride and learning to use a sewing machine and drive a car, mom told me about not knowing the first thing about cooking when she was married at 18. Mom suddnely threw this recipe at me, that she learnt from her mother. Called Mandarin Cream pudding, she says her mother concocted it to serve as an eggless subsitute for Mouses and it was her fool proof fallback for dessert when she was coping with being a new bride and novice cook. It seemed appropriate to share it with all of you today, make it for your mothers tomorrow celebrate them and remember me to them.

Mom's Mom's Mandarin cream pudding
1 pkt orange jelly
1 large can Pineapple slices
1 small pkt vanilla ice cream

Leave Ice cream at room temprature to soften up. Chop pineapples fine, reserving a few slices for decoration. Use the syrup from the canned pineapples to make jelly and cool. Too cooled jelly add chooped pineapples and melted ice cream and fold together untill well combined. Transfer to serving dish, decorate with reserved pineapple slices and leave some for decoration and refrigerate/

Chew on this ... A little seasoning can add so much to a ‘dish’...

Chew on this ... A little seasoning can add so much to a ‘dish’...
Recently I did a salad in which I tossed some Fleur De Sel that my friend and fellow food writer Marryam Reshi sent me a while ago. Fleur de sel which is French for ‘Flower of salt’ is a salt that is hand-harvested by workers who scrape only the top layer of salt before it sinks to the bottom of large salt pans.
Traditional French fleur de sel is collected off the coast of Brittany and is added to a dish just prior to serving. So I kept it simple and tossed a bowl of greens in some olive oil from an Italian friends home press, with a little Fleur De Sel and coarsely ground pepper and served it immediately. Fleur de Sel is composed of irregularly shaped grains of salt that are slightly moist and form flake like clumps. Added just before eating they give dishes a salty crunch that holds it’s own alongside flakes of pepper. This combination is also great to season a good chicken breast, toss prawns in post cooking just prior to serving, or sprinkle over French Fries warm from the pan!
And then as I applied my latest discovery to one of the Amuse Boushe I was cooking up for the Natures Basket Delhi showcase, a rather interesting conversation lead to a stray thought....
A friend who is more salt than pepper was scolding another younger fellow, for assuming that all men with white hair are old. He stated that a lot of women like the salt and pepper look and cited George Clooney as an example.
I couldn’t agree more.
And that lead to the thought that in cooking, seasoning ‘Is a process by which the natural flavours of any type of food are enhanced. Commonly these seasonings are salt and black pepper can be all that is required to make a delicious dish.’
Every ‘dish’ gets more delicious with a little seasoning of Salt and Pepper!
There is just something about a man of a certain age, with salt and pepper hair, distinguished, dapper and self possessed, he stands apart from the crowd and inspires confidence. (And a few other feelings if the delicious winks of silver at my darling husband’s temples are anything to go by... I just love them!)
The Salt and Pepper Prawns that inspired such ‘profound’ thoughts!
500 g large fresh prawns - cleaned and deveined
2 tsp Fleur de Sel
2 tsp roasted peppercorns crushed coarsely
2 cups peanut oil; for deep frying
2 cups shallots sliced
Kaffir Lime leaves to serve
In a small bowl, combine the coarse salt, pepper and set aside. Heat a wok or deep skillet until it is hot and add the oil. When the oil is very hot and smoking, add the shrimp and deep-fry for about 1 minute or until they are pink. Remove immediately with a slotted spoon and drain well. Pour off all but 1 1/2 tablespoons of the oil (the residual peppercorns should have settles at the bottom) and reheat the wok. Add the shallots and stir-fry for 10 seconds. Return the shrimp to the wok and stir-fry over high heat for about 2 minutes until the shallots are crunchy cooked. Line a platter or small bowls/Chinese spoons with Kaffir lime leaves and transfer hot prawns to the serving platter over the leaves. Serve immediately.

Prelude to a feast....Antipasti

With mostly continental finger food (coin pizzas, tarts, puffs, sandwiches, baby burgers) on the Kiddie menu for my son's 6th birthday party I planned an Italian spread for the adults to substaniate the leftovers from the kids party. While shopping for the party I came accoss some beautiful fleshy sweet peppers (or coloured capsicums as we call them in our part of the world). I quickly did a rethink of my menu and instead of the stir fry I had planned I decided to do an Antipasti platter.

In Italian cuisine Antipasti are dishes that literally mean “before the meal”. Though generally not part of a typical family meal, these dishes play a very important part in a formal dinner, or a celebration.

Antipasto need not be complicated; in fact it can be as simple as a bowl of olives, some bread, and good olive oil like Soler Romero for dipping or as elaborate as a platter of gourmet cold cuts, cheeses and the like. Antipasto platters look and taste spectacular and are simple to put together. Though they're traditionally served as a prelude to a meal, I've often turned them into the main event itself, either as a casual supper or a party tray with wine and beer. In fact they have become a regular on the menu as a casual meal option as well since the lack of cooking required (most of the stuff can be outsourced) makes them ideal for relaxed weekend fare. Just add good bread and a green salad.

I did an antipasti platter of mushrooms and peppers with garlic and sun dried bruchettas on the side. For this batch I cooked about 5 packets of mushrooms, and a dozen peppers. I would advise doing this in larger quantities because the slow cooking process yields much better results with larger quantities. (You'll know exactly what I mean when you soak up the juices left on the platter with a bit of bread once the antipasti is over.) And although the mushrooms require little time, if you are going to sit and peel peppers you might as well enjoy them for a while!

I did an antipasti platter of mushrooms and peppers with garlic and sun dried bruchettas on the side. For this batch I cooked about 5 packets of mushrooms, and a dozen peppers. I would advise doing this in larger quantities because the slow cooking process yields much better results with larger quantities. (You'll know exactly what I mean when you soak up the juices left on the platter with a bit of bread once the antipasti is over.) And although the mushrooms require little time, if you are going to sit and peel peppers you might as well enjoy them for a while!

Antipasti

For the Mushroom antipasti
1 kg (5 standard 200g pkts)
1/2 cup garlic peeled and chopped fine
1 tbsp freshly crushed black peppercorns
1 cup of the best Extra Virgin Olive oil you can afford (I use Soler Romero organic EVOO)
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (when you squeeze lemon juice add a little salt to it so it does not get bitter on standing) OR Balsamic vinegar (I use some a friend got me from Modena where it is made)
1 tbsp salt or to taste

Rinse mushrooms quickly under running water. Trim stems and cut off any discoloured bits. layer in a baking dish as you go. In a bowl combine all the other ingredients, mix well and pour over mushrooms. Allow to stand for 1/2 an hour. At the end of that time place dish in oven and grill until mushrooms are cooked. I usually let them cook until the parts sticking out are dried out and slightly charred - don't worry about the charred bits, they are what will add flavour to the whole later. Once cooked allow to cool and transfer to an airtight container juices and all. Leave for a while so the dried bits have had a chance to soak up the juices again and they are ready to eat. Serve at room temperature, warm or cold depending on the weather. These mushrooms will last up to 10 days in the refrigerator (if you let them)

For the pepper antipasti
1 dozen large red yellow and orange peppers.
1/2 cup olive (again the best Extra Virgin Olive oil you can afford)

For the marinade
1/2 cup chopped garlic
1 tbsp freshly crushed black peppercorns
1 cup of the best Extra Virgin Olive oil you can afford (I use Soler Romero organic EVOO)
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (when you squeeze lemon juice add a little salt to it so it does not get bitter on standing) OR Balsamic vinegar (I use some a friend got me from Modena where it is made)
1 tbsp salt or to taste

Wash peppers, cut vertically into four wedges and arrange on a cookie tray. Brush with olive oil, and place in the oven. Roast until the skin has blistered and blackened all over. When it does, remove, place in a plastic bag or air tight box and seal. (This allows the peppers to steam, so the skins are easily removed). When cool, remove from bag, peel away skins and put in a bowl as you go, split open, remove seeds and stem, cut into wedges. Season with olive oil, minced garlic, salt and pepper and set aside till serving time. , split open, remove seeds and stem, cut into wedges.

For the garlic bruchettas
2 french loaves
1/2 cup butter or olive oil
10 cloves of garlic
1 cup of grated cheese

Pound the garlic to a paste in a mortar and pestle, add butter or oil and mix well. Set aside. Slice the french loaves to your preference of thickness (thin slices will give you crisp bruchettas, thicker ones will be crisp on the outside and softer on the inside). Spread the garlic butter/oil mixture over each slice and arrange in a baking tray. Scatter with grated cheese. Grill in the oven till the edges of the bread and the top of the cheese has started to brown. Remove and serve.

If you are inclined to spicier fare add minced chillies to the garlic oil mix or top with chopped jalapenos before the cheese.

For the sun dried tomato bruchettas
2 french loaves
2 cups sundried tomatoes
1/2 cup olive oil
10 cloves of garlic

Place garlic and tomatoes in a blender and blend to a paste adding oil in a thin stream as you go. Set aside. Slice the french loaves to your preference of thickness ( again, thin slices will give you crisp bruchettas, thicker ones will be crisp on the outside and softer on the inside). Spread the sun dried tomato mixture over each slice and arrange in a baking tray. Grill in the oven till the edges of the bread have browned well. Remove and serve.

It has been established in my family that I will go to great lengths to achieve a good meal but if you are not inclined to cooking you will find antipasti a great option as well. You will find basic things like olive and sun dried tomato tepanade, marinated olives, mushrooms and artichokes in the exotic food isles of your local supermarket and cold cuts and the like in the meats section.

With the cold cuts I used to be partial the offerings from Alf Farms and Prabhat untill I discovered the meats section at Hypercity this weekend. I was like a kid at a candy store!

Of course for more artisnal gourmet stuff you could also pop in to the Bombay Baking Company (BBC) at the JW Marriott at Juhu, the Deli & Pastry shop at the Renaissance in Powai, Grand Delicatessen at the Intercontinental the Grand, Moshe’s, Cuffe Parade, the Gourmet Shop, Grand Hyatt, Santacruz, Olive Market Cafe, Bandra but the best possible place to shop for an Antipasto platter is The Indigo Delicatessen, Colaba.