Paruppu Usili - Whistle podu

One dish that I could never get right is the paruppu usili. Failed miserably the first time I attempted it and gave up after that (chee chee indha pazham pulikkum). But then when I realized S liked this a lot, I wanted to learn how to make it and make it good.

I'd been trying out various recipes but nothing felt right. Came to my rescue, executive chef and dear friend, Padmanabhan. He sent me a recipe that was absolutely brilliant, and I have surpassed myself each time I have made it.

Paruppu usili is made with a coarsely ground channa dal (kadala paruppu) and an assortment of vegetables. It's best eaten with morekozhambu (spiced yoghurt).

Couple of things to be noted while making usili

a. There should be more usili than the vegetables.
b. It should be dry and coarse, and not feel like chunks of little balls sitting amidst the vegetables.

Ingredients:

Bengal gram: 150 gm
Red Chilli (whole)- 50 gm
Asafoetida - a pinch
Oil - 2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Curry leaves - 1 stick
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Green chilli - 3 - 4
Urad dal - 20 gm (optional)
Grated coconut (optional) - 2 tsp (I do not use coconut in my preparation)
Chopped coriander - a handful (save some for garnish)

Vegetables - chopped finely and boiled. You can add salt here. (Preferred vegetables here - fresh green beans, cluster beans, capsicum. If using capsicum, do not boil)

Method:

Soak the bengal gram in water, for half hour. Grind coarsely, along with the chillies (red and green), coriander, cumin, asafoetida and salt. Add very less water, so it doesn't become a paste.

Steam this mixture in an idli cooker, for about 15-20 minutes (in an electric cooker). Remove and break using a fork / spoon. (I prefer to do this using my fingers). It should be a dry mixture. This is the paruppu usili. This can be pre-made & stored in the refrigerator for later use.

Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan, add mustard seeds. Once it splutters, add the asafoetida and the vegetables. Saute for a bit, and then add the lentil mixture (usili). Mix well for a while. Garnish with coriander leaves, and serve hot.

Off now to eat this for lunch ! 

Meet the bakers - Part 14

And that's one more baker right under my nose. Where were you girls all this while !

Meet the multi talented (oh yeah crochet, knitting, painting, sketching - is there anything that you do not do? :-)) RoseAnne George, home maker, mother of two and proud owner of Oven180degrees

Excerpts:


D: Looks like you've recently started baking? What got you into this?
RG: Grown up in a household with a baker mom and yummy cakes, was always focused on polishing the plate than baking. Ever since I took break from my software job (was with Infosys for over a decade) last year, my attention is on kids, home and hobbies. Baking slowly made way as I started experimenting and making cakes and chocolates for family and close friends. Inspiration came from those friendly souls who urged me to start taking this up more seriously and resulted in my just launched Oven180degrees home based bakeshop

D: What's your specialty? 
RG: I am a novice baker and happy baking every day cakes and bakes. I also make chocolate fudges. I try to experiment and bake cakes from around the world. Most recently I am smitten by the macaron bug.

D: What's your theme for the bake fest?
RG: Theme .. French connection.. (Now THAT is a theme ! :D)

D: Where do you source all your ingredients?
RG: Mostly local, specifically Waltax road. My sis and niece generously help me to bring equipments, food colouring, etc from US. Also I love to stock vanilla bean from Mattanchery, Kochi. Another place I love to pick up stuff is Institute of baking and cake art, Bangalore. (OK, an interesting option and I didn't know such an institute existed)

D. What's the one ingredient that you think is not available in India without which baking becomes so difficult?
RG: Yet to find one. I find most of the stuff available locally, but imported stuff is pricey. Would love to see more much stores selling quality baking supplies.

A happy baker mom with two very young tasters at home ready to pinpoint exactly what went right/wrong with her baking trials, I'm sure she's going to bring us some truly delightful bakes. Her classic walnut brownie recipe is to watch out for.

Signs off Rose, Baking is therapeutic for me. Makes me happy when I see children gorging on my cakes and ask for more. Hope to see many more happy faces.

Oh you sure have a happy face in me :D. See ya in less than 48 hours :-) 


And yes, I'll take you up on that offer and will drop by for a slice of cake :)


A common question to all you beautiful bakers - how do you all manage to look so pretty and gorgeous? 

Meet the bakers - Part 13

I've heard of sweet nothings, but sweet something? Oh yes, it's there, right next to where I live and I didn't know about it. As they say, the best things are right before your eyes and you just don't notice it !

Meet Prerna Narula Raj of Sweet Something. She has just started to go pro; and going by what she has put up on her page, I think she's in the right direction.

Excerpts:

D: What do you see for yourself in the home baking domain?
PNR: I've been baking for a while now but just for family. I have just started off professionally and there's a long way to go...and am sure people also are looking at exploring newer options rather than just going to the routine bakery next door type of thing!

D: What do you specialize in?
PNR: My strength is in cookies and my family loves my walnut brownies. I bake eggless and vegetarian!! My sugar free and vegan cookies are still in the trail phase and should be ready soon... I also do cookies in whole wheat instead of refined flour on request!!! (OK, I remember someone asking for vegan on HBG. You know where to head ! and whole wheat too ! Very cool)

D: What's your theme for this bake fest?
PNR: I don't have any specific theme for the showcase...just baking what my family loves to eat....and of course my husband's favourite Rum Balls!! (Yay Rum balls - so in love :-))

D: When did you first realize that this is your true calling?
PNR: I have been in to what my mom calls "Fancy cooking" ever since I was in school...loved to cook and bake stuff not on the regular menu....(the routine cooking gets boring after a while...especially deciding on menus day in and day out), knowing this my cousin who is also into baking used to give me tips whenever I visited her and I have learned a lot from her. Even though I was in an advertising agency then, I did know that finally food has to be my line of work...and once my little princess came along...I decided it was time to start!!! So professionally, just stepped into this vast and beautiful ocean of the Home Bakers

With the little one running around, Prerna has a tough time getting the goodies ready for the showcase. But, with the strong support of her husband, who's her official taster and critic, she's confident of whipping up some sinful delights.

Meet the bakers - Part 12

Chocolates are something that can light up the face of a girl. As I'd mentioned in one of my earlier posts, a chocolate can even give you an orgasm.

Choc of the town is perhaps my biggest weakness. An IT Pro turned chocolatier - Subhatra Priyadarshini's new venture specializes in fresh delicious hand-made personalized chocolates and they are delivered all over India.

Excerpts:

D: Have you been doing this for a very long time? What inspired you?
SP: I had always wanted a career where I can use my creativity/artistic skills and have fun too. I attended a course on Women's Entrepreneurship at IIM Bangalore two years ago that gave me the final push to pursue this dream. Among the many ideas that came up during the course, making chocolates seemed the most exciting. I decided to be as creative as possible in the chocolates I make. The fact that this allows me to come up with new ideas very frequently keeps me motivated to continue growing this business.

D: Do you specialize only in chocolates?
SP: At the moment, we are only into chocolates.

D: I see that you deliver across India. What special care do you take when doing long distance delivery? Do the products reach in the same shape, size and texture?
SP: We did extensive research and tried out various methods in the first few months of going online. We now have what we think is the perfect combination for ensuring safe delivery of our chocolates - sturdy packaging, ice packs for keeping them cool and tie-ups with reputed logistics providers like Bluedart and DTDC. So yes, the products reach in the same shape, size and texture. Our large base of repeat customers is a testimony that we are doing this right.

D: Do you plan to open a store? Or are you content with baking at home?
SP: At the moment, we operate only through www.chocofthetown.com . Being an exclusively online store has its advantages like reduced overhead expenses and the non-necessity of holding an inventory, so I am quite happy with the current model. We have a large range of product pictures for customers to choose from, and we make the chocolates fresh after receiving an order. Of course, setting up an exclusive store for Choc Of The Town is one of the dreams and we will evaluate this again in future. (Spoken like a true management grad ! ;-) )

Signs off Subhatra - If you have a dream to start something of your own, don't wait for all pieces of the puzzle to fall together - it never will. You can always figure things out as you go along. Have fun!

I wish I have the guts to do that some day ! You are inspiring ! 


Cheers and see you and your chocolates on the 30th ! 

Meet the bakers - Part 11

Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar? The Kuki Jar, for some reason, reminded me of this childhood game-song, and I'd been singing this ever since I wrote to Kuki Ravindran. :-)

Today's issue of Meet the bakers features Kuki Ravindran whose Baklava muffins, bowled me over.


D: How / When did you start baking? What got you into this and to start professionally?
KR: I baked my first cake at 7 so that's about XX years of baking (what a sneaky way of asking me my age, you woman !) ;)) (She mentioned the number of years, but that also gives out her age and I'm not publishing a lady's age :P ). It's always been a passion and even through my career with British Airways, I used to bake for pleasure and sometimes even sold my cakes to people who placed orders. I've always know I would work with food, so last year when a friend of mine gave me a lecture about being lazy and wasting time, I decided to take the plunge....and there was born The Kuki-Jar !  :)

D: As a market, where do home bakers stand, as compared to pros like French Loaf and stuff like that?
KR: Home Bakers are FINALLY coming into their own, about time ! Pages like the Home Baker's Guild and the Baker Showcase are evidence of the fact that home-baking is close to most people's hearts - whether you are a baker or a consumer ! I feel that the talent and dedication to quality that Home Baker's have been displaying is staggering and I would personally order from them over a commercial bakery any day.

D: Where do you source your ingredients and can you think of 1 ingredient that we don't get here in India?
 KR: I source my ingredients from all over. Most of it is local so that I can run a sustainable business, but a few ingredients that are key to some dishes I make, I source from abroad. Double-Cream is one ingredient I have been pulling my hair out over , so now I've decided to adapt my recipes to single-cream. Even considered a written petition to Amul to request double-cream, and sent them an online query, but no joy till date.  Another is pecan-nuts for my Mocha Pecan Pie which is an un-reliable and expensive ingredient here. I get those from the US.

D: What's your theme for the bake fest?
KR: I don't really have a conscious theme for the Baker Showcase. I will probably be making the dishes I love the best and which are my most requested...... and maybe some new favourites too. Ok so here's the theme - My Favourite Things! Come to the Showcase to find out what they are.

Does this girl look like she's scared of spiders? Music, food and her 10 year old puppy dog Nooky are her passions. If not baking, we'd have still seen Kuki crooning some lovely numbers.


Signs off Kuki - Met some of the bakers at a photo-shoot the other day and it was such a lot of fun ! Can't wait for the Showcase to meet more of this Sisterhood of home-bakers....thanks to Bala and Nandita for the idea and execution of the HBG and Baker Showcase. A tip of the hat to them ! 

I'm bringing my appetite and you please bring those delicious  baklava muffins ;-) Cheers and see ya at the fest !

Fusion 9 - High and Mighty

It was the day of yet another dinner with the foodies at the one of the city's well known restaurants on Sterling Road. I'd never been to Fusion 9 before and I wish Shadir or Doc had warned me earlier about the poor lighting. (That explains some of the out of focus pictures). This was one of the fun dinners I've been on, with Doc Waz and Shadir regaling us with food stories of their college days. Aswin was a last minute entry as Nish and Ali couldn't make it. Divyan and Karthik completed the 6 member group.

Mohan and Mrinalini from the PR consultancy led us with the initial introductions and I'd requested for a copy of what we'd be eating today. (It's too difficult remembering names, and I sure don't want to look at the pics wondering what it was ! :-) ) Sajith was taking care of our table. I'm covering only the vegetarian fare here. (It wouldn't be fair for me to talk about something that I don't eat)

It was a new spring menu that has now been introduced. And me being a veggie, was curious how the new menu helped us. It so happens that this revised menu has loads of options for vegetarians. *big smile* Round 1 to Fusion 9

The dinner kicked off with the barman's special - Irish Apple Mocktail. Not a big fan of apple, this one was a little too sweet for my liking and didn't really make an impact on my taste buds. When I told Mohan about it, he promptly got the bar to get me another drink with orange and lemon and mint, and loads of crushed ice. The orange had no flavor, and all we could eat was the crushed ice. I should have perhaps tried some other mocktail from the menu. Round 2 to me ;-)

The drinks gave way to starters. The first dish on the table was a platter of watermelon and feta titbits with reduced aged balsamic. Round 3 to Fusion 9. Absolutely brilliant. This coming from someone who HATES watermelons - This is a must order when you go there. Fresh watermelon scoops with generous cuts of feta - yummy !

This was followed by sicilian rice cakes, mushroom and smoked scamorza filling, fresh tomato and MTN. Usually, cakes are associated with cubed / rectangular shapes, but this one was round (!!??) Slightly dry, but overall good flavors. The mushroom and scamorza stood out. Round 4 to Fusion 9

With this, came the beirut hummus falafel platter. Round 5 to Fusion 9. Excellent pita and hummus. We could lick the bowl clean :)

After this, followed the spiced tofu katsu with crispy rice noodles. Tofu by itself has no taste. This one was well cooked, and the katsu sauce is a perfect combination with the tofu. I was curious as to what the katsu was made of and Sajith would only tell me that it had peanuts and Japanese spices. I asked him what spice was that and he insisted it was Japanese spices. (Aswin says it's theriyumotheriyadho and Doc waz claims it's nikumonikado :P) Jokes apart, I'd certainly like to know what spice it had ! It did taste a bit like maggi and korma. Round 6 to Fusion 9

What I should mention here is an out-of-the-tasting-menu item - Tandoori broccoli. I am in love with Fusion 9 only for this dish. (We never did get that second plate, did we.. Aswin?)

The salad then came on. Roasted new potato salad with sour cream and dill mayo. Round 7 to me. Potato skin was bitter and there was something weird about this salad. The peas were undercooked and there was absolutely no flavor anywhere. One mish mash of ingredients dumped together hurriedly !

Corn chowder soup came on. I'd rather not say anything about this. It was too creamy and after all the heavy starters, given a choice, I'd have opted for a clear soup, something that would also cleanse my palate. The soup was equally heavy and it didn't quite taste of any particular flavor. Round 8 to me.

Next is Pasta. Yay, I've always loved pasta and was super glad that the veg pasta was not penne ! It was fusili, with fresh spinach, sundried tomatoes, assorted peppers and leeks. Pasta was undercooked (much below the al dente level, perhaps another 30 - 40 seconds in the boiling water, or even a minute may be?). Sundried tomatoes were too little in number and too bad Aswin ate the last piece ;-). Also appears they weren't actually sun dried. Oven roasted may be? Nothing to rave about - this pasta. Round 9 to me

It was already past 10, and we had still not started the main course. Pizza was yet to be served. :-)

The pizza landed on the table, looked delightful. We cut and served, wanting to taste each vegetable on the pizza - zucchini - check, eggplant - couldn't find one, peppers - check, onions - check, mozarella - check, white cream - check. An overall decent pizza, but I've had better ones. Round 10 - draw. 

It was time for the main course. Moroccan Panneer steak with spiced harissa and lemon cous cous- epic fail. Round 11 to me. Panneer was rubbery, and the lemon cous cous tasted like wheat upma. The sauce was decent and the only saving grace here was my favorite broccoli.

I was stuffed. Too many dishes for a tasting session. As I was drooling over the dessert menu, steamed rice with Thai Green curry arrived. I thought it was a little too lemon grassy, (and a few others on the table also did think so, but Doc thought it was perfect). Overall good one, rich flavors, slightly on the creamier side; nonetheless a good way to end a meal. Round 12 to Fusion 9

We were eagerly awaiting the dessert, having stuffed ourselves with all the aforementioned dishes. And it came, regally, on a platter. One bite and we realized the desserts were outsources from Sandy's. Yay ! The chef explained that they didn't have enough space in their kitchen to make these. Of course, the chocolate brownies were from their kitchen and were absolutely delicious. The cheesecake and German chocolate mousse from Sandy's - delightful as always. Round 13 to Fusion 9

On a Tuesday evening, this place was crowded. That should explain that the fact that the crowd loves this restaurant, despite being a tad expensive. A meal for 2 would cost anywhere between 1200 - 2000. I also come to understand that the non-veg dishes were done well. 

On the whole, a good experience and if they can work a bit on sourcing fresh ingredients, especially the leaves (lettuce and basil - which were terribly bitter), and perhaps removing paneer from the menu (I love paneer but it just doesn't fit in here), this would be a great place to dine. 

PS: I also think you should tune into Star world on weekdays from 9 pm so we could watch MasterChef Australia. We were told TLC is your standard channel ! 

PSS: As we wound up and were leaving, the aroma of sizzlers was undeniably dragging us back. Why, Oh why, did you not serve us some of that brilliant sizzler?

Meet the bakers - Part 10

As we near the showcase, I'm trying to meet all the bakers (of course, online). I can sense the nervousness, the thrill and the excitement of a mega event !

Today's episode will feature Rashmee Gopalan of Snow Frosting. (Where do you girls come up with these awesome names. Each one is brilliant and unique in its own right!!) A Masters in Food Science from WCC, well what can one expect, other than the best ! :-)

Excerpts:


D: Has baking always been your passion? 
RG: I have been baking for close to 4 years now, although very recently commercially. I’ve enjoyed baking for friends and family immensely. Snow frosting was started in august 2011.A lot of people liked what I baked and encouraged me to take it up professionally.

D: Where do you source your ingredients from?
RG: I pick up a lot of stuff abroad. I have it picked up by family and friends. Cake accessories are extremely tough to find. Cupcake liners ,toppers, sprinkles, gel colouring, edible markers, extracts etc are always sourced from other countries, mainly USA. In Chennai, I pick up a lot of stuff from passionate baking ,anna nagar. A lot of care is going into sourcing imported stuff these days. Places like Gormei Market and Amma Naana do stock up on imported stuff but they are expensive. For bulk supplies I go to walltax road.

D: What plans do you have for Snow Frosting?
RG: To continue getting customers through word of mouth as of now. Maybe publicize a little more from next year and eventually a retail outlet/restaurant!

D: What's your theme for the bake fest?
RG: Its going to be mostly chocolate based with imported chocolates! I'm trying cupcakes with filled centers to offer more in each bite! Mini cheesecakes and toffee shortbread will also be on sale.

D: What's the most difficult cake that you've ever baked?
RG: I haven’t found any cake too tough to bake but getting the cake exactly the way I want it to has been a result of a number of trials/attempts and errors.

What's more yummier here? The cup cakes or the lady herself? ;-) 


With the support of family and 2 beautiful kids who are a great source of encouragement, we can expect nothing short of amazing from Rashmee. Oh and she also writes food columns for a magazine called ParentCircle.

Watch out for this chica at the Bake Fest on the 30th ! 

Meet the bakers - Part 9

It's been a blog marathon for me and I've crossed 3000 hits in about 5 weeks. (OK enough of bragging now, back to the post ! ) Today, we'll be featuring Anusha Kaushik of Delicioso (pronounced deli-shee-osso). Poor girl, between her house shifting and missing her daughter's uniform (because of which the kid had happy days not going to school), she managed to email me ! Appreciate it Anusha, I know how painful shifting can be - having shifted 4 times in 4 years across states.

Excerpts:

D: How long have you been baking for?
AK: say 12 yrs back! mentored initially by mom of course...I manage most things at home when I bake....I cook, manage my 3.5 yr old and bake...My mom gets summoned during emergencies of course (read - on days there's more than one cake going on!)...yes my mom does pitch in and bail me out on difficult days. otherwise pretty much on my own :) 


D: What's the most difficult cake that you've ever baked?
AK: I am big on theme cakes, the most challenging characters to bring out on a cake are - Ra One and the green lantern which I did more recently... (I personally loved the couple cuddling on a bed :P absolutely romantic)


D: Where do you source your ingredients?
AK: I source them locally, make most at home (cheese for example), equipment - get some imported..thanks to relatives who stay abroad :)


D: What's your theme for this fest?
AK: I didn't particularly have any, but coming to think of it I want incorporate fruit in all my bakes...so maybe a fruity theme?

Ladies and Gentlemen, Meet Anusha Kaushik.

I hope sanity has returned at home and look forward to seeing you on 30th :) (I hope you also found your daughter's uniform *wink wink*)

Meet the bakers - Part 8

Cleaner, chef, dish washer, stylist, photographer, manager and odd-job jack - Meet Aysha Shanaz Abdulla of Ma Baker

Lovely creations and even prettier packing boxes got me curious. Clumsy as she might be (and even having a ganache on her ceiling and a 2 year old creating havoc in the house), I think her creations are absolutely brilliant. I'm actually proud to do this post on Aysha, for she is a recluse but she thought answering my questions was going to be fun ! Read on..

Excerpts:

D: Any reason why this name - Ma Baker?
ASA: I'm a full time ma to my children, bitten very hard by the baking bug. So the old Boney M song title seemed appropriate.  (True that ! )


D: Where do you source your ingredients from? Is there something you don't get in India?
ASA: There's hardly anything you don't find in India these days but the quality is very inconsistent and therefore unreliable, especially in stores that sell in bulk. Most of my stuff comes from the States, brought back by my family who travel pretty often and are willing to carry anything I need. But now with more stores that carry specialty ingredients opening up, things are getting easier. 


D: What's the most difficult part in baking in humid conditions?
ASA: The most difficult part is that you get cooked before your cakes get cooked! Its just so exhausting! Other than that there are the challenges of the butter falling flat and the frosting looking wilted but there's no point complaining and we have to just find ways to work around it, like working after sun-down.


D: What's your theme for the fest?
ASA: I don't really have a theme in mind, I'm just planning to stick to my strong points and bake what I've always got good reviews for. I may introduce one new item as a trial but it really depends on how well I manage time on the days running up to the 30th. With a 2 year old in the house and me being a one man army, its a circus around these parts on most days. Did I mention I've already had a couple of panic attacks thinking about the 30th? Yes, I'm confident like that! (haha, I am sure you are going to whip up a storm)


D: On that note, I loved the little boxes that housed those single cup cakes. Did you design those boxes?
ASA: I found a box design that I loved and then painstakingly cut out the template and handmade a box as a sample for the person who makes my other boxes. So technically I did not design the boxes myself but there was no way I could make my box supplier comprehend what I needed without actually making one and showing it to him!

I couldn't convince Aysha to let me use a picture of hers on the blog (she refrains from having her pictures published, and I respect her decision) and instead of the awesome baker, I do have one of her creations here ! :)

Cheers Aysha and look forward to seeing you on the 30th ! (Can't hide there :P)

The Great Biriyani Cookout - Yay !

Finally, the day arrived and Dinesh was kind enough to pick me up so close to home. We made our way to Adyar Cafe Coffee Day, waiting to pick up the rest of the junta. (Carpooling it was). PG, Aswin, Sruti, Tasneem, Shivani and few more arrived, and we headed towards Lakshmi Farms on ECR. Nish had mentioned it was right after the toll and we would be able to see balloons. :P And we were looking out for the balloons and went up to Mayajaal. (Little did we know that the balloons arrived after us ! :P ) Dinesh - Thanks #1

Rajab Nisha was absolutely brilliant. She, with her tremendous experience, made this huge cookout seemingly so easy ! And not to mention Asma, who with her dazzling smile, was so delightful to watch in the make-shift kitchen. Thanks #2

The cookout started off with bread halwa, and Kamalika and I were already drooling. It was a bright and sunny day and the Arabian tent did serve the purpose to an extent, but Chennai heat at its full glory took its toll. RO iced water and soft drinks did little to ease the heat, but what did actually make us all feel better was the amazing food and the enthusiastic group. So, Thanks #3!

Bread halwa was followed by batter making for chicken and gobi 65. They were left to marinate, and we moved on to the baingan salan (aka ennai kathrikkai, baghara baingan, kathrikai thokku). Totally tempting (I did shudder at the amount of oil, but I guess it has to be made that way!)

This was followed by making the gravy for the biriyani. It is the base for all types of biriyani. It would later be split into 3 parts to accommodate veg, chicken and mutton varieties.

The sweetened rice was on the stove and whilst that was cooking, we took a break to rest our muddy feet and quench our parched throats.

That done, the veg biriyani got its opportunity to get cooked, followed by chicken and mutton. Meanwhile, on a stove, the gobi 65 started to fry, followed by chicken.

The group was impatient, and hunger pangs began to pass. I was worried if I would be able to do justice to this amazing cook out. We couldn't wait for the table to be set and that done, we dug in.

It was truly a delicious cookout, and I can't wait to try all this at home. (S - please note :P) I have the bread halwa and sweetened rice saved, and will be eaten with lunch tomorrow.

Rajab Nisha's tips were amazing, and I know a few people have diligently taken down detailed notes. Jaya: Please share :)

Jaya was the official translator, for people who couldn't see what was happening, and PG was the official kinder (mixer :P). Even Chef Rajab Nisha commented "avar karandi pudichu verum pose thanga kudukaraaru" :P

Oh, and thanks #4  to Nigar Sultana of Dawat-e-Biriyani for her silent support and being the associate sponsor of this event. She has graciously signed our certificates and has given each of us a 15% off voucher on all orders (valid for 3 months).

What a way to spend a Saturday. Truly memorable. Way to go Ali and Nish. Look forward to many more such cookouts and workshops. Thanks #5

and Lastly, Thanks #6 Aswin, for dropping me home, with a free tour of the city ! :P ;-)

Meet the bakers - Part 7

Flying mighty high on cakes is our very own pretty and charming Neha Gugaliya. What I loved about her cakes are the concept cakes so to speak. I couldn't pick a favorite, as I was telling her. Loved the Cindrella story, Louis Vuitton Purse and the football field (If only liverpool was featured on there, I'd have ordered it for S :-P)

Excerpts:

D: Where do you source your ingredients from?
NG: I get them from walltax road, Passionate baking off late, and few of my moulds n cutters are from abroad..... where ever i find any awesome stuff relating to baking and even for chocolate bouquets i get them... Off late even my relatives and friends hunt gifts related to these!!!

D: What do you feel about this fest? How far, as a home baker, do you think it's going to help you?
NG: Very Happy to be a part of this show .. its a great initiative from Bala and Nanditha. It's been only an year and a half that High On Cakes is a part of my life, and I see a lot of home bakers who have been doing such great stuff for sooooo many years... for me it will be a lottttt (ok.. she actually stressed on the "lot" :P) of learning from this event... and this is surely gonna help me a lot...... 


D: Would you like to open a store soon?
NG: Yuppyyyy opening up a store is my dream, and in future u'll see HIGH ON CAKES store somewhere around Chennai!!


D: What does High on Cakes specialize in?
NG:  I do only egg less stuff.... None of my products have egg or any non-veg related items.... I do cakes, muffins, cookies, chocolates.... There are a lot of concept cakes, muffins and cookies that I'm doing off late and I'm really loving doing them..... My customers too love them:-) Apart from all these I also do Chocolate Bouquets , Chocolate sticks and Chocolate Trays... Now I'm trying my hands on Sugar craft flowers and wedding cakes!!!!


D: And your theme for the bake fest?
NG: There is no theme kind of thing, Gonna bring cakes, Flavored Muffins, Customized Cookies, Chocolate Bouquets and New variety of chocolate trays ... I'm veryyy happpyy to be a part of this event, its gonna be a gala evening meeting all expert bakers of the town , learning and having a happy fun loving evening :-)

I could totally imagine the smile on her face in each line of her email. I'm sure she was hyperventilating and she's sure verrrry happy to be a happy part of this happy event ! A happy go lucky girl ! :-)


Here's to opening High on Cakes soon in the city ! Cheers!

Meet the bakers - Part 6

I was sailing on a small fluffy cupcake, floating high in the air, looking around the clouds, dreaming... mmmm..  That's what Rivka's email did to me - by far the best compliment I have ever received for the Meet the Baker series - quoting her verbatim - "Yes, I’ve seen and read all your blog posts and have been anxiously waiting for this mail from you! "

Meet Little miss muffet... er.. sorry Lil' Miss Kitchen's Rivka Maria Shahani, owner, baker, delivery girl, dishwasher and everything else that you can think of.

For someone who has been dabbling in various forms of arts - music, an MA in Fine Arts, logo design, photography, baking is a piece of cake (er.. ! does that make sense? :-) ) Rivka now sings with her church choir.

Excerpts:


D: Do you make your own pasta from scratch? Or are they store bought? If so, where do you source your ingredients from?
RMS: For my lasagna, I make my own pasta sheets, as the taste is unbeatable. But for my pasta bakes, since it’s not really viable to make penne/fusilli/smaller pasta shapes, I use store bought pasta. I source all my ingredients locally, supporting the small shop owners in Kilpauk. They have surprised me with their products like you’d never imagine!


D: Do you customize based on individual tastes?
RMS: Yes, 99% of the time.. I cook what I love to eat and it’s only fair that I feed people what they love to eat, but there is a limit as to how far I will go.. I never compromise on my basic recipes.


D: Your thoughts on the Bake Fest?
RMS: It’s a superb plan... I think KP Balakumar and Nanditha have been quite fantastic in bringing all of us together... It’s going to be extremely beneficial to us bakers, as we’re reaching out to an audience that we might not have had a chance to encounter, if it wasn’t for this. And it’s healthy to stand side by side with others who might be considered “competition” and be supportive of them and they of you... it’s going to be quite a show!


D: Your theme for this fest?
RMS: As you might’ve noticed on my page, my philosophy with my Kitchen is “Good food, made with love.” and that’s all it is. I like to keep things simple, I love my food and I want to share it.



D: Would you like to open a store sometime?
RMS: I’d love to... that is the eventual plan... for now I’m very content with working from home… since I have no professional training and since I do it all on my own, I’m growing with the Kitchen… it’s a good process for me, I’m taking my time and I think that’s the way to go… there’s no rush.

Signs off Rivka, Food is what occupies my days now… it’s extremely satisfying when you hear that a 2 year old squealed with delight and gobbled up her birthday cake that you’ve put a load of love into... it’s no longer about the time or effort it takes... it’s all about the love.

And someday, somewhere, I will have a space for likeminded people to come and share in these 3 loves of my life… and it will be beautiful.

Thank  you Rivka and I so look forward to meeting you on 30th. Love, Hugs, xx. 

Meet the bakers - Part 5

First off, this post is long overdue. Work was all consuming and then a couple of Showcase meets happened :)

So I was writing to each of these bakeraanis and this time, I picked the enthu cutlet - Suma Satish. That's how I am going to call her, because her email to me was bubbling with excitement and thrill and I couldn't resist responding immediately. There weren't many details on her FB page, so I had to throw random questions at her. And then, after reading her email I realized, even if I didn't ask her any question, I would have still ended up with reams of information ! :D That's Suma for you - a bundle of excitement of a little kid.

Suma is absolutely talented; she calls herself jack of all trades, king of none (shouldn't it be queen? :P) but I think it's amazing that she can knit, paint, crochet, and apparently play a bit of flute (but stopped because the neighbor complained ! :P). As I was wondering who is she going to knit for in Chennai, her next line sent me into peals of laughter - she could perhaps knit bikinis in Chennai :P

Excerpts:

D: What got you into baking? Is this full time or do you work elsewhere?
SS: My mom used to bake when my sis and I were little. She made cookies and cakes for our birthdays. She used to break the eggs with a butter knife (we are vegetarians) resulting in shells all over the batter and 30 mins to pick the shells off LOL! So I kinda knew what went into making a cake and how it was done, but my experiments with baking started when I got married and moved to the US- no work, no friends, a humongous oven, an easy access to raw materials and some super awesome baking websites/books made my baking life simpler  And the biggest plus point was that my mom was not around so if one cake flopped I could *cough* chuck it and without her glaring at me  I took some Wilton cake decorating classes etc and since I lived in Maryland I could not operate out of a home kitchen (they have some mental law) so I used to chumma timepass bake and decorate cakes and send it free to Jay's office. We just moved back to India last month and my full time job is running after my 2yr old. (Note to self: Ask SS later about mental law? :P haha )


D: Where do you source your ingredients? and do you think you find all you need in Chennai / India? If not, what do you think that's missing and can stores like Gormei can source it for us?
SS: I have just been to Currimbhoys, Poppat Jamals ad Nuts and spices. Thanks to the Bakers Guild I have gathered a LOT of information about other stores. What I really (and I think most Home bakers would agree) is have a store like the ones in US- where they carry everything related to baking from icing sugar to colours, to cake boxes to fondant/gum paste/modeling chocolates. It would make our life so much easier. But I think Passionate Baking is doing something along those lines. I am really pleased to know that there are stores like Gormei that carry exotic stuff, I can't wait to raid their store :-P


D: What's your theme for the fest?
SS: Theme for the fest hmm... I will be keeping it real simple (no frosting or anything fancy) because I have a toddler (who loves running around the house throwing spoons and bowls from the balcony and stuffing his toys into the fridge sigh) it is challenging to make complicated things  But what I'll bring shall remain a secret (only because I'm yet to try out those recipes LOL).  (haha, girl - can't really wait to see what you are going to bring and I do hope your little one is tagging along with you !  Please do bring him:) )

D: Future plans?
SS:  Oh yeah, I plan to teach baking. I mean why buy cakes when you can bake right? Home Bakers don't shoot me  But 1st I need to figure out how to contact Jayalalitha and tell her to put an end to these damned power cuts  It will take some time for me to set it up (because I plan to teach in my house, only weekends) but I can assure you it will not be the run of mill baking classes, it will be fun because hey you are making cake- what is there to be serious about?!? (Absolutely, and let me know when you talk to JJ ;-) I will put gosham for you - SS vaazhga types :P)

She so wanted me to use this picture, so here you go ! BTW, this multi talented pretty lady also blogs at http://masalavade.blogspot.in/. And I was doubling in laughter at the uterus post ! Seriously screw loose ! :P 

Sim...Sim...Simar

It was a hot day and the evening only became hotter. The CFG Showcase was on this evening, and I had to reach KNK Road by 1930. As I crossed the tree covered Poes Garden, I smelt wet earth and then without a warning, it started pouring. A big respite from the simmering heat, it sure was.

As I entered Simar, a restaurant that claims to serve North West Frontier cuisine, I couldn't fail to observe the painstakingly done interiors. Shades of black, white and grey everywhere, right from the ceiling to the table mats, talked of a theme. I'd also identified black with charcoal cooking, that's a predominant part of North West Frontier Province cuisine.

I'd already googled for what constituted this type of cuisine, so I knew what to expect. But, I must warn you, it's best to get in here with the least expectation.

We were 5 veggies and 6 non vegetarians. I will be concentrating on the vegetarian spread in this post.

The kebabs started off on a decent note. The veg sheekh kebab had an overpowering taste of some spice, which we couldn't quite put our finger (or should we say tongue) on. NWF Cuisine usually uses minimal spice, but simmered for longer hours, that flavors the dish. That was clearly missing here. The mushroom filled with spinach kebab was mindblowing. Simply loved it to bits (literally).

And then we waited and waited and waited... and waited... ah there it was, the mango yoghurt. Tasted more like a mango milk shake to me. The sourness (is there a word like that?) of the yoghurt was super minimal. Was this supposed to be a palate cleanser? It did its job, but it also filled the tummy, if you weren't smart enough to drink it one sip at a time.

Further waiting ensued, and some of the girls had to get home. (Oh well they work too hard and had to take calls at 10 pm ;-) ) And then suddenly, like the rain that poured without a warning, the table was filled with baingan barta, paneer butter masala, lacha parantha, pudina parantha, (or were they rotis?) and peas pulao. 

Baingan bartha is one of my favorite dishes and sadly, this one was a let down. I'd expect the bartha to have a very smoky flavor, which is perhaps very distinct to these kind of dishes. Especially, the North West Frontier cuisine, is charcoaled over a longer duration and one would expect some amount of smokiness in the food. That was missing in the bartha. 

Paneer butter masala is a done to death dish that's now available in most Indian, Chinese, Tandoori, Multi-cuisine restaurants and I did see a little bit of butter on the dish. Paneer was succulent, and the gravy is nothing to rave about. 

Peas pulao was bland, the peas were not shelled from fresh pods. It appeared to be the store bought artificially colored frozen peas. (Simar - please correct me if I am wrong here, but all of us did notice this one)

And finally, when I almost finished my meal, the dal did arrive. I was expecting a dal bukhara - a very peshawari special with black lentils. But what came was a yellow colored salty dal.  On that note, this place should go easy on salt. There was too much salt in everything.

Oh and finally again, the raita also arrived. I'd finished my meal though. I couldn't wait to get my hands on the dessert, could someone ever go wrong with the gulab jamun and rabdi ! And when it arrived, I realized, yes people can go wrong ! 

Super sweet gulab jamun and some kind of crumbly textured rabdi, totally bland. (Aarti said the texture was like dosai maavu and I agree with her) I understand that the jamun and rabdi are to be eaten together, but the taste has to balance in itself, and not only as a combination.

As a final note, as the group departed, one thing that we all agree on - it's an interesting idea, but it's back to the drawing board (stealing these words from Sreehari :-)) for Simar, to re-design the menu and service. We hope to see great food coming out of this kitchen very soon ! 

As I headed back home, the rains sure were a welcome respite ! ;-)