Thank you Thali

A big thank you to Meera, Ashwini and Nupur for making my thali! I hope to do this on a fortnightly basis, set aside atleast one day where I make everything from the snack to dinner with recipes from fellow bloggers. I tried out Ashwinis Batata Song, Nupurs Chavli Amti and Meera's Khatta Dhokla sandwich. They were delicious!

Harvesting Clove: A pictorial

My entry for Think Spice: Clove hosted by Gretchen at Canela & Comino.







Disclaimer:This is the process as described in Spice: The history of a temptation by Jack Turner. The drawings/sketches are mine. Iam not sure if this is still followed.

Mexican Series #7: Chorizo-style TVP Veggie Burger

I have been trying to integrate soy into my plate for a long time. Tofu, nuh-ive tried it fried, baked, soft , firm- it just doesnt work for me-not yet anyway. Ive made Soya Kheema from TVP before and that worked for me. TVP or textured vegetable protien is made from soy flour that is passed through a machine- an extruder, to make small pellets or granules, commonly available at your local health store or organic food store bulk bin.

I wanted to make an healthy and hearty alternative to the potato cutlets that H. likes so much. I first tried this recipe for a veggie burger from CHOW. It has about every healthy thing you can imagine, from brown rice to grated zucchini to nuts. That makes the recipe a mile long ,fussy and this burger also sat in my stomach like a stone. I wanted something much quicker to make and tastier and lighter.

I was reading Rick Bayless's Authentic Mexican and his recipe for Chorizo, a traditional Mexican pork sausage. I liked the flavors in it, but I wanted a veggie version. After about three trials, Ive now arrived at a stable :) veggie version packed with soy and bean protien. You can have these at breakfast with bread or in a salad with veggies or just plain with ketchup or green chutney.

It keeps in the fridge very well, I usually mix up a big batch and fry it up on a non stick skillet whenever I want to eat it. You could also shape patties, put them on a large baking sheet, freeze for an hour and then put it in a zip lock bag. Then you could just skillet fry them whenever you like, except you should do that on low heat.

I am proud that for once I not quoting the recipe from either my mother or a book! This recipe is all my own.

For today, Ive paired this burger with roasted red and yellow peppers and cucumber. The Bread is Kamut Brown bread.

Chorizo style TVP Veggie Burger Recipe





















2/3 cup refried beans, canned, vegetarian and without lard
1/2 cup cooked brown rice( I used brown basmati, you could use any brown rice you have. Brown basmati is drier, other rice types might be a little wetter. Adjust bread crumbs accordingly)
1/2 cup bread crumbs

11/2 cups tvp

5 tbsp hot sauce (texas pete)
2 finely chopped jalapenos
1 tsp cumin
1/2 cup enchilada sauce
1/2 an avocado
1/4rth cup tomato paste (I used Hunts Tomato Paste- donot use Puree, it is a lot wetter)
salt to taste

Method:
The method is fairly straightforward. If you have left over rice, great, other wise get that done first. Peel the avocado( technique video here).

Now dump all the ingredients into one bowl and mix it up. It should form a fairly stiff dough. Referigerate overnight. Form into patties and fry into cutlets on a non stick skillet.

Substitutions: Hot sauce- this is cheap about a buck, but a good substitute is lemon juice and red chilli powder. Make it about 5 tbsp of lemon juice and half as much chili powder as you like ( the jalapenos are hot too!)
Enchilada sauce- This really puts the chorizo in this veggie burger. If you are pinched for time , you could use a bottled mexican brand enchilada sauce.
Avocado- The avocado gives a nice creaminess because of its high fat content, skip and increase water if you want to avoid saturated fats.

CLICK Au Naturel: Last Shower

When I read the post on CLICK Au Naturel, the image that popped into my head was the admittedly rated R image of somebody showering! Dont get more au naturel than that :) CLICK Metal winner Gopal Seshadrinathan had photographed a single water droplet in the air. I also went through CLICK Liquid Comfort, Manisha of Indian Food rocks had a beautiful image of water splashing out of a martini glass. I was curious as to what went into high speed photography.

So I combined both these ideas into taking an image of Spinach in the shower!( with a blood thirsty cry in the background and a deep snarling voice) His last shower before I chopped off his many many heads! :)

It has been a learning experience. Seriously. Manisha of IFR had a beautiful explanation of how she took that photograph. I am really grateful for that guideline. I know I have not come anywhere near to achieving her perfection, but I have learnt enough of the process to have some serious appreciation of the work and craft that went into that image. Manisha , tussi to stud ho!

I used two reading lamps for extra light, my flash gave me very funny results. The Olympus C 5000 is actually a pretty darn decent, if a little old, digital camera. It has some manual functions including setting shutter speed to around 1/800 and also Setting the ISO from 50 to 320. But I donot really understand the interaction between these settings and how exactly it works in digital camera. A classic case of having more information and less knowledge.

Thanks jai and bee for hosting this wonderful event, every time I participate I learn something new.

Pear Frangipane with Pate Sucree Tart shell

I was originally making this for AFAM: Pears hosted by Raaga of the The Singing chef for the month of March. I am posting this recipe after she has even finished with the round up! Talk about Indian standard stretchable time:) I wanted to explore frangipane tarts more thoroughly before writing about them.

The frangipane tart in terms of taste was a great contrast of slightly tart fruit with the crisp chewiness of the macaroon like almond filling.

Frangipane in the pastry world is a sweetened almond filling used in tarts and pastries. I was very delighted to discover that it has an Indian connection. Frangipane is the name of a flower, which was originally used to flavor the almond paste.Look familiar?
.












I love this flower, called the Temple Tree flower, it has a sweet intoxicating smell which usually denotes summer for me.

For the Frangipane itself I followed this recipe from the Washington Post.For the shell instead of going with the cream cheese tart shell as in the WP recipe, I went for a Pate Sucree ( Sweet Tart Pastry Shell) from the Bakers dozen cookbook.

Couple of important pointers for anyone who might want to attempt this. One is that The frangipane receives equal billing with the fruits. This is not a tart you want to stuff with fruits. The picture I have of my pear tart is actually a good example of what not to do with a frangipane tart. You want give the frangipane enough space to puff up and develop a nice brown crust. A very good example is Spittoon extra's Apricot and Fig Frangipane Tart.

You can substitute the pear with any stone fruit, Apple or Plums being favorite choices. You can also flavor the almond frangipane filling like I did with cardamom or even perhaps nutmeg. I made a Plum filled one as well, but I donot have any pictures because my little daughter really liked it. She polished it off with the ten teeth she has!

This tart shell is perhaps one of the easiest bcause it does not depend too much on the correct mixing of the butter into the flour, which is perhaps the most technical part of forming a good tart shell. So it is good for newbies.

Pate Sucree( Sweet Tart Pastry Shell)
from the Bakers dozen Cookbook.

6 tbsp unsalted butter, cool but not chilled
2.5 tbsp sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of fine sea salt
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1. In a medium bowl, using a hand-held mixer on medium high speed, cream the butter and sugar until light in color and texture, about 2 minutes. Break the egg into a cup, mix it thoroughly with a fork, and measure 2.5 tbsp. Discard the remainder. Beat it in with the vanilla and salt just until blended. Scrape down the bowl. On low speed, add the flour all at once and mix just until the ingredients are moistened. Donot overmix.

2. Turn the dough out onto an unfloured work surface. Quickly finish combining the ingredients by smearing small amounts away from you. Using a bench knife or plastic scraper, scrape up the dough and gather it together. Form into a flat disk about 1/2 inch thick. Wrap in plastic wrap. Referigerate until firm, atleast one hour.( The dough can be prepared upto a day ahead, wrapped, and referigerated.)

This dough tends to break, but it is easy to repair.

Dosa Mela: Body Builder Dosa

Last minute entry for Srivallis Dosa Mela

Srivalli is surely going to throw stones, rotten eggs and tomatoes at me for this entry! :) While i sat on the sidelines twiddling my thumbs, the entire blogging community has come up with some amazing dosas. My only excuse for this last minute entry is that i was too busy trying and eating their entries( Sia's Moong chilla and Srivallis Curds Dosa really delicious)

I was all out of ideas, when i re read srivallis original announcement. It helpfully had a link to the wiki post on dosa, which led me to the wiki on crepes- which briefly mentioned a crepe called body builder crepe.

I was intrigued. It is getting to summer now and H. and I have just started hitting the gym to exercise away the cakes and rich foods of winter.A protein rich low carb dosa/crepe sounded like just the thing we needed. After much googling, I found a recipe to a protein rich pancake here. I am reproducing the recipe below:

Cindy's Protein Crepe/Pancake / Body builder dosa:

Ingredients:

1/4 cup slow cooked oats raw
1/4 cup light cottage cheese
5 egg whites
cinnamon to taste

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend about 15 seconds. Heat skillet and put half of your batter on the pan. Watch your heat! Too high can really destroy it. My skillet is usually about 325-350 degrees. Don't forget to flip your crepe!"

I adapted it to an Indian palette. I replaced the slow cooked oats with quick cooking ones, removed the cinnamon and added green chillies, coriander leaves and whey protein powder(2 tbsp).

I was not sure what I would get at the end, but i went ahead and made a dosa with the mixture.

The verdict: Wow. It was really good. It tastes almost exactly like an omlette, but it really fills you up. Two eggs make one utthapams style crepe. A quick back of the envelope calculation- and one crepe made from two eggs is approximately around 120 calories.(cottage cheese: Around 25 calories
Quick cooking oats: Around 30 calories
Two egg whites at 17 calories each: 34
Protein powder: Around 30 calories)

I am sure you can use egg beaters for this recipe. It does not have egg yolks, so it does not have cholestrol. It has fibre from the oats. I am sure you can add any vegetables you like, like tomato or shredded cabbage, spinach and any cheese that you like. Or have it with fruits as per cindys post.

So happy summer gym-ming with the body builder dosa.

VoW Bharela Karela: Mango stuffed Bittergourd

I HATE Bittergourd / Pavakka / Karela. Or did, until I tried my Mothers recipe for Stuffed Karela. I had not eaten it for a good fifteen years, until Pooja's VoW Bittergourd event forced me to try it again.

But the things I do for Vow, sigh. Pooja owes me big time!

So I called up my mom to get the actual recipe, and she was ecstatic that I was making it. It is amusing that I now voluntarily make and eat the things my mom used to have to twist my arm to even try.

I tried it. And surprisingly enough....liked it! If a karela hater like me can be converted, I am sure karela enthusiasts will love this recipe.

So here it is.





















BHARELA KARELA:
I only had the heart to try out the recipe for two karelas, so please scale up as necessary.

1/2 unripe mango, peeled and roughly grated
1/4 small onion, finely sliced in long
1 tsp saunf
2 tsp dhana jeeru powder ( equal amounts of dhania and jeera , toasted and powdered)
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp red chilli powder or to taste
2 tsp Besan/ kadala maavu
salt

First,take a knife/ peeler and remove the outer rough skin. Then slit the karelas along its length. Remove the seeds. At this point, add salt, the turmeric and half the red chilli powder to the karela. Rub it in and let it rest for about half an hour or so. This should draw out some of the bitter juices.

Prepare the mango and onion, and saute in a pan with a little oil with the red chilli powder, dhana jeeru and saunf until cooked through.Cool.

Add the besan to this mixture and stuff the two halves of the karela and join them together again. My mother used to tie it up using a string. I was too lazy so I just placed the stuffed karelas in a pan with a little oil and fried them up.

The verdict:
The tangy sourness of the mango is really good in counteracting the bitterness of the karela. Next time I would steam the stuffed karelas in an idli steamer or microwave it for five minutes before frying it. That would make it a little easier to bite. Also feel free to increase the quantity of the saunf seeds- they refresh the mouth very well too.

















So Pooja, heres one for you!

Fondant Welcome Home Cake

I made this quick and easy cake on Saturday for my cousin G. in Baltimore and her cute new baby daughter. The cake itself is a chocolate chiffon cake with vanilla buttercream. The cake topper is a white chocolate baby pram with royal icing decorations.

Resources:
Chocolate Chiffon Cake recipe from here

Food Crisis: Grains Gone Wild & Maps

Paul Krugmans OpEd: Grains gone Wild published in the NYT today talks about the sudden sharp increase in Grain prices , so sharp as to qualify as a Worldwide food crisis. He says and I quote,"Over the past few years the prices of wheat, corn, rice and other basic foodstuffs have doubled or tripled, with much of the increase taking place just in the last few months".

He goes on to identify the some of the causes of this crisis, The war in Iraq, the Australian drought, increasing Chinese demand for meat, global warming etc. Modern Agriculture is dependent on Oil prices. Any increase in oil prices reflects in Food prices.

It would seem that a part solution to this problem is fairly obvious, an increased emphasis on Organic Food and Local Food. Organic Food uses non Fertilizer / pesticide based techniques of farming. The amount of miles your food travels adds to the total fuel cost and impact on the earth.

To give an example from my pantry, I have two packets of Frozen Okra or Bhindi- One bought in my local supermarket- comes to me all the way from China and the other- bought in the Indian Grocery store- comes from India. This brings me to the new map feature at Sometime Foodie.

I wanted to introduce a map feature to Sometime Foodie for a while now and finally did so yesterday in a panel in the left hand side. I am going to use it to keep a log of all my favorite foodie places in India and now after this article, to keep a log of the sources from which my food comes from. I want to see the mileage on my food.

I will end on a more positive and less alarmist note with this map from my favorite mapsite, American Memory on the Library of Congress website.

Pittsburgh 1902Map from Library of Congress

Cakeworks for Mahanandi: Devils Food Chocolate Cake

I am really lucky and honored that my first order in my new Cake baking venture, CAKEWORKS, came from Indira of Mahanandi. I am much obliged to her for her thoughtfulness and support. Indira ordered this cake for an event in Philadelphia, the 29th of March.

Indira says via email,"Cake looks yummilious!:) Great job with the decoration. I like it."

This cake is an all butter devils food chocolate cake with chocolate ganache filling. The two buildings on top of the cake are the Liberty Place buildings in downtown, that I have modeled out of vanilla chiffon cake. The cake is covered with chocolate and white fondant. The roofs of the buildings are non edible and carved out of foam.























I hope to develop a professional career in baking over the years. I will be posting detailed recipes and instructions on my baking blog, Cakeworks.

RCI Bengal: Saak er Ghanto with Home made Boris

My entry for RCI Bengal hosted by Sandeepa

I know next to nothing about Bengali food, the cooking that is :). The eating, well now that is a long list, from mishti doi and sandesh to the egg cutlet and puchkas of Chittaranjan park in delhi. This stomach has seen them all. I first tried a Bengali Recipe for Brinjal from Ajanta, but it had a strong, pungent mustardy flavor that caught me by surprise.

This time around, I had just finished Chitrita Banerjis book, Eating India. Although I was not impressed by the whole of the book, parts were lyrical and insightful. She had a delightful description of Boris, little pellets of urad dal that are some times added to vegetable dishes, also called saak in Bengal. She goes on to describe that many villages in Bengal and Bangladesh specialize in producing the lightest of Boris. They are similiar to Punjabi Wadis, in a very broad sense.

I wanted to try these delighful protein packed dumplings, so I decided to make them for RCI Bengal hosted by Sandeepa. Now, I did find a recipe for Boris here but no real information on how to make them.

THE WADI ER.. BORI STORY

My first attempt at making Boris was an entire and complete FLOP. Exhibit A on the right hand side of the above picture. Flat, disk shaped and no airy goodness. Gloom Doom. Too much water in the dough.
In my second attempt, I was careful to not add any water during grinding the urad dal and Eureka! Success was mine. Note the successful conical bori on the left with the huge airpocket.

The final recipe is deceptively simple.
1/2 cup of Urad dal
1/2 tsp Red chilli powder
1/2 tsp Ginger powder
1/2 Aniseed powder
1/2 tsp Asofoetida powder
1 tbsp water
1/2 tsp baking soda

Soak the urad dal for an hour. Drain completely. Grind finely with the other seasonings and leavening, adding a maximum of 1 tbsp of water. Put in a zip lock bag.

Meanwhile, take a baking sheet and line with aluminium foil. Spray with pam or similiar non stick oil spray. Cut the zip lock bag. Squeeze out hershey kisses shaped piece of bori. Bake at 200 F for about two hours making sure to turn the Boris at the 1 hour mark. Think meringue and you will instinctively do it right.

Saak Er Ghanto Recipe from Hare Krsna here

I then made a saak or sabji with the boris according to the recipe from the Hare Krsna site. Keeping in mind my earlier brush with the Bengali love of mustard, I decided to tone it down this time. I skipped the mustard powder the recipe calls for, although I did use a combination of mustard oil and canola instead of the ghee. Also I made the panchphoran using 1/2 tsp. of each of the spices. Seemed quite right for the amount of vegetables specified in the recipe.

The verdict: The pumpkin was utterly delightful and next time im going to up it to 2 cups. The overall flavor of the saak was very different and very delicious. And what of the sweat of my brow Boris? Well- They were deep fried for this recipe. Once they soak up the juices of the vegetable, they offer some textural contrast. But next time I will try them without deep frying them.



It was real fun participating in this RCI Bengal, because I learned something about Bengal. Perhaps I should call this post, Eating Bengal? :)

Mexican Series #6 WW Burrito with Hongos Guisados

As a bookish cook, I usually try various recipes from different books. For the first time, I find myself cooking through a book- Authentic Mexican by Rick Bayless - all the vegetarian recipes i.e. The Mexican Series is a chronicle of this cook through.

Whole wheat burritos uses whole wheat tortillas which are a variation on this recipe from Authentic Mexican. I substituted one cup of the all purpose flour with Whole wheat flour. The texture of the tortillas and their taste was quite good.

Update: This weekend I was at an Mexican restaurant with good reviews in Philadelphia. The texture of their flour tortillas was silken smooth and soft. Quite unlike the texture of my flour tortillas. The flour tortilla recipe needs more work.

As for fillings I usually turn towards sauted peppers and onions with jalapenos and oregano. Yawn. After trying some of the various quesadilla/enchilada/empanada fillings recipes in his book, I highly recommend the Stewed Mushrooms with Onions and garlic - Hongos Guisados. Ive also used this Mushroom recipe as a layer in lasagna and it works beautifully. It has become my go to recipe for Mushrooms.

To assemble the Burrito, Lay out a line of the Hongos Guisados Mushrooms in the middle of the tortilla. Top with a little canned Refried Beans, some chopped lettuce , grated cheddar cheese and onions. You can optionally grill it at a high temperature for a delightfully smoky flavor. Wrap and serve with a fresh salad.

Hongos Guisados Recipe:

12oz Fresh mushrooms, washed and chopped in half
1/2 medium onion diced
1 Jalapeno , diced
2/3 cup broth
1/2 small lime, juiced
1 tbsp oil
1 large tomato, roasted or boiled, cored, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
11/2 tbsp epazote(or cilantro)
Salt to taste

1.Cooking the mushrooms:Place the mushrooms, onion, chile, broth , lime juice and oil in a medium sized saucepan. Bring to a boil ove rmedium high heat, cover and cook 3 min. Uncover and cook until all the liquid has evaporated and the mushrooms begin to fry in the fat.
2. Finishing the mixture. While the mushrooms are cooking, puree the tomato with garlic in a blender or food processor and optional epazote and cook for about 5 min, until the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thick. Season with salt and cool before using.

Other fillings I tried:
1. Potatoes with Swiss chard Acelgas Guisadas
Tastes a lot like aloo palak. Not very mexican to my palette.
2. Potatoes and Green Chiles Papas con rajas
Aloo sabji again. Yawn.

I just love the look of the fresh green swiss chard. The folds of its leaf recall some distant hidden valley. If you are still reading the post, and are curious about the swiss chard potato recipe, here it is!






















Swiss Chard with tomatoes and Potatoes.
Acelgas Guisadas

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 small onion thinly sliced
1/2 chile jalapeno
1 ripe medium small tomato, roasted or boiled
2 small boiling potatoes, diced
1/2 cup broth
Salt
1/2 bunch small swiss chard , stems cut off and leaves sliced crosswise into 1 inch strips

1. The flavorings: In a medium size saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and chile and cook, stirring frequently until the onion ins lightly browned. Roughly chop the tomato, add it to the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes longer to reduce the liquid a little.
2. The poatoes. Stir in the potatoes, broth , optional epazote and salt. Cover, and cook over medium low heat until the potatoes are tender about 10 minutes. Check the amount of liquid, If too much boil down.
3. Steam cooking the chard: Mix in the chard, cover and cook over medium heat until the greens are tender. Uncover and taste for salt. There should be enough tomatoey broth to coat the vegetables. Serve right away.

CLICK Metal : Kitchen UFO

This picture of my trusty Jali karandi lying on a metal thali looked so much like an alien I could not resist titling it Kitchen UFO - Not the flying kind - the frying kind :))








My entry for CLICK Metal by Jugalbandi

Essay for Humblogistani 07: Revolution in a Thali

I am really sorry I have not hyperlinked the blogs and their recipes that Ive mentioned in my essay submission. My apologies. My only excuse is that I was in a tearing hurry. I hope to correct the omission within a week

UPDATE: Corrections and links hyperlinked March 26/08

HUMBLOGISTANI ESSAY 08

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

REVOLUTION IN A THALI

I argue that India and Indians have a unique approach to food and that our predisposition to multicuisines is cultural and has been part of our capacity to absorb and assimilate various cultures over the centuries. I then look at how I think blogging has accelerated this process and laid the foundations of a cultural revolution.I then end by speculating on how far the new approach and the technology are going to take us.

In the first book I reviewed for my blog , Light of India, poet and philosopher Octavio Paz said of Indian food, “in India, the various dishes come together on a single plate. Neither a succession nor a parade, but a conglomeration and superimposition of things and tastes: a synchronic cuisine. A fusion of flavors, a fusion of times.”

The gujarati thali or the South Indian Banana Leaf, wherever I look at food in India his observation seems to ring true. In places I go to, Benares, the oldest cosmopolitan city in India I think- Idlis are being served steaming hot in one place and in another , its famous Banarsi Lassi. "Multicuisine" restaurants seem to dominate the Indian restaurant scene.But the best example I can give is close to home - my Mother because when I think food- good food, I usually think of my mother's cooking.

My mother makes dishes from her native Kanchipuram,or from occasional recipe swaps with her Gujarati neighbors and colleagues from all over India. Only now, over the last five years has she started cooking stuff shown on the television. Nothing unusual about this story, I am sure many people growing up in an Indian home had a similar experience. A fusion of flavors from different parts of India, but evolving rather slowly in spurts and starts.

Now think of the same process sped up and on steroids.
Every day, for atleast one meal, over a year.

That is exactly what I am doing these days. I blog about food and look at the work of fellow food bloggers-some indian and some international. A typical lunch, google vangi baath and and make it. Dinner the next day, Husband wants something different – its eggplant rollatini with linguini.

India's propensity towards “multi cuisine” has led to easy stereotyping of regions both in Indian homes and restaurants. South Indian means Idli Dosa, North Indian means naan and paneer butter masala. You will find paneer butter masala even in a remote hilltop in kerala and idlis in the equally remote kulu manali. True regional food rooted in the soil is mainly found in homes or perhaps the five star hotels. A mist of cheap ubiquity has shrouded the complex regional cuisines of India. The sharp focus on regional cuisine characteristic of Indian food bloggers has brought in focus the true complex tapestry that regional cuisine in India is.

Recipes like Kobbari kaaam podi from Indira or even Perugulu Ringulu from Asvadha, Bhakri from Kajals dreams or Chokha from Jugalbandi are traditional regional recipes from India. I could never have known about these recipes easily in America. My understanding of regional recipes and flavors of India are mostly from the food blogging world.

I envy the rootedness in regional cuisine that many Indian foodblogs have. In their cases, traditional seems easier to define, as the everyday food of a particular region in India. The food I make is not entirely the result of being an immigrant twice over, first from my native Tamilnadu to Gujarat and then to America. You could call it the schizophrenic food of a short attention span generation yuppie or quirk of my particular nature....or a way of life spawned by the multitude of mouth watering choices offered by the internet and more specifically food blogging .

Food blogging is very different from Food writing and instruction in traditional media like the television or books and creates a way of life with new traditions. It means readily accessible, high quality information on Indian and International food at any time of the day. Most other differences are part and parcel of the structural aspects of the internet and blogging.

Food blogging is an interactive experience. I know I have been been inspired not only the posts on some of the food blogs that I like, but I am also energized by the comments. I get a sense of community and food history from the comments. Food events are organized on a regular basis, from the JFI series to the AFAM. I participate in events that use ingredients or are about regional foods that I know nothing about. It only gives me an opportunity to understand and learn a little more about that culture or ingredient.

Food blogging is not only about food. Its vibrant personality and interests are as big as the person behind them. Its about photography, sustainability, food politics in my case, charitable work, arts and crafts. It can be controversial, thoughtful, insightful. Even when it is about the food, there is a skilled many times funny narrative, of mistakes made towards reaching that perfect phulka or the description of eating the first mango of the season.

Food blogging also enjoys freedom of expression. None of that boring flat politically correct stuff. I find a foodie book aunty like , I can call it aunty like. And then no need to keep my hands on my head to ward the brickbats away. In that sense, the internet is an hydroponic medium. No gravity, just become what you want to be.

Indian Food blogging breathes new life into traditional regional food by recording them but also gives birth to a new tradition of “authentic multi cuisine” by the access to recipes in India and world wide. It increases the focus on regional cuisines but also increases the scope of multicuisine in Indian homes. Will there be a breaking point? Will the balance tip? I now include Mexican and some baking in my already crowded repertoire of Continental, Gujarati, South Indian and Punjabi dishes. I think that Indian food blogging has now reached a critical mass of bloggers and readers to qualify as a genuine cultural revolution in the making.

It is a cultural revolution that betters my understanding of genuine regional cuisines, Indian and world. Unlike the established perception of cultural revolutions, the food blogging revolution does not undermine tradition – but supports it. Will Kanchipuram be the new Provence? I sure hope so.

Pitod/Patod ka Saag

I first ate this Rajasthani specialty at a restaurant called Chokki dhani near Jaipur. I guess because Rajasthan is a desert region it has has many sabzis that are made with staples, the other example being Gatte ki sabji made from besan noodles. Pitod or Patod ka Saag has diamond- shaped pieces made of besan and spices in a spiced yoghurt sauce. Serve with hot rotis or puris. This recipe is from the book Spice box by Manju Shivraj Singh.

Ingredients:
Diamonds:
1 cup water
salt to taste
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 cups chickpea flour / besan / patod

Sauce:
2 Tbl ghee or oil
2-3 dried red chilies, broken into pieces
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
3 med onions, minced
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp sliced ginger root
1/2 cup yogurt
salt to taste
1 green chili, seeded and chopped, for garnish
coriander leaves, chopped, for garnish


For the diamonds:
Bring water to a boil. Add salt, cayenne, cumin and chickpea flour. Whisk
these into the water carefully. Cook untill the mixture thickens.
Turn out on a greased plate and flatten with a spatula. When it cools, cut
it into diamond shapes.

This recipe serves 8, You can safely halve the recipe like I did. Even at half, the 1 cup of chickpea flour / besan makes a lot of diamonds. The 1 cup of chickpea took about 1 cup of water. So i think the water proportion in Manju Shivraj Singhs recipe isnt quite right. The besan cooks fairly fast, think five minutes for the total. Of course use a greased thali to pour out the cooked besan. Dont worry if the edges of your cooked besan on the thali are a little raggged. Of course , season the besan well.

For the sauce:
In a heavy saucepan heat oil or ghee. Add red chilies, fenugreek, mustard
seeds, onions and garlic. When browned, add turmeric and sliced ginger, yogurt
and salt to taste. Cook. When it thickens a bit, about 10 min later, add the
chickpea diamonds and simmer for 2-3 min. Garnish with chopped green chilies
and coriander.

Donot dump all the spices in. Do let the mustard pop before you add the cumin and the other ingredients. Actually the Besan / chickpea flour diamonds expand quite a bit in the gravy. So when you add water to your curry remember to take care of that. The second thing is, the chopped onions detract from the smooth taste of the gravy/ curry. Next time i will saute the onions in a little oil and then puree them before adding it to the gravy.

I would also highly recommend topping the sabji with a dollop of ghee before serving. Makes a world of difference.

Serves: 8



THE VERDICT:
With a little bit of finetuning, this recipe is very very delicious. When you are flummoxed by the utter lack of vegetables in your referigerator , like I was, this is a go to recipe. Everybody always has besan right?

Tastes very good with rice too, with a dollop of ghee of course!

Book Review: Eating India

The bookish cook strikes again!( thanks to barbara of Tiger and strawberries for a catchy self defining phrase) Eating India, An odyssey into the food and culture of the land of spices by Chitrita Banerji.When I saw this title in the library, I just had to read it.

I think that reading a book is partly like getting to know a person. You want to know where it comes from, does it belong to a family, what are its roots? You browse through it and if it catches your imagination, you read it through.

This book is by a Bengali food writer, Chitrita Banerji who has done a lot of food writing focusing on Bengal. Her writing, nay, her soul is rooted in Bengal - although she lives here, in the USA.

As you read through the book, your minds eye forms an image of an middle aged woman -thorough Bengali traipsing through India, using her connections to meet foodie people, and EAT. She name drops quite a bit, A famous artist here, a business man there. But essentially, she is on an eating tour and she recounts her tale region by region: Bengal, Goa, Gujarat, Bombay, Punjab , Hyderabad, Karnataka, Delhi , Benares and some more .

Her writing is peppered with interesting ideas, for example the idea of Weddings in India as cultural and Food snapshots. That is so true and I think so unexplored as a book. The second , Temples as repositories of traditional or authentic indian cuisine- so true( although ive run into this idea elsewhere too). Their style of cooking remaining unchanged over centuries. She draws cool inferences between historical politics in India and food.

The first road block is, what i like to call the "Burden of India". Every sand grain in India has a story and a history - boy what a history - 2000 years of it. When you weave history into a food tour, sometimes it works - many times it doesnt. The book detours into mini tourguide versions of the places she visits. Many times she draws interesting inferences, but mostly its deadweight.

Ok second road block, I think Ive been spoiled by Anthony Bourdain. Chitrita Banerjis approach strikes me as too safe and aunty like. Her preferred sources of information about actual food are the head chefs at the TAJ hotels. Every place she goes, from kerala to Bombay- she picks their brain for places to go and then straightaway you hear about those foods. The fun, experiential and adventurous approach of a foodie or even the homecook is sorely missing.

Where she also fails is in the cartography of food in India. Some places receive more attention and some less - so the book is pretty patchy if you want to know what to eat where in India.

Primarily this book should appeal to the Bengali exploring other Regional Indian Cuisines for the first time.

Mexican Series#5 Mexican street style Enchilada

Enchilada, what enchilada? The fellow in the photo up there dont look like no enchilada :)In essence this is a tava version of the baked Enchilada.

I always, always make my Enchiladas the other way-Roll em up, top with sauce and plllenty of cheese. Enchiladas meant carb fest: gorge myself on the glorious cheesy goodness. So im glad that this "authentic" Mexican street style Enchilada from Rick Bayless's book Authentic Mexican lets me have my Enchilada and indulge myself with far less guilt( Authentic is as authentic does- Im not sure about authentic, having never been to Mexico but ill take Ricks word for it)

Note the bed of cabbage( at the best of times not my favorite vegetable), the utter and complete lack of cheese ( those two little yellow strings on top dont count) and the mushroom topping(Only two mushrooms for decorum in a photo- You can veg out in the actual plate). More veggies, less cheese- yet complete flavor.

Looks healthy! So when I read the recipe I thought id give it a shot. I used flour tortillas, H. having a complete allergy to corn tortillas.

Ingredients:

A. 12 corn tortillas,preferably dry

B. Sauce Recipe

C. Vegetable Stuffing / Topping( Can use any cooked vegetable topping(potato, carrot) of your choice or use any of the recipes in Mexican series #6 to follow)

D. For the condiments:
1/2 small head cabbage
3 tbsp cider vinegar ( can sub with lemon / lime juice)
1/2 tsp salt
2 thin slices onion
1/2 cup crumbled Mexican queso fresco, or other fresh cheese like feta or farmers cheese ( I only had yellow cheddar)


Method:
1. The condiments or garnishes: Slice the cabbage very thinly( or get a packet or chopped coleslaw) and place in a bowl. Mix with vinegar, oil and salt,then toss with the cabbage. Set aside, together with the onion rings and crumbled cheese.
2. Frying the enchiladas: About fifteen minutes before serving, divide the cabbage mixture among 4 plates, spreading it into a bed in the center. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet( I used my Nirlep Non stick Tava). When the oil is hot, dip both sides of a tortilla into the sauce, then lay it in the oil. After about 20 seconds, flip the tortillas over, fry for another 20 seconds, fold in half, then in half again lenghtwise. Lift them out draining as much of the oil back into the pan as possible.
3. Finishing the dish.
Lay 3 tortillas per plate on the bed of cabbage, top with vegetables and the cheese and serve.

VERDICT:
I actually liked this version better, sort of like a different take on roti sabzi.The cabbage was a revelation, crip and tart - it went perfectly with the enchilada. Note to self: always serve enchiladas(baked or otherwise) in the future with pickled cabbage and onions.

Having a timeline for this dish would be helpful
1. Upto a week Before: Make the sauce
2. Upto four days before: Buy the tortillas
3. Two hours before serving: Make the cabbage base, The sabzi topping.
4. Assemble.

The baked enchiladas are convenient because they freeze very well, but if you are making lunch for just yourself this is a great way to have a light but flavorful lunch.

If you do try it with corn tortillas, let me know how it goes.

Mexican Series#4 Red Enchilada Sauce

In the picture: Puffed up ancho chile

I used to buy Enchilada Sauce from the supermarket, but I started looking for alternatives as soon as i tasted it. Call me a curious cat, but I just had to know what the real thing tasted like. A couple of searches on chowhound revealed long and passionate discussions on "real" Enchilada Red Sauce, but all of these discussions had a couple of ingredients in common, Mexican Chiles(Ancho, Guajillos),Garlic, Onions, Cumin and Pepper. Many had flour added to thicken the sauce but I could not stomach that idea.

Finally, I ended up going to my sourcebook, Authentic Mexican by Rick Bayless- and I must say his recipe makes a pretty darn good Enchilada Sauce, without flour.This is the first time Ive ended up cooking through an entire book and its been quite a learning experience and the entire Mexican series is from that book.

To those who are short on time, Dont think enchilada sauce, think chutney. When you know what ingredients to throw together and puree - the whole process is a breeze. If you donot have time to toast the chiles as Bayless suggests, just soak the chiles in water and puree with some pre chopped garlic, pepper and cumin.I have taken this route before and It tasted similiar to the elaborate method that he outlines.

Now the mexican style of cooking is similiar to ours, so the recipe below is more of a suggestion rather than a very fixed thing. If you saute onion and garlic and add some tomato to the sauce below it becomes Salsa roja or Western Texas Enchilada Sauce. So do feel free to experiment.

Red Enchilada Sauce Recipe:

4 clove garlic, unpeeled
4 medium dried chiles guajillos
6 medium dried chiles anchos
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
2 cups any poultry broth, plus a little more if needed.
Salt, abt 1 tsp
Sugar 1 pinch if needed

Heat a heavy skillet or griddle over medium then lay the garlic on one side to roast. Tear the chillies into flat pieces and, few at a time, press them against the hot surface with a metal spatula, flip them over and press again; you will see them blister and change color.

( I was too lazy to strip the chillies into flat pieces, I just toasted them whole, they blistered up just fine - Look at the Picture above - Also I halved the quantities of the chiles but kept 4 garlic cloves- Even half the chiles makes a whole lot of sauce. You can buy mexican chiles at your local farmers market, My supermarket carries the goya brand.If you are apprehensive about buying two varieties of chiles that you may not use for other things, try out the recipe with only one chile type- still tastes great)

Dunk into hot water, and soak for atleast an hour, preferably 2 -3 hours. Turn the garlic frequently for 15 min or so, until blackened and soft within. Cool and then peel.

Now remove the stems from the chiles and puree with all the other ingredients.

(You can also add some cider vinegar or lime juice - which i liked - added a little tang to my sauce. While pureeing, you shouldnt add much water. The sauce will be thick. You can adjust the thickness of the sauce adding as much of the soaking water as you like. Adjust salt and sugar according to your taste)

This sauce keeps well for a long, long time in a glass jar in the Referigerator. It has a deep red ochre color that is really alluring.

Stay tuned for the next post on Authentic Mexican Street Style Enchiladas.

Norwegian Potato Roti: Lefse

This is my entry for Sia's Ode to Potato Event

I first came accross Lefse on the blogs on Epicurious. The article went on and on and on about the glorious joys of eating this THING, a traditional roti type bread in Norway: they eat it with lutefisk(a fish), they eat it with jam & yada yada yada. This is probably the first time I have been nagged into making something :)- that too by an article!

I was like, okay okay ill make it.

You can find comprehensive info on Lefse at Wikipedia.You can find step by step PHOTO instructions for the traditional Lefse here.

The recipe that I prefer is not really the traditional recipe for Lefse. Traditionally, Lefse recipes contain a lot of flour - in terms of proportion, around half to two third of the amount of potatoes. Ive chosen to reduce the flour to only around a tablespoon. My Lefse is all potato all the way.So they are a lot smaller than norwegian lefske.

You can adapt this recipe for fasting days by substituting the flour with some sago/ sabudana flour.

Ingredients:
5 medium sized boiling or yukon gold potatoes.Donot use baking potatoes.
2 tbsp heavy cream
2 tbsp butter, unsalted, soft.
about 1 tbsp all purpose flour, more if needed.
Salt, to taste

Method:
1. Boiling the potatoes: Peel the potatoes and halve them to have pieces pproximately the same size. Boil with plenty of water for 15 minutes, until soft but firm. The texture is very important because, the potato should not disintegrate or become too watery. If the center part of the potato is firm, but the sides are well done, go ahead and remove it from the water. Drain and reserve on a plate.
2.Grate the Potato:First cool the potatoes completely. About an hour or so. You can referigerate them and hasten the process. Grate using a grater with small holes( like a cheese grater).
3. Finish the dough: Add the cream,salt, the butter and the flour and mix very delicately. Just bring it all together into a ball.Do not knead. If you need more flour and your potato mixture is very wet , you can add more flour. Remember, the more flour you add, the less tender your lefse is going to be.
4. Roll out the Roti: Roll the Lefse out like a roti. Put on Tava and cook on both sides until you have brown spots. Spread some ghee on top, just like a normal roti.

The end texture we are aiming for is meltingly soft.

Serve with any sabji/chutney of your choice. I love it plain without anything.I was finding it very difficult to photograph it without gobbling the whole thing up :)

More power to Mr.Spudly!

Lemon Curd Mousse

I made a Strawberry Tart with Lemon Curd for Spice Cafe's JFI Lemon/Lime a little while back. I only used a couple of tablespoons of that delicious lemon curd.

So I made a Lemon Curd Mousse with the remainder.It has a wonderfully tangy and tart flavor, at the same time creamy and smooth - delicious.

So here is the recipe.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Lemon Curd
2 cups Heavy cream
11/2 packets Plain Gelatin (Knox)
2 tbsp water
3 tbsp sugar

Method:
Things to take care of before starting:
a. Make sure the Lemon curd is at room temperature and not cold.
If you add the gelatin to really cold lemon curd, it causes the gelatin to become really lumpy.
b. Chill the vessel in which you are going to whip the cream and the beaters.


1. Add the water to the gelatin in a little sauce pan. Let stand for five minutes until the gelatin blooms.
2. After five minutes, heat the mixture gently over low heat, until the gelatin dissolves. Do not Boil
3. Add the dissolved gelatin to the Lemon Curd.
4. Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form(3 minutes on high). Add the 3 tbsp sugar and whip until smooth and glossy(Another 2 minutes). Take care that you donot overwhip. I prefer to be on the safer side and usually underwhip it.
5. Gently fold in the Lemon Curd and gelatin Mixture.
6. If you are using a mould like a square cake pan , line carefully with wax paper or parchment paper and pour the Mousse in.
7. Freeze overnight.
9. Dip the cake pan in hot water and gently remove the mousse.
10. Cut into squares.
11. Plate onto final serving dishes.

I was not familiar with freezing Mousse, but it is a good technique if you want to cut it into geometric shapes. Because of the high butterfat content in the Heavy cream , it is easy to cut and shape. Keeping it in the referigerator for about two hours makes it all soft and creamy again, while holding its shape. But once it becomes soft ,it is impossible to move it: so once you cut it frozen, plate it.

Top with strawberries and chocolate sauce and enjoy.