Holiday celebrations for all....

  

For anyone who has read my October post on Halloween, it will come as no surprise that when it comes to celebrations involving children.....I go a bit overboard.

So, with December's festivities, the madness was expected to turn into mayhem. I think between the OWC Carnival, the Sunday Soul Sante, the I Love Indiranagar Christmas Carnival, the Christmas tree decorations kids party at my place, a visit to Leela Palace's tree and gingerbread house, I possibly covered every Christmas themed event within a 5 km radius....and had as much, if not more, fun doing it....as my kids!!! 

I must add that the "real" gingerbread house you see on the top right came from a playdate that my son was invited to - apparently, I am not the only one who gets super spirited in December :).

To end the year on a high note, we (the Pre kindergarten kid' parents from my younger son's school) decided to co-host a "Pre-K Christmas Party" in a  children's park.

As a reminder, I have lived in the US for over 10 years and done the whole Rockefeller Center Xmas lighting thing in NYC, stood in freezing (and this no exaggeration!) cold in downtown Minneapolis to watch the Holidazzle Parade, done cookie exchanges with friends, etc. etc. But, to tell you the truth, the enthusiasm with which this party was undertaken by all the parents - really left me amazed!

It made me realize how far as a generation we have come. Today, we truly embrace the cultures, traditions, the big and small nuances of different religions with so much gusto. It is heartwarming to know that my son goes to school with children of parents who embrace each other's beliefs in a truly loving way. As parents, we all want our children to grow up being embracive, non judgmental and global citizens.

It started with a small thought...which morphed into a meeting at a coffee shop....and then just like a snow ball....it kept gaining momentum and whole lot of beautiful ideas.

 

This "little" list, cumulated into a memorable afternoon at the Children's Park where the children got a chance to get some "Xmas themed nail art" done, make handcrafted snowmen using cookies and paper, decorate a large tree, write their names on decorations and hang those on the tree to be taken home as a keepsake, decorate their own cookies with lots of sprinkles, take home their personal gingerbread house goodie bags, run around with home made pinwheels, and - hold your breath - "a visit from Santa"!! A Santa who came in great spirits and gave each of them a personalized book!!

 

  

One of the most touching aspect of the event was the inclusion of representatives from a charitable organization (www.karunashraya.org) which provides hospice for cancer patients. The children were able to get tattoos from these representatives and the parents were in turn encouraged to donate towards the charity. All in all, it truly gave children the complete picture behind the term "spirit of giving".

In regards to the food, let me just say on the onset that none of the above are from my kitchen. These are all showcasing the wonderful creativity of the moms who all got goodies to share for the kids and their parents (thank God for that!). We also had chips and dips, veggies and fruits, pizzas, jam and cheese sandwiches, cookies etc.

A Christmas celebration, that was made meaningful by the participation of all......could there be a better way to start the holidays for our kids?

So, happy holidays to all and I truly wish all of you a joyful and healthy 2014!!

 

Cold nights and warm desserts.....

During my trip to Edinburgh a few years ago, I realized that there was one dessert for which I was willing to let all thoughts of calorie count dissipate.  I was willing to add a few inches to my waistline. In fact, I also sent my husband hunting at 10 p.m. for my daily fix of that warm, wicked and delicious sweet.

Yes, I am referring of course to the sticky toffee pudding!!! Staying at "The Balmoral", eating at Michelin star restaurants, walking on the Royal Mile's cobbled stone path towards the castle - and all I wanted was to end the evening on the sweet note of a warm pudding with tons of caramel flavor topped with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

Something about the combination of warm and cold in sweets is truly exciting for me - maybe its because I grew up in Calcutta. A place somewhat famous for the innovative combinations of warm and cool desserts. I have so many amazing memories of attending weddings with my parents in the months of December. The sequence of events at these weddings used to be the same for me. First, I had to see what the bride wore (yes, clothes have fascinated me from a very young age :) and then my father and I would head over to the dessert section of the food tables and chalk out the ones which would be our top picks after dinner. You can actually say that our dessert selections decided how much, if any, of the main meal would be eaten by us :). For those unfamiliar with Calcutta and its culture of weddings, I can explain it very simply to you - "more is better and nothing but the best". So an average wedding feast in a typical north Indian wedding would have at least 10-15 appetizers, 40-50 main and side course options and at least 15 dessert selections. And I am NOT exaggerating!!! To say I was spoilt for choice is an understatement. The idea of warm malpuas (sugar syrup soaked pancakes) with cold rabadi (a milk based sweet) or piping hot gulab jamuns (Indian style milk solids sweets) with kesar pista kulfi (Indian nutty ice cream) or freshly made jalebis (spiral shaped gram flour crisps) served with cooling rasmalai (spongy milk based dumpling) - make me want to book the first available flight to Calcutta (it is December, remember!).

Before I give you this amazing recipe, I must add a big thank you to my dearest neighbor/friend, G Aunty, who found it in a coffee table book in course of her visit to Scotland.....I am ever so grateful for this one....and all those who try this pudding will be as well!!!
 

 

Sticky Toffee Pudding

(makes 8 portions)

 

150 gm Unsalted Butter

150 gm All purpose Flour

100 gm Granulated Sugar

50 gm Brown Sugar (my modification)

150 gm Stoned Dates (chopped fine)

300 ml Boiling Water

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Baking Powder

2 eggs - slightly beaten

1/4 tsp Salt (my modification)

 

Pre-heat oven to 100 degree Celsius and grease a 13" baking dish

 

Soak the chopped dates in boiling water for 10 minutes

 

Cream the butter and sugar till the color becomes light

 Add eggs, flour and baking powder

Add the dates, water, salt and baking soda

The batter will seem fairly runny...

 

Place in moderate oven (100 degree Celsius) and bake for about 45 minutes to 1hour until golden brown and firm to touch

 

 

Sticky Toffee Sauce

 

I used the recipe from BBC's Good Foods website for this sauce. Having tried a few different options, this worked best for me.

 

250 ml Cream

80 gm Butter

80 gm Brown Sugar

 

Mix all the ingredients and heat on moderate high and whisk regularly to get an even sauce

 



Make some holes in the cake and pour the sauce on top.

 

Put back in oven under broiler for 3-5 minutes (monitoring continuously). Take out and allow to cool down. Serve warm with either vanilla or butterscotch ice-cream!

 

This is one dessert, where the pictures really don't do justice to it's taste....try it and get hooked for life!!

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keep it "real"....

Have been noticing a lot of posts/video uploads on Facebook (FB) and receiving forwards via emails/whatsapp about people living more in the "virtual" world vs. a "real" one.

Upon further introspection, I realized that I was one of those folks as well....one who seems to have become a combination of a voyeuristic surfer and a sufferer of FOMO (fear of missing out)...whose hands feel almost itchy without a phone to play around with....whose idea of a "historical" person was one who, God forbid, moved around without an internet data plan....who was guilty of enjoying the "likes" notifications on FB and felt empowered by others appreciation and comments on her posts/updates/photos etc.

Don't get me wrong. I think these are all wonderful things to do...to the extent they allow us to still live in the "real" world with the blood and flesh people who surround us. Can you imagine the frustrations of a patient describing his ailments in great detail to a doctor, only to be interrupted by the sudden jarring noise of a mobile ringing; or a lovely gathering of family/friends being overtaken by a person taking a call and making those who specially came to celebrate feel unimportant; or asking your son to keep quiet as you finish typing your latest "thoughts" on FB? Sadly, I do.

Why am I going on about all this? Well, the thought came to me that this "virtual" somewhat "nice-to-see-but-not-available-to-you" world of FB travelers, eaters, romantics, sport enthusiasts etc., could make all our lives so much easier!! Using this application of virtual logic towards food, can we enjoy food through simply looking at their beautiful, mouth watering pictures?

A world of "No calories, No fat, No cost - just a whole load of salivating"...

So this time, instead of sharing recipes, I give you some pictures and you tell me....are these enough? Or do you want more?

 Corn pancakes - Indian style w/cilantro chutney

 

Homemade pizza with caramelized apples and onions

 

 

 Beetroot salad with basil and feta

 

Figs stewed and roasted with spice blend

 

 

 Vegetable sizzler with garlic bread

 

Apple bread topped with avocado salad

 

Are we really okay living "virtually" or do we want to dive in and take a bite out of life?

Match made in heaven...or shud I say...kitchen?

Growing up, I was truly blessed to have a mother who loved experimenting with different types of cuisines. It was somewhat unusual for most kids in my knowhow to have whole meals where the fare was completely continental….whether it was a wok full of vegetable spaghetti with red sauce and garlic bread, or vegetable cutlets with tomato soup, or sizzlers with multiple sides, or pizzas or enchiladas, or ….I truly give credit to my mom’s cooking for my love of multiple types of cuisines.

And in trying to inculcate the same love for different flavors and textures in my boys, I have been working very hard to try and get them to taste a wide variety of food.  The rule at our place is that it is ok if you don’t care for the new dish, as long as you have given it a fair shot….an open minded tasting by trying at least 1 or 2 tsp of the items on your plate.

With my culinary efforts, and thru use of some cajoling and other interesting tactics applied by my husband, the kids appear to have expanded their palate significantly. This has truly helped me further experiment with their lunch boxes as well.

So with that in mind, and considering the popularity of the previous lunch box post (http://samridhiatdivalicious.blogspot.in/2013/09/now-you-see-itnow-you-dont.html), I decided to add some more ideas for all you lovely mommies to consider for your darlings.

MP style poha with steamed sprouts

Healthy with a nice dose of flavor. For the sprouts, soak the lentils overnight (I used a mix of whole green grams and Turkish grams). In a wok, add 1 tsp of oil and let it heat up. Add 1/8 tsp of whole mustard seeds and let them pop. Add some curry leaves with chopped green chili. Stir in chopped onions (2 tsp) and allow to cook for 2-3 mins. Add 3 tsp of chopped tomatoes, salt to taste and the sprouts (1/4 cup). Cover and cook on low heat for 5-6 minutes. Serve topped with fresh chopped cilantro. Add lemon juice to taste if needed.

This is truly one of my favorite snacks/breakfast item. Soak 1/4 cup of thick flattened rice (poha) in water for 10 mins. Take 2 tsp of oil and heat it up. Add a pinch of hing (asafoetida) and 1/8 tsp of mustard seeds. After the seeds splutter, add curry leaves; chopped green chili; peas (2 tbsp.); a pinch of red chili powder and a pinch of turmeric. Stir and add the soaked rice. Add salt to taste and a good dose of sugar (1 tsp at least). You want this to be a good mix of sweet and savory. To finish, add 2 tsp of lemon juice and a sprinkle of chopped cilantro.

 Paneer paratha with blueberry and apple muffin

These paneer parathas are superbly moist and delicious. To make them, start by grating/finely chopping 2 tbsp each of carrots, green beans, cauliflower, onions. Grate 100 gms of paneer. In a pan heat some oil and add the veggies. Add 1 chopped garlic pod, a small pc of ginger grated and salt together with a pinch of garam masala and turmeric. Add the paneer and stir in some chopped cilantro. Cool the mixture and stuff into kneaded whole wheat dough balls and roll into parathas. Cook in a pan or tawa using some oil/ghee. Slice into triangles for easy eating/handling.



The recipe for these muffins were from the website http://www.bestrecipes.com.au/recipe/basic-muffin-base-L8631.html

The modifications I made were to add 1 tsp of vanilla essence, 1/4 tsp of salt, increase the sugar amount by 1/8 cup, adding 1 medium sized apple peeled and chopped together with 1/2 cup of dried blueberries.

Would I call this the best muffins? Unfortunately no. But, they were super easy to make and took me less than 10 mins to assemble. Kids get very excited to see these in their lunch boxes and the addition of fruits helps reduce my guilt :).

Black bean quesadilla with pineapple salsa and nachos



For this very refreshing pineapple salsa, simply chop and mix together 1 medium sized tomato, 1/2 onion, 2 tbsp. cilantro, 1/4 each of red and green bell peppers, de-seeded chili to taste, 2 cloves garlic and 1/2 cup chopped pineapples (I used the tinned variety). Stir it up and add salt, red paprika, juice of 1 lemon and refrigerate for at least 2 hrs.

To say that I saved the best for the last would be an understatement. These quesadillas are really that good!! The pictures above are actually pertaining to the dinner from the night before, which is why you see the corn and spring onion rice with smoked paprika as well as the home made sour cream. The filling was made using 1/2 cup of kidney beans soaked overnight and then boiled well in a pressure cooker. Mash the beans. Finely chop 2-3 tbsp. each of bell peppers, onions, spring onions, tomato. Take a tsp of oil in a pan and add chili flakes together with 2-3 cloves of grated garlic. Add some grated ginger and the veggies. Cook till tender and add the mashed beans. Add salt, 1/4 tsp of sugar, oregano and paprika powder and cook for another 3-4 mins. After the mixture cools down add 1/4 cup of grated cheddar cheese and 1 tbsp. of chopped cilantro. Your mixture is ready. Take the tortilla and cook one side on a pan with some oil. Turn and spread the mix on one half. Fold and cook on both sides till crispy. Remove from pan and allow it to cool down slightly before slicing into 4 triangles. I find that a pizza cutter works best for me.

Hope you get to try one or more of the above recipes and your kids treat you to a day of bringing back their lunch boxes empty!! I know mine always do :).



Children’s day…one cookie at a time….

Children’s Day is celebrated in India on November 14^th  and rather than tell you too much about why is it celebrated….when did it start….and all the other questions that can be easily answered thru “google”, let me tell you how we are celebrating.

 

To begin with, my boys will be reminded for the millionth time how very much they are loved and how blessed we are to have them in our lives…and no, unlike valentine’s day, this reiteration of adoration happens daily and more than once daily in our household J.

The kids are having a fair/mela at their school with a variety of activities….such as temporary tattoos, games, painting, hair braiding (hoping this one is for the girls…), nail painting (not holding my breath for this one….I guarantee you, they will come with nails painted in brick-red or deep purple), etc. For my part, a friend and I have planned an activity stall for kids to decorate their own bookmarks (if you read closely…you will see a broad hint encouraging them to read…or maybe I am just delusional J).

They will also have a special cafeteria of food items that the teachers are pulling together for them…to this I say -  “Good luck! May you succeed where I have often failed”…or maybe they will be smart and stay away from every possible healthy snack option that is out there.

To celebrate this occasion, I also decided to indulge the kids by baking their favorite chocolate chip cookie (see bookclub post). Calling this a ‘chocolate chip cookie” is honestly downplaying it to a large extent. This is “THE COOKIE”. This is the cookie that never fails to impress the most critical of kid connoisseurs.  And let me admit it…..it helps me get thru a day of dealing with over a hundred and twenty kids….yep, I don’t simply crave this cookie…I NEED it!

Warm Chocolate Chip and Pecan Cookies

 

(makes approx. 12 cookies)

 

Granulated sugar - 1/4 cup

Demerara sugar - 1/2 cup

Unsalted butter - 95 gms (little under 1/2 cup)

Egg - 1

Vanilla extract - 1 tsp

All purpose flour - 1 cup

Powdered Oatmeal - 1/2 cup

Salt - 1/4 tsp

Baking soda - 1/2 tsp

Hot water - 1 tsp

Dark chocolate chips - 2/3 cup

Milk chocolate - 1/3 cup

Roasted Pecans chopped - 1/2 cup (you can try to replace with walnuts)

 

Preheat oven to 175 degree Celsius

 

 

 Cream the softened butter and sugars well. Add the egg. Mix well and add the vanilla extract.  Add the baking soda dissolved in hot water to the mixture together with the salt. Then add the flour and oatmeal and mix well.

 

Now combine the chocolate chips...

And the pecans...

Roll into 1nch sized balls (flatten slightly) and put on ungreased tray. Bake for 10 minutes or so. Cookies will be done when the bottom turns slightly brown. Don't over cook or the cookies will be very hard. When you take them out of the oven, they will be excessively soft to the touch...but, they will harden up to chewy consistency after 5 minutes of cooling. This part is very critical......

And this is the toughest part....where you have the 5 minutes of waiting time :)

And finally...you get a piece of heaven!!!

 

I know it started with children's day and seems to have somehow ended up being all about my personal nirvana....but, a happy mom results in a very happy set of children...believe me :).

 

Have a great time making this with your little and older ones.....one bite (while still warm) and you will be hooked for life!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Orange panna cotta anyone?

The coolest thing that I am experiencing nowadays is going to parties and get-togethers and being asked by multiple people when my next post is coming up....to know that there are folks out there who are enjoying reading and experimenting at home thru this blog makes me feel euphoric....in view of which, I am sharing a great party favorite (of course it had to be a dessert!!).

If there were two words that inspired a mixture of terror and awe within me, then it would have to be “gelatin” and “panna cotta”. To even contemplate working with the former and for that matter, attempting to make the latter, seemed like an impossibility. But, then I attended a cooking class at a high-end food retailer in Bangalore and was able to learn the tricks directly from the dessert chef of one of the most amazing Mediterranean restaurant of the city.

It really is a fairly simple dessert…of course, it goes without saying that I say a silent prayer each time I refrigerate the completed mixture, I don’t try to unmold the panna cotta (though in all fairness, I have done it in the past with perfect results…..it is just that I prefer serving it in individual containers with some sort of garnish versus plate it individually for larger dinner parties), and I really have not tried to modify this recipe…much.

So, without further ado….please consider making this dessert which has a healthy dose of orange juice and yogurt….so much so, that you almost forget about the litre of cream that accompanies it J. But, remember, eating healthy is a very relative term and good things enjoyed in moderation are never harmful – or at least, that’s my excuse!

 

 

Orange Yogurt Panna Cotta - 30 servings

(Note that I have also successfully halved the recipe by simply reducing all ingredients by half)

 

Powdered Gelatin - 20 gms

Cold water - 60 ml

Heavy Cream - 1 litre

Caster Sugar - 350 gms

Store bought firm yogurt - 450 gms

Orange Juice - 450 gms

Vanilla bean - 1 pc or powdered vanilla 1/4 tsp

Orange zest - 1 tbsp.

 

 

In a large pot, bring the cream, sugar, and vanilla bean (slit up) or powder to a slow simmer. At the same time, let the gelatin bloom in the cold water for 5 minutes and then either microwave with 10 second intervals on medium level or use the double boiler method to bring to a clear liquid consistency. Let the cream mixture cool down a bit.

 

 

Add the gelatin mixture to the cream.

 

 

Next add the orange juice. I used store bought variety, but, you can use fresh juice if it is in season.

 

 

Mix up the yogurt and add to the cream and juice mixture.

 

 



Now, the tough part is done! Sieve the whole mixture so that any lumps from the gelatin and the vanilla bean pod can be removed.

 

 

Add the orange zest to the mix.

 

 



Pour into individual molds. In case you are hoping to upturn and serve, you should coat the inside of the molds well with olive oil (it has surprisingly no impact on the taste) before pouring the mixture. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours till firm.

 

 

 

Garnish with mandarin oranges, basil, mint leaves or lemon slices and serve.

 

Another option for serving could be the addition of a stewed fruit topping. I decided to try a blueberry orange one.

 

 

Blueberry Orange Topping - makes 1/2 cup

 

1/3 cup dried blueberries

3/4 cup orange juice

4-5 tsp caster sugar

1/2 tsp orange zest

 

 

Bring all the ingredients to a boil till the berries plump up and orange juice reduces by one third. Roughly blend the cooled mixture with a hand blender.

 

 

Add to the set panna cotta serving bowls or provide as a side.

 

Your somewhat guilt free bliss awaits.....