A day with Chef Tanveer Kwatra shopping ingredients, cooking and dining at Le Meridien Gurgaon

I am always eager to meet and talk to people who experiment and cook passionately. Walking in old fashioned markets, finding out new ingredients and using those ingredients in traditional as well as experimental ways is what interests me most. So much so I sometimes carry greens and vegetables from the places I travel. I have shared how I brought the freshest Haak greens from Leh and so many vegetables from our travels to Sikkim and Darjeeling. Recently I brought Mahua flowers from our trip to Bandhavgarh and packed some Palm fruits in my hand bag while on my way back from Hyderabad.

Finding people of my ilk doesn't come by easy but there are times when the universe conspires in amazing ways. I was in Hyderabad for 'whole woman speaker series' where I was invited as a speaker and a very successful millet workshop when this conspiracy was being hatched.

Le Meridien Gurgaon had curated a whole day with Tanveer Kwatra (the Executive Chef, Le Meridien Gurgaon) taking Deeba, Ruchira and myself to an action packed culinary journey and I jumped right into it within 12 hours of landing back in Delhi. I am glad I didn't feel lazy. Early morning I was in the hotel lobby, surrounded with artworks of Paresh Maity, Sateesh Gujral, P R Daroz and the likes.

We were received by the Chef himself, shots of Cardamom coffee and cumin infused mango juice came to greet us as Chef took us to Latest Recipe, the multi cuisine restaurant and cafe. It is a well lit spacious restaurant that changes it's mood through the day as we witnessed later.

Chef Kwatra treated us with a guided tour of the breakfast buffet before settling down for a double espresso shot and some fruits. Fruits are displayed quite interestingly at the restaurant I must add.

It was a day planned with Tanveer where we had breakfast prepared by him, tasted the multicuisine lunch spread, had lunch in the staff canteen then went on to shop with him before he cooked dinner for us again. Totally an action packed day.

The day was made special by the affable and intelligent chef who shared his work experience and how running a kitchen like this is meticulous work that needs detailed planning. I could see how he is watchful of every single detail and multitasks in the kitchen all the time. It was fun to watch him in action.

He cooked a special 'signature breakfast' for all three of us, breakfasts where they infuse local flavours with world cuisine and call it 'unlock the destination'. The signature breakfasts at Le Meridien Delhi is also a must try. I relished my crabmeat stuffed omelet with grilled tomatoes, bacon and hash potatoes. Ruchira had a Brioche burger and Deeba enjoyed her duck khurchan dosa served with mulligatawny soup and chutney.

We had our breakfast sitting in the kitchen while it was being assembled live.

Then Chef Tanveer took us to the dishwash section, the freezer rooms and the stores for fresh produce as well as dry grocery. It was good to see how a hotel kitchen is backed up by such efficient ingredient procurement and storage.

We got to visit the microbiology lab where food samples are tested regularly to avoid food poisoning etc.

We took a tour of the bakery section and saw pastries being assembled and decorated. It is an art and a science for sure. Good looking food comes from precision in executing it the right way.

Bread dough was being punched and whacked. And then it was made into rolls delicately before being pushed into the oven. The golden baked rolls were brushed with melted butter and the aroma was intoxicating. It reminded me that it has been ages I did not bake any breads at home.

Biryani was being made into a huge copper Lagan (a flat base vessel designed to cook biryani) as we saw spices being mixed and ghee and saffron milk being poured into it. It was kachhe gosht ki Hyderabadi biryani. Later the biryani was unveiled and we had a taste of it.

As the lunch buffet was being prepared by now, each of us grabbed a spoon and tasted many of the dishes. I loved the kaali daal makhni to bits. It was a really well made daal I had after a long time. The other impressive preparation was a fish in Beurre blanc sauce that we all loved.

Tanveer asked if we like pumpkin and there we spotted a beautiful looking platted of roasted pumpkin with feta cheese. We could not stop eating this roasted pumpkin salad that was infused with thyme and garlic while being roasted with loads of olive oil.

The Dhungar butter chicken (smoked butter chicken) was yummy. The spread of salads, raitas and desserts at the lunch buffet is quite impressive too. One can easily choose according to personal taste and dietary preferences.

A variety of mediterranian dips and salads, roasted banarasi alu papad cones with chaat stuffing was interesting.

 And then we headed to the staff canteen where we 'tasted' the lunch of the day. There was no scope of having a full meal as there was a lot of tasting going on. Canteen food was wholesome and delicious, it was a delight to see such efficiently managed staff kitchen.

The GM of Le Meridien Gurgaon Mr David Hopcroft joined us for lunch at the canteen where self service is the norm and everyone picks up their own plates and disposes them to the washing area.

We could see happy diners who must have come between work shifts.

And then it was time to head to the market. It was very hot that day, equipped with cold towels, water bottles and sunglasses we headed towards CR park fish market. Some of these fish were to become our diner that day.

And then we went to Kamala sweets where Chef Tanveer bought some mishti doi and we sampled some of their specialties. A lack lusture jol bhora sondesh but really good radhabollobhi kachori and alu subzi. I love Bengali food and this shop is really good in the heart of Delhi.

He also bought some Water apples (jaamphal) and Mango-ginger along with a few more vegetables to cook with. These markets are a pleasure to explore. You don't get seasonal produce from other parts of the country in supermarkets these days as they stock mostly the exotic produce and the everyday staples that have somehow become 'all season produce' in modern times.

These markets in metro cities can't really afford to stock all local stuff but most produce is from within the country and is always seasonal. People who love the foods from back home throng to such markets to find the ingredients of the season.

Tanveer bought some phalsa and then we moved onto a micro greens farm where he picked up some of these beauties.

Back to the hotel we were exhausted and sapped due to the extreme heat. The hotel had planned a foot spa so I went in straight for that. Chef was at work preparing a dinner with what he had bought at the market. We were pampered royally you see.

It is always exciting to see what we cook with freshly bought ingredients, Chef Tanveer came up with a few surprises. He had made a Caprese with fresh Burrata, basil and phalsa berries. This salad was so good we polished off the plate within a matter of minutes.

Another salad was made with the water apples (jaamphal or jamrul), purple cabbage, mango-ginger and edemame etc and was a multitude of flavours and textures.

The Sea bass was grilled and served with baby beet greens on a bed of mango-ginger salsa along with a side of caramelized sweet potato slices. Very creative and flavourful.

Baby prawns were deep fried and served with kasundi sauce with bits of dried apricot and fried garlic. This was amazing with a really interesting take on kasundi.

And there was this Mishti doi Eclairs topped with white chocolate and popped amaranth. The mishti doi from Kamala sweets was for this special teat. A little too sweet but addictive stuff. Beware.

We had all our meals at Latest Recipe that day. Multitude of flavours but since we had small tasting portions it was not overwhelming. The best part of the day was that the flavours remained with me, I can recreate some of these at home or can go back again to Latest Recipe to savour the Roasted Pumpkin Salad or the Fish in Buerre blanc.

Good food stays with you forever. Thanks to Tanveer Kwatra for being such a sweet host and Le Meridien Hotel for pampering us for a day.

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recipe of millet pongal live from the millet workshop | millets are for everyone, use them everyday

Millets are tasty grains. Trust me when I say this. The only reason why you might have had a lukewarm experience with millets is that our cooking procedures have tuned in so much with rice and wheat that we have forgotten how to cook millets well.

And no, there is nothing elaborate about cooking millets, it is actually simpler. We often make the recipes so complicated and overburden the ingredients with seasonings that the dish gets killed. Millets need simpler treatment, simpler seasoning and fewer accompaniments in my experience.

I am sharing the recipe of a very simple millet pongal made with Foxtail millet (kangni) and Mung daal (skinned yellow mung). Pongal is a savoury porridge that is a popular breakfast dish in the south but rarely made with millets. Pongal is also a popular temple prasad and I have had the best pongals of my life as prasad (offerings made to God and then distributed to everyone).

I made this pongal for the participants of the workshop I conducted at Our Sacred Space in Hyderabad, with a theme 'Millets for everyone, for everyday'. The objective was to introduce the participants about how and why millets are better than wheat and rice for our own health as well as for the health of the planet and agriculture practices. The bunch of participants was a joy to interact with.

I wanted something tangible for the participants at the end of the workshop so they could get a taste of what we talk about. I had made some multi grain panjeeri, some ragi crackers, Jau ki ghaat and jowar banana pankeas and a millet pongal was planned as live cooking. While I was confident about everything else, I felt really nervous about the pongal as this was one dish that I have not grown up eating and cooking it for people from Andhra was like a vegetarian talking about fish to a Bengali. Yes I was nervous for the pongal.

This is a phone picture of the cooked pongal to which I added tadka in a huge pot. The pongal was made for 40-50 people.

It was a pleasant surprise to know that everyone loved this pongal and took second and third helpings. The second thing everyone one loved was Jau ki ghaat because it was the right season for such a drink, although panjeeri, pancakes and crackers were all favourites. Panjeeri made an instant fan following there with people asking for more, saving some for themselves too.

Pongal made me happy for obvious reasons.

The feedback I got for this millet pongal was that they couldn't believe it could taste better than rice pongal. I was exhausted by the end of the workshop that lasted 4 hours but I did taste the pongal so I can recreate the same in my own kitchen later. But honestly speaking, when pongal is made in larger quantities the taste is better for some reason. You might be familiar with the belief that prasad pongal always tastes better.

Recipe of millet pongal (the way I cooked for the millet workshop) 

ingredients 
(40-50 servings with other side dishes)

Foxtail millet (Kangni) 1 kilo
split Mung daal 1 kilo
water 7 Liters
chopped green chillies 1 cup
chopped curry patta 1/2 cup
salt 1/4 cup, add more after checking the salt balance once the pongal is cooked
ghee 250 gm
asafoetida powder 1/2 tsp
cumin seeds 2 tbsp
whole red chillies broken 10-12
whole pepper corns 1 tbsp
cashew nuts 250 gm chopped

procedure 

Rinse the mung daal, drain and tip in to the cooking vessel. I used a large (12 Liter capacity) pot for cooking this pongal. Add the water and the salt and place it on stove. Let the mixture come to a boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes.

Rinse the millet, drain water and tip in to the cooking pot. Let it come to a boil again and simmer for 30 minutes. You might need a little more water if the consistency is too thick. Add the chopped green chillies and 1/3rd of the ghee, mix well and let it simmer for a few more minutes.

Now heat the ghee in a pan, add the asafoetida, cumin seeds, red chillies, pepper corns, curry patta and cashew nuts in that order and let them all get sizzling. Let the cashews get a bit brownish, the curry patta will also be fried nicely by this time. Add this whole mixture to the cooked pongal, mix well and keep the pongal covered. Serve while the pongal is still hot. This huge pot of pongal was hot for a couple of hours.

Here is a picture collage of iphone pictures my friend Bhavana clicked. There were a few organic farmers at the workshop and some people who wanted to know more about millets and their uses.

This workshop was organised and held at Our Sacred Space, brainchild of Nayantara Nandakumar who works tirelessly behind this beautiful space and its working. She has transformed her huge garden into a retreat, a mindfully done oasis of peace. Outdoors surrounded with beautiful plants, walls finished with mud and red oxide flooring gives this space a feel of an old village chaupal. Finding such a peaceful oasis in the heart of a crowded city Secuderabad feels like a bliss.

Our sacred space holds farmer's markets to support local produce, flee markets for local craftsmen and workshops for children and adults on many different themes. The Sunday Farmer's market that I witness was so good I am dreaming if we could have something like that in Delhi.

Later, back home I cooked the same pongal in pressure cooker. Since I was going to pressure cook the pongal in one step I decided to break the mung daal in smaller bits by running it into the mixie for a few seconds. The foxtail and mung mix was added to water (4 times the millet-lentil mix) and was pressure cooked with salt. Then a tempering was added and it made a really good lunch that day. I had chilled buttermilk with this meal.

It has been just too hot in Delhi these days and we have lost our appetite for heavier foods. Watermelon, buttermilk, chilled mango slices, chilled milk etc is what I am having mostly but I do eat a few spicy meals in between too. This pongal made me so happy with it's spice quotient and still felt very light on the system.

If you are using Pearl millet (bajra) or Barnyard millet (sama) for pongal you might like to cook them along with the mung daal as those take a bit longer time to cook. Just adjusting the cooking time and consistency you should be able to cook a delicious pongal with just any kind of millets you choose.

I was so glad to see so many varieties of millets available in Hyderabad, specially Our Sacred Space Sunday market was treasure trove for organic food seekers. The variety of millet rawa (millet semolina), millet vermicelli, broken millets etc is so good you would want to find out more ways to cook with them.

I buy my millets from Navdanya store, Down to Earth website and I Say Organic whenever possible. I also collect millets and lentils from my travels to interiors of the country. This foxtail millet from I Say Organic is from Uttarakhand.

Do let me know whenever you have a query about millets. I will be glad to share whatever I know.

Millets are ancient grains that need to be brought back to mainstream, not only for our own health but to break the pattern of monoculture of wheat and rice that is cause much harm to the agriculture and food chain both.

Did you know millets are hardy crops that can grow well in arid regions and don't need much chemical fertilizers or pesticides because they are naturally disease resistant. Also because millets have not been aggressively bred for huge yield etc. most millets are native varieties. Millets can be grown organically well and most millets you get in the market are grown by organic means.

Bring back millets on your dining table, every day.

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panjeeri is a desi granola mix ; a recipe of mixed millet panjeeri and a millet workshop in Hyderabad

Panjeeri brings back memories of my grandmother who used to make panjeeri with almost every grain. She used to make panjeeri even with rice flour as one of the ingredients and would sometimes bind the mix into laddu for the ease of handling and serving. Panjeeri is a roasted mix of flours, chopped nuts, powdered fox nuts and raisins, the ingredients are roasted separately and slowly along with ghee and are mixed with raw sugar or jaggery powder to make a delicious mix that is considered great for breakfast or for day time snacking.

My grandmother used to have panjeeri with warm milk too, just like one has cereal. Many old people like to add panjeeri to milk as they find it easy to gulp down that way. Panjeeri mixed with mashed banana and some milk makes good baby food too, but for that purpose panjeeri is made without ghee and nuts. How versatile a recipe can be.

The panjeeri mix includes dry ginger, turmeric, edible gum etc if it is made for winters and is made without these for summer days. But panjeeri is not an everyday summer food traditionally, it was made when one had to stock some ready to eat options at home or for traveling.

I remember panjeeri used to be our travel food each summer vacation. My mother still makes it almost all through the year using different ingredients suited for seasons, she makes a sugar free (not with sugar substitutes) version with few raisins and chopped dates for my dad too who is a diabetic. Like all diabetics my dad loves sweets and feels deprived if he doesn't get such things.

This time I made this panjeeri with mixed millets flour. There is some pearl millet, some sorghum, some amaranth flour, some corn meal, some barley flour, some oats flour, little wheat flour, some bran and some whole chickpea flour (with skin) in this mix. One can always mix the flours according to taste and preference and make the panjeeri using any of these flours alone, but mixing the flours works great for a complex flavour.

The panjeeri was actually made in large amount this time. I am doing a workshop on health benefits of millets and their everyday uses and wanted the participants get a taste of what they learn that day. I am so looking forward to the workshop.

The recipe is simple, but takes some time to prepare the ingredients and slow roast them separately. I did it myself in three days as I was busy with work too. Once the panjeeri is ready you feel like tasting it every half an hour. No I couldn't do that this time as I was suffering from a bout of food poisoning and was on a strict diet of yogurt and khichdi, my breakfast was plain yogurt mixed with isabgul husk. Life is not always fair but I will make up for it :-)

ingredients
(makes about 80-100 servings)

mixed millet flour 1 kilo (I used a mix of sorghum (jowar), pearl millet (bajra), barley (jau), corn (makii), oats (jaee), amatranth (ramdana or rajgira), whole wheat, whole black chickpea (kala chana) and little bran. All flours are added in equal amount.
fox nuts (makhana)100 gm (powdered)
flax seeds meal 200 gm
chopped almonds 500 gm (use mixed nuts if desired)
raisins 150 gm
jaggery powder or raw sugar 700 gm (or to taste) I used organic shakkar which is powdered jaggery
ghee 600 gm

*skip using wheat if you are allergic to it. I get this flour mix for my rotis and used the same for making panjeeri, skipping wheat makes no difference in taste. Gluten free version of panjeeri is as good.

** skip sugar or jaggery for diabetics. Ad some stewia powder or just some chopped dates too and serve in small portions to diabetics.

procedure

Heat 50 gm ghee in a pan ( I used a thick base kadhai) and roast the fox nut powder lightly. Keep aside.

Heat a little more ghee and fry the chopped almonds lightly on low flame, add the raisins in the last couple of minutes, fry together and take out from the kadhai. Keep aside.

Heat the remaining ghee and tip in the mixed millet flour and the flax seeds meal. Roast the flour mix at very low flame for an hour or so or till it becomes a bit brown and gets aromatic too. Take off the stove, add the raw sugar or jaggery powder, the roasted fox nut nut powder and almonds and raisins too and mix well.

Let the mixture cool down completely and then store it in air tight jars for about a month. I fill the pajeeri in many small jars so one of them in on the dining table too. This time the lot has already been packed to take it to Hyderabad :-)

A 25-30 gm serving of this multigrain panjeeri is very filling with a glass of milk. Some people even eat 50 gm or more but it is one of the healthier low glycemic foods that keep you full for hours. The next meal is automatically portion controlled if you have had this panjeeri in a large serving.

I always call it desi granola mix as it has everything a granola has and is made with local ingredients. And it can also be modified to suit seasons.

I make a methi panjeeri a lot for myself and the recipe is still to be shared, will share that too very soon. Another version of panjeeri with herbs and nuts is made for new mothers too which is a ritual in most Indian homes.

Are you based in Hyderabad? Come for this workshop if so and enjoy some millet panjeeri with me. There will be some more food to sample and I am sure you all would enjoy being there, we will definitely learn some interesting things that day.

Looking forward to talk about millets, their health benefits and how millets are crucial for the health of our planet as well. Come join me there.

I will be sharing the updates and may be videos of the workshop too with all of you here. Stay tuned.

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101 gluten free breakfasts | sorghum banana pancakes with pomegranate rhododendron jelly

Someone asked me why I work around millets so much. What is the goal I am working towards when I promote millets, traditional recipes that are getting lost and age old nutrition wisdom. I was thinking of the age old wisdom that is being taken over by consumerism and 'tactful' nutrition information fine printed on shiny food packets.

I asked him what did he have for breakfast and he told me about a crisp toast with French butter and some fruit preserve. I told that I made a gluten free sorghum flour and banana pancake and had it with pomegranate rhododendron jelly. Jowar kele ka cheela, as we would call it and he wanted to know more about the pancake and how millets can make such tasty foods. The interest was ignited immediately.

I had never expected this kind of question as all of you my readers and friends have been
reassuring in different ways, and my own quest giving me enough reasons to continue what I love doing. I never follow a goal but do what I like at the moment, taking life as it comes, plans never worked and surprises were always good.

But yes, I do have a reason for reviving old times wisdom and alternative grains, Indian native foods and cooking techniques and most importantly the love for cooking family meals at home. I don't have to explain those reasons for you my friend, because you have subscribed to my blog and have been reading what I think about these.

I would explain my concern about the millets for a reason today. I am an environmentalist by instinct, I feel frustrated to see how the soil health is depleting by monoculture of wheat and rice in different agricultural areas while millets are being neglected. For ages millets were considered food of the poor.

How many of us know that millets take very few resources to grow? These are mostly rain fed crops and do not deplete water resources, do not need pesticides and insecticides much and can be grown organically well.

And there are health benefits that you know already. I know because you are reading healthfood desivideshi and have clicked to read this piece of information. I know you too hate quinoa and use alternative flours for everyday cooking like I do.

ingredients..
(2 servings of filling breakfast)

jowar flour (sorghum flour) 3/4 cup
over ripe banana mashed well 1 or mashed pulp about 1/2 cup
cinnamon powder 1/4 tsp or to taste (optional)
milk 1/3 cup or a bit more
chopped mixed nuts 2 tbsp
flax seeds meal 2 tsp
ghee to shallow fry the pancakes 1-2 tsp per serving ( I used total about a tbsp)
any fruit preserve or honey to serve

procedure 

Make a batter using the flour, the mashed banana, flax meal, chopped nuts and milk. Add just enough milk to make a thick batter.

Heat a griddle and smear ghee over it. Pour small ladlefuls of batter over the griddle and let it cook for a couple of minutes on one side, over medium flame. Turn over and cook the other side too to get a golden crust.

Serve hot or warm with any fruit preserve or honey you like. This time we had the pomegranate and rhododendron jelly with it. I like the pancake plain with some hot milk, the husband always likes some jam or honey with his pancakes.

The pancake keeps me full till evening if I have it with milk. I normally munch on some salted roasted nuts or peanuts in between because I don't feel good after eating something sweet but that is me.

I must tell you that I have seen some people eating such pancakes with laal mirch ka acahar too and that actually tastes really good. A combination of sweet and spicy is actually good.

Tell me if you want to learn more about millets. For health reasons and for environment too, I will make sure there is some millets everyday on your table. Or that is being over ambitious?

I will be in Hyderabad next week, and will conduct a workshop with a millets theme, millets for everyone and everyday, at Our Sacred Space. If you are in Hyderabad and want to learn how to cook with millets everyday, you are welcome. Please sign up with this workshop and have fun with millets.

We are planning to serve this sorghum banana pancake too at the workshop. Would you like to join us there?

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yellow cherry tomatoes and a crust less ricotta quiche recipe with them

I had planted a few varieties of tomatoes like I do every year but it has become a norm in my garden that only one variety of tomatoes makes a success story in one season. May be it is the survival of the fittest when planted together, it happens somehow that most of the other varieties remain stunted or never come to flower or bear just a few tomatoes when they mature. It could well be true as I plant all the tomato varieties in one place, in adjacent beds.

Whatever the reason, this year is the season of yellow cherry tomatoes. And I am not complaining.

I have been dunking them into salads and popping them into my mouth as it is, some of them are being sun dried for more delicious ways to eat yellow cherry tomatoes.

This salad is made using the yellow cherry tomatoes, black and green grapes, chopped cucumber and bits of red onion, everything mixed with some hung yogurt, salt and pepper and a generous sprinkling of flax seed dry chutney.

It is a delicious way to eat all the good things of the day in large doses.

Another is a chickpeas salad that has been repeated frequently, this picture is from last year when I had got only a few yellow cherry tomatoes. This recipe uses sun dried red cherry tomato paste in the dressing. Sun dried tomato paste is a very useful thing to keep, just dilute with some vinegar or water, some garlic powder and extra virgin olive oil and make a nice salad dressing quickly.

But the happy yield of yellow cherry tomatoes made me try them for a crust less ricotta quiche. I don't mind  a nice crust in my quiches, I even make a quiche with cornmeal crust, but this time I wanted something that can be consumed in one go between the two of us, so to keep the serving size suitable I skipped the crust. The recipe got quicker and easier too.

The recipe uses minimal ingredients and made enough quiche for 3-4 servings if served with some crusty bread and some sauteed vegetables on the side. Crusty bread because the quiche is very soft and creamy, yet well set to be made into neat wedges. I had baked it in a rectangular baking pan so we just cut square pieces and ate merrily without any bread.

A side of sauteed vegetables is enough with this crust less quiche when it is just the two of us. The leftover was sandwiched between slices of whole grain bread though.

ingredients 
(for 2-3 servings and some leftover)

home made or packaged ricotta cheese 200 gm (or use freshly made paneer without letting it set)
light fresh cream 50 ml (100 ml in case of home made paneer)
cheddar cheese grated 50 gm
salt and pepper to taste
roasted chilly flakes to taste
garlic powder 1/4 tsp
mixed herbs as per taste ( I used sage and rosemary crushed together)
extra virgin olive oil to drizzle on top 1 tsp (optional)
as many tomatoes as you can layer over the ricotta layer, keep a single layer of slices though

procedure..

Mix everything together except the tomatoes. Mix the ricotta, cream and herbs together and knead well to make smooth sticky dough like mix.

You can add some sun dried tomatoes to the cheese mix or some steamed spinach which has been drained of all water. I left it plain as there was no crust to support vegetables.

Grease the pan (9"X7" size) and spread the ricotta cheese mixture on the base. Spread it using your fingers or a silicon spatula.

Now layer the halved cherry tomatoes over it. You can use slices of any tomatoes you like.

Press down the slices to embed them into the quiche. Sprinkle some more herbs and drizzle olive oil or mustard oil over the tomatoes. Trust me mustard oil tastes really good with ricotta.

Now bake in a preheated oven at 200C for 20 minutes or till the sides start bubbling and start getting pinkish. The tomatoes look shrinking and slightly dehydrated.

Serve hot.

This quiche is a minimalist recipe, the day I baked it was a hurried day and I clicked minimalist pictures too. But I think the taste and aroma of this ricotta quiche is something that I can feel even now staring at the picture. Hope it reaches you too.

This ricotta and cherry tomato quiche keeps well in refrigerator, gets more set and reheats well to become soft again. The tomatoes may get pulpy after reheating but that allows their flavour to meld with the cheese layer better if the leftover is being used to make a grilled sandwich.

The grilled sandwich was actually a very good way to reclaim the missing crust of the quiche :-)

There are some more yellow cherry tomatoes being sun dried.

Will be back with some more recipes using them.

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food and coffee pairing session with Bonhomia and a recipe of apple peach walnut salad with home made feta cheese

Coffee and food pairing sessions make sense if you are someone who likes entertaining with a lot of coffee being served. I would probably have one shot of coffee during a meal or snacking session with friends, but when you are to learn the intricacies of coffee, you got to gulp down a lot of caffeine in one sitting. I was ready to take this caffeine assault greedily when Bonhomia hosted a coffee and food paring session at Le Bistro du Parc.

Le Bistro du Parc is a standalone French bistro located at the edge of a park in Moolchand market, a nice place to sit and relax while dining with the company of old trees. The bistro, founded by Naina de Bois-Juzan serves French cuisine using locally grown seasonal ingredients, not too difficult as we are growing almost everything now. The fresh ingredients make a difference and that is evident at Le Bistro du Park, of course I could witness the finesse with which the ingredients were handled too. More about that later.

Bonhomia is a premium brand of coffee that makes coffee blends packaged in capsules compatible to Nespresso machines, the coffee blend capsules are made for a single shot of coffee and are packaged in boxes of 10 capsules each. Now that is a convenient way to enjoy great coffee in the comfort of home. Coffee that gives a perfect crema, as I had learned with Illy coffee master barista Nicola Scognamiglio from Italy.

The coffee blends that go by the names like 'Free love', 'Dark deeds', 'Black viel' and 'Vanilla artisan' are blended creatively. Mr. Tuhin Jain (CMO, Bonhomia) introduced us to the nuances of Bonhomia coffee blends and that these are all sourced from high altitude coffee plantation of south of India. Mr Kunal Bhagat joined us later and discussed how these capsules of coffee are made locally using the best coffee beans.

A Tomato tartar prepped with lime juice, esplette pepper and basil wrapped in a pickled ribbon of radish was served in dainty portions along with the blend Free love. The freshness of the salad bites fits well with a medium strength espresso shot.

Next was garlic bread topped with baby romaine folded around goat cheese, sun dried tomato and radish microgreens paired with Dark deeds served as Americano. Sharp edgy flavours raising the bar to a stronger full bodied coffee blend.

Next came dainty bites of stuffed puff pastry with olive tapenade and confit peppers paired with Black veil, the most potent coffee blend of the day. It was served as cappuccino but I tried the espresso shot too and it is indeed a very robust coffee blend.

The dessert platter had an assortment of miniature almond financiers, lemon Madeleine, crisp meringues and pistachio tuiles with some fresh fruit bites. Vanilla artisan blend served as macchiato is perfect with dessert and the pairing was received well.

Now it was a lot of caffeine in my bloodstream. The food was beautifully done, the dainty lemon Madeleine proved that the French bistro is worth it's salt. The finesse in every little detail is very evident, the taste hits the spot perfectly.

And then I had to make the next meal that could hydrate me and be filling at the same time. I made this apple peach walnut salad with home made feta cheese and home grown rucola greens. Nothing could have served the purpose that day. The salad was so good it got repeated for the weekend breakfast too. Yes we do eat unconventional things for our meals.

Home made feta cheese makes so much sense for me, the reason being I love the creamy feta so much and the packaged feta is just too expensive. So I have to do the effort of making feta, it takes some time but I try and make large batches and refrigerate for about 2 weeks. Will share the recipe of feta cheese sometime soon. Have not been able to photograph the process for the purpose.

The dressing... whisk everything together

balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp
lime juice 1 tsp
brown sugar 2 tsp
salt and pepper to taste
crushed walnuts 2 tsp or walnut oil few drops

Chop one large green apple and 4-5 small peaches. The Himachal green peaches are starting to come right now and I love the complex flavours they pack. Chop about 15 walnuts halves and mix with the cut fruits. Tear a handful of rucola leaves and add. Drizzle the dressing and toss the salad.

Serve immediately topped with as much feta cheese as you want. We had kept some feta cheese on the side too and kept digging the fork to pick up the creamy cubes of goodness.

This apple peach walnut salad will be really great for a summer menu, especially during day time. If you chop the fruits a bit smaller the salad can be served over garlic bread too. But we eat breads very occasionally so the large bowl of this salad will be good any time. Check out another Peach and feta salad to see how you can make variations of this salad.

No coffee with this salad please.

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101 alternative flours | polenta cakes made using makki ka atta, with arrabbiata sauce | quick recipe of arrabbiata sauce

Polenta is my favourite. I think I have said it earlier too, probably many times. I like polenta as much as I like my makki ki roti. I know both are very different from each other but I always found a similarity, the sweet nuttiness of cornmeal that is so characteristic and the way both can be served in so many different ways.

The polenta I used to make earlier with corn grits was a regular for some time and then I started adding fresh corn to polenta, see the gruel type polenta with mushroom goodness and fresh corn polenta with cheese. Check out the baked polanta sticks too.

But then I decided to use regular makki ka atta (corn meal meant to make makki ki roti during Indian winters) to make polenta cakes. The result has been very encouraging, the polenta cakes set well and I can toast them really well on the cast iron skillet too. It doesn't take too much time in preparation and tastes really good. And the best thing is, that it is great even at room temperature. A win win situation really.

This time I served it doused with arrabbiata sauce and sage butter infused vegetables on the side, sprinkled generously with Parmesan.

ingredients...
(2 meal servings with loads of stir fry vegetables)

for polenta cakes 
corn meal (or polenta, I used makki ka atta) 150 gm
water 300 ml
grated cheddar 1 tbsp
salt to taste
oil or butter to grease the skillet and the metal rings to shape the polenta cakes

*arrabbiata sauce (I used home made) 1/4 cup (recipe in the end)

for stir fry vegetables
cauliflower florets 2 cups
cabbage chopped in big chunks 2 cups
sage leaves (fresh or dried) about a dozen
butter 1 tbsp
salt and pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top of the platter

procedure..

Mix the ingredients for polenta cakes in a deep saucepan (except butter) and whisk together. Now place the saucepan over stove and cook while whisking till the mixture becomes thick and soft dough like. Take the pan off the heat and grease the steel rings.

Now place the steel rings over silpat or a greased surface, spoon about 2 heaped tbsp of cooked mix into each ring and press down making a flat round cake (or tikki like shape). You can spread the whole cooked dough over a greased silpat and let it cool while it sets. Then cut into squares or triangles.

You can toast the polenta cakes while still hot as they set perfectly well and quickly. Or you can cool down completely to be sure, the cold polenta cakes can be refrigerated for later use too. Toast on a greased skillet to serve.

Since I make them fresh and toast them while still warm, it takes about 20 minutes to make two servings.

Smear the cakes with prepared hot arrabbiata sauce, grate Parmesan cheese over them and serve with meat or vegetables or whatever you like it with.

I made this sage infused stir fry for the side.

To make the stir fry parboil the cauliflowers and cabbage chunks separately in slated water. Drain and immediately dunk into a skillet with butter and sage leaves, toss on high heat for a couple of minutes, season and serve immediately.

recipe of arrabbiata sauce..

ingredients 
garlic cloves 10
fresh oregano leaves 2 tbsp or dried oregano 1 tsp
fresh thyme leaves 4-5 springs or dry thyme a generous pinch
fresh basil torn about 12 leaves
red chilly flakes 1 tbsp or as per taste
salt to taste
chopped tomatoes (preferably blanched and peeled) 3 cups
balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp
olive oil (extra virgin) 1 tbsp
Parmesan cheese grated 2 tbsp

procedure

Add olive oil, garlic and herbs in blender and make a coarse paste. Add the paste to a pan and place the pan over stove. Let the oil and herbs start sizzle, add the chilly flakes followed by the tomatoes, salt and balsamic vinegar. Stir and cook till it all gets saucy.

Add the grated Parmesan and let it get incorporated. Adjust seasoning and consistency as required and bottle. Keep refrigerated for about a a couple of months.

This sauce is a good condiment to keep in the fridge. You can toss a quick pasta or even boiled potatoes or cauliflower with this sauce to make a healthier meal. Never make this kind of sauces in small amounts, make enough for at least three to four meals for the family. I like the arrabbiata auce hot but you can always tone down the chilly heat a little bit.

With this polenta cakes the sauce doesn't taste so hot. Polenta tones down the heat as it is a bit bland in taste, with a nutty taste of it's own of course.
.

This is one of the most comforting meals one can have, that too very calorie efficient I must add. All the good fats, not an overload of proteins and all the carbs in the meal are complex and low glycemic index type.

Healthy meal.

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