SNAPSHOTS: INDIAN ACCENT

This isn't really a review of Indian Accent because I had to run out of lunch to get to office for an exciting corporate law emergency. These happen all the time.

Anyway I had these photos and I love Indian Accent so I thought I'd put them up.

I can't wait to go back to do an actual review.



If the weather allows it get a seat in the pretty garden



Atta and Semolina Puchkas, Coriander Chickpea Tabbouleh, Five Waters





Kashmiri Morel Musallem, Crushed Roast Walnut, Parmesan Papad



Baked Amritsari Machhi, Masala Butter Whitebait Papad



Garlic Khada Masala Chicken

Kulfi Sorbet



Palm Sugar and Tender Coconut Brulee with Mixed Berries



A Charpoy of School Memories

CREAMY PRAWN LINGUINI

"Why does Sea World have a seafood restaurant? I'm halfway through my fish burger and I realize - Oh man....I could be eating a slow learner." - Unknown

You might have noticed that like most food bloggers I tag my recipes as vegetarian, with meat, egg based etc so it's easier for a reader to find what they're looking for. I was quite surprised to realize that this is my first post in the seafood category and that's a shame because I really love every kind of cretin that swims out of the sea and on to my plate.

I haven't cooked fish yet and I find the thought a little intimidating since it's such a delicate meat but prawns are really easy to work with. I've used frozen prawns here and they were no trouble at all. Next on my list is crab, tuna and anchovy. I hope to graduate to fish and the dream is to be able to cook with mussels, scallops and caviar.

If you're a seafood rookie like me then start with this pleasantly light linguini. With no elaborate cooking method involved you can lay back and bask in it's subtle, creamy glory.

 

Serves 2

Adapted from Good Food Magazine
 

What you’ll need:
 

200gm pasta (preferably linguini or spaghetti but this is only for prettiness)

200gm spinach (pok choy if you have it)

200 gm raw peeled prawns (frozen works well)

½ cup milk

3 – 4 tbsp grated cheese

3 tbsp garlic paste

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp red chilli powder

Salt and pepper to taste
 

How to:
 

1. Cook the linguini till al dente.
 

2. In a pot, add the olive oil, then the garlic paste – stir till fragrant.
 

3. Add the spinach and let it sweat, when it starts to wilt add the prawns and cook till done.
 

4. Add the pasta to the pan and the milk and cheese to make a sauce to cover the pasta. Season with red chilli powder, salt and pepper.

 

 

RESTAURANT REVIEW: SPICE WATER TRAIL - CURRENTLY CLOSED

For South Indian Non Vegetarian Food

Chutneys that could change the world. Seriously.

Why is this jewel of a restaurant hiding in an almost defunct market?!

 

LOOKS LIKE
 

 

Spice water trail looks like it was decorated in the early 90s much before the invasion of fairy lights and poorly painted, mismatched chairs. The décor is functional and the design touches perfunctory. Faux temple pillars and a smattering of wooden screens (with not really very south Indian motifs) and some sort of trance bhajan piped over the speakers is pretty much it.
 

 Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing terribly wrong with it. There’s just nothing to get very excited about either.  

I'm sorry about the phone camera photos but even hyper bloggers sometimes leave their cameras at home. Kane Fry.

TASTES LIKE
 

The menu is a scenic, long winded path through south India. The Sole Kadi and Kokam Martini were lively and busy with tangy flavor. The Tamarind Jacuzzi masked the taste of vodka with an expertly blended tamarind and ginger mix with just enough sweet to keep each ingredient’s flavor balanced.
 

The meal starts with papad served with 4 chutneys – sharp raw mango, sweet and sour tomato, insanely fresh coriander and shy, retiring coconut. The Kane Fry was not the fried fish from my companion’s hazy college memories but it was fresh and the batter perfectly tart – making the effort of picking out the tiny persnickety bones completely worth it.  
 

 The dry Ghonghura Chicken Fry was not as spicy as the Andhra cooking I’m familiar with but each piece was well cooked in Ghonghura leaves. The same feeling struck me with the Mutton Puli Manchi and Kerala Prawns in Raw Mango – the meat and prawns were expertly cooked and all the seasoning in sync but at some point the chef seems to have decided to sap the spice from the preparations. I don’t have a particularly high threshold for heat but there was definitely a certain piquancy missing.
 

 Don’t get me wrong, this is very good food but don’t expect the mouth on fire, sweat dripping off your brow, hard to breathe, sort of wallop that a Gunpowder can give its food.

 

The appam was excellent, pillowy soft but unfortunately a little cold. The steaming, immensely filling Ghee Rice is an indisputable star in its own right.

Clockwise from Left: Mutton Puli Manchi, Ghee Rice, Appam and Prawn and Raw Mango Curry

FEELS LIKE

 The service is good and the restaurant great value for money. My only regret was an overzealous waiter who duped us into ordering 2 curries when 1 is more than enough for two people – I was so full I couldn’t try out any of the promising dessert options.
 

 

THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

 

Should you go: Definitely!

Vegetarian Options: Yes

Liquor License: Yes

Smoking Area: No

Address: M 24, 1st Floor, M Block Market, Greater Kailash (GK) 1, New Delhi

Phone: +91 8860080710, 011 30185746

Chunks of Jaggery with your cheque

INTRODUCING THE CANDLE PROJECT WITH A SIDE OF APPLE CRUMBLE

This incredible initiative started by Gruhalakshmi Kumar and Jasmeet Thind coordinate youth volunteers, community members and schools to provide educational facilities to underprivileged children. Already off to a fabulous start, they're teaching around 55 children in Bombay and if the Bombay trials go well may soon be looking to expanding to other cities.

Personally I can't wait for the Delhi chapter to get going but people in Bombay don't need to wait! You can reach them on facebook or visit their website and figure out how to join in the effort. I'm sure they would appreciate contributions of time, money or even teaching supplies so drop them a line. If you can actually volunteer some of your time I'm sure you'll love working with these fun, driven, young people! *Comes with a Reluctant Chef guarantee*

Even if you're not going to do anything else, I recomend that you atleast follow them on facebook - the adorable snapshots of happy children in class (my favourites are the pictures of their art work) always cheer me up.

Congratulations to Lakshmi and Jasmeet for actually doing what the rest of us are always aimlessly gabbing about!

For The Candle Project, this unpretentious, unfussy crumble overflowing with crunchy oat and apple goodness:

 

Serves 6

Adapted from Good Food Magazine

 

What you’ll need:
 

6 apples

150 gm oats

150 gm flour

125 gm butter

70gm sugar

50 gm raisins

50 gm almonds (chopped)

4 tbsp honey

1 tsp cinnamon

 

How to:
 

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.

 

2. Peel and core the apples. Cut them into chunks and pop into a saucepan. Cook with half the sugar (you can even add some more cinnamon) – the apples should release juice but keep stirring so they don’t stick to the bottom of the pan.

 

3. When the apples get tender add the raisins and cook for a couple of more minutes. Add to your baking dish. This is going to smell amazing but try not to eat the cooked apples.

 

4. Melt the other half of the sugar, butter and honey in another pan. Take off the heat when you have a sauce.

 

5. Add the flour, oats, almonds and cinnamon to the butter and stir till you have a sticky crumbly mixture – use your hands if this is too unwieldy with a spoon.

 

6. Make an even layer of the flour on top of the cooked apples and bake for 30 to 40 minutes till the top is crisp and golden.

SNIPPETS: WHERE WE TRY TO MAKE NEW FRIENDS

I have to confess I never thought this blog would last this long.

I thought it would be one more thing I start enthusiastically and quickly tire of. I know it's only been 8 months but I'm still as excited and nervous about putting a post up as when I started in June. I  feel terrible if I'm not posting things regularly (and I know I havn't been) or if something doesn't turn out looking the way I want when I hit publish.

In 8 months I think I've barely managed to get the basics together - the blog presentation, font size and post format. It's going to be a long time before I manage to master sufficient technology to make this mess of food writing presentable. But there are moments I consider milestones (which most right thinking people would probably consider obvious glitches).

Anyhoo, barrelling on with the things I've learnt:

1. I really like taking pictures but it's shocking how mediocre I am at it and also how *@#&*$% difficult it can be. It seems easy. Just hit the round button on the top of the camera but don't even get me started on how much I obsess about lighting. It's why I hate all my restaurant review photos - I usually go out for dinner and all these places with soft, warm, romantic lighting just end up looking dim and vaguely orange.

2. Recipe writing is really hard. Till a friend pointed it out recently I realized I never mention how many people a recipe will serve. I know that's really obvious but it didn't even strike me and now of course I'm mortified and can't believe I missed it.

3. I worry about strange things. This is true for me generally also but now I spend a lot of time being anxious about whether I should specify cup measures or gram measures. I'd like to use cup measures because I assume anyone trying to cook will at least have a cup at hand but I can't be sure these are standard measures and if it's a fancy baking thing I don't want you to buy all those expensive ingredients and end up with a puddle of flour and eggs because the proportions don't work. Wow. That was a long sentence. It's because I worry.

Apart from my fears (there are many more which I won't bore you with now) there are things which make me really happy about this blog. No, it's definitely not it's wild popularity (it is the world's smallest food blog I'm sure).

Starting to write restuarant reviews has been a lot of fun. I really enjoy it and since I eat out a lot it's nice to put my two cents in. I apologize to all my lunch and dinner companions for my embarrassing, tourist-y photo taking every time we go out. So there are definitely going to be more of these. Also I'd love to hear if you disagree. I mean it's great if you agree but I'd be really interested if you had a different experience at these places.

Also, guest posts! Love 'em! Not just because I'm lazy but because when someone is doing something awesome I want to tell everyone! So far I've introduced you guys to Vrinda who has contributed very many exciting recipes I wouldn't have the courage to try, Lekha who with Danish has her own blog that I love, Radha and her lovely blog and Aashmita's adorable illustrations.

I'd like if this was a more regular thing so expect to see more blogs I love, people I admire and projects which I think are interesting. It might not all be food related but then I promise to supply a recipe so nobody forgets this is the world's smallest food blog.

CHEESE AND GARLIC DINNER ROLLS

“All sorrows are less with bread. ”  ― Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

 

 

I don't even know if I should be recommending that you get into this sordid bread baking business. It's a terrible addiction. I've been elbow deep in flour each weekend since I started. I was at this party recently and all I was thinking about was if I get home early I can wake up early to bake these garlic rolls in time for lunch. These are rich, cheesy and gorgeously garlic-y rolls. Pair them with a thick soup for a simple, satisfying meal.

 

Anyway turns out even my blossoming addiction can't wake me up early on a weekend but these rolls were delicious as a late afternoon snack.

 

Once again, many, many thanks to Food Wishes and Chef John:                                                           http://foodwishes.blogspot.in/2012/03/garlic-parmesan-dinner-rolls-can.html 

I've said this before but I'm a huge fan of his video recipes - they really help break things down into simple steps and make unfamiliar recipes a lot less intimidating.

 

 

Some thoughts on this recipe:

 

1. Don't bother adhering to the garlic and cheese quantities prescribed - go ahead and load the dough down with as much garlic and cheese you can take or your conscience will permit.

 

2. You can afford to be generous with the seasoning - it will all add up to a hot, cheesy, flavourful bun.

 

3. Yes, this is a bun. A dinner roll. Basically flavoured bread. Not a roll or some sort of fancy pastry puff with stuffing so you're going to need to pair it with something to make a meal of it.