Say Hello to Ceasar

Ceasar Awaits!

The most ridiculous thing that happens when someone talks of eating a salad is that you conjure the image of a rail-thin person, counting calories and gobbling greens. Eating salads should not be like that. In fact, when properly constructed, a salad is a meal unto itself. And with so many variations and possibilities available, it is a crime of sheer laziness, not to give the bowl of greens and much, much more a fair try.

So before you turn away, call me mad and what not, why don't you join me, as I walk you through making, easily and on the cheap one of my favourite salad. [As a side-note, it is indeed very good for you too].

The Kofta Connection

As a child I rarely, if ever had Kofta curry (meat-ball curry) unless there were guests coming to our house. Although the journey from the keema (mince meat) to a kofta seems rather simplistic, for some reason Kofta never got inducted into the routine repertoire. 

 

So as a child I always looked  forward to the holidays and the special occassions when there was a great influx of people in our house and naturally the kofta was there to impress.

 

Now take my word for it, making this curry is simple. Nevermind my peculiar family dinner dynamics. The recipe which I have for you here is my version of the Kofta curry. It is not the Bengali recipe that I am used to.  The pungent Mustard oil and the other spices that go into it is an acquired taste.

 

My friends are coming home tonight and none of them are Bongs. Keeping that in mind I re-worked the recipe. It is prepared with Punjabi tadka here. With Diwali right round the corner take the additional 10 minutes to make this gorgeous dish. A little would go a long way.

An Apple A DAy

The Bolzana Apple cake has become quite the rage since Scott Carsberg wrote about it in the New York Times. I followed that recipe and fell in love with the cake. It was a great mixture between a pastry and a custard. A marriage made in apple heaven.

However, this cake also reminded me was so much  of a strudel that it made me want to improvise and make something else. So I decided to make an apple pancake. Prepared much like the original cake yet with the textural integrity and lightness of a pancake. 

It is absolutely genius. So why don't you take my word for it and give this a try. I am certain, when you taste the vanilla butter ensconced apples held up by a gossamer batter you will absolutely fall in love.

It is very easy so enjoy!

Dinner With Friends: Halloween Edition

A head's up. There will be no recipes today. 

I threw a simple dinner for my friends as we geared up for the Halloween festivities. Not that it is culturally required but why waste a chance to watch scary movies, gouge down plentiful of comfort food and have a gala time at it.

So just to let you guys, this is what me and my friends had and the movies we saw while having the food.

Call of the Middle-East: Hummus

I am going to go out on a limb here and say I never had hummus before I landed in Bangalore. It was just something that was not as easily available in the densely Bengali world of Kolkata.

Though late, I lapped up the opportunity of savouring Lebanese and Middle-eastern food once I got exposed to it.

So you might ask, why Hummus? First of all, it is dang easy. So easy that you can say hummus and be ready with a spread to be had in less than 5 minutes.
Second, adding the caramelised onion and garlic like I did here, makes this hummus so delicious that you can base an entire meal around it without missing any protein.

Throw in a salad and get yourself some pita bread (ideally) or crackers and get into the world of this Mediterranean/ Middle-Eastern delight.