Wednesday 31 July 2013

First Event of 2013-14 | ‘ONLY’ Food For Pregnancy | Cookbook Giveaway


Hi All!!
This year the events are going to be more health oriented and to start off with is going to be an interesting yet challenging theme..Pregnancy Food.
Pregnancy is a long period of 9months towards motherhood, at the end of which the woman can hold the bundle of joy, her baby, finally in her hands. It is a well-known fact that what a mother eats during pregnancy is important for her health, also  the health and development of her baby. Therefore it is important for every mother to eat right during this period

Tuesday 30 July 2013

दम परवल​ (Dum Cooked Pointed Gourd) & Flax Seed Flat Bread | Lunch Combo |


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Hi!!
It was about 3yrs back, I was entering a new territory, a new job with new surroundings, new colleagues, new targets and pressures. I used to feel lost at times and my best friend in that hostile situation used to be the library, where I could spend a decent time reading various books, either work related or even others too.
Apart from the personal time that I used to spend in the library, I had to compulsorily use three quarters of an hour on records in the reference section. The reference section had books of all kinds, from literature and history to modern technology. And amongst all these books were a few cookbooks too which I could not touch during my officially allotted time but on other days, I could use them.

Thursday 25 July 2013

Banana Rings | Monsoon Special | Shravan Special | Tea Time Snacks | Dairy Free | Step Wise Tutorial


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Hi All!!
It’s been about two years now that I’m off a full time job. At times I do feel that my monetary contribution to the family is very less as compared to my husband, who works really hard to run this family but when I see that I’m able to feed the family with a variety of food, take care of house hold chores, paying all the bills and many more things which are not even noticed, all those negative thoughts are thrown out of the mind. And the most important contribution which  I feel is, that I’m able to connect with the kid, give him time.
My younger kid who has just entered his teens is a lonely kid these days, with no company for him in the society we live… I’m his person. The minute he enters home after the school, he wants to be with me. He has to tell me what happened in the school, which friend did what, what subjects they studied, which movie they watched during break, who ate his lunch box and the comments his friends gave for the lunch box..

Tuesday 23 July 2013

Bhawanee Singh’s Madhra | Himachal Pradesh Cuisine | Jain Recipe | Gluten Free | Shravan Special

 

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Hi All!!

I love watching cookery shows, I can spend hours watching them if I have free time in hand. I love watching Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, Rachael Ray..and the list goes on. Each and every cook has their favorite ingredient, own way of presentation, food styling and I learn a lot from their expertise and knowledge. I pick up so many handy tips. Out of the so many recipes that I must have watched, some get inscribed in my brain and two preparations which had left an impression on me were from NDTV good times, from the state of Himachal Pradesh…The name of the dishes and their location had got imprinted in my brain. I clearly remembered they were was called Madra and  Babroo , both were the preparations from Himachal Pradesh. The Madra/ Madhra is  a recipe famous in Chamba.

Friday 19 July 2013

वांगी भात​ / Eggplant Rice | Karnataka Cuisine | One Pot Meal | Vegan | Gluten Free


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Hello!!
It’s been raining here and I’m more than happy to see that. Monsoon..a beautiful season, in which the sun plays hide and seek behind the clouds. The kids play in puddles and the trees are green, shining with the pearl drops sitting on their leaves. The cool breeze, the thundering, the sunless days..everything is so beautiful!!! My kid loves to go out and stand in the rains with his umbrella and listen to the pitter patter of the falling rain drops…they seem to travel so much distance before they hit the ground, he loves looking at them!!
I love to cook when it’s raining. It’s beautiful to see the rains through my kitchen window, while I cook. Mostly I cook elaborate meals but sometimes I indulge in a one pot meal and then while it rains, cuddle inside the comforter and cherish memories of my childhood.. when after getting drenched in rainwater, me and my brother were pushed to have a bath and then we would cuddle inside the comforter and sleep. Childhood was so much fun!!!

Thursday 18 July 2013

‘ONLY’ SERIES OF EVENTS FOR 2013-14 | Inviting Guest Hosts |

 

Hello all!!

With the completion of ‘Only’ Cooking from Cookbooks, guest hosted by Gauri, the ‘ONLY’ Series would complete three successful years of cooking events. I’m so thankful to all the participants for their continued support in the events. I would also take this opportunity to request the winners of cookbooks from previous events to share a recipe from the book they have won earlier in the ongoing event.

Thursday 11 July 2013

Sweet & Sour Potato | Indo-Chinese Starter | Vegetarian | Step Wise


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Hi All!!
Last few days were interesting in my life, I bought an interesting bunch of spice plants amongst which is an all spice plant too. All these plants are occupying a small space in my balcony. I met food blogger friends of my city, and chit chatted with them over lunch. It was indeed a humbling experience to be surrounded by such immensely talented people. I attended a friend’s surprise birthday party too who will be undergoing a heart surgery soon and I was overwhelmed to see the joy on her face. On top of such pleasant things happening around me, it’s also raining here and I’m loving the cloudy days, the dip in the temperature.
I forgot to mention a very important thing earlier that I’m reading  books too amongst all this, loads of books...actually cookbooks to be precise and my old recipe diaries that I’ve been filling for ages. My bed is full of books these days which I keep flipping through the day, and later at night stand as a heap of books next to my bed..so much for the late night cleaning!!!Winking smile

Monday 8 July 2013

Paul Hollywood’s White Bread & The Lesson’s Learnt | Vegan Recipe | Dairy Free | Step Wise


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Hi all!
I’m back to a baking spree and I do not regret it at all!!!!! As a matter of fact I’m loving it, the entire experience of proofing the yeast and baking the bread is so captivating and I’m so much in love with my breads that I can’t stop admiring them. I’m like a self obsessed kid who just can’t stop praising herself..and for all this I must thanks Sharanya SL, who is reader of my blog and had requested me to post a tutorial on making a white bread.
With all the candor, I must confess that I have baked many breads till now but never  baked a whole white bread only for the simple reason that I’m not very fond of the processed flour. But a request is a request and I respected that and took it as an opportunity to learn new.
I’ve many books on bread baking in my collection and the recent addition to that is Paul Hollywood’s 100 Great Breads. I had read a mixed bag of reviews for this book and decided to buy it simply for the person behind it..Paul Hollywood, who is a baker’s son who went on to work as a baker for many leading hotels. He has also judged many TV shows. This particular book was awarded the ‘top bread and pastry book of the year’ for 2005 by the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards.
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When I started reading the book, I thought that’s it quite simple to understand and also realized that this man does not rely on big tools and machine and depends more on hand kneading, I thought suits me fine. It was only when  I started using the recipe in terms of ingredients and measures that I realized the problem of this book..the weighs & measures!!  The biggest difficulty was that the yeast measure was given in ounces and grams rather than spoons and he also insisted on using fresh yeast like most of all the famous bakers. Fortunately I had got hold of fresh yeast recently and I was more than willing to use it. But measuring fresh yeast in ounces was the trickiest part..Disappointed smile but somehow I sailed through the hurdle..Smile
I tried to stick with the weighs & measures in the book but then I realized that the measure of salt was also high, so I decided to adjust it as per my understanding and expertise..
I decided to use my old OTG and not the microwave for baking.The bread turned out fine and rose well too, but it rose  much more than expected and the bread got stuck into the top heating rods of the oven. Fortunately, I was alert and I moved the bread to the bottom shelf but by then it already  had got a light burn mark  .. The book said that the bread would get ready in 35mins but mine was ready in 20mins, a pat on the top produced a hollow sound, indicating that it was done. I’m still to come across such tips in the book.. When I cut the bread and I looked at the cut slice, the word WOW came out instantly  and after eating the first bite I was a happy to see that it was light, moist and soft but I was also disappointed that the bread was very mildly yeasty, which also explained the bread hitting the top of the oven.. So, it confirmed that the yeast required should have been less and the measure probably is incorrect in the book, which even I had felt earlier, but since I was using the fresh yeast for the very first time, I did not take any chances. Due to which  my bread was not absolutely white..lessons learnt.

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Preparation Time: 15mins | Rising Time: 2hrs | Baking Time: 20-35mins | Serves: 4 | Makes- 1loaf  | Difficulty Level: Moderate


Ingredients

500g/ 1lb/ 2oz strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
1tsp salt
60ml/ 2fl ounce olive oil
15g/ 1/2oz yeast ( I thought less would be better)
270ml/ 9fl ounces water ( I used only about 200ml)

Method

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Sift the flour, add the yeast, oil and spread the salt over the flour, avoiding direct contact with the yeast.
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Warm the water slightly and knead the dough using that. The quantity of water required will vary from flour to flour. Knead the flour for about 10mins, till it’s shows a gloss on the top.
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Shaping The Bread
Grease it lightly and leave it to rise for an hour, till it doubles in volume.
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Punch down the dough and knead lightly.
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Dust the kitchen platform floor with some flour and spread the dough.
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Fold the dough slightly from the left and right side of the dough.
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From the top fold the dough and start rolling it towards the bottom. Roll completely and shape.
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Place the shaped dough in a greased bread tin.
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Let the dough rise for about 40-45mins, till it doubles in volume.
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Dust the dough on top and bake in a pre-heated oven at 230C for 20-35mins till done. A baked bread sounds hollow when tapped on top.
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Remove on a cooling rack. Slice and serve.

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Sending it to my event ‘Only’- Cooking From Cookbooks guest hosted by Gauri.

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