“You create something with your own hands, add a dash of your heart and when you see a satisfied diner relishing it, the feeling goes to your soul,”
Maurizio Raselli
It’s the passion, the energy, the enthusiasm, the free spirited and relaxed young chef who greets you. The emotions are infectious and before you know it, the charismatic Maurizio Raselli casts a spell over you. From there he effortlessly leads you into his chamber {read private kitchen, with a large glass window, well lit and fully equipped} for a therapeutic, unwinding, endlessly entertaining and interactive Italian cooking class. That’s what Camp Charmaine was about!
With poster boy good looks , a charm that can instantly disable, and a smile that can light a room, this young man is passionate about what he does. Hailing from the Piedmont region of Italy, Chef Maurizio Raselli is happy to be in India.
He thinks food, he celebrates food and believes in simple, good cooking. His mantra is clear. Use the best ingredients, keep it simple, do it from scratch, cook from the heart, use your head … discover the soul of a good dish! Every dish he created was gold standard! Effortlessly conversing with us, with his ingredients, with himself too, hands flying all over the place, he enjoyed every single moment!
We loved it too! Tremendously. It was a treat being invited to the camp held at the beautiful Hyatt Regency, New Delhi. A little bit about the concept. It’s the brainchild of young, enthusiastic and affable Vidhi Jatia {extreme right below}, the CEO & Director of Charmaine. Charmaine means ‘Charm’ and you can see the concept taking life right from the word go!
Charmaine is aimed at young girls and ladies who are wanting to learn about etiquette – social and communication skills, table manners and dining etiquette, grooming, hair and make up, fashion and styling as well as image consulting, nutrition, wine and wine glasses, wine and cheeses, cooking and plating dishes, cocktail making etc…. the list goes on! They do customised classes for beginners right up to advanced camps.
The interactive cooking session was stellar. Simple, unfussy, good quality ingredients and a load of elbow grease is the secret to Italian cuisine. “Read a recipe, then forget it“, he says! A diehard Italian cuisine fan, he learnt the tricks of the trade watching his grandmother cook.
Lavished generously with small handy tips, some amazingly simple yet so effective. It was a well set menu. We did 4 dishes, each one special, with flavours that pleased. Beginning with a simple, moorish green bean and potato salad, it was surprising how much flavour he incorporated into the almost humble salad. {catch the recipe at the bottom}.
Every ingredient was treated lovingly, right from handling the beans to chopping the spuds, he ENJOYED the process. Expertly tossing the dressing, not distracted by us talking nineteen to a dozen, Maurizio seems born to do this. The salad was outstanding in flavour, everyday ingredients beautifully paired.
Onto the risotto and I was ‘iffy‘. Shrimp, calamari and asparagus sounded exotic good, but I’m not a ‘seafood’ person and was apprehensive. The risotto used Maurizio’s rice of choice, Riso Scotti Carnaroli. He prefers carnaroli over arborio as it has a higher starch content. The risotto was simmering very soon…. This class was beginning to be really good. With 2 dishes to go, Maurizzio decided to show us his muscle power and within 1 few minutes was happily kneading pasta dough. Keep it simple he said. Too many egg yolks do not a tasty pasta make! With perfect eyeballing, he tossed flour, eggs, salt and olive oil …dashes of water, some serious {and well appreciated} kneading later, he left the dough to rest.
While the dough rested, the risotto was done. A nice generous helping of mature parmesan and butter later, it was plated to perfection, with another generous drizzle of EVOO!
With Ruchira quickly doing a taste test, she confirmed that it wasn’t ‘fishy’ at all. I was convinced and then couldn’t stop devouring spoonful after spoonful. Excellent! Creamy, fab texture, good bite, all the flavours just right. One of the best risottos we’ve had. Almost wiped the platter clean, even though we were yet be served lunch.By which time the pasta sauce was being expertly panned! It was very simple and yet very delicious. While the sauce gently cooked {begun with all ingredients in a cold pan so as to not give it a thermal shock}, the efficient chef turned his attention to rolling out the pasta. He spoke about tortini, tortellini and ravioli, dispelling several misnomers we had.
It was a treat watching him create the filling for ravioli. Simply blanch the spinach. Dunk into cold water and then press. Yes, he showed off his muscle power yet again, much the the glee of the ladies. All the liquid must be squeezed out, ALL of it! Then came some expert chopping. You would not like to get a leaf in your mouth he questioned? Would you?Make sure you don’t overstuff them, he warned. We need the bite of pasta as well as the filling.The sauce was as simple as it was delicious. Just enough to add some beautiful moistness to the pasta, some mature parmesan to give it the added luxury, some EVOO…and it was soon gone! He certainly created magic! Bravo!!
Soon it was time for tiramisu. In a matter of seconds he grabbed a HUGE bowl, separate the yolks and white and got down to whipping manually. He was now beginning to enjoy showing off his muscle power to the awed women! The yolks are the easy part he said, eyeballing some sugar into the bowl with the yolks. What unbelievably followed next were the whites. I have never seen egg whites come to stiff peaks whipped by hand in a matter of minutes. We all stared …
What a tiramisu that was. Maybe the best ever. Not too sweet, full of deep coffee flavour, no liqueur as was his choice, the zabaglione mousse and light. Creamy but sans cream, it was excellent.
We soon shifted to the table set at the beautiful Hyatt Club, a private seating and lounging arrangement. With newly done and refurbished interiors, it’s chic, relaxed, well lit and spacious. We devoured a lot fresh and delicious bread with our meal. Chef Bungla who heads the bakery at the Hyatt is one of the most unassuming and humble chefs around. He was sweet enough to part with some sourdough starter. And Maurizio presented us each with a jar of bruschetta topping he made.
Well I baked bread soon after. That with the topping was addictive good! Will share the recipe sometime soon! Until then, here’s the simple bean and potato salad that we loved!
Recipe: Green beans and potato salad, aged parmesan flakes, rocket leaves, mint and shallot dressing
Summary: Recipe courtesy Chef Maurizio Raselli, Hyatt Regency, New Delhi
Prep Time: 5 minutes Total Time: 20 minutes Ingredients:
80g diced beans
80g diced potatoes
5g shallot
10g EVOO
white vinegar
20g aged parmesan
rocket leaves
mint
parsley
almond flakes
Method:
Cook the beans in boiling water for about 5 minutes.
Trim the beans, and open them into two follwoing the natural line.
Cook the potatoes diced in water till soft.
In a bowl mix the beans and slightly mashed potatoes
Add the grated parmesan, EVOO< shallot brunoise with vinegar, mint leaves and chopped parsley.
Plate it nicely with some rocket leaves underneath and fresh grated parmesan on top as garnish.
He can kill with his eyes, he can wound with his smile … David Rocco! Sigh!! An Italian with a disarming smile, words that roll off his tongue with an accent you want to hang on to, energetic, animated, full of life and fun! Such a good sport!! This Italian food guru was at the mercy of a bunch of women food bloggers to “Celebrate the Exquisite Flavors of Italy at ITC Maurya“. Or maybe, we were at his mercy!!
It was an afternoon well spent at the rustic yet elegant West View, ITC Maurya, New Delhi, in animated food discussion. Indian food, Italian cusine, the cultures, the similarities yet the differences and Davids’ India experience. The charmer that he is, there wasnt a moment left silent, a table of 9 women geared up to quiz the Italian chef.
Keeping him company was affable ITC Executive Chef Manisha Bhasin who I have been fortunate to meet at the Singapore Pop Up and at the Ozzie Master Chefs meet up. David is in India for a series called Dolce India.
From the sambhar and dals that he experienced down south, to the Mcdonalds pit stop driving in Maharashtra, from olive oil to mustard oil, from complicated Indian dishes to simple four ingredient Italian meals, we had a banter going. The man’s Italian! That says enough for his style of cooking, his passion for food, his love for fresh produce … and above all his love for his family! His mantra is simple. Make cooking fun! He wants to bring food education back to the table.
David wears many hats – actor, director, chef, father, son. A charmer through & through! He learnt cooking from his mother, and his kids have picked it up from him. How inspiring that at 5 years old, his little twin girls can already stir up a mean risotto! Simple rustic meals, no fancy equipment and ingredients, fresh seasonal flavours, David’s an inspiration to home cooks around the globe. You can catch him on TV – “David Rocco’s Dolce Vita” and “David Rocco’s Amalfi Getaway.” {they air in india too}
He steers clear of controversial questions {like the pomace oil vs olive oil type}, considers Indian cuisine quite complicated and involved, yet loves the vastness of our cuisine with infinite regional variations. At a culinary event with ITC chefs in Mumbai, the challenge was to create signature dishes using similar ingredients. While the ITC chefs were still listing ingredients for ‘galaouti kebabs’, our man here was done in a heartbeat stirring up meatballs using four standard ingredients!
We were deep in culinary banter as the the first course made an appearance. The meal consisted of David recipes. Primo!Penne com Pomodori e Melanzane, a neapolitan style pasta with eggplant & mozzarella sauce. It was fresh, bursting with simple flavours and quite addictive. Mine didn’t seem to have eggplants in it, or so I thought. David talked us through the recipe as we ate. Did I tell you that the bread served was excellent? It was indeed! Nice selection and very addictive.
Secondi! This was something I loved. Saltimbocca di Pollo, chicken with sage cooked in marsala wine. Lilting flavours, chicken done just right, the saltiness coming through beautifully, and the pairing excellent. On the platter was a Beet Risotto which was perfecto! Good to the bite, amazingly delicious. Was the portion too small? Maybe it was just me, but I did wonder if the portions served for lunch were tinier than normal!
Time for Dolce … and amidst much anticipation dessert was served. Looked really nice. Torta Caprese {flourless chocolate cake}, and Zabaglione con Fruitti di Bosco {mixed fruit with espresso zabaglione}. Neither delivered. One spoon into the zabaglione and Ruchira warned me off. ‘Eggy‘ she whispered, knowing my disdain for eggy desserts.
I tried a teeny bit. Eggy indeed. Sadly enough, even the Torta Caprese was overpoweringly eggy. It was disappointing. Nothing some good old vanilla beans couldn’t have fixed!
We got over the disappointment soon as the 100 watt smile drowned the bunch of us. David left soon after lunch leaving us with his invincible charm and accent that seemed to hang in the air! Thank you ITC Maurya for organising the lunch. It was an afternoon well spent, and I love the stylish West View! The other food bloggers present were Anita, Reeta Skeeter, Charis, Sangeeta, Ruchira and Parul. We had a great great time!
“I remember a hundred lovely lakes, and recall the fragrant breath of pine and fir and cedar and poplar trees. The trail has strung upon it, as upon a thread of silk, opalescent dawns and saffron sunsets.”
Hamlin Garland
There’s something about saffron, something exotic, like a caress, light and beautiful! A tiny bit of this beautiful spice catapults a seemingly good dish into an extraordinary one. Pairing it with a panna cotta I learnt that something quite ethereal happened! We have never sat so long over dessert … S L O W L Y is how we ate it, not wanting it to finish. Thats just how sublime the Saffron Caramel Panna Cotta turned out to be.A good panna cotta is one of my favourite Italian desserts, possibly on top of my list. It’s been difficult to get the right consistency as whipping or heavy cream isn’t available here in India. I’ve made panna cotta several times in the past, but have never had much luck with turning them out perfectly, never a 100% satisfied feel!Must have been my lucky day as I experimented with a combination of low fat cream and gelatin and got the most amazing result. Amazing in taste and more importantly amazingly set! I set a few in goblets and the rest in metal molds with a saffron caramel {one in a ramekin too}. I had panna cotta on my mind ever since I received a mail from VAV Life Sciences, Mumbai inquiring if I was willing to review a ‘saffron extract‘ that their company produced. Saffron?Yes please! I’d never heard of saffron extract even though I use the normal dry saffron strands quite often … like here in Saffron, Pistachio & cardamom Kulfi {Indian frozen dessert}, Saffron Pistachio Yogurt Ice Cream, Saffron Rice Pudding, Hyderabadi Katchi Biryani, Yakhni Pulao etc.
Natural Saffron Extract : Saffron is a culinary spice that comes from the stigma of the crocus sativus flowers. Saffron Extract is a specially formulated food grade extract of saffron that has been treated to enhance the natural flavour of saffron, without losing any of its natural properties. There is a reduction in the amount of saffron extract required for imparting the same flavour, as compared to dry saffron. While the saffron leaves quickly stale and dry out, saffron extract does not lose flavour and can be stored upto 24 months. Liquid extract is easier to use and standardized in food preparations compared to dry stamens and can be dosed precisely compared to natural saffron. {For further details you can get in touch with Maitreyee Ghosh – logistics {@} vav {dot} in/ VAV Life Sciences }
With the tag of being the most expensive spice in the world, saffron is precious in many ways, especially its delicate flavour. Gentle and mild yet it elevates taste exotically perhaps like no other spice, saffron is associated with cuisines from India, Persia, Turkey, the Arab World, and even Europe. And I love the way it embraces both sweet and savory recipes so well.This versatile spice goes a long way, and the saffron extract was a pleasant surprise. It imparted the characteristic subtle saffron flavour and colour to perfection. It was easier to use as its already in an extract form so the need to soak it for the obligatory 15 minutes prior use wasn’t necessary. The flavours were deep and pronounced, as was the colour. Just a knife tip amount {about 1/8tsp} was good enough to beautifully flavour the panna cotta and another bit to flavour and colour the caramel.A panna cotta caramel? That morning my path crossed with Raquels who writes a stunning food blog in Spanish, The Tragaldabas. She had the most beautiful panna cotta posted there, and I found my culinary path instantly!! She used Werthers candy in her caramel, and the very idea of a panna cotta with a caramel had me captivated.I went my own caramel way, like how my mother used to make it for caramel custard when we were kids. I remember waiting with bated breadth for the custard to be turned over {always in a green bowl which was reserved for caramel custard}. All three of us sisters would cheer when like magic the well set steamed pudding would ‘plop’ out with this shining crown on top!That was going to be the caramel for my panna cotta, one I decided to flavour with a dash of the saffron extract. Since saffron is such a gentle spice, I kept from letting the caramel turn characteristically dark. Bitter caramel in pudding is yum, but with saffron I turned the heat off the minute the sugar melted and coloured slightly.Perfect Spring dessert, the panna cotta came together like a beautiful dream, lilting, mesmerising, smooth, perfect, like a dream you didn’t want to wake up from. The textures teased the palette and we ate it in silence, everyone enjoying the elegance and caress of this cooked cream. {I made it again yesterday, on request, and to ensure that the magic was for real. It was!!}
[print_this]Recipe: Saffron Caramel Panna Cotta
Summary: Perfect Spring dessert, the panna cotta came together like a beautiful dream, lilting, mesmerising, smooth, perfect, like a dream you didn’t want to wake up from. The textures teased the palette and we ate it in silence, everyone enjoying the elegance and caress of this exquisite Italian dessert.
Prep Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes plus setting time Ingredients:
Saffron caramel
75gm granulated sugar
1-2gm saffron extract {knife tip full}
Saffron Panna Cotta
2tsp gelatin powder
3 tbsp cold water
1ltr low fat cream {18% fat}
110gm vanilla sugar {or plain}
1/8 tsp saffron extract {plus a teeny bit more for topping}
Pistachios, rose petals to garnish
Method:
Saffron caramel
Keep the serving molds/ramekins ready.
Place sugar and 1/8 tsp of saffron extract in heavy bottom pan and melt the sugar to a light caramel. Do not let it burn or it will gte bitter. Swirl the pan often and take off the minute all the sugar has melted. It should be a bright orange colour.
Immediately spoon about a heaping tsp into each mold/ramekin, swirling it about to distribute it.Continue for all the molds. Do this pretty fast as the caramel will harden rapidly. Just in case it hardens before you are place the pan over very low heat to melt again.
Saffron Panna Cotta
Sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let stand for five minutes.
Place the cream, saffron and sugar in a heavy bottom pan and gently bring to a simmer, but not a full boil. Stir often.
Take off heat. Add 1-2 tbsp of this hot cream to the dissolved gelatin to loosen it further, and then pour the gelatin mix back into the hot cream through a sieve. Stir well.
Let the mixture stand for about 10 minutes, reserve about 100ml {optional}, and distribute the rest among your serving bowls/molds/ramekins/goblets.
Leave to set for about 1-2 hours, then add a tbsp of the deeper saffron cream over the tops. Allow to set for another 6-8 hours/preferably overnight.
Demold loosening the sides with a blunt knife and serve with a sprinkling of pistachio nuts and edible dried rose petals if you like.
“All sorrows are less with bread.”
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Is it just me, or does time really seem to crawl when you want life to get back to normal? Japan is still battling its worse ever crisis, the world looks on with fingers crossed, living in hope that things will get better. Hope rests on unlikely heroes, a band of brothers who work tirelessly round the clock with strength and resilience, reflecting the true spirit of the nation they belong to. The Fukushima 50, the bravest of the brave, put their lives on hold while they battle radiation risks to save impending disaster. The world salutes your spirit!As my mind is overtaken by thoughts of Japan, the bread I post today is simple yet comforting, a good classic bread with deep taste. A few days ago, I had this obsessive desire to bake bread. The weather here is changing, warming up rather quickly, an indication that bread baking days are back again.Often I forget to begin the bread process the previous evening; just don’t plan right. It’s such a bother! I’d had focaccia on my mind for a few days. That morning, leafing through my cookbooks and recipes {including Ottolenghi & Peter Reinhart}, figured I was late for the poolish again. Poolish is like a starter, a mother dough, and is also referred to as a pre-ferment or biga. Yet, bread I HAD to bake! The insane idea didn’t want to leave my head, so it was back to the net, proving for the infinite time that net dependency is something that isn’t easy to shake off! One of the first matches for ‘same day focaccia‘ led me to Pease-Pudding! What’s not to love about the name? One step into the delicious blog and it was time to bookmark. Pease-Pudding is hosted by a North English lass who lives in New Zealand. She loves peas and she loves pudding, has a passion for desserts, hence the name.Of the bread she said on her post, “I have made the bread three times now and each time it turns out perfect. The difference with this dough is that it is more like a wet ‘poolish‘ and not one you knead.” We absolutely loved the focaccia. The crust and texture of both the inside and the outside were addictive. It was obvious why she had made it thrice in a week. I would too!! A handsome splash of extra virgin olive oil, a couple of heads of roasted garlic in the dough, a sprinkling of fresh oregano, sea salt & more garlic on top. I couldn’t have asked for better, more comforting bread! It’s simple, is ready to bake in a couple of hours, and the olive oil lavished on top gives it a beautiful crust. Not sure if the addition of vital gluten had anything to do with it, but the insides were airy, light and delightfully chewy.
[print_this]
Recipe:Roasted Garlic Focaccia
By Deeba @ PAB
Published: 2011/03/19
One of the best breads I’ve made recently. I found the recipe at yet another wonderful blog from Down Under, NZ actually, while searching for for a ‘same day focaccia recipe‘.
Ingredients
500g plain flour
3 tbsp vital gluten
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 ½ teaspoon dry yeast
1 head roasted garlic, mashed with a fork
1 ½tsp teaspoon salt
500 ml luke warm water
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil Topping:
Extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
2-3 cloves garlic, sliced fine
Fresh oregano leaves
Life is too short, and I’m Italian. I’d much rather eat pasta and drink wine than be a size 0.”
Sophia Bush
Lombardy seems to be in the news for all the wrong reasons recently, with Nicolle Minetti and Silvio Berlusconi keeping the news hot with the bunga bunga investigations. Meanwhile, Lombardy is doing the foodie rounds here in New Delhi with a unique Lombardian promotion at Italia, the celebrated award winning Italian restaurant from The Park, which offers a variety of authentic Italian cuisine.
Lombardy which lies in the North of Italy is very famous for its food, culture, fashion, joy for life and football. Culinary delights from this part of Italy are very rich and mainly consist of rice, cheese and meats. Butter and cream are used much more liberally than the traditional olive oil base for sauces. Famous Italian cheese like Gorgonzola, Parmigiano reggiano, Taleggio and Provolone are produced in this region. Beef, lamb and pork are in abundance in the recipes of Lombardian food. Signature dishes include risotto milanese, veal ossobucco, cotoletta alla milanese, cassoeula, baked polenta gnocchi, pasta norma, tortellini bolognaise to name some.
I was recently invited to sample the Lombardian menu at Italia for a food event held to celebrate the cuisine from the region. The restaurant manager, Vikas did everything to make us feel at home, and Chef Sumopriyo came to talk us through every course. There were surprisingly very few patrons at the restaurant that afternoon, it being a public holiday; maybe a late lunch was the call for the day.The restaurant offers a fine dining experience, is well laid out and offers seating both indoors and outdoors, both casual and semi-formal. We chose to sit indoors as the winter sun was very hot outdoors. Interestingly, Italia also offers the option of ‘Private Dining‘, a separate room you can reserve for a private party, which offers seating capacity for up to 12 people. My plebeian tastes however make me feel happy sitting amongst the crowds… 26th January, Republic Day, meant a ‘dry day‘ in India, so there was no wine with the meal, but I have to say it wasn’t missed. An array of dazzling mocktails made way for starters. Polenta frita or pan fried polenta cakes, which I had sans pancetta, with mozarella was a perfect beginning to the meal. The texture was wonderful, mildly crisp, and the flavours outstanding. {Didn’t get a picture here as the platter was far too inviting!}. The focaccia was sadly dry and tasteless, nothing to write home about.
Next came Insalata di barbabietole e formaggio caprino, an oven roasted beet and goat cheese salad with balsamic and argula. That had us scraping the platters clean. Excellent in every way, a fabulous blend of flavours and an endearing drizzle of balsamic over the salad! This salad had a winning touch to it … the colours, the textures, the creaminess of the goat cheese. This was my most favourite part of the meal, well almost {dessert always wins in the end}! The inclusion of arugula,a pungent, peppery salad green, continued throughout the meal, as the leaf is widely found in the Lombardy region.
Time for the minestrone al risso, a classic minestrone soup with Parmesan and risotto. Risotto in the soup gives it regional character, arborio used quite a bit in the region as per the chef. There was plenty of vegetarian option in the menu put together by the chef, welcome for me as I prefer a vegetarian spread, even though I eat both. I found the higher use of polenta instead of flour in the cuisine strangely comforting and welcome.The soup was followed by pizza con patate, pollo e gorgonzola, or pizza with potatoes, chicken and gorgonzola cheese. Took me right back to my one and only visit to Milan in the late 1980’s where we tasted our first authentic Italian pizza, and were totally blown away. The one at Italia was sans a pizza sauce, very light {almost too light for a main meal I would say}, a paper thin crust, almost like a popaddum, yet pleasantly satisfying. It had more a starter like feel to it.The next 3 items came in small portions on a single platter {on special request to the chef} as the meal was now beginning to get filling already. Even though the portions were small, after a while eating and tasting so much becomes laborious, and I wanted to do justice to the menu. We had risotto alla milanese, a classic saffron risotto, which I found a tad disappointing. No deep or outstanding saffron flavours in it. The tortellini alla bolognese, mince meat dumplings with Parmesan which I left for Mr PAB to do the honours as I was too full. The dumplings he said were very good, the sauce was just a regular creamy tomato one. I did sample the 3rd dish, ravioli de zucca, pumpkin ravioli in a butter walnut sauce, which offered a gentle mingling of flavours. This was one course I could have gladly skipped for the next.Cotoletta alla milanese, breaded veal escalopes served with a spaghetti tomato basil sauce followed. This was excellent. The escalopes done just perfectly, with a great flavour combination. Very very enjoyable. On the platter too was pangasio al farno, or baked river sole with salsa verde and mustard potatoes. I am not much the fishy person, but Mr PAB enjoyed the flavour on the sole a lot. The third sampling on this platter was the malfatti ricotta e spinaci, ricotta cheese and spinach malfatti, which was very passable. I found it far too dense and low on taste. A good malfatti is amazing and addictive, even though the name might mean ‘poorly-made‘!The chef had put together a selection of the menu, a total of 13 items and I do wish I had seen some mushroom on my selection; I sorely missed that. The meal was lavish, course after course. Each course had a good selection on offer though the pressure of tasting so much was soon bearing down on me. In my humble opinion, I think the tasting menu might do better if it is trimmed down to a fewer items, and a lower cost perhaps. There is no way I could do justice to the huge selection on offer without feeling full.We finished the meal with an indulgent dessert, one that was fabulous – panna cotta alla vaniglia e lamponi … an sublime & satisfying vanilla bean panna cotta with raspberry sauce. Yes, it was wonderfully creamy {as heavy cream panna cottas always are}, not overbearingly sweet, perfectly complimented by the raspberry sauce. Thank you Italia and the Park Hotel Group for having me over to sample the menu. I do wish I had a much larger appetite and could have sampled each item.
The event is on until the 6th of February 2011 at Italia, DLF Promenade, so do hurry over if you are in the New Delhi region. Make sure you go with a big appetite!
Date: 21st Jan – 6th Feb 2011
Venue: ItALIa, 2nd floor, DLF Promenade
Timings: Lunch and Dinner
Average price for meal for two: Rs.2500+taxes (without alcohol)
♥ Thank you for stopping by ♥
“The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it…”
Oscar Wilde
Having kids completely changes the meaning of the word Mondays, and the meaning of manic as well. Before ‘they‘ came along, I never had an issue with Monday, e v e r, since the airline industry where I worked with worked the year around on rotating rosters. The cliche “I Hate Mondays” and “TGIF” made little sense to my existence. Not so now. I meant to post this yesterday for Meatless Mondays, but drama is part of our lives. All night Sunday the daughter threw up incessantly … which meant LAUNDRY {that was my first thought!}, and mopping and cleaning till kingdom came. It also meant a 6am dash to emergency to get her a couple of shots to stop the ‘volley‘ {Just as well, there’s nothing almost nothing that an injection can’t fix!!} Yesterday was B A D, but all is well now!
Recently read that quote above @ Barbara Bakes and it fit right in when I saw Sara’s post on beautiful One Tribe Gourmet. I forgot about my last VERY disastrous experience with gnocchi, the elusive little pillows of heaven, which had floated away in oblivion. I forgot that my last attempt, as part of a Daring Cooks challenge, left me crying copious tears of grief, while the sympathetic family slowly slurped the salvaged clouds from deep platters. Remind me never to try gnocchi again I ordered Mr PAB!He walked into the kitchen, saw me elbow deep in flour, and gave me a quizzed horrified look. Yes, he has the memory of an elephant.“What’re you making today? Haven’t you made this before?”, he said trying to keep it ‘mild’. I suspect he saw my pale face and did the disappearing act, past memories quite obviously reflected in his expressions. Why O why, I kicked myself, did I have to get tempted again?A 2 year gap must have honed my culinary skills in some good way I pleaded with my inner self, yet dashed off to beam the One Tribe Gourmet girl in from twitter! I needed H E L P & a boost of twitter self-confidence!Luckily she was there, and halfway through my tediously sieved boiled potatoes {I still can’t believe I sieved 3 pounds of boiled potatoes, while Man Friday stared at me bemused!} Bet he never thought anyone would ever push boiled potatoes through a sieve. Well, neither did I, but here I was. Man Friday knows better than to question me when I am elbow deep in dough, so he returned to humming his irritating songs and returned to do the dusting! Tweet-time….’Sara, help! Am I right or am I wrong? Consistency of the dough? Help help help!’ YIKES, I had done it again!There was no backing off as by now I had the potatoes done & the peppers roasted.Gnocchi is fiddly, but not as fiddly as macrons. Keep in mind that you must not boil them aggressively on a full rolling boil. A mild simmering boil is good for these pillowy whimsical creatures. You must read Sara’s advice for the perfect gnocchi, and if you still are unsure, catch her on twitter. She is most helpful and one of the sweetest girls around. If you say you know Shahrukh Khan, she might even fly down and make gnocchi for you in your kitchen … she’s his biggest fan!! Surprisingly enough gnocchi keep well. We had them for lunch and I boiled some and kept them flat out on a tray for the kids for dinner as they were in school. I thought I’d reheat them, but had second thoughts and decided to make them a little luxurious. So I simmered some unsalted butter with Tuscan spices that my younger sis had brought for me recently, and gently simmered the ready gnocchi in the flavoured butter. The daughter was over my shoulder with a fork, and dug in every 2 minutes to have another! The kids really enjoyed them too, and the sauce with a dash of Worcestershire sauce! It was worth all the hard work, and a great meatless meal. Of course I served it with a char grilled broccoli salad, my favourite winter side from Ottolenghi!
Homemade Potato Gnocchi with Roasted Pepper Cream Sauce Adapted minimally fromSarah’s post @ One Tribe Gourmet Recipe Adapted from Ron & Colleen Suhanosky’s book Pasta Sfoglia Potato Gnocchi
3 pounds Idaho Russet Potatoes { I used our local variety}
3 cloves of garlic, minced
50gms grated cheddar
1 1/4 cup all purpose Flour {extra for dusting} {Original recipe has 1 cup APF}
2 tsp salt
1 egg Method
Boil or pressure cook the potatoes until tender. {Use a knife to determine if the potatoes are tender}
Drain, peel the potatoes and pass them through a ricer, food mill or a sieve. {I sieved them, a first for me, and though it was hard work, the result was unbelievable smooth}.
Spread all purpose flour on a clean, dry work surface and place the potatoes on the flour. Add the salt, egg, minced garlic & cheddar.
Knead the dough gently into a 10 by 8 inch log. let it rest for 2 minutes.
Lightly dust a clean, dry work surface with flour. Cut the log into 4 equal pieces.
Roll each piece into a 1 inch thick rope .
Cut the rope into 1/2 inch wide gnocchi.
Mark the gnocchi with rolling it over back of a fork. {These marks help the sauce cling to the gnocchi}
Boil the gnocchi on medium high heat. Drop few gnocchi pieces at a time. Let the gnocchi come up to the top and drain.{I fished them out with a tea strainer}
Add to the sauce. Roasted Red Peppers & Cream Sauce
4 red bell peppers, roasted
3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce {optional/to taste}
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup low fat cream
Fresh Basil, few springs, chiffonaded Method:
Preheat the oven to 200C.
Place the peppers on a baking sheet, coat them with a little oil.
Bake until skins are blistered. Take out of the oven and let them cool covered in a glass/steel bowl covered with a kitchen towel/napkin.
Peel & seed the peppers. Add the pulp into a blender and process until smooth.{I used an immersion blender}
Sauté onions & garlic in the olive oil.
Add the pepper mixture and Worcestershire sauce. Mix.
Add salt & pepper, and then add the cream and basil leaves.
Saute for 2 more minutes over low heat.
Drop the gnocchi into the sauce and mix gently to coat.
Serve with a garnish of fresh basil.
