From my kitchen to yours

From my kitchen to yours

Thursday, June 30, 2011

DAY 54 : RAJILICIOUS ALWAYS






Every time i hear the name 'RAJ' ..Four people always come to mind

1. Raj Albuquerque-My brother-in-law who is just the nicest guy i know

2.Raj Jathar- the maddest guy with an appetite for food and life that's insatiable..

3.Raj Kaushal...a director and very dear friend who I'm extremely fond of but do not meet as often ....

AND

4.Raj.. As in Shah Rukh Khan form DDLJ....

Still cannot get over that scene in the film where Kajol has returned home from her Euro holiday and she is collecting her bags from outside her house and she imagines she is seeing "her Raj" there....
That was the moment I completely forgot Aamir Khan and was smitten by this guy in a red and white striped t-shirt , with floppy hair, that glint in his eyes , waving out bye....sighhhhhh...

But now enough of the drooling...
Because today is about RAJ NO.1...My bro-in-law...

Well what can I say ..he made the most amazing and smartest decision in life by marrying my sister , and to top it all he gets me as his fun sis-in -law , i can see him laughing right now and shaking his head saying ...YA RIGHT!!!PAIN....

But seriously Raj is the coolest , he is happy , chilled and has his fundas of life right ...He is just the most amazing husband, a great fun dad and a wonderful friend...
When he laughs he gets dimples on his cheeks that my sis adores and she says that he is always making her laugh...

Well i just spent my holidays with him...
Poor guy..had to hang with 2 sagi chicks and 4 kids ..all nuts and running in different directions and must say that ...he was just awesome....
He never looses his cool. always has a smile and has the patience of the Pope...

Every year on the memorial day weekend...He plans a trip and takes the family off somewhere far for a holiday, two years ago we were all at Virginia Beach which is on the east coast this year , we all took a 13 hour car trip to Destin beach Florida from Frisco, TX...
I flew in from another friends place straight into the arms of this beautiful aqua green coastline with powder like sand....heaven and bliss...
Raj and Juggie had their friends also coming in...
It was fantastic...I got to know a bunch of new people who were so warm and welcoming and had a great time..
Raj just ensured that both my ZZ'S and me had the holiday of our life..
We used to go to the beach late morning and hang there till late evening ...Thank you Raj for making me a beach bum... the kids and me were the colour of Scooby-doo, by the end of this trip and so freakin happy...

Raj loves good food and every evening , while at home he would say ,"c'mon what would you like to eat", and then he would proceed to take out a whole lota stuff and we would whip up something together and the three of us would laugh, cook and listen to some great music over a glass of wine or champagne....
And the cherry on the cake would be that he would read a story to our collective kids every night and they would drop off to sleep...

He works ...frankly all i know is that he does stuff with computers that i do not understand...I'm just not tech-savvy and that's that...
And he cooks , he also helps with the cleaning and looks after kids (while my sis and me went out shopping)
And Zene just loves her 'Uncle Raj"...
I made this while in Destin for Raj, Juggie and all their friends...and am dying to share it with you because it turned out really yummy, we'll they all said so....

Pork Chops ala RAJ...

1 kg pork chops
Horseradish paste
Cajun blend dry
Mustard
Salt
Olive oil
Lime

I put all the pork chops in a dish and really did not use any measurements..
I sprinkled the dry Cajun blend over all the chops...
then squeezed the mustard over them but not too much...
also added 2 tbsp of the horseradish paste..
added minced garlic and chili flakes
3 squeezed limes and a luscious pour of the extra virgin olive oil ....
blended it all in with my fingers and then took a fork and poked it so that the marinade gets into the meat and then let it stay in the marinade for 24 hours

Along with this i made a pasta salad with the most amazing vegetables i could find at the super market

Tri-coloured penne
Snow peas
Asparagus
Bell peppers
Broccoli
roquette leaves
crispy baby lettuce leaves
Tons of fresh basil
pine nuts
extra virgin olive oil

So after a long day spent getting sun-kissed on the Destin beach, while everybody jumped from the sea into the pool, i took a dip to get rid of the saltiness and went up to make this dinner ...

I heated the oven to 170 degrees and when it was heated put the pork chops in for 45 minutes....
i then took them out and put them in a pan to brown and reduce the liquid...
the chops were ready in about 25 minutes...

And then i went for the pasta salad which i had pre-cooked a night before ...because as i was officially a beach-bum ..i was not going to get all this ready on time IF I STARTED NOW...
So cut all the vegetables and power boil them separately..

In a large bowl mixed all the vegetables and the pasta together and drizzled it with olive oil and salt..
Pulled all the basil leaves apart, added the pine nuts that had been roasted , olive oil , 2 pods of garlic and 3 cherry tomatoes...and as I'm an extremely unbelievably lucky girl...the mixer just did not work...

So there went my pesto ...

But frankly all was not lost because I added some olive into the pan,fried the garlic, added the tomatoes , the pine-nuts and then just slightly sauteed the basil...the entire condo was filled with this amazing aroma...i just needed to be serenaded by a hunky ,tawny Italian with a husky voice...singing to me the Andrea Botticelli song that I'm in love with .......
But no such luck...

Well dinner was ready and thankfully , Juggie and Raj's friends all really liked it..
This was our last meal at Destin beach and needed to be a celebration ..
so to all the wonderful new friends I made, who treated me like family...

Sonia and Dax and your lovely boy Yohan...big God Bless
Michelle and her two lovely angels ..Allie and Zach...enjoyed all the health food we tried having
Bud...you are an amazing guy and wish you happiness

AND NOW TO JUGGIE, KYLE, CRUZ and the non-filmy RAJ in my life...
Thank-you for always welcoming me with open arms , giving me the most comfortable, warm , fuzzy , mad , adventurous , crazy holidays ever..
This dish that i conjured up in Destin, will always have your name on it..

Here's presenting lovely juicy pork chops with a pasta salad ...''RAJILICIOUS ALWAYS"...

This dish will always bring back memories of a holiday like no other...till we meet again...
Love and happiness

P.S. will now nail bheja masala ....so can make it like its supposed To be made , the next time around ...

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

DAY :53 I'M DIFFERENT...WHOOPIE PIES







Its 4.30 am and I'm wide awake...

Well I'm jet-lagging and really want this to stop..

It's been a week since I have come back from vacation ..and there is something different about me...firstly i have started drinking coffee...

And every time the sky darkens and its pours I have this deep urge to walk in the rain and drink, hot ,strong and sweet hazelnut coffee..

And 1 have never been somebody who drinks coffee or tea...
I'm a water body..ha ha ha

Any way while I try and fathom ..this skip in my step and this naughty smile on my face..

At 4 freakin 30 in the morning ..me and Taz are roaming around in the house...
The sky looks beautiful , bird sounds everywhere...and I'm not being pulled in different directions to do 150 things , which for some reason "that cool super-girl chick in me " thinks i can do ...

And hell "I'm craving CHOCOLATE"
I can eat chocolate at any time...
But I have given it up for a year to test my own will-power, I do that once in a while after completely O.D'ing on it.

I love dark chocolate ...and I love creamy melt in your mouth , lick your lips kinda chocolate..and I'm driving myself mad...

Yup I do cheat a bit and have stuff that has a bit of chocolate in it...but I'm staying away..

Sometimes in life, you need to know whether you can "SAY NO"...
I know I sound a little crazy ..but that's OK ...'I LOVE BEING ME"

So at 4.3o after walking around with my Taz and drinking water and eating a mango...I start wondering what to do...
And because of the mood I been in lately..
I knew immediately what I want to make..

This is how my heart is feeling, I want to run up a mountain, lay by the sea, play in the rain and feel free...
and so Thank you Google , I found this....

WHOOPIE PIES it is....
Then I read its history and geography ha ha ha ya I know what you thinking .....I really have too much time on my hands..


Ingredients..
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
8 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs

Filling
8 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
2 cups marshmallow cream...which i have not yet found since its too early...
I tsp pure vanilla extract

So while I decided to start getting out the ingredients.. I saw the sun peeping out at me from behind the grey monsoon laden clouds ..

And heard Zeke n Zene walk out saying, "Mama"...REALITY CHECK...
ha ha ha so the day begins...I'm off to wash , brush, pat cute bottoms , feed, change, scream , laugh, go mad ,giggle, chase and have a much needed cup of green tea..

Will start baking post the ZZ'S go to school...


Method

Sieve all the dry ingredients together..
Add the vanilla to the butter milk and keep aside..
Beat the sugar and the butter to a creamy consistency...Add the egg , beating it till its completely combined
Now to the butter mix add flour and buttermilk alternatively , beginning and ending with the flour

I got myself a Whoopie pie tray from 'Crate and Barrel' so that's what I'm gonna use , but you can also spoon little teaspoon full onto your baking sheet , keeping at least an inch of a distance between them as they do spread , like we did for the macaroons..
Bake this at 170 degrees for about 8-10 minutes...

Well I got back and joined my friend Sandy for a walk in the rain to drink coffee....
Ha ha ha it was not raining LIKE WE EXPECTED it to and we were feeling extremely hot and wondering why on earth we going to have hot coffee in this humid muggy weather...
But it was fun and hazelnut is ADDICTIVE and we chatted 19 to a dozen and laughed a lot about stupid and other various things...


WELL I was just thinking of all the times I drank coffee...
and they bought back fun mad memories....

Remember drinking it somewhere at some stop to Goa, when I could not really afford flying there and it was the time I used to dance...the best time ever...I so miss dancing ...
It was a dimly lit dhaba...and the whole group of us were huddled together drinking coffee with a little rum in it , for the warmth, because it was cold ha ha ha

Then I remember shooting for my Titan ad- film with Rajeev Menon in Manali with Parvin Dabbas...and it was freezing and I was wearing this white dainty blouse and freezing ..my hands were icicles, and I was holding flowers ...after some time my fingers froze and production were using it like a vase and were just changing the flowers...for continuity...
Remember swigging small cups of coffee with rum inside at some bizarre hour in the morning again at some quaint paratha dhaba ....
Rajeev and his wife said , it's to keep me from freezing ......

Then walking around in the East village in New-york,XOXO Jeans, boots and a lovely scarf , nose cold and pink cheeked, holding my warm Starbucks and walking around, having hot-dogs at "Gray's papaya", Iwas there to host the MTV Music Awards from Radio City Music hall, and I loved walking alone and doing my own thing...went to the MET and of course Central Park...just me and my coffee..

Then I remember Zeke and me sitting at Starbucks in London , he was just 2 years and 7 months and he was too adorable, (Err he did not fight with me then)and I was pregnant with Zene , and we would walk around , eat Kit-Kat 'for energy to walk' , we'll that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it and then , hanging at Piccadilly circus , or Portobello road , his 3 kg pram slung on my back and hot chocolate in his little flask and hot coffee(sprinkled with Chocolate) in mine...

We'll i have no idea where I am in my head...but I'm likin drinkin ma Coffee

Well the whoopie pies are ready , outa the oven and waiting to be bitten into...beautiful an tempting...
So filled them with the frosting and added tiny pieces of marshmallow to it...
Sandy was on the phone with Dr.Shroff in a very animated happy way.... i don't think they are talking about her back .... But liked how her eyes lit up after a bite...

and Kichie poo just walked in... took a bite and said, "UR back ..... thank you ...!!!!

Zeke has walked in through the door and devoured 2 already and wants to at least eat 8 whoopie pies in all....

So I'm thinking this works ...these little babies have done it ...they work like Magic...

Here's presenting happy , smiley , "WHOOPIE PIES" made with a glint in my eye and a naughty smile on my lips ..fresh and oh so yummy only from "Maria's Kitchen....

Friday, June 3, 2011

DAY 52: SAGI-MAGICAL MOMENTS....



And so after years of being technologically challenged and refusing to change my Nokia for any thing in the world ...

I get myself an IPhone 4...

And I suddenly grew up ...

It's a diff world out there and a whole new ball game ....

Interesting features ,games, down loads and matrix kinda apps...

At first I definitely did not want to do anything with this iPhone creature ...

That looked so swish and did all the right things...

I like my old Nokia that had fallen down ...God knows how many times....

My Nokia was my partner in crime, jumped into pools with me , has been chucked by Zeke, Zene and me , at different occasions and for different reasons..

My Nokia has been with me through, smiles, giggles, tantrums, tears, bad-words, gossip with my girls, heart-aches, power-breaks....it knows all my secrets...

I just need a simple phone for required phone calls and sms's ..

But think I kinda...
Ok im saying it "I love the IPhone 4 "... (even though I carry my beaten Nokia in my bag as back-up)

It has all the basics and some really fun apps...
You can tango, whats app, read books, learn a new language, download music, know which direction you going in , check the weather in Timbuktu ,play scrabble , take really good high resolution pictures , instant videos ,send them , receive them and so on and so forth ... And learning new things every day ...

I've fallen for this contraption ...
Hook ,Line and Sinker ...

And probably will have it roaming with me every where in the back pocket of my XoXo for a long time to come ...

What it has also done is open my world of friends...

And even though I'm a gregarious ,unpredictable ,impulsive Sagittarius ...
And come across like a retriever wagging her tail and running all over the country side.. I realized that I take time to make friends ....

And sometimes I think I have found a friend .. And jump right into it ... To realize that I was completely wrong ...
And then I have also made friends who are my family and cannot think of life without them ....

So to all who were,are and will be part of my life ...

And to the ones who will stay in my heart no matter what ...

I dedicate this ...

To karmic moments , soul connections ...

AND friendly, warm, intriguing, mysterious, ,sometimes drive you mad , adventure seeking , adrenalin charged, talkative,inquisitive, nature loving , charming ,truth seeking , trusting , flirty, lovable, incorrigible , philosophical ,athletic ,romantic ,prey to foot-in-mouth disease , confident and high spirited "Sagittarius" .....

You know we centaurs are clumsy , brash l'il brats...we may not always say the right things and sometimes make a mess of it all , but our hearts are in the right place...

I'm sure PETER PAN was a Sagi...

And so today when my sister Juliet (who is also a mad, sweet Sagittarius and a very talented photographer ) came home with the most seductively delicious ripe and juicy looking cherries, and all I wanted to do is make something that would be a combination of contradictions ,the ripeness of the season with good ole comfort food ...

So here goes

Creme Anglaise

1 Cup full fat milk
1 Cup cream
Vanilla essence or 1/2 a vanilla bean split
6 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar

Method:
In a heavy bottomed pan bring the milk and cream and vanilla to about just a boil , and then take it off the fire.In a bowl whisk together yolks , sugar and a pinch of salt, and then whisk in the hot milk, cream and vanilla liquid in a thin stream.
Over low heat cook this custard stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until it turns thick, please take extra care and see that this custard never comes to a boil.
Pour this through a sieve into a bowl and stir occasionally.
Chill it completely, your creme anglaise tastes fantastic if you can keep it for at least two days in the refrigerator...

Waffles

1 3/4 cup Cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs separated
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Method
In a small bowl stir together flour , baking powder and salt.
In another bowl beat egg yolk slightly. and stir in the milk and oil.
Add this yolk mixture immediately to the flour and stir till its just moistened.
In another small bowl beat the egg whites till they are stiff and form firm peaks.
Gently fold the egg whites into the flour, yolk mix and do not over mix and yes do leave a few fluffs of egg white.
Spoon the waffle batter into the hot waffle iron and cook till its nice and crispy..
Every waffle iron behaves differently so it may take a little longer or shorter time than the 15 minutes my iron took...

Drunken Cherry compote

1 cup cherries sweet
1 tbsp fresh orange juice
1 cup Sugar
A dollop of Golden syrup
A dash of a sweet wine..a Zinfandel, or a Muscat ..what ever you like .....

Method

In a non stick pan over low heat , mix all the above together on a very very low flame, until the cherries are thoroughly cooked , don't feel shy to give it a good boil...because that will give the sauce its thickness and its gloss...

Allow it to cool completely and refrigerate...

What i did is i made the creme anglaise and the cherry compote in advance ..

And on a lovely evening after watching "LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS"....
I went and made fresh waffles , and added a few blue berries in it.....
They were crispy and begging to be eaten, I know that we all eat our waffles with maple syrup ...
And they mostly eaten for break-fast...

But all is fair "in love, war and food "....

So I poured the voluptuous creme anglaise over it and topped it with the Drunken Cherry ...
And bit into a bite of sinful ......MAGIC..

The crispiness of the waffle , with the satiny texture of the sweet creme anglaise and the wine infused cherries... Explode into your senses like fire works on a moonlit night...

We all can't do magic like Siegfried and Roy , David Copperfield , P.C.Sorcar or David Blaine...But we can find magical moments in the simple things in life...

So here's presenting, " SAGI-MAGICAL MOMENTS"...fresh scrumptious and naughtily saucy ha ha ha .....

Only from 'Maria's Kitchen....