DAY 83 - THE CALL OF THE WILD

And so today on the eve of the release of "Ek Tha Tiger" I am going to share with you a trip ,we all took together a few years ago to Ramgarh..

I have muffins baked for the kids and I'm really excited to go watch Kabir's labour of love...

"Ek tha Tiger" muffins..

Well in a way it is Mini's too , because I know how much of sweat and blood goes into making a film...And I know its going to be worth all the time and effort ..
And I wish them all the success and happiness...

And now , ready to tell you about a holiday we took with Mini's side of the family,with the score of "Ek tha Tiger" playing in the back ground...
Now "Ramgarh" is  a name, that I had only heard in Sholay ...
And for most of my life, what it looked like in the film was what it was for me ..

So when Mini invited us all over to "SOULITUDE IN THE HIMALAYAS"in Ramgarh,  to bring in the New Year...

We were all really excited
Now the task of co-ordinating dates and holidays of all the kids , the work schedule of Arshad , Kabir, Mini and Sandhya and Amit,  was quite a task, but when there is a will there is a way...
And so, we all had our queries about the place that we addressed to Manish, Mini's elder brother and proud owner of both these fantastic properties...

Walking in Solitude...

I remember the chaos in the middle ,as we were leaving for the airport..
Getting all the woollies packed, getting the kids ready, amidst calling Amito , to be on time, and then I forgot Zene's pram, and also which terminal we were to go too...
So we were late ,did not have Zene's pram and were at the wrong terminal...
Wow what a start...

But all this chaos we forgot once we touched "Soulitude in the Himalayas"...

Well we  finally reached Delhi and like really good girls ..
We went shopping en route to Mini's home...
We then changed and refreshed all the kids, got them pottied , powdered , woolened up and ready to get on the night train...

Some where in the mountain...

But we all had to go to Kareem's..
So we put Arshad into a monkey cap...
Thank God for the cold...
And slipped into one of the busiest streets in Delhi,Jama Masjid...
Where we ordered barra kebab's , sheermal and a whole lot of other stuff...
And when the barra kebabs , came , all of us including the kids , pounced on them and for the first time after many hours there was silence ...
Since every one's mouth was full...
And then we heard little Vivian say, " can I have some more"
Well we ate in a frenzy ...
Like you see a shark feeding frenzy...
And in no time, the plates were swiped clean and there were extremely satisfied faces all around...
Arshad meanwhile was recognized and took photos with the entire staff...
Now was time to catch the night train to "Ramgarh"...


Well happy and full, we passed out in our berths ...
When we woke up in the morning ...
We were greeted by the fresh fragrance of green and nippy fantastic weather.....
And two and a half hours later ..we reached "Soulitude in the Himalayas "...

But as the barra kebabs have not yet been erased from the memory of my taste buds...
...
I'm going to give you a dish today made with Lamb Rib's ...

No they are nothing like the barra kebabs...
That was sacred and I just cannot make that, as reverence to its royalty and also because I do not have the recipe.... ha ha ha 

But these rib's are really good so here goes...

INGREDIENTS

Lamb Ribs - 2 kg

A handful of garlic with the cover

Onion - 1 , cut in four pieces

Tomato -1 cut in half

Carrot - 1 cut in half

Bay leaf - 2

Thyme - 3 sprigs

Parsley stalks- about 5

Salt and pepper to taste...

In a large thick bottomed pot, add all the above ingredients....

Add enough water to cover all the ingredients..and bring to boil, then let it simmer on the gas for about an hour...

Please spoon off all the scum that rises to the surface...

After about an hour and a little more , turn off the gas, and transfer the ribs to another plate for storage...

You can then sieve the liquid and use it as stock ...

You cam keep these ribs in the fridge over night ...

ROASTING....

Garlic- a handful

Olives- black and green a handful

Kashmiri chili's - 8 de-seeded 

Olive oil

Rock salt

Pre heat the oven to 175 degrees..

In a roasting tin , arrange the lamb ribs...

Scatter the olives and the garlic and the roughly chopped Kashmiri chillies , seeds removed ...

Throw some rock salt over the lamb and drizzle with a generous amount of olive oil...

Roast it in the oven for an hour...

The call of the wild lamb ribs...

So while the chops are in the oven let me tell you about "Soulitude in the Himalayas" where we spent a good many days in bliss..


Manish , was just awesome...

"Manish the awesome"

He looked after us like you would family...
He took us on long treks into mountains..
And we came back to hot delectable food from the "Soulitude in the Himalayas" kitchen...
And we ate like we had never seen food...
It was so yummy , with vegetables and produced grown on his "River-side property" ...
We also met a "Mountain Baba" , who told us how a tiger once slept in his cave on a cold winter night ...

Tiger- baba...

Manish took us on long walks , down paths filled with green ..
Took us into the market, and fed us goodies ..
we went on drives , had barbeque's...

The best "maggie" dhaba ever....

And I will never forget a break-fast we had one morning ..
It was so nice and yummy and we devoured it with a nip in the air..
And we must have had break-fast for at least an hour and a half...
Chatting, smearing our warm toast with Amul butter and jam made in the mountains...
While all our collective kids ran around...

At the end of it ..
I remember we girls just lay down right there in the grass and basked in the warm sun with our full tummies..
As Ratna, Manish's uber talented wife, kept our kids busy, with artistic activities...
She is the most soft spoken person I have met in my life..
And she has done the interiors of "Soulitude in the Himalayas " so aesthetically, nothing is over bearing . or shouts "look at me" and yet you cannot stop gaping ,at the beautiful comfortable aura this place has , filled with pretty corners and interesting nooks...
Well Ratna,  is just awesome with interiors and has a very keen eye for all things fine and beautiful...
And Manish and Ratna's daughter Anahat , is just the sweetest girl and an awesome baker....

There are some times in life that you never forget...
This was one of them...
Simple , filled with great company. fantastic food , from a kitchen that was over-flowing with warmth just like the owners of Soulitude...
And paths that talk to your soul...

 Manish also took us to his place ,on the banks of a lovely water body...

Pristine and inviting..
Think if we were not freezing as it was December, we would all have jumped into its inviting coolness...

I have not yet been able to go back...
But really want to...
Now more than ever...
Because it was peaceful , quaint and nestled in the arms of the beautiful Himalayan mountain ranges...

Secluded and filled with wonderment...
With stories of a tiger that lurks in the night ...


And the nights were black and silent ..
With the stars calling out to you ...
I have never seen a sky so filled with stars like I saw in Ramgarh...
The most mesmerizing sight ...

And then to sit shrouded under the  blanket of an inviting sparkling sky ...
And indulge in some sparkling wine...
can it really get better...
You definitely work up an enormous appetite..

So now, I'm sitting on my terrace , with the Lamb ribs I have made , sizzling out of the oven..
I have just broken some feta and thrown it over the ribs..
And bits of it has started melting ...
Its just the kind of food you want to dig into on a night filled with stars, ...
So with some home- made bread straight out of the oven and this lamb whose aroma transports me to the mountains ...

I dig in...
Hmmmm...
It is succulent meat that just falls off the bone..
And has such a basic rustic , flavour to it ...
With each bite...
You can feel the lamb melt inside your mouth and  I can feel myself walking up into a mountain ...
And the sweet fragrance of the pine in the air ...


So here's presenting..."The call of the wild" ...
Lamb ribs cooked to perfection..
With a memory of one of the nicest holidays , spent in a place that should frankly be kept a secret forever, with friends

that I would travel anywhere with...
Earthy "Call of the Wild- Lamb Ribs" sizzling hot , rustic and simply succulent only from 'Maria's Kitchen"....