Month: August 2011

AU BON PAIN (Koramangala)

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Au Bon Pain (pronounced O-Bo-Pa) literally means ‘the place of good bread’. So when you walk into the ‘international bakey café (as they call it) that’s what they expect you to expect.  I like that they call it a bakery café – sets them apart from the gazillion coffee shops around. Not that they don’t serve a mean coffee… but you get the drift! The outlet at Kormangala is located at the Sony world junction. The said junction becoming a kind of a food fest, what with ten to twelve restaurants within a 500 meter radius! Au Bon Pain is quite easy to locate considering the trademark cheery yellow colour of the café. (I have the same colour painted on my walls, so excuse me for thinking it’s a great colour!). That said – where do you park once you reach that junction?? Street parking in this area is like a game of musical chairs and most often than not, you are left without one! We parked next to Sapphire and gingerly crossed the mammoth …

Baked Beans and Pasta Hot Pot

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I am always trying out new recipes that I fish out of the internet or my gazillion new cookbooks. I almost forgot how much I love the good ole recipes of yore. No, I’m not talking about the medieval times, just rewinding to school. One of my first cookbooks was one that I stole from mom. The free cookbook that came along with the Preett Pressure Cooker! It had a ‘how to use a pressure cooker guide’ as well as ‘101 recipes from India and Elsewhere’. (with pictures!!) I was hooked. J I came across it, while cleaning my bookshelf last week. Yellowing, tattered along the edges, a few pages coming loose of the thread binding – but there it was, waiting to exhale. I picked it up gingerly and spent an hour reading it cover to cover. (Yes, I read cookbooks.. . how many times do I have to say it?). I zeroed in on the Baked Beans Pasta recipe. It was considered very international in those days. I know… we were easily impressed! …

Sweet Cinnamon Rolls and Savory Dill Rolls

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Featured in Tastespotting.com – 14th Jan 2012 Now that I think I can bake bread, I have ventured further into this magical world of yeast. Yes, I know it sounds corny, but it’s becoming an addiction. Somehow knowing that this little growing organism holds the key to a perfectly turned out loaf, makes me feel completely ensnared by it. Like a little slave, I wait for the yeast to make its presence felt and grace my little loaf with the air and water it needs to grow. Amen. This week I made rolls. I used the basic bread roll recipe and decided to twist the dough around – literally. In the end I had these pretty looking swirls enclosing raisins and cinnamon for the sweet lovers and dill and onions for the savory tongues. If you are going to have someone over for tea, I suggest serving a couple of these. Very very fun and tasty. Or have them for a fantastic breakfast – beats the crap out of store cereal anyday! Cinnamon Rolls and …

Babaganoush

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So what exactly is Babaganoush? (Ba-ba-ga-nuj). Sounds exotic I know – Like a word that twirls around in your mouth and takes you to some strange colorful dream in the Arabian nights. Well, Babaganoush is a Lebanese dip, a cousin of my favorite dip – Hummus. The hero of this recipe is the lovely aubergine/eggplant. The eggplant is broiled/roasted over an open flame before peeling and mashing, so that the pulp has a nice smokey taste which is characteristic of this dip. The process is very similar to cooking our Baingan ka Barta in India. We mix it with tomatoes, garlic and onion paste and eat it with rotis or naan. The Lebanese mix it with Tahini and lemon juice and eat it with pita. It’s a small world! But the end result either way – is a glorious, smokey, silky pate that has everyone begging for more.   Babaganoush Prep time: 15 mins Resting time: 10 mins Makes: 8 servings What you need: 1 big Eggplant ¼ cup Tahini (roasted white sesame paste) ¾ tsp …

Baking Bread – In all shapes and sizes

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The warm yeasty smell, the soft fluffy touch, the chewy satisfying taste, the golden yellow sheen – it can only be Bread!! I love bread. I love it so much that I want to sleep on a pillow of freshly baked bread… Sweet dreams for sure. Of course no one really bothers to try to bake bread – not without a bread machine. It’s too cumbersome, when you can just run out to the bakery that’s been making it for generations and pretty much knows how to earn their dough from it! But everyone wants to ‘try’ to bake bread. This attempt was one to scale my personal Everest of the year. Yes, some climb mountains; I make mountains of a mole hill challenge! Anyway I was mighty impressed with the results. *Patting myself on the back*. Just thought I’ll gloat to you guys as well 🙂 Basic Bread Recipe Prep time: 15 mins Sitting time: 2+2 hrs Baking time: 30 mins for loaves; 15 mins for buns/ rolls Makes: 2 loaves or several fun …