Singhland, Belapur - A Delicious Piece of Punjab in Navi Mumbai

We're always on the look out for nice eateries in Navi Mumbai and when we heard of Singhland in Belapur we were eager to try it out. Simple fare like kulchas, chhole puri, aloo tikkis, rajma chawal and lassi have always been attractive but the nearest place to get these was Chembur Camp as far as we knew. There are many places that serve these dishes in Navi Mumbai but one always looks for that clean homemade sort of touch which is rare. Singhland was started by a friend I met on Facebook, a Punjabi gentleman, and I was looking forward to checking it out.

The hubby had the day off today thanks to Mahashivratri. While the rest of the world lined up outside temples and shrines, we set off to pay obeisance to some good Punjabi food.

We landed up a little early. Singhland opens at 11am but we were there around 10.30. We were met by Mrs Singh outside who said Harjinder was in the kitchen with his staff gearing up for the day. We sat down for a chat while our food was readied.

We asked for Tikki Chhole, and a couple of varieties of Kulchas. The hubby also called for a glass each of lassi and chaas. Hot stuffed kulchas fresh out of the tandoor are just heavenly and I have to say these have me hooked. The tikkis are freshly made with Mrs Singh personally supervising the kitchen. The chhole was soft and flavourful, the spices were not overwhelming at all. What I really liked is the fact that the food had simple clean flavours, and they don't go overboard with spices or oil.

Singhland has a limited menu - there are kulchas, bhature, a few rice combinations, a couple of snacks like the tikkis, then there are a few drinks, and they have gulab jamuns and kulfi for dessert. I liked the fact that they've chosen to do a few things and do them really well.

At present they only have a dine in service though they are planning to add a home delivery service soon.

The Menu

The Menu continued

Aloo Kulcha served with chhole

A well stuffed kulcha with chunks of potato, not a thin miserly layer of filling!

Beautifully cooked soft chhole with traditional home made Punjabi masala

Fresh off the tava aloo tikkis with a green mint and coriander chutney

The massive glass of Singhland lassi topped with cream and flaked almonds and pistachios

Fresh chilled chaas

Singhland is located just outside the Belapur Railway Station in Balaji Bhavan, in line with CCD.
A meal for two will cost less than Rs. 500 making it perfect for office goers in the area and also ideal for those days when you want to eat good desi khana without bankrupting yourself in the process. 

In fact, this is a great place to stop if you're doing a Mumbai - Pune or Lonavala run. A good change from McDonalds for sure! 

Tripura Castle, Shillong - Luxury in the North East

Once again we had a student's wedding to attend and this time it was in Guwahati. Since we were going all the way to the North East for this I insisted that we spend a couple of days going somewhere nice nearby instead of spending all our time in Guwahati. We considered Kaziranga (that's what always comes to mind first!) and I looked at Google maps to see how far we'd have to travel. That's when I realised Shillong was quite nearby and to me, it was much more appealing. A quick search online, and a couple of phone conversations with friends convinced me that Shillong had much to appeal to us.

The first thing to do was look for a hotel and as I looked at the options I chanced upon a photo of a huge carved wooden bed set in an alcove in a huge room with shiny wooden floors. I was hooked.

This was in the Tripura Castle in Shillong and I was sold. I checked out their website thoroughly and then K and I booked ourselves in for a couple of days. As much as I looked forward to the wedding, and spending a few days staying with my college buddy in Guwahati, a part of me just couldn't wait to get to this gorgeous, romantic, old worldly hotel in Shillong.

After a fantastic 5 days in Guwahati we finally set out for Shillong. I was looking forward to a really beautiful scenic drive. Work to broaden and extend the highway is on full swing and thus the drive wasn't all that scenic. Still, we did see hillsides covered in tall betel palms, banana trees, bamboo thickets and eventually, pines.

The hotel is located high up inside Shillong, a little away from the main market areas and city centre, and took us a little while to find since our taxi driver was a little clueless. But what's an extra 15 minutes here or there when you're on holiday? Once we arrived we were welcomed warmly, seated at the open reception area, and we relaxed immediately. We were given a choice of two rooms - the one with that gorgeous bed, and another sumptuous room that opened out into a little private garden. I stuck to the one with the bed, of course!

From the Reception area

The property is a small one. It has a beautiful intimate feel and is just the thing if you're looking for a quiet time. It's just perfect for a romantic getaway! 

This what the rest of our room looked like. 

I loved that there was wood everywhere - old style. No formica, no modern metal or mirrors, just vintage style solid furniture.

 The room also had bits of Art Deco furniture which were quirky and reminded me of my childhood when these were all the rage.

The dressing table in the bathroom. 

The rest of the bathroom

As soon as we had freshened up and unpacked a bit we set off to have lunch. There's a restaurant in the hotel and while it's small, it has a big menu. With a wide choice of Indian (Punjabi/Tandoori) and Chinese there's enough to satisfy everyone. We tried out the Chinese items and were happy to not that most of the options were unique to the area, not at all the stuff we get in Mumbai. 

I loved these crisp pork fritters. 

I also had noodles, accompanied by a pork dish that had beaten egg white to recreate clouds. The dishes had fanciful names I am ashamed to say I have forgotten, but the food was good and the service attentive. 

The restaurant also serves breakfast, which, incidentally, is included in the room charges. Fresh toast, eggs to order, sausages, a selection of teas, coffee, fresh fruit, juice, etc., are all available along with Indian options like parathas, masala omlette, and more. 

The restaurant dining room

We stayed in at the hotel the day we arrived. Though it's just a three hour drive from Guwahati we weren't in the mood to go into town. It was also colder than we'd expected, a sudden cold wave scuppering our plans a bit. Our beautiful room, room service on call, all our needs taken care of, we weren't complaining at all!

Our room had a fireplace and I had every intention of making the most of it. We had it lit early in the evening and spent a lovely cosy evening in, doing nothing, our noses in our books, snacks ordered in, and the fire blazing merrily. Life was perfect.

I must have taken a hundred photographs of the flames... so mesmerising, so beautiful, so magical! For a city slicker like me who's only lived in apartments, and that too in Mumbai that barely has any seasons, staying in a room with a fireplace lit up was on my bucket list of things to do in this life time. Well, that one's ticked off the list now!

The hubby catches up with the news of the world outside

The verandah outside our room 

Rooms that lead out to the garden. It's lovely here on chilly mornings with the soft sun to thaw you.

A view of Shillong from the hotel garden

We wandered around in the city in the morning of our second day there and decided to come back to the cosy comfort of the hotel. Frankly, it was too cold to stay out in the evening and the hotel was so lovely, it was no sacrifice at all. 

We went up to the bar on the first floor for pre dinner drinks and then went down to the Shillong Cafe, situated in the Garden Wing of the hotel, for dinner. 

The bar on the first floor. 

The Shillong Cafe. We grabbed the table right next to the fire place!

We had an amazing dinner here and if we're ever back we're going to eat many more meals at this restaurant. Though I'd been told it serves Continental cuisine only, it turned out they serve a lot of local cuisines too. I had a kickass spicy and flavourful pork thukpa which warmed my frozen bones nicely. K had the roast pork with mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables which was also excellent. I don't have good photos of the restaurant or the food - it was so cold I didn't think I could have managed to fiddle around with my camera, and the photos on the phone didn't come out all that well. 

Shillong itself is a bustling city with lots to appeal to a tourist. Shop for local handicrafts, buy local food products, feast on local cuisine or enjoy Chinese with a North Eastern flavour, walk around Laitumkhrah market or trawl the Police Bazaar streets, chill out in any of the numerous coffee shops, or go sight seeing to places around. Taxis are easily available but be sure to bargain to fix the fares.

The stay at Tripura Castle was really lovely. We're the kind that likes to go someplace and just chill. Maybe go out for a bit but mainly just get comfortable in our room and be. Rest, recover, read, catch up on sleep, and let others take care of us. 

We found the service to be prompt, efficient and friendly. Room service is good and there's an extensive menu of snacks and meals that can be ordered in. The hotel has free wifi, and in case it doesn't work they give you a plug in dongel to use. There's hot water in the bathroom and the our room had two electric heaters apart from the fireplace. We were warm and comfortable. 

The staff will arrange for a taxi if you want to go into town. They also arrange for pick up and drop from Guwahati airport, and back. The rates are the same as outside. The hotel will also arrange sight seeing trips around Shillong if you require it. Cherrapunjee is perfect for a day visit, especially in the monsoons. 

While the Tripura Castle property doesn't boast of the usual swimming pools, discos, spas, etc., it's small and intimate, very well maintained, and guests are exceptionally well taken care of. I'm hoping to go back for a longer stay. 

You can check out more details (and loads of photos) about this gem of a property on their website here - Royal Heritage Tripura Castle

Marathon Bloggers 

Black Forest Buns - We Knead to Bake #25

The chosen bread for February, being valentine's month, for the We Knead to Bake group was Black Forest Buns. These buns have cherries, chocolate cake and chocolate sauce incorporated into bread in the form of buns. The idea appealed to me instantly and I got the ingredients together to make them on a Sunday.

Since K loves jams, jellies and preserves, he has quite a collection and I had his permission to raid his stash for something suitable. I did. I also made my easy pound cake with a whole lot of cocoa powder added to the mix for a home made chocolate cake that I could crumble and use for this recipe.

The Black Forest Buns are basically bread rolls stuffed with a cherry preserve or compote, and crumbled chocolate cake. Ideally they should look like cinnamon rolls and should stand individually instead of turning into pull apart rolls as mine did. The hubby certified the taste to be outstanding, so I'm glad I got that right at least!

To make the chocolate cake I followed the same Basic Sponge Cake recipe that I've been making for many years, with around 3 to 4 spoons of cocoa powder added to the flour. You can add a little milk to the batter if you feel the cocoa is making the batter too dry. Let the cake cool completely before you take it out of the tin. I used a little less than half the cake for crumbs. The rest will be slathered with Nutella and enjoyed with coffee :)

Black Forest Buns

The recipe is quite the same as given by Aparna here.

1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 heaped tablespoon soft butter
1 and 1/2 tsp Instant yeast
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups plus extra maida

For the filling

Crumbled chocolate cake
Cherry preserve or compote or any berry jam. Chunky will give good texture.

For topping

Melted cooking chocolate


Start by mixing the milk and water in a pan. Heat the two till hot but not boiling. Remove from heat. Add the sugar and let it dissolve. Let this mixture cool considerably and then put it into the mixing bowl of your food processor or stand mixer. If you're kneading by hand then just use a large mixing bowl.

Add the egg and the yeast into the still warm liquid mix and stir to combine. Then add a cup of maida/white flour and start your machine. I used my stand mixer with the batter paddle attachment. Gradually add the remaining flour till it all combines. Don't forget to add the salt early enough.

I changed to the dough hook once the ingredients were combined and left the machine to knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes. Once the dough was more or less together but still a tad sticky I took it out onto my work surface and kneaded it by hand till it was soft, smooth and very lightly sticky. Add loose flour little by little as you knead to get there. Use the stretch and fold method to work the dough.

Take an oiled bowl and set the dough aside to rise. I will take a little more than an hour to double. Leave the bowl covered with a damp cloth.

Once the dough has doubled get all your filling ingredients together.

Punch the dough down gently. Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the dough to make a large oblong around 18" x 12" Try to make it as neat and uniform as possible so you have nicely formed rolls at the end. Work quickly so the dough doesn't rise too much as you work.

Once the oblong is rolled out spread the cherry preserve (or whatever you are using) generously all over, leaving a small border around.

Next spread a generous amount of the cake crumbs covering as much of the dough as you can. Try to make the layer as even as you can.

Now comes the tricky part. Start from one long side and roll tightly to form a long log creating a spiral as you go. Tuck in the dough gently and carefully so the roll is not loose. The sides of my dough were a bit too thick so I had a really fat centre so remember to roll it as thin as you possibly can.

Use a dough scraper or a really sharp non serrated knife and cut out individual buns from the rolled log. Arrange these in a tall sided baking tin and leave them to prove for another hour. They will double.

Bake the risen buns for around 30 mins at 180C. Keep an eye on them so they don't become too brown.

 I also topped the buns with dried cranberries before putting them in to bake. Melt a little chocolate and drizzle on top of the buns. Serve them still warm or enjoy them later with your evening coffee or tea. These will be great as tiffin fillers for the kids.

We Knead to Bake

Marathon Bloggers

Choice Pork - A Pork-centric Enterprise from NE India

I received an invitation from Arohan Foods, the makers of the Choice Pork Natural range of products, to visit their Guwahati office and to sample a few of their products. What piqued my interest the most was that this company dealt exclusively with pork. Added to that was the fact that it was based in the NE and claimed to use fresh Indian ingredients only, sourced mainly from the North East. I asked the hubby if he would like to check them out and he eagerly agreed.

We found the office in what looked like a residential building and proceeded to go up. A bright and clean space, the first thing I noticed was a line of huge freezers. Just the thought of packets and packets of pork products sitting in there chilling made me happy :)

We were ushered into the office and introduced to Anabil Goswami, Head - Strategy and Business Development, who welcomed us very warmly. We settled down in his office for a long chat about Choice Pork Natural and of course, all their products. Anabil won me over in minutes. I asked him what made him start Choice Pork Natural and his answer was three magical words "I love pork". If you know me at all you know that these words are absolute music to my ears. It's why I started The Porkaholics on Facebook!

Anabil is one of three friends who got together to start Arohan Foods and launch Choice Pork Natural as a brand. He told me how they were particular about showcasing pork as the star and insisted on having the word pork in the brand name itself. There's no doubt that pork is not exactly the most popular meat in India and there are many biases against it.

Many of us also have misconceptions about the NE, it's people, the cultures, and how enterprising (or not) they are. Anabil and his partners wanted to change a few of these misconceptions and decided to set up a company that would sell its products across the nation - products from the NE, a brand from the NE, with ingredients sourced mainly from the NE, manufactured in the NE.

And thus, around three years ago they started Choice Pork Natural which is now available in Delhi, Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Bangalore, and of course all over the NE states. I was really happy to find out that Hypercity stocks their products because that means I have easy access. They are also in talks with an online grocery chain so you might soon be able to order their products online.

As we talked about the company a parade of the products began to appear in front of us. Sausages, frankfurters, salami, mortadella, bacon, the parade was endless! And it was delicious.

Here are pictures of some of the stuff we ate-

Juicy porky sausages flavoured with allspice berries. These were just fantastic. Since these came out towards the beginning I greedily ate two forgetting about the goodies that were going to follow! We also had garlic flavoured sausages which we forgot to take pictures of.

The hubby loved these, I wasn't so impressed. But that's a personal taste thing and I have to say these were juicy and full of pork.

Lightly grilled slices of salami with bits of fat scattered in each slice making them juicy and delicious. Choice Pork Natural products are made with absolutely no fillers - there's pork meat, fat, salt and spices. No soya. And believe me, we could taste the difference.

As you can see there's a nice balance of meat and fat on these bacon strips. Compared to the bacon I've eaten so far I found these to be very low in salt. Now o one hand low salt is an excellent thing, but since we associate a salty taste with bacon I was a little confused with this one. It's excellent quality bacon though and I would love to make my bacon jam with this.

This belly roll was made on trial and launched only locally in Guwahati during Christmas and New Year. It was the best Indian processed pork product I have ever eaten and I cannot wait for it to be launched properly all over India. Can you just imagine these with a couple of fried eggs and toast for breakfast? Heaven on a plate!

Mortadella with pistachios! I love this combination and I'm really glad that there's an Indian company making it and doing a good job of it too!

You can see more about the products and where they're available on the Choice Pork Natural Facebook page

The visit to the Choice Pork Natural office in Guwahati was one of the highlights of our trip to Assam. We had plans of going out for lunch but after this smorgasbord of delicious pork in every avatar we just rolled back home!

Pane Siciliano - We Knead to Bake #24

The new year began with a beautiful bread on the We Knead Bake group. The first bread for 2015 was Pane Siciliano, a semolina bread from Italy. It was exciting for me because there were new elements (for me) involved in this recipe - I'd never made a bread with semolina, and I'd never made a pre-ferment before. What a great way to start the new year - with a chance to broaden my bread making horizons.

The recipe is an easy one but the process takes some time. Ideally you should do it over two days giving the poolish, or in this case, the crescuita, time to develop properly overnight. The Pane Siciliano is traditionally shaped into the Mafalda (snake) or the Occhi di Santa Lucia (Eyes of Santa Lucia). I went with the Mafalda. The resultant loaf wouldn't be winning any prizes in the looks department but this was one delicious bread! And whatever reservations I had about making a bread with semolina simply evaporated as soon as I cut the first slice.

I started the crescuita in the late morning and by the time my dough was ready to prove for the final time it was already a little late. I didn't want to stay up baking till late in the night so I tucked it into the fridge and baked it in time for breakfast the next morning. (in fact, that was another first for me, I think!).

This is Aparna's recipe for the Pane Siciliano which I followed with a couple of minor variations.

Pane Siciliano

For the Crescuita (pre ferment)

1/4 cup warmed water
1/2 tsp Instant Yeast
1/4 cup plain flour

To make the crescuita simple dissolve the yeast in the warmed water. Once it froths stir in the flour and dissolve gently with a fork or whisk. Cover the bowl with a loose lid or napkin and leave it to ferment overnight. If you've forgotten to do this the night before simply start it as early as you can and let it sit for at least 4 to 6 hours. Mine was left for around 6 hours.

For the Dough

the crescuita
1/2 tsp Instant yeast
1 cup warm water
2 tsp honey
2 to 2 1/2 cups barik sooji or fine semolina, ground fine
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp sesame seeds
water for brushing

Once again, bloom the yeast. Dissolve the honey in the warm water and add the yeast in. Wait for it to froth. Though I use instant yeast I still like to bloom it just to ensure it is still active. Do this in a large mixing bowl so you have fewer things to wash once you're done.

Once the yeast solution has frothed add 2 cups of the ground semolina and mix well to form your dough. Add the olive oil and the salt with the semolina flour. You will start with a thick batter like consistency. Now keep adding the remaining semolina flour and knead/mix till you have a nice soft dough. I did this in the stand mixer. The final dough should be 'just short of sticky'.

Form into a ball and leave it to rise in a well oiled bowl covered with a damp tea towel. The dough should double in volume and this will take anything from an hour and a half to two hours.

Prepare your baking pan while you're waiting. All you need is the baking sheet/pan and some baking parchment. Cut a large piece of the paper, enough to cover the pan, and you're ready. Place the paper on the pan and spread it to cover the entire surface. You will be placing the ready loaf on this before popping it in to bake.

Once doubled, punch it down gently and take it out onto your work surface to shape into the Mafalda. I like to lightly dust the surface with flour so the dough doesn't stick. Knead the dough very lightly for a bare minute and then roll it into a long rope/cylinder. You will need it to be at least two and a half feet long so you can shape a proper snake with enough coils and enough tail to place on the coils.

Shape the mafalda and then leave it to rise for another couple of hours or until double. I did this stage overnight in the fridge. I covered the bread with a damp towel again to prevent it from dehydrating in the fridge - a hazard of our frost free refrigerators.

Brush the risen loaf with water and sprinkle sesame seeds all over the surface. Pat gently and make them stick.

Preheat the oven at 190C. Set a tray upside down in the oven and let it heat up with the oven. Once ready place your tray with the Pane Siciliano on top of the hot tray. Bake the bread for around 30 minutes till the crust turns brown.

Cool the loaf completely before you slice it. Enjoy your Pane Siciliano! We had ours with butter, cheese spread and even jam.

Marathon Bloggers

Monday Morning Treasure Hunt

The husband came home last night with a tantalising proposition - I'm going to take you to this shop. It's full of stuff you will love. Of course there was a caveat. I couldn't ask any questions about the shop or what it sold.

Now while it was music to my ears it qas also torture not having any clue about this wonderful shop! I asked if we could go the very next morning and the much amused hubby agreed. I  tried wheedling information out of him but had very little luck - all he said was " it's not ingredients". I had no choice but to wait. Sigh!

I booked us a cab for 7am and we set out for South Mumbai. We picked up our car from our Mazgaon workshop and headed towards Grant road. It was early morning and there were knots of school children all dressed up for Republic Day parades. Loud speakers blared patriotic songs from Hindi movies. I was totally charged up waiting excitedly to reach this mystery shop.

And suddenly we were there! A raddi shop! People come and dispose of household junk, old newspapers, plastic ware, etc, in return for a small cash payment. The shop had crates of old china, glassware, wooden bits and pieces, a couple of ugly marble sculptures ans many other odds and ends.

 

And among all this were a few brass things that were out of someone's kitchen. My eyes popped! A brass tiffin carrier! A footed grater with a coconut scraper, and a tea strainer caught my eye. It was love at first sight! A short sharp session of quick bargaining and I was the proud owner of all three beauties!

The hubby had seen this shop yesterday as he drove past. He noticed the grater hanging in the shop and knew this shop would have treasures for me.

I HAVE married really well, haven't I?!

Marathon Bloggers

Challah - A Bread and a Milestone

I've just treated myself to a beautiful wooden chopping board that I bought from 42 Design Studio. A lovely paddle shaped board with beautiful wood grain, I lost my heart when I first saw the photos on Facebook. I promptly ordered one for myself already imagining the photos I would take with this beauty as a prop!

Finally it arrived and I couldn't wait to use it. I thought a nice loaf of bread would be perfect to inaugurate the board.

I wanted to make something I hadn't tried before and I wanted something that would be fitting for such a lovely addition to my blogging toys. Yes, that's what they are - toys that we bloggers play with :)

Once I started getting more interested in homemade bread I did what most of us do - joined a couple of interest groups on Facebook. I looked in the files of one of the groups and read a few recipes till I found one that I felt confident enough to tackle and had the ingredients ready and available. I was going to make a Challah - a Jewish bread that's pretty to look at and is usually eaten on the Sabbath and on other special days. In fact, there are versions of this bread all across Europe.

I gathered the ingredients, cleaned my work space thoroughly, and set out to make my Challah. Things went wrong right from the outset. Though my yeast bloomed perfectly and I followed the instructions to the T there was no dough - just a big bowl of paste, or batter if you want to be more polite. I gave it more time to rise, since the initial steps were new to me, thinking that the cold weather was probably affecting things. Eventually I realised this wasn't working and I wasn't going to be able to do this bread by hand.

I cranked up the Kitchen Aid and poured the batter (!) into the mixer bowl. I dug out my flour canister and got ready to attempt to turn the batter into dough. I thought I needed to just add a little, bit by bit, and all would be well. It wasn't. The batter remained a batter and eventually I started flinging in fistfuls of flour instead of measured tablespoons. After adding as much flour as the recipe originally asked for I finally came close to a dough. It was still sticky but at least it wasn't pouring consistency!

I came back to my work area, floured the surface and plonked the dough on. A few minutes of hand kneading with generous lashings of more flour, and I finally had what I thought was a satisfactory dough.

I buttered a large, no huge, bowl and set the dough to rise. It doubled in half the prescribed time. I had no idea what was going on! But hey, it was supposed to double and it had done that. I wasn't arguing.

The dough was duly punched down and left to rest for 10 minutes as prescribed. It rose ominously in those 10 minutes. By now I was frazzled and not thinking quite clearly. I forgot I had doubled the flour and therefore ended up with a lot more dough than I should have. Ideally I should have halved the dough and probably frozen half. But I don't yet know for sure what dough can be refrigerated/frozen and what can't. But I did divide the dough, into two parts, just not equal ones.

I proceeded to further divide the bigger lump into three portions, rolled each portion into ropes and then made a simple basic three strand braid. It was rising as I was making the ropes an then braiding. It was like a dough possessed.

Anyway, I brushed it with an egg wash and put the braid into my biggest and only deep baking pan, lined with baking parchment. I left it to prove and proceeded to make a braid with the smaller lump of dough too. In the few minutes that it took me to make the second braid the first one had grown alarmingly fat.  I kept an eye on it and put it in to bake as soon as it had doubled. It certainly didn't take the 45 minutes it was supposed to.

Seeing how fast the dough was rising I shoved the smaller braid into the fridge so that it would go slower. I had to bake the big one and I couldn't take a chance with the smaller one turning into another giant loaf.

I could have wept with relief when I popped the big braid into the oven to bake. The recipe didn't say what temperature to bake at. I wanted to fling something at someone. Anyone. I took a chance and set the oven to preheat at 160 and then baked at the same for around 35-40 minutes. Just before putting the braid into the oven I brushed with egg again and sprinkled poppy seeds on the loaf.

I could have wept again when out emerged what looked like a perfectly baked Challah. Okay, it wasn't that beautiful, nutty brown, but otherwise it looked quite good. Just a tad pale and a little gargantuan. Well, actually it was ridiculously huge! The hubby is confident there's enough in that one loaf to last us a week.

Thank God for the smaller one. It turned out beautifully. And it's the perfect size for my board! Alls well that ends well, a few hissy fits notwithstanding :)

I'm sharing what I think will be a successful recipe for a Challah keeping in mind all the adjustments I made. I'm quite clueless why the dough chose to rise at such a speed but fortunately the bread turned out quite fine. This recipe will give you two loaves.

Challah

1 kilo maida or plain white flour
1 tsp salt
600ml warm water
2 tsp instant yeast
2 tbsp honey
3 heaped tsp butter, melted
2 eggs, beaten
1 egg yolk for glazing
2 -3 tsp poppy seeds

In a jug or bowl bloom the yeast in the warmed water. Stir with a spoon and leave it alone for a few minutes.

In a big mixing bowl stir the salt into the white flour. Once the yeast is bubbling get ready to mix it into the flour. Push the dry flour to the sides of the bowl to make a well and pour the yeast solution in. Mix in just enough flour to make a paste in the middle leaving dry flour around. Cover and leave the flour paste to bubble up. This should take around 20 minutes.

Once the flour paste has bubbled add the melted butter, honey and beaten eggs into the paste and mix. Gather in the dry flour from the sides and combine to make a soft dough. (Since the proportions in the recipe I followed were wrong this step worked very differently for me and I had to add flour endlessly to get a dough). You can either knead this dough by hand on your work surface or you can do it in a stand mixer if you have one. Work the dough for around 10 minutes till it's soft and elastic, and not sticky any more.

Put it in a large greased bowl, cover with a damp napkin and leave it to rise. Depending on the yeast, the weather, and the various bread gods, this should take anything from an hour to two hours.

While the dough is rising watch a few videos on YouTube to see braiding techniques. There are simple 3 strand braids and there are many more beautiful, but complicated braids that you can also try. With two loaves guaranteed, it won't hurt to try two different braids.

Punch the dough down and give it a quick and gentle knead. Let it rest for a few minutes.

Divide the dough into two halves. Make 3 portions or more with each half, roll each portion into a rope and braid into a loaf. Brush with the egg yolk to which you add a little water. Just a teaspoon or so. Bread expert Sujit Sumitran shared this little tip saying the yolk and water mix will give you that lovely dark brown classic challah colour.

Leave the braids to prove and double. If your dough is rising too fast just pop it into the fridge. It will rise slower.

Preheat the oven to 160C and then bake your challah till it sounds hollow when you tap it. 40 minutes or so is what it takes to get there. If your oven has space to do one at a time you can leave the waiting braid in the fridge. Don't forget to take it out 10 minutes before you put it to bake.

Let the bread cool completely before you slice it. You can also pull chunks off the loaf using the folds of the braid to guide you.

The reason I'm not halving this recipe is because I found that the basic error in the original recipe was the ratio of flour to water. I don't know if there was too much water or too little flour. So till I figure that out I'm going to be making two challahs whenever I make them :)

This experience was a milestone for me. Today I realised that I do understand bread. I was able to make a good bread in spite of what seemed to me a flawed recipe. I am proud of me :)

Marathon Bloggers 

Alu, Phulkopi Diye Machhe'r Jhol - Bengali Fish Stew with Potatoes and Cauliflower

Once in a way the Hubby asks me to cook a Bengali dish. This morning as we were in our local fish shop he bought a baby Bhetki and asked for a light and comforting alu, phulkopi'r jhol with a mountain of hot rice to be made for lunch. I used to call this 'jeere'r jhol' and one version or another of this simple preparation was made in my grandmother's kitchen and in those of all her sisters.

The fish was usually rui, a kind of river carp, and the vegetables in the stew would vary - there could be brinjals, pointed gourd or potol, plantain, and of course, cauliflower. The potato was omnipresent in all the versions. In winter when good cauliflower was available, the alu phulkopi diye jhol would appear quite frequently on the table.

As with most Bengali dishes, I had to do a little reading just to reassure myself of the basic recipe. Some recipes are so simple, and have such few ingredients they make you feel sure you've left something out! This was exactly the case today and though I was quite sure how this lovely, light jhol is made, I just had  to check anyway.

Alu, Phulkopi Diye Machhe'r Jhol

I don't claim this to be an authentic or traditional Bengali recipe. This is my version based mostly on my memories of eating it at my Didin's (maternal grandmom) house, and occasionally at our own house in Mumbai.

1/2 kilo bhekti (or any other suitable fish), sliced
1 small cauliflower, broken into florets
2 medium potatoes, cut into long wedges
2 fresh green chillies
1/2 inch piece ginger
1/2 tsp nigella seeds or kalonji
1/4 tsp randhuni (optional)
1 tsp cumin or jeera powder
mustard oil
salt
turmeric

Wash the fish slices, drain and then marinate with salt and turmeric. Leave it aside while you prep the vegetables.

Heat some mustard oil in a largeish wok and fry the fish lightly till the fish just turns opaque. I prefer this lightly fried version over the darker more firmly fried version. You can fry the fish more if you prefer. Remove the fried fish to a plate or vessel and then lightly fry the cauliflower and the potatoes in the same oil, one after the other. You might need to add a little oil along the way. Remove the fried vegetables too.

Now add some oil and wait till it is heated up really well. Chuck in the green chillies, nigella, and randhuni seeds. Stir for a minute and return the fried vegetables to the wok. Add the jeera powder and stir well to mix. Grate in the ginger. Add a little turmeric powder and salt too. Add a generous glass full of water, enough to submerge the vegetables. Bring to a boil and then cover and cook on simmer till the vegetables are nearly cooked.

Slide in the fried fish pieces and let the whole thing simmer for another 3 or 4 minutes. Adjust salt if necessary and remove the jhol carefully into a wide mouthed large serving bowl. Serve hot with rice.

As you can see it's a simple, frugal recipe with no elaborate procedures or fancy ingredients. Yet, it is a delicious and flavourful dish that's made in households across Bengal. I'm happy to say the hubby enjoyed it thoroughly. As for me, I was back in our flat in Bandra, sitting at the dining table squabbling with my brother, being scolded by my parents - back to being a 10 year old demanding the 'lyaja' or the tail piece :)

Marathon Bloggers

Chocolate Fudge Cookies - A Sweet Beginning for a New Year

In the years when I bought cook books like a woman possessed I bought one called The Colossal Cookie Cookbook. It sat among the other books and I always felt a thrill of joy seeing on my shelf anticipating the wonderful cookies I would make from it. I guess we get caught up in the anticipating and forget to actually make time to really use the books and the treasure of recipes within. I did make a recipe or two but then got caught up in other stuff and the book sat on the shelf, though not gathering dust because I am devoted to my books and I like to take good care of them :)

Sometime around November I saw a frenzy across Facebook where everyone seemed to be baking cookies. I wanted to bake cookies too! I surfed the net, like we automatically do these days, and after browsing quite a few sites I suddenly ground to a halt. What was I doing?! I have enough cookbooks to start my own little library - what was I doing searching on the net?

I pulled out The Colossal Cookie Cookbook and, finally made cookies from the book again. I'd shopped over the previous months and had gathered a decent hoard of cookie making ingredients in my pantry. So now there was no excuse left. Chocolate Fudge Cookies were zeroed in upon and what a success they turned out to be!

Chocolate Fudge Cookies

200gms dark cooking chocolate. I used Morde's
1 1/4 cup white flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder. I used Hintz
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
110 gms butter.
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
white chocolate for decoration

Set your oven to 180C and let it preheat.

Melt the cooking chocolate and set aside to cool. You can use a microwave like I did, or a double boiler.

In a clean bowl sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and the salt together.

In a separate bowl cream the sugar with the butter till it's well blended and fluffy. Add the eggs and the vanilla and beat further. You can use an electric hand blender for this. I plan to use my stand mixer the next time and make a double batch.

Pour in the cooled melted chocolate and whisk till it's all mixed in well. Now add the sifted dry ingredients in small quantities and incorporate. The dry ingredients will fly around so do this stage with a spatula or large spoon. You should have a smooth thick batter once everything is mixed in well. Give it a whizz with the electric beater for a minute and you're ready to bake the cookies.

Take two cookie sheets and line with baking parchment. Take a generous scoop of the cookie batter in a tablespoon and drop onto the parchment. Line up the scoops of batter leaving a couple of inches of space between the cookies. They will spread as they bake. You can use a piping bag to make it easier to drop the cookie batter onto the parchment. Use a plain nozzle, the cookies will not hold any fancy shapes.

Bake the cookies in your preheated oven for approximately 18 minutes. Let them cool on the parchment for a minute before you put them on a cooling rack to cool and harden. Don't worry if your cookies seem soft when you remove them from the oven.

Once the cookies have cooled you can decorate them. Melt white chocolate in a bowl and dip a fork into the melted chocolate and drizzle over the cookies. I think melted dark chocolate will also work quite well.

This recipe yielded 16 large cookies. Make a double batch and send some over to your BFF. Spread the love!

Now make a mug of coffee, pick up a few Chocolate Fudge Cookies, grab the book you're reading and settle down in your favourite chair for some delicious me time.

2015 - Why I'm Looking Forward to It

Father and child. B&W Photo Challenge on Facebook.

It's been an eventful 2014 and there are a few things I've done well this year. At the top of the list is the fact that I have found a renewed enthusiasm and enjoyment in blogging.

I had become quite jaded with things and was a little bored of restaurant reviews and events. I would attend them but I rarely blogged about them. I ended up feeling a mix of guilt for not 'giving back', stress because I felt I should be writing about events I attended (I was being hosted after all), and boredom because one event seemed to blend into the next and the next - they all felt like the same thing. The urge to write seemed to be completely dead. I needed to change something somewhere or this blog was going to be dead very soon.

After a good deal of thought I decided to stop going to these orchestrated events. There's nothing wrong with them per se, they serve a purpose and fulfill needs of brands, businesses, P R companies and yes, bloggers too. But it wasn't something that worked for me.

It's been a refreshing year and I have actually blogged the most this year, averaging a blog post a week. A huge support system and motivation has been the Marathon Bloggers group on Facebook. We started the Marathon Bloggers Project 52 at the start of 2014 and have nagged each other, encouraged each other, come up with blogging exercises and online events, all of which helped me write more, write better, and write a little more regularly.

I also started a Facebook page for the blog and that has had its own positive results. More interactions with readers and more motivation for me.

The best part of this year has been that I have not lacked for things to write about. Recipes, dining experiences, and personal thoughts and feelings have filled my blog. It has truly become a window into my world for the rest of the world to peep in to.

Photography has also kept me occupied this year and I have learned a lot, and I hope I have progressed and improved too! Having a food blog is a great advantage because it gives me a ready made space to display my photos. It's a win win situation. I participated in a few photo challenges on Facebook too - these are great exercises which can make you think and push your creative boundaries. The photograph in this post is the result of one such challenge.

In 2015 I plan to continue in the same vein. 2014 has boosted my confidence greatly. I have signed up for a photography challenge and will be doing stuff with the Marathon Bloggers for sure. The monthly breads at We Knead to Bake will also continue and I'm hoping to join a couple of more diverse group blogging activities or challenges that will keep the creative juices flowing.

Blogging is one of my most satisfying activities and I am thankful that I got my groove back. Here's wishing everyone a fulfilling 2015!

Marathon Bloggers Project 52

Bacon Rolls

Pull apart rolls are really easy to make and I like to make them as often as I can. It's good practice and one can variate the fillings without limit. My love for bacon is well known and it seemed to me that long strips of bacon tucked into the rolls would be simply fabulous. They were.

I made the bread dough using this recipe. 

Once the dough has proved the first time roll it out and then arrange your strips of bacon on it. Be sure to cook the bacon strips first. I left them slightly soft so they would roll with the dough easily. I had planned to grate cheese over the bacon strips but I forgot. I think cheese will be awesome in there so I'll remember it for sure the next time. 

Roll up the dough along the length of the oval so you get a nice long cylinder which will yield more rolls once you cut it.

Once you've made a neat cylinder cut into portions with a sharp bladed knife or a dough scraper. Don't use something with a serrated blade. You want clean cuts that will go through smoothly without snagging on the dough. 

Arrange the cut rolls in a baking tin leaving space for the rolls to rise. Leave them to rise in a warm place for around 20 to 25 minutes. Once they look like they're pushing each other vying for space they're ready to be baked :)

Pop the rolls into a pre heated oven and bake at 200C for around 20 minutes. Keep an eye on them - once the tops are nice and golden brown they're ready. Brush the hot rolls with butter and serve them warm from the oven with a hearty soup, a casserole, or just enjoy them on their own.

Marathon Bloggers Project 52

Julekake - A Norwegian Christmas Bread

The year comes to an end and along with it ends my first year with the We Knead to Bake bread baking group. I didn't manage to bake all the 12 breads of this year but I did quite a few - each one a new and interesting experience.

As I was making the Julekake, the chosen bread for December, I noticed how I was using ingredients, equipment, and various kitchen tools and toys that have come to me from a variety of people, some family and some friends, all spread across the globe. Each object is a connection and has created a tie, and as I went through the various stages and processes of making my Julekake I felt the ties get stronger as I measured, mixed, kneaded, scraped, poured and finally baked.

And I felt grateful for the Internet, for email and for Facebook, for these are the channels through which these ties were formed and I feel a flutter of happiness every time I open my packet of yeast, hear the clink of my measuring cups, fire up the KitchenAid, and dig through the pantry cupboard. My friends are with me.

I followed Aparna's recipe for Julekake with variations only for the filling and I left out the almonds and icing that are used as a topping on this bread/cake. I used pearl sugar to top my Julekake.

A simple though rich bread, it has a fine dense crumb which makes it cake-like. Call it cake or bread, the Julekake is one of the best recipes I've done with the We Knead to Bake group.

Julekake

2 tsp Instant yeast
1/4 cup water, warmed
1/2 cup milk, warmed
1 egg
50 gms butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
A large pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cardamom powder
2 1/2 cups white flour or maida
1 cup mixed peel and soaked fruit
1/4 cup pearl sugar

Bloom the yeast in the warm water with a little sugar. Though I use instant yeast I still like to bloom it before I chuck it into my flour to check that it is still active. This saves the remaining ingredients from getting wasted just in case the yeast is dead. I store my packet of instant yeast in the freezer where it stays well for many months and this little step at the beginning doesn't hurt.

In a large mixing bowl put in the egg, butter and sugar. Add the bloomed yeast mix and beat them all together. You can do this by hand or you can use an electric beater or your stand mixer. I used my stand mixer because I don't use it often enough! Add the flour and the cardamom powder and continue to mix. If using the stand mixer use the dough hook. Knead till you have a soft pliable dough that is smooth and stretches easily without breaking. If required, add dry flour or water to get the right consistency.

Roll out the dough like a pizza base and scatter the mixed peel and fruit, or whatever filling you are using. Raisins, or dried cranberries or any other dried berries will work quite well here. Cover the entire rolled out surface and then gather the dough together to form a ball by first rolling it into a swiss roll style roll and then bringing together into a ball. Knead it lightly by hand for a couple of minutes and try to ensure that the fruit is evenly distributed.

Oil a bowl and set the dough in it to rise. Cover with a damp dish cloth and leave it in a warm corner undisturbed, to double in volume. This should take an hour.

Once the dough has doubled deflate it gently and give it a light knead with your hands. Lay the dough ball on a greased baking try or on baking parchment on the tray and leave it to rise again, for around 45 minutes. The Julekake can also be put into a cake tin.

Brush the top with milk and then dot the surface with pearl sugar, or sliced almonds. You can also brush it with an egg wash. I prefer milk because you can't break half an egg ;)

Bake the Julekake for 25 to 30 minutes at 180C. Let it cool completely before you take it out of the cake tin in case your making it in a tin. Slice the Julekake once cooled and serve with coffee.

We Knead to Bake 2014

Marathon Bloggers Project 52