Kaanji- Guest Post by Shikha Bajaj

So, I have yet another guest post by my gracious SIL who has managed to document a recipe very close to my heart. Traditionally, most Indian people know of kanji as a winter drink. The very mention of the word conjures fond memories of my maternal grandmother, who was the only person I ever knew who would make yummy kanji. Winter vacations, were always associated with yummy gaajar achaar and kanji. She passed away a long time back, the tradition moved on to my mother and when I got married, I found kanji again being made, every winter by my mother-in-law. For the sake of posterity and to honour and continue the tradition, I’m glad that my SIl decide to document this one and that we will have the benefit to carry this custom forward. The best part is: the recipe was tested far away in the US, and the photographs were taken here; a complete cooperative effort.

Kanji is truly a family recipe. One of my earliest and fondest childhood memories is that of my great grandmother and her huge ceramic martabaans (jugs) of kanji.

In the winter afternoons, we would all settle down on the verandah of the ancestral home in Amritsar looking forward to an afternoon of the winter sun. These lazy afternoons were always accompanied by cool glasses of this mildly sour beverage, a bit of gossip and a lot of fun.

Speedy Shrimp - Guest Post by Shikha Bajaj

The blog has been silent for a while. No matter what I try, I am finding it hard to document all the cooking that has been happening. A great Mutton dish, the perfect greek salad recipe, a new way to eat healthy vegetable lasagna and many more recipes, are lying all in the various tummies and in my head. Mystically, To break the silence, and get the action rolling on the blog, my wonderful SIL, decided to send me this shrimp recipe with butter and lime, all the way across the seven seas. And what a wonderful way to start the day with this in your inbox :). Ironically, I never liked shrimp, until I had it on my visit to her place last year. I am a convert for sure, and after testing this recipe- I am sure you will be one too.

p.s Thanks for sharing this Didi. and a special thanks to the Sous Chef- I could see the little hands working hard! 

Nobody doesn't like shrimp.

This recipe to cook Shrimp (with butter and lime) is one of the quickest dishes one can make. It quite literally takes 15 minutes from start to finish.

Prepare your serving dish first. I like to use a bed of mixed greens. I happened to have some Radicchio, Frisee, Chard and Arugula (also known as rocket) mix in the fridge, so that is what I used. I am trying to eat better and recently went overboard in the produce section at whole foods.

Although the shrimp is the star of this show, my personal favorite part is at the end when I get to polish off the salad mixed in with the flavoured sauce.

Thanks Tanya for letting me do a guest post. I love your blog.

The Perfect Chocolate Cake

My search for the perfect dense chocolate cake that can be used for layers has been on forever.

Ive spent the last year or so, attempting many a cakes, from various books and blogs and websites..but have not managed to find that perfect, quick and simple recipe that can be used for a simple cake, which could be dressed up in layers for a fancy occasion cake. Most often, the cake does not rise enough- and no, I don’t have 2 identical pans yet to bake them separately. I follow the traditional technique of slicing up the cake. After this recipe though, I will definitely buy 2 identical pans; the cake was so soft and moist and most importantly- well-risen, that I have decided to have some fun with layered cakes for all occasions this year. People around me should be glad- they may be treated to cakes, maybe often enough.

Anyhow, coming back to this cake, It was my little brother’s birthday –the other Ak in my life (well- not so little actually), who is far away, across the seas, studying hard to become one of the fancy management men, who will hopefully teach me a thing or two about managing a business.  At the moment, it is the husband Ak, who’s constantly teaching me more than just two things. Since the brother and me have been in different cities for the last many birthdays and I have been wanting to bake a cake for my dad for a while as well, I decided to bake a special chocolate cake- celebrating the chocolate lover’s birthday. Often, when I cook, I think of the brother and how much he would have enjoyed it, and then message him a picture. This time, though, I decided to find the perfect recipe, just for him. We all got together, celebrated with nice Punjabi dinner outside, and then came back home- to facetime the cake-cutting ceremony in two different time zones.  

I found the recipe on the Hershey’s website- It’s just BRILLIANT.

For most beginners at baking, I would recommend this website- I don’t think that I have tried anything here that has failed. The recipe was quick, since I didn't have much time before we left for dinner. I dressed up the cake (in the centre and on top) using the traditional frosting that I use- recipe can be found here, and then just garnished with roasted almonds and sprinkles.

The cake took an hour from start to finish- including baking time. Who said baking special birthday cakes was a challenge? Everyone thought the cake was quite pretty- and I already know I am baking it again this week. 

For the recipe, visit the Hersheys Website. (No- they  didn't sponsor this post! I do hope I get a lifetime's supply of cooking chocolate though)

p.s. In the rush, I used 3 eggs instead of 2- Although I am sure, that using 2 would be just fine. Unfortunately, due to the rush, there are no photographs of the process as well. The cake is so simple though- noone would need step-by step photographs.

Bloggers Table: Cypus Food festival, Eros Hotel (Hilton), New Delhi

Middle-Eastern food always fascinates me. In fact as I write this post, I have just finished cooking a Lebanese spread for some friends. So when The Blogger’s Table was invited to the Cypriot festival at Eros Hotel managed by Hilton, Nehru Place, New Delhi, I was pretty excited. This was more so because I had missed the Table’s events in the last few months- and I was looking forward to meeting everyone.

It was a perfect winter evening, not too cold; just right to be outside in the garden. The Spread was extensive, with a very elaborate menu. Unlike Traditional Indian hosting style, the focus was not on the appetizers but instead on the Main Course spread, which comprised of a wide range of salads, and anti-pastis. After a brief introduction on the festival itself and the chefs, Cocktails were served with a variety of marinated olives, crackers and a creamy yogurt dip. Other appetizers were pickled calamari, filled chicken breast roulade with poppy seed bread and tomato/feta mousse on multigrain bread. The flavors were nice, but the bread tasted like it had been laid out for hours.

Coming back to the Main course, Personally, for me, this was the best part of the evening. The salads were unique, only made with ingredients that we all use often. I loved haloumi cheese salad, even the one with white beans, the rocket and tomato salad- how simply they had removed the mozzarella, and added sesame seeds instead. 

The grills attracted a lot of attention too- people were almost queuing up. My experience was mixed- the meats could have been cooked a bit more, but maybe that’s just because there were so many people. Other traditional dishes that were a part of the menu Pork Afelia (Pork braised in red wine with crushed coriander seeds), Beef and Tavvas (Oven cooked beef and potato with cumin, onion, and tomatoes). The Keftedes (meat balls of Lamb and Chicken) were really, really good- only that they were deep fried! Freshly made, I could have gone back for a second helping of these. I did pass the pickled octopus though.

I didn’t try much of the desserts, but the ones made out of phyllo were nice. The festival offers a great variety of food, for those interested in a lavish spread. If you are a foodie and someone interested in a wider experience of Turkish food, the festival offers a great variety.

Others at the Table were :

Sid Khullar (Chef At Large)

Mukta Varma (Bake-o-Mania)

Charis Bhagianathan (Culinary Storm)

Sangeeta Khanna (Banaras Ka Khana)

Aishwarya Eats