Tapas style party, 2007

Close friends of ours are moving to India. Another couple just had a daughter and we hadn't had a chance to have them over. Our new gift, a book - Asian Tapas - was calling out to be used.
Menu-

• Chai with Vada pav - batata vada, tamarind chutney and garlic chutney, ciabatta bread. This is typical roadside eatery dish.
  
• Surali chya vadya/ Khandvi. Not quite roadside but a snack nevertheless.
  
• Yakitori beef with eggplant. (From the book, Asian Tapas)
  
• Dim sum- 3 kinds
  
• Kashmiri Shrimp kababs (From the book, Asian Tapas)
• For dessert, fruit cake topped with ice-cream. (From Safeway!)
  

Drinks-

• Saki
• White wine
• Juice

Preparations-

1. Yakitori beef with eggplant -
   

Ingredients-

• Kobe beef. We replaced it with US Choice Grade (Sirloin Steak). Cut into 3/4 inch cubes.
• Asian Eggplant cut into 3/4 inch pieces.
• Sesame oil.
• Olive oil:Butter :: 1:1
  

Marinade-

• Light soy sauce
• Dark soy sauce
• Ponzu sauce
• Sugar
• Freshly ground black pepper

Mix all above ingredients in 3:2:1:1 proportion + 1 tsp of pepper.

How to-
Marinate the beef for 4 hours minimum. Pan fry eggplant for 30 seconds on each side in sesame oil. Arrange alternate eggplant and beef pieces on a steel skewer(we used bamboo). Heat olive oil and butter mixture in a skillet over high heat. Place skewers in skillet and let sear for 10 seconds each side for rare and longer for medium rare. Serve while hot.



2. Vada pav(spicy potato poppers in a sandwich)-

Ingredients-

• Baked potatoes
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Salt
• Turmeric powder
• Lemon juice
• Cummin seeds
• Chili Pepper powder.
  

How to-
For aboutFor about 4-5 medium sized baked potatoes, use 1 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp cummin seeds, 1 tsp garlic and 1 tsp ginger. 2 tsp of chili powder, 1 tsp of lemon juice. Salt and sugar to taste. Mix crushed baked potatoes and above ingredients together. Divide into 15 parts and make flat round patties out of them. For the shell, mix 5 tbsp of garbanzo flour(besan) with water slowly, turmeric powder and paprika and salt. Coat patties with the 'besan' mix by immersing in the wet flour potion and then frying them on high heat in a deep utensil. Remove and place on tissues to absorb the extract the extra oil.

For the vada-pav(sandwich combination) - use fresh ciabatta bread, slice open, add garlic chutney on 1 side and tamarind chutney on the other. Insert vada in between, close the bread and chomp!

I practically had this for breakfast for all of my undergrad years!

Photos for tamarind chutney and garlic chutney follow. I will put these recipes up if there is any interest.





3. Surali chya vadya - Spicy Khandvi rolls
A recipe touted by both the Maharashtrians and the Gujratis to be theirs originally.






4. Shaomai- Credit for this go to our close friends.

'Review' - a new label.

When cooking reluctance meets famished tummies, a new label is born. Some restaurants provide an opportunity for the zealously driven cooks and gourmands to mingle. Here is my personal assessment of how good some of the local eateries are.

Goan fish croquettes

Goan fish croquettes
Originally uploaded by Taswiir.

Recipe from Atul Kochar's Indian Essence book..recipe soon to come with faux pas to be avoided!

Review: California Cafe, Los Gatos

Sage Tea, Potstickers in the foreground. Belgian Waffles with Applewood bacon. Warm and toasty breads/muffins with butter. Mmm mm mm.

Vegetable fritata.

Opens on Sat at 11:30am. We were at the door at 10:57am. Got to choose a shaded area where we could park the stroller. Set in downtown Los Gatos with a view of LG hills, under the shade of an unknown yet huge tree, with a musician playing her guitar passionately but soothingly, California Cafe gets high points for service, ambience, taste and price. Anniversary brunch cost me $37 inclusive of tip. The Banana Republic across the street cost my husband 10x times as much soon after. My thumbs up for a place that is just 15 mins from S. San Jose.

Mac & Cheese

Mac & Cheese
Originally uploaded by Taswiir.

The most amazing M&C I've had so far. Sweet and tart mushrooms on the side were the perfect accompaniment.

Aleevachi kheer

Aleevachi kheer
Originally uploaded by Taswiir.

Pumpkin Bread.

Got this recipe from my mother-in-law's friend, Mrs. Anuradha Soman. I added sliced almonds and walnuts to the batter. I also added wet ingredients to the dry ones. This sequence matters says my husband.











Ingredients-
1.5 flour
0.5 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 c. pumpkin puree
1/2 c vegetable oil
2 egss, beaten
1/4 c. water
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 c. choppped nuts ( optional)

Preheat your over to 350. Sift together the floupr, slat, sugar, and baking soda. In a spearate bowl, combine the pumkin, oil, eggs, water and spices. Pour into the bowl w/ dry ingredients and mix until all are combined - don't stir too much! Stri in the nuts, if you are using them(I like it better w/o the nuts). Pour into a well-buttered 9x5x3 in loag pan, bake 50-60 minutes until done in them iddle. Remove from pan, cool on a rack.

Keep wrapped in the refrigerate. Really good w/ cream cheese or chooped walnits in cream cheese.

Blueberry Muffins/Cake (2nd attempt)

First time around the muffins were buttery yet dry. Sort of crumbly. This time I added some milk to the batter to make the end product moist (thanks to Food Network tips) and it worked. Ingredients: Milk, flour (sifted), milk, eggs, butter, baking powder, sugar, salt and blueberries. I also added some lemon zest to give it a fresh and tangy taste. Maybe next time I should put more zest - this time blueberries sort of over power the lemony taste. But hey ... these are supposed to be blueberry muffins/cake!

Mix all the wet ingredients into a creamy mixtures.
Then add all the dry ingredients and mix until everything is blended together.
Make sure the blueberries are tossed in some flour before you 'fold' them into the batter. And be gentle when you fold the berries - otherwise they will be mashed.
Into the oven for 20 mins at 400 deg F. Be vigilant after ~15 mins - as they may burn. I have a convection oven, and usually things cook faster with the fan running (compared to the conventional ovens). The pictures show that the cake is slightly over done.