Parathe

Over the course of the last few days, we were struck with the sudden urge to eat parathas. Hot, piping, fresh off the tava parathas with loads of butter. And so, this Sun morning, after a lazy cup of chai, we embarked upon satisfying our urges :)

The decision was made to make gobhi, aloo, as well as regular parathas. Return on investment, and all that, you see.

The aloo bartha.

The other filling with grated gobhi.

All ready for the tawa.

And here we go.

This grill press came in really handy to make the parathas thin and crispy.

Ready to eat. With even more butter :)

Another Sun morning/afternoon spent well. Looking forward to having the rest of the parathas with the evening chai!

Now playing - The Apu Trilogy

If you are an ardent fan of Ray or have ever wondered why he is “one of the greatest filmmakers of the 20th century”, here is a once in a lifetime opportunity to watch his best work on the big screen. The Criterion Collection has done a 4K restoration of the movies, and theaters all over the US will be playing them for a limited period. The Landmark Opera Plaza will be screening them for a week, starting June 12. Run, don’t walk, to book your tickets now.

Happy Holi!

This Holi, Hobbes decided to go all out and make thandai and gujiyas. He is becoming quite an expert in Indian desserts; his latest successful attempts have included jalebi (on my birthday)and puran poli (on Diwali).

First, the easier of the two.

Then, the real thing. First, the ingredients.

Then, the filling.

All ready to be fried.

And here we go.

Aren't they lovely?

As the gujiyas were being made, Nusrat saheb's voice kept us company with "Hajrat Khwaja ke sang kheliye dhamaal".

Happy Holi, everyone!

Manresa

Hobbes and I had wanted to go to Manresa for a long time but somehow it never happened. And then last year there was a fire following which they closed down for repairs. So as soon as we found out that had reopened we showed up at the first available opportunity. And I can say, the wait was worth it.

The list of ingredients. The menu doesn't arrive until the end of the meal.

Amuse-bouches.

Granola crisp.

Petit fours "red pepper-black olive".

Green panisse with meyer lemon.

Seafood with fermented plum, caviar.

Arpege farm egg. Amazing presentation!

Followed by a bread course. Several kinds to choose from.

And now, on to main courses. Seven of them!

Sweet turnip consomme, citrus and matsutake. The non-vegetarian option substituted the citrus with crab but looked almost like this. Hobbes opted for meat, and I took the vegetarian options. We usually do this at restaurants so we get to sample a lot more dishes :). In my opinion it takes a lot more to make vegetables taste exquisite, so it is a good measure of the chef's skills. Manresa went to great lengths to makes the dishes look alike and didn't bat an eyelid when we said that our party consisted of both meat-eaters and vegetarians. Bonus points for that!

Parsley (scallop) and carrot with flowering coriander. The brackets denote the meat substitutions.

Into the vegetable garden ... Loved the plate!

Winter truffle.

 Porcini "norinade".

 Black cod "norinade".

Shitake rice porridge, morels, black vinegar.

Abalone porridge, morels, black vinegar.

Chanterelles, hoshigake mostarda and sweet potato.

Roast duck, hoshigake mostarda and sweet potato.

Delicata, buckwheat and smoked lentil.

Beef bowl, buckwheat and smoked lentil.

 The dessert courses begin.

Apple and celery with green tea.

Beignet, quince with yogurt and hibiscus.

Winter squash, chocolate and sherry vinegar.

Petit fours "strawberry-chocolate".

Additional desserts outside of the prescribed courses.

Macaroons.

Chocolates.

The take-home bag.

 What was in the bag.

 Along with the menu.

Sun breakfast

Pancakes to celebrate the last day of holidays. Topped with mascarpone.

Sat night dinner

The resolution for 2015 is to blog more - post food pictures and put down my observations about music. Let's see how far I get, but here's the first one.

Tonight's dinner was goat biryani, tandoori gobhi, and onion raita. Washed down with some excellent wine.

The wine.

The gobhi was inspired by the lunches we used to have at the ICH canteen in Seepz.

The accompaniment.

And finally, the main attraction for the evening. Garnished with fried onions.

All set to eat.

Unconventional voices in Bollywood - Richa Sharma

You've probably heard her sing Maahi Ve in Kaante. Deep, and khule gale wali gaayaki. Classically trained, she handles both low and high notes with equal ease. Even though she had already sung several Bollywood songs by then, it wasn't until Maahi Ve that she got the recognition that she deserved. The song was extremely well received, though that may have more to do with its video rather than Richa's voice ;)

Here's arguably her most popular song. Notice how loud she gets in parts without getting screechy or besura. Sukhwinder Singh, the male voice, is another amazingly talented singer, but that's a post for another day :)

One another aspect of her voice is that it oozes with earthy confidence. No sweet nothings or love ballads for her - this woman delivers strong, powerful statements with her songs.

Listen to her in Sajda from My Name Is Khan.  She steals the song completely.  And that's not an easy thing to do, when you are singing with Rahat.

While one gets to hear her now fairly frequently as part of Hindi film music, I think, her forte is devotional music performed live. This probably has something to do with the fact that she has done this since she was a kid.

Here she charms her audience with Amir Khushro's poetry.

And again, a similar effect, with this perennial favorite. It isn't that she sings this better than the several ustaads who have sung it before her - it's the strength, the throw in her voice that impresses me, and the aplomb with which she renders it.

I leave you with this - Show Me Your Jalwa from Aaja Nachle. Her expression is perfect for the lyrics, and her strong voice would fill even the meekest women with self-confidence. 

Hats off to a truly "strong" singer!

हिन्दी में ब्लॉग करने का पहला प्रयास

इंटरनेट पर मेरी पसंदीदा एक्टिविटी है ब्लॉग पढ़ना । कई दिनों पहले कुछ ढूँढ़ते हुए मैं एक हिन्दी ब्लॉग पर जा पहुँची । वहाँ से लिंक्स के द्वारा और बहुत सारे हिन्दी ब्लॉग पढ़ने का मौका मिला । उनको पढ़ कर मुझे भी हिन्दी में लिखने की इच्छा हुई । सोचा कि ब्लॉगर इस्तेमाल कर के देखूं कि हिन्दी लिखने में कितना कष्ट होता है । लोहा मानना पड़ेगा गूगल का, कि इतना आसान बना दिया हिन्दी लिखना । सच में, मज़ा आ गया !