Chutni Punch Adding Fire To Winter Dishes

 This is the time for warm, fragrant dinners. Curries comes to mind. A spice spiked curry with a marriage of different spices comes to mind. It's even better with Chutni Punch , a new flavoring that brings the flavors of India to everyone's kitchen.

I recently discovered Chutni Punch and thought it would be perfect in my slapdash tomato curry. This is a take on a chicken curry turned vegan. It's full of warm spices that are perfect on a cold winter's day.

They come in three flavors, savory chana ,super sesame and spicy peanut.I used a heaping tablespoon  of savory chana in my curry.

Other spices are also added in such as garam masala, tumeric, and cumin along with garlic and onion powders.

The base is a mix of vegan soy yogurt, crushed tomatoes and coconut milk. The proteins were vegan chicken and chickpeas. The chickpeas were cooked first in just vegetable oil and then the tomato was added. Two cups of vegan soy yogurt was used along with 3/4 of a cup of coconut milk. This was cooked for about half an hour until all the flavors are melded together. I used about two tablespoons of ground ginger too, along with a good dash of the onion and garlic powders. A good dash of cumin, turmeric  and garam amsala were also added.

The end result was a warming curry that perfumed my kitchen with all sorts of good aromas. It was great over rice and just the thing on a cold January night.It wasn't as fiery as curries that I've had at Indian restaurants., It was a smooth texture thanks to the yogurt and hot but not super spicy .I'm looking forward to having it tomorrow as leftovers.

Chutni Punch is the perfect add in for a curry.It's also great in other dishes too, Yet happiness on a cold night is a hot dish that warms you inside and out.

Breaded Or Battered Which Is Better

 There's nothing like a crunchy nibble. There's something satisfying about hearing that crispy sound and that mouthfeel of a crumbly bite. Yet here's the question - produces that feeling? Battered or breaded?

Many people love their food battered. It can proiduce a loud snap when bitten into along with adding extra flavor to the food it's covering. Battering can range from tempura which produces the ultimate battering experience as far as crunch and taste to beer battered which can be slightly soggy.Seafood and chicken do well with a good coating of batter;It produces a tender  juicy meat and a nice golden and sometimes flaky exterior. what makes for the best batter? One that has the basic ingredients of flour water. Milk and cornstarch are added for silkiness and a dash of baking powder for rise and puffiness. Sugar and salt is added for flavor too. You coul;d add a good heaping amount of  groundpepper as home and commercial chefs do in southern Indiana. This gives the entire piece of chicken that spicy taste. Chinese five spice mix would give the batter a whole new taste level.Anything can be battered fried. The Scots love their Milky Ways with a coating thats fried almost a deep brown. Onion rings and shrimp are also good with a batter coating.

The much more healthier choice is breading, Bread crumbed fish doesn't soak up as much oil as its' battered counter part.it's because it's consdiered a "dry" coating while batter is considered a "wet". Breading takes an extra step The food is first dipped ina beaten egg and then dredged in either regular or panko breadcrumbs. The main problem with the technique is that breading can easily come off. There can be "bald" spots where the meat or veggie is exposed. The coating should be thick to ensure a nice crunchy exterior. What's a good breading recipe? A simple one combines one cup of flour with one cup of breadcrumbs along with teaspoons of paprika, salt and pepper. You could add tumeric ro chili peppers for more color and flavor. Another choice is panko which is lightly baked coarsely ground crumbs. Keep in mind that you can also get breadcrumbs Italian style which have garlic powder and oregano added. Veggies, like cauliflower are excellent with a bread crumb coating. You can also do the same with broccoli and shrimp.It gives both a nice crunch. 

What's better? Battered or breaded? That 's up to you. If you're going for healthy , then breaded.If you want more crunch and taste, then battered.

Cooking With Dementia

The diagnosis of dementia is scary  to begin with but imagine how a cook would feel. The loss of memory means the loss of  recipes and techniques. However there is one cook who is conquering it with cooking and eating  helpful foods.

Kim Severson wrote about this cook,Paula Wolfert , who's also  the food writer suffering from Alzheimer's disease in today's New York Times Food section.Her name may sound familiar to some. She was the one who introduced tangines and couscous to a generation of American home chefs and foodies . The dementia will not deter or define her. After all she and her two small chldren were left in Morrocco by a cad of a husband.She only has two thousand dollars then and no where to go  Her drive ,which propels her today, enabled her to live with some of the Beat Generations' most notable personalities in 1959. She discovered cooking as a young bride, taking classes from the French teacher, Dione Lucas, known for her omelets. Ms. Wolfert then became her assistant , with occasional cooking gigs arranged by none other than famed chef, James Beard. That didn';t work and she followed  her then first husband to Morocco where she wandered the souks or bazaars, picking up exotic spices and recipes. In 1973 her first cookbook "Couscous and Other Good Food From Morrocco" celebrating what she absorbed in the North African country. Other books that followed were centered around the cooking of Southwestern France, Spain and other parts of the Mediterranean. Now her life is being explored in a new biography, "Unforgetable: The Bold Flavors of Paula Wolfert's Renegade Life."

The renegade spirit is what is also getting her through this difficult time too. Since 2013, Ms Wolfert has been  dealing with the problems that come with the disease Words on the page were not making sense to her while questions were now baffling her. The worst part was when he had to ask her novelist husband, William Bayer how to make an omelet. As always she didn;t take time to feel sorry for herself, she sprang into action. Ms. Wolfert  She culled knowledge from Internet research, her doctors,and from dementia patients . There were also lengthy FaceTime conversations with friends and experts. From all this she has created a diet that will  help stave off the debilitating effects of this disease.She makes bulletproof coffee,a  high-quality java that is bolstered with grass fed butter and "Brain Octane Oil", an eight carbon fraction of  medium chain triglyceride oil, the last is saturated in fatty acids. It boosts  cognitive powers She also munches on squares of dark chocolate which slow down the dementia's progress as well as eating more salmon, berries and greens along with the extracts of eggplant,tumeric and cinnamon. Carbohydrates are off the table.. They can bring on the risk of Alzheimer.s

Paula Wolfert is not just a brave cook, introducing the US to delicious exotic foods, but also a brave person. She will not let this disease define her,She is curing her self as only a chef can - with good , healthy food.

Curry On A Cold Night

This is the time of the Indian festival Holi, the festival where brightly colored powders are gleefully chucked at friends and family. It's also a day of fasting and feasting. You don't have to be Inidan, though to enjoy curry and naan. Indian cooking is the perfect antidote for the blustery March night.

Many home chefs balk at trying the recipes of the Subcontitient. Yet, curry is an easy dish that once tasted will be a family favorite. Try a chicken one that just had chicken strips, diced onions and curry powder. The last can be bought at your local grocery, in the seasonings section. It's just heating the onion first in olive oil and then adding the meat and curry powder. It is a long process, taking about forty-five minutes to fully cook. Another caveat is keeping the burner on a low flame because curry powder burns easily. You can also create a vegan version by subbing the meat with traditional vegetables such as cauliflower and potatoes along with onions and carrots. Turmeric, that health booster is also added for more color and flavor. For a spicier dish, add red pepper flakes. If you like the dish and plan to make it often, then consider creating your own curry powder.It's dried chili blended with the seeds of coriander, fennel and cumin. Dried mace,  white pepper and turmeric round it out. Store in an airtight jar at room temperature. it can be made a week in advance.

Tikka masala is another tasty Indian dish.The chicken is usually roasted in a tandoor oven however a regular one will do. It's a little more involved than a simple curry. You first have to marinate chicken chunks in a mix of yogurt and lemon juice spiced with cinnamon,cumin, cayenne  ginger and black pepper. The chunks should be soaked for a good hour in order for the meat to be perfectly seasoned . They're then threaded on skewers and roasted on a stove top grill.As these are cooking the sauce is made.. Again, it's a blood warming mix of cream, butter and jalapenos blended with tomato sauce, garlic. Cumin and paprika are also added to intensify the color and flavor, A fun weekend meal is a plate of dosa pancakes,These are a blend of plain flour and bicarbonate of soda flavored with mustard seeds. Dosas are like crepes, meant to be filled with all sorts of delicious stuffings.One of the most popular is potato masala. Potatoes are combined with tomatoes and onions  and singed up with turmeric and curry leaves or powder if you can't get the leaves. Cauliflower and shredded cabbage is another tasty combo cooked with chaat masala, a dried spice that also has dried mango in it.

These blustery march nights can be bone chilling. Warm up with tasty Indian dishes that will warm you to your toes. They're tasty and flavorful along with being chock full of good for you spices and ingredients.

Eat Healthy It's Easy

Is it hard to give up the all that bad food? Yes!!! Who doesn't loved fried chicken wings, washed down with fries and a big Pepsi?Or a bacon cheeseburger? Or home made  chocolate chip cookies and shortbread? After all they''re tastier than all that healthy stuff, right? Maybe not. Fruits and veggies can be just as tantalizing and as yummy.

I recently had to change my own eating habits. I am a foodie, loving every aspect of food from crunchy fried snacks to icing drenched cupcakes. However I had to give up all that white flour, dairy,processed meats for healthier and just picked fare. I thought for sure I am going to hate this. My second thought how can I create healthy meals? Surprisingly both are easy. I have always loved fruit and veggies and sadly got away from them. I love the fresh field taste of kale and spinach. I'm now in love with lentils sprinkled with a good dose of tumeric. Even water - something I've just avoided is now my drink of choice along with freshly made juice. I still drink tea but eschew hot cocoa and coffee. Do I miss all that junk? Not really. I consider it poison to my system and I wish others would too.

What about cooking? Again there are some great all natural recipes that are tasty. Those lentils, that I previously hated are good cooked with brown rice. I also enjoy them reheated in the microwave with olive oil and again tumeric. Salads are easy to make and also fun. This is one dish where there is so many varieties  that the dish never grows old or stale. I can add grilled chicken or fish, create a tasty vinaigrette with the addition of crushed blueberries or blackberries, mix in different veggies every night. As far as with cooked dishes. there is turkey meat loaf, or turkey meat balls with whole wheat pasta. As for something to drink with it, I have my new Juiceman juicer.I can create more flavor combos than there are bottled drinks out there. Dessert is fruit. There's nothing like pineapple, blackberries or blueberries as a nice ender. Snacks are whole wheat Triscuits or even a scoop or Peanut butter (anjd sometimes cheating with Cheerios)

Eating healthy is not as scary or as boring as people think. Fruits and veggies are better tasting than than all those cupcakes and chips. Water is just as refreshing as any soda or sweetened tea. It's easy to change habits when there's a whole cornucopia of good things out there.