Channa Masala

A simple home style channa masala. A super easy curry to make on a weekday, this is a quick version, there are about a hundred ways to make, it is versatile and forgiving recipe.

Ingredients

A can of garbanzo beans(channa)

A medium size onion

Two tomatoes

A medium red potato

Half a can of coconut milk

Red chili powder

Coriander powder 

Cumin powder
Garlic powder

Star anise

Black cumin seeds

Cloves 

Procedure 

Heat a pan with few spoons of oil.

Sauté the cloves, star anise and cumin seeds.

Sauté the chopped onion.

Sauté the chopped tomatoes and chopped red potato. 

When it is simmering, add the can of garbanzo beans, and the spice powders to suit your taste( I add a spoon of red chili powder,1/2 spoon of garlic powder, 1/4 spoon cumin powder and 1/4 spoon coriander powder).

Let it simmer for 10-15 mins, stir in the coconut milk and add salt to taste.

Allow to simmer for 5 mins and we've with hot rice. 

Thailand ~ Teaser!

Hear me ! Hear me ! I am baaaacccccck! :) and I am going to flood you with food!

More updates coming soon! :)

Caffe Pascucci @ Express Avenue Mall Chennai

Caffe Pascucci ! I have to tell you how I found this place ;) My friend was visiting India for a break so we decided to catch up at EA mall, we were joined by another friend of hers who recommended this place and we went there for some coffee and snacks, later that day when few more friends of his joined us he took us all to this place again! :) We all started teasing him that he must be the unofficial marketing guy for the cafe and he must be getting a cut for recommending people :P but jokes aside this was one really good find !  :)

Note : I don't have my Digi cam with me so please excuse the dinky, blurry cell phone photographs!

  

Caffe Pascucci is located on the ground floor of EA mall almost inconspicuous, it completely cuts off the crowd and noise in the mall.

Pasta Salad

My friend and I made plans to catch a movie at ESCAPE and a quick lunch :) we chose to watch "Johnny English Reborn" - it was such a laugh riot :P after the movie went to have lunch at Caffe Pascucci.

Moi salad plate

We ordered a Mediterranean Pasta Salad - Pasta, Lettuce, Peppers and Zucchini tossed in a vinegar dressing,  it was absolutely crunchy, juicy and fresh !

Grilled Chicken & mashed potatoes

I had the grilled chicken and mashed potatoes served with brown sauce . The chicken was marinated in a fragrant herbs and spices and grilled well. I would have prefered roasted potaotes to mashed potatoes - I wish they gave that choice.

Ice Tea

 I also ordered a TALL glass of cranberry flavoured ice tea - yes I am a bit of a sweet tooth :P

 My friend ordered Grilled fish with spinach and mushrooms

The fish was mildly seasoned and grilled, it was well cooked and yet retained the moisture (that is quite a task) and it had a wonderful aroma. It was served with spinach cooked with mushrooms and mustard sauce.

Apple Pie and Vanilla Ice scream

I have a severe case of a sweet tooth :) which is not likely to get cured even until I have a toothless grin :P so when it was time for dessert I was super elated - we had a warm apple pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream ~ A match made in heaven truly!

Psst I dont have pictures but you shud also try the thin crust pizza and tri-pepper bruchetta which I had here on my earlier visits:)

Cafe Pascucci

Try Caffe Pascucci at Express Avenue Mall :) I am sure you'll like it and better still you'll recommend it to someone too !

~Fin~

P.S. I love you my dear Black Berry but I sincerely hope you start making better cell phone cameras in future :)

Mocha Mojo at Adyar!

Few weeks back on a really dreary boring Sunday evening my friend T and I decided to break the monotony and madness by dragging ourselves out and meeting up. We chose to meet at Mocha Mojo as I have been there once and  I  found the place very amusing in decor and cuisine :)

First thing you'd notice when you step in is the unusual decor , click here to see more.

We the Chocoholics had to order a cup of Hot Chocolate which was the served with a generous helping of fresh cream ..Super High on calories I know but we could not help it :) 

Our next choice was a crispy bagel served with a side serving of Creamy Cream Cheese- So crispy , so cheesy and Oh soo Yummy - One of my favorites 

I am totally a salad lover - i turn into Bovine when i see green leafy veggies, so I am a bit biased towards salads, but if you try the salad bowl at Mocha Moja you will know what I am talking about :)

For Dessert we chose - Tiramisu - Super Fresh, super delectable !

A boring Sunday evening turned delightful thanks to the the love, laughter and energy my dear friend T shared with me.

Seen above is the picture of the jasmine flowers my mom painstakingly made me wear in my hair :P

Over all I had a great time and yes the pleasant food and service at Mocha Mojo might be one of the main reasons.

Try Mocha Moja at Adyar, a refreshing place, an interesting menu, great food, and amicable service :)

Lunch Buffet at Main Land China

I finally went to Main Land China few weeks back and it was totally worth the long wait! I was absolutely delighted! Great Food, Great service, Plus add it to the fact that I got to meet a childhood friend after about 16 years !! and I got to meet a wonderful new friend  :)  

The only low point was that I was not carrying my camera with me when I went there first.

Lemon Flavored Ice Tea

So I when a dear friend of mine told me she wanted to catch up over lunch I convinced her to try the lunch buffet at Main  Land China  :P  and so it begins.. 

Let us start with the lovely floral display on each table.
Oh I just love orchids :)

A Cup of pickled cabbage caught my attention- fiery, spicy and totally REDiculous ;)

Cucumber in Vinegar 

Spicy Chicken Soup

I am not a soup person but I must say the hot and spicy chicken clear soup was delicious.

Chicken Dimsum

The chicken dimsums arrived to dominate the table for the rest of the afternoon! Clearly my fav! :)

Chicken Lollypop

The Chicken lolly pops were a close contender! :)

Tea Cup

My cup of warm tea which i enjoyed sipping between my starters..

Main Course

I had no space in my tummy for main course but i tasted the fried rice, noodles, shrimp gravy and crabs sauce before moving on to dessert.

Dessert

Now this is what you call dessert! :) YUM!!!!!

My dessert plate

When one has tasted watermelon he knows what the angels eat.  ~Mark Twain

Over all I had a fantastic experience both times!

Try the lunch buffet at Main Land China you will love it!!

Lunch Buffet at BBQ Nation!

Prologue: This is one place I have been dying to try out ever since the infamous Bobby Ganesan SMS Joke went viral! (For those of you who do not know the Bobby Ganesan-Joke please scroll down to the end of the post). 

Barbeque Nation is located at t-nagar and is almost always super crowded! I was lucky to get a table for two on a Sat afternoon! But once you get in you realise this place is totally worth the wait!

 

The table for two had a hollow space in the centre much like all tables which was well concealed with a table décor which they remove as soon as you tell them you are ready for starters… and then they bring a box of HOT COALS and set it right in between the table! 

It is a sight to behold! And then it begins... a wide range of assorted starter begin to arrive – everything you  can imagine~ shrimp, fish , chicken, lamb kebabs along with grilled paneer, capsicum, mixed vegetables , mushroom and potatoes. 

They leave no space in your table, plate and stomach – Ultimate visual treat to actually have these on skewers getting slow roasted on your very on table.

The starters are unlimited and keep arriving non- stop until you hoist down the flag place in your table – kinda makes you feel like royalty : )

I clearly was too stuffed to eat main course however I tasted a spoonful of Dum Briyani, a piece of fish tikka masala, a spoon full of lamb spicy curry, some fresh lettuce salad and cut vegetables along with sprout salad.

The Lunch Buffet comes with complementary drinks of your choice!

For dessert I had (Hold your breath) ~ a slice of chocolate fudge, a piece of mango soufflé, strawberry soufflé, hot gulab jamoons, rice pudding, ice cream and fresh cut fruits!! 

I don’t have just one sweet tooth all 28 of ‘em are sweet!

Lunch buffet for two  would cost you about 1000 rupees and totally worth every rupee :)

Now the Bobby Ganesan Joke

A famous actor turned politician who is known as the Shakespeare of the South India (lets call him Mokkai Man for now) plans to take his buddy for dinner and conversation as follows..

Mokkai man: Macha (Buddy) let us eat out tonight, my treat!

Buddy: Wokay, but where?

Mokkai man: I have heard of this fantastic restaurant in the city called Bobby Ganesan.

Buddy: Huh! I have never heard of such a place!! What did you say?

Mokkai man: Dei Machi (Yo Dude) You are so ignorant!

(Later that night both friends arrive at the restaurant and the sign board outside reads ‘BARBEQUE NATION’!!!)

Buddy: *closes his head with his palms*

Mokkai man says “Eppudi”!! (How is it!!)

~Fin~

Fish Fry at Mahabalipuram

I am a true blue Chennaite, I look at interruptions as a welcome break, I look forward to the northwest monsoons which turn my hot and torrid city into a water theme park and I love the muggy weather caused due to the salty seas which surrounds my beautiful city.    

However my parents and I moved to the suburbs of Chennai about 3 years back after spending a little over two decades in the city. Its not that we don’t love the city but its just that we need to miss something for a bit to love it even more:P so yes moving on ..Since all three of us go to work if you step into our tiny suburban home in the morning hours you will see  - Alien Vs Predator Vs Godzilla kinda action :P i.e. our mad rush to work so when 2 weeks back Wednesday was declared a holiday for all 3 of us by our respective organizations,  we got up late had a leisure brunch and hopped on to our car and drove far away and spent the noon at Mahabalipuram.

An ancient town built during the Pallavas circa 7^th century A.D. I remember reading so much about the Pallavas Dynasty while preparing for a popular competitive exam I’d rather not talk about here :D  because I do not want to be digressing again. The history buff I am, I am REALLY tempted to write down about the Pallava kings who consolidated power at in the south and established good governance with their seat of power at Mamallapuram.. I am also tempted to write about My mum who loves the historic epic ‘Sivakamiyin Sapatham’ which centers around the power struggle between the Pallava Kings and Pulikesin but I wont bore you with those details :) 

Somewhere around late noon I got hungry & I needed a quick snack and I was overcome by the smell of fried fish which was way too tempting to resist. So I gave in.. My mom is a doctor so she generally does  NOT approve eating anything other than home made food (impossible probability in my case).. But I managed to convince her I would be just fine... And now the highlight of the afternoon..

Crisp Fried Red Snapper

I chose one of those tiny shacks along the way to the beach which give you a choice of different fish to pick from - My choice ~ a nice red snapper marinated with Madras Masala powder and shallow fried till crisp. It was so delicious YOU WILL WANT MORE! I was full with just one slice :) 


What a perfect way to cool off a long day than a slice of water melon :)


Over all it was a perfect day and I am thankful for life's little blessing..