7th blog Anniversary with Magnum Icecream

It's been an amazing journey so far, I lost track of time and forgot that my blog is now seven years old. Didn't know that when kids grow older our responsibilities multiply! I am hardly posting recipes and only doing the review part these days.

A big "Hearty Thank You" to all my readers and visitors for your support, patience and encouragement all through these years. Please keep visiting and commenting. This keeps me inspired to blog. This year started with a big bang for me! I got the meet the very handsome and modest Indian celebrity chef and restaurateur Kunal Kapur and attend his masterclass!

Kunal Kapur is one of the most celebrated faces of Indian cuisine today. He is Chef extraordinaire, TV show host, winner of several culinary awards and the author of recently launched cookbook- ‘A Chef in Every Home’. He is living his dream of making Indian cuisine the number one cuisine in the world and empowering everyone through power of cooking to become self-sufficient. Chef Kunal (Executive Sous Chef, The Leela, Gurgaon) has been recognised amongst the Best Chefs in India by National Weekly Magazine - India Today. Recently, the Food & Nightlife Magazine adjudged him as the “Gourmet Guru”. He has been honored as one of the Top 20 chefs of India.

The event started like an interactive session with the chef. It was real pleasure to meet him. He started asking us about chocolates, the various types, test to identify the  best chocolate and how Magnum is different! We got 3 samples of chocolates and were asked to do a taste test.

For me eventually all were chocolates but I liked the bitter sweet one better and it was a nice start up!
Then came the tasting of Magnum Ice creams which was served in 3 different flavors. Chef Kunal Kapur wanted us to take the first bite and asked us how it feels after the very first bite! We were all speechless and were more keen on continuing the ice cream :)
Next was the creativity part. We got divided into teams and were given some ingredients along with the ice cream. We had to create something out of the given items.

I grabbed a few ingredients and found some gummy bears so we all decided to create traffic signals and a sundae out of them. This is what it eventually turned out to be :)

Though we all ended up with messy and sticky fingers we had so much fun creating it all! But the chef  created his master own piece which was standing out amongst us !

He even explained how to get the angry look of the bird with the placement of its eyes! That was simply awesome!
The event happily came to end with some refreshments, photo sessions, autographs, and goodie bags!

About Magnum:
Unilever’s biggest impulse ice-cream brand globally, Magnum not only dominates entire Europe but also is making giant waves across U.S., Asian countries like Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines. Its currently sold in more than 40 countries.Made from the finest Belgian chocolate and velvety smooth ice-cream, each bar of Magnum is crafted skillfully from bean to bite to invoke a sophisticated sensuous sensation, keeping perfect balance between bitter, sweet and milky. It’s a luxurious choc o-bar on a stick, fairly sophisticated flavors — vanilla wrapped in a neat, sturdy shell of Belgian chocolate.Magnum strongly believes " A day without pleasure is a day lost... " .They say if you haven't tasted Belgian chocolate you haven't experienced pure pleasure.
Magnum in India :
After a successful launch in Chennai last year ,the impulse ice cream brand is all set to make waves this summer in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Pune.
Magnum ice creams are made with 100% pure Belgian chocolate. They are delicious, creamy ice-creams covered in a thick layer of Belgian chocolate shell
Magnum’s “distinctive crack”- The sound and sight of the Belgian chocolate shell breaking when one first bites into the ice cream is signature Magnum
Magnum is one of the world’s largest chocolate ice cream brands and is owned by Unilever. As Unilever’s biggest impulse ice-cream brand globally, Magnum not only dominates Europe but is also making waves across the U.S. and Asian countries like Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. 
Magnum truly is an intense and remarkable experience of pleasure. It delivers pleasure experiences that are sensorial and intense, the kind that leaves you completely satisfied. It has a perfectionist approach.  From crafting to ingredient selection, there’s attention to every detail
Flavors available in India :
Classic: Plain vanilla ice cream covered in Belgian milk chocolate shell. Perfect for those who don’t like too much frills while enjoying an ice cream bar.

Almond: Plain vanilla ice cream covered in Belgian milk chocolate shell with almond nuts. Perfect for those who like some crunch in their ice cream.

Chocolate Truffle: Plain chocolate ice cream with chocolate truffle syrup covered in Belgian milk chocolate shell. Perfect for the chocoholics out there who like a good mix of creamy and bitter chocolate ice cream.

My Hearty Thanks to Sameer Malkani of Food Bloggers Association, India (FBAI) for sending me the invite and making it a memorable evening for me!

Pav Bhaji Bread Bowl and Pav Bhaji tikkis

Pav Bhaji being everyone's favorite I thought of giving it a new make over :) So I thought why not make a bread bowl. My kids loved the idea!
I received some samples of vegit's Pav Bhaji mix which is a ready made Pav Bhaji mix. Awesome isn't it! Why go through an elaborate time consuming process of making bhaji when we can do it in minutes.

  

 

Preparation 

Heat 50grams butter in frying pan on a low flame. Add 100grams chopped tomatoes and fry on medium heat for 3-5 minutes.

To this add 100grams of pav bhaji mix and mix well on a low flame. Add 500ml water and stir on a low flame for 15 minutes till water is absorbed.

Mash the pav bhai and garnish with fresh coriander leaves and half tsp. butter.

To make the bread bowl, the buns should be firm. Gently scoop out the upper part of the bun with knife and spoon. Place some bhaji inside it, top it with butter and serve warm with lemon wedges and chopped onions!

Pav Bhaji Tikkis

 

Follow the exact procedure given above to make the Bhaji. Make the bhaji a little dry leaving very little moisture so that tikkis can be made.
Make the patties/tikkis and coat them with bread crumbs. In a pan/tava add 1tsp oil and place the tikkis. Fry them till golden. Serve with ketchup!

About Vegit
Vegit, an agro division of Merino group and a leading brand in ready to cook segment, announced expansion of its product portfolio in Bangalore market with the launch of ever famous Vegit Pav Bhaji for the Retail HORECA (Hotel, Restaurant & Catering) segment. Priced at Rs. 60 for Retail, Vegit will now be available with a range of 9 new snacks mixes along with its flagship product ‘Aloo Mash’ (Potato Flakes), thereby strengthening its presence in Indian market. 

Keeping in line with the tradition of offering tasty, nutritive food that offers immense convenience, Vegit Pav Bhaji mix offers 100% classic Indian flavor and its preparation involves only 10% of time and effort on cooking, without missing the taste of traditional pav bhaji. Vegit Pav Bhaji mix comes in an innovative refreshed, clutter free packaging, which brings convenience into your kitchen.

Vegit products are healthy and contain the much essential vitamins and nutrients. The USP of these products “Hamara Mix, Aapka Twist” being that they can be prepared as it is or with a “Twist” as the consumer is free to experiment and modify the dish as per their taste buds.

Vegit has a wide array of products starting from the flagship products Aloo Mash (Potato Flakes) to 9 mouthwatering instant Indian snacks viz Pav Bhaji, Burger Patty, Aloo Tikki, Aloo Bonda, Soya Rolls, Cheese Balls, Hara Bhara Kebabs, Shammi Kebabas and  Veg cutlets.

Vegit is the agro division of Merino Group, spread equally between making of Potato Flakes and sumptuous Snacks Mixes and is committed to providing an international standard products that has been domestically produced. The integration of complete agri operations from tissue culture to food processing has assured the consistent supply of best quality products and has established a sustainable market for itself both with the domestic and international buyers.
Vegit offers a range of snacks mixes which are all simple, fast, neat and ready to make and also exports the products and reaches out to the retail sector and also the industrial catering units, restaurants and hotels. For more information visit Vegit at www.vegit-merino.com and www.merinoindia.com

Undhiyo a fabulous Winter food !

I Wish you all a very Happy and Prosperous New year !
Whenever I go to Rajasthani restaurants and eat Undhiyo I wanted to replicate it at home and after much research came up with a successful one!
Followed a little of Tarla Dalal and a little from Sanjeev Kapoor's recipe !

Ingredients   

• Potatoes,2 inch cubes 2 medium

• Purple Yam (kand),2 inch cubes 400 grams

• Papdi dana 1 cup

• Surti papdi , split 1 cup

• Brinjals , split with steam  6-8 small

• Raw bananas, 2 inch pieces  1

 For the Masala Paste

• Fresh green garlic, finely chopped  1/2 cup

• Fresh coriander leaves, chopped  1 cup

• Coconut, scraped  1 cup

• Green chilli paste  2 tablespoons

• Sugar  2 tablespoons

• Lemon juice  1 tablespoon

• Ginger paste  1 tablespoon

• Salt  to taste

• Oil  to deep fry

• Carom seeds (ajwain)  1 teaspoon

2 pinch of soda bicarbonate

For Muthiya  

• Whole wheat flour (atta) 1 cup

• Gram flour (besan) 1/4 cup

• Fenugreek leaves (methi),finely chopped 1/2 cup

• Turmeric powder  1/4 teaspoon

• Red chilli powder  1 teaspoon

• Salt  to taste

• Sugar  1 teaspoon


Preparation

To make muthiyas, mix all the ingredients and three tablespoons of oil into a stiff dough. Divide into small portions and shape each into one-inch long half-inch thick rolls. Heat sufficient oil in a kadhai and deep-fry the muthiyas on medium heat till cooked through and light golden. Drain and place on an absorbent paper and set aside.
Surti papdi is a variety of broad beans. Papdi Dana are shelled beans from the same surti papdi.

Mixed together all the vegetables with a little salt and pinch of soda bi carbonate and set aside.  Grind half the grated coconut,  green chilli paste, coriander, for the marination.  Add half the coconut mixture to the Surti papad and papdi dana and mix.  Add the remaining coconut mixture to the other vegetables. 
For the stuffing mix together green garlic, coriander leaves, coconut, green chilli paste, a pinch of sugar, lemon juice, ginger paste and salt in a bowl. Stuff some of this stuffing mixture into the slits of brinjals and raw banana pieces. Heat two tablespoons of the oil left after deep frying. Add carom seeds and saute. Add papdi dana and surti papdi and stir. Add half a cup of water and salt, cover and cook for two to three minutes. Open the lid and sprinkle a little of the stuffing mixture. Place the brinjals in a layer over this. Sprinkle a little of the stuffing mixture over this too. Place the raw banana pieces in a layer and once again sprinkle some of the stuffing mixture. Over this place a layer of the fried potatoes and purple yam and sprinkle the remaining stuffing mixture. Drizzle two to three tablespoons of oil all around and over the top. Toss lightly. Cover and cook on very low heat for ten minutes. Open the lid and place the muthiyas, cover once again and cook on very low heat for about half an hour or till all the vegetables are completely done and soft. Serve hot with puris or rotis !