Taco Night

The beauty of Taco's are that no matter what you do - you can NEVER go wrong, it always tastes yummy. Taco's are also lots of fun; specially if you are having people over because there will always be something for everyone. Who can say no to avocado, sour cream or hot salsa. I am sure there are a few but we'll focus on the ones who like to indulge. Below is a summary of how we made the various components. I am not going to give specific measurements because there were none - it was all about tasting & adding a little bit of this n' a little bit of that. One thing I discovered that was absolute magic were Chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce - this sauce has just the right amount of smokiness and spice. It is magical; I will definitely be experimenting with it more often.

Guacamole: 3 ripe avocado's + juice from 1 lime + 2 tomatoes + 3 jalapenos + cilantro + salt + 1 onion -> chop it all up and mix well; taste and add what you feel is missing

Slaw: This concoction was the brainchild of my darling husband. Chop purple cabbage, add to it a mixture of: light mayo + agave nectar + pepper + little soy sauce -> again taste and adjust; since everything else was spicy we made the slaw a little sweet to balance it out. Make sure you don't soak it in the mayo mix.

Fish: Marinate the fish (I used Tilapia) in a marinade of tomato from the Chipotle pepper sauce + salt + lemon juice + 1 tablespoon minced garlic for 30 minutes. Heat some oil on a saucepan and add the fish + all the sauce it has been marinating in. Finely chop 1 Chipotle pepper and add it to the pan. Reduce the heat and let it cook on a low flame for 10 - 15 mins. When almost done increase the heat for 1 minute to reduce the sauce;  flake the cooked fish it with a fork and it is ready to serve.

Other Stuff: lime, cut cilantro, sour cream and soft taco's

Now all you need to do is build the taco. On the soft taco add the fish + slaw + guacamole; sprinkle the cilantro, squeeze some lime and dollop on some sour cream, fold in half and take a big scrumptious bite!

A Gemini Who Is Trying To Stick With It !

I am a person who can rarely stick to one thing for a long period of time. I need a new project or shall we say a little focus (change) to my existing one. I LOVE to eat and cook, so I decided to Spy on some of my recipes while capturing and documenting my cooking. Lately I have been trying to be healthy, but my palate yearns for tasty food. Below is a recipe for stuffed peppers & tomatoes; I have kept the fat out and the flavor in. Hope you give it a try.

INGREDIENTS:

Vegetables: 1.5 Purple Onions, 3 large Tomatoes, 3 large Green Peppers, 1.5 Tablespoon Ginger Garlic paste, 3 stalks of chopped celery, 3 Green Chillies chopped 
Spices: 0.5 - 1 teaspoon each of Garam Masala powder, Cumin powder, Coriander powder, Turmeric powder, a pinch of Red Chilli powder, 1 Tspoon of panch poran (optional), 3 curry leaves, Sriracha to taste
Meat: 1 pound minced chicken   
Other: 0.5 cup uncooked brown rice, salt to taste, 1 tablespoon oil

METHOD:

1. Cook the brown rice - I do this first as brown rice usually takes a while to cook
2. Dice the onions and green chillies
3. In a large vessel heat the oil, add the panch poran & curry leaves till they start sputtering
4. Add the cut onions & green chillies to the above, stir till the onions turn light brown
5. While the onions are cooking cut the tops off two tomatoes remove the pulp and set aside
6. Add ginger garlic to the onions, stir for a minute, add all the powder spices and the pulp from the tomatoes - let it simmer for 5 minutes stirring occasionally
7. While the above is cooking cut the tops of the peppers and the tomato removing the seeds / pulp to make hollow casings; keep aside
8. Add the mince chicken to the tomato mixture; mix well and cover to let it cook; make sure the heat is on medium so that it does not burn
8. When the chicken is almost cooked add salt & sriracha (depending to level of heat you would like) to taste
9. Add the cooked brown rice & chopped celery to the chicken mixture. Let it simmer for 5 minutes or till the chicken is cooked
10. Turn the oven on to 355 F
11. Fill the tomato and peppers with the chicken - brown rice filling
12. Place on a flat surface and cover the peppers & tomato with foil
13. Bake covered in the middle rack of the oven for 20 -25 till the tomato & pepper softens a bit 
14. Garnish with coriander or sriracha or mint leaves (whatever is in the house !)

Variation: Whisk in a bowl -> 2 eggs, 1 tablespoon sriracha & a dash of soy sauce. When the pepper / tomatoes are almost cooked remove the cover, add one spoon of the mixture on top of each and put on the top rack of the oven at 375 F for 5 minutes or till egg mixture cooks.  

Let the Sunshine In

I hate dreary days in Manhattan. I can take the rain and I can take the cold but both together are the worst combination ever. In India when it rains it is beautiful. You smell the fresh mud as the monsoon cools down the sizzling hot ground. In New York when it rains all I want to do is curl up in bed and do nothing. My bones get lazy and efficiency is at an all time low. Today was such a day; the rain was annoying and slushy. This day reminded me of how great it is when the sun shines. This took my thoughts to Portugal and the time I spent in the Algarve - the southern most tip of Portugal. In the Algarve the weather is perfect; you lie on the beach, swim with the fishes and take long walks. The sunsets are gorgeous; I have never seen so many colors and beautiful cloud formations ever in my life. On dreary days like this I look back to the lovely experiences that the sun has given me and I know even though it is hiding behind those clouds today, it will come out tomorrow or the day after and bring back the warmth; until then I seek it under my covers in bed.

DOURO VALLEY

We were leaving the flat lands behind and driving up and into the valley. The scenery changed to curvy roads, mountains, meandering rivers and beautiful vistas. For this part of the trip we stayed in a farm house called Quinta de la Rosa that overlooked the Douro River. The pictures show how tranquil and serene this place is. Not sure whether it was the altitude we were at, the creaky wooden floors of the Quinta or the mosquito nets that hugged our beds at night – but something about the Douro valley just put us in a very relaxed state of mind

One of our day jaunts in the Douro was to a place called Quinta de Romaneira. This Quinta is tucked deep in the valley and we got thoroughly lost trying to find it. The gentleman who owns this luxury farmhouse is an avid collector of all things unique which include interesting artifacts from various Portuguese colonies, an insect collection from Brazil, a dining table made from a huge African tree truck and old carved chairs from Goa. One of my favorite things about this place was the infinity pool that overlooked the valley – I could laze there for hours. Click below to see some pictures from the Quinta:

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Another memorable experience was the dinner at DOC – which is Rui Paula’s restaurant by the Duoro river. My mouth still waters when I think of the scrumptious 7 course meal. The food was fantastic but never before have I been intrigued with the lighting in a restaurant as I was here. Below are some shots I took not of the food but the unique light fixtures.
 
We tasted a lot of wine in the Douro Valley. Wine from Portugal is not as well known; but they can stand up to some of the best wines in the world. The Douro valley was relaxing and surprising; sprinkled with many treats along the way. The next stop was Porto where we would discover the lovely world of Port Wine.

Fairytale Land

I want to live in the place of angels, unicorns and elves 

Where the sun shines everyday and rainbows have a pot of gold at the end 

Where there is fairy dust and your dreams come true 

As you sleep the moon sings a lullaby to you. 

Portugal is such a place
  

Press Play and click on show info to read where these pictures were taken.

NO planes, NO Trains, just Automobile

We picked up the car in Lisbon; this was very exciting as the adventure of driving through Portugal was about to commence. I was the designated driver for the trip and enjoyed every bit of zipping through the countries magnificent highways. There was almost no traffic and the zipping was controlled by Ms. GPS who warned me every time I was going too fast. The two things that made this drive a breeze was the GPS, we almost never got lost and the automatic gears which saved us as the further North we went the more winding and narrow the roads got. After this trip I have come to the conclusion that THE best way to discover a country is to drive it. We could take detours as we pleased, stop to take in the scenery and leave whenever we wanted. No planes, no trains, just our automobile – we were master’s of our time.
Evora was the first destination we drove to. We stayed at the best Bed and Breakfast. It felt like I was at home; sitting on the comfy couch reading my kindle with a glass of red wine. The organic food they served was scrumptious. The B&B is run by a couple from LA (Nina & Peter) who spoke fluent Portuguese as a result of their Brazilian descent. It was the perfect home away from home. Evora is a cute little town – the one ‘must do’ is to find a restaurant called  Botequim da Mouraria it seats only 8 people so get there early if you don’t want to wait. A hole-in-the wall place that is run by an old man – Domingo; who charms the front of the house while his wife – Florabel; cooks with much agility and skill at the back of the house. You will taste authentic delicious Portuguese cuisine here. We visited the city of Monsaraz that is not too far from Evora. The white washed walls and cobble stone roads set against the beautiful vista of lakes and mountains were breathtaking. There was not a person in sight and almost felt like I was in a movie – beautiful and surreal. Herdade de Esparoa is one of the biggest privately owned wineries in Evora and a must visit. We got to crush the grapes, walk in the fields, drink the wine and eat one of the best meals of the trip. Below are pictures that I took along the way:

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Lishboah

Lisbon – a city of seven hills with white winding roads that are so narrow you can barely tell they exist, as you wind up and down them discovering the city one hill at a time. Almost all the buildings have colorful tiles on the outside that make each one of them look majestic; specially when glistening in the sunlight. We spent most of our time roaming the city taking it all in; visiting castles, monasteries and monuments. Sampling Portuguese food was on top of our list. We ate our first exquisite (10 course) meal at 100 Maneiras. We were fed cod on a clothes line among other strange but delicious delicacies. Another hotspot I would recommend is  A Travessa – a restaurant that is situated inside an absolutely breathtaking old monastery. One thing we noticed about Portugal was the lack of people. No place was ever crowded and come afternoon the streets were deserted no matter where you were. We visited near by towns of Belém and Sintra the former has the best pastel de nata at Café Pastéis de Belém. Pastel de nata is a traditional creamy custard pie that is sinful ! Lisbon has many area’s (Bairro Alto, The Alfama, Chiado, The Baixa) that you can walk up and down endlessly. The city is full of white cobble stone roads, monuments, fado music and amazing food ! Stop one on our Portuguese journey was delightful.

Quin·quen·ni·um /kwinˈkwenēəm/: (Noun) A specified period of five years

My mother and I do "mommy - daughter" trip every five years. It is not something we planned on doing – it just happened. Ten years ago the destination was Italy, five years ago Eastern Europe and then this year we decided to take on Portugal. Of course much planning was done in advance (mainly by mom); and nothing could keep us away. Not Hurricane Irene in New York who hit the weekend I was leaving and not the Portuguese Embassy in India who could not issue a visa for my mom because their systems were down. After much drama she got a hand written visa the day before she was to leave! It was touch and go – we had Scotland as our back-up plan just in case the visa did not come through; but it would not have been the same. 

We spent fourteen days, driving one thousand eight hundred and ninety four kilometers from one end of Portugal to the other. I highly recommend driving through a country – it is the best way to see all of its nooks, crannies & idiosyncrasies. The highlight of our trip was the food. We (I mean .. mom) had done some serious research on restaurants and chefs. Our gastronomical experience spanned "hole in the wall" establishments to simply sinful tasting menu's at much acclaimed Michelin star restaurants. The hotels we stayed at were varied and added to the entire experience. In Lisbon and Porto we wanted to be in the center of it all and stayed at a typical city hotel; while in Condexia a Nova we chose an old traditional Portuguese house. We stayed at the best bed and breakfast I have ever been to in Evora; and in Pinhao it was a farm house (Quinta) that made amazing Port Wine. Finally, we ended our holiday in the Algarve at a Spa Resort right by the beach. Complete relaxation before getting back to reality. Driving, eating, drinking, taking it all in - It was quite a trip. Below is a glimpse of what is to come as I take you through my Portuguese journey in pictures and words.

Let’s Run Away

What if you could live another life. What would it be? Would you live on an island in Greece or would you want to have lived in another time. Movies have been made and books written that deal with time travel or living a life other than your own. A few weekends ago I was surrounded by the 1920's. First I watched Midnight in Paris which is a story told (only the way Woody Allen can) about time traveling to the 1920's in Paris. It was so romantic, mesmerizing & whimsical – every character wanted to escape to a place other than their present. The other 1920's experience that weekend was at Governors Island where we came across a 1920's themed day - everyone was dressed as they would in the 20's dancing the day away. It was magical to watch people  escape into a time that seemed simpler and easier.
What is the fascination with wanting to live another life? Why do people want to escape the present? Be curious about what was and what may be - but enjoy your now because it isn't coming back. Below are some pictures from Governors Island that capture the 1920’s era that was.

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Manhattanhenge

Today was Manhattanhenge - it is when the sun aligns perfectly with the Manhattan grid. One of the many things that you learn when you live in Manhattan. I have been meaning to go view this semiannual occurrence but never got down to it - till today. I walked to 34th street with my husband and kept complaining along the way; there are too many clouds in the sky, its too hazy, we are never going to get good shots. Of course I thought that we were the only two crazy people to walk 25 blocks in the heat. We turned the corner onto 34th street - and oh my; there were 100's of people waiting for the lights to turn red so they could jump to the middle of the road and capture this perfect alignment. I am surprised no one got run over. See below pictures from the amazing Manhattanhenge. I am sure centuries from now when people dig up the ruins of Manhattan they will wonder if it has any significance as we do of Stonehenge today.