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Archive for the ‘Garam Masala’ Category

Holiday Garam Masala Cake makes a great hostess gift.

It’s hard to believe it’s time to plan Christmas baking once again. I’ve scheduled my cookie bake-off this weekend just in time for sharing during the holiday festivities.

I’m all about hostess gifts from the kitchen. It’s a lovely gesture that comes from the heart and you can never go wrong with bringing food to a party!

Not only amazing in this cake, but try garam masala in your spiced holiday cookies, fruit cake and my favourite – hot chocolate!

The garam masala in a cake is warming and reminiscent of the holidays.

The savoury Indian spice blend really compliments any sweet with fruit, rum or dark chocolate—think of a salted caramel or dark chocolate with chili–it’s a similar combination.

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All week I’ve been thinking about tapas, and Indian-style tapas to be exact. Spain winning last week’s FIFA World Cup final has got me hooked on Spain On The Road Again …all over again!

Summertime always reminds me of Spain. When I was younger my family hosted some Spanish students for a couple of months in the summer opening me up to their culinary traditions and culture. Meat was definitely on the menu! From Asturias to Valencia to the northern Basque country, it was interesting to learn from our Spanish friends how the cuisine was unique to each Spanish province. Similarly India’s regional differences are very pronounced.

For the Masala Papad recipe below, of course this is not Spanish but I like to call it Indian-style tapas. It’s a light snack made from papads, also known as pappadums, thin grilled wafers made from lentils. These are gluten-free!

Uncooked papads

This snack is crunchy but gets freshness from tomatoes, cilantro, green chili and onions. Choose heirloom tomatoes for their amazing taste! I heard Clover Roads Organic Farm may possibly have their delicious tomatoes at today’s Oakville Organic Farmers’ Market. So exciting, I’ve waited a year for these!

Ingredients:
4 papads, grilled
2 tomatoes, finely cubed
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1 green chili, finely chopped
2 tsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. Arvinda’s Garam Masala, to garnish

Method of Preparation: In a bowl combine all ingredients. Top grilled papads with tomato mixture and garnish with Arvinda’s Garam Masala. Serves 4.

Masala Papad topping all mixed up!

Now for the experiment. What is the best way to grill papads?

Today I tried it on the electrical stove.

For the electrical stove, cook papads on top of a cake cooling rack.

And then on the gas stove and lastly in the microwave.

Gas stove (left); electric stove (middle); microwave (right).

To my surprise, the microwave fared as the most consistent and even cooking and most aesthetically pleasing. Stove top grilling tends to slightly burn them, as they are very thin and delicate. Grilling the papads on the electrical stove made them crispier however. Any tips on cooking the perfect papad?

You can serve Masala Papadslike this:

Whole Masala Papad

Or like this!

Masala Papad Chips!

A teaspoon of: Johannes Linstead. Listening to: Hour of the Lamps.

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Arvinda's Curried Cilantro Deviled Eggs

Growing up in the 80s, I remember deviled eggs popping up at spring luncheons and potlucks often (on the grown-ups’ table at least!). As a kid it was something I didn’t pay much attention to, but I remember seeing them everywhere!

Simple and elegant, this curried version was on my holiday table, keeping in theme with eggs for this weekend. The recipe is simple and of course has an Indian twist!

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Preena

Since releasing Arvinda’s Artisanal Indian Spice Blends in 2005 I’ve always loved the dark chocolate and garam masala combo. There is something great about the pairing of sweet with savoury, similar to a caramel with sea salt. Since then I’m always sneaking a hit of Arvinda’s Garam Masala into my hot chocolate – I think I have this every day!

Being a sweet lover, a steamy cup of hot chocolate is as much comfort for me as a warm blanket. Therefore, my garam masala hot chocolate ritual gives me both a sweet fix and like I said, comfort from the warming Indian spices, especially needed for our snowy days like today.

After a few years, I’m still super-loving this recipe and haven’t found anything to displace my daily indulgence, so I’m excited to share this with you!

Here is a short video clip on Making Preena’s Signature Garam Masala Hot Chocolate with Arvinda’s and the recipe that goes along with it:

A few weeks ago, trend-spotter and food blogger Dana McCauley, asked her audience about culinary collections. Yes, that would be me, a collector of cocoas and hot chocolates amongst my other food collectibles. Here are some of my favourites…

A selection of my favourites

Although I have many different hot chocolates in my collection, I prefer making hot chocolate from scratch using pure cocoa, to avoid any additives or preservatives. My absolute favourite is Cadbury’s Bournville Cocoa (Fair Trade certified), and Guittard’s Cocoa Rouge is also delicious with its fudge-like bittersweet qualities. Green & Black’s Organic Cocoa is also a great choice, as is Canadian Cocoa Camino cooperative’s organic and Fair Trade cocoa.

My top pure cocoa pics

Each cocoa does indeed have a unique flavour and characteristic, lending differences in taste, texture and full-bodiness.

Hint: I switch up the recipe from time to time and swap out the garam masala for Arvinda’s Chai Masala to give that quintessential chai flavour. Hope you enjoy this as much as I do!

A teaspoon of: Snow Patrol. Listening to: Chocolate.

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Still looking for some inspiration for a special Valentine’s meal today? Look no further. Indian spices can add both warming qualities and lots of flavour to a beautifully pleasing Valentine’s menu.

Indian cuisine is known to be aphrodisical in nature, namely because of the vast array of spices we use, each having euphoric-inducing qualities. These spices include ginger, cardamom, cloves and chilies that awaken the senses and excite the mind, body and spirit.

Here are a few easy recipes posted on Food Network Canada’s website using Arvinda’s Chai Masala and Arvinda’s Garam Masala, both containing these powerful and sensuous spices.



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We served up Arvinda's Phyllo Samosas with Garam Masala Organic Raspberry Tamarind Date Chutney

Tuesday night’s Dine, Demo & Dinner fundraiser for Doctors Without Borders, Haiti Earthquake Relief Benefit was a resounding success!

The series of three chef fundraising events held in Oakville at Whole Foods Market and in Toronto at Great Cooks this week was organized by Lisa Slater and Judy Hembruff whom we’ve worked with for the last 14 years in the all-women’s chef event Eat to the Beat, held each October to raise funds for Willow Breast Cancer Support.

Rose from Whole Foods Market with Preena

Edward Street's Tory & Chef Chris Klugman made a Spiced Orange & Cauliflower Mash that makes my mouth water!

Preena with Chef Julia Hanna of Julia's Ristorante

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A few days ago I was ‘across the pond’ in rainy London, England and had a wonderful day at the Tate Modern for a taste of the latest exhibits of modern art. Although there are many pieces worth mentioning, the work I was most intrigued about was Robert Therrien’s “Red Room,” a collection of 888 red household items melded together into what seems like one “large monochrome painting.”

Red Room courtesy of http://www.tate.org.uk

So often the colour red has negative connotations symbolizing war, anger, pain, danger, bloodshed…the list goes on. Upon first glance, I glazed over the room as an unpleasant ‘sea of red.’ However, within a couple of minutes I was drawn to Therrien’s work as it evoked feelings of the contrary — warmth, happiness, fire, excitement and passion. Each individual object began to story tell, spanning a range of positive uncanny emotions.

I started to get hungry. The “Red Room” got me thinking about my kitchen. My George Foreman Grill is the colour red, as are the silicone oven mitts, spatulas and pastry brushes I own. Interesting. It is said the colour red makes one hungry which could explain why red is so readily found in the kitchen. We left the Tate feeling famished!

In India, the colour red is highly symbolic, representing purity, fertility and wealth. Most things Indian involve some colour red, most definitely including the spice box!

Inspired by Therrien, I consolidated my red items into a monochromatic panorama. Of course my version of the “Red Room” didn’t come close to Therrien’s complex lacing of 888 items, but my selection included some of my favourite things – chilies, beetroots, Sriracha sauce, pomegrantes, apples and red tea.

Preena's 'room of red'

This month choose foods with the colour red for their antioxidant, energy boosting and aesthetic qualities, as well as to bring about feelings of warmth, excitement and passion.

This Garam Masala Beetroot & Carrot Kachumber(salad) is refreshing and beautifully pleasing to any February menu.

Garam Masala Beetroot Carrot Kachumber

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I know everyone enjoys those canapés and savoury starters like samosas at a holiday party. I like them too, however as a hostess they can be labour-intensive to prepare, especially when guests are arriving on short notice.

Frustrated and frazzled party-throwers often run to their frozen food aisle for the many boxed-up savoury hors d’oeuvres available, which can be expensive and often contain additives too.

When I’m in a bind, my favourite party tip to feed a crowd is to make a soup, served up in a shot glass or espresso cup with a cool garnishing.

Soup makes a perfect presentation for a party

It’s a low-fuss preparation, something you can make in one big batch and you know your guests can fill up on something flavourful (and healthy too!).

For your next gathering, try Arvinda’s Curried Lentil Carrot Soup served in an espresso cup garnished with a pappadum wafers.
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Arvinda’s Curried Lentil Carrot Soup

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Welcome December, which also means welcome in the sweets and treats, and cookies galore! The last few days I’ve been in the grocery and specialty stores to stock up on baking supplies, all which have ‘end caps’ brimming with flour, sugar and candied cherries waiting to be turned into fruitcakes, sugar cookies, shortbread and more. Are you inspired yet!?

If you’re looking for a ‘sweet’ change of pace to this year’s cookie bake-off, try using Arvinda’s Indian spice blends paired with your traditional festive ingredients.

Arvinda’s Chai Masala is great in sugar cookies, shortbread, fruit-based desserts like a roasted apple or pear cake. Also makes a rich, steamy authentic cup of Masala Chai too!

Arvinda’s Garam Masala is the perfect spice mix in your fruitcakes – the richness of fruit, nuts and brandy can handle this spice blend’s intensely intoxicating aroma and flavour. Pairs nicely in savoury cheese biscuits and crackers too, ideal for a cheese plate. Or try an unconventional savoury and sweet Garam Masala Crème Brulee.

All those who attended Arvinda’s Merry Masala Cookie Exchange this week had a chance to experience our spicy creations first-hand (and were good at it too…delicious!). Thank you for coming and take a peek at our cookie mayhem!

Elizabeth Baird, Canada's very own baking guru was there too - what an honour!

Busy, busy baking

Finishing station

Before

After!

Simply festive Garam Masala Gingerbread Squares

The fan's favourite

Time to eat!

Thank you also to Food Network Canada and Spotlight Toronto for the tweets that night!

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