Product Reviews - Travels for Taste

Häagen-Dazs Limited Edition Christmas ice cream cake – Le Village

December 18, 2014 by manjirichitnis Leave a Comment

Each year, the Christmas Häagen-Dazs ice cream cake is a new gourmand creation which unites the beauty of design with the succulence of ingredients. For this 7th edition, Häagen-Dazs has sought Nendo – a Japanese designer whose powerful imagination is combined with the simplicity of lines. Nendo’s technical excellence matches the poetry in his creations. Le Village instantly brings back memories of New Year parties, the magic of Christmas, and the fragility of woken dreams. Between marvellous fairy tales and enchanted reality, the Village brings together adults and children around the same desire for sharing.

Of the two versions of Le Village created (pink or chocolate houses), I was sent one of the Le Village cakes as a beautiful early Christmas present – one with pink houses – talk about getting an ‘inside scoop’ !!

A frozen wonderland with a sleek design.

Each Le Village creation both pink and chocolate contains a delicious original recipe, one enhancing the iconic flavours from Häagen-Dazs (Macadamia Nut Brittle and Dulche de Leche), and the other completely original with a new limited edition flavour ( Vanilla and florentine ).

To the excellency of its ice cream, Häagen-Dazs adds another ingredient to sublimate its recipes: chocolate. In fact, the houses themselves are made of milk or white chocolate and filled with fudge sauce and caramelized hazelnuts . They are then delicately dusted with icing sugar, like freshly fallen snow on the rooftops.

I took this beautiful cake to my friends place at a Pre-Christmas lunch party – sharing only made this treat sweeter and more special… 🙂

Christmas is a time for generosity; for large tables, the Village can be expanded at the wish of Nendo who, in a final gesture of great inspiration, created a small bridge out of chocolate, which allows the two different villages to be joined together. So everyone has the chance to (re)create their own Village, a purely indulgent creation with timeless elegance.

You too can discover pure indulgence and share this very special festive delight with your loved ones on Christmas day, but there are only TEN Le Village Limited Edition Christmas ice cream cakes available to buy from the Häagen-Dazs Leicester Square store for the whole of Britain! Will YOU be one of the 10 LUCKY people across BRITAIN sharing this lovely cake for Christmas ?

A generous helping of festive delight!

*With thanks to Häagen-Dazs and the PR team for sending this beautiful early Christmas present. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own

Cooking with WORLD FOODS at the School of Wok and WORLD FOODS Giveaway – CLOSED

December 16, 2014 by manjirichitnis 11 Comments

Cooking out of jar is something we resort to only when we are really hard pressed for time or in a situation when we simply do have access to fresh ingredients, but there are few jarred sauces that defy this belief and World Foods sauces I think deserve to be one of those. The reason I say this thank to a really well planned and executed cookery class at the School of Wok courtesy WORLDFOODS and expertly conducted by Head Chef at School of Wok Jeremy Wong.

WORLDFOODS produces a range of seven ready-made sauces totaling 51 variations in all with tantalising Asian dipping sauces, pastes, noodle sauces, stir-fry, cooking sauces, marinades, chutneys and salad dressings . The best bit is that they do not use preservatives and artificial flavorings. AND their products are food allergens free, trans-fat free and gluten free with no artificial preservatives, coloring or flavouring. The aim being to produce and maintain a range of “clean” products that are suitable for Vegetarians, Vegans and Celiacs.

Once we had a brief introduction from Jeremy, we were each asked to pick a partner to cook with and since I was going to be eating the duck and Nayna is a vegetarian we picked other partners and Fiona and me started working on the ingredients.

Jeremy showed us some really amazing knife skills and we sliced a pepper like I’ve never done before using a rather huge cleaver imported straight from the Far East. In spite of both Fiona and me still having wrists in bad shape we managed this bit smoothly thanks to picking up some basic techniques that Chef Jeremy very lucidly explained.

The mention of Panang Curry duck with Thai basil stir fry made my mouth water. On the menu was a also a Masaman roast poussin and for the vegetarians similar dishes using the same WORLDFOODS sauces but with aubergine replacing the duck and delicious and cute squash used in place of poussin. I love paneer and the squash was stuffed with paneer – I felt slightly greedy especially when I saw the beautiful roast squash was taken out of the oven – turning a visible shade of green (with envy – which scared Fiona a little and Nayna a lot 😉 !). The vegetarians also made Rendang tacos.

After the veggie chopping when we started cooking I was really impressed with the huge portion of duck that we were going to cook and it watching the duck sizzle and ooze its fat and juices on the pan made my tummy rumble in anticipation of a fab meal.

What happened next was the most interesting part of the evening – we learnt some cool wok handling skills and the basics of how to get a stir fry going, I even managed to get a really cool video of Jeremy giving us some amazing tips – why not head over to my Instagram feed and watch the video now?!)

After our cooking session we sat down to a delicious meal and really enjoyed the the taste of the dishes – fresh and full of flavour – nothing that you will expect coming out of a jar – ever! The Lemon drizzle cake made with WORLDFOODS lemongrass paste had a beautiful fluffy and light texture and was irresistibly yummy. I am not a fan of traditional lemon drizzle cakes and find the sharp citrusy taste overwhelming but the milder lemon grass was a very welcome taste for me and I really think that this is going to be my favourite not so secret ingredient for my future bakes!

With minimal prep done for us, I picked up some excellent knife skills and cookery tips, ate some gorgeous Asian Fusion food and spent a very pleasant evening in the company of some old food blogger friends and met some more really lovely bloggers. The most important part was the superb time management by Jeremy and his efficient in house chef.

WORLDFOODS have kindly agreed to give ONE lucky reader a selection of 5 delicious sauces to experiment with so you too can create asian fusion foods using natural ingredients in the comfort of your own home.

How to enter the WORLDFOODS Asian Fusion Flavour Sauces Giveaway with sliceoffme blog:

How to enter the giveaway:

You too can WIN 5 delicious sauces from the WORLDFOODS range, all you have to do is :

Follow me on twitter – @manjirichitnis
Tweet out the following – #WORLDFOODS #WIN @fusiontasteteam sauces with @manjirichitnis, to enter #GIVEAWAY head to sliceoffme blog bit.ly/16oX4oj
Leave a comment below telling me what is your favourite asian dish and your facebook name used to like my FB page. I will find you on twitter via the hashtag so it’s not required for you to mention your twitter handle in the comments. Do not share your email id in the comments please.

Please have a read through the Terms and Conditions below:

Winner will be picked using Random Number Generator.
Deadline for entering this contest is 5th January’ 2015 midnight GMT.
Entry is open only to residents of the U.K except Scotland and Ireland.
All entrants must be 18 years old and above.
ONE lucky winner will be chosen using random number generator.
The giveaway prize is as mentioned in the post. Neither WORLDFOODS, nor I am liable for any damage of products and / or contents in transit.
Please allow a minimum of 25 days for delivery of the prize, which may reach earlier or later. The sauces will be sent directly by WORLDFOODS.
The prize is as stated: no cash alternatives are available.
I retain the right to DISQUALIFY any entrant who do not complete all the 3 steps mentioned above.
The winner will be notified on 6th January’ 2015 on Twitter by me and here on my blog post. I shall tag the winner on Twitter via their twitter id. If you are declared as the winner you agree to allow me and Knorr to contact you via email id to arrange for the goody bag to be sent out to you.
If the winner failS to respond by 8th January’ 2015 then another winner will be chosen via Random Number Generator.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE LUCKY WINNER WHO HAS WON 5 DELICIOUS WORLDFOODS Asian Fusion Flavour Sauces

Sarah Davies @haonharas

*With thanks to WORLDFOODS and the PR team for arranging the fabulous sauces for my giveaway and inviting me for the event. A special thank you to School of Wok and Jeremy for his time, generosity and teaching me some cool skills . No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own

Pomegranate, caramelised Walnut and baby Kale salad

December 13, 2014 by manjirichitnis 49 Comments

The first time I discovered Hotel Chocolat was when my friend, fellow book worm, tea enthusiast, and impromptu hogging fest companion ND and me collapsed into a warm cosy corner of the beautiful Hotel Chocolate cafe’/ shop at Borough Market ( why not read about what we did, what we ate and discover the sights and sounds of our visit with my blog posts here?)

It was love at first taste for me and ever since I have adored the fabulously creative chocolates from Hotel Chocolat. But did you know that they also make a whole range of delicious products like spreads, drinking chocolates, pasta, pesto, sauces, and even chilli oil all infused with cocoa and chocolate? There is a whole world of both sweet and savoury dishes that can be prepared by adding an extra touch of elegance and decadence with Hotel Chocolat products.

I was sent a bottle of the Hotel Chocolat Cocoa Balsamic packaged in a beautiful bag for review.

I made a filling, colourful wintery salad using some fresh ingredients and the result was this gorgeously delicious salad!

Here is my easy recipe for :

Pomegranate,caramelised Walnut and baby Kale salad with Hotel Chocolat Cocoa Balsamic

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1 small red onion sliced lengthwise
5- 6 smoked ham sliced fine
1/2 a pack of baby kale leaves
1/2 a pack of baby spinach leaves
1 small or 1/2 a big avocado
2 heaped tbsp pomegranate seeds
a small handful of walnuts
2 tsp heaped Gran Luchito Chilli Honey
Generous sloshes of Hotel Chocolat Cocoa Balsamic
1 small juicy red tomato sliced into circular discs
A handful of cherry tomatoes
Smoked Austrian cheese
1 boiled egg

Feel free to substitute the smoked ham with shredded chicken or chicken sausages, for a vegetarian version why not add boiled baby potatoes halved instead of meat?

Method:

In a small vessel add enough water to place the egg into to boil.
Heat a pan on medium heat, when the pan is hot add the chilli jam and throw in the walnuts and stir with a wooden spatula to coat the melting chilli jam on the walnuts. Reduce the flame to a minimum, DO NOT allow the chilli jam to smoke or burn. The caramelised walnuts are done in under a minute. Set aside to cool.

Remove the egg from the boiled water, and hold it under running water, when the eggshell has cooled, peel it, halve and set aside.
Chop the red onion lengthwise, and the tomato into circular discs and halve the cherry tomatoes.
If the baby kale and baby spinach leaves are not washed, add them to a sieve and wash them under running tap water.
Then put the leaves in a huge salad bowl and add generous sloshes of Hotel Chocolat Cocoa Balsamic.
On a huge plate or platter place the seasoned leaves and then place the smoked ham and cheese slices.
Then place the avocado slices, tomato discs and cherry tomato halves.
Scatter the pomegranate seeds and the caramelised walnuts on top.
With a wooden spatula, scrape off the remaining caramelised Gran Luchito chilli honey and scatter on the salad.
Again drizzle the Hotel Chocolat Cocoa Balsamic on top of the salad and serve immediately.

The tender roasted cocoa nibs soaked in Italian balsamic vinegar, create a rounded flavour that’s fabulous with avocado, tomatoes, smoked ham and smoked cheese. The caramelised walnuts and fresh pomegranate seeds give this winter salad a great crunch and the chilli honey plays hide and seek with your taste buds. The baby kale leaves have a mild and pleasant taste and the spinach works as the good stuff for blood purification thanks to its high iron content.

This salad is fresh, wholesome and healthy as kale is associated with a whole host of health benefits. It contains Vitamin K, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, fibre and carotenoids and 45 — different flavonoids with a variety of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

Now for the fabulously FESTIVE GIVEAWAY OF A GOODY BAG FROM HOTEL CHOCOLAT

One lucky winner gets a beautiful Hotel Chocolat gift bag with the following products:

Hotel Chocolat Chilli and cocoa oil
Hotel Chocolat cocoa pasta
Hotel Chocolat cocoa pesto

Hotel Chocolat Chilli and cocoa finishing oil

A special recipe used by Hotel Chocolat chefs in their Boucan restaurant in Saint Lucia – extra-virgin olive oil rounded by rich notes of cocoa nibs and beans, with a kick of red chilli. Shake to wake the chilli flakes, then drizzle and dress lightly over chicken, fish, pasta, pizza and roast vegetables. Try crushing the cocoa for some fabulous bread-dipping.

Hotel Chocolat cocoa pasta

Durum wheat penne with unsweetened cocoa, as made by chefs at our Boucan restaurant in Saint Lucia and recommended by Nigella Lawson. Ideal for adding a thrill to dishes both savoury and sweet. As used by Nigella Lawson in her chocolate pasta with caramel and pecans recipe, and Hotel Chocolat’s very own Chocolate Pasta with Pesto recipe.

Hotel Chocolat cocoa pesto

Outstanding with pasta, risotto, salad, blinis, crusty bread, cold meats or straight from the jar as a dip: rough-chopped basil, crunchy pine nuts, Italian cheese and nutty roast cocoa nibs. A favourite from Hotel Chocolat’s Boucan kitchen in Saint Lucia.

1-Hotel Chocolat Balsamic Vinegar salad RESIZED

How to enter the giveaway:

You too could WIN a GOODY BAG from Hotel Chocolat PACKED with exciting products from the cocoa cuisine range, all you have to do is :

Like my Facebook page and leave your Facebook name as part of your comment.
Follow me on Twitter – @manjirichitnis
Tweet out the following – #HOTELCHOCOLATGIVEAWAY #WIN @HotelChocolat GOODY BAG with @manjirichitnis, winter salad recipe bit.ly/1smP3Kv
Leave a comment below telling me which type of chocolates do you like most and your Facebook name used to like my FB page. I will find you on Twitter via the hashtag so it’s not required for you to mention your Twitter handle in the comments. Do not share your email id in the comments, please.

Please have a read through the Terms and Conditions below:

Winners will be picked using Random Number Generator.
The deadline for entering this contest is 8th January 2015 midnight GMT.
Entry is open only to residents of the U.K except for Scotland and Ireland.
All entrants must be 18 years old and above.
One lucky winner will be chosen using a random number generator.
The giveaway prize is as mentioned in the post. Neither Hotel Chocolat nor I are liable for any damage to the hamper and/or its contents in transit.
Please allow a minimum of 25 days for delivery of the prize, which may reach earlier or later. The goody bags will be sent directly by Hotel Chocolat.
The prize is as stated: no cash alternatives are available.
I retain the right to DISQUALIFY any entrant who does not complete all the 3 steps mentioned above.
The winner will be notified on 9th January 2015 on Twitter by me and here on my blog post. I shall tag the winner on Twitter via their Twitter id. If you are declared as the winner you agree to allow me and Hotel Chocolat to contact you via email id to arrange for the goody bag to be sent out to you.
If the winner fails to respond by 15th January 2015 then another winner will be chosen via Random Number Generator.

CONGRATULATIONS to the LUCKY winner of this fabulous GIVEAWAY of a GOODY BAG from Hotel Chocolat PACKED with exciting products from the cocoa cuisine range !!!

AND The lucky winner is *DRUMROLLS* …….

Mark Johnson – Twitter id @tubbyjpin

Please get in touch with me at fruitsnveg@yahoo.com

THANK YOU to everyone who participated and keep following my posts for more exciting competitions!

*With thanks to Hotel Chocolat and the PR team for arranging the fabulous gifts and beautiful Hotel Chocolat goody bag and sending me a sample of Hotel Chocolate Cocoa Balsamic for review. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own. References Wiki & Herald Tribune.

While you are here why not have a look at the other giveaways on my blog and increase your chances of winnings cool freebies!?!

CLOSED Win one of TWO Goody Bags from KNORR packed with 2x of EACH Knorr flavour pots and stock cubes to participate click here – CLOSED
CLOSED Win a box of Chef Inspirations Saveurs Du Monde Box of 16 chocolates from Godiva, to participate click here– CLOSED
CLOSED WIN 5 delicious sauces from the WORLDFOODS Asian Fusion Flavour Sauces, to participate click here CLOSED

Easy three peppercorn Baked fish recipe, Knorr Giveaway – Closed

December 7, 2014 by manjirichitnis 48 Comments

After the masterclass with Master Chef Marco Pierre White, where he cooked us steak in Knorr Beef stock cube and served it with a creamy three peppercorn sauce – I was hooked onto the taste of the Knorr three peppercorn flavour pot. This mix of 3 peppercorns will add a depth of flavour to your dishes. Whether used in a straightforward steak sauce or a luxury pork stroganoff, this little pot will instantly add a touch of indulgence to your meal.

Unilever has agreed to Giveaway TWO lucky winners a chance to WIN one of TWO goody bags PACKED to the brim with Knorr flavour pots and stock cubes. These stock pots have been created by Chef Cameron Healy who is part of a team of dedicated professional chefs, based at Knorr Headquarters, who work together to develop Knorr’s culinary creations, with good food, convenience and innovation as the main thought process behind these products.

As you know by now I love seafood and I simply cannot resist buying fresh fish. Last week on my way home from work I saw fresh herring at the supermarket and just had to bring home some for dinner. I wanted a very light quick and easy fish dish which I could have with a heavy creamy soup so I rustled up this easy baked fish. Since we were already going to consume a creamy soup I wanted to avoid using single cream to make any gravy sauce.

This baked fish recipe is a super quick and easy meal idea with very few ingredients and makes for a delicious meal. Served with a fresh leafy baby kale and cherry tomato salad it makes a refreshingly light choice. No oil is used in this dish and though the butter is 2 tbsp it is the only thing that you will add other than the flavour pot. Besides Herring are very high in the long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA, they are also a source of vitamin D.

A low – calorie meal for two readies in under 25 minutes – can it get any better? Think not!

I have used the Knorr three peppercorn flavour pot that was in my goody bag which all loggers received at the end of a day packed with masterclasses spent at the Unilever headquarter in the U.K at Leatherhead.

If you love cooking with the flavour of fresh herbs and spices, but prefer the convenience of dried, Knorr flavour pots allow you to create delicious meals infused with aromatic and fresh flavours in no time at all AND with the very same convenience that dried products offer.

Knorr three peppercorn Baked fish recipe

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

2 whole herrings fresh – with the head and tail removed.
Smoked sea salt
1 and half Knorr three peppercorn flavour pots
1 large red onion finely chopped
2 heaped tbsp butter
1 bay leaf
3- 4 cloves of garlic finely chopped

Method:

Pre-Heat the oven to 180 °C. Keep the butter out so that it is not straight from the fridge
Wash the herring fish under running tap water. I asked the fishmonger to slit it through the middle and clean it from inside for me after removing the head and the tail.
Place the fish on baking parchment in a baking tray and sprinkle liberally with Maldon smoked sea salt.

Wrap the parchment to make a neat parcel.

Bake the fish in the oven for 20 minutes at 180 °C.
Meanwhile, heat a heavy-bottom pan on medium heat.
When the pan is at add 2 heaped tbsp of butter.
Add in the bay leaf and then finely chopped onion and finely chopped garlic with skins. Then add in the Knorr three peppercorn flavour pots and cook until the onion has gone soft.

Once the fish has been baked, remove from the oven and allow for the steam to escape.

When you can hold the fish in your hand without scalding remove the skin which should come of pretty easily and remove the bone, it comes straight off which is great, one clean sweep. Don’t worry if the fish falls apart, it will still taste amazing!
Plate each fish onto 2 plates.

Place the onion onto the fish and serve with baby kale and chopped cherry tomatoes. If you wish to sprinkle some sea salt on the salad leaves.

WIN one of TWO goody bags PACKED to the brim with Knorr flavour pots and stock cubes

Each GOODY BAG from KNORR contains :

2 x Mexican Flavour Pot
2x Garden Herbs Flavour Pot
2 x Paprika Flavour Pot
2x Ginger and Lemongrass Flavour Pot
2x Curry Flavour Pot
2x Garlic Flavour Pot
2x Mixed Chillies Flavour Pot
2x Fish Stock Cube
2x Pork Stock Cube
2x Ham Stock Cube
2 x Chicken Stock Pot
2 x Beef Stock Pot
2 x Veg Stock Pot

How to enter the giveaway:

You too could WIN ONE of TWO of these GOODY BAGS from KNORR PACKED with exciting products from the flavour pots and stock sauces range, all you have to do is :

Follow me on twitter – @manjirichitnis
Like my Facebook page and leave your Facebook name as part of your comment.
Follow me on Instagram
Tweet out the following – #KNORRGIVEAWAY #WIN with @manjirichitnis 1 of 2 GOODY BAGS with @knorr Flavour Pots & Stock Cubes, Baked fish recipe bit.ly/1s9fRYW
Leave a comment below telling me which is your favourite herb, your Facebook name used to like my FB page, your Instagram handle. I will find you on twitter via the hashtag so it’s not required for you to mention your twitter handle in the comments. Do not share your email id in the comments, please.

Please have a read through the Terms and Conditions below:

Winners will be picked using Random Number.
Deadline for entering this contest is 15th January’ 2015 midnight GMT.
Entry is open only to residents of the U.K except for Scotland and Ireland.
All entrants must be 18 years old and above.
Two lucky winners will be chosen using a random number generator.
The giveaway prize is as mentioned in the post. Neither Knorr or I am liable for any damage of hamper and / or contents in transit.
Please allow a minimum of 15 days for delivery of the prize, which may reach earlier or later. The goody bags will be sent directly by Knorr.
The prize is as stated: no cash alternatives are available.
I retain the right to DISQUALIFY any entrant who does not complete all the 3 steps mentioned above.
The winner will be notified on 16th January’ 2015 on Twitter by me and here on my blog post. I shall tag the 2 winners on Twitter via their twitter ids. If you are declared as the winner you agree to allow me and Knorr to contact you via email id to arrange for the goody bag to be sent out to you.
If the TWO winners fail to respond by 18th January’ 2015 then other winners will be chosen.

*With thanks to Unilever and the Knorr PR team for arranging the fabulous gifts for the two goody bags. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own. References Wiki.

While you are here why not have a look at the other giveaways on my blog and increase your chances of winnings cool freebies!?!

Win one beautiful Hotel Chocolat gift bag with fabulous cocoa cuisine products, to participate click here.
CLOSED Win a box of Chef Inspirations Saveurs Du Monde Box of 16 chocolates from Godiva, to participate click here– CLOSED.
CLOSED Win 5 delicious sauces from the WORLDFOODS Asian Fusion Flavour Sauces, to participate click here – CLOSED.

Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine from Roberson Wines – A review

December 1, 2014 by manjirichitnis Leave a Comment

Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine is a French white that defies convention. It is named after the characteristic of the grape variety used to make this wine – melon grape variety which has ‘wine with a musk-like taste’ , unlike other French Wines which all get their names after their growing regions.

I was sent a bottle of this fine French wine by Roberson Wines for review. Intrigued by the words Sur Lie on the label I did a bit of reading up and found that it is the French expression for “on the lees.” lees is the coarse sediment, which consists mainly of dead yeast cells and small grape particles that accumulate during fermentation. Wine makers believe that certain wines benefit from being aged sur lie.

These wines have a creamy, yeasty flavor and a touch of carbon dioxide which gives a slight prickling sensation on the tongue.

Both hubster and me liked the wine for its light and crisp taste and found it a great companion to our seafood starter for the evening – a light prawn pan fry with white onions.

I would highly recommend this white wine to those looking for a light fresh white with hints of citrus to pair with seafood, vegetable stir fries or when you simply want easy drinking – fuss free yet something that will sit well at a party table or for a quite dinner for two.

*With thanks to Roberson Wines . No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own. References Wiki and Kens Wine Guide.

Reblochon Cheese, Onion, Swiss Chard and Mushrooms Tart

November 30, 2014 by manjirichitnis 2 Comments

I had been eyeing this beautiful red Swiss Chard at the Chapel market on a street vegetable vendors stall for days and today I finally managed to buy myself a bunch of these beauties.

I also purchased a gorgeous beefsteak tomato, chestnut mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, sweet baby carrots, 2 avocados,and guess what ?All this booty came at £6.50 only ,woohoo! Totally amazing right, beautiful fresh ingredients purchased from a very friendly lady from a bustling vibrant market over lunch hour – I mean what more could I ask for ?

Since it was Thanksgiving on Thursday, a treat was in order and with my beautiful vegetable bounty a vegetable tart smothered in cheese was what I would be making! I was sent a lovely french cheese to sample a few days back and it was begging to be used , perfect!

I was sent Reblochon de Savoie AOC, which is an artisanal cheese from the Haute-Savoie and Val d’Arly region. Reblochon was the first of the 46 AOC cheeses in France to receive that stamp of quality in 1958. It contains only 22% fat which makes it as light or lighter than other cooked pressed cheeses including Gruyère or Emmental. Reblochon is packaged individually by the producer, it is placed onto a thin spruce-wood board, thus regulating its moisture content and allowing it to mature.

Autumnal swiss chard which I have used in my recipe is rich in vitamins A,K and C and is also rich in minerals, dietary fiber, and protein. All parts of the chard plant contain oxalic acid. Packed with good stuff this tart is!

Preparation Time:10 minutes

Cooking Time: 35-40minutes

Serves:6

Ingredients:

1/2 of the Reblochon Cheese
320g Puff Pastry 1 sheet from a pack of ready made pastry
4 small Happy Eggs
5 big leaves of red Swiss Chard
8 chestnut mushrooms
3 stalks of spring onions
1 medium sized red onion
2 heaped tsp of Luchito chilli honey
15- 6 large slices of beefsteak tomato
2 small potatoes
Red chilli flakes 1.5 tsp
1 .5 tsp garlic puree or 2 large garlic cloves finely chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt to taste

Method:

Peel the potatoes, slice them wafer-thin.
Heat 2 tsp of olive oil on a pan and place the potato slices of the pan, brown on each side till they are really crisp.
Chop the red onion fine and cut the spring onion as fine as possible.
Roughly cut the mushrooms into chunks,
In a small saucepan add 1 tsp of olive oil , when the oil is hot add the chopped red onion & spring onions and when they begin to sweat add in the mushrooms.
Cook on a medium flame till the onions turns a nice light brown colour and add in the chilli honey.
The heat from the pan will create the perfect environment for the honey to melt just enough to coat the onion and the mushroom and impart a fabulously warming sweet and hot flavour.
Place the puff pastry on a baking tray lined with baking parchment.
Add the onion and mushroom mixture on the puff pastry.

Then add the roughly chopped swiss chard leaves, season with some sea salt.
Place the slices of beefsteak tomato on the top.
Scoop out the nutty and delicious cheese from the rind with a spoon and scatter it onto the chard and tomato slices.

Beat the eggs in a bowl and add some sea salt and red chilli powder as per taste.
Whisk the eggs with a fork till they foam so as to aerate them.
Pour the egg mixture onto the chard and tomatoes.
Pre-heat the oven to 200° C.
Place the baking tray into the pre-heated oven.
Bake the savoury tart for 35 minutes, for the first 15 minutes at 150° C and then at 180° C – 200° C.
The egg and cheese mix will cook and release a beautiful aroma which will just rush through when you get the tart out of the oven.
Place the crispy potato slices on top and if you wish scatter a few chopped nuts on the top for added crunch.

I really liked the texture of the cheese and the floral, nutty and herbal flavours it imparts to this gorgeous vegetable laden tart which reflect its Alpine provenance.

Serve the tart with fruity red wines such as those made with Gamay or Pinot Noir grapes, or a lively and refreshing white such as Chasselas which complement the cheese.

*With thanks to Reblochon for sending me a sample of their delicious artisanal cheese for review. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Vin Chaud – Hot French Mulled Wine with Red Wine

November 25, 2014 by manjirichitnis 14 Comments

Last week Sunday was mostly grey and rainy , but I wasn’t feeling blue about the weather, I spent the day mostly curled up with a good book watching Netflix with the hubster around. We also decided that since it was the day the lights went on at Regent’s street it was the perfect day to get out the ladder and reach for the large brown carton which contains amongst other odds and ends our plastic Christmas tree neatly folded and wrapped, all our precious baubles and ….the neatly wrapped bundle of lights…..

As the crowds gathered around to watch the lights go on at Regents Street around 3pm, as hubster was gently snoring away after a rather delicious (if I may say so myself) meal of fried king fish, red lentil curry and rice, I decided that it was perfect time to take stock of what was in my store cupboard and check on my dried fruits which are now steeping in a rather rich alcohol base – ready for the day I will make the Christmas pudding. It was then that I found a beautiful tin with 2 packets of gorgeous spices to make Mulled wine, which was part of my goody bag given during July at the Christmas Show by waitrose.

There is something absolutely magical and heartwarming about opening a packet of spices , it is like flipping through an old album, happy memories of holidays spent with family , turkey carved, gifts unwrapped on Christmas morning….. all seem to come tumbling out of my blue tin spice jar which has a picture of Santa pulling his sleigh along the snow. The light brown tightly curled cinnamon sticks and hard dried orange sitting amongst deep red dried berries and fragrant cardamom… like a bouquet of aromas…

Waitrose Cellar had sent me a case of carefully picked red wines to let me experiment and come up with a recipe for mulled wine, from a country of my choice and taking inspiration from their Mulled wine page .They have a beautiful collection of recipes for mulled wines from around the world. They also sent as part of the case a bottle of wine that was mulled by their team of wine experts.

I remembered reading a recipe for Vin Chaud or Hot French Mulled Wine on David Lebovitz’s blog long ago and I knew I wanted to pick this French version of mulled wine and create it using the red wine – Marqués de Calatrava Organic Selecci´on Reservada Tempranillo from my wine case sent by Waitrose. Priced at £8.99 it is described as having notes of juicy strawberry with subtle spices and vanilla. This fruity red made from Tempranillo grapes grown in the La Mancha region. It is a medium to full-bodied wine with a rich palate. It sounded apt for making Vin Chaud as it would marry well with the ginger and pepper required in the recipe used by David Lebovitz, which was inspired by a recipe Food52 cookbook. He has very rightly mentioned that adding cinnamon into the Vin Chaud which is actually made with white wine, overpowers the taste of the other warming spices in the hot French mulled wine.

I also found another recipe for Vin Chaud by Rebecca Franklin a French food expert on about.com and it recommends the addition of cinnamon and cognac – now Cognac – I am a huge fan of. Friends who know me well, tire of my boring old way of almost always ordering a large peg of cognac with hot water when we go out during winter season. It’s just something to do with the rich, strong ,smooth and warm drink sipped slowly that warms my blood ,like a mini warm toasty log-fire inside my body, an internal thermostat of sorts… 🙂

So I decided to use combine both the recipes and both hubster and me are really satisfied with the end result. So much so that we ended up greedily pouring ourselves a more than generous portion of the Vin Chaud to perilous after effects which involved both us falling fast asleep while the tv played a few episodes of Breaking Bad to no one in particular – humm

Note to self – do not guzzle wine on an empty stomach especially Vin Chaud made with a large ‘splash’ of Cognac added in….

This warm festive mulled wine infused with hot spices and spiked with Cognac, honey and pepper is a great choice for serving at Christmas Parties and for sipping on co during cold, winter evenings – imagine drinking this fab French mulled wine in the dead of winter when you have just stepped in after braving the wretched winter winds , as the heating and warm socks work their effect on the outside, the hot wine induces a sense of warmth and festivity within – no one will judge you if you do go a bit overboard…

Vin Chaud – Hot French Mulled Wine

Serves:6

Ingredients:

1 bottle of Marqués de Calatrava Organic Selecci´on Reservada Tempranillo
3 cardamom pods
3 cloves
2 slices ginger
1 whole star anise
1/4 cup i.e 60ml Cognac
1 dried orange slice
a generous sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Pour the red wine into a saucepan add in all the ingredients and simmer over the lowest setting on your hob.
Keep stirring and do not allow the wine to boil
Heat until the wine begins to bring up steam
Strain using a sieve or a cheesecloth lined funnel
Pour into glasses and enjoy the warm, spicy mulled wine.

I do hope this festive Hot French mulled wine warms the cockles of your heart this winter. Cheers!

*With thanks to Waitrose Cellar . No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own. Thanks to David Lebovitz for his inspiring post on Vin Chaud.

Festive Hot Chocolate Vodka Martini with chilli Cocktail Recipe

November 23, 2014 by manjirichitnis 5 Comments

A girl needs a good Martini at times and I like mine with Vodka rather than the classic gin, although there are times I would be found sipping on a Gin based Martini too. My recipe for Festive Hot Chocolate Vodka Martini with chilli, is sure to be an instant hit at your cocktail parties and your friends and family are going to beg for more so stock up on the ingredients and learn to shake that cocktail with some style aka Tom cruise from the flick Cocktail!

House of Fraser sent me a very elegant set of 4 Pied e Terre Martini glasses with REAL GOLD spiral detailing ,yes you heard that right , for review , so a Chocolate Martini was in order.I do have a large bottle of Smirnoff Vodka Martini but this Martini recipe had to be special and befitting these rather special martini glasses.

Hubby was equally excited to contribute towards this fab Martini evening I planned for a lazy Sunday with some friends, so when I sent him out to buy Vanilla flavoured Vodka he came back with a beautiful bottle of M&S ”HOT” Chocolate Vodka with chocolate flavouring and a hint of chilli for warmth – Perfect!

It’s often by such happy coincidences that something really fabulous can be conjured. I have been using rather sparingly the Baileys Chocolate Luxe Limited Edition Creamy Irish liqueur which I purchased at the Chocolate Festival in April this year.And just like an opportunity to experiment with the liqueur has presented itself – aha!

So folks before I share the recipe for my Festive Hot Chocolate Vodka Martini with chilli served in the Pied e Terre Martini glasses with REAL GOLD sprial detailing, let me bestow upon you – my unsuspecting readers my newfound knowledge about chocolate liqueurs acquired after spending a few hours browsing the net and harassing several people including a very sweet gentleman who makes a living mixing drinks.This will ensure that you do not endure the angst that poor hubster and I experienced, as we searched high and low for Crème de cacao before realising that a creamy chocolate liqueur can be used instead and gives a creamy consistency to the martini which the Crème de cacao does not. Crème de cacao was not to be found on supermarket shelves and believe you me, we went into most of the big ones, they are available to buy online though – but that for me amounts to hassle and a longer wait than just grabbing whats on the shelves ,right ?

Since Crème de cacao can be replaced by the chocolate liqueur and I had the Baileys Chocolate Luxe Limited Edition Creamy Irish liqueur , I was quite relieved. Or else I would have had to either order the Crème de cacao online or spend ££ on Godiva’s Chocolate liqueur which does sound so very sinfully delicious ummm

A bit about the Pied e Terre Martini glasses with REAL GOLD spiral detailing – these sophisticated glasses are available to buy from House of Fraser and are rather reasonably priced at £30 for a set of 4, they surely make for a fabulous gift idea for the festive season or any special anniversary or birthday or simply to spoil a martini lover.

Festive Hot Chocolate Vodka Martini with chilli recipe

Makes: 2 cocktails

Ingredients:

75 ml ( 1 peg measure of 60 ml + 1 /2 of a small peg measure of 30ml ) OR 2 and 1/2 ounces of Baileys Chocolate Irish Cream Liqueur
2 peg measure which is 120ml OR 4 ounces of M&S ”HOT” Chocolate Vodka with chocolate flavouring and a hint of chilli
Powdered Lindt Chilli chocolate for rimming
Shavings of Lindt Chilli chocolate for garnishing
Ice
Cocktail shaker

1 ounce = 29.5 ml approx half a peg . 1 peg = 60 ml

Method:

Wash , wipe dry the Martini glasses and place them face down on a kitchen roll with the powdered Lindt Chilli chocolate to line the rim of the glass.
Place these lined rim glasses to chill in the freezer.

Pour all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with the ice cubes.
Shake vigorously.
Strain into chilled martini glasses lined with Hershey’s chocolate syrup
Garnish with Shavings of Lindt Chilli chocolate to get the extra chilli kick going

Enjoy with friends and family for a fabulous festive feast guaranteed to satisfy ANY chocolatey cravings !

*With thanks to House of Fraser for a complimentary set of 4 Pied e Terre Martini glasses with REAL GOLD spiral detailing. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

*Recipe inspiration from Cocktail expert Colleen Graham’s recipe and Murrye Bernard’s recipe.

Kadhai Chicken Masala

November 3, 2014 by manjirichitnis 116 Comments

As the nights close in, Indian comfort food tops my list of things I crave. And nothing spells comfort food louder than a warming curry and some rice with some spicy kebabs on the side. The problem is when these craving hit mid-week and I am simply too exhausted to make elaborate meals. That’s when I turn to my store cupboard for some help.

Loyd Grossman has come up with a new Limited Edition Mint Masala gravy sauce which I was sent to review along with some delicious naan , a bottle of Chicken Tikka Masala and boil in the bag Basmati rice all packaged in this beautiful box !

I wanted to create something easy to make using the Mint Masala Gravy sauce and came up a recipe for Minty Chicken Masala Kadhai – best served with some buttery warm naan!

Kadhai Chicken Masala

Manjiri Chitnis

Minty Kadhai Chicken in a delicious masala

5 from 13 votes

Print Recipe

Prep Time 2 mins

Cook Time 15 mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Fusion Indian

Servings 2 people

Equipment

Pan
Knife and chopping board

Ingredients

450 grams Diced chicken breast
Loyd Grossman Limited Edition Mint Masala
1 medium-sized red onion
2 tsp Umami paste
2 Bay leaves
2 Dried Kashmiri red chillies
Salt to taste
1 tbsp Butter for the naans
1 tbsp Oil
2 Sprays Oil for greasing the griddle pan
1 Boiled egg
1/2 Red onion sliced lengthwise to serve with the naan

Instructions

Wash and cut the chicken breasts into cubes
Coat the chicken with 300 gm of the Lloyd Grossman Limited Edition Mint Masala for about 30 minutes
The yoghurt in the Mint Masala speeds up the way the spices are absorbed into the chicken
Chop the red onion fine
Heat the oil in a saucepan and when it is hot add the bay leaves and red chillies and sauté till the bay leaf begins to change colour, then add the onions.
Sauté the onions till they turn pink and reduce
Then add some of the umami paste and 2 large tbsp of the Lloyd Grossman Limited Edition Mint Masala gravy sauce and sauté for 2 minutes on a low flame
Keep stirring to ensure the onion does not burn. Season with salt
Take off the flame and set aside
After 30 minutes heat the griddle pan till it’s very hot and place on medium heat.
Spray some oil onto the griddle pan, it will sizzle and smoke
Drop the marinated chicken cubes on the pan
‘Bruise’ the chicken cubes on the pan till they are grilled, flip and grill on the other side.
Repeat until chicken cooks through
Ensure chicken pieces are not too large as they will remain raw in the middle
Once cooked add them into the sautéed onion thick gravy sauce
Mix well and sauté on a very low flame for half a minute
To serve heat some butter on a large pan and heat the naan till they are soft and buttery
Transfer the Minty chicken kadhai into the shiny balti serving dish and place the halved boiled egg on top

Keyword Kadhai Chicken

The fresh flavours of the minty gravy sauce are enhanced by the delicious umami onion gravy. Lap up the thick gravy and juicy ,tasty grilled chicken cubes with the soft warm naan, scooping up some of the soft boiled yolk as well… ummmmm

Vegetarians needn’t feel disappointed . Try the same recipes using Paneer or Indian cottage cheese, only thing is while ‘bruising’ the paneer on the griddle pan it has to be handled gently so as not to break the cubes and also while mixing it into the thick onion gravy it should be mixed with care.

GIVEAWAY for 2 LUCKY WINNERS !

WIN ONE OF TWO Loyd Grossman GIFT HAMPERS!

Each Gift Hamper contains LIMITED EDITION Loyd Grossman Mint Masala – 1 bottle , Loyd Grossman Chicken Tikka Masala 1 bottle, Pack of 4 naans from Loyd Grossman , one packet with 4 boil in the bag basmati rice pouches and a SHINY new BALTI serving dish – dishwasher proof.

How to enter the giveaway:

You too could WIN ONE of TWO of these beautiful hampers from Loyd Grossman , all you have to do is :

Follow me on twitter – @manjirichitnis
Tweet out the following – WIN 1 of 2 LIMITED EDITION @loydfood Mint Masala Hampers with @manjirichitnis, Minty Chicken Masala Kadhai recipe bit.ly/1wrEdSD
Leave a comment below telling me what is your favourite Indian food

Please have a read through the Terms and Conditions below:

Winners will be picked using Random Number.
Deadline for entering this contest is 8th November ‘2014 midnight GMT.
Entry is open only to residents of the U.K except Scotland and Ireland.
All entrants must be 18 years old and above.
Two lucky winners will be chosen using random number generator.
The giveaway prize is as mentioned in the post. Neither Lloyd Grossman or I am liable for any damage of hamper and / or contents in transit.
Please allow a minimum of 15 days for delivery of the prize, which may reach earlier or later.
The prize is as stated: no cash alternatives are available.
I retain the right to DISQUALIFY any entrant who do not complete all the 3 steps mentioned above.
The winner will be notified on 9th Nov’14 on Twitter by me and here on my blog post. I shall tag the 2 winners on Twitter via their twitter id’s . If you are declared as the winner you agree to allow me and Lloyd Grossman to contact you via email id to arrange for the gift hamper to be sent out to you.
If the TWO winners fail to respond BY 12th Nov’14 then other winners will be chosen.

CONGRATULATIONS to the 2 LUCKY winners of this fabulous GIVEAWAY of LIMITED EDITION Loyd Grossman Mint Masala Gift Hampers!!!

AND The lucky winners are: *DRUMROLLS* …….

Claire Wilkinson – Twitter id @claire_wilko83

Michelle – Twitter id @mshell1231

*With thanks to Loyd Grossman for sending me a complimentary Loyd Grossman LIMITED EDITION Mint Masala Hamper . No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Chickpea and sweet Chilli Paneer salad

October 27, 2014 by manjirichitnis 5 Comments

Chickpeas are comfort food especially when used to make chole , a spicy chickpea curry best devoured with steamed rice. But chickpeas also taste great in salads and because they take up various flavourings so easily , they are perfect ingredients to be used in quick ,filling salads like my Chickpea and Olive salad with sweet chilli Paneer.

On a very rainy weekend , I was alone at home and curled up reading a very good book . Though my tummy was rumbling by mid- day I didn’t really want to let go off my book and cook an elaborate meal. So a hunt around the kitchen cabinets and fridge resulted in the following finds – a an of chickpeas sitting around and some soft paneer in the fridge , half an onion chopped – perfect.Now all I needed was some inspiration…

Sitting in the corner was a brown paper carton sent a few days ago by Olives et al – a few interesting bottles staring at me with beautiful labels and rather interesting names – a quick unpacking of the box revealed the following contents –

Smoky Chipotle Chilli Olives – marinated in Extra-Virgin Olive Oil naturally infused with Chipotle chillis.
Mojo Pink Grapefruit dressing and marinade
North African Style Red Chilli Harissa sauce
Sweet Chilly Billy Jelly Chilly and Ginger Relish

I decided to rustle up a quick salad in a jiffy using some of the samples and these ingredients and the result was a very punchy ,pleasing salad that I am sure to recreate soon! Especially on another rainy evening or afternoon when I won’t be able to tear myself away from yet another gripping novel …

Serves : 2

Ingredients

2 tbsp Olives et al Sweet Chilly Billy Jelly Chilly and Ginger Relish
1 tsp Olive et al Mojo Pink Grapefruit dressing and marinade
397 gm Chickpea can
267gm Paneer /Cottage cheese
1/2 red onion medium size chopped
Few Olives et al Smoky Chipotle Chilli Olives
Sea salt to garnish

Method

Cut the slab of paneer into large chunks so that they do not crumble.
Heat a griddle pan on a low flame and add 2 tbsp of Olives et al Sweet Chilly Billy Jelly Chilly and Ginger Relish to the pan , spread using a wooden spatula . Place the paneer gently on the chilli relish and allow the relish to caramelise and harden then flip and give the the other side of the paneer cubes the same treatment.

This will give the paneer a delicious sticky and crunchy coating with just the right flavouring.
In a large mixing bowl add the entire can of chickpeas and pour some of the salty water it is preserved in over the chickpeas.
Toss in a few olives and pour a small amount of the chilli oil they are marinated on over the chickpeas. Garnish with sea salt to taste.Mix well.
Then add the sticky paneer cubes . Mix gently using a wooden spatula.
I then poured a very small amount of the Olive et al Mojo Pink Grapefruit dressing and marinade over the salad – a perfectly beautiful dressing described on the Olives et al site as – ‘Inspired by a Caribbean sauce from the Cayman Islands known locally simply as Mojo Sauce ….Happily unusual, wonderfully versatile and loved by all’ Now I know why its a best seller !

I would have loved to garnish with finely chopped cucumber but sadly my vegetable tray was quite bare that day but do feel free to add a generous amount onto the salad . Coriander marries well with chickpea in any form.

All this salad now needed was a fork and I fell back into the pages of my novel in like 15 minutes flat, how’s that for a quick and easy filling recipe that tastes fab and makes you go back for seconds and thirds ? Super I say 🙂

While browsing the website I noticed the beautiful logo for Olives et al and read the fabulous story of how this multi award winning company was born In the early 90s , brain child of Annie and Giles Henschel who embarked on a year-long adventure that would be the inspiration for Olives Et Al. Travelling on motorbikes through the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North Africa, they fell in love with the food we ate along the way and gathered many precious recipes along the way.

It is this motorbike journey that is hidden as a story in their beautifully intricate logo , reminds me so very much of my days in Pune spent zipping across the city in a black Honda Activa scooter that I prefer to call a bike , it had fantastic pick up, was gearless and because of it’s heavy errr ‘bottom’ on which the seats rested it didn’t shake like an autumn leaf even at high speeds on the highway – sigh… seems like a whole lifetime away …

They launched Olives Et Al in 1993 to satisfy their own culinary cravings and to share quality olives with a wider audience. They began producing Marinated Olives using some of their “souvenir” recipes. Over time, their range of products has grown and now includes, Oils and Balsamics, Speciality Olives, Sauces, Snacks, Kiln Roasted Nuts and Dressings and Marinades – all made in Dorset and free from free of artificial colouring, flavours or preservatives.

Their products can be purchased directly from their website or in delis across the country and in various food stores.

With thanks to Olives et al for the complimentary samples. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review . As always all opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Häagen-Dazs Limited Edition Christmas ice cream cake – Le Village

Cooking with WORLD FOODS at the School of Wok and WORLD FOODS Giveaway – CLOSED

Pomegranate, caramelised Walnut and baby Kale salad

Easy three peppercorn Baked fish recipe, Knorr Giveaway – Closed

Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine from Roberson Wines – A review

Reblochon Cheese, Onion, Swiss Chard and Mushrooms Tart

Vin Chaud – Hot French Mulled Wine with Red Wine

Festive Hot Chocolate Vodka Martini with chilli Cocktail Recipe

Kadhai Chicken Masala

Kadhai Chicken Masala

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

Chickpea and sweet Chilli Paneer salad

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