blogger event - Travels for Taste

Pack a healthy protien punch into your meals with Quorn

June 15, 2015 by manjirichitnis 6 Comments

One of the main challenges I have been facing off late as I am trying hard to throw off weight is maintaining a high protien diet and keeping my meals low on fat. Believe me it’s tricky trying to go low on sugar, saturated fats and ensuring blood sugar and cholesterol are at acceptable levels too- almost like a tight rope walk!

But even if you do not need to actively lower your cholesterol or sugar levels and are just looking for a healthier alternate to protein from meat sources I would consider including Quorn in your diet. I first tried Quorn simply out of curiosity. Both my husband and me love lamb mince but eating it more that 2 times on a week made me really feel very guilty. But swapping Quorn mince for lamb, once a week was something we are happy to do.

I always marinate Quorn mince with spices overnight and leave it to soak in all the flavours overnight. So when I was invited to an event to cook with Quorn at the Underground Cookery School, I was quite keen to see what recipes they had in mind.

Starters for the evening

We started by making dessert – always a great way to start the evening! Chocolate Torte was on the menu and we really enjoyed working with chocolate and working to an easy recipe created by the Underground Cookery School .

Chocolate Torte

Next it was the BBQ pulled Quorn and pink coleslaw followed by Quorn Thai Curry – which I enjoyed making the most. I really loved the recipe created by Denise.

Denise in conversation with bloggers at the #quorncooks event

And for you, my readers here its is for you:

Quorn Thai Curry

Serves: 10

Ingredients:

Marinade

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp korma paste
2 tbsp vegetarian Thai green curry paste
500gm Quorn pieces

Sauce

1 tbsp vegetable oil
400gm onions, peeled and chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp fresh grated ginger
60gm fresh coriander
1 tbsp fresh, frozen or dried lime leaves (optional)
1 1/2 tbsp turmeric
1 vegetable stock cube crumbled
2 x 400 gm tin coconut milk
3 tbsp sweet mango chutney
30 gm fresh basil
350 gm red peppers, thinly sliced
200 gm mangetout or sugar snaps, halved

Quorn Chicken Pieces

Method

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl until the Quorn is coated. Transfer to the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
To prepare the sauce heat the oil in a pan then gently fry the chopped onion, garlic and ginger for 5 minutes until softened but not coloured.
Add half of the coriander, the lime leaves, turmeric, stock cube, coconut milk and mango chutney. Gently bring to the boil then simmer, covered for 20 minutes. Add the basil and remaining coriander to the sauce for the last 5 minutes of cooking time then remove the pan from the heat and blend until smooth with a hand blender.
Meanwhile transfer the marinated Quorn pieces to a baking tray and cook in a moderate oven 180°C/Gas Mark 4 for 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and reserve.
Add the Quorn pieces, red pepper and mangetout to the sauce and simmer for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are just cooked.

Quorn Thai Curry

While our curry was bubbling away we sat through a presentation over wine and a Q-A session. The question many of the bloggers had – as am sure many of you do was – what exactly is Quorn made up of?

Quorn’s core ingredient is a plant protein that is exceptional at replicating the texture and taste of meat. This is a naturally occurring fungus, which is harvested through a fermentation process. Other key features that make it a great choice are:

Quorn has no cholestrol and is high on fibre
From the sustainability perspective consider this Quorn mince uses 90% less greenhouse gasses than lean beef mince,

It was lovely to meet so many bloggers that evening and also bump into familiar faces like Leyla Preston and Becky. And for me it’s always a good feeling to come back to Underground cookery school where Chef and Patron Matt Kemp and his able team of chefs ensures that every blogger feels welcome, wine glasses never run dry and cooking is fun all the way.

The BBQ pulled Quorn was delicious and I really liked the texture of quorn and how easily it had taken up the flavours of the seasoning used. Paired with pink coleslaw it makes for a really great snack and a lovely idea for a summer BBQ.

BBQ pulled Quorn and pink coleslaw

Served with steamed basmati rice, perfectly done – each grain cooked to satisfying perfection was the creamy Thai Green curry – this was the most satisfying dish that evening and one that I am happy to make at home over and over again.

Both hubby and me love our meat and seafood but we are consciously trying to eat healthier, include more vegetables and fruits in our diet and look for healthier protein choices. That’s where Quorn comes in. Quorn certainly is a healthy protein alternative with a wide range of options – a solution to both vegetarians and the rapidly expanding group of people wanting to reduce their meat consumption.

Infographic-Quorn

Today is World Meat Free Day, why not create your very own easy vegetarian delight for an easy dinner at home tonight? And for those feeling less adventurous there’s many options Quorn has like my favourite Quorn steaks – served with a peppery salad of rocket leaves and fresh summery cherry tomatoes they go down a treat.

World Meat Free Day

*With thanks to Quorn for the invite and for the team at Underground Cookery for another great experience. All photographs used in this post are courtesy Preston Perfect Photography. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo with Old El Paso at London Victoria

May 29, 2015 by manjirichitnis 18 Comments

This year I was part of the Cinco de Mayo celebrations at a fun Pop Up event held bang in the middle of the busy Victoria Station in London by OldEl Paso . A celebration of all things Mexican Cinco de Mayo means the 5th of May on Spanish and marks the triumphant victory of Mexican forces over a heavily armed attack by the French forces in the state of Puebla in 1862.

Old El Paso pop up causes a stir at London Victoria

Though it was not a parade or an energetic dance troop entertaining passerby’s in colourful costumes – as is the way the celebrations happen in U.S.A and Mexico, the pop did manage to cause quite a stir! Chef Andy Bates cooked up some fresh and delicious fajitas for us and pleasantly surprised commuters using Old El Paso. With a few fresh ingredients in tow, he cooked up a delicious treat in minutes.

To spatchcock the chicken, the spine was removed. Then Andy marinated a whole chicken with Old El Paso roasted tomato and pepper fajita seasoning mix. The best part was though the super soft Old El Paso flour tortillas into which it was wrapped with lettuce some , beans, gucamole and salsa on top.

Chef Andy Bates preparing Spatchcock Roast Chicken with a Mexican style rub

You can check of some cool videos of Chef Andy Bates cooking up Mexican meals with Old El Paso ingredients on the Food Network UK website.

Old El Paso makes kits that you can buy and make delicious meals in minutes but did you know that you can buy various ingredients to create something special on your own too? I particularly like the squeezy chunky guacamole , canned refried beans and bottled sliced red and green jalapenos.

Whatever it is you are after tacos, fajitas, quesadillas, whether you want to fix a tasty side dish or rustle up a big main meal for friends there are many products in their arsenal that could help you create a feast in minutes.

So if it’s the soft and toasty, oven baked tortillas that are calling out to you, why not combine then with some chunky salsa, and twice cooked, crunchy nachips today? Or if you want tangy prawns then why not make it #fajitafriday with a little recipe inspiration from Old El Paso? Find the recipe here

Whatever Mexican feast you cook up, don’t forget to stock up your larder with some handy Old El Paso ingredients. I am off to make some Ol El Paso Mexican Taco’s now – buh -bye!

*With thanks to Old El Paso U.K for inviting me. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Great British Chefs Masterclass with Michelin-starred Chef Adam Gray

May 1, 2015 by manjirichitnis Leave a Comment

Last week, I was invited to the #GBCCookSchool by Great British Chefs to cook up a 3-course meal with Michelin-starred Skylon Chef Adam Gray at the Cookery School.

I have always been a great fan of the Great British Chefs website and their many cool recipes and some life saving How-to videos. So it was really exciting to be invited to a masterclass with them and watch a Michelin-starred Chef show us some cool tips and tricks.

After nibbling on some cheese and yummy starters washed down with a glass of bubbly (oh alright I confess – several glasses of bubbly!) we gathered for the demo by Adam Gray. Assisted by his sous chef Damon Stokes, he showed us how to expertly fillet fresh Cornish mackerel.

He then used a wafer-thin slice of bread and wrapped it around the fish dabbed with a little mustard and then lightly pan-fried in Rapeseed oil.

I have used Rape seed oil before it has a strong nutty flavour probably only less overpowering that it’s bright yellow colour but as the Chef rightly informed us it has half the saturated fat content of olive oil making it lower in cholesterol and also it has 10 times more Omega 3 than olive oil. Besides hailing from Northampton too, the locally produced rapeseed oil (Farrington’s Mellow Yellow) has the Chef’s seal of approval, as expected he is as proud a supporter of British produce, as he is of seasonal ingredients.

Served with a delicious Rhubarb Relish and a Pea Shoot & Sea Kale salad, these really elevate a simple dish to Michelin-star quality by combining otherwise unusual ingredients to create an imaginative dish.

Image Courtesy: Great British Chefs

The sea kale is something I had never tasted before and like me was quite a discovery in a new taste sensation for me and a few other bloggers. Chef Adam Gray showed us how to serve the Crispy Cornish Mackerel chopped at a slant and plated with the relish at the side adding a final flourish to a posh looking yet easy to prepare crispy fish finger starter – easy if you can master filleting the mackerel that is!

It looked ever so easy but that wasn’t the case as we were all about to find out when later a few enthusiastic bloggers got to try their hand at it with the Chef showing them how to wield their knives and expertly handle the fish even if it was a delicate small mackerel or a large meaty specimen.

After that, we formed 3 groups and set out to make Ticklemore & Goat’s Cheese Fritters under the watchful eye of Chef Adam and Chef Damon. Coated in panko breadcrumbs with a generous sprinkling of fennel seeds, I busied myself with adding 2 coats of the egg wash and breadcrumb mixture to the fritter while the others chopped up the delicious heritage tomatoes seasoned with lovage – an intriguing herb and in taste aptly described by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall as ‘ The flavour is like parsley and celery combined with a hint of aniseed and curry’. We used Sharpham farms goats cheese and combined it with some soft cheese resulting in a delicious and rich fritter that tasted fabulous served on a bed of fresh salad.

Moving on to the dessert we made individual portions of Flourless Citrus Cake served with English Strawberries and Vanilla Yoghurt. This is by far one of Chef Adam Gray’s most popular recipe on Great British Chefs, a completely gluten-free cake it is one of those recipes which is perfect for cooking along with kids and helping them master some basic skills.

While our cakes were baking in the oven, we once again huddled around the demo kitchen and watched while some brave bloggers volunteered to learn how exactly to wield a knife and fillet a Cornish Mackerel.

The flourless cakes were delightfully light and soft and the fresh strawberries mixed with Tiptree strawberry jam relish was a perfect accompaniment to the dessert. The vanilla-infused yoghurt added an interesting dimension to the dish.

This was the second in a new series of Masterclasses by Great British Chefs. Held at the Cookery School, where Rosalind Rathouse and her team hosted all of us and made sure that we were well looked after, it was a great experience. The Cookery School itself is very well maintained, as is evident from the spotlessly clean kitchen and work surfaces and eco-friendly practices.

Needless to say, the event was even more fun because I caught up with blogger friends Vaishali and Heidi, also finally go to meet Deena Kakaya and Felicity Spector in person. It was lovely to see some more familiar faces like the lovely Miriam and Alexandra too.

*With thanks to Great British Chefs for inviting me. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

MoBa – New Boulangerie with a French-Asian fusion menu opens in London

March 30, 2015 by manjirichitnis 8 Comments

The new artisan bakery where Bánh Mì meets Boulangerie called MoBa opened it’s doors to the public on Monday at Goodge street in London.

Before I dive into the details about their unique and well thought of menu, a bit about the background – the how’s and why’s ( humm ,maybe all those hours am spending watching House M.D have started affecting the way I think – need to know the why first..)

The Paris born founding duo – Thibaut and Theodore, met while studying Hotel Management in Switzerland and then kept in touch even when their careers took to various locations across the world. They recently moved to London with the aim of bringing a new concept of dining to London. Though they are still in their early 20’s this duo has gained lots of experience between the two of them and have been exposed to various culinary influences.

With a bold and fabulous new fusion menu this new casual dining spot promises to serve up interesting food, which like their lovely window display will change with the seasons. ‘MoBa’ an acronym for Modern Bakery aims to combine traditional French cooking with fresh and simple flavours from Asia – a culmination of friendship, passion for creativity and of course a shared love of good food.

The interiors are cool and fresh, the minimalist look adds a soothing touch while the sleek leather lined stools give it just the right edge.

I also got a feel of a bit of behind the scene the counter action – a masterclass of sorts. Thibaut Voury, one of the founders , who was managing the kitchen showed me how to make my own Bánh Mì.

Because I wasn’t too keen on a heavy lunch, the naked Bánh Mì sounded good and Theodore Charoy the other founder suggested that I choose ‘Tokyo’ because of the fabulous flavours of the Salmon gravlax. He was right! I absolutely loved this mix of seasonal veg wok, Japanese lime and garlic cream served on a bed of noodles. Not only is it light and fresh it is still full of wonderful Asian flavours.

I resisted having any beer but they have my favourite Asian beer – Asahi, while the other bloggers loved Bellerose – a blonde beer from Northern France.

I also learnt that the word Bánh Mì was born out of a misspelling for ”pain de mie” which simply means ‘sliced bread’. This sandwich dated back to the time when French colonised Indochina, a perfect example of a fusion born out of the meeting of two very different culinary worlds.

The other bloggers choose the Toulouse (£7.20) which as they described as a fabulous combination of spicy mango sauce and duck confit in a traditional baguette stuffed with seasonal veg wok. It was massive and looked very delicious , I do hope to go back soon for this one.

Apart from the fusion menu, the Boulangerie also stocks beautiful breads and some baguettes with unusual combinations like the soya-ginger baguette which I got to take home in goody bag. I was greedily eyeing the green tea croissant while photographing the place and the mango croissant looked so tempting with the beautiful glaze over it – wow – almost irresistible!

Ever since I started having my matcha green tea everyday I am totally addicted to the taste of green tea and the match green tea brownies were my absolute favourite from the sweet treats we were given to sample. Of course the fusion of flavours spills over into the dessert menu too then and the exotic sounding Zen Lightning Éclair packs a punch with a strong tangy flavour while the Speculoos Mango Cheesecake is delicious too and a perfect companion with a steaming hot latte. What I loved most is that the dessert tray came lined with the MoBa ‘newspaper’ – hot off the press!

MoBa is conveniently located a short walk from Goodge Street tube station and is a fabulous lunch option for lunch go-ers and would make for a great place for a casual catch up over dinner with friends too.

Don’t know about you but I think MoBa is going to kick off a new trend in London with their fusion menu!

*With thanks to the PR Agency and MoBa for the invite. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.All images without my watermark for ‘travelsfortaste’ are provided by the PR Agency. Kindly do not re-produce any images without prior permission.

Greek Easter Feast with Tonia Buxton and Total Greek Yoghurt

May 1, 2014 by manjirichitnis 10 Comments

One of the things I enjoy most about being a food and travel writer is that I am able to experience various traditions from various cultures. Also, I think it is a privilege and also an incredible opportunity to to celebrate various festivals from across the world. As an added benefit I have had the good fortune of meeting the wonderful people on my journey into exploring various beautiful cuisines and destinations.

I have cooked alongside some very talented trained Michelin-starred Chefs, home cooks, and cookbook authors too.

I am so glad that I had a chance to cook with someone as passionate as Tonia Buxton who taught us how to make a 3-course Greek feast and took us through a journey of how Easter is celebrated back in Greece, relating in a very animated manner the rituals, prayer, and festivity surrounding the occasion. Total Yogurt the makers of the deliciously thick and creamy yogurt put together this cooking fest at a Cookery School called La Cucina Caldesi located in the heart of Central London.

Tonia Buxton a Greek Cypriot is the Total Greek Yogurt Brand Ambassador and a presenter of the award-winning T.V series on Discovery Channel called ‘My Greek Kitchen’ and has also authored a book titled ‘Tonia’s Greek Kitchen’. Soon to star in a new T.V series called ‘Pauls Family Feast’ a TV show by well, Paul Hollywood 🙂

After a quick ice breaker session, we got into groups and started preparing the main dish of the meal – Greek Lamb Pattie Tray Bake. I love cooking lamb and am delighted with the similarities in Greek and Indian cuisines. We too love our spices and cumin does add a very deep flavour to lamb. If I was to make it at home though I would tweak it and amp up the spices especially the cumin and just because I love heat crushed or paper-thin slices of green chillies with seeds ummm!

Here is the recipe:

Greek Lamb Pattie Tray Bake

Serves: 4

Ingredients

100g TOTAL Greek Yoghurt
100g fresh wholemeal breadcrumbs
400g lamb mince
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp ground cumin
4 red onions (2 finely chopped, 2 cut into wedges)
Large handful mint, chopped
4 waxy new potatoes, i.e. the Charlottes cut into wedges
4 courgettes, halved & quartered lengthways
250g pack juicy cherry tomatoes on the vine
2 unwaxed lemons cut into 6 wedges each
4 tbsp olive oil
100g feta cheese, crumbled

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C / 180°C Fan / Gas Mark 6.
Put the breadcrumbs, the lamb mince, egg, plenty of seasoning, and cumin in a bowl.
Add the chopped onion and sprinkle in half the chopped mint. Give everything a good mix and shape into 8 patties.
Lightly oil a large, shallow roasting tray and add the patties.
Place the onion wedges on the tray around the lamb patties with the potatoes, courgettes, and tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil and season. Bake for around 40 minutes, turning & basting everything once halfway until the lamb is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the feta and remaining mint. (We used up most of the mint and our minty lamb patties were very juicy and yum)
Serve with a large dollop of Total Greek yoghurt and tahini sauce.

While our lamb patties were cooking we played a fun Greek easter egg game with eggs painted a cheerful bright red. We had to go about smashing our egg onto everyone else and in the end, I was up against Tonia- of course, she won! Years of experience laster she has mastered the technique 🙂

We then made a Greek dessert called Anarocrema using Anari Cheese, which I flavoured with orange blossom extract, fresh fruits, and generous bits of freshly made filo pastry crispy bits. This creamy dessert is made using goats cheese and marries well with fruits, pistachios, almonds, and honey too is very filling and moreish dessert.

While our desserts were sent for chilling we got cracking on with the starter a light and superbly flavoured starter – Greek Sea Bream fillets with olives, capers, lemon, and yoghurt Tahini Sauce.

Thanks to @satureyes for the brilliant photos.

It was a very well organised event and I got an opportunity to meet so many more bloggers.Cooking up in a team with Fiona (London Unattached) and Heidi was good fun and it great to be working with familiar faces. Many thanks to @TotalGreek yogurt for the lovely event & @ToniaBuxton for her lively, warm, and friendly way of conducting the cookery workshop and sharing so many beautiful experiences.

I hope all of you had a brilliant Easter Weekend and are looking forward to another long weekend coming up!

Disclaimer: With many thanks to Total Uk and Tonia Buxton.I was not required to write a positive review and was not compensated monetarily for this post. Like all my previous posts about events and reviews, ALL opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Salon du Chocolat’s first Chocolate Fashion Show in London

October 27, 2013 by manjirichitnis Leave a Comment

For any one with a sweet tooth going to a fashion show and watching models walk around in clothes made with chocolate is a pure test of resilience, thankfully I sampled almost all of the varied offering by master chocolatiers after to not feel deprived 😉

During National Chocolate Week – Salon du Chocolat‘s world famous fashion show came to London for the first time.On Friday the 18th of October Chocolate Couture was its best with various world-renowned chocolatiers teaming up with designers and artists to present their creations live on the catwalk at the VIP Gala Evening.The venue was National Hall, Olympia ,at Kensington in London and before we (Nisha of My Kitchen Antics and Suchi of Kitchen Karma) went there we had quite enjoyed dressing up and doing our own hair and make up , after all ”girls just wanna have fun”, huh?

The weekend saw many events unfold like demonstrations, talks, interactive workshops from acclaimed chocolatiers and chefs including master patissier Eric Lanlard in action, Great British Bake Off winner John Whaite and leading pastry chefs from Hakkasan and Le Manoir aux quat’saisons.

Lindt’s strapless chocolate dress weighed a whooping 50 kg and was made with chocolate and chilli.Called the “Eternal Diamond” it was designed by Graduate Fashion Week 2013 winner Lauren Smith:

My favourite though was this elegant and beautiful creation by Mark Tilling of Squires Kitchen.

Artisan du Chocolat’s ‘Alaya’ dress made by Sabina Motasem with white, caramel and dark chocolate, embellished with chocolate pearls and sugar diamonds and accessorised with a Kelly Spence tulle veil trimmed with intricate chocolate lace.

Fruitful Blooms who specialise in bespoke artistic chocolate creations created a chocolate bikini with matching cover up with British designer swimwear brand, Bikini Fling.

French patissier and chocolatier Les Sucreries de Mélodie’s sweet creation was adorned with cupcakes, macarons and edible brooches.

The chocolate bath had tell tale signs that some one had taken a dip in it and as I found out later ,sure enough earlier on in the evening a model had done exactly that!

Hotel Chocolat’s life size chocolate cocoa tree:

Some of the best chocolate companies from the UK and abroad such as Artisan du Chocolat, Paul a Young, Rococo, Hotel Chocolat, Paul Wayne Gregory, Marc Demarquette, Divine, Prestat, Lindt, Valrhona, Pralus and Bonnat offered tastings to lucky visitors.

Iain Burnett – The Highland chocolatiers intricately decorated designs made for a very pretty mixed box, apt for a very special gift idea indeed!

ChocoMe’s brilliant combinations and ever so tempting display of goodies had me drooling.

Comptoir du Cacao’s delicious offering are very tastefully packaged in very artistic packs, I love the brunette in a red scarf cycling past the Eiffel Tower and oh yes I tried ALL the yummy flavours 🙂