Toast

Vasundhara Chauhan

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Dry or buttered, decorated with a topping or grilled, a slice of bread can inspire.

Beans on toast, eggs on toast, tea and toast… “Toast, as everyone in Britain knows, is made by placing a slice of bread in front of dry heat… until the surface browns and gives off an attractive smell.” (Alan Davidson, The Oxford Companion to Food.) We don’t need definitions because, like “everyone in Britain”, we know what toast is.

It is a standard part of a proper English breakfast — whichever continent it is eaten on — and “the true toast addict is fussy about its preparation, choosing day-old baker’s bread to make it, and insisting it is eaten as soon as ready, for good toast must be consumed whilst hot. It is the smell of toast, and the sensations of the hot crunchy outside of the bread combined with the soft inner crumb and melted butter, that makes it so appealing. Left to go cold, it becomes leathery and loses its aroma.” (Ibid) In effect, “it’s toast”. Because to be toast means to be (or be likely to become) finished, defunct, or dead. As in “one mistake and you’re toast” or “if my boss hears of this, I’m toast”.

Over the centuries, England has seen toast, then called “tost” being eaten as a sop (a piece of bread, preferably toasted, used to mop up soup or other liquids), until now, when toast-with-a-topping is routine. In the 16th century, meat toppings became popular; sometimes sweetened, as in kidneys, eggs, sugar and flavourings; and sometimes savoury. Towards the end of that century, toppings we now consider the norm became common: Poached eggs, buttered (or scrambled) eggs, ham or bacon, melted cheese. All of these are associated with toast, as are beans, sardines and marmalade. But in India, we have made it our own; we have more: Bombay toast, Bombay toast sandwich, and rusks, differentiated as “cake” rusk and “toss” rusk” where “toss” presumably means toast, and is harder and less sweet than the “cake” type.

Tossed!

Bombay — or should we now call it Mumbai — toast is a version of French toast, and a Bombay toast sandwich is what in some Delhi circles is called a “patty”: A toasted sandwich. Anita the cruel once affected innocence and asked a colleague, eyes opened wide in awe, how she had had the time to make flaky pastry before reporting to work at the crack of dawn. Because that poor ignoramus had said that she’s made “patties” for the family’s breakfast. Of course Anita knew what she’d meant: Some vegetable leftovers (or mashed and spiced potatoes) sandwiched in sliced white bread, buttered and toasted (or grilled) in that wonderful tongs-like appliance, a “tasty toast” maker.

French Toast, pain perdu, literally, “lost bread” is a dessert and consists of slices of stale bread soaked in milk, dipped in eggs beaten with sugar, then lightly fried in butter. It is served hot and crisp. According to the Larousse Gastronomique it was originally intended to use up crusty and leftover pieces of bread, and today is made with brioche or milk bread and served with custard cream, jam or compote. In France it was formerly called pain crotté, pain à la romaine, or croûtes dorées.

In India it is often served for breakfast, only sometimes sweet. Savoury, it is made with salt instead of sugar, finely chopped onions, green chillies and fresh coriander.

FRENCH TOAST

Serves 4

2 cups milk

Half vanilla pod or 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

1/2 cup sugar

250g stale brioche (or milk bread), cut into thick slices

2 eggs, beaten well

2-3 tsp caster sugar

1/2 cup butter

Boil milk with vanilla and sugar. Leave to cool. Soak cut bread in cooled milk, only long enough to wet thoroughly without falling apart. Stir a spoon of sugar into beaten egg. In a heavy-bottomed skillet, heat butter. Meanwhile dip bread in egg-sugar mixture, then fry in hot butter. When golden on one side, turn over gently and fry other side till cooked, crisp and golden. Arrange bread slices in a round dish, dust over with remaining caster sugar, and serve hot with cream, cream custard, jam or stewed fruit.

CROQUE-MONSIEUR

Serves 2

This toast dish combines all the usual toppings, and is very similar to Welsh rarebit (or rabbit) but with added ham.

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

1 cup whole milk

Pinch of ground nutmeg

1 bay leaf

4 slices firm white sandwich bread

4 thin slices Black Forest ham

150 g sliced Gruyère cheese

1 tbsp melted butter

1/4 cup grated Gruyère cheese

2 teaspoons chopped fresh chives

Melt two tbsp butter in small saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and stir one minute. Gradually whisk in milk. Add nutmeg and bay leaf. Increase heat to medium-high and boil until sauce thickens, whisking constantly, about two minutes.

Season with salt and pepper and keep aside. Preheat grill. Place two bread slices on work surface. Top each with half of ham and sliced Gruyère. Top with remaining bread. Heat heavy large skillet over low heat. Brush sandwiches with one tbsp melted butter. Add to skillet and cook until deep golden brown, about two minutes per side. Transfer to small metal baking sheet. Spoon sauce, then grated cheese over sandwiches. Grill until cheese begins to brown, about two minutes.

(Processed cheese is not a great substitute, but does when you’re strapped.

A variation is the croque-madame (or, in Normandy, a croque-cheval), with a fried egg on top.)

Keywords: toast recipes, french toast, croque-monsieur recipe, english breakfast

All that glitters is saffron

Published: Sunday, Aug 26, 2012, 10:00 IST By Geetanjali Jhala | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA

Laban ke Kofte DNA  « Back Next »  Few foods have the kind of effect saffron does:Even before the first bite of a saffron-infused preparation, there’s a synchronised assault on your visual and olfactory senses. Seated comfortably at Soma, the Indian restaurant at Mumbai’s Grand Hyatt hotel, as the waiter opens a pot of steaming saffron-infused biryani, a private battle rages in my mind — should I heed the years of conditioning, or give in to my baser instincts and devour the food in front of me? One tentative bite of the golden yellow rice preparation, and my mind is made up. I will savour this meal. Saffron is, after all, as precious as gold. “Saffron, or kesar, is the most expensive of all spices,” says Pushpendru Sen, chef de cuisine at the Grand Hyatt, as he brings in the first course during the saffron festival at Soma. We start with a paneer ka sheekh, murgh zafrani kebab and macchi tukda. Saffron flavouring works well with the milder paneer and chicken, lending them a rich yellow colour and a distinctive sweet flavour. The taste of fish, on the other hand, overpowers the saffron. “To be able to bring out the saffron, the fish is marinated thrice. It is first washed with saffron, then marinated with it, and finally, before the fish is put into the tandoor, it has to be brushed with saffron again,” says Sen. That’s a rich meal if you ever had one. In India, saffron grows only in Kashmir, and therefore sells at a very high price. It is allegedly a more lucrative commodity for smugglers than gold because it is more difficult to detect. Only a few cultures have adopted saffron into their cuisines. North-Indian, Iranian and Spanish cooking involves the use of saffron. Incidentally, these are also the largest saffron producing countries in the world. The menu — dishes from the northwestern frontier — has been chosen to highlight the versatility and unique flavour of saffron. Sen says he learnt to cook most of the dishes during his stint as a chef at a hotel in Kashmir. “Saffron is used in almost every dish in Kashmiri cuisines — in the rich and spicy dishes the Muslims make, as well as vegetarian food of the Hindus,” he says. “It is used more sparingly in the Mughal-inspired Avadhi cuisine, and even the way that saffron is used is different,” he adds. In Kashmiri preparations, the meat is cooked along with saffron. “For example, aab gosht, boneless mutton in an onion gravy, is cooked in saffron water. In Avadhi dishes, on the other hand, saffron is added after the dish is cooked, mostly for the colour it lends the gravy,” says Sen. Besides its colour, Saffron’s distinctive flavour gels well with the flavour of meat. Instead of adding saffron only as a garnish, when it is cooked with mutton, it enhances the flavour of the meat. However, cooking with saffron requires constant monitoring. “It has to be cooked at the right temperature, and for the right amount of time. If overcooked, the saffron won’t give off its flavour. Slow cooking on low heat is the best way to bring out saffron’s flavour,” he adds. The Spanish use saffron in some preparations of paella, but usually only as a garnish. Sen says he is inspired by the way Kashmiris cook food. “Take gustava for instance. The chef personally chooses the goat and watches it get butchered, making sure it’s done right so the muscles don’t go rigid. There’s a kitchen help whose only job is to pound and tenderise the meat for 6-8 hours. This kind of dedication is something I haven’t seen in any kitchen outside of Kashmir. I’d have liked to include gustava in the menu here, but to make sure it tastes authentic, I’d need the right kind of meat cooked at the correct temperature.” Instead, he chose to make aab gosht. There’s a rogan josh on the menu too, but aab gosht requires fewer spices, so the flavour of both the meat and the saffron stand out. “In rogan josh, with all the other spices that go into the recipe, the flavour of saffron is much milder,” says Sen. The aab gosht arrives, along with a handi of chicken biryani. The food is only lightly flavoured, and the natural flavours of the meat stand out. The highlight of the meal is undoubtedly the laban ke kofte, curd croquettes stuffed with figs. The sourness of the curd is offset with the sweet figs, and the ingredients blend well with a saffron-infused gravy. That’s the thing about saffron: It could be a garnish for a dish or it could be the ingredient that holds the other ingredients together. And while it’s not an absolutely necessary ingredient, once you’ve had biryani, or meat, or even fig koftas cooked in saffron, no other version of these preparations will ever taste the same. As a substitute for saffron, cinnamon comes close, and can be used in most dishes, sweet or savoury. We end this rather royal meal with a warm kheer. Saffron has a sort of natural affinity with desserts. It lends the otherwise bland-looking kheer a rich, pale yellow colour, and even just two pieces of the thread-like spice breaks the visual monotony of the dessert. The real clincher, however, is the taste. Just two strips of saffron can instantly transform a dessert, thus changing the way you experience food. Laban Ke Kofte Ingredients Filling: Hung Curd 200 gms Chopped Fig 20 ml Chopped ginger 5 gm Corn flour 20 gm Gravy: Cashew paste 100 gm Butter 25 gm Cream 15 gm Salt Cardamom powder 2 gm Mawa 10 gm Ginger garlic paste 10 gm Garnish: Saffron 5 gm Cream 100 gmslAlmond flakes 50 gms Method Stuff the hung curd with figs and chopped ginger Shape it like a barrel and roll it in corn flour Heat oil and deep fry till rich in colour Make the gravy nice and smooth and dip the rolls in it. Adjust seasoning accordingly lGarnish with fresh cream, almond flakes and saffron. Aab Gosht Ingredients Lamb (boneless) 250 gm Ginger garlic paste 15 gm Lamb (stock) 1000 ml Aniseed 100 gmlGarlic 25 gm Ginger powder 15 gm Cream 15 mllGhee 100 ml Clove 3 gmlSalt Cardamom green (Whole) Cinnamon 5 gmlBlack pepper corn 10 gm Milk 1,500 ml Saffron 2 gm Method Boil the lamb in water with the aniseed powder, garlic, ginger powder and salt till it is tender lRemove the lamb and keep aside. Strain the stock in another pan and keep aside lBoil the milk with green cardamom, cinnamon, clove and whole black pepper in a separate pan lSimmer till the milk is reduced to half. Stir well. Add the lamb and the stock lStir well and bring the mixture to the boil. Continue to boil for 5 minutes and then reduce the heat to low lSimmer for another 10 minutes. Add saffron. Finish with cream.

Healthy hogging

Ramzan is here and with it comes the season of Iftaar parties and deep-fried goodies. But this year, Moeena Halim urges you to turn a blind eye to all things unhealthy. Here are four different Iftaar options that will be far nicer to your body

 

Come Ramzan and the streets are dotted with kebab stalls, people frying samosas, bhajiyas and so many more goodies. Deep fried and dripping with oil, these aren’t exactly healthy options for your Iftaar (the meal after sunset, with which Muslims break their fast).

“But not every Muslim eats unhealthy,” clarifies Dr Zubeda Tumbi, PhD Clinical Nutrition, who has been keeping rozas (the fasts during the month of Ramzan) for the past 23 years. Busting another myth, Tumbi says that Ramzan isn’t about limiting your daily meals to two. Most Muslims eat three meals even during Ramzan — sehri (the meal that is eaten before dawn), Iftaar and dinner.

“Sehri is the most important meal, it takes you through the day. Iftaar can be light, with dates and fruits and then dinner — a regular meal of dal chawal or the like,” explains Tumbi. The point of fasting during Ramzan is to learn to empathise with the poor, explains Tumbi. You’re supposed to live as modestly as possible during the month and have meagre meals. “The idea is also to teach oneself discipline, self-restraint, to cleanse your body and to learn to control your emotions,” she says.

‘Haleem is the healthiesT option’
“There’s nothing healthier than Haleem,” says Bilkees Latif, a Hyderabadi food connoisseur, who is also the daughter of the late Nawab Ali Yavar Jung. “Apart from Haleem, Muslims in Hyderabad also have a dish of cooked dry savoury dal with chopped onions and lime juice and kachaloo, which is a mixture of chopped fruit sprinkled with salt and pepper — both very nutritious foods,” she says. She offers the traditional recipe of Haleem — cooked the Hyderabadi way, which is a porridge-like wheat and lamb preparation. “I don’t usually make it this way. I just cook the meat as a korma and then add it to the wheat.” Haleem is a staple during Ramzan.

Hyderabadi Haleem
1Ingredients:
300g chicken, cut into chunks
100g boiled kabuli chana (chick peas)
1 large onion, sliced
Salt, to taste
300g basmati rice
3 tbsp butter
2 pieces bay leaves
6 pieces black pepper, whole
Healthy pinch of saffron soaked in 1 tbs broth
1 small carrot cut into sticks
20g dark raisin
20g blanched pistachio, whole
20g blanched almonds
15g fried onion
5g black cumin, whole

Method:
>> Soak wheat in water for one hour and drain
>> Cut lamb into pieces
>> Heat ghee and fry onions till they turn brown. Remove from ghee and keep aside
>> In the same ghee, fry cloves, cardamom and cinnamon for a minute
>> Add ginger and garlic and fry together. Add lamb and saute for 50 minutes or till lamb and wheat are soft, adding water as required. This can be done in a large pressure cooker for 30-35 minutes.
>> Cook till the water evaporates. When the meat and wheat are soft, mash them to get a porridge-like consistency
>> Add salt and a little water if it is too dry. Simmer for five minutes
>> Garnish with sprigs of mint, fried onions and slices of lime
‘Chanas make for a power-packed option’
According to Arsalans’s Executive Chef, Sarafat Ali, chana makes for an obvious healthy option during Ramzan. “Chana is great for digestion and is a must before you break your fast. Apart from chana, dry fruits like khajoor are also important. Both fresh and dry fruits give you a burst of energy,” says Ali. For the chef, Sehri is usually a light meal – milk, biscuits, sevaiyan. So it is important that his meal at Iftaar provides him with the necessary nutrition.” He suggests the Shahi Bagh Chaat — a simple, quick to make chaat, which is a power-packed meal in itself.

Shahi Bagh Chat
1Ingredients:
1/2 kg broken wheat (dalia)
1/2 kg boneless lamb
1/2 cup ghee
2 onions
6 cloves
6 cardamoms
2 sticks cinnamon (1” each)
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
1 tbsp coriander powder (dry roasted)
1 tsp caraway seeds (ground)
Red chilly powder to taste
3 green chillies (ground)
Water
Salt to taste
for garnishing:
A few sprigs of mint leaves
2 limes (sliced)


Method:
>> Add all the ingredients, tomatoes, green chillies, coriander, chat masala powder and lemon juice and mix well
>> Garnish with coriander leaves and chutney
>> Top it off with raisins and cashewnuts
A Yemeni iftaar
“Suffut was introduced to the Dawoodi Bohra community by their Yemeni forefathers. This dish is predominantly prepared by the Bohri’s from Surat,” says Lamiya Amiruddin, a catering and food technology graduate of Kamala Nehru Polytechnic for Women, Hyderabad. Amiruddin, now a homemaker, loves to cook — she is quite the expert when it comes to Bohri foods. She suggests Suffut as an healthy Iftaar option. “Traditionally made from lentil pancakes, yogurt, mince and a whole bunch of vegetables, Suffut is definitely a healthy option,” says Amiruddin. “It doesn’t involve deep frying either,” she adds. Although the original Yemeni recipe consisted of lentil pancakes, here it is substituted by dosas.

Suffut
1Ingredients:
3 sada dosas
1 large tub dahi
300g mutton or chicken mince meat
1 green chilli chopped (optional)
Half tsp ginger garlic paste
2 cucumbers grated
1 large carrot grated
Half a bunch spring onions, finely chopped
100g French beans, finely diced and boiled
1 small beetroot, boiled and grated (optional)
100g boiled peas (optional)
1 tomato, finely sliced (optional)
1 level tsp mustard powder steeped for 15minutes in a tsp of warm water and beaten
Half tsp sugar
Salt to taste
Method:
>> Rub the ginger garlic paste on washed mince meat and boil along with the green chilli
>> Save the soup of boiled mince meat. Beat dahi along with mustard paste, sugar, and salt. Lay one dosa on the serving dish, soak the dosa with some soup
>> Spread some seasoned dahi on the soup-soaked dosa. Cover the dosa with the portion of mince meat and liberally sprinkle chopped spring onion and grated cucumber
>> Place the second dosa on top and repeat the same steps
>> Put the final dosa on top and soak again with soup and dahi
>> Cover the whole dosa with all the prepared vegetables and remaining mince in any preferred pattern to make the dish attractive
>> To add an Indian twist to this dish, you can spread a layer of spicy green chutney on the dosa before putting dahi
>> Bread can be used as a substitute for dosas
Kabuli chana, different avatar
Kabuli Chana is very commonly eaten during Ramzan, says Chef Mujeeb Qureshi, Executive Chef at Veda Palladium.Lower Parel. Agreeing with Chef Sarafat, he feels that it is an essential addition to your food during the holy month of fasting. His Kabuli Chana concoction is poles apart from Chef Sarafat’s, however. “I have combined rice, chana, chicken and a whole lot of dry fruits — which make it extremely healthy,” says Qureshi. This is also low on masalas, which must be avoided during Ramzan, says Qureshi. “Since the stomach is empty all day long, consuming spicy foods is a bad idea during Iftaar.”

Murg Kabuli Pulao
1Ingredients:
300g chicken (cut into chunks)
100g boiled kabuli chana (chick peas)
1 large onion, sliced
Salt, to taste
300g basmati rice
3 tbsp butter
2 pieces bay leaves
6 pcs black pepper whole
Pinch of saffron soaked in 1 tbsp broth
1 small carrot, chopped
into sticks
20g dark raisin
20g blanched pistachio whole
20g blanched almond
15g fried onion
5g black cumin whole
Method:
>> Place carrot, almond, pistachio, raisin and chicken pieces, onions and hot water in a large pot. Boil it for 10 to 15 minutes
>> Add salt to taste
>> Soak the Basmati rice in water for 30 minutes
>> Remove chicken, reserving stock and discard cooked onions
>> TIn a deep pan, add butter, black cumin, black pepper, and bay leaf, stir for 30 seconds then add chicken and fried onion
>> Stir for a minute. Add the dry fruit, carrot, and stock water
>>Cook all of them till boiling point then add soaked rice with Kabuli chana, cover the lid and let it cook for 15 minutes
>> Check the consistency, add saffron water and cover the lid
>> Cook for 15 to 20 minutes
>> Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot
An ideal Iftaar
“Every fast must be opened with a khajoor (date),” says Dr Zubeda Tumbi. Apart from that, fresh fruits such as watermelons, papaya, peach, pear should be eaten. Lots of fluids need to be taken, such as lime juice, coconut water, iced tea, milk in the form of fruit milkshakes.


The third course must include something savoury. However, fried foods must be avoided, as they are bad for the liver. Ragda, moong or chana chaat are good options. Mixed sprouts or pineapple chaat is great too.

Sehri should be sustaining, adds Tumbi. “Always include cereals, either roti or bhakri or raagi porridge.” Milk, she says, is a must too — it gives you your dose of calcium and Vitamin A. Nuts and a cup of tea (especially green tea) will make it a highly nutritious meal. 

Monsoon magic in Goa

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A dark shadow creeps across the sky until it's almost as black as night. The waves get choppier and choppier until they lash against the shore in anger. The water is chilly on your skin. When the dogs sense the deluge coming, they flee out of sight. In the distance, where the beach shack is shut, the palm trees sway wildly. Then the rain descends, instantly torrential, drowning all other sounds. It gets in your eyes and ears, soaking your swimsuit to the skin. Sea and sky merge into one angry crash of water. Goa in the monsoon - the loveliest place on earth.

When you tire of the sea, you can drive through the state, north to south or south to north, through sleepy little villages dotted with wine shops and streetside bars and restaurants, past paddy fields and dense forests of palm trees. The lush foliage makes the entire state, apart from a few small towns, look like countryside. The rain keeps pouring, forming swirling mists around the peaks of the Western Ghats that form a shadowy backdrop to everything. Aunties in loose, short dresses sit inside fast food shacks, selling beef chilly and Goan sausage with bread.

What can you say about Goa without sounding like a travel brochure? I just spent six days there in the middle of the monsoon season when tourism is at its lowest ebb and the sea at its highest. Initially, I had planned to rent a service apartment, a concept that's growing in popularity in the tourism-dependent state. People from Bombay, Delhi, and overseas buy condos in Goa that serve as holiday homes when they want to visit. But most of the time they're rented out to tourists.

Unfortunately, in the off season, the condos we were going to rent turned out to be quite poorly equipped, so we drove around looking for a hotel, and finally landed up at the exact same place I'd stayed at four years ago, on my last visit to Goa. The Royal Orchid Galaxy at Uttorda was, back then, a fairly quiet, small resort on the beach with few frills. Now, I was stunned to see the transformation, and reminded of a short story by EM Forster, "The Eternal Moment", where a character returns to a hotel in an Alpine town which used to be unspoilt but has since been changed utterly by fame. Except that the Royal Orchid has become even prettier. Its new swankiness is subdued and charming. Of course the tariffs have doubled. The whole change reminded me that even south Goa won't remain unspoilt forever. These days, nearly every tourist I meet seems to prefer the south to the overcrowded north.

On one of the days we drove around the southernmost parts of the state, the region that borders Karnataka. Our car was ferried across a small river, but once on the other side, we were completely lost. It was about as different from the northern towns of Panjim and Calangute as it can get. No people for miles, no cell phone signal, and no traffic. Just winding, hilly roads flanked by thick coconut groves, glistening paddy fields, and muddy ponds filled with rainwater. In the distance stood the blue-grey hills. And every now and then, without any warning, the car would turn a bend and below us we'd catch a sudden shocking glimpse of the silver sea. The local people in the villages around spoke almost no Hindi or English, only Kannada. From the coconut trees hang clusters of green coconuts, and when you drive with the windows rolled down, occasionally a strong whiff of coconut oil floats up. It's funny how the scent of coconut oil in Indian cities elsewhere evokes associations of cheap hair oil. But in the Goan countryside, all I could think of was delicious prawn curry.

On the other hand, north Goa feels like a different country. Even the gas station attendants speak fluent English. In some ways, used to the huge influx of Western tourists, perhaps, Goa is perhaps the most liberal part of India. You can wear the skimpiest clothes without anyone staring. Drinking and driving also doesn't seem to be a big deal, which is a good thing in Goa! The small towns around Panjim are a lot more lively than the south but can feel very crowded even in the off season. I prefer the quiet, deserted beaches of the south, like Uttorda, but I did drive up to Panjim a couple of times to see the energy of the city. This is the only Goan city that feels urban, compared to say Colva or Margao. Old Panjim is quaint and charming with its heritage houses and pretty churches and strong Portuguese influence.

Needless to say, I ate tons of Goan food. Much of it is very spicy but, unlike the Andhra cuisine I mentioned in my last blog post, Goan cuisine is also a little sweet and tangy. Coconut and vinegar are big ingredients. We ate fried kingfisher and ladyfish, fresh lobster and several Goan curries such as Balchao, Xacuti, Cafriel, and Vindaloo. Goan pork is very fatty and a little smelly. Of all the dishes, my favourite is the basic prawn or fish curry which smells strongly coconutty. For dessert, you've got to have the layered coconut milk cake, the pudding with the prettiest name in the world - Bibingka. It's ideally served warm, with a side of vanilla ice cream.

Goa is the only place in India where port wine is produced. When I was seven years old, I went on my first vacation to Goa with my parents. We lived in Bombay then and sailed by ship. I remember sleeping outdoors on the deck. In Goa, my parents found that a bottle of Vinicola port cost exactly the same as a bottle of Thums Up - four rupees. My father poured me some port at dinner and said, "You may as well drink this instead of the cola." It was my taste of anything remotely alcoholic, though Goan port has very little alcohol content and varies from mildly sweet to very sweet. It's easy to drink a bottle at a time.

I have to confess that port wine is no longer my drink of choice in Goa unlike when I was seven. Over the years, Goan fenny, fermented from both coconut and cashew, has grown on me more and more. I no longer find cashew fenny smelly like many people do. Drunk with Sprite or Limca, it's quite refreshing and also quite potent.

In the monsoon, with very few tourists around, especially on the weekdays, the beach resorts are magical. Uttorda beach by our hotel felt like a private beach. When the rain came down in sheets, there was no one there but us. The bigger beach shacks were open and are really fun places to eat. My favourite is Johncy in Benaulim. They put tables out on the beach so you can eat while watching the waves crash on the shore. The more popular Martin's Corner has live Goan music at night and is quite crowded even in the off season. In peak season, I can't imagine what Goa must be like. Quite frankly, I'm not eager to find out. You can rest assured that my next visit there will also be in the monsoon.

In the midst of my summer in crowded Indian cities, these six days without Wi-Fi on my laptop or a strong cell phone signal, were almost like a dream. You can never really be sure you were there. But long after you've left, somewhere far away, surrounded by city noises, a sudden scent of coconut oil or an unexpectedly cool breeze has the power to transport you to an idyllic place, a cool, green place where mountains and forests meet the sea and everything is covered in rain.

Fake sugars won’t help you lose weight Published: Wednesday, Jul 11, 2012, 18:02 IST Place: NEW YORK | Agency: ANI

If you think sprinkling that packet of Equal or Splenda over foods or beverages may help you shed extra pounds, then you may be wrong. A new statement by the American Heart Association and the American Diabetes Association has claimed that replacing regular sugar with artificial sweeteners won’t always make you thin. The study behind it says that substituting fake sweeteners into your diet can help you reduce your intake of calories and sugar, both major culprits of obesity. But there is ‘limited and inconclusive’ evidence that artificial sweeteners help consumers lose weight in the long run, New York Daily News reported. Those small bags of Nutrasweet and Truvia “are not magic bullets” against extra body-baggage, said Christopher Gardner, the main author of the study Artificial sweeteners only work when consumers don’t “overcompensate.” Which basically means: don’t throw away all those precious calories you’ve saved by drinking a diet soda only to eat a chocolate-chip cookie and a chili-cheese dog People do this more often than you’d think, and the study said it happens more often with foods containing artifical sugar than with beverages For years, websites across the Internet have criticised America’s range of fake sweeteners, going so far as to claim that they can in fact cause obesity because of the chemical changes they produce in the body. “The sweeteners that people use to lose weight are actually causing them to not only gain weight, but to make weight loss efforts extremely difficult,” the website MomsWhoThink.com argues. The Sugar Association’s “Truth About Splenda” page urges viewers to “take action to inform your family and friends about the realities concerning the chlorinated artificial sweetener Splenda. And warnings about the dangers of the chemical Aspartame in artificial sweeteners can be found across YouTube, where users like Dr Nordquist have uploaded videos claiming that “there are over 92 different health side-effects associated with aspartame consumption, killing over 300,000 people every year.”

Almond oil helps fight obesity, diabetes

ANI | Jun 25, 2012, 01.08PM IST

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Almond oil helps fight obesity, diabetes (Thinkstock photos/Getty Images)

Researchers, including one of Indian origin, have found that a future weapon in the battle against obesity and diabetes could come in the form of an oil derived from the seeds of wild almond trees.

According to researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology, the key to the oil's potential lies in its ability to affect certain microorganisms living in our bellies.

In the study, the researchers reported that adding sterculic oil to the diets of obese laboratory mice increased their sensitivity to insulin. This was due to the oil's effect on three types of microorganisms that live in the guts of the mice.

As a result, the researchers saw a "statistically significant improvement in glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity in the obese mice," Shreya Ghosh, a Ph.D. student in environmental engineering at Missouri S and T, said.

The sterculic oil had no adverse affects on lean mice fed the same diet.

Sterculic oil is extracted from the seeds of the wild almond tree known as Sterculia foetida.

The research by Ghosh and her advisor, Dr. Daniel Oerther, builds upon previous studies conducted at the University of Missouri-Columbia. In those studies, sterculic oil was found to suppress the bodily enzyme stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1 (SCD1).

SCD1 is associated with insulin resistance, a condition that can lead to diabetes and obesity.

Other studies have shown that obese mice deficient in the hormone leptin have a different composition of "gut microbiota" than lean mice do.

Leptin helps regulate metabolism, and a deficiency of the hormone can contribute to obesity, says Oerther, the John and Susan Mathes Chair of Environmental Engineering at Missouri S and T.

In the Missouri S and T study, a diet supplemented by sterculic oil also correlated with lower levels of three types of gut microbiota - Actinobacteria, Bacilli and Erysipelotrichia - in the obese mice.

It isn't clear, however, whether the lower levels of those microbiota led to the improvement of glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity among the obese mice, Oerther says.

To perform her experiments, Ghosh studied 28 male mice - 14 of them obese and 14 normal, and each of them five weeks old at the beginning of the study.

She separated the mice into four groups and for nine weeks, fed a standard diet to one group of obese mice and one group of non-obese mice.

Over the same period, she fed the same diet, supplemented with 0.5 per cent of sterculic oil, to one group of obese mice and one group of non-obese mice. Ghosh recorded the weights, food consumption and glucose levels of the mice during the nine-week period.

After the nine weeks, researchers conducted a DNA analysis of the gut microbiota at King Abdullah Institute of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia.

The results confirmed correlations between the diet, improved glucose tolerance and groups of microbes. Even though the mice fed a diet with sterculic oil did not experience weight loss, both Ghosh and Oerther believe their findings could lead to new insights into controlling diabetes and weight gain.

The study was presented at the American Society for Microbiology's general meeting in San Francisco.

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Living la dolce vita

The 'mango' imported from Italy might taste a little like guava, but you won't mind too much, given the variety of tantalising options at this new yoghurt shop in Bandra

 

Not big fans of yoghurt, stopping by an eatery that deals primarily in desserts made from the dairy product with ‘friendly bacteria’ didn’t seem like an alluring proposition. We liked the cool, white interiors of Dolcement Italia, complete with wooden chairs and tables painted white. After comfortably seating ourselves, we got down to business.

The Banana Split is served with yoghurt and hazelnut sauce, but could do with a little more jazzing up

The menu offers a variety of options that would leave anyone with a sweet tooth spoilt for choice. We started with a mini dessert called the Monte Rosa (Rs 55). It’s delicious strawberry crust filled with yoghurt inside a waffle cone left us wanting more.  Since finishing the mini dessert didn’t take us long, we quickly moved on to our next option: Mango Gelato with Frozen Yoghurt Splash (Rs 90), followed by the Golosone Choco Lollipop (Rs 70). The ‘mango’ in the Mango Gelato tasted more like guava — could it be because the ‘mango’ is actually imported from Italy? It tasted good, so we didn’t mind too much.

The Blueberry Muffin served with a scoop of frozen yoghurt made for great combo

The Golosone Choco tasted good, but there were certain ‘practical’ problems to eating it: The chocolate crust of the round lollipop was difficult to bite into. In the end, we lost our enthusiasm to finish what was on our plates, even though it tasted good. Our last orders for the day was the Banana Split (Rs 100) and the Blueberry Muffin (Rs 130). The Blueberry Muffin was soft, and carried just the right hint of sweetness.
Time to split
The Banana Split served with yoghurt and hazelnut sauce, however, seemed to be missing something — perhaps  a sprinkling of nuts or a little extra ‘something’ would have helped make the dish even more interesting.  For now though, Dolcemente Italia is still the answer to most, if not all, our sweet desires.