What is a doswaffle?
Last weekend, we went back to one of our favorite Bay Area restaurants, Juhu Beach Club (JBC). Last time we ate here, we could still eat gluten and we were impressed by the pavs. This time, we opted for the JBC Fried Chicken n Doswaffle – gluten free! Waffles were made with dosa batter – fantastic concept, yes? And the fried chicken were dipped in lentil batter.
Juhu Beach Club Fried Chicken and Doswaffle
Starting 2015 with lunch at Chez Panisse Cafe
Nibbled at the edges of this excellent sourdough, thus convincing ourselves that we were managing to stay on the right side of our gluten quota.
“Bob Cannard’s chicories with crème fraîche, ginger, roasted beets, and chives”. Ginger-y creme fraîche! Bless Alice Waters. Chez Panisse salads are to die for.
“Shaved winter vegetable salad with Dungeness crab and citrus vinaigrette”. Mildly citrus-y vinaigrette with perfectly crunchy carrot and fennel shavings.
“Fish and shellfish fritto misto with snap pea and cabbage salad, cress, and saffron mayonnaise”. The fries felt like eating cloud! What? Each bite was feather lite crispiness on the outside and melt in your mouth on the inside. Mayo was made even more indulgent by the addition of saffron. The tart cabbage salad with green and white florets of cauliflower and peppery baby cress provided an excellent counterpoint .
“Black truffle and ricotta cheese soufflé with roasted Belgian endive, cardoons and cress.” Don’t let the picture fool you, this soufflé was like a puff of air in its lightness. Cardoons and endive were both braised and roasted.
“Bittersweet chocolate custard with crème Chantilly and almond biscotti” with sightglass espresso.
Bhut Jolokia @ Dzükou tribal kitchen
Dzükou tribal kitchen in Hauz Khas market.
Bhut Jolokia or Naga Mircha (Bengali/Naga name) or Ghost chili pepper – call it what you want but it is the second hottest chili pepper in the world. And Dzükou tribal kitchen in Hauz Khas market serves chutneys from the chili. Yum!
Coconut filled rice crepes, a Bengali delicacy
Pati Shaptar Pithe/Pitha or coconut filled rice crepes. Pati means a mat, and shapta means simple in Bengali.
Grate raw coconut (or get frozen unsweetened grated coconut and thaw), about two cups, add sugar to taste and stir fry until golden brown. If you wish, you can add a tablespoon of raisins and a tablespoon of toasted and chopped cashew nuts or slivered almonds.
Pitha comes in various shapes. These are the simplest. To prepare the crepe batter, to a cup of rice flour, add a pinch of salt, and a tablespoon of sugar. Add milk, 2% or full fat preferably, until the batter consistency is like crepe. Heat up a non-stick pan. If needed, you can wipe it down with a buttered cloth/brush. Follow cooking temperature regimen for a crepe.
 Pour about 1/4 cup of batter and roll it around on the hot pan to form a thin crepe. |
 As the crepe cooks, it starts to lift off the edges. |
 Add two tablespoons of filling. Optionally, form the filling in the palm of your hand in shape of a small spheroid. |
 Roll in form of a fat cigar. |
Keep aside while you prepare the rest. These can be eaten warm or at room temperature. To take them to the next level (i.e. not simple), you can bake them in condensed milk as well but they do become heavy. Drizzling some condensed milk on top while not traditional can be an excellent substitute.
During this trip to India, I am seeing some new sweets in Bengal including baked rasogolla (boiled cheese balls dunked in sugar syrup) , Kolkata’s famous sweet and chana pora (literal translation for roasted cheese), a dish very similar to cheese cake.
Chai by river Hooghly
 Chai-wallah. Super sweet milky chai with hints of ginger. What is special are these earthen cups in which the chai is served. The pots are size of a child’s fist. So even though the sweetness of the tea hurts your teeth, it lasts only a few tiny sips. Tea gets a slightly earthen flavor when served in these pots. |
 I remember the pots being nicely proportioned back in the days. |
Post Peter Cat, we decided to do a family outing to Outram ghat and threw in a boat ride. Last similar trip was in 2008. We had desperately needed the exercise but instead our boatman got some. The ghats along the river are full of untapped tourism potential but as a third generation Calcuttan, I have now finally given up hope. However, it never fails to provide some elements of interest. During this particular boat ride, we drew close to Prinsep ghat and found a long haired baul singer entertaining the crowd. When he got up for an ovation, we realized that he was a hipster to boot. We found remnants of bisarjan, a long legged goddess, dangling by her ankles at one of the canal bridges.
Peter Cat of Kolkata
Peter Cat of Kolkata, started in sixties, it is unclear how much has changed since. My brother is pretty convinced that absolutely no changes have occurred in last 2 decades.
A mindless concoction of a bloody mary. Completely avoidable.
Sizzler. This is not on the menu but clientele seemed to know of it. Various kababs, liver, shrimp, paneer doused in a creamy sauce. Quite nice.
Tandoori shrimp, my favorite this time. The shrimps were amazingly tender and disappeared rapidly.
Spicy chicken liver. I got some back home to try with the Kentucky bourbon.
Chelokabab plate. The sheek kabab was over spiced but the tandoori skewers were tender and juicy. We had a lot of left over tandoori chicken which came back home – to be converted into tikka masala.
Singapore Sling
Should have had one at Raffles Hotel but had one at LongBeach@Dempsey which was awful to say the least. So I had another one on the flight out. And the one on the flight was better than the one at LongBeach!
According to Singapore Airlines menu, Singapore Sling was created in 1915 at the Long Bar of Raffles Hotel and is a concoction of dry gin, Dom Benedictine, orange liqueur and cherry brandy and shaken up with lime and pineapple juices and a dash of Angostura bitters and Grenadine. Does this have the potential of being sublime like a good gin-martini? Possibly not.
Salut to Wah Kee Big Prawn Noodles
We had to wait only a few minutes for our $5 bowls at Wah Kee Big Prawn Noodle shop. Karma, baby!
This little hawker shop at Pek Kio serves noodles and broth just the way I like it. A bowl of ambient temperature flat rice noodles was served with crunchy bits, bean sprouts and spicy oil, like dan-dan noodles. A separate bowl of hot delicious shrimp broth came with two juicy jumbo shrimps. When served separately, the noodles and broth can be independently perfected and enjoyed.
Every time I am outside of the cocoon of SF Bay Area, I am humbled at the sight of hard working people in their 70s and 80s. At Wah Kee, grandfather meticulously puts the shrimp broth together, one bowl at a time. Shrimps are cooked after the order is placed. Grandmother serves the customers, and puts together the noodle bowl. She is supposedly a bit moody but we did not see any evidence of that. She helped us choose the right type of noodles (gluten free) and afterwards when we went up to thank her, she shook our hands and gave us a lovely smile.
It was too muggy to bring a mobile phone to the food center but if you want to see photos, check out the links below.
- Here is where we got our recommendation from.
- Another foodie whose site I must wade through before our next trip to Singapore.
For coffee we recommend Cambridge Coffee Stall – serving rich coffee made cowboy style and served with a small tsp of condensed milk.
LongBeach @ Dempsey
House specialty prawn. Shelled and batter fried shrimps topped with salted egg. The salted egg bits were crunchy and about the size of sesame seeds.
House specialty, a 1.8 kilo black peppered Sri Lankan crab – about the size of my head. The pepper flavor danced around in my mouth while I spent better part of an hour devouring the giant on the plate. Only a few women at the establishment were using bibs. Several of the patrons, like us, were using all available appendages and implements in sight – tourists like us perhaps. Someone at the table across us was eating his crab with chopsticks!
After all that effort, we were hungry enough to share a durian pudding which arrived at the table promptly. Some presentation flair involving basic chemistry was involved – the bowl of pudding was situated on a tumbler containing blue liquid that emitted vigorous white vapors. The pudding was creamy and exuded a super strong durian flavor. My husband fondly describes durian as jackfruit flavored with (two week old sweaty gym socks that has been dowsed in kerosene.)
On our way back from LongBeach, our cab driver mentioned the urban legend surrounding the gigantic size of Sri Lankan crabs.
Katanashi at Boat Quay
Boat Quay is touristy but to be honest it is really pleasant to sit by the river and eat. Singapore, like other warm weather countries is hot and humid even in November and the hawker stalls do get a bit too muggy. We have a general motto – when in doubt, eat Japanese cuisine – it paid off in choosing Katanashi.
We were early at Boat Quay. We whetted our appetite by walking from one end of Boat Quay to other, crossing over to the other side of the river and walking back. In spite of all that walking about, we were early and decided to seat ourselves at a table by the river. We could hear the staff starting their shift with pledges of hospitality and customer service. Within a short time of lunch opening, the restaurant filled up with office goers. It emptied up equally quickly. It was great to watch others rushing about their lives while we were lazing about!
Katanashi at Boat Quay, prides itself in really fresh ingredients, apparently eggs so fresh that one could eat them raw!
Although at lunch time, only beer is served. Damn gluten sensitivity. I wish I could have ordered sake. Cold green tea just wasn’t the right substitute. Perhaps it was for the best, I was only a foot away from the river.
Scorched mackerel. Scorching happens at the table, the fish is marinated in vinegar, served with freshly grated horseradish, scallions and soy.
Signature dish, curried slow cooked beef tongue. Served with rice and picked cucumbers.
Korean style salmon served on a bowl of rice, with fried egg, fresh okra and pickled cucumbers.
Hong Kong Style Chee Cheong Fun, really really fresh
A clean kitchen towel is placed on the steamer. A thin rice batter is poured on the towel and ingredients laid on top. In this case, shrimp. A cover is placed and the noodle sheet is steamed for a minute or so.
On a different station, oil is first applied on the pan. The kitchen towel is laid rice noodle sheet side down and a spatula is used to loosen the towel. The towel is then picked up by hand. leaving the noodle on the pan. The noodle is rolled up and cut up.
Busy duo from Chee Cheong Fun noodle stall at Pek Kio Market
Plain noodles with sprinkled sesame seeds, a rich broth with five spice flavor, a tea spoon of red pepper the side.
Minced pork noodles.
Carrot Cake at Pek Kio Market
There is no carrot in this carrot cake (Chai tao kway). No sweet either. Daikon radish cakes (Luo Bo Gao) are chopped up and fried with “Good Spice” flavors, eggs, scallion and soy sauce. The fried cakes get chewy and the eggs are soft. Perfect anytime food.
Good Spice Carrot Cake Shop
Chef and co-owner. During the total of 30 minutes I saw him on three different mornings, he never stopped moving his spatula.
Thick Indonesian style soy sauce is added at the end to lend sweetness and umami flavor.
Homemade pomegranate seeds
Dried pomegranate seeds are excellent in salads or in soups or savory pancakes where the crunch from the seed or the sourness can be pleasing. The seeds can also be crushed and added to dishes to lend sourness.
On the right, in the picture above, are store bought seeds. They are sour but don’t have a whole lot of taste. The one on the left of the picture are dried at home in a food dryer per recommendation. It took what seemed like forever but the result is gorgeous. The seeds retain the lovely pomegranate color and are intensely flavorful. The seeds are crunchier as well and perhaps not as sour as the store bought variety.
I think I am going to additionally try my seeds as toppings on ice cream and homemade bars.
Mamey, another tropical fruit
Pouteria sapota, mamey sapote, is native to Central America, naturally ranging from southern Mexico to southern Costa Rica.
Wait for the fruit to get slightly soft to touch. Cut open, get rid of the fat black seed, scoop the flesh out an eat. In taste, this is like the chikoo fruit in India, but somewhat fibrous. These fruits are very expensive in Bay Area but if I get it again, I will try milkshake, which is apparently a Cuban favorite.
Prickly Pear jelly
These are from Mexico, and pretty expensive at the local market. On the plus side, they are cleaned of the larger prickly thorns.
To eat, cut open and scoop out the flesh and eat. The color can vary, deep orange, purple or watermelon and matches the color of the fruit on the outside. Flesh is not too sweet, is subtly flavored and juicy. There are lots of small seeds that make for a nice texture – mouthfeel is like eating raspberries.
A dear neighbor recently gave us a large pail of prickly pear. He has the deep orange variety. These of course had the thorns unlike the ones from the store. I held each fruit using a tong, gave it a quick rinse in the kitchen basin to get rid of cobwebs and spiders, cut the fruit in half with a sharp knife on a cutting board, scooped the flesh out with a butter spoon and dumped the rest in my compost bin – assembly line style. I got about 6 cups from ~20 fruits.
I cooked the resulting flesh for about 45 minutes to release the juices, added a cinnamon stick at the end and let cool. Strained the resulting mass through a steel strainer to get rid of the seeds – if you just let the liquid drip, you will get a clearer jel but I let the pulp through. Finally, followed a low sugar jelly following instructions on Pomona pectin package for strawberries.
Made exactly 3 mason jars worth of jelly. Two of these will go to my neighbor who has a lot of grandchildren to share fruits of his labor with.
Enjoy with some plain yogurt.
Pineapple guava, a tropical fruit
Pineapple guava at my local market, Sigona.
Small fruits, smaller than your typical guava.
These are pineapple guavas from my tree. To eat, wait until they are a little soft to touch. They will continue to look green.
Although edible, the outside part is too tart to be fun. Inside is soft and sweet and a blast of flavor. When ripe, the inside portion starts to look translucent. I scoop the insides out using a spoon. Right now, the fruits are ripening and they fall from the tree making a nice “tup” sound on the patio wood.
These are the flowers of pineapple guava tree. Now that I am catching the tree in spring bloom, I see the squirrels wreak a havoc on these flowers. Hopefully the tree will end up with sufficient fruits this summer.
Same to same?
Several meat and lentil dishes served together on an injira, a fermented and steamed crepe. Fundamental flavors are surprisingly similar to Indian food – just imagine this served thali style. Overall tastes were sufficiently different to make it interesting.
Also served with injira on the side. Injira can potentially be made with teff alone but these at Asmara had wheat (gluten) in them. Sigh! Taste and texture wise, these are perfect to mop up curries. I like the fact that they hold up well at room temperature. I am on a quest to replicate these …
If you are going towards Asmara in Temescal, consider checking out Doughnut Dolly nearby. They do run out of doughtnuts and close shop – so adjust your expectations accordingly.
Richmond night market, taste of Asia in the middle of Vancouver
I thought I had stepped into one of the markets of Hong Kong. But it was the Richmond Night Market of Vancouver. A garish night market selling cheap trinkets. Skill-free Karaoke accompanied skillful food making displays.
Once you are out of the Bridgeport train station, the urban scene changed rapidly. We walked through dirt roads, guided by city traffic police and bright night lights to get to waterside barren ground where the market was setup. The long queue moved fast, tickets were cheap and then we were surrounded with deluge of trinkets – electronic junk, cute socks, Japanese swords, lenses to change your eye color… At bazaars like these, food is always the most fascinating part. Most of the food was some form of grilled or fried food – fried stinky tofu, fried calamari, grilled chicken, grilled shrimps, fried noodles… There were some curious food making on display like bubble waffles and fish shaped waffles. And then there were some fairly complex food being made like meat balls being formed with chopsticks.
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Lemonade, Vancouver’s gluten free bakery
Chocolate and cherry brioche from Lemonade.
On our recent trip to Vancouver, we happened to book an AirBnB home within a few blocks of Lemonade. Not only did this result in devouring of these gluten free chocolate and cherry brioches, we also had our only real tasting sandwich in over an year. Their gluten free bread comes close to real white bread in texture.
Saltwater and champagne by the bay
Saltwater happened to be located right opposite our cottage. We started our outdoor dinner with the raw deal where we were served the same variety of oysters raised in different waters – indeed they tasted different.
Salmon tartare
Smoked tuna with a celery, pine nut, berries and tangy creamy sauce
Back at our cottage to share a bottle of champagne.
Marin and its happy cows
Cowgirl is a great place to pick up local cheeses – some of them are such limited production and they don’t even make it to their Ferry Building location in San Francisco.
Their cheeses are made with milk from happy Jersey organic cows from John Taverna’s dairy, located in Chileno Valley in Marin County. On this trip, we tried a couple new ones:
- Inverness: Cowgirl describes this as full flavored, tangy lactic curd with a dense, creamy mouth feel. This is aged for two weeks to create a delicate version of St Marcellin style cheese.
- St Pat: This is cowgirl’s spring seasonal cheese. This creamy semi-firm cheese is wrapped with nettle leaves that grow wild in Marin. Cowgirl describes this as mellow, soft, and full of smoky artichoke flavor.
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Meandering about Abbotts Lagoon trail
This photo is from the Point Reyes lighthouse and if one kept walking on this beach in a straight line, one would reach Abbotts Lagoon. Attempt this crazy route only if you are equipped with heavy woolens on a summer afternoon.
Some kids were being kids while their parents had beached themselves nearby.
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Drakes Bay Oyster Shack
In Bay Area, oyster on the half shell is usually $3 per piece. I am convinced that Oysters are calorie free food particularly when not accompanied by champagne. Hence, if it weren’t for the price, I think I would eat them by the dozens every day. Drakes Bay Oyster Shack is where you can get your oyster fix for half the price. They have been farming 4 generations at Point Reyes but we don’t know how long they will be allowed to continue. While they are, one hopes will continue to serve big fat plump oysters by the dozen. We landed up here towards the end of the day so all they had left were oysters doused in Bloody Mary mix – what a lovely start to the evening!
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Marin Sun Farms
One can presumably spot myriad wild life at Point Reyes National Seashore but what we saw most were happy cows. I can only assume they are happy – rolling grasslands and other fellow cows as far as eyes can see. Occasional hikers and cold breeze can perhaps be considered the only hardship they endure.
Marin sun farms in a family owned pasture to fork farm with the restaurant right on Highway 1 at Point Reyes Station. Sea air and good hikes can easily prepare you for their fat and juicy steaks. Be prepared to wait an hour for your food, even if you are ordering just a burger, but the wait is well worth it.
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A brief sojourn at Inverness
 Cottage on the beach. Skylights and large windows dissolve the barrier between inside and outside. |
 If we had a kayak, we could launch from our doorstep. Blue Waters Kayaking were a mile away. |
 Put your feet up and stare the flecks of gold blow across the blue sky. |
 Watching the changes in sun, breeze, tide and sounds, you really feel moored like this old boat. |
 Early in the morning, sitting on the patio, drinking tea and looking out at the sun sparkling on the Bay. |
 Lazing out on the deck, body and soul disappears into the surrounding. |
Locomotoring 