Luchi aloo is Kolkata’s version of Puri Aloo but it’s so much better especially if you eat it on the streets. There’s nothing like a piping hot luchi, smothered with spicy curried aloo. Here’s a great homemade version of this recipe.
Category Archives: Appetizers & Snacks
Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Squash on Toast at ABC Kitchen
I recently went to lunch at one of my favourite eateries – ABC Kitchen, at one of New York City’s most beautiful stores ABC Carpet & Home.
The menu offered many seasonal dishes of which one I just could not get enough off. It was their “roasted kabocha squash toast w/ fresh ricotta and apple cider vinegar”. The flavors and textures of this creation were simply divine. Thoughtfully layered with crunchy bread, salty cheese, sweet and earthy squash, topped with chili and mint – it was divinity in each bite.
I recreated this dish in my kitchen using Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s recipe and though I could not get it to taste exactly the same but it was still par excellence.
You must use good quality bread and you can use any cheese from ricotta, goat cheese – I even tried it with a herbed cream cheese and it tasted so good. I would try it with butternut squash the next time around.
This makes for a wonderful snack, appetizer or even a lunch dish!
Plantain Kababs (Kachha Kela ka Kabab)
Plantains are a really wonderful source of fiber and vitamins C and A. They taste especially good when spiced up and pan-fried to make a yummy meal that can be served with pretty much anything.
Roasted Broccoli Tart with Smoked Gouda
I recently found this wonderful recipe for a roasted broccoli tart on Celeste’s Cooking Creation blog which I just had to try.
The tart turned out to be really easy to make and a wonderful appetizer or meal idea.
Atsuko’s Potato Salad
My mother-in-law makes the best potato salad ever!
It is chock-full of vegetables and really super tasty. Here is her simple recipe.
Zaalouk Salad (Eggplant) at La Maison Arabe
Zaalouk is a scrumptious cooked salad made with eggplants. It is one of my favorite salad dishes in Moroccan cuisine and I was thrilled when we learned how to make it at my cooking class at La Maison Arabe in Marrakech.
Zaalouk is most delicious when eaten with warm, crispy slices bread (Khubz). Zaalouk keeps for many days in the refrigerator, tasting better as time goes by. In fact it is recommended that you make this salad a day ahead.
Aunty Penn’s Minced Pork Toast
I went back to visit Bangkok, a city I love, this past summer after many years.
One of my very favorite things to do in Bangkok is spend an evening in our good friend Varong’s home where his amazing Aunty Pen does a cooking demo for me (and then of course we get to eat all the wonderful food).
Aunty Penn is an amazing cook and I have learned so many of her wonderful recipes during my visits to Thailand. Click here to see some of her earlier recipes I posted.
Here was a really quick and tasty appetizer that Aunty Penn made for us. It’s a fried minced pork toast, which is really easy to make. You can substitute the minced pork with minced chicken, beef or shrimp.
