My Inner Goddess is still on holiday and I'm getting by without C through sheer luck!! Meaning, plenty of eating out and super simple dal-roti courtesy Amma. Which is also fine, since we have been travelling and working, leaving little time for culinary fine-tuning. The upside is zero stress, a few jhatpat concoctions and no stale khana. :)
Alekhya is now a cook-in-training. In addition to the best french omlettes, she has been baking.
In honour of Chris' birthday, Alekhya made him what he asked for:
Banana Bread with Peanut butter and chocolate chips. It was a hit, and interesting to know we could just add stuff to a cake. I have always sworn that baking is SO precise that you cannot fool around with it.
Alekhya definitely seems to be a Pattisiere-in-waiting! She has the uncanny ability to follow a recipe and turn out the perfect cake. All on her own. I only pull out the ingredients. It is a joy to see her measure and mix and discover the alchemy that baking has always been.These holidays she perfected her Brownie recipe, made a marvellous Pineapple Upside Down cake (with Allie), banana bread and a yummy Dense Chocolate Loaf ( hurrah! now we can make it at home and don't need to crave it from Theobroma!).
When she was 5 years old, Alekhya very seriously told me that she wanted to have her own bakery when she grew up. Going by the truly divine Theobroma, I think that's a worthy goal!
Speaking of Theobroma, these last few trips to Bombay have been rather....heavenly. Have mostly been centred in Bandra on the day trips and Theobroma's new avatar there has been a must-stop-and-hog destination. The first time, we gratefully packed a bunch of goodies to eat on the drive home through rush hour. Two entire days later, I dug the New York Cheese Cake out of the fridge. And bit into heaven: meringue and some gooey jam atop the cheesecake (baked not chilled) and the resulting combination was so insanely perfect, that I wanted to cry with pleasure... I did. Kainaz Messman ( an old classmate Tina's baby sister) is really good. I ve been a pattisserie addict all my life and have long harboured the desire to learn at the Cordon Bleu, and I'm tellin you, this woman knows her cookies, her cakes and her desserts.
The entire family is addicted to her "Almond Chocolate Crunch". These sinful squares of salty almond bits, atop a layer of toffee-caramel and another of chocolate are reminescent of Florentines like La Patisserie at the Taj would make when I was little and Mama walked me down Apollo Bunder for a weekly treat. I always liked the sticky Florentines and have never tasted them so good outside of Eurpoe. Mostly, I think I was thrilled they were round and didnt have cream! I learned to appreciate a good Florentine years later when I discovered that no one really makes them. So these Almond Crunch squares are very Florentine-esque in their layering and bite. Steeply priced, but worth each bite.
Another trip, we had an ok dinner at Thai Ban in Bandra ( the Beef Mussaman Curry was worthy), before unanimously heading to Theo`s for dessert. We were disappointed with the slack service and the confusion between placing the order at the counter and paying for it at the Cashier`s. In the confusion, we lost out on the last slice of Fresh Mango Cheeseckae, and were on the verge of a food fight with the lady who managed to snag it. We decided to share a variety of sticky, gooey chocolate desserts ( the one in the glass was dry and totally missable), and we packed a few mentionables, although they messed up the order and didnt pack as many as I asked for!
The multigrain Ciabatta was reeeeeally good and I am in despair of finding such good bread here in Poona. The two brownies were good, as expected. The shortbread borwnie is not so much brownie as, well, a slice of shortbread smothered in chocolate. The Marzipan danish is luscious and I will not allow myself a nibble. Ditto the Pain au chocolat. For me, the Baguette, the Croissant, the Pain au chocolat or aux raisins and the Brioche are the true tests of a Patisserie. And Theobroma`s is as close to the Paris Boulangeries as any.
Sigh..... writing about all these breakfast goodies makes my mouth water and I log off now, to turn forlornly to my bowl of oatmeal.
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