DELIGHTFUL COOKING

Top ten restaurants

2012-02-29T22:28:00.002-08:00

10. Per Se – USA

They have the Daily menus with 9 courses of US cuisine. Their special meal is the Snake River Farm beef with crispy bone marrow and spring lamb with butter poached morels. The owners Thomas Keller and Jonathan Benno no doubt did the wonderful job in putting this restaurant awesome enough to be in top ten.

9. Arzak – Spain

This restaurant is after the name of the owner Juan Mari Arzak. This restaurant is located in San Sebastian and the owner and his daughter are putting a great effort in making this restaurant better. The owner has been awarded the Universal Basque award for being highly innovative in his dishes. Their specialty is the Lobster with white olive oil and smoked white tuna figs and pine nuts.

8. Daniel – USA

It is located in manhattans Upper East Side. This is a French-American restaurant and they have the best menu for both vegetarians and carnivores.

7. Alinea – USA

Do try the dishes like American peanut butter and jelly sandwich served with bread wrapped round a grape on a specially made spike, You’ll know why is it in the top ten.

6. Osteria Francescana- Italy

Due to the Massimo Bottura of this restaurant, it has come into the top 50 restaurants in the restaurant magazine. Bottura is an awesome looking dish with colors and texture to be loved. This restaurant has the walls with great artistic designs and foods.

5. Mugaritz – Spain

Mugaritz is also in San Sebastian Spain. And the chef Andoni Aduriz is apprenticed at El Bulli. Their daily menu is full of mouth watering dishes like warm lettuce hearts soaked in vanilla brine, sheep’s milk curd seasoned with hay and toasted fern and beef roasted with embers of vine cutting.

4. El Celler de Can Roca – Spain

The chefs Joan Roca, Josep and Jordi made this restaurant awesome. They have a large dining hall and a wine cellar that gives customer an audio and visual journey of five wine regions.

3. The Fat Duck- UK

The Fat Duck restaurant has the most unusual dishes in their daily menus like Snail porridge, Sardine on toast sorbet, Bacon and egg ice cream and salmon poached with liquorices. They have the starter of jelly and beetroot. This restaurant scored the maximum in Good Food Guide.

2. El Bulli – Spain

Ferran Adria has worked a lot to put this restaurant in the top 50s, his knowledge has influenced a lot of other chefs. Many of them have taken his techniques and ideas to make their own restaurants.

1. Noma – Denmark

Its specialty is the Nordic cuisine and has the classical Scandinavian cuisine with many great dishes. The Chef Rene Redzepi runs this restaurant and gave it the name by the acronym of two Danish words “nor” from Nordic and “ma” from food.

My search continues. Here I am with the worlds top ten restaurants. If you have visited any of them, please do mention the specialities of the above restaurants in your comments.

HOW TO DRESS YOUR SALAD

2012-02-28T20:21:00.001-08:00

In order to decorate your salad, following ideas can help you out.

First step is to be sure whether the salad is the part of the meal or it is a whole meal in itself.

The salad should appear colorful. Hence always use ingredients of varying colors. Most commonly the greens, reds and yellows.

The presentation is very important. Try to come out with some innovative ideas of presentation like serving it in a scooped out pumpkin or melon.
Make use of glass decorative bowls or wooden bowls to serve the salad in a beautiful and exotic way.

A good dressing is a must for a salad. Even though, the dressings do not make a significant difference in the appearance of the salad, but make a major difference to taste.

Many times the salads can be made more attractive by a sprinkling of chopped nuts or capers, minced green pepper or red pimiento or a grating of cheese.

All the ingredients should be thoroughly chilled before being used. Greens should be washed in cold, salty water. Then they should be carefully dried and kept in cheese-cloth bags in the coldest part of the refrigerator until needed.

Some fruits like apples, peaches, bananas and pears, tend to become dark after slicing. It can be avoided by covering them at once with clear French dressing made with either vinegar or lemon juice.

And lastly, be sure that the salad does not extend over the edge of the plate or the dressing may run onto the table linen.

FOOD FACTS

2012-02-28T19:46:00.000-08:00

Here are some amazing food facts. Read them for your delight.

Coffee

The Fact: The most expensive coffee in the world comes from civet(a cat sized mammal) poop.

Soup

The Fact: The first soup was made of hippopotamus
The earliest archeological evidence for the consumption of soup dates back to 6000 BC, and it was hippopotamus soup!

Refried Beans

The Fact: Refried beans are only fried once
The reason for this misconception is a translation error. The originals are frijoles refritos which actually means “well fried beans” – not re-fried.

Worcestershire Sauce

The Fact: Worcestershire sauce is made from dissolved fish.
Worcestershire sauce, the popular English sauce, is made from dissolved anchovies. The anchovies are soaked in vinegar until they have completely melted. The sauce contains the bones and all.

Popsicle

The Fact: The Popsicle was invented by an 11 year who kept it secret for 18 years.
The inventor was Frank Epperson who, in 1905, left a mixture of powdered soda and water out on the porch, which contained a stir stick. That night, temperatures in San Francisco reached record low temperature. When he woke the next morning, he discovered that it had frozen to the stir stick, creating a fruit flavored ice treat that he named the epsicle. 18 years later he patented it and called it the Popsicle.

Microwaves

The Fact: Microwave cooking was discovered accidentally, when a chocolate bar melted in someone’s pocket
This is very true and very scary – imagine what it was doing to his leg! The fact is, Percy LeBaron Spencer of the Raytheon Company was walking past a radar tube and he noticed that the chocolate bar in his pocket melted. He then tested popcorn in front of the tube (surely turning up the power and standing out of the beam), and it quickly popped all over the room. He is (obviously) known as the inventor of the Microwave oven.

Peanuts

The Fact: Dynamite is made with peanuts
Peanut oil can be processed to produce glycerol, which can be used to make nitroglycerin, one of the constituents of dynamite. Note however, there are other processes that can be used to make dynamite without using peanuts at all.

Coconut Water

The Fact: Coconut water can be used (in emergencies) as a substitute for blood plasma.
The reason for this is that coconut water (the water found in coconuts – not to be confused with coconut milk, which comes from the flesh of the coconut) is sterile and has an ideal pH level. Coconut water is liquid endosperm – it surrounds the embryo and provides nutrition.

CHOCOLATE MUFFINS

2012-02-27T00:55:00.002-08:00

This delicious, mouthwatering recipe is for all the chocolate lovers out there.

6 eggs
150 grams cooking chocolate
15 grams baking powder
50 grams cocoa powder
125 grams plain flour
150 grams sugar
few drops of vanilla essence

METHOD:

Beat 6 eggs in a bowl till they are creamy. Then add sugar and baking powder. Beat them enough to dissolve sugar.

Then add 125 grams of plain flour gradually and keep stirring. Also add cocoa powder and mix well. (you can use beater as I did).

When cocoa powder is well combined, add vanilla essence and beat well. Pour the mixture in a mould and bake in a preheated oven 180 degrees for 15 minutes. When sponge is ready, let it cool at room temperature.

FOR TOPPING:

For topping met a block of 150 grams of cooking chocolate. Top baked muffins with melted chocolate and also insert some chocolate inside muffins with a syringe.

Finally it is ready to serve.

Note: Remember baking is all about measurements. Taking the right quantity will lead you towards success.

WHY DRINK WATER??

2012-02-27T00:26:00.002-08:00

Drinking water is essential for all of us. Since our body is made up of 75% water, its regular take is a necessity. There are many advantages of drinking water regularly. Weird it may sound, but water actually helps us losing weight and stay smart. Increase in water intake reduces fat deposits in our body.

Less water intake results in dehydration which may result in the following:

Tiredness
Migraine
Constipation
Muscle cramps
Irregular blood pressure
Kidney problems
Dry skin
20% dehydrated – Risk of death

One can get rid of many skin diseases through water intake. Water also energizes us and keeps us healthy and blooming.

Hence for all the people, especially the lovely ladies who want a weight loss should follow the schedule in order to utilize water at its best.

Morning: 1 quart consumed over a 30-minute period.
Noon: 1 quart consumed over a 30-minute period.
Evening: 1 quart consumed between five and six o'clock.
Comment if the above article helps. Till then, HAPPY DRINKING.

CHICKEN TANDOORI PIZZA BY CHEF ZAKIR

2012-02-23T08:16:00.005-08:00

A TESTED RECIPE...TRY IT!

Ingredients:

• Chicken (boneless)-200 gram
• Red pepper powder-1tbsp
• Turmeric powder-1 tsp
• Garam Masala Powder-1 tsp
• Cumin powder-1 tsp
• Salt- to taste
• Ginger/Garlic Paste-1 tbsp
• Yogurt-100 gram
• Oil-as required

Topping:

• Mozzarella cheese-1 pack
• Parsley-1 bunch

• Capsicum-1

• Onion-1
• Tomato-1
• Olives (black)-6 to 8
• Tomato Puree-1 cup
• Oregano-As required
• Rosemary-As required
• Salt-To taste
• Oil-4 tbsp
• Black pepper-As required
• White pepper-As required

Method:
*Cook the entire ingredients of chicken for 8 to 10 minutes over a high flame.
* Then on the pizza dough apply tomato paste, oregano, rosemary, chicken as well the cooked vegetables.
* In the end put mozzarella cheese, olives, and put it into the preheated oven at the degree of 180 and heat it for 10 to 12 minutes.
* Then dish it out on a serving plate and cut the slices into triangle shape.
* And there you have it; your Chicken Tandoori Pizza is now ready.Enjoy it.

2012-02-23T08:01:00.001-08:00

Food food absolutely appetising...........!!
Food food absolutely tantalising...........!!

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