Luxury amidst the wild and the green

We visited Patlidun, in the month of January. The truly Indian welcome, with the tikka and the drink; hot ginger honey water at the Patlidun Safari Lodge, leaves you curious for more.



Each corner of the property has been thoughtfully built, with a story to tell. Let's start with name 'Patli- Dun', meaning Narrow (Patli) and Valley (Dun). You arrive at the property in a 4by4, with tall Sal trees around you, which is an experience in itself. The first thing you notice is the beautifully painted wall of the sitting area. The drawing is called 'Aipan', a traditional art of Kumaon. It is a 'Rangoli' like painting, which is considered to be auspicious for wealth and power. The locals, also, paint these 'Aipans' on cloth and and on the floor at their house entrances.


The stones used to build the rooms at Patlidun, have been procured from old houses as the stone mines producing Uttarakhand Stones, were shut down in 1982. There is also 'Italian' marble used, which is approximately 200 years old. All rooms have paintings depicting the Kumaoni festivals, which gives a local and welcoming touch.


We checked in to the property at late evening hours, where a bon fire was arranged with a classy bar on the side and an array of hot exotic snacks, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. High chairs for the kids let you enjoy the drinks, without worrying about them. The evening session was followed by Chinese dinner in our  rooms. The first sight of the cottages as you open the door, is nothing but pure luxury. There is a sitting area with all amenities and a bathroom and then as you enter the room, you see fine pieces of furniture, hand picked by the owners themselves from various parts of the country, mainly Jodhpur. The cottages are huge, and also have an open area to sit and admire the beauty of the jungle and the hills. As you move further, you see another big room with bathing and the wash. The bathtub with the wild look, adds on to the beauty of the cottage. The most fascinating part, was the 'Star Window', you can lie down on the bed and keep gazing at the stars, till you go off to sleep.
 The private pool, along with all cottages is enough to lure you for a dip.







A very interesting place that caught our attention was the dhaba, which opens only in the evening for 2 hours. You can sit back and relax, with Masala Chai being made and served the Dhaba way. Also, the containers and accompaniments and the whole decor gives you a rustic but a cozy feel.

The restaurant is big enough to accommodate a large number of people, with an option to sit in the open area. Also, the food served is extremely well made and delectable to all palettes.
Next to the restaurant, a TV room lets you chill after an early long day with nature. The big screen with projector, adds on to the whole experience.




The safari and other activities, which are provided by the resort are highly recommended. The minutest of the requirement is taken care of. Even if you skip your tea, while rushing for the morning safari, a hot cup of ginger tea awaits you, right before you hop on the jeep. The courteous staff, also arranges for a blanket and hot water bottle for one to enjoy the drive amidst the jungle, while spotting some wild animals. If luck favours you, a tiger can be spotted too. The morning hunger pangs are also taken care off, with the packed breakfast and hot tea. Having breakfast in a jungle, can be well imagined as adventurous and exciting.



As souvenirs, the gift shop, has a large variety of items to choose from at a decent price.

'Patlidun' is not just another resort, it is an experience to remember. 

Foodventures in the kitchen

We all love to taste and try out new foods and cuisines. Don’t we? Then why in our kitchens do we have to stick to cookbooks and standard recipes passed on to us by our mother and grandmother?  Quite often, we accidently create a sumptuous meal in our kitchens. Such an incident, done with a purpose, is what I call an Innovation.

Adding ‘Lauki ki sabzi’ to Pao Bhaji was my grandmother’s idea. ‘Idli Ka Poha’ was my mother’s brainchild. My experiment with food is the Makhani Lasagne. Stuffing the regular lasagna sheets, with mixed vegetables and pineapples, topping it up with cottage cheese and baking it till golden brown.

6-8 Lasagne Sheets, 4-5 tbsp grated cottage cheese

FILLING

3 tbsp Olive oil

½ cup diced carrots spinach

1/2 cup chopped mushrooms

½ green capsicum, ½ yellow capsicum- shredded

1 ½ cup paneer- roughly crumbled, 150 gms

2-3 slices pineapple

¾ tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper

MAKHNI SAUCE

250 grams or 4 to 5 medium ripe and red tomatoes

 2 to 3 tbsp dairy cream

2 tbsp butter

1 bay leaf/tej patta

1 tsp ginger garlic paste (1/2 inch ginger + 3-4 small garlic crushed to paste in a mortar-pestle)

½ tsp red chilli powder or kashmiri red chilli powder or deghi mirch

1-2 green chillies, slit

¼ garam masala powder or tandoori masala powder

½ to 1 tsp honey or sugar - add as required* check notes

½ inch ginger, julienned

½ tsp kasuri methi leaves/dry fenugreek leaves, crushed

1.5 cups water

salt as required

METHOD

1. Rinse the tomatoes very well. chop them and make a smooth puree in a blender or grinder. keep the tomato puree aside.

2. Melt butter in a pan. first add the tejpatta/bay leaf and saute for a few seconds till aromatic.

3. Add the crushed ginger-garlic paste and saute till the raw aroma of the ginger-garlic goes away.

4. Add the tomato puree and stir well.

5. Add the red chili powder and saute this mixture till the fat begins to leave the side of the tomato paste. takes about 14 to 15 on a low flame. keep on stirring often.

6. When you see the tomato mixture clumping together and the fat leaving the sides, then add water.

7. Stir and simmer till the gravy or sauce thickens a bit. takes about 7 to 8 mins on a low flame.

8. Add the slit green chilies and ginger julienne. stir and simmer for a minute.

add the honey or sugar, salt and crushed kasuri methi/dry fenugreek leaves.

9. To complete the Makhni sauce, add cream

10. For vegetable filling, sauté all of them together with little salt and pepper except pineapple. Add pineapple slices in the end

11. To assemble lasagne, Spread 2 tbsp of Makhni sauce at the bottom of the baking vessel.

12. Dip 2 lasagne sheets in water and place it side by side leaving some gap around it.

13. Spread some makhni sauce and filling with a little paneer on top and repeat the process with 2 more lasagne sheets.

14. Cover with foil and bake it at 180 degrees for 45 mins. Now bake it uncovered for another 4-5 mins so that it turns slightly golden.

Innovative dishes can be created with the leftovers in the fridge or a fusion of cuisines or simply trying to google recipes with the fancy ingredients lying in your house and cooking them up your way. Often, I have seen people getting anxious over exact measurements. My advice is RELAX!!! Give your food your own touch, if your cake doesn’t rise too high like the one at your favorite bakery, just drizzle whatever sauce/crush you have, whether chocolate or any fruit and serve it as a gooey cake to your family after dinner and keep adding those compliments to your kitty.

I also came across something that Vikas Khanna and Vir Sanghvi are doing-  #foodventures , which sounds exciting and highlights the adventures done with food. Tastiest food is not created with perfect recipes but with the good thought of serving. ‘Share’your food adventures too.

Know what's the Mangalorean Cuisine?

What really impresses me about India, is the number of cuisines here. Just last month, I was travelling in the north and experiencing the Kumauni cuisine. Not that it was the first time, I was relishing each dish there but each time it's like a new experience. While I was travelling, I got an invite to be a part of the chef's table at Four Point Sheraton, Navi Mumbai, to try out the Mangalorean cuisine.

Super thrilled about trying out the food I had never tasted before, I googled about the variety of food in Mangalore. Even though I knew a major chunk of it would be non-vegetarian food and heavy on spices, I accepted the invite and joined the other bloggers at the chef's table with my better half Moksh. The dinner table was set at the hotel's multi cuisine restaurant, Asian Kitchen. We were the last one's to arrive, when everybody was already proceeding towards the desserts. However, a blogger couple and a few others decided to give us company, while we had our dinner. To my surprise, the main course was mainly vegetarian, with a few non-vegetarian dishes.
The food was prepared by the homechefs duo Mrs.Vijaya S Bangera and Mrs. Rekha S Salian who are renowned for their traditional preparations and have catered for various community events and also cooked for the late Mr. Bal Thackeray and  his family.
We started with Tomato Rasam, which was a little pungent for me but I guess most of the people savoured the flavors.

The vegetarian snacks included a chickpea chaat and baby corn sauteed in mild spices. Because, I wanted to taste each dish there, I also put the salads in the same plate. Tomato and Coconut salad was absolutely delicious and highly recommended.


A few other dishes which were a part of the buffet are- Kori Sukha, Bangude Puli Munchi,  Neer Dosa with Jinji chutney and the Mangalorean staple Ganjee rice served with assorted chutney.
Kadle Bele Kosambari (chana dal and coconut salad), Matte Sukha (Boiled Egg with dry coconut & Mangalorean spice), Genasu Podi (Sweet Potato Chips), Kappu Manji Meen Rasa (Black Pomfret Curry) and Bisi Bele Bhat

What I enjoyed the most was the Pineapple Stew, very mildly spiced Dal and Rice. It was a perfect meal to end a hectic day and kick start the weekend. The whole food gave a very homely feel and no points for guessing, the amount of love with which it was made.
 The dessert included Hannu Kesari Bhat, Sweet Appams, Gajar Halwa, Godhi Payasam, Mysore Pak and much more.
We ended our dinner with a hot cup of cappuccino and a group picture with fellow bloggers and the hosts.

The Mangalorean fest is on till 10th February, 2016 and in my opinion, nobody should miss it :)