Keep the child alive is what everyone has always said about growing up. SportsDiner by HangOut is one of those places where you can be unabashedly childish. From Monopoly to Air hockey, it offers you everything; even if you fancy a round of bowling or a virtual reality game. Oh and I am not just looking at the 23 year olds who seek this opportunity to take a break from adulting but even you parents. While you grab a bite or a drink amidst snooker tables, your little ones can easily be mesmerized by the interactive play area on the next floor (the pizza parlour and the hospital areas are cute enough to start playing yourself).

Coming to the food, the chef is doing something brilliant things with the vegetarian fare. It happens so often that our ve getarian friends get sidelined when we go out to have a night of drinks and games. Blindly order the vegetarian Pizza, you will see a play with veggies including broccoli and the cheese. The crust is light and the sauce actually compliments the green. If I didn’t notice the calories on the cheese, I would have declared this a healthy meal.(Yes, its a tennis racket acting as a serving plate in the picture)

Next came the Kung Pao chicken with what we figured was a pickled cabbage that was not kimchi. Delhi is almost infamous for its chin-jabi culture and if your hangout doesn’t serve you good masala chinese, why is it even a hangout. No such situation here. The chicken was as juicy as much as  it was exploding with all the garlic and chilli peppers. The special non veg platter comes with 4 different types of tikkas. This is the part that leaves you with a sense of dissatisfaction. The classic chicken tikka was still cooked well but the fish and malai tikkas had perhaps had too much time in the tandoor and ended up dry while the seekh was bland and chewy.

But hey, the best part is the hospitality of the place. The diner has the sweetest staff, who will readily take on any criticism their way and work on it (it’s such a rarity nowadays that I always like to mention it). They are also very keen on making the entire experience better and will keep accommodating all your requests. It’s the one corner in the heart of the poshest areas where you can let loose.

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Etymologists trace the origin of the word “chocolate” to the Aztec word “xocoatl,” which referred to a bitter drink brewed from cacao beans. The Latin name for the cacao tree,Theobrama cacao, means ‘food of the gods’. Throughout history, there have been several accounts of the foreigners in India growing greedy over this one bittersweet thing called ‘chocolate’ (especially the Spaniards). Ask any modern Indian today and you will find someone preferring one variant over the other but no one ever refuses a chocolate and then there are people like me. Food lovers who go to great lengths so that we can understand and put the best into our mouths and more so to be able to tell you where you can find your money’s worth.

ITC’s luxury chocolate boutique ‘Fabelle’ has taken luxury to another level with its couverture chocolates. Now it is offering you a chance to take it to another step. Their new campaign lets you choose exactly what flavours you want in your chocolate. If you like the dark or the milk ones, with caramel or with chillies or maybe you want to surprise your taste buds with a little sea salt, they do it all. And then they let you name you sweet little chocolate cup after yourself.

So we made our two dainty little “As DFW likes it” cups with a milk chocolate base, caramel, some Sri Lankan sea salt, a dark chocolate creme topped with cocoa crumbs and almond slivers. (You really should check out the video on Instagram @delhifoodwalks , https://www.instagram.com/p/BXSYWREDbKg/?taken-by=delhifoodwalks)

Personalization of luxury goods is one of the goals, we strive for in our modern lifestyle. What better way to make it sweeter (pun intended) than with a chocolate cup that resonates with you. If nothing else, it is a thrill telling your friends that ITC let you name a chocolate after yourself. We know we have been gloating about that 😉

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One of the few things synonymous with Rakhi is a box of chocolates. It’s almost ritualistic to pick up a piece and pop it into your sibling’s mouth or maybe steal one from between their fingers. Now, we have long shifted from the candy like bars to the more delicate couverture chocolate pralines. ITC’s exclusive chocolate boutique “FABELLE” has taken even that one step further. The delicate pralines now hold the spirit of your sibling. Inspired by the 5 elements: Fire, Earth, Water, Wood and Air, you can now customise a box of chocolates that is as fiery as your sister or as free flowing as your brother.

I chose the element “water” for my cool headed sibling. He tends to be salty and intense at the most inopportune moments but is one of the biggest calming influences of my life. So a praline with dark chocolate mousse filled with the Acacia nectar, sprinkled with just a hint of Sri lankan sea salt gave me the perfect sweet treat for him. Picking one out for the more passionate and fiery one was easier with the “fire” praline. The dark chocolate shell is filled with a white chocolate mousse laced with ancho chilli and tangy candied mango.

The best part about the entire thing is that you can pick out your box all from home and if you wish even create a website in your sibling’s name. Keeping no stones unturned in ensuring that this moment is truly memorable; Fabelle has created a special website www.rakhiwithfabelle.com for placing orders and creating the customised website orders.

But in order to do so you need to log on before or on the 3rd of August, 2017. They are taking orders to be delivered between  4th to 8th August, 2017.

Where: ​

Fabelle at The Chocolate Boutique, ITC Gardenia, #1 Residency Road, Bengaluru;

080 66825270

Fabelle at The Chocolate Boutique, ITC Windsor, 25, Golf Course Road, ISRO
Colony, Sankey Road, Bengaluru; 080 61401111

Fabelle at The Chocolate Boutique, ITC Maurya, Diplomatic Enclave, New Delhi;
011 66325360

Fabelle at The Chocolate Boutique, ITC Grand Chola, Mount Road, Guindy, Chennai;
044 49065410

Fabelle at The Chocolate Boutique, ITC Maratha, Sahar, Mumbai; 022 61841979

Fabelle at The Chocolate Boutique, ITC Grand Central, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar
Road, Parel, Mumbai; 022 67045143

Fabelle at The Chocolate Boutique, ITC Sonar, JBS Haldane Avenue, Kolkata;
033 23004407

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I have always been told that you cannot buy happiness and well, being the foodie I am, I always tell them that I can buy Ice Cream and that is pretty much the same thing. There is no other comfort food like ice cream, especially when it comes to Baskin Robbins and their penchant for trying out the wackiest flavours, that somehow always work.

As one of the Happyness Ambassadors this month, Baskin Robbins presented us with their five experiments for the month and asked us to pick a favourite. Now, a foodie is a foodie because of our indecisiveness when it comes to picking a favourite.

But the weather, I believe gave us an inspiration and we decided on the flavour that could complement this “surprise it’s hot, surprise it’s rain” monsoon. I will give you a hint. The flavour evokes the memory of sitting on the “charpai” (a traditional woven bed) and eating freshly plucked fruit with a spicy condiment. Baskin and Robbins has made the traditional after school fruit snack of Guava and Red Chilli Powder into an ice cream !

Surprised? So were we. But after such a long time we found an ice cream that was not just a mix of sugar and fruity elements. This ice cream is perfect for people who believe that ice cream can be more than just a sweet treat. In fact you can actually find hints of the smoky chilli flavour in the aftertaste mixed with the ice creamy consistency of the guava flavour. The reason we love B&K ice creams is because they are unafraid to test the limits of our palate and I do believe that our favourite “Spicy Guava” is the perfect example of how they deliver on the taste  every time even when your head is mumbling something on the lines of ‘ mad geniuses’.

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How many times have you looked at fast moving pizzas and pastas and decided that they are unhealthy Or Let’s count the times when you have looked at the roti and decided it’s boring? We at DFW wondered that with the time we have spent out on the streets exploring food should have given us some skills in the kitchen and maybe a little inspiration too. So, instead of a food joint that we found, we are telling you a recipe!!

Since we wanted to get all the nutritional benefit we could, we picked out the Aashirvaad Multigrain Atta as our base for the most wholesome goodness in a mouthful that we could gather. Aashirvaad leverages its institutional strength of sourcing wheat from the finest wheat growing regions of India combined with the traditional ‘chakki-grinding’ method to lend the chapatis a softer texture and a superior taste or like in our case to the “ HOMEMADE PASTA”. We chose multigrain because the extra fiber makes the food easier to digest making it heart healthy. The extra protein in the atta helps build strength; vitamins build immunity and the extra fiber aids digestion.

So here is the recipe and no you do not need that Pasta Machine 😉

Ingredients:

a)Pasta

• 2cup Aashirvaad Multigrain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 eggs  (You can substitute the eggs for half cup semolina flour(sooji) )
• 3 tsp oil
• 10-20 ml water

1. b) Sauce

• 3 tsp oil
• 10-20 gm butter
• Half cup Tomato puree or 4 tomatoes diced finely with seeds
• 6-7 finely chopped garlic
• Salt  to taste
• 1 tsp Oregano
• 1 tsp Black pepper
• 1 tsp Chilli flakes
• 2 tsp Mayonnaise
• 1 slice cheese (regular American)

Process :

1. Mix all the the ingredients of the pasta. Knead out a dough and let it rest for 1 hour at room temperature.
2. While the dough rests, On a medium flame add the oil and butter.
3. As soon as the butter melts, add the garlic to the pan and make sure that butter doesn’t brown. Keep stirring so that the garlic doesn’t burn.
4. If using chopped tomatoes, after putting them in break them down and add half a cup of water little by little until they reach a sauce like consistency. If using the tomato puree, cook it down till the smell of the tomato leaves the pan (if persistent, try squeezing half a lemon)
5. Add your condiments once you are happy with the consistency of the sauce and switch off the gas.
6. Meanwhile boil 8 cups of salted water
7. Roll out your pasta dough with a pin into a thin sheet. Use extra flour to dust the area and the dough to make it easier. The dough should be spread out till it is as thin as possible.
8. Cut the dough in long strands with the help of a knife and dust the strands with flour once more.
9. Boil the pasta in the salted water for 8-10 minutes till al-dente.
10. Use the time to heat your sauce and add mayonnaise.
11. Add the pasta from the water directly to the saucepan and half a ladle of the salted water along with it.
12. Mix well till the sauce coats the pasta on low flame. Add the cheese by breaking it down to give a creamier consistency,
13. Serve hot with extra cheese if you want some.

And that sums up our cooking adventure with ITC Aashirvaad Multigrain Atta. Have you tried any recipes that you would like to share? Tell us in the comments below.

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Kuppies

I could easily envisage the constant mushrooming of bakeries in Delhi. Many home bakers have taken to the streets their products and commercialised its value. Due to rapid population growth, and rising foreign influence, baked goods are quickly gaining popularity among younger generations, contributing significantly to the growth trajectory of the baking industry. Khan Market and other upscale markets in South Delhi have some of the best bakers in Delhi.

However, there is a huge gap between the bakery products that are affordable and those that taste good. To fill this gap, you have several new ventures Kuppies being one. They have come up with Chocolate Chip Brownies.

Kuppies has a dedicated team led by founders Jeevash Vaid, successful entrepreneur and business owner, and Uni Vaid, trained culinary and pastry designer from USA. She was ranked among the top five bakers in New Delhi in 2014 and has received numerous award and accolades for baking Delhi’s best cheesecakes, cupcakes and other treats.

Recently, I got the chance to visit the place where these brownies are made i.e  in Noida, to get a first hand experience in what makes their brownies the best.

The brownies were delicious, gooey and molten at an extremely affordable retail price of Rs 18 per piece. For the very first time it is being launched in the Indian FMCG market.

The Brownie is made with Imported Real Dark Cocoa solids to give an intense chocolate hit burst in your mouth way ahead of any sweet or dessert snack available in the market. It is a cross between a cake and a soft cookie giving it a chewy mouth feel. The Brownie is moist in texture and oozes with chocolate and richness due to its smooth batter which even gives it a long shelf life.

Keeping in mind that majority of Indians are vegetarians (those who eat eggs are excluded) Kuppies brownie are 100% Vegetarian.

 Kuppies  supply to the largest national and international brands Café Coffee Day (India’s largest coffee house chain), Chaayos, Costa Coffee, Big Bazaar (India’s largest hypermarket chain), Wal Mart, Spenser, 24×7, Easy Day, Big Basket and more. supply to largest cafes in the country, CCD, Chhayos, Costa Coffe, throughout the country. Kuppies also has a FSSC 22000 (Food Safety System Certification).

What sets them apart from other brownie brands in the market are-authenticity, taste and the packaging. Their from scratch production and original recipe has made this treat one of a kind.

Anubhav Sapra

Anubhav Sapra is an avid foodie! He is a Founder but proudly calls himself a Foodie-in-chief at Delhi Food Walks. He is also a street-food and Indian regional cuisine connoisseur and loves to write about street-food.

http://www.delhifoodwalks.com