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Tag: masterchef

  • Pomegranate Khandvi Lasagne

    Pomegranate Khandvi Lasagne

    Khandvi is probably my favorite Gujarati dish to make and eat. Making perfect paper thin, translucent khandvi is true art, I believe. And I must admit I can’t make it the way my mum does. Nonetheless, I can make it, well enough to satisfy a greedy craving.

    Traditional khandvi can get boring after a while and Masterchef has only taught us to elevate traditional dishes to something where imagination is given a chance to appear as an art. Khandvi is basically a result of 3 ingredients — gram flour, buttermilk, salt and sometimes turmeric.

    Our second week in the Masterchef Kitchen started with a Mystery Box challenge which had pomegranate, water chestnut, cucumber, physalis (cape gooseberry), lentils and walnuts. In addition, a regular support pantry with flours, sugars, dairy and basics.

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    I decided to turn that typical yellow khandvi batter to something more fun like purple (or pink?)! And then screw the typical rolling and taking the easy way out — simply stacking sheets of khandvi that would resemble a lasagne.

    They loved the idea but were hesitant if I would finish it in time
                 They loved the idea but were hesitant if I would complete the dish in time

    But I did.
    IMG_0149    And I was happy to hear the judges say “this dish is a masterstroke!”

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    And present me the Star of the week!
    IMG_0297Now do you have a reason to not make this dish?! I guess not. So here you go!

    Pomegranate Khandvi Lasagne

    For the Pomegranate Khandvi Sheets:
    1/2 cup gram flour
    1/2 cup yogurt
    1 cup fresh pomegranate juice
    salt and red chili powder to taste

    1) Mix everything using a wire whisk to form a smooth batter. Rest for 20 minutes.
    2) Cook it in nonstick pan stirring constantly so no lumps form.
    3) Once it’s very thick, spread it on the counter into a thin layer using a palette knife and then cut it in squares.

    For the Water Chestnut & Walnut Filling:
    1 small onion, finely chopped
    1 green chili, finely chopped
    8 canned water chestnuts, chopped
    4 tablespoons walnuts, lightly roasted
    salt and pepper to taste

    1) Heat oil in a pan.
    2) Sauté onions and green chili till translucent.
    3) Add in water chestnuts and sauté till cooked well.
    4) Lastly add in walnuts and mix. Season with salt and pepper and keep aside.

    For the Cape Gooseberry Sauce:
    15-20 cape gooseberries
    1 tbsp oil
    2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
    1 teaspoon sugar
    1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in water
    Salt and pepper to taste

    1) In a pot of boiling water, add in cape gooseberries, cover and boil till softened.
    2) Grind them in a blender to a smooth paste.
    3) Heat oil and sauté garlic. Add in the paste and reduce it on low heat.
    4) Add in cornstarch slurry and keep cooking untilthe sauce is somewhat thickened.
    5) Season with sugar, salt and pepper.

    To Assemble the Khandvi Lasagne:
    1) Brush some sauce on a plate.
    2) Place a sheet of khandvi in the cutter. Spread some sauce. Spoon some filling over. Place another sheet and continue to form the layers until you have 4 sheets of khandvi and 3 layers of filling.


  • Wintery Tart

    Wintery Tart

    If I’m ever asked what my FAVORITE recipe from the MasterChef Kitchen is, I’d say “Wintery Tart”. More than just being a winner recipe, it has been a blessing for me. It is that first recipe I made as a result of a Mystery Box challenge when we were in bootcamp (top 30) and got me the first apron (with my name on it) to enter the top 12, from where started the real journey.

    If at all you’re curious to know what was in that Mystery Box, we had carrots, cinnamon, strawberries, pineapple, lentils and purple yam. In addition, we had a support pantry with basics such as flours, sugars, ginger, garlic and dairy.

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                           It was an honor to demonstrate this recipe with Chef Ranveer Brar in the week’s                                                                        MasterChef Extraclass episode @ Holiday Inn, Mumbai

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    Wintery Tart

    For the Tart Pastry:
    90 grams unsalted butter
    1-tablespoon oil
    3-tablespoons water
    1-tablespoon sugar
    1/8-teaspoon salt (skip if using salted butter)
    150 grams plain flour

    1) In a saucepan, heat together butter, oil, water, sugar and salt until the butter melts completely and the mixture is bubbling.
    2) Turn off the heat and dump in all the flour at once. Mix quickly just until soft and smooth dough comes together. Do not overwork the dough.
    3) Using a spatula, evenly spread the dough out and up the sides of an 8” loose-bottomed (preferred) tart pan.
    4) Prick the pastry all over using a fork. Bake for 12-15 minutes in an oven preheated to 190ºC/375ºF.
    5) Remove from oven and let it cool completely before filling.

    For the Carrot Ginger Rice Custard:
    2 medium carrots, roughly chopped
    2 inch piece ginger, roughly chopped
    2 cups milk
    1/3 cup sugar
    1/4 cup rice flour

    1) Boil together the roughly chopped carrots and ginger until tender. Blend them to make a purée.
    2) In a saucepan, heat together the milk and sugar until the sugar is fully dissolved.
    3) In a separate bowl, whisk together the rice flour with some additional milk to form thin smooth slurry.
    4) Slowly add this slurry to the hot milk while whisking continuously and vigorously.
    5) Continue stirring and cooking the custard until it thickens significantly.
    6) Lastly, turn off the heat and mix in the carrot and ginger purée.
    7) Pour out the custard into a bowl, and cover with saran wrap touching the surface of the custard. Refrigerate to cool completely.

    For the Pan-roasted Cinnamon Pineapple:
    1 cup fresh pineapple, chopped
    1/4 cup sugar (or depending on the natural sugars of the pineapple)
    1 inch stick cinnamon, freshly ground

    1) Place the chopped pineapple and sugar in a non-stick saucepan over medium heat.
    2) Cook until the pineapple is nicely roasted with a crusty golden hue.
    3) Add ground cinnamon and cook for another minute. Grind the mixture in a small mixer jar.
    4) Set aside to cool.

    For the Strawberry Purée:
    4 fresh strawberries
    1-teaspoon confectioner’s sugar

    1) Blend the strawberries with sugar.
    2) Strain the mixture.

    For garnish:
    Carrot juliennes
    Fresh pineapple wedges
    Ground cinnamon

    To Assemble the Tart:
    1) Evenly spread the pan-roasted cinnamon pineapple on the bottom of the cooled tart pastry.
    2) Spread the carrot ginger rice custard over the pineapple layer. Smoothen the top using a palette knife.
    3) Refrigerate the tart until the filling is set well.
    4) Brush a strip of strawberry purée on the bottom of a plate. Place a slice of the tart on top, garnish with carrot juliennes, pineapple wedges and ground cinnamon.
    5) Serve.

    Serves 6.