Tag: come

‘Come Dine with Me’ with Class: A Feast through India

What do you get when you cross a Canadian, Australian, Irish Woman, Indian, Mexican and a couple of Brits?

It sounds, like a start to a really bad racist joke, but in fact, it was the start of a wonderful evening.

I have to admit that prior to being invited to a Supper Club I had absolutely no idea what it was all about.  It loosely resembles ‘Come Dine with Me’ but the biggest difference is the host is an amazing cook and the people are really nice.

As we walked up to the front door we were greeted by the most amazing smell and knew we were in for a real treat.  Within minutes we were enjoying a cocktail in the garden chatting with the other guests.

Sheba had been busy all day cooking ‘A Feast through India’ for us.  Check out this menu.  The pictures don’t do it justice I can’t begin to tell you how amazing the food was.   I wish the pictures were scratch and sniff!

The menu

Appetisers 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Parippu Vada (Kerala) –  Lentil & shallot fritters served with coconut chutney
  • Bonda (Kerala)  – Spiced potato balls with mustard seeds & curry leaves


Mains

Rogan Josh (Kashmir)
Aromatic lamb slow cooked with cardamom, cloves & fennel seeds


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kozhi Kuruma –  Home style chicken cooked with poppy seeds, coconut and cashews

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Payar Thoran (Kerala) – Green bean sautéed with a delicate combination of spices
  • Coconut Rice (Andra Pradesh) tossed with garlic, red chillies & cashew nuts
  • Jeera Rice (Basmati rice with cumin seeds & ghee
  • Carrot & coriander raita (North India) seasoned with cumin

Dessert

  • Ethakya Porichathu (Kerala)
  • Caramelised plantains with lime, nutmeg & coconut milk

Masala Chai

  • Sweet tea infused with cardamom and cinnamon

Verdict

I’m now a convert and will definitely go again.  What a wonderful way to meet new interesting people and sample some amazing food.  It’s probably the best dinner party I’ve been to in ages!

The next ‘Kerala Summer Supperclub’ is on the 21st of July inSt Albans.  I’d highly recommend it.  Thanks to Sheba for all her hard work.

Disclosure:  Dinner was compliments of Absolute Indian Cookery

 

Final Curtain Call for Strictly Come Dancing?

As most of you know I’m a big fan of Strictly Come Dancing.  I haven’t been watching it since the beginning but damn near close enough.   However, the changes over the last couple of years are starting to test my loyalty.  Last year, when they replaced Arlene Phillips resident dance expert, with Alesha Dixon, I was very vocal about my unhappiness with this decision.

This is not a personal attack against Alesha, she seems like a lovely woman and probably learned a lot when she participated in the show in 2007.  However, I still don’t think comments like ‘great outfit’, ‘your bum looks great in those trousers’ or ‘the ladies are loving you tonight’ really add to the show.  These quotes were all taken from tonight’s show.

Anyhow, I’ve moved on from that.  However, this year the removal of the ‘Dance Off’ doesn’t anger me but in fact terrifies me.  I’m not going to explain how SCD works as I’m assuming that if you’re still reading this you must be a fan, otherwise you would have buggered off by now.  We’ve all seen it happen year after year, the British Public voting for the underdog or just to goad the judges, mostly Craig.  A prime example of this was John Sergeant.  Goodness knows how far he would have gotten if he didn’t make the decision to walk.

So, in reality, there is nothing stopping the likes of Ann Widdecombe from getting to the final.  I really hope the British public come to their senses and remember that underneath all the glitz and glamour that it is a dance competition.  I do appreciate it’s for entertainment, but I don’t think it’s really fair to those that are working really hard and delivering excellent dances.  This is why the judge’s involvement is imperative as they used to have the opportunity to step in and save the better dancer if need be.

In addition, without the Dance Off the Sunday night result show is a complete waste of time.  It’s just filler, clips of the show the night before, with a couple of show dances thrown in, possibly a celebrity guest and then the lights go out.  If the voting closes shortly after the show on Saturday night why can’t they have the results on the same night?

I really hope I’m wrong about this and that the new format of the programme adds to our enjoyment but I can’t help feeling that the BBC has made a grave error.

Photo Credit

Strictly Come Dancing 2010: A Family Affair

And my prediction for tomorrow night is…..

We all know that the people at the top and bottom of the leaderboard ‘tend’ to be safe and it’s the ones in the middle that need to worry.  So, there is a really good chance that we will get to ‘enjoy’ ‘endure’ Ann Widdecombe next week and if the UK public is true to their normal fashion we we’ll get to do so for a number of weeks.

Anyhow, back to my prediction, this week I think it’s going to be between the likes of Tina O’Brien, Michelle Williams and possibly Goldie.  But, I think that Michelle will be leaving tomorrow night.  I personally haven’t warmed to her and I don’t think the British Public is going to either.

On a side note, I do feel that Gavin really shot himself in the foot tonight with his narcissism.  He’s so lucky he has Wales behind him.

So what’s your prediction?  Any other thoughts so far on the program?