Monthly Archives: April 2012

Match Your Favorite Music With A Scintillating Cocktail

Have you ever been down in the dumps and wanted to be left alone with just your music ( Back to Black – Amy Winehouse? Hum bewafa har kis na the by Kishore Kumar?)  Or, you wanted to sing aloud to the entire world and express your euphoria ( On the floor – J Lo?) Well, all of us have been there and done it at some point in time.

Whether I am  in a celebratory mood, hurt, nostalgic or sad, Music has always given me the much-needed respite, peace and solace!

Now, combine your music with a glass of Apple Martini or a Glen on the rocks – a person`s day can be complete! I actually “Stumbled Upon”  an  amazing website which gives some interesting pairings for music and cocktails.

Curtsey - http://drinkify.org/

This really got me thinking how relevant music, moods and beverages are. I mean, after my 2nd Martini, I could not have listened to Frank Sinatra – it had to be a groovy Adele number like Daydreamer.

I realized if you can pair your songs/music with the right beverage, it kind of ties all the loose ends.

  • In the mood for some No woman no cry ? Well, I have realized anything to do with Bob Marley and it goes very well with Red Bull
  • Are you listening to upbeat Asha Bhonsle numbers? Grab a bottle of Merlot and groove to her tunes
  • Nostalgic with Whitney Houston numbers – pour some vodka over ice and enjoy the evening
  • Pour some Gin, top it with some tonic and garnish with a nice slice of cucumber and sing along with Jagjit Singh
  • Attending a party and listening to Shakira? Pour some Champagne, add a dash of Galliano and top it with orange juice (yes, it tastes good!)
  • Feel like a beer? Groove to Carrie Underwood songs
  • Winters are in full swing and Bon Jovi is belting out his numbers – grab some brandy, add some Cointreau and a dash of lime

I tried few other disastrous pairings also  but you need to try for yourself and see what works best for you.  Of course, there is no science to this – it is more about what you like, your favorite beverages, music and your mood! But one thing is for sure, this unusual music – beverage pairing has an interesting and fascinating aspect to it!

 

Cooking With Fine Wine

What do you do with a really old and cheap bottle of wine? Well, my immediate thought is to sprinkle it over my salad or add it to a nice entrée! I am sure most of you have done the same – sometime or the other. Then I heard a renowned chef and a wine expert -

“Do not pour a wine in your sauce pan that you cannot pour into your own glass”

Wow! That really struck me. When I cook, I make sure that I use really good ingredients. Then why do I compromise with wine?

 

 

Whether it is Gordon Ramsay, Rachel Ray or a wine guru, one thing is sure – if you cannot enjoy a particular wine in your glass, please do not use it to cook! Wine brings about the robust and hearty flavors of your dish – why spoil the taste with a cheap, stale wine?


 

 

Interesting ways to use wine in your cooking

  • Simplest way to jazz up your salad is to drizzle some wine over it (preferably what you are drinking right then)
  • Many entrees taste really good if you just de-glaze your cooking pan/pot with some wine. I am still learning the ropes, so I stick to a nice Sauvignon Blanc or a Chardonnay for white meat and good a Chianti or a Pinot Noir if its red meat. If it is all veggies, a light red will do the trick
  • Cooking with wine transcends cuisines! Do not feel shy to use wines in Mexican, Indian or any other cuisine. In fact, depending on the meat, usage of wine in marinades is fantastic. Splash a little wine in your marination for Tandoori Chicken or Murgh Tikka and see the “pop” of flavor
  • Red wine takes a little longer to reduce than a white
  • If you are using red wine, make sure you really reduce it, unless you want your sauce to be purple / red in color. Reduce it over low heat and be rewarded with a woody brown color.
  • If you are using fruits, especially berries, in your dessert, try a splash of Sauternes (Yum!)

Be Creative

Are you a Sherry or a Port Wine lover? Fret not! If you like it and if you think the flavors will not clash, go ahead! Try it.

A word of caution – Sherry is usually a “finishing” ingredient for a sauce. If you put it too soon, it might lose its flavor and taste.

Flavorful Ending

Remember you are cooking wine, so there is bound to be some amount of alcohol in your food. Research and studies show that the more you cook, flavors are enhanced and lesser amount of alcohol content remains in the food.

Enjoy cooking with wine – the same wine that you will enjoy drinking!

Pairing Indian Food with Wine

One of the most renowned wine maker, Robert Mondavi, once said, ” Making wine is a skill, but making fine wine is an art”. So true!

A fine wine is a symbol of sophistication and finesse. Pair it with appropriate and delicious food and voila! You have a success story! If “nosing” and “tasting” are part of the wine story, then pairing it appropriately with different cuisines and different courses, is equally important. Trying to sip a Rose wine with the fish course might be a disaster but have your Rose with a Caramel Custard and you have a perfect finale to your evening.

So, when you think of wine and food pairings, immediately one tends to think of various cuisines like French, Italian, Japanese etc. But “Indian” cuisine does not really appear on that list. Well, wine experts and wine connoisseurs are pretty particular about the fact that spicy, robust and strong foods can destroy the delicate flavors, notes and aromas of a fine wine. But Indian food is just that – robust, heavy and spicy. So does it mean it can never be enjoyed with a glass of wine? Do lovers of India cuisine need to chug beers only??

Indian Food with Wines

I am neither an expert nor a connoisseur but I love wines and I have tried quite a few of them with Indian food – believe it or not, some were super successful while some were disasters!

A suggestion - Avoid red wines with this cuisine because the food is spicy and robust. Red wines are also robust and strong. Too much of the same thing will confuse your taste buds! At the same time, if you are eating some appetizers which are straight from the Tandoor (clay oven), go ahead – enjoy the reds!

Courtesy – Wine Society of India, http://wsi.indiatimes.com/Pairing-Food-Wine/Wine-Indian-cuisine/articleshow/4609103.cms

Gewurztraminer is a delicious grape and its white wine is apt for Indian cuisine. Whether it is a light appetizer like Paneer Tikka or a heavy entree like Chicken Kashmiri or Prawn Curry, this wine is smooth, aromatic and medium bodied. Most of the new world wines like Riesling from Australia, Chenin Blanc from New Zeland etc. go surprisingly well with Indian cuisine. My personal favorite is Robert Mondavi`s Sauvignon Blanc which goes best with tomato based gravy and white meat dishes.

Pairing Indian desserts with wines is a little more tricky because here the dynamics change – it is not just sweet instead of spicy but most of the Indian desserts are dairy based. Well, avoid pairing wine but if you must, a nice port wine is best suited. The crispness cuts across the sweet and “milky” flavors of the desserts.

Fruity Notes to end with

Gastronomical delight is all about your eyes, nose and tongue! Do not hesitate to try out new wines and be a little creative – you never know what might appeal to your taste buds!!

Big Girl, Big City and Bigger Exercise Woes

Mumbai is to India what NYC is to America. Big city and bigger corporates yet small time frames and even smaller apartment space!


Getting up @ 6 AM, getting ready, commuting to work, working hard (hardly working??!!) and coming back home @ 8 PM – that was my typical day in Mumbai – all for money, fame and corporate success. A few years went by and I realized – Ouch!! My jeans do not fit me any more and there it was – the reality hit me.  In my quest to achieve success and be cool (I was a single girl, staying alone in a great loft in a great city!!), I had neglected my health and lifestyle.

I am sure I am not alone and my life will be your reflection too! But gradually, I stopped saying that I do not have time to hit the gym or go for a run. Who says you need to become a member of a coveted gym or fall for those expensive diet fads?

Read on… for interesting and creative ways to lose weight, stay fit and yet enjoy your life…

  • When we think of workout sessions @ home, we think of big space, many equipments, monetary investment and stuff. Try following basic Yoga or Pilates (at least to begin with). In my tiny apartment, I could manage a nice Yoga session and I am not a morning person at all – so be it – I did it after I came home from work
  • What is peculiar to NYC apartments or even offices? They are all high up. Try taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Well, do not risk that if you are wearing your Vera Wang`s 4 inch heels  , but how about taking the stairs to your apartment?
  • Being single and “cool”, I had a great social life. Guess what I did? Mumbai is a food lover`s paradise which also means it will have a plethora of organic and healthy options. I started ordering a nice Waldorf Salad with red wine instead of Cheeseburgers
  • Before the “realization” struck me, I used to be happy grabbing a slice of pizza or filling my tummy with pots of coffee for lunch during office hours. I am sure most of you do the same thing and it is understandable. But your health is your biggest investment! Try getting up a little early and making some a healthy sandwich and throwing in some fruits and nuts as a snack option. It will not just make you healthy but save you tonnes of money!
Healthy living and healthy lifestyle are necessary in the long run. Be creative – do not go the traditional way of running on a treadmill. You love your dog – great! Take it out for a run every day and voila! You are running towards your fitness and health…..

My Adventurous with “Bharatnatyam”

“Bharatnatyam is a means of spiritual elevation both for the dancer and the audience”

So in my quest to twirl and twist, I started pursuing my Bharatanatyam dance classes as a kid. It started as a constructive utilization of time but soon went on to become much more than that – it became my ardent passion. As kids all of us are asking this rhetorical question – what do you want to become when you grow up? My friends used to say doctor, engineer, police man, pilot and the like. Guess what I said – I want to become a dancer!

Well, that didn’t exactly work out (who ever said all your childhood dreams come true???) but dancing has remained my first love – Zumba on a J-LO number or Tapping on an Irish Tune – dancing is fun and full filling.

So, back to my first love – Bharatanatyam – It originated in the Southern State of Tamil Nadu, India. It started as a temple dance where the dancers used to offer their prayers to God and Gidessess. “Abhinaya” meaning emotions and expressions are a vital part of the dance form. It is a perfect blend of body movements and expressions. There are 108 key poses and numerous “Mudras” ( hand gestures for communication) through which the dancer gracefully unfolds a dramatic saga!

It is dramatic, satirical and larger than life but delivers just one humble message – Love and Respect. Pursuing this form of performing arts does not just give joy and happiness to a person but inculcates the most basic yet priceless values of love, humility, expressing yourselves and respecting others.

My mom thought I was learning the dance, which was true, but those hours spent in the dance school taught me a lot about life, emotions and feelings!

Zumbathon – Fitness with a Twist

“I love working in hotels, I love dancing, love reading books and love eating!! But gym.. Huh .. What??? Like really, do I need to lose weight or become fit? Hell yeah! But where is the time? Oh god, why doesn’t some miracle happen??!!!”

Well, it did happen and I finally started going to the gym, eating a little more healthy and overall feeling stronger and better about myself – thanks to Zumba and my lovely gang of girls at the YMCA. Zumba is a phenomenon that has taken millions by storm, including me. I never imagined that I will ever look forward to a gym session.

For the uninitiated, here is the Zumba legend – As the story goes, it all started in 2001 and today 12 million people, across 125 nations are dancing their ways to their desired shape and size. This dance Cardio workout combines Latin and international music to which the trained instructors choreograph dance routines keeping in mind body fitness and sculpting.

It has definitely emerged as a great Cardio workout, especially for people like me who do not prefer the treadmill. If you can shake, shimmy, twirl, twist and still manage to lose calories, why not. Slowly, but surely I started going to all the Zumba sessions and before I realized, I was hooked on to this new craze called Zumba.

In fact, it is so much of a trend now that people and organizations are being creative and using this trend to spread awareness, raise money for charities, Zumba sessions for a cause etc. People of all ages, size, race, culture, sex are willing to twist and twirl for a good cause (of course, besides their own fitness).

Keeping this in mind, a Zumbathon (Zumba + Marathon) has been organized to raise awareness about Leukemia and Lymphoma in Western NY! Guess what I did – I registered for it and am so excited!!

Dancing has always been a passion – just never knew that it could lead me to a healthier lifestyle and also propel me to help a charitable cause!

“Indian Classical Dances” – My Introduction To The World Of Happiness

My mom is an artist. So, when I was a kid, she tried her luck by sending me to various “hobby classes” – singing, painting, instruments, sculpting and what not! Little did she know, I will be kicked out of all of them other than one – my awesome dance classes! Oh how I loved it. Running back from school, getting ready and going with a bunch of girls to a neighborhood dance school became an everyday occurrence for me and something that I looked forward to with much joy and anticipation. Well, I really thought I had found my calling (remember I was just a 2nd grader and everything was still invisible to me!!) and so I persevered my Bharatanatyam dance classes for many more years….

For the western world, Indian classical dances are exotic, enchanting and seductive. Yes, the 7 Classical dances of India are all of that and much more…. It is tied to the history, culture and heritage of this beautiful country. All the 7 dance forms reflect stories and episodes of various cultural and religious texts and every dance sequence has a message for the audience. It really depends on the dancer how he / she moves and emotes different feelings. In simpler terms, imagine Rose and Jack of Titanic, on a stage, dancing (not speaking) and telling the audience their feelings, their emotions, their true story – wouldn’t it be epic? Guess what, In my dance class, we learnt how to emote and move to different feelings and rhythms!

Historically what started as dancers performing in temples (Place of worship for Hindus), now became an everyday occurrence in my family living room. Being a “daddy`s girl”, I would love to show him my new moves and steps and oh! He was the best audience and my truest fan – little did he know that his little girl will continue her learning for nearly ten years and he will be shelling out big bucks in the process!!!

For more facts, experiences, pictures, tips – keep reading this space!