Category: pineapple

Kale chips by Green Snack Co

When health knocks at your doorstep, you jump at it! I’ve been nibbling on these Kale chips by Green Snack Co, off and on, at home, at work and have even packed some in my bag for those long road trips I undertake. 
Kale is a superfood of the West making inroads to India. It is a powerhouse of beta carotene, vitamin K, and vitamin C, and is rich in calcium too. By far Skeeter’s most favourite Kale dish has been a Phad Pak Kiew or Stir fried Kale with morning glory, pokchoy, soya bean sauce, garlic & pepper, that I enjoyed at Neung Roi. Besides its nutrition quotient, the curly-leaved vegetable that grows green and purple leaves has ornamental value for the gardens too. 
Green Snack Co have taken the best selling flavours from the world of crisps and are offering three most loved and well received flavours: Cheese & Onion, Sea Salt & Vinegar, Thai Sweet Chilli.
Sea Salt & Vinegar is Skeeter’s personal favourite flavour of the three. The goodness of apple cider vinegar is combined with sea salt and a hint of cayenne pepper. The apple cider lends a slightly sour/fruity tang to the Kale chips that is accentuated by sea salt and further enhanced by the subtle kick from cayenne pepper that leaves one longing for more.
Cheese & Onion comes second for Skeeter, and they’d surely be well received by most. They are flavoured with parmesan, along with a novel addition: cashews, garlic and onion. This well-balanced flavour is presented well by Green Snack Co and cannot go wrong ever.
Thai Sweet Chilli is a zingy, pick-me-up flavour and is coated with with bell peppers and Thai chillies for a punch. Add to that cashews and pineapple for sweetness and you have a very fine product. 
Nutrition
Kale chips by Green Snack Co are made using the dehydration technique. They have the additional benefits of having no added sugar, preservatives or additives. You can read more about the health benefits here.. 
Price and packaging
All bags come for Rs 200, which is somewhat steep but well worth the money. The pack is simple and resealable, so you can begin munching from where you left. You can buy Kale chips online here or pick them up from your nearest store.
(The product was provided by Green Snack Co.)
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Anna Perenna Pizza

Healthy ‘eating out’ may sound oxymoronish, but as they say there is no harm trying. Hence, I wander. Skeeter ended up at Anna Perenna Pizza, a gourmet, handmade pizza place, trying to do things differently. Anna Perenna is the Roman Goddess of long life & renewal, health & plenty. This delivery/takeaway service does top notch pizzas, making dough from the scratch and yes they are wholewheat (some, even multigrain) with no processed cheese whatsoever! While the last line may be hard to digest, the pizzas are rather easy on the stomach.

The Mint cooler lemonade served in a glass jar with the right amount of sweet and tang will quench your thirst and make you forget the sweltering heat outside for a while. The olive-studded bread and hummous were a great starter. The hummous was creamy and full of flavour and the olive-studded bread was wholewheat. What else could one ask for? I know it’s gonna be on my dinner table again and again, and more!

From the pizza selection, Skeeter tried the ‘Roast zucchini, tomato and basil pizza’, that has a light and crisp base. The base sauce is made in-house and was finger-licking good. The pizza was overall perfect and I did not realise the absence of cheese. I would’ve loved a crispier base and if the zucchini was char-grilled it would make for a better sight on the plate, but then that’s just being greedy and asking for more. This pizza makes for a perfect treat for weight watchers, as is.

The ‘Jalapeno, pineapple and rocket pizza was rather inspirational and it’d be my go-to pizza in the days to come. If there is poetry on a plate, this is it, this is it, this is it! A crisp base, smeared with tomato sauce, topped with generous helpings of pineapple slices and rocket leaves. You get your pizza fix, you eat your dose of the favourite fruit and you munch some salad, all at a go. Oh did I mention, they have a low cheese and no-cheese option as well. Just ask them and they oblige. They claim to procure as many organic ingredients as possible. Plus ten for that. Vegan pizzas, anyone? Almost everything on the menu can be made vegan if it already isn’t. They even cater to the needs of those suffering from celiac or gluten allergies.
The Pizza cannot get hotter than this!

Meal for two: Rs 750
For more information, check the Anna Perenna Pizza website  

Shiv Sagar, Delhi (Aye!)

All the Bombay vs Delhi debate doesn’t work for me. Nor does the Mumbai vs Bombay. Dilli vs Delhi neither. What a Pani Puri with hot ragda can do for a resident of Maharashtra, the Delhi girl in me could not understand in my few years in that part of the country.
When I arrived back in Delhi, I loved what the good old Delhi Golgappa with cold, boiled potatoes and chickpeas and teekha pani did to my tastebuds. In Delhi, for sometime now, I find myself craving Pani Puri, the Maharashtrian way at times, and the Vada Pav very often. If there is any difference at all between the two cities, that I’d readily admit, it is the pricing. Bombay food is cheaper. Period.
When one of my favourite Bombay eateries opened up in Delhi, I decided to give it a try. Shiv Sagar, of Bombay fame has a Janpath address now. #Win

The ambience is welcoming. A Bombay person would easily connect. Start your meal at Shiv Sagar with a pineapple or watermelon juice, as I recommend them for their taste and freshness. Ask for a no-masala version, if you please, else they add it by default. I had a sample of 6 juices they offer on a sci-fi test tube platter, all of which I enjoyed. The sev puri comes recommended too. Papri topped with potatoes, a medley of chutneys and spices, finished with a generous helping of sev and pearls of pomegranate. Street food, the hygienic way, served up on the table. I’d have preferred it a bit more spicy. 

Shiv Sagar also manages to do justice to the quintessential Maharashtrian street food, the Vada Pav. The chilli garlic powder on the side is amazing too! If you are in the mood for something tangy, go for the chinese bhel. It is neither Chinese nor Bhel, but crispy fried noodles tossed in a sweet and sour sauce and topped with onion and coriander. Yum!

Last but not the least, do not leave Shiv Sagar, Delhi without sampling their Pav Bhaji. Doused in butter, it is the nearest you can get to the Bombay version. Other offerings at Shiv Sagar that one should try are the Veg Makhanwala, Veg Kolhapuri, Biryani with Raita and the cheese grilled sandwich. Icing on the cake? They are gonna turn into an all-day dining, just like Bombay. And the prices will make every Delhiite smile on their way out. Very pocket friendly! An average meal would cost about Rs 800 for two.