Restaurant review: Bar Bar Black Sheep, Cluny Court @ Bukit Timah

This was my third visit to Bar Bar Black Sheep. All three times, I've been to the outlet at Cluny Court in Bukit Timah. The other three outlets are at Robertson Quay, Tanjong Katong and Cherry avenue. This café/bar/restaurant (I don't really know how to categorize it) is a good place to unwind with friends for drinks and a vast selection of food. It is seemingly quite popular with the expatriates living in Singapore. BBBS offers Thai, Western and North Indian dishes off three separate menus, so it caters to people who wish to sample dishes from these three diverse cuisines.

Since we were a large group of 15 friends and it was a Friday evening, we made a reservation in advance. The Cluny Court outlet is located right outside the exit of the Botanic gardens MRT on the circle line, so it is very easily accessible.

The interior is eye-catching with an interesting layout, color scheme, good lighting, colorful chalkboards, mirrors, a brick wall and knickknacks. 

Since I went with a large group of friends, we ended up ordering a LOT of food. I didn't see a lot of the dishes that were at the far end of the table so I just passed my camera around and my friends did the clicking for me. Despite that, I think we missed a few dishes. Sorry for not providing the detailed description and price of each specific dish.

Recipe of the month: Rava Idli

I dedicate this post to my paternal grandmother, my beloved "dodda", who passed away last month. She was the warmest, kindest, liveliest and most hospitable woman I have ever known and I consider it an absolute privilege to be her granddaughter. 

When I was born, she flew all the way to England along with my maternal grandmother (fortunately, those two got along famously) so she was one of the first among my extended family who welcomed me into this world. 

I will forever remember her as someone who LOVED chatting with people, sharing family stories, outlining befuddling multigenerational familial relationships, gardening, drinking endless cups of filter coffee and reading Kannada novels with her thick black-rimmed spectacles. As an emotionally invested tv viewer, she could often be heard openly chastising the antagonist for his/her villainous deeds while watching Kannada daily soaps on tv 😂 But most of all, I will remember her as someone who was deeply devoted to her family. She epitomized generosity, wisdom, patience, sacrifice and hard work. During her lifetime, she showed nothing but kindness and a genuine affection towards her daughter-in-law (my mother), which made me respect her even more. I loved her with all my heart and I am going to miss her dearly. The pure and beautiful soul that she was, I'm sure that she is even making heaven a better place ❤️

Rava idli or steamed semolina cakes is a popular South-Indian breakfast dish. To be completely honest, rava idli is one of those dishes that I have struggled with over the years. It started off with me not acknowledging its existence altogether to buying instant rava idli mixes and then to a few disastrous attempts at making it myself from scratch. It's weird because I make the regular kind of idlis all the time and they turn out pretty great. 

Unlike the regular idli, rava idli does not require any soaking, grinding, fermentation (basically any cumbersome procedure) and can be prepared in a jiffy so you would think that it should be a cinch right? For me at least, no such luck (boo!). It took me a few trials to figure out the right kind of rava, the consistency of the batter and the life-altering realization that it was so much better to use fruit salt (eno) instead of cooking soda. Anyway, better late than never so here I am with a rava idli post which should be an indication that I have finally laid my rava idli demons to rest 😄

Rava idli has quite an interesting history. This dish which originates from my home state of Karnataka is said to be the brainchild of the popular restaurant chain Mavalli Tiffin Rooms (MTR) of Bangalore. It is said to have been invented during World War II when rice (which was the staple ingredient used to make idli) was in short supply. In order to overcome this impediment, MTR apparently experimented with rava to make idlis and lo behold, the humble rava idli was born. Since then, it has been a staple on the menus of restaurants that serve Udupi cuisine and eventually it spread to feature on breakfast menus of restaurants serving South-Indian food in general. 

My mum makes rava idlis very frequently at home and she consistently prepares two side dishes to go along with it - coconut chutney (on demand) and a potato bhaji (courtesy my demanding brother!). Since rava idli is already flavoured with an array of tempering ingredients, curry leaves, ginger, green chillies and coriander, I don't really need much to go along with it. It was my paternal grandmother who introduced me to the idea of eating idli with chutney pudi mixed with coconut oil and since then, there has been no looking back. All I need is my chutney pudi and I'm all set to devour piping hot rava idlis. But then again, despite my best efforts to keep it simple, nostalgia kicks in at the very last minute and I end up going the same route as my mum and prepare both the coconut chutney and the potato bhaji 😊

The last two or three occasions I made rava idlis at home, they turned out well enough for me to consider the recipe blogworthy. I know of many people who are not familiar with rava idli. This is an easy to make dish which is nutritious, delicious and vegan-friendly (i.e. if you replace the ghee with oil). Here is my version which results in soft and spongy idlis. This recipe works for me and I hope it works for you too.

Book Review: The Hunger Games

Winning will make you famous.

Losing means certain death.

May the odds ever be in your favour

-The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games is a 2008 science fiction novel by the American writer Suzanne Collins. The novel is the first in The Hunger Games trilogy, followed by Catching Fire (2009) and Mockingjay (2010). 

I cannot fathom why it took me so long to read this series considering this groundbreaking trilogy was idly sitting in my bookshelf all along. The reason I say that is because I am currently wholly consumed by it. I had vaguely heard of the books and the motion pictures based on the books but that was about it. 

A few weeks ago, I happened to watch the first part of the movie i.e. The Hunger Games quite by accident. I had no idea what it was about so I had no idea what to expect. A few minutes into the movie and I became aware of the whole dystopian sensibility going on and that made me a bit weary. I have watched movies based on a similar concept like Children of Men, V for Vendetta and Cloud Atlas to name a few and although I consider these movies to be very good, the concept frankly, isn't my cup of tea. 

Well, at the end of watching The Hunger Games, I ended up having to eat my words. I found the concept, storyline and characters in the movie so unique and intriguing that I immediately rushed to my bookshelf and fished out the book. I wish someone had recommended these books to me earlier (if I sound obsessed, it is because I am). I don't know how I will feel about the successors but for now at least I am thrilled with how the story has unfolded. 

Baker's Corner: Vegetable Pot Pie

So I've been MIA for a few days now haven't I? It wasn't intentional really. I have so many recipe drafts ready which can keep my blog going without having me breaking into a cold sweat. But I discovered that it was time to feature my Baker's Corner segment and none of the recipe posts that I had on hold were baking-related. I was thinking of a savoury bake, something on the lines of lasagne or cannelloni but I couldn't quite make up my mind. I asked my husband what dish I should bake next and he said 'pot pie' before I had even finished asking the question. For a food blogger who often gets stumped with what to cook next, it really helps to have someone at home who has such specific food demands 😄

A pot pie is a mixture of meat and/or vegetables made in a pot, hence the name "pot pie”. Although there are crustless varieties, I went for the type of pot pie which is baked in a casserole dish lined with a crust. I've had pot pies before and I like them. I'd never tried making them myself though. While browsing recipe websites a few months ago, I saw an interesting variation of a vegetable pocket pie which had a vegetable pot pie filling encased in a short-crust pocket and baked till golden. That image stayed with me for a while and I thought of re-creating the recipe exactly as I had seen it. But fast forward to the present where I've received a request for a pot pie. I thought to myself - "Okay....let's try this dish the traditional way then".

I buy puff pastry and filo pastry from the frozen section of the grocery store. Having no experience with shortcrust pastry before, I thought I shouldn't take any risks and just buy the store-bought variety. Unfortunately I didn't find it in the grocery store (to be completely honest, I didn't look very hard). A conversation with a gastronomically gifted friend brought me to the realization that making shortcrust pastry at home is really easy and it can be done within 15 min. I watched a youtube video of Gordon Ramsay making shortcrust pastry and I was relieved that this was something I could handle. But if you want to get the ready made stuff, please go ahead and do so. I would be the last person to judge you. For the filling, I improvised on the vegetable pocket pie filling that I mentioned earlier hoping that it would turn out the way I had in mind.

A friend had gifted me a lovely square Corelle casserole set during my housewarming ceremony and I thought the two smaller (5x5 inch) casseroles would be perfect to assemble the pot pie in. So, shortcrust pastry and filling done, the only thing left to do was put together the pies and pop them in the oven. I was anxiously watching the pies in the oven since they seemed to be taking a long time to brown. But  in the end, brown they did and they came out looking good. They were scalding hot so we were forced to wait before digging our spoons in. The only thing I can say is that it was worth the wait. The crust was flaky and cooked perfectly and the filling was creamy and delicious. Hubby gave his stamp of approval and I was so glad I attempted this dish. There is no doubt in my mind that it is going to feature regularly on our weekend brunch menu 😊

This recipe might look elaborate but trust me, it is quite easy. And since this dish can be served as main course, you don't need anything else to go alongside it.

Okay, that's quite enough of my jibber-jabber for now. Please be a dear and check out the recipe.