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id someone ever say, ‘the best way to a man’s heart
is through his stomach?" Whoever said it sure knew what he was talking about. Ask
those countless contented housewives who find perfect bliss nay refuge in the confines of
their home kitchens, experimenting with the choicest of delicacies, to keep their
husband’s happy. Bravo! Hat’s off to them.
 To
assist them in this noble task the Chennai Culinary Institute has just opened its doors to
housewives and the public from the first of March this year. Replete with the latest
cooking gadgets - cooking ranges flown from overseas, mixies, grinders, simple ovens and
the hi-tech microwaves, it is all set to be a hit on its maiden run. The perfect ambience
is in store for you to hone your culinary skills and whet your appetites. Five worktables
on which three to four students work at a time under the supervision of a staff member
show that the institute means business. Ingredients are laid out on the tables ready for
use by the students before their arrival. When the batch arrives, the work-plan for the
recipe is gone through with a tooth-comb and the dos’ and don’ts explained. In
fact, printed leaflets of the recipe that are distributed a few days earlier make life
much simpler as do the staff members who continuously help the budding chefs. "This
is where we are  different from other culinary institutes. We offer the personal
touch," says Chandri Bhat the principal of the institute and a well-known food and
cookery consultant. "We had just about sufficient numbers (of housewives) to start
the first batch, but the response that we are now getting from Chennaites is quite
heartening, " she continues.
What’s more, some mouthwatering summer specials are
lined up for this season as are the number of cookery courses. A special jams and pickles
course is ensured at tickling the taste buds with delicious mango, tomato and
gooseberry chutneys along with grape, apple and mixed fruit
jam, just a sample of what’s to follow. Not to forget the refreshing cool orange,
lemon and barley squashes, an absolute must to battle the blistering heat of
Chennai. Yums
the word! You’d almost wish summer were here to stay.
 That’s not all. A special microwave cooking course ensures maximum usage of
the microwave oven at home, with a detailed demonstration imparting the necessary know-how
for rustling up regular and special dishes as well as for baking. Gee! Makes cooking seem
almost like child’s play especially for the non-starters.
Besides, there are both foundation and specialised
courses in Baking and Confectionery as well in International Cooking. Lest you
wonder what the latter entails let’s clear the doubts here. This includes popular
Indian and Mughlai dishes as well as Chinese, Thai, Mexican and Western cooking. For
practical classes, Chefs specialising in their respective cuisines are called upon to
demonstrate. Talk of global living and you’ve got it at CCI.
 But of course, the baked fare is always the most ravishing specially for one
with a sweet tooth. The assortment packs in some yummy pies and pastries - short crusty,
flaky, puffy ones et al, creamy cakes, mouthwatering chocolates and confectionery, rolled
cookies and crisp biscuits. And of course, the inevitable pizzas, breads, buttery buns
(reminds you of those hot cross buns in the nursery rhymes at school) and savarins to name
a few. A French pastry Chef unravels his magic skills in this course.
Incidentally CCI is the brainchild of Mr.
Mahadevan, an NRI
who runs the show at Oriental Cuisine’s Ltd. as well as a number of eating outlets
around the city and in the country - Hot Breads the first branded bakery with a French
cafeteria, Wang’s Kitchen an exclusive Chinese and Thai restaurant, Don Pepe the
first Mexican outlet in the city and the winner of the National Tourism Award for 97-98,
as well as Café Picasso the Italian and Mexican eatout.
 Interestingly, the proceeds from CCI will help poor and destitute women to find a
new meaning to life. There are plans to harness the skills of these women into
constructive outlets - baking, pickle and jam making under the guidance of the staff at
the Culinary Institute. All this training is to be provided free of cost to enable the
needy to become self-sufficient. Whoever said chivalry and goodness is dead!
So, let’s hope CCI is able to live up to its
expectations and churn out more and more efficient cooks, so that eating, out or at home
becomes one of those rare pleasures that we all dream of.
For more information contact:
CCI,
74 Cathedral Road,
(Opp. Chola Sheraton),
Chennai – 600 086.
Tel. # 8211434
Italian Torrone
Butter - ¾ cup
Cocoa - 3 tbsp.
Powdered sugar - ½ cup
Boiled water - 4tbsp.
Cashewnut powder - ½ cup
Chopped walnuts - 3tbsp.
Raisins - 3tbsp.
Almond essence – few drops
Vanilla essence – ½ tsp.
Marie biscuits – 1 packet (100gms)
Break the biscuits into small pieces. Beat butter with
cocoa. Dissolve sugar in boiling water and add it hot to the butter mixture. Mix in
remaining ingredients. Pour in a cacke tin that is lined with greased butter paper. Place
in the freezer. When set, cut into pieces and serve plain or with ice-cream.
Toasted pepper and garlic soup
Green capsicums – 2 medium size
Garlic – 4 flakes chopped
Butter – 1 tbsp.
Vegetable stock – 1 ½ litre
White sauce – (recipe below)
Salt & pepper – To taste
Remove seeds from capsicums. Apply a little oil in a hot
oven till they are roasted (about 20-30 minutes). Cool slightly, peel and chop. Heat
butter, fry garlic till light brown. Add capsicums and stock. Simmer for 15-20 minutes,
cool and blend. Combine with white sauce, add salt and pepper to taste, heat thoroughly
and serve.
White sauce
Butter – 2 tbsp.
Maida – 3 tbsp.
Milk – 250 ml.
Melt butter. Add maida and cook till the raw smell is lost.
Add milk and cook stirring till the sauce thickens. Season to taste.
Banana Pineapple Surprise
Sponge cake – 1 (1/4 kg)
Bananas – 2 to 3
Pineapple slices – 2 to 3
Fresh cream – 1 cup
Rum or brandy – 2 tbsp. (optional)
Icing sugar – to taste
Peel and slice the bananas. Toss them with 2 tbsps of
pineapple syrup and add a tsp. of lime juice to it. Chop the pineapple slices. Make a
rectangular cut at the under side of the cake without cutting through the top. Scoop out
the cake crumbs through that cut to make a hollow in the cake. Mash the crumbs with 2 to 3
tbsp. cream. Chop ½ the banana slices. Mix them with some of the pineapple pieces and add
to the mashed crumbs. Fill the hollow in the cake with this mixture. Place the cake top
side up on a serving plate. Prick all over with a fork. Sprinkle with syrup from the
pineapple tin (flavour the syrup with rum or brandy if desired). Whip the remaining cream
and sweeten to taste with icing sugar. Decorate the top of the cake with cream, banana
slices and pineapple pieces.
Shobha Mathur Pandian
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