Tag: Book Launch Event

Step into the world of Nouvelle Indian Cuisine and cook in style with the help of Asha Khatau!

From Asha Khatau’s kitchen to yours! With the thought of “expressing herself” in mind, the gourmet queen Asha penned her book, Nouvelle Indian Cuisine, which officially released on 30th November 2017.

“The book was a great way to express, what I believe is my unique style of cooking. I was not worried about what people would think. I played around with flavors, had fun, experimented, and at the end of it, tried to bring the world together on a platesaid Asha Khatau

Ms. Anuradha Paudwal said “Asha ji is family, she is like a little sister to me. She has done a great job in this book. I would also like to thank Amruta ji for removing some time from her hectic schedule & marking her gracious presence on our request. I wanted the best lady for the launch of this book. This book is not special just for its content but also the fact that she has entered her 60th year makes it even more special. As far as Amruta ji is concerned, all I can I say is that we have the very best lady as or the first lady, we are proud of you”

Chef Vicky Ratnani said Definitely this book must go international because there are many people around the world who aspire to cook Indian food. I think the kind of dishes this book has are very trendy easy to make at home. This book is fabulous and one day I will surely cook these recipes”

Nouvelle Indian Cuisine by Asha Khatau, the latest book in The Best of Epicure series, Nouvelle Indian Cuisine by Asha Khatau, is a modern and experimental approach to traditional Indian cuisine.

Nouvelle Indian cuisine, which was inspired by French nouvelle cuisine, began over a decade ago and is now on its way to becoming mainstream. The hallmarks of this cuisine are dishes plated aesthetically in a modern style that are also lighter on the palate.

The recipes featured in this book use the best of traditional Indian flavours while combining them with modern culinary trends. In other words, Indian food prepared with western sensibilities and a modern style of plating and serving making it distinctively unique.

With over hundred delicious recipes to choose from, this book is sure to please the gourmets, foodies, and the young generation. These recipes are easy to master and equally impressive.

About Asha Khatau- Asha Khatau is a well-known figure in the field of gourmet vegetarian cooking. After twenty years of experience in providing memorable meals for her family and friends, Asha was persuaded to start her own cooking classes about eighteen years ago, which run under the name of ‘Epicure’. The classes feature regional cuisines from all over the world. She has also conducted cooking demonstration all over India as well as different parts of the world. During her extensive travels in India and abroad, she makes it a point to visit local bazaars and restaurants to taste authentic flavours and ingredients.

The success of her cooking classes inspired her to write her first book The Best of Epicure’s Vegetarian Cuisines of the World, which was awarded the ‘Best Vegetarian Book in the World’, at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards 2002, considered to be the Oscars of the cookery world, in the cookbook category.

She has delivered ten more books so far and each one of them is super-successes. Her book, Delectable Desserts of the World, has received an honorable mention at the World Media Awards 2006 in the Best Foreign Cookbook in the World category. Exciting Vegetarian Cuisines of the World placed her among the ‘Top Ten Chefs in the World’ for her research on vegetarian cuisines, at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards at Paris Book Fair 2011.

At a show celebrating 20 years of Gourmand World Cookbook Awards it was announced that Asha’s first book Vegetarian Cuisines of the World was chosen as one of the ‘Top 20 Books in the World’ and is amongst the ‘Best of the Best in the World’.

Her latest activity includes consulting to eminent caterers and restaurants in Mumbai, for menu planning as well as training people in international cuisines, designed to client needs. Her cookery videos are now available on YouTube. She also volunteers at SPJ Sadhana School and Om Creations.

 

Every Gift Matters- Book Launch Event

November 4th, 2016 a book launch was organized by FLO, Ficci Ladies Organisation.
The book Every Gift Matters has been authored by Carrie Morgridge, Vice President,Morgridge Family Foundation.
Amitabh Saha and Parth Vasavada Of Yuva Unstoppable, were mainly responsible for bringing Carrie to India for a hands on experience and an indepth insight to the needs of our society to which her organisation could provide funds through various non profit organisations and help improve conditions in various sectors.
Carrie is a Renowned philanthropist and works tirelessly to give leverage to the money funded by her organisation so as to create maximum impact of every dollar spent.
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Her first gift in this step, in India, was a funding of $10,000 to Yuva Unstoppable.
To their credit Yuva Unstoppable surprised Carrie by showing how much more they achieved by that funding which was used to provide toilets in schools and provide much cleaner healthier atmosphere.
The book, Every Gift Matters also reflects Carrie’s vision of funding wisely to maximize the benefits to a larger section of society.
The book makes for a fascinating read underlining the need for wise funding.(Read the review here)

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Carrie was kind enough to share a lot of interesting moments from her life, some of which she has incorporated in the book too, which made for an interesting talk.

Talking at her debut book Carrie Morgridge said, “The smallest donation on the planet can transform a life – I have this first hand. And, the best part is, it transforms two lives: the one who receives and the one who gives. Through my book Every Gift Matters, I have shared real-life stories of how having a hands-on approach to giving has transformed lives including my own. I believe that anyone and everyone can make a difference in their community, no matter what the size of the gift. The first step is believing you can – are you ready to change the world?”

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I also managed to have a one on one conversation with Carrie and tried to understand what it takes to become an author. Here is the excerpt from my interview with her


Ikreate: Which books have made an impact in your life?


Carrie: Jim Collins – Good to Great

Malcolm Gladwell – All books, but in particular, Outliers and The Tipping Point

Adam Grant – Originals

Malala


Ikreate: What was the hardest part of writing a book on philanthropy?


Carrie: Editing down the great stories worth sharing


Ikreate: Which was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why?


Carrie: All the chapters to me were pretty darn great. I had the hardest time writing chapter two, as I never like to talk about myself and it took weeks for me to write. What I love, is not what I think is the best chapter, but how people share with me their personal stories of how they related to the book or the story.


Ikreate: What were your learnings while writing this book?


Carrie: I was very surprised when I asked the people in the book to help me proof what I had written about them. All the people in the book, jumped at the chance to help me. I had at some pointed helped them, and they all felt that helping me in return was an honour. Their help was a beautiful way to say Thank You.


Ikreate: Do you think someone could be a writer if they don’t feel emotions strongly?


Carrie: A person writing a technical book would be very successful without emotion. However, if you are writing a story about love and compassion the author must have that in their own heart.


Ikreate: What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?


Carrie: I have had the pleasure of becoming friends with authors who are changing the world. Dr. Jane Goodall, Amy Newmark Salmon Kahn, Marc Turcek, Dr. Kirk Johnson, Dr. Pamela Cantor and Rick Hess all share the same passion about the world as we do. They want to help others help themselves, and make our planet a better place to live.


Ikreate: What is the key message in your book that you hope readers will grasp?


Carrie: You have to find your passion to really make a difference. Once you find your passion, you have to do something with it.


Ikreate: How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?


Carrie: Being my first book, I enjoyed the process immensely. I did catch the bug for writing, and I enjoy writing blogs. My first major blog was written this summer as my husband and I mountain biked across the country, unsupported. You can find it at morgridgefamilyfoundation.org/blog


Ikreate: What kind of research do you do, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?


Carrie: My style of writing is not based on research; I share stories that I personally live. As for book two, it is still mulling around in my heart and head.


Ikreate: Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?


Carrie: I do read the book reviews, and I also now write book reviews. Once I was a published author I realized how important they are. I have one bad review, and to be honest it hurt, but I learned from it, and I hope I will be a better writer in the future. On this trip to India, I am asking the good people of India to write a review. Since I only have 24 reviews on amazon, it will be really easy to see the impact I have on India, and I hope a way to hear from people in this wonderful country who are making a difference. This is not a time to ask for money. I will not fund projects from book reviews, just to be clear.


Ikreate: What would you like to suggest to other aspiring authors?


Carrie: Never give up. We all have a story to tell, so keep at it. It you work hard, and don’t take the comments from people in the business to hard, you can become a best seller. What my agent and publisher said was such a gift, was my willing to learn to perfect writing and to accept all changes without having my feelings hurt.


Ikreate: What are your future project(s)?


Carrie: I am about to turn 50 this year, and in celebrating this big birthday with an zero, I have asked 50 friends to join me on 50 islands. The Island is their choice, and I have a year to complete the goal. The catch is that we have to “do something philanthropic while on the Island”. I think this will inspire me to go more, see more, do more.


Do read the book and I am sure it will change your mind set towards Philanthropy as it changed mine.

Chef Ranveer Brar Launches His Maiden Book “Come Into My Kitchen” At Junglee Billee

Being a foodie, exploring different cuisines becomes the most natural things to do and meeting a celebrity chef is always like a dream come true. And very recently it happened to me when one of the most popular celebrity chefs Ranveer Brar launched his maiden book “Come Into My Kitchen”. The launch was very exclusive for a selected few and I consider myself lucky to have been invited for such an event. All this happened because the venue for the launch was a very happening place in the heart of South Delhi, Junglee Billee in GK1, whose head chef Pawan Bisht is a close friend. He personally invited me for the event, and though it was a working day but I could neither ignore Pawan’s invite and nor the opportunity of meeting Chef Ranveer Brar in person.

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As I reached the place, Ranveer was casually standing and interacting with those present. Instantly he came across as a very warm and down to earth person. I asked him about his book, to which he replied” This book reflects me as a person; I have shared recipes which are close to my heart and which I prepare in my kitchen. I have also shared my knowledge regarding the process of making food, for my readers to understand taste, food presentation etc. in a simple way and I hope they enjoy reading it”.

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He also gave me a personalized autographed copy of his book and I just loved it.

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The ambience of Junglee Billee always adds a lot of value to events and this was no different. Finger licking good food was served along with Red Wine Sangrias; the weather too was just perfect, light drizzle with cool breeze. I relished some of the delicacies prepared by Pawan, and especially loved the Prawn Canopies and Chicken Tikka. I loved the way the tikka was presented in a cutting chai glass.

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After a hearty chat with Ranveer Brar and enjoying good food and wine, I came back home happy with the book in my hand to be shared with another chef in my home, my mom.

Both me and my mom have enjoyed reading the book, the book encapsulates Ranveer’s life from his early childhood days to becoming a celebrity chef and has collection of most amazing recipes and also as mentioned by Ranveer, an insight into the entire process of food and tasting. The images used in the book tempt you to actually get up and try making that dish there and then.

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Most of the recipes are easy and can be prepared in our kitchens without worrying too much about the fancy ingredients. I am sharing one of the recipes that I personally loved and I am sure you too would try it.
Also don’t forget to get yourself a copy of this amazing book by Chef Ranveer Brar, “Come Into My Kitchen”.

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