Pooja’s Way

I had the good fortune to be able to attend a luncheon hosted and catered by Pooja of Pooja’s Way, showcasing ways to eat real food while remaining healthy and conscious of your food choices.  I arrived slightly late due to a train malfunction, but managed to enjoy myself anyway (once I’d calmed down – I detest being late!). 

The first course that greeted me was carrot ginger soup and whole grain toasts with tamarind date chutney & dairy free raita.  I’ve never been a huge ginger fan, though it was fairly mild here; I took a few spoonfuls and left it.  However, the toast with non-dairy raita was really quite delicious, and I could see making that as an appetizer for my own parties.  Yum. 

Pooja took a moment here to talk to us about the next course, and demonstrate how she made it.  At this point, a few questions were asked, and though perhaps there was a disconnect in the abbreviated response, I don’t really feel the same way as she does about local/organic/sustainable.  Not that I think she’s wrong – I don’t think of people as wrong when it comes to how they live their lives generally (unless you’re harming other people, or yourself) – just that I view the issue much differently.  In any case, it was fun watching her making the salad for the next course. 

The jicama and basil salad, which was really good, had blood orange segments along with a blood orange vinaigrette

The side bit was much more bland to me – wild salmon dill patties with citrus aioli.  The flavor didn’t particularly stand out to me. 

Check out that gorgeous salad: eating a brightly colored salad – or any brightly colored meal, really – helps lift your spirits and make you eat less.  I don’t know if that’s scientific, but that’s how I felt all those years that I bento’d; if my meal was aesthetically pleasing, I tended to eat it more slowly, taking time to enjoy it, both looking and chewing, and I realized I was full faster.  Good tip for me, anyway. 

And then the last course: unrefined vanilla cake with hazelnut cocoa cashew frosting. 

Absolutely gorgeous, but even better?  It tasted fantastic.  I would never believe this cake could be at all good for me, but apparently, it wasn’t ‘that bad’ for me either.  Nice.  I had to stop myself from gobbling the whole thing immediately. 

Be sure to check out Pooja’s Way for recipes, tips, videos, and more – lots of good information and tons of great recipes for all of these delicious dishes and more. 

I certainly learned a lot that day!  Thanks again to Pooja for hosting the event.