To this day I can recall the sensation of those cot bars pressed up coldly against my toddler’s face, my nose poked out as far as possible and searching the air for that aromatic packet of cardamom, fish heads, and palm oil, which, even at that young age, somehow suggested there were unfathomable riches to be discovered and savored in the free world beyond. - The Hundred-Foot Journey

The above passage is from the amazing book The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais. I settled in with this book one snowy evening a few months back and as soon as I read that passage I knew I was in for a treat. A visual treat as well as a literary one. The Hundred-Foot Journey is food for your soul.

When you read the book you really do go on a journey. You visit India, London and rural France vividly and smell every aroma whether it is from the stove or the scenery so beautifully narrated.

I don’t want you to think it is all about food because it isn’t. It is about cultural differences, racial intolerance’s and above all the human psyche. Our “hero” Hassan not only takes a journey with his culinary learnings but also learns about the importance of family and friends. I think it is a journey that each of us take every day and it really resonated with me as a reader.

Of course I would be doing you a disservice if I didn’t talk about love because there was a lot of that in the book. Not just between family and lovers but pure love of food. When food is talked about in this book you will almost be able to smell it and you will definitely crave it. The infusion of two different cuisines is like falling love. Two totally different people meet and if there is enough chemistry they marry and become one. Okay, I will stop being sappy now

This is a book to be savored, enjoyed and fallen in love with. I am so excited Dreamworks is making this into a movie. I can’t wait to see the Kadam family, Madame Mallory, and Marguerite come alive on the big screen.

And it was on these seats that I had my first taste of England: a chilled and soggy egg-salad sandwich wrapped in a triangle of plastic. It is the bread, in particular, that I remember, the way it dissolved on my tongue. Never before had I experienced anything so determinedly tasteless, wet, and white. - The Hundred-Foot Journey

I am anxious to see how they adapt the book into a movie. Will I fall in love with the movie, as I did the book? Time will tell but I can tell you I am counting the days til the August 8th 2014 release. Also, I fell in love with the trailer and have watched it several times now

Dreamworks has been nice enough to share a recipe with you. I hope you will try it but don’t be surprised if you leave your town for just a little while and go on a culinary journey.

Beef Bourguinon al a Hassan:

The Hundred-Foot Journey:

In The Hundred-Foot Journey, Hassan Kadam (Manish Dayal) is a culinary ingénue with the gastronomic equivalent of perfect pitch. Displaced from their native India, the Kadam family, led by Papa (Om Puri), settles in the quaint village of Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val in the south of France. Filled with charm, it is both picturesque and elegant – the ideal place to settle down and open an Indian restaurant, the Maison Mumbai. That is, until the chilly chef proprietress of Le Saule Pleureur, a Michelin starred, classical French restaurant run by Madame Mallory (Academy Award®-winner Helen Mirren), gets wind of it. Her icy protests against the new Indian restaurant a hundred feet from her own, escalate to all out war between the two establishments – until Hassan’s passion for French haute cuisine and for Mme. Mallory’s enchanting sous chef, Marguerite (Charlotte Le Bon), combine with his mysteriously delicious talent to weave magic between their two cultures and imbue Saint-Antonin with the flavors of life that even Mme. Mallory cannot ignore. At first Mme. Mallory’s culinary rival, she eventually recognizes Hassan’s gift as a chef and takes him under her wing.

“The Hundred-Foot Journey” abounds with flavors that burst across the tongue. A stimulating triumph over exile, blossoming with passion and heart, with marjoram and madras, it is a portrayal of two worlds colliding and one boy’s drive to find the comfort of home, in every pot, wherever he may be.

Starring: Helen Mirren, Manish Dayal, Om Puri, Charlotte Le Bon
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