Bread, bond, love

Every Friday Dr Chandini SethiShah wraps up her appointments by 6 pm It is time for the fulltime surgeon to swap her doctorrsquos lab coat for a bakerrsquos apron Her cosy home kitchen off Pali Mala Road in Bandra always smells of freshlybaked sourdoughFirst she takes a moment to check her starter Douce Megravere which she has nurtured since 2016 A starter is a mixture of flour and water that hosts a stable blend of beneficial bacteria and wild yeasts which is fed continuously twice daily and is used to leaven bread No one is allowed to touch it She then preps the ingredientsmdashflour water and saltmdashwith a scientistrsquos precisionDoctor duo Dr Prarthana Shah and her mother Dr Chandini SethiShah love baking sourdough PicKirti Surve ParadeHer daughter doctor and integrative health coach Prarthana Shah is her partner in crime The duorsquos baking session begins in the evening and goes well into the night Chandini preps the dough wraps it in linen and gently pats it into the fridge for the night ready to go into the oven next morningBesides baking Prarthana is in charge of curating the playlistmdashfrom Andrea Bocelli to Whitney Houston to Kenny Rogers Neil Diamond and Elvismdashthinking new flavours and capturing photos and videosMost sourdoughs are dished off to friends and family or served at dinner parties at the familyrsquos residence Last weekend for the first time they held a bake sale ldquoWe made 15 sourdough breads in two days and they were sold off in no timerdquo says PrarthanaChandini learned to cook and bake from her mother a seasoned baker in the 1970s ldquoMom studied nutrition at Lady Irwin College in Delhi and was inspired by her British teachers to bake Every birthday I had the most delicious cakes with icingrdquo recalls Chandini who also fondly remembers her nanirsquos vanilla cakeAfter 10th grade Chandini pursued her passion by enrolling in a lsquohousewifersquo cooking course at Dadar Catering College She continued cooking even as she studied medicine at Grant Medical College JJ hospitalLater she took classes with Sonjuhi Baking Academy in Juhu and completed CIAaffiliated courses at Rakhi Vaswanirsquos cooking school in Khar Baking became a family tradition with Chandini and her family taking pride in hosting memorable dinner partiesIn 2016 Chandini was ldquobitten by the sourdough bugrdquo after tasting a good loaf on her travels She attended a workshop by Bengalurubased expert Samriddhi Nayak who now lives in Germany She taught her the science and precision of sourdoughOver the years the duo has attended numerous masterclasses and courses including one by Vanessa Kimbell in the UK where they learned about gut health and adding botanicals to their dough Next month they are heading to Sicily next month to study sourdough fermentation under Sara Owens at the Anna Tasca Lanza cooking schoolSourdough says Chandini requires focus at every stage ldquoYou build a connection with the bread To date sometimes we are on the phone and miss the alarm and wersquoll have a fiasco in the kitchen Someone switches off the AC and the resting sourdough will sulk Sourdough doesnrsquot like changemdashit easily reacts to change in season and humidityrdquo explains Chandini adding that sourdough is also ingredient sensitive ldquoAdd cinnamon and bake time slows down Every bake needs a special calculation There is so much excitement every time a loaf comes out When we have to send out a batch I tell my husband not to inform our friends until they are baked The moment of truth is only when it comes out of the ovenrdquo she smilesThough a constant learner and student Chandini has also conducted masterclasses online during the COVID19 enforced lockdown ldquoOne of the sessions was flatbreads of the world where we made sourdough pizza base pita and pumpkinshaped breadrdquo says Chandini She also conducted a session for the patisserie La Folie In recent years the motherdaughter duo has also tilled a plot of land in Alibaug to grow tomatoes cabbages cauliflowers broccoli and vegetables Next week theyrsquoll be at the farm to harvest riceAs we take a seat at the dining table we are spoilt for choice Walnut and chocolate bread cheese and jalapeno olive and 100 per cent wheat bread and even a quilt of focaccia with rosemary and baby tomatoes Chandini runs a serrated knife through them with utmost care We dunk the bread into balsamic vinegar nibble on cheddar cheese and olives and even pair slices with a batch of kumquats Chandni has pickled The breads wear a crusty coat and a snug softness inside Therersquos pindrop silence as everyone chews immersed ldquoWhat did we have for breakfastrdquo Chandini asks Prarthana breaking the silenceldquoSourdoughrdquo her daughter replies with a smileTo order 9820068744