Savory, crispy and buttery comfort 

This month, I’m crushing on an old favorite that I just fell back in love with: the Ghee Dosa from Saffron Valley in Utah are Southern India’s answer to crepes. But really, the phrase “comparing apples to oranges” should be changed to “comparing dosas to crepes.” While both are thin batters cooked on a piping-hot griddle, the similarities end there. You won’t find flour, eggs or milk in the dosa batter. 

Dosas are made with fermented rice and lentils and are naturally gluten-free, vegetarian and nutritious. The grains are soaked for a day, blended and left to ferment until the batter is light and frothy. Unlike the Ethiopian injera (a tartly fermented, springy teff crepe), the Indian dosa has sweet undertones. Once the batter is ready, it is poured off onto a hot, round griddle (called a tava). The chef spreads it uniformly with a ladle, often leading to ‘stripes’ in the finished dosa. It is typically cooked in ghee, with the clarified butter infusing it with a rich flavor and creating lacy edges. It is served stuffed with a savory filling or rolled into an inverted waffle cone. 

Saffron Valley serves its dosas four different ways and my favorite is the Ghee Dosa. It is cooked and served plain, painted with extra ghee for a rich blank canvas. If you love anything crispy, you too will crush on this. It comes to the table—show-stopper style—smelling like the griddle and ready to break apart. Eat the first bite plain and let the dosa dissolve in your mouth. It is thin and delicate enough that it borders savory cotton candy, leaving a toasty flavor. 

When you order a dosa at Saffron Valley, it’s not just the dosa you’re getting. It’s a complete sensory experience. The dosa is typically served with small dishes of fresh coconut chutney, tomato chutney and sambar (a lentil and vegetable dipping soup with a hint of tamarind). The coconut chutney is a sweet and cool contrast, the tomato chutney is an umami bomb with a hint of heat, and the sambar adds some density. It’s the perfect shared appetizer.

Saffron Valley has three stuffed dosas, each a unique culinary adventure. The Masala Dosa, a traditional favorite, is filled with spiced mashed potatoes. The Paneer Spring Dosa is a medley of seasonal vegetables, Indian-style cottage cheese and sautéed spiced potatoes. For a heartier option, there’s the Chicken Tikka Dosa, stuffed with pulled chicken in a flavorful tikka sauce. Each portion is perfect for one or two people and comes with the chutneys and sambar. 

If You Go

SAFFRON VALLEY
Downtown, Sugar House,
South Jordan and Riverton
saffronvalley.com

Gather your witches and get ready to spill the tea at The Grand America Hotel’s annual Witches High Tea. Spend an afternoon luxuriating around an intimate table, sipping tea, enjoying bites like sandwiches, pastries and fall-themed desserts. Dressed in your autumnal best, you’ll feel like royalty walking into the Lobby Lounge that lives up to the hotel name, being grand in every sense of the meaning. At select times, the high tea features a live harpist adding to the relaxing and elevated ambiance.

Donning your favorite witch hat and upturned pinky, the tea party begins with a welcome table of chantilly and berries waiting for you to devour. After you’ve finished, select from a variety of teas, including their seasonal-specialty tea— autumn leaves, that I opted for and loved. The spiced aroma and warming effect completed the Halloween themed event and complimented the seasonal treats. If you’d prefer a mommy-daughter date, they offer a selection of hot chocolates and kid-friendly sandwiches; the little ones will love dressing up as a witch and spending an afternoon with their favorite person. When you’re finished, pursue The Grand America shops and sights, all dressed up for the Halloween occasion. Don’t forget to stop by the courtyard for some fresh air, views of the fountains and beautifully kept landscaping. 

If you can’t make it for the Witches Tea, they also offer Holiday Tea with delightful winter treats perfect for season’s greetings. If you love the experience and are looking to do it again, without the holiday themes, they also offer year-round afternoon tea. 

For more holiday fun, visit the hotel for a Grand thanksgiving dinner at Laurel Brasserie and Bar, where they are offering a “Thanksgiving meal without the stress and mess of cooking.” And be sure to get the holidays off to a festive start by joining their indoor Holiday Window Stroll. You can view all their seasonal, holiday window displays that feature a new theme each year, and stop to see their magnificent, life-sized gingerbread house. 

It’s a casserole with weight

At the juniper inn take out restaurant in Logan, whatever you’re ordering comes with the option of “au gratin” potatoes. But locals know this cheesy, calorie-laden side dish of scalloped Idaho Russets dusted with cornflakes by its more specific taxonomy: “Funeral Potatoes.”

The gloomy moniker comes from the prevalence of this easy-to-prepare casserole at post-graveside-service receptions in LDS ward houses and grieving open houses up and down the Jell-O Belt (Utah, Southeastern Idaho, Off-Off-The-Strip Las Vegas and Orange County, Calif.). It is a member of the genus Hot Dish, native to the northern plains of the Midwestern United States, but its Utah prominence has evolved as a result of two distinct, selective factors: No. 1 large families and No. 2 even larger gatherings (such as funerals) attended by multiple large families.

So-called funeral potatoes are also commonly sighted at family reunions, both stake and ward picnics/campouts, wedding receptions and any occasion where hungry multitudes require easy, cheesy calories. 

Its plumage varies from Relief Society Cookbook region to region, but the staples are: Frozen hashbrown potatoes, copious amounts of mild cheddar and/or Monterey Jack cheese (sharper cheese is eschewed), a can of cream of mushroom soup (generic brand varieties preferred), lots of margarine and commercial sour cream and a “crisp” topping such as corn flakes (again, off-brand) or potato chips for even more sodium. Bake at 350 for one hour, seal with foil, place on a foldout, ward-house table and insert spoon. (Find a full recipe from the late and great Mary Malouf here)

The principal consumers of Funeral Potatoes are LDS bishops, morticians and Relief Society and Elders’ Quorum presidents. Funeral Potatoes started popping up on menus with cheeky chef-driven flair (Gruyere, anyone?) a few years ago, and, of course, the  aforementioned Juniper Take Out and Restaurant is a classic source.

But Utah is just recently coming to terms with its own food identity. One day we will have our own evangelist of regional cuisine—a Paula Deen with a Hyrum accent. And where cheese grits are on the menu at The Lady & Sons in Savannah, funeral potatoes will one day occupy the same spot on the buffet at Sister Wives or some such aptly named Temple of Utah’s own delicacies.