Subho Bijoya and happy Dussera 2018!

I was out of the country last year , vacationing in the US of A, so had huge plans for Durga puja this year. But as luck would have it, all my plans went up in the air as an accident rendered me immobile. Not only were the muscles of my hands, shoulder and upper back damaged, as well as the wrists, but also I ended up with a huge cut across my face, nose and chin.
Not to mention the swelling that came with it .... I couldn't recognise my own self in the mirror.

So the days passed by in a haze of pain killers and before I knew it, it was Navami already.
And since I don't like to be defeated, especially by life, I took this challenge too, just like I have the numerous times it has thrown me one and went to watch the Aarti in the evening. Yes bruised body and face notwithstanding.

The sound of the dhaaks, the conch blowing, the priest performing aarti and the ringing the bell, the smell of camphor and dhuno in the air, the crowd watching mesmerised ..... everything was like a balm on my pain and I came back home with a feeling of peace and the belief that all will be well soon.
Today dawned beautiful after last night's heavy rain and I craved the bhog or from the puja pandal that I missed this time.
And then decided to cook some as soon as the pain killer started to work.

So here is my plate of khichuri bhog. 
I made the dryish bhaja khichuri, cauliflower and potatoes cooked with white matar/chana/ legumes, tomato and khejur er chaatni , beguni / batter fried brinjal and batter fried green chillies.
B fried papad too but a little later,so not in the picture.

I plated everything together, trying to replicate the bhoger thala/plate, where everything is served in one plate.
I absolutely love the mix of flavours .... the dry khichuri, the gravy of the curry, the sweetness of the tomato chatni, along with the crunch of  the papad.

Savoured this meal and was glad I decided to do it.
Also, I am glad that I believe tomorrow never comes.

Live like you want to and you will have no regrets. Ever.
All you need is a little will and a lot of power.

Shubho Bijoya Dashami and happy Dusherra!! .
May your life be filled with light, love and everything good.

Pan fried Sabudana vada

" Koto deri hoye geyche! I need to make that sabu for b'fast! And it is already 9:30!", I exclaimed.

We were sitting ... no piling up on one another on the bed in the first guest room .... chatting and remicising, the cups of our morning tea and the biscuit jars still sitting on the tray.
I sat snuggled to Jethima. My cousin, her younger daughter, had already taken up my Ma's lap.
Another cousin stands near the bed, threatening and jostling with us for space.
Kakima sat in her usual pose with her legs straight in front of her, leaning on the head rest.
She was already onto her second paan.
Shejo kaku and Ranga kaku half sat, half laid at the other  end of the bed. Jethumoni was the only one who sat properly in a chair by the window.

Our talks were all about memories, of the long gone days at Dadu's house and our childhood stories. Small bits and pieces of memories came up spread a warm blanket all over us.
A lot of what we were talking of does not exist anymore. Neither Dadu, nor Thamma, the house and our recent loss of Bapi and then Didi.
All gone.
Leaving us with memories; just happy memories.

And then I realized how late it was and jumped up to go to the kitchen to make breakfast of the Sabudana Khichdi.
And hearing me exclaim, Ranga kaku jumped up too.

"Sabu?!!"
"Yes!"
"Kar jor holo abar? Boudi tomar? "

I laughed.
Sabu or tapioca pearls means two things to a Bengali ... illness or a fast.
If you have fever, you have sabu cooked in milk. If you have an upset tummy you have sabu cooked in water with a little salt and lemon juice.
Every Bengali's 'ugh' memories of childhood will definitely have this ghost of boiled sabu.
And if there was a puja in the house and the ladies are fasting, they would make a mash of soaked sabudana with fruits and milk or curd.

I assured kaku that nobody is ill and I was just going to cook sabudana for breakfast.
"Eyi na na, ami oi sabu tabu khabo na!" , Kaku was truly worried by now.

I had planned to make the Sabudana khichadi and prayed that he liked it.

While writing about this, I was wondering what recipe to publish as I have already posted the Sabudana khichadi.
And then  I came across a few photographs of the Sabudana vadas that I had made once.

These vadas are not deep fried, as the traditional ones are.
Instead I have brushed them with a little ghee and toasted them on a pan.
They are very crisp on the outside and very soft inside.
Perfect melt in the mouth texture.
And guilt free too.

Need :

Sabudana or Tapioca pearls - 1 cup, soaked overnight in enough water
Boiled potatoes - 1, medium
Roasted and crushed groundnuts - 5 to 6 tbsp
Fresh green chillies - chopped
Red chilli powder
Salt - to taste
Sugar - to taste
Ghee - to brush the vadas with

How to :

Mash everything, except the ghee, together.

Shape into small flat tikkis.
The traditional ones are shaped round because they are deep fried.
We need to shape these flat so that they cook well on a flat surface.

Heat a flat pan or a tawa .... ( they should be well seasoned ).
Brush it with a little ghee and place the vadas on it.
You can cover them for a while too.

When one side turns brown, turn them over and brush them with some more ghee.
Let them cook till the outside is crisp and brown.

Serve hot with tea.

These vadas are very high in calories and hence very filling too.
A couple of them will take you through a good part of the day or evening easily.

They go great with this beautiful Amti on the side. A complete meal when you are doing a vrat or fasting.

Enjoy!!

And oh, the family loved the Sabudana khichadi.
Which is why I am going to make these vadas for tea time next.

Take care all.
See you again soon.

Peanuts and Kokum Amti

 

It is a windy day. While the wind howls outside, threatening to blow away my freshly done laundry ... 

that I have entrusted so to the sun ... it is quiet inside the house.

Yes, finally ... even if it is  for a few hours.

I have the kitchen and Jagjit Singh all to myself.

Oh .. I do have Follet all to myself too.

But am multitasking ... and wouldn't want the guy to feel neglected.

So right now ... just my kitchen and Jaggu Singh it will be.

And my thoughts.

Recently I have been a little too rough on people.

But on only those who take me for granted.

I detest insincere people. And those who speak to please me ... I stay away from.

I mean there is a limit to repeating the same things over and over again ... when you don't mean to then why speak wind? 

Since I never expect anything from anybody, I detest anything that comes to my life free of cost.

And I am known for my knack for burning bridges.

Does not take me a moment to know just how well off would I be ... or just how clutter free my life would be ...  in the absence of a particular person or moment or thing.

And switch I off.

People have a knack of becoming friends first, get into your life second and then
tick you off when you do not react to their expectations
 in a predictable way.

And I am a sucker for people crying 'sad','lonely','hurt' ... etc etc. 

Recently a friend's wife left her marital home of one year, called me innumerable times to cry,

 to abuse the husband and his family, to basically lighten herself.

And I am left with the strain of calming her, explaining to her and hoping that she sees light.

All the while keeping in mind that the husband is our friend.

Suddenly ... all quiet.

Last heard ... she is back with the husband and is expecting a baby.

And that explained the husband refusing to return our calls.

Go figure! 

And I refuse to learn.

I still believe in people.

I still welcome them with warmth in my life. 

Soon left to wonder at the 'attitude' or the cold shoulder just recieved.

Soon become a trash can for their woes ... conviniently dumped on me as they walk ahead in life. 

And I am left with this bane of a good memory ... storing every bit of data ... returning to fill me with gloom once in a while.

How I wish at those times my feet reached my backside ... with a good force.

Anyway ... that explains my deleting people from my life.

People don't like it ... can't do anything.
Have to think of my peace of mind first.

Jagjit Singh is still crooning "Dhoop mein niklo, ghataon mein naha kar dekho ...".How true.

But am not in the mood for lectures right now.Got a post to make.

I have a good number of photographs that are waiting to see the light of the day.

But the hitch that comes is I never remember how I cooked that what.

So while I sit staring at the dish, trying to rake my brains to what went into it and how,
 the dish sits and look back at me helplessly.

Amongst them, there are a few ones that I had posted on the notes section of my fb page.

Picked up one today to post.

 I have always liked this aamti that is usually served with simple 'Vrat'  or 'Upwaas' fares.
This is also a part of the Mahaprasad served at the ISCKON temple.
But I had no idea what went into it.

So when Preeti of ISingcakes & More wrote on FB  that she had this amti as part of her lunch one day, I asked for the recipe.
She promptly gave it to me.

And here it is ... what a beautifully flavoured aamti this is.
The blend of fresh green chillies with the kokum gives it fresh as well as tangy flavour.
I have been making this over and over again for a while now.
Thanks Preeti!

Need :
Peanuts/ Groundnuts - half a small cup ( dry roasted and skinned )
Kokum - 3 - 4 pieces
Green chillies - 2
Ghee - half a teaspoon
Cumin seeds / jeera - a small pinch
Salt to taste
Water - a cupful

How to:
Grind the peanuts in a mixie ( I just half crushed them as I like the small bits in a spoonful)
Make a paste of the kokum and green chillies.
(Preeti grinds them together with the peanuts ... I did not ... which is why my aamti lacks the colour hers has)

Heat ghee in a pan. Add the cumin seeds. When they start to splutter add the peanuts and the kokum paste.
Add water and salt.
Bring to a boil and simmer for around 5 minutes.
Check consistency .. if needed add more water and bring to a simmer again. 

Serve hot with sabudana khichdi.
It is a great side with these beautiful Sabudana vadas too.
Makes a vrat worth looking forward to.
Enjoy!!

Sabudana khichdi

 This is another favorite that I learnt to make after a lot of trials.

Sabudana khichdi is made regularly, almost every week, in Maharashtrian households, on vrat or days of fasting ... usually a Thursday. Or on festivals that require fasting as a ritual.
High on starch, this is the perfect thing to fill you till you can have a full meal.

Most people find making this tricky. So did I. The key is to have the sabudana properly soaked. My Maharashtrian friend had told me to soak it for 1 hour and then take out of the water and spread it on a flat plate and leave it overnight.

But later I came up with my own version of soaking it. I just wash the sabudana well and soak it with water only skimming the top. Not too much ... too much water will make it soft ... and when frying it, the moisture will turn it lumpy.
 About an hour or two later, I leave it in the fridge, without a cover on  ... for the next day / the day after .... any day ... no probs.
 All I have to do is take it out and crumble with hands .... it loosens out and is ready.

Another thing that I do when I visit my home ( which is for a little longer time ) is to prepare the whole thing and leave it in the fridge ... (no potatoes then) .... all hubby has to do is heat oil and do the tempering. Ready in minutes. :-)

Need :

Soaked sabudana
Roasted and crushed groundnuts
Boiled potatoes - peeled and roughly crushed into medium sized pieces
Curry leaves
Mustard seeds
Chopped green chillies
A little red chilli powder
Salt to taste
Sugar ... a little more than usual ... the perfect sabudana khichdi is slightly sweetish
Ghee


How to :

To prepare the sabudana mixture ..... put the soaked sabudana in a bowl.
Add salt, sugar, red chilli powder and the crushed groundnuts to it and mix well ... loosely seperating the pearls.

H eat ghee in a kadahi.
Add the mustard seeds, curry leaves, green chillies and the crushed boiled potatoes.
Fry for a while.
Add just a little salt for the potatoes.
Fry well and then add the sabudana mixture.
 Mix well and fry for sometime.

Remove from heat and serve hot.

It is usually eaten with curd on the side. Or Kokum ki Amti. 

Enjoy!!