CURRY AND SPICE

.... and it indeed was a hectic week... I really did not have anytime to say "Hello" to my readers. I hope you love me enough not to have left me by now? It is a sunny Sunday morning and there is the most unexpected but wonderful offer from the man of the house.... lets go for a beach ride wifey.... the wifey is on cloud nine but she prefers to sit and share this recipe of sweet done with fresh orange juice, paneer / chena, sugar and some instant khoya... that I prepare at home. I found it to be the best way to say "Subha Bijoya".... "Happy Dussehra" to my readers!.... the beach ride can happen next... I am unwilling to miss this "once in a blue moon offer" either.... The week was beautiful but tiring. I am not a kind of person who likes to wear make up everyday and go out to socialise, neither my men are. There is nothing like sitting and relaxing in a quiet, serene environment for us ..... there has to have a gap of at least fifteen days to do some kind of socialisation .... but all three of us in the family love to break or refute this norm during Durga Pooja.... our biggest festival. Some of my fellow bloggers have so beautifully explained what Durga Pooja actually means ..... it is something beyond a community celebration or in particular a religious festival.... it is magnanimous in character or fervour.... whatever. I lack my friends' talent and will not go for any further details on mythology or history of it. I ate a lot, wore eight sarees from my not so exclusive collection, fought with my men on what to wear and what not to, pestered my lazy brother over phone to go out with his fun loving wife and send me some clicks and the last day of pujo arrived. On this day, the ladies wear red & white based saree and all the available jewelries in their locker, bid a good bye to the mother and her kids for a year offering her sweets, vermilion, flowers seeking her blessings for the dear ones. While Bengal and Bengalis living elsewhere celebrated Bijaya Dashami yesterday, it was also Dussehra for the rest of India and for those living abroad too marking Lord Rama's victory over demon Ravana. I am not so much fond of the lord because he failed to respect his own woman..... my tall, dark, thin framed man is better who believes in and promotes gender equality. Our problem is we worship the Lord who did not have a bit of gender equality sense in him and the next moment refute all societal norms to show how progressive we are. Women's Liberation is a noble concept and is the need of the hour, it is achievable when we both work together towards it.... and not in rebuking each other. I will stick to my belief always..... Now if I am going to post a naru or sweet recipe, I will not at all think whether it is a man thing or a woman thing, everyone is capable of it if they have the passion for cooking. As for diligence, I lack it and I go by my heart and will continue doing so....

Oranges, Oranges, Oranges.... I remember it marked the onset of winter in our childhood and the siblings loved having them ... "pithey roddur mekhey barandai boshey".... in the month long winter vacation, both of us siblings loved to have oranges sitting in the balcony of our two roomed rented house. The skin was then made into a paste with milk to prepare a face musk..... that did not help much haha.... doing all these again is self derogatory.... come on we should not be like that self proclaimed progressive, Bengali woman writer who had four men in her life and whose writing seems to me as soft porn.... a Neena Gupta or a Susmita Sen appeals to me more who never did hide the men in their lives, earn their bread without the support of men and raising the daughters with pride.... Praising these strong ladies, I equally take pride in my son and man. How come a Bijoya Dashami post have all these stuff in it, well I use this space to speak my mind.... It is mine. Anyway, this island gives us juicy oranges throughout the year and they are considered auspicious among the natives here. We are always welcome to prepare any dish with it or enjoy eating it as a fruit. I particularly love its citrusy flavour. I had this sandesh / sweet earlier but do not have any idea it is still available in Kolkata or not. I have done it my way with few ingredients like fresh orange juice, paneer [Indian Cottage Cheese], instantly made khoya kheer at home, sugar. I am pretty sure you will love to do them together with me.

INGREDIENTS : [for the instant khoya kheer]
Milk : 1/2big medium cup
Milk Powder : 1medium cup
Ghee : 2-3tbsp

INGREDIENTS : [for the kheer komola sandesh]
The instant khoya kheer
Orange Juice : 1big cup [fresh]
Orange Pulp : 1/2 small cup [fresh]
Sugar : 1/2small cup
Green Cardamom Powder : 1/2tsp
Milk : 2lt. for the paneer
Ice cube : 1small cup
Yellow Food Colour : 2 pinch [optional]
Garnish as you wish..

METHOD :
Let us prepare the paneer first. Take the milk in a heavy bottomed vessel and put for boil.

Let it come to boil.... stir at intervals.

We will get the orange juice ready in advance.

Once the milk comes to boil, add the orange juice. As the milk curdles, switch off gas and add the ice cubes.

As the mixture cools down, strain it through a fine, clean, white cloth.

Tie the cloth on to the tap for about an hour.

For the instant khoya kheer, we will mix together the milk powder, milk and ghee in a cup or a bowl. Microwave it at high for 3 minutes, pausing every 1 minute and giving it a stir.

We will take down the cloth after an hour, and take the paneer in a plate. We will mash it for few minutes. Heat a wok atop gas oven and add the paneer.

We will stir it for some time and add the instant khoya kheer, sugar and cardamom powder.

We will add the fresh orange pulp and the yellow food colour now to the wok and fold in well.

Stir gently for 2-3 minutes and transfer the sadness mixture to a plate.

Transfer the entire mixture to a square shaped box once cool. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.

After an hour or so, take out the box and transfer the mixture on to a plate.

Use a knife to shape it as you desire.

Garnish with choice of your dry fruit.

Anytime is a good time for fries & fritters at our home.... the reason why my sweat out sessions at the gym are not that fruitful as they should have been. Who knows what is waiting there for me when I go to live beyond the clouds. I am not bothered who I am going to live with there, I am humble enough to think there is no better moron than me in this world. What bothers me is that will I be served Hilsa, Mutton, Prawns and Pakoras there? Perhaps not ..... else the human race would not have longed for "life" so much.... I presume 80% of my race is a foodie like me... haha. How was Durga Puja spent this year.... it came and went without leaving any remarkable memory to remember. People have really become crazy.... I saw very few people are actually interested in how the mother is worshipped.... what the rituals are. They are more interested in showing off who belongs to which lobby..... how powerful one is in the social forums. Even I love getting clicked, to be seen in media but there has to have a limit.... people crossed that limit. To me my family comes first in any given situation...... off course followed by friends unless anyone is trying to control / conquer me. In the virtual world I wish to remain loyal to people for whom I own a blog. In real life, I do not believe in any lobby or group... if anyone is trying to drag me in to it.... you are just causing breathlessness to to this poor soul ..... I am that disloyal person who you will find beside your hospital bed among very few.... but not in your present ma'am.... present sir group. A very decent and sincere note to few people.... if you cannot show your love to my family when I am seeking so.... I do not need your personal care either .... do not expect me to show any special care or attention towards you. I say all these on behalf of those soft yet firm, compassionate, overly emotional Scorpions who believes the world is his / her home.... my Scorpion "couch partner" made me think that way.... thats a mariner speaking after all. I could have proved it well if only I knew that baking thingi..... woh! I can prepare one dal, one curry, one mixed-veg, rice, chapati by the time I look at the screen and add a little flour here.... take a little a sugar from there..... and then scream..... Cristine..... I forgot to add baking powder.... its all your fault.... she could leave us any day for me... she has not in the last three years .... people can feel vive..... I never hesitate sitting with her in a food joint....... on a day of high pitched shrill notes from me gets her a t-shirt. She knows she never has to stand outside a restaurant with a stroller when we eat at a restaurant. No, I am not trying to get rid of the moron tag.... just a question why do you have to wait for death to see hell.... just look around.... get the feel..... Life... yet is beautiful if we can avoid unnecessary complications.... thats makes me a happy, merry loner.

Trust me, in real life I do not speak 1/4 of what I do here. This space still remains when I am not there... this very thought gives me pleasure. As I say we are world citizens as a family though my blog does not reflect that. Baking classes here are too expensive .... given we live in an exclusively expensive island. When I look at the superbly done row houses .... the husband says wife do not even look. The wife is adamant.... husband.... they can invite us over tea.... 'bahar itna sundar... na janey andar kaisa hoga'..... ahah.... and we are unable or unwilling even to pay the 35% extra stamp duty we as foreigners are supposed to buy a decent flat in a condominium. It is better to visit the Asian store and buy a 1-1/2 kg weight 'Padmar Ilish' for 35-40 dollars and please your tummy. If you still want to kiss me..... here I am.... spare my lips but... haha.... I am in a happy mood.... you see my curry leaves and mint leaves plants are growing together giving space to each other.... wish we could be that way....

Here are some fries with a chilled dip for all our friends and their kids spread worldwide.... for the angels I have used less chillies, you can skip it entirely as we are using black pepper powder. It is the season for 'kumropotash'.... I wonder how people curve so beautifully on it.... even more wonder thinking do they waste the flesh? Did Sukumar Ray know about Halloween when he wrote "Kumropotash?" If you are not using the flesh.... send it to me.... I will prepare some "kumro chechki" with pumpkin and coconut.... or "batichochhori" with pumpkin, potato and prawns.... resend. Meanwhile, let me prepare this easy, irresistibly tempting vegetarian appetiser with shredded potato, chopped peanut, onion, little of chopped green chilli, chopped coriander leaves, refined flour, corn flour, bread crumbs. I named this superbly crisp fritters CRISP POTATO-PEANUT COINS and served it with DATES-YOGURT DIP. We also had a beetroot-onion salad and a soya sauce-green chilli dip with it. Both recipes for CRISP POTATO-PEANUT COINS WITH DATES-YOGURT DIP is below with few stepwise pictures.... Shall we do them together and continue with the festive mood?

INGREDIENTS : [for the Dates-Yogurt Dip]

Plain Yogurt : 150-200gm
Dates : 1/2small cup [chopped]
Onion : 1tbsp [chopped]
Green Chilli : 1/4tsp [chopped]
Coriander Leaves : 1tbsp [chopped]
Black Salt : 2-3pinches

INGREDIENTS :
Potato : 2big [peeled and shredded]
Green Chilli : 2 [chopped, optional]
Peanut : 1/2medium cup [chopped]
Onion : 1medium [chopped]
Coriander : 2-3tbsp [chopped]
Corn Flour : 1tbsp
Flour : 2tbsp
Bread Crumb : 1big cup + 1tbsp
Black Pepper Powder : 1/4tsp
Salt : As Required
Oil : 150-200ml [left over can be used later]

We will do first all the chopping that is required. Let us prepare the dates-yogurt dip first and set it for chill.

Take the plain yogurt and and black salt in a bowl and whisk well. Add the chopped dates, onion, coriander and little of the chopped green chillies if the kids are not having it. Transfer to a serving bowl and place it in the refrigerator to chill.

For the superbly crisp potato-peanut coins we will peel and shred the potatoes, soak them in salted water for 1/2 an hour.

Then we will pour them in a strainer, squeeze any excess water from them and keep in a plate.

Get your chopped peanuts ready too.

Take all the ingredients for the coin fritters in a big bowl.... shredded potato, chopped onion, coriander, little of chopped green chilli, chopped peanuts, corn flour, refined flour, 1tbsp of bread crumb, turmeric powder, salt.

Mix the entire mixture very well without adding any water.

We will take 1 cup of bread flour in a plate. We will take small portions of the mixture and shape as coins. Coat them well with the bread crumb.

Once done we will refrigerate them for an hour or so. Take out and coat them again with bread flour.

Heat oil in a wok and deep fry the fritters in batches.

Once done, place them on to tissue papers for the excess oil to soak.

Arrange them in a serving plate and enjoy fresh and hot with the dates-yogurt dip. We also had some soya sauce-chilli dip and a beetroot-onion salad alongside. I do not know if it was world in a platter or not.... but it was something to be thoroughly enjoyed.

Finally the busy early autumn schedule this year seems to have come to a pause.... I will not use the word 'end'.... festivity is a part of our lives.... it is all about the magnitude of it. Before Diwali... there is a breather period of fifteen days.... How will I spend it? relaxing with the usual routine and preparing some sweet and salted snacks for the occasion. In our childhood, Bijoya Dashami lasted till Kali Pooja / Diwali.... people visited each other, exchanged pleasantries .... had that ritual of "kolakuli"..... that my son kind of kids may call silly hugging. It was after Diwali, we geared up for our examinations.... though for me that "gearing up" never happened.... the reason why my mark sheets are hidden in the dark, secret chamber of the wardrobe. Five days of doing what I am not has come to an end, the last two days I was supposed to wear fair amount of jewelry as part of our ritual while busy preparing goodies for our goddess of wealth but I kept it minimal.... so tired and unwilling I had been but there was no dearth in my effort to worship her with what she loves...... if my mother-in-law has stopped doing it.... I must carry forward the tradition as long as I can.

What am I having right now? two stale pooris / luchis with a cup of tea.... that too after a glass of water with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar which claims to have some slimming effect.... off course not after having two pooris.... that too stale. I am that way... you should not try to find reason in me.... I do what I wish to .... emotionally drained for a long time now, poor observant, with questionable amount of grey matter..... you can call me "ghaar tyara".... that is the Bengali term for an untamed horse. Even, I do not know my next move, I always wish to be left at myself, thats how the wise man at home handles me. Last two days had been very busy..... yet the men at home will revolt if I serve leftover vegetarian meal to them today too.... tomorrow is a Sunday.... Cristine is on leave.... that nightmarish thought of cleaning the kitchen after cooking makes me cook 7-10 dishes on Saturdays. I am too tired to share an elaborate recipe today, let us share this quick and easy recipe of a DESI STYLE EGGPLANT DIP.... done with eggplants, tomatoes, sesame seed, peanuts, olive oil, green chillies, onion and coriander leaves. We only need to roast the tomato and eggplant and the rest is assortment and blending. The onion slices are crispy fried and they add to the taste of the dish. There was off course a meat curry to accompany. We usually have it with poori / luchi / paratha.... I am yet to try making pita at home..... soon will. You can try and test with your choice of mains. Come let us do it together.

INGREDIENTS :
Eggplant : 1big [the fleshy variety]
Tomato : 1medium
Onion : 1medium
Green Chilli : 3-5 [choose yours]
Sesame Seed : 1tbsp
Peanut : 11/2tbsp
Coriander Leaves : 2-3tbsp [roughly chopped]
Salt : As Required
Oil : 2tbsp
Olive Oil : 1tbsp [to drizzle atop]

METHOD :
Wash the eggplant and tomato thoroughly. Pat dry and grease with few drops of oil. We will roast the vegetables one after another atop the gas oven. Once done, place them on a plate and let cool. Once cool.... take off the skin from both the eggplant and tomato.

Chop the coriander leaves roughly discarding the roots, wash. Peel, wash, slice the onion. Heat 2-3tbsp oil in a pan and fry the onion slices till they are crisp and brown. Take out and keep on to a tissue paper.

In the remaining oil, fry the sesame seeds and peanuts lightly till they turn golden brown. Take out. Let cool.

Squeeze the water from the eggplant and place in a blender. Chop the tomato and add it too to it. I usually discard the seeds. Add the salt, washed green chillies, chopped coriander, lightly fried sesame seeds and peanuts.

Blend for 3-4 minutes pausing every 1 minute. We are done. Transfer to a serving bowl. Drizzle some olive oil and garnish with crispy fried sliced onion and some chopped green chillies. Enjoy with your choice of mains.

This recipe demands a pretty long description yet I decided to go ahead with it. I am really not in a mental state to even concentrate on anything at a stretch at the moment. Why so? The son's board examination starts today with his nightmare Hindi.... there will be another paper on Thursday.... then the rest will happen after a gap of five months. You can well understand I am having a nervous breakdown every half an hour with no one paying any such attention to it.... why? because the clever people around know it aggravates the condition. Obviously both of us went to the school to drop him off, the madam in charge understood my condition looking at my face, she even allowed me to go with the son up to his classroom, but he is not my mother's kids.... he blatantly said either you go off else I do not sit for the examination. I cannot make phone calls to the old people back there either.... they get on my nerves more..... " boro scale.. diyechish to? addh dozen pen dibi.... formalities gulo thik moto likhtey bolish barbar.... school canteen e boshey thakbi sharadin.... cheleter porikkhar shomoy phone ta to bondho rakhtey parish...." I am too tired to even spend a single word to convince them that I can spend the entire day at the school or keep blogging at bay for few days if only anyone listens to me at home. I get angry with the old people in the family in such situations.... their fingers are always targetted towards me knowing I deal with the most difficult duo of the world.... they are the master of their own will... well, to a certain extent me too...... However they are, they are mine .... End of the day they come home to me and we sit for dinner together. To top up all the tensions and worries within me.... there is another lady with similar anxiety disorder as mine ... she is not my family or may be yes.... is that important? what you may find hilarious is both of us think our kids are too vulnerable and the entire world is conspiring against them.... hahaha.... That is where the two ladies.... with a 25 years of age gap bonds..... wish I could ever tell you the story of her sacrifice for her kids.... if only I had been given the liberty to. Every mother or parent do sacrifice some thing or the other for their kids.... she did a bit more.... If you have seen that.... can feel that... you will definitely respect that ..... therein lies the reason for some of my life time connections inspite of having good amount of differences / distance .... in between.

If I have decided not to talk to the old people for any mental support... or if the son has decided not to allow mumma to sit at the school for the day..... what will mumma do except for something she loves doing ..... share her recipes with the world.... festivity continues for us.... To boost our festive spirit, we need a variety of sweets and snacks... For me whether it is a festival or a family get together or otherwise... food should be the ultimate... rest seems lifeless without it ... haha... I proudly admit I live to eat ..... Kachori is stuffed poori or puffed bread and very much loved among us. The island I live in may not eat Kachori in particular.... but I strongly feel if a fair number of them can eat murtabak... a kind of stuffed paratha or even something similar to our samosa... a thin skinned variety of it.... my kachori stall can earn me a fair amount.... Oh God! my dear readers do not follow ever a person like me who sits and plan but never get out of the couch and try something fruitful. Kachori can be done with a variety of fillings... You just need to mix and match the ingredients from time to time... This time I tried kachori with a filling made with roasted semolina and freshly ground spices. I served it with an instantly made sweet tamarind chutney. Come let us do the SEMOLINA & SPICE STUFFED KACHORI together and serve them with a SWEET TAMARIND CHUTNEY. The platter definitely remain incomplete without hot chai / coffee.. masala or otherwise.

INGREDIENTS : [for the Sweet Tamarind Chutney]
Tamarind : 1/2small cup
Sugar : 1/22tbsp
Black Salt : 2-3pinches
Green Chilli : 1
Ginger Extract : 1/4tsp
Water : 1/2small cup

INGREDIENTS : [for the Semolina & Spice Stuffed Kachori]
Refined Flour : 2big cup
Baking Soda : 1/4tsp
Salt : 1/4tsp
Sugar : 11/2tsp
Semolina : 1medium cup
Cumin Seeds : 1tsp
Coriander Seeds : 11/2tsp
Fennel Seeds : 1/2tsp
Carrom Seeds : 1tsp
Dry Red Chilli : 2-3
Green Cardamom : 2
Cinnamon Stick : 2 one inch stick
Ghee : 3-4tbsp
Oil : 100-200ml [to deep fry]

METHOD :
Let us prepare the filling first. Heat oil in a wok / pan and dry roast the cumin... coriander... fennel.... carom seeds and the dry red chilli for a minute or two.

In the same wok, add 1tbsp ghee. Once hot, add the semolina and roast till it turns golden brown.

Once it is golden brown, add the dry roasted spice mixture and fold in well.

Add sugar and salt to it and stir for 3-4 minutes. Transfer the filling to a bowl and let cool.

For the dough, take the maida, baking soda, salt in a wide mouthed big bowl. Mix well. Add 3-4tbsp ghee.

Rub the entire thing well for 2-3 minutes.

Add water little by little, and keep kneading.

Once done, transfer the mixture to a plate and cover with cling wrap.

After 20 minutes to half an hour, remove cling wrap.... and knead again for another 5-6 minute. You will not get a better chance to practice your punching skills... trust me.

Tear out small portions from the dough and make pockets as below.

Add a good amount of filling right in the middle.

Close from all sides and flatten a bit to form kachori.

Heat oil in a wok and add the green cardamom & cinnamon.... this adds to the flavour of the kachoris.

Fry the kachoris in batches at medium to low heat.

Transfer them on to tissue papers.

For the Sweet Tamarind Chutney, take the tamarind in a grinder discarding the seeds. Add sugar, black salt and the green chilli.... add water.

Grind to a paste. It looks as below.

Pass the entire mixture through a strainer.

The Sweet Tamarind Chutney looks as this.

We will have the fresh and hot SEMOLINA & SPICE STUFFED KACHORI with SWEET TAMARIND CHUTNEY. There have to have hot cups of tea or coffee to complete the platter.

Isn't that the king of all fruits for many of my tribe?.... and what I see around is the versatile use of this magical fruit .... sweet... juicy... yellowish red in the kitchen of so many.... of certified chefs to self taught, homely cooks. I simply loved the idea of not having mango only as a fruit but using it to prepare a number of desserts... from cheese cakes to various desi sweets. Since, you already know that my fingers are not so friendly with bakes.... my kitchen is at most times filled with sweet aroma of desi desserts.... this time with a MANGO HALWA. There will be at least one dessert stored in the refrigerator for the day... I do so for the teen at home, my nocturnal senior and for any sudden guest given that there is no "doi mishtir dokan".... every 200 mts. here..... though there are malls every 1-3 km perhaps.... which has more food stores than clothing shops these days I see. It is so difficult for a foodie diabetic like me to practice self control. So we can always get something or the other for sudden guests within 15 minutes..... but I have grown up in an environment / family where guests were always welcomed with food made with lots of love and care at home... from the drinks to mains to chutney to sweet. It was not the number of items that mattered but the warmth expressed doing so. In the grandmother's kitchen, there were two big clay ovens .... 'matir unan'.... I have never seen her frowning in irritation with arrival of guests at anytime.... there was always something or the other in her kitchen cabinet to treat people, no beggar went off from her gate without a coin or some food during her reign. The lady is nearing 90... cannot hear properly... still can look after herself without any help..... I love her.... I grew up in her lap.... I have very sweet memories with her to cherish.... and more so because she loved my father too much. When I see my friends doing everything in the kitchen from scratch ..... my hope gets alive that our lives indeed has not become 'bottled.'.... and the efforts of these yester year wonders will not be done away with entirely.

My brother has just called and conveyed me a very good news..... the elder sister who has always guarded him like a tigress is too very happy and wishes to treat her readers with some sweets ..... no there is no cliched statement like... oh you know our daddy is coming back in the family.... that way they are not giving any hope as of now, neither did he say didibhai... ok I will now match my political ideology with yours.... yet some 'mishti mukh' folks because some relations are perhaps not related to any calculation. Fresh Fruits are very much used in my kitchen both for desserts or in curries other than Bengali. We indeed treat Mango as the 'king' given we are still having it which ever variety we are getting coming from the neighbouring countries or elsewhere. This was the first time I have used freshly pureed mango to prepare a scrumptous dessert as this. The ingredients I have used for this MANGO HALWA are ripe mango pulp, semolina, pistachio, cashew nut, raisin, sugar, full cream milk, condensed milk, ghee. There might be similar recipes of MANGO HALWA already, I have not followed any. This dessert with mango, semolina and mixed dry fruits was part of an offering to God, hence I could not click pictures of the steps... we are not supposed to. Yet it will not stop us from doing together this yum laden MANGO HALWA which can very much be a part of your festive dessert menu.

INGREDIENTS :
Ripe Mango : 2-3big
Semolina : 11/2medium cup
Sugar : 1/4small cup
Condensed Milk : 2 -4 tbsp
Full Cream Milk : 1big cup
Cashew nut : 6-8halved
Pistachio : 4-5chopped
Raisin : 7-8
Green Cardamom : 2-3
Ghee : 4-5 tbsp

METHOD :

Wash the mangoes, peel and cut into small cubes. Add to a blender, blend for 2 minutes to get a paste / puree. Pour in a bowl.

Heat ghee in a pan / wok. Tear the green cardamoms lightly and add to the ghee. Your kitchen is filled with a magnetic aroma... haha...

Add the chopped pistachio and halved cashew nuts , stir. Add the semolina, fold in well and keep stirring till it is roasted well and turns little brown.

Add the mango puree and sugar. Mix well the entire thing. Add the condensed milk and again fold in well.

Let it cook while we constantly stir the mixture. Add the milk little by little and stir. Pour the entire content and let boil for sometime. Add the raisins too.

After 3-5 minutes it should be done. Add more milk if required. Drizzle a tbsp ghee atop. Garnish as you wish.

These are Friday night scenarios at my home .... cooking fresh with left over raw ingredients in the pantry. I prefer cooking vegetarian meals on Friday, as the next two days will be too much of non-vegetarian fair...... and if it is vegetarian, I need to be extra cautious while cooking and pairing the mains with sides...... What goes inside my mind is that ..... there has to be smiling faces around when I serve the platter. I do get to see that when I prepare this kind of vegetarian food and not that kind that we grew up eating. I meant if there is a platter of "shaak, panchtorkari, daaler bora / beguni and dal".... that is a vegetarian platter of greens, mixed vegetables, lentil or eggplant fritters and lentil curry ....... the men at this home will eat the rice with lentil curry with a good number of fritters and totally skip the vegetables.... So, on days we are not eating out, I try to create that restaurant like ambience right at home whether I am cooking exotics or a platter as simple as this.... COCONUT ALOO which I served with herbed butter baby naan and dry fruit pulao. Just a little trick and it clicks. Breads are so much loved at this home that they can have it just like that with dollops of butter or ghee. The lady of the house will not serve it that way but prepare a delicious sides with shredded coconut, potato and spices and name it COCONUT ALOO. I could have named it narkol aloo.... however I will put it this way.... I try to use Bengali name for authentic Bengali dishes.... I have some in line..... will do as and when I feel like.

At the moment, I do not know what I am writing .... it is a Sunday and the man of this house has to play all variety of songs and movies on screen... he is a fan of Kapoor junior as much as I am.... finding it difficult to concentrate .... I can never multi task.... well he is just a little boy compared to the count of my grey strands..... the eye lashes and brows are also turning grey... I have stopped bothering ever since the "chote nawab" had chosen Kareena Kapoor over me... yes.... post Dil Chahta Hai I became an ardent fan of Saif Ali Khan ... the way he transformed and improved his acting skills is good enough reason to be so.... but he disowned me.... so I will not watch his latest.... CHEF.... where he plays the role of a chef.... I do not wish to see him love what I love .... on screen... in public .... neither should I show any interest in his personal likes and dislikes.... he is not mine .... Kareena must be taking care of that.... Come let us give a big shout out for Vidya's Tumhari Sulu, Irfan's Doob and Amir's Secret Superstar .... Well you are not an idiot like me and know it well if there is a Kareena and me to choose from ... the 'chote nawab' will always choose a Kareena .... You should watch them all .... do not worry lah... I still remain his fan because I do not allow negativity to breed within .... We should not harbour offence against people unless they make a serious attempt to insult your 'self'...... Swelling of heart is an 'inside' thing and only we have to take care of our own... no one will really care. Come.... let us prepare this no onion, no garlic vegetarian delight called COCONUT ALOO instead..... "Saifina"... the glamorous Bollywood couple may not like it but my man smiled when I served it .... one who through all thick and thin is always beside me.... If I am getting filmy today, let me mention another film ... a Bengali box office success "Projapoti Biskut"...directed by an once upon a time friend from college, the very talented Anindya Chatterjee .... All this while I was watching how sincerely he was doing all the publicity for his baby .... the music of which is directed together by him and equally talented Anupam Roy ... Santanu Moitro and Prasen who I do not know... May be someday we get to see it... yet to be lucky enough to watch Aparna Sen's Sonata ... starring Shabana, Aparna and Lillete Dubey.... When actors of their calibre come together ... we have to watch it..... till date we have not missed a single movie directed by Aparna Sen .... too much of a favourite.... If you still have the energy to read my trash, thank you for tolerating this senile ... I get more so after a Saturday night fever.... I was unable to find the way to my home even through the basement yesterday midnight.... hahaha.... It feels good to be bad at times .... Coming to COCONUT ALOO...... it was Friday night... with hungry stomach growling... I could not manage stepwise pictures really ... the three dishes took me nearly three hours .... but it is worth it.... The stuffed red chilli pickle recipe needs to be shared soon ...

INGREDIENTS :
Potato : 4big
Shredded Coconut : 1medium cup
Ginger Paste : 2tsp
Asafoetida : 2pinches
Cumin Seeds : 1tsp
Coriander Seeds : 1tsp + 2pinches
Fennel Seeds : 1/2tsp
Urad Dal : 2tsp [split black lentil]
Black Pepper Corn : 1tsp
Dry Red Chilli : 4
Turmeric Powder : 1tsp
Salt : As Required
Lemon Juice : 2tbsp
Bay Leaf : 1
Oil : 4tsp

METHOD :

Wash the potatoes and prick all over with a fork. Take them all in a plate, microwave at high for 2 minutes. Let cool, peel.

Cut each potato into 4 pieces. Rub with salt and half of the turmeric powder. Keep aside for 5-7 minutes.

Dry roast the cumin.... coriander..... fennel seeds, urad dal, black pepper corns, dry red chillies together and dry grind to a powder.

Heat oil in a pan.... fry the potatoes in batches till golden brown. Take out.

Temper oil with asafoetida, bay leaf and cumin seeds. Add the shredded coconut and fry till they are toasted well. Take out.

Add the ginger paste and fry for 2 minutes. Add the dry roasted spice powder and the toasted coconut together and fold in well. Stir for 1-2 minutes and add the fried potato pieces.

Fold in the entire mixture well and add 1 medium cup water. Cover cook for 7-8 minutes. Check in between.... if we require water we will sprinkle little. I wished for a dry potato dish.

Once done, add the lemon juice and fold in gently.

Transfer to a serving bowl. I served them with herbed baby butter naan and dry fruit pulao.

Tomorrow is Diwali.... we get to see an illuminated India and also at Indian homes worldwide.... My heart whispers.... "Let there be light"in your lives.... let it remain kindled all 365 days of the year. Each year during this time .... I can see a picture been circulated in social media on how India looks from space during Diwali / Deepavali. I do not know about its authenticity but I love watching it and never do get bored. Its been eight years now we miss this nationwide celebration but we live in a country which not only allots national holiday for Diwali but a month long Diwali Bazaar is held at two to three venues.... In specific Indian localities .... streets are decorated with lights..... earlier I have shared such pictures in different forums. In most of the condominiums with considerable amount of Indian population..... there is celebration and people are allowed to burn crackers in specific areas been allotted for the purpose. So we do not feel detached as such. I have preferred to stay away from the "cracker ban" issue that has caused a stir recently..... the three of us in the family are too very scared of crackers .... specially of the ones that make noise. My earliest memory of burning crackers during this period was at the maternal grandparents' place wearing jazzy, silk clothes and burning "tarabati, rongmashal, chorki"..... the sparkling, no noise ones. Does that sound very dangerous to you .... wearing silk / zaridar suits and playing with fire? Well .... this controversy's own child decided not to take sides on this matter ..... storing two to three gas cylinders in your balcony is equally dangerous .... my family does, friends too, even my empty home back in Kolkata has one spare in the balcony..... even after repeated warnings from my senior who handles the safety control issue of a couple of ships. I remember when I went on board ship, I used to cook for the 30-35 crew members on board as I wished so.... I was not supposed to by the rule book of this industry.... the master of the ship who happened to be my husband told both the chief and second cooks if this lady creates any mess I will throw her out of the ship and send report to the higher authorities against you. So you know what we wish is at most times backed by emotions..... which may not tally with what is right in all cases ..... let wiser people decide what is wrong and right if we are unable to. When my little brother spent hundreds to thousand rupees on "kalipotka, dodoma, rocket bomb".... the fiercest of the crackers .... I used to be too worried.

If it is Diwali for majority of the Indians, it is also Kali Pujo for the Bengalis.... we worship the Goddess of Power? with some "Shyama Sangeet" and "Pathar Mangsho"..... a special music genre as a tribute to the mother and rice, mutton, khichdi. How are we celebrating Diwali? Well tomorrow is Diwali, family is in holiday mood and I prefer home cooked food.... preparation is on for some mutton biryani and hilsa curry..... but when it comes to what I share on blog..... I have to think of what majority of my readers want or how they will be celebrating! Thursday is Kalipujo for us..... there will be a "chotto kore bhog".... I will cook and offer to my Gods and Goddesses..... evening is booked for the temple visit..... "doob de re mon kali boley"..... Each year the friends visit the nearest venue for Kali pujo .... done the Bengali way ..... its around midnight and I skip. This year we may go, the husband wishes to be with his friends......... Moreover, the person who sponsors this pooja hailing from "opar Bangla".... is an overly rich businessman yet outwardly down to earth human being who personally attends all the guests during both durga pooja and kali pooja .... I simply adore that humble tone in people though I was married to a "pot full of arrogance".... haha... I was hooked towards a genuinely honest person actually. What is a celebration without sweets? This time I felt this PAN FLAVOURED RASMALAI is just perfect for the occasion..... all three of them should be happy .... Maa Lakshmi .... Ganesh .... Maha Kali... Rasmalai is a very much loved sweet among the Indians. I do try them at home though not on a regular basis. I happened to taste this particular PAN FLAVOURED RASMALAI at a friend's place last month, instantly loved ..... yes this is the same shameless diabetic speaking whose sugar level goes beyond limit even after a test on fasting. What else? the son is not giving me any reason to smile and live .... two weeks of term break... he is either watching television or playing car games on his laptop..... repeating history? haha... better I do what I love.... cook and eat. My friend got frozen packets of these PAN FLAVOURED RASMALAI from the Indian super market here. One bite into it and I instantly decided I have to prepare this Indian dessert of super white rasgullas / roshogolla dunked in a very light milk syrup which has been flavoured with freshly made pan / betel leaf juice. Betel Leaves have a deep connection .... the grandmother's "pan er dabor" was like "podi pishir barmi baksho"..... the later is a classic by Leela Majumder for the young.... as a child we all were curious to know what was there in Podi Aunt's intricately designed Burmese box... I had similar curiosity for my grandma's betel leaf box.... that generation had to have a "pan" post lunch and the kids were barred from it. I craved for one whenever I was there with them. Her "paner dabor" had fresh betel leaves, betel nuts [shupuri], khoyer [catechu?], chun [lime powder?] roasted fennel seeds[bhaja mouri] and few other spices. I love my teeth, else I would have own that treasure box by now. So, no wonder I will love to do the PAN FLAVOURED RASMALAI and wish to share the recipe with you all on the occasion of Diwali. However, I do not know whether this dessert is done this way or not. I have done it my way and did not follow any other recipe.

INGREDIENTS :
Milk : 1lt + 400ml
Lemon Juice : 1/2small cup
Ice Cube : 1small cup
Sugar : 11/2 medium cup
Semolina : 1tsp
Baking Powder : 2-3pinches [optional]
Green Cardamom : 2-3
Betel Leaf : 7-8
Water : As Required
Rose Water : 2-4drops
Garnish as you wish
The amount yields about 10-12 rasgullas / roshogolla
METHOD :

Let us prepare the Paneer / Chena / Indian Cottage Cheese first. Take 1lt. of milk in a deep bottomed vessel. Put for boil. As it comes to boil, add the lemon juice, stir. The milk will curdle, switch off gas and add the ice cubes.

Once cool, pass the entire mixture through a fine, white cloth and squeeze out as much water as you can.

Tie the cloth on your kitchen tap and leave like that for 45 minutes-1hour.

Take down, untie and place the paneer / chena / Indian cottage cheese on to a plate.

We will knead it now for about 15 minutes. We will add the semolina and baking powder now and knead further for 10 minutes.

We will prepare small balls from the dough. I do not have much expertise in rasgulla / roshogolla making, so they do not double in size while cooking but they taste like rasgulla ... hehe...

Simultaneously, we were preparing the sugar syrup with 11/2 medium cups of sugar and 2-3 big cups of water. Rasgulla syrup should never be allowed to be sticky. We will tear the green cardamoms a bit and add to the boiling syrup. Once it has boiled for about 7-8 minutes, we will gently add the cottage cheese balls.

We will cover cook it for about 15-18 minutes at medium heat and switch off gas. Meanwhile, wash the betel leaf, one by one thoroughly.

Tear from middle, discarding the stem. Prepare a juice in the blender adding little water. Strain and take in a bowl.

In a clean vessel, boil 400ml milk for 5 minutes. Add 1small cup of the sugar syrup from the vessel where the rasgullas are still swimming. You know I hate wastage.

After boiling it for another 7-8 minutes, we will gently add the rasgullas / roshogolla. Rasmalai's milk syrup is always light in texture and I like it that way. Let the rasgullas boil for 3-4 minutes before we switch off gas.

Let the entire thing cool down, add the betel leaf juice gently, rose water drops too. Gently stir. Transfer to a serving bowl and refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours before serving. Do not forget to garnish as you wish either. Your dessert for any season is ready.

The month long celebration is about to finish .... it is painful to even think of that ...... just the way I feel looking at the empty bowls / plates after lapping up all of the hilsa / prawn / mutton curry. Do celebrations really get over? .... so many cultures .... tradition .... celebration does go on in one way or the other .... Our home is always in a celebration mode ..... we are geared up with our movie going sessions after a month long gap starting with Golmaal Again .... we have not missed any of this series ..... my too much of a favourite 'Tabu'.... is featuring in it and for Ajay Devgan too.... this man proved looks are not the 'only' required thing in the industry or say in life .... but talent really matters ..... I lack both, so I totally adore both of them .... We are quite accommodating unless it hurts the eyes .... so we find pleasure in both Sonata and Golmaal Again. Following it .... there will be a series of movie going sessions ..... If the father and son duo have decided to follow '' lekhapora korey je garichapa porey shey"..... the mother will stop overthinking refusing to turn more grey and will indulge in merry making .... life is entertainment... entertainment.... entertainment. The son believes studying is a waste of time and the father supports that, so the mother will do whatever she wishes to. I am super elated to know that my son loves me so much so that he decided to follow my path.... "gharey boshey mumma r moto bhyarenda bhajo tobey"...... When the lady of a house gets this crazy with no one actually listening to her, she will talk as this without having a drop of alcohol. A major part of me is Bollywood.... all this while I was enjoying those Bollywood couples in gorgeous outfits attending parties and celebrating the "Festival of Light." However, I preferred to arrange a special prayer at home, visit the temple and did attend a dine out on few friends' request. In between there was some RAJMA CURRY WITH EGGS IN A YOGURT BASED GRAVY cooked at home. Now, I got some time to sit and share the recipe, though there is some cooking going on simultaneously.

The sailor men at home do like curries that suits fried rices and breads. This thick textured RAJMA CURRY WITH EGGS IN A YOGURT BASED GRAVY was made to bring a little variation in the usual Rajma Curry been made at home. Rajma Curry goes very well with any kind of South Asian Bread / Steamed Rice / Jeera Rice. On that particular day I served this RAJMA CURRY WITH EGGS IN A YOGURT BASED GRAVY with egg fried rice. The next morning, the gravy thickened more and we enjoyed it with some parathas. Our mother says her daughter-in-law prepares Rajma Curries very well, I had to blog on it and look for some appreciation .... it is my brother's bubly wife who shows all my food pictures to the mother. I am pretty sure the old lady will scream at me saying... "peyaz-roshun na shatley diye dili shob kichur sangey?".... but my smart readers are smarter enough to try it and agree we can try a spice paste taking together everything when in a hurry.... especially when you are eager to complete a short story from the Maupassant's Collection. What we must do is to stir the spice paste for quite sometime. Ever since one of the master chefs have confused me on the usage of the word "saute" .... I am avoiding it, as I am not that much of a knowledgeable person. I will try to do a research on it once I complete reading the collection. I am always open to cooking with you all in between and sharing the recipe of RAJMA CURRY WITH EGGS IN A YOGURT BASED GRAVY.

INGREDIENTS :

Rajma [Red Kidney Beans] : 250gm
Eggs [boiled and halved] : 3-4
Plain Yogurt : 100-150gm
Onion : 1medium
Coriander Seed : 1tbsp
Cumin Seed : 1tsp +2-3pinches
Dry Red Chilli : 4
Cinnamon Stick : 1-2two inch size
Green Cardamom : 2-3
Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder : 1tsp[for colour]
Garlic : 3-4 cloves[peeled and washed]
Ginger : 1two inch size [ peeled and washed]
Turmeric Powder : 1tsp
Bayleaf : 1
Salt : As Required
Oil : 4-5tbsp
Coriander Leaves [chopped] : 1small cup

METHOD :

Wash the red kidney beans well and soak in hot salted water for at least 5-6 hours. Pressure cook up to 4-5 whistles adding little turmeric powder and switch off. Let it cool till the lid opens by itself.

Take the plain yogurt, onion, green cardamoms, cinnamon sticks, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chillies, garlic cloves and ginger piece together in a blender.

Blend to a paste adding half small cup water.

Heat oil in a wok and temper with cumin seeds and a bay leaf. Add the spice paste and keep stirring till the oil separated from the spice mix. Add the Kashmiri red chilli powder, turmeric powder now. Fold in well and stir for a minute or so.

Add the boiled red kidney beans / Rajma without the water and stir for 3-4 minutes.

Add the remaining water from the pressure cooker and little more. Cover and simmer for about 12-15 minutes at minimal heat.

Open cover, add the already boiled, peeled and halved eggs and chopped coriander leaves. Gently fold in and take down.

Transfer to a serving bowl and enjoy with a mains of your choice. On that particular day we thoroughly enjoyed it with egg fried rice.

..... the hangover of 'Golmaal Again' last night continues. Once in a while watching such movies are relax-ing .... we do not have to think much .... just chill kind of.... I am not a kind of a person for whom smiles come naturally so I feel happy to see myself giggling all through for 21/2 hours .... there was a story line ... nothing special .... that same old cliched Bollywood stories of property swapping, love-betrayal-revenge. It was not a letdown because we did not go for a story but for some comic relief. Did we really need a talent called Tabu aka Tabassum Fatima Hashmi for that role?.... anyone could have done that.... well Bollywood seldom makes movies where an actress of her calibre suits in.... I am not for a blame game.... everyone is here to earn.... who can deny money is honey?... only if it could leave behind the associated malice and come clean in our lives.... only if we could look down / at people who are not so fortunate with a nose as flat as mine.... even my favourite mutton / hilsa costs 30-40 dollars per kilogram.... I used to eat them while dreaming of owning a kalashnikov rifle once and bring justice to an imbalanced society.... hypocrite ?... you have the right to call me.... even this boy.... the very talented singer, lyricist, film director .... Anindya Chatterjee was seen frequently with the "DSO" following "dadas and didis"at college, hanging out with them at College Street. Besides "Projapoti Biskut," we wish something else too from him.... something based on what he believed in.... As of me, I still take immense pleasure in both ..... eating biryani and reading Jhumpa's "The Lowland"..... who is right? those who stood strong against state atrocities or those who fled to different countries of wealth? Could there be something in between which could help people in need? Giving up tender lives is bad.... fleeing and forgetting all about your ideology is even worse unless you are funding a movement with a cause .... In such a situation, watching a 'Golmaal Again' helps.... also helpful is a plate of TAWA ALOO MACCHI served with tomato rice ..... trust me haha.....

This week is a week for celebration at this home .... there will be a lot of cooking, going out for movies or otherwise ..... What is a celebration without fish and meat for the carnivores in this family? This humble fish platter of spice coated potato and fish... "TAWA ALOO MACCHI was done few days back...... I do not blog on what I cook.... immediately.... I meant not often I do that.... moreover do my friends allow me to do so? With lesser amount of brain activity, I am unable to think beyond a limit. My brain cells do not allow me to analyse unless it is a good movie or a book ... my areas of interest.... so you are always welcome to call me 'Ms. Mistake'..... while I call myself 'Mistaken'.... both wise I am ok and will never give in for a correction. I myself do not know when there will be an emotional outbreak within me or should I go public with it?..... leave me at myself.... I cannot claim that either if I am making my feelings public. 'Analysis' is not my cuppa .... never at this moment.... the sky seems so bright.... with patches of green all over ..... amidst that the high rises and the peeping rooftop of the red and white themed 'homes' say ..... 'hum saath saath hai'...... Since I am a package quite irritating, what best I can do for you is sharing this simple and yum recipe of spice marinated fish and potato cooked in less oil in a pan that was served with Tomato rice. Come let us cook together TAWA ALOO MACCHI which you can pair with any kind of rice preparation or enjoy as an appetiser.

INGREDIENTS :
Boneless Fish : 500-600gm [any firm white fish]
Potato : 1big [boiled]
Onion : 1medium [sliced]
Curry Leaf : 1-8
Cornflour : 1tbsp
Lemon Juice : 5tbsp + 2tbsp
Black Pepper Corn : 1tsp
Coriander Seeds : 1tsp
Cumin Seeds : 1 tsp
Dry Red Chilli : 2-3
Garam Masala Powder : 1/2tsp
Chaat Masala : 1/2tsp
Turmeric Powder : 1tsp
Cumin Powder : 1/4tsp
Coriander Powder : 1/4tsp
Red Chilli Powder : 1/4tsp
Aamchur Powder : 1/4tsp [dry mango powder]
Salt : As Required
Oil : 4 tbsp +1tbsp

METHOD :

Wash the fish fillets thoroughly, marinate with 3 tbsp of lemon juice.

Dry roast and grind to a powder the following spices .... black peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chillies.

Discard the excess water from the fish and add the freshly made spice powder, cornflour,1/3of turmeric powder, little salt, 2tbsp of lemon juice and garam masala powder to it. Keep aside for an hour.

Cut half the boiled potato and further into smaller pieces, cutting it lengthwise looks good. Marinate with 2 tsp lemon juice, salt, turmeric, cumin powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder, aamchur powder. Keep aside for 1/2 an hour.

Heat 4tbsp oil in a pan. Gently place the marinated fish pieces discarding the excess marinade.

Cook for 4-5 minutes at low heat. Turn over and cook further till the outer layer is more or less crisp. Cooking at low heat is a must.

Take out the cooked fish and arrange in a serving plate. Add little oil to the pan if required. Once hot, add the curry leaves, stir and at once add the onion slices.

Stir for 2-3 minutes and add the spice marinated boiled potatoes, stir.

Let cook uncovered for 3-4 minutes at low heat stirring gently in between. We should be done.

Arrange them atop the fish pieces and it is ready to serve. We enjoyed the TAWA ALOO MACCHI with Tomato Rice. You can enjoy the dish with any kind of rice preparation or enjoy it as an appetiser.

.... it happened to be a special day yesterday.... some meat and fish dishes had to be cooked.... a simple cake had to be baked with "kompoman haath"... shivering hands and a sweet something to end the meal... all went haywire with a phone call day before yesterday.... I was standing in front of the meat shop calculating exactly what amount of mutton / goat meat to buy.... thats when the old, demon birthday boy called from office and said I have a flight to catch right at 5pm.... coming home in an hour.... The right thing to do was to call one of my boy friends spread island wise, sit by the sea with some black pepper crab which had to be paired with mini steamed buns and ahem... you know what else.... I am not friends with smoothies or soft drinks... Girl friends are equally welcome on such meets but not when you are craving badly for a revenge. Instead, I saved some money not buying the meat, rushed back home and stood at the doorstep with "cholo cholo chokh" Sandhya Ray style.... and bid a goodbye saying "dugga dugga".... The mind was at a boiling point so much so that I wished to employ a detective to find out why he travels to the capital of the neighbouring country so often .... but you know I do not earn so had to drop the idea and wait for his return with "duru duru bokkho"

The above lines speaks of a happy home which lives in the lines of sharing and caring..... but not all homes are such, cracking jokes on each other freely .... not all women are so fortunate neither all men are so lucky as mine hihi.... off course I will take that credit .... one should love one's self that much. The man of this house does not usually complain about his wife but the wife does to only few trusted people... there is one person who always says S you can say this because you are in a happy environment, it never is a grave situation... my complaints ranges from he shouts to he is unromantic to he does not know the way to the kitchen or the market. The person here is one of the top creams of India with an exactly appropriate wife by his side... who I call a super woman. Both been in very very high profile jobs which is quite but natural and deserving for them. They have taught me how to be down to the earth, treat and take care of people with warmth.... and well if my mother has not taught me anything before marriage on how to handle a different home where people will not love you naturally but for your work.... I have learnt a major part of "ghar kanna" from this super woman post marriage who been in a high profile job, an university topper does cook dal-rice back from office, treats guests, in fact their home is abuzz with guests.... extended family, friends 24/7 right from their honey-moon days years back. If they say do not fake S, it is true..... I will take their name in an appropriate post not here in DESI STYLE POACHED EGG CURRY... I must.... they never discuss science, finance .... with me ever... areas where I am blank.... themselves been moving Encyclopaedia. Coming to "unfortunate women".... they off course are a majority.... while me or some of my friends are posing with all smiles with family in trips.... the news flashes in front of my eyes .... woman killed by the husband while travelling in a car .... did she ever thought about it ? This brings back some childhood horrified memories .... we were in lower level of school when the "Swarupa Guha?" murder case raised a stir .... she was killed probably by people who she trusted the most .... the case never got solved because it involved powerful people ..... did the conspirers only consist of men?.... no there were women too.... so male bashing is not the solution ..... need of the hour is to change the patriarch pattern of the society, neither should feminists run for the ladies sit in buses, trains and trams.... sits should be reserved only for senior citizens, children, handicaps and pregnant women. So long a mentally de-ranged pregnant women lie naked on streets back there, women are vulnerable.... even cows have a better lives there.... but then its my roots, I was born there.... the love for that land is by default.... neither can I deny that a Nirbhaya case happens every other day there.... now I hear a little boy from a foreign land is been sexually assaulted for years.

Too much of lecture is boring.... I am too boring a company anyway because I cannot talk much in literal sense, always I keep wondering what to say next..... I do not need to bore you more. What I wished to share today was a fish / meat / sweet dish but I did not cook much these two days .... he is arriving tonight .... so I will cook properly tomorrow.... a birthday deserves some good food at this home.... if not shared immediately .... I do not wish to drag my readers to the family celebrations however open I am on what goes on a regular basis here. However, yesterday evening I used an ingredient he loves.... EGG.... anything for egg is perhaps his tagline. This DESI STYLE POACHED EGG CURRY is not a family recipe, neither do I know how authentic Bengali recipe it is but it is cooked in some known families. I have also seen recipes similar to DESI STYLE POACHED EGG CURRY in different food groups may be but I did not save any. I followed my own way of doing this non vegetarian, spice laden, tomato based gravy with eggs and potatoes. We had it with half and half rice and chapati... and "peyaj... lanka... achar".... I am not so fond of egg unless it is a duck egg curry but egg is always a better and wiser option when there is scarcity of tyangra, pabda, charapona..... problem is not with the frozen part but what comes here are too stale. So here is my recipe of DESI STYLE POACHED EGG CURRY which we will cook together now..... For middle class Bengalis like us .... sunny side ups are also poached eggs .... and I will seek some license here... hehe...

INGREDIENTS :

Egg : 4

Potato : 1big [peeled, washed, cut into 4 or 8 pieces

Tomato : 1medium [washed and chopped]

Onion : 1medium [peeled, washed, sliced]

Ginger Paste : 1tbsp

Garlic Paste : 1tsp

Asafoetida : 2pinches

Cumin Seed : 2pinches

Bayleaf : 1

Cumin Powder : 1tsp

Coriander Powder : 1/2tsp

Red Chilli Powder : 1tsp

Cinnamon Powder : 1/4tsp

Cardamom Powder : 2-3pinches

Turmeric Powder : 1/2tsp

Salt : As Required

Oil : 2tbsp

Ghee : 1/4tsp for each egg

Sugar : 1/2tsp [optional]

Coriander Leaves : 1tbsp to garnish.... my most loved fresh herbs

METHOD :

Heat 1/4 tsp ghee in a pan for each of the sunny side ups and prepare them carefully, we will be careful to keep the yolk in tact.

Rub the potato pieces with salt and turmeric and keep aside for 5 minutes. Heat oil in a yolk and add the potato pieces. Fry them light brown and take out.

Temper remaining oil with asafoetida, cumin seeds and bayleaf. Add the onion slices and fry till brown.

Add the ginger and garlic paste and stir for 2 minutes. Add the chopped tomato, salt and turmeric. Fold in well and cover cook at low heat till it melts.

Now add the cumin, red chilli and coriander powders, stir and cook for a minute. Add one big cup of water, let it come to boil.

Add the fried potatoes and cover cook at low heat for 3-4 minutes. Open cover and add the cinnamon and cardamom powder, sugar and the leftover ghee from the pan or a tsp if you wish.

Arrange the sunny side ups in a serving bowl. Pour the gravy gently and garnish with fresh, chopped coriander leaves. We must allow the sunny side ups to soak in the gravy at least for 1/2 an hour before having it.

"Bhaat, Porota, Luchi"... Rice, Paratha, Poori ..... I am kind of addictive to these three storehouse of carbs .... Each day I swear on the gym, I will not eat these three things more than one or two days per week.... I simply fail to conform to that and end up tasting what I made for the family. It may not be in large quantity .... may be it is two to three table spoon of rice or not more than one paratha or two pooris .... yet it does not help in the weight loss process. Perhaps the missing link here is the uncountable number of fries and fritters that goes inside on a regular basis ..... My most loved comfort food is any kind of fritter, dal, rice, ghee, green chilli with a bit of salt. Sweets were never a priority for me until I was diagnosed with diabetes. There is so much truth in the 'forbidden' logic .... one apple that created so much of stir.... haha..... same is with sweets in this house.... I get them or prepare more often for my men and end up tasting one or two while they say weekly one sweet is permissible for the diabetics. I have seen in the gym that a proper diet works better than only exercise. The problem with me is that I know it all but fail to follow the basic rules required to stay fit. Staying slim and fit is a necessity for me.... entirely for health reasons .... Obese since childhood with high power glasses and with a height of 4'10" .... I never did try or knew the tricks to woo a boy .... going to the gym or spending hours in the beauty parlour..... whatever. Even as a teen, I always felt that to change the person I am to attract someone is the worst blow to my self honour ..... my eye kohl may smudge, face paint may wash away, waistline may double in size .... what then? One has to accept me as the person I am and the feelings has to be mutual ...... it applies to boys too .... this wooing thing only looks good in movies which is not real life. From then till now .... its been 30 long years.... with half century at the doorstep .... I was even unwilling to comb my hair on my special day that is when the senior scolded so hard.... however I am, I am his queen and he indeed treats me as a queen on my special day. We have two back to back celebrations at home... the autumn phenomenon .... on his day I cook everything from the cake to mains to sweet at home by my choice off course ..... on my day.... I do not go near the kitchen .... I get a royal treat.... going out and doing what I love.... eat... eat and eat more and not TOMATO RICE alone. Why my post smells so much of 'me' today?..... because I always wish people, rather real world people to know who or what I am ..... ferociously "tyara" haha .... that is stubborn and cold to anything I do not like....

When was it..... my day? May be yesterday, day before yesterday or whenever ..... that is not important.... what I strongly felt was that I am getting old .... a sense of lethargy gripped in so much so that I refused an invitation of a lunch fair at Marina Bay Sands or a buffet at Hyatt and said... call 'Food Panda'... let us enjoy at home.... this is the first time I did not step out for even five minutes ..... and I loved so much been with my own at home. These are all signs of aging when any kind of excess seems to be a baggage ..... and every inch of my body screams leave me at myself .... I find it very difficult to mingle with folks with different mindsets.... this is a quality I lack ..... a reason why I simply love seclusion .... more so when the world seems to be very much complicated compared to my brain activities.... better I do what I love .... go for long walks alone, sit down at a food court thereafter, take silly clicks now and then and eagerly wait for the men to come back home..... evenings are the happiest moment in this family..... if only my little brother lived near..... Such a preface is not required to share a recipe of TOMATO RICE ..... but my readers know by now whatever talking I do, I do it here.... in my personal space.

As I always say my men love rice when it is fried with anything or everything with good seasoning and served with baked or grilled fish or meat or otherwise.... the salad and vegetables are obviously for me to enjoy ..... haha .... you see they are mine .... end of the day I have to give in to their wishes. This TOMATO RICE is often done in my kitchen though not during celebrations but I wished to share this humble dish of TOMATO RICE done with Basmati Rice, a freshly made spice paste along with a generous amount of tomato.... what else? You will not see me anywhere near ghosts.... I am far from them since childhood.... but watched them all from "Hanabari" to "Bhoot Bangla" to "Kiley Ka Rahasya"..... thrillers with all scares of ghosts... God.... why on earth the angelic faces are to be painted as that I do not get but they can also question .... why do you have to get so mad during Holi? So let us respect each other's tradition and do not cross boundaries but gently avoid what is not me.... Who am I?.... ohh the very sight of Pumpkins all over the social media makes me drool and crave for some "gorom bhaatey kumro sheddo, kancha lanka aar shorsher tel" or "kumror chokka aar luchi"..... you bet I am that rustic, earthy soul till date who does not have any problem accepting an invitation over pumpkin spiced latte either.... I am not in the habit of breaking hearts, haha.... Coming to the island we stay.... we do not have to make any extra effort to stay rooted.... every 200 mt, there are shops selling "ankher rosh" or "tormujer shorbot".... sugarcane or watermelon juice. As of today, we will cook TOMATO RICE together which is a very quick, easy and simple recipe. Rest its another Monday made happier with a movie show tonight with a very understanding couple friend .... something I thoroughly enjoy.... from the company to the atmosphere of the hall...

INGREDIENTS:
Long Grained Basmati Rice : 1big cup
Tomato : 2big [washed and chopped]
Onion : 1big [peeled, washed and sliced]
Coriander Leaves : 2sprigs [washed and chopped]
Cumin Seeds : 1tsp +1/4tsp
Coriander Seeds : 1tsp
Fennel Seeds : 1/2tsp
Dry Red Chillies : 3-4 + 2
Dry Mango Powder : 1/2tsp
Green Chillies : 2-3 [slitted]
Mustard Seeds : 1/4tsp
Bayleaf : 1
Turmeric Powder : 1/2tsp
Salt : As Required
Oil : 3-4tbsp

METHOD :

Dry roast 1tsp of cumin seeds, 1tsp of coriander seeds, 1/4tsp of fennel seeds and 3 to 4 dry red chillies in a pan and add to the blender. Add the chopped tomatoes.

Blend the entire mix to a paste. We have already cooked the rice up to 60% to 70% and strained all the water.

Heat oil in a wok or a pan. Temper with 1/4tsp of mustard seeds, 1/4tsp of cumin seeds and a bayleaf. Stir once and add the sliced onion. Once they turn golden brown, add the spice paste with tomatoes.

Stir the spice paste for about 2-3 minutes.... add the turmeric powder, dry mango powder and salt as required.

Add the rice, slitted green chillies if using and half of the chopped coriander leaves.

Fold in gently and stir for 2-3 minutes. We have to be very careful at this stage so that the rice grains do not break.

Once done, we will transfer the entire content to a serving bowl and garnish with onion rings and the remaining chopped coriander leaves. Serve the TOMATO RICE hot and fresh with gravied / grilled / baked meat / fish or may be veggies too.

I was so eager to share this recipe of MIXED VEGETABLE KOFTA IN A CREAMY RICH CURRY that I prepared last week...... with my readers. There are a couple of reasons for this .... Koftas are an absolute favourite and I keep doing them with a varied combination of ingredients. At this home, there lives a teen whose mother fed him "mulo shaak to pepe ghonto" .... since age three....... that is heirloom Bengali / Indian dishes and also took him out for Pizzas, Fried Chicken or Oriental Cuisine or to taste Cuisines of other Indian states. Ten long years the mother and her kid had a beautiful, "live in" relationship where the father was an occasional guest, though we were well guarded by family members. Our boy was ok with both kinds of food until he relocated to a different land, learnt to be vocal about his likes and dislikes. Perhaps because the mother started taking interest in cooking or may be she was too bothered about what she serves to her family on the table, the son started expecting restaurant style food at the comfort of home. He will eat veggies only when it is cooked and served with a royal touch ..... by that I meant if I serve him a normal fry made of potato, carrot and beetroot, he will not touch but if I cook them together with aromatic spices, prepare balls from them and serve with such a nutty, creamy gravy, he will have it with all love with pulao or poori, parathas, following his father's footsteps. The lady feels she has nothing much to do, why cannot she do this much for her family.... while cooking is a passion for her too. I bet many of you face the same with your son and daughter.

I wished to share this recipe of MIXED VEGETABLE KOFTA IN A CREAMY RICH CURRY today because it is an easy recipe that requires less explanation, the hangover of watching a movie with a strong message as Secret Superstar is still there, I cannot concentrate on other things much. This vegetarian dish with all the goodness of carrots, beetroot, potato and green peas in a yogurt and nuts based gravy is done in very less oil as I never fry the koftas, it is absolutely not required in this case.... I will be very glad if my readers try this no fail recipe that will bring a restaurant effect on their dining table when served with naan / luchi / paratha or rice / pulao. You can well include this MIXED VEGETABLE KOFTA IN A CREAMY RICH CURRY recipe of mine in your menu if you have fussy eaters at home.... and if you have a daughter "Insia" at your home, the protagonist of the movie Secret Superstar .... treat her / them as a queen.... as an equal to your son if you have both. Looking at my late father's picture yesterday or today, I missed him more.... I have never seen or felt such discrimination at our home or in the surrounding.... my little brother was so caring about me.... he punched me only when I complained about his mischiefs to the parents... hihi...... but I know there are millions of Insia who are fighting for recognition, dignity..... I also hear of women.... educated ones who abort female foetus as they do not wish to have a second daughter in their life.... who would you blame? lack of 'actual' education, awareness off course. I fail to understand how come spending crores on installing statues and demolishing historical monuments become more important than spending on education and in the health sectors.... perhaps that does not serve the purpose of been in the throne for long. I am been apolitical in the sense that this is true during all regime .... perhaps I am too uneducated compared to people in power..... perhaps I am an anti-nationalist...... My further shrinking brain was wondering if an uneducated Najma.... the mother of the protagonist can give birth to her girl child going against all odds, why others cannot.... not everything is filmy in films ..... I am not in a smooching-kissing relationship with my in-laws but I am so thankful to them for raising two wonderful kids. Someone sitting beside me at the cinema hall was caught getting emotional.... Who is that in disguise of a tiger? ... hihi... the rest of the film was for comic relief .... road to success is definitely not so easy and fast .... but my recipe of MIXED VEGETABLE KOFTA IN A CREAMY RICH CURRY is so much easy so that it is done within an hour or so. To prove that, we need to do it together. I am extremely unhappy with the pictures, I click without any knowledge on the basics of photography. How to avoid those shadows I do not know, those reflections I hate.... not knowing the proper use of light.... not an easy thing yeah. After all these excitement I see, I have kind of a similar recipe from two years back ..... hihi ... anyway.... the two are a bit different.... today's gravy is milder, creamier with a sweet and sour tone.

INGREDIENTS : [for the kofta]
Potato : 2big
Carrot : 2medium
Beetroot : 1standard
Green Pea : 2tbsp
Green Chilli : 2 [chopped]
Cumin Powder : 1tsp
Coriander Powder : 1tsp
Turmeric Powder : 1/2tsp
Cumin Seed : 1/4tsp
Refined Flour : 11/2tbsp
Sugar : 1tsp [optional]
Salt : As Required
Ghee : 2tbsp

INGREDIENTS : [for the gravy]
Plain Yogurt : 1/2coffee mug
Cashew Nut : 6-8
Raisin : 8-10
Melon Seed : 1/4tsp
Garlic Paste : 1tsp
Onion Paste : 2tbsp
Red Chilli Powder :1tsp
Turmeric Powder : 2pinches
Cumin Seed : 2-3pinches
Bayleaf : 1
Salt : As Required
Sugar : 1/4tsp

METHOD :

Let us prepare the koftas first. Peel, wash and half the potatoes. Peel and wash the beetroot and roughly chop. Peel and wash the carrot, cut into cubes.

Take all of them in a pressure cooker and add one big cup of water, little salt and turmeric. Pressure cook at low heat up to two whistles. Let cool.

Once it is cool. Take out the boiled vegetables and keep in a plate. The remaining water can be used in soups and gravies. Mash the veggies well.

Heat the ghee in a pan. Temper with cumin seeds. Add the green peas and chopped green chillies. Stir for not more than a minute.

Add the mashed vegetables to the pan and fold in well. Stir for 2-3 minutes. Now add the cumin and coriander powder, little salt and turmeric powder, sugar. Fold in well and stir cook for 3-4 minutes.

You will see the water evaporating. Add the refined flour now, fold in and cook for a minute. Switch off gas and transfer the entire mixture in a plate and let cool.

Once cool, form tennis size balls / kofta from it. Keep aside.

Microwave the cashew nuts and melon seeds for a minute at low power. Prepare a smooth paste with cashew nuts, raisins, melon seeds and yogurt in the blender. We have already in hand onion and garlic pastes.

Heat oil in a wok and temper with cumin seeds and a bayleaf. Add the onion paste and fry for 2 minutes. Add garlic paste and fry for another 2 minutes. Add the yogurt mix. Fold in well and stir continuously for a minute. Add salt, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and the sugar. Fold in well and let cook for a minute.

Add 11/2 medium cup water, give a stir. Let the curry boil at low heat for 2-3 minutes. Switch off.

Arrange the koftas in a serving plate and pour the gravy on top of it. Allow the gravy to soak in for 15-20 minutes.

Now our MIXED VEGETABLE KOFTA IN A CREAMY RICH GRAVY is ready to be served with a wide range of mains....from plain rice, sweet pulao, lemon rice, dry fruit pulao, mixed fried rice to chapati, paratha, luchi, pita, naan to any kind of bread if you may prefer.

The tropical weather we need to sustain requires coolers throughout the year but it is not the case with the rest. To share this recipe of PAN FLAVOURED KULFI was long due and before people take refuge under "leper tola".... well that is taking refuge under their blanket. My childhood memory of winter is associated with "shankrantir pithe payesh" and "laal shalutey mora lep".... winter special sweet meats and those desi style blankets .... beaten cotton from Bombay Ceiba as per wiki covered with a red, cotton piece of cloth and sewed in the border. All the sweaters, Kashmiri Shawl came out from the "steel er almari".... steel almirah by October. In most of the Bengali families, sweaters were not bought but made by the women in the family .... my mother, aunts, the maa-in-law were so good at it. There were hardly any woman in the neighbourhood or in the city who did not know how to make a sweater. My mother tried in vein to teach me the art, but you know well I am so far from artistry except for cooking... if only you consider cooking as an art. Gradually, winter became just a one month affair in Kolkata ... perhaps because of Global Warming. Since winters in my entire childhood and teen hood was spent at my maternal grandparent's place some 100 km away from Kolkata .... a small township known to many in the world for few of its unique things..... I always experienced proper winter up to a certain stage of life. The temperature there was much less than the over crowded metro city and I had to be there to start the mornings with "dadur jomir tatka khejurer rosh" and "khejur gur diye pithe"..... Mornings started with a glass of fresh date palm juice that came from the grandfather's farm further away from the town and rest of the day were sweet and salted steamed or fried snacks with date palm jaggery.... what is maple syrup for many of you is date palm jaggery for us.... in context of attachment and we are unlikely to trade one for the other. This December I am not going to Kolkata, I do not know how to get my winter special "patali gur".... Date Palm jaggery is available here in few Asian stores but the quality does not attract me... Your milk gets curdled if it is not good. Oh God! how come a PAN FLAVOURED KULFI got me to "Smriti Romonthon".... I do not know when this Memory thing will stop chasing me, it gets over bearing at times.

Anyways, if I have taken up the name of my pan loving grandmother today, let us share this recipe of PAN FLAVOURED KULFI with my readers. No artificial flavour has been used in it, there is no use of condensed milk or evaporated milk. What we need is a good quality full cream milk and a bit of patience as it needs to be boiled till it becomes less than half at low heat. I do not associate having coolers or frozen desserts to any season. I love them so much that I find them suitable for all seasons. I remember a year before my marriage, that was in 1996, we made a tour of Rajasthan.... that was my last tour with my parents.... few clippings I still remember.... my favourite custard apple garden within the Chittorgarh Fort .... how I was caught trying to steal one.... each tree there is owned by the Indian Government .... sitting on a khatia and having dal bati churma, visiting all three of Pushkar, Vishnu Temple and Ajmer Shariff together.... The mother bought two Rajai.... Rajasthan special blankets and gifted us on our marriage.... I got totally lost and confused in the Kundan Jewelry and Jaipur Nagrai shoe shops ... the pani poori I did not like as a Kolkatan feels Kolkata's puchka is the best. I loved touring Ray's "Shonar Kella"... the yellow sandstone? fort after a plateful of "laal mas".... What did I love most?.... Enjoying ice-cream sitting at Mount Abu in the month of December... Vadilal ones... till then ice cream meant only Kwality Walls perhaps to the Kolkatans. So you see, not having frozen dessert during winter logic does not work for those who love it. Kulfi is an absolute favourite among many in our sub-continent, there is no reason why it should not be liked by the rest when it can be done in few easy steps at home. This PAN FLAVOURED KULFI is done with full cream milk, fresh beetle leaf juice, cardamom powder, sugar, cashew nut, raisins. We will do it together now.

INGREDIENTS :
Full Cream Milk : 1lt
Fresh Betel Leaf Juice : 1/2medium cup
Cashew Nut : 5-6 [chopped]
Cashew Nut Powdered : 7-8
Raisin : 8-10 [chopped]
Green Cardamom Powder : 1/4tsp
Sugar : 1/2medium cup

METHOD :

Take the full cream milk in a heavy bottomed vessel and put for boil. We will do it with lot of patience and at low heat. We need to stir the milk every 3-4 minutes.

When the milk comes down to half, add the sugar. Let boil till the milk reduces further to about 300-400 ml.

Switch off and let cool. Add the cashew nut powder, chopped raisins and cashew nut, green cardamom powder and the betel leaf juice. Stir well gently.

Pour into plastic or thermocol glasses.

Take them on a tray and keep in the freezer for an hour. Take out.

Insert medium sized sticks just in the middle.

Freeze again for 4-5 hours. Take out. Cut, tear and discard the plastic or thermocol glasses. Do it carefully. Arrange them atop a ice-cubes filled plate or tray. Enjoy!

Ahh... another Sunday morning.... no hurry and only merry... a refrigerator full of cooked food yet feels like going out for lunch .... either to the Arab Street joints or to Fish&Co. or to Sushi Tei or to one of the numerous restaurants serving the best Local Cuisine. No I do not have Biryani in any restaurants here ... they cannot make it ... what they serve is a dry meat curry with rice. It can also happen that I still do not know the address of the right places for a proper Biryani. I remember when I landed for the first time here, I was missing Kolkata food.... not home cooked ones though ... I do them pretty well. I heard people raving about a very popular Biryani joint here.... My eyes sparked and went there with the senior..... what a let down! a messy surrounding, smelly mutton chunks on a bed of rice which was far from been long.... after that I never went back near it. I do not want to take the name of the shop but told the senior it is the lazy cooks who recommended the place, they cannot be food connoisseurs. I do it my way with freshly ground spices, good quality ghee, Basmati rice.... marinating the mutton overnight and slow cooking it for two hours.... saying so I do not want to go into any fights with people doing otherwise.... arguments are healthy but I personally dislike it. As of mutton... I miss that juicy, fatty chunks as in Kolkata... haha .... neither do we get the giant crabs in Kolkata .... Our brother like childhood buddy from Gurgaon Sandip called me on my birthday and said yaar, I miss those giant chilli crabs we had sitting by the sea. I do not prepare Biryani like Arsalan or Royal in Kolkata, but if you are in the island you can visit my home for it or have a little better version at one of my dearest Sanak's home. We had it at their place last Friday but it lacked his touch... their help from Myanmar did it on his instruction... it was good as much as the little girl could do. You see, good cooking is how you hold the ladle and with what amount of love. Ohh, his beautiful wife Nibedita, the ace Kathak dancer prepared a frozen mango-yogurt dessert which was the show stealer. I am telling this from the bottom of the heart and also from a fear... if I do not she may go up with a profile picture on a swim suit tomorrow... haha.... I told her 1001times, the world mirror says you are beautiful and you do not need to upload photographs on social media everyday. May be I miss the fact that she is in the entertainment world and needs to.This girl is easily gullible and yes... many take full advantage of that. Where do I bond with her husband? .... when we both say... if you have so much of quality... why do you need to be so silly to give in to the stupidity of others... who are using you and will throw you into the dustbin in their own good time. As of my man, he is always throwing me out of the 10th floor window. I am still alive because I have to share this heirloom recipe from the Bengal Kitchen..... CHOTO CHINGRI KUMRO ALOO BORBOTI DIYE BATI CHOCCHORI ..... You see I clicked the morning sky sitting on my favourite couch .... ohh it is a necessity for me if 24/7 something like CNN / CNBC / NDTV is ought to damage your earbuds.

I try to seek his attention.... prompt answer is do not disturb now.... I get a little bolder .... I sing "Dil Ne Yeh Kaha Hai Dil Se".... immediate answer is.... if you wish to go for shopping, go alone ... I am into an important thing or I am waiting for an urgent call from ship. The son who once did not even allow his father to sit beside his mother will not even interfere. How do I keep my cool? ..... with cups of black coffee and tea and some fresh bakes.... haha.... I indeed do them.... may be not as confidently as I do a CHOTO CHINGRI KUMRO ALOO BORBOTI DIYE BATI CHOCCHORI.

I wished to share this recipe today which has a rural, traditional Indian touch and Bengali in essence for a reason. I cooked this yesterday morning and was not sure whether to share it with you all today. It was yesterday night I decided to watch a movie.... while searching, I discovered I am yet to watch my favourite Nagesh Kukunoor's Lakshmi.... trust me I could not watch the movie full.... it was late night, my nocturnal man was sleeping somehow.... I was feeling sick..... such a raw and real depiction of the prevalent issue of child trafficking in India and her neighbours... I do not know about the rest. The ordeal of this rural girl of 14 made me think and rethink.... do we have the right to have a life we are enjoying so much?... why majority of us are so unaffected about our surroundings.... till this date.... I have made no contribution to the mother earth but I have always wished to in my own small ways. Anytime is a good time to start a good work but I am that commoner who things big, does little. However, I wish to be with such organisations after son's 12th examinations..... who are working towards for the emancipation of girls like Lakshmi who like many are brought to slaughter houses at a tender age and tortured for life... each hour of the night. You see that "after son's 12th"... says it all about me... I am selfish?or may be too family oriented. Anyways, it takes a lot of mental preparation to enter society decided forbidden zones for weak hearts like me.... The first step towards it is to be able to complete watching the movie... Lakshmi.... which has torn me apart as did Chandni Bar... You have to accept the truths of life.... however tough it is.... I have left the movie as it is in a separate window and gathering the courage.... can I? can you ?.... then go to Youtube and type Lakshmi or search Google for an introduction. At some point, I must come back to what I am meant for, in this case it is food... a Bengali dish ....CHOTO CHINGRI KUMRO ALOO BORBOTI DIYE BATI CHOCCHORI..... I am so eager to share with you all.... Bati Chocchori is a way of cooking a dish wherein we marinate the vegetable with or without shrimps or other small fish variety with salt, turmeric powder, slitted green chillies and a generous amount of mustard oil and let it slow cook at low heat in its own juices. I lack or avoid details on my food shares because I do not do research.... I follow as is done in family or surrounding. I made a bit of modification, I used little of cumin and red chilli powders and kalonji / nigella seeds tempered mustard oil in it. The pumpkin pieces should stay "gota gota" even after cooking.... that is they should not get mushy in this method.... The pumpkins in this island are buttery, sweet and release a lot of water.... I may not have uncover the wok in time... you will excuse me because this way, the taste is enhanced... trust me... I used shrimps, pumpkin, long beans, potato, onion for this Bengali dish called CHOTO CHINGRI KUMRO ALOO BORBOTI DIYE BATI CHOCCHORI .... you can add egg plants to it too.... We usually have fish dishes with rice varieties.... this is a vegetable based dry dish... so should go with luchi / poori / paratha.

INGREDIENTS :
Shrimp : 250-300gm [de shelled, washed, keep head or do not]
Pumpkin : 1/4 of a medium sized [peeled, cubed and washed]
Long Bean : 3-5 [throw the two ends and cut lengthwise]
Potato : 1big [peeled, washed, cubed]
Onion : 1big [peeled, washed, cubed] [it is not always used in this dish]
Cumin Powder : 1/2tsp
Red Chilli Powder : 1/2tsp
Turmeric Powder : 1/2tsp
Green Chilli : 3-4 [slitted]
Nigella Seed : 1/4tsp [kalongi]
Salt : As Required
Sugar : 1/2-1tsp
Oil : 2tbsp + 1tsp [authentically mustard]

METHOD :

Take the washed vegetables and shrimps in a big bowl.

Add the cumin powder, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, 2tbsp oil and salt to them and mix well. Leave them marinated for 15-20 minutes.

Heat a wok well and gently add the veggies and toss gently. Cover.

Meanwhile in another burner, heat 1tsp oil in a pan and temper with nigella seeds. Switch off. After 5-6 minutes, open cover of the wok where the bati chocchori is cooking, add the kalonji tempered oil and the slitted green chillies. Gently stir just once, do not cover.

After 3-5 minutes, we will see the water released has dried. We will add the sugar if using. Stir just once. It is done.

Transfer to a serving bowl, enjoy hot and fresh with piping hot plain rice or luchi / porota / poori.

Some mornings feel very auspicious... and you go back in time within a fraction of a second and wish to share this sweet snack recipe of KHOI ER MURKI ..... Well, my readers know by now I do not require any trigger to get my memories alive... they are very much a part of me.... and I so much love cuddling them. Let us start from mid 70's and there after. The little girl stayed mostly at her grandparent's place .... she was too attached to her maternal grandmother and loved watching her in action. Cooking, washing, cleaning... doing household chores without any complaint. Besides the normal household chores she had .... she also had some extra work to do which these ladies never considered as a work or a burden. There was a big courtyard in that house with two big "matir unan"... clay ovens at work.... She used to prepare "muri"... puffed rice or murmura, "khoi"... another variety of puffed rice with help of sand. I did not get the exact English of Khoi in Google search option.... I get it from an Indian grocery here, if not you can order for it. The religious order our grandparents followed had to have special prayer meets called "Upasana" held every weekend at different homes in turns. On this occasion, this KHOI ER MURKI was a must along with coconut ladoo "naru" and "batasha"... a kind of sweet?.... my knowledge and vocabulary of English is too poor which definitely is irritating to my readers but I can compensate your complaints with a very authentic Bengali sweet snack as this KHOI ER MURKI. So while the grandmother was busy preparing batches of khoi in her clay oven, we were busy making "kagojer thonga".... paper bags or pockets?.... Yes there was a time I knew making them.... I forgot all about it lah.... else could have supplied brown paper bags islandwide.... and earn some .... My friend Bianca also does not go out for work but takes good care of her farm ... run you may get some fresh duck eggs there. Yes, these are very much a part of my memories... ducks and hens laying eggs by the pond, buying super sweet litchis and mangoes from the vast gardens, boat rides , the grandfather had a milch cow too at his home... even the caterpillars hiding behind the drumstick leaves are fresh on my mind... Perhaps because I follow a page called Nomadic Weekends on Facebook that I feel like going to explore rural India / Bengal these days.... I was telling my man .... when can we?... the woods beckon by its own rights... The unforgettable aroma of dhoop sticks mixed with freshly cut fruits gets me awake at an unearthly hour of the night.... Yes... I am a religious soul who believes saffron looks best in sweets, pulao, desserts just as green in the woods, on your backyard or on my balcony. I do not have problem with people with a different stand... just that I do not wish to kiss each other on issues that does not match with my mindset..... when did I say I am not self centric?

KHOI ER MURKI is done among us during special prayers held at home.... mainly on Lakshmi or Saraswati Pooja.... Our grandmother did it on a regular basis and stored in those empty Britannia biscuit tins. I am still so fond of having it either with grated coconut or plain yogurt that I can have it everyday if only this diabetes thing would not have featured on life. This khoi that is another variant of puffed rice have some beneficial properties... it eases your bowel movement while had with little warm or may be chilled milk and banana... My paternal grandparents' dinner for the last 15-20 years of their life was this khoi with warm milk and a mashed banana and they had no physical complications as such. Please do not expect any note on its exact nutritional value, its contribution on reducing your BMI or the amount of carb in it.... as I say I do not research deep on a matter... I lack that patience. How this khoi is made?.... just as popcorns.... I remember, the grandmother used special kind of husked rice grains for the purpose.... once the sand got hot, the grains started blooming like white blossoms .... the most painful part was to separate the khoi from the husks. Now a days we do not even have to go through this long process .... we get easily digestible khoi in packets all cleaned for us.... do not buy too white ones... they are bleached... Its natural colour is brownish, very light weight with no taste of its own.... almost like popcorns. May we prepare together this childhood favourite sweet snack of mine called KHOI ER MURKI with this variant of puffed rice called Khoi, jaggery, cardamon powder and little camphor?... We should.... The cashew nuts and raisins are my addition for a richer taste.

INGREDIENTS :
Khoi : 500gm [another variant of puffed rice]
Jaggery : 100gm
Green Cardamom Powder : 4-5pinches
Camphor Tablet : 1/2of one ground to a powder
Water : 1big cup
Grated Coconut or plain yogurt as accompaniment

METHOD :
Take the khoi on a newspaper placed on the table... check carefully if any husk is present.... we need to remove them. Transfer the khoi in a bowl now.

Heat a wok. Add the water and the jaggery. Let it come to boil. If you see any dirt at the top, gently take out and throw. It is very important to buy a good quality jaggery.

Once the jaggery mixture starts getting sticky, add the green cardamom and the camphor powder and stir continuously till it reaches an one string consistency.

Switch of gas and immediately add the khoi and quickly fold in well for sometime.

Transfer to an airtight container.... but it tastes best when had fresh with either grated coconut or plain yogurt or as it is.

Some mornings are little more pleasant than usual just as what I am feeling right now ..... why? I had a good sleep which of late has become an unusual affair for me ..... I had always been an early morning person which is a norm in my side of the family.... only after marriage I came to know people can sleep till 12pm also.... even they too laughed at me saying after 9pm... S switches off from the worldly being.... and the husband continues saying so to his friends. The school I worked in after marriage had a morning session for the senior section.... and the neighbourhood saw this almost newly wed walking towards the bus stop around 5:30 am in the morning.... that was no big deal for me... crossing the Dakshineshwar temple... Belur Math each morning was a pleasure.... what quite pricks me these days is .... once I taught high school students .... now I feel I cannot even guide a primary kid.... do I regret? .... not really.... there were two little hands hugging me tight .... "amar mumma chai".... the mother could not even go to the toilet when required.... only when the littler slept she could .... the helps I had were more interested in befriending strangers than looking after my son.... so I had to say goodbye to them... The man of the house is far from been chauvinist... he just said ... I will be sailing most of the time... if you too stay away from home all day long.... sensing the genuine worry in him... I thought I was not a professional, my report cards do not say that the world will be at loss if I stay at home.... so I happily complied and happy till date. Then why do I wake up as early as 4:30am or at 5am when 6-6:30 am is fair enough to prepare two lunch boxes? I think and realise that the littler has grown big .... so big that hugging mumma will seem a child like affair.... he has gone after his father and screams if I share a photograph of him in public... at this point I sincerely wish if they could behave a bit like others. So far my expectations are concerned .... one of my man's dearest pal, the old demon with a young wife ..... Dibyendu Banerjee told my husband long before .... do not you notice her abnormal attachment with the son? this is going to be a big trouble if you do not have one more, there has to be diversion of attention a bit.... Emotional Attachments kill you unless you are wise enough to make a fair distribution of it. I do have some confidants in this matter.... the first one is my mother whose son does not go to office without kissing her, my friend Kana Dasgupta.... a teacher now .... eight years back when I was leaving Kolkata.... she was weeping hard and said S how will I?.... our sons studied together since nursery.... two best friends now hardly talk when they meet... still friends though.... When it comes to sincerity, few people can match Kana.... once I had some work and could not go to the other side of the road to receive our son.... Kana's son.... my Memo had a head injury.... he was bleeding.... courtesy Kolkata roads.... She made her bleeding son stand with our security.... got my toddler at my doorstep and then went to the hospital. Among her other qualities.... well she is a certified Rabindra Sangeet singer... too good at it and she never ever indulge in any kind of gossips.... always keeps busy with her school work, stitching, tuitions and Memo. She hates cooking and eating but handed over to me the wonderful recipe of Posto Bandhakopi.... Cabbage with Poppyseed Paste..... What would have happened if we had stayed together till date ?...... we would have fought over that one number in Mathematics that either of our sons would get less than the other ... hihi.... "Kolkata Mother".... is phenomenal..... So meeting once or twice a year is a better idea... wherein you will see me clicking selfies with her husband in the morning while she still stands with her 10th grader Mimo at the gate waiting for the school bus. Does the father know which class his son is in?.... I doubt. Then there is that "another woman" I keep telling you about.... one who has a major contribution towards my abnormal behaviour concerning the son and the sleepless nights thereafter thinking about all negatives happening to him once he is out in the world.... What will you do with her name?.... The telephonic conversations goes as this .... S give up everything to bring up your son .... I know... I never saw any extravagance in you in those days and that endearing dedication towards bringing up your kids.... S ... I cannot sleep.... stop overthinking .... you have such a loving family... nothing will happen to them... chant Nam Myoho Renge Kyo. I hang up the phone and go to sleep.... wake up sweating .... I dreamt of the son crossing an unmanned street or falling from the bus or similar incidents concerning the husband, brother or the loved ones .... Yes, my readers I suffer from an anxiety disorder where I fear of losing dear ones, ever since early 90's perhaps after witnessing a train accident and was under treatment at different times .... I believe it is still there.... to get rid of all these one needs to be engaging... busy and I am way bit a lazy brat.

How come the above lines come while sharing a recipe on FRESH FRUIT & CORNFLOUR HALWA WITH MIXED NUTS.... Well I love unfolding my life and the people around however reluctant my readers are! You can always go straightaway to the recipe and the process of doing it. In this case, it is a sweet recipe done with fresh fruit juices of watermelon and oranges, cornflour and mixed nuts like pistachios, almonds and cashew nuts. This FRESH FRUIT & CORNFLOUR HALWA WITH MIXED NUTS is just a healthy twist to the very common desi sweet cornflour halwa. There are so many variety of halwa and I perhaps have tried only half of them. Hey.... fat, old diabetic why are you sharing sweet dishes one after another? Trust me there is no reason, this was done as part of the husband's birthday menu, it was easy and done in less time. Oh My! 11/2 table spoon of ghee and 1/4teaspoon of green cardamom powder can fill your home with such aroma!... amazing... the only thing we need to be cautious is to stir the entire mixture continuously while cooking, else lumps will form. Ok, the wonder called Mary Kom won a gold again and I am so much loving that.... I was never into sports ever.... the parents could not push me out of home. When the friends played badminton in the school courtyard... I was a silent watcher, yawning throughout.... I should never be an example to be set.... a sweet treat to anyone who makes a mark, a sweet to keep your calm after knowing that a teen kills a kid in the school toilet just to get the school examination postponed.... and you expect me to get cured of my anxiety disorder?.... it never will happen.... the reason why I like carefree, chirpy people.... the reason why I thank the almighty for not making my men like me!

You will find few hundreds of recipe of cornflour halwa on the internet shared by trained chefs to home cooks. I have gone through a couple of them, of Sharmis Passion in particular and then went up doing it on my own with my version of this desi sweet that I named FRESH FRUIT & CORNFLOUR HALWA WITH MIXED NUTS. I did it listening to Ustad Mehdi Hassan ..... "kesariya balam.... aayo ni.... padharo mharey des rey"it is so hassle free ....You see I do not understand a bit of oriental language, but while in the supermarkets.... my feet gets tapped automatically listening to the background scores.... just as I am far from knowing the vast arena of local food.... I enjoy having them though.... but majority of my clan do not know what authentic oriental cooking / food is.... Let me take a midway and use fresh, too good quality local ingredients and go desi.... angry, sad, happy, merry, irritated?.... up to you....

INGREDIENTS :
Watermelon : 1/4 od a standard size
Orange : 2-3 medium sized [ I used 4-5 mandarins]
Cornflour : 3tbsp
Sugar : 1/2small cup
Green Cardamom Powder : 1/4tsp
Ghee : 11/2tbsp [clarified butter]
Water : 1coffee mug
Pistachio : 4-5
Almond : 4-5
Cashew nut : 6-7
Food Colour : 1/2pinch of yellow / red [optional]

METHOD :

Chop and keep the nuts in a plate.

Cut the watermelon into smaller cubes discarding the seeds and the cover. Oranges too we will discard the skin and deseed.

With help of a juicer, we will get the combined juice of both the fruits using little water.

We will strain any residual pulp and store the juice in a bowl.

Add the cornflour and food colour very nicely so that no lumps are found.

After adding the cornflour, the mixture looks as below.

Take the water and sugar in a vessel and switch on gas. Once the syrup come to boil, let it boil for 3-4 minutes at low heat.

Stir the fruit juice and cornflour mixture well enough again and pour on to the sugar syrup.

Keep stirring continuously till it tends to become thicker. Add the ghee and keep stirring.

As the mixture gets more thicker into a paste like consistency, add the green cardamom powder and the mixed nuts consisting of chopped pistachio, almond and cashew nuts. Stir for another minute.

Pour into any shape of container.... preferably square or rectangular.

Let cool for an hour, refrigerate furthermore for an hour. Take out, cut in to your desired shapes and
serve.

It was last Friday that we had this for dinner .... the season here is such that it is licensed to rain though each day can be a rainy day here in the island..... there is heavy down pour since morning.... here is the proof....

All my photographs are taken with my smart phone which does not show any proof of date, but I have a couple of blogger friends from this island ..... far far more known in the food world than me by their own right.... they will agree with me that it is raining right now and is the right time to share a bowlful of MANGSHER KHICHURI ..... khichdi or rice and dal hotchpotch done with mutton this time. I was wondering why we guys have not met over some coffee or tea a single day ..... Then I know myself well .... I am never so friendly, communicative creature in the vast, unknown social media world and definitely lack the brain to promote myself..... Hence, I just share what I cook and then take refuge to my own world ... capturing those pearl drops and do some "goongoon"..... humming "lagi lagan pati saki sang." To all newbies in the food world.... newer than me ..... I am never a good example to follow in any matter.... one who fails to promote herself.... should not be expected to be helpful for others much.... though willing to genuinely. I cannot multi task but at this moment I am writing my food post and at the same time cannot take my eyes off from the television set. I am watching CNN.... S when did you start lying?... trust me I am not..... CNN is featuring an Old Delhi food walk.... and I simply cannot take my eyes off from the parathe wale gali and the end number of chaats they have to offer. My taste buds have become such that I can have chaats all day through.... Smog or whatever.... at the moment I feel like taking the earliest flight there and savour some goodies, explore same old places of history again with the same excitement of a first timer, Delhi Hut is a must for home decors and a humble visit to Sarojini Nagar goes without saying... I do carry "Coach" bags but thats the senior's gift.... The other day I got a ten dollars shoes on discount for which the senior threatened of filing a divorce.... the one whose torn kurti got me fall for him many summers back. Come on this hypocrite is not trying to prove anything, while booking for tours.... she has to have the best facilities in the resort or hotel. I wonder what are we?.... what we have turned to actually?.... my very this man was heavily in to a particular political belief, worked sincerely for it alternatively wearing 2-3 shirts that his father could afford. As I always say.... romance never got us together .... but some qualities of him made the parasitical, cunning fox like me believe I can have a peaceful life with him.... You see it is quite normal that such a khichdi home with a confused ideology will have MANGSHER KHICURI more often on their dining table. Moreover my meat-o-phobic little brother is responding to all my shares he does not like... sweets... prawns... he deserves mutton today though I always tell him social media is not the place to show personal relationship too often..... however we are humans and fail to be politically right always.

The eight years of stay in this island have made me a bit liberated when it comes to food..... within my limits though.... but you remember my friend Paromita Ghosal?... the excellent cook and teacher will find it very upsetting when I am caught having a dumpling soup or bak chor mee or my favourite yong tau fong.... I have to comfort her saying that last Wednesday I waited two hours in one particular Asian store which is the only to sell "tatka tyangra"... that too only on Wednesdays between 3-5pm.... She has trained her daughter well who eats full Bengali meal. What is the scene at my home?.... the son did not touch tyangra... he wants baked Salmon. He is into Bengali food only when it is chicken and mutton curry or chingrir malaikari. I feel awkward when I see my men ordering beef steak... instructing the waiter on whether it has to have less or more blood.... I am that much liberated to accept it and think that other people also feel bad when I cook shutki / hudkir bharta that is fermented fish in my kitchen. May I share a secret?... my not so Bengali men loves shutkir bharta .... haha... you see there has to have a thin thread of attachment to your roots..... and if you are like me you will cook khichdi dishes like shorshe salmon or tandoori mosholai grilled bhetki.... but this MANGSHER KHICHURI of mine is done in the most authentic Bengali way.... doing so I have not followed anyone.... rather would say I did it my way with Bengali spices. I need to finish my post quickly and message Paromita about the tatka tyangra. Mangsher Khichuri is not so common at Bengali homes as is the vegetarian version that we strictly do with cauliflower, potato and green peas or the "bhoger bhuna khichuri" using ghee, kaju, kishmish. I remember once I shared a picture of vegetarian khichuri recipe with carrots and my friend from college Andy.... Aindrila Dutta commented "gajor deoa khichuri" khabona... haha... and she lives in Illinois since 1991! Saying so I am not taking a dig at anyone.... my northern Indian friends can say how come you add so much sugar on a peas pulao?... just as my southern Indian friends may scream .... S you are adding fruit salt to a khichdi mixture, calling it instant idli and burst into tears... hihi.... the friends from west may vehemently protest when I add all available spices to the fish or chicken fillets and bake them.... you see the island still allows me here even when I cook the very healthy tofu or mushrooms with "jirey ada lonka bata" ..... so spare me of your sticks.... its all for the sake of the food-o-phobics at home. I should stop doing all the silly talks now and share my recipe of MANGSHER KHICHURI ..... a rice, dal and mutton hotchpotch wherein I cooked the mutton and rice-dal separately, mixed together later and simmered for sometime and finished adding a tempering. I was too lazy to take the stepwise pictures. The papad and chutney are missing in the picture because I was running out of them..... you are not bad as me and would have them. I compensated with an "aloo fulkopir dalna" and "raita."

INGREDIENTS :
Rice : 1medium cup of Fragrant Basmati or Gobindobhog [I used kalijeera]
Moong Dal : 1/3 medium cup split green gram
Mutton : 500gm medium to small cut
Onion : 2 [peeled, washed, sliced]
Tomato : 1medium [washed and chopped]
Green Chilli : 4slitted
Lemon Juice : 1/4small cup
Bayleaf : 1+1
Dry Red Chilli : 2-3halved
Cumin Seed : 1/4tsp
Cumin Powder : 1/2+1/2tsp
Coriander Powder : 1/2tsp
Red Chilli Powder : 11/2tsp [or as you require]
Turmeric Powder : 1tsp + 1tsp + 1/2tsp
Ginger Paste : 1tsp + 11/2tsp
Garlic Paste : 2tsp
Sugar : 2tsp [optional]
Salt : As Required
Ghee : 3-4tbsp
Oil : 4tbsp +2tbsp [authentically mustard]

METHOD :
Wash the mutton and marinate with cumin powder, half of red chilli powder, coriander powder, little turmeric and salt, lemon juice. Mix well and refrigerate in an airtight container at least for 4-5 hours. Take out an hour before cooking.

Heat 4tbsp oil in a wok and temper with a bayleaf. Add the sliced onion and fry till crisp and brown. Take out some to garnish the mangsher khichuri later.

Add 1tsp ginger paste and the garlic paste and stir for 2 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes and let it melt. Add the 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1tsp chilli powder, salt and stir for a minute. Add the marinated mutton pieces along with the marinade. Fold in well and cover.

We will cook the mutton at low heat till all the water dries up and the mutton is tender. Add the cinnamon and cardamom powder and mix well. Cook for 2-3 minutes more and switch off gas.

Dry roast the moong dal and wash 2-3 times. Soak in hot water for 2 hours. Pour in a deep, heavy bottomed vessel and add some more water. Put on gas for boil and cover. Wash and soak the rice in enough water at normal temparature.

Once it is about half boiled which may take about 20-25 minutes, add the washed rice and some more water. Keep adding water, little at a time if required.

Add 1tsp turmeric powder and salt, stir. Once the rice and dal mixture is 80% done, add the cooked mutton with all its juices, sugar if using and the slitted green chillies.

Fold in well and simmer for sometime. At no point we will allow the khichdi mixture to burn or get too dry, so the entire cooking is to be done at low heat and to be stirred often. Once done switch off.

Heat 2tbsp oil in a pan and temper with cumin seeds, halved dry red chillies and a bayleaf. Add the ginger paste, salt, 1/2tsp cumin and turmeric powder. Stir for 2 minutes and add to the mangsher khichuri.

Transfer to a serving bowl and add the ghee, garnish with crispy fried onion slices. Serve hot with a veggie sides, chutney, raita, papad.

Its raining .... raining..... raining again since last night and we are quite used to enjoying monsoon at this time of the year for a couple of years now. I simply love watching the downpour early morning and can spend hours doing so..... there comes our Cristine's inevitable call .... ma'am its 7:15am already.... when will you prepare their lunch box?.... All possibilities of a "wedding with monsoon" within had to be kept aside and I had to say good bye to the favourite corner of my couch .... I have to because the old demon senior always looks for a reason not to carry a lunch box to the office.... he does because I insist. This island has no dearth of food outlets offering the healthiest choice of food at a cleanliest ambience at reasonable rate where the government decides what amount of salt is to be used in a dish. Though my senior is a demon, packing his lunch box is perhaps from the feeling that ok I too have some contribution at home. There is off course some kind of guilt inside that I have a grown up teen at home, no elderly people to look after, I do not earn a penny.... yet there is a full time help always at service.... who supplies cups of coffee when we savour some FRESH HERBS ALOO PAKORA on a rain drenched evening. Then you see there is a reason for such indulgence.... I could never train my men well and household work seems to be nightmarish to them.... the question is can they be trained? that it is impossible to train them and the source of been so.... will be agreed upon by my father-in-law too... not in public though... haha.... There are three people in this family who if they say.... Sun rises in the west and sets in the north-east... no one on earth can correct it. I always have an open offer for all.... if anyone can train the trio... I give a considerable amount to them from my savings. Come on lah... I am never a victim.... they are nice people who do not set rules for you either. The senior deserves a roast chicken and pulao in the lunch box prepared early morning... you know why readers? Few winters back when I came down from the confession box uttering the truth.... and nothing but truth... he offered me a glass of port wine instead of breaking the cut glass on my head saying.... "Pushpa yeh tumney kya bola... dur ho jao meri nazroon se." If you are inquisitive enough to know what I said, I cannot comply.... few things in life are so personal .... neither am I a Bollywood queen that my life story will sell like hot cake. What best I can do for you is treating you with some crisp, hot fries / fritters / pakora as good as this FRESH HERBS ALOO PAKORA done with the most common Indian herbs and the universal aloo / potato.

Hi S, you boast of your island so much.... yet you hardly share a local dish on your blog. To that I would say its not a child's play given I am so lethargic / allergic to research and miser enough to buy seven sauces and ten herbs for a dish .... better we enjoy that outside because there are right people for doing it rather than me. I have a plan to share the Bengali style noodles that our mothers used to do in the early 80's if only my oriental friends guarantee that they will not shoot me at point blank range at the sight of it. I may not ever blog on "mushroom diye dal".... if anyone does it I do not have a problem either. I do have a wonderful recipe of a winter special heirloom Bengali dal recipe to be shared soon. For majority, pakora / fry / fritter is welcome at any season unless you are an extreme case of health freakiness. In that case I am not so much of your friend, I have stopped talking to Ipsita ever since she said S whenever you have cravings for carbs.... eat corns... Gosh! I mean I failed to even react! .... I am that shameless diabetic who eats salad adding some ripe mango pieces to it .... Ipsita survives on salads and soups, knows about 50 kinds of it and sends me every week... giving me tremendous complex wearing body hugging clothes at the same time. Girls .... if you are so keen on wearing some happening dresses.... do some bench press, leg curls, push ups or whatever. Let me work peacefully on perfecting these FRESH HERBS PAKORA and treat you and family with some along with my favourite cup of coffee. Once I please my tummy, I can go out looking for some dresses with a guarantee of 80% coverage of all the extras on my arms, tummy.... Of late I realised all solutions lies in going for a surgery of my tongue. If you are ready with your "hata-khunti"..... we can proceed with FRESH HERBS ALOO PAKORA done with fresh Indian herbs like mint-coriander-curry leaves, potatoes and few spices.

INGREDIENTS :
Coriander Leaves : 11/2coffee mug [roughly chopped]
Mint Leaves : 1medium Cup [roughly chopped]
Curry Leaves : 1small cup
Potato : 1big
Green Chillies : 2-3chopped
Rice flour : 4tbsp
Gram flour : 21/2tbsp
Turmeric Powder : 1/2tsp
Red Chilli Powder : 1/2tsp
Asafoetida : A pinch
Nigella Seeds : 1tsp
Lemon Juice : 2tbsp
Sugar : 1tsp [optional]
Salt : As Required
Oil : 50ml [strain and store the extra for later use]

The entire amount fetched 12 fresh herbs aloo pakora.

METHOD :

Take all tree chopped herbs in a strainer and wash throughly. Wait till all the water drains away.

Wash the potato, prick all over. Take on a plate and microwave at high for 21/2 to 3 minutes. Let cool.

Transfer the chopped herbs and green chillies to a big bowl. Peel the boiled potato and add to the fresh herbs.

Mix the content well.

Add the lemon juice, turmeric and chilli powders, asafoetida, salt, sugar and nigella seeds to the herbs and potato mixture.

Fold in the entire content very well.

Prepare tennis size balls taking out small portions and then flatten with your palm. Refrigerate for 1/2 an hour.

Take out the tray from the refrigerator. Heat oil in a wok and fry the fresh herbs aloo pakoras in batches constantly switching between medium to low heat.

Once done, transfer the pakoras on to tissue papers to get rid of any excess oil.

Serve the crisp, hot FRESH HERBS ALOO PAKORA on a tray with chilli tomato sauce, spiced yogurt and off course to have some steaming hot coffee with it.

This blog never had been kids friendly.... far from been a health blog either. That does not mean I do not or cannot do something for them given that I love them too much .... just that I always lack the patience to handle them ..... these wonder pieces of joy can really get mischievous and make you get wild, grey, bald whatever. On a positive note, in the process .... they help you slim down... haha... I remember when I wished to have a second child.... my friend Kana said S nine months is nothing but you know that you have to start from ABCD again... sit hours at one place for feeding the kid.... then there was this senior at home.... S I cannot take two years of leave from the ship again and then he takes out that horrendous piece of paper from the pocket and shows me some graphs which I never was interested in and there came out an inevitable shrill note... "rakho tomar chota".... haha chota is cheat paper in Bengali.... Now my readers know very well S gives big talks in public but she never ever had been a brave girl.... the nightmarish dreams of staying awake at night with an "in a play mood" child gave her shock waves ..... you are not silly as this fat old lady.... you are physically fit and still young and you will go for a second chance... prince or a princess is not your choice and you need not be bothered.... your family hopefully do not have "tarini jethu".... "ramakanta jomider" or "khenti pishi" who never had / have any idea of the functioning of the x and y chromosomes. The man of this house who brought up his child with a trained nurse's efficiency till he was 11/2 years old, going penniless in the process sitting at home for two long years is on a child's diet at the moment. He has developed an infection on the edge of his tongue. Come on he is a very nice human being.... the wife cannot even say... the more you scold your wife, more of such things will happen in your life. So the wife is cooking semi liquid stuffs for his lunch box while the son is taking either sandwiches or noodles... he does not like messy things to be carried to the school. See the scenario at the kitchen this morning....

Semi liquid upma... "maar bhaat"... kind of rice porridge with egg and potato is been cooked.... while Cristine cooked some noodles for the son. In between there was this INSTANT POPS as fillers. I feel really bad to prepare poori / paratha when the senior cannot have it.... they can wait..... Be sure readers.... yet he will not take the wife to a jewelry showroom and say choose.... you know the old demon is unromantic enough to say.... gold is bad investment. With 20 years under one roof, I can only say... boss you got spared marrying me... had it been other "wo...".... before I can finish.... prompt comes the answer... there is no one on earth who can conquer me.... The wife at this home has an open offer.... anyone please who can prove him wrong?.... I have got some ilish, puti, mutton yesterday to treat you guys and also to kiss you with some INSTANT POPS... Every Wednesday I go for music lessons in the heart of the Indian market.... how much to learn or whether to buy desi food stuffs is a question..... though both are a favourite.

So when the father of this house had to sail leaving his 11/2 year old baby, hell broke on his "dhyarosh"wife.... however favourite ladysfinger is for the Bengalis, it also refers to someone worthless. The wife did not even know how to feed the kid.... but since she loved her freedom and self respect.... she did not like asking the supreme power in a household .... what amount of rice is to be taken everyday just to prove I am a subordinate who needs to take permission for every move neither did I love to listen every now and then that my mother has not taught me anything.... So I had to prove my self worth sitting alone with a toddler in a 500 sq.ft. flat .... from feeding him, taking him to preschool all the way literally carrying him on my lap till we settled on "biplak kakur auto".... to carrying 5+5=10kg rice bags on my two strong hands. I was stubborn and wise enough to know that if I love my freedom, I must be able to do my work alone and do not bother the family for every other thing. I always had family support though. Eventually, I also had to prove I am a good homemaker.... though not great like "my mother." When life was this, husband sailing continuously to get ends meet.... wife struggling alone with a difficult child, we could not think of having a second issue but one should... what say?... you can always! For the aspiring and already parents... life is difficult but worth living and if you are a foodie like me... it is always worth to taste a variety of dishes, as much as possible and try them at home for your little munchkins .... it makes very much sense because maintaining hygiene and quality is a must when it comes to the kids. With so many posts on kids yesterday, the idea of preparing something for them and blog on it at earliest was what I wished. Innovations do not come naturally to me though the mother fed all kinds of brain boosting food since childhood.... Yesterday afternoon the idea of this sweet snack INSTANT POPS came in flashes... it took few minutes to assemble the idea and I did not spend much time to prepare them. We will need very few ingredients like dry roasted bread crumbs, little sugar and / or jaggery, mixed nuts / dry fruits like pistachio, cashew nut, almond, raisin, ghee and cardamom powder to prepare these kids to teen friendly INSTANT POPS.... nonetheless to say... we parents will also enjoy having them. My men are under weight... so I try to feed them dry fruits and nuts in various ways... in snacks, sweets, desserts, pulao ...... you can too.

INGREDIENTS :
Bread Crumb : 11/2medium cup
Sugar : 1tbsp
Jaggery Powder : 21/2tbsp
Green Cardamom Powder : 1/2tsp
Pistachio : 8-10
Almond : 11/2tsp
Cashew nuts : 12-14
Raisin : 14-15
Ghee : 1tbsp + 3tbsp
Toothpick : 1each for an Instant Pop

The amount yields about nine Instant Pops.

METHOD :

Heat a frying pan on stove. Add the bread crumbs to it and roast well.

Let cool and transfer to a grinder.... which definitely you do not use to grind spices.... coffee grinder makes sense.

The the pistachios, cashew nuts, almonds in a bowl and microwave at low power for 11/2 minute stirring in between.

Add the mixed nuts, 1tbsp ghee, sugar, jaggery powder, green cardamom powder too to the grinder.

Grind to a powder which may take 2-3 minutes, pause in between. Transfer to a plate, add the raisins and 1tbsp ghee at a time. We are using the ghee for binding the pops and to add flavour.

Prepare tennis ball size roundels.

Gently insert a tooth pick into each one of the Instant Pops.

Refrigerate for 1/2 an hour before serving or let the kids help themselves whenever they wish to.

I found this no fancy, regular, heirloom Bengali dish CHINGRI TOMATO ALOO POTOL DIYE JHAL JHAL DALNA to be a perfect share today .... I am not in a mood to be too elaborate today... neither can I after a fair dose of Turkish? Yaniraki & Danish Vodka at a sis-in-law's place. This too very glamorous girl Gargi Neogy is an excellent cook, near perfect homemaker and a wonderful host. The entire period we stayed there..... we were on food .... succulent pieces of tandoori chicken, crispy fried fish, minced chicken & cheese stuffed mushroom, dates, chaats to start with and mutton, prawn, paneer kofta, pulao, chutney, kheer to end with.... and this greedy woman had f-o-u-r fish fries .... and she gives big talks to others. Well that is an inherent nature of some people to barge into people's lives and decide how their lives should be.... I have seen such irritating people since my school days who were more interested in ruling other's lives, alluring them to what and what nots.... that is fine if one does not use other people in the process.... What such people forget to do is minding their own business and life.... till date I can see they have not changed a bit and I personally prefer to avoid / ignore such people.... and the man who boasts of not been conquered by any does not go against his wife's wish in such matters... haha. Yesterday night or at each of these parties we were / are just free birds... thats when this lady expresses her concern to her not so bossy boss.... janeman when we go back from this island and arrange such parties... self proclaimed protectors of the society can barge into our homes and decide on our menu... drinks.... whatever..... Media is not entirely or always wrong and the news are pretty scaring.... anything in excess puts me off. Let me tell you a bit about this Yaniraki.... Last year while we went for the Europe tour.... Gargi's husband Kaushik told us to pick up a bottle from the Ataturk airport, given we do not get it anywhere in this island or may be even in India. We never thought of buying one for us.... oh my God... it went down so well with my taste bud.... the over powering flavour of fennel seeds took over me and I have to have it when we visit them. I was just beginning to get the right kicks.... thats when the happening danseuse Nibedita entered who publicly has to share all her secrets with me, kiss and hug who I failed to convince stay focussed on what you are good at... dance. Yes, you are right .... I am too very indulgent with certain people in life, had been for years however against I am with few of their ways.... you may call it love which in certain cases is equivalent to stupidity.... beyond any logic. So, for this pretty girl I stood straight even after four shots and reached home safely with help of the wise and sane Ipsita and now fit enough to blog on a family and few of the friend's favourite.... CHINGRI TOMATO ALOO POTOL DIYE JHAL JHAL DALNA.

So you get me there.... in a sentence.... I enjoy certain kisses and vehemently say no to others... and a no is a no forever to me... in a real life context. I call myself one whimsical woman who prefers not to be constant always.... I will serve a full proof Bengali lunch to my men, blogging on a heirloom Bengali dish but will go for watching Doob this afternoon being a diehard Irfan fan. Some of us may share more of Bengali recipes.... I do not know about others but I do it because I grew up eating them, I do not need to search Google for doing them.... and foremost we must contribute towards promoting Bengali Cuisine which however do not feature much in world palette.... leave alone world, I doubt how many non- Bengali speaking people visit "Bhojohori Manna" located in other cities of India.... it definitely hurts. I also must say I severely dislike it when some in the known circle responds only to my Bengali posts... food or non-food.... I hate to smell regional... I take pride being a Bengali, comfortable in the language but I am equally friends with people from other states of India and abroad... my lunches are usually rasam-vadai or a dumpling or fish soups and I am pretty good at making aloo paratha besides macher jhol. I bake too but like a toddler.... wish to share a few during xmas. I like it when my friend Bianca Castafiore shares pictures of perfectly made naan with kebobs. Though I always doubt about the amount of chillies used but she grows a few variety in her farmhouse.... haha. Look at me, not a single vegetable survives on my balcony while some are growing them wonderfully on theirs.... and I have to share our mother's winter blooms in a month or two ... though I have a feeling the brother does not like it. Only my orchids are growing without much care just as my hair.... that makes me happy. As usual I had to do a lot of "no-sense" talking before sharing this awesome Bengali curry recipe of CHINGRI TOMATO ALOO POTOL DIYE JHAL JHAL DALNA.... You will still find me tolerable more than I find certain overbearing people who had been such since ages. This authentic Bengali curry has a vegetarian version too that I have blogged on earlier. We Bengalis have a habit to throw in shrimps to curries with various vegetables. At this home, doing so makes life easier for me as it helps me to feed them the accompanying veggies. Shrimps / Prawns are a regular at this home. An untimely and good supply of the summer vegetable called potol / parwal / pointed gourd made me feel sharing this heirloom, regular Bengali curry called CHINGRI TOMATO ALOO POTOL DIYE JHAL JHAL DALNA done with usual Bengali spices, tomato, potato, pointed gourd and shrimps. We have it with steamed rice, but you should not hesitate to dunk your hot chapatis in to it.

INGREDIENTS :
Shrimp : 400gm
Pointed Gourd : 10-12
Potato : 2medium
Tomato : 2medium
Ginger Paste : 2tbsp
Cumin Powder : 11/2tsp
Red Chilli Powder : 2tsp [adjust as per your preference]
Turmeric Powder : 1tsp
Salt : As Required
Sugar : 1tsp
Bayleaf : 1
Cumin Seeds : 1/4tsp
Cinnamon Powder : 1/4tsp
Green Cardamom Powder : 3-4pinches
Cloves Powder : 2-3pinches
Lemon Juice : 2tbsp
Oil : 6-7tbsp [authentically mustard]

METHOD :

Peel, wash and cut each potato into four halves, apply little salt and turmeric and keep aside for 5-6 minutes.

Thinly peel the pointed gourds keeping a little gap in between, cut off the two ends and then cut half. Wash well and apply little salt and turmeric, keep aside for 10 minutes.

De shell and clean the fresh shrimps and wash thoroughly. You are preferably to keep the heads on as doing so enhances the taste, I cannot always. Frozen, already cleaned ones do not give you similar taste though I do it when my help is on leave... haha. Apply salt, lemon juice, little of red chilly powder and turmeric. Marinate for 15 minutes.

Heat oil in a wok and fry the potatoes till brown first else they will turn black. Take out. Fry the pointed gourds now in batches. Take out once they turn light brown.

Lightly fry the prawns discarding the marinade totally. Take out.

Temper oil with a bay leaf and cumin seeds. Take the remaining salt and turmeric, red chilli powder, cumin powder, ginger paste in a bowl, sprinkle a little water and mix well. Add it to the tempered oil. Fry the spice mix for 2 minutes.

Chop the washed tomatoes and add to the spice mix, fold in well. Once the tomato pieces melts totally, add the semi fried potato pieces and fold in well. Stir for a minute and add one coffee mug of water. and stir.

Let the gravy boil at low heat for 2-3 minutes. Add the semi fried pointed gourd pieces and lightly fried shrimps. Stir and let cook uncovered for 3-4 minutes. If at any point you see the potatoes are getting to be overdone, take them out later to be added to the curry.

Add the sugar, cinnamon... green cardamom and cloves powder, mix well and let cook for a minute.
Switch of gas and serve CHINGRI TOMATO ALOO POTOL DIYE JHAL JHAL DALNA hot with piping hot steamed rice.... You can enjoy with your hot phulkas too.

KHEER KOMOLA SANDESH

CRISP POTATO-PEANUT COINS WITH DATES-YOGURT DIP

DESI STYLE EGGPLANT DIP

SEMOLINA & SPICE STUFFED KACHORI WITH SWEET TAMARIND CHUTNEY

MANGO HALWA

COCONUT ALOO

PAN FLAVOURED RASMALAI

RAJMA CURRY WITH EGGS IN A YOGURT BASED GRAVY

TAWA ALOO MACCHI

DESI STYLE POACHED EGG CURRY

TOMATO RICE

MIXED VEGETABLE KOFTA IN A CREAMY RICH CURRY

PAN FLAVOURED KULFI

CHOTO CHINGRI KUMRO ALOO BORBOTI DIYE BATI CHOCCHORI

KHOI ER MURKI

FRESH FRUIT & CORNFLOUR HALWA WITH MIXED NUTS

MANGSHER KHICHURI

FRESH HERBS ALOO PAKORA

INSTANT POPS

CHINGRI TOMATO ALOO POTOL DIYE JHAL JHAL DALNA