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Kola boda | Banana fritters
Banana are a must in our kitchen. They make for an easy snack any time of the day, are tasty and easy to eat. All you have to do is peel and chomp. And my father feels incomplete without them. Sometimes I feel they are the food version of a security blanket for Baba – I’ve seen him get agitated when we are down to that last banana and rush out at 8 pm to hunt for the fruit. “There’s only one left!” he’d say before pulling on his walking shoes and making a rush for the vegetable store. While that’s not happening in the current scenario –coronavirus lockdown continues…
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An emotional Iced Apple Chai
A fellow blogger and adorable friend recently shared a beautiful post on her Instagram feed. The sentiments she expressed in the post echoed my thoughts, many of you might also agree with me… Posts like this one by Kamini Patel of the Kitchen Therapy, the various positive videos and memes on social media platforms are like energy shots on dreary days. There are also some wicked friends who’ve kept spirits high with their unswerving dedication to sharing food photographs – for instance… Hriday Bhatia of The Chef From India who diligently sends me lush food photographs before they make it to his Instagram feed! Proof below…And the girlfriends who send…
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Nariyal-Gaajar ka Halva | Carrot & Coconut Halva
I have a strange relationship with expiry dates. I tend to forget about them until that moment of realization which leads to ‘mission expiry date check’. This is a mission in which you’ll find me combing through the medicine cabinet, my makeup stash, the spice cabinets and… you get the drift? The latest ‘expiry check’ had me cleaning out my mega makeup collection – I was left with an eyeliner and lipstick each. The scene was no different in the kitchen. Empty bottles of spices were lined up on the platform like school children gearing up for morning assembly. The near-expiry carton of fresh cream and an undated packet of desiccated coconut…
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Slow-cooked Mixed Vegetables
Between the time I spend in the kitchen for the baking orders and winter laze that makes us want to snuggle under the blanket with a book, the ‘cooking’ mood at home has been at an all-time low. But since one has to eat and I’m doing my best not to succumb to the lures of ‘restaurant food’, Maa has taken to cooking food that is healthy, quick, easy and minimal. The winter vegetables that continue to sit pretty on the market shelves also help the cause. Mixed vegetables are the go-to for us on most days, especially the Bengali rosha (Bengali vegetable curry) and this particular nameless mixed vegetable.…
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Guymag | Wheat & Butter Halva
Do you know what one of the best parts about winter is? It’s that special fragrance that comes from generous amounts of ghee or butter. It’s the heady aroma of paratha being roasted in ghee, the sizzle of the spices when they touch the hot makkhan (homemade butter), the hiss as a rainbow of vegetables slide into the butter for a winter-special stir fry. A mention of halva that has been painstakingly slow cooked for that perfect balance of flavours is a must. After all, winters are synonymous with halva! Gaajar ka halva, moong dal ka halva, badam halva, doodhi halva, matar halva… (types of Indian puddings made of carrots, green mung beans, almond, bottle gourd, green peas) Amid this list of lavish…
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Dahi Matar Paneer | Cottage Cheese & Green Peas in Yoghurt Sauce
I had always found it odd that some of the best cooks around me wouldn’t eat some of the foods they made. For instance, an aunt of mine makes some amazing Thai non-vegetarian food but she never tastes any of it. Why? Because she gave up non-vegetarian food decades ago for health reasons. Then there is a friend’s mother who cooks the best biryani I’ve eaten; she makes all of it without even tasting the biryani to adjust seasoning. She doesn’t eat rice and non-vegetarian food. So there! I’d always wondered at the strangeness of the situation and how these women managed to cook without wanting to eat the food…
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Nutty Nutrition Powder
“To health drink or not” – this is the question that plagued my mother since the time a friend of hers raved about a nutrition drink, especially for senior citizens. While the friend claimed to have felt a difference after regular consumption of the drink, Maa was not convinced owing to the ‘chemicals’ and ‘sugar’ contents. Her concerns, when relayed to the family doctor, got us the response “Make a natural nutrition drink at home”. The doctor’s logic was rather simple. Why put chemicals into your body for nutrition when you can get the same from products already a part of the household? “Dried fruits & nuts are the perfect drink supplement.…
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Lal Shaak | Stir-fried Red Spinach
As a child, I used to be fascinated with the concept of a red coloured vegetable and immediately made it my favourite. What tickled me pink was the rice turning pink when mixed with red spinach. Seems it was officially my favourite food and the only time I liked the colour pink! Yes, I never appreciated the various hues of pink until I grew older and wiser and discovered hot pink. But that’s a story for another day. Going back to the red spinach or lal shaak as it is known in West Bengal, this lesser-known cousin of Popeye’s favourite food is filled with all things healthy. It should be…
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Mishti Ghee Bhaat | Sweet Ghee Rice
It’s the last week of the year for several of us and preparations are in full swing to celebrate the first day of the New Year. Invitations to attend community celebrations have already started making the rounds and the “I’ll-go-if-you-go” discussions have begun. In a week’s time, Bengalis worldwide will step into the New Year on ‘Poila Boishakh’ or ‘First of Boishakh’, the first day of the first month (Boishakh) in the lunisolar Bengali Calendar. Celebrated on either the 14th or 15th of April each other, it is one among the many other New Year celebrations marked by other communities and states. This year, we’ll be celebrating Poila Boishakh on April 15 along…
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How to Celebrate ‘World Vegetarian Day’?
I’ll be honest. I was a bit flummoxed when I first read that October 1 is celebrated as World Vegetarian Day! As someone born in India, vegetarian food has been a part-and-parcel of life as far as memory stretches. My family loves its fish, meat, seafood and what not. But we love our vegetarian food as much. So much so that you’ll see the lot of us sticking to vegetarian food during the relentless summers – easy on the digestive system – and on some festival days – for spiritual reasons. Curious, I went on an internet searching spree – starting with the Oxford Dictionary – and found some rather…
