Dessert (Eggless)

Jamun or Java Plum Panna Cotta

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Few memories never fade. Rather those embedded so firmly in your mind, in your heart that at every step of life they help you to stay strong and happy. I miss my grandmother very much. I miss her wrinkled cheeks which I love to cuddle and pull. I miss the way she used to make Kheer er Putul (Dolls out of Kheer) on the auspicious occasion of Shashti Puja. I miss all the pranks that my sister and I only used to play on her. There are some relationships that build upon love and affection. A totally different kind of affection where the only language is love, nothing else. Call it a blind love or what, at the grandparents’ lap we know what exactly a sheer pampering calls for. I also believe, Food makes a relationship strong and also builds up evocative reminiscences. The summer fruit Jaam/Jamun/Java plum or Balck Plum is associated with a very close memory in my heart.

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Snacks, Veg

Pizza Pouches

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If we have a fight ever or arguments, that has to be always over food. Miss Picky Pie, the pickiest eater of the world (I am not exaggerating) sometimes makes my life hell where she leaves me shattered, tattered (again not exaggerating) without any choices or on a bed of junk food to offer. I spend sleep nights, pinning hundreds of recipes on Pinterest when her school is open. Preparing her lunchbox is literally a nightmare to me. Mainly because she leaves for her school at 7.00 am and I have to prepare her lunch box ready by 6.30am. She will not have bread, no Parathas, no noodles, no eggs, no vegetables. She will have only Pasta or Something made out of Potato. So either I make pasta or potato wedges or chilli potato with a side of stir fried sweet corns that she really loves. But again if her friends refuse to share her tiffin because every day they are having the same dish and now want something new, Miss Picky Pie on same note comes back home and demands something new. Friends are the God to her. A word showered from their mouth that means those have to be written with a golden ink and propelled at any cost. And me, the mommy with a nettled heart, thrust my face again in the recipe collections.

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Main Course, Non-Veg

Chicken Chap (Kolkata Style)

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The other day we were busy in discussing on Chicken Chap over a cup of tea and some lip smacking snacks in the evening. It was raining heavily, the Cable on the TV was showing no signal, so we got a chance to spend some quality time with the Family. I prepared Chicken Chap for lunch that day. So the chitchat taking many tours through the gossip lanes stopped to take a breathe over Chicken Chap. All were in praise of the dish that made me lifted on cloud nine in no time, I decided why not sharing some food stories on this dish. I started first. My memory with Chicken Chap is quite elusive to me. I can dimly recollect the memory of a 9/10 years girl holding her father’s hand, all excited as if some hidden treasure is waiting for me inside Aminia of Park Street – one of the most famous restaurants of that era of Kolkata. Neither I can recollect properly the taste nor the texture. What I can remember the excitement of tasting a dish what is one of my father’s favourite dishes. The New Market area was/is always a treasure trove place for me. Whenever my father used to come to Kolkata, if my school was closed, I never failed to accompany him. And if we were in Kolkata a visit to New Market was a must. I roamed around in amazement holding my father’s hand hours after hours watching the busy cacophonic market life. While wrapping up quickly the works in hand, my father kept on telling me his childhood memories. I can recollect very well my father elucidating his first experience of tasting the Chicken Chap when it was nothing but a fancy dish that could only be found around few areas of Old Kolkata. My father was in his mid-30s, one day on his way back home, he took a detour with his colleagues to Aminia. They ordered for Biriyani and Chicken Chap. Whenever he recollects that memory, I have always seen his face lit up with a joy. My father can’t illuminate the exact taste of Chicken Chap he had tasted so many years back neither I can. But we both know that Chicken Chap has become an integral part of our life from then and it will keep on building up many food stories.

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Baking

Simple Cherry Vanilla Cupcakes

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The kaleidoscopic lifestyle is a bit annoying now a day. Too much entertainment and attractions making the kids demanding and that affecting their psychology. Human psychology is a weird subject to understand. It will never make you sit contented even if you get the Moon in your hand, it will go next to own the Sun. Considering this fact, every day the parents are facing a lot of challenges. How tactfully to tackle their kids without disturbing their sudden impulses totally restraining the demands on the spot, is a lesson to learn for each one of us. Parenting is one of the toughest jobs to handle and the success reaches the summit when the parents watch their children at the pit of success. Now this word ‘Success’ is complicated and confusing. And each one of us has a different definition and vision for Success. A survey has seen that most Indian parents mainly the Bengali parents seek success in scoring good marks. That means the pressure for opting good scores in exams making the little brains overloaded. Even the schools are to be blamed for it too. Too much pressure of study is hindering the mental age. Kids now a day are maturing ahead because they are learning everything before age and the childishness is getting killed at an innocent age. Therefore, it is very necessary for the parents to understand the kids’ psychology and their needs. Affection can make them a better person. But affection doesn’t mean to shower plenty of gifts to show how much we love them. We need to give them our time, play with them and hear their stories for hours. I raised this topic only to know as a parent what kind of challenges do you face and how do you make your parenthood successful. I have thought of writing serial posts on parenting, the challenges we face as a parent. I will share few incidents that were really challenging for us and how we tried to solve that matter from my next post.

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Baking

Coffee Beans Chocolate Cinnamon Cupcake

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How do you brighten up a grey weekend?  I would call it grey, when there is no way to go out to chill or  finding a comfort zone in the bizarre window shopping or sometimes just enjoying the not-so-likely cacophonic city life. I would call it grey when you have a very little option left to cook something sumptuous having only a few ingredients staring at you to know their fate. I would call it grey when the Man is out on an Office tour and the kids are literally turning most of your hairs grey. So what will you do? I truly believe good food always starts from a domestic kitchen. Whatever lesser ingredients you have that could make rich your kitchen pantry and by no time you could end up with nothing but surely something tasty. Yes, I consider owning that magic wand that sometimes magically plates delectable dishes out of the blue.   I made one such grey weekend glorious baking some Coffee beans Chocolate Cinnamon Cupcake cupcakes followed by a photo shoot. The story continues how coffee beans became the part and parcel of my life….

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Dessert (Eggless)

Mango Mousse – Just 2 Ingredients

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The Moose Mousse Factor:

I was taught in my school that the meaning of Moose is – “Large northern deer with enormous flattened antlers in the male”. I was happy with my so called little knowledge and grown up into a Courteous lady who got married with a Qualified, Educated Brahmin Boy. Soon after our marriage, we had to travel to a dream destination where most of the people aspire to settle down. Young and novice in the Kitchen, I tried to expertise myself with whatever little skill I gathered till that age by watching the women of my family.  The world of cuisine was then restricted to only two – Indian and Chinese. Who knows then that Moose Mousse would embarrass me in this way.

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Snacks

Parmesan Pizza Twist

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Everyone has a specific hour in his/her life, strained out from the daily mundane chores that one apprehensively yearns and waits for. That few minutes we consider as the quality time of our life. That can be spent doing nothing, relaxing or just letting your thought process go crazy to engage in some gratifying affair. I like love relish such moments. I have many such moments. The particular time of a day that lures me more is when I go to pick up Miss Picky Pie from her school. I get 30 minutes to reach her school. If I am not digging deep in the utopian world of a book or tickling my very expensive android with care, I prefer to weave series of stories. The stories of different phases of life that I experience every day around me. The feeling of turning instantly into a writer is nothing but cosmic. This sublime sensation travels me back some far-away land – a world of exquisite imagination. I ignore the clumsy cacophonic city life, the bumpy roads, the potholes and the polluted smoke hovering around. The claustrophobic jam-packed traffic can’t harm my sedative solemn reverie. This is the time when I feel free to float with my chain of thoughts. Sometimes I drift in the realm of nothingness, just staring blank through the window ignoring what I am passing by. The term ‘Nothingness’ has a kind of romance and mystery hidden behind. The satisfaction comes out of staring blank is beyond explanation and the mind jumps in joy as it goes for a power nap. 

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Main Course

Shorshe Chingri

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I was looking like a roasted duck in the blistering heat at 41 degree C in front of Miss. Picky Pie’s school. Almost lost at the cacophonic chirping of the mothers busy in group-discussions only on one topic- the pressure of the school and study, I snuggled myself at a cozy corner. A mom suddenly popped in front of me with whom I shared eye contact often, keeping me almost on a gun point started to shower endless questions. The questions were ready to dissect my 35 years of journey in a manner to postmortem my life history. When it came to my occupation, I announced, accumulating all my pride that brightened up my face:“I am a Food Blogger”. A vague look in a fraction of moment brushed the Mother’s face and the look screamed at me, that she didn’t know who a food blogger is!! All the pride fumed off in a second. We both exchanged a pale smile. Thankfully the conversation abruptly lined an end. I was both happy and disappointed. Happy that she uttered those magical words that made me to escape from the noxious blabber but disappointed for how come people did not know who a Food Blogger is!! God sarcastically gave a smile and continued the story when another mom overheard our conversation with her radioactive ears and promptly interrupted – “Oh My!! You are a Food Blogger!!” I, for that moment thought like giving the lady a tight hug and press a deep kiss ignoring her stinky sweaty cheeks. But who knew just after that I would wish for snapping the lady. The lady continues: “How lucky you guys are. You visit so many restaurants and eat for free!!” Holy crap!!

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Baking

#CookbookInspiration – Peanutbutter Chocolate Cake from Rachel Allen

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A big dispute broke in dessert making.  This has become a mundane chore in the Pie household – An argument must barge in on dessert making. Miss Picky Pie, after a meal every day, has an attack of her sweet tooth that drives her crazy to gulp something sweet. My, Food Blogger title often  put on ledge then – “Mom you are a Food Blogger right!! Then why don’t I get some homemade desserts every day?”. I will make a pity face with a promise that next day there will be something served after the meal. But that day rarely arrives. Rather I will be seen sitting in front of my desktop staring at the Facebook feeds hours after hours idly wasting the time which I can creatively apply on some constructive work. The hours of meditating work with Facebook will asphyxiate my brain and I will hypnotically roam around like a zombie for an hour or so from this room to that room thinking of what to do. And the end result sums up with no outcome and again the same dispute starts from the scratch. The other day Miss Picky Pie made me to swear by god to take up an “Everyday Baking challenge”.  The soul of a Food Blogger jumped with joy and shake hands with Miss Picky pie without wasting any time. Day 1 arrives. Miss Picky Pie chose a chocolate egg base cake. But I wanted to make some eggless oil/butter free cake to skill my excellence in the eggless baking world. Considering the members of the household my little Guinea Pigs I happily keep on stuffing their mouth with my experimented food. And the highly sophisticated and polite Mr. Pie is too good at saying everything that is served to him is nothing but tasty. Miss Picky Pie is sweet and clever. She has learned to remain diplomatic not to speak the bitter truth bluntly rather not saying bad directly she would say – “It is not that bad Mom!!” The above description may give the readers a hunch that I might be a so-called good cook. OH! Behold!! I am actually not. Everybody has a bad cooking day and kitchen disasters, so as I have too sometimes. Miss Picky Pie loves to declare in good spirit in front of everybody, friends etc. that her Mom is the best cook of the world. I suffice my portion of  happiness and reward in those words. I feel myself the luckiest Mom of the world. But that doesn’t end up the disputable story after food. It’s better to move on the recipe of the day.

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