Happy Halloween

Better late than never.

face-bhook

Its normally out of boredom that I check out facebook. But sometimes theres a lingering desire to check out an old friend, what he/she is upto. Most of the time this degenerates into spying, poking around available photos and guessing what is happening in that persons life.

Modern friendship is becoming efficient, pre-packaged into a set template of activities. Its very ‘American’/globalised and not really time intensive. After all what is staring at pictures compared to listening to rants?

Its unnatural.  Is this the new way we learn about people? In the age where brand and cult seem to be synonymous, the biggest brand management challenge is your own image.  Are we to accept the happy pictures, the relationship notifications and farmville activities as the whole truth and nothing but the truth? I feel like this is another product being sold to me, some with better marketing skills than others.

No information is better than this sea of jumbles.  I will rest on my favourite conspiracy theory, Its one big marketing scam.

 

 

Leftovers

Going over old photos in my camera I realised that there were a few food pics I had completely forgotten about. Summer was a time to experiment, here are the results.

 

1. Tartlets : Every time I make pie crust I invariably have leftovers, which I leave to freeze. I collected a bunch of these and decided to try out the small tart moulds my mom left behind. The blueberry filling is the same one I used in the pie, the jam filling I made up. Strawberry jam, lemon juice and corn starch.  It turned out quite nice.

I also did some experimenting with a mini-bundt cake silicone mould I got at the thrift store for a mere 2 bucks. I lined it with pie crust and filled it with jam. And the end result was..

…the tart with a hole! To let the calories through?

2. Cookies :

I tried out two different types of plain cookies. The first was shortbread cookies, more to try out the cookie cutters I had gotten (yes, these are christmas patterns, and yes I got them cheap. Yeah there is a pattern here..)

The second were brown sugar cookies. Look ordinary, but then, theres nothing as sweet as brown sugar . The trick with these was to overbake slightly so that it does not crumble, but to avoid it become too dry/over flaky. They turned out quite nice.

Sinful Eating

Thanks to the awesome Arts and Lectures organisation here at UCSB I was able to watch Food Inc. . In case you havent heard, its a documentary that looks inside ‘big food’ industries. In an effort to be efficient and help their bottomlines, food processing companies are making food in unimaginable ways. I am a devoted non-vegetarian, but I firmly believe that unless you can kill the animal yourself, you shouldnt be eating it, simply becaue you need to respect what you eat. The movie is turning me into a vegetarian, atleast here. The closed quarters in which these animals are kept and they way they are treated, sometimes cut while still alive is revolting to the core. While the movie does plug organic food, I’m starting to wonder if organics are more than just a marketing gimmick (atleast thats what I believed till now). The real shocking part is the fact that food lobbyists here have been able to reduce/cripple the watch-dog agencies here , so much that the number of plant inspections has decreased by 2 orders of magnitude! If you’re living (and consequently eating) in the US you should watch this movie. Its a leftist movie , I will give it that, but they also look at money and economics, so it does give it a much more balanced view.

I dont have much to report in my food making these days.  I made shortbread cookies and brown Sugar cookies, both of which were delicious. My new roommate is slowly converting me to…hold your breath..vegetarianism these days.

However I have taken up a newer hobby (ans thus began the shameful plugging ). Over the summer I became a Radio Jockey for the local campus station KCSb. I host the ‘India Show’ , along with a bunch of other people. It airs on Saturday from 12:30 to 2:30 and we play about an hour of classical music follwed by more filmy/pop/fusion stuff.  You can hear it online as well on www.kcsb.org . Let me know if you’re listening, I can do a shoutout

Thanks to the show I have been listening to a lot of classical music these days. I simultaneously discovered that Pandora has added a large collection of classical music, both north and south Indian , to its catalog. Nikhil Bannerjee has become a favourite, but I’m open to suggestions. A singerwho moved me was Shobha Gurtu. I love a voice which isnt syrupy sweet, and her voice has some character. I will leave you with a link to her song, ‘Rangi Saari Gulabi’.

The Fall of Summer

This post was supposed to come out a very long time ago. But , being in love with the title I dreamed up I will stick by it

1. A Thousand Splendid Suns :

The book was a good read, albeit an extremely sad one. Hosseni does a good job of sticking to what he knows, but I still prefer ‘The Kite Runner’. There was a line though in the afterword, that made it all worth it. ‘The sad truth is that the Taliban-style oppression of women in certain regions of Afganistan existed long before the Taliban was even a twinkle in the loving eye of the Pakistani secret intelligence’. Touche Mr Hosseni, Touche. On a side note, I discovered the website of the BBC World Book Club. This is a radio show (I assume, not sure if its on tv), where the author is asked questions about his or her novel by readers. There is a clip for the Kite Runner, as well as for ‘Atonement’ (which I have described below) , along with a whole bunch of other famous books/authors.  Its a good listen if you’re the type who wonders what exactly was going on inside the authors mind, while crafting his/her book.

2. Atonement :

I have not read a sophisticated novel in a long time. ‘Atonement’ brought back all the joys of reading to me. Set in Britain , just before the break of World War II, it unravels a mistakes over decades. I loved the book in its entirety but this one paragraph spoke to me, the habitual daydreamer,

‘The cost of oblivious daydreaming was always this moment of return, the realignment with what had been before and now seemed a little worse. Her reverie,  one rich in plausible details, had become a passing silliness before the hard mass of the actual. It was difficult to come back. Come back , her sister used to whisper when she woke her from a bad dream. Briony had lost her godly power of creation, but it was only at this moment of return that the loss became evident; part of a daydream’s enticement was the illusion that she was helpless before its logic:’….’But of course, it had all been her – by her and about her- and now she was back in the world,not one she could make,but the one that had made her,and she felt herself shrinking under the early evening sky. ‘

This book also features in the  BBC World Book Club that I mentioned above. I liked this piece exceedingly because I did think  one is able to see glimmers of how Ian McEwan’s mind worked, atleast when it came to writing ‘Atonement’, which he describes as having ‘a rather typical English emphasis on setting’. The book is about a random event and his take on it is ,”I think that there is a random quality to life which is quite shocking and for a novelist profoundly interesting.” A studied attempt at randomness? His novel is able to achieve it effortlessly though. And I just liked this line so I’m going to put it in “If you ask people about how they met their loved ones it is usually a catalog of incredible chances, the quality of what might not have happened is what really draws me in”

3. Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs:

I have been dying to see this movie since I saw the 3d trailer. It did not disappoint. I like this new trend of inserting a lot of  ‘mature’ humour in animation movies these days. The heroine is of course , my role model  now (go see the movie to find out why ).  My favourite character though was the policeman, especially the close up shot they did of his rear (no , it was not scandalous, just funny). Definitely a must see.

4. Star Trek :

UCSB has this great organisation, ‘Magic Lantern’, which brings recent-ish movies to a local theatre. This guarantees that they bring big hits, and we get to see it at 4$ a pop. That asise, ‘Star Trek’ was a decent movie. Nice editing, with all the standard cliches, it shows the ‘origins’ of the original show. While Many know William Shatner for his role in ‘Boston Legal’ it was Star Trek that made him famous (and had my cousin drooling for him). His replacement does a decent job : is it just me though or did Captain Kirk speak reeal slow?

5. Firefly and Serenity :

Thanks to Hulu I get to see lots of old time shows. ‘Firefly’ was cancelled in its first season : what a crying shame. If I had just been told that the show was a ’sci0fi western’ I wouldve thought it deserved its fate , however the premise does work, and spectacularly so. Nathan Fillion does a great job as Captain Reynolds. The demand for this show was so great that they actually made a movie “Serenity’, which was a follow up/tier-upper of lose ends.  I guess I’ve now joined the ‘Bring Firefly Back!’ cult.

Reviews

To start off, some plugging.

A close friend of mine Priyanka Lahiri from IIT Bombay is planning to run for charity, for this great organisation called Asha.  Do visit her page http://www.ashanet.org/nycnj/teamasha/2009/runner.php?rid=5632. Spare some time, and if possible , some dimes.

2 books and 2 movies. Yes its been a busy summer.

1. Julie and Julia : This was one of the best movie watching experiences yet. FIrst off I was able to see it with my parents, whom I hadnt met in a year. Secondly, it turns out that Julia Child was a resident of Santa Barbara. A lady sitting next to my Dad got very excited and starting  telling us stories of Julia Childs kitchen. The audience itself comprised of old ladies , eager for a good cackle. And there was a lot to cackle about. Nora Ephron has kept it short and simple and Meryl Streep’s performance is superlative. A must see, even if you aren’t a foodie.

Of course all that convinced me that Julia Child was an authentic foodie was her ode to Butter.  And yes, the movie will leave you extremely hungry, so make dinner plans for sure.

2. Kite Runner : It was an excellent read. A birthday gift from F, and a real tear jerker (Yes F, I wondered if you’re a fan of this song. ). Perhaps it is slightly autobiographical in nature, but like the hero of the book, Khaled Hosseni seems to be more of a short story writer. The novel sometimes gave a feel of a short story being extended. The good thing about that was that it was fast paced and gripping. Its set in Afganistan, and sometimes the violence was a bit overwhelming. (I can only imagine what his follow up novel, ‘AThousand Splendid Suns’ , which is about the Taliban, will be like). The only breaks I took were to get myself some more tissue.

3. Inglorious Basterds : I’m sorry, but this movie disappointed me terribly. Normally I love all Tarantino movies, but I found this one a test of my patience. Tarantino seems to have lost his touch with the slick editing.  There were some scenes (like the entrance of the ‘Bear Jew’) which I found so overwhelming. I actually took a break for 15 minutes during the movie, and roamed around the movie hall lobby. I returned to find that I could still follow the story.  Someone shouldve taken back the blank check they wrote out to the director, sometimes constraints work better. About Brad Pitt…lets not even go there.

4. Rule of Four : This book was a gift from my father. Its a suspense thriller about an ancient tome called the ‘Hynerotomachia Poliphili‘. Extremely fast paced, and ambitious, the two authors have tackled a lot of themes, including research and obsession.  Some reviewers have compared it to Dan Brown, but of course in my world thats closer to insult than acclaim .  Perhaps I will need a second read to really absorb all the themes it encompasses.

Summer Cookin 2

I have been busy this summer. Busy eating, with some hints of cooking. Ever heard of a chicken spring dosa anyone?

Let me start with the savoury then move onto the sweet

I never imagined a pizza sans sauce until I stumbled upon this . Onions, mushrooms, capsicum tossed in a bit of olive oil and some herbs, topped off with salty feta. Really really great! The pizza base doesnt get soggy with the sauce and it becomes a light pizza. Next time I will be adding olives for a full blown mediterranean pizza.

Spinach Quiche

I never realised how eggy quiche is until I made it. I think this recipe askes for one egg too many. Even a die hard egg fan like me found the inside to be a little too omlette-e (and subsequently less cheesy) . Another view of the inside.

In a burst of enthusiasm I bought myself some puff pastry sheets and had absolutely no clue what to do with them. I found this recipe and was curious about hollaindaise sauce. I’m not sure if I bought the wrong brand but I hated the stuff. So I improvised using my all time favourite – cheese and cream. I added some white wine as well to give it a bit more flavour and finally ended up with this.

Another pic of a cut piece to show what it looks like inside. I must say I’m becoming quite the fan of the whole asparagus, mushroom, white wine combination.  A note about the puff pastry leftovers though : if you heat them in the microwave they become excessively oily. Using a paper towel to absorb some of that definitely helps.

Now onto my real love : the sweet stuff.

Its blueberry season with a vengeance and I had to try out Blueberry Muffins . They are unbelievably yummy. The recipe calls for a ‘topping’ to be put onto the muffins. I made the mistake of putting a little too much, and that made the top a bit to crusty and extra sweet. Nest time a bit more restraint is in order.

This pie was made more out of necessity. I was convinced to go shopping at Costco and found myself the proud owner of a 3 pound box of blueberries. A pie was definitely in order. What surprised me was that the toughest part of this recipe was the crust. You had to be real careful not to overwork the dough, and it constantly had to be kept in the refrigerator. The worst part was that after you remove it from the oven, you have to let it sit for atleast 3 hours before you can sut into it. It was an extremely trying time to say the least.

I think I fell in love with my roommate the day she made lemon squares. It seemed so awesome and difficult. It didnt turn out to be so difficult, this recipe was pretty simple. I saw some recipes call for adding ‘limonchello’ which is a lemon liquer. Perhaps some other time when I have a lot more pantry space . A good tip which I ignored, much to my chagrin, was not placing parchment paper at the bottom. It makes a world of difference when cutting the little  buggers out.And yes in the pictur you cant really tell the difference between the crust and the lemon but there are two layers there.

Last but not the least we have Biscuit Cinnamon rolls. I had to use buttermilk while making a double layer chocolate cake (for which I unfortunately have no pictures). I thought I’d try making biscuits with buttermilk. I stumbled upon this recipe and thought I’d try combining cinnamon rolls and biscuits in one recipe. The smell..oh the smell! I found my roommates friend standing outside the kitchen window, sniffing . These biscuits didnt stay good for very long though, so these need to be refrigerated, or even better, eaten up that day itself.

Transform-huh?

I went to watch this movie knowing full well that this was ‘a teenage boys wet dream’. The first     hour did not disappoint.  One has to admit that these guys have their formulas pat : its as bad as watching a Karan Johar movie. The confused hero who ‘just wants to lead a normal life’, the ultra hot heroine (with shots up her hot pants to boot, no I exagerate not), the comic relief parents, sidekick…uff! There was obscene product placement, including the now bankrupt General Motors and two Chevrolet small cars (which fit the stereotypical black man). Like in real life they were totally unnecessary and disjoint from the rest of the stable.  At two and a half hours it was an hour too long. It got so ridiculous that I was laughing my head off in the last 30 minutes (My friend was concerned that I was weeping at the drama). The special effects were outstanding, so something was there I suppose. What happened to the good old days of action movies, where you’d have your hero grunt a few lines and then beat everyone to a pulp?

I just finished reading ‘A Suitable Boy’ by Vikram Seth. While it was quite long I was completely hooked.  I liked this novel because of the light it drew on this Bengali family, the Chatterjis, and how I associated with some things Vikram Seth has described. Of course, my family is not the same in any sense (mainly of geographical and generational differences), but there is a certain ‘Indianess’ which he has captured and been true to, and I appreciate that. Its a none too taxing read, very pleasant.

I am no expert here, but of the few India authors that I have read, including Vikram Seth, VS Naipaul is still my favourite. Most would say that hes more English than an Englishman , so to call him an Indian writer might be inaccurate. Perhaps I need to cast the nets wider to regional literature. Suggestions anyone?

I remember going to Micheal Jackson’s concert in his first and only visit to Bombay. I was in the fifth and had to bunk school. I was sitting all the way on the steps of the Brabourne stadium, well, jumping mostly. I doubt I’ll ever get to see such a combination of audio and visual again.  RIP MJ.

ps: Since imitation is the best form of flattery I thought this would be a better way of remembering him

Summer Cookin

The first week out of exams I took a one week vacation (thats the official one ). So I did some cooking and here are the results.

Madeleines

Madeleines

Madeleines are little french cookies shaped like sea shells. They’re eggy, buttery , spongy and just plain old yummy! It requires some skill while melting the butter, ‘nutty aroma’ isnt a very scientific term but I think I managed ok. Its essential to whip these up properly, and cool the butter fully, else the light sponginess does not come.

Prawn Gassi with Idlis

I have used this recipe before, just got a picture this time. Also used a little less tamrind to make it less spicy. I substituted cocomut flakes with milk, as the grated coconut here seems to be of only the sweetened variety.  Since I dont have access to dry red chillies (forgot to buy them) I used fresh green serranos. Ai Caramba! Were they hot or what .

On a side note I managed to get round idlies this time. Turns out that whipping up the urad dal into a frothy  batter makes all the difference. I abused the batter by freezing it, thawing and refrigerating but it still came out beautifully. Yay!

Portabello Mushrooms with Cheese Spinach filling

This was my own recipe, actually a mix of a couple of recipes.  I grilled the mushrooms in some white wine, and made a filling of onions, mushroom stems, spinach , a six cheese blend and ricotta. (later added some garlic. I have a feeling bacon would also be a very welcome filling).  I added some oregano for flavouring, not being ambitious enough to fool around with other herbs yet. Breadcrumbs on top : not a good idea, unless you coat it with some butter as well. Too rich.

This is one of the first recipes I tried with my slow cooker. Not my most successful, because I forgot to fry the prok tenderloin prior to cooking it for 6 hours. Have rectified this error now, with mutton and ITC masalas : wowie.

Spinach and Chicken Pie

I did this so long ago that I have lost the recipe. The filling is similar to the one I described for the portabellos, with pieces of chicken added. However I do remember that one had to add cream. Unfortunately, I hadnt made slits in the pie correctly and it split at the top. I used ready made pie shells, the next project is to make my own pie shell. Too lazy for that now.

Banana Bread

Walnuts and Pecans

I had to try out this recipe because it reminded me of something I used to love at CCD (Cafe Coffee day). It was their Banana Walnut cake. Its a lovely combination, the sweetness of the ripe banans tempered by the crunchy walnuts. I added  some toasted pecans as well. The time for baking was atleast 20 minutes longer than that specified in the recipe, but it is brilliant, especially with a cup of hot coffee.

Its fun to cook, especially when theres someone waiting to eat it all .

Old Times

My first Saturday free in a loong loong time and I of course decided to spend it watching TV. I ended up watching this show on VH1 called ‘The greatest songs of the 90’s’. It was a trip down memory lane. Apart from making me feel old (‘what! theyre making these songs ‘classics already’ ) it also reminded me of the ifrst time we got cable. My favourite channel was MTV and it ended up influencing my choices for music. The number one song on the list was my favourite. I didnt understand ‘Smells like Teen Spirit’ and I didnt like the video much. But I just loved that song. Another song which I really liked was ‘Creep’. (I was a weird 8 yr old..oh well). It cringes when they rank ‘tearin up my heart’ by N’sync ahead of ‘Creep’ but thats what the 90’s were all about right. (JT, the hair the hair! What were you thinking!).

Some songs which I really liked and thought they missed :

1.No Rain by Blind Melon

2.Runaway Train by Soul Asylum

3. Go West by the Pet Shop Boys. I mean I know they were 80’s techno guys but come one! This song was brilliant!

For some reason ‘I like Big butts’ got voted ahead of Britney Spears. Most people would say that this is correct but then ‘I’m too sexy’ should be right up there in the top ten as well. *huffs and puffs with indignation*

I thoroughly enjoyed the show though, even the parts where they showed the Backstreet Boys as the number 3 song (how will I ever explain that to my kids. *sigh* )

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Speaking of old times, I , through sheer accident, ended up revisiting the time when the only pizza you could get your hands on was the one at the Udipi (and the one which you made at home). Get the buns from Monginis, top with ketchup, capsicum, onions and…cheese! Then put onto a tava and cover with lid until nicely toasted. No ovens and mozarella for us.

I got myself some pizza dough from Trader Joes, to test on a new pizza stone which I had acquired (Amazon super shipper saving is going to be the death of my savings). It turns out that you have to mistreat pizza dough a bit if you want to roll it out nice and thin. However I let it remain a bit thick and got a chewy crust. I compensated with extra mozarella. Other toppings include onions, mushrooms and turkey salami.

I didnt do any tossing of the pizza and ended up with a misshapen thing with a face only a mother could love. But I loved it. *sigh*