Friday, October 19, 2012

Mixed vegetable curry

If you ask what dish first your mother taught you, I will answer none. Yes, it is true. My mother never taught me to cook. Only one time in my life she asked me to learn cooking. That was a very funny story. One day after my high school final examination she asked me to prepare tea. When I serve the tea, it was already cold. Everyone at home loves to have steaming hot tea. My mother asked me, why I didn’t not heat the tea before serving. I answered that, heating up tea many time caused lead secretion. From that day she never asked me to cook. I also never took the hassle of cooking. However, I usually watched her cooking, while talking with her. By this way I learned the basics of cooking. Though she never taught me to cook or do anything to be a ‘good’ daughter-in-law, but she taught me to be strong. She taught me how to accustom myself in any condition. She taught me how to live life only with bare necessities. Till now she is a minimalist. She is the only lady I have seen in my life without any desires. I never saw her to demand anything to my father. She is a person like water. Water takes the shape of the container where you keep. She also accustoms herself with any condition. When my husband asks me why I don’t have any demand, I answer, this is my mother’s teaching.  Long back, one morning suddenly she felt very sick. At that time I was sleeping. She called me asked me cook. That was the first day in my life I cooked. I cooked an entire Bengali lunch. My father just was taken aback in my accomplishment. He called all our relatives and told that for the first time I cooked in my life, and all dishes were tasty. Anyway, when you asked me to write something about her, all these memories flooded my mind.
Here I’m giving one very simple recipe of mixed vegetable curry which my mother cooks.
One cup of chopped pumpkin
One cup of chopped carrot
One cup of chopped long beans
One cup chopped eggplant (optional)
One big bowl of chopped spinach
One tsp cumin powder
One tsp coriander powder ( she use to make paste of cumin and coriander seeds)
half tsp randhuni seed paste( wild celery)( I didn’t have in my kitchen, so I Couldn’t use it)
One tbsp. oil
Pinch of turmeric
Salt to taste
For tampering:
paanch phoron ( five spices)

Method:
Heat one tbsp. of oil; add all the vegetables, except the spinach. Cover the wok, and fry for few minutes. Add salt and turmeric, and fry for another few minutes. Then add all the spices. Stir and cover the wok. Wait for few minutes. Then add the spinach, and stir. Cover and cook for a while. In the mean time add one cup of water, if needed. Boil for 10 minutes. The curry is done. Serve with rice or roti.

Sending this to VIRNUTHU UNNA VAANGA for her event 'Feast for your guru'

Monday, October 8, 2012

The mess that I made




10/04/2012

Since morning I had been making mistakes one after another. First of all, though I knew that, I had an appointment with physiotherapist at 9:40, I was doing all the works very slowly. I was under the impression that, I needed to start from home at 9:15. When it was almost 9:15 I realized my mistake. In no time I got ready and rushed to the bus stop. As usual I didn’t get the bus. It was already 9:25. I call my hubby dear. The poor guy rushed from office to take me to the place.


Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Shopping in Michaels'

I was in a hurry in the morning. By any means I had to reach the physiotherapy center. Before leaving home I just checked the schedule, and I found that I had to reach within 10:20 instead of 10:30. I literally ran to the bus stop. Today I was lucky. As soon as I reached the stop I got the bus. After getting down from the bus I rushed to the center. To my utter disappointment I found that I didn’t have any schedule today. But I had an appointment today according to the schedule I was given. I felt like shouting out of anger.  They didn’t properly change in their system, and they gave me a wrong print of the schedule. Anyway, nothing could be done, because the concerned physiotherapist was absent. Anyway, I decided to go Michaels’ from there, my favorite shop.  Actually this year, I decided to do little fall decoration in my home. Anyway, I had ample of time in my hand. Mr. S was going to come to pick me up at 12:30. I decided to stroll aisle by aisle in the store. First I fished out some things, which were kept outside of the shop. The trays outside of the shop always attract me, because of their throw-away price. :) I always lose myself when I go inside Michaels’. Anyway, I had started picking up many things, from yarn to acrylic paint. Actually I wanted to buy some decorative punches, but I thought, it would be wise to buy at time of ‘Thanksgiving’ sale. Then probably I can get in much cheaper price. Fall wreathes were expensive, so I dropped the idea of buying one. Lastly I saw that, I’ve picked up many things except any decorating article for fall. Anyway, I picked a small pumpkin. When I went to pay, I found that I was going to cost a great amount. So, I kept some of the articles in store. I told Mr. S that I didn’t buy all the articles I liked. He told me that I could buy freely whatever I liked. So, Friday I’m going there again to buy the rest of the articles I liked. :)

Monday, October 1, 2012

Easy pizza

This one I often make for my son. Every day I have to give him something without repetition, which is very difficult task. Anyway, he loves pizza very much, but making pizza at home takes a long time. I have to cook something quickly for him. So, one day I decided to give a try in my own way. The pizza turned out very good. Though, my son didn’t like that, my hubby dear enjoyed that ‘pizza’ a lot.

Ingredients:

For pizza bread:

1large egg

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

1 tsp. sugar

1 tbsp. oil

Pinch of baking powder

For topping:

1 tbsp chopped onion

1 tbsp chopped green pepper

2 tbsp shredded cheese (whatever cheese is available at home)

2 tbsp. tomato sauce

Pinch of salt

Method:

For pizza bread:

Mix all the ingredients to make dough.  If you need you may add tsp. of milk. The dough will too sticky to handle. So, it will be better, if you grease your palm. Set it for 1 hour.
Pre heat the oven at 350 degree.

After 1 hour flatten the pizza dough with a roller. On a cookie sheet sprinkle flour, and put the pizza bread.  Spread tomato sauce all over the dough. Then spread onion and green pepper on that. Sprinkle salt on the top. Lastly sprinkle the cheese. Bake for 20 mins. The pizza is ready.