10 Things I like about summer

A Japanese friend of mine once asked me which season I like the most. It is not a difficult question to answer as most us have favorite seasons. I bet more than 50% love summers closely followed by fall. To me, it is a question of perplexity. Which one of the seasons of Kerala – summer, summer^2, summer³, and monsoons to choose? So, I decided to make a list of pros and cons of summer. Here it is.

1. Plentiful sunshine. Days are longer than nights. That means we can spend more time playing and less time sleeping. As an adult, I might have to rephrase it as more time napping and less time sleeping at nights. Weekends ofcourse!

2. Mango, Papaya, Guava and Melons. The long list of glorious summer fruits – a perfect excuse for not having lunch. Check out my newest summer creation : Forget-me-not papaya panna cotta.

3. Summer road trips – I love road trips, a weakness of mine initiated by my father when we were kids. We have spent some interesting summers in the southern states of India!!

4. Backyard Barbecue – My husband, the ‘king of the barbecue’, insists that I should stay away from his grill. I like that idea as I get to lounge in my favorite chair with my buttermilk fizzie while he does the cooking. Role reversal I say.

5. A trip to ocean- Crystal Clear sky, blue ocean and sugary sand (and a crowded beach!), an idyllic spot to spend time with family.

6. Outdoor adventure – Recent years, my husband has been pushing us to introduce exercise into our lives, a healthy adventure. I love being with nature as I have spent most summers climbing trees in our neighbor’s backyards when I was a child. I don’t think those trees would hold me if I climb now!!!! Perhaps hiking that hill is not a bad idea.

7. Summer picnics – A perfect time to get connected with old friends, chat up new ones and a long table of food. It is even better if they bring everything! What not to love?

8. Vacations. Who doesn’t like vacations? Switch off the computer, close the complicated books and pack up your bags. Don’t forget to take sunscreen, cute sandals and gorgeous clothes.

9. Cool and Creamy Ice creams. Forget your waistline. Forget your diet. It is time to indulge in one of the best things of summer. Be generous!!

10. Blockbuster movies. Super powers, magic schools, and nasty robots, an excuse to forget world and think about future.

Looks like, I like summer more. What do you think?

Simplistically Yours,

Forget-Me-Not Papaya Panna Cotta

Being lived in Kerala for many years, my summers were overflowin with mangoes, more mangoes and melons. Although papaya was readily available and most often planted in the backyard , it is a forgotten fruit of summer. The mild taste of papaya with a touch of creaminess and a smooth texture is a perfect ingredient for my newly concocted recipe – A panna cotta wth papayas, honoring this wonderful fruit.

Panna cotta, cooked cream, is an Italian dessert made by simmering cream, milk and sugar. The gelatin is mixed into the mixture and cooled until they are set. Interestingly, the dessert is made without eggs. It is a smooth, fluffy and airy dessert with an exquisite texture, a perfect accompaniment to a spicy meal.

Shopping List
4 cups of cream
3/4 cup of water + 3 tbsp
¼ cup orange blossom honey
½ cup sugar
1 tbsp of gelatin (about 1 ½ sachets of gelatin powder)
1 cup of chopped ripened papaya

What to do
In a small bowl, combine 3 tbsp of water and gelatin and let it stand for about 5-10 minutes.

Cook papaya with 3/4 cup of water in a medium sauce pan. Once cooked, mash it with a spoon.

Blend the papaya mixture with honey and ½ cup of cream to a nice and smooth texture.

Heat a pan with 3 ½ cups of cream and sugar to a simmer in medium heat. Turn off the heat and mix in the gelatin mixture, stirring to dissolve the gelatin. Stir in the papaya blend to a smooth mixture. Pour the mixture to ramekins or any mould of your choice. Chill uncovered for a minimum of 4 hrs.

Once they are set, dip the moulds in a hot water for few minutes. Sometimes, you can run a knife through the edges of the mould. Turn the mould into a plate.

Serve with fruit puree of any kind. I like it as it is. Enjoy!

Recipe source: Adapted from Gale Gand’s Vanilla Panna cotta.
Recipe Note: Try the same without papaya and you get a vanilla custard.

ButterMilk Fizzie (Moru Sambharam)

Shopping List
1 cup of Butttermilk
2 green chillies
4-5 curry leaves
1 shallot
¼ inch ginger chopped
½ tbsp of lemon juice
4-5 sliced berries/grapes
Seltzer water
Sea Salt to taste

What to do:
In a food processor puree buttermilk, chillies, shallots, curry leaves and ginger. Strain the puree through a sieve;discard solids. To this add lemon juice and salt. Pour ½ of the mixture into tall glasses and add seltzer water. Slide in sliced grapes for a sweet taste.

Perfectly good on a hot summer day!.

Recipe Source: Family

10 Things I would do to prevent Global Warming

What happens when you watch a movie that deeply influences, raises the questions and suddenly brings clarity to those that has been nagging in your mind for many years? Well, this is what I did. I came up with this list.

1. Use light rail for commuting whenever possible. This might take some time to get used to. But it is far better than spending hours in blocked traffic when you can spend some quality time with your fellow travelers or open your mind by reading books or just watch people.

2. Use paper or cloth bags for grocery shopping. This is no biggie. I can do this one!

3. Switch off the air conditioning in the mornings and use it only when absolutely necessary. This in not going to be hard as I have spent my share of summers in the heat waves of New Delhi.

4. Use fuel efficient cars. Actually, I am doing this already as I have the car from my favorite automaker – Honda

5. Walk whenever possible to nearest grocery store however inconvenient that can be. Walking with a toddler who has incessant curiosity and a mind of her own to a grocery store, and then back home with hefty bags; can’t imagine that. But I will give it a try for an abridged shopping list.

6. Use lights to the least extent one day per week. Use beeswax candles instead. This would need some amount of convincing to reach a consensus in my family. Worth a try!

7. Use organically grown food products. Although over the past few years I have become a fan of organic food, at times, time constraints and lack of specialty food availability has pushed me to the other side. But I am firm on this resolution.

8. Plant something. Planting is easy. But taking care of it needs special attention and care, like kids. Anyhow they will pay attention to you!

9. Increase awareness of Global Warming among your friends, colleagues and anybody. That’s exactly what I am doing right now.

10. Contribute your time, energy or ideas to a project that fights Global warming. Vote for Members project – Global reforestation.

Concluding on a supplementary savory and spicy note – a recipe made with organic farm raised tilapia, my entry for Meeta's Monthy-Mingle:Earth Food @ What's For Lunch, Honey?.

Simplistically yours,

Fish Curry – Fish in coconut milk sauce

Shopping List:
¾ lb of fish cleaned and cut into cubes. I used tilapia in this dish.
6 shallots thinly sliced
3 – 4 sliced chilies
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1 inch ginger finely chopped
1 tbsp chillie powder
¼ tsp turmeric powder
Handful of curry leaves
2 tbsp coconut oil
4 – 5 tbsp of coconut milk powder
2 -3 kudampuli (Kerala Tamarind or Gamboge known in English)
Sea salt to taste

What to do:
Marinate the fish with chillie powder and turmeric and keep it aside.

In medium saucepan mix shallots, curry leaves, green chillies and coconut oil using hands until the shallots are well separated. The aroma of this mixture is very much enticing. Combine coconut milk powder with 1 ½ cups of water and add it to the mixture. Add the marinated fish and bring the mixture to a slight boil. Reduce the flame to medium and simmer the curry for about 20 – 30 mts.

Serve it hot with rice!

Recipe Source: My Mom

Recipe Note: Adjust water-coconut milk powder accordingly for maintaining consistency of the curry. Add more powder and less water for a thicker curry.

The Ten-Ten (1010) Series

1010 - a representation of number '10' in base 2 number system

I have always been fascinated with numbers. No, I am not a mathematics genius. But truth be told, numbers are omnipresent – in our conversations (“she is the number one in the world”), refrigerator (1/2 lb of potatoes), bills (well, that’s pretty much explanatory), prayers (“The one and only” ) and so on. I guess that our nature to quantify the world rather than focusing on quality is perhaps the rationale behind our obsession with numbers.

Recently, I read in a psychiatric journal that one’s favorite number can explain their persona. Sounds interesting!. Well then- I decided to try this on my 2 year old – the budding new generation engulfed in a world of internet, computers and soon to be outdated TV. Now you might wonder, why her? Why not me?. I pretty much know about myself. Nothing new to be discovered there. So I asked her. “Well sweety, could you tell amma which number you like the most from this book of numbers”. She gave me an irritated quizzical look for breaking concentration from her artistic endeavors - ‘building Lego architecture’ – Here we go again, why can’t she apply this mumbo jumbo on dad. With a half smile, she chose numbers 1 and 0 and back to her world of potential dwellers (a monkey, a dog, Minnie mouse and another dog) in her newly built house. OMG…They didn’t say anything about two numbers in the journal. It is better to accept her answer than reason with a toddler. Hmm…,numbers 1 and 0 or 0 and 1 or 10. Undoubtedly this started my neurons working a bit. 10 is a fascinating number – a combination of 1 for everything and 0 for nothing, a perfect equilibrium. More information on 10 can be found here.

10 has become my favorite number too after this experiment. So dear friends, this is a series of 10 things I would like to do. Hey, wait a sec, Did she really mean 10? Or was she playing me to leave her in peace?

Simplistically yours,