Lotsa Pasta - and its good too :-)

Ok - progressing through the different cuisine I have experimented with in order to produce the dummies cookbook (a.k.a very difficult to go wrong recipe! - perfect for people like me :-) here is a pasta recipe - credited to the one and only Heather Brown.

Ground Meat (1.5 lbs is good enough - you don't like beef, no problem; try any type of ground meat.... I am pretty sure it will work out)
1 packet egg noodles (15 oz is what I used)
10 oz sour cream
2 cups cottage cheese.... or for that matter any shredded cheese
2 cups (or as much as you like) pasta sauce
a few dollops of mayonnaise

Now here is how the whole thing is put together
Cook the meat - unless u don't mind mad cow or any other allied disease - you can add some spice if you so desire - shouldn't adversely affect the final taste - cause its failsafe to a big extent
Cook the noodles as indicated on the packet (FTIS - Follow the instructions stupid!!!!)
Mix the noodles, sour cream, cheese, mayonnaise, meat, pasta together and pour the stuff into a greased pan.
Bake at 350F for 30 minutes

Voila.... get ready to eat.

p.s. for an extra special meal - maybe for an extra special person get some French bread, and French onion soup on the side... and along with candles you are ready for a romantic evening.

Enjoy!

Fish Curry - I

Hi - enclosing a quick posting of a mouth watering fish curry I tried out the other day.... with due credits to excellent Telephone Tech support from my good friend and fish expert Natasha D'souza....

Now - just a small footnote on why its so awesome.... cause even if you do not have the exact ingredients, no need to fret. This recipe is accomodating (just like me :-)) and will still deliver the goods!

ah now, lets get started

ya - obv you need fish; i chose Tilapia fillet. i used 6 fillet for the recipe. (fillet == less cleaning == easy to eat: my type of recipe)
red chillis
green chillis
tamarind paste
tomato puree
turmeric powder
chilli powder
cumin seeds
onions
ginger garlic paste
tandoori paste
pepper pods/powder
coconut milk
water



using a blender blend the following ingredients..

6 red chillis (kashmiri are preferred - i just used whatever was around)
1 chopped onion
3-4 tsp of chilli powder (spicy variety is preferred)
1 tsp of turmeric powder
2 tsp of cumin seeds
3-4 pods of pepper (i used garden variety pepper powder - no pepper - no problemos!)
1-2 tsp of tamarind juice (Natasha suggested squashing real tamarind and using the water - i use tamarind paste available at the Indian store)
some water to make the whole thing into an paste (no too watery mind you)... but limp gravy is not my type so i substituted water with tomato puree.
ok - so blend it all together until it becomes a paste

In a pot fry the onions (in oil - i like olive - but guess any variety like vegetable oil would do) with some ginger garlic paste ( i omitted the latter - didnt have any :-( ) until golden brown. I added some tandoori paste to the mix - cause i like the taste of that.... and some ghee (hydrogenated oil) for some flavor... (consider these as digressions of an idle mind)
when the onions are fried add some green chillis sliced lengthwise and fry the same. then add the paste and stir it all up.
when it starts bubbling a bit - check for saltiness - and add as much as required. add a little bit of water too - and make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom of the pot (no problems with finished product - but big problems with cleaning a burnt vessel!)
finally add coconut milk and mix well

15 minutes before serving add the fish (defrosted - cleaned in cold running water with a little salt to get rid of any remaining fishy odour)..... and voila you are good to go!!!!!

again - all credits to Natasha for giving me the basics....

try it out and enjoy

Pangs of Parting

My folks sent me this one - credit goes to the author from Deccan Herald. A very sweet, and somewhat reflective piece.




Strong emotions of love and deep affection poured out of my heart and strong sentimentality gripped me in the Airport. I remembered the episode in ' Ramayana' and empathised with King Dasaratha's pain and agony when lord Rama left for the forests. Though the situation was different, the emotion was the same-my dear son, my own extension, was going away to a country thousands of miles away. It was like a portion of my heart being severed. I was numb all over; but I did not cry. I remembered my cousin's word - "If the mother bird cries, it will clip the wings of the young fledglings trying to soar high into the skies". I didn't want my son to feel anxious and pained about leaving us, leaving his home. He was going on a purpose, to realise his dream- to one of the best universities of the world.
His first day at the school came vividly to my mind - how unwillingly he had stepped into the class. He had fought back tears (the pride of being "a boy" had been fierce in him right from a tender age), yet they shone like little stars in his bright big eyes. The question was writ large in them "When are u coming Ma, to take me home?"
Now the roles were reveresed and my brimming eyes were questioning him, "When are u coming back son? The lure of the West, the land of opportunity is strong no doubt, but don"t forget your roots. They are in me, your mother, and in India, your motherland.
The void was too great for me to bear. My son and I are great bosom friends. We talk, share thoughts, beliefs, feelings.He has an unscanny ability to joke about my silly frustrations and make them vanish. He has this keen mind and eye to find the mistakes in my writings. He is a loveable critic, and a writer himself. He is my best friend. How could I stop my tears from flowing, though I knew that I could be in constant contact with him across the space?
Before going he joke with a wink, "Ma I am getting you a bahu, a "phoren' one", expecting me to bring the roof down.. But I replied, "go ahead, Rajesh but ensure that she is not a phoney one . Love is, beyond cavil or question, the most important experience in the life of a human being. But the quality of love is very important. The fleeting, counterfeit and selfish love 'binds and blinds'. True love allows plenty of room for respect, privacy and independence. It allows one to breathe and grow. It is the primal rhythm of the universe". And when I ended my speech with a warning. "Dont cheat any girl or get cheated by any," he smiled an "I know that, Ma smile and said, "It's not easy to have a writer as a mother. Along with love she pours out words and words." He then hugged me warmly.
I am sure he will learn to live life to the fullest, he will learn to pick himself up after stumbling, he will learn to create a solid ground under his feet to stand tall and mighty.
I sent him with a blessing. "May God stand between you and the raw evil loose in this world/ Let not destructive emotions of anger and hatred overpower you. May your inner calm and composure reign over this age of stark pervasive fear and anxiety, may there be a healthy integration of your heart and your mind and may simple common sense precautions give you sure protection"
Contributed by Ambika Ananth from Deccan Herald October 7th 2004

IF - Rudyard Kipling

To be honest I aint too much of a poetry fan - either I do not have the gift of the abstract or the patience to delve into abstruse form of art.... even so - there are a few of such literary works I have come across in my life which convey a great deal to me. One of these is Rudyard Kipling's IF. Although written from a father to his son decades ago - when the world was a very different and far less complicated place - the essense of what he put down in ink I believe is something we should all cherish - hence would like to share the same with you.

Take a moment off to read it - take it for its literal meaning..... and if possible LIVE it.


If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies
Or being hated, don't give way to hating
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise

If you can dream and not make dreams your master
If you can think and not make thoughts your aim
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue
Or walk with Kings, nor lose the common touch
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you
If all men count with you, but none too much

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it
And which is more, you'll be a Man, my son!


Rudyard Kipling