Shubho Nobo Borsho with Gurer Sondesh.

Traditions are nostalgic, and nostalgia makes us want to relive those moments’ real bad, making us do things which turns the plain vanilla days --Festive.


That feeling is infectious indeed.  It comes in all forms, sometimes it’s a religious rite, a certain aroma you wake up to on a given day every year, It even comes in the form of some awkward family ritual that you are forced to perform every year, no matter how much you cringe and groan silently, all these bits and pieces of traditions bind us and makes us feel like a family.

We miss it, when it’s gone.

And then perhaps comes the cycle of recreating it for our next generation, so that once they are as grow up as us , they feel all warm and fuzzy thinking about it. Just the way I’m musing over it all today.

My fuzzy feeling nuzzles peacefully in the form of this freshly made Gurer Sondesh. Using up all the last bits of patali gur (palm jaggery ) preserved carefully for the nobo borsho celebration, before we bid adieu to the patali till the onset of winters. During my childhood days, all we had to do was to touch the feet of all the elders around we were rewarded with this family favorite (did I mention home cooked?) sweet.

For me , It’s time again  to relive those memories.No feets nearby, but blessing are much awaited.Ma are you reading?

Gurer Sondesh 

Ingredients 
2 litres full cream milk
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup Patali gur (palm jaggery ) or ¾ cup Sugar
Moulds

How to’s 

Bring the milk to boil and while it’s boiling add the lime juice. Lower the heat. The milk will curdle and separate from the whey (a greenish coloured liquid ). Let it sit  for a bit and then strain the whey . Rinse the channa /cottage cheese under running water to get rid of the lemony taste. Now tie the channa /cottage cheese in a fine cloth and weigh it down with a heavy substance (like the mortar and pestle) for a few hours. This will drain out any excess liquid.

After a few hours , you should knead the  chhana with the gur , till it mixes well. You can heat the jaggery in a microwave for a few seconds so that it’s soft enough to knead. The heel of your hand is your best kneading bet here! Once you are done, the channa with start to resemble like a smooth ball of dough in pale brown or white, depending on your choice of sweetener.

Take the dough and cook on a very low heat. Say 5-6 minutes is enough. Once done, switch off the heat and straightaway contour the chana with molds or just toss into balls. They are ready for the celebration.

Going nuts on Holi - Boiled Peanut Salad

 

 Holi is a synonym for spring to me.  A time for family and friends, flowers , colors, gujias, gulab-jamuns and endorphin rushing songs that only get played ‘on a loudspeaker mode’ just this time of the year. 

I love the spirit of the festival- and I don’t even play with colours. I run the risk of sounding like a snooty auntie who sniggers at the colors and hauls the holiday hullabaloo.  That’s sincerely not me. I’m plain shy. Just  one of those people who will stand in one corner of the apartment bacony , careful enough not to be seen, yet seizing the colourful moments from the tiny curtain opening. Once its all done, I’ll go and reward myself with a Gujiya .

Do you think that there is anything that echoes with Holi, more than the abundant servings of Gujiya, Sewain kheer or a desi celebratory salad? Yes of course , it’s the hip gyrating holi numbers in Amitabh Bacchans throaty baritone blaring from the society loudspeakers. Maybe for me the Holi magic comes from these catchy once-a-year wonders that stick in your head and feel good, perhaps only while taking a big mouthful of the freshly made spiced peanut salad with a spoon that’s a bit stained with gulal.

Bura na mano Holi hai.

No, I’m not about to present a festival sweet recipe. Today is a shortcut day. Spring cleaning for guests has taken most of my time. So it’s a short cut colourful savory and oh so healthy peanut salad day. Are you game?

Boiled Peanut Salad 

Ingredients:

1.5 cups boiled peanuts

1 cucumber diced

1 fresh tomato diced

1 red bell pepper

1 yellow bell pepper

2-3 green chillies 

2-3 sprigs coriander leaves

Sea salt to taste

Black pepper to taste

t tbsb lemon juice(to serve)

Method:

Pressure cook the peanuts in salted water till soft but firm , not mushy. Cool to room temperature. Next toss all the other  ingredients(except lemon juice) together. I sometimes add dried prunes or raisins, but that's optional. just before serving add freshly squeezed lemon juice. As simple as it can get.

Ranga Alur Pithe(Sweet Potato Dumplings in Syrup) on Poush Parbon

Festivals stir memories.

Poush Parbon is one such occasion for me. So far my only contribution to the celebratory month of Poush (January) had been eating away the goodies, I've never really given any second thoughts to the origins of the custom. It was then. This year I’m making a humble attempt to step into my mother’s shoes. Bless me.

Sankranti celebrations in my childhood home were nowhere like its big festival cousins called Holi or Diwali, yet its uniqueness lied in its simplicity. Sankranti is a simple Harvest festival which is celebrated in a very traditional manner all over India. It’s the celebration of the season’s bounty, and a way we’ve devised to thank the Gods for blessing us with good harvest.

With time I’ve come to know that every region has its own festive recipe which they prepare with the freshly harvested crop. For us Bengalis it’s the freshly harvested paddy, coconut and notun gur . These ingredients and recipes change as we traverse across our varied nation yet we stand united in the spirit of the festival. Food has an incredible power to remind us of our roots, to recap the rituals for us, and bring us closer to those who taught us of these ceremonials first. Like, I think of my mother every time I shape a Puli, and of my father every time I grate a coconut.

"All good food comes with a story, and the stories need sharing as much as the food'.

The story has been told.It’s the turn for Ranga alur Pithe  or Sweet Potato Dumpling which are fried and soaked in a cardamom flavored syrup. I favor this over others for the sake of simplicity and the option of getting some goodness of the root vegetable this season.

Now I leave you to kinder some festive memories, while I negotiate my way from work to home and brace myself up to mash cook fry and serve this dish to my family and you.

Stay tuned. Will be back with the recipe.

For now let me ask you about your favorite festive memory?

The feast was a hit - here's the recipe : 

Ingredients for Ranga Alur Pithe (Sweet potato dumplings)

3 medium - sweet potatoes, boiled, peeled and mashed

1.5 tbsp.  All-purpose flour or Maida

2 tbsp. powdered sugar

For the Filling:

1 cup finely grated coconut

1 tsp - powdered cardamom seeds

3 tbsp - milk

3 tbsp – sugar

For the syrup

2 cup sugar

1 cup water

2-3 cardamoms

How to prepare the filling

Prepare the filling first by cooking the coconut in a pan along with sugar until sticky and golden brown.

How to prepare the Syrup

Boil one cup of water in two cups of sugar and add the cardamoms to it. Boil for10-15 minutes till the water reduces to half and the syrup reaches the desired consistency. Once done, remove from fire and set aside.

How to prepare the Ranga Alur Pithe  or Sweet potato dumplings

Knead together sweet potatoes and flour with 2 tbsb powdered sugar to a smooth dough. Divide the flour into small balls and fill each small ball with a tsp f the filling. Now shape it oval or into a ball with the filling inside.

Now fry in a deep dish to a golden brown colour.

Drain the excess oil and soak in the syrup.

Ready to eat.

Beetroot Chops - and warm wishes for a Happy Diwali

Kali Puja (or Diwali) as it’s known to us Bengalis – is upon is and instead of sprucing my home, lighting it up and cooking et al, I’m travelling this year.

We did have a pre-bash of sorts at home, but that does not do justice to the spirit of the festival. Travelling at this time is unlikely – perhaps these are some of the maladies of leading a super busy urban life where a festive holiday eats up the festival altogether. Perhaps not that bad – and I might be needlessly beating myself up, as the place where I’m travelling to is more decked up than an Indian bride and looks as if the stars themselves have descended to bless the newly wed!! But then Kali Pujo spirit needs to be preserved and stories need to be passed from generation to generation. Isn’t that how I learnt it all too…

So I brace myself up. As Mr husband navigates through the narrow arteries of the joyous Jaipur, I prepare to tell a tale to my little one. The legend of Kali Pujo .

It is her- all dressed for Diwali,
strapped in the rear seat. Listening
to the legend

I start at birth.Ma Kali was born from Durga Ma’s forehead as Kal Bhoi Nashini to save heaven and earth from the growing cruelty of the demons. Why ma? I wish she’d ask me, but she is too small now. Never mind. I carry on. Kali Thakur was born to protect the world from two demons called Shambhu and Nishambhu, who posed a challenge to disrupt the peace of the kingdom of heaven. All the gods then prayed to Ma Durga, and that’s how Kali Ma came into being.

Once the demons were slaughtered , Kali Ma made a garland of their heads and wore it around her neck, killing anyone who came her way. To stop her, Lord Shiva threw himself under her feet. Shocked at this sight, Kali stuck out her tongue in shame, and this put an end to her fury. This is the form in which we pray to her – with her tongue stuck out and lord Shiva beneath her feet and a garland across her neck.

We celebrate her victory as Kali Puja . My daughter is scared at the sight of Kali Thakur, but then I tell her that it is only because she is so angry at the evil in this world. Kali is the destroyer of all things bad, and  so we much worship her on this day. Isn’t it time to get our priorities straight; safety comes first! I wink at her.

Re-thinking – can you really ward off evils like Shambhu and Nishambhiu just with prayers at midnight. We need more than that; I’m set to take appropriate action immediately. I’m not a big fan of the evils anyways; I cannot blindfold and trust anyone without making an attempt to please the gods and ward off evils with lights all over.

So I came prepared already. A big batch of my special beetroot cutlet is sitting quietly in my refrigerator. For any hungry devil spirit who wants to lurk around my house while we are out.

Beetroot Cutlet

Ingredients
2 medium size beetroots, grated
2 green chilies, finely chopped
1 large onion, boiled and mashed  (only if you must, puritans do not agree with my onion addition!)
1 cup shelled boiled peas
2 tbsp roasted peanuts
1 tsp ginger juliennes
1/2 tsp pinch asafoetida (hing)
1 tsp garam masala
1tbs all-purpose flour
1 egg (optional)
1 tbs  bread crumbs
Salt to taste
oil, for pan fry
1 medium red onion rings/ chopped (to serve)

Directions
In a bowl, mix all the ingredients except oil, and raw onions rings.

Make the patties from the mixture in elongated shape. This is messy.

Refrigerate for a few minutes. Wrap in a cling flim.

In a kadai, heat the oil till it smokes and deep fry .

If you want to shallow fry then you can transfer the patties to a baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes,this will add a crispy coat with less calories.

Serve hot with chopped raw onion rings.

Enjoy with your near and dear ones. Here’s my way of wishing you and your family members a safe and happy Diwali and a fantastic Kali Pujo

Sending this entry to Cooks Joy