Posts

Of Chocolate Fudge Cakes and Goa

I have this friend Sweta (read Sweta and NOT Shweta, else she will kill you). She hails from Goa, which is not just fun and frolic land as all tourists think it is, but it is a land of great local food, which symbolizes experimentation at its best. One has to sample just the fish and prawn curries to understand what I am trying to say (unfortunately, no restaurant targeting tourists serves that kind of food). Main course apart, I have this recipe of Chocolate Fudge Cake that Sweta was gracious enough to share. Its an interesting one, especially for all the little trade secrets that she gave out (for which I am grateful to her). So people take down the recipe and share your experience.   Parts List 125 g unsalted butter at room temperature 1 cup sugar 2 large eggs 2/3 cup dark cocoa 2 tsp vinegar 1 cup milk 1.75 cup maida 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp bicarb 1 tsp salt 1 tsp vanilla essence Procedure 1. beat butter until creamy. then add sugar and beat until light. then egg yolks - on

पल

यूं चुप चुप तुम मुझको देखते रहे मैं खामोश तुम्हे बस तकता रहा सन्नाटे के आगोश में यूं ही वक़्त बीतता रहा सवाल कई पर जवाब एक ही दिल में जो और ज़हन में भी तिनके जितना छोटा ये पल लगे इक अरसा बीतता रहा     

Carbon Tax and all that.....

Well I was at an event today (I will not say where) and I was hearing these two Australians talk about the carbon tax debate that has split Australia right down the middle. It was a fascinating discussion as I overheard them, as they kept saying that it was about a terrible goof-up and a media fiasco of the Australian federal government that led to this mess in the country. To hear people discuss the impact of green issues on national politics was both an assuring as well as a scary prospect. It was assuring to see how Australia's national debate has been revolving around green issues. This is not to belittle other issues, but countries with such unique environment as Australia should certainly be discussing environmental issues with increasing realization that all issues of development come back and link to the issues of the environment. Moreover, what impressed me even more was the fact that some of those very eager to see the tax to be brought in were entrepreneurs who see it a

I Got Left Behind

And while I stood waiting, the world walked past me And I got left behind While everyone ran around and chased their dreams My dreams got blurred in my own teary eyes While I kept looking around me, trying to make sense of my life The world moved away, its giant strides crushing, unkind And I looked across, straining my neck To see what was left of the world's grind It was a lonesome scene, standing alone While the world walked past me, leaving me behind

Muji Chetein....a finger-lickin' appetizer

Some time since I put in a recipe. For all those who love to eat chutneys and sauces on the side, and who also love yoghurt, this is a great idea. Muji Chetein ( muli chutney in Hindi or radish chutney) is a common side chutney popular amongst Kashmiri Pandit.   What you need are the following: 1 white radish - grated 1/2 tsp red chilli powder 1 tsp caraway seeds (shahjeera) 3/4 tsp salt 400 gm yoghurt 1/2 tsp sugar Simply mix in the ingredients and serve spoonfuls with rice or chapatis . It goes well even with paranthas and makki di rotis . Believe me, its worth a while.

The Butterfly - A Science Fiction Rendition

Brahma was furious. He had fired his fierce crystallizer towards the rotten creature, and yet his anger towards the thing that dared to enter his garden and make it look ugly. And yet, even after he had crystallized it, he was angry. It was a strange set of events that had led him to be so furious as to throw weapons in his very own garden. Brahma was fond of gardening. He took pride in the beauty of the various flowers that he, the Creator, had created from the elements of nature; those very elements that he had created by moulding the various molecules and atoms that were moving about without any purpose in this universe. Now, what is Brahma, or who is Brahma, you may ask. Brahma was the force, the matter behind everything, the Higgs Boson itself. It was powerful enough to create everything out of itself, by stripping itself to create molecules so that he could re-engineer them to create new entities. And it was thus that he had created the earth, the water flowing on it, the soil

Wattakka Kalu Pol - Pumpkin Curry Sri Lankan style

Image
Well, it is always fun to cook for me. I would in fact say that it is akin to meditation for me, as it gives me immense peace of mind. I had tried a new recipe recently from the gourmet's paradise Sri Lanka, and though it is slightly different from the original, the end result tends to be the same. This time around, I tried cooking pumpkin a bit differently. The need to cook it differently arose from the problem that the cold weather poses - tamarind tends to spoil throats, and everyone is already fighting sore throats and sniffing noses. I recalled something I had seen on television aeons ago, and thought I's try. The end result was wonderful. Wattakka Kalu Pol roughly translates to Pumpkin Curry in Coconut Milk, and the recipe is a must try for it gives you an option of eating pumpkin with rice, something unheard of before. So here goes the recipe. Hope you guys enjoy it. This recipe is for 2-3 people, so just adjust if you want to make it for more people. INGREDIENTS 250