Sexy Claws

It is hard to find some large heavy crabs in the markets often.  Then there is always the temptation to try out a new recipe with crab meat but when the crabs get home I can only think of eating them in traditional goan preparation called Crab Xec Xec or cooked with some Recheiado masala.  So this time it was Crab Xec Xec a red gravy using roasted coconut.

Swedish Tea Ring

Swedish Tea Ring

                              

After having tried the Chelsea buns, the Swedish tea ring seemed easy.  And easy it was.  My nephews were over and I look forward to cook something for the boys.  I helped two year old Kieran,  plonk himself on the kitchen platform right next to where I was working.  He watched me knead the dough as he dangled his tiny feet and entertained me with his blabber.  As the dough was resting, Keagan, Kieran and me got busy reading the story of the 'Seven Little Postmen' and 'Hansel and Gretel' and some more till it was time for me to get back to my dough.  I let the boys do some colouring whilst I started putting the swedish tea ring together.

Sweet & Sour Notes

Saturday evening, we finally watched 'Ek Tha Tiger' which seems to have crossed the 200 crore mark at the box office.  Definitely not the kind of movie I would ever watch, but since my brother had worked on the background scores we decided to go watch. 

Baking is Fun

The past two weeks or rather weekends were spent in recreating the stuff learnt at baking class.  It was fun getting my hands in the dough and kneading it to get a fairly elastic texture.  Breads seem to be a lot more easier than cakes, not too many ingredients and it isn't so much hard work as I thought it was.  Once you have mastered the kneading techniques it can be great fun, to then play around with the proven dough.  I think I am going to experiment a lot with breads. 

In Love with Goa...

A getaway to one of my favourite places in the world - Goa - and since I am a Goan it holds a very special place in my heart.  I could keep writing about Goa.  I visit it almost every year and each time has been special and with a different story to tell.  So dont be surprised if you find me writing some more posts connected with Goa again.  Last year I spent time in Chorao which is my ancestral village to celebrate my birthday with two of my closest  friends. The island is close to Panjim city and one has to take a ferry  to reach the island.

Time to Bake

I have a confession to make...

Baking intimidates me...and by baking I mean baking cakes, breads, sponges. 
I have made unsuccessful attempts at baking and all this deters me from trying out the next recipe.
I comfort myself by saying it just takes too much time and too much precision. 

Dessert Dilemma..

A last minute whip up usually yields the best surprises.  Most often  a well planned holiday or a carefully thought out  menu or a beautifully planned wedding does not really seem to go all the way as planned.  There will always be some goof ups here and there but no one really notices or realises that something is different except the planner.  And that is because alongwith our planning we carry too many expectations and anxieties around  it.  Although I am a person who loves to organise and plan and prepare way ahead to avoid stress and running around at the nth hour,  I’d like to leave room for a few unplanned glitches.  Especially when it comes to travelling, these little uncertainties make for memorable moments.  Else it can never be that 'perfect' holiday.  Perfect is boring.

Its raining again

I wake up to a beautiful day.  The sky is grey and its raining.  Yes its finally raining.  The wind is lashing the rains against the window panes and I can feel this light mist on my face just right to make me pop up straight in my bed and look out of the window.  Am feeling lethargic to get dressed and get to work but at the same time am looking forward to wear my new pair of rain wear shoes and get a little wet. So I quickly get off my bed and get the water boiling for tea and am in the mood to listen to some Beatles.  They start belting out 'Love Love me do'...Perfect boys you are into the mood of things. A quick shower, breakfast and am out and soon on a train. 

The Birthday Weekend

Sweet lil birthday message from darling Mel

Birthdays are special days, says who?,  says me.  And why not?  If I wouldn’t be born here on this earth, I would never have known my funny family , my crazy friends and my naughty nephews.  I would not have been writing this blog.  Jane would probably be an alien on some other planet.  Well I can hear someone chuckle, she almost looks like one.  And what if I was born without a roof over my head or in famine stricken Ethiopia.  Ethiopia – sorry I am drifting now, hey I would be adopted by Angelina or Madonna.  No such luck would be too old for that, would probably be adopted as the nanny.  Well but where I am is the perfect place where I was planted and there is every reason for me to celebrate life. There is a purpose and plan for each one of us, so they say.  And I think my plan now is to make the most of this weekend.  

For Dad...

The daughter is always referred to as Daddy’s little girl.  Well my Dad has four daughters to call his little girls, though far from  little anymore.  But I remember he calling us his “Little Women” and that was the one of the first simple adaptation of the classic by Louisa May Alcott that he had gifted us.  And inside the book he wrote “To My Little Women – With Love Dad”.  I loved reading it and me and my sisters identified with the four sisters in the story – Meg, Joe, Beth and  Amy .  And  at that time we were curious to know who would be  Laurie. 

TGIF

Thank God its Friday!   No lunch boxes from home.  Its time to explore and find new restaurants around town where I work.  One thing in common that the team I work with share is Food.  We love talking about it and exchanging notes on various preparations of the same meat or vegetable carrying the influences and styles of the different parts of the country we come from.  We have tried and tested the restaurants in and around our office. 

Although it was a hot and sultry afternoon our yearning to try something new has made us walk down the bylanes towards the Sterling Cinema near Victoria Terminus Station.  The walk wasn’t bad actually as the roads were lined up with trees which cast a cool shade.  We walked past beautiful old buildings built during the British Raj which houses offices of multinationals and banks.   We finally reached Sky Cafe, opposite Sterling Cinema.  which had a beautiful patio kind of seating arrangement. As we were deciding if it was a good idea to sit there in this hot weather the light breeze blowing amidst the stone buildings convinced us that it was a perfect day for Sky Cafe.  The menu was simple with salads, soups, sandwiches, pastas, risotto continental and oriental spread.   



The Weekend Spirit

The hot summers in Mumbai can be really exhausting.  Heres my fix to pep me up for that Friday evening.  I mix my vodka (60 ml) with some zest of lemon,  a tsp of crushed ginger,  8-10 crushed mint leaves, juice of 1 lemon.  Shake all ingredients with ice cubes in a cocktail shaker.  Pour it in salt rimmed glass.  Add some lemonade to top it up and drop in half a slice of lemon and sprinkle crushed pepper.  Hmmmm...refreshing!!   Where’s the party tonight???

Bitter-Sweet Moments

I never see too many people put this vegetable in their shopping basket.  And I am not surprised because this gourd is really bitter. But if cooked the right way, it can be eaten without contorting your face in any grotesque way. 

The Colour Purple

I remember a song we sang as kids “God Painted a picture and called it the World...” And truly amazing colours have been used by this divine artist.  It is hard to believe your eyes when you look at a beautiful flower or a colourful bird or that tiny little butterfly, that this is all natural, this is the way they were created.   I enjoy visiting the local vegetable and fruit markets rather than the supermarkets as the produce there always looks fresh and the vendors display them beautifully.  Square patches filled with varieties of vegetables, fruits stacked in a pyramid, the entire stall looks colourful.   Today I spotted these purple wonders, the baby brinjals which I love as a stuffed preparation.  So I carefully select the ones that are beautifully rounded and the size of lemons.   So here is how I finally prepared them ....

My First Blog...

Here I go with my first blog at Love In A Pot.  Why Love in a pot?  Well, I love cooking and cooking with love, for people you love is the most important ingredient of any recipe.  And I know you all agree with me on this one.   So fill all that love in a pot that gets together your loved ones, share some laughter and music and life is all good!