Vegetable Puff

I am (like I've already said in all cycle gaps!) a sweet lover. Any time of day or night I can have them. But the U S of A, with its abundant sweet treats, has even made me crave for some salty/spicy snacks from time to time! Unlike in India, where you can stop by a 'kaiyendhi bhavan' or bakery and have those pakodas or samosas or kara bun or puff, there are not much choices in the light snack variety other than a pizza slice or bread stick here. Then, one of my friend surprised me with those home-made vegetable puffs one day. Ever since, I try to stock up on those frozen puff pastry sheets ready to make these easy savory treat for those lazy afternoons or to trick guests to make them believe that I am a super cook! ;)


Ingredients


Frozen puff pastry sheet - 1

1/2 an onion, diced

Mixed vegetables

(diced potatoes, beans, carrots, peas) - 1 cup

garam masala - a pinch

chilly powder - as per taste

salt - as per taste



1. Make a vegetable masala sauteing the diced onions in a little oil and adding chilly powder, garam masala, salt and mixed vegetables (I used regular potato masala).

2. Thaw the puff pastry sheets.


3. Preheat oven to 350 F(or 400 F)


4. Cut it into rectangles, fill with vegetable masala, close and seal the sides. Poke the pastry sheets with a fork[Alton Brown's(one of my favourite cooks from food network) advice!]

5. Place it in ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 30 mins(or 20 mins)

P.S1. : me - in hiding, this is not going to be a Friday feature. It just happens to be a Friday today!!


P.S2. - I've been looking for 'kara' bun recipe for a long time. Anyone knows of a recipe or a link, please let me know. Any other such savoury recipes(no frying) that you know of can be shared too.

Teenage Turmoil

I'm sure, as a child, most of us would have wanted to grow up fast! Especially, the hype and gloss surrounding the teenage years would've added to the impatience. But like most things in life, what most adults conveniently cover-up or not highlight is about the unwanted but unavoidable aspect of that age, the not-so-simple, beauty spot pimple!!

The timing of its appearance (as a solitary reaper or as a gang) is something one has to awe at! Exactly before a family function or school annual day or the day you get to meet a friend's good looking older brother!! The more people tell about the advantages of practicing untouchability with the 'beauty spots', one would feel like crushing it!!

Luckily, the face is only visible to others and not to ourselves(unless you are a descendant of Snowwhite's stepmom!)! But the disadvantage is, people looking at you start giving beauty tips/remedies for the lovely spots. Apply this cream, that cream, multani-m(a)itti, curd, milk, cucumber, apple or whatever is in season! The folks at home would get all worried that their share of healthy snacks is neither going inside their tummy nor ours!

As a last resort, medical help is sought. Here again there is dilemma whether to go for homeopathy, allopathy or ambikapathy/amaravathy. Homeopathy takes 40 yrs to get results. Allopathy will result in side-effects lasting between 40 days-40 yrs. Not much is known about the effects of ambikapathy/amaravathy! Anyway, by the time, the magical teenage ends, we are left with a moon-like face, complete with craters!! Then, you step into adulthood and realise among the other bigger issues, these pimple problems were really simplest of them all!

Last Friday Melody!

Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Basu Chatterjee's movies in the 70s are a treat to watch even today. Simple story, elegant execution, lovely songs, natural acting - what a risk it must've been in that era of gory and violent Hindi movies! Listed below are some of my all time favourites.

Jab deep jale aana - Chitchor

Tu jo mere sur mein - Chitchor

Na jaane kyon - Choti si baat

Jane-e-mann - Choti si baat

Meine tere liye - Anand

Zindagi - Anand

Loote koyi - Abhimaan

Tere mere milan ki - Abhimaan

I wanted to include songs from 'Chashme Buddoor' along too even though it was directed by Sai Paranjpe and came out in the 80s but couldn't find any links.

P.S. - Like the title says, this will be the last of the Friday melody series. It started of like this one (last) July Friday and for the past 2 years, it has been fun playing the DJ! I guess, it will be kind of itchy the next few Fridays but I've almost run out of ideas, enthu' (and end it before I run out of audience)! A big Thanks everyone!!

FM

Some recent favourites!


செவ்வானம் சேலைய கட்டி - மொழி

ஏன் எனக்கு - நான் அவனில்லை

பேரூந்தில் - பொறி

உன்னாலே - உன்னாலே உன்னாலே

உன் பார்வை - சென்னை 600028

தாலியே தேவையில்ல - தாமிரபரணி

அட, Lallu land!!

For many years, Bihar in northern India has earned notoriety for being one of the poorest and most lawless states in the country.

Nobel-prize winning author VS Naipaul once described it as the place where "civilisation ends".

But all is not lost, perhaps. We discover five areas where Bihar might consider itself to be ahead of other Indian states.

more...

FM - Hindi oldies

Tera mera pyar amar - Asli Naqli

Achaji mein haari - Kalapani

Aaja sanam - Chori chori

Dil ki nazar se - Anari

Dil thadhap - Madhumathi

Deewana hua badal - Kashmir ki kali

Bandha parwar - Phir wohi dil laya hoon

Manner(les)s!

Sometime back there was a huge outcry when Mumbai was judged the rudest city by a Reader's Digest survey. But I realised it long back that politeness as per the western standards was/is not our cup of Tea. I have never thanked my bus conductor/driver or the fruit/flower seller or sincerely said sorry to a co-passenger on stamping her feet or excused myself on getting a phone call or asked my mom, 'can I have some more sambar, please?' or ... I can go on and on. On top of that came 'Maine pyar kiya' where the hero and heroine's 'No sorry, no thank you among friends' got etched in my mind!! Apparam enna, when there is no necessity for sorry and thank you among friends, why waste it on strangers!!


With all this background, you can understand the struggle I must've gone(still going!) thro' landing in the western hemisphere! Atleast with outsiders I can show a 'don't care if they think me as rude or mannerless' attitude but when kids start to learn manners from school, there is no escape. My daughter wouldn't leave me in peace unless I 'welcomed' her 'thank you' or 'ok-ed' her sorry! But hubby dear hasn't been so lucky yet! On situations even when a sorry from my side is absolutely due, my mouth won't utter them(first of all, owning up my fault-ey nadakkadhey!). Whenever there is a chance to thank him, the words would come till my throat but then 'maine pyar kiya'!!! So, this post is to let him know that atleast those words float in my RAM!

P.S. - 'Please' is getting to be the most abused word in our household. During her toddler days, as part of teaching manners, we taught our daughter to say 'please' when she needs something. Also, to show difference, whenever she used 'please' we tried to attend to it immediately. Now, it has turned the table on us. What do you do when they go 'Amma, more cookies, please please!' or '100 more minutes in the park, please please!'!! :(

FM - Indi Pop

Ho gayi hai muhabbat - Aslam

O Sanam - Lucky Ali

Choodi jo kanki - Phalguni Pathak

Tu jo mila - Alisha Chinoy

Mehndi ki raat - ??

Breathless - Shankar Mahadevan

Afreen afreen - Nusrat Fateh Ali khan

Vaalpaarai - Malgudi Suba


Links are from youtube. The Indi pop of those early days used be interesting and exciting because of its picturisation.

FM - "நிலா"

நிலா காய்கிறது - இந்திரா

நிலாக்காயும் நேரம் - செம்பருத்தி

நிலவே முகம் காட்டு - எஜமான்

நிலாவே வா - மௌன ராகம்

நிலவுக்கு என் மேல் - போலீஸ்காரன் மகள்

(அந்த)நிலாவத்தான் - முதல் மரியாதை

Veyyil

Growing up in Chennai, 'ஸ்ஸ்.... என்ன வெயில்!' ('sss... enna veyyil!') was pretty much the only dialogue/monologue one can hear on weather. So, it felt odd when I was actually looking forward to some warm 'வெயில்'('veyyil') on my first summer in the North-east! Also, the obsession with weather reports was a totally new phenomenon!

Is it only me or does anyone else feel that even the high 80s and low 90s degree F (25-35 C) feels a lot more hot than it does in our hot Chennai? Is it because of the low humidity? Or is there any truth to theory that in US unlike India(which is near the tropics) the radiation is more because of its geographical location? Another thing is, a couple of days of 90+ degrees F and there usually comes those really noisy thunderstorms cooling the place down. The weather reporters(Todd Gross of Seven News was my favourite!) on TV have numerous times explained why it happens but I never understood it(*sighing* Whatever! Why doesn't this happen in India!). Another weather phenomenon which I awe at and wish happened in India is how rain clouds have enough punch to sustain from Texas coast to the North-east Coast whereas in India, the storm force loses power going from AP coast to TN coast! Ofcourse, Atlantic & Pacific oceans are giants compared to Bay of Bengal & Indian ocean.

Anyway, all this veyyil/weather puranam is because this is my first summer in the south. Only this time, there hasn't been any April showers to bring May flowers and we are in official drought('Namma enge ponaalum namma specialty-um koodave varum poley'!). Ofcourse, the 'drought' here is different('don't water the plants or face court!) from our drought(alternate days water supply, thanni kodam, Metro water lorry...).

Lastly, வசந்த பாலனின் 'வெயில்' மனதை சுட்டது! Who is to be blamed, the father or the son? Even though the punishment given to the boy was harsh, I could relate to the father's anger! On one side, there are children toiling in match box/fireworks/loom industries yearning to go to school and on the other side, there are children whose parents toil to educate them and they bunk schools, smoke or run away to chase colourful dreams! Like I wrote before, it is tough being a parent especially, a father! Pasupathi(Annathey's find!!), asusual is brilliant! And kutti paiya, GVPrakash, urukittiye, pa!! Producer Shankar seems to do the prayachitham for all the sins of Director Shankar!!

FM - "மாலை"

மாலை என் வேதனை - சேது

மாலையில் யாரோ - சத்ரியன்

மாலை எனை வாட்டுதே - பூக்களை பறிகாதீர்கள்

மாலை கருக்கயில் - நீதியின் மறுபக்கம்

மால கருக்கலிலே - எங்க ஊரு காவக்காரன்

மாலை பொழுதின் - பாக்கியலட்சுமி

Remake

Happened to watch a few scenes from the original 'King Kong' recently on TCM. For a movie of its time, it is really something!! That got me thinking. If Billa/Kulla could be remade, why can't someone remake the classic 'Maya Bazaar' (good chance to show off our compooter graphics!)?




My vote for the role of Gadodhgajan (played by Rangarao) is Prakash Raj.




After 'Godfather' spl. role, think Ajit might suit the role of Krishna? ;)



And IMO, Vivek might be good choice for Illakkana Kumaran, the gaurava prince played by Thangavelu.






Is there anyone now in Kollywood to do role of Vatsala played by Savithri ?

FM - "அந்தி"

அந்தி மழை - ராஜ பார்வை

அந்தி வரும் நேரம் - முந்தானை முடிச்சு

அந்திநேர தென்றல் காற்று - இணைந்த கைகள்

அந்தியிலே வானம் - சின்னவர்

ETFN* - III

Asusual, a flashback incident after reading this post. We had been invited for lunch at my husband's (American) colleague's house when our daughter was around 9 months old. Like all Indian mothers, my daughter's feeding time was made into a big event by me! After initial chat, when everyone got ready for lunch, I excused myself saying that I had to feed my daughter first. The colleague had a girl just 6 months older to ours who was made to sit on the high-chair and served whatever was cooked. By the time I was done with the feeding session, everyone else had finished eating too and so I ate while everyone else watched! The next day at work, the colleague was quite cross with my husband as he thought my husband practised the good old Indian tradition of letting the wife eat only after the husband and hence the feeding the child ruse!!!



* - Embarrassing Then Funny Now (I and II)

FM - "மூங்கில்"

மூங்கிலிலே - ராகம் தேடும் பல்லவி

மூங்கில் இலை - பெண்மணி அவள் கண்மணி

மூங்கில் காட்டோரம் - பூக்கள் விடும் தூது

மூங்கில் காடுகளே - சாமுராய்

FM - "மா"

மாம்பூவே - மச்சனை பாத்தீங்களா

மாஞ்சோலை - கிழக்கே போகும் ரயில்

மாமரத்து - ஊமை விழிகள்

FM - 'ஓ!!'

'ஓ மானே மானே' - வெள்ளை ரோஜா

'ஓ வானம்பாடி' - சாதனை

'ஓ வசந்த ராஜா' - நீங்கள் கேட்டவை

'ஓ பாபா லாலி' - இதயத்தை திருடாதே

'ஓ பேபி பெபி' - காதலுக்கு மரியாதை

'ஓ மனமே' - உள்ளம் கேட்குமே

FM - "மலை"

"மலையோரம் வீசும் காத்து" - பாடு நிலாவே

"மலை கோவில்" - வீரா

"மலையோரம் மயிலே' - ஒருவர் வாழும் ஆலயம்

Tomato Sambar Recipe

Ingredients:

1 tomato chopped
1/2 onion chopped(optional)

1/2 cup Mung dal

1 or 2 tsp sambar powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste

1 tsp oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp urad dal (optional)
1 red chilli (optional)

3 and 1/2 cups water

Method:

Boil mung dal in 1 and 1/2 cups water. Mash and set aside

1. Add 1 tsp of oil to sauce pan and temper with mustard seeds, curry leaves, urad dal and red chilli

2. Add chopped onions and fry till soft

3. Add chopped tomatoes and fry a little

4. Add 2 cups water, salt, sambar powder and turmeric

5. Boil in high till it starts frothing

6. Reduce heat and let simmer for 15 minutes

7. Add the boiled mung dal, stir and let boil for another 5 minutes

8. Add chopped cilantro/coriander

IMO, this sambar goes well with dosais, adais etc.

and with rice & kaara/fry curries

P.S. - For a milder sambar, just add chopped tomatoes to water and follow from step 4. Temper with mustard seeds at the end.

Mung dal makes it quite bland. For variation, you can substitute Tur dal.

FM - "தாலாட்டு"

தாலாட்டு - அச்சாணி

தாலாட்டு மாறி போனது - உன்னை நான் சந்தித்தேன்

தாலாட்டும் பூங்காற்று - கோபுர வாசலிலே