Twenty- five Seven

Do we as women need to celebrate #Women’s Day?

March 8, 2018

Yesterday I stumbled upon a video clip exhorting women to #uncelebratewomen’sday.

It was very cleverly made and cited several reasons for skipping this ‘event ‘ as it were . And I agree with them .

Do we as women need a special day?

I also read a remarkable post by Mackenzie Glanville who remarked that being a feminist doesn’t mean being a man hater .

I agree with this too.

Coming from a patriarchal family with strong women, I sometimes feel that feminism sometimes goes over the top . Gender bias ? Of course it exists. In my family women have a distinct advantage. The girls in our family are encouraged to do what they want to do (education, music, athletics) not because they are women and need empowerment but because they have the aptitude to do so.

Similarly the boys are encouraged to help around the house, even taking on major chores like laundry, grocery shopping and cooking .

But who are we kidding ? There are inherent differences between men and women. There are certain characteristics that are typically female and those that are typically male.

My two younger grandchildren are just five weeks apart. Strangely enough they seem to be connected and even though they live in different continents share a strange bond- when one of them sneezes, you can be sure the other one is also coming down with something. They both are wise beyond their years and have a distinct sense of humour that was apparent even when they were toddling out of infancy. Both were given gender unspecific toys. But strangely enough, the boy prefers cars while the girl prefers books.

So my own personal observation is that there are gender specific differences in terms of attitude. Men are from Mars and women are from Venus

And let’s celebrate the differences rather than try to make both men and women into androgynous creatures in the name of feminism.

Linking up with #ablogginggoodtime hosted by MacKenzie Glanville.
What day is it ? #MondayMusings

March 7, 2018

Whenever I travel from West to East I suffer from jet lag which lasts a year. But it seems this time that I’m suffering from a permanent jet lag.

This is largely due to the fact that I spend the major part of the morning making calls back home where everyone is wishing my good night . And it is a good night of the day that is just beginning for me.

Do you get the drift ?

The first time I ever travelled westward, I was horrified to learn that I arrived on the same day that I left Mumbai. Similarly, when I arrived home, I had lost a whole day! All this plays havoc with my circadian rhythm and I land up countering this by watching movies back to back. This time round I saw movies in all but can only remember that they were delightful. Somehow I don’t remember the names. Nor do I remember the stories. All that I remember is that they we’re thoroughly enjoyable .

Which brings me to my blogging schedule.

Being averse to carrying lap tops and iPads and other objects that have to go through security , I prefer blogging on my phone. But as far as I know, my blog posts are scheduled to go up as per IST. This makes it difficult for me to keep track of the posting .

When do I put up my Monday posts ? Thanks to the different time zones, I can’t keep up with the time.

In my mailbox I find letters of yesterday which are actually dated today if that makes any sense.

And the cold weather is not making things any easier. Despite the central heating and thermal underwear, the sun is deceptive and I often step out only to have my brains freeze in the cold .

So I check the weather report and dress accordingly only to find myself breaking into a sweat in the sunshine . Coming from a Mumbai which only sees hot and hotter mixed with humid and wet , I just don’t know how to deal with the clothes.

Which brings me to my original dilemma. What day is it ?

I hope I’m not too late to link up with #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne of EverydayGyaan.

How do you my dear Readers deal with jet lag and time zones? Would love to know in the comments.
Let them eat cake #FlavoursomeTuesdays

March 5, 2018
Hello and welcome to another edition of #FlavoursomeTuesdays

This time I am in New Jersey, enjoying the last few days of a winter that has been unusually cold. The second day after my arrival I was actually driving home in a snow shower : a first for me that literally had me holding my breath as Ms. Papaya was whining for the inside light to be put on and Daughter No. 1 was trying to concentrate on the lines on the road that were fast getting invisible with the snow.

But one of the joys of being in the US and with Daughter No 1 is the opportunity to try out new foods as Daughter No 1 is a food snob. She loves indulging in her taste for the exotic and unusual especially when it comes to cakes and baked goods.

Marie Antoinette , the queen of France is reportedly to have said “let them eat cake ” when her courtiers informed her that the common man was starving and had no bread to eat . Apparently this callous remark triggered the French Revolution and Marie lost her head to the guillotine.

Of course whether or not she actually said this remains a moot point . Equally, this was not the sole reason for the revolution. But what is undoubtedly true is the fact that nothing can quite compare with the absolute bliss of eating a freshly baked cake.

Cooking is in itself a therapeutic activity and many renowned chefs have found themselves drawn to this activity . There is something calming about chopping , cutting , dicing , slicing , grating , mincing – cutting down to size the various ingredients required to make a dish.

And then you have the different processes like searing , basting, frying, roasting, baking , simmering and cooking to get that perfect meal.

It is no wonder then that food and food preparation holds a strange fascination for so many people . Especially for those who don’t HAVE to cook on a daily basis.

But funnily enough, most first time cooks are attracted to baking . Perhaps it is the precision : measuring out ingredients, mixing them step by step, putting them into the oven and watching them bake to perfection .

Daughter No1 ( who sadly HAS to cook every meal every day) somehow enjoys making her cake and eating it .

Beyond the recipe

She also loves recipe books – not the usual meat and potato kind but those that go beyond the mere recipe, with pretty pictures and a lot of information . Books that have a new perspective to cooking is what she is on the look out for.

Browsing through her book shelf I came upon this delightful book by celebrity chef and Food scientist Mich Turner. This book is a cake lover’s dream with visual treats that are simple to make and healthy as well.

So on this wet and dreary February Sunday , she decided to make a Lemon Cream Cake to take along with us when we went visiting friends later in the afternoon. To add to the deliciousness , we served it with a freshly made Blackberry compote.

Here’s the recipe for both.

Peanut oil or butter for greasing an 8 ” round baking tin

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour or maida

1 lightly mounded teaspoon of baking powder

3 large eggs separated

Scant 1 1/2 cups castor sugar

1 cup heavy cream

Grated zest of 1 lemon

1 town vanilla essence

Vanilla sugar for dusting

And here’s what you have to do :
1. Heat the oven to 350 F . Grease and line the bottom and sides of an 8″ round springform cake pan ( She used a square regular cake tin )
2. Sift together flour and baking powder. Place the egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl and whisk until thick and aerated. Beat in the cream slowly until just mixed. DO NOT OVERBEAT. Fold in the dry ingredients and vanilla essence.
3. Whisk egg whites till they reach soft peak stage and fold into the batter with a metal spoon.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and place in the oven .
5. Immediately reduce the heat to 325 F and bake for 50-60 minutes until golden brown and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
6. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool . Let it sit in the pan for 10 minutes before turning it out to cool completely. ( She didn’t have a wire rack so she cooled it bottom up on a regular plate )
7. Dust with vanilla sugar and serve. (She used icing sugar instead)
While the cake was baking I made the blackberry compote. I didn’t make it as per the recipe given in the book because we ran out of blackberries.

But here’s the recipe for a fresh fruit compote .

Place 4 1/2 cups of fresh or frozen fruit in a pan. Add 1/2 cup castor sugar and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat.

Cook, stirring occasionally, for about24-30 minutes , till the fruit has softened and reduced to pulp. Add lemon zest or juice of 1 lemon or orange (if you so like) to taste.

Now that is super easy isn’t it ?

According to the author, because the cake is made with heavy cream instead of butter, the fat content is reduced from 80 % to 46%! This also means that it is best eaten the same day. Of course that was no problem with four of us and Ms Papaya waiting to gobble it up!

What is Flavoursome Tuesdays?

Last year my food blog, Foodities , died a natural death by mere neglect . However, being a foodie, I missed writing about food and memories associated with food . So I began #FlavoursomeTuesdays – a weekly post on food . Soon I found that an enthusiastic blogger Shilpa of Metanoia was joining in with her delightful stories . And occasionally we got Alana , Obsessive Mom and VaaydiPennu too.

This encouraged me to launch a Linky party.

Thus we give you, Shilpa and I, BellyBytes our official #FlavoursomeTuesday.

Incidentally both of us are technically challenged and learning on the go. So if we do get anything wrong …. please bear with us.

One thing we do assure you is a good time with food and memories .

So do join us for this Pot Luck hosted by us on the first Tuesday of every month. The Linky will be open till the following Monday, giving you a week to join in with your own contribution.

Ingredients for a #FlavoursomeTuesday:
- Food memories
- Food stories
- Food photos
- Recipes & Restaurant reviews
All these are optional. You can bring in any of the above or all!

Method:
1. Write a blog post and hashtag it #FlavoursomeTuesdays
2. Drop your links in the comments on my blog and on Shilpa’s blog.
3. Visit Shilpa’s blog and blogs of others left in the comments.
4. Leave some comments too and share the love on social media.
5. Sit back and enjoy the party.
Do feel free to share the badge on your blog to let the others know .

Please link up with Shilpa as I’m unable to make a Linky.

Do visit this food memory shared by my friend Amita Sathe Bambawale at Amita’s Mind Space. http://amitasmindspaces.blogspot.com/2018/02/chittapavan-brahmin-cuisine-complexity.html?m=1

Looking forward to seeing you today and on the first Tuesday of every month !

Bon Appetit mes amis !