Vegetarian Sweet Corn Soup

Everybody and their nephew must already know how to make a Sweet Corn Soup. I didn't. Before Jan 16th that is. I didn't even want to know. Sweet Corn Soup wasn't the kind of soup I ordered at a restaurant. At a restaurant I usually skip the soup. Except of course if it is Thai where I can practically live on the soup. And if it is Panera where I go to torture myself.

But on Jan 16th after all the PatiShapta and whatnot I went to the gym. It was a miracle that I remembered the co-ordinates given that I was going there after months.

And then I did something I should have never, ever done.

No, not steal towels silly. I stepped on the shiny, new digital scale there.

For a fraction of a second there was dead silence all around, the Zumba ladies froze with their clenched derrieres suspended in mid-air, the treadmills came to a stand still, the spinners hunched on their shoulders forgot to look up, the water drop from the water fountain forgot to drip. And then amidst clanging bells a voice from nowhere said "Beti jao, soup piyo" Translated in English "Go home and drink soup" but the Hindi actually has more punch to it.

I went home enlightened.

Before that I bought two small cans of sweet corn.

And then I told Mom: "Ma, today I will cook and then we will drink only soup for dinner"

Ma: "Ok, but after you eat rice and maacher jhol"

Me: "I guess you didn't understand me. ONLY soup for dinner. NO rice. I need to lose the whole 3 lbs that I gained since November to go back to a weight that was far from ideal in the first place"

Ma: "Why, what is wrong with rice. What has it to do with weight?"

Me: "Rice is grains and that translates to Carb. Dear lady have you not heard of South Beach-Palm beach-Myrtle Beach and such where humans do not eat rice and thus achieve a figure like Priyanka Chopra."

Ma: "That is okay, Priyanka Chopra is much younger than you. You eat Ruti. You know our neighbor in Kolkata, the Sen's, since her son relocated to Gurgaon they only speak Hindi and eat Ruti"

Me: " But Maaa...Ruti=Wheat=Grains. What did I say?"

My Mother gives me the royal ignore: "Do whatever you want. It is your house, your kitchen. but at this age don't tell me that eating rice one gets fat. It is exercise that you need to do."

Enter BigSis: "What soup are you going to make Mommy? The Thai Shrimp soup?"

Me: "Nope.Sweet Corn Soup. Remember in 2008 March you had it at N's house and loved it. Well that is what I am going to make for dinner today. Ta-da."

BigSis: "You know what, I am actually full. Didun gave me maacher chop after school. I really don't need dinner today"

The husband man knew the menu that comes up in January and so is already on the first half of his extended travel plan where they do meetings in BeerGartens.

So I made a huge vat of soup and am eating it or drinking it (what ever is grammatically correct) all by myself for three days. I can do anything. I am also having the maacher jhol and bhaat. And then day before actually had dinner at a Portugese place where I ate paella and clams and lobsters. In between the soup is keeping me warm.

The recipe I kinda followed is this one here, but I did not add chicken or ajino moto or eggs.Instead I added thinly sliced carrots. Mushroom would have been good but I did not have any. I also used garlic, soy sauce, chilis and vinegar. I used the Sweet Corn Cream Style in a can and so the whole thing was pretty effortless. It actually tasted pretty good too and BigSis did have a bowl of it.

Heat 1 tsp Olive Oil. Add 1 fat clove of garlic minced to flavor the oil. Add some finely chopped green chili and then the thinly sliced carrots. Next add 1 tsp of Soy Sauce and a splash of the stock or water. Cover and let the carrot cook. Once the carrots are almost done add the sweet corn, about 1 cup of it.

Next a little vinegar followed by 1 whole can of chicken or vegetable broth. Meanwhile mix 1 tbsp of Corn flour with 4 tbsp of cold water. Add this to the pot. Add salt to taste. Let the soup simmer to a boil. Season with salt and pepper.

Garnish with chopped scallion.

PatiShapta on Sankranti -- with a touch of Nutella and Maple Syrup

I really had no intention to make a dessert again today. Sankranti, Columbus Day, Republic Day -- no, I wasn't going to celebrate them by making anything sweet. Enough !! My Ma though had other ideas. She had already made the coconut-kheer stuffing and was all ready to launch into Poush-Parbon frenzy.

"Nah, no more sweets. Do you realize how much of sugar we have consumed all through December?"

My Ma, a very sparse eater herself of course did not consume all that.But I was quiet adamant. Then she said she would make some moog-samali. I of course had no idea, what that was. She wanted to do a savory version of it which needed green peas.We had no green peas.

Then this happened. Late yesterday night, Poli sent a mail asking for a Pati Shapta recipe for her boys. I was filled with guilt. My girls deserved something sweet on Sankranti, I thought. And so do my parents. And well the husband. And maybe me too, a tiny bite. What is a tiny bite in fact in the bigger scheme of Poush Parbon.

The recipe is same as my old one. No rice flour this time. If you scroll down there I have updated the batter recipe.

Also I have smeared with nutella the inside of the pati-shapta because the kids love nutella more than the coconut-kheer thingy. Drizzled with some maple syrup these were soft, sweet delights for the new beginnings of a new season. Never mind that is just cold, winter here.

Pati Shapta Recipe


Gokul Pithe Recipe

Alu Kabli -- the Bongo Potato Salad

"Go, watch a movie", my Mother prods. She does this every time she is here. Religiously, during the course of her six months of stay, she asks me to go out to a movie theater. To a multiplex, with digital screens, buckets of popcorn, large glasses of coke, the whole zing-bang. She says it the same way she asks me to take my vitamins, calcium , drink milk, exercise, kapalbhaati, breath in-out.

If she had put so much effort early on in my life, I could have watched QSQT, Maine Pyaar Kiya, Roja, Bazigar, Jo Jeeta Wahi Sikandar, all first day , first show. But that never happened.

Even now there are constraints. She doesn't want me to go and watch any movie by myself, my friends or even with her.The movie has to be watched along with my legally wedded husband, the D, only. That is the rule she lays down. Watching movie at the theaters with one's spouse, is the litmus test by which she checks all izz well between me and the guy.

Can't blame her. There is little else to rest one's faith on when all you see the couple arguing over is, "You get the Milk from Costco, I will pick up Bitter Gourd from Patel", "I did all the pickups and drop off last week when you were traveling, this week you better pick BS up from karate"

I take up my Mother's proposal with much hope, excitement even. Three hours away from clinging kids in a dimmed room with Shahrukh Khan/Farhan Akhtar/Tom Cruise and a glass of chilled coke doesn't sound too bad. If things go okay, we can hold hands even (without arguing). The husband however is not much enthused. He would rather watch "how they make shiny steely razors" instead on SCI, stretched out on the couch and eat Haldiram's Nav Ratan Bhujia.

Also the movies I want to watch is not the ones he would be caught seeing, even in a dark theater. At least not anymore.Sickly mushy romantic movies with a touch of humor are my genre. He likes the rock, car chases, hooded men and anything animated. Even if we agree on the animated we cannot white-lie a eight year old and say "We have to pick up groceries" when all we are doing is going to watch Tintin in 3D.

With every movie that we finally do not watch and argue instead, my Ma wants to dial Ajmeri Baba on hot-line.

Finally we do. Not call Ajmeri Baba. Watch a movie. At the theater. With a large glass of coke half filled with ice and toasted nachos. The nachos are terrible and I really wish there was something better. Alu-Kabli would have been perfect. Tangy with a tamarind chutney, salty with sprinkles of pink salt, hot with the tiny pieces of green chlili. It would have perfectly matched the excitement of Ethan Hunt rappelling down the Burj.

Next time maybe. A year later. And then maybe we can also hold hands.

Alu Kabli is the easiest thing that you can make in your lifetime. All you have to do in the cooking department is cook potatoes or rather boil them. You can do that step in the MW, stove top or the Pressure Cooker. Baas, you are done. To make life easy use a can of chickpeas which you drain, rinse and then just eat. If you do not have access to canned ones, you need to soak chickpeas overnight and then cook till they are soft and edible.

When I had asked in FB months ago, Eve's Lungs had this about Alu Kabli-- "tiny cubed pots, soaked red chana, onions chopped small,motor boiled ,cucumber - small diced , dhania patta , loads of imli , bhaja moshla,kalo noon and yummo"
Tanushree said -- "plus u have to have kacha lanka and chine badam..................must. "

Mine does not have cucumber, coriander leaves or roasted peanuts. If you want add them to yours.


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Alu Kabli

Boil 2 medium potatoes in their jacket.Peel and then cube. Soak chickpeas overnight and cook them till soft. OR buy a can of chickpeas, drain, rinse well and use.

Chop half of a large onion in small pieces. Chop about 6 small green chili in thin rounds.

Dry roast 1/2 tbsp Cumin seeds till they roast to a nice smell. Dry roast or char by holding directly on fire two Dry red Chili. Okay, only one for the faint hearted. Dry grind the cumin seeds and red chili together to make a fine powder called Bhaja Masla.

In a bowl add 2 tbsp of Tamarind Chutney, 2 tbsp water, 1 tsp of Bhaja Masla, a little salt to taste and 2 of the finely chopped green chili. Mix well.Note: I used Deep Brand Tamarind Chutney, you can also make your own

In another bowl assemble the potatoes and a cup of boiled chickpeas.Sprinkle rest of the bhaja masla, some pink salt according to taste, the chopped green chili and the chopped onion. Squeeze a little of lime juice, maybe a teaspoonful. Toss together and let it sit for 5 minutes.

Now dole out a serving in a bowl. Drizzle the tamarind water you made. Garnish with some more chili and onion. Sprinkle with some hot sev if you wish. Eat immediately.