Food

Flavors of Life

Experimentation with food and flavors started after I quit working and started parenting.

The first cookbook I enjoyed was 'Nita Mehta's Vegetarian' wonders. Whatever I cooked from this book turned out very delectable and flavorful.

When my husband and I visited Singapore, I got introduced to new vegetables and spices at the local market and some south Indian shops. I was surprised with the different vegetables, roots, stems, flowers, leaves and vegetables as when I, as a South Indian had never seen or heard of these exotic species. I additionally visited some European restaurants on Orchard road and some vegetarian restaurants once in a while. I enjoyed the new flavors and tastes as I never knew that food could be so simple, so tempting, delicious and unique at the same time. I also realized that presentation makes food very palatable.

My world revolves around my three kids for whom I love to try to make varied and healthy food. Over the years, I have realized that remembering each person of the family while cooking and just wanting them to feel happy was very important. On the days I made food as chore, neither did I enjoy it nor did my family.

So the last 20 years after I started my journey with cooking, I have loved experimenting with every vegetable. I just create a dish based on what spice, what nuts or herbs or what health benefits I would like to add to the recipe. I love the look on the kids' faces when they enjoy something. I also started writing my experimental recipes as I forget what I create easily. My daughter says that if I don't document it I wouldn't ever remember it. As the kids grew older, we enjoyed cooking together, as I would tell them to make something they want to buy.

Here's my very first recipe after i started blogging :-

Cheesy Garlic Spread

Comments

Greens (கீரை/ఆకు కూర) Curry

KEERAI KOOTU ( Recipe serves 5 ) Keerai kootu as it is called in Tamil nadu got my fancy as its tasty and is nature cure compliant. An easy to make and a very tasty rich dish, can be eaten with millets/ rice or vegetable dosa or even a vegetable chappati. Indegenious rice like Rajamudi rice,Thoyamali rice tastes very good. Keerai or Greens can be anything like Palak, Amaranthus Vareities ( Sirri keerai, Thandu keerai, Arrai Keerai ), Ceylon spinach. Take 200 ml water in a pot boil well. Added 1/2 inch shredded ginger and jeera powder. Wash and finely chop 2 bundles of palak ( roughly 500gm ) and add to boiling water. Cover and keep in high for just 2 min. Switch off the gas and do not open lid for 10 min. After this no cooking only blending and mixing. Remove the leaves and cool. Puree the palak and add to the remaining hot water in the pot. Also add chopped boiled potatoes 2 or 3 (About 300gms ). Always keep pot covered. Mixie half coconut with green chilli, lots of curry ...

Yellow pumpkin soup -NC

Yellow pumpkin soup the nature cure way Ingredients:- Yellow pumpkin - 250 gms cut as steamed with one green chilli. Ginger 2 to 4 mint leaves Few leaves of Rosemary Thick Coconut milk Salt to taste Procedure:- 1) Wash and cut the pumpkin with the skin if it's organic and steam it with a green chilli and a closed lid till just cooked but firm... So not over cook. 2) puree well with about 200 ml of water . Add few leaves of mint , half tsp grated ginger ,few leaves of thyme and rosemary. Bring to boil and switch off the stove 3) add one cup of freshly extracted thick coconut milk. 4) add salt to taste... 5) This is a thick soup and very delicious... Very important coconut milk to be added only after the heat under the soup is switched off.. Enjoy your soup 😋

Simple hair care

Aa.... A topic that is so touchy for many. I remember as a child my parents telling me the best way to take care of your hair is apply coconut oil and wash with Reetha / Shikkakai. I was like mom what do you understand the pains of combing the hair.. Hair is so frizzy and the struggles went on to breaking and hair thinning etc... Went on to try the so called so many conditioners... I noticed it helped temporarily and definately did not feel good by the 2nd day ... 😏 Finally came to a point of balding. Tried even the onion juice , hair creams and infused oils, and lastly tried out even the ayurvedic brands like vedix. etc... All these trials made me think more ... In these trials I understood self made hair creams worked ... Reetha and shikkai worked ... But how much care do we need for the scalp and hair I went on to experiment... And the following helped... Will explain the why and the science behind it too... 1) Being on the nature cure way of life helped as we eat ...

Suchitra's Life Journey

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