mom's recipes

Semia Payasam

Ingredients:

Bombino Vermicelli – 250 gms.
Dry Kismis (raisins) - 25 gms.
Elaichi (cardamom) – 07 nos.
Cashew nuts – 25 gms.
Sugar – to taste.
Milk – 1 litre.
Ghee – enough to fry the vermicelli, cashews & raisins separately

Method:

Fry the vermicelli in a thick bottomed pan or “cheenichetti”.

Put the fried vermicelli in a dry plate.

Boil the milk in a vessel.

Add two glasses of water with milk.

When it boils, put the vermicelli in it in small quantities, stirring gradually till it cooks. Ensure no lumps are formed. The vermicelli should be soft enough to bite through.

Remove from the flame and add the sugar.

Fry the cashew and raisins separately in ghee, add to the payasam.

Powder the elaichi, and add to the brew.

Kadala Payasam

Chana dal (kadala parippu) – 250 gms.
Sabudana – 100 gms.
Dry fruits (raisins, cashew nuts, cardamom) – to taste
Jaggery – ½ kg.
Coconut milk or diary milk – ½ litre

Method:

Clean the chana dal well (twice), boil it in a pressure cooker.

Add jaggery to the cooked dal and mix it.

Add the sabudana. Keep stirring the broth continuously.

Add milk and boil it. Remove from the fire.

Then add the fried dry fruits and we are done!

dreams....

Listening to the Beatles as I write this. It’s a pretty large collection of their songs in MP3, picked it up at a friend’s place last week. Cassettes I had, but MP3s were what I was looking for. But tell you what, MP3s lack the quality of a cassette or CD. That's not doing justice to the Beatles.

Got my Pilatus PC-12 licence too. Looks like my traveling days are over, although a trip to Sri Lanka is a possibility if the AS 355 goes there. Then there is my cousin’s wedding which I want to attend in Kerala in August. Lots happening, after the dull phase last year. Dreams, plans, …..only time will tell how much will become a reality. Career plans include licenses on a couple of helicopters, the ATRs. Then learning the Guitar. Then there is the dream of picking up flying lessons, paragliding, and building up that aircraft model that’s been lying at home. Then furnishing my new apartment… ideas are welcome! The aeromodelling will, in all likelihood, have to wait till I can shift to my own pad with a proper working table; et al. Can’t believe that sacrificing that six figure airline package for a better quality of life would be so satisfying. More time to meet friends, more time to do everything, although time management is something that I have to work on. Still sticking to the workout schedule, and inshah allah, will put more effort into it. Paying dividends to the amount of energy I can pack in a day. But improvement to my physique is still a long way to go. But should suffice to say that I’m most likely to tie the knot in a year’s time. Wish that I had more time, but a year is all that I could wrangle out of my parents’ persistent nagging.