Book Review - Half Pants Full Pants by Anand Suspi

“This is a book about childhood, best enjoyed after you have left it behind.”

What the renowned filmmaker RR Balki has to say about the book:

"After Malgudi Days, I could never imagine that somebody could create another childhood classic for adults to regain their innocence even for a few hours. Suspi’s tales would have made R K Narayan smile. Oh! That beautiful Kannadiga gene!"

'Half Pants Full Pants' by Anand Suspi is an endearing read. It is the author’s debut novel where he recounts his real-life childhood tales from Shimoga, a then sleepy town in the state of Karnataka.

This book was sent to me by paperboatdrinks (Hector Beverages) and was with me for over 2 months before I picked it up to read. Well, as the adage goes – better late than never; I am so glad to have read it. Reading it was such an amazing experience. As I turned pages after pages of this book, I often got transported to my own childhood days and to my own stories. A wave of nostalgia often hit me and I wished if I could relive my childhood again. It is perhaps our lives' biggest irony - when we are kids, all we want to be is grow up and when we do, we wish we could travel back in time and enjoy the pleasures of childhood again.

There are altogether 38 stories in the book – some from the half pant days and other from the full pant days of the author. And each one succeeds in evoking a sense of nostalgia in the readers. In some way of the other most of us – from the pre-internet and gadget-free childhood days, will be able to relate to these real-life childhood tales of the author in some ways or the other.

The first story in the book revolves around a popular idea that did the rounds in my school days too – when a coin in put on railway track and a train passes over it, it turns into magnet! Back then, I didn’t have any mean to check it. The author being the son of a railway employee had the opportunity to find out the truth of the idea first hand. But, instead of a magnet what he got was a 5 paisa badly shaped chapati!

The author has had a fair share of adventures in his childhood. Some of them are exclusive to him – how many of us can boast of driving a train? I guess none of us can boast of that. But, there are so many other anecdotes - on fighting mosquitoes to imagining self to be some sort of detective (most of us must have been thorough that phase after reading famous five books), to climbing trees, saving pocket money, to delving deep into philanthropy, to detesting gourds (same-pinch), and so on. One thing that is sure this book will do to you - it will make your revisit your childhood.

Thank you Anand Suspi for crafting a book of your childhood tales; and thank you paperboats for publishing it so that it could reach the readers.

Highly recommended. You can buy it on Amazon or Flipkart. It makes for a great gift to friends and family.

Thank you for stopping by! Cheers!

Natural's Style Chikoo Ice Cream Recipe | Sapota Ice Cream | How to Make Chikoo Ice Cream From Scratch | Ice Cream Recipes

Chikoo Ice cream #Recipe

This chikoo ice cream is one of the best ways to use up some ripe chikoo fruits. Chikoo is quite a sweet fruit and is particularly great in ice creams. With condensed milk and fresh cream in it, this ice cream is literally a no-fail recipe. Don't like the flavour of chikoo - no problem just use the fruit of your choice instead of chikoo and keep the rest of the ingredients same.

I have always been a fruit lover. My mom never had a chance to complain that I didn't have my share of fruits. The same cannot be said for veggies though - it was a different story altogether. Till date, I am very much a fruit person - in fact, there are very few fruits that I don't like much.

A few years back, when I had the fresh fruit flavoured ice creams at Naturals, I was sold to the idea. Since then I am in love with all sorts of fresh fruit ice cream. So, here I am today with a fresh fruit ice cream - made with chikoo fruit.  I had some ripe chikoo fruits and I couldn't think of another better way to use them. I went ahead and made this chikoo ice cream and I am so happy with the results.

Yellow Moong Dal Dhokla | How to Make Moong Dal Dhokla From Scratch | Gujarati Steamed Snack

Yellow Moong Dal Dhokla #Recipe

Yellow Moong Dal Dhokla is a Gujarati steamed snack. It is protein packed and is quite healthy. Those who do not have much idea about this Indian snack, dhokla is a sort of steamed savoury cake made with yellow moong batter. It is tempered and is then served with Indian chutneys.

Summer is the season to stay away from oily and greasy food. No 'pakoras' and 'wadas' for me - at least till the rain sets in. So, when I think of snacks these days - I think of all the healthy things I can indulge in and things like Khaman Dhokla, Khandvi or a bowl of hearty Chickpea Salad comes to my mind. 

So, one fine day when I was feeling inspired I decided to try making yellow moong dal dhokla instead of this regular khaman dhokla. I pretty much made it the same way and the results were good. These Dhoklas are packed with nutrition and tastes best when eaten fresh with dollops of green chutney and tamarind chutney. If you are making in bulk, you can reheat it in microwave with some sprinkling of water and they are as good as fresh.

Yellow Moong Dal Dhokla Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup yellow moong dal, soaked overnight 

1 tbsp ginger- chili paste

1/4 tsp hing

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp ENO fruit salt

Oil for greasing the dhokla plates

For tempering

A sprig of curry leaves

2-3 chilies

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp sesame seeds

1/2 to 1 tsp red chili powder

2 tbsp oil

Handful of chopped coriander leaves

Yellow Moong Dal Dhokla. A Steamed & Healthy Gujarati Snack.

Process:

1. Drain the water from the soaked moong dal. Tip the soaked dal into a grinder jar and using about 1/4 cup water grind it to a smooth paste.

2. In a large mixing bowl, add the moong dal paste. Add rest of the ingredients except ENO. Mix it to form a batter. If it seems too thick add water little by little till you get a pouring consistency batter. 

3. Add water to dhokla steamer and put it on high heat. Grease the plates on which you will pour the batter.

4. When steam starts forming in the steamer, lower the heat to medium. Add ENO to the prepared batter and stir gently. Pour the batter into the greased plates and place them inside the steamer. Cover and steam for 15-20 mins.

5. When done, take off the lid and check for done-ness. Take the plates out. Set aside to cool while you prepare the tempering.

6. Heat the oil for tempering. When hot, add the mustard seeds, sesame seeds, green chilies and curry leaves. When it splutters add the red chili powder. Take it off gas and spread the tempering over the Dhokla.

7. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve with green chutney, tamarind and dates chutney or good old tomato ketchup.

Notes:

1. This recipe requires no fermentation. ENO is used for leavening, so put the batter to steam as soon as you add it.

2. Moong Dal need to be soaked over-night for best results. So, a bit of planning is needed if you want to make these.

3. I have used a dhokla steamer to make these. If you do not have it, then use a large kadhai or saucepan with lid to steam. You can use a can tin that fits into the saucepan to steam the batter in.

4. I used 2 around 6" inch plates for this quantity of batter. If you are adding all of it in one smaller plate/tin, you will have to steam it 10-15 mins more.

Thank you for stopping by! Cheers!

Herbal Iced Tea Recipe | How to Make Herbal Iced Tea from Scratch | Summer Cool Drinks Ideas

Herbal Iced Tea #Recipe

Herbal Iced Tea is a thrist-quenching summer drink. With lemongrass, ginger and mint, this herbal iced tea is full of flavours. I have used sugar to sweeten it, but you can use honey or any other sugar free sweetness as well.

I have never been an iced tea person. I do order it some times at food joints, but it has never been one of my go-to cool drinks. But, after trying this recipe I am a convert. I wouldn't mind saying that this herbal iced tea has become one of my latest favorite chilled drinks to beat the heat this summer. 

Long ago, I had tried a fruit punch recipe that used tea decoction and it turned to be a super flop. Since, then I was wary of trying any drink recipe with tea decoction in it. But, when I chanced upon a herbal iced tea recipe in one of the cookbooks I own ( did I tell you I am a hoarder of cookbooks?) I decided to give it a try.

The recipe involved making a herbal decoction first - a combination of lemongrass, ginger and mint. The recipe did interest me; but I had an even better reason to try it. Sometimes back I had planted lemongrass and mint in my terrace garden and I was delighted at the idea of using my garden produce.

The best thing about this recipe is that you can prepare the herbal decoction in bulk and freeze them in ice trays and use them when needed. You can play around with the ratio of the herbs, depending on which herb flavor you want to be prominent.

Here is how you can prepare the herbal decoction for iced tea:

1/2 cup ginger, washed, peeled and grated.

1/2 cup lemongrass leaves, washed and chopped

1/4 cup mint leaves

1" cinnamon stick

Process:

1. Add all the listed ingredients in a saucepan and add 500 ml water. Bring it to a boil and then simmer it on medium heat for 15 to 20 mins.

2. Turn off the heat and cover the saucepan. Let it cool completely before straining. Strain and set aside the herb extract.

3. You can add another cup of water to the residue and simmer it for 15 mins. The decoction prepared the second time will be milder in flavor. You can combine both the extracts thus prepared or you can store them separately. If you do not need to use the entire decoction in one go, freeze them in iced cube tray. When frozen fill them in a zip-lock bag.

Herbal Iced Tea Recipe

Makes 2 tall glasses

Ingredients:

2 teabags 

100 ml boiling water

10-12 herbal ice cubes or about 60 ml of the herbal extract

3 tbsp simple syrup ( sugar syrup prepared by mixing and boiling equal quantity of sugar and water till the sugar is dissolved)

300 ml chilled water

Ice cubes, mint leaves and lemon slices to garnish (optional)

Process:

1. Add the tea bags in boiling water and let it steep for 10 mins. Take the tea bags out and set aside the tea decoction.

2. If you are using herbal ice cubes, add them to the warm tea decoction so that they melt faster. Else add the herbal concoction equally into two glasses. Pour prepared tea decoction. Add simple sugar syrup and top with chilled water. 
3. Add ice cubes, mint leaves and lemon slices as desired. Stir and serve chilled. 

Notes:

1. Add a squirt of lemon juice for Herbal Lemon Iced Tea.
2. You can add the herbal ice cubes to your regular lemonades for added flavor.

Check out some more summer drink ideas

Sweet Lime Soda,
Ginger Mint Lemonade,
Makhanya Lassi, 
Blueberry Lemonade 
Strawberry Lemonade

Thank you for stopping by. Cheers!

Masala Chaas | Masala Taak | How to Make Masala Chaas | Indian Summer Drinks

Masala Chaas #Recipe

Masala Chaas is a yogurt based drink. It is yummy and it is very good for health in summer months. It helps to cool the body, aids in digestion and keeps you hydrated. The best thing about it is that it is so simple to make it – just get all the ingredients and blend it and it is ready to be gulped down.

This time of the year is the time to indulge in some cool drinks and I am doing just that. Past few days, I am guzzling down large glassfuls of ‘Masala Chaas’ or ‘Masala Taak’ as it is called in Maharashtra. 

The last week of March 2017 has seen mercury rising steeply here in Pune. The heat is relentless; one look outside the window in the afternoon will make your eyes squint and make your head dizzy. Forget about stepping out in the sun – else the menacing rays of sun with scorch your body.

Such is the heat that I keep all the curtains drawn in all the rooms; the fans are doing overtime running at full speed all the time. When things look unmanageable, the air conditioner also steps in. Apart from keeping the house cool, it is also important to keep our bodies cool and hydrated. Drinking lots of water and fluids is very important and they are the only things that are keeping me sane in this hot weather.

Looking for more summer drink ideas – check out Sweet Lime Soda, Ginger Mint Lemonade, Makhanya Lassi, Blueberry Lemonade or Strawberry Lemonade

How to Make Masala Chaas| Simple Masala Chaas Recipe

Ingredients:

250 ml yogurt

300 ml water

½ tsp roasted cumin powder

½ tsp black salt or to taste

7-8 mint leaves + extra for garnishing

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

1 tsp taak masala or chaat masala + extra for garnishing

Ice cubes for serving (optional)

Process:

1. Add all the ingredients in a blender and blend it till the mixture is frothy. 

2. Add ice cubes into two tall glasses and pour the Chaas equally into them. Garnish with mint leaves and taak or chaat masala. Serve Chilled.

Notes:

1. This yogurt based drink is common all across India. However, some regions have their own simple variations. Some common variations are adding a green chili for some spice or ginger, asafoetida (hing), curry leaves and black pepper. All of these helps in digestion.

2. I have used store bought taak masala. But it can be easily substituted with chaat masala.

What cool drinks you are indulging in to beat the heat? Do share.

Thank you for stopping by! Cheers!