The engagement story...and yes, this does involve food

So...yes.  Joe and I have fabulous news, which is that we're getting hitched!  Here's the full story, and yes, it does involve food.

It all started last December, when Joe first bought the engagement ring.  He was still unsure about when to pop the question, but kept it deep in his dresser drawer, unbeknownst to me.  Joe began to think that my birthday would be a great day to ask me to marry him, but he knew had to get permission from my parents first.  The Wednesday evening before my birthday (March 13), he summoned up the courage to call my parents.**  To his surprise, my parents told him that this was something they wanted to discuss in person so they could talk through it face-to-face.  Joe was terrified, but he spontaneously decided to take a flight out to Houston that following Saturday, and my parents agreed to see him.  Luckily for him, we were on a little "couple hiatus" this past weekend since we both had a tremendous amount of work to do (so he told me...but actually, he does have midterms this weekend, which added to the stress of asking for my parents' blessing and proposing to me!), so I had no idea he was even GONE!

**Note: Joe actually called my parents while on an evening walk with Sasha.  Usually, they're gone for about 10 minutes, but he didn't return home for about 45.  I was terrified!  Forty minutes into their "evening walk," I began to worry (to the point of paranoia) and suddenly imagined that he and Sasha were picked up on the side of the road and put on an ambulance stretcher headed straight for Atlanta Medical Center!  I began searching around parts of the neighborhood where they usually walk around and even thought about calling the police!  Luckily it didn't get to that point.  Boy did I feel silly after I found out the FULL story of what he was really doing!

During his 26 hour stay in Houston to get my parents blessings, my father, being the tough and protective parent that he is, asked Joe to make a case for why we should get married.  Joe confessed to both my parents how much we loved each other, how good we are together, and how well he promised to take care of me and make me happy for our whole lives, after which Joe received official blessings from my parents to get married.  Upon his return to Atlanta, Joe called me and asked me to come over for dinner the following evening...

...Fast forward to the evening of Monday, March 18.  I had a pretty stressful day, but was excited to spend a nice evening meal with Joe.  Immediately after walking into his apartment, I noticed things were strangely...cleaner.  The coffee table (read: dining table) had been cleared off, dishes had been put away...it was spic and span!  And there were beautiful candles laid out on the coffee table!  AND, I smelled Indian food.  Immediately, I began judging (you all know how judgy I am about my Indian food).  "Where did you get this food?" I asked.  He replied that he had picked up the food the night before from Chai Pani, a new fast food Indian joint in Decatur, and had a lot of leftovers to share for tonight's dinner.  "I heard that place isn't very authentic!" I replied.

I began to inspect further, lifting the covers off the saucepans full of food heating up on the stovetop.  I was shocked...this looked like Bengali food!  Traditional unripened papaya curry, ginger-spiced chicken curry...maybe I misjudged this Chai Pani place after all!

(*Note: I'm not officially disapproving of Chai Pani, since I have never been there.  Also, I would never bash a local restaurant on my blog.  My statements regarding Chai Pani are solely based on hearsay and I only included this detail to add to the story line.)

We sat down to eat, and from the very first bite, the food tasted like my Mom's cooking.  I kept exclaiming it over and over, too -- "Honey, this is just like my mom would make it!  So much ginger, the sweetness...the fresh papaya, so carefully grated..."  Then I had an idea.  "Honey!  I love this place.  We should go and have a sit-down meal at Chai Pani.  Can I borrow your phone to check out their menu?  Maybe the owner is Bengali.  Maybe I can talk to him so we can get a discount!"  Anyway, nearing the end of the meal, Joe asked me if I wanted some dessert.  I immediately assumed we'd be having ice cream, so I started heading towards the freezer to pull out the triple peanut butter ice cream (being Joe's favorite ice cream, he almost always has it on hand).  "No, no -- I brought some dessert from Chai Pani, let's have that instead."

Joe pulled out a traditional rice pudding (payesh) from the fridge.  Now, most of you know me pretty well enough to know that while I am extremely judgmental of food served at Indian restaurants, I'm even more critical of the desserts.  This is because Bengalis make the best sweets in India -- especially if they're milk-based.  And the rice pudding that's usually served at Indian restaurant buffets?  Awful -- usually soupy, thin, lazily made.  But THIS payesh, you guys.  It was full of richness and the rice wasn't falling apart and it was just pure love.  It tasted...again...just like my mother's!  That's when I KNEW I had to look up this Chai Pani place on his phone.  I tried to grab the phone from his pocket, which he subsequently blocked from my reach, and told me he had one more birthday gift to give me.

At that point, he gave me a card, which read "All you need is love. ~John Lennon" on the outside, and "All I need is you. Forever and for always, Joe."  Aw, very sweet.  I was sort of scratching my head at this point, wondering what I did to deserve all this special treatment!

That's when he noted that he had actually taken a picture with the chef at Chai Pani.  I mistook that to mean OWNER.  "Wow!!" I exclaimed.  "You had a picture taken with the owner?!  Let me see!"  ...that's when he pulled out his phone and showed me a picture of my mother and him together.  Boy, was I puzzled.  "Wait, was this from a few years ago when you visited Lake Jackson?" I asked.  That's when he revealed that he had actually been in Lake Jackson the past weekend.  I still felt generally confused -- almost like I was in a dream!

A few seconds later, Joe had me close my eyes and he handed me a beautiful ring box, which was...empty.  Well, that's only partially right.  It didn't have a ring in it, but it DID contain a sheet of Japanese grape candy (much like a sheet of pills, but with candy).  Each tiny piece of candy represented good luck in one single aspect of the consumer's life, e.g. dating, sports, shopping, studying, friendship.  The last candy, which had been uneaten, was labeled "marriage."

It turns out that he had bought this candy sheet the last time he was in Osaka for work, over a year ago.  He ate most of it, but left the marriage candy piece for the both of us to eat together when we were ready to take this step together.  It wasn't until I pulled out the candy sheet, and he explained its significance, that I began to gain clarity on what was happening.

Pretty soon after, Joe got down on one knee and asked me if I would make him the happiest man in the world.  And I said yes.  Then we giggled and danced around the apartment.

Yeah, I'm pretty lucky, aren't I? :)

Happy half birthday, Sasha bear!

Before I begin, I have to warn all of my (three: maximum) readers that this post has nothing to do with human food.  Instead, I am specifically dedicating this post to my hyperactive, sneezy, sickly, cuddly, contemplative, and incredibly clever puppy*, Sasha bear.  Actually, she is only by default partially mine since Joe, my partner, has been kind enough to share her with me since he adopted her about three and a half years ago.  Sasha is a brown and white Jack Russell terrier mix with an intense love for fish eggs and an obsession with attacking all living things small and cute (e.g. chipmunks, squirrels, smaller dogs, sparrows), and also things not so small and perhaps not always cute (e.g. possums, raccoons, slightly larger dogs).  Actually, she's gotten better about behaving around other dogs, but all the other parts are true.  She's an incredibly vivacious dog who loves to run and play, but also enjoys cuddling with pretty much any warm body who's willing to give her a head or belly rub.

When we first got Sasha, we noticed that half her medical records stated that she was born in July, while the other half reported a birth date sometime in January.  Not knowing the exact date, we just sort of assumed she was a summer puppy.  Sadly, though, we never got around to celebrating her birthday; it was always a fleeting thought in conversation..."Hey, we should get people together for a party!" or "Maybe we should give sweet Sasha an extra treat for her birthday" were examples of comments floating into conversations around the summer time.

Well this PAST year, I took it upon myself to actually make it happen for her 8th birthday.  Several days in advance, I made all the preparations -- invited five dogs (and their owners), made doggie treat bags for all the guests, prepared a birthday cake for the canine of the hour, decorated the living room with banners and balloons.  Joe even bought Elmo birthday hats and tiaras for everyone.  Now, let's make one thing clear -- we're not crazy dog owners who dress our pups up in ridiculous outfits and put makeup on them and carry them around in large purses (murses).  We just had to make up for the past three years, so we went all out.

The evening was filled with various different activities involving fetch and playing with doggie mental-stimulation toys.  About half-way through the party, I gave Sasha her birthday cake, which had all of her favorite ingredients -- Beggin' Strips, masago (tiny fish eggs), milkbones, peanut butter, and a doggie-safe muffin.  I know...it sounds completely grotesque for us humans, but I can guarantee you it was a hit for all the honored canine guests, who were clearly in doggie heaven at the time (the cake was a bit much for Sasha alone to consume, so I let the others take a stab at it).  (So, see?  Food not only brings HUMANS together, but also doggies.)  All pups ended up being over-stimulated from eating and playing for at least two hours, after which every one of our guests crashed.  It made me wonder whether this was what it was like to experience a sugar crash at a kid's birthday party!

Anyway, in honor of our special little girl, here are a few snaps from the party.  Sticking with the tradition of belated (and forgotten) celebrations, happy half birthday, sweet Sasha.  Sorry we missed the past three years...here's to another 10 years of remembering!

*As many of you know, I could write a whole book on stories of Sasha scheming to accomplish something.  I'll save some of those stories for another post.

Chicken Soup for the...Soul?

Yes, it's true that the term "soul food" was coined in the 1960s to describe traditional Southern food, but to me, soul food describes any comfort food that brings a group of people together to eat, e.g. family-style meals.  Here's a recipe for a hearty chicken and brown rice soup that will bring your family and/or friends together, especially when on a chilly, wintry day (I know...just in time for spring in a few weeks...sorry!).  If you live alone, this is a great way to create a big batch of balanced food for the whole week.  Oh!  And this is a great post-workout dinner as well.

I won't lie, I do take the easy way out by using rotisserie chicken instead of  raw meat, but doing so adds more flavor, and honestly, makes your life way easier.  I have a tendency to add a variety of vegetables to my soups, and I make this soup differently every time.  I am currently making a pot of the stuff and happened to add carrots, parsnips, celery, spinach, and parsnips; however, I have used different types of squash (chayote, yellow, etc.), leeks, and mushrooms with equal success.  Use your best judgment on what to add, and have a little fun experimenting!  Below are just suggestions on how best to whip up a batch, with some recommendations and guidelines on how to add a little more love into this dish.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

-1 whole rotisserie chicken, roughly chopped into 1-2 inch cubes.  I tend to remove about 3/4 of the skin, but leave some for flavor; I also throw in the bones to flavor the broth.
-6 carrots, chopped
-3 parsnips, chopped
-1 medium-sized yellow onion, chopped
-6-8 cloves of garlic, chopped
-1 shallot
-3 stalks of celery, chopped
-1 bunch parsley
-3 tbsp chicken broth base
-1 cup brown rice (uncooked)
-A few sprigs of thyme
-Salt, to taste
-1 tbsp of fresh peppercorns
-1 tbsp Bolst curry powder (nope, I don't use anything else) -- this is my not-so-secret "secret" ingredient!
-1 tablespoon ghee

Preparation (chopping: 0.5 hour; cooking: 1.5 hours)

1. Fill half a large pot with water and add chopped chicken (with bones), chopped vegetables, garlic, shallot, onions, thyme, salt, peppercorns, thyme, parsley broth base, and curry powder.
2. Cook on high heat until contents of pot begin to boil, then reduce to medium heat for about an hour.
3. In the meantime, cook 1 cup of brown rice using a pressure cooker or rice cooker.
4. After about an hour, check on the soup and adjust flavors as needed.
5. Add rice to soup, then readjust flavors again (you may have to add a tad of salt after adding the rice).
6. Just before serving, add 1 tbsp of ghee to the soup.  This adds to the richness and comfort of the soup.
7. Serve piping hot, with love.

*A tip: Never add the rice until the very end, to limit risk of your rice melting/dissolving into the soup.  Also, never cook the rice IN the soup; your rice will just absorb the flavors of the broth.  This may end up tasting delicious, but you won't end up with soup -- only flavored rice.

 A bowl of comforting chicken and brown rice soup.

At long last, another blog post

Y'all, this is the longest hiatus I've taken from this food blog since its inception.  I've thought about writing so many times, but you know, life just happens.  Other things take precedence over blog writing.  I've really missed it, though, guys.  Over the last 3 months, I've periodically planned out posts in my head dedicated to certain foods or events.  First, it was a post on my recent trip to India.  Then came the idea of compiling "Best posts of 2012 that never happened."  Well, obviously, that never materialized, either.  Several other ideas popped into my head too, but alas.  

Well, I have an announcement to make to my readers (however few they are in numbers): I'm excited to start writing again.  You see, I just turned in the first draft of my dissertation proposal so I have a lot more free time on my hands now.  That's right, guys.  I have three weeks of normalcy before I get comments back on this behemoth document, and I'm taking full advantage of this time.  With that, I would like to devote this post to sharing my amazing food experiences during my trip to India in November-December 2012.  

Two weeks of our trip was spent in Kolkata with extended family.  Now, I have a basic understanding of the geography of the hustling and bustling capital of West Bengal; I feel comfortable taking the metro anywhere I need to go and know generally where in the city big landmarks are located.  But most of all, I know where all the well-renowned (even underground) fast food and sweets shops are, thanks to my favorite uncle on the face. of. the planet., my Pishemoshai.  There was a period about 5 years ago when I actually lived with my Pishi and Pishemoshai for about 6 weeks.  During that time, I commuted by metro to work at a government clinic six days a week.  Most days, I only worked about 6-7 hours, which meant that almost daily, I would return in the afternoons to some delightful culinary surprise, courtesy of my uncle.  It started out as small items -- a few sandesh from the local sweets store, some chanachur from a street shop.  After a while, Pishemoshai got a sense of which foods I preferred over others (and I was not at all shy about vocalizing my favorites).  As soon as he figured out which snacks I loved the most, they came in dozens or more...and not just during this six week period, but for every one of my visits thereafter.  Kheer khadam (dairy-based sweet -- hard on the outside, soft and spongy on the inside), nolen gurer sandesh (milk-based dessert sweetened with fresh date palm jaggery), giant shingaras (commonly known as samosas, but Bengali-style), fresh tandoori chicken, langra aam (a type of fresh mango); you name it, he got it.  

He always tells me his favorite part about bringing home these foods is seeing the look on my face while I eat.  Knowing that I will never get these tasty treats in such quality in the States, I always try to relish every bite, closing my eyes, chewing slowly, feeling the flavors tickle each taste sensation on my tongue, allowing the flavors dissolve in my mouth.  But while I always appreciate these treats, I always feel a little guilty relishing the flavors too much.  See, my uncle cannot eat many of the snacks he brings home for us when we visit because he has had type I diabetes for much of his life.  Despite not being able to share with him, he still appreciates that the sheer love for food can bring a whole family together for a cup of chai, some snacks, and good old-fashioned adda (chatting).  This is the power of food, folks.  

I must have gained at least 5 pounds on this trip, but not just from my two weeks in Kolkata.  My parents and I also spent about 8 days traveling around different parts of India.  My favorite food-related experiences were during a visit to an organic spice farm in Goa.  I know, I was skeptical too, guys.  And your suspicions may be confirmed when I tell you that the farm was overpopulated with foreign tourists and was largely commercialized (then again, so are most things in Goa, as we discovered).  BUT, I did learn a lot about spices!  And let me tell you -- commercialized organic spice farm or not, spices sold in India are far better than anything you might find at a grocery store in the States.  Here are some fun facts I learned on the tour of the Sahakari Farm:

- Often, we find mixes of black and white peppercorns.  You know the difference between the two?  Well, peppercorns are actually green in color; they are picked while still unripe and boiled for a short time, which gives black peppercorns their color (and pruny appearance).  When soaked for a long period in water, the black skin naturally peels off, revealing a white color (hence, white pepper).  

- Most people have heard of Chinese five-spice.  Well, did you know it's actually a single spice, better known as all-spice?  All-spice, or five-spice, is a bit of a misnomer.  It is, in fact, a single plant which gives the flavor of five different spices.  Don't believe me?  Well, let me tell you a little story.  We actually took a tour of this spice farm, during which the guide broke off a bit of a plant and encouraged everyone in the group to try a little.  "What do you taste?"  She asked, curiously.  "Clove!"  "Arre, no, it's peppercorn."  "No, I think I taste a little anise."  Well, we were all right and wrong.  See, all-spice contains the flavors of anise, fennel, peppercorn, cinnamon, and clove.  And while these individual spices have very distinct flavors, all-spice encompasses them all into a single dried piece of tiny fruit.  (Little known fact:  Stores often sell five-spice as these individual components ground up into a powder because all-spice cannot be grown everywhere.)

- When was the last time you used a bay leaf in your chicken stew?  Well, did you know that your bay leaf could come from a number of different plants?  In South Asia, the bay leaf has an appearance and flavor similar to a cinnamon leaf, but is primarily grown in Sri Lanka.  Because bay leaves are popularly used in South Asian cuisine, dried cinnamon leaves are often used as cheaper, more plentiful substitutes.  

- Cashews -- ah, what delicious, creamy, sweet nuts you are.  Little did I know, until a few months ago, that cashew nuts come from a unique, yellow, heart-shaped fruit.  Interestingly enough, cashews are not native to Asia.  They were actually brought to India from Brazil during the 1500s when the Portuguese settled in Goa; through trade, access to cashews spread throughout South and Southeast Asia.  The cashew nut is actually the seed within this juicy fruit.  Apparently, a very strong alcoholic drink commonly sold in Goa (but apparently nowhere else in the country, as it is illegal), called feni, is produced from the cashew fruit.  It's quite strong, actually -- very similar to taking a shot of vodka (so, yeah -- also unpleasant).  

Well, I have so many more food-related experiences to share from my trip, but I'm beat.  Until next time, eat, be merry, and love.