ZOOMING OUT

Temple at Livermore, CA

KACHORI

My earliest memory of Kachori dates back to my childhood. A great aunt, an expert cook, was visiting us one summer. One such lazy afternoon she decided to treat us to some kachoris. I had never even heard of kachoris before and imagined she was preparing something truly exotic.

I still faintly remember the scene; my great aunt seated on the kitchen floor, expertly filling the stuffing into the crust and then flattening them into neat little kachoris, all while maintaining a steady stream of tales from here and there. Although the kachori left such a strong memory, I don't remember having it again......

One of the reasons I enjoy cooking is for the sense of accomplishment that it provides. I go about with a smug smile on my face, after trying out a dish that is not regularly made or after attempting a recipe that requires skill. (of course if they turn out well) Praise from grandma is an added motivation.

Thus I embarked on a kachori making adventure this afternoon. My recipe, as always, was a mash-up of multiple recipes with my own little variations. I like this site because the recipes are accompanied by a video, always helpful when you are not sure about "what should be the consistency of the batter" or "how dry should the filling be", etc. Needless to say I peeped in here before I got down to making my kachoris.

My kachoris turned out tasty but slightly chewy...wonder why!...was it because the crust should have been thinner? or was it because the temperature of the oil while frying was not right? Any guesses?

I served my kachoris with some homemade tangy tamarind-date chutney.

BERKELEY KITE FESTIVAL

There is something about the image (mental or real) of a colorful kite, cruising the sky, which always brings a smile to my face, and fills me with hope and positivism. Maybe it’s the bright colors or perhaps the bounce with which the kite moves in the sky. To me, a flying kite is a symbol of conviction and perseverance, virtues that we require to keep plowing through life, to achieve our goals and to turn our dreams into reality.

Kite flying is a popular sport in Northern India. I had only read about kites/kite-flying in books and seen the euphoric atmosphere surrounding Indian kite-flying festivities in the movies. So when I heard about the Berkeley Kite Festival, it wasn’t too surprising that I decided to go.

The festival was running through the weekend between 11 am – 2pm. We headed for Berkeley on Sunday after a quick brunch. Considering that it was summer and that the festival was in its 22^nd year, we were expecting a crowd, but weren’t really sure of the size. As we neared Berkeley, we were able to see the big kites suspended for display. A friend had warned us about traffic in the area and tipped us about his parking woes. Sensing that we too were destined to similar fate, we turned back and found a parking spot in town, maybe a mile or two away from the park where the festival was running.

Long traffic lines near the festival area

Throngs of people, of all ages, walked towards the kite arenas. A group of musicians jammed, as onlookers swayed and clapped. The sky looked glum with no patch of blue and we were glad to be bundled up in layers. The monotone of the sky was broken by the colorful kites, some suspended for display and some drifted in the sky, like paintbrushes sweeping across a blank canvas with colorful strokes. While many, like us seemed to be there just to enjoy the scene or hang-out with friends and families, there seemed to be many photo enthusiasts, armed with cameras, from the simple point and shoot, to SLRs. Families with little ones had their own kites. It was fun watching children fly kites, their expressions darting between curiosity, focus and excitement.

Kite festival area

Musicians jamming

Some kites that were on display

After touring the arena for all the interesting looking kites, we stopped near the main arena to watch the kite ballet and synchronized kite flying. The kite flyers precisely controlled their kites to make it seem that their kites were moving to the music playing. I was very impressed by this display. The next scheduled program was the Rokkaku kite battle. As we waited near the fight arena, Arnold invited us and a few others to join the fight. I was excited that V would get to fly a kite. But unsure of my kite flying skills, I tried to excuse myself, citing photography as an excuse. But Arnold made me abandon my camera and handed me the line and gloves with “Taking pictures is no fun, flying a kite is”. So I dumped my camera and put on the gloves as Arnold gave us the “kite flying 101”. I got a cute looking sky-blue kite with pink daisies – numbered 34. “Maybe I am the the Rokkaku champ waiting to be discovered”, my delusional mind suggested. You see, my house number is 34 and my home phone number used to end in 34.

Arnold giving lessons

Either it was my non-combative nature interfering, or simply the fact that I couldn’t steer my kite, I was far from trying to get at the neck of other kites in the fight. The commentator commented on chickened fighters (apparently I wasn’t the only one! ) and challenged them to be more aggressive. Finally somebody noticed that it was time to send me home, my cutie kite tumbled down to the ground and that ended my dreams of becoming a Rokkaku champ. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Next in line was the candy drop event. I was curious to see how they would do it and also hoped to get some nice pictures of kids scrambling for candy. Kids had lined up for the candy drop, the youngest ones (3 yr olds I think) with their parents. A bag of candy would be hoisted up on the kite line, the kite line would then be cut loose and the bag opened. Kids of a specific age group would be called in and they would run around scouring the ground for candy. Volunteers with bags of candy would throw some more candy on the ground just to create a ruckus.

Children lined up for the candy drop

We then made our way to the food stalls to get our candy, oops! fries. We had seen all that there was to see and decided there wasn’t much left to do.

Content at having done something new and fun, we bade good-bye to the kites.

IN SEARCH OF THE PERFECT DM

Certain dishes leave an indelible impression on you, so much so that you crave for the same experience, everytime you eat the dish. Some set on a pursuit to find a restaurant that can guarantee them that experience, while some, (like me) undertake the challenge of appeasing their taste buds by replicating the flavors on my own - in my very own kitchen.

I fell in love with 'Dal Makhani' (DM) ever since I had it at a restaurant last year. Now, DM has become comfort food for me. This week I finally got down to trying it on my own. I read many DM recipes on the Internet. I didn't follow any particular recipe to the dot, but picked up ideas from all over. Here is my version, which turned out to my liking, except that it was a tad too hot for me.

Pre-Prep:

• Soak whole urad dal and rajma (red kidney beans) overnight. I measured the urad dal and then threw in some rajma.
• Pressure cook the dals. I added salt while pressure cooking. I also dropped in a couple of bay leaves, a black cardamom, a cinnamon stick and a few cloves while pressure cooking, so that their flavors would be nicely absorbed by the dals.

For the puree:

• Grind tomatoes-ginger-garlic-green chillies to a fine paste.

Procedure:

• Heat oil for tadka. Add heeng, mustard seeds, jeera seeds when the oil is hot.
• Saute finely chopped onions when the seeds start crackling.
• Once the onions are done, add the puree and saute it till its cooked.
• Add pepper powder, anardana powder, some turmeric powder and red chilli poowder (optional)
• Add the dal and mash it slightly. Mix well.
• Add water, salt (if necessary) and allow the mixture to simmer.
• Add some milk and simmer for a bit.
• Garnish with chopped coriander and a dollop of butter. I also used some chopped spring onions for the garnishing.

Tip:

• Remove the whole masalas from the dal once it is cooked, else, their flavor can be over powering.
• Be careful with the spice. I used 4 ingredients (green chillies, pepper powder, red chilli powder and cloves) and a bit too much of the pepper powder.

WE FLY HIGH

I wish I were a kite that could fly high, high, high...

“Don't be afraid of opposition. Remember, a kite rises against, not with the wind.”
~ Hamilton Wright Mabie

What doesn't have wings but can fly?? - Kite (eesh that was baad). We had a good time at the Kite Festival in Berkeley this past weekend. If you are in the Bay Area and missed this one, fret not. Santa Cruz will be having a similar event in Sept. (13th, Saturday)

A detailed post about the BKF is here.

DRAGON

I see a dragon. What do you see?

The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend.
~ Henri Bergson

Reality is what we take to be true.
What we take to be true is what we believe.
What we believe is based upon our perceptions.
What we perceive depends upon what we look for.
What we look for depends upon what we think.
What we think depends upon what we perceive.
What we perceive determines what we believe.
What we believe determines what we take to be true.
What we take to be true is our reality.
~ Gary Zukav

‘One new perception,
one fresh thought,
one act of surrender,
one change of heart,
one leap of faith,
can change your life forever.’
~ Robert Holden

What you see and hear depends a good deal on where you are standing; it also depends on what sort of person you are.
~ C. S. Lewis.

Men are disturbed not by things, but by the view which they take of them.
~Epictetus

The voyage of discovery is not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.
~ Marcel Proust.

People only see what they are prepared to see.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

We don't see things as they are, we see things as we are.
~ Anais Nin

FORT BRAGG - III

Monday, Day 3: I feel most tourist places in America are overrated. Most disappoint me upon arrival. But what I admire is their smart marketing attitude. I wish the Indian tourism industry learnt a thing or two and used it to promote all the wonderful places that are really worth the visit. Anyhoo, so I am always seeking travel experiences beyond the usual and much-touted. So it won’t be surprising that I decided to take the ride aboard the Skunk Train. I will give anything for opportunities that allow me to commune with nature and this promised to be one, I hoped. I had booked tickets in advance for the morning ride to Willits. As we lined to board the train for a 3 hour journey through the redwood forests, a train singer entertained us. The train had four compartments; two of them were regular compartments with seats, one of them was a pantry car, and the middle compartment was an open compartment (the best part about the train).

Skunk Train arrives

No sooner had the journey begun than people, especially those with kids started making way towards the open compartment. We hoped that the crowd’s enthusiasm would wane soon. We could then go to the compartment and enjoy the views with fewer people. But it was hard to sit inside and we soon headed out. The train moved along the winding tracks and took us deeper and deeper into the redwood forests away from civilization and any of its signs. It was cloudy and therefore slightly cold, but every once in a while the sun would come out and bathe the canvas before us in its glow.

People enjoying the open car

The lady in the uniform was our train conductor

We got down at Willits and while the engineers worked on attaching the engine to the other end of the train, people enjoyed their picnic lunches, kids danced to the train singer’s songs and I between taking pictures tried to take in as much of the quaint setting as possible. Technical glitches delayed our start back from Willits, but I don’t think anybody minded the delay. I would recommend highly recommend this ride if you are a nature lover – worth every penny!

Picnic tables at Willits

We were really hungry by the time the train got us back to FB. We spotted a small Mexican restaurant and decided to try our luck. The lunch was excellent. With happy hearts and stomachs we bade farewell to FB. Traffic was unusually good and we were home in time for dinner.

A journey that will be fondly cherished

FORT BRAGG - II

Sunday, Day 2: Mary had predicted that since the ocean water looked blue on Saturday, Sunday would be clear and sunny. How glad we were to see that her prediction was correct. After a good breakfast at our BnB we headed out. We are regular hikers and wanted to try something different this time. We were hoping to rent bikes and bike along the 10 mile trail. We walked to the bike rental shop in town and were surprised and also disappointed to find it closed. With tourists flocking the area for the long weekend who would have expected the shop to be closed!?

Tops of buildings in FB

Oh well, so we got into the car and headed to some nearby SPs. We hiked at Russian Gulch SP and Van Damme SP. Russian Gulch offered some nice views of the ocean. We stopped by Mendocino for lunch; I was really disappointed with it. I guess previous night’s dinner had got my expectations high.

Views from the SPs we visited

I was really excited about visiting the Glass Beach. The beach area was used as a dump ground for many years until authorities decided to stop that. Over the years, the pounding surf smoothened the glass trash dumped here. Visitors will find the beach sprinkled with smooth glass pebbles that glisten in the sun. I think years of visitors and lack of new glass trash has reduced the glass on the beach; at least I thought it wasn’t easy to spot. I combed the beach for the glass pebbles and got some home as souvenirs of this trip.

Glass at Glass Beach

I really wanted to do the 10 mile trail hike, but having hiked for the better part of the day and gotten good views of the Mendocino coast, I gave up on the hike. I doubt if it the views would have been too different than what we had seen during the day.

We walked along the Pudding Creek Trestle before returning to the comforts of our BnB.

Pudding Creek Trestle and views from the Trestle

I didn’t want to take any risk with my dinner, so we headed to good old Subway. I also wanted to try the local ice-cream (that seemed popular). We grabbed some ice-cream from the Cowlick’s store and rushed back to the Pudding Creek Trestle. We were just in time to see the sun go down. Overall a very satisfying and fun day.

Local popular ice-cream store