Pinku-Enchanted Life

 TRAVEL!  In our household the word has magical powers. We consider even the most mundane trip something to look forward to and any hint of anything outstation is always welcomed with glee. Since 2020 though for a variety of reasons our trips as a family have been limited. The last we travelled together was in Oct 2022 for a trip to Dharamshala and Dalhousie which we had to cut short due to unavoidable reasons. This year with temperatures in Delhi often touching 50 degrees, we were hallucinating about the mountains and cooler climes. Not holding a regular job makes the financial scenario very dicey and it made me extremely uncomfortable to spend on what can best be described as an indulgence. The partner however insisted promising that we would stick to a shoe string budget. The look of anticipation the kids gave me eventually made me capitulate.  We had often spotted the Delhi-Kathmandu Bus on the Expressway and wondered what that journey would be like. Quick checks onli...

Christmas for me is incomplete without some serious plum cake eating. Since for the past year or so I have been baking with a vengeance I thought this year the Plum cake too should be home baked.  Research on the hows, do's and dont's took me through various books, blog posts and videos and I finally figured out a recipe that I was reasonably sure would work for me and was close to the taste and texture I had in mind. To me a good plum cake is a dark, well baked almost over baked, moist, filled with dry fruits kind of cake which is rich in spices and has a distinct aroma. Sharing herewith the recipe. Do give it a try and let me know how it goes: Ingredients: To Soak the Fruits ( do this atleast 4 weeks before you expect to bake. Remember to stir it atleast twice every week) 2 cups - chopped dry fruits - include all that you like. and then some. Add lemon and orange peels if you can, they add a lovely fragrance 1 1/2 - cups liquor - I used dark Rum, you can choose to use red wi...

I love reading Rhea's blog . Its a simple food lovers blog and her recipes are no fuss, delicious, DIY even for kitchen novices kind of recipes. Its been a while since I read her post on sponge cakes and remembered the cakes my mom used to bake for us kids. Those days a home baked cake was a HUGE treat and especially so for me since I never did like the cream soaked versions that bakeries sold. The whole delight of waking up in a house smelling of baked goodies was just too good. Mom mostly baked when we kids were sleeping as we used to otherwise bother her too much. :) Now my daughter is the same - though guess I am smarter as I put her to work whisking which keeps her involved. So since reading her posts I had been meaning to bake a sponge cake but since its considered too basic a cake I didnt dare to bake it for the Cook-off at the Anandomela so it had to wait. Then some dearly loved friends announced that they are in town and the perfect opportunity for the Sponge cakes presen...

We fulfilled a long held dream of travelling to Paris last week. One of the high points of the trip for me apart from staring down at the city from the heights of the Eiffel Tower was visiting a local market.  The market which caters to the ordinary Parisian and keeps them well stocked with fresh produce, cheese and wine among other things was a serendipitous discovery as we were roaming the streets of Paris in search of the 'real Paris' and we found it and how. What drew our attention to this market was the sight of two full sized cows lazing on top of a shop. A closer look and we figured we had hit a fresh bazaar something I had been hoping to visit.  Do check out the cows on the top - for the record these Holstein cows famous as Swiss Cows The sight of the fresh fruits, vegetables, cheese and God knows how many kinds of fresh sea produce was unbelievable. What I totally loved was the attention given to presentation at what was essentially a haat.  Take a look yourself....

A brief at work triggered memories from long ago. From pre liberalization days when a burger was a fancy dish you read about in an Archies magazine and a Cappuccino was to be had only in the lounge of a five star hotel. Growing up in the early eighties meant that our choices were limited and treats were meant for special occasions. A Cadbury’s Dairy Milk, Fruit & Nut, Uncle Chipps, Poppins, Gems, 5 Star and the occasional pack of Brittannia’s Bourbon biscuits were the highlights of our childhood days. The once a fortnight Gaylords or Kwality ice cream treat that dad took us out for were of course hallowed events. One of our summer vacation pastimes was to create treats for ourselves and then share the treat and trick with friends. Freezing roohafza and making red cubes, having chaat masala mixed with a little water, raw mangoes with sugar, salt and a lil chilly, making sandwich biscuits with good old marie and jam. And the most delicious of all, putting cubes of chilled butter into...