I am really in awe of those expats who juggle home and office with elan. Whoever lives outside India and manages home and work without an outside help deserves accolades. I wonder how can they? I do not go out to work, neither I do the household chores. Sitting far from India, I do have a whole time help. After the son left for college, we never thought of asking Cristine to go back home. We want her to stay as long as we are here; we do not know if she would want to renew her contract with us again in 2022. Her father is not keeping well; her elder sister too works here. Her brother has shifted to their home with his wife & child from Manilla but himself has heart ailments. You need strength to work & guide the labourers in the farm. The sister's husband & four children also stay in the same house but everyone looks unto Cristine for every help; financial & otherwise. She was to go home last December; we promised her a two months of paid leave instead of one, her father wants her. The pandemic jeopardised every plan of people. We can understand her plight but helpless at this time. We only tell her she needs to think a bit about her future also; she has to save enough for her old age. I doubt if her family thinks of marrying her off; realise that she should also have her own family! Coming to the point, I shiver at the thought of mopping & sweeping, washing stuffs all day long! Then you see, those who cook smart, do they do the arrangements to cook shukto or labra or chyachra or panchmeshali using a couple of vegetables? Also kofta, fish & meat, dal? Aren't they devoid of savouring homemade mocha or echorer chop, paneer er cutlet? I dislike dishwasher and different gadgets, neither can eat bland food that belongs to no land!
MY INABILITY TO ACCEPT MODERNITY AND RUN WITH THE TIME; IS MY GREATEST BARRIER!
The couple at this home has mental blockage about doing household chores. Because I am pretty sure about the fact that the senior hates washing & cleaning stuffs; he would not be able to become a helping hand ever. That is the reason why he prefers keeping a help instead of renting an apartment of my choice. I am not an "ujbuk" who would ask him to rent one for 4500-5000$. I am only asking him to leave the idea of living in a prime location and go a little further. Here; living in a distance similar to Habra, Bashirhat or Naihati, Pairadanga is not a big deal. Am I asking for too many things at a time? My son must study where he wants to; he should be able to achieve higher degrees; at the same time I wish to relocate at least to a well donned home. The senior cannot ever say I have demanded expensive dresses & jewelry, properties for myself. I know of couples who say they cannot afford to send their kids to a country where our son went; but they have way more savings and properties than we have; their wives have triple the amount of jewelry than what I own; they are more of social beings and travel bugs than we are. I have no regrets about not having. I always believe our most fruitful investment is for our child's education & future. I am angry with the senior only because of him not wanting to change some 7-8 years old furnitures. Locked at home with nowhere to go, life gets monotonous with "purono jinishpotro"! Till date, he could not arrange for a separate prayer room for me, that is frustrating! We miss our weird, mischievous son; and we must have a little bit of life to let our lives flow further! We hardly agree on any matter! What I do is I watch movies whenever I am free; we can go to the movie theatres, he does not agree to! Then, I cook, keep cooking! Some days, it is a healthier form of a very popular but non-pedigreed snack item of Bengal; Trikon nimki / Triangular Nimki!
WHAT IS OVEN COOKED TRIKON NIMKI? What is oven-cooked food? Any food cooked in the combination or bake or in the microwave mode; instead of on the gas top; can be termed so! OVEN COOKED TRIKON NIMKI is TRIANGULAR BENGALI SNACK cooked in the oven using very less oil! The neighbourhood sweet shops and the road side tea stall all over Bengal including that of Kolkata would fry them every morning. People would queue up in those shops; asking for a plate of roshoshogolla, pantua & this nimki / fried triangular salty snack. Yesterday evening, I tried recreating in my kitchen; a less oil version of it! I followed every step of doing the BENGALI VEGETARIAN SNACK, only cooked the last step in the oven. My bake mode is not working, but they were crisp even after being done in the combination mode! The little tweak I used is the use of fresh mint & coriander beside the use of nigella seeds in the authentic Bengali one. It came out extremely flavoursome and tasted exactly like cream cracker biscuits with fresh flavours!
The idea of making that paste with the refined flour & clarified butter / ghee is drawn from Tarla Dalal ji's recipe of BENGALI TRIKON NIMKI!
INGREDIENTS :
While eating, I just wanted some jam or spread atop but I am a diabetic. You can try!
Street foods are very popular here! This snack must be delicious. I am sure our apricot jam goes well with it in tea time. Happy Sunday dear friend.
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