CURRY AND SPICE: PAAN OATS MAWA MISHTI

EXPERIMENT WITH INGREDIENTS IS FUN; MORE IF IT'S A SWEET!

Not that I am an experimental foodie! When it comes to making sweet, I play with ingredients to get the easiest ones without sweating! With regards to having a sweet, there are challenges! I am a diabetic who need not have sweets at all. Not that I am a lover of sweet stuffs but do not wish to quit it! When its food, I can't be restrictive! If it concerns my honour, image; I know how to preserve it; I thank my parents for this! Since childhood, I am cautious about my repute. Actually, I need not have to be cautious either, my tastebuds never allowed anything that is below dignity. I am proud about my nature. It is also true a girl of my nature & looks does not generate much interest in people. I did not really regret it; Richie Benaud to Alan Border to David Gower, Wasim Akram to Khan; Little Master to Dilip Vengsarkar to Mohindar Amarnath; all of them used to be too big statured as compared to me; I lived in the world of fantasy surrounded by them. Once, the mother's eldest brother, Boromamu rode in his scooter 100 km from that district town of Nadia to our Dum Dum home, then took me to the airport on his scooter; the Indian Cricket Team landed for test match in Eden Gardens. Somehow, boromamu got the news! Mohinder Amarnath might have been the captain then, it was either 1984 or 85, I was in standard 8 may be! Boromamu used to take me to a flat in the Nagerbazaar area where the veteran music director Ravindra Jain visited; that was Glaxo Company's senior Medical Representative's home. The maternal grandparent's home is placed in a town of sweet hub; I grew up having shorbhaja, shorpuria regular! I cannot keep off those memories, neither sweets! Shorpuria should have been my first blogpost but I could not get the exact recipe or a chance to visit the Adhar Mishtanna Bhandar for the recipe! It is upon our seniors, elderlies to keep the relationships strong & warm; so that we can take them forward!

I PREFER MAKING INNOVATIVE, EASY MADE VEGETARIAN SWEETS!

Vegetarian Sweet is an important term for me! I cannot think of a sweet that uses egg! I say this without any pun intended at anyone! It is about the kind of food you are habituated to eating within the family! My family never would use eggs in sweets and desserts! Addition of an egg makes it easier to cook many a recipes! The lazy, diabetic self would work with few ingredients and less sugar while making a sweet! I am a lazy since birth; the family would discuss how I was a mismatch in a sports loving family with superb homemakers! They would conclude I went after my paternal grandmother, our father too after his mother; that we love to sleep, fear heavy work; also that we are not in the habit of discussing people, pinching, backbiting! Our mother who cannot think beyond her "baap er bari" till date admits that her in-laws had been good at heart, benevolent, whilst their stay in Bangladesh; also after their migration to India! I am a happy go lucky until and unless you bother me, same with my man & the son! All of us are indoor loving people. Yesterday, I went to the Bottom Slim outlet in the mall opposite to get complimentary massage. Thereafter, I went outside of the mall to a known food court & bought Lamb & Chips meal for the man. For myself I got a choice meal & a mushroom soup!

As per my South Asian tastebud, the chicken felt undercooked and the fun of eating went to the drain.I had to eat "jeera goli, imli goli mukhshuddi" to get over the awkwardness! Off course, I enjoy Oriental food but selective dishes.

After late Sunday lunches, we would have late afternoon naps! It gets visible Cristine is absent! At night, after a long time, I ate a decent amount of rice. I ate a lot of carbs & sweets since Durga Pooja!The man could not eat all of the lamb & chips, we used them at our dinner!

Life got Cristine dependent; it seems my West bound wishes have to be buried and we would have to catch a flight to Kolkata after few years and be happy with 3-4 maids. My life would not have such freedom once in Kolkata for sure; where is this level of commuting pleasures in Kolkata?

WHAT IS PAN OATS MAWA MISHTI?

At times, it feels the low sugar sweets I make can be called a sweet or not! They are not conventional, the sweet shops back in Bengal would not patent them.Yet I think they are worth doing to satisfy your sudden sweet cravings! Like this morning, I did some gulabjamuns with GRB's instant mix; they are tasting good, some broke. I had three of them unable to resist.Thinking of the amount of sugar required to make the syrup, its suicidal for me!

This is a major reason why I prepare unconventional sweets like this gluten-free one; PAAN OATS MAWA MISHTI! After any special prayer meet at home; a couple of unused betel leaves are there; fearing teeth damage, I don't eat them as mouth freshener; used their juice in a sweet snack! I did it using little sugar, instant khoya kheer / semi-solidified milk prepared in the microwave, oatmeal.

Few similar recipes from the Blog are :

MILLET RICE PINEAPPLE STEAMED PUDDING

INSTANT KHOYA CARROT MINT MISHTI

KANCHA AAM O ALOOR MISHTI

PLUM KHEER

BAKED MALAI

SUJI GURO DOODH KOMOLAR ROSH DIYE HALKA MISHTI

INGREDIENTS :

BETEL LEAF : 7-8

POWDERED MILK : 1/2 SMALL TEA CUP

GHEE / CLARIFIED BUTTER : 2 TBSP

OAT MEAL : 1 MEDIUM TEA CUP

SUGAR : 1 TBSP [I USED BROWN SUGAR]

GARNISH WITH WHAT YOU WISH

PROCEDURE :

We will fold half the betel leaves; tear off the middle hard stem.

We will wash them and chop roughly!

In a blender, we will get the juice out of them, strain in a bowl. To it we will add the ghee & the powdered milk!

We will mix both together, take in the sugar and fold in well!

We will microwave at low for 2 minutes; take out & stir. Again would we microwave for a minute or so; our paan flavoured mawa / semi-solidified milk is ready!