Home-made Strawberry jam

Recently, we visited our local pick your own farm. We had a fantastic time spending the whole day at the farm, enjoyed a picnic together and we got to pick fresh fruits. It was a fantastic opportunity for Anjalie to see how fruits grow and also for us to enjoy fresh fruits from the farm. Among our haul was gooseberries, strawberries and raspberries. We immediately decided to make our own jam over the weekend and we turned the gooseberries into the most yummiest pickle (recipe to follow soon).

Ammani/Mani kozhukattai (South Indian Gnocchi)

Today being Ganesh Chaturthi, traditionally, in Chennai every practicing household will make kozhukattai -  a sort of steam dumplings made from rice flour. The filling usually is either sweet (made from jaggery & coconut) or savory (made from urad dal). But what I love the most is the Mani (pearl) kozhukattai. My parents usually never made kozhukattai. It was our neighbor, who happens to be my best friend's grandmother, who made these regularly. I spent most of my waking time at their house more or less either playing with my friend or hanging out with her "paatti (grandmother)" in the kitchen. She was sort of a grand-mum for both of us. Whenever, she made these dumplings, she will always make extra flour for the outer shell just to make me these mani kozhukattai. Although, she is no longer with us, her memory lives on and I always remember her when I see/hear/eat mani kozhukattai. Over the years, I have slightly changed the recipe from using refined rice flour to healthier chemba (red) rice flour for the B vitamin content. Other than that, the spongy texture of the mani kozhukattai and flavor of the freshly grated coconuts still reminds me of the happy days singing old songs with "patti" in her kitchen while she cooked. Anyway, Happy Ganesh Chaturthi to everyone, and Happy Birthday to Ganesh and a special thanks to "paatti" for giving me such happy childhood memories.


You will need:
Idiyappanm rice flour - 3/4 cup
water - 1 to 1+1/4 cup
salt to taste
steamer
1 tbsp coconut/cooking oil
1/4 cup grated coconut
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp urad dal
a pinch of asafoetida
10 curry leaves (chopped/torn)
2 green chillies chopped (for adults)

Home-made doughnuts (kids can help!)

Last weekend we had a lovely Mother's day here. This week things are again back to normal and I had a request to make doughnuts/donuts for snack today. With the April showers lashing us, it did seem like a great idea to eat warm doughnuts with a good cup of hot chocolate while watching the rain through the windows. Anjalie as usual was very helpful and with the use of bread machine, we had more time to play together while the dough had time to rise. Anjalie helped cut the doughnut shapes and we were soon sinking our teeth into soft, melt in your mouth and yummy doughnuts with a cuppa. So here is the recipe...


You will need:
For the Doughnuts
1 packet (7 g) rapid rise yeast
220 ml whole milk
55 g sugar
1/2 teaspoons salt
1 eggs
40 g unsalted butter (skip the salt if using salted butter)
315 g plain/all-purpose flour + more for dusting
oil for frying

Vegetable kuzhi paniyaram

Off late we have been talking about trying something different for breakfast. I mean, other than the usual bread, crumpets, pancakes or idlis and dosas. I remember trying these paniyarams when I travelled with my parents to Karur, in South India, one summer when I was in high school. I remember that it was totally delicious and we all of us in the family ate them for breakfast every single day during that trip. The trouble was, none in our family know how to make it! I called my friend Boon (who is from that area) and got the recipe (& the vessel to make it) from her. If you do not have one of these paniyaram vessels you can just shallow fry them straight in the frying pan. I added some veggies (like grated carrots and sweet peppers) to the recipe, but, the original recipe just requires onions and other Indian seasoning. It turned out crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and delicious (exactly as I remember it). Kuzhi in Tamil means a dent/hole. These paniyarams are made in a vessel with many dents (see pic below) and hence called kuzhi paniyaram. They can be sweet or savoury. Below is a recipe for the savoury variety.

You will need:

3 cups of idli batter
1 small onion (or use 1/2 med. onion)
1/2 carrot grated
1/4 cup sweet peppers chopped finely
2 fresh green chillies- chopped fine (optional)
1 inch ginger grated or 1/2 tsp ginger paste
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp oil for seasoning + extra for greasing the pot
salt to taste

Anadama Bread

After a little hiatus, that involved holidays with little to no internet access, time spent with Anjalie & family and starting new project at work and the stress that comes with it, I am back with more yummy recipes that is now approved by Anjalie (who is turning 4 this December- where did the time go!) and the rest of the family. It has been a while (2 months!) since I experimented with bread. So here it is- Anadama bread. This one uses corn meal/polenta and is traditional bread from New England. What attracted me to try this was the story of it's origin and the use of molasses as a sweetener instead of sugar. First the story- like many old recipes there are many, but, here is my favourite one- there once was a fisherman who lived in New England with his wife. All she ever fed him was polenta/cornmeal porridge sweetened with molasses. Eventually, he got tired of it and made bread with the porridge by adding bread flour, all the while saying, "Anna, damn her!" which became Anadama bread :)

Sweet pepper Masala vadai/chickpeas patties

For a long while, now, I have been feeling like spending some time in India during the monsoons. I must say that, while growing up, it was one of my favourite times of the year. School was closed due to the torrential rain. Unlike the summer holidays when it was too hot, sticky and uncomfortable, this was lot cooler time of the year. Despite the rain, we would spend hours on end making paper boats and racing them against each other. Also, it was the perfect time to open up new books to read or play board games like ludo, pallangkuzhi/mancala with the whole family. But, best of all were those fantastic snacks that Mum, aunts and grand-mums seemingly whipped up quickly with a hot cup of tea (or hot-chocolate for children). The king of those snacks that included bread bondas, methu vadai, bajjis, samosas, vegetable puffs and pakodas is the masala vadai. It is crispy with a not-so smooth texture and spicy and that made it totally irresistible. The original masala vadai is a very popular snack in all of South India and has many variations in name and recipes. But one thing that all recipes have in common is that the patties are made with chickpeas lentils (not flour)/channa dal/kadala paruppu and onions. Of course, now that I am a Mum, I use this delicious snack to include veggies that Anjalie usually does not care much for, like spinach or other greens like kale, sweet peppers and aubergine. I guess, this sort of little manipulation skills come with the territory :) When using spinach it will be called "keerai vadai" which again is a common snack in Tamil Nadu and it is just as delicious. It is an easy to make snack and the only long time involved is in soaking the dal/lentils. Another change I make to the original recipe is that I add a little bit of Toor dal (pigeon peas) to this just for the better protein and amino acids content and lighter taste. But you can simply replace it with more channa dal to stick to the original recipe.

You will need:
1/2 cup Channa dal/kadala paruppu/split chickpeas
1/4 cup Toor dal/Tuvaram paruppu/split pigeon peas
2 fresh green chillies - chopped finely (for adults only)
2-3 dried Red chillies/ 1 tsp chilli flakes
3 Garlic cloves
1 inch Ginger
1 tbsp fennel seeds/sombhu
Salt- as needed
1/2 tsp garam masala (optional)
1 shallot -finely chopped
1/2 yellow/red and 1/2 green sweet peppers/kudai milagai chopped fine.
1 pinch Hing/perungayam/asafoetida
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
8-10 Curry leaves
3 tbsps coriander leaves chopped fine.

Falafel Sandwich with apple salsa

Falafels are easy to make, healthy and yummy. They make perfect sandwich for children's lunch boxes. They also double up as snacks and are great for parties and get together. Despite the frying, they are rich in protein and fibre. Most importantly, it is totally yummy and are sure to please the whole family :) I usually serve them to Anjalie with ketchup for snack or as a sandwich with mild apple salsa, while, we adults enjoy them with spicy green tomato chutney.

You will need:
2 cans of chickpeas drained
3 cloves of garlic -sliced
1 shallots- sliced
1 tsp cumin powder (preferably roasted)
1 tsp coriander powder
salt to taste
1 tsp parsley
2 large eggs (optional - just increase the amount of flour or use bread crumbs)
3-5 tbsp flour ( I used soy flour- love the flavour!)
1/2 tsp oil + 1/3 cup for frying
1 tsp lemon juice

For apple salsa:
1/2 apple peeled, cored and chopped finely
1 shallots chopped finely (for adults)
1 Jalapeños chopped finely (for adults)
2 tomatoes chopped finely
2 tbsp coriander leaves chopped coarsely
salt to taste
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp vinegar or lime juice  (you can increase the amount of lemon juice instead)

Kosmari - South Indian salad/snack

Kosmari is a refreshing and tasty salad that can also be served as part of a healthy snack. The recipe from  the South of India uses lentils and vegetables together where the lentils provide a texture to the salad with the sweet taste of the  vegetables such as carrots, cucumbers and/or sweet corn which is complimented by a tangy spicy dressing made from lemon juice and fresh chillies. I make this often as a variation to the regular green salad. Usually, Anjalie's favourite for kosmari is carrots so I have used it in today's kosmari for the blog too. But you can mix and match your favourite fresh vegetables and/or fruits. I personally prefer sweet corn and/or pomegranate. You can also use sprouts to make this salad instead of or in addition to the lentils. It is versatile and easy to prepare and very tasty.

You will need.
1/4 cup Moong Dal/ yellow split peas.
1 carrot/cucumber peeled & grated or 1 small can of sweet corn drained.
1 pinch of asafoetida
1 fresh green chilly chopped fine (optional for adults)
salt to taste
1-2 tsp lemon juice



For tempering:
1 tsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp urad dal (split black gram)

Minestrone

This is a traditional Italian soup that is colourful and hence captures children's attention and looks appetising for them in particular when they are sick. After a week's break, in London visiting museums with Anjalie, we have come back but with flu :( Anjalie and Naz have been quite badly off for past 2 days. As the norm is that both parents are simply not allowed to be sick at the same time, I am trying to fight (although a losing battle) to postpone the inevitable. After making their favourite chicken-noodle soup, yesterday, I decided to make all our favourite Minestrone. To me a hot minestrone with thinly sliced and toasted rye-sourdough bread is like lying down on my mother's lap when I am sick. I replaced most of the vegetables with 2 cans of mixed vegetables (drained) to make a quick minestrone. But I will list my traditional ingredients for when you have time to try. Also I made mine with more stock than normal since it was for a sick child. You can adjust according to your taste. Here is the recipe:

You will need (all vegetables chopped to bite size pieces):
1 tbsp olive oil
1 med onion chopped
1 leek chopped
3 garlic cloves crushed
1 can chopped tomatoes in juice
1 carrot chopped
1 small turnip chopped
1 med potato chopped
1 stalk of celery chopped
3 cups water
4 cups vegetable stock
1 can cannellini beans drained and rinsed
1 cup leafy cabbage chopped
1 cup pasta of any shape (I used children sized penne)
salt and pepper to taste
freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
1 tsp oregano (fresh or dried for garnish)

Buckwheat adai (quicker version)

After an overdose of ice-creams for this week, I thought I will get back to my healthy recipes. Like I have mentioned in my previous posts, buckwheat is a great healthy substitute for dishes that use rice and/or wheat. Since buckwheat is a fruit it is one of the low glycemic index food groups. We can replace all of the rice in making traditional dosais or adais. For the traditional recipe for making South-Indian adai, see here. However, tonight I was in a hurry with a hungry and tired Anjalie wanting adai. So I made this quicker version that uses some of the left overs from lunch as well. Two birds with one stone! ;)

You will need:
1 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup urad dhal flour (optional)
salt to taste 
To grind:
1 cup cooked rice
1/2 cup cooked dhal of any kind (I used chickpeas/split peas dhal)
1 inch piece ginger peeled and chopped
1-2 fresh green chillies (for adults)
water as needed



Optional veggies:
Carrots/beetroot- grated
onions chopped
tomatoes chopped

Cheesy Garlic Bread

Cheesy garlic bread are fluffy, cheesy, soft and garlicky, a perfect combination to make an excellent side dish to accompany pizza, pasta, soup or risotto or can be a part of healthy snack in the evening. Today, turned to be a lovely day with blue skies and warm sunny weather that we decided to take a walk together after lunch. So I expected that after a stroll we will all return home hungry and cannot wait for dinner time. So I decided to make cheesy garlic bread which as I had expected was very much appreciated by us all when we returned. It is quick and easy to make from scratch or it can be even more quicker if you use store bought pizza base. In fact, I made enough dough to make garlic bread for snack and pizza for dinner saving myself some time to enjoy playing with Anjalie :) For making two 12 inch cheesy garlic bread and/or Pizza

You will need:
For the base:
1.25 to 1.5 cups warm water
2 tbsp olive oil
4 cups unbleached white bread flour
1.5 tsp salt
0.5 tsp sugar
1 tsp rapid raise yeast

Vegetable/Chicken Cutlets

These are great for snack or burger patty. It also makes a great party food. Potatoes make a great soft base but breadcrumbs add a great texture to these patties and is a real crowd-pleaser. However, I was all out of breadcrumbs so skipped that part.




You will need:
5-6 medium sized potatoes
200 grams mixed vegetables (you can use canned vegetables or frozen too) or 1/2 cup cooked chicken pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup soy/plain flour (adjust as needed)
1 large egg + 2 tbsp milk/water beaten well together
breadcrumbs as needed to coat
cooking oil for shallow frying

To grind to a paste:
6-8 shallots or 1/2 medium sized onions
3 cloves garlic
2 inch piece ginger
2-3 fresh green chillies
1 tbsp coriander leaves
Dry masalas:
1 tsp chilli powder (optional for adults)
salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
1 tsp curry powder/chicken masala powder (use mild curry for children)

Hot-Cross Buns (just in time for Easter) with water roux

Hot cross buns! Hot cross buns!

One a penny, two a penny

Hot cross buns!

With Easter almost upon us, I had a few requests to make my hot-cross buns.  This time around, I had decided to try out the water roux method to make these soft melt in your mouth sweet buns even more soft! These traditional buns are very popular here in UK during the Easter time. The traditional cross on these Easter buns probably symbolized the four the seasons and were made during the spring time to point out the end of winter time and the cycle of seasons. But later the cross was associated with Good Friday and the Crucifixion. Regardless, they taste great and are perfect for this time of the year with the smell of spices and mild sweet taste of the dried fruits.

There are many superstitions surrounding hot cross buns. One of them says that buns baked and served on Good Friday will not spoil or mold during the subsequent year (probably due to the spices in them). Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time. If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly. The hanging bun is replaced each year. For more info on these look in wikipedia here.

Like many traditional recipes hot-cross buns have many variations. Traditionally the crosses were made with shortcrust pastry. There are recipes that use plain flour and margarine and/or water to make the crosses. I make mine with royal icing (egg whites and icing sugar). If you do not want a sweet tasting crosses, you can use either shortcrust pastry or plain flour and margarine method. Also for the getting the shiny sticky look the hot-cross buns are usually glazed using one of these options: 3 tbsp of apricot jam + 3 tbsp of water- heated up to dissolve completely and sieved or 3 tbsp of sugar + 3 tbsp of milk- heated up to dissolve completely or 3 tbsp of sugar + 3 tbsp of water- heated up to dissolve completely. Again, I use a different glaze here with condensed milk instead. Here is the recipe I have used...

You will need:
water roux prepared as given here
1 - 1 and 1/4 cup warm milk
1 egg/ egg substitute (optional)
4 cups unbleached white bread flour
1 and 1/2 tsp apple pie spice or
1/2 tsp each of ground ginger, nutmeg and all spice
1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 and 1/2 tsp of rapid-raise active dry yeast
1/2 cup currants
3 tbsp golden raisins
3 tbsp mixed candied fruit peel
egg wash (optional): 1 egg + 3 tbsp milk

For Glaze:
2 tbsp milk
2 tbsp sweetened condensed milk

For the crosses: (choose other methods if you want to avoid using eggs)
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 medium egg white

Italian Breadsticks (Grissini)

Italian Breadsticks (Grissini) make a very healthy snack for children and the entire family. Including a cheesy dip with them is a great way to increase the children's dairy consumption. All of us here including Anjalie love breadsticks and enjoy them as tea time snack. Naz likes them soft and thick and Anjalie and I enjoy them crispy and thin. Regardless, both varieties are made from the same dough but shaped slightly different. I make them every week and store them in air tight containers and we enjoy them during the week. The soft chunky breadsticks should be eaten warm and fresh on the same day. We usually enjoy them with a nice bowl of minestrone or other soups. The crispy ones can be enjoyed with any of your favorite dips. I made my bread sticks with 3 toppings tonight: plain, Italian seasoning-garlic salt and freshly ground pepper-garlic salt. You can use coarsely ground rock salt or sesame seeds or poppy seeds or any of your other favorite topping. This recipe yields around 30-36 crispy bread sticks. Here is the recipe...

You will need:
230-260 ml lukewarm water (more or less)
3 tbsp olive oil
3 cups unbleached white bread flour
1 and 1/2 tsp salt
1 and 1/2 tsp instant active dried yeast

For coating any of these/combinations: (optional)
rock salt (coarsely ground) - use sparingly
freshly ground black pepper
dried Italian seasoning/oregano
garlic salt granules (not powder)
poppy seeds
sesame seeds
grated parmesan cheese
olive oil for greasing with pastry brush

Trinidadian Doubles (home-made)

Trinidad doubles is a delicious street food from Trinidad and Tobago. It is totally delectable sandwich made from fried dough, called Bara, with curried chickpeas filling. It is usually topped with variety of chutneys such as mango, tamarind and cucumber chutneys etc. It is usually served with hot pepper sauce made from Habernero/Scotch Bonnet peppers and the amount can be varied according to your taste. In Trinidad they use "bun danya/Mexican coriander" which is used for garnishing much like the Indian coriander. See here for more info on this plant.

Doubles is usually eaten for breakfast in Trinidad, but, some times it is eaten as evening snack as well. It is the first Trinidad food that I fell in love with. I enjoy it so much that whenever we go to visit our family there they always make sure and have it for me everyday :) Click here for a video of a vendor selling doubles in Trinidad streets on Youtube (FYI).

Buckwheat and Semolina (sooji/rava) dhokla

Dhokla is a typical breakfast and/or snack from the North west of India, in particular, Gujarat. It is commonly made with fermented rice and chickpeas flours or with semolina (without fermenting). It is somewhat similar to the South Indian Idlis. The fluffy and soft texture and tangy taste of the dhokla is like a piece of heaven! More over, it is very healthy, does not use too much oil since it is mainly steam cooked and is very filling so makes a great breakfast dish or perfect as a after school snack. This is indeed a very popular dish in the North of India as well as at our home. It was even a great success as party food during Anjalie's birthday :)

I used to make dhokla's with sooji often since it is quick and easier to prepare compared to the chickpea dhokla which requires fermentation. Now I have discovered something much more healthier and that is buckwheat. Buckwheat has a nutty and strong flavor compared to semolina and has low Glycemic Index (GI). In fact, it is one of the grains with the lowest GI. See http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=faq&dbid=32 for a list of grains and their GI. It is perfect for those suffering from diabetes and those who are on low-carb diets. Buckwheat is as wholesome as the grains get, see http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=11. Given all the benefits of buckwheat (called Kuttu/kutto in India and Kasa in Russian and parts of Easter Europe) I now use buckwheat and semolina (sooji) in equal amounts to make my dhokla. If you are more worried about your health, you can replace all of the sooji with buckwheat. The resulting dhokla will be slightly more dense than the once using sooji. But will taste great nonetheless. Using a mixture of sooji and buckwheat also gives double colored (yellow and brown) dhoklas making it visually appealing  for children :)

Dhoklas are steamed in plates placed inside a container such as pressure cooker. But you can use stainless steel plates and/or cake pan and steam the dhoklas in a stock pot. In fact, you can even steam them in coffee mugs! Just increase the time for steaming to 30-40 mins.

You will need:

50 grams of buckwheat groats (wholegrain kasa/kutto)

50 grams of medium Semolina (sooji)/ whole wheat rava 

100 grams of plain yogurt (I use Greek Style) 

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar (granulated)

2 chillies chopped finely (for adults)

1 tsp grated ginger/ginger paste

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

150 ml water + 50 ml water for later

2 tbsp of lemon juice

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tbsp cooking oil (for greasing)

2 tbsp coarsely chopped coriander for garnish

for tempering (optional)

1 tsp cooking oil

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp sesame seeds

Aloo/Potato puri

Puri is unleavened bread just like roti, except, it is deep fried giving it a crispy-soft texture. Like most Indian unleavened bread, puris can be eaten as part of any of your meals and is versatile. Given a choice between puri and roti most children will pick puri due to the crispy texture and yummy taste of fried dough. Anjalie is just the same. In particular, she loves Aloo/potato puri. Potatoes makes the puri more soft and moist at the same gives a delicious taste. Aloo puris usually have a variety of spices and herbs added along with the potatoes to the dough and the collection of spices used usually depend on and varies from family to family. Some of fresh herbs typically used are coriander leaves, fenugreek (methi) leaves or fresh chillies. Some of typical spices used are dried mango (amchur), cumin powder and black pepper. Since Anjalie, like most children, prefers simple aloo puri with just mashed potatoes I have given the recipe for that. Feel free to add your favorite spices and herbs to the dough according to your taste. Just the plain aloo puri given here is very tasty and moist due to the potatoes that we, the adults, have started to enjoy it as much as Anjalie does.

Home-made Crumpets

It was Sunday morning (a few hrs ago) and my little daughter, whose favorite activity is to cook with Mummy asked, "Mummy, what are we making to eat?". The key word here is "we". So I took the hint and thought toast somehow will not cut it today and decided to make crumpets and she will be able to help with the mixing the dough part of it. After I told her about it, my daughter beamed at me saying, "yay! crumpets!", letting me know that she was doubly pleased :)

Crumpets are very popular here, in the UK, and are eaten for afternoon tea or even sometimes for breakfast. They are not spicy or strange, and make for great finger food, making it easy for children to eat. Whenever our family visits us from Trinidad or India they like to eat these everyday. They love it so much that they complain that they unable to get them in their hometowns! Funny thing is that I did not realize how easy it is to make them at home until recently and home-made ones tastes way better than the store bought crumpets. Now, why is that not a big surprise? So let's get to the recipe...

You will need (for making 8-10 medium crumpets):
225 g/8 oz plain/all purpose flour
150 ml warm water + 2 tbsp warm
150 ml warm milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp active dried yeast
1 tsp butter
1/2 tsp baking soda
cooking oil to grease the skillet and crumpet rings/cookie cutters (if using)

Barley dosai and idlis with green chutney

I am not a health freak. But I am heath conscious. This means that I do not obsess over only eating healthy food. But I moderate unhealthy food and try to mix in as much healthy food in my diet as possible. Looking back at how and when I started being health conscious, I can clearly point out that, I started to eat healthy since the day I realized that I was pregnant. It is the fact that I am now responsible for another life and that it is up to me and Naz to help the child to grow up healthy, happy and become a responsible adult that caused this change in me. One of the changes I have made for healthy diet is to choose food with low glycemic index  whenever possible. This  became more easier once I started to look beyond the usual recipes that call for rice and wheat based products. Introducing other whole grains like, barley and buckwheat has resulted in tasty and healthy food for the whole family. Food with low glycemic index are particularly great for those suffering from diabetes. They are also great for maintaining a healthy energy level through out the day and avoid feelings of low energy and fatigue. Parents of small children, I am sure, will totally appreciate this ;) For more information on Glycemic Index, you can read,

http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=faq&dbid=32

Easy Chocolate Cornflakes crispy flowers

Toddlers and Preschoolers love to help grown-ups. Kitchen, to them, is often a fascinating place where the grown ups are busy working briskly and there is steam coming from the pots followed by irresistible aroma of yummy food. Most of my pleasant memories of my childhood are about the times I spent in both my paatti's (grand-mum) and Amma's (Mum) kitchen. Little did I know that the little tasks I did to help them was helping me become self-reliant and independent and came in very handy when I left home for further studies. Years later, while talking with my Amma casually, I was told that the very same days were wonderful memories for her of quality time with me! I did not appreciate the depth of that feeling until I had Anjalie. Seeing  how much we enjoy each other's company while cooking and baking I totally understand how much those days mean to my Amma.