A few days ago I had some guests over for lunch. When I heard that they will be visting us, I raked my brain so that I can give them a different experience than providing them with the regular Kerala feast. Now, dont get me wrong, I love our cuisine. But, as much as I love eating it, I dont enjoy preparing it. I have found that my culinary skills are better displayed while preparing North Indian dishes (though I add a Southern touch to it). More over, since the guests included newly weds, I decided that they might have had their stomach full of local feasts and payasam. So, why not deviate from the norms??? I justified.
So the day saw me busy in the kitchen working over Cauliflower, Daal, Onions, Capsicum and a lot of other vegetables that my kitchen had not seen ever since the vegetable prices started going North!!! My gobi manchurain had saved me innumerable times; so I habitually prepares it whenever there is a need to include a specail item in the menu. (My husband says that it is my trick to increase my fanbase!) Then there was the ever dependable daal fry, along with fried rice, (which didn't come up to the expectations) salad, curd and the papad being the local item.
For dessert, I had made Gulab Jamuns and kept it as a surprise to top up the feast. In hind sight that was the most gratifying of the whole - though the gobi manchurian scored brownies for me - because the new bride had been asking her mother for it, who, due to the wedding rush couldn't make it for her... When she was delightfully surprised by the it, I felt as if all my efforts were aptly rewarded.... I felt very happy and content!
