whose food we eat, their song we sing

Two of Pedatha’s stars are featured in this photograph. One is great grandson Nandan, the apple of her eye, and the other, Cooking at home with Pedatha, a new dawn in the dusk of her life. For as Pedatha said, life can begin even after 80.
At 84, with Cooking at home with Pedatha, she found fame, received letters of love and admiration from strangers far and wide, from bloggers around the globe, and in her own words, became a model without walking the ramp. To many of you, she sent back her message of love, she read and re-read your loving comments and told us about the joy it brought to her heart.
At 85, with the birth of Nandan, she found yet another link to posterity. His gurgles and babbles brought back the innocent laughter of childhood to her life.

’Cooking at home with Pedatha’ was not just a book. It was for her, a creation of love, a space that recorded her beauty, wisdom & knowledge forever and ever, thus keeping her alive…immortal.
So also, Nandan was not just a child, he was her little Krishna. He is well behaved, he is naughty, he is obedient, yet has a mind of his own, he looks like butter won’t melt in his mouth, yet is so caring…as soft as butter….utterly irresistible.
Last week, Nandan was in Chennai with his adorable parents, Rohit & Aarti. While we were chatting together he did something that we as authors of ‘Cooking at Home with Pedatha’ simply consider the most spectacular moment in the history of the book. He was playing and suddenly picked up the book from the coffee table and said with glee, “Naama Poo buk.” That’s what he called her – Naamapoo…and he gave the most affectionate, uninhibited, slurpy kiss to her picture on the cover. And it didn’t stop there. He turned to every page which carries Pedatha’s picture and planted a kiss on each one with the pure innocent love that only babies have in abundance! We watched with wonder as he closed the book, placed it back on the table & went back to playing with his ball…it was like he had just stepped into his Naamapoo’s room, chatted with her in their very own language of love and then got back to the business of life.

That very same day, we found that our blog had received the “You Made My Day” award from Swati of Chatkhor.

Google could not take us to the blogger who started this award, all we understood is that it is to be passed on to ten bloggers for similar reasons. It is our pleasure now to pass on this award to some of those bloggers whose comments had reached Pedatha and added to her joy. What better way to express our appreciation than to give away the award along with these beautiful pictures of those precious kisses?

We feel so happy to continue the tradition by presenting the “You make my day” award to:-

1. Indira of Mahanandi whose review of our book inspired many readers to own the book and cook from it. In her simple, profound style, she called this book an “emerald gem…that would bring good health and good luck to my cooking.”
2. Jyotsna of The Cook’s Cottage who was one of the first bloggers who posted this book on her site. Someone sent us that link and that’s when our fascination with blogs began. For her, each of the recipe from the book was “accurate in the measurement of ingredients, true to the Andhra style of cooking and is absolutely ‘no fail’. An added advantage is the simplicity of every one of them…”
3. Jai & Bee of Jugalbandi who have ardently tried many recipes, encouraging us with their compliments such as - “The title description of Cooking at Home with Pedatha is “Vegetarian recipes from a traditional Andhra kitchen”. The book makes no further claims. What you see is what you get. There are just 61 recipes, but no one dish is like the next…”
4. Linda of Out of the Garden who wrote about ‘Cooking at home with Pedatha’- “Full of simple, beautiful photographs, it conveys the wisdom and instinct of a woman who reminds me very much of my own nana. When I returned to the kitchen, instead of facing a quandry, I was inspired…”
5. SRA who wrote at When My Soup Came Alive - “This is the only book I’ve noticed that tells us exactly how to temper a dish – what goes in first, the mustard seed or the urad dal, and it’s fail-proof…” Pedatha really enjoyed seeing our book prominently displayed in SRA’s collection.
6. Suganya of Tasty palettes who has tried and posted many recipes using Pedatha’s insights wrote at her blog, “Thank you Pedatha, for your inspiration and ingenious ideas. The recipes I have tried and techniques I have adapted from this book, have never failed me…”
7. Barbara of Tigers & Strawberries who wrote about Pedatha, “She also is a woman who understands innately that cooking is a deeply spiritual act which is intimate and intensely personal…”
8. Aahaar Vihaar who bought the book after reading the review at Mahanandi wrote, “I…picked the book and read from start to finish. The book not only has recipes from the 86 year old culinary queen Pedatha, but also the variations and tips with which a recipe can be cooked…”
9. Gini of Salt & Pepper who wrote at her blog, “It has a green hardcover, pictures in every page, simple instructions - what’s not to like…I had forgotten to do that slow stirring for sometime now but this
   cookbook has reminded me to slow down, and enjoy my cooking…”
10. Mythili of Vindu who said, “The narration and recipe in the book jonesed me to try out Spinach (palakoora) chutney. Needless to say it came out awesome and I was surprised at the results.”

Thank you all from the depths of our hearts. We hope you enjoy these awesome pictures that capture the essence of life….pure & uncomplicated LOVE.

Ten is a small number and did not complete our list J. As if providence agreed with us, within a couple of days, Madhu of Eggless Cooking thought of us for the Nice Matters Award. This award was started by Genevieve of Bella Enchanted “for those bloggers who are just nice people, good blog friends and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Those that care about others that are there to lend support or those that are just a positive influence on our blogging world.”

Thank you very much for thinking of us Madhu. We happily pass on this award to those bloggers who were our first links to the blogging world:

1. Kiruba Shankar – Much before we became familiar with culinary blogs, we were regular visitors at kiruba.com. Therefore, when we published “Cooking at Home with Pedatha”, we wrote to him and he responded promptly and warmly. He said he liked the idea of documenting grandma’s recipes and wrote on his blog, “Pratibha and Jigyasa did something I had long wanted to do. Capture Grandma’s expertise in a book…”
2. Prabha of Food for Thought – Prabha’s blog is one of our first favourites. Her wit, unassuming humour and latitude of thoughts makes it a place one wants to visit again and again. We were naturally delighted when we discovered our book being mentioned at her site, “It’s just the book to have no matter how long you have been cooking…”
3. Sailu of Sailus Food – The first culinary blog we chanced upon, thanks to Google. We still remember our first impressions of being stunned. When we wrote to her asking her if she had seen our book, she replied, “Let me inform you that I am a proud owner of your wonderful book. I bought it the day it arrived at my regular bookstore in Vizag. How can I miss it?…”

Thank you friends for making “Cooking at Home with Pedatha” a special experience for us with your warm words and encouragements. You may continue this blog friendship chain by passing on these awards that you have received to those you cherish.

POSTED by Pratibha & Jigyasa

To begin with, a mention of the people in this post:
- Shanta Ben, an 85-year-old lady who lives with her family in UK
- Her son Mr. Nitin Mehta and his wife Pratibha Ben
- Their daughters Janaki & Jyoti Mehta

Jyoti Mehta says, “My mum’s food is famous among my friends. The good thing is that mum enjoys feeding them as much as they enjoy being fed! I am a Vegan and mum has been hugely supportive in this choice. She has found ingenious ways to Veganise many Indian dishes. She uses Tofu instead of Paneer and has actually managed to improvise on recipes like ‘ Kadhi’ by replacing yogurt with coconut milk! Now, even my Grandma uses Soya milk in tea thus giving me a chance to rediscover Indian Chai (just don’t watch how much sugar she puts in)!”

This is the pic. of Shanta Ben, the Grandma mentioned above. Let us quickly share how we met this lady, the proud mother of Nitin Mehta. Mr. Mehta has made a name for himself in the United Kingdom with his intense work in the field of Vegetarianism. He is quite popular and has made many friends who frequently visit them. They stay in a lovely house at East Croydon, UK. The first thing that catches your eye as you enter his driveway is an old white Amabassador car which they shipped from India to UK . It is like a magnificent welcome to their cozy home.
Mr. Nitin Mehta started an organization called The Young Indian Vegetarians of UK. They are a group of people committed to the cause of vegetarianism and a healthy way of life. Their website is comprehensive, featuring many writings (LINK) by Mehtaji and even a newsletter dating back to August 1983, encouraging comments by many popular organizations.

The Young Indian Vegetarians of UK (Nitin Mehta in the black and white shirt) with Jigyasa, Pratibha & Dr. Kalmadi
On April 18th this year, Mr. Mehta invited us to his home where we were to address this group about our book “Cooking at Home with Pedatha” since it had won the Gourmand award of ‘Best Vegetarian Cookbook in the world, 2006’. But before the talk, we were to dine with his family.
As we entered his home with Dr. Prakash Kalmadi (whose Ayurvedic insights form the basis of our next book), we were ushered into the dining room where the first thing that our eyes fell on was a delicious spread of pickles on the dining table. Jigyasa was instantly excited since it was an all Gujarati spread. The next attention grabber was Shanta Ben who stood there with such a warm smile! It was like meeting Pedatha all over again.

An array of Gujarati pickles
We sat down for dinner, a lovely meal made by Mr. Mehta’s wife, Pratibha Ben. Dhoklas, Gujarati dal, soft rotis, sweet dish – what a regional fare to discover in a foreign land! The pickles were amazing and we found ourselves asking the ladies for the recipes.
As Jyoti says, “Being a family of Gujaratis who came to Britain via East Africa, mum has absorbed the flavours and ideas of Kenyan food and incorporated it into our diet. I love ‘Mandazi’, ‘Iriyo’, ‘Bharaji’ and dad’s Sunday is incomplete without ‘Muhogo’ (cassava). In fact, some of my friends say that ‘Muhogo’ is a dietary symbol of all that I am! We add ‘Imli’ (tamarind) chutney on the Muhogo to Indianise it and now we add ketchup to make it a British dish as well!”
Shanta Ben took a while to realize that we were serious about wanting the recipes in detail, but once in the groove, she excitedly reeled them off. Those were fun moments as Shanta Ben reeled of the recipes the traditional way and Pratibha Ben kept adding her inputs on how to them user friendly and contemporary.

Shanta Ben with Pratibha Ben
Shanta Ben is popular among friends for her pickles and sweets, and she is often invited to make her yummy pickles to her friends’ homes. Grand daughter Janaki says, “My grandmother’s best preparation is ‘Adadiya’, a sweet dish with plenty of Ghee prepared during Diwali!”
The guests began to arrive soon after, so we got just 3 recipes which we would love to share out here. Shanta Ben experienced such joy at sharing the recipes that she was beaming even hours later. She may not understand English in depth as she would her mother tongue, but she was attentive through out our talk. Perhaps we had struck the language of love as we spoke about our book and the importance of striking a chord with our elders. She stayed awake till we left, blessing us many times. Simple joys that make a difference!
The idea is not just to document traditional recipes, but to enjoy moments of sharing and caring, to convey to our elders that they are special because they are such a storehouse of knowledge and love.
We must say that back home, for many of us, home meals have become so cosmopolitan and contemporary, that we can hardly call them meals of the region we belong to. But at the Mehta home that evening, we had to remind ourselves that we were indeed in UK and not in the heart of Gujarat!
As Janaki says, “Even though I like Pizza and Pasta, as most youngsters do, my mum and grandma made sure I developed a taste for our traditional food - daal, bhaat, shaak, rotli (Chapatti, vegetables, lentils and Rice). My favourite dish prepared by my mum is ‘ Chana Bhatura’. I like the Gujarati speciality ‘ Thepla’–the life saver at picnics and holidays where you cannot get vegetarian food! Her home made ‘Mathia’ made during Diwali is also very good.”

These pickles are tasty accompaniments to an Indian meal

1) RAIWALA MARCHA (chilli pickle with a twang of mustard flavour)
Wash and pat dry 15-20 thick green chillies. Remove the stalks and slit each chilli length-wise. Remove the seeds unless you enjoy the spice.
Add 1 tablespoon Split Mustard (Rai Naa Koraya), a pinch of turmeric, a pinch of asafetida, salt to taste and 2 teaspoons oil to the chillies.
Squeeze juice of half a lemon to the above and shake well.
Let the pickle mature for a day; can be refrigerated and kept for a week or two.

2) TINDODA NO ATHANU (Gherkins pickle; Tindoda is also Tindola/Tondli in Hindi, dondakaya in Telugu)
Salt, lemon juice, turmeric, Chilli powder
asafoetida
Raw oil
They lose their crispiness
Wash and pat dry 15-20 Tindodas. Cut them into thin strips (approx. 8 per veggie).
Add 1 teaspoon chilli powder, ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, a pinch of asafetida, salt to taste and 2 teaspoons oil.
Add 3 teaspoon Achaar Masala (also known as Sambhar, this is not the south Indian sambhar made with lentils), readily available in Indian stores.
Squeeze juice of half a lemon to the above and shake well.
Can be eaten instantly; stays good for weeks in the refrigerator.

3) METHI NO ACHAAR (Fenugreek seeds pickle)
Wash and pat dry 3-4 raw mangoes. Chop, add ¼ cup of salt and leave overnight.
Next day, drain off the excess water and let the mangoes dry for an hour. Don’t dry them much longer as they will lose the crunch.
Now, wash and soak 2 cups of fenugreek seeds for a couple of hours.
Strain and dry on a cloth for 1-2 hours.
Sprinkle ¼ teaspoon of asafoetida powder and shake it up
Heat 1 cup of hot oil. Pour ½ cup of hot oil on the fenugreek.
Add 2 teaspoons chilli powder, ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder and salt to taste.
Add the chopped mangoes to the fenugreek pickle.
Add the remaining oil and shake well.
Let the pickle mature for another day.
Stays good for 3-4 months in the refrigerator.
POSTED by Pratibha & Jigyasa

“We had a cold and wet snow storm last week which wrecked havoc all over this mountain. The electricity went out to over 40,000 homes for over 3 days. (GOD BLESS WOOD STOVES and the power of a woman’s survival instincts!) It was quite an adventure! I was heating up snow, water and milk on top of the stove for hot drinks and water for my 4-legged monsters, used a pair of metal tongs to heat up sandwiches over the fire in the stove, I even scrambled eggs on top of the stove. All food supplies in the refrigerator and freezer eventually went bad and to the garbage dump.

But I was able to READ 3 complete novels, went sledding into my pasture and came up with quite a delicious but primitive type of fruit cobbler: Oats, brown sugar, peaches (canned and drained partially), cinnamon, nutmeg all mixed together and placed into a stainless steel bowl, then covered with tin-foil, and placed directly on top of the fire in the stove. 30 minutes later, I drizzled some maple syrup on top and delighted in my sweet creation.”

These are words from an email from Randi Levin whom we first met on The Great Wall of China in April 2007. On The Great Wall where everything else seems smaller than life, it takes a person like Randi Levin to make an impact on the mind, but much more, on the heart.

Jigyasa captures Randi Levin (on the right) with Pratibha - friendships at The Great Wall

Free spirited and gregarious, this is a woman who lives in the high range of Colorado, all by herself, with her pets (old white and orange kitty, Snowy Blanca, a Newfoundland/Setter mix/pound puppy, a pony, and…and…) for company, ending emails abruptly with, “Off to feed him, I just heard his WHINY for breakfast”. The snow and hail storms are her eternal fascinations…she does not mind the power cuts…she is nature’s child. “The thunder wasn’t too bad; it turned to snow within a 1/2 hour. 3 more inches last night and it looked so very pretty this morning!” she wrote to us on April17th last year.

At Randi’s pasture - snow after a spring storm & a view of mountain sunshine

Her website begins with: “There is one extraordinary ingredient that goes into everything I cook and bake. Please, do not forget this ingredient for it is important to all recipes. When I am cooking or baking, I add extra spoonfuls of love to all my recipes. Love added to all things good makes them just a little bit better.” This is what makes her an ideal protagonist for this week’s tribute recipe on our blog.

That lovely elk against the rainbow almost looks like a statue to my eyes. The yellow leaves are aspen leaves in the fall sitting on a bunch of grass and Shata Daisy leaves - email from Randi on June 2007.

Children, animals and nature are her three fascinations, and just like every other culinary lover, a good recipe. True to the spirit of the place where she lives, she brought out two books of recipes for the mountain dwellers.

Baking at High Altitude: The Muffin Lady’s Old Fashioned Recipes
Sharing Mountain Recipes: The Muffin Lady’s Everyday Favorites

Her Baking at High Altitude won many awards: Best First Cookbook in the World, Gourmand & First Place Cookbooks, EVVY Award, CIPA

The 2 books feature hundreds of original Recipes ranging from cookies and cakes to strudels and much more! Breakfast dishes to Dinner treats with colour photos. There are snippets of altitudinal wisdom prevalent through out the books; including special dietary adjustments, ingredient substitutions and equivalents.

When we sent her the link of our blog, she instantly replied: “Your site has made me smile through this current turmoil, it is gorgeous and the photos, though viewed before, literally just sent me some hugs of warmth, and for that I THANK YOU!!!!

I wish I could have met Pedatha, as she was and is a very special woman. I just know that she has met my Grandmom and that the 2 of them have enjoyed looking down upon, and watching over us together on numerous occasions. We are very lucky Grandchildren indeed!!!”

For a TRIBUTE RECIPE, Randi shares with us the Blue berry Muffins by her Great Grandmother.

RANDI WRITES:
Thank goodness for Grandmothers! Full of smiles, hugs and love, they are as sweet as can be. The wisdom they generously share with those they love and many they have yet to meet is precious and priceless. I find myself quite fortunate to have learned numerous lessons for days to come from my Grandmother while spending cherished moments in her tiny kitchen in a Philadelphia apartment building. I would watch as she would mix ingredients, adding an extra pinch of this and dash of that, while producing some of the most delicious treats a little girl could ever imagine, better yet taste. Oh my, the delights I felt each time she pulled a pan of fresh baked treats out of her oven will be treasured throughout my days. More often than not, I would attempt to grab a treat immediately, but was always warned to wait until they cooled just a bit or I might burn my fingers. Although her advice was just and worthy, I find it amazing how today, decades later, I still cannot resist the temptation of delicately baked hot treats, right out of the oven. Do I burn my fingers, occasionally, but the savor is worth the ting of pain.

My Mom’s name was Marlene, but everyone called her Mickey. Grandmom’s name was Gertrude, but all called her Gert. And my Great Grandmother’s name I was never told, as she was rarely spoken of. I can’t recall my Dad ever speaking of her, and my Grandmom only referred to her as Mother or YOUR Great Grandmother. I do know that she was born in Poland and came to the US in the later 1800’s and that she must have been a fabulous cook/baker, for many still enjoy her recipes today, over 100 years later. My apologies that I cannot be more helpful, my memory runs long, but for info never shared, it is empty!

To my surprise, Grandmom left a gift to me when she passed onto to greener pastures. I specifically remember the FedEx man ringing my doorbell one snowy afternoon, and handing me a heavy, but small package, with my grandmother’s return address. Confused, as she had been gone for a couple weeks, I immediately opened the package, while the FedEx truck slipped away. Inside was her treasured metal box of recipes saved and savored for decades. This same box is where she often pulled recipes to prepare for me when I was a child. I was in heaven, as I immediately sat on the floor and pulled out amber index cards and newspaper clippings of recipes from the 30’s and 40’s. Inside this box, (which as a child I always thought was magical) I found treasured recipes for coffee cakes, pies, cookies and much more.

Although I immediately recognized my grandmother’s handwriting on various cards, there were some that appeared older with a handwriting I did not recognize, so I called my Aunt. After reciting a few recipe titles to her, she began laughing, as these were HER grandmother’s recipes, of which I was commanded to copy and forward to her.

The muffin recipe that follows is one of my Great Grandmother’s. Please enjoy it as many have for more than a century to date!

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
½ cup (1 stick) margarine
1½ cups sugar, or sugar substitute
1 tablespoon vanilla
4¼ cups flour
5 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons milk
1½ cups fresh or frozen blueberries

1. Thoroughly mix together the margarine, sugar, vanilla, milk, flour and baking powder.
2. Add the blueberries last gently, at slow speed, mix berries thoroughly into the batter.
3. Grease 8 sections of a large muffin tin, or 12 regular size muffin sections.
4. Fill each muffin section to top with batter.

Topping: Combine: 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon

5. Sprinkle the cinnamon mixture on top of each muffin.
6. Bake 20-35 minutes (depending on muffin section size) or until they are golden and feel firm on top or until inserted knife or toothpick comes out clean.
Variation: * Raspberries or diced peaches can be used in place of berries*

My excitement at finding this treasure of recipes was beyond me, I was having so much fun imaging the times and foods from way back when, for some of these recipes are over 100 years old. I felt like the luckiest gal on earth, for right before me, was a simple metal box, that turned magical as the lid opened. You see, that magical metal box, is not just filled with an exceptional array of flavors, it is overflowing with the love of Grandmothers’!
RANDI

Posted by PRATIBHA & JIGYASA

Tarlaji in the centre at the Felicitation of “Cooking at Home with Pedatha”

In March 1991, I wrote a letter to Smt. Tarla Dalal. By then, I was convinced that if angels have to be granted existence, she was one of them. I was then an ordinary housewife, a young 26-year-old woman struggling to find a self-identity within the four walls of the kitchen, since I spent the maximum time there, trying to get things organized for breakfasts, lunches and dinners for an extended joint family.

In that rather stifling scenario, her books were a breath of fresh air. I spent so much time with them that they turned greasy and yellow much before wisdom dawned that I better write down whatever I want to cook from them on a scrap of paper instead of using them while cooking. At home, everyone remained amused by my obsession with her books. Once, I was making tea for a many guests and the water was taking time to boil. Bored, I pulled Tarlaji’s “The pleasures of vegetarian cooking”, and leafed through it as I stood by the stove. My brother-in-law walked into the kitchen, looked at me by the stove with the book in my hand and exclaimed, “You are actually making tea from the book! ”

Always wanting everything precious to be recorded, including my thoughts, I penned down my gratitude to Tarlaji and actually posted the letter to her. Those were days when even photocopying was not such a common practice, hence I sent her a neat fair copy of my letter, keeping the rough one for my records. Years later, I keyed it into a file on my laptop. Here it is.

March 1991, Chennai
Dear Ms Tarla Dalal,
I am one of your most ardent fans and for quite a long time have had the pleasure of being known as a very good cook. However, the credit for this mist go to you because honestly speaking, I don’t do anything, other than follow the instructions from any one of those innumerable Tarla-Dalal-Heaven-Sent recipes. Your books are an eternal source of inspiration and contentment – I know this statement may seem unreal, but it is true. To cook well, serve well and be praised for the food one makes is the source of utmost happiness to any cook.
I am 25 years old and belong to a Marwari family. I was given away in marriage at the age of 20 when I was freshly out of college and had been so absorbed in my studies that I did not have any time to explore my culinary potentials. Luckily, extremely so, I received two of your books as a wedding gift and was saved by the miracle of your books. Your books became my bibles, so to speak, and inspired me to bring about a change in the usual style of serving. I started trying out your unusual recipes, served differently and presented quite unconventionally. For the last 5 years, I have hosted innumerable parties for groups of 20-30 people at a time and have been very satisfied with the results.
I am still dizzy from the excitement of a last night’s “Tarla Dalal supper” and the flow of compliments I have received!
Thank you, once again, madam for being a guardian angel in my life, and I’m sure in the lives of many others too. You are a blessing from above.
Respectfully yours
Pratibha Jain.

I always wrote letters to those who inspired me. Some of them include Linda Goodman, Hindi Novelist Shivani, actors Dharmendra and Meena Kumari, Cookbook author Smt. Chandra Padmanabhan and my best friend who broke up with me in school. But I never received a response. Therefore, when I received Tarlaji’s response, my joy knew no limits. For days I showed her letter to everyone who came home. I even framed it in a photo frame and kept it by my bedside. Just 4 simple lines saying she was happy to receive my letter, and that if I am ever in Mumbai, then she would be delighted to meet me. May be she responded to all her fan mail which speaks highly of her indeed! But this one was special…it was for ME.
Anyways, life moved on, and then one day I found myself authoring and publishing a cookbook along with my friend Jigyasa Giri. I felt like connecting with Tarlaji again. Here is the letter I wrote 15 years later:

Chennai, 30.01.06
Dear Tarlaji,
Warm greetings. Enclosed please find my letter to you dated way back in 1991. It has been retyped and therefore may appear slightly different from my original letter, but the content is exactly the same. I received your warm response within a few weeks which also I am enclosing herewith.
My admiration for you and love for your recipes has only enhanced over the years. The proof is the fact that I have preserved my one-time correspondence with you over such a long span of time. Your books were a tangible milestone in my journey of love for the culinary art, for cooking, for feeding near and dear ones…and today I am happy to present to you yet another milestone in this journey - “Cooking at home with Pedatha“, a cookbook co-authored by Jigyasa Giri and myself.
Hope you like the book, a product of love and affection for a senior aunt. If you have a little time, do visit our website www.pritya.com.
Also hope that like in 1991, I will have the honour of your response once again. Looking forward to your comments and suggestions.
With warmest regards,
Pratibha Jain
(94440-20011, pratibha@pritya.com)

Enclosed:
1. Cookery book “Cooking at home with Pedatha”
2. Letter from Pratibha to Ms. Tarla Dalal, 1991
3. Response from Ms. Tarla Dalal to Pratibha, 1991

She again responded immediately and sent us a lovely comment that we were honoured to print on the dust jacket of our book when it went into its second edition.

“A very well researched and aesthetically presented book. The recipes are easy and self-explanatory. A must buy for all food lovers.” Tarla Dalal

Pratibha, Tarlaji & Jigyasa

Later, she came to Chennai to attend a felicitation event organized by Karuna International when the book won the Gourmand Award. She shared two lovely days with Jigyasa and me. Her warmth continues to flow.

When I called her and told her about this website for tribute recipes, she was delighted with the idea. She sent us the following recipe as a tribute to her mother, who she says has always been her inspiration and from whom she learnt the art of cooking, serving & managing family.

TARLA DALAL’s MALAI PEDAS

- Makes soft 18 Pedas with a grainy texture

Ingredients
1 litre full fat milk
A few saffron strands
½ cup sugar
2 pinches citric acid
4 teaspoons milk
1 level teaspoon cornflour
¼ teaspoon cardamom (elaichi) powder

For the garnish
A few chopped almonds
A few chopped pistachios

Method
1. Boil the milk in a heavy bottomed pan, stirring throughout, until it reduces to half.
2. Warm the saffron in a small vessel, add 2 teaspoons of milk and rub until the saffron dissolves. Add to the boiling milk.
3. Add the sugar and cook for a further 4 to 5 minutes.
4. Mix the citric acid in 3 teaspoons of water. Add this mixture very gradually to the boiling milk until it curdles slightly. This may require anything from half to the entire quantity of the citric acid mixture.
5. Mix the cornflour in the balance 2 teaspoons of milk and add to the boiling milk.
6. Continue stirring till the mixture becomes thick and resembles khoya.
7. Add the cardamom powder and mix well. Allow to cool.
8. Shape into 18 small balls.
9. Place in paper cups, decorate with chopped almonds and pistachios and serve.

Thank you Tarlaji for the wonderful author and person that you are.

POSTED BY PRATIBHA