Jihva for Love – Round-up of 40 Tribute recipes

We start with Harini of Tongue Ticklers. She summed up Jihva for Love so poignantly on her blog. She says,

I did not know who Pedatha was till I read all about her here. When I read I felt I had known her all along – only in different forms;

as my mom who prepares maalaadu and porulvilangai urundai (to name a few!) just because I love them, as my Mom-in-law who thoughtfully prepares less spicy dishes when she calls me over just because I cannot tolerate spicy food, as my sis-in-law who prepares tea with less sugar keeping in mind my taste, as my friend Bina who thinks of me each time she prepares koki, as my neighbour M.Aunty who gives me her dhokla each time because we love them, as my husband for the surprises he springs on me when I am not in the mood to cook, as my children when they prepared my morning tea, and bread-butter & jam sandwich for my birthday,

and a warm feeling spread through my whole being, as I thought of all these people and so many others whom, I have not named here. Well….what can I say….”and I sing to myself what a wonderful world!”

Thank you Harini…your words capture the essence of what tributes are all about. Many bloggers have echoed the same sentiment in different words. We start the roundup with our own posts about Tarlaji, India’s popular culinary author & the gorgeous Sarla Athaiyya. We hope you enjoy this peeks into the entries by the blogging community.

Pratibha at Whose food we eat about Tarlaji & Malai Pedas
I was convinced that if angels have to be granted existence, she was one of them…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…

Jigyasa at Whose food we eat about Sarla Athaiyaa & Ugadi Pachchadi
…a true Gemini, with her quick silver charm and witty conversations. She is unintimidated by the ups and downs of life, straightforward in her approach to any situation. Aptly therefore, we call her a candle in the wind.

Arundathi of My food blog about Mom and Spicy potatoes
Every sunday though, our menu doesn’t change…its very near and dear to my heart for it will always represent sundays with my family, reading the newspaper and chatting about the week.

Arundati Rao of Escapades about Aunty E’s & Birthday cake
She’s lived a tough life….bringing up and supporting a large family of siblings, taking whatever lemons life threw at her and making lemonade…what I find most remarkable about her is her ability to remember dates, wedding anniversaries, death anniversaries, birthdays etc of more than 100 people…without any calendar, reminder or to do list.

Asha of Asha’s ramblings about her Amma, Ammamma & Chadacha Maanga
I wanted Amma to make all the tasty food that Ammamma used to make for us as kids. Ammamma…was also the supervisor ever present in the kitchen, chopping veggies and constantly improvising recipes…

Bhagyashri of Taste buds about Manni and Mysore Pakk
Manni…was almost like a friend to us…We shared jokes, college tidbits, funny incidents and almost everything with her…I don’t know what she did right or what I was doing wrong until that day, but I could finally make pliable dough & consequently soft chapatis! The dough maker has been lying at my place unused…

Deepika of Ammalu’s kitchen about Amma and Karra pendalam vepudu
I entered her world and became the brightest star in her universe…All that she could see and think was me, loving me a little more as each day passed…to give unconditional love…the importance of failures in life and resilience to bounce back

Harini of Tongue ticklers about her Daughter’s Dal tadka
I still recall how she surprised us by not going through the crawling stage, talking when she was just nine months old, and the 11 years of pure pleasure…This dal being a creation of my daughter with lots of love seemed so appropriate for JFI – Love.

Inji Pennu on Ginger and Mango about her Mother-in-law
She prepares a huge feast in a short time and she does it like a musician with ease…the finer detail is what makes a dish, a beautiful memory. She writes letters to her son, asking him always to help me in the kitchen…It is from these mothers men learn to respect women, from them they learn to be a good husband.

Indira of Mahanandi about her Avva and Alasanda Vankaya
Like Jigyasa and Pratibha’s Pedatha, my Avva (grandmother) is also from a “do one thing at a time” generation…Cooking was an unconsciously clever and creative act, and done in a unhurried manner to everyone’s satisfaction.

Linda of Out of the Garden about her Nana’s Potatoes in white sauce
…where nana sat in the shade of an old crab-apple tree on a hot sunny day and watched us kids, chasing a wayward volleyball or badminton birdie into the vegetable patches, and called out in her trademark sing-song way … “out of the garden!!”

Madhavi of Recepies from my favorite place about her Papa
…this lovely, memory-stirring event…My dad, my dearest papa, was full of life … He used to call me – “Queen Victoria”. He was a big foodie, and…I developed interest and passion for cooking because of him.

Meera of Enjoy Indian food about Dad’s limboo sarbat
Well, I am still nothing to the whole world, but for them, I am their world…I am sure they said the same to my brothers and of course with all their grandkids, I do think, our share has reduced a little!!:-) I am talking about my mom & dad.

Madhu of Eggless cooking about Avva and Fire roasted tomato chutney
…my grandmother…her contemporary fashion sense…95% of the sarees I have now were bought by her…Recently she had also started giving hair cuts for my mother, to her colleagues disbelief. They would ask her which beauty parlor?

Meera of Enjoy Indian food about Mom’s Dudhichi bhaji
The same bhaji which tortured me all my school years, that same bhaji – I wanted to eat, made by mom, sitting in the kitchen. All the restaurant foods, meant nothing. I was homesick.

Miel of Food and watercolour about her Grandmother’s Aku Pakodu
As my mom used to work when we are small,she really took care of us when she was with us…I still remember the taste and look of that yummy snack called Aku pakodu.

Medhaa of Cook with love about Papa, Mama and Grilled sandwiches
knew just the right thing to do to get a smile on my face…who make life worth living. Thank you mama, papa and listen for being there for me in every step of life, god knows how I would deal with life if you guys were not around.

Miri of Pepper mill about her Doctor & Mother’s Peas pulao
So, I wondered (being a true Gemini) how I could choose just one person. These people are difficult to separate from the person I am. They make me complete in their own unique way.

Namratha Sudarshan of Finger licking food about her Ajji’s Poppindi
a big red kumkum bindi adorning her forehead she has always brought unique delicious dishes to the table…making a dish with a “surprise” ingredient and what follows is a guessing game…and hey, we have a yummy dish to dig into.

Nanditha Prabhu of Satvika about Ammumma and Bread Bowl
Ammumma…my grandmother…She embraced life as it was, and even in the direst circumstances kept her faith alive. Creativity according to her does not need any pre requisites. It blooms with an open eye and clear thought and minimum materials.

Nirmala of Amma’s special about Amma and Murungai keerai poriyal
All mothers are lovely but…I can’t even reach half of her heights as a mother. Having a great passion towards medical field she waited 50 long years to do something in it…she is now a Doctorate in Accupuncture…and an adorable grandma.

Pooja of My creative ideas about Mom & Dad and Chhole Bhature
Your little Pooja has grown up now and is known for her cooking among good friends now…While from Mom I learn how to cook healthy, with minimum possible use of oil, dad taught me which taste goes perfect with other taste of food.

Priyanka of Asan khana about Dadi & Tamarind jaggery chutney
Dadi, I know I never said that I love u when u were there…I remember my fascination for rings when I was a kid…I used to collect all sorts of finger rings and I remember whenever you used to go outstation…you always used to get a ring for me without fail.

Ranjeetha of Ranji’s kitchen corner about Ammumma and Kukka hummen
Her sweet smile and contagious toothless laugh was a sight to die for…Her actions and reactions reflected out her innocent behaviour that lot of times one had no choice but to sit back and laugh…

Raaga of The singing chef about her Amma, V aunty and Nankhatai
My classmate…sent me an email asking for the recipe. She said, “I don’t know the name, your mom used to have containers filled with these biscuits.” Amma was shocked when I forwarded that email to her. She said, “I didn’t know that she’d ever eaten them, let alone get nostalgic about them.”

Roma of Roma’s space about her Mom & Homemade Chocolate Ice cream
Moms are true role models for us in every way…Wish I hadnt been so playful back then. I would have learnt a thing or two from the person who is an absolute genius when it comes to cooking.

Sarada of Cilantro about her Periyamma & Kesari
Periyamma at 74 is an inspiration to me. I have learned from her silently, watching her sometimes from up close, sometimes from a distance-thoughtfulness, persistence, loving, kindness, fortitude, generosity, resilience…and the list could go on.

Sharadha of Choicest healthy recipes about Swarnamma
I remember how she placed the food on the leaf with taste and knack and it used to look simply delicious. Then the way she had the food with utmost attention and never left a morsel of food in the leaf was a sight to watch.

Sia of Monsoon spice about her Ajji and Huli-Menasina Kodhel
…the sparkling diamond studs on her ears and nose reminded me of twinkling stars. Her eyes heavily lined with Kaadige would twinkle with all the love and kindness and her beautiful smile would spread warmth in our heart. No wonder my Ajja fell in love with her…she was at tender age of 16.

Siri on Siri’s corner about Mom and Samosas
Is this what they call the blood bind?
A bind which connects two souls together ?
Is this the doing of the umbilical cord..?
Or the loving gestation of 2 in one body for 10 months?

Sowjanya of Mom’s kitchen about Ammamma and Rasam
Ammamma…gentle by nature and took great pleasure in feeding me while sharing memories of her childhood, her marriage with my grandfather, her days as a young bride, so on and so forth…

Srimathi of Few minute wonders about Mami and Kadala Kolazmbu
…a talented veena artist, a mother, a grandmother and a passionate cook and reference guide to any traditional recipe…our relationship has grown many folds and I always enjoy conversations with her…over a good cup of tea.

Suganya of Tasty palettes about Pedatha and Purslane kootu
A visit to the…market…Its either the motivation of laying hands on the freshest produce that I will serve my family; or the interaction with the person who devotedly grew it…The farmers are always eager to share recipes…that I haven’t tried before.

Swapna of Crafts and cooking about Mattemma and Puli chammandi
I remember leaning against her and rocking to the rythm of her grinding chammandi on the stone..imagine the endless patience it takes to make chammandi for a housefull of people while having a 10 year-old lean on!
…Salutations to Pedatha for leaving a great legacy.

Swati of Chatkhor about Amma and Bharwan shimla mirch
…nostalgic reading all these wonderful posts by people remembering their lovely parents, grandparents and other special people…well Jigyasa and pratibha come up with this beautiful theme…I get a chance to pay a tribute to the beautiful and ever sacrificing Amma…She was the one who would hide my poor marks from other family members…

Srivalli of Cooking 4 all seasons about Amma, Ammamma and Athirasallu.
Seasons change, our needs changes. But the essence that goes into making great cooking never does!…The unconditional love that comes, in being a mother, yes that’s the extra spice that she always adds…what is life without food and food without love!

The taste tinkerer about Mom and Ellukari
I think I’m inspired to tinker with recipes because of my mom, and get the passion for discovering a myriad of tastes from her.

Vaishali of Holy cow about Mom and Usal
…mom…left me with an everlasting love for Marathi food. My own style of cooking reflects the many cultures that have influenced my life and the places I’ve lived in or visited… learning largely through cookbooks and from memory…and…the web.

Vandana jindal of Vandy’s culinary adventures about Mummy and Aate ke laddoo
I can clearly picture my mom roasting the flour in a big kadhai, the home filling up with heavenly aroma and then all of us, my dad included, sitting around in a circle and making the laddoos together. Then comparing the sizes of the laddoos and laughing coz of course mine would be the smallest!