Babysitting Parents

So the Rents are here! They've been here 2 weeks already. It's kind of sad that they're so worn out and need a lot of help with everything. Today I sent them to a shop I took them to earlier for the first time by themselves and yes, I'm a little worried.

Ofcourse my Mom is being fabulous with Daughter who adores her. Luckily I told Mom that I wanted her to teach her our mother tongue so she's been busy trying to teach her to read, and they've been making great progress.

Dad needs the most babysitting of all. He went for a walk by himself along Galle Road, and despite all his claims of being able to manage lost his way and phoned H.

We went to Victoria Golf and Country Resort last week which was just fabulous though there were a few bugs here and there. Throughout the trip, however they kept comparing everything to other places which I could not understand. Plus they are not really that into nature. Luckily H and I did thouroughly enjoy the place.

Kandy and Nuwara Eliya

We travelled recently to these two places. Daughter had a cough and H was dithering about whether to go, but I insisted. Anyway, we had a relaxed visit, well as much as possible with a coughing child and husband who worries at every cough. Nuwara Eliya was gorgeous. Made me think of Switzerland. And Kandy was interesting too with nice views of the misty hills. Made me think of Budapest.

Semolina (Suji) Halwa

I had been searching high and low for semolina here. After arriving at the conclusion that Sri Lankans don't have it, recently someone told me it is in fact available. So I asked someone in Keels Super (at Staples) whether they had it and sure enough they found it for me in the baking section (who would have thought?) Anyway, so finally I made this halwa, which is good to have with Paratha / luchi or just toasted bread if you don't have either of those two, on the odd weekend when you want to be reminded of home. The way I make this halwa, it is semi solid in consistency. Some people prefer the harder, springy variety which they shape into barfi (diamond) shapes, but this is how me and H prefer it.

SUJI HALWA (SEMOLINA PUDDING)

INGREDIENTS
1 cup suji (semolina)
¾ cup sugar
1.5 cup whole milk
1.5 cup water
3 tablespoon ghee, butter or margarine or substitute some of the ghee for oil if you prefer a healthier option
1/ teaspoon cardamom
2 tablespoon raisin
Garnish
2 tablespoon raisin
2 tablespoon almonds

METHOD
Heat ghee, butter or margarine in a pan.
Add Cardamom and heat few seconds in medium heat.
Add Semolina and heat for few minutes with constant stirring in medium heat.
Add sugar and half of both raisin, and Almond. Heat few more minutes.
Add water and milk. Mix well and heat until you get desired consistency. (Usually like watery dough or thick pudding)
Garnish with remaining raisin and almonds.
Serve either hot or cold.

Destressing with Nigella, Kylie and Jamie

My favourite way of destressing is to watch cookery shows. I just find them immensely soothing. Don't get me wrong, I don't run off and make every single dish. I just lie back, relax and enjoy the show.

I think I get this from my mother who also loves them. In the old days when we had a VCR, my mother would video tape them. And before that when cookery shows were not really around she'd cut out recipes from magazines and make a scrap book. I don't have a scrap book. Initially I used to save my recipes in a word file which, much to my chagrin, has got corrrupted. So now, I will eventually upload all my favourite recipes to this very blog.

Back to the cookery shows. Well, my very favourite was Jamie Oliver. And in particular the Naked Chef series. Jamie was young, happy and so different from the run of the mill TV chef. His later shows where he's more serious or the ones where he has a live audience I'm not so fond of.

Then there's Nigella. Again I liked the original shows much better, but this time I prefer the more serious Nigella who doesn't keep smiling coquettishly at the camera every 5 minutes. Still, recipe wise I think I find Nigella uses easier to find ingredients.

Kylie Kwong I like mainly because of her accent and the novelty of her travelling around all the Chinese province. I don't find a lot of the recipes very appetising though, as she features recipes with ingredients I'd never in my life ever want to eat. Chicken feet anyone?

There's another Australian cook I like: Bill. Really calm collected, and I like his recipes. Not heard of him? Find out more at http://www.lifestylefood.com.au/shows/bills-food/

From the Americans I like only Giada I think. I find Americans don't do great cookery shows.

And then there are food blogs ofcourse and food podcasts.

I listen to one podcast called "Cooking with the Moms" which is done by 2 nutritionists which I find very informative. You can find the podcasts here http://mealmakeovermoms.com/podcast/

They also do a food blog.

And out of food blogs I like http://www.bongcookbook.com/ which is written by a Bengali lady living in the US.

Unfortunately, over here with the channels I receive I only get to watch Nigella and Kylie. But it's better than nothing.

So that's my secret to destressing. What's yours?

Invictus

I am happy with the fact that I left the scope of this blog so wide. I can write about anything I fancy. The fact that I don't have a wide readership does not bother me. Maybe one day my daughter will read it and just learn a bit more about her mom's likes and dislikes.

So anyway, the new thing I will write about today: movies. I realise taste in movies is very subjective. I do not in any way guarantee that you will share my thoughts on these movies. Anyway, a movie I enjoyed recently: Invictus. It basically depicts the first few months of Nelson Mandela's taking office after winning the elections. How he united a divided country through Rugby. I am not a sports fan, generally hate sports based movies and don't understand the first thing about rugby. Here lies the genius of Clint Eastwood. It's not just about the game. It's more about how great a man Mandela is. I was awed by how he brought to light Mandela's humility and kindness to all he met. And it made all the petty jealousies, slights and silliness that one comes across in every day life seem just that, petty. Here was a man who could be nice to people who imprisoned him for decades.

Aside from that , the rugby part is interestingly shot too. The sound effects are great. Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon have done a good job. Watch this movie and tell me what you thought.

Furniture Finds

Colombo is a place for beautiful objets d'art, much to my surprise. The things you can find here are, in my opinion, equal to or surpass in beauty that found in Zara Home or other lifestyle and home decor shops.

Apart from Paradise Road and Barefoot which are the most written about I think everyone should visit the Roux Brothers and Gandhara and just prepare to swept off their feet. The finds here are simply breathtaking. I can't wait to buy something pretty from these places. The Roux Brothers have the antique touch to their furniture pieces and Gandhara has lots of things from all over the world, including lots of Chinese treasure chests, and wardrobes.

For anyone wanting to visit:

Gandhara :
28, Stratford Avenue, Colombo 6Shop no:8 Shopping Piazza, Galle Face hotel

Roux Brothers:
Outlet: 7 De Fonseka Rd, Colombo 5
Dutch period antique furniture and reproductions in solid timber, lamps and upholstery material

Park Street Mews

I'm sitting in Park Street Mews writing this review. This is my second visit here. Obviously they have wifi here, and it's free! That's one plus point. I like the decor a lot. It's a spacious joint, high ceilings. Family friendly environment. We came here for coffee. Had a Cafe Moccha. Pretty good. On my earlier visit which was for lunch, I had a South Indian fish curry with rice which was very good. Dessert however was a bit of a disappointment: Rhubarb Crumble. It was just too sour for words.
Anyway H is getting restless. He doesn't like the fact that there's no AC here. I find it perfectly alright however as the high ceilings keep the place cool. Daughter likes it because of the bean bags. Time to sign off!