My 5 year old is already talking back - well, not quite but she does not take anything at face value and the worst part is that she *remembers* the explanation from another conversation, relates it to the current one and points out the flaw in what I was just telling her.
Here's one such conversation as we were driving to the airport.
My angel: Mom, is that a forest?
Me: No, sweetie, those are just a lot of trees in someone's yard.
My angel: Mom is that a forest?
Me: No, darling, that is just someone else's yard with many trees.
My angel: Mom is that a forest?
Me: No, poppet, that is just a plot of land with many trees.
< and it went on...till finally...>
Me: I will tell you when we drive by a forest so you will see what a forest is.
My angel: Is a forest only trees?
Me: Yes! Yes! No houses. Only trees, trees and more trees.
My angel
Me: Arrggggh! I need a Tylenol and some very strong coffee...
Or maybe some of that Chai tea ;-)
Tried some roasted corn lately? Indian style? We call it bhootta.Bhootta
Roasted Corn on the Cob
Spice Level: Entirely up to you
What you need:
Fresh corn
Butter
Red chilli powder
Salt
Fresh lemon cut in halves
What to do:
Remove the husk and the silk. Crank your grill on high and place your corn on the grate. It's better if the flames can reach the corn. Keep turning the corn so that it does not burn. It should crackle every now and then. And it's done when most of the individual kernels have a black dot on them but are not burnt or charred. Just nicely roasted. It takes but a few minutes per ear.
Hold the corn by the stem or stick or whatever - for want of a better word!! And dip the lemon into the salt and then the red chilli powder and use it to spread the mixture along the corn, squeezing the lemon as you move up and down the ear. So you get a great mixture of tastes. If you like the flavor of butter, spread some butter on the ear, too.
I prefer mine without the butter. Avoid the red chilli powder for kids - instead smother their bootta with butter. They love that!
I am not looking forward to the teen years...
I wish Indian men would cook...
Boy I wish men would cook. Mine does not. At best he will order pizza. But he does make the morning tea and I can't move without that. Yes, tea. It's finally becoming fashionable here in the US. I remember Steve McQueen or someone saying in an old war movie: "Tea? What's that? I have it only when I am in the hospital." But the funniest is to step into the local Starbucks or Panera and find Chai Tea as an item on their menu. Chai is the Indian word for tea. It's like saying Tea tea. No-one says noodles noodles. Or coffee coffee so why tea tea...
July 4th!! Independence Day!! Flags. Fireworks galore. We watched the firework show that the American Legion had from our backyard. This will be the very first firework show we have seen in New Lenox. Yeah. For the past 3 years, the firework shows have been washed out due to rain. We're hoping we'll be able to catch the show at the high school tomorrow.
4th of July is grillin' time, folks!! Lots of grillin'. Corn on the cob (bhutta - Indian style). And chilled watermelon.
I made incredible turkey burgers the other day. I just have to share the recipe. It's my own. My 5 year old simply loved them!!
Turkey Burgers
A touch of mint and lots of spice
Spice Level: ENTIRELY UP TO YOU!!
This is something that you can toss together while your coal is heating up. What? You have a gas grill? You're losing out on something essential...Flavor! You have no grill at all? Go get one. You must!! I have one of those cheap $30 charcoal grills that I bought from some bargain store. It has survived 3 Chicagoland winters without a cover. I was kind of hoping it would not survive this last winter so I could buy a new grill with all the works...oh well!
Here's what you will need:
1 tray of Jennie-O lean ground turkey (approx 20 oz)
1 tablespoon of very finely chopped garlic(you could grate it too...but it tastes better if it is chopped fine)
3-4 tablespoons of olive oil
5-6 fresh mint leaves, sliced fine
2-3 teaspoons of any garam masala**optional(I prefer Shan's Chicken Tikka masala or Boti Kabab masala. Even Nihari or Paya Curry masala will do. If you don't have Shan, then any old garam masala will do. Add more if you want to kick it up a bit. I do!!)
fresh ground pepper(as much as you want to add)
egg white**optional(This works like a binder but I have found that I don't need it. If you can't separate the yolk from the egg white and have no cholesterol issues then just add the whole darned egg!!)
1/3 bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped
salt to taste
Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue sauce for basting while grilling
Hmmm....Let's start. In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients except the Sweet Baby Ray's sauce - that's to use while grilling, remember? Mix everything together so that it's all well blended. Use your hands - you have to get them dirty. Using a spoon or spatula will just not work as the spices need to be rubbed well into the meat.
If you have a young child at home who cannot handle the spices, then do not add the garam masala and freshly ground black pepper as yet. Place aside some of this mixture for your kids or anyone else who cannot tolerate the heat. Then add the garam masala and pepper and mix well. Shape and pat this mixture into burgers.
I usually make 6 burgers from 1 packet of Jennie-O's. This seems to work out really well for us.
Brush some oil onto the grate and place the burgers on your hot grill at medium heat. Keep turning the burgers over every now and then. After the burgers are no longer pink on the outside, baste them with Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce. Turn them over. Baste the other side and cook for a couple of minutes. Baste. Turn over. Baste. Turn over. Basting and frequent turning ensures that the burgers remain very moist. About 15-20 minutes later, you have the most delicious turkey burgers, ever!!
I don't baste my daughter's burgers with the bbq sauce. She finds that 'spicy' - but she will eat Hot Mix!! I brush hers with olive oil.
Interesting things to do with these burgers
I don't work at shaping the burgers till they look like the burgers you get at the fast food places. Mine are round and about an inch or more thick. These can then be sliced thin and stuffed into pocket pitas with chopped onions, tomatoes, lettuce, a slice of cheese - simply anything you may feel like adding.
The wonderful thing about creating your own recipes is that you can do precisely what you want!! Believe me, the results are often very inspiring and very very gratifying. Imagine how overwhelmed I am when my 5 year old wolfs these down like she has never seen food before. And this from a child who is less than 10 percentile for weight and seems to survive on air.
A variation of this recipe is to saute chopped onions in the olive oil, add everything except the meat, mint and cilantro and saute some more. Cool the mixture and then the rest of the ingredients. Go out and grill your burgers!
Check for salt
How do you know if you have added enough salt? That has always been my basic dilemma with each dish. With raw meat, tasting is not an option - so what I put a very small amount of the mixture in a bowl with 2-3 tablespoons of water. Heat it in the microwave for 30-35 seconds or as much time as it will take for that teeny amount of meat to cook. It might become leathery but hey! you will be able to tell if you added the right amount of salt.
The nicest part about these burgers is that they can be spiced to the level you want. They are made from lean ground turkey - so none of the red meat and cholesterol issues come into play. Use Extra Virgin Olive Oil - it's the best!!
Burgers, corn and watermelon!! A terrific meal!!
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