ideas – Page 26 – Sugar And Spice… Among Other Things

Cakes of Rainbow

Posted on October 20, 2018October 19, 2018 by Sugar and Spice..... Among Other Things

For any celebratory or ceremonial occasion (some festive ones too), the setting is incomplete without the main dessert of “cake”. Originating from the Old Norse word “kaka”, among the desserts which has been adapted to the history of that era, cakes were initially started off as modifications to the regular flat breads. Gradually the breads became more elaborate and softer as evidenced by the origin of phrase, “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche” (Let them eat cake) where brioche was a luxury bread enriched with butter and eggs. Since then it has been through a lot of history, transitioning in make through the era of the world wars, civil revolutionary years and even the great depression. It has even became a part of the superstitions, like for instance an old English belief of putting a fruit cake under your pillow would make you dream about the person you will marry.

The entertainment industry also felt it’s presence, basing a number of songs and few movies on it (even in the vernacular languages). However what fascinated me was the myth of Joan’s rainbow cake which I had recently seen in the movie “Salt and Pepper”. Here the protagonists in the movie bond over food and both of them bake the Joan’s rainbow cake simultaneously as the movie progresses.

As per the narrative, the cake is baked by a French lady Joan, who awaits the return of her husband who was in the army at war during the WWII(1939-1945). The soldier informed Joan about his arrival. To surprise her love on the day of his arrival, she baked a delicious strawberry cake and waited for him, but he never turned up. Although she was little disappointed, the next day Joan baked a pistachio cake, anticipating her love would return at least today, but the soldier did not return. She joined the cakes together with some whipped cream. Her wait continued into the third day when she made an orange cake. He still did not come. That night, she went to bed with a heavy heart. Next morning her love arrived bearing a gift of chocolates for his lady. She combined all the cakes she baked with cream. She then melted the chocolate and poured it over the cake, and then served it to her loved one. They ate it together in celebration of his return and their never ending love.

Despite the fact I am unable to ferret out and ascertain the proof of authenticity behind this tale, the whole idea of having a three layered cake with whipped cream and a chocolate dripping is nevertheless an irresistible delectable feast for all. Moreover, it’s the feeling that goes behind that cake that makes it special.

There have been many versions of the rainbow cake and many a time we come up with our own style during the baking. All the same, for every cake the pot of gold at the end of the baking is worth every attempt to create a masterpiece.

Source:https://vk.com/pub_mdma

Source:https://vk.com/pub_mdma

Personal Musings, Photography Art, Random Thoughts, Stories Around the World

Drizzle to Rain

Posted on October 12, 2018October 5, 2018 by Sugar and Spice..... Among Other Things

In the hustle of the morning rush hour on the road, there was a crowd of people on the sidewalk waiting to cross the road. Unfortunately there were not standing anywhere near the zebra crossing. Most of the vehicles sped up even on seeing them standing there to reach before the next traffic light turned red. Yet despite the rush, few of the vehicles did slow down to allow them to pass through. On watching the whole scene from the bus, I was wondering among them might be a few people who would be able to make it to time for work, while others would be able to head home after a long night. Yet come what may, they were able to cross the road because some vehicles had stopped to give a free path.

In the midst of the chaos of the modern life, we often wonder why do something kind and unselfish; as nobody really bothers and we don’t get anything in return. Yet the fact is that one small random kind act will influence somebody who will continue the change and eventually the chain will grow longer and bigger. Then the small difference becomes a momentous change which will affect and benefit a huge cause.

This reminded me of a story I had once read about the boy and the starfish. For those of us who haven’t heard about it, it as follows.

A man walked along the shore and suddenly saw a boy who raised something from the sand and threw it into the sea. The man came closer and saw that the boy was lifting the stars from the sand. They surrounded him from all sides. It seemed that on the sand – millions of sea stars, the shore was literally strewn with them for many kilometers.
“Why are you throwing these starfish into the water?” Asked the man, coming closer.
“If they stay on the shore until tomorrow morning, when the ebb tide begins, they’ll die,” the boy answered, continuing his occupation.
“But that’s just stupid!” Cried the man.
– Look around! There are millions of sea stars here, the shore is just strewn with them. Your attempts will not change anything!
The boy picked up the next starfish, thought for a moment, threw it into the sea and said:
– No, my attempts will change very much … for this star.
Then the man also picked up the star and threw it into the sea. Then one more.
By the night on the beach there were a lot of people, each of whom picked up and threw a star at sea. And when the sun rose, there was not a single soul left on the beach.

Likewise being a part of a bigger community, there is so much that we can do. Organizing small clean up drives in the public park, mowing lawns for the elderly, help in reading sessions in the town library, helping someone to load or carry groceries and so on. The list is endless.

A small act of kindness and goodwill doesn’t take much time or effort on our part. All it requires us is to keep our eyes wide open and be empathetic. While we may not be able to make a huge difference by a small act, it will make a change for one person. While one drop may not alone make an ocean, it contributes to the beginning of more drops and finally the ocean is there.

Source: https://vk.com/slideshowarts

Source: https://vk.com/englisharoundtheworld

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Source: https://vk.com/public138314547

Source: https://vk.com/slideshowarts

Daily, Food, Photography Art

Cookie-Art Moments

Posted on October 11, 2018October 10, 2018 by Sugar and Spice..... Among Other Things

Being trapped in the kitchen with a bored toddler in the early evening hours while it’s raining outside and the electricity is out is a very risque situation. Left in the lantern light, one option to put all the excess energy into good use was to bake cookies. Time flew as we started off with the mixing the wheat flour, butter and powdered sugar for the dough. Although halfway through, a bit of the batter was missing with a mischievous grinning kid nowhere to be found. Finally the cookie dough in varied shapes was ready to be baked . As the electricity was still out, I had to improvise and bake the cookies in the pan as the electricity was still out. On the whole, an hour and half later I had a plate of fresh cookies, a happy toddler drinking his milk and time well spent.

Source: https://vk.com/slideshowarts

It’s spontaneous moments like these which make life more fun. Moreover, when our children grow up and leave the nest, it’s memories like these which will hold dear in our hearts. To quote Crystal Woods ,“I want to take all our best moments, put them in a jar, and take them out like cookies and savor each one of them forever.”

Source: https://vk.com/slideshowarts

Source: https://vk.com/pub_mdma

Source: https://vk.com/slideshowarts

Source: https://vk.com/slideshowarts

Food, Photography Art, Quotes

Ice Cream-Art

Posted on October 1, 2018September 21, 2018 by Sugar and Spice..... Among Other Things

Among the priceless knowledge that has survived centuries of time, there is nothing that can bring forth joy like ice cream. Originally named as iced cream or cream ice, the roots of ice cream began in the first Persian empire (as early as 500 BC). Since then it has been modified with addition of fruits, honey, even rice and has been made into various versions such as sorbets, flavored sorbets and so on. Today ice cream has been added to sundaes, cakes, milkshakes and even can be baked. Although in the present day,ice cream is often sold in carts and local delis, at one point of time it was expensive and considered a privilege to the upper class. Since the mid-18th century it has been popularized and accessible to middle-class homes especially with Agnes Marshall’s recipe books.

All said, ice cream elicits an emotional response. In spite of the simplicity of ice-cream, each scoop brings forth its own flavours. Eating ice-cream is like an emotional and palatial feast. Maybe it’s because of the love and care that goes in with each scoop or maybe it’s because it just makes everyone happy. Even now if a drop of ice cream falls or scoop of ice cream spills over, brings deep disappointment.

Source: https://vk.com/pub_mdma

At home, being with my two year old son who is resistant to anything nutritious especially vegetables,fruits and even cereals; ice cream is an all time buffer. Like in most homes, on certain days ice cream is a treat or a reward for eating all the vegetables and fruits (though we limit it to 1 scoop). Other times, it’s a medium for various fruits and vegetables, ranging from diced kiwis, boiled baby carrots or corns, sliced berries or dates to even boiled rice, vermicelli, wheat and even oats.

Though the most important role to play is when surprise guests come over and I’m out of pie or cake for desserts. Then ice cream is the answer. Delicious treats can be made by adding hot chocolate or fudge, chopped peanuts or almonds, whipping cream, sprinkles or even candied fruit to a scoop of ice-cream and voila, dessert is ready. One can even reverse the combinations and add ice cream to pies, waffles coffee, biscuits and even doughnuts, depending on the mood for the day.

Be it summer or winter, ice cream is always stocked up in the freezer. I usually scour the net for various pictures of ice cream art which have inspired me to re-create, simulate or improvise. As too much of sugar is bad; a delicate balance has to be struck.

To quote Charles M. Schulz, best known for the comic strip Peanuts, “Life is like an ice-cream cone, you have to lick it one day at a time.”

Source: https://vk.com/pub_mdma

Source: https://vk.com/pub_mdma

Daily, Food, Photography Art

Squash-Fun with Jam-Art

Posted on September 27, 2018September 26, 2018 by Sugar and Spice..... Among Other Things

Last weekend we had a charity auction at church, consequence of which I had landed with two crates of black grapes i.e. about 20 kg. Nevertheless two days, everyone was sick of grapes even mixed with oatmeal, pancakes or desserts. Hence, it was a unanimous decision to make grape squash yesterday.

So towards late noon yesterday, the kitchen counters were grape stained and I ended with four big bottles of grape squash. The trick in making them right was to proportionate the grape extract to the sugar in a 1:2 proportion with the entire water required being equal to the amount of grape extract. In three simple steps;it was ready. First wash the grapes and boil them in just sufficient water so it gets cooked and while boiling continuously mash the grapes till it becomes thoroughly juicy. Strain the mix to get the grape extract and measure it. Second is to take the sugar (keep the amount twice the extract), add to it a minimal amount of lemon juice (1 tsp for 2.5 pounds sugar) and water (the entire water used should be equal to amount of grape extract) in a pan; and heat it till the sugar dissolves and bubbles up. To prevent charring of sugar, you make to intermittently stir the mix. Third, let the sugar syrup cool till room temperature and mix it with the grape extract to form a good consistent liquid. One can add grape extract (tonovin, 1 tsp for 2 pints or 1 litre of grape extract) or sodium benzoate (almost same measure as tonovin) if preferred. Since even refrigerated squash gets over fast at home, I had avoided the latter.

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On the whole, it was a fun experience for everyone including my two year old son who loved getting grape-stained. As for the remaining grapes, I had decided to make them into jam. Although making jam looks arduous, it’s actually easy and almost similar to squash, with few differences. Here the measure of grapes to the sugar is 2:1. It’s the same for all sweet fruits like strawberries, apricots but for bitter fruits like lemon and oranges we need a slightly higher amount of sugar ( I prefer a 2:1.5 ratio).

There’s nothing better than having hot dripping homemade jam especially on cakes and in pies or cold jam layered on bread. Besides making jam keeps the kids from getting into mischief indoors especially on cold, rainy days of autumn. As Sandra Dallas said, “Jam on a winter took away the blue devils. It was like tasting summer. ” Here are some pictures of jam-art to get inspired.

Source: https://vk.com/slideshowarts

Daily, Food, Photography Art

Petit-déjeuner or Le breakfast !

Posted on September 12, 2018September 11, 2018 by Sugar and Spice..... Among Other Things

Being in the house with a two year toddler forces you to revise, improvise and reinforce a lot of the good old ideals. Starting with the morning, getting up is an ordeal and as he is too young to head to playschool; keeping him occupied till breakfast is quite a difficult task. So the easiest way is to get him help in making breakfast. It benefits in many ways; keeps him occupied, teaches him to get involved and more importantly, getting him to eat his breakfast. And believe it or not, besides scouring the net and recipe books for new breakfast ideas, this goes quite a long way in getting a picky eater to start the meal.

Here are a few of the days of what petit-déjeuner or breakfasts be like and reminds of what Milne’s Pooh and Piglet be like.

“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “what’s the first thing you say to yourself?”
“What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?”
“I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet.
Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing,” he said.”
― A.A. Milne

The best part is one can be so creative for breakfast. It can range from brown sugar laden oatmeal or crunchy cornflakes to French Toast or simple toast and eggs with bacon optional to steamed idlis or even calorie laden goodies ranging from maple syrup dripping pancakes to stuffed paranthas, buns loaded with nutella or even rice noodles topped with fresh juice, a pot of tea or the best- coffee loaded with cream and caramel. It is the best meal to splurge on, for the whole day awaits to burn it !! Be it a rainy day or a busy morning, or outside on the sun shaded patio or a windy day; alone or with a group of friends or noisy rambunctious family or a quieter meal for two, breakfast sets the pace and swings in the mood for the day. To quote,

“Everyone runs around trying to find a place where they still serve breakfast because eating breakfast, even if it’s 5 o’clock in the afternoon, is a sign that the day has just begun and good things can still happen. Having lunch is like throwing in the towel.” ― Jonathan Goldstein, Lenny Bruce is Dead

Source: https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/article-what-chinese-eat-for-breakfast.htm

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Source: http://www.crazymasalafood.com/southern-flavours-20-south-indian-breakfast-dishes/

Photo by Julian Jagtenberg on Pexels.com

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Daily, Food, Photography Art

For the Love for Oreo

Posted on September 8, 2018September 6, 2018 by Sugar and Spice..... Among Other Things

Speaking of cookies, there is one word that any two year old would say and that is “Oreo”. And like the quote says, “Taking pictures is like tiptoeing into the kitchen late at night and stealing Oreo cookies- Diane Airbus”.

To quote Jonathan Mayberry ” I’m not sure I could trust a man who would bypass an Oreo in favour of vanilla wafers. It’s a fundamental character flaw, possibly a sign of true evil.”

Here are some shots below of how creative can the Oreo cookies go.