Dec 27, 2007

Bye bye kitchen

As everyone around the world is gearing up to bid farewell to 2007, I am gearing up to bid farewell to a lot of things that mattered in this year. After staying in US for 1.5 years, we are going back tomorrow to India forever. That means saying bye to dear friends, this apartment, and most importantly my kitchen that produced all the recipes featured on Swad. I still remember the day we shifted into this apartment and I had made my first list of things to buy. It was fun setting up a kitchen and buying all the pots, pans, spoons, and gadgets. I had not carried anything from India and had to buy everything here. I loved visiting shops such as Bed, Bath, and Beyond and Linen and Things. I could have spent an entire day looking at items in the kitchen section. I remember my trips to the local library. I would spend hours looking at cook books to make special dishes for some event or another and carry home arm loads of books. I remember the last minute trips to grocery stores before the deadline of some blogging event. I remember making lists for grocery shopping keeping in mind I needed to buy apples for AFAM or something else for JFI. Mostly, I remember learning to use new gadgets that I had not used earlier. There's a good possibility that if we hadn't come to US I would not have taken so much interest in cooking and never started this blog. The success of Swad is due to this kitchen. I am going to miss it terribly. I still remember the day I decided to start my blog. It has been a great journey from that day. Here's a photo of the kitchen that inspired me to blog:




Nupur is hosting a lovely event,the Best of 2007. 2007 was definitely the best year for me. I started blogging this year. My dependent visa did not allow me to work but I utilized my free time in a lot of things that I always wanted to do. I pursued my hobbies, took cake decorating classes and bead jewelry classes, did voluntary work, and devoured lots of delicious home-made food. Coming back to the event, here are the winner dishes/moments on Swad:




  1. The award for the most innovative recipe goes to...Idli Manchurian. Nupur's A-Z event of Indian vegetables had really got us thinking every week. Everyone wanted to do something different and it was great learning so many dishes that you can cook a using a single vegetable. Of course, some letters were challenging. I came up with Idli Manchurian for the letter I. The dish turned out great.

  2. The award for writing a post that came straight from the heart goes to...Weaving friendship through cranberry nut upside down muffins. Bee and Jai sent the Amish friendship starter packed with love. Their affection and the lovely muffins resulted in writing a post that came straight from my heart. Some times the words just flow and you don't have to think about what you will write next. This was one such post.

  3. The award for a simple dish that turned out great...Green peas with lovage seeds. Even if it contains very few and basic ingredients this vegetable tastes great.

  4. The award for the proudest dish and post on Swad goes to...A taste of Maharashtra. RCI Maharashtra made me nostalgic and brought back memories of all lovely Maharashtrian dishes. If I had to define Maharashtrian food, I would sum it up as Zunka Bhakar. Of course, the attempt at making bhakris was disastrous and so I made mini bhakris. The zunka turned out just as I like it..zanzaneet, meaning fiery hot.

  5. The dish that I had most fun making is: Puran poli. Trupti's cooking with family and friends event was great. My friend had invited us for a treat of puran poli and we all gathered and made them together. While one group was making dough and rolling small chapatis, another was filling it and rolling out chapatis, and a third group was frying the puran polis. I took loads of snaps of each step and truly enjoyed cooking with friends.

  6. The award for one dish that I made from a fellow blogger and turned out superb definitely goes to...Tee's Microwave Besan Ladoos. I remember spending an hour last Diwali trying to fry the damn besan. I was sweaty, irritated, frustrated, my arms started aching, but the besan still wouldn't let out any aroma. When I saw Tee's recipe, I decided to give it a try. The ladoos were ready in 15 minutes without any hassle and tasted superb. I have named these ladoos 'Quick, hassle-free, arm pain free microwave besan ladoos'. Thanks Tee for this amazing recipe.

Any cooking resolutions for 2008? Definitely. One resolution is to blog regularly. I am hoping to post atleast one recipe per week. Second resolution is to try a lot of different cuisines. Majority of the dishes I have cooked in 2007 are Punjabi and Marathi. I want to try out a lot of different spices, cuisines, and techniques.


Swad will now go on a blogging break as I move back to India, settle into our apartment there, set up my kitchen, find a job, and get my Internet connection. There's a lot to be done but I will be excited to start blogging again.



I have hardly 4-5 cook books. It will be great if you suggest good books that I can buy for my new kitchen. Many thanks to all of you for visiting Swad. Your suggestions, feedback, and comments give me inspiration and energy to try out different dishes.



Here's wishing all of you a very Happy New Year!

27 comments:

Nupur said...

What an awesome post, Swapna! This is such an exciting time for you...moving back to India and setting up a brand new kitchen. Can't wait to read all about your culinary adventures from your new kitchen.
About new cookbooks...I have to confess that most of my favorite new recipes come from fellow bloggers. If you have a reliable internet connection, that might be your own "cookbook" :)
All the very best to you! Happy New Year!

Latha said...

Good luck on your journey back Swapna! Ironically, i think this is the first time i am visitng your blog i think... but i will surely look for some interesting updates from India!
Good Luck and Cheers
Latha

amna said...

good luck swapna. you can get all the cookbooks once you get back but i suggest you carry some nice bowls when you get back!

Manasi said...

A very nice post!! I'm sure u will have a LOT of fun setting up ur new kichen & carry so many, many memories of everything here!
All the VERY beat to u !! Take care and keep in touch!!
looking forward to your adventures in a brand new kitchen!!!

sra said...

Good luck with your move and your blog, happy new year!

Anonymous said...

Good luck with the move, Swapna! See you back soon :)

FH said...

Have a great time in India! Settling down is hard and takes time but I am sure you will do that as soon as possible and I am sure you will miss USA too. Come back when you can, don't stop blogging! I will miss you.
Happy 2008, have a safe, blessed and healthful new year!Hugs to you!:))

Richa said...

Hey swaps, Wish you the very best on ur move back home :)
amhala visru nakos :) look frwrd to recipes from ur new kitchen.

Shilpa said...

Wish you all the very best for setting up your new apartment Swapna. I know the feeling when we have to leave a kitchen which we set up with so much love and care.
Wish you happy journey back home :).
I am so happy for u.

Tee said...

Hey...we sure will miss you till you get settled and get back to blogging. Please do come back with new recipes soon...i am sure you are excited to be back home with family...hope things fall into place quickly.
Thanks for trying out the besan ladoo and all the sweet words! I like the new name for it :)
All the best for the coming year and hope to see you back soon!

Indian Food Rocks said...

Swapna, Happy New Year to you and P! Congrats on your move back to India and I wish you the very best for a smooth transition. You are going to love seeing good produce again, that's for sure!

For cookbooks, check out this link.

Gretchen Noelle said...

Good luck with the move!

TheCooker said...

Wish you a smooth move back home.
All the best.

bee said...

have a safe and smooth return back to india, and do keep us posted. hope to see your posts again soon. wish you a beautiful 2008.

bee said...

have a safe and smooth return back to india, and do keep us posted. hope to see your posts again soon. wish you a beautiful 2008.

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year and best wishes for your move and new home, Swapna! Looking forward to seeing you again from India :)

vimmi said...

Hi,
we also plan to return home after 3 yrs. waiting for that moment. Best of luck with ur move. Do blog regularly. love ur recipes and idli manchurian recipes

Anonymous said...

Good Luck on returning to Apna Desh:

Happy blogging

Anonymous said...

Good luck in India. I wish I could go to India myself.Keep posting.

Rumya

Unknown said...

Hi swapna....we two are sailing in the same boat....well I too started blogging in 2007...beautiful memories of cooking and uploading the recipes on my blog...Missing all that so much...we too have moved to India(Mumbai)....well waiting for my kitchen equipments to get shipped here...and then start of a new culinary experience in Mumbai...Wish you all the good Luck...

RML said...

Hello Swapna.
Hope you have settled down in your kitchen by now.Wish you all good luck in your new kitchen and looking forward for delicious recipes from India too.
Good luck
Madhuri

TNL said...

hope you've settled in India....and come back soon to blogging when you can. Take care.

Bhagyashri said...

Hi dear, would like to see a 'Hello' here instead of 'bye bye'! Theres something for you ojn my blog.

Indian Food Rocks said...

Hey girlie! Hope all is well with you! Happy New Year!

Srivalli said...

hey swapna, still no news...hope things are fine your end!

Kartik said...

Wow! this post goes to show how good you are as a cook AND as a Technical Writer :). Keep it up.

rachelisallen said...

Hello,
We also intend to come home after three yrs. Waiting for that moment. Best of luck with ur move. Do blog constantly.
Love ur recipes and idli manchurian recipes.