Daily Prompt: Red Pill,Blue Pill

If you could get all the nutrition in a day with a pill… no worrying about what to eat, no food preparation— would you do it?

The kind of joy I feel preparing food I eat, the spices I use, the different recipes I choose is the reason I will never replace preparing and cooking food, with a pill, be it red or blue.

Each day brings about a new way of eating the same meat, fish, and vegetables. Some days I like to spice up my meat, chicken or even simple vegetables, to change my taste for food. A pill cannot do that,it sounds boring .

Yesterday I prepared lentil soup, I used two kinds of lentils, onions, spices , oil and salt, I even used tomatoes as one of the ingredients to see if it tastes better with or without it. I’m always changing my recipe so it’s not the same recipe day in and day out. I consider it my privilege. If I settle for pills, I’d swallow one in the morning,one in the afternoon and one for dinner. And my total calories are taken care of, or are they?

Then there are these shops where they sell fruits and vegetables, what will happen to them, they will be out of jobs or business.

The only people who will be working would be the pharmacists and scientists. I wouldn’t put so much faith in them. I like to be free,  independent and not dependent on these experts. It’s bad enough they prepare our health pills, which after a certain period is declared  unsafe. What happens when the Red and Blue pills meet the same fate?

I do not think I can risk my health just because I’d be able to sit around and have hours of leisure,it does not appeal to me! 😦

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Blogging 101,Day one: Introduce yourself to the world

Today’s assignment: Write and publish a “who am I and why I’m here” post on your blog.

My name is Ranu, I am a Bengali from Bangladesh. My Father was Abdus Sabeth and my mother was Tahira Khatun. I am my parents seventh child.

In my country we all have two names, one is used at home and among relatives and the other is used outside home i.e school , certificates. It’s considered a formal name.

Like others in my homeland I too have two names, Ranu is my nick name and Chaman is my name which is used in my certificates and other documents.

When I started blogging I felt comfortable using Ranu as my user name.It’s short and easy to pronounce.

I studied in schools where the medium of instruction was English. I was able to take my mother tongue  Bengali as one of the subjects .

I am blogging publicly because it motivates me to write. Before becoming a blogger, I did not write a personal journal, I did not think about it and was not interested.

My blog’s focus is mainly on writing fiction, sometimes I like writing recipes, I also like translating poems and song lyrics of Rabindranath Tagore. He was a famous Bengali poet. I enjoy reading his poems listening to his songs and translating them, my aim is to let other bloggers enjoy Tagore’s poetry and songs, which is why I like translating them.

There are a few sports, I am interested to watch, one of them is Tennis and other is Ice Hockey, especially when my favorite team  or my favorite player is playing.

In Tennis my favorite players are  Roger Federer among men and Maria Sharapova among women. If they lose early in tournaments, I’m disappointed and lose my interest.

I love cooking spicy food, and have posted some recipes on my blog.

I’m also participating in online courses since 2011, it is the study of Allama Iqbal one of Pakistan’s most favorite and well-known poet and Philosopher. It is offered by Khurram Ali Shafique, he has devoted a long time studying about Iqbal and is the perfect facilitator for all of us.

Lastly I’d like to write about  my blog name  Sabethville, I  used my father’s last name Sabeth and added ville to it.

I hope to meet a lot of other bloggers and also read their posts.

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365 writing prompt: Evasive action

What’s the most significant secret you’ve ever kept? Did the truth ever come out?

As far as I know, I do not keep secrets, and there was no incidence of me keeping a secret significant or otherwise. Therefore the possibility of coming out does not exist.

My husband always told me I must never give my recipes to anyone, that way they can only taste my food when they visit me.

I remember one of my neighbors from India wanted my recipe for a very famous dessert we have in Bangladesh. I went to her house prepared the dessert for her while she was watching. She could not make it the way I did,this is what she told me.

I know for a fact it does not matter if I give my so called secret recipes, they are unable to duplicate it , this is true with everyone not just me. There is some kind of magic in our hands we all have, even with the same recipe, ingredients and what have you, it does not taste the same.

The question is, does theirs taste better? No, it doesn’t even taste the same. This is what they tell me.

………………………………… 🙂

DP Daily Prompt: Happy Endings

I tried to quit eating sweet stuff such as cookies,chocolate,desserts, I always tell myself it’s not good for me. It makes me gain weight, or have problems with my teeth,and the worst thing is diabetes.

I managed to curtail eating these things, but not completely. I used to bake a variety of cookies,find recipes from ‘Better Homes And Gardens’ and would fill my cookie tins. I baked them for my kids. I have one habit that I want to lose,it is tasting them. I can never stop after one, I’d eat four or five and then stop.

I decided to make the cookies and not taste them at all. My husband would say, “you know kids your Mom knows her cookies are horrible that’s why she doesn’t eat them, she gives them to us.” To prove it was not true,I’d eat them.

When I couldn’t resist the temptation,I stopped baking all the sweets.  I still eat some but not the way I used to.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2014/02/01/daily-prompt-the-end

 

DP Daily Prompt: Trick or Treat Post by Ranu

A little snack for me! (Photo credit: Sandy Austin)

The event was called “Mickey’s Halloween Treat” using this logo from 2005 through 2007. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If this actually happened. Since it is all about candies and goodies.I’d give recipes for a variety of candies,cookies and  my homemade recipe of our famous native dessert “Ras Gullas”(Cheese balls in syrup).Whenever I am introduced to an Urdu speaking person,the first thing they ask me is can you make,”Ras Gullas?”(cheese balls in syrup). I’m sure this recipe will be a welcome treat.

Enough about food.I took some gorgeous pictures of my daughter in the Walt Disney character,”Meredah” she  sowed the costume herself in a week, she also sowed the cape. She did a marvellous job.  I will post the pictures.

I am thinking about some songs too. I hope I can get some scary songs. This will be my treat for the bloggers.It’s a very good idea.

Recipe for Bengali Dessert,” Ras Gulla”( cheese balls in syrup)

Ingredients:

1. whole milk– 2 litres

2. white vinegar or fresh lemon juice— half cup

3. all purpose flour– 1 tablespoon

4. butter— 1 tablespoon

For syrup:

1, sugar– 2 cups

2. water— 3 cups

3. rose water— 2 tablespoons( optional)

Method:  boil milk in low heat until the milk comes to room temperature.High heat will burn the milk.Gradually raise the temperature,making sure milk doesn’t burn at the bottom.

Bring it to a full boil,pour the vinegar or fresh lemon juice in the boiling milk,this will help to form the cheese,keep boiling until the cheese separates from the milk and the liquid resembles water.

Take a colander and put a a cheese cloth in it that will drain the water and hold the cheese.Drain excess water from the cheese by squeezing it.

When the cheese cools off,put it in a bowl.You will notice you are unable to shape balls.

Put the flour and the butter in the cheese and mix it thoroughly.

Next start kneading the cheese to make it pliable and soft,enough to shape into small balls,half the size of a golf ball.(use the palm of your hand to knead,just like when you knead atta to make chapatis)

You can make eighteen balls.( cover with a cloth to prevent them from drying up)

Next is syrup:

Pour the 3 cups of water and 2 cups of sugar in a round pot.It should be large enough to hold the cheese balls.Bring it to a boil,test to make sure the syrup feels a bit sticky when you touch it.

Put the cheese balls in the syrup one at a time,making sure there are no cracks,otherwise they will break. when the syrup resumes boiling,cover and let it boil for five minutes at high heat. reduce the heat to medium and continue boiling for ten more minutes,check to make sure the syrup has not dried up ,have some boiling water ready to pour if the syrup is too thick. Leave it boiling at medium another ten minutes. Reduce the heat to simmer and boil for twenty five minutes more,before taking it off the stove put some of the rose water for flavour. My daughter does not like the scent of rose water,so I don’t use it.( take the cover off after five minutes of boiling)

Helpful hint the cheese balls

should not rub against each other, they should have enough room to move independently,otherwise they will break.

If you like your Ras gullas very sweet increase the amount of sugar.