ಬಲ

 If you read works of 19th century writers like Saki or Wodehouse, you will find the rich old aristocratic ladies who are bored with their lives and waiting for some event, any event in their life. 

I am certainly living in 19th century. This century, particularly this decade has been really eventful, most of them not so good. But still as an older lady, who spends most of her life within walls of her home, I can say my life is almost non-eventful. 

Yesterday was different. I decided that I will celebrate the festival in good, traditional manner. Which is hypocritical to say the least. I am not so much traditional, not very much religious either. 

But bored, yes of course. So I practiced one particular rangoli for the festival. I tried to learn one or two songs for Ganesha - today's deity, not so successful. And I decided I will make the same 5 sweets for Ganesha puja. 

This morning did not start well. The kitchen sink malfunctioned and decided it needed more attention than the deity himself. Kitchen cleaned, anger subsided and mind calmed, I came to kitchen for the preparation. Which means I was already later than most women in Karnataka on this particular day.  No problem, I can do - when internet is my friend and pal. 

So I grated coconut, cut jaggery into pieces and kept it on stove. Started another parallel process of panchakajjaya. It is very simple - grind together roasted chanadal, sugar, cardamoms, grated coconut. And it is ready. 

But last year a lady had inspired me to make it more interesting - she taught me (her youtube video taught me), how to use jaggery syrup instead of sugar. So the process would be to grind together putani (your roasted chana dal), and slightly roasted grated coconut (why buy dry copra and waste rest of it) and add the powder  to jaggery syrup. I remembered the procedure, but not the proportions. My search for video was not successful. 

But I went ahead, made jaggery syrup of  2 threads constituency and added the chana powder to it. But unfortunately the ratio of 1:1 was wrong. So panchakajjaya which was supposed to be a powder which you had to eat with ghee, became a ball - an unde. Same taste but different and better shape and structure. 

Meanwhile the jaggery and coconut for modaka got burnt - a little bit. That's OK. In my house, that is a tuesday. You just should not scrape the burnt part. 

But chakkali was a success story. Again adapted from a youtube video - Hebbar's kitchen - a more reliable channel I can say. It came out good and crispy. I was thrilled to see I could make a spiral from the chakli maker. I was on seventh heaven when I could fry it without breaking. 

So 1/5 and +10 for effort. Right? 

But here I must emphasize my special privileges - we are only two. So nagging and commenting children are not home. And more often husband either stays quiet or praises me for my 'effort'. So it is OK. And considering the number of hours I spend making snacks rest of the year is zero, I get a special concession - from myself. 

I can add other excuses like I have not feeling so great nowadays, and it was quite a hot day etc. etc. But prior planning makes lives easier.

Will I remember this next year? I may not.