A pickled mind and some pickled Gooseberries...

With the prolific nature of postings on the blog, you must have guessed the state of my mind. I am bored. I never thought I would say this. I miss working. I miss the deadlines and stale office coffees. I miss bitching over silly people in office and I miss taking a day off just because I thought I am stressing myself out. I think more than that, I miss shopping. You know the guilt free unapologetic shelling out of money for things I believe I need.

Since I really do not have anything to do I have turned into pickling! Here is a simple recipe for gooseberry pickle. It is tasty and uses much less oil than the ones you buy from outside. If it were not easy, I would not even recommend. You can whole-heartedly trust me on that. Oh yes, for a change, it is my own recipe.

Ingredients:

1. Gooseberry – 250 grams
2. Salt         -1-2 tbsp
3. Chilly Powder- 2-3 tbsp
4. Turmeric Powder – ½ -1 tsp
5. Fenugreek – 1 table spoon
6. Asafoetida   - ½ -1 tsp
7. Oil               3-4 tbsp

Cooking Procedure:

1. In a heavy bottomed pan, boil water (just enough cover the berried) with salt and gooseberry. Lesser the water the better it is.
2. Allow the gooseberries to become tender.
3. In a wok heat the oil and add Fenugreek. Wait until Fenugreek turns brown.
4. Add Gooseberry, Chilly Powder, Turmeric Powder, and Asafoetida.
5. Once the mixture boils, lower the heat and wait till mixture thickens and oil separates

Cheat Code:

You may use Fenugreek powder instead of the seeds. 

If you get bored after Steps 1 and 2.Do not worry. Transfer the salted Gooseberry in to an airtight container and keep it aside. When you feel like it continue with rest of the steps. Please resist the temptation of gobbling the salted berries else, you will not be able to pickle it. Happened to me couple of times!

Today I had a very interesting conversation with the better half. After moving to Perth, the husband deposits money into my bank account every month so that I get to be independent. So today, I asked him if he had transferred money to my account.

“Why don’t you first spend the money I deposited last month? “ pat came the reply.

For a moment, I thought I was in never-never land. When was the last time a husband asked a wife to spend some money on shopping?

Grinning I said,” Your wish is my command!”

P: S: From tomorrow, I start my volunteer work with “Save the Children”. My first assignment is assisting in the setting up of a children’s bookshop. Fingers crossed!

P: P: S: This post was a real potpourri. Sorry about that!