DAY 76 : UNPREDICTABLE MANGO JAM...

UNPREDICTABLE MANGO JAM...

Oh yes ...
And after Spain won the UEFA 2012 last night beating Italy by 4 fantastic goals..
I just had to celebrate...
Why???

Because I love Spain..the place, the people , the food , the language , the Sangria, the beaches..the mountains...Xabi Alonso..(who is yummy...)
And how amazing that place just makes you feel..
Sun-kissed and very happy...
I was there last year on holiday with my girl-friends and made memories that are gonna last me till I do'nt lose my memory ...ha ha ha .
And so what I made actually reminds me of the golden in the Spanish flag..

And so ,here I'm at it again...
Can't help it ...
Trying to keep the flavour of mangoes with me for a longer time than possible..
And so I have been devouring them like they are zero calorie ..
Using them in salads, dressings, desserts and even put some in my face pack...
And it was "Deeeelicious"...
I don't know if it did anything for my skin...but I was busy licking my lips...
Because the honey, lime and mango combination was just too yummy...
And Taz was looking at me, like I was his dessert....wagging his tail, ready to lick my face ....
Ha ha ha...

And so I made something , I saw my mummy make every year ..
And store in huge glass jars in the fridge...
And for a very large part of the year..
We had yummy mango jam , mango ice-cream, mango chutney etc...etc..

INGREDIENTS

Fresh Mango pulp-1.2 kg...(that's because, I had quite a number of Alphonso mangoes at home)
Castor sugar- 1 1/2 cup
Sour limes -3 squeezed..

Method..

In a non stick pan..
Stir all the ingredients together on a medium to low flame...
You have to keep stirring it, till the consistency changes to thick and very glossy...
It took me approximately an hour , fifteen minutes and a little more...
You know you are done , when you run your spatula through the pulp and it parts like how Moses parted the waters of the sea to save his people..
Err but not till all the horses had run through..
Just count 1...2...3... And you can then take it off the fire..and let it cool completely before transferring it into a clean and dry glass container or Tupperware of your choice...
You are done ...

That easy, probably my easiest recipe till date , and one that is really deeply satisfying ....
Now keep a little out, for daily"  greedumption " my version of greedy consumption..
And the rest store in the fridge..

So while I was stirring the mango pulp and inhaling the aroma, of probably the last mangoes this season..
(Because now, on account of the rains, the mangoes in the market are not upto mark...)
I was just thinking , that this. is just an ideal way of keeping with me .all who I don't want to let go off...

So are there more like me..
Making jam of what they want to keep with them...

Longer than a season ,for a reason known best to them...
Simply because who has really seen a life-time....

How nice , if we could also add lime and keep with us ,the people we love..
So when we miss them..
All we have to do is go to the jar ,say marked "Betty-boo" or "Ninja", my golden-retriever and my Boxer...
And there ,they are with me, all over ,again...
Jumping , bouncing, wagging their tails ...

Unfortunately life is not as easy as making Jam...
You cannot put anyone in a bottle, or hold on to them...
More than they want to be held....

We were meant to be free,  that is our true essence...
And it is that fragrance that permeates through our very being...
And the choices we make in "complete freedom" are the only ones we can truly stand by...

In my opinion , how a person behaves with you while exercising his complete 'free will', is directly proportionate to where you stand in their life and vice versa..
It's easy to ask for what you want , or put limitations or expectations onto any relationship...
But for me, free will is the "clincher" the deal " maker" or" breaker"..

There are no "genie's " in any bottle...

And no amount of preservatives can keep anything forever...
But while it is with you, if it brings you unboundable happiness, then it's worth it..

As you know, everything in a bottle comes with a shelf life...
But thank fully some relationships don't...

And the ones that do...
Well....I don't know...????

And I'm sure that's why God gave us "memories" ...
That we can visit , each time we are missing someone ...
All we really have to do is visit our memory of that person, and smile again...
All the little moments, you shared everything that made you laugh, giggle, cry, fight, scream, sing, eat, cook, argue, talk, stay silent, run, walk, travel, drink coffee, have green tea, get drunk with champagne, swim, jump, dance, whisper, play in the rain, drive...everything...

Or then sometimes we keep photographs...
Because photograph's do not change , even if the person in them has...

So yes while I was busy stirring this very rich mango pulp, that was soon starting to look like a beautiful sun shining , satiny  quilt , that you would like to drape around you on a rainy day ...
And the aroma of which was driving me slowly but surely insane ...

In my head, I had a number of people that I would have liked to make into "Jam" ..
So that I could hang on to them longer than what life intends...

But since thats not possible...
In this crazy kitchen that exists in my head....
I have these little bottles in different colours...
And they have smiling photographs on all of them, of the ones that I love...
And inside I have a corresponding spice or ingredient...

Ha ha ha ..
And I just cannot share the names or what ingredient each one stands for...
Because I don't want to get beaten up...
The whole exercise then ,would be counter active...

But in my head at the moment I'm having a mad laugh fest...
And all these bottles are walking around and I'm having a wonderful tea party with all of them...
And yes, Mad-hatter , the Cheshire cat and the Rabbit are very much part of it ...
And the man on the moon...

Bottom line..

My mango jam is really nice ,wholesome, and very basic,has the flavour and essence of fresh mangoes..
It has a beautiful rich colour and an uneven texture..(I left pieces of mango in it, for ....unpredictability)
There is nothing artificially flavoured or coloured..
What you see ,is what you get..
Or rather what you put into it, is exactly what you get back... ha ha ha ....

Blue pancakes

Settled 1/3 of my cookery books..

And it's , just going to be a pleasure biting into a slice of toasted multigrain bread with  Mango Jam, smeared generously on it..
When it's pouring cats and dogs here in Mumbai , and there are no more mangoes available in the market ...

So here's presenting wholesome , flavoursome , simple ,"Unpredictable Mango Jam" inspired by my mum...
Made with tons of old and new wonderful memories..
That are lying in bottles marked with smiling faces in the kitchen of my heart...

As I'm busy licking my fingers only in , "Maria's Kitchen