Dahl Recipe in the time of Lockdown

My next-door neighbor, Rachel, asked me for my recipe for dahl.  I had left a pot of it on the wall that divides us.  We leave things there for each other, then signal on Whatsapp that there’s a delivery.  We’ve always done this, even before Cyprus went into lockdown.

There are a lot of Indian restaurants here in Paphos, but my favorite one is too far.  And frankly, right now, it’s a bit expensive.  So, the mother of necessity showed up.  I was dying for real dahl.  Since we lived in India for so long, I knew what real dahl taste like.  We are total addicts to Indian food.  There are just times when my husband and I need Indian food.  Our bodies are craving it.

Dahl is the staple of India.  Lentils are cheap and make a great protein-rich meal.  Northern Indians generally eat dahl with chapatis or naan.   In the South, they must have their rice. Thinking of India and food right now isn’t easy.  Many don’t have access to food due to a severe lockdown brought on by the Coronavirus pandemic.  Many migrant workers couldn’t get home to their home villages on the other side of the country because the trains had stopped and had to walk home on the highways during intense heat.  May provisions be made for them speedily.

So here is my recipe as of today–it might change as some of my Indian friends may have good suggestions.  I buy lentils in a can or tin because I’m lazy, and that means my lentils are less likely to be too hard.  Of course you can use dried lentils and soak them and clean them in the traditional way.

For me, I have to try a recipe a few times before I get it the way I like it.  I recommend you do the same.  Go on the low end of the amount of spices, and work your way up–especially with the chilies.   If you make it too hot (spicy-wise) then just add plain yogurt or have it on the side for your guests to mix in as they like.

I find it easier to have all my ingredients gathered together on the counter next to the stove (or cooker if you are from the UK).

INGREDIENTS

1 large onion, or more if you like.  Onions are anti-viral.

5 or more cloves of garlic, since we are in isolation, you don’t have to worry about bad breath

mustard seeds or Colman’s mustard (just don’t tell any Indian woman who really cooks that you know, since this would be an anathema)

bay leaf

cumin powder which I like–as for me, it really gives that Indian taste

Turmeric Don’t go crazy on the turmeric even though it is good for you.

two tins or cans of lentils

a tin or can (depending on if you are from the UK or America) of tomato chunks, sauce, whatever you have.  Try to buy the best tomato products that you can.  It really makes a difference.  Usually, any product from Italy will be good.

coconut cream (if you are on a low carb diet, check to make sure the packet is low carb)

or regular cream

chicken bouillon cube or whatever flavor (or flavour if you are from the UK)

Thai green curry paste for me, is a cool heat

red chili paste, powder, or chilies, cut or whole

asafetida – you can only find this in a good Indian shop.  If you can’t get it, don’t worry.  It will smell horrible.  You only need VERY LITTLE.

garam masala

fresh coriander or dalia, or cilantro (not quite the same thing, but it will do)

ghee (clarified butter cooked until it smells like heaven).  It’s amazing. It gives that “je ne sais quoi.”

safron – There is a relatively low-grand kind available here in Cyprus.  Don’t worry if you can’t get it.

Food processor – not necessary, but nice

slow cooker or crockpot – not necessary, but nice

lemons because I have lemon trees, but Indians traditionally use limes

oil – I use olive oil because I live in Cyprus and I am surrounded by olive trees.  Use what you have.

PREP

1. Chop the onion.  If you don’t have a food processor, chop them finely.  If you do, DO NOT put the onion in the food processor raw.  Hang in there.  Just chop the onion enough to be able to fry it.

2. Chop up the garlic.  Don’t worry if the pieces are big.

3.  Open the cans of lentil and tomatoes.

4.  If you have a fresh chili, carefully cut it up in small pieces and put it to the side.

2.  Get a little bowl. Pour a tablespoon of cummin in the bowl.  Add a tablespoon of mustard seeds if you have them.  Add the bay leaf.

KEY TO INDIAN COOKING: COOK THE SPICES

Use a pot you can fry in, or use a frying pan.  I like the iron pans the best.

1.  Heat the pan.
2. Add a couple of tablespoons of oil with a little ghee.
3. Wait until it gets hot.
4. Add the spices in the little bowl.  The mustard seeds should start to pop like popcorn.
5. Now add the onion pieces as soon as the mustard seeds start to pop.  Swish the onion pieces around until they are covered with the spice oil.  Then lower the heat a bit.  You want to cook the onions until they are caramel color.  You are cooking out the sulfur, making the onions sweet.  Don’t let them burn.
6. Add the garlic pieces.  Monitor them.  Don’t let them burn.  You should have a nice masala paste now.  Masala means a mixture of spices where you can’t tell where one spice ends and another begins.  You’re not so much aware of individual spices as you are of the taste as a whole–that’s a true masala mix.
7. Turn off the heat.
8. Turn on your crockpot or slow cooker if you have one to high or auto.
9. Empty the masala paste in your pan and put it in your food processor and grind on high until everything is mixed well.
10. Add as much as you can of the tin of tomatoes into your food processor and grind on high.
11. Pour the mixture back into the pan.
12. Let it cook on medium heat.  Keep stirring.  If it starts to stick too much to the pan, lower the heat.  You are marrying the tomatoes to the masala paste.  You really want to get the tomatoes to take on the flavor of the masala paste so it can give it to the lentils.
13. Add about a half a teaspoon of green chili paste. Add more if you like it hot or tikka.
14. Add your red chili paste–just a little.
15. Add the chicken bouillon cube to the mix.  You can put your cube in a cup with hot water, dissolve it, and add it to the mix if you prefer.
16. Add two teaspoons of Coleman mustard if you didn’t have mustard seeds.
17. Add a pinch of Asafetida.
18. Stir and let all these ingredients get to know each other and blend in the tomato sauce.  If it gets too thick, add some of the liquid from the tin or can of lentils.  Or add a little water.
19. Add the coconut cream or regular cream if you want.  It will dilute the spices, but it gives a creamy consistency.
20. Taste it.  Correct the seasoning to your taste.  At this point, I might add some more Colman’s mustard or cumin powder or chili.

You’re almost done.

Now just throw the mix into the slow cooker or crockpot that you turned on to high.  Add the lentils.

Mix.  If you need to eat right away, then just cook it on the stove as long as you can and see below what you need to add before serving.

If you have a slow cooker and you can let this go for a few hours, then after a while, put the temperature to low if you don’t have an auto (automatic) setting.  Or just put it on low on your stove for as long as you can.  Tomatoes always make a dish taste better the longer you cook it.

Taste it.  Correct the seasoning.

Cut your lemon or lime and squeeze the juice over the dahl.

Add a teaspoon of garam masala.

Add a pinch of safron.

Garnish with corriander or cilantro.

Since we have this dish regularly, I like to vary the taste.  I don’t always put coconut cream in.  I might use regular cream instead, or no cream at all. I might add cinnamon to give it a sweeter taste.  You can add ginger or peppercorns.  You can also add sesame paste (tahini) to give it a more northern flavor.  You can throw diced carrots in there or almonds, or even spinach etc, and make it your own.  Believe me, even if you don’t like spinach, you’ll like it in dhal.

Since we are on a low-carb diet, we use green rice that looks a lot like broccoli, because actually, it is broccoli.  We may even use a whole-wheat soft taco if we eat this for lunch.

I would appreciate any feedback as we are all learning together.  I’d especially like to hear from my Indian friends, as I miss you all and hope you and yours are healthy and safe.

Why Yom Kippur Should be a National Holiday

Yom Kippur is a sacred holiday found in Leviticus 16.  It is observed only by the Jews where they ask one another, “Will you forgive me for anything I might have said or done this year that has hurt you?” It should be an international holiday. 

Start with schools: the principle should make an announcement where he/she asks for forgiveness from the teachers and students. In each classroom, the teachers do it with the children, then the children do it with each other and the teacher. The teacher does it with the parents and the parents do it with the teachers.

Then at work, HR should have a policy that the boss asks forgiveness from the employees.  The employees not only ask for forgiveness from each other but also the clients, customers, patients, or vendors.

At home, parents ask forgiveness from children and neighbors and friends. 

The slate is wiped clean once a year.  No one is allowed to bring up wrongs from the year before.  All relationships start all over again.

Okay, so now we take it into politics.  The Democrats forgive the Republicans and visa versa.  You no longer get to hate someone because they don’t agree with you.

My Swan Song from the UK

Right before I left the UK,  I saw some swans on my way to church and stopped to take some photos.  The ground was uneven and my left leg fell in a small hole–just enough to unhinge something in my hip.  The swan didn’t seem to notice. I thought, well, I’ll do some yoga and deal with it.  Was able to somehow move to Cyprus the next week.  In Paphos, I met a wonderful ex-pat lawyer, Jeanette Truscott, who invited me to ancient St. Paul’s Church. But as I went upstairs on Sunday morning to take a shower and picked up a dust bunny on the stairs–POW!  Something disconnected and I was in paralyzing pain.  I could only crawl to bed.

Checking the Ex-Pat forum, I saw recommendations for a certain physio-therapist called Herodotou Nicos.  His features somehow reminded me of portraits of Mozart, and he looked at my body with dismay as if it were a damaged Stradivarius. He worked his magic on my hip like an artist.  Within three sessions, I was walking without pain.  Now I can finally enjoy the village of Tala where we now live.

 

What Big Countries Can Learn from Cyprus

After three and a half years in the UK, we are back in a sunny land:  this time we are in Tala, a suburb of Paphos in Cyprus.  We have been here less than a week.  So far we have found a raw honey source, fresh fish, but unfortunately only skimmed goat milk.  We have been told by our local shepherd, Marius, that we can’t get raw goat milk until January when his goats will give birth.

Today in Cyprus it is quiet because it is a national holiday. Banks, shops, and schools are closed. There are parades in Nicosia and all the larger cities. Today is ‘No Day’ or ‘Ohi Day’. Just 75 years ago, the Greeks said no to a bullying Mussolini and resisted the Italian invasion. This changed the course of World War II.  Read about it here in Wikipedia. For the Cypriots, Ohi Day (pronounced oxhi, the xh like the ch in Bach) is a day to celebrate independence and freedom from oppression.

Perhaps other countries could learn from the Cypriots, and start an Ohi Day of their own–a day to say no against invading ideologies that tear apart the fabric and morals of a country.
Cyprus is just a little country, but one with big ideas.

What the TV series “The Office” can teach Instructional Designers

I have been spending almost a year now designing a biblical Hebrew course.  Why would I do this?  Because being a language teacher, I didn’t like most of the courses that were offered.  Just like they say that doctors make the worst patients; teachers make for difficult students.  I employed various innovative methods from people like William Griffin.

I did my own graphics, used our photos from our trip in Israel, added cultural sections about the Dead Sea Scrolls, and even had words to popular Hebrew songs.  But it still did say “snap, crackle, pop!”  This course isn’t for the pedantic Hebrew scholars but for the “yuf” as we say here in East Anglia.

I strayed over to Powtoon and saw that they had fun avatars that I could easily use.  I did a video for my introduction that I really liked, BUT I could not save it.  It was lost.  But no use crying over spilled milk in the cyber world. I tried the Articulate learning software, but the avatars were too faded and old.  I went back to my original PowerPoint presentation and played with the shapes and made my own avatars.  It is not really hard to tailor the avatar to illustrate the text on the slide.  As I continued to work with them, they were no longer avatars but dare I say, characters, people. I uploaded my work on iSpring and here it is: http://rankin.ispringonline.com/view/6856-hA74n-W1d6V

While I was working on this video, I was also watching the TV series finale of “The Office.” (Am I the only one who works from home that does this?) Why do millions of people love this show so much? It took place in a boring, dead-end office where none of us would ever want to work.  The office was character-driven.  Even when the plots were lost, the writing bad, the audience could forgive.

We spend more time with the people with whom we work than we do with our families and friends.  In fact, in this day of dysfunctional families, some may see their workmates as family.  But as more people work from home, this changes.  We work in cyberspace where we still need that human touch. Many employees no longer get their training with their colleagues.  They are left alone with a light box.  Instructional designers can make it less lonely by animating the avatars.  They also need good story lines. We never really grew out of that need for a story, “Once upon a time…”

Potato Juice for Frozen Shoulder, Allergies, and GURT

If you hadn’t noticed, one of the latest crazes is drinking potato juice.  I had no idea that potatoes had juice.  All I knew is that they were pure carbs and to stay away from them.  And i wasn’t going to buy an expensive juicer that takes more time to clean than to use.  And to be honest, having a start-up company limits your finances but ignites your creativity.

My body has never made the adjustment from hot Chennai, India, to chilly Braintree, UK.  Hay fever went into asthma to the point where breathing was difficult.  A frozen shoulder was growing painful.  And from the lack of all those good spices in Indian meals, GURT meant that I paid a price for drinking coffee.

So I got the grater out, washed a potato, and started to grind.  I put all the mess in a clean stocking and squeezed.  Then I drank the juice.  I did this early in the morning and late at night.  It hasn’t even been a week.  You know what?  I don’t need my allergy medicine. Really.  Like it happened in 24 hours.   I can do things with my shoulder that I couldn’t do.  And the GURT is getting better.

Google potato juice yourself and see if it can help you too.

But I’m seriously thinking about getting a juicer.

What Jerusalem Day and Teachers’ Day and Spock have in common

Without teachers, there might not be a Jerusalem.  How’s that, you might ask.  Well, it is a matter of “Tradition” as goes the song in “Fiddler on the Roof.”  There has always been the Jewish tradition of teaching the next generation.  The whole liturgy of the Passover is one big object lesson for kids.  While university professors were lecturing away, enjoying the sound of their own voice, doing a data dump in their bored students’ minds, rabbis were facilitating before facilitators were in vogue.  Talk about home-schooling, Jewish mothers would teach the Hebrew aleph-bet by baking cookies in the shape of the letters.

When will educators leave behind the old Greek oratory lecture method of teaching and enter into interactive learning?  The Digital Age of Education is how we will teach the next generation.  It has to be quick, memorable, visual, putting the student in the driver’s seat.  This is scarey for the 20th century educator.  But I say to you, give it up!  Even Spock (Leonard Nimoy) has given his mantle to Zachary Quinto, Elijah/Elisha style, ensuring future generation of Trekkies.   See them together in Audi advert.

Right now I am developing an online course for the most ancient of languages:  Hebrew.  This will not be a course for old fogies who want a grammar lesson.  This is meant for kids–because they are the ones who need to find Hebrew fun, because it is.  Through a company called iSpring, I have been able to make powerpoint presentations and upload them on their site.  They convert them to flash presentations.  But this is the kicker–they keep all my animations–which are essential to the method of the course.  Also, the student has control on the slides: the student can set the pace. Other website where you can upload your ppt don’t always offer these features.  That is where YouTube doesn’t cut it–a video is too fluid–it’s gone before you know it.  No time for reflection.  With iSpring, a student can stop one a slide as long as needed.  it’s easy to go back and repeat.  In learning languages, it’s all about repetition.  The student can hear the word as many times as necessary.  What is good about iSpring is that it accommodates a language written right to left. Also, there is no problem mixing the English with the Hebrew.

Also, at the end of each module, there is a game, what some would call a quiz. For learning to take place, real learning, students need to have the opportunity to check what they have studied, and many times, the learning actually takes place during the game.

This course is a great way for kids who are preparing for their Bar-Mitzva and Bat-Mitva to actually learn how to read Hebrew and have fun.  After this course, they can easily learn to read the prayers and scripture that they need to know.  And if some adults who are still kids at heart want to learn how to read Hebrew, they can enjoy it too.

In the Jewish tradition, I am searching for beta-testers.  I welcome interaction from participants where I can learn from you.

You didn’t really spend £16.95 for a Pepperoni Pizza, did you?

I read that many people in the UK have to borrow money or dig out of their savings just to buy food.  So who’s buying the pizza for £16.95?  In Chennai, India, I thought I was really splurging when I got a Domino’s pizza for rs 600.  So in my survival mode, I looked in my cupboard, and then googled.  Even though I was brought up in a second-generation Sicilian home in Timonium, MD, I didn’t know the difference between pizza sauce and spaghetti sauce.  I bet you didn’t either.  So this is it:  it’s mainly more concentrated, more spicy–and no surprises–lotsa sugar–or honey if you want to justify yourself.

So if you are poor but need your pizza, buy a pizza shell and make your own.  I had tomatoes in a tin, so I put it through my blender until it was thick.  I added tomato puree.  Then I added basil, fresh oregano, sea salt, cayenne pepper, honey, black pepper, lotsa garlic (love my garlic press), bay leaf, and…and…are you ready for this?  Because you really have to be ready.  I don’t know what Nona Fava would make out of this, but here it goes.  Yes, I put in two clean egg shells.  Why?  To take out the acidity.  This is huge if you have GURT or an ulcer or you know…

But that’s not my secret ingredient.  It has to do with Pinocchio.  I’ll tell you tomorrow.

Why I Put Egg Shells in My Coffee, Don’t You?

Well, it finally happened.  Like Job, what I feared came upon me.  That dreaded ulcer or GERT or whatever.  What it meant is that when I drank my beloved coffee, I paid for it.  It became painful.  Did that stop me?  Of course not.  But thank God, I found an answer in something that I have been throwing away.  Yes, the egg shell.

The egg shell neutralized the acid in the coffee.  If I am making instant, I just put a piece of egg shell into the coffee with the powder.  You may want to crush the shell first.  For regular coffee, put the crushed egg shells with the coffee.  By the way, the coffee and the egg shells are great for your garden.

To store egg shells:  Wash the egg shells with warm water and soap.  Rinse.  Put out to dry.  They are ready to use.  You can also grind them in your coffee grinder and store in a container.

You can use egg shells when making soups, etc.  In this way, you can get the calcium that’s in the egg shell.  Put the egg shells in a net and drop in the soup.  When the soup is finished, you can take out the net.

What to do when a bomb hits

In light of the Boston Marathon bombing, I called my friend in Jerusalem and asked if she could give me a few pointers:

1.  Hit the ground. Pull anyone around you to the ground.  Avoid glass fragments.

2.  Stay away from shops with glass windows.

3.  Don’t run down the street.  You may be running  to another bomb.

4.  Option: Run into a building and go to the far end.  Try to get to the bathrooms.

5.  Option: Be in the middle of the street and away from building with glass windows.

6.  Stay away from waste bins, trash cans, or any luggage unattended.  There may be another bomb.

7.  Be observant for what doesn’t look right, and stay away from it. Go with your gut.

8.  Help the wounded. Don’t move them unless necessary.

9.  Cover yourself with your jacket, and cover children and babies.

10.  Cell phones may not work.  Try to use a phone booth and leave a message at your home phone that you are ok.

How to prepare before hand:

1.  Keep your land line.  Cell phone may not work in an emergency situation.

2.  Always keeps coins on you to use in a pay phone.

3.  Take a First Aid course.

4.  Train your family to keep together in crowds.

5.  Coordinate with your social groups–clubs, synagogs, churches–to develop a disaster management plan.

This is a rough draft.  Would like to get feedback.