parotechnics

Last night in Provincetown - rainy, cold, not pretending to be anything but itself, the town that was home for some time. Amy had a goodbye party which of course had great food - chorizo and shrimp skewers- and a killer cocktail made with white rum, strawberries, pineapples and a little orange juice. Also there, were Amanda, who had spent some time in Bangalore and was at the Fine Arts Work Centre, Vanessa&Liz whose video store I had haunted through my trip, renting a DVD a day, regularly and absent mindedly returning only the boxes, and Anna who I had met at their housewarming. Amy lectured on the how sugar neutralises the effects of alcohol. Right. And right on. PICTURE OF AMY'S BAR Like many goodbyes in these globalised times, this one too was oddly distracted - filled with the sense that it wasn't real, that I could come back, they could come to Bombay. We planned the menu for the restaurant we will one day open in Goa. I'll drink to that. My Ptown friends in Andher

AMY'S EASTER REPAST: Spicy Pepperoni Cheese and crackers Green beans with onions in a balsamic vinaigrette Asparagus with rock salt and balsamic vinegar - (do you remember when rock salt would be in every house? Do we get it in India anymore or is it all taken over by Tata's iodised salt?) Devilled eggs Shrimp with some sort of creamy, pale red dipping sauce Steamed artichoke with dipping butter A salad of arugula, braised scallops topped with a cauliflower puree, raisins and walnuts Roast lamb Roast vegetables Arugula pesto Tomato and gorgonzola relish Chocolate cupcakes with pink icing and sprinkles We also each got an easter basket fit for a lush, sorry, I mean, sophisticate. With little sweeties and a nip of liquor each. Mine was a miniature bottle of pear vodka. Clearly I chose my seat well! It's my feeling that Amy should move to Bombay and open an establishment called Amy's Excellent Repasts on Mahakali Caves Road. But she may be discouraged by the unavailability

I'd always promised myself that some day when I had enough time I'd diligently learn how to cook an entire cuisine. Well....oh well... there is such a cuisine as random self indulgence, right? And these are all things I never made before so as long as I'm learning... And that's peanut butter chocolate chip cookies to you - made from scratch! And that's the smart cookie who baked them enjoying the fruits of her labour.. remaining cookies to be donated to various nice peoples And that me dears is a two faced pizza, like some peoples we all may know from time to time, except tastier. One side has bacon, asparagus, tomatoes and asiago cheese with paprika and the other has smoked salmon, cream cheese, dill and black olives (yes I know, should have been capers but I forgot to buy them in shop due to classic case of ASSS (American Supermarket Stupefecation Syndrome). Still, very good. BEFORE AFTER Yes indeed I have had the grace not to take a picture of myself stuffing my