“This ain't nothin but a summer jam”

Friday, July 13, 2007

Bronze skin and cinnamon tans, woah
This ain't nothin but a summer jam
We're gonna party as much as we can
Hey, woah woah, hey
Summer jam alright

I was really sad mid week when I realized that I will not be able to attend the Konkani Youth Convention this year taking place in San Francisco :o( I am going to be missing out on one of the most anticipated weekends this year but my life around that time is going to be far too busy. So before I get lots of comments as to why I am not going, scoldings and advices galore….I want to share reasoning as to why I can’t make it. First and foremost, my sister in law who lives in Chicago is due the first weekend in August which coincides with the konk youth convention. Although Bhatji and I are not going that very first weekend since the new baby could come early or later….we are going for a long weekend at the end of August. It is top priority for me to see my new niece/nephew. Secondly, my parents have never been in the city of Chicago so Bhatji and I are surprising them with tickets for that end of August Chicago trip. Sure my parents have driven through the city and we even attended the konk convention a few years ago which was held in Elgin (outskirts of Chicago and quite a distance from the city itself) but they haven’t actually seen the downtown area, the beach, Michigan Avenue or any of the fun sights. So for all the nice things that my parents have done for me and Bhatji, we decided to buy tickets to a well deserved trip to see the city and see the new baby :o) thirdly, the prices for airfare to San Francisco is ridamndiculous! I mean right now flying from Washington Dc to San Fran, San Jose or Oakland is going to cost $400!! I was able to buy 4 tickets to Chicago for less than that!! And finally Bhatji and I have booked tickets to an awesome vacation to Singapore, Malaysia and Bangkok in early Sept (More on this later) Seeing how we have these 2 big upcoming trips…I will not be able to add another trip to my itinerary. I am sad that I will not be seeing my konk friends and family or party it up San Fran style but I am sure I will be seeing them at other gatherings throughout the year. And I guess a trip to San Fran will have to wait. To all my konk friends going to the event….please take a moment of silence to show how much yall will miss me and follow it up with a shot ;o)
On to the foodie part of this blog. My mother in law loves pasta so I thought I would make a simple one pot Italian/Indian pasta dish from Meenas blog that I knew she would love. My mom used to use noodles in this recipe but I used bow tie pasta. You can use any pasta you have and it will turn out just fine. So here is the recipe for Spicy Veggie one pot Pasta:
Ingredients:
2 cups bowtie pasta (or any pasta) cooked and strained
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 large tomatoes diced
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 cup frozen peas and carrots
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp red chili powder
¼ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp of garam masala
¼ tsp of turmeric
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
To Make:
Heat oil in a deep pan and sauté garlic and onion till fragrant and browned. Add in tomatoes, salt, pepper, and oregano cook till tomatoes begin to pulp and turn liquidy. Add turmeric powder, garam masala, chili powder, peas, carrots and macaroni and mix to coat well with sauce. Cover cook for 5-7 minutes. Take off heat and serve.

This dish was a huge hit with mother in law since it was an Italian dish with an Indian twist. It’s the perfectly spicy and hearty weekday meal and very healthy.
This weekend promises to be a beautiful summer weekend and I am super excited to do some outdoor activities! So until the next blog entry…have a safe and warm weekend :o)