Travel Tuesdays: India

When my husband and I decided to have children, we also decided we would scale back our usual travel. No more camel trekking in the Sahara or hiking the Inca trail--we would stick to US or maybe European travel. That all changed in 2008 when our friends invited us to their wedding in India.

We thought long and hard about whether we wanted to travel that far to a place so new to us with our then 5 year old and 2 1/2 year old children. In the end, we realized we couldn't say no. Truthfully, we weren't certain it was the right decision (If that's ever even possible) but we were certain we'd always regret it if we didn't go. How right we were. I cannot imagine how much we would have missed if we had said no.

I'm certain I'll write about this again. I have written about this particular trip and its wonderful long-term impact on our family many times in my journal but I can never quite find the words to exactly express it's magnitude.  For now, I'll share some photos to make my point.

We shared meals with our friend's family in Hyderabad, India

Our son and our friend's nephew became fast friends and danced at the bride-making ceremony.

Part of the wedding festivites included shopping for our clothes.

We participated in a Hindu wedding

We shared meals, stories, and cultural traditions. Six months later, our friend's parents came to stay with us during the American wedding that happened in our back yard. We shared more stories, photographs and cultural traditions. Our friend's parents asked us to call them Auntie and Uncle. They started to feel more like family than friends. (This could be an entire post.)

Over the years we've skyped with our friend's family and the two boys skyped by showing each other their latest toys over the internet. "Look, my John Deer Tractor."

Now, three years later, our friends have returned with their family. This time, Auntie, Uncle, our friend's two sisters, and his nephew came.  Our house is in a constant buzz. Someone is always cooking...

Learning to make chapatis.

Or eating...

Locally grown corn, anyone?

 Or celebrating birthdays...

 Or cooking again...

Auntie never grilled before so we posed the photo for fun.

 We keep asking each other for recipes. Most often we say the same thing...there is no recipe... I just cook it from scratch with what I have.

And, the two boys picked up right where they left off 3 1/2 years ago. Our friend's nephew even got to experience a visit to an American school.

(Photo added 1 October 2011)

None of these things would have happened if we didn't throw our fears to the wind and take the travel leap with our young children. Now we wonder why we ever worried about traveling outside of the US or Europe with our kids.

What risks are you afraid of taking? What might you and your kids gain by taking a leap?

Saag Paneer (Cheese in Spinach Sauce)

When we took our family to India for a wedding in 2008, many people asked me, "What did your kids eat?" My response was always, "The food."

The follow-up was often similar- something like, "My kids would never eat the food." Or, "It's too spicy for my kids."

But, consider this...children raised in India have no problem eating "Indian food." To them it's just "food." It's really all about exposure. You eat what you are used to.

While I always intended to feed my children a wide variety of foods, my son ,"D," taught me that I could do it much earlier than I had thought. When D was about 16 months old, my husband and I took him to an Indian restaurant. We were still bringing food for him at this point, so we fed him first and then ate when our food arrived. We had taught D a few signs to make communication easier. He kept pointing to his dad's plate and making the sign for "eat." We were hesitant to give him any because it was pretty spicy. We finally gave in and dipped  a piece of nan (bread) into the sauce for him to taste. His eyes opened wide and a smile spread across his face. Then he began to forcefully sign the word "more." He was hooked!

Why were we bringing food for our toddler to a restaurant?  From then on, we ordered off the menu, most of the time sharing whatever we ordered with D.  (A note I can't go without saying...Why are children's menus so terrible? Chicken fingers and french fries are not healthy foods for children. We almost always order adult meals and share them).

I know there are children who have particular dietary needs, allergies,  or food aversions related to special needs. I know how hard it is to work within those needs and restrictions. I feel for you. I feel fortunate that our children do not have any dietary restrictions. Obviously, I'm not talking about children with special dietary needs in this post.

Consider for a moment, though... could your child(ren) stand to branch out? Could you?

If you're feeling brave, try this recipe from The Essential Asian Cookbook. Now is the perfect time because spinach and garlic are in season. Make it an event by involving your children in the cooking.



(Lentil) Dhal on left. Saag Paneer on right

Saag Paneer (Panir)
Prep time: 20 min (plus 3 hours standing if you make the cheese)
Total cooking time: 30 minutes

Note: This recipe calls for making cheese. It's actually quite simple, but you could choose to skip the cheese. You could saute some boneless chicken breast pieces and add them to the sauce instead of the cheese. That's how I started because I was a bit afraid of making cheese. Now I don't know what I was worried about!

Ingredients
For the cheese:
2 quarts (1/2 gallon) of milk. (NOT Ultra High Temperature Pasteurized. Many organic milks are UHT, so check the label. It won't work if UHT)
Juice of 1 lemon (4 Tablespoons juice)
2 Tablespoons yogurt
cheesecloth (Find it in the grocery store near utensils/gadgets)

For the Saag (sauce):
1 lb spinach, washed and tough stems removed.
2 cloves garlic
3/4 inch fresh ginger, grated
2 green chillies, chopped (Wear gloves. If you don't like spicy food, try one chili)
1 medium onion, chopped
2 Tablespoons ghee or oil (ghee is clarified butter- found in international food aisle of most groceries)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3 Tablespoons yogurt
1/2 to 1 cup water (use as much as needed to get the right thickness of sauce for your liking)
1/2 cup cream (I cut this to 1/4)

To make the cheese:

1. Heat the milk in a large pan until just boiling. Reduce heat, add lemon juice and yogurt, and stir until it starts to curdle. This usually happens almost immediately.
2. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes or so.
3. Line a colander with cheesecloth. Pour curd mixture into the colander and allow to sit until most of the liquid has drained.
4. Gather the corners of the cheese cloth and squeeze as much moisture as possible from the curd. Return it to the colander. Rest the colander on a pan or bowl to catch moisture and let it sit in a cool place (a cool basement or fridge if it's very warm) for 3 hours.
5. Cut  the cheese into 1 to 1 1/2 inch cubes.

To make the Saag (sauce):

1. Steam the spinach over simmering water until tender. (This takes just a few minutes.  The spinach should still be bright green but tender).
2. Squeeze out excess moisture and chop coarsely.
3. Place the garlic, ginger, chili and onion in a food processor and process to make a paste.
4. Heat ghee or oil in a wok (or large saute pan). Add the paste and cook about 5 minutes. Add salt, cumin, nutmeg, and water. Simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Transfer the mixture to a food processor. Add the spinach and process until smooth.
6. Return it to the wok, add the chopped cheese and cream, and simmer about 10 minutes until heated through.
7. Serve with rice.

As the adult in your home, what foods do you expose your children to? Are you intimidated by food from other cultures? Could you start to branch out and try some new things? If you don't like to cook, are there any interesting restaurants nearby you that you could try? Please share your thoughts in the comments.

Related posts:
Cora Cooks Pancit
A Passion for Pesto
Shurit Ads (Egyptian Lentil Soup)