I ain't fat for no reason.

OK. Its time I say this aloud, modesty be damned! I am a good cook. While I am at it, I'm an awesome cook! I'm not bloody creative or I don't claim to know everything that's there in cooking, but whatever I do I'm good at it. And I LOVE cooking. OK now, this does nt sound unbelievable to you does it? DOES it? I did nt think so too! So why the hell is it hard for my friends to believe the same? Every time I talk to one of my college friends, they re surprised that Im married, a house wife, a stay at home mother, a cook, a home maker, etc... One of them is surprised that I had a natural labor and not a C section because she did nt think I had it in me to go through a natural labor. Another one laughed on the phone when I announced that I was pregnant as in "YOU are pregnant!" Almost all of them think that I am lying when I tell them what I cooked for a dinner party. Now, why would a woman pushing 30 lie about what she cooked for dinner to anyone other than her mother in law? Beats me!

The thing is I was a tom boy in school and college. And our family moved a lot because of my dads job. So except for a couple of friends, I have nt met anyone after I got married. And me living out of India does nt help either. So everyone has this image of this girl who was out going, who did nt know how to cook, who had a boy friend even though she was in a girls college, who fought with her dad, who read Mills & Boon, blah, blah, blah! And I was the first one to get married among friends. Go figure! And I get all this heat from girls who don't know what gestational diabetes is even though they had it, cant spell Schezwan, don't name their babies until the babies start speaking, live with their in-laws and tell me that they like their MIL more than their mother and schedule a C section after consulting an astrologer! God only knows why I even bother to stay in touch with them. Who needs enemies when I have friends like these?

Now for some proof of my culinary skills:






Tomato baskets stuffed with capsicum rice. I made this inspired by a friends recipe.











Banana muffins I baked yesterday.








I don't have more photos here. But take my word for it when I say I make a mean Pineapple Rasam. That's my speciality. My Rava upma/khichdi is something else altogether. I have brought respect to the word Upma among friends and family. I make awesome Pasta with home made sauce. I am good at chopping veggies. I am better than a food processor! I don't use any frozen veggies except green peas. No pre cut veggies either! No tinned fruits except pineapples. No canned veggies except sweet corn. I am very popular among friends for making Veg puffs, Enchilada, Layered Aloo tikki chole, Khulfi, Rasam, Sambar, Veg clear soup,... My idlis, dosas and adai are always good. Im known to make tasty raita and mor kozhambu(kadhi) even though I don't like them and don't eat them.

Now to discard the evil eye, here are the things I am no good at.

I can never make a perfectly round chapathi/roti even if my life depended on it.

I am very scared to deep fry in oil. So I very rarely make pooris, bhajjis and pakodas much to the disappointment of Hd.

Except for Gulab jamoon, ghajar halwa, Rava kesari and Kheer, I have never tried making any other sweet. Oh, I made Basundi once. And I tried making Rasmalai. Gave up half way through. Don't ask!

Even though I make passable muffins and breads, I still have nt perfected the art of cake making.

I am NEVER consistent. No one can taste a dish and say for certain that I had cooked it. I still have nt got that "my" flavour!

I can never follow a recipe to the T. I have to give it my touch. At times, it does nt work!

Bottom line - Judge my cooking by my looks! Like I said, I ain't fat for no reason! ;)