Gadbad Ghotala

When I mentioned Gadbad icecreams in my previous post, the first comment I got was "What is Gadbad icecream"? I went "Whaaa?", then I realized that it must be an exclusively South, maybe exclusively Karnataka ice-cream. Gadbad deserves more publicity ;) This post is dedicated to just that!

Gadbad icecream is a delicious hotchpotch of different ice-cream flavours, fruits and nuts. It is served in a tall transparent glass and served with a long spoon so that you can really dig into it. Every spoonful of heaven tickles your taste-buds and awakens your senses, and with each swallow, you get closer to Nirvana.

This delectable concoction was apparently first whipped up in Hotel Diana in Udupi. Of course, once people got a taste of it, they flocked to the parlour and its fame spread - and how! For me, Udupi evokes only two images - The temple of Krishna and Gadbad of Diana. (not necessarily in the same order ;))

Now of course, most of the self-respecting ice-cream parlours (at least in Karnataka) serve their own versions of Gadbad icecream. MTR has come up with packed Gadbad icecreams too! Of course, in no way does it do justice to the original one, but it will have to do when you can't get to the original!

You can make your own Gadbad! Here is how!

Ingredients -

At least three of your favourite flavours of icecream. - e.g. Vanilla, butterscotch, Kesar-badam
Cut fruits - (Apple, pineapple, banana, strawberries, and anything else you can lay your hands on)
Nuts - broken cashew, sliced almonds
Raisins
Strawberry Jelly.
Optional - cherry to top/chocolate sauce.

Method -

Take a tall transparent glass. The larger and taller, the better (It will hold more icecream ;))Put a layer of about half an inch of jelly at the bottom of the class. Pour one scoop of one flavour, say butterscotch on this. Be careful about it, make sure it does not mix with the jelly. It has to fall in layers. Over this, place a layer of nuts and raisins. One more scoop of icecream, say vanilla goes over this. Another layer of jelly. Now put a thick layer of fruits over this. Add some more nuts and raisins if your glass is tall enough. Top it off with a huge scoop of your favourite icecream, say Kesar-badam. This scoop should stand over the glass, like a kind of dome. It should look ready to melt and spill down the sides of the glass.

[Optional - You can sprinkle some more nuts over it., and if you like cherries, add a bright red cherry on top. You can even add chocolate sauce, if you are so inclined.]
Now get a long enough spoon, and DIG in.

NOTE: Gadbad is NOT to be eaten layer by layer. You just have to delve into it and make sure that you get all kinds of flavours and fruits and nuts in a single spoon.

FAQ: In that case, why place it layer by layer? Why not mix it all in a big bowl and fill the glass with it?
ANS: Looks, looks. Half of the attraction of Gadbad is in the way it LOOKS.

Best time to have it : When you are hungry. It's almost a full meal!

Enjoy your Gadbad!

Mangalore and Me

Snippets of my weekend trip to Mangalore.....

Mangalore - Calm, quiet, clean and safe place. Courteous people. Excellent transport system.
Not yet gone the Bangalore way (and hope it won't either). A little too hot for a hardcore Bangalorean like me (and it's supposed to be winter!). All shops close by 9 30. :-o

Function at hubby's relatives' house. - Me "new" bride. Clad in heavy Kanjeevaram saree. Forgotten safety pins. Borrow from hostess and fasten saree firmly. All friendly people. Feel comfy.
But Mangalore-heat + heavy-Kanjeevaram + constant-smiling + hunger = headache.
Lunch at last. Delicious. Five types of sweets. Slurp. Food done.
But Mangalore-heat + heavy-Kanjeevaram + constant-smiling + full-tummy = deep sleep.
Back to room. Collapse.

Coincidence - Had heard loads about the Kannada movie "Aptamitra" and the Tamil movie "Chandramukhi". Had also vaguely heard that one is a remake of the other. Also knew that both are superhits. Had never got round to watching Aptamitra (Me Kannadiga). Friday night, on the night bus from Bangalore to Mangalore - movie being screened - "Aptamitra". VCD gets stuck within 1 hour of the movie - I go to sleep. 12 hours later - Saturday morning at relatives' house - Kids watching "Chandramukhi" with subtitles. I enter room at exactly the point where Aptamitra VCD got stuck the previous night on the bus. Watched the rest of Chandramukhi with kids.
Eerie??

Strange happenings in hotel room - Midnight. Me and hubby fast asleep. My cell gets unlocked and lights up all by itself. Faced no such problems before. Shrug it off and go to sleep. TV gets switched on all by itself. Reminiscent of "The Ring". Switch off TV and go to sleep. No further curious events. Still don't know the reason for this. :)

Temple visits - Anegudde Ganapati temple at Khumbashi, and Gurunarasimha temple at Saligrama, about 85 km from Mangalore. Lord Narasimha of Saligrama - Ugra(angry) Narasimha. Anjaneya temple built opposite the main temple to cool down the effects of Ugranarasimha. First visit Anjaneya temple, and then Narasimha temple. Have lunch at the temple. Good.

Udupi - Famous Krishna temple at Udupi. Even more famous (??) Hotel Diana - originators of the wonderful Gadbad icecream. - Eat the original Gadbad. Revel in the taste. All other Gadbads fade in comparison.
Mission Accomplished. :)

A post I would not have read had I not written it.

Coz its about cricket. And I am not a cricket maniac. I don't think much of a sport where the sportsmen can afford to be tubby (think Inzy-with-a-paunch) ;) But hey, I am an Indian, and if the cricket magic does not touch you in India, you are probably living in a bubble. And that was why I went to the India-SA second one-dayer at Bangalore on Saturday. Wow! What an experience!!

It was my first cricket match. Yes, I mean that. I had not watched any match completely, even on TV. The only time I watch cricket is when India is playing a one-dayer against somebody and they are on the verge of winning and it is very close and there are a lot of other people around me all in a frenzy. Otherwise, if a match is on and I hear wild cheering, I come running to the TV and watch the replay of the dismissal or the boundary or whatever it is. That's cricket for me.

Anyway, about the match - we went early to avoid the inevitable traffic jam... and we got to see the players at the nets, and their warm-up sessions. As they came out one by one for the practice sessions, they were cheered, but nobody responded, except Greg Chappell, who gave us a gracious wave, which drove the crowds crazier. The team ran, threw, caught, hit, exercised, chatted, kidded around, even as each new bunch of spectators entered, recognized their heroes and shouted out to them. By the time the match started, the stadium was filled to capacity, and the roaring and waving and cheering was deafening.

The match began, and before I knew it, there were 3 dismissals and I had missed them all :( I was busy with something inane, like wondering why the protective fence had two bars missing, or where the chips-seller had disappeared.

I actually looked back towards the field, waiting for a replay, when I realised that I was not watching TV. I admit I felt quite stupid ;) And the large screen was not working, so no replay there either. But I really concentrated after that and caught all the other dismissals and boundaries.

Meanwhile, I had to contend with a tall unruly-haired man who plonked himself in the seat in front of me, blocking my view entirely [as a sidenote, ever wondered why all the people who sit in the seat in front of you are tall with unruly hair?] There was also this man who steadfastly refused to put out his cigarette, and asked "Why?" when requested to stop smoking.

Adding masala to the match was hubby dearest who kept up a running commentary for my benefit. He also slapped his forehead a few times when I asked him "ignorant" questions like "Why do they change sides after each over?" He was also sweet enough to keep up a constant supply of food. [Though I have a sneaking suspicion that it was to keep my mouth full so that I would not ask him any more stupid questions]

So with all the other crazy people, I screamed, jumped, threw my arms around, hi-fived, jigged, and mexican-waved and brought the cheering to a roaring crescendo as India swept to a cool victory.

I still cannot talk about offside and legside and doosras but I can brag, "Oh, I saw Tendulkar from within 20 feet", and I guess that makes me a fan!

Insomnia

Fall asleep, come on, fall asleep... For heaven's sake, its been almost one hour since I switched off the lights and went to sleep.... why am I not falling asleep? Please, let me fall asleep.. tomorrow is a Monday, I have to go to office, let me fall asleep now. Mondays are bad enough without my being sleepy throughout the day. Come on, fall asleep! Please!

Ok, maybe I am feeling too hot. Let me increase the speed of the fan..... ha! thats better.. yes, this is it, now I should fall asleep in no time. Come on, just relax. .... I am actually feeling sleepy now, see? I should fall asleep at any moment. Hmmm.... actually maybe the fan is too fast after all. I am feeling a little cold. It was better before. Let me decrease it. Yeah, this should do the trick. I should sleep now............. Ummmm... actually the air from the fan was good. It was comforting. What do I do? Ok, let me put on the fan and then pull a blanket over myself. (stretch) Ah thats good.. thats great! I should fall asleep now...

Sigh. Mosquitoes.. I forgot to switch on the repellant. (switch on) There.... now there should be no more mosquitoes.. Come on.. sleep... Ok, maybe I should lie flat on my back... relax my limbs... and take deep breaths... Yes, this is so relaxing, so comfortable... see... I am yawning! Hooray! I will drift away in no time!

Tch... that clock .. why does it tick so loudly? tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick... how irritating.... its ticking louder today just to spite me... I never hear it otherwise... I'll go and smother it with a pillow.....There... now I can't hear you, smart guy! Now I can sleep......(smile)........ what the hell.. I can still hear it! Ok fine, if that's what you want... I am removing your batteries! A-ha! You ticking monster.. let me hear you tick now..... mu-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

Back to bed... hmm now it is silent. Now I'll sleep... Damn, I'm thirsty... Where's the water.... (gulp gulp)... there.. that was it.. I was thirsty! Now there is no stopping me...... ..... ...... come on.. sleep.... ok.. let me count sheep.... one.. two.. three.... twenty eight, twenty nine.... why do they count sheep? why not goats? or for that matter elephants or orangutans? And why sheep jumping over a stile... why not crossing a bridge? Funny... wonder who thought of it.... I should google it out tomorrow..... oh where was I? ...thirty four.. thirty five... thirty six...thirty seven.... What was that about counting sheep in that Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy book?? Oh yes, something about that robot Marvin, counting some billion sheep and falling asleep in the next second... hee hee... that was funny.. ... fifty five, fifty six........ damn. drank too much water... (visit to the toilet).... brrr the water's too cold....

(back to bed).... why are the dogs howling??... let me shut the windows.. thats better.. but its too stuffy... ok.. I'll open it just a crack.... now let me sleep.... where were the sheep? ninety nine.. hundred....... three hundred and eighty, three hundred and eighty one..... one thousand forty, one thousand forty one..... thats it...... I have enough wool to clothe the whole city..... no more sheep..... just face it... I can't sleep... maybe I should get up. and try to do something.... where is that report....ah...there.. on goes the light, and here's the report..... ok... get the pillows.. will prop myself up... blanket on my legs... yes, this is comfortable... where are my glasses.... yes, here they are.... ok let me read this.... stastical summary of......... zzzzzzzz.............

Writing, interrupted!

Nine months! - The difference in months between my first post and this!

I am not giving any reasons for the long interval, but you can put it down as a combination of laziness and the "yawn-is-it-worth-writing-about" syndrome ;)

I also have Ravi to thank, who shook me out of my stupor by placing the url of my near empty site under the "Blogs I read" category on his site! I pleaded with him to remove it, but I also started blogging again (Or so I'd like to think :))

But the path to renewing my blog was not strewn with roses either! I wanted to change my url... but hello, not even one url was available. I went through hundreds but all were taken.... finally in frustration I even tried "anything.blogspot.com", "something.blogspot.com" - but hey, guess what, they were also taken :(

Anyway for the second time in nine months "Here goes"!