Labor of Love

Over the weekend, I was invited to a party. After contemplating on the dessert, I decided to make gajar ka halwa. I sought my dad's advise and decided to follow the recipe from the yellowed page my mum had written 5 years ago. The carrot soaked in the sweet milk and spices for 12 simmering hours, making it an instant hit with a renowned Sushi chef who was a guest at the dinner, among others. 

For weeks months I've been ruminating to hand-grind my coffee. I'd looked at burr grinders on Amazon, and have 3 shortlisted in my Wishlist. Another trekker, who also works out of his home office accounted how fresh-grinding of coffee for each brew gives his deltoides, bicep and flexors a thorough workout. 

This gave me the courage to finally take a plunge and get a hand-crank grinder. 

The apparatus is a mill attached to a ceramic pot where the fresh grounds collect.

You may notice that the crank has a vacated hole where the it should have a knob or some such. The thing is, this pretty pot had been gathering dust in the store for years. Every time I saw it, I'd pick it up, turn it around, and then leave it behind. Nobody else wanted it. Finally, I amassed some courage and asked the store manager if he'd got a 'newer' model. He promptly dusted off the thin film of dust on this desolate piece and offered a discount. Like a good Indian, I bargained, and got it for my asking price of $10.

A bit of oiling, scrubbing and what have we here! 40 beans of dark roast can be ground for a different apparatus of coffee-making every time I crave some caffeine. 

1. Coarse ground for a French press

2. Fine coarse for a drip brew

3. Super-fine when I need a shot of espresso.

At dinner today, I went to a Mediterranean restaurant which served Turkish coffee. The thick fine coffee just lifted the pain off my aching shoulders. So that's my next conquest - making a smooth shot of Turkish coffee.