Inshallah

The meaning of Inshallah is ‘if God wills it’. Now that’s a word I’ve been hearing since toddlerhood. When I grew big enough to think on my own, I knew that when Uppa said Inshallah in response to one of our requests, he had no intentions of fulfilling it; he just didn’t want to disappoint us with an outright No.

  

Later in college, one of my friends, Abid used to mention Inshallah a lot. Whenever he said it, things worked out just the opposite to our wishes. So, Inshallah started being associated with ‘no chance’ or ‘hell freezing over is likelier’. The word got so unpopular that a few of our non-Muslim friends started referring to it as ‘the I word’.

  

 
I used to poke fun of the word, a lot. That was until 29^th Aug, 2008 happened.
  

Case in point:  17^th Sept, 2007 was Kashi’s birthday. In contrast to our usual low-profile birthdays, this time we had planned a dinner out with our cousins (maternal cousins who were in the UAE at that time). We were all walking to our cars when suddenly Kashi told us that we’d have to take a rain check on the dinner. Another cousin (paternal) was unwell and had called up my brother to take him to the doctor. All of us dispersed saying that the next time we’d have a big bash. Mind you, there were no Inshallahs mentioned. Alas! As tragic and spooky as things got, there was to be no next time.

  

Another case in point: In early 2009, I was window shopping and saw a Premium edition Scrabble set, the kind that we had since our Saudi days.  I knew right then that this was the perfect gift for my father, a Scrabble enthusiast. I also knew that it was not the right time to randomly buy it for Uppa as he wasn’t big on gifts. His 65^th birthday was fast approaching and that seemed like a good time to gift him the prized Scrabble set. Sadly, no Inshallahs occurred in my mind. As things would have been, God never willed for that 65^th birthday to happen.

  

So, no more mocking Inshallah. Now, I am scared about forgetting to say Inshallah when I wish for something. Inshallah, I’ll be more mindful of God’s intentions.

You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you. ~ C.S. Lewis

Sin-Worthy Unnakaya

Just the other day, the tempting aroma of plantain fritters that my s-i-l was frying downstairs wafted through our house. My daughter thought it was the aroma of Unnakaya – a Malabar delicacy that makes you a glutton. The next thing I heard was, “Mommy, please make me some Kunnakaayams.” It was a hilarious moment hearing her pronounce it wrong, yet identifying the delicacy.

How about some Unnakaya with tea

How could I resist her sweet little request. That said, I had to muster up my patience to make this delicious snack. You’ll know why when you see the recipe.

Unnakaya

Ingredients:

2 kg plantain, not too ripe, not too raw

4 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 cardamom

¼ cup coconut

½ cup milk

Nuts and raisins as much as you like

Ghee

Method:

1. Cut the ends off the plantains and steam them until just cooked. Take care not to overcook them.
2. Peel the skin and remove those fibrous things that run down the length of the plantain. Next, cut the plantain lengthwise and remove the black line of seeds from the center of the plantains. It is easier to do this when the plantain is still hot.
3. Pass the plantain through a sieve to mash the plantain well. You can also use a potato ricer; just make sure there are no lumps. Knead the mashed mass of plantain to form a dough. If the dough is a bit soft, you can refrigerate it for a bit.
4. For the filling, blend together eggs, sugar, milk, coconut and cardamom. Strain the mixture into a bowl to remove cardamom bits.
5. Heat a pan, pour some ghee and roast the nuts and raisins. To this, add the egg mixture and stir well like you would to scramble eggs. Take off the heat once the mixture cooks through and solidifies; make sure all the liquid has dried. Once the filling has cooled, you can proceed with shaping the unnakaya.
6. Apply a little ghee on your palm and fingers (the grease prevents the dough from sticking to your hands). Make balls about the size of a lemon. Flatten each ball on your palm to form a circle and place a teaspoon of the filling in the center. Now carefully fold the circle down the middle like you would close a book. You get a nice oval-shaped unnakaya. Smoothen the seams with your fingers.
7. Shallow fry the unnakayas in medium heat until golden brown. Take care not to burn them as the sugar in the plantain caramelizes quickly.
8. Enjoy this snack without an ounce of guilt – you deserve a treat for painstakingly making these unnakayas!

Wish I'd made some more!

This sweet dish is a real winner - even my husband, who hates the whole banana family, devours them.

Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart. ~ Erma Bombeck