A year older......

Yes!! My blog is a year older today (& me too!)...Gosh, the year just flew by and the best thing that happened to me because of blogging is I got so many friends.

Just a year back - actually sometime in last July, my husband encouraged me to start blogging. Of all the people my not-at-all-interested-in-food hubby told me to start food blogging. Well, let me give you a little background. If I ever get time, there are only two channels I watch on TV - or actually used to watch on TV (now my free time is allocated to blogging after Gudiya goes to bed!) - Food Network and HGTV. I love cooking and interior home designing too. So while watching "Mission Organization", an organizer challenged that all the things that you don't use or haven't used since last 5 years, you can get rid of them. They are junk. Recycle, Donate or trash them!! I was so inspired by this novel idea that I kept the entire collection of my recipes in the recycle bin. Now I have been collecting these recipes from childhood. So there are just too many notebooks and files and folders (& there are even more at my home in India!!:-). I was convinced that I don't need that many recipes!! It was just a childhood obsession. & I am so over it... As my husband went to put the newspaper in the recycle bin, he was shocked to see my recipe collection. He picked it up and really urged me not to throw it away. As I said, he is neither a gourmet nor a gourmand. He is not a picky eater but only category he really loves is Street food/Chaat food from Mumbai. The rest no matter what it is, he gives one feedback "exceptionally good!" - even when there is no salt in the curry!! :-D He warned me that if I get rid of these notebooks, I will repent later. For once, I listened to him!!:-D (Thank God!) "Why don't you start a blog?" He asked.

Blogging!! Yes, I had come across some beautiful blogs before. I have mentioned it many times, Nupur's one Hot Stove was the first blog I had stumbled upon while searching for a recipe. and from there I had hopped on to some other blogs. I had contributed sometimes on bawarchi or tarladalal.com or even to some blogs. but starting a blog myself was totally a new concept.

Hesitantly, I created my user profile in July 2007.

It took me almost 3-4 months to be fully convinced that I can start blogging. and on this special day of Oct 14th, I decided to start blogging. At first I had thought of keeping it simple - only limited to 2 flavors - Gujarati and Maharashtrian - flavors of my sasuraal and mayka. But then I thought of my grandmothers from whom I have inherited Malvani and South Canara food heritage...& then hubby dear insisted that I should blog the way I cook, and showcase the recipes that I have gathered from my friends & family and my desire to learn about the regional cuisines of India!! He gave it a name "Enjoy Indian Food"(I had decided a few different names which I really do not even remember now!!) and thus, this wonderful journey began. & in spite of encouraging and almost pushing me into this wonderful world of blogging, my husband hasn't yet read a single post of mine!!:-D

Well, I can't show you my silly collection of recipe brochures and notebooks, but sharing a brochure which may make you chuckle. Remember, Maggie noodles when they were first introduced in India sometime in 1980s? All the school children were given the sample packs? Do you remember, Maggie used to come with some recipe brochures then? My school friends and I had no idea what we were eating as we slurped that first Maggie!!:-D I think some of those flavors don't even exist now like Capsica or Sambhar or Lasanya (not Italian Lasagna but Hinglish garlicky flavor lasanya!!:-D but the recipes are safe with me!!!:-D As some kids are crazy about collecting stamps, autographs, or coins, I was obsessed about the recipes!!:-D

I want to thank all the blogger friends who stop by, and encourage me. I want to thank all the reader friends, who read, comment and email me. I also want to thank all of those who read and criticize me about the recipes not being authentic or traditional or whatever. I want to thank my immediate and extended family & friends for letting me taste various cuisines of India. I want to thank my husband for his pivotal role in this blog. and last but not least, I want to thank my daughter, Gudiya who is my source of inspiration (& harshest critic!) for everything I cook everyday.

& oh, where's the party, you may ask? It's right over there arranged by my lovely friend, Purnima!! :-D