Shrikhand #FoodieReads

This post was inspired by The Chemistry of Love by Sariah Wilson.

On the Page

As I mentioned, this post was inspired by The Chemistry of Love by Sariah Wilson. Though I love watching rom-coms, I can honestly say that I have never read a rom-com. The story line was simple and predictable, but it was exactly what I wanted it to be. The conclusion was completely expected, but the journey to get there was still enjoyable.

Anna Ellis, a twenty-something cosmetic chemist, is in love with her boss, Craig Kimball. He barely knows she's alive. When she unwittingly meets his half-brother, Marco, they hatch a plan to break up Craig's engagement to Marco's ex-girlfriend. The scheme: Anna and Marco will pretend to fall in love to make Craig jealous as he is prone to coveting anything his brother has.

The characters are quirky and fun. You can well imagine what happens! Blame it on the chemistry of love.

There was plenty mentions of food on these pages that made me chuckle - cuisine torture, Marco as ketchup, and coquetry over fried foods

"'My grandmother thinks she can cook, but what she makes is like what Satan would serve in hell if he was trying to torture people. And I tell you this because you do seem like a reasonably nice man, and I don’t think anyone should be subjected to it. And my grandfather thinks that it’s rude not to eat the food set in front of you, so you’ll be stuck eating it out of politeness. I have an iron stomach from many years of that kind of cuisine torture. The second I turned sixteen, I did my best to never be home during dinnertime again.' 'That was a pretty long explanation for "don’t eat dinner here".' Brevity has never been my strong point."

"'You are not my type,' I told him. I didn’t know which one of us I was trying to convince, but I didn’t think either one of us was buying it. 'Not your type? I’m like ketchup. I go with everything.' 'You eat ketchup? Don’t your kind stick to gold-plated caviar and artichokes?' 'Artichokes? That’s your insult?'

"I got a handful of french fries. They were perfectly salted and crispy. 'French fries is my favorite F word.' 'That’s sad.' 'Why? What’s your favorite F word?' His hot, wolfish grin let me know I’d walked right into that one."

In the Bowl

But the dish that sent me into the kitchen was the tipping point - when Marco's step-mom purposefully made a dairy dish when Anna is lactose intolerant.

"The last dish was served. 'This is a mango shrikhand,' Tracie said. 'We had it on our last trip to India.' They set a bowl in front of me, and I took a small taste. It was delicious—light, creamy, sweet." I didn't make a mango shrikhand; I opted for a version that was flavored with saffron and cardamom and topped with toasted nuts.

Shrikhand

Indian Yogurt Pudding with Saffron, Cardamom, and Toasted Nuts

Ingredients

• 3 cups whole milk plain drained yogurt or 2 cups Greek yogurt

• 2 Tablespoons whole organic milk

• Pinch saffron (approximately 10 threads)

• 3 Tablespoons organic granulated sugar

• pinch ground cardamom

• pinch ground cinnamon

• pinch freshly grated nutmeg

• pinch ground ginger

• pinch ground allspice

• 2 Tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut, for garnish

• 2 Tablespoons sliced almonds, for garnish

• 2 Tablespoons pistachios, for garnish

Procedure

In a small saucepan, combine the milk and saffron over low heat just until just warmed. Remove from heat, cover, and allow to steep for 60 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk in sugar, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice. Add the saffron-steeped milk, until you get a distinct saffron flavor.

Cover the yogurt and refrigerate for up to 1 day.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.ahrenheit Place coconut, almonds, and pistachios on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Toast toppings for 5 to 7 minutes, until fragrant.

Spoon yogurt into individual serving dishes. Top with toasted toppings. Serve immediately.

I am adding this to the January 2025 #FoodieReads Link-Up.