Art/ Heritage

In this article, we delve deep into the diary of one of the most-challenged Vicar of Bombay, namely Bishop Anastasius Hartmann. He saved the Bombay Seminary from shipwreck and the Church from stagnation. Here’s a sneak peek into Bishop Hartmann’s Hassles:

March 28, 1850 – Bishop Hartmann takes over as the Vicar Apostolic of Bombay. On arrival, he finds the Seminary in a chaotic mess. It had no rector, no professor, and five students on the roll!

May 1850 – Hartmann recalls the Carmelites to Bombay and appoints Fra Mauritius, Rector of the Seminary. The new Rector was fairly good and the Bishop was well-pleased. Unfortunately, Fra Mauritius’s services ended prematurely for he was deputed to Belgaum.

November 1850 – The situation worsens. The Seminary is exposed to the rebellious spirit of Fr. Braz Fernandes who had taken possession over the Salvation Church by simony. Within a few months, the Church moves over to the Padroado camp.

April 1851 – Amidst turmoil, Bishop Hartmann refused to shut down the Seminary. He appoints the Spanish Carmelite, Fr. Joseph Lopez, Rector, and Vicar of the loyal remnants of the Parish of Salvation Church.

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Faith

There can never really be nothing to give. Perhaps what we mean is there is nothing in our surplus bag to give, which still indicates that we have something.  The disciples have hit the panic button for Jesus has withdrawn by boat to a deserted place followed by large crowds and the sun was dipping its head over another Galilean horizon.

Jesus was in mourning; He had just lost his cousin, John the Baptist, in a grisly death as a ‘pleasure prize’ at Herod’s birthday party. Jesus perhaps longed to be by himself but the crowds followed Him incessantly.  His teaching of the Sermon on the Mount had made a deep impact on them.  Jesus suspends His own need to grieve because He grieves over the situation His people are. Scripture tells us that He is moved by compassion and spends the entire day curing the sick.

While scripture also tells us that there were five thousand men that day, scholars tell us that this number added to women and children would have brought the head count to a whopping twenty thousand. It is understandable why the disciples panicked. This was after all a deserted place and food by itself was a scarce commodity under Roman rule. The people of the land could barely eke out a living, perhaps prompting Jesus to pray for ‘our daily bread.’

What the disciples had truly forgotten was the power of God in a deserted place (to say the least).  The Greek word for ‘deserted’ (eremos) is the same used in the Bible for the ‘wildernesses’.  By now the light of faith should have begun to flicker in the minds of the disciples.  Surely they should have recalled the compassion of God who in the wilderness had provided manna for his people. Or the feeding of widow of Zarephath by Elijah or Elisha who fed one hundred people.  But they did not; they simply panicked like most of us in a difficult situation.

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Food

Spinach and cottage cheese 

Spinach – one bunch
Cottage cheese – 100 grams
Green chillies – 3
Mustard seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Onions – two large
Tomatoes – two large
Turmeric powder – 1/4 teaspoon
Garam masala powder- 1 teaspoon

Cut the spinach very fine. Slice the onions and chop up the chillies and tomatoes separately.

In a pan heat oil and add the diced pieces of cottage cheese. When they are fried drop them in a bowl of hot water; this will keep the paneer moist. Make sure the water is not too much (half a cup is good) as the flavours of the paneer will ooze into the water.

In the same pan that you fried the paneer, drop mustard seeds and let them crackle. Then add the chillies and when fried add the onions and cook till translucent. Add the tomatoes and rend this down. Now add the turmeric powder and salt and stir this well. Add the water of the paneer to the onion mixture and cook till ninety percent of the water is absorbed. Now add the finely chopped spinach and stir well. The spinach will reduce rapidly. Drop the heat to simmer and cover this and cook for three to four minutes. Check for salt. Add the fried paneer and stir the ingredients together gently making sure you don’t break the paneer. Serve hot.

For more food recipes go to http://www.pottypadre.com/category/food/

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Food

The Pomegranate is the first fruit ever cultivated by man and always on my list of what to buy at the market if available. This noble fruit with healing properties hails from the berry family and is the favourite fruit of the Middle East, especially Iran. Known for a love for all things sour, Iran is the largest exporter of this jeweled delicacy and one can find around 740 varieties of pomegranate there. The Iranians love the fruit so much that they even celebrate it as a festival.

Most people I know love pomegranates but hate peeling the fruit and getting to those seeds. 

There are a few methods Iranians have come up with. 

The first one involves getting a bowl of water where one separates the seeds from the peal in it. The seeds sink to the bottom and the white membrane floats up.

Some say freezing the fruit makes it easier to separate. Another method is massaging the fruit with your fingers, puncturing the skin at one end, and sucking out the juice much like a mango. 

One can also slice off the top, run a knife through the distinct white separations and pull it apart. 

My favourite method though, comes from a man who lives far far away from this ancient Persian land and is one of my favorite chefs. Enter Mr. Jamie Oliver. He simply cuts the fruit into two halves, gets himself a large bowl, takes a rolling pin in one hand, and the fruit in the other, seed side facing down. He then proceeds to happily smack it with the pin removing whatever frustration he has and hey presto the seeds fall into the bowl, and you’ve got to the fruit in seconds leaving you with only a few seeds to remove. Happy days!

This sweet and sometimes sour fruit comes in various sizes and tastes, both in its seed form and in colour. It is also pretty popular as a fresh fruit drink.

In Iran, they have juice stalls that serve only pomegranate and other toppings made from the fruit. Imagine a full stall dedicated to one fruit!

When Pomegranate is harvested in Autumn, it is juiced and boiled to a thick brown sauce called Rob-e-Anar. This is added to one of the most popular Iranian stews called Fesenjan. Fesenjan is eaten with steaming white rice and also contains, walnuts, chicken, and other spices.

In India, pomegranate seeds are used in it’s dried state. Know as Anardana it lends a beautiful acidity to curries, chutneys, and parathas. The Mexicans, Greeks, Turkish, Syrians, and most of the Middle East, all love pomegranate and use it for various dishes and drinks.

However, my absolute favourite product from the pomegranate is pomegranate molasses. I discovered it a few years ago when I entered the culinary world of the Middle East. This dark, sticky, sweet, yet acidic syrup has many uses.

Made by reducing pomegranate juice to 1/4 its volume or by optionally adding lemons and sugar. It is used in making drinks, drizzled over salads, as a marinade or glaze, in dressings, dips, stews, and even as a topping for ice cream, sorbets, puddings. 

Jelly, jams, cakes, and chocolates. Chefs and food lovers seem to have discovered a whole new exciting world with pomegranates.

The next time you have someone visit the Middle East and they ask you if you’d like something special, let them bring back a bottle of pomegranate molasses. If you don’t have anyone headed towards this region make it yourself. There are many recipes for it on the net. Once made it can be stored in the refrigerator for quite a few months. Make sure however you are careful to separate the seeds from the rind or you may have a slightly bitter sauce on your hands. Also, you have to keep a close watch on it as the sauce thickens, reduces, and bubbles or you’ll end up with hard jelly.

Here is an easy salad that I make at home often using both pomegranate and the molasses.

Ingredients:

1 juicing orange,

1 beetroot,

1 Pomegranate(seeds),

1 cucumber,

1 tomato,

1 red onion,

A tbsp. of apple cider vinegar,

A handful of rocket leaves, 

A handful of baby spinach,

Nuts- 2 tbsp. pine nuts or walnuts,

A few raisins,

Salad Dressing– 3 tbsp. Good quality olive oil, a pinch of salt, a dash of pepper, and a tsp. of Pomegranate molasses.

Slice the onion into thin slivers and let them sit in the apple cider vinegar to pickle. 

In a large salad bowl add the peeled, skinned, and segmented orange. Steam an unpeeled beetroot, cool and chop into 1” chunks. Dice the cucumber and tomato to approximately the same size as the cucumber. Add all this to the bowl along with a handful each of washed and air dried fresh rocket and baby spinach. Toast the nuts on a gentle heat in a pan and once cooled add these too. Reserve a few to top the salad). Add the raisins and the drained and freshly pickled onion.

For the dressing, shake all of the mentioned ingredients vigorously in a closed jar and pour it onto the salad. Mix all gently with your hands. Top with the remaining toasted nuts.

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Food

Brinjals with vindaloo masala

Brinjal – one very large (Black Nadia variety – see image below)
Garlic – 15 cloves
Curry leaves 4 sprigs

For masala – grind the following – this is enough to bottle and keep.

Cumin – 2 teaspoons
Cinnamon sticks – four small pieces
Bedgi chillies- 30
Garlic flakes – 28
Turmeric – 1/2 teaspoon
Cloves – 32
Pepper corns- 14
Vinegar to grind

Slice the brinjals into thick slices vertically and make deep slits on both sides. Make sure that the slits on side B of the brinjal is in between the slits made by you on side A.

Mix 1/2 teaspoon of salt with about two tablespoons of the ground masala and make sure you fill the slits well. Let this rest in the fridge for two hours.

After two hours remove from the fridge and let it stand till it comes to room temperature. Heat oil in a non stick pan. If you have a pan with ridges that will leave grill marks on the brinjals, that works better. Heat oil in a pan (not too much as brinjals can really absorb oil, so very little at a time). Place the brinjals in the pan. You may have to do this in batches depending on the size of the brinjals. After two minutes on high heat turn it over and now add the garlic and curry leaves on the side. After two minutes drop the heat and continue cooking on low heat for another three minutes.

Each time you fry a batch of brinjals add some garlic and curry leaves on the oil. When done, pile all the garlic and curry leaves on top of the brinjals and serve

For more food recipes go to http://www.pottypadre.com/category/food/

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