My uncle is a successful man in many ways, and has been called a benevolent leader (with some of the leadership self-imposed, as some might argue). Recently, he was roundly criticized for over-expenditure, indebtedness, and for living beyond his means. Of course, you and I well know that such a sorry state of affairs is rarely due to one person alone. Not surprising, therefore, that some of his errant children were accused as having encouraged their siblings to indulge in thoughtless splurging even when the latter couldn’t afford it, and as having enlightened their family members about the benefits of (in many cases, excessive) retail therapy. It is sad that due to a few bad eggs and several trusting souls, the larger family has recently had to suffer the pain of tightening their belts during trying times. I say ‘larger family’ because those (wealthy) few who squirrelled away their secret stashes continue to levitate from consumer nirvana at Saks, Nordstrom, Nieman Marcus, and other such (no doubt) enervating destinations.
I’m sure you all must know by now which uncle I refer to…of course, none other than that magnanimous relative from across the seven seas - Uncle Sam – who is dearly embraced by multitudes from across the globe hoping to be adopted by him one fine day. I don’t know if my uncle will continue his philanthropic activities in the near future as his family is already protesting his generosity…but really, one can’t blame his good intentions as much as one should criticize his family’s tendencies to max out his credit cards.
Somewhere down the line, I think my uncle’s family lost sight of some values and principles they’d lived by 50 years ago – of a good day’s work, of living within one’s means, saving for the future, of knowing that there is more to be gained from cooperation rather than opposition, and so on and so forth. Old-fashioned school stuff, some might scoff, but really, very central to any kind of proactive philosophy and change in strategy at any point of time, in any culture/ country/ situation. In the mad quest for profit and rapid growth, any commensurate rest for one’s body and soul has also been forgotten. And so it is that today, during the greatest recession since the Great Depression, millions of my uncle’s children are trying to cope with such challenges in day-to-day living that they’ve never really faced before, after having lived a cushy life in the last 50 years or so. Yet surprisingly, more of them have been reported as being ‘happy’ – perhaps the result of realizing, in the midst of leaner days, that the best things in life are free.
People continue to have children, and to learn from them that really, one can face hardships with adaptability, faith, laughter, and self-confidence. As Wordsworth said, the child is indeed the father of man, and one learns from children the benefits of seeing anything from a fresh, optimistic perspective. Of recovering quickly. That, in time, this too shall pass. In addition, the sheer natural beauty of the American landscape acts as a balm to calm our nerves from life’s frustrations and stresses. It has also been reported that there has been a surge in community service – by both the young and the retired, an increase in food drives, non-profits and thrift outfits such as Goodwill - proof of the observation that helping the needy is a great way to appreciate the value of one’s own (certainly more fortunate) situation. These little acts of kindness and selflessness themselves point to the hope that good sense and good character will ultimately prevail, and that a change is already underway in this Age of Aquarius.
Therefore, in celebration of this fulfilling turn towards mass introspection, self-evaluation, and re-assessment, here is a dish that rose like the phoenix from leftovers – not trying to discourage you from visiting my home here, but merely pointing out how the marrying of unwilling partners can still result in a cheerful, heartening magic, at a time when food wastage is not the order of the day. Enter: Pumpkin-Tandoori Mac N Cheese!
Having leftover roast pumpkin and spare twigs of tandoori chicken at hand, I decided to stretch both to maximum advantage to feed our family of four, twice. The one fulfilled the veggie part of the dish, and the other answered any protein cravings with its potent flavor. All that was needed was a convenient carbohydrate filler – and here my eye caught a 450gram bag of pasta (maccheroni elbows), that I promptly set upon.
While the pasta cooked, into a saucepan went 4 tablespoons of butter, leftover tandoori chicken fat with its runny red color, and ¼ cup of flour…briskly whisked over a low flame to form a roux base. Over that went 3 cups of milk (whatever you have at hand in your pantry – whole/ 2%/ almond/ soy) and 2 cups of pureed roast pumpkin chunks. More pureed pumpkin is fine as long as the roux doesn’t get too runny, and if there’s too little, well then just shove in a handful of peas or corn or some such creamy, fast cooking vegetable. I would even do some diced zucchini or mushrooms for bite and meatiness.
Having run out of nutmeg, I threw in a dash of all-spice, some salt to taste, and a few turns of freshly ground black pepper, whisking occasionally to prevent lumps and to arrive at a thick, smooth soup. I really didn’t have to add much more than that because the dripping from the tandoori chicken baking dish and the rosemary-tinted pumpkin contained enough kick to make up for any herb I might have had to scrounge for. I then dunked the cooked pasta into the sauce, added the last of the chicken (finely shredded), gave it a toss, and slid the whole into a baking dish, sprinkling over a handful or so of leftover shredded cheese. This was placed in a 350 degree F pre-heated oven, to cook and brown over for about 25 minutes.
The result was a full-bodied, creamy, nutty, filling comfort food that warmed one’s cockles on a cold winter evening, and was colored a visually appealing deep rich egg-yolk orange-yellow, as you can see for yourself:
