What is it about favorite childhood foods? Somehow they live deep inside our minds and hearts. Foods we learn to eat as adults don't have the same kind of emotional hold on us, don't provide the same comfort. Perhaps this is because they are associated with that simpler time in our lives, those memories of being loved and protected and taken care of unconditionally, of diving headlong into life without worrying about consequences.

My mother used to make this snack on rainy monsoon afternoons in Kolkata, when the weather was just chilly enough to cuddle up under a quilt with my favorite book. She served it with mint-coriander chutney, and hot tea on the side. I've continued the tradition (adding spinach, which I love). I pass it on to you, my holiday gift.

Pakoras

1 cup besan flour (lentil flour--buy from an Indian grocery. You may substitute whole wheat flour, but the taste isn't the same)
1/2 c water
1/2 onion, chopped fine
1 t finely chopped ginger
1/2 t red chili powder (more or less, depending on how spicy you want it)
1/4 t each: coriander and cumin powder
1/4 t ajwain, crushed (optional; get from Indian store. Ajwain is a digestive spice)
1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach, defrosted, or 1 c chopped spinach leaves, fresh
salt to taste

Mix the besan and water to make a thick paste (similar to pancake batter--you might need to add a bit more water or besan). Add in all other ingredients.Mix well.

In a pan, heat vegetable or canola oil, enough to deep fry. (I know, I know, not the healthiest. But hey. We all have to live it up once in a while. Plus you'll be getting some spinach.) Drop the mix by spoonfuls into the hot oil. Turn over when one side is done. Remove when golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels & serve hot.

Chutney:
1 bunch cilantro or coriander leaf
a few sprigs mint leaf
a few T water
To taste: salt, green chilies (serrano or jalapeno), sugar, lime juice
Blend in food processor until it's a smooth paste, a little thinner than a dip.
Serve on the side with pakoras

If you're short on time, ketchup works almost as well as the chutney. (Sorry, Mom!)

Thanks to all of you who contacted me to say that you wanted more of my on-stage interview of Orhan Pamuk. Here are some more of his writing ideas/techniques.

Q: What would you say are some of the pros and cons of being a political writer?

To this, Pamuk responded by stating, quite firmly, that he doesn't consider himself a political writer. Only one of his novels, Snow, has overt political content. In the rest, we see the state of the country as it relates to the lives of the characters. Pamuk said that the problem with being a political writer is that immediately there are two sides, mine and the other's. My point of view becomes the right one. The other becomes wrong or harmful. But this is in conflict with the writer's enterprise, which is to try and understand all points of view, to try and treat all characters with compassion.

Q: You sometimes write the first sentence of your novel 50 or perhaps even 100 times. Could you comment on this?

To this, Pamuk responded, smiling, "Doesn't everyone? Well, then, they should!" He went on to explain that to him that first sentence sets the tone for the entire novel and once he gets it right, he can write the beginning chapter--and often the following chapters-- quite rapidly.

Pamuk brought out many of his ideas about fiction in the Norton lectures he gave earlier this year at Harvard. He told me they will be published in about a year, so watch for them.

My final question to Pamuk--which is often my last question during these onstage interviews, since many of my Creative Writing students are in the audience--was, What advice would you give to young writers?

To which Pamuk replied (the audience loved his answer), "Never listen to an old writer."

Blog: Amazing Things