Tuesday, August 09, 2011

Pink snow

It's taken me a while to get used to this Delhi monsoon.  It's a cycle we go through every few days. The days get hotter and hotter till the tar on the road melts and sticks to my sandals. Expeditions outdoors are invested with a sense of daring. Only the most intrepid brave the heat.

The evenings get very still. The disappearance of the sun brings no relief. The earth takes its time dispensing the heat it has absorbed all day. The air is heavy. It is at this time that troops of ants march relentlessly indoors, finding cracks in the wall to disappear into. Panda takes a break from lying panting on the floor, to paw at them investigatively.

We carry on like this for as long as six days at a time, and by the fourth day, take to predicting the rain, knowing it will come. Each time though, the rain takes longer, as if testing our faith. When it comes, it comes with almost no warning. The sky is no help. It continues looking grey and ominous while the sun beats down from it, and even after the rains it remains that way.

The rains bring some relief. The morning after them, Panda and I have great fun peeking at our reflections in puddles. While he shies away growling, I self-consciously check my hair. It is very pleasant on those mornings, just after the rain. But as the run goes higher and higher, it dries up all those little puddles determinedly. By evening, all that is left of them is a crust of mud along the sides of the road. And then it all begins again.

The one good thing about all this is that I'm getting a great deal of use out of my ice cream maker. Why have lemonade when you can churn it into a sorbet? Why drink coffee when you can eat gelato? Don't throw away that awfully grainy fudge, churn it into ice cream. We have contrived to spend these monsoons merrily indeed.

In that spirit, I hacked away at a watermelon, juiced its innards, strained and chilled it. I then churned it to pretty pink snow and ate it out in the garden, in defiance of the sun.


9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great description of the monsoon, Nithya. So relatable!

Nithya said...

Thanks Ellie. I remember the mornings when only the promise of coffee would get us out of the office and heading towards AWWA. :)

Anonymous said...

haha - I just got back from there... Not the same without you! ;)

Anonymous said...

Looks cool! Worth a try. Can I get that effect with no icecream machine around? Will my mixer do that justice and effect?
I wish my office people do something to quell this miserable humidity

Nithya said...

@Anon, you might not get snow, but you can certainly get ice. Check out this recipe: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/07/watermelon-granita/

I've never known her to fail. Good luck!

Spectator said...

Is posting such enlarged pics a part of your scheme to leave your readers mouth-watering and earning some jealousy? :D

Nithya said...

@Spectator, that was the idea, yes. :)

Vartika said...

wow!!

tejasvi said...

Hey Nithya..
Im a friend of gurveen.. she just passed me your blog.. and i just love what i see here...home made icecreams are such a biggie for me....loved the blue and pink in the picutre that blue is my favourite....also reminds me of making frozen strawberry yogurt today though the weather doesnt call for it i have a big box of strawberries screaming to be used....