Poila Boisakh: Deb's Kosha Mangsho- Aunty Jean's Apple Crumble -Swordfish Casino:

Shubho Noboborsho. Hopefully 1418 has started on a great note for everyone. Touchwood. Well, it surely did start on an awesome note for us. Coz, we also celebrate one of our anniversaries with the auspicious new year. Well, I did get married to the same man, in the same year, in two different ceremonies. Hence double celebrations every year. 


Is Poila Boisakh ever complete without the quintessential kosha mangsho-bhaaat? I guess not, as it is so much into our nostalgia, of the superb platter prepared during our childhood days by our mommmas. My husband obliged me, yet again, to relive that nostalgia. Well, we ushered in 1418 with a Bong feast, where the KOSHA MANGSHO was surely "kobjidobano."

And I had been debating on the dessert which could satisfy the sweettooth, of the man of the house, who isnt too fond of the regular payesh. Cakes, I bake, a bit too often. So what could it be? One of my friends had just shared her family recipe of the APPLE CRUMBLE, which her mom(Aunty Jean) had learnt from her mom, in UK. I had always loved to dig in to Aunty Jean's desserts all through my growing up years, and this seemed to be the perfect choice for the Anniversary dessert, as the clock struck 12. Another trip down memory lane, another nostalgia connect.  

The first day of the new year, and the first day of a new benchmark in matrimony had to be celebrated well and surely not include any of us slogging in the kitchen. We love our share of fish,and having already downed kosha mangsho, our hearts longed for a fishy-connect, but with a twist. And we had not even gone for a seaside getaway this year, like our last anniversary, so we decided to somehow get a fish connect. Seafood, it was, in downtown KC. McCormick and Schmick's Seafood Restaurant in Plaza was the undisputed choice, despite the freezing cold, and the long drive. The oysters in the bar catapulted our appetites to higher and higher and once we dug into our platters, we were already on seventh heaven. Swordfish skewers on a beach in Puerto Rico, with Pina Coladas, is a cherished experience, but SWORDFISH CASINO was like manna on plate. 

To partner that we had WILD ALASKA HALIBUT & SALMON BAKED IN A CRISPY PASTRY, baked with tender shrimp, sun-dried tomato and hazelnut pesto. The tender flaky fish, the crab and lobster meat, just the right amount of heat, and the subtle touch of tang, was too tasty to properly recreate  in words. 

 And how could I forget the blissful SEAFOOD CHOWDER?! Move away New England, KC rocks in this version of the chowder, with the oyster crackers adding just the right texture and crunch. The lashing rains on the sidewalk, the recreated interiors of the steamboat 'Missouri,' the man of the moment, and just the right food, to celebrate the new year, what more could any girlie want. 

For anyone who is looking forward to laying their hands on Aunty Jean's APPLE CRUMBLE recipe,which has made its way from UK, to Kolkata and now to Kansas City, here it goes. 

APPLE CRUMBLE: 

Recreating Aunty Jean's Apple Crumble

super easy did I mention along with being super tasty !

Ingredients: 

Apple: 3 ( any variety that you like)

Sugar: 1/2 cup and 2 tbsp

All purpose Flour: 1/2 cup  and 2tbsp

Salt: a pinch

Cinnamon Powder: 2 tsp

Orange juice: 4 tbsp

Lemon juice: 2 tbsp

Shredded coconut: 1/3 cup

Butter: 6 tbsp: frozen

Procedure:

Peel, core and chop the apples. 

Mix in 2 tbsp each of sugar and flour and 1 tsp of cinnamon powder, and the citrus juices, and mix well. Keep aside. 

Grease a 9 inch round cake tin. 

Chop the butter sticks into semi-small pieces. 

In another bowl, mix together the chopped butter and the rest of the flour, sugar, cinnamon powder, and shredded coconut. Mix well, so that the butter cubes form pea sized lumps,and are well coated with the mixture. 

Layer the apples in the greased cake tin. Now layer the crumble, which has been created with the flour-butter- coconut-sugar, over it, evenly. 

Bake in a pre heated oven at 300F, till the crumble turn golden brown. 

Cool it before serving. 

Apple Crumble also goes very well with ice-cream, or whipped cream. 

Enjoy Aunty Jean's culinary secret and wish her a speedy recovery from her present ailment.