India Tour for Before We Visit the Goddess, in photos

I just came back from a wonderful visit to India to celebrate the launch of the paperback of my newest novel, Before We Visit the Goddess, the adventures of three generations of Indian women, spanning India and USA. You can read more about it here: http://www.chitradivakaruni.com/

Thanks to everyone who helped make the tour a success: my publisher Simon and Schuster India, especially my wonderful publicist Bharti Taneja; my agent Sandra Dijkstra and her associates; ZEE Jaipur Lit Fest, Tata Kalam Lit Meet Kolkata, and Times Lit Fest Bangalore; Crossword bookstores across the country; the colleges that invited me: Lady Shri Ram, Ethiraj, IIT Madras; INKTALKS, Bangalore;  the journalists who interviewed me so generously; and especially my wonderful readers in all the cities I visited. Couldn't have done it without you. 

Here are some photo highlights. More to come later.

DELHI LAUNCH OF BEFORE WE VISIT THE GODDESS PAPERBACK. ONSTAGE WITH JAYA BHATTACHARJEE ROSE

MY TALK AT THE JAIPUR LIT FEST, WITH MODERATOR SHRABANI BASU. OVER A THOUSAND ATTENDEES AT THIS EVENT!

AT THE TATA KALAM LITERARY MEET, KOLKATA, AT THE HISTORIC VICTORIA MEMORIAL, WITH DIYA KAR HAZRA OF PAN MACMILLAN INDIA. SHE WILL BE MY EDITOR FOR MY UPCOMING NOVEL ON SITA!

WITH READER NAMAN CHAHDHARY AT THE DELHI LAUNCH

WITH READER SHAMBHAVI SINGH AT LADY SHRI RAM COLLEGE, DELHI

WITH THE BROKE BIBLIOPHILES CHENNAI CHAPTER AT CROSSWORD BOOKSTORE, CHENNAI

Hope you enjoyed these. Will add more photos soon. Thanks again, everyone!

Healthy Eating: Indian Style Omelette, a Comfort Dish from My Childhood

A new book publication is always a hectic affair, and since the birth of Before We Visit the Goddess, things have been exciting but crazy. I’ve been rushing around on book tour, eating whatever I can grab on the run. So now that I am home for a few days, I thought I would make something healthy for myself and Murthy for our lunch.

I decided on an Indian style omelette, because it is tasty, easy to make, quick, healthy and low-carb. It's also a comfort-food out of my childhood. My mother used to make omelettes spiced with onions and chilies to be served with khichuri, a rice-and-lentil dish, on rainy days. We were not rich; she probably chose to make this meal because it was an easy and inexpensive way for her to get her family some protein. Still, I have many happy memories associated with omelettes.

I started by chopping up one red onion and a jalapeno pepper, because I like my omelette spicy. I chopped up an inch of ginger, one green bell pepper, and one red bell pepper. You can add garlic, also – I just wasn’t in the mood for any. I sautéed all this in 1 tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick pan. I chopped some cilantro leaves and kept them aside. I used 1/4 cup, but you can adjust for taste. I added a little salt into the vegetables.

I beat up four large eggs, adding 1 tablespoon of water because I don’t like my egg mixture too thick. (I only use cage free eggs nowadays because I feel it’s more humane. I use eggs from pasture roaming hens when I can find them.) I added salt and pepper to taste.

I sprayed a non-stick skillet with olive oil spray, added the egg mixture, lowered the temperature to 3, and allowed the eggs to solidify without browning at the bottom. Once they were semisolid I lowered the temperature further (I don’t like crisped omelette!), added the sautéed veggies onto one half and sprinkled the whole thing with shredded cheese – shredded sharp cheddar works really well for me, but mozzarella is good, too. I topped the cheese with chopped cilantro and folded the omelette in half. I cut it into two pieces-- and lunch was ready!

I feel an omelette is a full meal in itself, so that was a good lunch for me. Murthy ate his with brown bread, and that, too, is a good way to eat omelettes!

 What is a favorite comfort dish for you out of your childhood? I'd love to know.