I Did It!!!!

Here’s an example of the beautiful photography that came out of last week’s three-day photo shoot for my upcoming cookbook The Indian Slow Cooker (Fall release). (Shots are by Brave New Pictures) This dish is a traditional spicy yogurt-based dish called Khari. If you are Indian your mouth will be watering at this point. Khari is eaten on the weekends as a lunch with tons of rice and spicy achaar on the side. I never thought it was possible to actually make this in a slow cooker – but I did it!

This was just one of the approximately twenty dishes I prepped in the first two days of shooting.

Here’s another – Palak paneer as all the ingredients are going into the slow cooker. I don’t normally pat myself on the back but I gotta’ tell you all I am incredibly proud of myself.

We went into the week sick. Aria (my 4-year-old) started crying at pick up on Friday. Her eyes were watery and I figured it was likely pink eye. My heart fell because I had a list of things to get done for the weekend. Instead of doing any of them, we ended up Saturday at the pediatrician. What began as pink eye escalated to a severe cough and cold for Aria, Neha and me. Sandeep was heading out of town and I wasn’t sure what to do.

When we had to cancel school on Monday I was miserable. I knew how much work I needed to get done including grocery shopping on Devon (Chicago’s Little India) and basic prep and cooking. Oh, and did I mention a deadline for a Chicago Sun-Times article?

I hyperventalated a bit on Monday and then I sprung into action Tuesday. Despite the constant snow, I bundled the girls up and headed to Devon. I decided to make it an adventure for them. They took turns sitting in the cart with piles and piles of beans, lentils and fresh veggies tossed on top of them.

Tuesday night I finally got the girls in bed and started prepping at 10 p.m. I started with the recipes that would take the longest to make – Dal Makhani and Rajmah. As I cut my onions and grated my ginger, Aria would cough and cry upstairs. I run up, rub some Vicks on her feet or massage her back a few minutes and run back down to finish prepping (um, washing my hands in-between). I was frustrated, anxious I wouldn’t get it all done and wondering why the hell I ever gave up my extra pair of hands (my au pair). I found myself getting angry but I brushed it off and just kept going.

I prepped all 6 slow cookers in my kitchen – they were all actually running. I timed everything so well that come Wednesday when the photogs came over we actually had food ready as it was time to shoot that particular dish.

At the end of Wed. I stayed up till 1 a.m. to wash dishes and put things away and prep some more because it was time to do it all over again for Thursday. And the story goes on – you see where I’m going with this.

Come Friday around 10 p.m. when the guys were just finishing up shooting we toasted over beers. I said, half laughing, “I’m not really sure how I managed all this.”

“We’re not really sure either,” they said.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, when we do photo shoots for folks like Hyatt they usually have a team of chefs. At least 10. And here, you did this all by yourself.”

I was dumbfounded, thinking, was I an idiot that I decided to take all of this on myself? I should have at least enlisted friends or hired someone to wash dishes.

But, I gotta’ say what got me through it all? The amazing simplicity of the Slow Cooker. I know I sound like a broken record here, but that is the only way I could have done it. I managed to cook a feast in what amounted to about two hours (if even that) of prep time per day.

And to have this achievement under my belt was worth all the grief and aggravation.

If you want to write your own cookbook – take my advice – it’s not easy. Sure, the end product is wonderful and worth all the grief but it is such a taxing process along the way. I’ve tried recipes dozens upon dozens of times…tweaking ingredients along the way. I never thought it would be such a long, arduous process. The folks doing it out there now make it look so easy. But nothing that’s ever worth it is easy.

Folks, this book will be worth it. I can’t wait to have it in my hands for all of you to purchase…use…and benefit from.

Thanks for all the kind words and support along the way. I’ve needed it. Hop onto Facebook and friend me if you’re new to the site. I’m on Twitter as well. I’ve got loads of promotions in store as we move forward and I want to make sure you’re all taking advantage of all of them. (some are book and slow cooker give-a-ways!).

I’m taking a break and then it’s off to cooking again starting next week. Keep posting your comments. They keep me going.