Coping with Homesickness at Christmas

Day 1 – Kul Kuls

Last year, after 27 years in the United States of America, I decided to tackle the homesickness I feel every year around Christmas! I miss Christmas back in Bombay – there is simply no other place I would rather be.

But life dictates otherwise. So in order to battle the blues, I decided to bring a little bit of Bandra to my neck of the woods in the United States of America.

I decided to host a Kuswar session.

First, I figured out who to invite. I wanted to invite people who may have visited India, have a connection with India, or do not have either qualifying feature but be open to learning about another Christmas culture.

So, I invited three friends. Two were young and one was my age.

Then, I decided what particular Kuswar item to make. It was going to be Kulkuls.

Here is a Recipe

• 1/2 kg plain flour
• 1 cup sugar (granulated)
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup coconut cream
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 4 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp butter
• 3–4 tbsp water
• Oil for deep frying. We use canola oil for this. Otherwise, coconut oil and olive oil are the reigning champions in our home.

Preparation:

1. Mix the flour and baking powder.
2. Add the butter gradually and mix again.
3. Beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add them to the flour-butter mix.
4. Add the powdered sugar and coconut milk to this mixture and knead into a soft dough.
5. Form the dough into small marble-sized balls.
6. Grease the back of a fork with some oil and flatten and press a ball of dough onto it. You also get the actual kulkul-making mold.
7. Starting at one end, roll the dough off the fork and into a tight curl. The end result will be a tube-like curl with the design from the fork on it.
8. Make similar tube-like curls with the remaining dough.
9. Heat the oil in a deep, heavy-bottomed pan on a medium flame.
10. When hot, fry the kulkuls in it
11. Turn regularly till they are a light golden brown. Drain and keep aside on a sheet of paper towel to drain out the excess oil.
12. In a separate pan prepare the sugar syrup by adding granulated sugar and water and cook till the sugar melts fully.
13. Put the cooled kulkuls into this sugar syrup and coat well.
14. Remove and allow to cool in a plate till the sugar encrusts on the kulkuls.

The process

The actual process is tedious. But it is not so when you have a group of friends all chipping in to help! Turn on some Christmas music, and make an evening of it!

When the kul kuls are done, distribute the kul kuls for your friends to take home!

I must add that this tradition has now been passed onto my kid. This year 2022, marks the first year she and her friends will be making the kulkuls.

Yours truly will be supervising and test-tasting the delicacies.

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