About Me

 I am so glad you came. Hi, my name is Somdatta but friends call me Soma. You can call me that too. I am a Bong (from the state of West Bengal, in the Eastern part of India) but grew up in Shillong, a small hilly hamlet in the North Eastern part of India. My dad was transferred to this city and apart from our yearly vacations to Kolkata, we lived the laid back, mountain life away from the big city hustle bustle. May be that is the reason why I was introduced to the “Celebrating Friday” way of life pretty early on.

We had a close knit circle of a few families who were more family than friends to us and most Fridays would be spent watching new Hindi movie releases on the VCR (Video Cassette Recorders) and the ladies, ma (my mom), kakimas(aunts) showing off their cooking expertise with traditional dishes and also with the ones they spent afternoons adapting from various cookbooks and sharing with each other over hour long phone calls. I still remember one occasion when my sister spent the entire afternoon learning how to frost my birthday cake from one such family friend. The good thing, I still get to meet these friends after a good 20-22 years and the warmth in their hugs melts my heart and makes me feel like a little girl again.

In a way, my life today in California is a lot like the life I led in my childhood. I live from Fridays to Fridays. One of the ways I dissipate Sunday evening blues is by planning ahead for the next Friday. Having “good” friends over and the “adda”  that follows till the wee hours of the morning is something that is a part and parcel of our California life. And how can I miss talking about the spread that is laid out and all the planning that goes into it. And in the end, all the effort is worth it if things turn out well.

As Julia Child says “…nothing is too much trouble if it turns out the way it should.” But trust me; I have had my share of kitchen faux pas too.

If we are not meeting friends or entertaining, I spend the precious Friday evenings doctoring recipes in the kitchen while sipping on to my favorite California wine. So true to my being, this blog is all about “My Friday Food Swings”. Cooking to me is a holistic experience that feeds not only the body but the soul too. Food is definitely more than just sustenance by all means. And being in California, I can’t help but advocate the “Farm to Fork” way of life. Farmers’ markets are a big favorite of mine and whipping up family favorites with farm fresh ingredients takes my cooking experience to a completely different level. Fresh ingredients treated simple can never go wrong, can they? So fresh and flavorful recipes alongside everyday indulgences is what you will find here.

Now a little bit about me and my wonderful family. I would like you to meet the wind beneath my wings, my husband Samrat. I can’t help but resort to the cliché that “opposites do attract and that’s how it is meant to be” while describing us. Sam and I are definitely left and right brained respectively but that’s what helps us get a total perspective most of the times. And I love the way it is between us. Now coming to the most important part of Sam and my life, it is our 10 year old daughter Gungun. Our life revolves around her. A complete foodie like her parents, she is a food critic in the making. Sometimes she amazes me with her keen sense of taste and flavor and now things are such, that I cannot help but pay heed to her comments when I am testing out a recipe. All in all, we are a team.

Oh did I tell you, my day job involves working with lifestyle bloggers and vloggers. And a lot of it has to do with food. Now, ain’t I lucky!

I am a passionate foodie and self-taught cook without any professional training whatsoever. Everything you find in this blog are things I have been doing and which worked for me. I am by no means an expert of any kind.

Welcome to my home and life. Hope I get to meet some great friends like you here and forge a lifelong bond. Your comments, advice and feedback are most welcome. Thanks for stopping by. Just a friendly reminder, everything you find here is protected by copyright. Please do not plagiarize and be gracious enough to give due credit to my hard work. Thanks for understanding.

P.S : “My Friday Food Swings” was born on a cold November evening in the year 2012. Yes, I uploaded a pic for a soup and homemade pizza that day and started an album named “MFFS” on FB. It took almost two years for the blog to become a reality and I thank my colleague and friend Jared immensely for helping me make it a reality.