text:
Old Time Hare Krishna Cookbook
The following cookbook manuscript, which contains a wonderful collection of vintage Hare Krsna recipes, was handed to us several years ago by a devotee, who'd been carrying an old photocopy of it around for many years. While the manuscript doesn't bear the author's name, we're told that it was likely compiled in the early 1970's by Revatinanda dasa.
A bit of the text was illegible, but the manuscript is reproduced below (with added index.) Obviously the cookbook was written while Srila Prabhupada was still physically present. Judging from the language and recipes, our best guess is that it's circa 1972-73. The recipes will be pleasurably familiar to devotees who remember the wonderful prasadam pastimes in ISKCON temples during the 'early days'.
"This is a very limited presentation of recipes for prasadam offerings that I have become practiced in preparing over the last few years. The ingredients and basic techniques used in the preparations are according to parampara tradition. Whether the details are as Srila Prabhupada would have exactly instructed, I do not know, but I have experienced on many occasions that He has been pleased by some of these exact preparations. Also I have experienced that devotees especially, and usually karmies (non-devotees) as well, are very much attracted by my preparations. For these reasons - to increase the attractiveness of our offerings to Sri Sri Radha and Krishna, and to increase the satisfaction of both the devotees and karmies with the prasadam they take to purify their existence - I have prepared this small cook-book. It is simply an offering of one devotee's experience in the matter of prasadam preparation.
The book mostly consists of feast preparations, of which a few are conspicuously missing - kachories, barats and yoghurt, some sweets (listed in the sweets section), etc. - because I am not expert at preparing them. Some ordinary daily preparations are also listed (dals, rice, chapatis, okma, several vegetables, etc.), but as daily prasadam should be simple, most of the art is in special preparations for feasts and for the Deities' plate. For daily prasadam Srila Prabhupada has told us that milk and milk preparations (at least one pink of milk per devotee per day), vegetables, dals (these latter two can be prepared together if more complex cooking isn't convenient), chapatis, and fruits are the basic necessities. Rice is to be added in hot climates, and is not forbidden any time, nor are any other simple preparations of grains (cereals, etc.). The daily diet should contain more ghee or butter and general richness when the weather is very cold, less when the climate is warmer. Many sweets and fried preparations, while transcendental when offered, also have passion producing effects in the body. Particularly, brahmacaries (celibate students) should take very little sugar. They are also wise to go relatively easy on spices, ghee, peanuts and chickpeas (and other very high protein foods) and quantity generally - especially if they are troubled by lust and/or anger. If this kind of dietary restraint plus full engagement in devotional service does not solve the problem, then marriage is in order.
Srila Prabhupada once said we should be austere in eating for 6 days of the week and feast on Sunday. He has also said about feasting that "our eating should not cause death" (meaning excessive sleeping), nor is too much eating of rich foods worth subsequent passion, and grogginess the next day. The best policy is to prepare the feast very nicely for the pleasure of the Lord, the devotees, and the guests, and later relish the remnants for point of satisfaction, but not to excess. This kind of restraint is only possible when we remember that we are eating prasadam, and not food, and that real happiness comes through service, and not through sense gratification. Part of devotional service is to accept only Krishna-prasadam and to relish it as the mercy of the Lord. To repeat the prayer "This material body is a lump of ignorance" before eating prasadam is very helpful in this respect.
A few things we don't eat as Vaisnavas are onions, garlic, chocolate, mushrooms (not forbidden, but not offerable to the Deity), soybeans, masur dal (red lentils), yeast - and, of course, meat, fish, eggs, and alcohol. Some spices Srila Prabhupada has nixed are mustard seeds, mustard oil (useful for toothpaste and skin), and fenugreek seeds. Cooking oils are never better than third class, and should never be used in cooking for the Deities, unless ghee is truly unavailable. Srila Prabhupada has never shied away from the use of white sugar, nor has he shown any interest in today's 'health food' or 'zen diet' theories, nor has he been overly fussy in investigating the background production or processing of foodstuffs. The principle is that there is nothing produced in this contaminated age that is pure, and that if the foods are those we accept, we treat them properly once we have them, and purify them by offering, without so much worrying about their background. If what is there is sugar, for example, we don't' worry how it got that way. Simply, once we have it, we prepare with it and offer nicely, and leave the rest to Lord Krishna.
With this bit of basic philosophy covered, we can proceed to the practical basics and terms used in the recipes. The basic spices I keep with me (these are not the only useful ones), along with their Hindi names (when I know them), are turmeric (haldi); salt; asofoetida (hing); cumin seeds (jira); anise seeds (sauf); coriander seeds; whole cardamom seeds (ilachi); whole cloves; ground cinnamon and ground nutmeg; rosemary; and thyme. Some others that are useful sometimes are ground coriander; ground cloves; bay leaves; saffron; camphor; and lavajis (Gujurati) or joyan (Bengali) for which I know no English name-equivalent.
When I chaunce, I begin by heating ghee (clarified butter) in the bottom of a pan over medium-high heat. If using coriander seeds, these go in first. Once these are beginning to brown, then cumin seeds. Once the cumin seeds are browning, then broken up red peppers. Once these are turning black, then (if using) anise seeds. When these are golden brown, then sprinkle in the asofoetida, and immediately afterward add the foodstuffs or pour the chaunce into the dal or cuddy. When the chaunce is ready, the coriander and cumin seeds are deep brown (never burnt black), the red peppers are black, the anise seeds are medium brown, and asofoetida has just been added (asofoetida should always be sprinkled in, or else it merges into lumps in the ghee). A proper chauncing is one of the keys to nice vegetable preparations, chutneys, dals, and many others.
For steaming vegetables, the technique is to put the vegetables in a pot, and add from ¼ to one inch of water at the bottom. Put on a tight lid, and let the water boil out, stirring a couple of times in the process. Different vegetables take different times to steam, and the art is to add just the right amount of water so that just as it cooks out the vegetables are just soft through. An arrangement (like a double boiler) that suspends the vegetables above the water, while exposing them to the steam, is the best. This method of pre-cooking is far superior to boiling, which causes loss of nutrients.
Concerning spicing, I have never been one to measure spices by teaspoons, tablespoons, etc. Hence you will not find exact measurements in the recipes. Srila Prabhupada spices by pouring the spice into the palm of his hand, appraising the amount, and then adding it to the preparation. Especially at first (and especially with salt), it is better to be a bit conservative. You can always add spices, but it is generally impossible to remove them once in. Mastery in spicing means that the preparation is spiced just sufficiently to fully enhance the flavour of the main ingredients. Each time you prepare something you can learn by tasting the remnants the way to improve your spicing of it the next time.
With the exception of the undesirable foods pre-listed, most fruits, grains, vegetables, etc. can be made into first class preparations. Cabbage is generally second class, but can be prepared nicely in certain ways. I find that turnips, parsnips, swedes, spring (loose-head) cabbage, and a few others are generally third to fourth class by nature, and I usually don't cook with them. Artichokes are out (too troublesome). We don't generally have much use for grains other than wheat, rice, and occasionally oatmeal and cornmeal. Srila Prabhupada has complimented nicely prepared broccoli, and I have also observed him to enjoy properly prepared grapefruit (both these were once thought taboo). Properly prepared grapefruit means not only to remove the outer peel, but also the skin on each segment, and to offer the internal membrane with a little sugar. Srila Prabhupada has never shown excessive fondness for salads made of raw vegetables, although he will take them on occasion.
Of course, the general principles are to keep Krishna's kitchen as clean as His temple room and to be very clean in body and mind while cooking. Clean of body means to wash hands before cooking (and when possible, bath first and wear clean clothes), and also each time you touch your clothing or body, the floor, or any dirty object. If you drop foodstuffs, those that can be thoroughly washed can be used, but otherwise they are not offerable and should be discarded or eaten without offering. No eating or drinking should take place in the kitchen. Animals and bugs are undesirable guests, as are non-devotees who don't understand that prasadam is not to be relished by seeing, smelling or tasting before it is offered to the Lord. Cleanliness of mind means to offer obeisances to Srila Prabhupada before beginning, and to discuss only the cooking and Krishna Katha while in the kitchen. Generally less talking means less burning and spoiling of preparations. Basically, then, a good cook means he is very clean and very aware of his responsibility as a cook for the spiritual master and the Deities. Krishna helps such a servant to cook very nicely.
The techniques of cooking prasadam are as transcendental as the offering process. Prasadam cooking is not just another theory on vegetarian diet, but is the style in which foodstuffs are actually prepared for Krishna in the spiritual sky. Therefore, we should stick to the standard approaches and try to make them perfectly. This will make the prasadam very pleasing to the Lord, and automatically the best tasting of all foodstuffs, especially for those who are balanced toward the mode of goodness. The following are only a few of the unlimited transcendental preparations possible.
DAL PREPARATIONS 1. Yellow Split Mung Dal
Wash dal and drain, spice mildly with turmeric, salt, ground black pepper, bay leaves, (rosemary, sage optional), add four parts water to one part dal and boil. Chaunce mildly with cumin seeds, anise seeds, red peppers, and asofoetida (hing).
2. Split Channa Dal (very high protein)
Wash dal, drain and spice medium with turmeric, salt, black pepper, bay leaves, sliced ginger root, a little cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Add 5 parts water to one part dal and keep at rolling boil. It takes a long time to cook. Chaunce, medium strength with cumin seeds, a few coriander seeds, red peppers and hing.
3. Cracked and Shelled Urad Dal (high protein)
Wash dal and drain, spice mildly with turmeric, salt, black pepper, sliced fresh ginger root, some chopped tomatoes. Add 5 parts water to one part dal, and keep at rolling boil. It takes a very long time - say five hours - to cook until breaking up. Chaunce mildly with cumin seeds, anise seeds, red pepper and plenty of hing. (You may require more water while cooking.)
4. Whole Mung Bean Dal
Wash and drain, spice the same as for Channa Dal, also putting some rosemary and thyme and chopped tomatoes. Add four parts water to one part dal and keep at rolling boil. About half an hour before done, adding small chunks of cauliflower is nice. When beans breaking open and liquid becoming soupy, done. Chaunce with a few coriander seeds, medium cumin seeds, light on anise seeds, red peppers and hing.
5. Sweet Whole Mung Bean Dal
Wash beans and drain, spice lightly with turmeric, salt and black pepper, put rosemary and sliced ginger root and a good sprinkling of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove powders. Add 3 ½ to 4 parts water to 1 part dal. About 1 hour before done, add plenty of apple chunks. Chaunce with light cumin, fairly heavy anise seeds, medium red peppers, and light hing. Near the end add about a quarter cup of sugar for every cup of dal beans used. Should be slightly sweet and quite thick - almost pasty.
I have experienced that Srila Prabhupada is much more interested that dals are properly spiced and sufficiently cooked, rather than in their thickness - I usually make all dals fairly thick and cook the beans until they are breaking up and making the liquid thicken. Channa I do not make so thick because it is very high in protein. Sometimes in 2, 4 and 5, I go light on the ground black pepper, and add also some whole peppercorns; also, in five, whole cloves instead of ground. 3 should be spiced lightly and simply just to accentuate and bring out flavour. 5 is nice change now and then, usually very popular and 1, 2, and 4 are good for most days - vegetables can also be added liberally to these if one likes.
6. Special Dal
There is one special dal using whole chickpeas which is good for big S.K.P. (sankirtan party) days or feasts: Boil whole chickpeas until soft when squeezed. Drain off water and add buttermilk to the top of beans. Mix in a little gram (chick pea) flour - enough so that as the buttermilk comes to boil, it thickens a bit. Spice with turmeric, salt, light on red peppers, and plenty of hing.
7. Kittrie (rice - yellow split mung)
Wash equal proportions rice and dal and drain thoroughly. In the bottom of a deep pot make a chaunce with plenty of ghee, adding medium amounts of coriander seeds, cumin seeds, red peppers and hing - when seeds are deep brown add grains and stir. Add ghee until it is almost running out the bottom (Srila Prabhupada: "Kittrie means ghee"). While stirring over medium flame add turmeric, salt, black pepper, thyme, rosemary and a light sprinkle of ground cinnamon and nutmeg. At this point fairly big chunks of potato and cauliflower should be added (chopped tomato and other vegetables optional), and mixture should be stirred until rice is looking well fried. Then add water in this proportion: 1 part rice, 1 part dal, 4 parts water. Bring to a boil, and then turn down again to a low boil, covering tightly with lid, and steaming like rice. Give it one stir when water has gone down to top of rice, thus mixing ingredients, otherwise disturb as little as possible. When water is gone check to see that rice and dal are soft to touch, if not, add a bit more water.
If this preparation is made with less spice or just salt and turmeric, and ½ again more water is used, it can be stirred while cooking and made into a runny kind of kittrie that is very good for weak or sick stomachs - this should be taken (if for medicine) with no chapaties and only boiled or steamed vegetables.
8. Kittrie and Cuddy
Prepare rice and mung the same as for regular kittrie, and fry the same way but no chaunce. Spice and salt and turmeric, and while frying add chunks of cauliflower and potato. When dal appears a bit glassy add water in the same proportion as for regular Kittrie and cook in the same way, exactly until done.
At the same time this is cooking, put one part sifted gram flour in the bottom of a deep saucepan, add a moderate sprinkle of turmeric and salt, (it takes some practice on the turmeric), and then mix in a little water, beating into a pasty batter so that lumps are stirred out. Then add four to five parts yoghurt (4 if very thick, 5 if thinner) and beat this into the batter. When all lumps are gone, add water slowly, stirring constantly until the batter has become nearly like water. If turmeric has been right this liquid should be white with a light yellowish caste, not bold yellow. Then bring this mixture up to a boil, being careful because it burns easily and even a little burning spoils cuddy sauce. As it gets near boiling it should turn yellow and almost simultaneously thicken into a thick liquid (gravy-like). When boiled, finished. Chaunce with fairly heavy cumin seeds, very light red peppers, and heavy hing. When offered or served poured over the kittrie this is one of Srila Prabhupada's favorites.
9. Plain Rice
Wash rice at least twice thoroughly and drain. Put in pot with a small quantity of salt and two parts water to one part rice. A little more water if Basmati or some other hard variety. Bring quickly to a boil and then turn heat down until barely boiling, and put lid on. The best thing is not to disturb rice while cooking - but if it is a very big quantity or the pot is too small, then check it once rice is showing above water to make sure it is cooking evenly. If not, stir gently occasionally until nearly cooked, and then stop stirring completely. The rice should be cooked - soft and fluffy - when the water is gone. Then stir once gently and offer hot - plain or with a little butter on it. It can be offered along with some plain yoghurt - because the two mixed is very palatable.
10. Pushpanna (Flower Rice)
'Kesing' - cheese balls - boil 12 pints of milk, when boiling pour in lemon juice or tartaric acid solution slowly while stirring - when milk separates into curds and whey stop, and strain out curds thru a cloth, saving whey and keeping. Squeeze the whey out of the cheese by twisting in the cloth until cheese is nearly dry but still a bit moist with whey. Then roll the cheese under a rolling pin, thoroughly smashing the curds until the cheese is smooth. Then compress this cheese into small, firm balls less then ½ inch diameter, and keep them aside. Then crack open a good sized coconut or two smaller, putting the water in the whey. Pry out the white meat with a knife in as large pieces as possible. Slice these pieces into wedges 1 to 1 ½ inches long and one-sixteenth to one-eighth thick, after scraping the brown off the back.
Have 1 to 1 ½ lbs. Whole cashew nuts, or, alternatively, whole blanched almonds on hand. Now - deep fry all these items in ghee - best thing is to have them in a wire mesh basket or big strainer and dip this into the ghee, removing when they are done and draining to save ghee. The coconut wedges and nuts should be fried until just golden-brown, and the kesing balls until rich brown and hard on the outside. Keep these fried goods aside along with 1 to 1 ½ cups golden raisins.
Next - wash 4 lbs. of basmati rice (or highest quality available) checking first for pebbles. Drain thoroughly. In the bottom of a deep fairly big pot melt some ghee and make a chaunce - medium strength, with coriander seeds first, then cumin seeds, then red peppers broken, then anise seeds, and right at the last, plenty of hing sprinkled in and a few bay leaves. Right on top of the hing and the bay leaves toss the rice, and stir, adding some ghee until rice nicely glistening with it. Now fry over medium heat, stirring occasionally, and adding: turmeric, salt, black pepper - all medium - plenty of rosemary (crumbled in hand first to free flavour), liberal sprinklings of cinnamon and coriander powder, a bit less clove powder (very strong), and especially lots of ground nutmeg, which is very nice in this preparation. Stir this mixture around until the rice is just a bit browned, and then add the fried goodies and raisins. Stir once gently and then add about 9 pints (a bit more than two to one) of the whey and coconut milk mixture - supplement with water if necessary. Add now one to 1 ½ lbs. Sugar, and break open 10 to 15 cardamom pods, breaking the enclosed seed-lumps into the liquid. Bring quickly to boil and then turn heat down to low boil and cover tightly, cooking like plain rice. Again, when rice beginning to show above water, check to see that it is cooking evenly, and if not stir gently and re-cover. If problem, then stir once again gently when half of remaining water is gone. When water is gone, see that rice is soft - if not, add a bit more whey or water, but it should be done. If not already mixed, then stir once to mix all ingredients and fluff up. While stirring be careful of kesing balls. Offer as is. This preparation is nearly a feast in itself. I've had it twice cooked by Srila Prabhupada - an unforgettable taste - and this recipe approximates that taste. This recipe feeds 50 usually, so proportions can be adjusted to suit.
BREAD PREPARATIONS 1. Chapatis
Take plain whole-wheat flour - smooth ground is best - and add a little salt. Mix in warm water, kneading until you have a dough which is neither quite sticky nor stiff. Then go on to knead this dough thoroughly for at least 5 minutes, and after that let sit - covered with pot or damp cloth for 15 minutes - do not allow to dry out on outside. Avoid kneading dough again after letting sit. Then make some balls - maybe 1 ½ inches diameter - recovering the rest and rolling the balls in flour. Spread some flour on the rolling surface, and press a ball down with hand in the middle of it. Roll out into a thin circle one-eighth of an inch or less thick. Try to perfect rolling nice circles of uniform, thin-ness, turning over and re-spreading flour when necessary. Use as little flour as possible for rolling and brush off the chapati gently before cooking to remove excess flour. The more flour on the chapati, the more it tends to become tough.
To cook - have a hot plate, griddle, or cast-iron fry pan (or Indian chapati-circle) hot above a low to low-medium heat, on another burner have a medium to high heat, and a way to suspend the chapati above it and then turn it - directly above the heat source (sometimes stacking two burner grills accomplishes this - in India they heat the chapati on a hot cast-iron circle and then toss it right on the hot coals and flip it once to puff it). Then put the chapati on the hot surface (normally, it will not stick) and let it heat until it just begins to bubble - then flip and let it bubble just a bit more - then put directly over heat - it should then puff up like a basketball - and flip immediately. Brown (not black) spots should form a bit on both sides. Then brush with melted butter and offer or serve hot - right off the flame whenever possible. If served fresh like this, with plenty of butter, the taste is incomparable. Srila Prabhupada likes them thin and around 8" in diameter.
2. Poories
Take either whole-wheat flour or 50% white (chapoories). Melt ghee (try ¼ lb. Melted ghee to 2 lbs. Of flour) and work warm ghee into the flour. Srila Prabhupada told me that good poorie dough means some ghee (so it will not need flour to roll), but not lots of ghee. Minimum ghee is better. When ghee pervades flour, then start kneading in warm water to make a stiff dough. Knead thoroughly until smooth and then let sit 15 minutes covered. Again make balls - this time smaller, 1" diameter. Rolling pin and surface should first be smeared with a bit of ghee (minimum) and then roll out some nice, round circles, very thin. If sufficient ghee in dough, no flour is needed, if not, work in more ghee - don't use flour to roll poories.
For cooking, two approaches:
1. If to be offered and served up immediately, then have ghee quite hot and roll the poories fairly small and very thin. Put them in the ghee (remember, hot ghee is extremely hot and burns severely). They will puff immediately. Immediately flip and then quickly remove from ghee, offering or serving while hot is best. In this way they will stay soft, but because they are thin they are cooked nicely.
2. If to be put aside and distributed later - say at an engagement - then roll them a bit thicker - up to one-eighth inch - and cook them in ghee that is hot but not extremely hot. Putting them in ghee, they will also puff up, but a bit slower, when puffed, flip for a couple of seconds. The idea here is to cook them until they are beginning to stiffen, but are not yet brittle and crumbly. Then drain them, and finally stack them up in a pot or box, on top of each other, and keep a lid on the container as much as possible while cooking them. In this way they are cooked sufficiently and their weight and heat will collapse them one atop the others. Still soft, warm, and palatable, they can be served up hours later if desired.
3. White Flour Poories
The same approach is used in making the dough - stiff and not too much ghee. Then they can be cooked in medium-hot ghee - thin but not extremely thin, and after puffing and flipping, but not yet showing any brown, they can be removed, drained, and sprinkled with granulated or powdered sugar mixed with a bit of salt (10 sugar, 1 salt) - a delicacy.
4. Savoury Poories
Make dough as in No. "2", but before adding in water, mix in turmeric, salt, and fine ground hing (plenty of latter), and also some tiny Indian seeds (like anise in appearance, but only one-third as big) called "lavajin" - (these seeds have a unique taste unlike cumin or anise - this name is Gujarati or Hindi - they have different names in different Indian languages). Then complete the dough and cook like regular poories.
5. Samosas (Sangosas) - All attractive at feasts
Filling: clean cauliflower and then chop into small bits (I usually whittle down the heads with a knife - all the way down to the tough centre). Then make a chaunce with plenty of ghee, adding medium-large quantities of coriander seeds, cumin seeds, dried red peppers, fennel seeds, and much hing at the very last. The cauliflower goes in right on top of the hing. Stir, and add in liberal quantities of turmeric, salt, black pepper, rosemary, thyme, and very important, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander, and a bit of ground cloves - also add in some butter, to increase richness and speed cooking. When cauliflower nearly cooked (glassy) add fresh or frozen peas and finely chopped spinach. (Sample proportions: 5 or 6 good-sized cauliflowers, 2 lbs. peas, 1 lb. spinach, ¼ lb. butter). Stir around for a few minutes (all through frying, heat can be high as you like, but don't burn), and then add water until not quite showing above vegetables. Then cover and let the water steam out, stirring occasionally and not burning. When peas nicely cooked remove lid and cook off any excess water. When mixture is moist but water not running out bottom, finished. Mash into paste. It is easier to stuff samosa's when the filling has cooled. Samosa filling should be fairly spicy, but not so hot the karmies can't eat them.
Dough - for the above quantities of vegetables approximately 4 lbs. white flour, put in a pan. Melt 1 lb. ghee, and when nice and warm, thoroughly blend all this ghee into the flour, so that flour is pervaded with ghee. Then mix in warm/hot water a little at a time, while kneading, until a smooth but stiff dough is formed. Knead thoroughly, and then cover for a few minutes. In this way, samosa dough, unlike poorie dough, means lots of ghee - the more ghee and less water used in making, the softer and more palatable the samosa crust - some water is however necessary. And, according to Srila Prabhupada, samosa dough should be made with white flour, not whole wheat.
Folding and cooking - there are many ways of folding samosas - the nicest being those that result in the least un-filled crust. One way is like this: Roll out thin circles about 5" in diameter (or roll bigger and cut out circles), and cut in half. Fold the semi-circle into a cone (it is difficult to diagram how) putting some water on the edge being sealed). The cone looks like an ice cream cone, sealed along the cut edges of the semi-circle. Turn inside out, and fill two-thirds of the cone with filling. Then seal the top using water, pinch thoroughly, and then crinkle the sealed end by twisting. The cone looks like this:
and when finished, the samosa looks like this:
Make sure all seams are well sealed so they don't break open while frying. Then deep fry in hot ghee until a rich golden colour, and offer.
At Kachories - poorie like, filled with spiced dal filling and fried, I am not expert, nor at barats and yogurt (I can say that barats should be soft and soak up yogurt.)
VEGETABLE PREPARATIONS 1. Potatoes and Cauliflower - with Sour Cream
Excellent at feasts and engagements. Clean potatoes thoroughly and cut into fairly large chunks of uniform size. Put in a pot and add a super-large amount of turmeric (much more than you think) - then add water to just above top of potatoes and boil with lid on until knife passes easily through the potato chunks. Then drain off the liquid thoroughly. Usually, Srila Prabhupada does not like vegetables to be boiled, but he has allowed me to do this with potatoes. (Steaming is O.K.) They will soak up turmeric and look yellow-orange when cooked. At the same time spuds are cooking, chop up cauliflowers into fairly small, whole pieces (for 10 lbs. potatoes, use 3-4 medium cauliflowers, and at least 2 pints of sour cream).
Now, in a suitable frying pan make a chaunce with plenty of ghee. Make a strong chaunce, enough for potatoes as well as cauliflowers. Proportionately - medium coriander seeds, heavy cumin seeds, medium red peppers, heavy hing - but all together, quite strong. Add in the cauliflower, being careful of the explosion, and stir. While frying, add in enough butter so that vegetable does not stick and fries quickly. Let the cauliflower brown a bit, then stir, etc. until cooked. When cauliflower bits cooked through, add in a quarter to half lb. of butter to melt, and then pour everything over potatoes. Add salt and black pepper - potatoes take a lot of both - but not too much. You can always add salt, you cannot take it out. Add the sour cream. Now take a spatula or flat spoon and press it into the preparation again and again, dicing up the potatoes. Then stir thoroughly, mixing together all ingredients. The result should be yellow and a bit creamy and tastes super-excellent. Some yoghurt - say one-third as much as sour cream, can also be put, optionally. Yoghurt and milk can be used instead of sour cream, but are not nearly as good.
1-b - turmeric potatoes - if potatoes are boiled as above in turmeric, and drained they can then be fried in a similar chaunce, adding salt, pepper and butter for a few minutes, and then offered as a simple, daily preparation. Some milk, yoghurt, or sour-cream can be added to make it more creamy.
2. Potato-Cauliflower - Wet Vegetable
Wash and peel potatoes and cut in chunks about 1 ½ inches square. Wash similar quantity of cauliflower and cut in sections about same size. (sub-heads). In hot ghee deep fry the potato chunks until golden on outside and soft through. Deep fry the cauliflower chunks in very hot ghee, but only until about half cooked. Drain thoroughly while removing from ghee. In a pot make a medium chaunce with a few coriander seeds, cumin seeds, red peppers, and plenty of hing. Not too much ghee needed in the chaunce. When chaunce ready throw a pint of water in. Then add the potatoes and cauliflower, and add water to barely cover vegetables. Spice with turmeric, salt (moderate) and a little black pepper. Rosemary and thyme optional. Bring to boil, and cover, boiling for about one hour. Then serve in a bowl with the soup. When I offered this (including herbs) to Srila Prabhupada he singled it out as "very nice".
3. Brussel Sprouts Cauliflower - Wet Vegetable
Clean sprouts and cut in half through stem. Clean cauliflowers and cut into medium size chunks (sub-heads). Make a mild chaunce in a pot with medium ghee, a few coriander seeds, cumin seeds, red peppers, and fair-to-heavy hing. Add vegetables (both together) and fry around over medium-to-high heat, adding butter or ghee if they are sticking too much. While frying add medium turmeric, salt, and ground black pepper. Fry and then stir until sprout leaves are browned just a bit, and then add water to just cover vegetables. Cover and boil until sprouts are soft and turned light green, and cauliflower chunks are soft enough to break up while stirring. Finished. Offer in bowl with juice or poured over plain rice. One of Srila Prabhupada's favorites. Feast or daily.
4. Eggplant & Tomatoes & (Spinach) (Maha-brinjal)
Cut eggplants into small chunks. If your fry-pot is small, figure 2 to 3 times as much eggplant as it appears it will hold (as eggplant cooks down, you can add more and more). Make a chaunce with lots of cumin seeds, medium reds, and medium hing, and plenty of ghee. When chaunce ready, add eggplant bits and stir. Add plenty of turmeric, medium salt (not too much, eggplant is sensitive to salt), and medium black pepper. Have on high heat. Let sit for a while until brown and just beginning to stick - then stir, scraping bottom of pan. Then let sit again, and keep repeating this process. If not cooking very quickly or thoroughly, add more butter or ghee - this preparation requires plenty. When eggplant chunks are soft through and beginning to mush up, add tomatoes chopped into six or 8 pieces. (If tomato skins have first been removed by scaling the tomatoes quickly in boiling water or turning directly in gas flame, this is nicer - no rolled-up skins later). Figure 2 medium size tomatoes to one medium sized eggplant. Stir these in, and also, optional, add a bunch of chopped-up spinach (tough stems excluded) at the same time. Water will come out of the tomatoes, and the whole thing will become soupy. Now start boiling out of the water, letting sit, then stirring. As water cooks out it begins to thicken. Watch out you don't burn at this stage. Then, when all loose water is gone and the whole thing is an un-recognizable, almost dry, pasty substance, finished. Options are to (1) put in slices of zucchini squash (corgetttes) with the tomatoes (2) to mix in boiled potato-chunks at the end (3) to thoroughly cook chickpeas and then deep fry them in very hot ghee until a bit crisp on the outside but still soft inside, and then mix in at the end. But plain eggplant and tomatoes, or with spinach, is sufficient in itself. This makes a nice noon meal along side kittrie and cuddy and chapatis. It is a very big hit at feasts, especially with devotees and devotee-types. You can often recognize a potential devotee by the way he goes after this preparation. Flat karmies don't always care much for it. At one time Srila Prabhupada was eating this every day.
5. Brussel Sprouts (Cabbage Optional)
Clean sprouts and cut in half thru stem. If you like, also wash and shred some cabbage. Put sprouts (and cabbage) into a pot and add a little water up to, say, half an inch deep at bottom. Then put on high heat with tight lid so that water boils and steam cooks the vegetables. Stir 2 or three times while steaming. The art in steaming is to put just enough water so that when it is gone the vegetable is just cooked. Less water at first is better than too much, because you can add a bit, but if you have to drain you loose food value in the water, and Srila Prabhupada does not like this. When loose water gone and sprouts just soft thru; cooked. Now make a mild-medium chaunce with very light coriander seeds, medium-heavy anise seeds, medium reds and hing. Add the vegetables, along with medium turmeric, salt, and pepper. While frying, add some butter to make moist. Fry a few minutes to cook turmeric, then done. Many vegetables can be cooked similar to this.
If you want to cook plain cabbage (I have never seen Srila Prabhupada request or eat much cabbage), to do it in this way is as good as any, but at the end mix in a good sprinkling of coriander powder and let sit for a few minutes (zucchini squash - corgettes - can be sliced and steamed with the brussel sprout prep. If you want you can skin a few tomatoes, chop them, and throw them in the chaunce just a few minutes before the sprouts - makes a wetter tomato flavoured preparation.
6. Spinach, Tomatoes, and Cheese
Prepare the cheese the same as for pushpanna, breaking up the curds with a rolling pin (smash thoroughly ) and then put into a firm layer about ½ inch thick. Cut this layer cross-cross, making squares about 1 inch on a side. Deep-fry these squares in hot ghee until rich brown in colour and keep aside.
Remove the skins from some tomatoes and chop in 6 to 8 pieces each. Make a medium-heavy chaunce with a few coriander seeds, cumin seeds, lighter red peppers, hing. Put the tomatoes in the chaunce, adding plenty of turmeric, medium salt and pepper, rosemary, thyme and basil. Cook down, stirring frequently, into a thick tomato sauce.
Have a large amount of spinach cleaned, stems removed, and chopped up in fairly small bits. At the same time tomato sauce is cooking, put some ghee (a little) in the bottom of a pot, and add the spinach. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach is thoroughly cooked. Whenever water forms, drain it off into the cooking sauce, so that spinach remains almost dry. When the spinach is thoroughly cooked, add in the thick sauce and the cheese cubes, and stir together gently, so as not to break up cheese. If there is still a bit of wateryness, cook it off, stirring gently now and then - if not, then having mixed all ingredients, take off heat and let sit for a few minutes with lid (so cheese gets soft), then offer. Excellent feast preparation.
If you prefer, young zucchini squash can be sliced (one-eighth of an inch thick) and used instead of spinach - cook them exactly the same as spinach, draining off water when necessary.
7. Okra & Tomatoes with Yogurt (Eggplant Optional)
Clean some young, fresh okra (not tough and stringy) and cut the 'fingers' cross-wise into discs one quarter to half an inch thick. Chop up an equal quantity of ripe but firm tomatoes into small bits about the same size as the okra-disks. Make a mild-medium chaunce with coriander seeds, cumin seeds, red peppers and hing, and not too much ghee. Add the okra to the chaunce and stir for a while, frying over a medium heart. While frying add moderate turmeric, salt, and black pepper. When cooked a little, add the tomato bits and stir gently for just a couple more minutes, so that tomato bits don't break up much. Then add water enough to steam through and add lid. Let steam until water is gone and okra is just cooked through. Then add in some plain yogurt - enough to thoroughly wet the vegetables, and then let the yogurt cook out with lid off. As the yogurt-water cooks off (you stir gently occasionally as this goes on) the yogurt will vanish into the vegetables. When all free juice is gone turn off heat and offer. This can also be made including an equal portion of small-chopped eggplant, which should be chaunced with the okra. In this case, more ghee is used in the chaunce, and eggplant should be about half cooked before tomatoes added. The rest is the same.
8. Plain Okra
If okra pieces small, simply wash and remove stem. If longer, cut in half and split big half in two lengthwise. Make a chaunce with medium ghee and mild strength using cumin seeds, anise seeds (equal parts), red peppers and hing. Add in the okra and begin stirring over a medium heat, spicing with turmeric, salt, and a little black pepper. While cooking, if the preparation seems too dry and begins sticking, add a little water now and then - depending on the kind of pot or pan used and the condition of the okra, this is sometimes not necessary. When all okra is soft through and beginning to break up, finished. When one becomes accustomed to the unusual texture of okra cooked like this (to most people it seems a bit slimy) it becomes very relishable.
9. Fried Potatoes and Cauliflower
Cut cleaned potatoes into cubes half inch to three-quarters inch square and an equal quantity of cauliflower into medium to small sub-heads. Make a medium-to-strong chaunce with fairly heavy ghee - using a few corianders and plenty of cumin seeds, red peppers, and hing. When chaunce is nice and ready, add first the cauliflowers and fry around a bit on medium to high heat. When just beginning to cook, add the potatoes and a fairly heavy sprinkling of turmeric, salt, and ground black pepper. Stir occasionally at this heat, allowing to brown a bit, and then stirring again. Whenever sticking becomes a problem, add in more ghee - enough so that they are always frying and browning a bit, but not sticking excessively or burning. When potatoes are soft through, cauliflowers are usually also done, and preparation is finished. Difficult to do in large quantity, but very tasty and attractive.
For a larger quantity, chaunce and begin frying in this way until potatoes and spices are in. When stirring becomes a problem (i.e., burning becomes difficult to avoid) or the vegetables begin breaking up too much, then add some water and a lid and steam the rest of the way. When liquid is gone and vegetables are soft, finished. Some spicy (not sweet) masalas (spice-mixtures) are nice in this, added toward end of frying stage.
10. Fried Eggplant
Slice eggplants into cross-sectional layers not more than half an inch thick. (i.e. into flat discs or ovals). Make a powder with five parts turmeric to one part salt, and add a bit of cumin powder and hing (this may be too much salt, I don't usually measure so I am guessing). In a flat bottomed frying pan heat up ghee about one-eighth of an inch deep. Press some eggplant flats down in the spice mixture so that coated on both sides. Now add one or more flats into frying pan (depending on its size) so that they are all flat down in ghee. Fry them over medium-high heat, moving as little as possible in the process. When golden-brown on one side, turn over and fry equally on the other side. By the time the flat should be cooked thru, and ready to offer. Every now and then, as necessary, add more ghee - they soak up plenty - and also now and then scrape all the loose spices that tend to accumulate in the ghee over to one side and remove. In this way you can cook as many as you have spice, time and ghee for. When done right, an ultimate good taste.
VEGETABLE-GRAIN PREPARATIONS 1. Pakoras
Good vegetables to use are cauliflower, eggplant, zucchini, brussels sprouts, potatoes, spinach. Batter: put gram flour in a bowl, and add medium sprinklings of salt, turmeric, ginger powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, a little hing, and a lot of ground red pepper (it should be a little hot). Add in some water and then stir into a thick paste, beating out all lumps. Add more water and stir until a fairly thick batter is prepared.
Prepare vegetables like this: cauliflowers - make into medium-small "sub heads" and steam first till almost soft through - not quite cooked; sprouts - clean and cut in half thru stem, steam similarly; eggplant - cut into squares, wedges, or flats not more than 1" thick, zucchini (small), cut crossways into thin discs 1/8" thick; potatoes - cut into thin wedges or flats not more than ¼" thick; spinach - break leaves up into fairly small pieces, and when dipping in batter, try to crumble several such bits together and dip - this is difficult but worthwhile. Some people also make fruit pakoras out of bananas, peaches, etc. - nice in some cases.
Then heat ghee to medium-hot frying temperature, dip the bits of vegetables in the batter, and then put them in the ghee (carefully). Fry them until the batter has fluffed up, and turned a nice golden brown, and by this time, if the vegetables are properly prepared and are the right size, they will be cooked through. Then offer.
2. Okma (Upma?)
An excellent breakfast preparation (being sugar-less) when properly prepared. Best vegetable to use - cabbage; others - cauliflowers, brussels sprouts, peas, indian 'portals'; and tomatoes are optional. If using cabbage, shred (not too fine), and if others - cut into small bits or wedges. For 4 cups semolina, 7 cups water and half a medium cabbage are sufficient, also ¾ lb. butter is about right.
Make a medium chaunce with coriander seeds, cumin seeds, red peppers, and hing. Add in the cabbage or the other vegetable, and, optimally, tomato bits as well. Fry around until cabbage is just barely cooked, spicing with medium to heavy turmeric; rosemary and thyme are optional, as well as mild cinnamon and nutmeg. (It is best to exclude these optimal items until you are expert at the basic preparation.)
If not frying nicely, add some of the butter, and then, when cabbage is cooked, add all the butter. When the butter is melted, add the semolina and stir. If butter quantity is right, it should become like grains for medium-to-light-butter halvah. Stir occasionally on medium to high heat until grains are lightly roasted - being careful not to burn.
At the same time you are doing this, you should heat up the water (a little less than 2 parts to 1 part semolina, and less water yet if the semolina is very fine) to a boil, after adding a good bit of salt and much ground black pepper - about three times the pepper you think you should add is usually barely enough. When the grains are lightly roasted and the water is boiling, add the grains in and stir thoroughly, beating out any lumps that may try to form. It will form a cake and is then finished. This preparation has all the warming and strength-giving power of halvah without the drawback of putting too much passion-creating sugar in the brahmacari diet. It is excellent especially in cold weather, and when done right, it is usually well-liked.
SNACKS 1. Avocado 'Guacamole'
Is actually essential Mexican, but is first-class. Remove pits and skins from several ripe avocados, and remove skins from a few tomatoes by dipping in boiling water briefly or by scorching by rotating on a fork in a burner-flame. Smash the avocado into a paste, chop the tomatoes in small bits, and add the two together. Spice with medium salt, black pepper, thyme, and cayenne pepper. Add 1/3 cup sour cream for each cup of avocado-and-tomato, and beat all together. Finished.
2. Peanuts and Raisins
Best are blanched peanuts. Peanuts with dark, strong tasting skins are least desirable. I usually use 1 part peanuts to 1 part raisins. Not more than 2 parts peanuts to 1 raisins (or sultanas).
Make a chaunce using a relatively small amount of ghee, and medium amounts of cumin seeds, anise seeds, dry hot red peppers, and hing. Turn the heat down low for a couple minutes as chaunce nears readiness, and then add the peanuts, stirring as you add. A hot pot or fry pan scorches peanuts very quickly. Then turn heat up to medium-low and stir almost constantly, letting the nuts sit for only a few seconds at a time, and then stirring thoroughly.
SWEETS 1. Halvah
Put 2 ½ gallons milk on to boil at high heat, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. In a big wok melt 4 lb. butter (have 2 ½ lb. more butter unwrapped nearby). When butter melted, add 15 cups farina and mix in. Let sit at high heat till browned, then stir, being careful not to burn. When browning too fast to keep up with, turn down heat a bit. When milk comes to a boil turn it to a rolling boil that does not boil over, and let it boil for 10 minutes or so, then add 15 cups sugar, stirring until dissolved over high heat. Bring boiling back to rolling boil.
When farina gets a golden brown [toast the pecans] fully brown, add 5 cups raisins to the boiling milk and add the pecans to the farina. Not more than 5 minutes later, add the remaining butter to the grains. When the butter is melted, add the orange peel to the milk, stir for 5 seconds and then start adding the grains to the milk. Bring to boil, stirring thoroughly. Then turn off heat and stir till thick.
Alternate Halvah Recipe:
When semolina is a few minutes from roasted, add the sultanas to the milk to soften. When semolina is golden-brown add remaining butter and stir till melted. When butter nearly melted add finely-chopped orange-rind (and nuts) to milk, then, when butter melted, add boiling milk mixture to grains and butter (or vice-versa) and stir over low heat until thick enough to suspend the raisins. After one thorough mixing, let sit off the heat (no lid till cooled) and it will form a nice cake. Melting in an additional pound of butter after mixing ingredients at end makes incredible halva. Nicest when offered warm, but also good cool. Fantastic option is to add in a spicy pineapple chutney, along with the milk, to the grains right at the end. Chaunced pineapple halva results (pineapples chopped in small bits, directions below.) Another option is to add in a good quantity of smashed fresh fruits (like strawberries) instead of orange peels, sultanas, or cloves. Fruit should go in at the last when mixing milk and grains. The final opulent option is to replace one pint of milk with cream, or even double-cream.
2. Sweet Rice (Khir)
10 pints milk to 1 lb. basmati rice (as much as 16 to 1 ratio is possible, but in that case boil off several pints liquid from milk before beginning). Put the milk on to boil and wash rice. When the milk is boiling add the rice along with some shredded saffron (difficult to estimate quantity on saffron - it is very strong, but use enough to slightly yellow the preparation, bring the saffron to a boil in a tiny bit of water and then pour this mixture into the milk) and some freshly crushed seeds from cardamom pods (about 10 ordinary white or green pods). Adjust heat so that mixture is at slowly rolling boil, stirring occasionally. As it slowly thickens, be very careful of burning, if necessary lowering heat, and stirring constantly. Do not allow sticking to begin. When rice is soft but still a bit firm, it is nice to add about ¼ lb. thinly sliced or slivered pistachio nuts (or blanched almonds). When rice grains are extremely soft - still intact but breaking up - then add 1 lb. sugar (or less - lightly sweetened is more pleasant than very sweet in this case), dissolve it, and remove from heat. Can be offered warm or cool. This is a liquidy sweet rice (called khir or kshir). For the thicker sweet rice use more milk and boil down considerably before adding rice, or simply use more rice (6 parts milk to 1 rice instead of 10 to 1).
This liquid recipe should be offered in a bowl or cup. Some use camphor instead of cardamom. If you do, be sure it's real camphor, add near the end and be careful not to put too much. I prefer cardamom. A nice option is to utilize broken length of vermicelli noodles instead of basmati rice - cooking in the same way, but adding noodles after milk has boiled down a bit.
3. Chutneys
Chutneys are delightful spicy fruit preparations. Srila Prabhupada especially likes tomato chutney, but I have seen him complement other kinds as well, including apple. About the only kind of fruit I have never tasted nice as a chutney is pear. The basic technique is generally to make a chaunce, stirring, add sugar [fruit and] sometimes raisins), and again cook down until becoming pasty. Offer warm or sometimes cool, depending on variety. Generally, sugar should be added to make the mixture appear glassy (a normally sweet chutney usually means about 3 lbs. sugar to 8 or 10 lbs. fruit), and in most cases (especially apple, tomato and pineapple), some butter should be added towards the end. Because there are so many unique varieties, I'm hoping to try and make a grape. (See chart) There are other varieties as well, these (overleaf) are [illegible] that I am not [illegible] and tamarind. [illegible] chutney is not cooked at all (according to Srila Prabhupada). Fully ripe berries should be soaked and mixed with pulp squeezed from soaked tamarind and ground black pepper - that is all.
For apple chutney, I slice the apples in wedges. I leave skins on if in good condition because they usually add nice color and texture. I add citrus rind and juice and [illegible] during chauncing. Sometimes I add raisins, and usually more butter, both near the end. Srila Prabhupada likes this preparation very much, but usually does not care for apple chutney.
The rosemary and thyme (and sometimes basil) are nice in tomato chutney. I remove skins by dipping tomatoes in boiling water first, or by straining at the end.
Cherry, when thickened to jam consistency, made with sweet, black cherries, and made with great love and attention, is super-excellent.
Chart of Chutney Recipe Combinations
4. ShrikhandIngredients: yoghurt and sugar. Take fresh yogurt and wrap it in a cloth (like muslin) that allows water but not yogurt to pass through. Suspend the cloth holding the yogurt in such a way that as it hangs, water from the yogurt drains through the cloth and into a pan. Allow to hang, dripping, for at least 12 hours (overnight generally). Then take the drained yogurt in a pot and add sugar (1 part sugar to ten parts yogurt is generally good - it should be sweet, but not too sweet). Then beat with a spoon for a long time until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is like creamy frosting. Offer cool. Pistachio nuts, saffron, and/or crushed cardamom can be added before beating. (Saffron should be pre-boiled in a bit of water.) Or bits of fresh fruit - especially sweet 'spring' fruits or tropical fruits can be mixed in.
5. Lugdoos
Ingredients: fried chick pea flour, noodles, sugar, dried figs, raisins, chopped walnuts, candied cherries, camphor.
Make a pasty batter by stirring water into sifted chick-pea (gram) flour. Beat out the lumps in this batter, and then stir in more water until you have a thick but liquid batter. Beat up about two inches of ghee (or more) in a fairly deep pan. When the ghee is just beginning to smoke, adjust the heat down to about medium. Have a colander (bowl-strainer) handy which has small holes interspersed around its bottom. Hold this colander above the hot ghee, and pour a small ladle full of batter into it. If the batter is the proper thick-but-liquid consistency it should drip into the ghee, forming into small, drop-shaped noodles. When the ghee has about ½ inch of noodles frying in it, stop dripping them, and stir the noodles to break any up which may be sticking together. If they are browning too fast to cope with, turn the heat down a bit. When the noodles are a rich golden colour and crispy, dip them out with a fine wire-mesh spoon or spoon with holes in it. Drain them for a few seconds above the ghee, and place them in a fair sized pot. Do this repeatedly until you have produced as many noodles as you want. A pound of chick pea flour should produce enough noodles for approximately 30 good-sized sweet balls. You will need to add more ghee periodically as you fry.
When noodles are done, make a sugar syrup in this way: put a quantity of water in a pot. Figure (by volume) 8 parts noodles to 1 part water. In that water put two parts sugar (2 lbs sugar to 1 pint water). Stir this over the heat. Only as the water comes near a boil will all the sugar dissolve. Into this boiling heavy syrup add the dried fruit and nuts. If you have 6 pints of noodles, figure 1 lb. of raisins, ½ pound of chopped dried figs, ½ lb. chopped walnuts, ¼ lb. candied cherries (chopped in quarters or eights). When these fruits have been mixed in, the final addition is crumbled camphor. Liquid camphor-spirit can also be used, because all the alcohol boils off immediately upon hitting the boiling liquid (alcohol has lower boiling point than water.) Plenty of camphor should be used (the first lugdoo I tasted was made under Srila Prabhupada's personal supervision. When I bit into it the small of camphor shot up my nose very distinctly. The experience was vivid and ecstatic.)
As soon as the camphor is dissolved, pour most of the syrup and all the fruit and nuts over the noodles and stir together. Keep some syrup aside in case more is needed. (If not, use the syrup in making halvah). The noodles should become soft and sticky on the outside, but should remain a bit crisp in the middle. If they don't appear moist enough to stick together, add more syrup (if they are too soft-mushy - I'm sorry. Next time make less syrup). When the mixture is cooled down (as it cools, it becomes stickier), squeeze into big balls, about 1 ½ inches in diameter. These balls are difficult to roll because of the sticky mixture. I find it best to keep a bowl of water nearby and to rinse my hands after every few balls. When properly made this (along with kachories) is one of Srila Prabhupada's top favourites.
6. Laddu
Gram (chick-pea) flour, butter, sugar, icing sugar. Melt 1 lb. butter in a sauce-pan, and then add 1 lb. gram flour and mix together. Keep mixture over a medium flame, allowing to sit and begin to brown, and then stirring thoroughly. Repeat this process until the mixture is a rich golden-brown colour. Then, turn heat down to very low and add in ½ to ¾ lb. icing (powdered) sugar. Stir this in, and the result will be crumbly. Keep stirring over low heat and the sugar will melt, so that the mixture becomes again pasty. Then add the rest of the sugar, up to 1 lb. total, and stir again until pasty. Then allow the mixture to cool, and roll into balls, by spooning some nearly firm mixture into hand and then quickly rolling into a ball. Allow these to cool. Do not store laddu balls in a warm place (they melt).
If you want less-sweet laddu, use less sugar and a bit less butter. Similarly, for thicker mix, use less butter. Some devotees like to add raisins or currants near the end of cooking. Many karmies like these balls.
7. Simply Wonderfuls
Butter, icing sugar, powdered milk. Melt 1 lbs. butter in sauce pan. When melted, add 1 lb. icing sugar and stir over medium heat until the sugar melts. Then turn off the heat. Add 1 lb. of good-quality, powdered or crystalised milk (this is the only thing I used powdered milk for - never to drink) and mix in thoroughly. Raisins or sultanas can also be added (if desired) at this point. Squeeze this mixture into balls about ¼ inch in diameter, and roll the balls in a bit of powdered milk or sugar to coat them. A very quick and popular sweet.
These are the only sweets at which I am reasonably expert. Others I am not expert at are barfi (thickened milk sweets), sandesh, goolabjamons (or 'sweet-balls'), and rasgullas. All those are also first-class when nicely prepared. So far barfi is concerned, the basic technique is to boil milk down, either plain, or with ground cashew-nut (first-class), or with shredded coconut (second-class). Sugar is also mixed in, but I don't know the proportion. When the mixture is cooked down until thickening but still liquid, pour into a baking pan or pie-tin and allow to cool. As it cools, it solidifies and can be cut into squares. Rasgullas are made from moist curdled milk-solid which is smashed to break up the curds and then made into small balls. These balls are then boiled in sugar solution. I have never been able to adjust the cheese moisture, solution sugar proportion, and rate of boil adequately to produce the spongy, puffy, juicy rasgullas that Bengal is famous for. Very difficult. Chant Hare Krishna!
FRUIT PREPARATIONS AND DRINKS 1. Fruit Salads
Can be prepared from most juicy kinds of fruits, along with most dried fruits and nuts (excepting peanuts). After removing all seeds, pits, stems, skins, etc. from the fruit, and cutting the remaining easily edible parts into relatively small pieces, a little sugar and some kind of milk product can be added. The milk product can be thickened cream or yoghurt, but Srila Prabhupada's favourite is sour cream. These ingredients are then mixed to form the salad. A Simpler variation is to add sugar and some lemon juice instead of a milk product. When offering plates of cut fruits (especially tangy fruits like fresh pineapples), little cups of salt and pepper can also be offered.
2. Buttermilk Nectar
Can be made from cultured buttermilk, sugar, and ripe, pulpy fruits like peaches, bananas, pears, etc. The fruit is thoroughly mashed and mixed into the buttermilk along with a little sugar (it should not be too sweet.)"


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Buy the Nikon 85mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor
(From Nikon lens literature) Compact and portable telephoto lens that is ideal for portraits. Rear focusing for fast AF operation. Subtle blurring of background for beautifully natural and evocative portraits.
SLRgear Review
August 4, 2008
by Andrew Alexander
The Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8 AF was introduced in March of 1988; the AF-D version was introduced a few years later in 1994. A small-sized medium-range fixed telephoto lens, the 85mm ƒ/1.8 is the little brother to the larger 85mm ƒ/1.4. The ƒ/1.8 version only loses two-thirds of a stop, but costs only one-third the price of the ƒ/1.4 version.
The 85mm ƒ/1.8 was originally designed to fit the 35mm film frame, so it will have no problems covering either FX or DX digital SLR camera sensors. On a DX body, the lens will give an effective field of view of 127mm.
The lens is available now for around $400, and ships with a round screw-in lens hood.
The Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8 AF-D is very slightly soft when used wide open at ƒ/1.8, ranging from just under 3 blur units in the corners, to just under 2.5 blur units in the center. This improves as you stop down; around 2 blur units uniformly at ƒ/2, and at ƒ/2.8 the lens approaches its optimal sharpness, at 1 to 1.5 blur units. At ƒ/4 the lens is essentially tack-sharp across the frame, but by the numbers it doesn't reach its optical peak until ƒ/5.6. At ƒ/8 and ƒ/11 performance continues to be stable, still tack-sharp, and ƒ/16 shows some degradation from diffraction limiting, but only reducing overall quality to 1.5 blur units.
On the full-frame D3, the 85mm ƒ/1.8 fares slightly better (and posed some questions to us we still can't answer - more on that later). At ƒ/1.8, the lens shows results between 1.5 and 2 blur units. Mirroring the D200, this performance improves as the lens is stopped down, achieving essentially tack-sharp performance by ƒ/4, though the differences between ƒ/2.8 and ƒ/4 are very small. Sharpness is excellent all the way through to ƒ/16.
The question we haven't been able to find a satisfactory answer to is why the ƒ/1.8 performance on the D200 is a full blur unit worse than that seen on the D3. The effect only occurs at ƒ/1.8; at other apertures, everything else is more or less as we would expect. If you have any insights as to why this might be, please chime in with a user review below.
To summarize, with the exception of some very slight softness as ƒ/1.8, the 85mm ƒ/1.8 offers excellent results for sharpness stopped down to ƒ/2.8 and greater.
Chromatic Aberration
We were very surprised by the excellent performance exhibited by the 85mm ƒ/1.8 to reduce chromatic aberration. Mounted on the D200, we see some of the lowest numbers we've ever seen for CA, with even the worst-case CA not exceeding 1.5 percent of frame height.
This performance is mirrored on the D3, where any extra CA introduced by the full-frame FX sensor is detected and automatically removed by the D3's image processor. To evaluate the lens' performance rather than the camera's we run RAW images produced by the D3 through Bibble to evaluate chromatic aberration. In this case, the lens does show some CA, but it's still not alot to write home about: in the worst case, 3/100ths of a percent of frame height in the corners.
Shading (''Vignetting'')
Corner shading isn't much of a problem on the D200: at ƒ/1.8, you can expect the corners to be about 1/3 of a stop darker than the center. This improves at ƒ/2, where this number drops to about a quarter-stop. At ƒ/2.8, corner shading is very low.
On the full-frame D3, corner shading is more of an issue. At ƒ/1.8, shading in the corners almost reaches a full stop; this improves to 2/3 of a stop at ƒ/2, and 1/3 of a stop at ƒ/2.8. At ƒ/4, light falloff is less than a quarter stop difference, and by ƒ/5.6, it's as low as it can get.
The 85mm ƒ/1.8 is optimized to produce distortion-free images. On the D200, there is statistically the slightest amount of barrel distortion, but it's a very, very small number. On the D3, you're looking at about 0.1% barrel distortion in the corners; however, this is almost so small as to be inconsequential.
Autofocus Operation
The 85mm ƒ/1.8 AF-D was developed before Nikon's newer AF-S system, meaning it uses a mechanical screw to move the focusing lens group. The lens focuses quickly, and does produce some noise while focusing, but the level of noise (as well as focus speed) will depend largely on the Nikon body being employed. Newer Nikon bodies like the D40, D40x and D60 which lack the focus screw will not be able to autofocus this lens.
The 85mm ƒ/1.8 offers very poor macro capability, with a minimum close-focusing distance of 85cm (around 3 feet) and a magnification of only 0.11x.
Build Quality and Handling
The 85mm ƒ/1.8 is often criticized as being one of Nikon's cheaper-looking lenses, primarily because of its plastic shell. Despite the plastic shell, it's fairly heavy for its size, at 374 grams (13 oz), and construction stands up well in day-to-day use with a metal body mount.
The 85mm ƒ/1.8 offers a windowed distance scale measured in feet and meters, with a companion depth-of-field scale and marked infrared index. The lens uses an aperture ring with a locking mechanism to prevent the ring from moving. Unlike its pro-level sibling, the 85mm ƒ/1.4, the ƒ/1.8 lens does not offer a lens-mounted manual focus switch.
The focus ring of the 85mm ƒ/1.8 is 3/8'' wide, using a soft rubber texture of raised squares. Manual focus travel of the ring is almost a quarter-turn: 85 degrees. The plastic filter threads take 62mm filters, which do not rotate during focusing.
The HN-23 lens hood is provided with the lens, a round screw-in hood made of metal, with a ribbed interior. Use of the hood is recommended to prevent flare and ghosting, but it's a screw-mount hood so much less easier to attach than newer bayonet-style mounts. The hood can't be reversed for storage.
There's really only one direct alternative for the 85mm ƒ/1.8; the larger, heavier, and costlier 85mm ƒ/1.4. However, if you're willing to sacrifice the ƒ/1.8 capability, there are a couple of other alternatives.
Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.4D AF ~$1,000
The ƒ/1.4 version of the lens is larger, heavier, and costlier, but you do get something for that: two-thirds of a stop faster aperture performance, and a bit more sharpness, at the cost of corner softness. Stopped-down, the 85mm ƒ/1.8 is actually a bit sharper, but the out-of-focus corners are a large part of what makes the 85mm ƒ/1.4 such a good portrait lens.
Sigma 70mm ƒ/2.8 EX DG Macro ~$400
It's not really in the same class of lens, as the Sigma 70mm doesn't provide the ƒ/1.8 of the 85mm, however, it offers a similar focal length. Optical performance of the Sigma 70mm is some of the best we've seen: tack-sharp at ƒ/2.8 (actually outdoing the 85mm ƒ/1.8) but a bit worse CA. Corner shading and Distortion are about the same.
Tamron 90mm ƒ/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 SP AF ~$450
The Tamron also isn't a good direct comparison, but it's in the same ballpark. It's primarily a macro lens, offering similar results for sharpness, corner shading and distortion as the 85mm ƒ/1.8; CA is slightly higher.
The comparison between the 85mm ƒ/1.8 and ƒ/1.4 versions is one of the longest ongoing discussions concerning the Nikon product line. In the final analysis they are dramatically different products, offering results which are difficult to compare. The ƒ/1.8 version offers better corner-to-corner sharpness, but at wider apertures, the ƒ/1.4 offers better central sharpness.
In its own right, the 85mm is an excellent lens, offering class-leading performance for chromatic aberration, very low corner shading at wide apertures, and practically no distortion. Sharpness is excellent at ƒ/2.8, only showing a touch of softness when used wide open. For the price, if you need the 85mm focal length, the lens is an excellent option we have no trouble recommending.
Sample Photos
The VFA target should give you a good idea of sharpness in the center and corners, as well as some idea of the extent of barrel or pincushion distortion and chromatic aberration, while the Still Life subject may help in judging contrast and color. We shoot both images using the default JPEG settings and manual white balance of our test bodies, so the images should be quite consistent from lens to lens.
As appropriate, we shoot these with both full-frame and sub-frame bodies, at a range of focal lengths, and at both maximum aperture and ƒ/8. For the ''VFA'' target (the viewfinder accuracy target from Imaging Resource), we also provide sample crops from the center and upper-left corner of each shot, so you can quickly get a sense of relative sharpness, without having to download and inspect the full-res images. To avoid space limitations with the layout of our review pages, indexes to the test shots launch in separate windows.
Nikon 85mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor
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Nikon 85mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor User Reviews
Good build quality. Fast autofocus. High resolution and good sharpness. Minimum distortion. Low price.Very soft on open apertures. Cold color rendering. Poor bokeh quality.
This lens has both fans and haters. I became interested and I bought it. Assembled very well, I do not understand the complaints. Inside it is metal (the lenses are fixed in an aluminum tube), only the outer frame is made of polycarbonate. The Micro-Nikkor 60 / 2.8D and Micro-Nikkor 105 / 2.8D are made in the same way, which no one complains about. Autofocus on professional cameras is fast and tenacious. I was unlucky to get a front focus lens, but after adjusting the AF in my D300, I got accuracy. Unfortunately, due to the front focus, I can't use it on my favorite D200 and S5pro, which have excellent color reproduction but no autofocus adjustment.
reviewed July 19th, 2022 (purchased for $300)
Technically, the lens turned out to be good. I don't like shooting at wide apertures, so image quality issues at f/1.8-2.2 don't bother me. Starting from f/2.8 the lens is sharp and contrasting, in the f/5.6-11 range it is quite suitable for technical shooting, not much inferior in resolution even to Micro-Nikkor lenses. There are practically no distortions, there are chromatic aberrations, but they are not annoying and can be easily removed in the editor. There is also a problem - a large focusing distance does not allow you to approach small objects at the right distance. I did not check how the lens works with macro rings. It does not seem to have a CRC system, but at the minimum focusing distance I had no complaints, so I think it will be good for shooting at 1:4 - 1:2 scales.
Portrait. At f/2.8-5.6 you can get good close-up portraits. Technically, there is nothing to complain about - the lens, I repeat, is contrasting and sharp. But the quality of his bokeh leaves much to be desired. It is "rough" and "nervous", somewhat similar to the bokeh AF Nikkor 50/1.8D. You need to watch the background very carefully, or shoot in a studio where you can control everything. I was surprised that the color reproduction of the lens tends to be cold. I have a late version of the lens, I know that the early version of Nikkor 85/1.8 (without "D") has a different lens coating. Perhaps she has a different color rendition, I did not check. But my lens noticeably cools the image, which is perfectly visible in comparison with the same AF Nikkor 50 / 1.4D or the superb old Nikkor 85/1.4 AiS. I prefer "warm" color tones, although "cold" ones may be closer to someone, this is a matter of taste.
I summarize. If you want to shoot at wide apertures - look at more modern devices, this old man reveals himself after f / 2.8. If you are not confused by the nature of bokeh and cold color reproduction, the lens is wonderful. It is inexpensive, well made, well suited for studio portraits, still life, and technical photography.
Good luck everyone, and sorry for my english :) -
size price lightweightsoft at 1/8 slow focus
I have this lens for about 8 years. it's my all around portrait lens but it took some time untill I got used not to use it wide open because it is very soft. Go up a bit till 2.2 and this will become very sharp. I like it a lot to use it in low light environments like churches. More photos with this lens are on my blog Hochzeitsfotograf Frankfurt
reviewed May 6th, 2017 (purchased for $300) -
Great Portraits and balance between cost and quality.Some guys like a little longer option
Super portrait lens. Very sharp and great Bokeh. Fast enough and a pleasure to use. I pull this for use on my F100 with slow film.
reviewed October 16th, 2012 (purchased for $300) -
Small, sharp, fast focussing, cheap, decent build qualityNone
I like this lens, I like it a lot. Sharpness is excellent at f/4 (and smaller) and that's often the minimum aperture I like to use for portraits with this lens. Images are really sharp! I find it very nice that this model is sharper then the new AF-S version. Saves me some money. Also, autofocus is faster with the AF-D. I've had no problems with autofocus accuracy or speed. I find the autofocus speed of the 50mm and 85mm AF-S models annoyingly slow. The AF-D has no ass gasket like the new AF-S version has, but then I don't care for that much. The focussing ring rotates during focussing, but the lens barrel is large enough to grip the lens without touching the ring. I like the build quality of this lens. The lens has a nice feel and weight to it. I prefer it to the build quality of the AF-S version. If you are looking for a prime in this range, I recommend this lens.
reviewed May 4th, 2012 (purchased for $400) -
Price, Size, Sharpness62mm Filter Size, No Bayonet Shade
This lens takes an impressive image for not much $.
reviewed November 23rd, 2011
Is only 1/2 stop slower than the 1.4D for less than 1/2 the bux.
For my glamour portraiture usage, I have some sample images by this lens and a comparison to several of its peers avail in a more detailed review @ http://glamourphotography.co/?p=4841
For the money, if you need a sharp 85mm AF, it's hard to beat. -
Very consistent sharpness, great bokeh and fast auto focusNone
It's absolutely great lens!
reviewed November 5th, 2011 (purchased for $520)
I use this lens for all my studio work and produces great shots.
To view some of the shots, click
http://ourphotolib.com/suntoro/g15/ -
price, IQNONE!
this lens is an absolute gem!
reviewed May 20th, 2011
i use it for ALL my studio work on my d3x
i have tested the 85mm 1.4 d and g and they are not any sharper stopped down and not worth the increase in price.
buy this lens!! -
Sharp, great focus ability, tinyLOCA, wish it focused closer
Great lens for the most part. Sharp. Annoying green and magenta aberrations until f5.6+
reviewed November 10th, 2010 (purchased for $350) -
size, weight, build, rear focusspinning focus ring during AF
I suspect any negatives about this lens wide open come from AF inaccuracy. On bodies that have AF fine tune abilities, with some tweaking, this lens is DAMN sharp wide open. A bit of field curvature up close, but not and objectionable amount. Again, it's down to AF--if you choose a proper point and the camera nails it, you're golden.
reviewed November 2nd, 2010 (purchased for $230)
I wouldn't count the lack of AFS as much of a negative, except in circumstances where you hand you camera to some one else--as a pro, this is pretty never.
The AF issue may or may not be because of the screw drive, but I have noticed that newer bodies are consistently bad at focusing these screw drive lenses at default settings. For example, the D90 is inconsistent and the D200 wasn't very good with it either. D300, D700, D2x, and D3 were all great, but only after adjustment. And the amount of adjustment was different for each body (among similar AND different models).
High contrast situations can excite some LoCA--but that is so for MANY lenses, even the 1.4D and the new 1.4G. It's just a fact of life, and one that's hard to cure in post. Pretty much goes away stopped down.
Great bokeh, with a caveat: edge quality of point light sources can be excellent to mediocre, depending on subject distance. I'm not talking about just the amount of blur, but the quality. It does actually tend towards 100% neutral at closer focus distances. Very subtle ringing as you get closer to infinity, but never objectionably so.
In closing: an undervalued gem! -
Corner to Corner sharpness f/4 and aboveSoft until f/2.8
I'm rating this lens a solid 9 all-around.
reviewed March 28th, 2010 (purchased for $350)
The build quality is excellent, but not pro-calibre.
The image quality is excellent, but not until f/2.8 and doesn't see it's best until f/4. The good news is that at f/4 all the way through f/16 it is evenly sharp all over. This is great for those shots where you need the detail and sharpness all over the frame.
The lens handles direct light very well. I've never experienced any ghosting problems. Chromatic aberation is there wide open. By f/4 it is gone.
Overall I'm rating the lens a 9 for it's limited use wide-open.
You wanna buy a fast lens like this to take advantage of the maximum aperature.
This lens is nothing special from f/1.8 to f/2.8.
It is very, very good at f/2.8.
It is a dream lens at f/4 and above.
I'm selling mine because I get very similar performance out of my 80-200mm f/2.8 AF-S. -
Sharp! Durable. Focus is fast enough for most applications.No AFS
I use this lens for shooting indoor sports in poorly lit gyms on my D300. It is very sharp, even at f1.8 (my results are better than the slrgear sharpness results would show). For a non-AFS lens, it focuses fast, however, it can't compare to an AFS lens for sports. I do find that sometimes the focus doesn't keep up with the action. If you are shooting sports at f1.8 which offers little to no depth of field, you get some shots which are out of focus. But this is a minor complaint. This lens is also great for portraits. I also use it to shoot theater if I can get close to the foot of the stage-- the results are superb. Sharpness, color rendition, contrast are exceptional.
reviewed January 5th, 2010 (purchased for $350) -
Superb build quality and sharp as a tackNot an AF-S lens
Nikon professional user. This lens is superb. I use it on the D300 and D200. It oozes quality. Perefect for outdoor and studio work. It is sharp as a tack.
reviewed November 28th, 2009 (purchased for $490) -
Inexpensive, great and consitantly great performance?
This is a cant loose lens. While doing a studio shoot with some guys a few months ago this lens earned its keep in company with a raft of F1.4 and Canon f1.2 85 mm. So the question was when shooting a F4 @ 250th, why do you need a 1.4 or a 1.2? The answer of course is that you don't...the little 1.8 was as sharp as all of them at that aperture and just 33% of the cost. yes it may not be as rugged but its still a decent lens and its works an absolute treat on my D700.
reviewed November 5th, 2009 (purchased for $450)
I have an example below for anyone that wants to look.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lightknight/3631862836/ -
fast, sharp, smooth bokehfocus ring rotates with AF
Exellent portrait lens. Lovely creamy bokeh, good sharpness and contrast.
reviewed October 25th, 2009 (purchased for $460) -
Great focal length, SHARP!, FAST!, great bokeh...just right portrait lens.We are not born with this lens. noisy focus.
WOW!, just perfect, all the "right moves" for portrait and low light work, always sharp in the center (even f1.8!), fairly quick focus...I can't ask for much more...maybe add VR to it one day and a motor? Primes offer so much bang for the buck in the category. I have even shot some very nice landscapes with this lens, who says all landscapes have to be wide? just silly! :-)
reviewed February 6th, 2009 (purchased for $275) -
optical quality, price, sizenot expensive enough to have a mystique
This is probably the single best value in the Nikon lens lineup. The performance of the lens is much more consistent than the 85mm f/1.4. This lens isn't designed to give you soft corners. It's not a dreamy portrait lens, though it does make a very good portrait lens. It's like a neo-realist portrait lens. The 85mm f/1.8 is also very sharp when stopped down. I have a D700 and find this lens attached to my camera much more than I imagined. This and the 35mm f/2 are really the only two lenses I'd have a hard time living without. If you like the speed, size and convenience of fast primes you aren't going to want to let this one pass you by.
reviewed January 29th, 2009 (purchased for $325) -
Bright!, compact and light, very good built, nice bokeh!So far so good
This is my first prime lens and I'm already in love with it. I put it on my D90 to replace my 18-105mm kit lens. It is very bright and a killer in indoor low light situation. I use it mostly for portrait. I'm warmly recommend it!
reviewed January 8th, 2009 (purchased for $450)
You can check some pictures on my Flickr account here :
http://www.flickr.com/photos/alxbertrand/3150219843/in/set-72157602367247531/ -
great sharp lens , very well corrected , very low CA, AF fast enough.slower than the Canon 85f1.8 in terms of AF, flare more than the Canon.
I like its size and AF speed as a screw driven lens.
reviewed December 4th, 2008 (purchased for $370)
I think this lens is quite sharp wide open and well corrected almost distortion free lens.
Its only one weakness is the flare control, its color and contrast are good , almost no CA even wide open.
This lens is small , fast , sharp and makes my D300 looks so small , I love it , I think this lens is a better lens than the f1.4D if you like street photography or sharp corners as SLRGERA.com this very site says.
One of these best bargain lenses in Nikon world. -
Sharp, fast, good valueBit noisy, build quality
Picked up this lens a couple weeks back and have taken forty - fifty shoots with the D200 and half a roll with the F100. Since then, I've taken lots of shots which has only confirmed my initial impression on both FX and DX - this lens is SHARP!
reviewed November 14th, 2008 (purchased for $390)
I did not expect this lens to be so sharp wide open, and stopping down, it just seems to get sharper and sharper. The bokeh at f/1.8 is good and improves as the lens is stopped down. Focus speed is good, a little louder than AF-S, but not a big issue. Focus on the D200 works well, but you can still miss a shot wide open since the DOF is narrow.
I have not seen any purple fringing in FX or DX or on film. Build quality does not compare to older AIS lenses but it is very decent.
This lens is a keeper. -
SHARP! Nice Bokeh, Light and SmallA bit of pruple fringing, not built like a tank
Whew, and I thought the Nikkor 180/2.8 was sharp! From about f/2.2 on, this lens will just slice you up, certainly the sharpest I've yet mounted to my D200. Most other aspects of image quality are great as well. The only issue I've had in that regard is purple fringing, much like from the 180, particularly at the larger apertures. If only it was correctable easily in software, it would be no worry.
reviewed October 7th, 2008 (purchased for $340)
The lens is built very well, and the internal focus is a welcome upgrade over similar Nikkor primes like the 50/1.8 and 35/2.0. The focus ring could stand to be larger and better damped, but it is an AF lens after all.
The only reason I'm getting rid of this lens is that I've found the focal length to a bit of a tweener on DX. I'd rather use 50-60 or 135-150. I'm sure this lens would be great on film/FX, filling the hole I use 50 in on DX. -
fast, small, great focal length for portraitsclosest focus 3ft
I've used this and the Tamron 90mm f/2.8 macro in this focal length range, and it seems like the pictures with this lens wide open are a bit softer than the test results would imply, but I don't think that's a bad thing. This and the Tamron are about equally sharp at f/2.8 (the 90mm's max), but I love the softer images with the 85 at wide apertures. And who can complain about an extra stop (and a bit) for low light situations?
reviewed August 4th, 2008 (purchased for $400)
This is a wonderful portrait lens, and it wont make your camera front-heavy. I haven't noticed the autofocus being slow or noisy (on a D300), but I haven't had much experience with Af-s lenses for financial reasons.
I don't think people would consider this if they're looking for a macro lens at this length, but if you are don't because it's not a macro lens. Closest focus is 3ft, but I guess you can't have everything. -
Great detail, fast, reliable
I have this piece of glass since 1994, used it with my F2A Photomic with great results and now with my D200. This is a great portrait lens but not only. It is always attached to my D200 body and I use it for anything I can throw it in, with great results all the time. Focus it's a bit noisier than the "kiT lens" but the construction of this 85mm is excellent. Very fast and reliable, it is almost impossible to take bad captures with this baby.Great prime lens.
reviewed February 26th, 2007 (purchased for $527) -
amazing low-light captures, excellent portrait telephotoAF can be slow on consumer bodies
I absolutely love this lens. Most of my favorite pictures taken with my D70 have been through its fine optics, and it just seems to coax flattering expressions from people's faces. This is also the best lens I've used for live music photography -- it's small enough to pack around in a crowded club, and has just enough reach to pull just the singer out of a busy scene.
reviewed January 14th, 2007 (purchased for $450)
The balance and handling are quite good, though the MF ring on mine is a touch loose. Wide-open, it adds just enough softness to images to avoid the need for photoshop retouching of minor skin blemishes, and the extremely-thin DoF renders background features beautifully blurred. Bokeh is generally quite nice, though extremely bright points of light in the background can occasionally appear more polyagonal than circular.
My only real complaint is with the focusing distance -- if you want to do any close-up work, then you'll probably want to check out the 60mm or 105mm macro units. AF speed also isn't anything special, but much of that is probably the D70 AF system not being quite up to some of the low-light situations I press on it. -
Compact, lightweight, bright, quick autofocus, well built.None
This is a great portrait lens. In fact, I think it would be pretty hard to take a bad portrait with this lens. I used the 85mm f/1.4 at a Nikon event and although it was beautiful, it was also much larger and quite heavy, (and twice the cost). This lens is compact and lightweight. I love using the Nikkor 50mm and this lens is not a lot bigger. The out of focus area with this lens is soft and the colors are rich and well saturated. Perfect.
reviewed December 29th, 2006 (purchased for $399) -
fast, sharpness, overall image qualitynot the 1.4?
This lens is on my D80 85% of the time for both indoor family photos and general outdoor or street photography. The image quality is excellent. Its plenty fast to capture most events without resorting to flash use. I really don't find myself longing for the extra speed of the F1.4 as I usually end up shooting at around F2.0 or F2.2 for a good DOF + speed compromise.
reviewed December 26th, 2006 (purchased for $400) -
very fast lens
I bought this lens to take photos of dance competitions where flash is not allowed. It has performed flawlessly. Focus is quick, and final products have been well received
reviewed December 19th, 2006 (purchased for $300) -
Sharp, great color, great DOFNone that I can think of.
I just bought this lens a few weeks ago and the results are amazing! The DOF is beautiful, the lens is sharp and the colors seem so much better than my other lenses! I definately recommend this lens!
reviewed December 17th, 2006 (purchased for $450) -
great color, sharpness, and feel
This and my 80-200 are the "10s" in my collection. I often use this one to shoot local concerts at clubs or "all ages" venues, where I can move about freely. Naturally, I also use it for portraits, although it is sometimes too sharp and I must resort to smoothing techniques in photoshop.
reviewed December 12th, 2006
Every photographer should use a lens like this to understand the famous filter-vs-no filter debate. Take a couple of shots without a filter on this lens, and if you've always believed in protection filters, your world will be rocked. The resolution can be stunning.
People might think that I write a lot of gushing reviews, but I've had a lot of Nikon and Canon lenses over the past thirty years, and I've only kept the ones I really like. Here's one of my favorite shots from this lens:
http://www.pbase.com/deanzat/image/30676328 -
ultra fast, lightweightnoisy, autofocus on low light with Nikon D50
I use this lens as an addition to my tamron 17-50 Zoom. The lens isn't full metal as already told. the focusing ring and the lense hood are metal.
reviewed December 9th, 2006 (purchased for $550)
first i tested this lense indoor at evening having normal artificial light; I wundered that the autofocus was not as reliable as with my tamron zoom. When the lens did not find the focus it gots very noisy searching the right focus from one to the other end. This is a little bit disappointing for a low light lense.
But experience showed soon it is often better to focus manually. I think the small focus range of the lense makes it for the auto focus system of D50 harder to get the correct focus.
Then i went outside - downtown and was very impressed to shoot pictures with ISO400 and 1.8 Appertue at times about 1/125s! Some poeple looked strange at me doing this all without flash!
This lens is an optical cutting machine - with open aperture you can extract everything you want too.
My daugter soon loved this lense walking around and making interesting pics.
pictures seems are very brilliant if you get the right focus.
A very special glass - one of my diamands!
a little bit expensive in europe!
Karl -
Lightweight, Good color reproductionSome visible CA at wide open
Inexpensive, good color reproduction, smooth & natural skin tone. Better sharpness get start at f/2.
reviewed November 26th, 2006 (purchased for $340)
If you can't effort 85/1.4, this lens will not let you disappointed.
If you love protrait, you will love this lens. -
reasonable, amazingly sharpno afs
This lens is very sharp. It seems to have some focus error on older bodies like my s2 (backfocus). It works great on my d80. Likely just the focus system on the s2, but something to note if you dont have a newer body.
reviewed November 20th, 2006 (purchased for $300)
This is great for closeup portraits. It is the 105/135 portrait lenses for digital.
The focus on this lens is clunky and loud - especially compared to the 50mm. But it gets the job done. Having a speedlight with the red led focus grid helps in the dark.
The 1.4 version gets you IF and a little more sensitvity. The 1.8 is just as good in every other way. -
well built, light, sharpno af-s
I like this lens. I don't really shoot in this range often (I tend to max out at 55-60 mm, just a personal preference), but when I do, I reach for this lens.
reviewed September 8th, 2006 (purchased for $380)
It's small, not much bigger than my 50 1.4 and smaller than my 60 2.8, and isn't intimidating on the camera at all.
It tends to hunt for focus in low-light situations, and has to be used manually when there's very little light (ie, on the street at night). -
Superb image quality, well built, fastno AFS
This is a superb lens. It is 979% as good as the F/1.4 yet it is much smaller and cheaper.
reviewed August 1st, 2006 (purchased for $400)
Build quality is not all metal but still very good. It is the old style auto focus but it nonetheless operates very fast and precisely. Filter size is 62nn. A very nice and compact lens.
I find it a bit long for portraits on a DSLR, but we currently have no alternatives. -
A sharp & compact lens that's not all that expensiveIt would be nice to have AF-S auto focus
AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.8D
reviewed November 23rd, 2005
All of my lens test/comparisons were performed on a Nikon D2x (reduced frame, 1.5x 12.2MP CMOS sensor). The camera was set to mirror lock-up, mounted on a tripod and fired with the MC-30 cable release. The test exposures were captured as NEF raw files and compared with no image sharpening.
This undoubtedly is one of the sharpest lenses I own and it's not all that expensive. The best results arrive with the 85mm f/1.8D lens when it's set to around f/4. In fact at f4 it out does the critical sharpness of anything I own.
The HN-23 screw type lens hood is a welcome addition, that's permanently affixed to the end of my 85mm f/1.8D. Edge sharpness is fantastic, whilst chromatic aberrations and vignetting are very well controlled.
Mounted on a D2x the auto focus of the 85mm f/1.8D is not too far off the quiet and speed offered by an AF-S lens. Mounted on the Nikon D70 the same lens becomes noisier and is more prone to 'searching' in low light.
Note: these are subjective results that may not reflect your particular sample OR use of this lens.
Das Bosun -
very sharp, small, very good for low light shootingsome CA at f1.8
I've used this lens mainly for low light theatre shots on my D70 and it performs excellent at that. Focusing is fast. Hardly ever hunts even in low light. There is some CA at f1.8 but at 2.2 there's almost none. A near perfect lens for my taste.
reviewed November 11th, 2005 (purchased for $215)
(by the way I have the non D version, but it looks an behaves the same, I think)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Little Frog Ergonomic Carrier - Rainbow Aura 2
- Little Frog carrier is dedicated for parents who would like to carry their baby from beginning in healthy and safe position.
- There is nothing better than closeness.
All Little Frog wraps,ring slings & fabrics are certified to STANDARD 100 by OEKO -TEX (class I)
Little Frog Ergonomic Carrier – Rainbow Aura (blue waist belt)
For babies from 4 (9 lbs) to 20 kg (45 lbs), aged to 24 months old.
Colors: colors of the rainbow (weft: white);
Fabric: Weave – broken twill weave, 240 gsm
Made in Poland
Little Frog carrier is dedicated for parents who would like to carry their baby from beginning in healthy and safe position. There is nothing better than closeness.
Going for walk, for shopping or doing daily work at home – will become much easier. In Little Frog carrier – you can wear your baby from 4 kg (9lbs) to 20 kg (lbs) in position belly-to-belly (also with straps crossed), and on your back (when baby is over 4 months).
This carrier will grow with your baby because you can extend panel in width and height and make it fit to your baby's size.
This is Soft Structured Carrier – so your baby's spine has full support and keep natural position and knees are placed above the bottom, in the so-called position "M"
Little Frog Carriers are complaint with Standards:
- ASTM F-2236-16a
- CPSIA (for US only)


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This document briefly introduces how to set up the virtual network and connect the subhurd with the main hurd.
1. Set up the virtual network.
1.1 Patch and install GNU Hurd, GNU Mach and the GNU C library.
Step 1: Get the Hurd and compile it.
cvs -z3 -d:pserver:email@example.com:/sources/hurd co -r zhengda-soc2008-virt-branch hurd
Step 2: apply the patch on the GNU Mach.
In order to connect the virtual network created in hurd with the external network, we need this patch. It enables the Hurd to set the Mach device into the promiscuous mode, so the real device can accept the packet that goes to the virtual device in hurd. (This step is optional if we are only interested in creating a internal virtual network.)
Step 3: apply the patch on glibc.
This patch enables the user to override the default socket server by using the environment variables SOCK_SERV_DIR or SOCK_SERV_%d (%d is the domain of the socket server).
1.2 Set up the Hurd components to build the virtual network.
In this section, I show how to create two virtual interfaces and run three pfinet servers. I assume that the source code of Hurd is in /root/hurd.
Step 4: create the network device file in /dev with devnode. The network device file is used to help other translators open the device.
# settrans -acfg /dev/eth0 /root/hurd/devnode/devnode eth0
Step 5: create the virtual network device with eth-multiplexer.
eth-multiplexer is responsible to create the virtual network device and dispatch the packet to the right clients that connect to the virtual device. It also connects the virtual network and the external network. Eth-multiplexer of the current version is a netfs translator and can create virtual devices and the device files dynamically, according to the request from the client.
# settrans -acfg /root/multiplexer /root/hurd/eth-multiplexer/eth-multiplexer -i /dev/eth0
Step 6: setup the filter translator eth-filter on the network device. This step is optional.
eth-filter is used by the user to force the traffic policy on the network device.
# settrans -acfg /dev/fveth0 /root/hurd/eth-filter/eth-filter -i /root/multiplexer/veth0 -S 192.168.8.0/24 -R 192.168.8.0/24
# settrans -acfg /dev/fveth1 /root/hurd/eth-filter/eth-filter -i /root/multiplexer/veth1 -S 192.168.8.0/24 -R 192.168.8.0/24
Step 7: setup the pfinet server on the virtual network device.
# settrans -afgc /root/socket0/2 /root/hurd/pfinet/pfinet -i /dev/fveth0 -a 192.168.8.10 -g 192.168.8.1 -m 255.255.255.0
# settrans -afgc /root/socket1/2 /root/hurd/pfinet/pfinet -i /dev/fveth1 -a 192.168.8.11 -g 192.168.8.1 -m 255.255.255.0
1.3 Run the command with the customized pfinet server.
Step 8: Set environment variables to use the customized pfinet server.
The environment variable of SOCK_SERV_DIR is used to override all socket servers and SOCK_SERV_%d to override a specific socket server. %d after SOCK_SERV_ is the domain of the protocol that the socket server supports. The environment variable SOCK_SERV_%d has the higher priority than SOCK_SERV_DIR.
# export SOCK_SERV_2=/root/socket1/2
If the modified glibc isn't installed as the system default C library, set LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment.
# export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:/the/path/of/glibc
We can run any command now, for example, ping.
A SHELL script is provided to run all translators I mentioned automatically: http://www.assembla.com/spaces/VNetHurd/documents/c2W71ABser3AIxab7jnrAJ/download/runmultiplexer. To use this script, the user must specify the source of the hurd tree (the default value is /root/hurd) and the path of the servers (the default value is /root) where they should be created. This script is only used to test all translators I mentioned above and shows all steps to set up the virtual network.
2. Connect the subhurd with the main hurd.
In the main hurd, we still need to do Step 1-8. We run subhurd,
# /root/hurd/boot/boot -m eth0=/dev/fveth0 -m eth1=/dev/fveth1 servers.boot /dev/hd1s1
In the subhurd, we do Step 1, 4, 8. Step 4: # settrans -acfg /dev/veth0 /root/hurd/devnode/devnode -d veth0 Step 7: # settrans -afgc /servers/socket/2 /root/hurd/pfinet/pfinet -i /dev/veth0 -a 192.168.8.20 -g 192.168.8.1 -m 255.255.255.0
Now we can communicate from the subhurd with any pfinet server of the main Hurd that runs in the virtual network.