"He's gone with her forever! She wailed into the phone. Twisting the cord in her hands.

"Listen, you idiot. He-ll never leave you. They never do. They're afraid of what their mothers will say," said Mimi. "Come to the health club. You will feel better at once. They are getting a hypnotist again today. You know the chap…Swami something or other. He's incredible. He can train your mind to stop eating. He looks at you for thirty seconds with his great, black eyes, Omar Sharif type, and whoosh!..."

This is a book of stories about women for whom food is an obsession, a passion, a gift of love, a source of power and even a means of revenge. Each of these tales is followed by a favourite recipe to read or, if you are particularly adventurous, to try out.

Bulbul Sharma, writer, painter, birdwatcher, maker of woodcuts, is the author of two books of stories, my Sainted Aunts and The Perfect Woman, and books on birds and trees for children. She teaches art to children with special needs and is a regular columnist for The Asian Age.

If you're looking for melodrama and action, passion and mystery…move on. But if you're delighted by the smaller things in life, everyday oddities and character quirks,… sample a few of these tasty dishes.

Obviously written by woman of taste…the eternal story of this country's complicated but abiding love for food.