Horchata
March was long, to say the least. And with every long month comes an opportunity to review what happened through the weeks and cherish the tiny wins and contemplate on the things that can be done better aka the opportunities for further examination as I like to call it. So let’s delve deep into this month’s Highs and Lows.
Highs
International women’s day was celebrated in the first week of this month. This for most marketers means a very hectic February filled with content planning, collaboration, and approvals. Since a big part of my job revolves around B2B marketing, IWD becomes a very introspective time. We implore organisations to look towards talent and gendered relationships within the company that can be used to create conversations. The one thing that I pitch a lot is collaborating with other voices. Using this as an opportunity to educate and empower a workforce that may otherwise blend too easily into the crowd. While some brands love the idea, most drop the ball because it’s hard to collaborate with too many stakeholders while keeping a single line of messaging. Another reason that I get too often is “why spend so much time and money for one day?” I wanted to explore this idea of collaboration and really try to get to the root of the problem, is it too hard to build a campaign where we share, amplify, and empower women-led voices for the sole purpose of educating and creating noise around a cause that on paper we stand by whole-heartedly? This question resulted in a month-long campaign where I got on board 41 women-led businesses and shared their stories. Businesses shared stories, took over my Instagram, and even conducted giveaways. In fact, my feed has never seen so many faces before as it has now (and I even lost followers through the process) but I am very happy that I did this! I not only connected with so many great businesses but audiences that did stay back made it a point to share their delight about the whole campaign!
Natasha and I took time off! For the first time in a while, we took 4 days off from work. We travelled to Jaipur and did NOTHING and it was the best trip ever. Any time away with Natasha is only good times filled with good food, lots of TV, and answering some of Natasha’s ontological questions throughout our journey. I loved loved loved it!
Lows
A long month means just a lot of work. Between managing content, connecting with businesses, to actually working with my team back at work, it was pretty much 16 hour weekdays. I usually have no issues with this but I could see my body breaking a little bit. Case in point a sty I got 3 days before my trip to Jaipur which got magically healed after my first night on my holiday. Natasha’s theory is that it healed because I slept for 9 hours straight unlike my usual 5 hours of sleep. I agree with her
There’s a lull in the content creation cycle. I’m feeling a little demotivated as I look at my data and analyse what’s working well and what isn’t. That being said, this is my third blog post of the month so Idk if I should be too worried? But I do want to plan more and look at the next big campaigns of the year. Hopefully, they will sort themselves out soon (as they have in the past)
I have been very bad at keeping in touch this month. With both extended family and friends, my MO has been to respond to conversations and not really create my own. I haven’t had the social capital to really focus on that and it’s gnawing at me a little. While I do think it’s a two-way street, I do also want to dust off the leaves on my side of the road. Things to work on in April.
This Horchata comes from a fascination with Mexican meals and the wonder that is rice. The first time I had this drink was at a small Mexican restaurant in Urbana Champagne, Illinois. Nowhere close to Mexico but still quite a lot closer to those cultures than we are privy to in India for now. The horchata is a fairly easy drink but what makes it fascinating is the utilisation of a homemade rice “milk” that is then further supplemented with condensed and whole milks. The flavour and texture is akin to Thandai but the process of making this drink is really like no other! I hope you do try this recipe if for nothing but the fun of actually grinding up rice in a blender to piss off your mom only to then surprise her with a drink that she won’t believe is made of rice!
Glimpses from the week
Recipe
Ingredients
1 cup of uncooked white rice (basmati work)
100 ml of condensed milk (1/2 a traditional can of Milkmaid)
1/2 tablespoon of nutmeg, freshly grated
1/2 tablespoon of cinnamon
500 ml of whole milk
To make a dirty Horchata
30 ml of cold brew concentrate
Method
Add the rice and 1 cup water to a large container and cover. Soak at room temperature for a minimum of 8 hours.
Pour the rice and soaking liquid into a blender, and blend until all the rice is finely ground 2 to 3 minutes. (If necessary, stop your blender periodically to prevent overheating.) Add condensed milk, nutmeg and cinnamon; blend until combined. Pour the mixture into a large pitcher or bowl. Add the whole milk and whisk until incorporated.
To serve, divide horchata among ice-filled glasses and top with cold brew concentrate, to taste (about 2 to 3 tablespoons cold brew for each cup of horchata).
