I was planning to go home for my parent's anniversary. My mom is a big admirer of dates. It's a must in her pantry. So I decided to make something out of them for their anniversary. She normally prepares halwa and payasam out of it. So, I had decided on dates cake, something which she hasn't tried yet. Thanks to Hetal and Anuja's recipe . Mom and dad loved my cake and asked me to prepare it again (for an amateur baker its a big compliment :) ). Lets get started.

What I used:

Dates – 100g approx 20-25
Sweetened Condensed Milk – 400g
Unsalted Butter – 115g
Baking Soda – 1 1/2 tsp
Baking Powder – 1 tsp
All-purpose Flour – 200g

How I did:

1. Soak the Dates in warm water to soften them.
2. Sift the All Purpose Flour along with the Baking Powder and the Baking Soda. Avoid lumps
3. Make a paste of the Dates using as little water as possible
4. Melt the butter and mix it with flour, baking soda & baking powder. Add the dates and sweetened milk and mix well.
5. Grease a baking pan and pour the batter into it.
6. Preheat your oven at 180 degree and bake for 40 min.
7. Once done, take the cake out and allow it to stand for 5 minutes before taking it out of the pan.


How it looked:

Everyday sharp 5PM I start thinking hard on my son's evening snack and I have only 15 min for this as by 5:15 my son is ready with his question as to what I am planning to give him. That particular day I was blank and was tired of preparing the same things for him. Whenever I go blank, Google gets me out of it as usual. Found this simple tempting recipe and thanks to Nags(Edible Garden)

What I used:
Wheat flour  - 3/4 cup
Melted Jaggery  - 2 tsp
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
Powdered cardamom - 1/3 tsp
Salt  to taste
Ghee - 2 tsp

How I Made It:
1. Mix all the ingredients well to make a loose dough. Neither watery nor very hard.
2. Heat a tava and add some ghee. Take out some dough with your fingers, place on the tava and smooth out to make a dosa. Cook both the sides until they turn brown.


P.S: If you don't have ready made melted jaggery then you need to prepare it. Add few teaspoons of water to jaggery and keep it on low flame until the jaggery melts and has a thread like consistency. If you doubt impurities in your jaggery then its safe to strain it once and then use it as required.


How it looked:

A typical scene in a typical family on a typical rainy season would be a running nose, roaring sounds of sneezes, high temperature and on such typical occasions its very typical of me, preparing jeerige menasu saaru. But this time I thought I would get out of this typical saga and prepare this recipe. Thanks again to Ramya's Mane Adige.

What I used:
1 tsp Coriander seeds
1 tsp Jeera seeds
1/4 cup fresh grated coconut
2 Dry red chillies
Little Cilantro
1/4 tsp Tamarind paste
1/2 tsp Jaggery

For Tempering:
1 tsp Ghee
Little Mustard seeds
A pinch of hing
3-4 Curry leaves

Salt as per taste

How I did:
    1. Grind together coconut, coriander seeds, jeera, cilantro and red chillies with some water.
    2. Add about 3 cups of water and dilute the masala.
    3. Bring to boil and add tamarind paste, jaggery. Boil well.
    4. Temper with mustard seeds, hing and curry leaves.

How it looked:

Me: What do I cook this Sunday?
My conscious: What else? repeat any of these... Veg palav, Fried rice, Jeera rice, blah blah....
Me: NO!!!!.. Am bored....
My conscious: But these are simple and you know them well ....
Me: NO NO NO .... Now, shut up and let me search something new...

and the result of me fighting with my conscious was this recipe. Thanks to Ramya's Mane Adige for making our Sunday delicious :)


What I used:

1 1/2 cup Basmati Rice
1 bunch Dill leaves, chopped finely
1cup carrots, beans
1/2 cup sweet corn
1 Green chilli
1/2 tsp Haldi
1 tsp Lemon juice
Salt as per taste

Dry Masala:
1 tsp Jeera
2 tsp Coriander seeds
2" Cinnamon stick
5-7 cloves
2 Bay Leaves
10 Black pepper corns
2 Elaichi/Cardamoms

How I did:

   1. Powder all the ingredients for the dry masala and keep it aside.
   2. Heat ghee in a cooker or whatever you generally use to prepare palav.  Add jeera and let it splutter.
   3. Add rice, vegetables, dill leaves, dry masala,  2 3/4 cup water, salt. Bring it to boil, close the lid and cook for 10 min.
    4. Once done, pour lemon juice, mix well and serve hot.


How it looked:

How it tasted:
Yummmmmmmmmmmm ..... yummilicious ..... :)

Dear Mr. Weighing Scale,

Each time I step onto you, you make me go pale
All my month long efforts tend to fail
Can't you show some leniency towards this female
Heart broken I wail and wail and wail

But wow! the poet within me is on sail :)

Right next to the window where our son sleeps, a truck is loaded with speakers and people dance to chikni chameli, am a barbie girl, boardu illada bussige hattu banda chokari(eeiiks) and such numbers and that too at 11PM. Our windows were vibrating to the extent that we almost thought they would collapse any moment now. What do you think is the occassion? It's our very own favorite Lord Ganesha's visarjane. After having read the previous line if you are thinking 'Oh visarjane is it? Why is she complaining?', then please stop reading further. You would not understand my feelings and for others who voice my opinion, why do we bear this year to year. Dont consider me to be against celebrations, in fact I love them. Lots of things change around us. Some for good and some for bad. But I dont want the bad change scoring high over good change because its our younger ones who will be living there. Let them celebrate with dholaks,drums or whatever but why make such humongous noise and dance to those meaningless numbers in front of the Lord. Earlier when a visarjan procession would come in front of our homes we would offer poojas and take the Lord's blessing. But I don't see any such act now as the procession nowadays starts only after 10-11PM.
Am I the only one who cant relate to such acts.Am I the only one so agitated?
                      It's the Bangalore bandh today. Everybody seems to be cooperating which is really very good.
Surroundings are peaceful. No shops open, no rickshaws, buses plying on the roads. I hear a group of people on motorbikes shouting 'nyaya beku nyaya beku' (we want justice). Everything seems normal for a bandh day and then all of a sudden our room is filled with a pungent smell and our son has coughing bouts. Outside the people on the bike have burnt a Tyre and the surrounding if filled with thick black smoke.

Why? Why? and Why?. When everything is going smooth according to their plans why did they have to burn that Tyre and create such discomfort and huge degree of pollution? When I witness such acts, a voice within me shouts back saying 'If its troubling you so much, why don't you do something?'. But then, Can I? Can't we change such improper acts prevailing in our society.
              

I can still recall the days when my mom used to ask me to learn how to put a few stitches. But arts and sports were never in my circle of interests. Off late I have been thinking about it and thought why shouldn't I try something and the one thing that struck me was the Anchor Stitch kit. The kit comes in Flash Frame Series(14cmx16cm), Impression Series(22cmx25cm) and Masterpiece Series(33cmx39cm). This kit contains
1. A printed canvas for us to embroider
2. Cotton embroidery threads
3. One tapestry needle
A completed one will look like this

If you are an amateur holding needles and threads (like me :)), then you will find it quite a task to embroider it. But once you finish a small section you will realize that it is quite easy and fun too. Am totally impressed with my first art. Mom, stop complaining now ;) .

Chinese cuisine has always been our favorite. So, we decided to cook some Indo-Chinese recipes on a weekend. We decided on Schezuan fried rice and Gobi Manchurian.
Schezuan Fried Rice:
Ingredients
    2 cups of Chinese Rice - Serves 4 - 6. Change according to your needs.
    2 tbsp Schezuan sauce
    1 tsp garlic, chopped
    Vegetables of your choice
    Salt according to your taste
Method
    Heat the oil, add the garlic and sauté till it turns golden in colour.
    Add the vegetables and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes.
    Add the Schezuan sauce and cook for another minute.
    Add the rice, salt and mix well.
    Toss for a few seconds till all the ingredients are mixed.
Schezuan Sauce recipe:
Ingredients
   12 to 15 whole dry red chillies, soaked in warm water
   2 tbsp chopped garlic
   6 tbsp white vinegar
   2 tsp sugar
   2 tbsp sesame oil
   1 tsp salt
Method
    Drain out all the water from the chillies and discard it.
    Grind all ingredients except the oil in a blender to a fine paste. Keep aside.
    Heat the oil to smoking point and pour over the paste. Mix well, allow it to cool and use as required
Chinese Rice recipe:
Ingredients
   2 cup long grained rice (basmati)
   4 tbsp oil
   2 tsp salt
Method
    Wash the rice thoroughly and soak in 6 cups of water for 30 minutes. Drain and keep aside.
    Boil 6 to 8 cups of water, add salt and 1 tablespoon of oil.
    Add the rice to the boiling water. Cook till the rice is 85% cooked.
    Pour into a colander and let the water drain out. Pour some cold water on the rice to arrest further cooking.
    Let all the water from the rice drain out ensuring that the rice does not contain any moisture.
    Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and toss the rice in it
    Spread the cooked rice on a flat surface till it is cool and use.

Gobi Manchurian Recipe: This tasted so very authentic. I just couldn't stop relishing on them.
Ingredients:
1 medium sized cauliflower, cut into florets, placed in salted hot water for 10-12 mts, drained
2 tbsps maida/all-purpose flour
2 tbsps cornflour
1 tbsp ginger-garlic-green chilli paste
Salt accordingly

For sauce:
1/4 cup spring onions, finely chopped,
1/2 capsicum, finely sliced
2 tbsp ginger-garlic-green chilli paste
1 tsp red chilli pwd
1 tsps soya sauce
1 tbsp chilli sauce  - Use the sauces and vinegar to suit your taste
1 tsps vinegar
3 tbsps tomato sauce
Salt as required
1 1/2 tbsps sesame oil
1 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves

1 Heat oil for deep frying in a heavy bottomed vessel.
2 In a bowl, combine maida, cornflour, salt, ginger-garlic-green chilli paste and water to make a thick paste. Dip the washed and drained florets into the batter such that its well coated. Leave it for 10-15 min. Place each floret that is well coated with the batter into the hot oil. Do not crowd the vessel. Reduce flame and deep fry till the gobi is almost cooked. Increase the flame towards the end of the cooking process and fry the gobi till it turns golden brown. Remove onto absorbent paper and keep aside.
3 Heat oil in a large vessel and once the oil is piping hot, add the ginger-garlic-chilli paste and stir fry on high for a few seconds.
4 Add the whites of spring onions and stir fry on high for 3-4 mts, constantly tossing them. Add the sliced capsicum and stir fry for another 3 mts. They should retain their crunch.
4 Reduce to medium heat and add the soya sauce, tomato ketchup, chilli sauce and vinegar. Combine well and cook for 2 mts. Add 3-4 tbsps of water and cook for 2 mts.
5 Add the deep fried gobhi and combine. Toss on high flame for 1-2 mts. Turn off heat. Garnish with the chopped spring onion greens and coriander leaves.

Yummmmm ..... posting this recipe is making me hungry. While I am off to munch on something spicy and tangy you decide when you are going to try this.

Frank Lloyd Wright has rightly said "I believe in God, only I spell it nature". Imagine sleeping on the banks of Kapila river watching the sun change into its divine dawn color and the birds drifting right in front of the sun bidding it goodbye.Just the thought brings so much peace within us.I recently happened to enjoy this peace in Kittur.No, I am not talking about the one in North Karnataka. This is a remote village in the Mysore district,Karnataka near Kabini dam  http://g.co/maps/z99xx.

 I am married into the Kittur family. We are basically Vadama Iyers having migrated there.We have a Ravi Rameshwara temple there where every year people in large numbers gather to celebrate Shivratri festival with immense faith.This year we were lucky to be there to seek his blessings and thought the experience is worth a share. Lets slightly dwell into its history.

 Sri Ravi Rameshwara temple, part of the Taranimunti (Kittur) village, has a history of around 1500 years. Kittur village was the capital of the Punnata kingdom, the first kannada kingdom. Punnata kingdom is believed to have been established prior to 345 A.D and they were the first to use our Kannada script. The temple was built between 430 A.D. and 450 A.D during the reign of Ramaverma. Around the year 1960 the Kabini dam project was taken up and this made it inevitable to shift some villages adjacent to the dam as these would be submerged.Kittur and our temple were one of those affected. The caretakers of the temple were the Arasu families of Mysore samsthana. They decided to shift all the Devi-Devathas to another temple.But this did not go as planned.Instead,these vigrahas were sold for a price. However, the main Sri Ravi Rameshwara idol could not be touched as the Nagaraja (king of snakes) was guarding it. Hence for about 40 years, Sri Ravi Rameshwara remained in seclusion and provided shelter for wild animals In the year 2000,group of our people made a suggestion to assemble all the migrated Kittur families and form an association. A few members from the Kittur family visited Taranimunti and the old Kittur village. The Sri Ravi Rameshwara temple was in a dilapidated condition. It was difficult to even enter the temple premises.This was the starting point of Kittur Balaga. With the efforts from Kittur Balaga, its family members and others, the Sri Ravi Rameshwara temple has been cleaned and restored to the current state. Work on improving the temple is still in progress. From 2010 onwards, the Mahashivarathri pooja is celebrated in a grand manner. The Kittur Balaga family and the villagers of Taranimunti come together to celebrate the Mahashivarathri pooja.

The Balaga has also built a guest house in Kittur, according to the village standards.It has a large dining hall with 2 rooms and a bathroom. The reason why I specified the 'village standard' is, people well accustomed to city luxuries should not expect the same here. After all we are seeking peace in a village. Balaga families and their acquaintances can stay here with a minimal price though. Food arrangement needs to be taken care of by the families.
Now getting back onto the track, let me shed some more light on this year's Shivratri celebration. On the morning of  20-02-2012, Rudrabhisheka was performed. Few days before the festival, villagers of Kittur had requested the balaga to marry off a couple who were economically unstable. So, in the evening necessary arrangements were made for the marriage to take place. This is just one of the examples which makes clear that the balaga also intends to uplift the village families socially and economically along with the welfare of their own. Following the wedding was the teppotsava, where the lord's utsavamurthy is relaxed on the coracle and taken on a blissful ride on the waters of Kapila river. This sight is beyond words.

On the Shivratri night, arrangements had been made to entertain folks intending to do jaagarane(staying up whole night). Harikatha and bhajans were performed by Sri. S. R. Narasimhan and we also engaged the saxophone specialist Sri. S. V. Narayan. Next day we had early morning poojas which extended till 11AM. On both the days(20 Feb 2012 and 21 Feb 2012) there is annasantharpane(serving food to all the devotees) in the temple. This was just a gist that I have provided here. One should experience and enjoy the above in person.
Any further details about our village/temple/balaga, please feel free to mail me. Suggestions and comments are open.