Today me will live the moment,unless it's unpleasant in which case me will eat a cookie ~ Cookie Monster
If cookie monster was real,that would be me !... Yeahhh,I am that monster who loves cookie,and my better half loves tad more..that makes him ......??? Oh my !...I din't say anything,words just flew that way (Love you honey :D)....Sometimes I wonder what will happen when we will have kids...It will be monstrously chaotic it seems !!
Cookies are so easy to bake and it's like ,you can share it without much fuss- like ,3 for me ,two for you ...
My hubby's favourite cookie is the coconut cookie ...This cookie especially can turn him into a 2 yr old kiddo...Very special it is and very yummy it is..
Please watch my video that will show you how to make this egg less cookie recipe,coconut cookie easily and quickly.The coconut cookie recipe is in the video ...
"Me want cookie!" "Me eat cookie!" "Om nom nom nommmm"
If you have a child who hates Cauliflower ,don't scream at them or give them free advice ,make them Gobi 65 .Problem solved !
Well,that's how I used to tell my mother....
When I was little, I was always curious to know, why the hell is a vegetable that appears to be cloned into a cluster called CauliFLOWER or PHOOLgobi (in Hindi) ...Is it a flower or is it a vegetable ? What the heck it is ? Unwanted questions like this always haunted my growing mind back then....
However,whenever,my neighbor Punjabi aunty would bring some Gobi 65 to my home ,I would be thinking with a smile at her,when is this aunty gonna leave ..I want that orange-y,crunchy,crispy looking thing she brought for us, ASAP...The moment she would step outside the door,I would jump at it as if she would return soon to take them back ....And Oh my..Did I love it ?..I was so crazy about it and I was in a denial for long, that inside that orange-y thing-y is actually those cauliflower florets that intrigued me to think more, than just eat.
So,my mother had her recurring ahaa moment ...She got her sure shot idea how to make her fussy child (ME) eat those cauliflowers ...She started making Gobi 65 but without any color ....I kind of surrendered ! (Sm-art moms!)
So,it is by far my favorite cauliflower recipe that I simply love...I make it often at home..Usually like my mom even I don't use any color but if I've any guest invited ,to make it look quite presentable just like I did in my video would add a pinch of color ...Poor cauliflowers!...After all they also deserve some color other than white and green....
So,here is my crunchy crispy Gobi 65 recipe restaurant style.....
Gobi 65
INGREDIENTS:
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Cauliflower (Florets) - 1 no.
All purpose flour - 1 cup
Rice powder - 1 Tbsp
Semolina - 1 Tbsp
Red chilli powder - 1 Tbsp
Turmeric powder - 1 Tsp
Baking powder - 1/4 Tsp
Ginger-garlic paste - 1 Tsp
Green chilli paste of 1 -2 green chillies
1 Tbsp Yogurt
Water as needed
Edible red color (optional)
For tempering :
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Onion,big,chopped - 1/2or 1 small onion chopped
2 whole large green chillies
Cilantro ,a few
Curry leaves,a few,
Salt to taste
Chaat masala to taste
Oil for deep frying
Please watch my video that will show you how to exactly make these yummy crunchy Gobi 65 at home just like restaurant style ....one of a kind....
Now I've come to a conclusion or an acceptance that cauliflower is a flower among vegetables with an identity crisis...However,Gobi 65 recipe perfectly covers all its insecurities at par...What do you say ?
Let me ask you this : How does a Broccoli appear to you ? Like a greeny vegetable right ?..Yeah,that's what normal brains think of ..so kudos to you ! However,abnormal people like me ,who never grow up (by height/size including brain's, excluding the waist size),who still day dream,who still believes Harry Potter is not a fictional character ,who still believes in Santa Claus annd elf,who kind of ,often, drift into some whimsical place in and out of dreams ,when I look at a Broccoli ,I feel like a tree shrunk into ground ..the tiniest edible tree of this world,that's the vibe I get from a Broccoli !
Well,I never ever saw Broccoli in India ..and my G.K. is always outdated ...or may be vegetables and I have a love and hate relationship...I hate them first ,love them later...So,that was my first and many times reaction when I saw Broccoli at store . I even thought if it is not a tree,it is definitely some kind of edible shrub ..Gross!! I avoided it for a long time ...until one day,for a change or as a revenge my better 1/2 threw a heart-touching lecture about how healthy this broccoli is ! He said,we MUST make it a part of our menu .
As obedient and caring wife I am :D ,I dared - started with a garden omelette ,then fried rice ,then stir frys' ,the most popular one as of now is the Potato and Broccoli stir fry .It is a very simple broccoli recipe that goes really well with roti/paratha/rice .Please watch my video to learn how to make this simple yet yummy Potato Broccoli stir fry .
Potato Broccoli stir fry recipe
Broccoli florets - 2 cups
3 medium size potatoes
1/2 of large onions
2-3 green chillies
1 Tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 Tsp pepper powder
2 dry red chillies
1 Tsp mustard
1 Tsp cumin seeds
Oil - 1-2 Tablespoon
Salt to taste
As of now,I can say,this is one Broccoli recipe that definitely sees a green future at my home and in my tummy...
It's Vishu !..God's own country 's /Kerala's new year day ,also celebration of onset of spring .Vishu just like the grand festival of Kerala,Onam is celebrated with great zeal and happiness in the family .It is believed that this day, when one wakes up,whatever he/she would see will indicate what one can expect in this year .So,people celebrate by decorating their puja rooms with Lord Krishna,incense sticks,deepams/lamps,prasadams/offerings,a special yellow flower called,Kanikonna,fruits,vegetables,grains,coins,cloths,jewelries ,desserts etc the night before and early morning, everyone would head to worship almighty (first) for his blessings for a prosperous year ahead ...
However, this Vishu is not that happy one for Malayalees all over the world .At a Hindu temple,Puttingal temple in Kollam district of Kerala ,while celebrating Vishu ,where firework display is one of the prominent show and groups compete with one another , more than 100 innocent people lost their lives and more got injured in an uncontrolled deadly firework explosion caused by a faulty rocket falling into the stockpile of firecrackers stored in a near by storeroom.The temple authorities were actually denied permission by the civic authorities even to store the fireworks but they went ahead with good intention for worse.
Well,fireworks are part and parcel of most of the festivals in India since ages.Fireworks symbolizes destruction of evil and when it comes to South Indian temples,no temple celebration is incomplete without any fireworks..There is even day to day fireworks at most of the large temples.
Thing is, time has changed .So are the types of harmful chemicals etc used to make firecrackers nowadays.Even the food products are adulterated,I will not be surprised if those firecrackers are nothing less than any dynamites or bombs ..
Sometimes it's lack of proper security personnel during such religious occasion or sometimes ,people are so carried away by the celebration that they forget about any safety at all ,they are just tranced.However,temple authorities would have paid heed to the Govt.'s rules and regulations and took it seriously as "Serving others is serving God". Just like God,his devotees' life also matters .That should be their priorities too!
So,I don't know,whom to actually blame on ?? I personally feel like it was just an unforeseen accident that went awry because in India (truth be told) people/authority concerned make rules and break rules mostly .So,what the temple authority did is not something new or unheard of (not that I am justifying it.. ) ...It is just another careless incident that claimed so many innocent lives...
I think that it is high time;We must remember that ,citizens of a country makes it or breaks it .We all should do our part - the Govt. should make and implement proper rules and regulations with harsh punishments to the violators and we,individuals should be law-abiding citizens ,helping the Govt. to make their policies successful one ,eradicate social evils and we must take care of ourselves and others regardless ...Life is precious ,when we value life,that is being truly grateful to God...
Anyways,this incident and more like this are quite painful to even hear .To lessen the pain a tad bit,I again leaned towards some kind of sweetness,that is,I made an easy peasy Pineapple Payasam .To make this Pineapple payasam,only a few ingredients are required.
So,please watch my video that will show you how to make Pineapple Payasam/Pineapple kheer/Pineapple dessert :
Well,this Vishu,I don't feel like making any grand sadya/feast at home and just made this pineapple payasam for a distraction ...But I hope,at least this new year,we have to make a strict resolution to be a law-abiding citizen ,whatever favors humanity and most importantly,it is our dire responsibility to take care of ourselves and others irrespectively...
Rest In Peace - all those innocent people who lost their lives at the blink of a firework..and prayers to their family for immense strength to get through it...
That was indeed a looong post...Thanks if you read all that..well,just trying to vent out my discomfort yet spread love,hope and sweetness my way...
I love to eat fingers !
errrr...I mean lady's fingers ...
I love lady'sfinger so much that even my vegetable garden at my backyard ,produces more lady'sfinger than any other vegetables...I end up feeling like I should open a sabzi mandi here/grocery store or sell it in the nearby farmer's market :D...So,I've to come out with many lady'sfinger recipes ,otherwise ,I would hate those vegetable's fingers ...
So,one of the lady'sfinger recipe that is quite a hit at my home is the Achari Bhindi recipes. We love this recipes as the bland lady'sfinger gets a tangy yummy makeover and which goes awesome with just roti/chapathi or boiled rice and a non-spicy curry especially like dal fry etc ...
So,this is how I make Achari Bhindi at home :
Please watch the video below that will show you clearly how to make this recipe properly much better than the restaurant style one......
I can eat this lady's finger recipe all by itself....I hope I will not eat my fingers by the way.....
Jab hota hai bura haal,tab kaam aata hai mighty dal !:D....Aaadaab aadaab...
Meaning Dal a.k.a. Lentil soup or lentil curry is that comfort food for me ,that is like an answer to my lazy days or when I am sick to bed .One of the stuff,stuffed in my pantry - store can run out of lentils,not my pantry !
Dal is not only easy to make but also is very nutritious . So,it is in every way a wake-me-up food item for me and healthy for my family as well.Totally a win-win thing-y ...
So,one of the dal that is quite frequent at my home is ,"Moong Dal fry " ,a lentil curry made with yellow mung dal which is very easy,tasty and healthy.
So,this is how I make Mung Dal fry at home :
Mung Dal fry recipe
Ingredients
Moong dal/Mung lentils - 1 cup
Water - 2 cups
1 Tsp turmeric powder
1/2 of large onion,chopped
1-2 large green chillies,chopped
8 Garlic cloves,chopped
1/2 of large tomato
Cilantro leaves,a few
Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp
Kalonji seeds - 1 Tsp
Oil - 1-2 Tbsp
Salt to taste
Ghee to taste....
Method:
Please watch my video below that will show you how to make this yummy Moong dal fry recipe at home which tastes nothing less than the restaurant style dal fry :
This curry is so satisfying ;Just some boiled rice ,any spicy side dish or pickle with this humble simple dal ...what can I say..maa ki yaad aagayi doston..koi mujhey rumaal pass karo ....
