Rava Laddoo

Laddoos..Mmm.. yummy yummy.. Those mini globes that are given and taken on any joyous occasion back home.. I am sure there will not be a single living Indian who will not drool for the word laddoo. And for the rest of the world, it is until they give in to the temptation of their first laddoo. I may be wrong in my assumptions here because there maybe quite a number who may just dont like anything sweet. I belong to the group for whom each single tooth given by nature is all sweet coated.. :) But nature has its way of applying brakes by coating all of sweet all over me.. So there comes the stop signal for all the laddoo worship.. :)

Well, for me, any food that I eat or the aroma that it spreads reminds me of people associated with it. As of the rava laddoo that I am going to post here, they will forever remind me of my dear friend Rupa who is the first other person I spoke after landing in the United States. (Of course I am counting out the apartment maintnance person) When I was pathetically homesick and lonely, I should say that the heavens send her to me. I dutifully dedicate this work to her because it is she who taught me to do it. And since it is the type that can be made in a jiffy, all of us can get on to doing it. So here goes the dedication.

Rava Laddoo

Ingredients:

Rava (Sooji) - 1 cup
Sugar - 1/2 cup
Ghee - 1 tsp
Shredded coconut - 2 tbsp (optional)
Few Cashews, Almonds & Raisins
Lukewarm milk - 1/4 cup

Way to Go..

In a large pan, heat the ghee on medium heat and roast the cashews, almonds, raisins and keep aside. To the same pan add the rava and saute until slightly brown. Take care so that the rava is not burnt or browned too much. The taste of the laddoos primarily depends on the roasted rava.

Let the roasted rava cool to room temperature. Add the sugar, shredded coconut and the roasted nuts and raisins and mix well. Add milk slowly to this mixture. Use the hands in this process because the mixture should constantly be checked to be made into laddoos..

Once the mixture comes into the right consistency, take a little of the mixture and press it in your hands to make firm round shapes. When the laddoo you make does not break away, there your done with your yummy mini globes.. Sit back and enjoy or give it away to family and friends and enjoy more..

Mango Mango..

Well.. What is life without food. As far as food goes, the human species can be divided into two categories.. Those that live to eat and those that eat to live.. And each one of us would fall into one category or the other based on the specific food that we eat at any point of time.. And when it comes to the king of fruits I belong to the live to eat category.. Oh yes.. The mango season in India was the time I lived to eat it.. without any guilt.. Is it human to possess any guilt when you love..The one thing that I miss the most after coming to the United States after my parents and friends are the king of all fruits - my dear mango.. Oh.. If I were a poet, I would write one too many odes to my dear mango..

So here goes my first food post on my favourite vegetable/fruit. Here I will be using the vegetable variety of mango - the raw mango. It is a simple rice dish that I learnt from a colleague while I was working in India. Ok.. No more waiting..

Simple Mango Rice

Ingredients:

Grated Raw Mango - 1/2 cup

Cooked Rice - 2 cups
Onion - 1 small
Green chillies - 3 to 4
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Small piece of ginger finely chopped
Seasoning - Oil, Mustard and Urad Dal
Salt to taste
Chopped Cilantro for garnishing

Way to Go..

Heat oil in a pan and season with mustard and urad dal. You may add roasted peanuts also at this stage if you like the extra bite.

Add in chopped onions and green chillies and saute till tender. Then, add chopped ginger, grated raw mango and turmeric and saute for a couple of minutes.

Once the raw smell of turmeric goes, add cooked rice and salt and mix well for a few minutes. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Your steaming cup of rice with the tangy taste of mango is ready to fill your heart and stomach.. Enjoy!

The Pressed Flower Workshop

So.. I am back after a long hiatus.. not that it was anything intended. just that I suddenly found myself with no time at my disposal.. Anyhow I am sure I am not going to be stuck like that anymore..

Ok.. now coming to my latest fascination in the arts and crafts area - Pressed Flowers. I had the good fortune to attend a pressed frower workshop conducted by the Denver Public Library. I sure enjoyed the experience of learning something new in the world of crafts. Ever since I have been to this workshop, it has taught me to see the regular plants and trees in new light. Anyhow I have already been fascinated by the seasonal changes of these plants and trees in this beautiful country which is more like them speaking a language to the environment around them. It makes me feel their presence more often than I did in the past. The workshop has made me more keen in finding out the wild flowers and leaves that will be made immortal in my craft even if they didnt like me plucking them out of their place.. :)

So.. I hope there will be more of my craft work on display in the future on my space here. The one that I have posted is the first step I took in just putting everything at my disposal on the paper to make my first bookmarks. I hope the next time around there will be more clarity in my work and less of messing up. Well.. Hope is eternal.. ;)

One True Thing

One True Thing was one movie that embarked me on a journey that I had not anticipated. The brilliant potrayal of a family and the different emotions which all of us go through in our families sends us down memory lane. Meryl Streep as the mother will remind each one of us of the everyday sacrifices our mothers had to make to make us what we are and what our family becomes. Renee Zellweger as the ambitious daughter will remind every woman of how she wished in her growing years that she does not grow up to be her mom and how later in her life she identifies her mother as the strongest person and wishes that she had at least a fraction of the strength her mom possessed.

A scene where the mother inspite of her own illness tells her daughter that she needs to make her own career reminded me of my own mother telling me the same thing when I was going for my first day at work. Had it not been for her strong words then, I doubt if I would have ever accomplished the little I did.

This is my salutation to the selfless years of the life of all mothers from whom we have all borrowed our own lives.. Thank You Amma..

Krishnaarpanam

I thought it should be appropriate for me to start off my blog (Yes, I am one of the latest to join the blogging community) with Bala Krishna, one of our favourite gods who gives us fond memories of our own childhood.. This is a drawing I took a little less than 6 hours to complete within a span of two days. That was after I had almost spent about 6 months just looking at the picture when I offer my daily prayers.. I am sure all you guys must be thinking that this is the heights of procastination.. :) I should agree it is..

There are quite a number of flaws for one with a detailed eye.. but when I did complete the drawing, I was surely happy with the result though it was'nt the best or the most perfect..

And at this point I am surely indebted to my friend Divya of mixtomatch blog for her encouragement. During my recent visit to her blog I came to know of the Purva's Krishna and Ganesh Chaturthi event for which I thought of sending this art of mine..