Yummy Gaajar(Carrot) Halwa…

I dont consider myself a good cook. But there are some recipes of which I am confident and and always get compliments. This dessert is one such. Its very simple to cook but takes little longer time. As its always said, Intezar ka phal meetha hota hai..

Ingredients:

1/2 kg grated Carrot
1/2 litre milk
100 gms Ghee
100 gms sugar
5 Cashew
5 Almond
Raisins if desired

Procedure:

Heat the pan and pour ghee in it. After the ghee melts, add grated carrot. Fry it in medium flame for about 20 mins. Keep stirring it. When the raw smell of carrot is gone and it becomes soft(this generally takes 20 mins, may take little longer time too), add milk into it and close the pan with a lid and let it cook for about 15 mins. Now add fried cashew & almonds in it. Right now it will be in semi solid state. Add sugar and keep stirring it till it thickens. The indication for it to be done is, it is no longer sticky and it will shed the ghee in sides of the pan.

Add ons:
You can also reduce milk quantity and add condensed milk. If you like the taste of cardamom, you can crush some cardamom and add it while frying carrot.

Tastes yummy when it is hot. Also you can refrigerate it and serve it with a scoop of ice cream.

Tell me how you like it. Write in comments if it doesnt come out well, I can give you tips as what can be done to make it taste better!!!

Quick Breakfast..

I heard of this quick recipe when I was at school. Maharashtrians call it ‘Fodni chi roti‘. Suppose there are left over roti from previous night’s dinner, here is a simple way to reuse them by modifying it easily. Tasty it definately is!

After returning from office, you take all the pain to knead the dough, roll them and then cook them. Serve it on table and after dinner realise that there are some 3-4 roti still remaining. And if you are that type of person who doesn’t like to waste food, then here it is for you ‘Fodni chi rotiiii‘.

Ingredients:
3-4 Old roti
1 medium size Chopped Onion
1 Chopped Green Chilli
Mustard (1 tbsp)
Turmeric powder (1 tbsp)
Cumin seeds (1 tbsp)
Curry leaves
Oil (1 tbsp)
Salt
Red Chilli powder

Procedure:
Cut the roties into small pieces(as small as corn flakes). Heat the oil in a pan. Add Turmeric powder, cumin seeds & mustard in it. Let the mustard pop. After that add chopped green chillies, curry leaves and onion. Cook it till onion turns light brown in colour. Now add roti pieces in it. Add salt and chilli powder. Fry for 3-4 minutes in medium flame. Serve it in plate with mango pickle and curd.

Add-ons:
If you like potatoes/groundnuts, you can fry them with onion.

Quick and good to taste. Next time if you are running late to office and you have left over roti, you know what to do with it .

Try it and let me know how it was.

MY INDIA

India – a land of splendor and charms
The land where people know to respect each other;

India – a land which will make a person a real human
The land which is famous for its ancient activities;

India – a land which made people flock into it from outside its border
The land which still retains the good old glory of the past;

India – a land of scholars, poets and outstanding personalities
The land where ramanujam, raman, gandhi and kalam made history;

India – a land of mouth watering dishes and cuisines
The land famous for its various regional delicacies;

India – a land of music, dance culture and heritage
The land of bharatanatyam, kathak and balle balle;

India – a land where unity and diversity is at its best
The land of fame which every Indian should be proud of.

I saw her in tears…

I met her this morning. Her eyes were swollen and reddish cos she cried the whole night. Her dad would not let her marry the guy she loves. She is Brahmin and he is not. Her dad is against this just for the reason that he is not a Brahmin!

The discrimination happens so badly here that people end up fighting and eventually dying claiming their superiority. Just because Brahmins are higher class they degrade every other caste. If there is so much discrimination even so many years after independence, after moving forward so much, after achieving so much, then there is only one conclusion drawn… People are Selfish & Coward. In our society all one is bothered about is how he retains his dignity. To do so, he can go as high as sacrificing his desires, his family’s desires and their little little dreams.

What right has her dad got to kill her dreams like this? Why can’t he just meet the guy once before he draws a conclusion about him based on his community? He worked so hard all these years to see her in a good position, which she is now. And he always wanted her to be independent and manage her life by herself. When he gave all these rights, then why is it that he is not allowing her to unite with him? After the day she told her dad about her desire to marry, there was a roar. After which she decided to give up and marry anyone her parents choose. Then why are they asking her the opinion about the guy they chose? I have heard her mom asking her to stay happy, and not to be glum. Little do they understand where her happiness is actually in?

They are seeing her die. They are seeing her difficulty in sleeping, eating, conversing socially, yet they scold her and force her to be happy. The reason is awesome. They do not want the people around to know about it and lower their prestige. They stand here!!!! Well if they want only that, then why ask her opinion. They want prestige, they want pride, they want all this in her happiness’ cost and when it hurts, then she is not allowed to show that too.

In Indian culture it has happened always that parents choose the groom or bride. Yes, I agree that it is very important to respect their opinion and their single most important thing to see. But cant there be an effort to think about her too… Once?? May be I am being rebellious and am thinking only about her, not bothering about what her parents went through went they heard this.

She is about to start her life. And it is so very important to be excited and attracted to the guy one girl marries. A forced love is what it is. How can you assume that you love someone? How can she forget her love and try to love some one else? For the whole life this weight has to be carried. I pray that the situation changes soon and everything turns out as expected. And never see her in tears again.

The Perfect Evening…

It was on one evening at work, in cafeteria, where we were sipping our evening cup of tea with a dash of gossip. When suddenly we could feel the breeze becoming stronger and turning into chill thorny drops of water. The sound from the roof was tremendous. The trees went left and right frantically making a hushing noise.

In sometime, the rain slowed down. Thinking that I would rather leave for the day than waiting here forever, I decided to step out. Caroline stopped me. She said that I might get stuck in rain. She made me wait till it slows down and then I left the lobby with dupatta covering my head trying to escape from rain drops.

When I just crossed the road, rain suddenly became storm again. The dupatta on my head could do no good to prevent me from getting wet. It was pouring like a waterfall.By then I was WET!!!

That was such a lovely moment. No one on the roads. Water flowing underneath my feet, pouring over me from skies. I just removed the cover on my head and walked happily in the rain. All I was bothered about was my mobile. Making it sure that it was safe inside my bag and dumping the watch too inside, I walked. And then there was the best walk from office to home getting fully wet in heavy rain and for first time wished that my home was little more away, so that there is little more time with rain.

I was all giggling… happy, sometimes splashing the water and couldn’t contain it in myself. People who were taking shelter from rain in shops on my way home, were laughing and commenting among themselves. I dint care for people who were watching me do that.

I reached home. As the door opened there was another rain – of words. Not being satisfied of the feeling of being in rain, I wanted to go out in rain again and continue, but he did not allow me to.  . What followed next just completed the evening – A hot cup of TEA served on the couch.

A Perfect Evening!!! This is what I would name it….

El Inicio

Ages after the thought of blogging struck me, finally I stepped out of my lazy shoes and have signed up to blog. Here comes my first post in my blog- El Inicio, meaning ‘The start’ in Spanish.