Last year, I got a new recipe of Suji halwa given to me by my Punjabi friend, Divya. The recipe sounded very interesting. But I had my doubts. Her recipe didn’t involve any roasting of Suji and no water what so ever. After talking back and forth with her on this, I decided to take the plunge. And now I can’t believe I sat on it for a year. [Read on…]
As soon as I hear the name “ladoo” my mind starts swirling with scenes from all those movies where a mum packs ladoos for her child who is going away from her. 80% of all movies where a mom’s love has to be communicated through a sweet, it is ladoo. Every student who has ever lived in a hostel, has carried [Read on…]
No other sweet symbolizes Jodhpur more than Mawa Kachori and deservingly so. The secret to so many paunches in Jodhpur can be traced back to this sweet most of the times. [Read on…]
Ginger Cookie Trifle is one of the most delicious dessert you will ever eat. It is unique, easy and difficult to resist. [Read on…]
Rich, luxurious, winter-special gajar ka halwa is everyone’s favorite and there are lots of ways to make it. This is one of the ways I make it. [Read on…]
I am having a hard time choosing a mithai to make for Diwali. I have already made my favorites in the past few years and now I am left choice less and confused. I have already prepared my mom’s special besan ki barfi, ghevar, gond ki barfi, gajar ka halwa and Rasmalai. Even though there are hundreds of mithai options, all my favorites are gone. So now can you appreciate my dilemma? Asking my mom won’t help me much too coz she has been making her besan barfi every Diwali for the past 20 plus years. And no one wants her to change that. [Read on…]
All my childhood, on Raksha Bandhan, there was only one sweet that came to our house. It was also one of the very few store-bought sweet that dared to enter our household. It was Samosa house’s special spongy Rasgulla. I have not eaten better Spongy Rasgulla (s) than those. Small, white, sugar soaked balls of Paneer that you could squeeze all the way through and they would not fall apart. Put them back in the syrup and they would puff right back up. Such was their popularity that all our relatives in Delhi asked for them when we would visit them. [Read on…]
It’s the season of celebrations!!! Come November and the non-stop festivities start. But nothing can beat the month of December for me. Everyone finds a little more in their heart at this time of the year. A little more joy, a little more giving and a little more loving! Forgive me if I am super happy to be born around this time. Yup, am a full-blown Sagittarius in every which way. And Of course, I digress. Now that my son is 5, he is able to understand and assimilate a lot of things that he didn’t last year. Christmas is one of them. There is something so magical about Christmas that it draws kids to it like a powerful magnet. And now that the attraction has sinked in, the questions have taken over. [Read on…]
Good neighbors make life fun!!! I truly believe that life is hell if your next door Homo sapiens have not evolved to be at the same page as you! I somehow, have been counting my blessings twice when it comes to all my present and past neighbors. When my last neighbors moved out-of-state, I thought, with a very heavy heart “Gosh, where will I find such good people again?” And now, when I am in the midst of some very wonderful, fun-loving people one more time, I pinch myself from time to time just to make sure, it’s not a dream. [Read on…]
So the other day we went to Ikea to pick some stuff up for the house. I have to say that brave are the souls who blaze the Ikea trails along with kids. My highest regards, deepest sympathies and a big salute to them! We were ready to pull our hair out just half way through. If it’s your first time to Ikea, it’s understandable to be super over whelmed. But even on subsequent trips, it doesn’t get any easier. With one kindergartener running around picking random things and stuffing into our cart, to the infant (almost toddler) refusing to sit in the cart and wanting to do some exploration of his own (mainly picking up the crap from the floor), we had no time to stop and look at things. It was almost like – You like? I like- Let’s pick up. I like, You- not sure? Chuck it. But in any case- Move it, move it, move it! [Read on…]