Vanilla cinnamon butter cups

Vanilla cinnamon butter cups

Christmas is round the corner. Before the final evening when Santa would be knocking my door, I thought I should be ready with a new flavour cake. This time I tried Vanilla cinnamon cup cakes. The recipe is almost same for cupcakes and cakes except for the fact that cake can be cut in between and the sauce can be spread between the layers and over the top. I chose cinnamon this year, as its my favourite flavour . the mild sweet smell of cinnamon makes my heart wobble. I bought selected cinnamon sticks from Diu this vacation.

For the cup cakes:

100gm refined flour

80gm salted butter
2eggs

80gms powdered sugar

Vanilla essence

Pinch of grounded cinnamon

3/4tsf baking powder

1/4tsf baking soda

In a bowl whisk eggs, sugar and butter till the froth appears. Add vanilla essence and a pinch of cinnamon powder. In another bowl, sieve flour, baking powder and soda. Fold and mix the flour mixture in the egg mixture. Bake in greased moulds in preheated oven at 120”C for 30-40minutes.

For the cream sauce

Whisk 50ml double cream with 50gm powdered sugar, vanilla essence and cinnamon powder until peaks develop.

With the help of cone decorate the cup cakes.

Creativity is all we look for. Merry Christmas.

Colors of my city

Tofu Muttar sabzi

Tofu Muttar 

                                                      Tofu Muttar / muttar paneer sabzi 

I came back home to find that my fridge had peas, tofu, tomatoes. So I came up with an innovation of our regular muttar paneer sabzi. The recipe is same as authentic muttar paneer sabzi, just replaced paneer (cottage cheese) with tofu. Tofu is soya protein condensed in cubes. Its rich in protein, calcium, magnesium and other minerals.

Here is the recipe:

All you need is:

Peas 100gm

Tofu 100gm

Onions 2

Tomatos 5-6

Tomato puree 2tsf

Ginger garlic paste

Green chilli

Chilli powder

Coriander powder

Turmeric powder

Refined oil 4-5tsf(option to desi ghee)

Cream 1tsf

Home made garam masala a pinch

Salt to taste

In a blender, blend garlic ginger, onions, green chilli. Take a wok, heat the oil on medium heat, add the paste. Sauté till the paste starts leaving oil. Add few pepper, cloves. Blend the tomatoes. Add tomato paste and puree in the wok. Add all the masala. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add peas, tofu (diced in cubes). Heat for 20minutes in the covered vessel. The recipe is done once it starts leaving oil in the corners. Garnish with cream. Green coriander leaves.

Savor with roti, phulka, paratha, puri or rice.

Priorities

Need to be rescued
From a cold heart
Far away
With some warmth.

A rocking chair
To introspect within
Courage to loose
To gain within.

I ponder
Looking towards the walls
In empty space
I look for solution.

Right or wrong
I have done before
This time
I am not sure.

Bear pain
Or take chance
Its all I have to do
Deciding my priorities.

My Faith

My faith in you, will never rust.

My love for you, will never get dust.

In you lives my god,

With you, the world ever exist.

Mooli ki bhaji (mooli ki burji)

Mooli ki bhaji (mooli ki burji)

The day was clumsy, I hate my physiotherapy sessions as they aggravate my pain contrary to the fact they will help me recover fast. I got a call from my dear friend that she has an exam near my residence and she wanna drop by afterwards for dinner. She asked for mooli ki bhaji (radish leaves) with chapattis. The request lifted my mood in a jiffy.

Mooli ki bhaaji is a common dish cooked in north Indian houses especially in winters. Though this dish is rich in minerals , I find it medically unbalanced diet. Hence I improvised it with fortifying it with some protein. Being a vegetarian i have limited options of adding protein to a savoury.

Here goes the recipe:

250gms of green leaves of radish (mooli)

1 stem of radish (white one is better as the pink is slightly stingy)

Soya chunks (soya wadi) optional, 50 gm

2tsf refined oil

Cumin (Jeera ) 1 tsf

Asafoetida (hing) a pinch

Lemon half

Garlic 7 cloves finely diced.

Salt, pepper,turmeric powder

Soak the leaves in saline water for an hour (it will clean the leaves, if infected with pests) drain and rinse with clean water. Finely chop the green leaves and radish. Boil the leaves,  radish and soya chunks  in 100ml of water until just soft. Squeeze the excess water from the leaves by putting between the palms. (the drained water can be used in kneading the dough for chapattis, or can be used in dal).

In a sauce pan, heat oil, sauté cumin, asafoetida, and garlic. Wait until garlic is almost burnt. Add salt, pepper, and a pinch of turmeric powder. Add the boil and strained leaves. Sauté for 3-4min. Add lemon juice.

Serve hot with chapattis.

Tofu and Vegetable Clear Soup

Tofu and Vegetable Clear Soup:

Tofu and Vegetable Clear Soup:

Soups are generally considered low calorie diet. Dietians often recommend soups for reducing weight. But they generally forget that soups are deprived of protein. Vegetable soups are generally rich in minerals (unless cream is added, which adds extra calorie and fat). I came up with the idea of fortifying a regular clear soup with extra calcium and proteins.

I recommend this soup especially  obese who have knee problems and trying to reduce weight.

Tofu is soya protein(paneer) which is rich in calcium and proteins.

Here is the recipe

All you need is:

1tsf of olive oil

Tofu 100gm diced in small cubes

Peas, cabbage, cauliflower,spring  onion, beans : 100 gms

1 tsf corn flour

500ml of vegetable stock

Salt

Oregano, chilli flakes

Garlic powder

1sf vinegar

In a cooker, sauté the vegetables and tofu in olive oil. Add salt, garlic powder,corn flour(dissolved in water), oregano,chilli flakes, vinegar and salt.

Whistle the cooker and wait for two whistles.

MANDANA (WALL ART, TRIBAL FOLK ART)

MANDANA (WALL ART, TRIBAL FOLK ART)

Tribal art is the living proof that a traditional or folk artist is at par with the modern urban counterpart. They are equally creative and imaginative as the designers of urban communities.

Mandana is a tribal, folk art originated in some districts of Madhya Pradesh in India. Over time with the migration of communities, this art has taken several forms in the other states of the country. Marked as the beginning of social and religious functions, this art is revolving in the lives of Indian communities. 

I first saw this form in Ahmedabad, where this art is created on the outer walls of fence of a house having some auspicious celebration specially marriage ceremonies.

Originally the artist used to white wash the wall with lime mixture “khariya” and draws the motifs with red colour stone “geru”. 

Now days, various patterns have emerged. While covering this art, the artist chose to colour the wall in red and motifs in golden oil paint. Sometimes the finished product is again decorated with small circular mirrors glued with mud.

The motifs commonly drawn are called “ Varghodo” or the marriage procession where the boy’s family arrives the bride’s house.

The craze of this art form is somewhere decreasing due to availability of various texture paints. People living in flats or apartments don’t have fence walls for this traditional art.