tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145479082024-11-08T09:35:44.459-06:00A blog of cooking, delicious vegetarian food; our travels to lands far and near; my paintings & crafts; books I read and our furry & feathery babiesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.comBlogger336125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-50556661121884796642018-11-01T17:38:00.000-05:002018-11-01T17:39:56.913-05:00

New from Art by Bala! Hand-painted Christmas Ornaments ... a limited edition of only 100 with just 10 purple ones for the first 10 orders. I am thrilled to try something new again this year (last year I did the coloring book for the holiday season). These little approximately 3" plastic shatterproof ornaments are painted on both sides. I was able to find the disc-shaped ones in just red &

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-30733390830485748622018-10-17T08:48:00.003-05:002018-10-17T08:52:57.872-05:00

Seems like these days all the cooking revolves around using up what’s left from the garden! We had our first frost over this past weekend and all the remaining vegetables in the garden needed to be plucked and brought in. I have two brow bags with green tomatoes ripening on top of the kitchen cabinet. There are about 2 dozen butter gourds waiting to be roasted on the counter, along with some

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-49611075843827728042018-08-10T08:03:00.000-05:002018-08-10T08:03:06.021-05:00

S and I spent a week in Alaska to celebrate our wedding anniversary this year! We took the trip at the best time of the year and it was so amazing I can't wait to already go back. We flew in from Chicago to Anchorage, connecting in Seattle. We finished dinner at the Seattle airport at a little vegetarian joint called Floret. We took an uber from the airport to the airbnb we stayed at. 

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0Katmai National Park and Preserve, King Salmon, AK 99613, USA58.5975286 -154.693728500000022.1691205999999994 40.07189649999998 90 10.54064649999998tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-14648323870488475342017-12-04T09:39:00.002-06:002017-12-04T09:40:18.634-06:00

November was a hectic month in the studio with my time spent between finishing up a bunch of new paintings for the upcoming One of a Kind Show this weekend and my biggest project - Meditative Mandalas. I am so happy to announce that I have just published my Mandala Coloring Book! Over the years I have always said that I can paint, but I cannot draw. I threw out that notion with this completely

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-76179362443061655842017-10-27T11:08:00.001-05:002017-10-27T11:09:01.531-05:00

I love all my backyard birds - even the house sparrows that flock in dozens & empty the feeder I refill in about 20 minutes flat, even when they kind of yell at me when the feeder is empty. recently I bought a bird feeding station kit where I can hang about 4 different feeders, it includes a suet cage and a tray and also a small bird bath. I also got a woodpecker feeder for adding peanuts

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-91116236853546360172017-08-18T15:32:00.000-05:002017-08-18T15:32:20.658-05:00

As the summer progresses, my gardening woes have also increased! We had a huge hail that damaged most of my squash plants. In its aftermath, all the squash, pumpkin & melon plants have been stressed & developed powdery mildew. In addition to that, we now have squash bugs :( However, not everything is doom & gloom. The pole beans & some of the bush beans not near the squash

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-9859534625379739342017-05-26T16:15:00.000-05:002017-05-26T16:15:22.941-05:00

Today the suet feeder in the backyard was empty - with so many birds at the feeders, it seems like a daunting task to keep all of them filled all the time! The White Breasted Nuthatch was having a tough time competing with the other birds on the regular feeder and managed to discover the feeder in the front yard. He even managed to bring a friend along today & this is the first time I have

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-43908109837432686802017-05-25T19:35:00.000-05:002017-05-25T20:06:31.782-05:00

Among all the visitors to the backyard, my favorite is the Downy Woodpecker - the smallest of all the North American Woodpeckers, he is elusive and I have to sit still for a while before he will land on one of the pear trees. Last week he found his favorite suet in the feeder & gave me a chance to get some nice shots... ...till one of the blue jays chased him away for a bit! He

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-17560047091934267872017-05-19T08:34:00.000-05:002017-05-19T08:34:34.955-05:00

The sparrows have learnt to expect a hoard of soft fur when the dogs get shed in the backyard. They wait for me to finish shedding and as soon as the dogs run away, they swoop down to fetch their treasure. Eyes on the prize, they completely ignore me & the camera...

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-56554549239452176882017-05-17T12:13:00.000-05:002017-05-17T12:13:38.175-05:00

Recently I have taken to having my DSLR camera with me when I sit out in the backyard with the dogs. We have set up a few bird feeders and a couple of bird houses. It's been wonderful to see so many different birds come to the yard and there's also quite a few of them nesting! Here are some clicks from a couple of weeks back...I am hoping to keep this blog alive with at least posting a few

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-21389864784245936752015-10-16T12:34:00.000-05:002015-10-16T12:34:04.682-05:00

2016 calendars are here and they are selling so fast that I have already ordered a second batch! The theme for 2016 is Mandala Paintings. There are 13 of my popular mandala paintings and 12 of them can be framed after the month is over.  Printed on high quality premium glossy card stock paper and measures 8.5" x 11". There is also room to write on the dates. Only $16 + $4 shipping

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-48181561848642566672014-11-18T12:04:00.000-06:002014-11-18T12:04:30.597-06:00

One of my favorite fall / winter squashes is the delicata squash that I got introduced to a few years back at the Oshkosh farmer's market. This week I quick cooked it in the microwave for a salad topping - with harissa, maple syrup and miso paste. In a glass bowl I mixed 1 tbsp Maple syrup, 1 tbsp white Miso, 1 tbsp Harissa. In went two of the squash cut to small bite sized portions with the

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-23728655728453698782014-10-23T11:12:00.001-05:002014-10-23T15:01:54.931-05:00

2015 Art by Bala calendars are almost here and will be shipped starting Nov 4! It is Animal Paintings themed, with high resolution images of 14 of my henna style textured animal paintings. Printed on high quality premium glossy card stock paper and measures 8.5" x 11". There is also room to write on the dates. Only $15 + $3 shipping within US. Get yours today! You can now purchase them

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-43639457964985870322014-09-23T10:02:00.000-05:002014-09-23T10:02:43.571-05:00

With the summer art season in full swing, its been a while since I was able to post anything here. As we are starting to wind down from the weekend shows, I got a chance to make delicious veggie Ramen last night! In the hot pan went 1/2 water + 1/2 Miso -Ginger Broth (from Trader Joe's), 1 pack of maggie + 1 pack of Ramen (without the flavorings), 1 tsp of my spicy garlic pickle, salt.

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-58112049501119684472014-07-17T23:10:00.000-05:002014-07-17T23:10:47.918-05:00

Its been a good couple of weeks in trying to get the changes going in my eating habits. Though I am not noticing any changes, its been good to be working out on a regular basis and watching my diet. It is not easy to cook at home in the weekends with really long days out at art festivals. We did indulge in sushi & tempura last weekend, but most week days I finish making dinner by the time S

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-741702863982821032014-07-08T22:06:00.002-05:002014-07-08T22:07:46.968-05:00

As S and I celebrated our wedding anniversary last week, we took a trip to the Door County for fun over the long weekend. We decided on Door County so Kalki can also go with us. One of the best decisions we made since he had so much fun! Before the trip we loaded on good home-made food & a wonderful anniversary dinner at a friend's house. I made a red-lentils & Cauliflower soup

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-20587450051361633692014-06-30T20:31:00.000-05:002014-06-30T20:31:02.224-05:00

As life gets busy with other things, the first thing to get ignored in my list of things seems to be this blog! Its been a crazy few months with the summer art festivals season and catching up on painting almost every day. Also, my health has not been in the best condition this last year and I am struggling a little bit to stay motivated to take care of myself. We have also been eating out

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-77468918845036204232014-02-24T17:55:00.000-06:002014-02-24T17:55:42.612-06:00

I just made a big batch of hummus, to be eaten with crackers as an evening snack & for that 4 pm hunger pang when S is at work. Its such an easy thing to make and I am sure everyone has their favorite recipe. I like mine with a bite to it. Here's how I made it today: In the food processor went in a large can of chick peas, 2 cloves of garlic, 1/4 tsp of chipotle chili powder, 1/2 tsp

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-51163796154627348962014-02-20T15:13:00.000-06:002014-02-20T15:13:10.309-06:00

We just completed a big move last weekend to the Greater Chicago area and our last night in Madison we went to Himal Chuli, a Nepalese restaurant with a couple of friends. Its one of our favorite restaurants in town and we hadn't been there in a long time. Food was good as usual and S got their seasonal special - Eggplants with Potatoes. It took us by surprise - it was a simple saute of asian

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-74833321402795880232013-11-17T22:20:00.000-06:002013-11-17T22:20:08.069-06:00

I am having guests again this year for thanksgiving and I have been so happy the last couple of weeks since finding out! And of course, trying to figure out what to make for the big dinner. So many different dishes are being considered and finally I decided on the dessert today! Yay! I made this Coconut - Orange -Caramel flan in 2012 April for a party. Version 1 was made in small ramekins

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-62149489664069107092013-11-11T11:47:00.000-06:002013-11-14T12:31:48.322-06:00

I am celebrating yet another trip around the sun today and look what you all got me this year. Since I am so close to my target I went ahead and got this wonderful set up. Even managed to take booth shots yesterday before the snow here today. Thanks again and keep sharing my art with your world!  Link to the campaign: http://igg.me/at/artbybala/x/4868314 Trimline Canopy tent &

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-60401837843784752272013-11-06T22:43:00.001-06:002013-11-06T22:44:45.670-06:00

As I cook my way around the world, here is yet another recipe that I adapted from the AZ Cookbook - a Creamy Yogurt Soup! I like to make this soup in the fall, though in our house we love to eat yogurt anytime. I also used some Quark in this which made it even more delicious. This reminded me of thick kadhi from Indian cooking. Ingredients: Yogurt + Quark - about 3

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-24579934061803427952013-10-30T11:23:00.001-05:002013-10-30T11:23:20.281-05:00

I saw these amazing Spanish porcelain tiles at the Habitat ReStore in Madison and knew right away that I wanted to create coasters with them. I have not played with these before and the process involved a lot of learning. And for once, youtube was not really helpful. But in the end, the coasters are turning out beautiful. These are the ones I have completely finished so far. A second batch is

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-84249147798351495462013-10-27T22:47:00.000-05:002013-10-27T22:47:28.873-05:00

I am doing a little fund raiser on IndieGoGo to take my art to the next level: Next summer, I want to hit the professional art festivals in the mid-west including Madison's Art Fair on the Square. I need your help and support for getting there. Please check out my campaign by clicking the link below, contribute whatever you can and help me spread the word about my works. And I have some

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14547908.post-7104860364283423772013-08-16T11:50:00.001-05:002013-08-16T11:50:55.192-05:00

When S was in St. Louis last month I had asked him to get me a couple of pounds of the white sweet potatoes. The last of those were used yesterday for dinner in a delicious salad from North Africa, adapted from World Food Cafe - 2. It was hard to not keep eating this salad as the rest of dinner was cooking! Ingredients: Japanese White Sweet Potatoes - 2 boiled, peeled and diced;&

Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05637262297020569662noreply@blogger.com0