Oblique Rays

The embrace

2015-02-01T01:53:00.001+05:30

She stood alone on the silver shore,

Beneath the sun's demanding light

Not the wind dared nor the sea moved

As if in reverence of her silent mind

Her unseeing eyes poured her vast journey

like diamonds polished bright

There was but one question in her heart,

"Aeons I have waited my love, Will you come tonight?"

She stood alone on the silver shore

under the dark shadows of the night

The sea kissed the shore with gleeful abandon

The stars danced on passionate hymns

Her eyes aflame with the love she sought

The universe a joyous cry

Her lips quivered with wonder as she said

"Aeons you waited for my embrace, as you walked by my side"

The human condition...

2014-05-18T08:33:00.002+05:30

This is a strange phrase...."the human condition"; typically used by philosophers, either to define the deplorable spiritual state of humans or to paint a dark picture of how humans are caught up in their own web of sorrow and suffering

For me the meaning is the state of the collective soul, a soul that is still a fledgling and not allowed to develop , or to be more philosophically correct, to manifest. This is most evident when you stand back or travel to a different country, where you are forced to be the audience, and you see people as a mass, and not as individuals you react with. You immediately get a sense of how the "mass" suffers, you see a dreary depressing reality, people almost like automatons, running through life, with a weird inhuman force or compulsion that makes them go through the motions day in and day out.

Life almost becomes a repetitive script written by an unseen hand that's not quite divine, but not quite human. And that unseen hand is the mind. It programs the body, drives life, and creates a veil of security that in singular rare moments of reflection feels "odd", like chains shackling something more important. But we do not investigate, we are slaves to our own minds, we are lulled into sleep so that the mind can exist at the cost of suppressing the soul.

And that according to me is the human condition, a malady more than a condition, where we pervert our naturally curious minds outwards, to take unholy pleasures in others sufferings; instead of using this nature of discovery to discover who we really are; and what we can be.

Maya

2014-02-10T23:24:00.003+05:30

She walked on the pavement

Cold dust in her face

The autumn leaves swirled listlessly

With the desolation she felt

Life felt so empty,

no meaning to it all

a cruel twisted fate

slaved to an arid desert land

The seasons driven by passions
Like bright eclipsing stars
Technicolor dreams
on the wasteland dark

Sometimes, it all seems so pointless, the existence of humanity, our clinging to daily routines, desires, our passions

A sudden loss or going away of strong emotions creates a void that scars the soul, until another illusion comes along, of joy. Every single illusion is stronger, and more destructive...

The woman on the bridge

2013-11-07T23:12:00.001+05:30

On the bridge across the river
stood a tall woman of might

She had blood on her hands
and a chill in her eyes

An ascetic calm grace
on a countenance so white

Her heart was of fire
Her blood was of ice

On the bridge across the river
stood a tall woman of might

She jumped off the wall
into the rivers' cold night

Tis said that even the dark warriors
the slayers of light

Have ever reached their end
Coz love was their plight

Burma...

2013-05-30T09:14:00.003+05:30

I could describe this country in the warm romanticism and mysticism of a benevolent traveler, who has something important to describe about quaint places, breathtaking nature, people, their warmth, beauty and other things. But maybe because of preceding events that will not be recounted here as they would defer from the theme, and maybe precisely because I had no emotion either of excitement or foreboding about this trip, I feel the urge to be true to myself and the thought that compelled this article. Sometimes the most abstract things explain more than the gloss of articulate words that mean nothing, except make the reader happy, feel in awe and live through the writer through his selfish pleasures and inconsequential dreams

It could not be a coincidence that I lived through the soul of Howard Roark, at the same time that I reached this country, in all its beauty and glory, so innocent; that you expect all the struggles they have to face. It is peaceful and terrible in its beauty and serenity; an almost childlike and tragic wonder at change and progress. You immediately want to protect everything in this country, even the brutality of the strife, just to feel the rawness of human life frozen in one endless moment.

You want to keep experiencing the simplicity of treating everyone through how they know to live life, their poverty neither a badge of self righteous honor, nor a shameful yoke to slink from. I do not know if I love this country, most of us anyways make the mistake of defining lust and desire as love, love turned to a stamp of approval for the baser desires. But I do know that the country touches you, not in a beautiful postcard kind of way, but in a more basic impersonal understanding and grave recognition of humanity.

Red Velvet!!

2013-04-29T14:17:00.003+05:30

I finally found the color and courage to make red velvet cupcakes!!

I used this recipe at Pinch my salt : http://pinchmysalt.com/red-velvet-cupcakes-with-cream-cheese-frosting-recipe/

The only change is I added a tablespoon of yoghurt, while mixing the batter, and I also substituted some of the red with rose red coloring!

Bread...

2012-10-08T18:05:00.000+05:30

I've been meaning to put this recipe down for quite some time, it's been more than two months!!

Guess Im not yet done getting over my habit of procrastination....but I guess better late ....

Anyway, so I've always struggled with bread, never really got down to making awesome bread except for the pizza bread variety....so I decided to give it one more try with a lot of trepidation...But the bread gods did decide to finally smile upon me and the results(and recipe) are below...

Ingredients:

All purpose flour 1.5 cups

Wheat flour 1 cup

Warm water 1/4 cup

Milk(warm) 1/2 cup

Yeast 1.5-2 tbsp(crumbled)

Sugar 1.5 tbsp

Olive oil 2 tbsp

Pinch of salt

In a mixing bowl add the flours ,crumbled yeast, sugar and salt. Make a well and add the oil, and milk and start kneading , adding water as required. Knead for about 8-10 minutes until dough is warm. Leave covered with a damp thin cloth in a warm corner(I normally put mine on top of the fridge) for an hour, until dough rises to almost 2ce its size.

Punch the air out of the dough and lightly knead into the shape required(I put mine in the loaf tin), and leave covered for half an hour. Brush the top with milk/whisked egg and bake at 175 deg C for half an hour(or until base of the pan sounds hollows to tapping), in a preheated oven.

An attempt at making fondant..

2012-07-17T00:14:00.002+05:30

I had been meaning to try making fondant for quite some time now, but due to a moody oven, and different websites telling me fondant doesn't taste good I had kept putting it off for quite some time.
However, a couple of weeks back I finally picked up a bag of marshmallows, and decided to give it a try...

To cut the taste of the fondant, I decided to make a slightly bitter cake, by adapting my "Tiramisu cupcake" recipe that was featured on "Savour the senses" here

However, in this recipe Ive added a bit of Cocoa.
(Note: I don't remember all the recipes exactly, I just generally dump stuff and end up forgetting exact measures. The following recipes are an approximation)

The Chocolate cake

100 g butter
100 g powdered sugar
100 g all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
2 tbsp instant coffee
3 tbsp cocoa
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking powder
2-3 tbsp milk

Preheat the oven to 350F (175C) whip the butter and sugar together.
Add the eggs and vanilla and whip until the mixture is light.
Add the instant coffee and mix.
Mix the flour,cocoa and baking powder (dry ingredients) in a bowl.
Now, slowly incorporate the dry ingredients and the milk with the butter mixture.
Bake at 350F until a skewer comes out clean (about 30 minutes).

The butter cream frosting:
Make a simple vanilla buttercream frosting. I whipped 2 tbsp butter with half a cup of heavy cream, half a cup of icing sugar and a tsp of vanilla, to make just enough to completely cover the cake.

The fondant:
Nuke 1.5 cups of marshmallows(I know it's a strange measure, but I dont remember thwe weight of the pack I used), with a tbsp of water for a minute or two, keep checking and stirring. Once completely melted, start adding icing sugar and stirring until it starts becoming thicker.
I cheated a bit, and instead of only Icing sugar, I also added cornflour, 'coz I started getting paranoid about the amount of sugar I was adding.
As it got thicker, I coated my hands with clarified butter(Ghee...you can use any shortening I guess), and started kneading it into a shiny dough. At this point I cheated again, and instead of all ghee, I added a tablespoon of olive oil(what do I say, I try to eat healthy)...
Keep kneading until a smooth dough is formed, wrap it tight in film and freeze it for atleast half an hour.

The assembly:
Cover the cooled cake with buttercream frosting.
Roll out the fondant on a surface dusted with icing sugar. You can add any color to this(I added a rose red).
Fondant is a very forgiving and versatile frosting, so you can play around with it quite a bit, until you get the hang of it.
Lightly roll the rolled out fondant on the rolling pin and in the same motion roll it out across the cake. Smooth it and trim the edges.

I added fondant flowers.

Back to baking....

2012-05-02T00:09:00.000+05:30

It's been a difficult few months, to put it mildly...I am struggling with a lot of things, and at this point of time, I cant say if the stress is going to get better, or if the struggle is going to cease any time soon...

But with every such phase in life, I become stronger, and understand myself better, and I believe thats a good life's lesson learnt :)

But let's not get all deep and serious, not when there's a weekend where I finally decide to reward myself with a happy break, and indulge in my favorite activity...baking.

I made Baklawa this weekend, which was to my surprise, quite a simple thing to do! The only part I didn't really care for was the cleaning up afterwards!!

Steps for making Baklawa:

1) Making phyllo pastry dough:

Recipe:
1 1/3 cup flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons water(add more if required)
2 tablespoons olive oil(can be substituted by vegetable oil)
1/2 teaspoon white vinegar

Mix the ingredients in the flour and knead until smooth soft but non-sticky dough is formed.
I kneaded it, and then wrapped it in a foil and kept it in the refrigerator for 4-5 hours as I didn't intend to make the Baklawa till evening, but I guess you can directly roll out the pastry.

2) The Syrup:

Recipe:
3/4th cup brown sugar + 1/4th cup castor sugar
1 cup water
1 stick cinnamon
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon rosewater(optional)

Add water into the sugar in a saucepan, add the cinnamon sticks, lemon juice and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Take off the heat and let it cool. Once it reaches room temperature, refrigerate it.
Tip: The brown sugar adds a depth to the flavor. However it can be easily substituted with normal refined sugar.
Chilling the syrup before using it helps the Baklawa keep its crispiness.

3)Preparing the nut mixture:
1.5 cups finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds
1/2 cup castor(very fine or powdered) sugar( I used 1/4 cup powdered brown sugar + 1/4 cup castor sugar)
3-4 powdered cloves
2 teaspoons of Cinnamon powder

Tip: You can interchange the walnuts with pistachios or any other nuts of your choice, however dont add cinnamon if not using walnuts. You could also add 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs or chopped dates, but I preferred my Baklawa with only nuts.

Mix all the ingredients together to use as a filling.

4) Assembling:

Make 12 portions of the dough and roll them out one by one. Make sure that you dust the surface lightly with flour and roll it wafer thin, until you can clearly see the surface below.(Use a large smooth work table or surface)

Use melted butter to butter a pan(I used a cake tin) generously. Roll out one portion of the dough and place it carefully on the base of the tin, it's ok to have a few holes in the rolled out dough.
Butter this generously again, and place the next layer on top of it.Make sure each layer is nicely stretched out. Continue making dough layers.
I made 6 layers because I got a bit bored of the rolling, but if you have a pasta machine, it should be really easy. Typically there are 8-10 layers.

Now spread the nut mixture on this.

Again roll 6 layers and cover the nuts, buttering each layer generously.

Cut through the layers with a sharp knife into small square/diamond shaped pieces.

5) Baking the Baklawa
Bake the Baklawa in a preheated oven at 175 degrees C for 30 - 45 minutes until the top starts looking done.

Let the Baklawa cool completely before pouring the cold sugar syrup on top of it.

The destiny of friendships.....

2012-03-08T21:13:00.000+05:30

It's funny...I was scrolling through my phone list, and there are these thousands(who am I kidding)... 100s of people in it, that were at one time so important to me, that I would sleep in front of a bus or a train for them.
And now as I scroll through, they are just memories from the past, of times shared, moments stolen from destiny. The people I rely on now, are not those from the faraway past, but those from my recent now.

It's strange how we believe in the eternal moment, how we believe that time wont move on, and neither will we.
But that is hope, hope of a future where we are still happily comfortably enclosed in our equations, relations and friendships. Hope that even if things change, there will be that one friend you can call on and share your life with...hope that makes me skip through a whole list of numbers to reach those 3-4 that are happy to share my life.....

My first guest post!!

2012-01-26T11:30:00.000+05:30

Ive written my first guest post, and it's about the two things I love, coffee and cream cheese!

There is this wonderful lady called Jenny, who has a really awesome blog "Savour the Senses" and she has put up my recipe here: http://savourthesensesblog.com/featured-foodie-friday-oblique-rays/

Also do spend some time on her blog and check out all the other mouth watering recipes she's put up....!!

I'm an ISBian...

2012-01-08T01:54:00.001+05:30

And a proud one at that...so please don't ask me if it was worth the money, or whether I got an appropriate Return on Investment.

Im an ISBian, and the first thing I learnt in ISB is to respect people, not because of their education, but because of who they are. It happens, because of how diverse the students are, and how carefully they are selected. So we see people for what they are and what they can be, not their B school tag, and I'd appreciate it if I got similar respect.

ISB is incidentally one of the top schools in the country, so either a lot of people are wrong, or ISB is doing something right. My money is on the latter. Ive been there, I know what we are capable of. So please don't ask me what's so great about it... I wont be able to stop talking about all the awesome things about it, and you'll just think I'm bragging.

And yes, it was definitely worth the money, not only in financial terms(I can prove it in excel), but everything in life is not measured in money. I would not trade that experience for a billion dollars, like I'm sure you wouldn't trade your great life experiences.

Where am I?

2012-01-08T01:21:00.000+05:30

And why havent I posted anything in a while?

Mainly 'coz I am now employed, after a year's break and working in a totally new field.

I'm finding it hard to juggle work and the things I really like to do, like bake, blog and work out....
I am running through the weeks at super fast speed trying to finish off my work, and I did manage to bake a raisin cake, but in general, my time sense has really gone awry.

In order to make my life more organized I now have 3 different calendar diaries, and in effect, if I'm really true to myself, I just bought 'em damn diaries coz they are sleek, and make me look important. It has had no effect on my time management at all......

But that's not the point, the point is that I'm suddenly facing a lot of changes, grappling with some new things in life, and trying to let go of some old ones....I know I'll eventually fall in step with the routine, but right now, I'm loving the uncertainty :)
And I really hope I can post and bake more regularly, because that's what keeps me sane!!

In one moment

2011-11-20T13:56:00.001+05:30

Eternity; that moment before the storm;
Of anticipation, dread, and change

That single hesitation before the arrow leaves the bow
and that last thought that flickers in the eye, before it hits the heart

a Lifetime; That moment before the earth shatters into half;
of peace and acceptance and fate

That one in drawn breath before the world sets on fire
and that last hope of life, before it turns to dust

An entire life lived in one single moment.

Crash 'nd Burn - Epic Kitchen Disasters....

2011-11-19T10:15:00.001+05:30

*Photo from here. Let me know if I'm violating any copyrights, and I'll take it off.

Anyone who's given me a patient sympathetic ear in the last few months, knows that my oven isn't exactly in the best of health. It blows a fuse after maybe half an hour , and then after every five minutes or so. In the throe of it's tantrums, it's also managed to blow the microwave oven, with constant voltage fluctuations.

So I try to stay away from the oven, it's been ages since I've baked anything, and with a sigh that would make a martyr proud, I longingly stare at all the beautiful things that the world around me is baking, and go into a dream world where there are no bratty ovens and no circuit trips.

But yesterday was different, my Hulk-esque bug for baking finally took over, and I decided to make cookies that I had bookmarked since almost 3 months. So, I mixed the flour, cocoa, baking soda and sugar , shut down all other electrical equipment and nervously started preheating the oven. Added the butter...rolled out half the cookie dough, scrounged around for a small round bottle lid and cut cookies. Put 'em on my blue cookie sheet, and shoved 'em in, breathed a sigh of relief, so far so good. Then a little more confident, I started playing around with the other half of the dough, adding chocolate chips, rolling, re rolling.....and then that ominous burning smell! I was so happy that the oven still hadn't given up, that I forgot to check the cookies, and the first batch was burnt to cinder!!! So much for the oven not shutting down on it's own!!

It's always depressing to have a failure on hands, especially when you're already dreaming of the finished product. Like the candy basket I promised my niece, but gave up after 5 batches of failed sugar syrup, and one batch of botched caramels. I've had my share of using dead yeast granules, making rock hard muffins that could be used as instruments of pain, dhoklas with so much baking soda that the tongue starts boiling, and of course; the worst; wrong estimation of quantities that sometimes lead to me feeling like a possessed machine that spews cupcakes after cupcakes after cupcakes, and drowning everything including people in a sea of food. Once I've even managed to cook so less that everyone had to end up eating a can of baked beans and bread!

But if you can survive the disaster and still want to venture into the kitchen, then that's what happy food endings are made of! So have you ever had an epic kitchen disaster? Do tell me all about it!!!

Of tortillas and wraps....

2011-11-12T18:20:00.001+05:30

Most of my decisions on food start off with a random ingredient that I spot during grocery shopping trips. So recently when I found a can of re-fried beans, I started imagining spicy and tangy, and I just had to pick it up.
Initially I wanted to make Enchiladas, but then common sense returned, when I realized that I had never made tortillas before and that if the tortillas got messed up, I'd be left with chilli sauce and a can full of fried beans.

So I made wraps instead!

The best part about the wraps is of course the Tortillas. These are flour tortillas, soft and delicate, and look really pretty! I think I see Enchiladas on the horizon soon!!

The recipe is from here with slight quantity changes in the oil and baking powder. It is also adapted for 6 tortillas instead of 8.

Flour Tortillas Recipe: (for 6 tortillas)

1.5 cups of all purpose flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
3 teaspoons of oil
1/2 cup warm milk

Mix the dry ingredients, and then slowly add the milk to make a soft dough ball. Don't over knead. Rest for half an hr. Divide and roll into 6 balls and rest again for 10-15 minutes. Roll out with light pressure on a floured surface until it becomes thin and slightly transparent. On a heavy pan, roast on each side till lightly spotted.

To make wraps:

Sautee chopped onions and tomatoes and a finely diced clove of garlic over olive oil. Add the tin of re-fried beans (next time I plan on trying to make these at home). Add a bit of salt for taste and a 2-3 tsp of water and heat until the sauteed onions and tomatoes are properly mixed and lumps are gone.

Pile up the tortilla with fried beans, fresh salsa (chopped tomatoes, onion and cilantro, tossed with a bit of salt), some chopped salad, grated cheddar cheese and crumbled tortilla chips.

You can add a bit of heat with a chunky spicy red chilli preserve.

Roll up and bite in!!!

Stuffed Indian Bread with Cauliflower (Gobi Parantha)

2011-11-12T13:08:00.001+05:30

Paranthas are extremely versatile and filling food, and transforms boring veggies into delicious breads.
All you need is some pickle, or a bit of yoghurt, or even tomato ketchup. Ofcourse a hot finger burning Parantha doesnt even need that, as long as you have a nice spoonful(or 2-3) of white butter to go along with it.

I love making paranthas, they are easy, and can be stuffed and rolled in different ways. The rule of thumb I use for any parantha is the same, the softness of the dough should be the same as the softness of the filling. A too liquidy or soft filling, and it won't spread to the edges, and will make rolling out sticky and messy. A harder filling, and it will tear through the dough. Also if you are adding raw ingredients to the stuffing like onions and garlic, they should be very finely chopped.

Gobi Paranthas require the stuffing to be cooked till the cauliflower becomes soft and dry.

Recipe For the stuffing:

2-2.5 cups of very finely diced cauliflower(you can also grate it, or lightly pulse it through a food processor)

1/2 -1 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Salt and turmeric for taste

2-3 teaspoons of oil

1/2 teaspoon of finely chopped green chillies OR read chilli powder

Slightly crackle cumin seeds on heated oil in a pan.

Add the cauliflower and sautee. Add turmeric, salt, chilli powder/chopped chillies and garam masala and sautee till soft and cooked. Let cool.

For the dough:

2-3 cups of flour

water

teaspoon of oil

Make a soft pliable dough. Break the dough into small balls of equal size (roughly equivalent to a tablespoon of dough)

For making the Parantha:

Slightly roll out a ball into a circle.

Add the filling in the center.

Cover with another rolled out dough ball, of the same size. Slightly press the sides and remove air.

Now lightly tap this stuffed circle with the roller all over to slowly spread the stuffing. Once it becomes flat, roll out lightly to make a thin Parantha.

On a non stick pan, cook on each side. Then turn over and add Ghee/butter on each side and cook for a minute on each side.

Enjoy with Curd, Raita, or mixed spicy pickle!

Adrift

2011-10-25T11:40:00.001+05:30

I want to stop, but I know I never will

I want to pull back, but I keep trudging still

I'm petrified and alone, my mind overwhelmed
I want to float awhile, but I'm sinking myself in.

Lollipops(Hard Candy)

2011-10-21T15:49:00.002+05:30

I am making hard candy for the first time ever. I am never comfortable around boiling sugar, and I have frankly no clue about all the different stages sugar goes through. But this time around I decided to make a candy basket for my cute li'l niece.

There are a lot of recipes out there, mostly using corn syrup. But it's not easily available here, so I used honey instead, and a dash of lemon.

Just when I thought I had a candy thermometer, it turned out that the maximum temperature it reads is a 110 deg C, while I need somewhere around 160. So I had to use the old method, where you drop a bit of the boiling sugar in cold water and see if it becomes brittle.

The recipe is from here : http://makethingsforkids.blogspot.com/2011/08/make-yummy-old-fashion-lollipops.html , I just added a twist of lime to it for flavor.

The following is a great resource if you don't have a candy thermometer: http://candy.about.com/od/candybasics/ss/candytempsbs.htm

I found some plastic thing with rounds in it, I cut off the edges of three of the circles and used it as a lollipop mould

Others drying on greased butter paper, without a mould

I don't have a picture of the finished candy yet, as they are still drying out(fingers crossed, they'll turn out ok). You will get to see the candy basket soon!!

*Update: I totally messed up the caramels I was planning to add to the basket....To top it, I pulled a few lollipops before they could set(impatient me), so now all I have is 3 good ones.....and no time to make more....so bye bye home made candy basket...it's not your time yet !!! But I will make another attempt quite soon!!

Snapshots from Saurashtra...In the pursuit of food

2011-10-19T15:04:00.000+05:30

We had Kathiyawadi food (Saurashtra is also called as Kathiyawad) at Amidhara Resort at Gir.

A typical Kathiyawadi Thali looks like this

Bharwanu Ringana(Stuffed Green Aubergines)

Tomato Sev Bhaaji

Baajre ke roti ( Flat Millet bread)

This is served with fresh white butter and fresh Jaggery, that is made from Sugar cane juice and tastes heavenly)

Ras waale Aloo(Potato curry)

Moong Khichdi (Rice cooked with soaked Green gram) served with Ghee(clarified butter)

Gujurati food at Dwaraka(at hotel Damji)

Other foods in the region

Saurashtra is dotted with shops that sell fresh snacks, like Chivda, Samosas, Patty, Pedhas and chikkis. It is also famous for a large variety of ice-creams in vivid flavors like Rajbhog. It's worth taking just a culinary trip to Saurashtra for their different savoury and sweet foods.

Snapshots from Saurashtra...Part 2(Porbander, Dwaraka and Rajkot)

2011-10-18T14:31:00.000+05:30

Porbander....dotted with shops, all closed (on Sundays)

The town square, with Mahatma Gandhi at the center..

His birth place

Beautiful three storeyed house

The temple at Dwaraka

Heading to Bet Dwaraka....the boats are packed!!

Hardly any space to move...

Watson Museum - Rajkot

Colorful wares at Rajkot Market

*Special Mentions and Comments

The Sarovar Portico hotel is currently the best place to stay at, in Rajkot. The staff is courteous and helpful. It's more than value for money and is worth staying for just their breakfast spread which has over 60 delectable items, including gujurati, north indian, south indian and continental food.

Do eat the "Paatis"(patty) at any good local "chiwda wala" - These are small fresh kachori type finger snacks stuffed with potato.

The crystal collection at Watson Museum is extensive and beautiful.

*Avoid

Definitely AVOID staying at Dwaraka Residency in Dwaraka. The staff is rude, the rooms are quite small and unclean and most probably you'll pay for one type of room and get totally another room. They also knock on the doors at midnight hours asking if there are any cups in the room.

Beware of the priests at Dwarka, who will try to guide you and extort money..the best way is to firmly and politely decline their help. Go to Dwaraka only if you want to see the temple, there is nothing else there worth seeing. I went with the hope of seeing some excavated ruins, but most of them are underwater and unaccessible.

Snapshots from Saurashtra...Part 1 (Junagadh, Gir and Veraval)

2011-10-16T10:55:00.001+05:30

A Vav(deep well) at Junagadh fort. It's one of the earliest known Vavs and is cut from a single rock.

A Bavdi...(smaller well)

We spotted a Neel Gai at Gir quietly grazing. (Asian Antelope) It looks like a cross between a cow and a deer.

And lions, lazing around in the sun..

Really lazing...and yawning...

Black bucks in a herd at a distance..

A Boat being built at Veraval..

Veraval is a fishing town, and small modified bikes transport fresh fish to various fisheries and markets

The road is spotted with Windmills silently and majestically harnessing Wind energy(Most of them are Suzlon mills)

*Special Mentions

The Amidhara Resort at Gir is beautiful. It's not too fancy and is quite simple, but there is a lot to do there, and is extremely clean. It has basket ball courts, a well equipped gym, pool and also indoor sports. The staff at Amidhara is warm, friendly, and will force feed you till you almost burst. (Watch out for the post on Kathiyawadi food)

If you have enough time, visit the Girnar mountain. It is a long climb, around 7000 steps or so. We only saw the base of the mountain and came back because we were short of time.

*Avoid
AVOID taking a guide at Junagadh. He will most probably talk extremely loudly and give you all sorts of wrong information.There are enough signs and information in the fort itself to explore it for yourself.

Power...

2011-09-27T01:09:00.003+05:30

Embrace the power you are born with....

Power is liberation....Liberation is happiness
Power is instinctive...let it guide...

Power is a positive force...it changes and shifts things

Power is change....Power to change the world

Power is only destructive if you think you own it....

The chocolate experiment....part deux

2011-09-22T16:45:00.000+05:30

It's not valentine's day yet....but why wait for it?

Pink Hearts are always in...

In fact, Pink chocolate is ALWAYS in...especially when it tastes deliciously of rum!!

Alu wadis ( Colocasia rolls)

2011-09-17T13:28:00.000+05:30

Alu wadis are prevalent in both Gujurati as well as Maharashtrian cuisine.However there are some differences in the stuffing and the way we eat it.

While Gujuratis eat them steamed with oil tadka, we normally shallow/deep fry them after steaming.

My mom got huge Alu(Colocasia) leaves, for making this snack, which is a favorite with us. Though it might work with any leaves,the use of these leaves is ideal, because they are thicker and stronger than other leafy vegetables, and can stand stacking, folding, rolling and steaming with sturdiness and character.

I don't have the recipe in exact quantities because I was just clicking pictures while my mom made them, but I will list out the ingredients and you can just play it along by taste(or you can get the recipe off any Indian food blog)

The roll filling is mainly made of Gram flour to which we add a bit of rice flour(for crispness), salt, paprika, asafoetida, turmeric, jaggery and tamarind pulp and water, to make a spreadable paste. It should taste sweet and sour, with a little heat.

Spread this on the leaves and make a roll as shown.

Cover with paste( the under side of the leaf)

Place another smaller leaf in an opposite direction on top

And another(so each roll has 3 leaves)....opposite to the earlier leaf,cover with the paste and fold the edges aligned at the center as shown:

Now roll tightly from the bottom to top, and tie with a string..

Steam for 10 minutes....

Refrigerate it over night, cut the string, and slice the roll as and when required for frying/shallow frying...