Raksha's Kitchen

Cowpea Beans Subzi / Valachi Bhaji

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Thu, 16 May 2013 10:25:00 PDT

My hubby loves healthy food. He wants only home cooked food every day. He needs atleast one type of subzi in his lunch pack everyday, apart from salad. So every weekend when we go to buy vegetables at the local super market, we plan what we need to cook for the entire week.

My challenge every morning is to cook the subzi's quickly and yet to retain it's nutritious values. This Cowpea meaning "vaal" in Konkani is another subzi. I have used pressure cooker in this recipe to make it quick. You can just boil in water if you are not using a pressure cooker. Also I have added curry leaves to this subzi which is totally optional.

Ingredients:
3 cups chopped cowpea beans
1 medium sized finely chopped onion
2 green chilles
10 curry leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 tablespoon grated coconut
1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
Pinch of asafoetida
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoon oil

Procedure:
Pressure cook the cowpea beans for one whistle and keep aside.
In a kadai/wok, add 2 tablespoon oil. Keep the flame on low.
When it heats, add mustard seeds and cover the kadai.
After the mustard flutters, add cumin seeds.
Then add asafoetida,curry leaves and green chilles.
Add onion and fry till it becomes pinkish.
Then add the pressure cooked cowpea and and let it simmer for 10 minutes.
Garnish with grated coconut. This is optional.
Serve with rice with a dash of love :)

NuNaturals Giveaway Worth $57 USD Update

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Tue, 14 May 2013 09:01:19 PDT

I just wanted to update all my readers, that the NuNaturals Giveaway is currently running on my blog. The NuNaturals Stevia are 100% Natural products which can be used like essence or flavours on baking and cooking. Apart from this, they can be added in milk to make great milkshakes.

The special feature about this giveaway is that, the total value of the products is $57 USD and what more, there will be 4 winners. So friends what are you waiting for, just follow the rules and send me the details.

So far only 4 people have been qualified for the giveaway. They are as follows:

Shobana Arunkumar

Santosh Bangar

katherine dibello

Virunthu unna vaang Vijidharmaraj

Friends, this giveaway ends on 31st May 2013. So hurry up and participate. Check the rules here.

Firmoo Glasses May 2013 New Arrivals For Free

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Tue, 14 May 2013 08:27:27 PDT

Don't you feel that sometimes you need to match your eye wear to your dress, footwear, hand bag and other accessories that you wear? I always feel that my sunglasses should match with the outfit that I wear :)
Sometimes people get so bored with their dressing style that they want to do a lot of changes to it.
Did you consider changing your regular glasses with a new pair of glasses?

This post is much different from my regular posts, but since they have the First Pair Free Program, I thought of sharing it with all my readers so that all get benefited.

Prawns & Egg Fried Rice - Happy Mother's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sat, 11 May 2013 19:30:01 PDT

Fried rice made by me is always a hit in Raksha's Kitchen. This is something which I learnt from my Mom. My Mom has magic in her hands. Whatever she cooks always turns delicious and yummy. Not just us, but even relatives and friends love whatever my Mom cooks. My Mom has won a lot of prizes in cooking competitions.

Whenever I cook fried rice, I always try to get my dish to the same level as my Mom. But it always remains a level below. So is this fried rice which I learnt from my Mom.I prepare it exactly the same way as what my Mom does, but it does not turn as yummy as that. Still it's a hit in my kitchen and it leaves my hubby and kid going nuts over this. My hubby says that the best prawn fried rice is what my dear wifey cooks.

Apart from this I have learnt a lot of things from my Mom. Right from cleanliness to healthy cooking. I feel that no matter how much educated we are, or how much we earn, finally the food that we cook and feed our family is all that matters and it gives immense satisfaction when people love what you cook. My Mom has always been my role model. A strong woman who has always stood up for her family and kids.

I am indebted to all that my Mom has given me. Her values, her care and love. I know you feel proud now, that your daughter who never even stepped into the kitchen prior to marriage has mastered the art of cooking to some extent and is having her own blog. I know you don't understand what a blog is, but when you hear about this from friends and relatives, you feel proud. This is all because of you Mom. You always brought out the best in me. You always encouraged me and taught me that I should always make use of my skills and creativity.

I love you Mumma. Happy Mother's Day to you.

Ingredients:
1 & 1/2 Cup Basmati Rice
2 Bay Leaves
2 Medium sized onions
5 Garlic pods
1/2 inch ginger
3 spring onions chopped
1/2 cup chopped spring onion greens
2 tsp soy sauce
2 Eggs
2 tablespoon chilly sauce
1/2 medium sized carrot
1/2 capsicum
1 non-veg Maggi cube
8-10 marinated prawns
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoon oil for frying
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp pepper powder
1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves for garnishing

For Marinating the prawns:
1/2 tsp chilly powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp salt

Procedure:

Marinate the prawns by applying chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt and keep aside for 30 Min's.
Scrape the outer skin of the carrot and cut it into fine long slices.
Chop the capsicum into thin long slices.

Par boil the basmati rice in 10 cups water by adding bay leaves and a pinch of salt.
Also add 1 tsp oil to the boiling rice so that they don't become sticky.
After the rice gets par-boiled, spread it on a colander/big strainer so the water drains out and let it dry for 20 Min's.
Spread the cinnamon and pepper powder on it.

In a kadai/wok, add oil and fry onions and let them turn pinkish.
Then add the paste made out of garlic and ginger. Let it get fried for sometime.
Add the veges and fry for sometime.
Chop the prawns into 2-3 pieces and add it to the kadai and fry.
After 8 Min's, add the sauces and the Maggi cube and fry for 1 min.
Add salt and mix well.

Let it simmer for 5 minutes on low flame with the kadai being covered.

On the other gas, place a omelet tawa/griddle on low flame. Add 2 tsp oil to it and spread around.
Break the egg and spread it on the tawa. Add a pinch of salt. Scramble the egg.

Add this to the mixture in kadai and stir.

Once this is done add the cooked basmati rice and mix well ensuring that the rice grains does not break. Add coriander leaves and chopped spring onion greens.
Add butter and mix properly.
Switch off the gas and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve it with starter of your choice or with salad/raita.

Note: Finely chopped cabbage can be added while frying the veges.

Modern Healthcare Touches Life Of A Multiple Sclerosis Patient

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Wed, 08 May 2013 07:36:35 PDT

It all started on 24th January 2012. Mrs. Indira a lady in her late twenties, a software engineer and a mother of a toddler suddenly felt blurring vision in her right eye. She thought that it was a viral infection and kept on washing her eyes. Little did she know what was about to come. Her hubby had planned a weekend off to be enjoyed in Kerala. Unknown about the fact that her life will change soon; she went off to enjoy the weekend with her family in Kerala. Her blurred vision did not improve. Along with that she got tremendous pain in the right eye along with unbearable headache. She kept popping pain killers to ward off the pain. They returned back from Kerala and while coming back Indira felt that she is losing vision in her right eye. There was 80% darkness in her right eye. The pain in the eye was so much that she had to keep her eye closed.

Since there was pain in the eye, she along with her hubby decided to visit an ophthalmologist. She went to a small eye clinic where the doctors could not understand Indira's problem. They just suggested to her that she might be having optic neuritis. Unconvinced by this, she went for a 2nd opinion to a good and reputed eye hospital, in his case Nethradhama Eye Hospital, Bangalore. There after careful examination, Indira was told that there was no problem with her eye, but it seemed to be a problem behind her eye i.e. in the brain. She was asked to undergo a lot of tests including tests for tuberculosis, HIV, hepatitis, etc. All the tests were negative. Finally she was asked to undergo an MRI brain scan. Indira was wondering why so many tests, but her hubby always stood by her side and convinced her that doctors are simply asking her to do the tests and that nothing had happened to her and it might be a small infection.

She had lost 3 days in the process of eye examination and her eye doc told her to hurry up. Her eye doctor told her to go to Apollo hospital for the MRI brain scan as they have everything in house. Indira went to Apollo hospital and took an appointment for the MRI brain scan. Since the time she heard about optic neuritis she kept searching on net what her problem might be and what might happen in future. She knew that worst could be multiple sclerosis. She kept telling her fears to her hubby.

The next day she went for a brain scan. She was extremely scared. Just like a CD she was put into the scanning machine. Her ears were closed with cotton buds. She beared the noise of highly magnetic plates inside the MRI scanning machine. The procedure went on for 45 minutes. In between she was brought out and was injected a dye into her vein to get accurate readings. The next day the eye doctor got the reports on phone and told Indira to immediately go and meet the neurologist at Apollo hospital as the MRI brain scan clearly showed that her optic nerve had almost neared diffusion.

Since Indira had gone with a referral letter, she was immediately allowed to meet the neurologist. The neurologist told Indira that she had optic neuritis and that immediately she should be put on intravenous steroids treatment. She was admitted the same day. The nurses kept on taking her blood samples to conduct a serious of tests. Next day the neurologist told Indira, that she had multiple lesions in brain and that they have to again do another MRI scan of the spinal cord to check if the lesions have spread to spinal cord. The worst night-mare came true when Indira learnt that she had Multiple Sclerosis. After learning this Indira felt that her world was almost over. She cried and cried and cried thinking about her future and her little 2 year old baby. But her hubby kept giving her support to fight it. He said that everything will be fine.

Next day she went for the MRI scan of the spinal cord. The results showed that the lesions had progressed to the spinal cord too. Her doctor told her that she has to undergo a spinal tap, in which the fluid from spinal cord will be extracted to conduct tests. This fluid which is called cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) has lots of data as it communicates between the brain and spinal cord. Indira was scared. She did not know what the procedure was. She thought that her end has come and that she will die on the table where the spinal tap will be conducted. She prayed to God to somehow convince the doctors not to do the lumbar puncture. She kept crying day and night in a helpless way. When the doctors came to know that Indira was completely broken, they came running to her and told her to be strong and that lumbar puncture is completely safe and that nothing will happen to her as she was in safe hands. The next day the lumbar puncture was held. The doctor performed the test with great expertise. Indira was scared and she held the nurses hand throughout the procedure as she wanted moral support. The procedure took 45 mins as the doctor used a smaller needle on Indira’s spine. He used a smaller needle as Indira’s legs lost senses when a bigger needle was injected into the spine.

Soon after the procedure, the doctors told Indira not to get depressed and to think in a positive way. They used to come and meet her every day. The steroid treatment was still going on. Apart from steroids she was closely monitored for high blood pressure and diabetes which is a normal procedure when a person is on steroids. The nurses used to do their duty well. Indira was admitted in the hospital for 7 days. After 7 days her IV steroids were stopped and she was put on oral steroids. Her vision was restored back to normal. But yes, now she has to live a life with MS. At some point in life she has to deal with disability. At her age, people are enjoying life, but she is hiding her tears behind a smile on her face. She doesn’t let the world know what she is going through. She needs love and affection to deal with depression every day. A small gesture from her nurses and doctors used to make her happy.

She was greatly touched by the service provided at super-specialty Apollo hospital by the staff, the nurses and the doctors. Initially even detection of MS was difficult in India. This disease was more common in USA and European countries. But now since we have super-specialty hospitals like Apollo, the detection of diseases at an early stage is become easy. They have imported machines and skilled technicians and highly qualified Doctors.

Apart from this she used the cashless mediclaim facility from her medical insurance provider. Her doctors only told her to live a stress free life. Stress was the main factor behind her MS. Living in a busy city like Bangalore, a working professional and a mother of one; she had lots of stress in her life. Now her only message to the world is not to take stress. Because once some critical illness like Multiple Sclerosis is detected then it is irreversible. Health is more important than work.

Multiple sclerosis destroys the connections and disconnects the mind from the body. It is an auto-immune disease that affects the brain and spinal cord, resulting in loss of muscle control, vision, balance, and sensation (such as numbness). With MS, the nerves of the brain and spinal cord are damaged by one's own immune system.

Apart from this, friends I want to tell you. If you know anyone living with MS, try to give them as much as love as possible. Their journey is difficult. Everyday is different for them. They may not show the pain to others, but they are going through a lot at a very young age. This is the age when life actually starts but in the case of a person with MS, life comes to a stop even before it has started.

Img Src: Multiple Sclerosis

Indira is my good friend and I know how much of depression and MS related pain she is going through on a daily basis. She keeps sharing with me all the little details of her life. She is now put on life modifying drugs and she goes through a lot of suffering at an early age. Her family supports her. Her hubby is always by her side and even her little daughter can understand that her mother needs love to deal with the pain. Some of her friends can understand her feelings; some feel its fake, and some feels that she needs attention. But all she needs is a bit of understanding, love and affection. She is fighting her illness alone and she is lonely because at times she is not able to express her feelings. Sometimes while walking her legs become numb and she loses balance, while talking words don’t come out of her mouth. Sometimes she can’t hear properly and has a lot of muscle pain. But she never tells anyone what all she is going through. She says that no one understand this.

But despite this she continued with her job as she needs money for her costly treatment which is approximately 30 k per month and her husband alone cannot take care of everything in a big city like Bangalore.

Nowadays the changing lifestyle, stress and environmental changes gives a lot invitation for several illness. She sacrificed her life for her family and kid. She did not take care of herself and finally health took a heavy toll on her. Following this incident, she joined yoga and meditation classes and has filled her life with joy. From this I want all of you to know that health is indeed wealth. If you have no health you have nothing. All the problems in life have a solution except health.

This is a post written for "How Modern Healthcare Touches Lives?" by Indiblogger.in and Apollo Hospitals.

Rawa Fried Broccoli And CupoNation.in

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sun, 05 May 2013 01:41:48 PDT

CupoNation.in is India's largest and leading coupon portal. For people who don't have time to go shop to shop in search of discounts and deals on a product of their choice, CupoNation.in helps them to save time and speeds their shopping by providing them with a lot of deals and discounts vouchers. They have more then 1000's of guaranteed working coupons on their portal. They are the only coupon portal which offers up to 60% discounts for a vast selection of categories ranging from items like Electronics, Books, Apparels, Flowers, Gifts to services like Insurance, Restaurants, Movies and many more. Some of the most popular stores on CupoNation.in are Jabong, Flipkart, Myntra, Tradus, Future Bazaar, GoodLife, FabFurnish, eBay, etc. So what are you waiting for, head on to www.CupoNation.in and grab the most exciting deals available online.

Now coming to today's recipe. This time when I went to do my weekly grocery shopping, I got attracted to something very cute. It was a bunch of broccoli lying on the shelf, waiting to be picked by a shopper.The green broccoli which is full of anti-oxidants is what I would really love to replace by the cauliflower. When I got it home, the challenge was to make a dish which my little one would love and eat. She does not like spicy stuff, neither does she like anything bland. Without a second thought I decided to rawa fry the broccoli, just how I do for cauliflower. The end result was great and my little one also loved the "green cauliflower" as she named it.

Ingredients:

1 bunch of broccoli

1 tsp. chilly powder

1 tsp. turmeric powder

¼ tsp. salt

Oil for frying

For the coating the broccoli:

½ cup rawa / semolina

¼ cup rice flour

½ tsp. chilly powder

¼ tsp. salt

Procedure:

Mix rawa, rice flour, chilly powder and salt and keep aside.

Cut the broccoli into pieces, wash them and immerse them into water.

Drain the water.

Apply chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt to the broccoli and keep aside for 5-10 Min's.

Coat the broccoli in the rawa.

Now take the frying pan, heat it and spread 1 tbsp. oil on it. And arrange the rawa coated broccoli on the frying pan one by one. Spread 1-2 tablespoon oil on top of the rawa coated broccoli.

After 10 Min's, flip to the other side and fry for another 10-15 Min's.

Note: Do not over-fry the broccoli as they will loose the nutrition.

This is a sponsored post, however all the views and opinions expressed here are my own.

Simple Breadfruit Subzi

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Thu, 02 May 2013 23:25:59 PDT

This is the first time in my life that I have prepared breadfruit subzi. I had a similar type of subzi when I had gone with my family on an outing to Chikamagalur in Karnataka. We stayed in a homestay there and they always served us healthy and nutritious home cooked food. The best part was that they also ate what they cooked for us. I had a similar type of subzi there. I could make out what all ingredients they had added to it.

This week when I went to do the weekly grocery shopping, I saw some breadfruits on the shelf. I picked up the smallest one with the intention to experiment with it. My hubby loves breadfruits. In Konkani we call it "Neerpanas". They are available in plenty in this summer season. Before the season is over, just go and grab some and try some nutritious dishes.

Ingredients:
3 cups chopped breadfruit
1 medium sized finely chopped onion
2 green chillies
10 curry leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp grated coconut
Pinch of asafoetida
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoon oil

Procedure:
In a kadai/wok, add 2 tablespoon oil. Keep the flame on low.
When it heats, add mustard seeds and cover the kadai.
After the mustard flutters, add cumin seeds.
Then add asafoetida,curry leaves and green chilles.
Add onion and fry till it becomes pinkish.
Then add the chopped breadfruit and water and let it simmer for 20 minutes or till the breadfruit gets cooked. Add grated coconut and stir. Also all the water should dry up.
Keep stirring occasionally. Add salt to taste.
Serve with rice with a dash of love :)

Coupondesh.Com – Offering the Best Deals and Discount Coupons!

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Wed, 01 May 2013 10:36:30 PDT

There are a lot of deals and discount coupon sites coming up nowadays. Each and every site is special in its own way. Coupondesh.com is one such site which has exciting deals and discounts for consumers all over India. It is a one stop solution for different types of coupons and moreover these coupons are available for free.

This site was developed in 2013 and it provides the best discount coupons for all the age groups, namely kids, youth to old people. They also provide discounts to retail buyers from almost all the reputed Indian Ecommerce websites. With more then 300+ coupon stores, their customers have a lot of options and these are on rise. They have coupons available for jewellery, kitchen appliances, books, electronic items, clothing, home decor, pizzas and many more.

When you click on Coupondesh.com, you will see a lot of coupons. Click on a desired coupon of your choice. Then you will be re-directed to your favorite shop where you can select the item of your choice. Use the coupon code in the promo code section. Then you will see the discounted price. After this, just pay and checkout. This is all so simple.

Always make it a point to read the coupon details before availing it. The discount rate varies depending on the item you are availing and also from which site you are having it. Suppose you clicked on Myntra or Jabong. You will come across a list of active coupons in these sites. Choose a deal of your interest. Remember that the deals are valid only on the landing page and if by any mistake you click any other link, the deal will not be valid there. This is as simple as that.
Some of the special features found on Coupondesh.com which are not found on any other site are as follows:

1. “The Features brand” section displaying top brand coupons to choose from
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4. “Let us guess your favorite coupons” section to locate the best desired coupon out of thousands there in the website
5. Offers sections in the menu bar to choose from wide variety of promotion types Blog is integrated within the website to easily share thoughts and comment

Apart from these there are other features like :

1. Latest and Top coupons section
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You will find the most unique coupon codes on Coupondesh.com as they have tie-ups with the most popular online shopping stores. You will not find these types of coupons in any other coupon site.

They have a customer care service or helpline which is very good at answering any of the customer queries. They are always available 24/7. There is also an interesting feature on their website which is the share tab like Facebook. This allows you to even share your favorite coupons with your friends.

So friends, what are you all waiting for? Just head on to Coupondesh.com also don't forget to like them on Facebook.

Note: This is a sponsored post. All the views and opinions stated here are my own.

NuNaturals Stevia Giveaway worth $57 USD @Rakshaskitchen

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sun, 12 May 2013 00:09:06 PDT

Being a food enthusiast, I got a wonderful opportunity to try and taste the NuNaturals Stevia products. I used these products in baking, desserts like puddings, milkshakes, sauces and much much more. Check this link to see the China Grass Pudding recipe which I made using NuNaturals Vanilla Stevia.

NuNaturals Stevia products are a sweet and a delicious way to reduce sugar and carbohydrates in your diet. These superior dietary supplements are the best tasting Stevia products available.

NuNaturals provides several forms of Stevia extract. NuStevia offers a delicious NON-Bitter taste, ZERO calories, is perfect for dieters, does not effect blood sugar levels and is safe for diabetics, plus dissolves instantly in hot or cold beverages.

These Flavoured Stevia Liquids are unlike any other stevia products that you will find where some use artificial or synthetic flavours. NuStevia products are 100% natural, gluten free and DO NOT contain Aspartame, Saccharin, Sucralose,high-fructose corn syrup,sugar or any kind of artificial sweeteners/colors. They have '0' calories and are consistent in quality that you expect from NuNaturals! The products are not altered or produced through genetic engineering. Stevia is derived from sustainable agriculture assisting in making a healthy Earth.

Here is an exiting giveaway for all the readers, followers,email subscribers & Facebook twitter fans of Raksha's Kitchen.
There will not be 1, but 4 winners of this giveaway. Each of the 4 winners will receive 1 bottle each of Lemon / Orange / Peppermint Flavored Stevia Liquids, PLUS their NEW CHOCOLATE STEVIA LIQUID. In whole the winners will receive not 1 but 4 bottles of NuNaturals Stevia worth $57 USD. (WOW)

To qualify for this giveaway strictly follow the below given rules:
1) Visit the NuNaturals Facebook page and click like. Click here to visit the page.
Drop a comment once its done and mention your Facebook ID.

2) Follow NuNaturals on twitter. Click here to visit the twitter page.
Drop a comment once its done and mention your twitter ID.

3) Be a follower of Raksha's Kitchen on Google Friend Connect(GFC).
Drop a comment once its done and mention your GFC ID and blog URL.

4) Visit Raksha's Kitchen Facebook page and click like.Click here to visit the page.
Drop a comment once its done.

5) Subscribe to Raksha's Kitchen via email.
Drop a comment once its done.

6) Spread the message about this giveaway by sharing this giveaway link on Facebook.
Drop a comment once its done and also provide the shared link.

This giveaway ends on 31-st May 2013.
You can drop me a mail if you have any doubts regarding this giveaway. My email id is rujal29(at)gmail(dot)com.

A person not satisfying any of the above 6 rules will be dis-qualified.
The winners will have to provide me their full name, shipping address and email address. No P.O. boxes allowed as the products cannot be shipped to P.O. Boxes. This giveaway is open world-wide.

NuNaturals has also provided all the readers of Raksha's Kitchen a huge DISCOUNT on their products for orders which are placed online through : www.nunaturals.com
At the checkout page enter the DISCOUNT CODE ; BLG0613 and receive - 15% DISCOUNT on your ENTIRE ORDER. This discount remains EFFECTIVE UNTIL JUNE 30, 2013 .
Through online ordering customers may also receive FREE SHIPPING to the CONTINENTAL U. S. on all orders exceeding $ 35.00 after discounts.

China Grass / Agar Agar Pudding With Almonds And Pistas

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:11:09 PDT

My childhood was a very beautiful one. I used to be always engrossed in my studies and art. I loved to draw and paint. My Mom always encouraged me by taking me around for various competitions and she used to feel very good when I used to win something and get it home. Apart from dance, painting and studies I did not do anything else. Come the summer vacations, I used to stitch pillow covers and do hand embroidery on then.

Begin an artist at heart, I also started writing poems and would publish them in newspapers and magazines. The only thing which I never did was cooking food. When my marriage time came, my Mom was worried as to what I will cook and feed my family. I used to childishly say "I will hire a cook".

Soon after marriage I realized that it was not so easy to hire a cook. So I started learning to cook and spent the 1st 6 months just learning the basics of cooking. I learnt to make tea, rice, rotis and some basic subzis. Very soon I realized that I also love cooking. Cooking is an art, and I an artist at heart. My Mom feels proud now that my family loves whatever I make. My mom-in-law calls me and asks me certain recipes which she had when she visited my place. Isn't it great?

Today I will present to you all a great recipe. I used to have China grass pudding in my childhood when my aunt used to make it on some special occasions. China grass is a healthy form of jelly compared to other gelatin which is derived from animals. Do try this recipe when you have some guests. Your guests will surely appreciate you. You can even make it otherwise for your sweet family.

Ingredients:
10 gms China grass / dried agar agar / Ceylon moss

8-10 almonds

8-10 pistas
warm water to soak china grass
2 cups milk
1 tsp NuNaturals Vanilla Stevia Liquid, alcohol free

Procedure:

Break the pista and almonds into small pieces.

Cut the china grass into small pieces and soak it in warm water till it gets dissolved.
Drain and into the liquid add almond and pista pieces, milk,Vanilla Stevia Liquid.
Bring the liquid to a boil. Lower the heat and keep stirring.
Remove from the gas and pour into a flat pan or mould.
Let it cool down and then refrigerate them.
Cut the jelly into square and serve.

Note: 1 tsp of NuNaturals Vanilla Stevia Liquid can be replaced by 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract.

Mushroom Ghee Roast

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 08:21:42 PDT

With nice cool breeze around, I am waiting for rains. It rained so heavily yesterday that I went back to my childhood. Those fond memories are something which I will treasure forever. Today I will be presenting you all with a delicious recipe from my kitchen i.e. Mushroom Ghee Roast. This recipe turned out yummy and all ended up licking fingers in the end. The taste of mushrooms with ghee and masala is awesome. I like to experiment with mushrooms because they are a great source of calcium. I have also started adding mushrooms in my kids diet but in a less spicier form.

Ingredients:
1 Packet mushrooms
1 Medium sized onion chopped fine
1 Tbsp garlic paste
2 Tomatoes chopped fine
3-5 Tbsp ghee

For gravy:
5 Red chillies
5-6 Curry leaves
3 Garlic pods
1 Tsp coriander seeds
1 Tsp cumin seeds
1 Tsp fennel seeds
1 Cardamom,cinnamon,clove
4-5 Black peppercorns
1 Tbsp grated coconut
1 Marble sized ball tamarind
1 Tbsp garam masala

Procedure:
Dry roast all the ingredients meant for gravy.
Grind the ingredients for gravy by adding 2 tbsp water.

Quarter the mushrooms n keep aside.
In a kadai, add ghee n when it heats add onion.
When onion turns pinkish add garlic paste and stir. Make sure to cover the kadai.
When aroma comes from garlic add tomatoes n fry till they turn mushy. Now add the gravy n stir well. Add garam masala to the gravy.
Now add the mushroom n stir so that the mushrooms are coated with the gravy.
Adjust salt.
Serve with rotis or rice. Serve with a dash of love.

Goan Special - Rawa Fried Drumsticks/Sangachyo Fodi

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 01:57:14 PDT

This is another yummy dish which we GSB's make in Goa. Drumsticks are very good for health. They are an excellent source of calcium, iron and vitamins. I have learnt a lot of traditional dishes from my mom. My dad being a pure vegetarian, my mom cooks different varieties of vegetarian food for him. In my in-laws house mostly non-veg food is cooked. I have learnt all my cooking skills from my mom and no one else. The things which I did not learn from my mom are the things which I learnt myself by experiments :)

I keep telling my friends that until and unless you try to cook in kitchen, you will never learn. Always be ready for failures and never crib about anything while cooking food. Cook food with love. I never cook food when my mood is not good. When I am happy I cook food and all my love goes into the food. I remember, once my mood was very bad and I baked a cake. The entire cake got burnt! So always remember, to put love in whatever you do.

Ingredients:

2 drumsticks

1 tsp. chilly powder

1 tsp. turmeric powder

¼ tsp. salt

Oil for frying

For the coating the drumsticks:

½ cup rawa

¼ cup rice flour

½ tsp. chilly powder

¼ tsp. salt

Procedure:

Step 1:

Mix rawa, rice flour, chilly powder and salt and keep aside.

Step 2:

Peel the drumsticks and cut into 2-3 inch wide sticks and immerse in them into water.

Step 3:

Apply chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt to the peeled drumsticks and keep aside for 10-15 mins.

Coat the drumsticks in the rawa.

Step 3:

Now take the frying pan, heat it and spread 1 tbsp. oil on it. And arrange the rawa coated drumsticks on the frying pan one by one. Spread 1-2 tablespoon oil on top of the rawa coated drumsticks.

After 10 mins, flip to the other side and fry for another 10-15 mins. Rawa Fried Drumsticks/Sangachyo Fodi.

Linking this to Hudson Canola Oil Hamper ~ a giveaway.

Goan Special – Drumstick Curry / Sangacho Ross

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 02:00:38 PDT

Many people want to see a lot of Goan recipes here. Today I will write about Goan Drumstick Curry/ Sangacho Ross. We prepare this curry in Goa on veg days. This ross/curry is another specialty of the GSB community of Goa. The GSB's in Goa have their own unique style of cooking and I love to cook dishes belonging to my tradition even after getting settled in Bangalore.

My hubby loves this drumstick curry and he says that he prefers this curry to the usual Dal tadka which we prepare here. If you really wanna try some Goan dishes, do try this curry. Serve it with rice, subzi, pickle, papad and some fodi as mentioned in the previous post.

Ingredients:

5 tbsp toor dal

2 drumsticks

½ onion

For the gravy:

4 tbsp grated coconut

1 tsp coriander seeds

4 red chilies

1 marble sized ball of tamarind

5-6 black peppercorns

1 tsp turmeric powder

Procedure:

Step 1:

Soak the toor daal in water for 2 hrs. Then pressure cook the daal along with the chopped onion.

Step 2:

Peel and cut the drumsticks into 3 inch pieces. Boil them in water separately and keep aside. Drain the water but do not discard it.

Step 3:

Grind all the ingredients mentioned above for gravy with ½ cup water and keep aside.

Step 4:

Now, place another utensil on the gas. Add the pressure cooked Dal to the utensil. To that add the gravy and finally add the boiled drumsticks. If the gravy is too thick, add the water which was used to boil the drumsticks as it has the flavor.

Step 5:

Finally, add 1 tsp salt or salt as per your taste.

Serve this drumstick curry with rice.

Linking this to Hudson Canola Oil Hamper ~ a giveaway.

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf - A Restaurant Review

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 01:29:45 PDT

On a fine evening, my friend and me decided to meet up at The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf(CBTL) , at Pheonix Market City. It is located in a spacious open air balcony of Pheonix Market City, right next to Copper Chimney. We really liked the ambiance. We went there in the day time and felt that it was a great place to relax after a hectic day of work with simply the best cup of tea or coffee. Also it is one of the best places in Bangalore, if you wanna take your boyfriend or girlfriend out on a date ;) Specially on a Sunday evening when there will be some or the other special events happening there.

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf was founded in 1963 by Herbert B. Hyman in Los Angeles, has been a pioneer in bringing gourmet coffees and teas to the global connoisseur. Over the years, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf has established itself as the oldest and most trusted brand, preferred by coffee & tea lovers across the world. The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf currently has more than 1000 stores.
These stores blanket the world in markets such as Germany, California, Arizona, Nevada, Singapore, Malaysia, Korea, Brunei, Indonesia, Philippines,Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, China, Mongolia, UAE, Israel, Lebanon, Bahrain, Kuwait, Egypt, Jordon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kurdistan, Turkey and still continues to expand further.

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is the oldest and largest privately-held specialty coffee and tea retailer in the United States with more than 1000 stores across 25 countries. This year, the iconic brand celebrates 50 years of heritage and passion of delighting its patrons worldwide. They rewarded consumers for their loyalty and that has played an enormous role in achieving this milestone. From 50th anniversary exclusive merchandise to special anniversary offers.

Operational in India since 2008, the brand also completes 5 successful years in India, where again it has played the pioneer's role in introducing the finest coffees & teas from around the world to the Indian coffee & tea lovers.

Coffee & Tea Guide & a special menu to celebrate 50 years

Talking about the 50th anniversary celebration, KS Narayanan, CEO, Pan India Food Solutions Pvt Ltd said, "Celebrating 50 years in business and delighting customers every day across so many countries is indeed a very proud moment in the history of any company. We at Pan India are extremely proud to be associated with Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and would take this opportunity to thank all our customers - past and present, our partners and associates."

To celebrate the global landmark, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf had introduced the 50th year anniversary week celebrations till 26th March, 2013, across all Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf outlets in India. Apart from being served the world's finest coffees and teas, all guests were being given a special offers booklet and few lucky ones even got some exclusive 50th anniversary merchandise.

To add to the celebrations, a new food menu with variety of gourmet and healthy eating options has also been introduced. From all day breakfast, gourmet bites, fresh bakes, main course to desserts, the new Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf menu is a foodies delight offering novel options like Chilly Cheese Baguette, Pizza Curl, Banofee Cake, Silky Chocolate Mousse to name a few.

Penne Arrabiata

Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf had also unveiled a new logo on the occasion, which bears the words: "Passion for coffee and tea". The logo reiterates the landmark in the brand's history, paying tribute to its patrons and thanking customers for their continuous support over the years. Also they reaffirm to produce the best tea and coffee beverages across the globe.

A little more about their Tea
Whole Leaf Tea Bags

Only at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf you will enjoy the finest teas in the world in convenient single-serving tea bags. The unique pyramid shape of the bag allows the whole two leaves and a bud to fully expand, providing maximum flavor infusion and the same richness and aroma you savor when brewing their premium tea in an infuser or teapot. It's never been easier to achieve whole leaf goodness.

Pyramid Shaped Tea Bag

Their Black Teas are distinguished by extensive hand processing to achieve the full oxidation that is crucial in the development of the exceptional black teas available at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.
eg. Chai - which is a special recipe blended by hand using only the finest blend of black tea,cinnamon clove,cardamom and other spices. These give an exotic aroma and spicy taste to this flavorful tea.
Flavored Teas are flavored by hand to create a unique, distinctive taste that is perfectly balanced with the essence of the whole leaf tea. Most of these are imported from Sri Lanka and are special in it's own way.

Swedish Berries & Chai Masala stored in air tight containers

Green Teas & Flavored Green Teas- Directly after plucking, the green tea leaves are pan-fired or steamed in order to stop the oxidation process. The tea is then dried once again to remove excess moisture. During the entire process, the leaves maintain their soft and supple texture. These are imported from Japan and China.
Herbal Infusions - All the herbal infusions are 100% caffeine-free, making them the best alternative to regular tea or coffee.They offer an array of flavors that are both delectable and satisfying.

Swedish Berries Iced Tea

Fruit Infusions - These are naturally caffeine-free and are made with large pieces of dried fruit with fruit flavors added,giving the infusion a fresh,bold fruity taste.
I tried this Swedish Berries there and I wanna have it again. It is a blend of hibiscus,raisins and mixed berries, this infusion is well-balanced with natural fruit flavor and a sweet, fragrant aroma.

A little more about the coffees
They only purchase coffee beans from specialty grade Arabic coffee beans from small farms and private estates in East Africa, Latin America and the Pacific. Because the growing conditions in each geographic region have a significant impact on the look, taste and smell of the coffee, they travel to many estates in each region to find Simply the best coffee. They serve coffees in the following categories.
Light & Subtle Coffees - These are characterized by their mild and delicate flavor and are complemented by a light or medium roast. Both mellow and satisfying, these coffees are sure to please every palate.

Caramel & Pure Chocolate Ice Blenders

Rich & Smooth Coffees - These are deeply aromatic coffees and are characterized by their well-balanced flavor and full, fragrant aroma. Each distinctive blend is roasted to perfection to add richness to every cup.
Dark & Distinctive Coffees - These are full-flavored with a bold taste and rich aroma. Aromatically complex, each coffee has a distinctive flavor that is well-balanced.
Flavored Coffees - The delicious flavored coffees are made with pre-ground medium roast coffee that they carefully hand-flavor with natural and artificial flavorings to ensure a rich and inviting full-flavored coffee.

Our personal experience:

A quiet place to relax

We loved the calm and serene open air atmosphere. The place was clean and the staff was polite. We met Mr. Zameer Ahmed, the Asst. Operation Manager- CBTL who was very friendly, and showed us around the newly opened store.

Something which I loved the most is the innovative coffee/tea takeaway box. We had never seen this type of a takeaway box in any of the coffee and tea outlets around. All the machines that they use are imported and maintained very well.

Takeaway Box for coffee/tea

Apart from Teas and Coffees, the food and dessert served there was good. Also we loved the ice blended caramel and ice blended double chocolate. The ice blended drinks are their specialty as they had invented them.

Paneer Tikka Sandwich & Chilly Cheese Baguette along with ice blenders

We also tried Classic cheese sandwich and oats and cranberry bar. To beat the summer heat we sipped on the the Swedish berries iced tea.The taste and quality of the coffee, tea, food and the ice blenders was good. I highly recommend this place to everyone.

Location in Bangalore:
Phoenix Market City, Whitefield Road

1 MG Road Mall, Opposite Taj Vivanta
Inorbit Mall - Whitefield
Kormangala, 7th Block

Average Meal For Two:

Approx. Rs. 500/- , Taxes extra

Timings:

10 AM to 11 PM

Note: All the opinions stated here are my own. This is not a paid review.

Round Up of 'ONLY Continental' Cooking Event And Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 19:57:56 PDT

In the month of March 2013, I got a wonderful opportunity to guest host the 'ONLY' Continental Cooking event and giveaway. Thanks to Pari for providing me with this opportunity.

There were a total of 25 entries from Indian blogger participants and 17 entries from the International blogger participants. Also there was one entry from a non-blogger. So all together there were 43 entries.

A wonderful round-up has been displayed here. Wishing good-luck to all the participants. Also please note that participants who are not following the rules will not be eligible for the giveaway. But I have included all the entries in the round-up.

Pari will select a winner randomly and it will be posted on her blog. So watch out for the winner announcement at Pari's blog soon.

Friend's please let me know if I have missed anyone's entry.

From the Indian Participants:

Cheese And Sausage Muffins	Mexican Rice	Corsican Rice/Scandinavian Rice
Quesadilla Pizza/Mexican Pizza	White Sauce Italian Dish	Caramel Apple Spice
Dark Chocolate And Strawberry Panna	Vegetable Burger	Shepherds Salad/Choban Salad
Egg And Corn Hot Dog	Plain Cheese Pizza	Simple And Quick Pasta
Chicken Lasagna	Capuccino	Cold Pasta Salad With White Sauce
Orange Pistachioa Biccotti	Shell Pasta In Spicach Pesto Sauce	Pesto Pasta Primavera One Bowl Eggs
Pasta With WHite Sauce	White Bread With Tangzhong	Scalded Flour Bread
Stuffed Braided Bread	Eggless Orange Muffins	Grilled Potato Salad
Easy Penne Pasta With chicken

From International Participants:

HomeMade Munchkins Using Biscuits	Oatmeal Raisin Lace Cookies	Pasta With Basil Pesto And Vegetables
Cauliflower Crust Cheese Sticks	Black Bean Soup With Quesadilla	Calzone
Baked Onion Rings	Chicken Sizzlers	Strawberry Mousse
Pasta With Pesto Vegetables	Banana Nutella Milkshake	Marbled Chocolate Banana Cake
Milkshake with Banana and Flax Seed	Pineapple Avocado Salad	Eggless Pinwheel Cookies

A non-blogger Sarah Takeya has sent the following recipe for the event:

EGGLESS PANCAKE WITH STRAWBERRY COULIS

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup maida/gluten free flour

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

1 cup milk

3 tbsp oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

oil to cook pancakes

METHOD:

1, Mix all the ingredients and form a smooth batter, according to the consistency add water.

2, in a pan, heat a tsp of oil and pour a scoop of batter. cover the lid and cook for 10 sec,

3, Uncover the pan and flip it off and cook the other side.

4. Ready to serve

FOR STRAWBERRY COULIS:

1, 1 cup ripe strawberry

2, 2 tbsp sugar

3, 3 tbsp water

METHOD:

Preserve strawberry with sugar overnight and next day cook with 3tbsp water in slow flame until it gets thick consistency.

serve hot and enjoy!

Strawberry Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 10:01:28 PDT

I had 2 packets of strawberries lying in my fridge. My kid wanted to eat all of them. Yet I managed to negotiate by giving her 1 packet and keeping the rest for me. I told her that I will prepare a yummy dessert using the strawberries and I forgot what I had told her.

By evening she came back to me and asked me where the dessert was. She also gave me a warning that if the dessert is not ready by night, she will finish all the strawberries in one shot!

Gosh, I was scared. This is the end of season for strawberries in the market and I wanted to try something yummylicious...

I quickly started googling and came across Martha Stewart's Strawberry Cake. I made up my mind that I will bake this cake. It looked damn easy and simple. Yes the cake was indeed simple and easy. But the taste was awesome.

My kid and my hubby finished 1/2 the cake in no time... My hubby just loved it and my kid was excited to see the cake topped with strawberries. She saved 1 piece of it to take to her school the next day.

Somehow I managed to save a little piece for my best friend too and he too liked it a lot. The end result was all were happy after eating the cake.

Only thing is that, I got the smallest piece of the cake. There is a saying that the chef feels happy and content when people likes what he/she cooks. Looking at the happy smiles on others faces, I too felt the same.

Recipe Source: Click here
Ingredients:
2 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 cup All purpose Flour /maida
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup + 2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 cup strawberries chopped

Procedure:
Preheat the microwave in convection mode for 4 mins at 180C.
Put the butter and 1 cup sugar in the food processor. Mix on medium speed until butter and sugar gets mixed. This has to be done for 2 mins. If you don't have a food processor, you can do it manually or with a hand blender.

Now add milk, vanilla essence, baking power and egg to the sugar and butter mixture in the food processor and mix on medium speed for 2-3 mins or until the mixture is fluffy.
Next is to mix the flour and run the food processor for another 5 mins till all the ingredients gets mixed properly.

Get the cake pan ready by doing the following:
Spread 2 tablespoon butter all over the cake pan and sprinkle 2 tablespoon APF/maida. Spread the flour in such a way that the entire pan gets covered with it.
Dust the remaining flour out of the pan.

Spread the batter in the pan. Arrange the chopped strawberries all over the batter. It should be very close to each other. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoon powdered sugar over the strawberries.

Bake the cake for 15 mins at 180C. After 15 mins check if the cake is done and further bake for another 15 mins. Check if it's done by inserting a toothpick. If it comes out clean that means the cake is done. Else bake it further for another 5 mins.

Exciting Coupons And Deals At CouponDunia.in

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 01:30:22 PDT

Hey Guys,

I’ve just come across CouponDunia, an amazing site for finding coupons & deals for online stores like FlipKart, GoIbibo, Dominos, SnapDeal, Myntra, Pepperfry, ShopClues & many more.

CouponDunia, is India’s Largest Coupon & Deal site, and has over 150,000 Likes on FaceBook !

CouponDunia covers deals/coupons for products across various categories from Books, Clothes, Perfumes & Watches to Air Tickets to Electronics.

They even have an option to subscribe to deals/coupons for specific online stores, so that you get an e-mail the moment a new deal/coupon is added for that online store.
Be sure to check out their featured coupons, where you can find great deals from new online stores.
To know more, check out CouponDunia here: http://www.coupondunia.in/

Here are some of my favourite deals !

Delicious Pizzas from Dominos. Save with Dominos Coupons

Philips Coffee Maker from FlipKart. Save with FlipKart Coupons

Samsung Microwave Ovens from eBay. Save with eBay Coupons

Note: This is a sponsored post.

Goan Special - Brinjal Rawa Fry / Eggplant Rawa Fry

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 02:03:09 PDT

In the month of March 2013, you all hardly saw any recipes in Raksha's Kitchen. I was getting a lot of comments why I am writing for an alchohol brand and that I should discontinue writing for it. But I did not loose my spirits. Yes, I was writing as I was asked to write for it. I took it up as a challenge given the fact that none in my family including me drinks alcohol (even occasionally!). But that's what we bloggers are right? We have to be creative and creativity lies inside me :)

Today I am presenting you all with a delicious Goan GSB( Goud Saraswat Bramhin) dish. It is normally served as a side dish with vegetarian thali in Goa. My Mom normally makes this and my dad being a pure vegetarian loves it. I learnt this dish from my Mom and we love it here too. My little one calls it Brinjal Fish :)

Ingredients:

For frying

1 big Brinjal

1 tsp. chilly powder

1 tsp. turmeric powder

¼ tsp. salt

Oil for frying

For the coating

½ cup rawa/semolina

¼ cup rice flour

½ tsp. chilly powder

¼ tsp. salt

Procedure:

Step 1:
Mix rawa, rice flour, chilly powder and salt and keep aside.

Step 2:
Slice the brinjal. The slices should be of ¼ inch thickness. When you slice the brinjal it will be circular in shape. If desired make it into semi-circular shape.

Apply chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt to the brinjal and keep aside for 10-15 mins.

Step 3:
Coat the brinjal in the rawa.

Step 4:
Now take the frying pan, heat it and spread 1 tbsp. oil on it.

Step 5:
Arrange the rawa coated brinjals on the frying pan one by one.

Step 6:
Spread 1-2 tablespoon oil on top of the rawa coated brinjals. Fry by covering the frying pan. In between sprinkle 1 tsp. water over the brinjals to keep them moist.

Step 7:

After 10 mins, flip to the other side and fry for another 10 mins.

Step 8:
Check whether the brinjals are cooked by poking in the center of the brinjal with a knife. If brinjal is soft and it gets cut easily then it’s done.

Linking this to Hudson Canola Oil Hamper ~ a giveaway.

Soldier For Women

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 05:49:02 PDT

Nowadays Bangalore has become extremely unsafe for women. I will not blame the men completely, there are some mean who cause problems to women, but along with that there are a bigger percentage of men who always stand for women and have lost their own life when they tried to save a woman who was in problem. It is a real must that every woman has a soldier around to protect her. Yes, I see so many men who have become soldiers for some or other woman at some point of their life.

Trust me, one such soldier for women is my hubby Mr. MK. MK as a responsible hubby has always protected me from bad guys around. Apart from this MK has helped a lot of other woman. I will tell you one such instance where MK had saved a woman in distress.

It so happened somewhat 2 years back when MK used to go for a jog in the evenings on the Pai Layout lake in Bangalore. There was a young woman who was in her early twenties who was walking with her old grand-mother on the lake. At around 6.30 PM MK was returning home after a jog. Suddenly this woman came from behind and caught MK's hand. At the first, MK thought that it was something planned to trap him to snatch off his credit cards and mobile phone. But then he saw a desperate man following the woman. The woman briefly explained the situation and told MK that she had to walk slowly as she had come out with the grand-mother. She told him that she can't run away leaving her old grand-mom alone. MK understood the problem and helped the woman and her grand-mom cross the busy K R Puram road. The drunk man was still following them. Suddenly MK noticed that the man had come very close to the woman. The man almost ran to embrace the woman from behind or maybe to touch her.

MK knew that the drunk man will keep following the woman or may even attack her in some way.So MK immediately stopped an auto. MK told the autowala to take the woman and her grand-mother to Indiranagar which was 10 Min's from Pai Layout. The autowala said that he is not going to Indiranagar. The man again reached very close to the woman. MK told the woman and her grand-mother to get into the auto and he told the autowala to take them to commercial street or any safe location and handed Rs.100/- to the autowala and the autowala took the woman away. The woman was saved from the drunk man who could have done anything to her if MK had not helped her.

The best thing that I liked was MK handled the situation non-violently. MK knew that arguing or talking to the drunkard is of no use. What if the drunkard had a weapon? I really liked MK's idea of getting an auto and sending the woman to a safe location. MK had courage to accompany the woman and her grand-mother and did not run away thinking that this woman will put him in trouble. Sometimes we have to trust our 6th sense.

I felt very proud to have a hubby who respects women and helps women in trouble. I don't know who that woman is, but I am sure that if that woman reads this post, she will be thankful. MK came as a soldier and saved her from the drunkard.

This post is a part of #Soldierforwomen in association with BlogAdda.com.

Black Dog Scotch And The Wonderful Times

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 06:54:58 PDT

By now you might have read a lot of posts regarding Black Dog Scotch on my Blog. Today I am writing my 30th post on Black Dog Scotch. In all the previous posts you have seen the history of Black Dog Scotch, how it got it’s name, it’s variants and how it is made. You also saw how Black Dog organizes Easy and Comedy Evenings for its consumers to unwind and relax. That is because they consider laughter and music as an instant vacation. You have learnt how to pair food and chocolates with Black Dog Scotch and how to set a home bar. You even learnt how to make cocktails and how Black Dog can be chosen as a great gift and more tips on how to improve your life and a lot of things.

I have always stressed on the fact that Black Dog Scotch is the most beautiful bottle of Scotch available in India. It is the smoothest and the finest Scotch and provides an unbeatable luxury. The beauty of Black Dog Scotch is that it is golden coloured liquid with shimmering highlights. When drunk in a responsible manner, it is used to mark some real good times.

There are some times when it is recommended not to consume Black Dog Scotch:
1) Before or while driving. Also drunken driving is legally a punishable offense.
2) Children below the age group of 21 should not consume alchohol as it has negative effects on the physical and mental development of the child.
3) At work - as it might be a standard of business conduct violation.
4) During Pregnancy and breast feeding.
5) After a physically exhausting activity like heavy exercise.
6) While on medications.

We have to remember to live responsibly as we owe a lot to our family and society.

This year Black Dog Scotch is celebrating 130 years of existence and I really feel that it has a long way to go. They dominate the market and its consumers just love Black Dog Scotch due to a lot of reasons.

Black Dog Scotch is available is the following variants:
· Black Dog 21 years old – Black Dog Quintessence
· Black Dog 18 years old – Black Dog Reserve
· Black Dog 12 years old – Black Dog Deluxe
· Black Dog Centenary

Do try all these 4 variants. Each of them have a unique taste and I am sure you will fall in love with its richness.
Check out more about Black Dog Scotch on their Facebook page. They tweet at bdtweets. Also check this link about Black Dog Comedy Evenings and remember to just live in style.

Celebrate Holi With Black Dog Scotch

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 06:55:20 PDT

Holi is the festival of colors and is celebrated throughout India, but mostly in the North Indian region. We also celebrated Holi today in a real grand way. We had ordered special organic colors to play Holi because we did not want our special guests to complain of skin allergy. And yes, we did not use water to play Holi because we wanted to save water.

We decided to play Holi in a grand way.So we had booked a resort in the out-skirts of Bangalore. The full day was spent at the resort. Yes I really felt good when I saw the decorations and the lighting in the open air hall. All the colors were neatly arranged in large big plates. We had kept the dress code as white. Because we wanted to fill colors in everyone’s life. A lot of sweets like ghevar, gulab jamuns,baklava, etc were served. But we wanted to make this Holi a special event. Almost all of my friends had come there. We wanted all our friends to unwind and relax. So instead of serving the traditional “Bhang” we decided to serve wine and Black Dog Scotch.

Oh, when Black Dog Scotch was served everyone’s eyes started to twinkle. After drinking a glass of Black Dog Scotch, the entire party atmosphere had changed. Wow, I could see most of my friends unwind and relax. Some of the shy ones also came up and were dancing to the beats of “Rang Barse” busy splashing colors at others.

Some of my friends who had some differences, used this occasion to resolve all the differences and to embrace each other with lots of love,joy and affection like the way it was before. All the white outfits which people had worn turned multi-colored, just like how their plain boring life was filled with joy and love. In the end everyone thanked us for organizing such a wonderful event. Thanks to Black Dog Scotch for making it even more eventful.

Serving And Gifting Black Dog Scotch At Indian Marriages

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 06:55:42 PDT

Black Dog Scotch is the most beautiful bottle of Scotch available in India. It is finest and the smoothest Scotch and offers an unbeatable luxury. The memories of it are ever-lasting. Recently I had been to my friends marriage. This friend of mine belongs to the upper middle class Christian family of Goa. He being the only son, his parents wanted his marriage to be an unforgettable experience.

Even the bachelor party which was thrown by him was an awesome experience. The bachelor party was held at Marriott Hotel’s grand Ball room. Black Dog Scotch and other types of alcohols were served throughout the party. Since my friend is from Goa, he had neatly paired fried seafood like prawns along with Black Dog Scotch. Some fried cashew nuts were also paired with Black Dog Scotch. Oh yes, I had never experienced such a grand bachelor party.

The marriage which was held after 2 days was a very costly affair for the groom and bride. The marriage was held according to Christian customs. A lot of people from the higher sections of the society had come to bless the newly weds. They were showered with lot’s of gifts. But we decided to gift them a wonderful bottle of Black Dog Scotch for the groom and a bottle of Red Wine for the bride. Yes, it is acceptable to gift a bottle of Black Dog Scotch in Indian marriages.

The reception party was held at The Leela Palace and Beach Resort, Goa. Wow, again what an experience it was. The venue very nicely decorated. Some nice tunes of Jazz music were being played and I could see many couples dancing to the tunes of it. Then there came a round of drinks. Yes, my favorite Black Dog Scotch with shimmering highlights was also served. I could see people getting indulged in its luxury. After all, any party is not a party without Black Dog Scotch.

I really consider this as the most wonderful wedding of the millennium. My friend and his newly wed wife, went to Switzerland for their honeymoon, and they packed the 2 bottles of alcohol which we had gifted to them. Wishing the wonderful couple a very Happy Married Life! Enjoy life responsibly with Black Dog Scotch.

Cocktail Recipes Made With Black Dog Scotch

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 06:56:03 PDT

After reading a lot of posts on Black Dog Scotch I am sure my readers have understood how luxurious this Scotch is. Black Dog Scotch is the most beautiful and the finest bottle of Scotch available in India. This is a golden colored liquid with shimmering highlights. As you already know, any type of alcohol should be drunk in moderation. When Black Dog Scotch is drunk responsibly, it offers the finest and the most luxurious way to relax.

There are a lot of ways to enjoy The Black Dog Scotch. A lot of recipes with Black Dog Scotch can be innovated from people’s creative mind. Apart from these, try adding Black Dog Scotch to other alcohol's like wine, Gin, vodka or juices like orange, pineapple or lemon. Try adding some crushed nutmeg and make some wonderful cocktails with Black Dog Scotch. What about adding Black Dog Scotch to soft drinks? Try it out and let us know :)

Some of the cocktails made with Black Dog Scotch are as follows:

Black Dog Mint Julep:

Ingredients:
· 60 ml Scotch whisky
· 8 mint leaves
· 2 spoons sugar
· Water / Soda
· Glass – Tall glass

Procedure:

Black Dog Mint Julep has a touch of refreshing mint and is an old classic. Mint leaves and sugar should be crushed in a glass with a spoon to release the flavors Then fill the glass with broken ice and add the 12 year old Black Dog Scotch with a splash of soda.

Blinder:

Ingredients:
· 60 ml Scotch whisky
· 30 ml grapefruit juice
· 1 tsp grenadine syrup

Procedure:

You will need a highball glass for this. Pour the Scotch and grapefruit juice in it and fill it with ice cubes. Drop grenadine into the center of the drink.

You should live in style with Black Dog Scotch. More such cocktail recipes can be found here. But I suggest, you all can experiment even more and publish your own recipes with Black Dog Scotch.

Black Dog Presents Russell Peters

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 06:56:29 PDT

Black Dog Comedy Evenings provides a wonderful opportunity to de-stress the stressed people and helps them to unwind and relax. They organized one such comedy evening which was performed by the worlds funniest man – Russell Peters. This program was held at Chowdiah Memorial Hall at Bangalore. The tickets were sold for Rs. 1500, Rs.1000 and Rs.500. There were so many fans of Russell Peters and all were eager to buy the tickets for this show. The tickets were over in no time.

Russell Peters' stand-up performances are mostly made up of observational comedy where he uses humor to highlight racial, ethnic, class and cultural stereotypes. He often refers to his own life experiences growing up in an Indian family and impersonates various English accents of different groups in his act to poke fun at each group. As Peters told an audience in San Francisco, "I don't make the stereotypes, I just see them.” Peters uses his minority status to allow him to poke fun at different races in his performance, but according to an interview done for The National, he does not intend to put down or offend different races and cultures, but instead tries to raise them up through humour. Peters is widely known for his punchlines, "Somebody gonna get a hurt real bad", in which he tells a joke about his childhood with a traditional Indian father who would use corporal punishment, and "Be a man!", while imitating a Chinese man trying to get him to pay more for an item at a shop. Source: Wiki.

Fueled by his Internet infamy and the popularity of his Comedy Now! Special, Peters has played to packed houses all over the world, from Singapore to South Africa.

People really enjoyed the Black Dog Comedy Evenings with Russell Peters. They laughed till their stomachs hurt. Black Dog Comedy Evenings are always performed with some world class artists like Russel Peters, Rod Schneider, Kenny G, Mellisa Totten, etc on a stage where the setup is patented by Black Dog.

In Bangalore, I Am Not Safe... Are You?

noreply@blogger.com (Raksha) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 01:12:09 PDT

Recently during the Indiblogger and TOI bloggers meet I learnt that Bangalore is the 2^nd largest city in India where the women related crime rate is high. I was indeed shocked to learn this. When I was getting married, I told my Mom not to find an alliance for me from Mumbai as I thought that the crime rate in Mumbai is high and I wanted to get settled in Bangalore as Bangalore was very safe for women. But I was wrong! Each and every day in Bangalore for me is unpredictable. I don’t know what might happen to me the very next moment here. Bangalore is very much unsafe for women.

I want to quote one of my true life experience when I was totally new in Bangalore.

This was way back in 2006, when I was doing my first job. I was travelling daily from K R Puram to Koramangala by BMTC buses. One day I noticed a man continuously starring at me. I was in my early twenties. I felt conscious and was uncomfortable. When my bus-stop came, I got down from my bus and started walking to my office. I noticed that the guy also got down at the same bus-stop and was following me. An idea stuck my mind. I got into Monday to Sunday store and called my office friends there. I narrated the incident to them. They came there and when they saw that the guy went away, they took me to office. After reaching office I phoned my hubby and told him what had happened. Evening I went to catch the bus on the same bus-stop and the guy was waiting there. He also got into the same bus. I called my hubby and told him that the guy is again following me. I got down at the Mayo Hall bus-stop. The guy also got down there. I continued to wait for my hubby and the guy got into a bus going to Indiranagar. When my hubby came, I got onto the bike and we followed the bus. The guy got down at Indiranagar and on seeing me and my hubby there, the guy fled away and I never saw him again.

So friends, it is the personality which matters. What if I had gone to office? The Guy could have followed me till office and then planned an attack. But the mobile phone which I carried and the idea which I got to enter into a super store, saved me. So it is very important not to panic. Be cool and think in such situations how to save yourself.

Always keep in mind that individual personality and confidence matters a lot. A non-confident and scared women walking on the street always becomes an easy target for attackers whereas a women with confidence is never attached. While walking on the street, always a women should be aware of the surroundings. Know where you are and who are around you. Keep a note of all exits and entrances wherever you go, be it movie halls, shopping malls, temples, pubs, any place. Never talk on mobile phone while walking on the street as it becomes easy for the attackers. The biggest weapon a women can have is her personality and her brain. Use the brain effectively. Learn to diffuse the problem rather then worsening it. For eg. When someone comes to snatch your purse or hand bag, throw it in air and run in the opposite direction, rather then trying to search for pepper spray and knife to attack the person. The attacker will not wait till you take out the knife or pepper spray. Just use your brain, use the power of voice, run in public places, scream and attract the public. Also remember punches and kicks will never work as the attacker will be stronger then what you expect. Just remember run away from the situation and be in a safest place.

While walking on the street, always remember to cover your neck completely if you are wearing gold chains. Better it will be if you don’t wear any gold. Why to show off to the society that you have a lot of gold by putting your life in danger? It is better if people say we are poor rather then to be a victim of some crime which can go to the extent of slit throats. Do you agree?

Another problem which women face in Bangalore is home robbery. The attackers keep a note as to which women are alone in which house. Such women who stay alone in the house should never open the door to strangers and probably should install a CCTV in their house.

Bangalore is known as the Silicon Valley of India, but is this Silicon valley safe for women working here? I being a women and being a non-Kannadiga, always faced a language problem. I was not able to converse in Kannada initially and people used to take advantage of this fact. For eg. Auto drivers charge more than what the meter shows when they know that we are a non-Kannadiga's. The bus conductor once shouted at me in Kannada, when I asked him in hindi how much the bus fare was. He told me in hindi “ Yeh Karnataka hai Madam, Kannada bolo”. Which means “ This is Karnataka, speak Kannada . To which I replied “This is a part of India, speak Hindi”.

Apart from this women working in the corporate sector face a lot of problems like male colleagues abusing and exploiting the female colleagues. Yes these IT companies have a lot of policies, but these policies will only be in the books. I know an incident when one of my friends was being constantly abused by her superior. She was verbally abused just because she used to leave early to catch the bus to reach home which was in the other end of Bangalore. She had to leave early ie. 5 PM and not stay back till 8 PM, because she had to maintain a balance between her family and work. The male colleague went to such an extent that during one of the project parties, he touched her bottom. She felt uncomfortable, but she could not report the incident due to lack of evidence. She discussed the problem with someone she confided in. Next day this male colleague put his arm around her while she was working at her desk. At that time she raised her voice and told him to take off his hand. If she had gone further and reported the problem without any evidence, then maybe she could have lost her job. But her first experience made her learn and 2^nd time she raised her voice against him.

During the blogger meet, one female blogger narrated an incident when she was thrown out of her PG at night 2 AM. A man from her apartment had written some leud comments on her under-garments when she had put the clothes to dry. He also wrote his phone number on her under-garments. When she complained to the PG owner, she herself was thrown out. The owner accused her saying that she had tried to provoke the guy when it was totally the guy's fault. In a society like ours, the blame always comes on women. Why the hell?

Apart from these, I constantly see that males blame women for the clothes that they were and they say that this is what provokes them to rape a female! But are the males in our society so weak that just by looking at a women’s outfit they want to rape her? Don’t they have any self control? I have seen so many cases of males raping little innocent girls. Even father’s and brother’s raping their little daughters and sisters. Does these little innocent girls provoke the males in our society or do their dressing?

Another constant fear I have living in Bangalore, is being a mother of a little 4 year old girl. I always keep a constant watch on her and every evening after I return from work I sit with her and ask her whether anyone has touched her. In my own apartment where I stay, I have seen my watchman touching my neighbours 7 year old daughter in a bad way. We need to educate our children about good and bad touch. After noticing this bad behavior from my watchman, I taught my daughter that if the watchman comes to touch her them to tell him not to touch her. The same happened, the next day the watchman came to touch my daughter and she clearly told him not to touch her and that if he does so, she will tell mom. Since that day he has stopped touching her. So you might wonder why we our apartment society did not fire the watchman, right? Even if we fire the watchman, what is the guarantee that the new watchman will be a good man? So it is always good to approach things with a cool mind. But always keep a watch on your child and keep talking to them. I know one of my colleague who used to come late to office with the same fear of his daughter getting abused in school bus. She would be the first to get into the bus and the care-taker/teacher would get in 2 stops later. So this guy used to take his daughter to the bus-stop where the teacher used to get in and never allowed her to travel alone. So much is the fear we face daily staying in Bangalore.

Awareness is extremely important, specially in schools. Not just the private schools, but even the govt. Schools. It is equally important to educate the slum dwellers about the crime and the impact.

A lot of domestic violence happens to women even in a city like Bangalore. I keep reading on TOI some or the other case where women are burnt alive or murdered for dowry. I had read a case in TOI itself where after getting married a man allowed four of his friends to sleep with his wife. This woman went through all the torture and on one fine day spoke against her so called husband and got him and his friends arrested.

I mean why should men feel that women are a toy which can be used and abused to any extent? Is it the way they are brought up? I know things start from our own house, so my dear friends please educate your children that boys and girls are equal. Never say that women belong to weaker sex. Apart from this try to stand up for any crime or any sort of abuse you face anywhere. If you see a women in distress, try to help her. And always remember that it is the women’s personality that matters.

This post is written for Bangalore for women which is an initiative taken by TOI to address issues which women face in Bangalore.