Kopi ,Kaya toast and a good book,..;-)

Sometimes i crave for the Kopi paired with Kaya toast and soft  boiled eggs ,

this picture was taken few days back
when driven by my craving
I went to  this kopitiam

just to sip coffee ,eat kaya toast and read a good book
and enjoy my me time :-)
this picture is joining

Black and White Wednesday - A Culinary Gallery Week #46 hosted by
 Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook.
Linking this to
The Weekly Story week 90 hosted by Colours Dekor.
take care friends,..see you all soon

If I had a girl,....

If I had a girl ,this is the cake
which I would bake for her special day.

Maybe some two decades back
this is the cake which i would
love to cut on my  birthday.

But just because I don't have a girl
or that I am three decades old
it didn't deter me to bake and decorate

this pinkilicious chocolate cake ,
as this one is for a sweet little girl
of my friend,..

thus, I had a wish   to bake and decorate
something like this for a sweet little  girl
and I am so glad that
I could do,......:-)

I baked this eggless chocolate cake for my friends daughter
iced it with strawberry butter cream  icing
and then deocrtaed with sprinkles,edible silver ball and pink pearl balls.
recipe of the cake is blogged here 
recipe of icing inspired from joy the baker and blogged here
replaced the vanilla essence with strawberry essence and add few drops of pink colour.
with the same  cake as base decorated as Angry Bird Cake 
blogged here and here .

linking this post to
the weekly story week 90 hosted by Colours Dekor.
the kids delight event hosted by  Ribbons to pasta event started by Srivalli 
thats all friends,wish you all happy week ahead,..
take care and Happy Blogging.

Indian breakfast - mooli paratha with bhindi bhujia and curd

Today is India's 65th Independence day ,this day reminds me of the special assembly which would be  held in our school followed by flag hosting by the Principal and distrbution of motichoor ladoo by our teachers.

When Advay came back from school today  he had the Indian tricolour   flag in his hand and when i heard him humming  Jana Gana Mana song i just smiled and remembered our childhood days btw i luved the way he hummed the song ,..:-)
coming back to today's post sharing with you all tri coloured which i prepared yesterday

this thali has Mooli Paratha, Bhindi bhujia curd nd is paired with Orange juice .
Bhindi bhujia recipe is blogged here
Mooli paratha recipe was shared by my sis on phone ,so here goes the recipe
Recipe name Mooli Paratha/ Pan fried indian flat bread stuffed with radish
recipe source my sister
preparation time 30 mins
cooking time 30 mins 
ingredient for the paratha
dough of whole wheat flour one cup
radish one
salt as per taste
red chili powder half tsp
garam masala powder half tsp
carom seeds half tsp

preparation
peel and grate the radish ,mix pinch of salt in radish
after 10 mins squeeze out the excess water by tying the grated radish in cheese cloth
in a mixing bowl mix the grated radish with salt,red chili powder,garam masala powder and carom seeds
divide the kneaded dough into equal sized disc and keep aside
make a depression in the center and fill in one tsp of the radish filling
bring the edges together ,flatten the disc and roll out on the rolling disc
place on a heat griddle/tava and sprinkle few drops of oil
flip once and once brown from both sides remove from flame
serve warm with curd and bhindi bhujia.

Linking this post to
the weekly story week 89 hosted by Colours Dekor.
wish all the readers of Asan Khana happpy Independence Day,..

priceless moment at a gelato shop for Black and white wednesday

year 2011
place Gelato shop
city Auckland
moment priceless ;-)

sharing the moment with the 45th edition of  Black and White Wednesday hosted by Chez Cayenne event started by Susan of the Well Seasoned Cook.
thats all friends,wish you all happy week ahead,..

Janmashtami Celebration 2012

Today is Janmashtami ,

Lord Krishna 's Birthday

which is celebrated with much pomp and grandeur throughout the country
.Like every year today when i got up I was filled with the warm memories of my childhood days ,we would be busy colouring sand and wood scrap different colour to decorate rangoli .
Dadi would be busy in kitchen with my mom and aunts preparing all kind of phalahar delicacies .Now it all seems like a dream to me and yeah a beautiful dream,this festival is not celebrated at my inlaws place thus no fasting for me but still i prepare a feast to celebrate Krishna's Birthday and relive  the memories of yesteryears

.Today while dropping Advay to bus stop I told him about Krishna's Birthday
he asked me "Mummy how old is Krishna Bhagwan
I replied "he is god ,he is not human being so you cant calculate his age
this answer satiated him ,..;-)
Last year i prepared Poori Sabji
this year i prepared Naan and Dal Makhani

recipe of Naan  is inspired from  here ,instead of two cups of  all purpose flour i have use one cup whole wheat and one cup all purpose flour

recipe of Dal Makhani is inspired from Vege yum blog

i didn't add any cream while preparing the tadka ,topped the cooked dal with home made fresh cream before serving and a dollop of ghee.

Wish all the readers of Asan Khana Happy Janmashtami
wish you all happy weekend
take care and happy blogging.

Bharwa Dhage wala Karela - Stuffed Bitter Gourd

Its been a while since i had this so today while deciding what to prepare for dinner i had to choose between stuffed chili or bittergourd ,i chose bittergourd and asked my mother on skype about the masala and everything including the oil,she told it has to be mustard oil for stuffed vegetbales /bharwa/kalonji.

Recipe name - Bharwa Karela/dhage wala karela/stuffed bitter gourd
recipe source my mother
preparation time half our 
cooking time 45 mins
Ingredient 
bitter gourd washed eight
for the filling 
onion two chopped finely
garlic crushed three clove
green chili one chopped
asafoetida pinch
cumin seeds half tsp
salt as per taste
red chili powder half tsp
turmeric powder one fourth tsp
amchur powder half stp
mustard oil one tbsp
for the kalonji masala
cumin seeds one tsp
fennel seeds one
nigella seed one tsp
carom seed half stp
fenugreek seek one fourth tsp
dry roasted coriander powder one tsp
Preparation 
- in a pan dry roast coriander powder for a minute ,keep aside.
- in the same pan dry roast seeds for the kalonji masala for two to three minutes
   let it cool and run through the blender ,keep the powder aside
- peel bittergourd and make a slit in the centre ,scoop out the seeds and keep aside .

Procedure 
for the filling 
Heat one tsp mustard oil in non stick pan ,once oil is hot lower the flame
add cumin seeds and asafoetida followed by chopped onion
keep stirring for  two to three minutes add chopped garlic and green chili
fry for a minute and add salt,red chili powder and turmeric powder.
after 10 to 15 minutes when onion is caramalised and oil is seen along the sides
add the scooped out bittergourd seeds followed by
 dry roasted coriander powder,amchur powder and kalonji masala powder
mix everything together and fry for two minutes and remove from flame .

for stuffed bittergourd
once the fried onion mixture has cooled down ,fill the mixture in the scooped out bitter gourd
tie each bittergourd with a thread and keep aside .

heat two tsp oil in the same pan and cook the stuffed bittergourd
cover and cook for 10 minutes ,after 10 minutes check for tenderess
and cover and cook  for 10 to 15 minutes till its done.

Serve warm with a bowl of dal and plain rice,this one is somfort food for me,,,;-)

thats all friends,take care and happy blogging.

Aloo Tikiya Matar Chaat for Raksha Bandhan Festival

Yesterday was Raksha Bandhan

 ,also known as Rakhi Purnima

this festival is celebrated with much gaiety in India
Advay's cousin had sent him Rakhi and a hand written letter

yesterday being a festival it was another reason for me to prepare this

recipe name Alloo tikiya matar chaat
recipe of Alloo tikiya blogged here

for the spiced matar/
ingedient 
2 cup matar soaked overnight
salt as per taste
tamarind juice two tbsp
garam masala powder one tbsp
procedure
pressure cook soaked matar with salt and half tsp baking soda
once done add garam masala and tamarind juice
simmer for few minutes and serve warm .

top the matar decked tikiya with beaten curd

followed by dhania/cilantro chutney

followed by tamarind chutney

sprinkle some chat masala and chopped onion and indulge,

optional this chaat can be served topped with bhujia and mint chutney too,.
thats all friends,wish you all happy weekend
take care and happy blogging.