Dew

I chanced to see berries or Thubatu or Pachai Sundaikai in the market yesterday. Just bought it because I wanted to make cook something interesting out of it. Did some quick asking around from elders and made this Kozhambhu. Kozhambhu is what the Tamilians mix with rice and eat. It is soupy or gravy in general. Here is your recipe for making Sundaikai Kozhambhu. Ingredients : Green Sundaikai - 10 or 15 Tamarind Paste - one cup if made from old tamarind ( dark in color usually) or two cups if made from new tamarind ( beautifully brown colored) Sambhar powder - 1 table spoon Salt to taste. Powdered Jagerry - one spoon. Turmeric powder - 1 pinch Seasoning : Curry leaves, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, gram dal, asafoetida, red chilly, Gingelly oil for best results. If not available use refined oil. Here is how you make Pachai Sundaikkai Kozhambhu: Slit the berries into two and soak them in tamarind water ( soak some tamarind in water and use the extract) for five to te...

Ingredients : Apple - 1 Ripe Tomato - 1 if very sour  ( usually the smaller types with lot of seeds taste very sour) and 2 if ripe but moderately sour. Salt and pepper to taste. Coriander if possible and if you are trying soups to reduce your sugar levels. Here is how you make it : Cut the apple into two and remove the seeds. Cut the tomatoes into two. Pressure-cook the cut apple and tomatoes with 3/4th cup of water.. It should take you five minutes at the most. Remove the cooked pieces from the pan and grind in your mixer.  Add the paste back into the cooker.  Now measure the contents with a cup. Chances are you would have three cups of the soup. Add one cup of water, salt and pepper to the mixture. Bring the mixture to boil. Add chopped coriander leaves. Important : Serve this soup warm or cold.Chances are that you wont be able to enjoy the taste of the sweet and sourness blended in this soup if you serve this steaming hot. The cooked apple rende...

Wonder why Floods and famines have less importance than the election rallies? Bomb blasts and terrorism are discussed more than the rights and duties? Next door man doesn't behave like a friendly neighbor anymore? Sending kids to school has become a scary thought? In whatever we do there is a sense of caution? Amassing wealth for self and family has become more important than amassing love and relationship? Easy money and lotteries and game shows are taken more serious than 'just-a-game'? Tomorrow seems more important than the lovely today? We waste a lot of time doing nothing other than worrying about life at large be it personal, professional, social,economical, or political? Man doesn't realize that he has better sense than animals and is supposed to behave like a human being? Love and friendship have less importance than money and material comfort? Living has become so tough than it was before, given that we live in a more advanced society with better...

Its the most important question according to me today... My one plus little girl now knows that the white crescent on the blue-black sky is called the Moon. She still does not get that the round ball of white on the full-moon lit night sky is the same Moon that she knows about.. I went on to explain the Moon to myself leaving alone the science. What would I call it?? A bright dome of white light in the night sky??... Just a light close to the kind of white light in our living room?? In the City of Lights as I would like to call Muscat as, sometimes this white ball of light seems to fade in the background for my daughter's eyes as she watches out of the car window.. So these two explanations didn't seem okay to me. I finally decided on this: Moon is the light given by God for us to see in the darkness of the nights.  Not that she will follow this right away, but to think about it, in the olden days when transport didn't exist, people depended on the Moon to show ...

Of late, my views on news channels have changed.. They keep changing often though. The current state of mind is this : News is not only about what is happening in the world around us but also about how much the news channel hypes up each news item. There is all day coverage of whatever news item the channels decide to mark as KEY. I simply dont understand the meaning and relevance of statements like ...." So and So has left his residence at 11:00 A.M for the trial in such and such a court.. "... " So and So didn't answer any queries from the news correspondents prior to the hearing "... " So and So did not offer any opinion"... And all these for some news item that is just not too important in an otherwise chaotic world. All day we get to see some news items getting repeated. This I agree, because it probably is important for anyone who switches on the TV at that hour. In such instances statements like the aforementioned don't really m...

Here is a very simple side dish for Rotis and variety rice. My  father's idea and it came out very well. It is every one's favorite in my house. I make it when apples remain in the fridge untouched for more than three days.. According to me, if you have not eaten them in three days time then it is time for Apple Raita. Here is how you make Apple Raita. Cut an apple into small pieces. ( You might want to remove the skin if you are serving old people and children under the age of two.This is quite a bit of work.) Add three table spoons of yogurt, half a tea spoon of salt. Add pepper or chat masala ( a north indian masala powder ) if you like. Garnish with finely chopped coriander, if possible. To avoid the apple pieces changing color as soon as you cut them, add salt immediately, or another option would to be to put the apple pieces straight into salted yogurt. Experience will teach you what works best for you. In any case, the change in color wont hamper the taste. ...

This dish is supposedly served in all the Malayalee homes as part of festival Sadhyas. It is believed to be equivalent to 1008 dishes. Well, I didn't say that.. a Keralite told me this. Here is how you make it: - Chop ginger into fine pieces, enough to grind well in your mixer.Add a spoonful of grated coconut, one spoon of cumin seeds, one green chilly along with the ginger. - Grind all the contents into fine paste. Add little water if required to get the fine texture. - Mix the ginger paste with thick curd. - Add salt. The Ingi Thayir is ready to serve. This is usually suitable for any Kerala Sadhya item which is very bland. There are quite a number of nice less spicy dishes that they make. Ingi Thayir was a good combo with the Eriserri I made for Onam. 

The best example of Chaos is one's mind at any given point in time. If you try to list the thoughts in your mind in any window of five minutes in a day, you will see that it is full of varied,unrelated thoughts and conclusions.

Don't have coffee in the morning. It is risky to your some organ. Don't add refined sugar to any beverage u drink.. It is not good for your pancreas. Don't eat too much nuts. High protein can also increase your weight. Don't eat rice as stapled diet. It is high on carbohydrates.Can increase your risk of the Sugary disease. Don't eat three meals only. Instead snack three times to make it six times. It is good for health. Don't be so dependent on the Air Conditioner. It is not good for your weight. Don't be so dependent on cars. It curbs your chance to exercise for a healthy lifestyle. Don't use Microwave. Don't use cell phone, Don't watch TV. Don't sit on computer for long hours. Like this wherever you turn and whatever you do, there seems to be a caution of why you shouldn't be doing what you are doing? Wonder why suddenly people are scared so much and why were not our earlier generation so troubled? They seemed to have enjoy...

Well, that is the name I can think of right now, because the dish I made is a trial based on Ramadan festival's special Ghee Rice. I have trimmed the quantity of ghee and the spices and added veggies to it, so I can claim this is a new recipe, which we can safely name as a version of vegetable pulav. Ingredients: Basmati Rice - 1 cup. Water - 2 cups. Ghee - 1 spoonful. Oil - 1 spoonful. Coriander leaves finely chopped - half a cup to one cup. Cumin seeds - 1 spoonful Ginger garlic paste - 1 spoonful. Onion - 1 finely chopped. Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch Mixed vegetables - Beans, Potato, Carrot - 1 cup. Preparation: The order that worked for me: Wash Basmati rice and soak in lukewarm water for thirty minutes. Cut the vegetables into small pieces and pressure cook them.Make sure they don't get mashed up.Drain the excess water and let the veggies cool. Grind, Ginger, Garlic, Cinnamon and one or two spoonfuls of grated onion. This is the spice mix for your Pula...

Sometimes, There is so much to eat but very less appetite.. There is so much to study but very less time.. There is so much to explore but very less inclination.. There is so much to speak but very less audience.. There is so much to think but very less motivation.. There is so much to learn but very less interest.. Similarly, today there is so much to write but very less flow, time, inclination, motivation... Wonder why? ..

The first time I heard this was in my Chemistry Lab where I was learning to use a pipette for the Titration. I still remember wondering "why in the wide world should pipette be such a complicated equipment and will I ever get this teacher to say, " It up to the mark" when I measure the liquid?" Many times from then on, the phrase " Not exactly up to the mark" kept popping up. Over the years I understand that Nothing really is up to the mark, its just that we define what the mark is... Whether it is the way you do things or the way you feel about things, it is up to us to fix the mark. The more out of reach we keep the mark ( read as goals) the more we will have to listen ( or feel ) that phrase: Not exactly up to the mark!!! So lower your goals first, achieve them.. Reset the goals to the next higher point, achieve them.. and at the end of every achievement never forget to say : Yes it is up to the mark!!! Your inner sense of confidence will feel li...

I'll live tomorrow.. Which is what most of the world seems to be saying each day and this according to me is the Height of Procrastination. On the roads there are politicians conducting speeches about what must be done and what has not been done. In homes there are people arguing about what is not correct and what should be done. In schools the children are made to worry about what they might want to become in future, calling it nurturing their dreams and making them achieve it. In temples devotees pray for what they want, what they do not want and often are worried souls. In Ashrams and other spiritual healing centers the Gurus talk endlessly about : There is NOTHING in this worldly life and the confused common man endlessly tries to understand this seemingly small but actually a big truth. In Work places the employees always crib about their jobs and pay checks and achievements and how the job market is low for a shift. In business houses, there is always the argument...

I just got back from a temple visit.It is an awesome get-away from the concrete world of today. Located in Ramanathapuram, Coimbatore, this temple is called Sri Dhanwanthri Temple, managed by the Ayruveda Research foundation and Hospital team. The hospital or the Chikitsalaya is housed in the same campus as the temple. http://temples.avpayurveda.com/about_us.php The website gives all the details about the temple. It is a typical Kerala temple and all the poojas and procedures are strictly followed. What caught my attention was the greenery all over the place. There are benches in the garden, where you can sit back and relax, meditate, do nothing and just recover. There seem to be houses or guest houses where people are seen to be taking rest after medication. To look at lush green garden from your window sill or balcony is a gift that people are rarely blessed with these days. It seems this simple exercise of looking at greenery each morning has got a healing touch to the human ...

About an hour ago, we were having tea. My daughter (1 year old ) usually joins us if she is awake. She takes a bite from the biscuit in my hand. Today, I wanted her to eat by herself. It is only when I tried thinking of ways to tell her, it struck me that it is important to actually learn to eat!!! I have always thought that eating is a natural process and does not have to be taught.. Children learn on their own...  I kept a biscuit in her hand and she took it as usual to analyze it. Then, I guided the biscuit to her mouth and she immediately took a bite, like she usually does. Then she gave me this look which meant to say " Did I just do something out of the world? Why are you giving me that smile? ".. Then I repeated the same guidance just once more.. She was thrilled this time I guess. She was all smiles may be because she just understood something... Then, I took a bite of the biscuit in my hand and she started eating her own biscuit. And with every bite both of us ...

I came across this picture of a  Sprout  from a plant in my friend's photo page. The first look brought in many thoughts : For one, the light green color on the dark greenish base is itself beautiful. The next thing that caught my eye was the ' Reaching out ' curve of the Sprout. Very Positive Picture in my view. To me, it seems like Nature's way of saying : Reach out as much as you can for what you desire; though not easy or perfect match to your want list, you surely will be able to achieve what you need.. That's nature's grant to one and all.. You will get what you need if you aspire for something within your  reach and really reach out !!!

Maangai Perukku is a Kerala delicacy, easy and simple to make. Here is how you make Maangai Perukku: You need : Raw Mango - 1, Grated coconut - One table spoonful or a little more, but never less for Kerala dishes, and One or two green chilly, Curry leaves ( optional but good to add ) Salt to taste. 1. Grate the raw mango. 2. In a mixer, grind grated coconut, salt, and chillies. 3. Add the paste to the grated mango.  4. In a pan, heat coconut oil, add the mustard seeds, curry leaves. Once the seeds splutter, put off the flame. 5. Mix the contents with the rest of the preparation. This is usually a side-dish for any of the bland curries made in Kerala. Maangai Perukku tastes good with Dosa, Rice, Molagootal, Curd Rice, Bread, and Roti. These are my choices usually.  The Quantity of Maangai perukku is based on the size of the mango. If you use a medium sized mango, this way of preparing the maangai perukku will serve four people. If you are planning ...

The technical writer in me was compelled to read this on my way to the laboratory in a hospital recently!!!.  YOU  might be the  NEXT !!! The capitalized letters were marked in Red Bold . This sentence was followed by a diagram that seemed out of a medical text book -Which means no one other than the author of the source text or a doctor is going to be able to follow it. The text below this sentence spoke about cervical cancer, a dreaded disease in the recent times. And I simply could not digest the fact that the reader is forced to believe that she is the next person in line to be affected.  I always believe in being positive, more so in a hospital where people are fighting many disorders.. For a person walking into a medical laboratory, this board educating the importance of cervical cancer in a very negative note is super annoying.. The advertisement was supposed to be a warning to all women of all ages to have their systems checked for the Big C diseas...

Delegate, Appreciate and Rule!! Often, its best to leave some jobs to others for one of the following reasons: 1. They do the job well. 2. They are trained in the job. 3. They need to focus on just that one job. 4. They are employed to do the job. So, Good Managers, know to delegate the right job to the right person. With delegation, comes the expectation about appreciation for a job well done. It is very important for your subordinate or colleague who has accepted an assignment from you to know how much you appreciate the work or favor.. Often it is a favor adorning the helmet of Work, in most cases. Good Managers appreciate all the best points about the job and then talk about the improvement suggestions  on the same. When you know to delegate the right job to the right person, and use the right word to appreciate and give feedback, you naturally get to have employees who listen to you and accept your way of working; which means you get to Rule. A Good Manager g...

Just came across this line somewhere : When there is life, there is Hope.. How interesting and how true!!! If you are lucky to be alive the next minute, then there is a chance for something nice, something better, something that you expected, to happen .. If not this time, there is always another time to wait for, hope for simply because you are alive and as long as you live there are going to be chances to hope and so why despair?? Nice read, I wanted to share.

"Bite only what you can chew" is a quote I have heard somewhere.. Many times people elder to me have told me. Never really took much interest until this morning.I was feeding my daughter. It takes quite a bit of time and lots of my patience topped with loads of fun to feed her at meal times. In the midst of the usual fun times we were having I noticed that she takes very little of the very little I feed her at a time.. What I think is little is too much for her to chew.. So she takes in just about what she can chew from the spoon at a time.. And she eats only as much as she can. I am sure all of us as babies would have eaten only as much as we can chew at a time.. Nice lesson and a very early one too.. Right? Its a lesson that we forgot as we grew up when we were faced with many situations where we overworked ourselves.. How often we really do or handle only as much as we can? Or is it because we think we are faced with no other option than to put up with loads? Lets t...

I was quite organized when I was at school. Later, when I went to college, many of the aspects seemed to come in an organized package naturally like what you do when;  the college timings also governed a little bit of the discipline into me. When into work life, the office life style and then the responsibility ( though not huge) at home made me stick to a routine and also give myself reasonable offs from the routine which I enjoyed quite a bit. Marriage brought in a new routine and as a home maker I was quite an organized person, but then I like to get off the routine once in a while. Rules were less unlike school and college authorities. The only time sense that governed me was my own stomach and my husband's work hours, which meant I needed to cook and set the table on time. Otherwise, I was quite unorganized than earlier times, but never took it serious. Now, when I am a mother of a nine-month baby, I forget what it is to be organized. Life centers around her and things do...

The future is uncertain, so why worry about it?.. - I read somewhere.. Thought it is perfect sense. Then I recalled: Prevention is better than cure. Which means, worry about what may happen in the future and try to avert the issue. Nutshell: All thoughts are correct based on the writer's situation and the reader's experience or frame of mind to accept or criticize.

Just read a statement which made perfect sense..And here is what I understood. Whenever you think that things have changed in a people relationship, it is really not the people who have changed, but it is the situation that has changed at any given point in time.. and the way people react to the situation makes all the difference. It is this reaction that makes one feel that the people have changed. It is not often you get to read sensible bits that are worth sharing on a blog or book. I thought there is no documentation for some realizations in life and decided to blog it for all of us!

"Desire is the root cause of all evil " - Gautama Buddha. I recall how this line seemed pointless and totally senseless back in Class Five when my teacher tried to explain the paragraph about Gautama Buddha in a History Class. I also recall how I was trying to reason out the statement at home the same day and in the days after. Everyone smiled. Today, I don't remember much of how the argument came to a close but for some unknown reason I remembered the section in the history book and the statement this morning. Been thinking about it over the day and I think it seems to make sense now, much better and much clearer. Wonder why do we still 'want' and 'do not want'? Wonder why we cannot take life as it is and as it comes? Wonder why history was not taught later in college days when we could have understood it better? Wonder if this is because I am growing up or Growing older??

Definitely not a section taken out from a primary school science book or a Chemistry text book. I realized last month and today how much I had taken WATER and its availability for granted. One fine morning when I opened the tap there was no water.. According to me, this was a simple problem.. In my mind I ran the various reasons ( of course, I am an engineer whose thinking is tuned to think of the probable reasons for a problem and I hate probability as a subject in Maths) for the probable water strike in my house - Could be the tank was empty - Could be the municipal water supply was cut - could be a billing issue - could be a power problem... When I finally got some sense of the real problem - THAT WE HAVE NOT A SINGLE DROP OF WATER in a household which includes the two of us, two old people and a new born - I reacted.. Phone has always been my best companion in India.. So I dialled a few numbers and finally got the Emergency Number for Water related issues. After all the automa...

It is an old story - the gangster group misbehaves with a 23 year old college student in Delhi, India. Ever since, every time I glance a news channel ( not my taste anyways, but it happens to be the best choice of channels for someone in my family, so when you walk here and there inside the house, automatically you get to see some news item) there is something related to an inappropriate treatment given to one lady or the other. While the case of the Delhi girl is still waiting for justice, there have been many more such cases, one more ruthless than the other ( it is almost like a revenge towards women I would say)... This morning, there was a news item where the bus conductor of the school bus misbehaved with a four year old Kinder Garten little angel. What could have been running on such psyched people's minds? People are blaming the government, the police, the law for not taking action on crimes against women. Another group says that Women need to dress this way, behav...

Encouragement has often meant so much to me and I guess has always been coming from my near and dear ones. One such email today made me revisit my priorities and that is how I am sitting in front of my computer trying to blog about something.. There are too many topics and too less time to write about, still I thought its best to start somewhere. Of late, my focus has been my little girl and my own self as a mom.. I didn't give much time to the outside world and what it teaches me... Usually that is what my blog talks about... Now it is a lot about the inner self and inner mind and lessons learned and unlearnt..more so from the new world am living in... New year has been a slightly different start for me this year... Silence... :-) Everyone around was asleep... and I was wondering why its so very quiet in this country on New Years night!!! Still, made my new year wish and prayers and gave my little angel her first new year wish ever !!! :) The best moment I would say!!!

Its not often you get to read thoughts and wishes like the ones posted here by a friend of mine. The best of the lot I would say.. Happy 2013!!

New year day today.. Beginning of new hopes, new aims and new aspirations... Wishing one and all a wonderful year ahead. Happy Happy 2013. This year, I have no resolutions. Just wishes... There is no point in resolution, I realized. I am going to strive for excellence in some areas of life and never resolve on anything in particular this year. Will be back in the blogging world soon. Wishing you well once again. Best, Dew