15 Marbles

Moong Dosa

July 11, 2007

Moong Dosa

This is another one of my favorite recipe.This recipe makes me believe that health food can be delicious too.This is my ultimate comfort food..no-guilt comfort food.And it has minimum preparation time.

For this you need-
2 cups Whole Moong(Green Gram)
1 medium sized onion-finely chopped
2 small green chilies- finely chopped
3-4 tsps chopped corriander leaves
salt to taste
1/2 tsp red chili powder to season
oil spray or oil to grease the tava/skillet

Method-

Wash and soak Moong with lot of water for atleast 6 hours till it becomes tender.
Grind it to a fine paste and add chopped onions,chilies and corriander leaves,salt and chili powder.
Mix well.
Heat up a skillet/Tava.
Grease the tava with a quick spray of oil spray and add a heaped round ladel full of batter at the centre of the tava and even spread it out like dosa or pancake.
Cook on a medium flame till golden on both the sides
Serve hot with chutney or pickle of your choice.

Chutney-
Ingredients-
3/4 cup loosely packed corriander leaves
1 green chili
1/2 cup grated coconut
1/4 cup roasted peanuts or
3tsp peanut powder
salt
1/2 tsp jeera
salt to taste
For seasoning
2-3 tsps oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
3-4 curry leaves
2 dry red chilies

Mix everything except the seasoning and blend in a grinder.
For seasoning-heat oil in a small pan.Add mustard seeds,when they start to splutter,lower the flame and add red chilies and finally curry leaves and remove from flame. Pour this over chutney.It is ready to serve.
Dig in!!
Chili Chicken and Fried rice.

July 6, 2007

“Chili Chicken and fried rice”-this phrase said quickly, reminds me of a Sunday lunch treat.Aadya turned 3 months old on June 30th and I decided to make our favorite meal to mark the occasion-“Chili Chicken and Fried rice”. This is the simplest,most delicious, home cooked party-food-kinda meal. Here’s my mom’s recipe for chili Chicken-
For this you need-
Ingredients-
1 lb boneless chicken breast
2 eggs
1 tsp corn flour
1+1 tbspn Soy sauce
1+1 tbspn tomato-chilli sauce( maggi)
1 tspn white vinegar
1 whole green pepper
1 medium sized onion
salt and pepper to taste
Oil for frying.
Method-
Wash and cut chicken breasts into small bite-sized pieces.Keep aside.

Mix-Eggs,1 tsp corn flour,1tbsp soy sauce,1 tbsp tomato chili sauce,salt and pepper.Beat well.This makes the marinade. Marinate chicken in this for a minimum of 30 minutes.The longer the better.

In the meantime,chop green pepper & onion into big chunks.

Heat oil in a pan.when its steaming hot,slowly add chicken pieces and lower the heat.Fry the chicken pieces till golden brown on a medium heat.Keep aside.

Now in a pan, add just a tsp oil and toss in green pepper chunks and onion chunks and toss around,then add vinegar followed by soy sauce,tomato sauce aand lastly add the chicken.Sprinkle a little water and cover it.Turn off the heat.Let it sit for 5 mins.Serve hot. A little garnish of lightly toasted sesame seeds gives it a nice crunchy taste.

P.S. Use little oil at a time and add more to the pan as needed,because it turns black because of the egg marinade.

Fried rice-
Ingredients-
2 cups rice
3 cups chopped vegetables-Cabbage,carrots,green peppers,peas.(I used a bag of frozen mixed vegetables-for lack of time)
2 beaten eggs mixed with salt and pepper to taste.
1 tspn soy sauce
less than half a tspn of white vinegar.
salt to taste.
Oil.
Method-
Cook rice and keep aside. Spread the rice out on a plate to cool and also so that all the grains separate out.

Take oil in a pan and add the beaten eggs and make them into scrambled eggs.Keep aside.

Take a little more oil in the pan and add all the chopped vegetables. Season with salt and let it cook till almost done.

Add soy sauce and a dash of vinegar to the vegetables and mix well. Add the scrambled eggs and then the rice and mix thoroughly. Serve hot!

Hope you enjoy making and eating this as much as I do!
HE is a girl!

July 6, 2007

Every time we go out,I am told-“Ohh ,You have such a cute BOY!” I am asked-“Is he a good boy?” Is he eating/sleeping well?” I smile and tell them-“OH No!Its a Girl! and Yes she is a good girl..” Walk away from them..Grit my teeth and ask DH..”Why do they all think She is a boy???”
I mean come on!!She has the cutest girlie face ever!!Ohh alrite.. not girlie..but cute!But then again they are not denying it! They just think SHE is a cute BOY! I think may be its her stroller..which is blue.But it is denim blue with a cute pink border and a pink head rest.

Or may be its her hair..which gives her this boyish look..But then I dress her in pinks and frilly onesies.. That should tell them its not a boy! Ohh Well!!
I asked the nurse at her Pediatrician’s office,what could I do so that people stopped mistaking her for a boy.. and she tells me..You know what Honey?I have 4 boys and every single one of them got mistaken for a girl..Beat that!! What do I say to that??
Anyway,I swore to myself that if another person asks me how old my little Boy is ..they are just gonna be smacked on their head.. and told.. “Ohh Look! Its a girl!” But then since I am chicken..I know I cant do that.. I decided to try the next best thing..Getting her ears pierced. Well that’s not the only reason I wanted to get her ears pierced..I think Little Girls look adorable with tiny studs in their tiny ears.I also think its better to get their ears pierced before they get too curious and start to tug at their earlobes.and there was also that emotional cultural thing about how she would have got it done at 6 weeks of age,like her mamma did as a baby.So, I started pestering DH about going and getting Aadya’s ears pierced.Now,this is the man who glares at nurses for giving his baby her vaccines..he was ready to kill me for agreeing to split her vaccines in two doses,on 2 different days,there was no way he was going to agree to inflict that pain on his little Princess. I kept at it and finally after 3 weeks he relented.And we are off to Claire’s I was excited,but my heart was pounding so hard,I was sure it was going to fall out.DH decided he was going to hold her.I was secretly grateful.
After getting done with the paperwork and being explained everything,the moment was here..But why was I not happy?I was worried,what if she moves,what if something goes wrong..Just as DH sat down at the piercing chair,I was ready to cancel the whole deal.And then I saw, there was this huge crowd, standing there to watch.I was so annoyed..Why is everyone standing here..so watch my baby get poked? Then i heard a voice..OH,Its good you guys are getting it done now..she wont even know a thing. I got my daughter’s done at the same age Me too Don’t worry Mommy..Daddy you gotta relax..you are doing a great job
And I realised.. all these people were here to lend us their support..In a strange way,it was so similar to having your family hovering around you as you get your baby’s ears pierced. So the girl at Claire’s,sanitized her hands,put on her gloves and sanitized her hands again,marked the spot on Aadya’s ear lobes and then used a small stapler-like instrument pre-loaded with the earring of our choice.And then as DH held her head steady,as was demonstrated,she quickly and efficiently pinched the earring and in less than 10 seconds the earring was on. But Aadya hated being pinched.. and she let out a huge cry..I tried to distract her,gave her a pacifier,which she threw on my face..she calmed down a little and the girl efficiently did the other ear too. And then she started crying even louder. DH gave her to me so he could get down from his high chair..and then snatched her right back,with a nasty stare and “Its OK,I can take care of her”..Ohh it broke my heart seeing my baby girl cry,my eyes teared up too.A nice lady among the bystanders patted my shoulder and hugged me..By then Aadya was quiet and was smiling at all those people around trying to make her smile.The whole thing took less than 10 minutes but it seemed like forever! My little baby is now officially a girl, with Tiny studs on her tiny earlobes.
When it was all over,I felt a wee bit jealous that DH managed to quieten her more easily than I could and that she preferred him over me(GOSH!I cant believe I am saying that!!) And Do I even need to tell you how DH gloated whole day yesterday and today, about how his baby feels protected and safe in his arms? GOD!!I am never going to hear the end of this!!!
Here’s my baby girl with her brand new earrings-
3 months old

July 6, 2007

Aadya turned 3 months old on June 30th and in my mind it still feels like yesterday when we welcomed baby Aadya into this world.
She rolled over that day! Its like she knows that she is turning a month older and so needs to celebrate it in her own special way!She smiled for the first time just before she turned a month old..the day she turned 2 months,she woke up and spent some time playing quietly in her crib and at three months she rolled over.It was tummy time and she was as usual batting her hands and legs.. but the way she was moving her left hand and leg so purposefully,I was sure something was going to happen and just then she rolled over!!Mamma picked her up,smothered her with hugs and kisses and put her back on her belly again and she did it again .. and mumma forgot to take a snap in all that excitement.That night she did it again for Papa.
But then after that..she has decided that its not worth the effort..She can hold her head up and so she loves to stay on her tummy and just watch the world from her vantage point!
This past month has been so exciting. This little girl keeps my life so exciting. She has found her voice and keeps babbling to herself and to us and to the strangers who look at her and smile and if they are wearing red,they are even rewarded with a beaming smile.She even wants to talk on the phone.These days when I am alone with her,I put the speakerphone ON when talking to family and she just has a ball talking to them.She just has to tell her own baby stories.
Then comes her butterfly..she has endless conversations with her butterfly,sometimes even pausing as if to listen to what it is saying!Sometimes smiling ,sometimes squealing and even laughing during the conversation.
This little girl has the cutest laugh ever.One day I was changing her diaper and my hand touch her butt and she giggled-Laughed out loud!!!I tried it again and she did it again!!!and again.DH put her on his lap and started playing horsey with her..making galloping sounds.. and she laughed so much..I wish I had taped it. She loves gazing at the light and since she has discovered her voice,she actually squeals with joy looking at it.
Then there’s the swing. When we first got it,She was so scared to sit in it.She would grab my t-shirt real tight and just not let go. Now, she sits in it,but not without cooing and that cooing is like pursuasive.Like she is telling me in her own baby way to not leave her in the swing..Not crying, not sad.. just cute..just like wanting to prolong a conversation after saying good bye to your favorite friend..So,I turn on the music and she looks up at her little teddy friends and she gets lost in talking to them..As if telling Mamma,its ok I am big girl! She even dozes off while sitting in the swing.
She’s learned to sit up.I give her my thumbs to hold,she grabs them real tight and lifts her body off the bed till she is in a sitting position and when she achieves her goal,she lets out this loud scream..like telling herself what a good job she did.
And slowly having mastered the sitting position, she now goes one step further and stands up..still holding mamma’s thumbs.
Ohh My baby girl is getting so independant slowly..Somedays she drifts off to sleep on her own. I lay her down in her crib, she chats with her butterfly and looks at the other ones on the bumper..talks to her Poochie and she just sleeps ..Aww and though mamma should be happy for getting this break,she just sits there with a lump as big as a rock in her throat,watching her sleep.. A tear or two trickle down..Ohh My baby girl is growing up!
From newborn to a 3 month old,in 3 quick months..If I could I would just freeze time..just so I can keep babying her longer..but then again..If I could I would just make it go faster so that I can see more of her cute antics.
Everytime I look at her, hold her, touch her,cuddle her,my heart swells with pride..and turns mushy all at the same time. I love her with all my heart but I just wish I had a wee bit more love..just so I could love her a little more ….
I leave you with a picture of my 3 month old.

oops you missed’em!

P.S. This is post No.50. and as I end this post..I just want to tell you all Thank you for all the encouragement.. and mostly thank you for taking the time to read my LONG posts!