Still Confused what to buy your Valentine?

Hi! I know I have been on quite a sabbatical but now I am back. And since Valentine’s Day is knocking at the door I am sure a lot of you have already decided how to woo the love of your life, but for those of you who are still confused this post might just come to your rescue.

Now we all have our own wallets. The good news is that love sees no pocket. It can be expressed in many ways irrespective of how deep or shallow your pocket is. Even words are enough and they cost nothing! 

Ideas for Diwali Decor

While diwali is just round the corner, I am sure most of you are already at the peak of MISSION “Ghar Ki Safai”. Come diwali and we all get a solid reason to force the men in the house to do their bit of cleaning. Every possible nook and corner is searched for a spider web, every shelf is dusted clean and the glass of all windows and doors are scrubbed till they sparkle to welcome Goddess Lakshmi.

Now that the houses are clean, we all try doing our best when it comes to Diwali decorations. In this post I will give you a few ideas that you can use to give your house a special touch this festive season. I am sure a lot of you must already be doing these things, but for those who are still confused, take a cue.

Navratra Special: Tikkad

I celebrated ashtmi (the eighth day of navratra) today but those of you who celebrate navmi (the ninth day) would still be fasting and so today’s post is just a tiny bit of help from my end to assist you decide the menu for dinner. The help is called tikkad.

Do not mistake them with tikkis (cutlets).

Navratra Special : Kaddu ka Halwa

I have always enjoyed my mom’s cooking and one major reason behind it has been her keeping it healthy. The butter and ghee (clarified butter) is avoided wherever it can be. Every navratra before I got married I used to binge on the kaddu ka halwa (close to a pumpkin pudding) she used to make for us. It was extremely plain and simple; no nuts and yet I was in love with that simplicity; the smooth blended texture that used to just melt slowly and give itself away to my taste buds once it touched the tongue. And the best part about it was that it was made in just a spoon and a half of ghee and yet looked and tasted so luxuriously rich.

Navratra Special: Sabudana Kheer

A lot of us choose to fast during the nine days of navratras. Navratri is generally celebrated twice a year. Once during the spring and the other during the onset of autumn, which is why the one celebrated during this time of the year is also known as Chaitra Navratri and the one that is celebrated during the latter half of the year is known as Sharad Navratri.

While some people choose to abstain from non-vegetarian food and alcohol during these nine days the others are forced to do the same, like my husband :p…(I am probably going to get killed for putting this down). Nonetheless, I love him for doing this solely for the faith I have in God (butter butter butter!!!).

Every year I generally fast for two days out of nine but this year I have chosen to fast for all eight days, The Eighth day because we celebrate ashtmi (the eighth day) instead of the navmi (the ninth day). Since most of us are confused about what to cook for a meal during these days, I thought of sharing what I cooked for myself last night. It was the sabudana (sago) kheer. 

Saraswati Puja 2014

The last time I remember celebrating Vasant Panchami was when I was in school. This day is dedicated for the worship of Saraswati Maa (Goddess of knowledge, music, arts, science and technology). During the school days, everybody used to look forward to the festival to get out of the monotonous school uniform and dress up in colourful clothes with yellow obviously dominating the colour palette. 

Yes, ideally one is supposed to wear white or yellow clothes on this day. Saraswati puja (ritual) was conducted and Saraswati vandana(prayer) was sung by the school choir followed by  lunch in the school garden. It used to be amazing.

After all these years (and I don’t mean half a century LOL but yes after ALMOST a decade) all those school memories were refreshed when I attended a Saraswati puja this year.

Christmas Plum Cake

my cute little christmas plum cake

So Christmas came and went. We welcomed it on 24^th midnight and made it merry in our own Punjabi way over a get together with family and friends. 25^th day was quite usual, however I did plan to make the evening special by baking a cake. Afterall, what is Christmas without the sweetness of a home-baked plum cake right?

Diwali 2013

photo courtesy: aditi ranotra

Diwali also called deepawali, is one of the most awaited festivals of the year in india. It is known as the festival of lights and marks the victory of good over evil. Diwali celebrations start with Dhanteras, which generally falls eighteen days after the Dussehra festival, followed by narak chaturdashi, commonly known as choti (small) Diwali and Diwali.

Diwali is celebrated with a huge fervour in india. People worship goddess lakshmi (goddess of wealth and prosperity), buy new clothes especially for this occasion, light and decorate their houses, buy sweets, exchange gifts and burn crackers.

Unlike the last few years, the Diwali of 2013 has been slightly different (blame the economy’s state and the changing trend).

karwachauth 2013

The festive spirits begin escalating with the month of October saying “hello” to us. First it is the navratras, and then comes karva chauth followed by the diwali celebrations. This post is about karwa chauth in particular. It is a festival in which Indian women fast from sunrise to moonrise for safety and longevity of their husbands. As per the tradition the mother-in-law gives sweets and other crackers (sargi) along with clothes, bangles and cosmetics to her daughter-in-law.

a different start to ganesh chaturthi

Unlike every year, this year the ganesh chaturthi started differently. And there is more than one reason behind it.