tutti frutti almond biscuits

It was our first wedding anniversary on Monday. I had planned a midnight Sunday surprise for my husband. A post dinner coffee with greeting cards hanging from the ceiling and the entire place lit with candles and the room filled with the fragrance of fresh flowers. I planned to bake him crispy tutti frutti biscuits that he could enjoy dunking in his cup of tea or coffee.

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To the starbucks attendant

Just yesterday, I was thinking to myself that my next post is not going to be anytime sooner than any day in the last week of this month. But then at quarter to twelve, with the hands forming a right angle in the dial of my watch something happened that induced me to put today’s post on the blog.

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).

happy realisation

I was about to turn 24 when my parents started looking for an eligible match for me. Like every single girl I was enjoying a carefree life and was reluctant to give in to the idea of marriage; however I said yes thinking that it will take at least one year to find the right match for me (you know how these things take time). Little did I know that when things are meant to happen they can happen in less than a month’s time.

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.

mac & cheese

My husband is crazy about cheesy stuff. No by that I do not mean that he is romantically cheesy but he likes food that has loads and loads and loads of cheese (*eyes rolling*). He loves cheese to the extent that he orders for a cheese-burst pizza with some extra cheese on it. He often surfs the net to find out new recipes and generally ends up liking the ones that require a generous helping of cheese. A few days back he shortlisted the traditional macaroni and cheese commonly known as mac & cheese as one of the dishes he would like to try on a weekend.

coffee-oreo banana ice-cream

The other day while I was surfing the net, I came across an ice-cream recipe with literally and practically no cream and milk. The ingredients that the recipe required were lying in my kitchen, so I thought to give the recipe a try.