Eggless Wholewheat Apple Cinnamon Cake

So…yesterday I got a reason to bake again (though I do not really need one :p..I love it anyway). It was my father-in-law’s (FIL) birthday. 

As kids all of us always chose the cake of our choice; chocolate or pineapple, decorated with a doll, a car or the epic pair of bat and ball. Now with the evolution in cake baking, as adults boy don’t shy away from bottles of wine with bikini clad women at the pool and girls love to adorn their piece of cake with Louis Vuittons, pair of heels and the little black dress. The gist of all this is that a birthday cake is all about customization. 

The Gift of Nature

image source: google

The lush green trees

They stand tall and proud

The almond shaped leaves

They whisper, they swish with the music of the winds

The fragrance of wet mud

It’s earthy, it’s rustic

The mighty tides of the sea

They go high; they go low, just like various phases of life

The sound of chirping birds

It’s happy, it’s melodious

The colourful flowers

Blushing pink, calm lavender and radiant yellow

They are vibrant; they are effervescent, never failing to bring a smile on the face

Such is the beauty of Mother Nature

This precious gift should not be wasted but be embraced

A feeling of peace is what one gets when he/she is close to nature. A very common example that each one of us must have experienced is that a tree’s cool shade always brings respite on a hot summer day. Walking at the beach or on the grass bare feet is unique and incomparable to a walk on the road with the shoes on. The gift of nature is very special and thanks to my parents who have inculcated in me a sense befriending that gift from the early days.

The Tamarind Hotel, Goa

the entrance

 My first trip to Goa (technically the second, I first visited Goa when I was just 8 and so I do not count it :p) was made all the more special because of the hotel we stayed at. It is called "The Tamarind" and is located opposite St. Michael’s Church near Anjuna beach. 

Eggless Strawberry Cupcakes

When a special day is approaching (read: birthday, anniversary or Valentine’s Day) and it comes to doing things for my dear husband my mind gets to work like a week prior to the main day. Since Valentine’s Day just went by allow me to talk about that.

I have often heard people excusing themselves from Valentine’s Day saying “oh we don’t believe in this stupid day, after all every day should be celebrated like Valentine’s Day and one should make his/her partner feel special every single day”.  And my husband is one of those people (eyes rolling!) But really who are we fooling? You tell me, with all the life’s madness do you really get time to shower your partner with love, adoration and little gestures every day (if you are one of those then I would like to tell your partner how lucky he/she is)? Even a cheesy romantic like me who surprises her husband with his favourite cookies and his favourite dish or breakfast on random days fail to make everyday special and exclusive.

home-made strawberry crush

There is something about a strawberry crush or jam. It takes me back to a trip I made to Mahabaleshwar as a kid with my family. We had visited the Mapro (manufacturer of fruit jams and fruit concentrates) plant where they manufacture fresh jams and crushes. One could taste these products and had the option to choose the one of their choice and buy it accordingly. I remember they had a small café that served shakes and ice-cream made from fresh strawberries. It was one of the best childhood trips and the memories of the plant visit and the aroma of fresh strawberries experienced then somehow stayed with me.

Now in a city like Delhi we do not get fresh strawberries throughout the year. Come winters and only then can one spot boxes full of beautiful blushing strawberries with the fruit vendors. So, the other day when I made a brief trip to the market my eyes fell on one such box of strawberries and an imaginary cloud popped over my head visualising strawberry crush and strawberry shake. The mundane toast topped with a layer of fresh strawberry crush…aaahhhh!! Pure bliss! 

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.

mark your book your way!

I was cleaning my room yesterday and came across the wedding card of a friend. It was sitting in the shelf for reference just in case we wanted to confirm the date or the venue as the wedding came closer. We were done with the wedding and so the card was no longer required.

The very moment I was about to discard it my eyes fell on the book that I am reading these days. To mark the last read page I had used a tissue paper that was slipped inside the book. That sure made my otherwise bright coloured book look dull and shabby.

Then the idea struck me. The wedding card was undoubtedly pretty. So I asked myself “why not recycle and reuse it?”