mayurisjikoni

Guest No.4 on the Blog   My guest this week is my charming niece Pooja. Young, energetic, caring and always smiling. Pooja loves helping people, it just comes very naturally to her. Born in Kenya, partially brought up in Kenya and then in US, she is pretty much a very down to earth sort of girl. She would come to spend her holidays in Mombasa when she was very young. She loved to be around my mother in law or me when we worked in the kitchen.It seemed that she was observing how we were preparing the food. Trips to the beach was like an ultimate dream come true for her. She simply loved the sand and the sea. I remember as a toddler she was not a fussy eater and loved exploring her environment. After they moved to US, we were not able to spend much time together but keep in touch through emails, phone calls and messages. Recently she attended my daughter's, it was like my second daughter arriving. Any job that needed any attention I just dropped it in her lap and she took care of it....

  sweet memories   The food blogger world for is getting bigger and bigger. Getting to know more bloggers, following many regularly and commenting too. Its amazing how some recipes reminds one of their childhood. It can be a whole recipe, a method or just a single ingredient that can trigger the memory.  One such recipe I came across was zucchini pancake by Shobha of Shobha's Food Mazaa . As I read the recipe, I immediately thought of my mum. She would make pudlas (chilas) and sweet pudlas often for dinner for the huge family. She would have two tawas on the cooker, and would spread out perfect round pudlas for all of us. My cousin would usually ask her to add an egg in his savoury pudlas. She would mix the egg into the batter and make them. I thought of making a version of the zucchini savoury pancakes. Here is my version. Shobha thank you sharing a wonderful recipe and bringing back sweet memories.  I added other vegetables as these days hubby dear does not want t...

What not to do when travelling     That's an interesting article I read on MSN today. Sometimes we think that some things are just common sense and not worth writing about or telling others about. However, every airport has its share of people who travel wearing the most weirdest clothes, accessories or footwear. I personally like to travel in comfortable clothes so its either jeans or cotton trousers and a top or kurti with trainers or my fit flops.Depends where I am going to. Colder areas, I put on jeans and trainers. Warmer areas call for cotton trousers and fit flops. We all love to smell pleasant on a flight but its best not to wear overpowering scents. So the writer recommends comfortable clothes but no skimpy clothes and obscene messages displayed on tops and t-shirts. Strong scented perfumes and food is a big no no. Stilettos and platforms are best left for the fashion ramp or parties and not flights and airports. I wonder how women in stilettos ever manage to walk fas...

 Feel the Light    Songs can uplift the soul, calm your mind, create a peaceful environment, bring smiles on faces, sometimes tears, transport you to a different level and make your heart beat. One such song I heard recently was Feel the Light by Jennifer Lopez. She has sung the song for the upcoming movie Home.The song is wow but what makes it even more wow is the dress she had worn for the American Idol. The 20 foot radius and 40 foot diameter long dress almost covered the whole American Idol stage. Called a projector dress it acted as a blank canvas projecting a variety of special effect lights.Watch the video to believe and at the same time enjoy the beautiful lyrics of the song - Feel the Light    Have you noticed how all the animated movies have beautiful songs. Love listening to them. I love watching animated movies.Its amazing how one can watch them again and again and still enjoy them.When my kids were growing up, we've watched Little Mermaid, Dumbo, Ju...

healthy option Zucchini, baby marrow or courgettes can be cooked, eaten raw, baked, stir fried or pureed. I previously had tried just zucchini soup and it didn't turn out that great. The end result was a pale colour soup and hardly any taste. However, next time round added a few more ingredients to make the colour and taste more appealing. The soup turned out just fine. What really beckons us to eat something besides the aroma is the colour. The eyes love what it sees and sends hunger signals to the brain. Anyway hope you like this recipe. SPINACH ZUCCHINI SOUP 4 servings 2 cups of chopped zucchini 2 cups chopped spinach ½ cup cubed potato ½ cup finely chopped  fresh coriander 2 tbsps olive oil 2 cloves of garlic, chopped 2 cups water or stock 1 tbsp lemon juice ¼ cup finely chopped onion 1 tsp salt 1 green chilli extra olive oil Heat 2 tbsps of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute till the onion becomes soft. Add potato and zucchini and saute for 2 t...

orange and green healthiness Zucchini, baby marrow, courgettes all different names for one vegetable. Bake it, stir fry it, fry it, add it, or eat it raw.Yes, eat it raw as a salad and it tastes good. A combination of green zucchini and orange carrots is a delightful medley of colours. Use a dressing of your choice. Can mix yellow zucchini too. A healthy accompaniment to any of the main dishes you prepare.  ZUCCHINI CARROT SALAD 4 servings 1 big zucchini or 2 small ones 1 cup shredded carrot ½ tsp salt ¼ cup of finely chopped fresh coriander or mint ¼ tsp minced garlic ¼ cup finely chopped white or red onion ¼ cup mayonnaise or thick yogurt ½ tsp mustard powder pinch of red chilli powder ½ tsp sugar Wash the zucchini. Cut it into thick long slices. Then cut each slice into thin long strips. Wash and peel a carrot. Shred it to get about a cup. Add chopped onion, garlic, salt, mustard powder, sugar and chilli powder to the mayonnaise or thick yogurt. Mix well. To serve, add the dress...

A quick dinner idea    I just love mushrooms and whenever I see a punnet at the market or the vegetable shop, I have to pick it up. What to do with them, the idea comes later but buying mushrooms is a must! So this time its an open pie, very fast and a very satisfying meal.Serve it as a snack,or for dinner or lunch with some salad. Did you know that mushrooms are rich in Vitamin D? Well, yes they are.Like humans when exposed to the sun they produce Vitamin D.They are also a good source of the B Vitamins. Mushrooms are rich in selenium which helps to boost the immune system.Mushrooms can be eaten raw or cooked. PESTO MUSHROOM PIE Makes 10 pieces 300 g ready rolled puff pastry 2 cups mushrooms cut into quarters 2 cups zucchini diced the same size as mushrooms 1 tsp garlic paste 2 tbsp  olive oil ½ tsp salt 1 tsp dried mixed herbs 1 tsp coarse pepper powder or chilli flakes Pesto sauce: 1 cup chopped fresh basil ¼ cup lightly roasted pine nuts  ¼ cup olive oil ½ cup g...