Lunch Ideas - Creating Balanced Vegetarian Meals

@magee lovely lovely. i wish i get to stay in such a place again.i know it is a dream, that has a possiblity. your jasmine reminds me of the two plants that are still in my other home. hope somebody gives them a little water. they are in huge pots and relocating them was difficult.. and boy a single flower was more than enough to drool on.. both from the arabian jasmine family. one is called the belle while the other is duke. no idea though.
this is belle..and a flower is almost 1.5 inch in length..

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this one the flower is like a rose..called duke..i suppose some call it mysore malle or chendu malle. i calle is jasmine rose...


and god bless, and be calm and relaxed..countdown and the wait is really testing on your nerves..enjoy nature and relax..do read, take enough rest, and sleep as much as you can..

 

@smartgrl i too wondered about the dollar. i believe dhokla, apart from the recipe, timing, the freshness of the besan also matter. and i am sure @vanivyas will get back to you.

@butterflyice don't we all want that recipe..already many believe if you are working abroad you have a money plant in your backyard, and imagine if you have the recipe too...

@sumanrathi enjoy with your family that is more important. we know you will be back with loads of information.

@Luvpavi i hope you got a basic cake recipe or just check out in the virtual feast thread. sunnaa, yashikushi would have given a few of what they have tried. even i have given a few in these thread but they are wheat and eggless.

where is @shodin, where is @vanivyas and the others..summer holidays in and everyone is busy??

 

Saturday's meal. it was sambhar on ds's request with sesame and spices toasted potato wedges, brinjal, curds and barley.

I remember i promised to share the sambhar powder measurements. we are a no masala, and very simple flavors people. any masala is added separately..only for the 3 of us. dh does not like anything that has even ginger.so garlic is a big no no..

i am giving the recipe in ratio form because that would help.

1 - red chillies (we use the round ones as they are lesser spice than the flat and long ones..well dried..when crush should crackle.)
1- dhania (well cleaned.and dried)
1/10- tur dal.
1/20 - pepper
1/20- jeera.
1/20 - methi

Mill it and store in a air tight container after it is cooled completely. stays good for a year if handled carefully and the ingredients were real dry.
and stays fresh for 3 years if in a freezer..(had the opportunity to test this when there was one lying inside the freezer that my dh forgot was there in his fridge..lol)

for those who are confused on the ratios..

500g chillies.
500g dhania
50 g tur dal
20gms pepper
20gms jeera
20gms methi


For a flavorful sambhar.. cook the dal with a dash of hing, curry leaves, turmeric and a little dal.. the dal soaks the flavors and retains it. and also temper the sambar with mustard,jeera, curry leaves and hing..

remember if the tamarind flavor or the sambhar powder does not get enough boil the sambhar would have that rawness in it..

if you are pressed for time, you can keep the right amount of tamarind in a closed bowl on top of your dal. that way the tamarind is cooked and you don't need to boil for extra long time to get the flavors intact.

 

today is chitra poornima and tommorrow is buddha poornima (the calculations slightly differ). the day is important for many. though it is celebrated mainly as birth of chitragupta , the one who keeps accounts. the repository of our karma.

what i like about this particular festival, is that it is said there was stress on annadhanam..being too hot, and going towards the dry months, serving the poor food was taken care by certain festivals like this. there were 11 days to 40 days of functions called chitira thear thiruvizha where relatives and people met each other celebrated the temple chariot festival with aplomb..it was one of those reasons for people who were far off from their hometowns to visit..sigh... how wonderfully planned..

my planning was to get a garland for my ambal, which is a potrait of almost 3.5ft..and when i asked around the area..the beautiful ones were upwards of 300-500..and though i wanted to do it, i told myself, s you can serve food for a few..(the reason for the steep cost is the muhurta day, yesterday was narsimha jeyanthi and today all temples have specials..a temple in the main high road had around 200 people taking milk in pots to the deity..) so i went to the regular lady, and she was not well and said that she has not tied any jasmine for the day. those who know me, i have issues with my hands, can't hold things for long and tieing garlands, strings of flowers in the traditional way was a nightmare. holding the thread for just a few minutes my fingers cramp..so i got two packs from her not wanting to deprive her. thought i will get the faithful needle and thread. but as i saw the spread out jasmine, i felt why not i give it a try again..so here i am..for the first time after many years tying jasmine in the traditional way. so whom do i share this milestone, with you people..who else..cheerleaders..

Coming back to the post.. so as is expected by my friends posting a picture of the pooja. today i restrict what i eat. fruits, and a little bit of the neivedyam...it is said many do not eat milk and milk products and others don't eat salt, steamed carbs.. and i believe do what you believe in and what you can. you don't need to torture yourself, in the name of tradition or rituals. it is another thing if you are happy..

May god bless us all...

 

@butterflyice i know, i need to keep that never say never attitude that my kids look up to me and practice too. i can't just stop now..keep it going..and i am sure many will feel motivated when we do share these..

and i wedges had sesame. you can actually make them a more spicy too.. and kaaral i think you mean stuffing.. i don't make stuffed brinjals unless all the fans of that sabji are at home. fil and dh together love it and it was one of my signature dishes for parties, and now i cringe at the amount of oil i used to use those days... how we fall and rise....

@satchitananda the bliss of chidlhood.. expecting the peacock feather to grow/reproduce, the money plant to produce money...

@shodin lovely salad. hope both of you are doing better. heard it has started off becoming hot fast..instead gradual move to summer.also heard chickenpox is in the air.

keep hydrated..