Day 10: It’s Festival Time, baby!
Wheeee! It is that time of the year… there is happiness in the air, spring in our steps, shopping bags in the car, wallets without cash and yet there is happiness in the air!
It is the Season of Festivals!! So what say, Wheeee again? 😀
The festivities begin with Ganesh Chaturthi and Eid.. moves on to Onam, the primary festival in Kerala.. next up Navratras (the celebration of Goddess Durga with lots of Garba and Dandiya, primarily in the Western part of India) coinciding with Durga Pujo (a huge festival in the Eastern part of India, it is also a celebration of Goddess Durga, only with a slight difference). Then comes Dussehra.. a celebration of Good over Evil.
The 3 months of festivities culminate with — Diwali. This festival of lights, happiness, prosperity and togetherness is celebrated across the country and beyond with great gusto!
For me, Diwali is the celebration of Family, Togetherness, Tradition and Rituals. Even before I got married and had a house of my own, I was more than involved with the preparations for Diwali than just bursting crackers with the neighbourhood kids. Preparing the Rangoli, buying bright new clothes, preparing the Diyas with oil and wicks, buying the flowers from the local market, cooking lots of yummy food.. and of course the endless “Teen Patti” sessions which ran well into the night!
As I grew up, I got even more serious in following the culture and traditions set by my mother and aped all her preparations and moves. Even to the level of giving the exact instructions to the Pati. 😛
While living as a Paying Guest in Pune, that one unfortunate Diwali that I was stuck in Pune, alone, I made it a point to draw a simple Rangoli, buy Laxmi-Ganesh and couple of Diyas to light up the house. Made some quick Chana-Puri and Halwa, settled in my blanket and watched back-to-back Karan Johar flicks. sigh!
I am now married and have a beautiful home.. and I cannot wait to go “Diwali shopping“! I even have my Silk Sari picked out for the occasion. This Diwali is going to be a grand one.. my in-laws are coming to spend Diwali with us and I cant wait to give the house, a makeover! New curtains shall be bough, new table covers and bed sheets, lots of scented candles and diyas and oh! new lamp shades. Wheeee.. I cannot wait for the weekend to come. 😀
Diwali is always the time of the year..when I am the happiest. All the twinkling lights, delectable food and family togetherness, makes Tanu, a happy young woman! 😉
A few of the clicks from my Diwali celebrations, last year!
The Puja at home..Chalo haath jodo.. 🙂
The entrance of our house!
Firecrackers!
Day 9: Ramblings from my Kitchen: Basil Pesto Pasta
Note my fellow Blogoholics: I am gonna miss the Saturday post (*holds ears*). Just way to tired to be writing 2 posts today. So I am just gonna pick up from today. Thank you.. you guys are awesome! 😉
The foodie inside me is gonna come out right now and slurp all over the keyboard! 😉
I love Pasta. And if I haven’t said it before, I Love Pasta. I could eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, comfort food, happy food, sad food…any food! Therefore, my favorite part of spending time in the kitchen is – Conducting Pasta experiments. Some have excelled beautifully and some..well.. lets not go there. I had done an earlier Recipe post based on pasta as well. This particular recipe is my own! *pats back* Oh, and I also love to make accompaniments (apart from just garlic bread)..so I will give you a quick recipe of that too!
So coming back.. Here is my version of Basil Pesto Pasta (with a feisty twist!;))
Basil Pesto Pasta (makes for 2)
Ingredients:
- 500 gms – Whole wheat Fusilli Pasta (You can use Penne or Spaghetti)
- 1 large Green Pepper
- 1 large Onion – cut julienne
- 4-5 Cherry Tomatoes (optional)
- 1/2 cup Black Olives, pitted
- 3-4 Jalapenos – cut up into small pieces
- 5 large cloves of Garlic, mashed up
- Dried Herbs – Thyme, Oregano and Chilli Flakes
- Pepper
- Salt
- Cheese to grate at the top
- Olive oil to cook
- 1 large bunch of Basil leaves (you will get them at a supermarket)
- 1 bunch of Spinach leaves
- Olive Oil
- 3 cloves of Garlic
- Pepper
- Salt
- 3 tablespoons of lemon juice
- 2 large Lettuce leaves
- A handful of Beans, Carrots and 1 Zucchini
- 1 Potato – cut up in small bite-size pieces
- Two slices of Garlic bread or any other bread you like
- 1 Tablespoon of Mayonnaise
- 1 Tablespoon Mustard Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Tomato Ketchup
- Wash the Basil leaves and Spinach leaves thoroughly.
- Blanch the Spinach leaves in boiling water for just about 4 minutes and let it cool in a bowl of ice-cold water (to keep its color and freshness)
- Put all of the ingredients – Basil leaves, blanched Spinach, crushed garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper and 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the Food processor and blend! Your sauce is ready!!
The Basil Pesto paste
- Boil a pan full of water with salt in it. Add the pasta in it and cook it al dente (is firm, but not hard and not completely squishy). Put the pasta through the sieve and add a bit of olive oil to keep it moist.
- Put a fork in the Green pepper and place it on the Gas Stove for 5 minutes, turning it around on all sides, till the skin blackens. Take it off the gas and put into a bowl of cold water. Peel off the skin with the blunt side of the knife and cut into thin strips.
- In a nonstick pan, put a teaspoon of olive oil and put the crushed garlic in it. Add the Onions and let it get slightly pink.
- Add the green pepper, Cherry Tomatoes, Olives and Jalapenos and cook it for about 2 minutes.
- Pour the Basil Pesto Paste into the pan and let it cook. Add a little bit of warm water, if the paste is little too thick. (Tip: Adding cold water to an already cooking dish, makes it a longer cooking time and your dish could lose flavors.)
- Add the dried herbs, salt and lots of pepper and chilli flakes. Let it cook for another 2 minutes or so. Your Cooked Basil Pesto Sauce is ready!
- In a pan, add a bit of butter and saute the carrots, beans and zucchini with some pepper. Keep it crunchy!
- Boil the cut-up potatoes and add it to the carrots and beans in the pan. Done!
- Mix the mayonnaise, mustard sauce and tomato sauce with a little drop of olive oil to prepare the Accompanying sauce.
- Put a Lettuce leaf on the plate and put the sauteed veggies on it.
- Put the Accompanying sauce on the side and place garlic bread with it.
- Put the boiled pasta on the plate and pour dollops of the Basil Pesto Sauce on it (covering every inch of the boiled pasta)
- Grate a generous amount of cheese on it.
Voila!
Day 7: My Most favorite place in the World!
Most people would talk about the city they live in. Some would like to talk about the city they would like to live in. My city..or rather a small town.. is my Most favorite because it is Ideal. Yes. Ideal.
Villefranche Sur Mer – the small town adjoins the more commercially known Nice and is about 10 kms from Monaco. Villefranche is a historic old town that has the population of barely 6000 people and is interconnected by beautiful cobbled streets. The winding cobbled streets are filled with old stone homes, flower-laden balconies and small cafes that dot the buildings.
I would not want to reduce the “beauty” of this place with words. I will let the pictures do the talking. But with a little bit of history as to why I love this gorgeous town. The Pati and I were planning our travel post marriage and we agreed upon Paris (which incidentally is my dream city). But we didn’t want to just see Paris so we decided to stay 10 days in South of France. Nice, Cannes and Monaco were way to commercial. So we searched the internet for accommodations along Cote de Azur. That is when we came across this sleepy town. The internet images made me drool all over my laptop and we instantly agreed upon this location. The town gets a lot of people who take accommodation for 2-3 months at a stretch, especially in the winters. This part of France is beautiful in winters. Crisp air, bright sun and gorgeous weather makes it perfect for people getting away from the harsh winter conditions in other parts of Europe.
I dream of doing the same and live here… away from the madness of city life and in the laps of  beauty. The cobbled streets, the fresh flowers, the divine seafood, the smiling people, the vibrancy, the no-tourist locations… it is my perfect place in the whole wide world!
Villefranche Sur Mer
View from our hotel room... The main street!
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The sunrise on the bay as seen from our room
The coastline and the town behind. Yes that is the whole of it!
The Cobbled streets that I rambled about!
The knick-knacks at Sunday market
One of the numerous intimate Cafes lined across the Bay
Day 6: The Blissful Getaway….
Note: trying to post this post for 2 days now! So this one is for Thursday’s post.. 😦
This post is 1 day delayed. But you see I was caught up in having a gorgeous getaway! 😉
The beauty of a holiday is when you can relax.. Be lazy.. Get active.. Refresh your mind and above all.. Laugh! That to me, is a true holiday!
We are in Ullal, which is about 10 kms from Mangalore city. It is perhaps a sleepy fishing village. We are at this beautiful and serene resort called the Summer Sands which is positioned right on the beach. It even has its so called private beach. Beautiful cottages surrounded by plantations, a cobbled pathway that opens at the beach, numerous fishing boats dotting the horizon and succelent sea food – aah! The blissful getaway!
Summer Sands.. view from Cottage!
Ramblings of a Feisty Spirit 