Randomlypicked

For passionate foodies and travelers.. I am Richa and I love to travel and enjoy various food delicacies. I desire to travel the whole world one day.

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The Vibrant Colours turned 6 today!

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#yummy #homemade #american #choupsey

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Homemade #donuts #yummy (at Nahars Amrit Shakti)

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Kashid- A Destination Worth Exploring..

Mine was supposed to be an ordinary trip, actually my extended birthday celebration with friends with a little fun and frolic BUT it turned out to be much more than that…..

The five of us started off from Mumbai to Kashid. It was a wonderful route rich in natural vegetation, moving as a serpentine along the beautiful coast. The lush green surroundings was truly a treat to the eyes of the beholder. We stopped a couple of times along the way for snacks and reached Kashid in around four hours.

I was aware that Kashid was a small village lying alongside the Arabian sea in Maharashtra, but what I saw was not what I had expected.

The beach was covered in white sand and hoards of people having the time of life while playing with the sea waves. I have seen quite a good number of Indian beaches, but only a few of them are as clean as this one with clean sea water as this one.

Kashid can rightly be called Mini Goa or probably the cleaner, smaller version of Goa. With white sand and blue water, Kashid swept me off my feet in just a few minutes.

While I was admiring the beauty of this beach, my friends had already hit the water. Within a split second, I too was playing in the water like a kid.

The joy that such moments give can only be experienced and I am still struggling to explain it in words.

After a good 2 hours fun, we headed towards our resort all soaked in water and sand, just waiting to hog over some delicacies served in the resort.

Very soon, we reached and fell in love with this amazing resort in the first look. This is how it looks..

Rest, was just pure fun with friends, barbeque besides the pool and a wonderful time basking in the sun..

Kudos to the splendid Kashid Trip..

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Potato Kofta

I am a foody who loves to try out something new everyday. Being a working woman, dinner is the most important meal for my family(for it is the only time when I can invest my time, energy and brain on creating something new). So, yesterday when I entered my kitchen to create something new, I found some potatoes and soya granules.

Now you may be wondering what can come out of these… well let me show you..

  Liked it?

Here’s the recipe

Ingredients for making Kofta balls

3 Boiled and mashed potatoes

1/2 cup soaked soya granules

1 tsp dried mint powder

2 tbsp cornflour or all purpose flour

1 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp green chili paste

1/2 tsp red chili paste

Salt to taste

Mix all of them together, make small balls and deep fry till golden brown. This is what you saw above. Now once the balls are ready, its time to make the gravy for Kofta.

Ingredients for Kofta

2 chopped onion

1 cup tomato puree

1 cup fresh cream wipped

2 tsp ginger-garlic paste

1 tsp asafetida powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp garam masala powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

Salt to taste

Take some oil in a heavy bottom pan. Let it heat. Add the chopped onions and fry them til light golden. Add the ginger-garlic paste and saute. Once its done, add the tomato puree followed with all the spices, one after another. As soon as the gravy gets ready, add the whipped cream to it. Add kofta balls to it and let them cook for around 5 minutes.

Thus, here comes the softest kofta in the world.

Happy Cooking! 

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Mafia Queens of Mumbai

Aah...you may be wondering where I have been lost all these days...Well I was busy preparing my new batch of recipes and enjoying reading some really thrilling books nowadays...

This one's my favorite....I bought it from Flipkart and finished it in 4 hours straight...kudos.:)

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Sweet Corn Tikki

Like many other wives I too face a tough time every day in preparing a breakfast that my hubby would love to have ;)

Important thing to note here is that he is is not the one who will eat cereal and smile!!

However, this sweet corn tikki saved me this morning 

My heartiest thanks to the savior!!

Here's the recipe:-

Ingredients

4 Boiled, peeled and mashed potatoes(Medium sized)

1 cup boiled and drained sweet corn

1/2 cup coriander chopped

1 tsp chopped green chillies

1 tsp chat masala

1 tsp mango powder

2-3 breads mashed

salt, turmeric- to taste

 Method

Mix all the above mentioned ingredients. Taste the mixture and make sure its spicy in taste.

Make small balls of mixture.

Heat the oil and deep fry the balls till they turn golden.

This 10 minutes recipe can be developed instantly if you keep boiled potatoes in your fridge like I do!!

Try them out with sauces of various kinds. You are going to love these golden sweet corn tikkis. 

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“Queen Beach of Sindhudurg”, this beach is known for its crystal clear water and tranquility. Must visit for scuba diving enthusiasts.

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Homemade Garlic bread

Homemade Garlic Bread is my any time favorite..

Earlier i used to munch on the Dominos Garlic Bread but now I know how to prepare it in just 2 minutes.

So, here's it for you Lucky guys  ;)

Ingredients

Bread Loafs-2 to 3

Salted Butter- 1 Tablespoon

2 Garlic-crushed

1 Green chilli-Crushed

Mix both garlic and green chilli and make a fine paste.

Method

Simply put butter in a hot pan and melt it

Add paste of garlic and green chilli and saute it.

In case you are using any unsalted butter but a pinch of salt.

Check that the paste does not burn. 

Now put off the stove.

Now brush this oily paste to your bread loaf and bake. 

Your Garlic Bread is ready

Note: You can add cheese in the paste to make your garlic bread even more yummy. Do go for Cheese Garlic Bread.

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Chilli paneer

Hi guys, I am really excited to tell that I recently wrote a guest post at a food blog and I am very happy to say that its been published now.

You can check it out on http://chattersmusings.blogspot.com/2012/08/chilli-paneer-guest-post.html

In the meanwhile I have also posted it right here...

Chilli Paneer is a traditional Chinese dish which is my personal favorite. The best part of this dish is that it can be easily served as a starter or accompanied with the main course. The credit for the original recipe goes to my mom and I have just made the necessary changes.

Ingredients

3/4 cup paneer (cottage cheese), cut into 12 mm. ( 1/2") thick strips

oil for deep-frying

To prepare Batter

1/4 cup Cornflour 1/4 cup Plain flour (maida)

1 tsp Soya Sauce

1 pinch Baking powder

salt to taste

Other Ingredients

1 tsp ginger (adrak)-Grated

2 tsp garlic (lehsun)-chopped

2 tsp celery-chopped

1/4 cup spring onions-chopped

2 to 3 green chillies-cut into 25 mm.

(1") pieces 1/4 cup capsicum-sliced

2 tbsp sweet corn grains

1 tsp soya sauce 1 tsp sugar

1 tbsp cornflour mixed with 3 tablespoons water

1tsp Oregano

1tsp Ajinomoto

1 tsp oil

salt to taste

Garnishing

1/2 cup spring onion greens-chopped

Method

Combine Batter ingredients in a bowl and make a smooth batter by adding approximately ¼ cup of water.

Coat paneer pieces with batter and deep fry in hot oil over a high flame

Do it till paneer is golden brown.

Drain on absorbent paper (tissue paper) to get rid of extra oil.

Allow it to cool.

How to proceed

Heat oil.

Add the ginger, garlic, celery, spring onion whites and green chillies and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add capsicum, sweet corn grains and sauté again for a few more seconds.

Now add ajinomoto, oregano, soya sauce, sugar, cornflour paste and salt.

Let it boil.

Add fried paneer and mix well. Serve hot garnished with the spring onion greens. 

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Ajanta Ellora caves

I am really happy to share this post with you guys. My last post about The Ajanta Caves got some good reviews and I am really excited to share my latest findings about Ellora with you..

Check out Ellora caves photos

The name Ajanta Ellora caves have always been spoken together but very few people actually know that they are two different kind of structures.

  The main difference in the Ajanta Ellora caves is as follows. While Ajanta predominantly has paintings describing the birth of Buddha, the significant contrast about Ellora caves is that it has rock cut temples dedicated to Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism, the three religions which had their origin in India.

   So, the story goes on like this that Ellora caves were built during 5th to 7th century. In contrast to Ajanta, these caves have beautiful temples dedicated to various Gods.This is the biggest difference between Ajantha Ellora caves

    Ellora does not have any paintings, but has massive sculptures carved in stones. You can find huge multistory buildings in the campus.

The place is better lighted than Ajanta and much easier to approach on foot. Wall carvings in these caves are brilliant and mesmerizing at times showcasing the brilliance of artists who worked and meditated at the same place for years. 

Note: Ellora is a world heritage site located around 29 kilometers from Aurangabad. You can reach the site by your own vehicle, cab or a state tourism buses.

Check out my post about the Ajanta caves

http://vibrancyoflife.tumblr.com/post/27961160392/ajanta-caves

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Momos

My affair with cooking has grown pretty old but I am not done yet ..

as its said "the older the wine the better it gets"

I was wondering what to share with you guys and I had a quick recap of my honeymoon trip at Kalimpong where I got the opportunity to taste the most amazing Momos. As soon as I had tasted them, I went directly into the restaurant kitchen and came out only when I got the secret recipe to the tastiest momos(Sikkimese Wonton's) I had. I have mastered them and now its your chance to learn the momos recipe..

So here's it..

Ingredients

2 Cup Maida

2 onions(chopped)

1cup cabbage(grated)

1cup Cottage cheese(grated)

1/2 tsp Ginger paste

Salt(To taste)

Baking Powder(A pinch)

Procedure

Mix maida, Baking soda and little water to make a dough and leave it overnight. 

Roll extremely thin medium sized chapatis from a rolling pin and cut them into half.

Now make the mixture of cabbage, cheese, onions, ginger paste and salt so as to stuff in the half chapati. Repeat the process with different chapatis until all the mixture is consumed.

They must appear something like this

  Now steam the mixture in a steamer or idli pot for around 8-10 minutes.

In case, you are making momos in microwave then put them in convection mode for 2 minutes.

They are ready to eat.

While you are preparing momos, you can make the special chilli sauce served exclusively with them.

To make the chutney

Ingredients

5 garlic flakes(chopped)

5 red chillies(chopped)

1 tbsp of white vinegar

Tomato sauce

Salt

2 drops of soya sauce

Procedure

To prepare the chutney, soak red chillies in vinegar for around an hour.

Later put all the ingredients in mixture and churn them. It must be spicy.

Saute them with little oil for around 10 to 15 seconds. Cool the chutney and preserve.

So when your chutney is ready, served the steamy, hot momos with spicy chilli chutney.

You can try it out with any kind of soup as well.

Its heaven on a rainy, misty day..

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The Ajanta Caves

My search for some really interesting places in India took me to the Ajanta Caves, a 2nd Century BC rock cut caves in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra. 

The ajanta caves are 30 rock cut caves dedicated to mainly Buddhism and possess sculptures and paintings describing the religion and its stories.

Check out the ajanta cave pictures.

     I recommend carrying along a torch and off course a guide who could help you in understanding the meaning of paintings and sculptures.

The place is simply wonderful and like me you too would be awestruck with its magnificence and detailed working.  

The place is very popular among Buddhist pilgrims and you may certainly encounter a few high tech lamas...like these..

Place was worthy of a visit and according to rumors Government of India is planning to shut down the original caves and create a replica of it as maintaining the structures and paintings is difficult with human intervention. So its up to you, whether you want to see the original or the replica...

Ajanta caves location:Reaching to caves via Aurangabad is quite easy. You can book a cab, an auto or tourism buses and visit the place. There are daily trains and buses to Aurangabad from Mumbai and other connecting towns. Don't give it a miss..

Do check out my next post about Ellora..

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Himalayas-My abode

“O dear Himalaya...why are you so amazing, can I kiss your peak or can I just let your silence speak...O dear Himalaya...” ― Santosh Kalwar

Read this somewhere and thought, how true it is!!

Thousands have tried to conquer the mighty Himalayas but none has succeeded.

Himalayas, with mighty peaks, mesmerizing beauty and awe struck landscape has been my abode and it is one place in the whole world that gives me solace and peace from the never ending run in life.

Here i am still trying to go back to my childhood where I enjoyed the first snowfall of the season, the fresh apples from the trees, enjoyed skiing and spent the whole day enjoying the beauty of my Himalayas.

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Thank you Sachin..

Winners of the cricket world cup 2011, India today is the proudest nation in the world. The final that was held on 2nd April, 2011 was the meteorological win of team India against Srilanka. Besides, it was the Indian team, which had already defeated the cricketing giant Australia (Winners of  last three world cups in a row). The Indian team which are called the men in blue have truly bleeded blue to win this much coveted title. 1.2 billion people of India today are happy and the last night saw celebration in even the remotest village of India. I doubt if, each and every person in India experienced this immense happiness ever.... Cricket is truly the religion of India and Sachin Tendulkar is considered the God of International Cricket. Thank you Sachin for bringing home this cup. We love you a lot.... and moreover thanks a lot God for giving us a captain as efficient and down to earth as M.S. Dhoni. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/World-Cup-the-ultimate-thing-Sachin-Tendulkar/articleshow/7854305.cms http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/Dhoni-Kirsten-Tendulkar-make-team-world-beaters/articleshow/7856027.cms

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Holi hai bhai Holi hai...

Holi, the festival of colours was celebrated on Sunday, the 20th of March in India. If any one of you might ever have experienced this festival, you would truly love it. Coloured powder, green, red, yellow and pink is applied on the face of people. Holi is all about joyfulness, one forgets all his tensions and even become friends with their enemies on the day of Holi. Holi is all about being happy, the bright colors of Holi signify that our lives be as colourful as them. People also throw coloured water on each other on the day of Holi. Holi splashes are a must, people enjoy them a lot. In India, when the temperature is already high by March, the cool water splashes gives one a new energy.

Besides there are special eatables made for Holi specially the gujia, dahi bada and khaja. They form an integral part of food. People also like gol gappe, chat and gulab jamun on the occasion. It is actually fun to have the delicacies. For the whole day people go to each other’s home for wishing Holi and eat the gujias. We too celebrated the holi with the slogan… Holi hai bhai Holi hai… bura na mano holi hai (Dear its holi today, therefore don’t get angry today).

http://vibrancyoflife.tumblr.com/post/3900225575/dahi-bhalle

http://vibrancyoflife.tumblr.com/post/3855365703/gujia-holi-special