tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-161928002024-03-07T02:06:58.452-06:00My experiments with wordsMehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.comBlogger131125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-72257868958093486172020-09-15T13:55:00.002-05:002020-09-15T13:55:53.198-05:00Hats off to all womenSo 2020 has been mostly spent being locked in your homes. Needless to say, most of the burden of managing the house, kids work, food, etc has fallen upon women. Not to mention they might have their own jobs to take care of. For some the job might be saving the entire planet as in the case of our health care workers. Despite that they are at the forefront when any imbalance happens at home. It is rewarding to see the kids run to mom for any problem but I have to admit it can also be taxing. Have been talking to various people on why that is the case and one of the conclusions I have come to is that women have more inbuilt empathy and sacrifice. We sacrifice our own needs for that of the family. Hats off to all the women working silently to save their families. Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-24820290759136387712020-08-27T15:10:00.002-05:002020-08-27T15:10:49.034-05:00It takes a village..to online teach a child. Also takes moving out all distractions from the room, larger screen, no touch screen to avoid playing around, removal of all other apps from the computer, removing the mouse and at times even letting go and let the child do some pranks :PMehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-4108004681413951682020-08-05T14:27:00.001-05:002020-08-05T14:27:14.900-05:00Hello world!It's 2020 and the world is locked up due to corona. I thought it might be a good time to revive this blog and write about thoughts -good, bad and random that come to my mind. At first I miss so many things - travel, parents, friends get together and eating outside. But I am also thankful to be in an industry where I can work from home and I also love the additional kids time I get :-).
Here is to new beginnings and new experiments with words! Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-50085325439610674582015-10-26T23:05:00.000-05:002015-10-26T23:07:16.607-05:00Grilled eggplant sandwich with basil pestoAlright its back to cooking season! Cooking cooking and cooking like never before. With mom gone and Alaina moving on to a preschool, I have to take up cooking. I am always on the lookout for short cut recipes that I can quickly make and relish. Today I prepared grilled eggplant sandwich with basil pesto for dinner totally loved it. I had come back at 6 pm after picking up Alaina. The traffic was a total mess today and it took me more than an hour to do 8 miles! Anyways, the recipe is as follows -
<pre>
For the grilled vegetables -
Eggplant
Zucchini
Bell pepper
Grill for 20-25 mins at 425F.
For the basil pesto -
1 cup fresh basil
1 garlic
2 tblspn pine nuts
4 tblspn parmesan grated
Loads of olive oil
Mix it in the food processor and have it fresh
For the sandwich -
Multigrain oat bread
Serve it with fruits :-)
</pre>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-9729401002151964802014-12-02T11:22:00.000-06:002014-12-02T11:22:00.371-06:00Baked Vegetable WrapYesterday I made Quinoa Biryani recipe by <a href="http://www.veganricha.com/2013/10/quinoa-cauliflower-biryani-vegan.html"> Vegan Richa </a>. This one turned out to be really great. I made a minor modification to the recipe as I did not have cashew cream. Instead I took a half ripe tomato, added a few black pepper and 1 tsp yoghurt and put it in the blender. And then added this to the gravy. I really liked it. Today I thought of making a vegetable wrap recipe. I had a few broccoli in the fridge and they were drying out. Also I dont like carrot vegetable made the Indian way (which is my husband's favorite) so I thought I could use them and bake them to make both of us happy. Here is the recipe -
<pre>
Ingriedients -
To Bake -
3-4 floret Broccoli chopped
3-4 floret Cauliflower chopped
1 small eggplant cubed
1 carrot sliced into rounds
Toss a little olive oil and salt. Preheat oven at 425F.
Put parchment paper on the baking tray and heat the veggies for 20-25 mins.
For Wrap -
whole wheat Wrap
Avacado diced into small cubes
spinach
In the wrap put the spinach and the avacado and then put the baked vegetables.
</pre>
This turned out really well and my hubby liked it as well. I think it is a good way to eat the broccoli and the carrots ;).Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-90726870944724027922014-11-26T14:31:00.001-06:002014-11-26T14:31:26.097-06:00Mau MauToddlers have a funny way to communicating and a strong observation. I have seen kids different words for simple things like water, milk, etc. My daughter uses mau mau for water and one day when I closely examined her water bottle I realized there is a small cat on the bottle and a cat says meow meow.. Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-7256201339649295542014-11-22T12:35:00.001-06:002014-11-22T12:35:07.314-06:00Mushroom Avacado sandwichThese days, every morning I am hunting for breakfast ideas to try to please my daughter and ofcourse my husband who cant tolerate a lot of deviation from the normal. I also do not want to spend a lot of time preparing the breakfast as my mornings are generally jam-packed until I step out for the office. At the same time, I want the breakfast to be a nice healthy start. This is one recipe that my hubby liked but did not get an ok yet from my daughter.
<pre>
Ingredients -
Multigrain bread
Avacado thinly sliced into long pieces
Baby Mushroom chopped
Spinach a bunch
Tomato diced into fine cubes
Garlic powder
Salt to taste
Olive oil
Method -
Bake the mushroom. Or lightly saute them in olive oil.
Put spinach and tomato for a minute.
Add a little garlic powder and salt.
On a toasted bread put the mixture and avacado slices.
Add parmesan cheese if needed.
</pre>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-49039097129203606512014-08-27T18:32:00.000-05:002014-08-27T18:32:33.954-05:00Vegetable Wrap with Hummus recipeMom's recipe!
<pre>
For the Hummus
1 cup chickpeas
1.5 tblsp Tahini
1.5 tblsp lemon juice
Little black pepper
1/2 tsp Jeera Powder
1 tsp Olive oil
1 garlic
Salt to taste
Method: Soak chickpeas overnight. Pressure cook it for 3-4 whistles. In a blender, put olive oil, tahini, garlic and lemon juice along with the chickpeas and blend it.
For the Wrap
1 Grated Carrot
1 small cut zucchini
1 cup moth (or moong) sprouts
1 cup spinach
1 small red onion chopped
1 small bell pepper thinly sliced
1 Avacado cut into small pieces
Method: Heat the wrap and spread the hummus on it. Put all the vegetables in it. That's it!
</pre>
Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-6195214773419010962014-04-29T19:15:00.001-05:002014-04-29T19:16:25.002-05:00Pasta Pasta
Here are two pasta recipes I liked.
The first one is what I tried last weekend. Here is the recipe -
<pre>
Cook Penne for 10-15 mins (as per the instructions on the box)
In a pan fry -
1/2 onion chopped
1 tomato
1 cup mushroom chopped
1 cup spinach
1 zucchini
</pre>
Mix pasta in it and add 2 tblsp Pesto sauce (I like the one I got from Whole foods)
Serve it topped with Parmesan cheese.
Here is another one that I had in office today. I had it just before my presentation so did not get time to decipher it properly but I will try it this weekend to see how it turns out
<pre>
Cook Penne (or any other pasta you like)
In a pan add olive oil and sundried tomato
1 cup spinach
1 cup mushroom (if you like)
2 tblsp pine nuts lightly toasted
</pre>
Add pasta and serve it with feta cheese.Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-27242971874052644502013-08-27T19:04:00.001-05:002013-08-27T19:04:34.111-05:00FirstFirst blog after the birth of my baby. What a bundle of joy she is. Life has changed so much - diapers, feeding, burping now rule my day. There is so much to write, so many feelings to share and so many moments to talk about and so many new learnings that I discover each day to brag about, but right now 6 weeks post baby I am just falling short of words to describe the miracle of life! Right now I am just exhilarated that she has outgrown the first set of clothes - actually diapers. Yes she has outgrown her newborn N sized diapers and has moved on to size 1. Yippie :-)
PS: You learn the real meaning of sleepless nights only after a baby!Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-38715215124102683402013-02-19T15:05:00.001-06:002013-02-19T15:07:19.942-06:00Mint chutneyFor long I was searching for the recipe to make the perfect mint chutney and finally came across something we both liked. Here it is -
<pre>
Ingredients
1 small bunch mint leaves
1 small bunch cilantro
1 medium onion
1 lemon juice
1/2 green chili pepper
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 pinch black pepper
Salt to taste
Put all the ingredients in a grinder with a little water and grind well.
</pre>
Here's a pic of the chutney with some dhoklas that I prepared.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihQrgv9Up7CdB8n7Rghpt1HPDIREfv6FCN-KY0H0wopBffapVANQrDh8DLdx0Fc4s629FpFJF0ObPv4s8yS4ig5xMX51eShTNOG4u8yvSJ4AXX53-NRX0uHAn5WNIb_Bs9UWj_/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihQrgv9Up7CdB8n7Rghpt1HPDIREfv6FCN-KY0H0wopBffapVANQrDh8DLdx0Fc4s629FpFJF0ObPv4s8yS4ig5xMX51eShTNOG4u8yvSJ4AXX53-NRX0uHAn5WNIb_Bs9UWj_/s320/photo.JPG" /></a>
<br>
<br>
My cooking spree is on like never before! (thanks to the taking some time off :P)Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-2378517419513411092013-02-14T12:40:00.000-06:002013-02-14T12:41:45.565-06:00Somebody that I used to know..Ok, this is not your typical Valentine's day song. Nevertheless, it caught my fancy yesterday while watching American Idol and now I cant stop the infinite loop that is running it. It also won the Grammy for the record of the year. Listen to it and judge it yourself! I especially like the high note in this paragraph -
<pre>
But you didn't have to cut me off
Make out like it never happened
And that we were nothing
And I don't even need your love
But you treat me like a stranger
And that feels so rough
You didn't have to stoop so low
Have your friends collect your records
And then change your number
I guess that I don't need that though
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
</pre>
Here's the song - <a href="http://youtu.be/8UVNT4wvIGY">http://youtu.be/8UVNT4wvIGY</a>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-8226956612988194812012-12-03T18:11:00.001-06:002012-12-03T18:11:53.714-06:00You know you are about to graduate when ....
<ol>
<li> Your travel schedule spells CRAZY
<li> You come to the lab only to go to the gym :|
<li> You start enjoying the process of giving talks.
<li> You can give a talk about your research in your sleep.
<li> You start adding your labmates and your advisor on linkedin
<li> When you have a job! (May be this should be the first point)
<li> You are finally cooking like crazy at home
<li> You are barely working :P
<li> When your periods of absence from the lab is greater than all the other years combined.
<li> When you realize the difference between an accepted paper and a great paper.
<li> When you always have a paper ready to submit to a conference, most likely recycled from previous rejections.
<li> When your advisor no longer pushes you for any work be it meetings or research.
<li> When you prepare a list of things to do and it does not contain work but contains a list of places to visit.
<li> When you finally start visiting nooks and corners of your campus.
<li> When your parents come to visit you.
<li> When you start clicking photos of your campus.
<li> When you finally get the time to read books, watch movies in theatres, follow TV serials.
<li> When the biggest activity of your day is the gym :P
<li> When you are available on chat from multiple accounts :D
<li> When you are embarrassingly the first person to like your friends FB posts.
<li> When it takes you two weeks to write what you'd have ideally written in two hours.
<li> When you write blogs like this :P
</ol>
Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-34071342649977411742012-09-06T11:54:00.001-05:002012-09-06T11:54:23.944-05:00Wake me up when Sept ends... <pre>
Summer has come and passed
The innocent can never last
wake me up when September ends
here comes the rain again
falling from the stars
drenched in my pain again
becoming who we are
as my memory rests
but never forgets what I lost
wake me up when September ends
ring out the bells again
like we did when spring began
wake me up when September ends
</pre>
Come tomorrow, Adi is flying out to California to begin a new life and job and my beautiful summer of 2012 comes to an end. But I think we were also lucky that we got to do a PhD in the same university - attending classes together, going to the university together esp on weekends to work when there was no one around and facing all the challenges both from the coursework and the inclement winter weather, having lunch together and being just a floor away from each other, cheering each other during the paper deadlines and just going out for a walk together when the Sun shined bright. Minneapolis and the university will not be the same again but I really had a great time due to having hubby around. Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-35218076964005655812012-08-20T23:20:00.000-05:002012-08-20T23:20:47.800-05:00Come tomorrow....Tomorrow is hubby's thesis defense... perhaps one of the biggest change in our lives in the past 4 years... i'm excited and happy and nervous and overwhelmed... Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-82991032839524256522012-07-20T12:47:00.001-05:002012-07-20T12:59:27.808-05:00PuzzledHubby dear's friends/lab mates/ex-roomates/classmates/co-workers/family members all know about his penchant for solving puzzles and asking them. When we started going around, I was subjected to one puzzle a day until when I strongly protested :P. Whenever, we have a re-union of friends and his btech batchmates, the usual ritual is that they are subjected to solve puzzles, puzzles and more puzzles after a glass of beer. This time in Dec we were all up till 3 am in consecutive nights solving puzzles given by him. He maintains a blog on <a href="http://n1b-algo.blogspot.com">algorithms and puzzles</a> to whet his appetite. However, today his puzzle solving obsession peaked a new height when I saw him talking to my Mom in the kitchen. He was making her solve a few of his usual puzzles :P What to say but that I married the cutest geek!Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-60737364786845211282012-07-01T09:42:00.000-05:002013-02-19T15:54:37.118-06:00Mom's recipe: Vegetable PulaoEver since mom has come to the US, I have been getting the pleasures of eating all the stuff at home that I missed for 4 years! One of her recipes that I really like (and that I think I can make myself) is Vegetable pulao. Here is the recipe -
<pre>
Ingredients:
Rice
Oil
1 tblsp Jeera
2-3 Tejpaat
10 Black pepper
3 Badi Ilaichi
3 Laung
2 Cinamon sticks
1 Ripe tomato made into puree and mixed
1 Onion chopped
1/2 inch ginger grated
1 Potato chopped
2 Carrot chopped into long slices
1/2 cup cauliflower chopped
1/2 cup beans chopped.
1 Large spoon oil
Salt as per taste
1 Cup rice cooked
</pre>
<ol>
<li> Heat 1 spoon oil. Put jeera, tejpaat, pepper, cinamon, laung ang ilachi
<li> Fry onions until light brown. Fry grated ginger too.
<li> Put all vegetables and let them cook for some time.
<li> Once the vegetables are done, add tomato puree and stir for sometime.
<li> Add cooked rice and mix.
</ol>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-48922875222960791522012-04-08T20:36:00.000-05:002012-04-08T20:36:57.571-05:00Take 5!Hubby and I completed our 5th anniversary on Friday. Co-incidentally this Friday April 6th was also a good Friday as it was 5 years ago. It's very hard to believe that it has already
been 5 years as it just feels like yesterday when I fell for this boy in my class who loved bunking classes, watching movies and solving algorithms and puzzles. After 5 years I think a lot of things are still the same but may be some have changed. One of the things that have changed is that we both have become similar to each other. I can't believe 5 years ago I would have frequently deleted my FB account or he would have eaten garlic (although must admit still very reluctantly!). And the things that have not changed is that we still watch movies by dozens and he still remains the best part of me.Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-12486562927308160602012-03-11T19:56:00.000-05:002012-04-08T20:19:18.319-05:00Shahi Paneer<pre>
After long I prepared something I liked :)
Ingredients
Paneer
2 medium onions
4 cloves garlic
1/2 inch ginger
2-3 green chillies
2 ripe tomoato
1 cup milk
1/2 cup yoghurt
dry fruits - 10-12 kaaju, 5-6 badaam, 5-6 raisins
1/2 tsp garam masala (optional, I like it without it as well)
1 tblsp anardaana dry
1 tblsp cumin seeds
1 pinch hing
1 pinch black pepper powder
Oil
Salt, turmeric to taste
Preparation:
1. Grind onions, ginger, garlic, chillies, anardaana into a fine paste.
2. Heat oil and add cumin seeds and hing after that add the mixture.
3. Fry it till it turns golden brown. Add turmeric powder, salt,
hing, garam masala, black pepper powder
4. Grind tomoto with dry fruits
5. Once it starts leaving oil, add yoghurt and milk and bring it to boil.
6. Fry paneer cubes and add it to the mixture.
7. Add corriander leaves for garnishing
</pre>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-31467138004466580172012-01-16T20:14:00.003-06:002012-01-16T20:14:49.502-06:00Steve JobsI am reading a non-academic book after long and what a wonderful book I have to resume my reading - the biography of Steve Jobs. I have only read it half way but am already in awe of the genius and his penchant for perfection. Adi who has finished reading it says that as you read the book your liking for Jobs will follow a bell curve. You begin by disliking him for all his quirky behavior and instead love the soft Woznaik and by mid-way his crazy antics exasperate you. But as you progress you realize the genius of the guy and his zeal and passion to create some beautiful products which only he could have thought of and pursued to perfection. I cant wait to read more but at the same time I don't want it to finish fast. Hats off to you Sir!
Updating the blog from my mac :-)Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-8856434172049708112012-01-12T23:04:00.000-06:002012-01-12T23:06:38.591-06:00And you can't fight the tears<pre>
that aint coming..
Or the moment of truth in your lies
When everything feels like the movies
Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive
And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's meant to be broken
I just want you to know who I am
And I'd give up forever to touch you
'Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now
And all I can taste is this moment
And all I can breathe is your life
And sooner or later it's over
I just don't wanna miss you tonight
Yeah I still love this song despite the years that have passed by.
</pre>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-86124414255575203622012-01-08T21:27:00.000-06:002012-01-08T21:27:53.612-06:00Ok so I ama Rubic cube solver :P
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMWdWbHID_QxtsCa1GRi_IBthH8oZS-1l1h4mebIqUcvg8NDzfbsxwk1vIobazwS18yTzQNmeUzMeNSrhPzZdcFHteyQoPnHG21j9Y6vbl7NzZulxJazPpnXjYrEm2MlBWkuzi/s1600/IMG_3641.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMWdWbHID_QxtsCa1GRi_IBthH8oZS-1l1h4mebIqUcvg8NDzfbsxwk1vIobazwS18yTzQNmeUzMeNSrhPzZdcFHteyQoPnHG21j9Y6vbl7NzZulxJazPpnXjYrEm2MlBWkuzi/s320/IMG_3641.JPG" /></a></div>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-16468662468913121992011-12-21T14:17:00.003-06:002011-12-21T14:17:37.476-06:00Country roadsTake me home... to the place I belong...
Ok, I am not traveling to Inida this December but I <b>really</b> want to go!Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-61722382640741074652011-04-01T16:46:00.002-05:002011-04-01T16:46:59.907-05:00The cloudI am the daughter of Earth and Water,<br />
And the nursling of the Sky;<br />
I pass through the pores of the ocean and shores;<br />
I change, but I cannot die.<br />
For after the rain when with never a stain<br />
The pavilion of Heaven is bare,<br />
And the winds and sunbeams with their convex gleams<br />
Build up the blue dome of air,<br />
I silently laugh at my own cenotaph,<br />
And out of the caverns of rain,<br />
Like a child from the womb, like a ghost from the tomb,<br />
I arise and unbuild it again.<br />
<br />
~Percy ShelleyMehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16192800.post-22168615664750275842011-03-30T14:21:00.000-05:002011-03-30T14:21:04.050-05:00Felt like 1996!An India-Pak clash in the World cup semi-final where Sachin has a big score and team India shines is what cricketing history will surely have in bold. The match reminded me of the euphoria that followed the quarter-final clash in 1996 and Jadeja's blitzkrieg. The only thing missing for sure was the fireworks after every fall of wicket.Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06697716614997362826noreply@blogger.com0