Ashoka Halwa - Wheat flour and Green gram sweet

ASHOKA HALWA

' Without grief '- That is the exact meaning of the word Ashoka. Ashoka Halwa or Happy Halwa is a festive sweet and is very popular in Tamil Nadu. It is a very simple and nutritious halwa which can be shared with the near and dear ones on the happy occassion of Deepavali.

INGREDIENTS

Wheat flour - 1 glass ( Which can hold 250 ml of liquid)
Green gram dal ( lightly dry roasted) - 1 glass
Sugar - 2 1/4 glass
Ghee - 12 tbsps
Cardamom powder - 1 pinch
Raisins - 50 gms
Cashew nuts - 50 gms

METHOD

1. Heat three tbsps of ghee in a heavy bottomed pan.
2. Add wheat flour and roast till it emanates a pleasant aroma.

3. The wheat flour should look like cream and not dry when roasted. Use more ghee, if needed, to get the creamy consistancy. Switch off flame and keep aside.
4. Wash and pressure cook dry roasted green gram dal with 2 1/2 cups of water. The dal should be well cooked and mushy.
5. Mash the cooked dal well and add it to the creamy wheat flour.

6. Cook dal and wheat flour together blending with a spatula.
7. Add sugar and keep stirring till the sugar melts and blends with the dal and wheat flour mixture.
8. As it starts thickening keep adding ghee little by little stirring all the time.
9. Cook till the mass leaves the sides of the pan and starts looking like custard.
10. Blend in cardamom powder.
11. Pour on a greased plate and level with a greased spatula.
12. Fry cashew nuts and raisins in 1 tbsp of ghee and pour all over the halwa.

Scoop out the halwa with a spoon when still warm and relish the flavoursome treat. When cold you can cut them into desired shapes and sizes. But do not forget to top the cold piece with a speckof ghee and microwave before you relish the halwa. Find yourself slipping into a happy trance as the Ashoka Halwa slides over your taste buds.

Narayanan Krishnan - Inspiring!

We got this message via -mail today, and thought we should spread the word!

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Catch: He brings hot meals to India's homeless – so please vote for him New Delhi: If you had not heard of Narayanan Krishnan, as I had not, it is a collective failure. This is one of the most incredible stories of personal commitment. Narayanan Krishnan, all of 29 years old now, does what he was professionally trained to do as a chef. Feed people. Only Krishnan does not do this in the swanky confines of a 5-star hotel. Every day, he wakes up at 4 am, cooks a simple hot meal and then, along with his team, loads it in a van and travels about 200 km feeding the homeless in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Krishnan feeds, often with his hands, almost 400 destitute people every day. And for those who need it, he provides a free haircut too. According to CNN, eight years ago, this award-winning chef with a five-star hotel chain was all set to go to Switzerland for a high-profile posting. On a visit to a Madurai temple, he came across a homeless, old man eating his own human waste. That stark sight changed Krishnan's life. Much to the dismay of his parents, CNN says, Krishnan abandoned his career plans and decided to spend his life and his professional training in looking after those who could not care for themselves. He has provided more than 1.2 million hot meals through his nonprofit organisation Akshaya Trust, and now hopes to extend this to shelter for the homeless too. Krishnan is the only Indian in a list of 10 heroes that CNN has picked worldwide to honour. One of them will be chosen CNN Hero of the Year, selected by the public through an online poll. If many Indians get together to vote for this inspiring man, he can win by a long mile. If Krishnan wins he will get $100,000 in addition to the $25,000 that he gets for being shortlisted for the Top 10. Akshaya Trust needs all the monetary support it can get to build on Krishnan's dream. Let's help him get there. Vote for Krishnan here. The poll continues through November 18 at 6 a.m. ET. Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/catch%20of%20the%20day/catch-he-brings-hot-meals-to-india-s-homeless-61029?cp

Voting Link: http://heroes.cnn.com/vote.aspx

Pancake Durian

Kemaren siang, Ci Santi langganan aku, BBM :

" Ren, pengen makan pancake durian nih, bisa ga?"

" Waduh, tapi ga janji ya ci..soalnya ga tau duriannya ada apa nggak, mesti cek dulu" balas aku

Jadilah setelah bermacet2 ria kmrn pulang dari kantor, mampir sebentar ke Superindo nyari duren.

Untung ada..wah jadi deh nih bikin pancake durian, langsung deh bbm Ci Santi, dia ok mesen 30 pcs.

Uda lama nih aku ga bikin pancake ini.Lumayan cepet kok bikinnya, jadi ga makan waktu juga.

Aku paling doyan ama namanya durennn, asikkk masi ada duren sisa nih buat dimakan bakul kue nya..

Komen Ci Santi : " Gila yaaa lo, minta bikinin apa aja ama lo pasti bisa..Canggih!!"

Hahahahaha tugas ci,kudu bisa semua..Thanks yaa