Two more awards and a Jaljeera to digest this news

Caution:This is a really loooong post,so visitors who are not interested in my Blah blah can directly scroll down to reach the recipe of jaljeera.

Well month of June started with a good note,so here i am rewarded with two more awards,again from Medha of cook with love(hey medha people will surely blame you for being partial to me)But sincerely thanks a ton for all the awards,they surely pep up my mood and make me feel really good

The two awards are Rocking Girl Award 

Well i am not sure how much i really rock,but this theme of passing awards is really rocking

And the other one is Inspiration Award

The idea behind this award is Inspiration.

“This is given to bloggers whose stories and recipes inspire us. Whether it’s to eat healthier, dive back into our past to conjure up something we ate as children, or just make the light bulbs in our brains go on with a new idea for a recipe.
As recipients of this award, please share with us what inspires you and then pass on the Inspiration Award to 4 other deserving bloggers.”(The logo is photo taken by Beth from Dueling Foodies)
To answer that “What inspires me”? well its a blend of many people and many things that inspires me and keep me going

I am inspired to live….by my kid,who loves me unconditionally

I am inspired to cook ….by all those family members and friends who are willing to be experimented for my culinary attempts

I am inspired to share all these recipes online,by my hubby,who painstakingly slogged for hours to make a setup that a nonprogrammer like me can manage to blog

I am inspired by common people doing outstanding things,simple people achieving extraordinary goals,people smiling inspite of their hearts bleeding in pain ..the list goes endless !

Then medha also tagged us for meme…so here is some MEME  for  UU;-)

Here is the Rapid fire round that i was put up to:

1) LAST MOVIE U SAW IN A THEATER?
Om Shanti om

2) WHAT BOOK ARE U READING?
Right now its just comic books,coz  my son is picking up to read Hindi

3)FAVORITE BOARD GAME?
Well chess ofcourse

4) FAVORITE MAGAZINE?
Parenting and Readers Digest

5) FAVORITE SMELLS?
I guess for Indians it could be just the smell of parched earth getting first drops of rain,aroma of tasty food,and ofcourse the smell of Johnsons baby products applied to newborn babies

6) FAVORITE SOUNDS?
Baarish ki rhimjim(piter pater raindrops),bacchon ki kilkariyan(giggling sounds of toddlers) ,and soft numbers

7) WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD?
Being cheated and as told before,Jab tadapta hai jahan mein apna koi(when somebody close to us is in pain)

WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN U WAKE?
Did i had a sleep?..thats the feeling which always creeps in my mind every morning

9) FAVORITE FAST FOOD PLACE?
That would be a dishonest answer if  i named few,coz considering foodie like me,the list is endless

10) FUTURE CHILD’S NAME?
I don’t know about the future ,but yes i had thought of a name “sandeep”before my son was born but ironically couldn’t give him that name (we are supposed to keep the name of kids suited to their birth charts and not those that mothers wish……….fantastic)

11) FINISH THIS STATEMENT—’IF I HAD A LOT OF MONEY I’D’
I don’t take money matters in my hand,i m just not bothered about it,so i think i will hand over it to my hubby(and let him get as many gifts he wanna buy for me …lolz)

12)DO YOU DRIVE FAST?
Don’t dare to scare me by asking this….i get hysterical if my hubby drives above 35 speed

13) DO U SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL?
No ,on the contrary from past few years i am “a stuffed toy” for my son,coz he just can’t sleep without cuddling me(choooo shweeeeeeeeeet  !)

14)STORMS–COOL OR SCARY?
Cool when every one from family is enjoying it from safety of home,but scary if some one is stucked outdoors

15) WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CAR?
I don’t have any yet,and don’t like them too,i love to take a back seat(literally) on bike and enjoy the rains in open,rather than watch raining from inside the closed doors of cars

16) FAVORITE DRINK?
Jaljeera,buttermilk and ofcourse water

17) FINISH THIS STATEMENT-IF I HAD THE TIME I WOULD…
Get in touch with all of my friends,hang out with them,cook elaborate meals for family and above all just get my kid out on a prowl

18) DO YOU EAT THE STEMS Of BROCCOLI?
Yes i eat it whole(with flowers)

19) IF YOU COULD DYE YOUR HAIR ANY OTHER COLOR, WHAT WOULD BE YOUR CHOICE?
Since i had already started spotting few grey strands,i guess i wud like to change them to permanently black

20) NAME ALL THE DIFFERENT CITIES/TOWNS U HAVE LIVED IN?
Just Mumbai

21) FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
None

22) ONE NICE THING ABOUT THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU?
Just one…that’s unfair…..ummm well medha is sweet,innocent ,helpful and an amazing  food blogger

23) WHATS UNDER YOUR BED?
Lots of rolling toys(like balls or cars) which goes far away from reach  under the bed when my son plays with them and dust too(coz my blog had made me to ignore works like vaccum cleaning….sooooooo embarrassing)

24) WOULD U LIKE TO BE BORN AS YOURSELF AGAIN??
Well ummm yes but few(read ..many) pounds lighter would be perfect

25) MORNING PERSON OR NIGHT OWL?
Oh gosh …its so  awkward to be called OWL…..c’mmon guys think about a good substitute of this word

26) OVER EASY OR SUNNY SIDE UP?
Sorry didnt got u???????

27) FAVORITE PLACE TO RELAX?
Ofcourse in hubby’s arms(blushing ,blushing,blushing)

28) FAVORITE PIE?
I don’t like baked sweet stuff to eat,so no favourites here

29) FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?
It has to be Icecream falooda made by my mom….the milk rabri freezed with lots of nuts ,served with Rex -mixed fruit jelly,few strands of falooda(a sort of fried sweet spaghetti ,cooked in sugar syrup),with a dash of rose syrup….heady combination of sinful pleasures(Watch out this space ,for a proper recipe of this….coming soon)

30) OF ALL THE PEOPLE U HAVE TAGGED, WHO IS THE MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND FIRST?
I wud be happy if they atleast responded….no time constraints

I would like to pass on these awards  and meme to

                                                 Meeta of Whats for lunch honey?

                                                 Sia of monsoonspice

                                                 Mansi of funnfud

                                                 Srivalli of cooking 4all seasons

Well after all this heavy and heady stuff,lets move on to something that would help u feel light,something that will help u all (and me too)to digest that my humble blog too could recieve so may awards,all courtsey to Medha.

As mentioned in my favourites lists,jaljeera is my most favourite drink .Jaljeera literally means,water+cumin,and i don’t know why no emphasis is given to mint leaves ,coz;that actually is the base of this cooling ,tangy.refreshing,drink that serves as an appetizer too and it also helps to aid digestion

This is also my entry for  MBP-streetfood ,and as per rules the link of my fellow blogger from where this recipe is inspired is  Arti’s corner

My version of making jaljeera differs a bit,but no major changes

Ingredients:

• Mint leaves half bunch(will make about 5-6 glasses of jaljeera)
• Salt as per taste
• Black peppers 2-3
• Black salt(rock salt or kaala namak) a pinch for each glass
• Cumin powder
• Water
• Ice(optional)
• Salted boondi(small fried pearls of chickpea flour or besan)

Method:

Pick mint leaves,by separating them from stalks

Wash them thoroughly,and grind these to paste by adding a little of water and black peppers

Now  take one spoon of this paste for each glass of jaljeera,mix some cold water or water and ice cubes

Squeeze about half lemon for each glass of jaljeera

Season it with black salt,cumin powder (roast and grind cumin seeds),salt

Taste it and adjust the seasoning as per taste

Serve with crispy salted boondi floating in this cool summer drink