Saturday, November 7, 2015

Vegetable cheese muffins

Ever since Pickles started solids, my adventures with cooking and baking have increased manifold. In my effort to make sure he gets all his nutrients, I try to bake healthy snacks for him myself. Usually, Saturdays are my bake-a-snack days. So, hopefully you'll see more experiments in the weeks to come Of course, I still have some successful experiments and some that have gone horribly wrong. But if Pickles likes them, I consider them pretty decent. And if he loves them but he cant have enough because R and I finished them off, then it is a super hit! 

This recipe falls in between the two categories. Pickles likes them but we can manage to keep our hands off. I try and use different vegetables every week and it works each time. I've used zucchini, mushrooms, baby corn, corn kernels, tomatoes and spinach in different combinations. 

Pardon the unflattering picture. I was too tired to get better pictures. 



This is what I used

Whole wheat flour - 1 cup
Self raising flour- 1 cup
Shredded/ grated veggies - 2 cups ( I used red bell peppers, carrots, peas and green onions)
Some spices: I used basil (as much or as little as you like)
Eggs- 2 nos
Grated cheddar cheese- 2 cups
Milk- 1.5 cups
Salt- to taste 

Here's how I made them.

1) Pre-heat the oven to 180 C.
2) Mix the sifted flours and all the veggies together in a bowl.
3) Add in the salt, spices and cheese.
4) Beat the eggs and mix in the milk in a separate bowl.
5) Add the liquid ingredients into the flour mixture slowly and fold them nicely together.
6) Grease some silicone muffin tins and pour the batter until two-thirds full.
7) Bake for 25 minutes or until a dipped toothpick comes out clean.
8) Cool on a cooling rack.
9) Now you can try them on your toddler.

Let me know how it goes. 

Friday, November 6, 2015

Elevator angst

I'm not generally a judgemental person. I try hard not to judge people and I think I'm getting better at it.

I'm sorry but I can't help judging you when...

You are THAT person who waits for a good five minutes at the lift lobby and braves the crowded lift only to ride up to the second floor.

Or THAT person who gets into the elevator on the 7th floor and then gets off on the 8th. It is still just one floor, you know!

And you do this EVERY single day!

And I know for a fact that you are absolutely in the pink of your health.

And you talk about running marathons and sustainability issues!

Seriously!

I want to scream "Take the stairs!" every time I see you!

Darn! I really need to work harder at this!

Thursday, November 5, 2015

Of Listmakers and heartbreakers

I like making lists but I'm not a pathological list maker. I was listening to someone who'd made a long list of pros (read good things) and cons (and bad things) about an actual person. I was baffled at first. Why would you do that?

That made me wonder, when do we start making these I love.. and I hate.. lists about the characteristics of a person? I think it is something we do when we're deciding to get into a relationship.  (Remember that episode of Friends when Ross makes a list about Rachel and Julie? ) Or looking for reasons to get out of one.

But I think heart of hearts, we already know the answer. We just need those lists to justify the decision.

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Don't even ask!

The one good thing that happened because of the fact that I have crazy curly hair is that Pickles inherited the trait and on him, the curls are the most adorable little ringlets you've ever seen. Don't get me wrong. I'm all about making conversation with random strangers about Pickles. But the one conversation that I keep having over and over is this one:

Random stranger: He's so cute. Is he yours?

Me: (with a smile) Hmmm, yes!

Random stranger: OMG, those curls are so nice. Are they natural?

Me:(with a smile) Hmmm, yes!

What I actually want to say: Oh, no! I always wanted my baby to have curly hair like mine. So, I just got his hair permed at the neighbourhood parlour. We're just coming from there. 

Maybe I really should just try using it the next time!

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

That checklist in my head..

..before agreeing to a night out with friends.

Then,


"Do I like the company of people who asked me? yeah, sure!"

" Do I have an early morning tomorrow? Yes, no, maybe. It doesn't really matter!"

"Do I feel like going out? Yes, no, maybe. What the heck, I'm going!"



Now, 

"Can I ask R to come back home early at short notice?"

"Maybe I can ask the nanny to put him to bed! No, I should really tell R to do it."

"Have I cooked dinner for Pickles?" Check

"Wait, who'll brush Pickles' teeth?
R should really try but he won't. Its ok, I guess one night of not brushing teeth won't do him much harm"

" But will Pickles even sleep without nursing? He might but maybe not. Maybe I should get back by his bedtime. But that's too early! I'll come back if R calls to say Pickles is not sleeping."

"Maybe I should come back home after work and spend some time with Pickles and join them after he goes to bed! Yeah, right! That is provided I don't fall asleep by then! But I haven't seen my baby since this morning and he only woke up just before I left to work! Ok, I'll come home and spend sometime with him and leave in a bit, so at least I have spent sometime with him."

"But will Pickles let me go once I'm home? He doesn't even let me go to the bathroom without crying his heart out!"

"Will I be able to pull through tomorrow without much sleep, considering Pickles will wake up multiple times at night and super early in the morning? Oh no, I have that meeting at 9. Maybe I should skip it this time."

"It's really ok. I can go another time! I really ought to plan this better and in advance. I'll just cancel out!"

" But I haven't been out in a while..I really want to go out!"

"What the heck! I'm going!'

It sure isn't easy being a mom!

Monday, November 2, 2015

My coffee and I

I was at a conference today. And I had to rush to the venue without my morning cup of coffee. Since I was already late,  I had to attend one whole session in the morning without it. By the time it was over, I was trying hard to focus and also nursing a bad headache. Lunch was then served and figure this, there was no coffee anywhere in sight! I had something to eat, drank a lot of water but my headache still continued. At 10 minutes before the next session, I was frantically looking for any source of coffee that I could find but I couldn't find any!

So, I spent the next session fantasizing about my next cup of coffee. That got me thinking: I don't know at what point in life I got so addicted to this brown/black liquid, my life has never been the same again. Don't get me wrong, I use the term "addiction" quite lightly. My journey in graduate school would have never been the same without it. Two cups a day were a given and attending any seminar would mean gulping down some more just before it started. If I was writing something, that would call for a venti-sized cup of glorious coffee. I could point you to places for the best coffee and I could also tell you which talks served good free coffee. It was almost something that we, as grad students bonded over. To cut a long story short I couldn't have survived grad school without it.

When I say "addicted", I mean it quite lightly because for the two years when I was pregnant and breastfeeding Pickles, I had stopped drinking coffee. Absolutely! And guess what, I actually wrote out my entire PhD thesis without a drop of it! I'm proud of it because if you've not been there, you have no idea what I'm talking about. It is no trivial matter, this. Once I had my first cup after the long hiatus, there was no going back. We were united again like we were never apart, my coffee and I.

Back to this afternoon, when finally the second session was coming to an end, I had made up my mind that if there was no coffee, I would just leave. Anyway, my brain was almost useless by then. But somebody heard my prayers, and there it was, that aroma. At that point, it was the sweetest smell in the universe.  I went seeking it and I found my salvation. It's another matter that the coffee was quite bad but I couldn't have asked for anything more. I was happy again. Happy to go back, sit through and actually enjoy some more talks.

So, what's your poison?

Sunday, November 1, 2015

November is here

and so am I.

When Shub, Sayesha and I did the April A to Z challenge, we had a blast and we talked about doing it again in November. But as it often happens, life gets in the way and I'm not sure if either of them would be up for it come November.  I have been excited about this project and was looking forward to November but today, I had almost forgotten about it. When Shub messaged me this evening (Thanks, Shub!) , I was shocked that I'd actually forgotten. But never you mind, I'm here now and I will be back here every day of this month.  But since this time there is no theme, this blog will see pictures, recipes, ramblings and a lot of random things, whatever strikes my fancy that day. I am really looking forward to the challenge and the feeling of accomplishment at the end of each day.Make way for NaBloPoMo.

That'll be all for today but hey, you'll hear a lot more in the coming month!