Sarika | Plants, Balcony Gardening & Simple Living

My Love for Old Trees Giant trees standing in one place for ages ..as if they have seen it all. Those big trees spreading their arms its an invitation for us. Such an irresistible attraction for them. Sometimes I feel I was one of them in my past life and that bond pulls me towards them.I touch them and can sense life flowing through underneath that rough bark.It is not as soft as wrinkled hands you remember of your grand parents but you feel that warmth and age-old wisdom. Every time i cross those roads feels like they recall my visits months /years back and bless me in every possible way. These are few with seasonal blooms.They are not giant and don't think they are as older ones. But for some unknown reasons I wait for their tender pin flowers every year wishing I could witness them dancing to the tunes of evening breeze. Bahava: Mumbai's Golden Shower of Summer I know it as Bahava, while it is also commonly called the Golden Shower Tree. Its transformation during summer is ...

 Office ला जायचे आहे मला आज पूजा करणार का? अशी विचारणा झाली आणि नकळत तक धीमी तक धीमी  असे सूर बॅकग्राऊंड ला वाजत आहेत कि काय असा क्षणभर वाटलं. आज सुट्टीचा दिवस Saturday त्यात संकष्टी चतुर्थी.गणपतीबाप्पा वर आपला विशेष जीव त्यामुळे फारच  खुशीत होती स्वारी  तक धीमी तक धीमी च्या तालावर देवपूजा  झाली पण. म्हणतात speed of  light  सगळ्यात जास्त असतो पण कधी कधी वाटतं विचाराचा स्पीड त्या पेक्षा जास्त असेल का?past present future तीन काळामध्ये ज्या वेगाने विचार येतात जातात ते पाहून तो बिचारा light हि दमेल मन पोचले होते अगदी ४०-वर्ष मागे शाळेनंतर dance class ची वाट बघत असायचे मी ! नमस्कार  नटराजवंदना आणि मग पूजा असा तो sequence असायचा  तक धीमी तक धीमी च्या तालावर फुलं गोळा करा मग त्याचे हार बनवा गंध उगाळा मग देवाला गंध हार उदबत्ती दिवा घंटानाद आणि मनोभावे नमस्कार  सगळे कसे तालबद्ध ! कोमल वयामध्ये ते देवभक्ती किती आपसूक होती कधी नटराजवंदना कधी गणपती स्तुती कधी कृष्णा आराधना कधी रामस्तुती तो भक्तीरस नकळत भिनला तो कायमचाच। दहा वर्ष संपली पुढे वेगळी fie...

This bright yellow tender flower grabbed my attention one morning.Peculiar leaf shape looked familiar but was not able to guess its name.May be just another wild flower i thought ... Just a week later these 2 little fruits hanging on the same creeper spill the beans.. Aah you little bitter guard....Karela as we all know. Not a karela fan but that young fruit was looking really likable. Entire day karela was on mind. कडू कारले तुपात भिजवले साखरेत लोळवले तरी कडू ते कडू।। काही काही म्हणी आठवत राहिल्या  कारल्याची भाजी।। मिठाच्या पाण्यात भिजवून कडूपणा काढून ती भाजी करायची किती तो अट्टाहास  ड्राय फ्रुट घालून पण एकदा कारल्याची भाजी करून पहिली होती माझंही मलाच हसू आल।। कुठे गेली ती रेसिपी शोधली पाहिजे मनात विचार डोकावला आता गाडी घसरली ती  कारल्याचा वेळ लाव ग सुने।। लाव ग सुने।।  ह्या भोंडल्याच्या गाण्यावर किती वर्ष झाली असतील फेर धरून आता।।। शाळेत असताना प्रत्येकी च्या घरी भोंडला ला जाणे हे ठरलेलेच असायचे मग खिरापत ओळख।। दोघी तिघींचा मिळून भोंडला असेल तर मग खिरापतीची पण चंग...

Its a winter season and green peas are everywhere in market and in kitchen. Green peas pulav,Green peas usal,Matar pattice ,matar chi karanji,stuff matar paratha,matar soup and you can really get innovative here.Even simple poha upama suddenly has green appearance in abundance Now there is an argument here you get matar throughout the season or haven't you heard about frozen mutter. But then grown up in modest middle class family one of the values that got imbibed is to have seasonal stuff.Season stuff which you get Rs 30-40 sh/kg, off season can roar up to Rs 150 quarter kg and then buying it at that price is a sin :)  (here there is no question of whether you afford it or not. Just your whims to have some food will not justify that price.) So when its a season you stock it up and then deep freezer section will have different dessert boxes filled with green peas. You take out one box for the menu on the card. Whenever I make mattar pattice I remember mavshi who had invited me for ...

Scene 1: Dropped son at stop for school bus and on the way back picked up milk packets from centre . while tea was on, milk was up for boiling I was on daily task list one by one.. collect malai ,warm left over milk ,set curd , make buttermilk for day. Took vegetables out from tray and started cutting it. "So much work you have in the morning." exclaimed my sister in law who was watching all these morning silent movie. Really? Ya..we really don't do all this in USA.Just take out milk can  from freeze and make tea. Canned milk so no need to boil.Curd doesn't set well of that milk so no question of setting curd. No curd no buttermilk. Skimmed milk so no malai no butter making no ghee making. and there I am thinking >>all this may be comes naturally in many of Indian house holds..We have grown up watching mothers /grand mothers doing all these activities and as we set our own kitchen many of that we picked up unknowingly. Scene 2: All of them were meeting for schoo...