A mus(t)seenagudi...

Last weekend we, along with friends decided to drive down to Masinagudi, nestled amidst the verdant foothills of the Nilgiris in Tamilnadu.

It was a pleasant break that involved...

* driving through the lush Bandipur and Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary.

* spotting some spotted deer.

* watching the cotton like clouds descend on the mountains.

* sleeping to the sound of steady rain outside.

* eating fresh ripe guava before the Malabar giant squirrel gets to it.

* exploring the wilderness hand in hand.

* finding a gurgling hill stream.

* picking up some pebbles for my succulents back home;-)

* becoming kids again when we saw a wild hare hop right before us and straight into the darkness.

* suddenly becoming quiet when we saw the bulbuls chirping in the morning on the evergreen tree.

* identifying the birds and the bees( oops, the moths)

* tasting some delicious locally grown gooseberry, jamun, bilberry jams

* devouring some sinfully delicious desserts.

* drinking cups of chai.

*taking in the colour green.

* enjoying every moment of the day.

* re-living those simple but beautiful moments through this post:-)

my friends' little daughter...

silver oak leaf...

gurgling stream...

The beautiful place where we stayed...

our charming cottage...

morning after the rains...

our wildlife and nature enthusiast friend helping us identify a bird...

sitting pretty on our window...

breakfast time was divine...

(images by Arch)

devouring cookbooks...

I am a voracious cookbook reader.

I love cookbooks.

Not only do I love trying out recipes from them but also love collecting them.

Some for their rustic food photography, some for their authentic regional cuisine, some for their simplicity, some for stories from bakeries of far away lands...

Nowadays I am leaning more towards recipes using wholesome and natural ingredients.

I would try anything that suggests using fresh locally or home grown vegetables and fruits. So when I saw Jamie Oliver's cookbook recently, I just knew I had to pick it up.

The rustic food photography...

Enjoy your cookbooks:-)

Crunchy himachal apples...

...have been flooding the markets and inspiring me to shoot some and to

...sink my teeth into some.

I have tried some interesting apple recipes like Apple Cobbler, Apple Cinnamon No-Fuss Cake, but strangely the husband and the daughter have some reservations about cooked apple.

So today I tried a very Indian recipe~ Apple Kheer

from our very own Sanjeev Kapoor's Khana Khaz

ana Channel.

The video is in Marathi, love that language:-) but they have English subtitles.

Now let me see how this fares here at home:-)

( I used Chironji instead of Almonds)

Lalbagh Flower Show...

It was a weekend and the thought of strolling down rows of exotic flowers in Lalbagh with the Mr Sun shining his golden grace on us was too appealing to pass.

As we entered there were vibrant flowers displayed all over...

...but what really had my full attention were the healthy vegetables grown in pots.

It brought back loads of memories from our childhood where we lived in houses with large backyards where our mothers along with the 'Maalis' would put the soil to test by planting corn, tomatoes, herbs, brinjals, okra, you name it...*sigh*

Anyway here are some pics from the show...

The daughter with her lil point & shoot...

Loved the illustrations on the packets of seeds for sale!

Do visit the show, it is on till 15th August, 2010.

(images Arch & Mallika)