52 Weeks of creative exposure - My favorite pictures

Good Bye 2015! 

Every year we all introspect at 365 days gone by.  2015 has been a fulfilling year for me. I learnt some valuable lessons, some good and some the hard way. Did some creative work that I enjoyed a lot. Some projects become so close to your heart.  More than anything enjoyed making pictures. 

 These are some of my favorite images from 52 weeks of creative exposure and some other images that I have taken through the year. Hope you enjoy it! 

Thanks to my friend Sophia for the idea of making a slide show for our project 52. Thanks to everyone who has supported me in my madness. 

Looking forward to a wonderful 2016!!

I am not happy with the resolution, for now this is the best I could do. I might, replace this video with a better resolution. Will need to find a way to do it. 

So I reworked on the video and here is the new one 

Happy New Year!! 

Jalapeño Poppers Cheese Bombs

Jalapeño Poppers  Cheese Bombs biscuits, perfect for your New Year's eve party, It's melts in the mouth, super flaky, with lot of cheesy goodness and the jalapeño kick is the best thing ever.

It was late, the street lights had turned on, the light from the sun was fading into darkness. I walked as fast as my feet could take me, looking over my shoulder to see if anyone was following me. An elderly lady with a bag full of fresh produce, a cyclist, a dog walker...none of them really looked scary, but I was still on my toes, almost anticipating something bad would happen.

I reached home and grabbed a glass of water...bosky (my pet dog) was wagging her tail, expecting  a treat ...the drapes were still not drawn. I leaped to my feet and shut all the drapes as though the whole world was waiting to take a peek into our home. As a child I was afraid of the dark, not so much in my own home, it was  fear to be outside in the darkness. As though the elements of the night were waiting to engulf me with the darkness. I think it was rooted from the scary stories our neighbor told us.

As the sun was setting today and I was taking  pictures, racing against time to get the job done. It felt like my childhood. At one point, I looked outside as the mix of rain n snow was coming down .... the same landscape looks so comforting when the sun is out, but looks harsh n bare without the light.

I literally had to pump the ISO to 1000+. Not my best preferred setting, but I just had to share this recipe with you guys. No time to style, out of the oven and click!

Teen is on vacation and most obvious, this is her post. She did all the prep work yesterday, but we had so much going on through the day that we pushed baking it till late afternoon. This kid needs to have her own restaurant. This is absolutely fabulous must have snacks. I also blame her for the extra pounds around my waist. But let me tell you it is worth every ounce of butter  and every bit of cheese....

Happy New Year to you guys!! Lots of love! Cheers to 2016 !

On  a cold winter night, this could be a perfect midnight snack :)

Holiday Desserts Menu

 Holiday desserts and drinks menu

I don't think any Christmas or New Year party is complete without a good selection of desserts and cocktails n mocktails. Am not sure how many of you are like me, I love my desserts. Even if the meal is not as good, if the dessert is worth it, it's all worth it. I may not eat my meals, but I make up with my desserts.

Even though, a lot of us think exotic desserts equal to long hours in the kitchen, ummm....not really. Most of the dessert I make are not complicated. I have a simple logic for that, if I wanted to do something complicated, I would have studies calculus or rocket science...

So here you go with some last moment ideas.

Dessert Ideas 

Cocktails and mocktails

Now if you are struggling with sides, I think I did a post on it here.

Have a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year. Lots n lots n lots of love!! Stay safe! 

52 weeks of creative exposure - week 51 & 52

This is the last post for 52 weeks of creative exposure. I cannot believe a year went by...
I really enjoyed every bit of it I remember I starting 365 days of photography last year (2014) and the first image was of an orange, this year I did 52 weeks of creative exposure and the last image for the year is - orange !! I remember taking the first orange picture as though it was yesterday, it has been two years...I just loved working on both the projects and learnt so much, I have even found some exotic secret photo spots in my neighborhood.

What about 2016?? .....I think it may be a good time to take a break. No! I am not going anywhere. I am just giving a break to personal year long project like #365 or #52. 2016 will be more about food and food photography, I'll integrate my food photography post with recipes or photo stories. As much as I loved doing these projects I think I need to take a break.

My mother and me are going to be doing a personal project together, I'm really excited about it. We are planning to study some of our favorite artists through the year. Probably one every other week. since it is not related to food or photography, I will not be blogging about it. But, it's going to be an interesting project and am looking forward to all the learning.

Lots of love!!

Moist chocolate - beet cake

Super moist chocolate cake with beet, great mini dessert to serve for the holidays. 

These little mini-cakes were almost a disaster. When you have been blogging for a few years, most people assume you are a seasoned cook/baker. ! Am not sure about others but my kitchen is full of  'happy-accidents'. Most times it is because I think I am a pro and multi task, resulting in a mess. So when I read this recipe, I said to myself …nothing complicated. I can do this….Hmmmm….. not really, think again! I almost messed up, you will not believe it, but I forgot to add baking powder. Yup! I redeemed myself, as I remembered as soon I had put it in the oven. And thankfully, I had just put half the batter. Poured it back, added baking powder  …. Phew!]

Am glad you guys don't judge me for burnt curries, flat cakes and curdled batter. After all what is life without a few mishaps.

In other news, I broke my favorite kettle - it was hand made from Japan. I want to kick myself. This was really an accident and had nothing to do with my skills. As I removed a cup near it, it tipped and broke the spout…. the store I bought it from is closed. Well being the eternal optimist, I told myself, maybe am in store for something better.

Well…. on that note, I leave you with a cup of coffee and some super cute bite size cake. For kids you can serve them as is, for grown up - add some brandy syrup.

Recipe adapted from David Lebovitz blog . His recipe adapted from Tender by Nigel Slater. 

Citrus Cranberry Gin N' Tonic

Or Cranberry lemonade or orangeade. 

I met a few of my friends for lunch the other day and we started talking about our interests and hobbies. About work, home and what each of us want in life. The conversation weaved into cooking and food. One of them asked me, "how do you pick a recipe to blog?" I have never really thought about this question…most times when I am at the grocery store, the produce aisle gives me countless ideas. I usually have my iPhone notebook open and write down my ideas. I really don't have to think a whole lot, my best ideas come to me when am looking at fresh produce or ingredients.

Photography, styling comes later, only after the dish is prepared and I know how it looks/taste like. A lot of people think that food bloggers cook because we need to feed our blogs. Well,  I can't talk for everyone but a lot of us food bloggers, blog about food because we love the art of cooking. Blog is a means to an end. In order to sustain any interest or passion, one has to enjoy doing what they do.

Some times I do get asked if I enjoy cooking or photographing. Well, I have never been able to answer that - each one has a special place and fulfills different aspects of my personality. Cooking, recipe development is creative in its own way, it engages all your senses. Even today when I add onion in hot oil and sauté it - the sizzling sounds makes me so happy. Watching the colors of the fruits blend into one as I turn my blender on. Roasting spices and soaking the aromas…nothing quite like it.

Photography is very different, it's the play of light, the dance of light, shades and color. It's a two dimensional world that narrates the story of a multi dimensional world. Especially if it is food photography. It's a lot more thinking than doing, that makes it intense. Not everything I photograph is food and not every food I make is photographed. I love to experiment, some turn out great and some a disaster. It's all a journey of self discovery.

I think I bought a lot of cranberries and I made this, this and now a delicious cocktail.

If you want a mocktail just omit the gin and you have a cranberry lemonade or orangeade.

52 weeks of creative exposure : weeks 49 and 50

One thing about mid western United States,  you never know about the weather. One moment it's bright and sunny and the next moment overcast skies. It is particularly warm for this time of the year, we had eight inches of snow in November and it's cold but not the midwestern killer cold right now. Figure that out !

When it's not cold, I like to go on my walks…since I was walking with my husband, I left my camera at home as he wants me to be 'with him' on a walk not my usual….hmmm…ummm…ya….true. But the photographer in me did take a few iPhone shots. (scroll down last one)

We got home and I had my breakfast and what do I see, perfect blue skies replaced with dull white overcast skies. Not even the dramatic grays ….sigh!! There goes my plan to go back with the camera. I almost gave up, but than I thought, why not. It's a DSLR…if I don't like it, delete it.

I was glad I did, the light kept peeking and it had a beautiful hue ….

All these images taken in one day and just few hours apart….I love the fact it's ever changing, keeps me on my toes and you never know how the sky is going to look like in the next moment.

Another 2 weeks and 52 weeks all done !! Wow ! that went so fast. Do you have a favorite from my 52 ??

Candied ginger panna cotta with mulled wine and cranberry jelly

Creamy panna cotta with a kick of ginger, with mulled cranberry n red wine jelly. The warm spices and ginger pair so well together. 

Another year closes, another chapter…..a year older, hopefully a year wiser.  This year has been a year of contemplation, to reflect, to learn and to discover. Some people enter our lives subtly and show us so much of kindness and generosity…it is baffling to understand and one is left with an overwhelming feeling of gratitude. Kindness is good if it passed on, and I do hope to pass it on what I have received from total strangers who have become good friends.

I wish I can narrate the story of his kindness, but since he has requested me not to, I will not. All I can say is am very grateful to people like him, who make the world such a beautiful place. I really hope I can be half as beautiful a person as people like him.

This post is for all of my friends and loved ones, who make my world what is it…. Thank you  for being there in my life.

Mushy as it may sound, but somethings have to be said….especially a heartfelt thank you.

Try making this panna cotta in cute ball jars. They come with a lid and you can gift them to your loved ones for the holidays.

I wanted to make the panna cotta pepper-mint flavor. Went to the store and bought pepper mint extract. Came home and opened the bottle, excited to smell the fresh aroma…..I thought I was sniffing into a bottle of pudin hara. Those of you from India, you know my plight. Well, for the rest of you, pudin hara is a mint medication that is used to treat an upset stomach…:(

The bottle of pepper-mint was tossed and I decided to go with warm winter spices instead….am so glad I did !!

Mulled Cranberry Masala Chai

Tea brewed with warm winter spices and a mild fruity flavor of cranberries, especially for the holiday season.

It has been cloudy, gray and dull.  I have almost forgotten how sunshine feels like. Yesterday we got some snow and it was gorgeous as it was falling, before it turned to a mix of rain and snow. Now that's when it becomes nasty with black ice and slippery sidewalks. 

Crazy as I am, I decided to shoot in the snow outside. Wet mushy snow and not to mention the icy winds. Setting up and then carrying the tea in a thermos…am sure my neighbors have signed me off as a mad crazy woman. So the funny part is my shoes got wet and since I did not want to bring the wet shoes inside, smart me left my wet shoes outside. ummm ! After I transferred all the images and wanted to bring the chair inside, I put my feet in frozen shoes…let me say this, the warm tea really helped. 

For Thanksgiving one of my very good friend, Dolphia sent me some of her favorite tea infused with spices, I love the tea, warm aromatic, perfect for the season. I infused it with cranberries and the outcome is fabulous. Thanks Dolphia, this one for you. I wish I could share it in person. 

Chewy gingerbread man cookies

Soft and chewy gingerbread man cookies with holiday spices, made from scratch . We went a step further and baked a christmas tree cookies, reindeer cookies, with the same cookie dough, but different cookie cutters. This makes for a great edible gift during the holidays.

Teen loves to bake, and she loves gingerbread cookies. I have no idea what happened to our gingerbread man cookie cutter from last year. We looked n looked n looked… 

Went looking for one at the local kitchen store, only to see a miniature - it was the size of my pinky. Very cute, but imagine an army of gingerbread men ….We had almost lost hope and then I saw a little box which had an assortment of cookie cutter and smiling happily was the gingerbread man. I still don't know what I did with my old one, but am glad to have found one to replace the lost one. 

Teen wanted to make a meringue icing, but I convinced her to get the ready icing tubes with different colors. I know, I know….don't give me that look. I am terrible at icing and frosting and I have promised  to work on it this year. 

I am sure before the holidays are over teen will be back with some kind of an meringue frosting dessert recipe. I only hope she finds time to bake. 

These are the most adorable cookies she has ever made. Totally in love, we she might make another batch for her friends as edible Christmas gifts.