100th Post And Diwali Lanterns!

100th Post! I didn't think I would hit a century in the blog space. I had dreamed of writing a blog for years - but my random musings would go just as far as my girlfriend next door. After moving to San Diego, I was in a new town with not many friends to hang out with, and a personal guinea pig to experiment on ;) - a perfect formula to finally sit down pen my recipes. I'm no writer, not at all! However, I enjoy blogging because there's no pressure to write a certain way. I can put my thoughts in my words without worrying about who reads it; because honestly, I doubted anyone would ever read my blog. And yet it's overwhelming to see all those 'Likes' on Facebook :). So here's a big "Thank You" to all those who give me a few minutes of their time in reading my ramblings.

Moving on to today's topic - Diwali decorations! Anyone who knows me knows that I love celebrating every festival with a bang. And that doesn't necessarily involve splurging - in fact, DIY is the way I always go. Remember the Ganesh idol? This year, I'll be juggling an exam, a conference, work deadlines and house duties all around diwali. So I'm getting a head start on my favorite part - the decorations!

Diwali is a festival of lights - about triumph of good over evil or dark. And lamps and lanterns are an important part of the celebration. Every house in India is lit up with oil lamps and glimmering with lanterns during this festival. So why not make it special by doing it yourself? I make these simple paper lanterns every year to hang up at the main entrance. This is something I enjoyed doing with my grandpa as a kid. I'm sure you'll love crafting them with your kids too. Getting your kids involved in making the decorations is a great way to get them interested in our festivals and culture. These lanterns are easy to make and look very traditional and authentic. If you make one big lantern, you can hang a light bulb inside. But I usually make smaller ones and hang them in a row. Nothing says 'Diwali' like these lanterns adorning the front of the house. And yes, they come with lots of compliments ;). 

**The long list of instructions may scare you at first, but just read on and you'll realize how easy it is to make these lanterns. 

Diwali Paper Lanterns

What you need:

Thick craft paper (8.5 x 11) - use white or beige

Thin craft papers (8.5 x 11) - your favorite colors 

Golden paper/ribbon for the trims

Glue

Scissors

A thick needle 

• Cut the white paper in 3 pieces width wise so each one has two 8.5" sides. Take the short sides and glue them together to create a cylinder (As shown in picture 2 above).
• Cut one colored paper in half - again width wise so each one has two 8.5" sides. One half will be used for the top and one to create the dangling strips at the bottom.
• Fold one of the colored halves into half lengthwise and make about 2/3" strips from the folded side. Don't cut the paper all the way. Leave about 1/2" on the top (Picture 3 in the collage above). When you open the paper, you will have slits in the center all attached on both the sides. This will be the top of the lantern. (As shown in picture 4).
• Take the other half of the colored paper and fold it 4 times from the short sides and cut small strips. Again, don't cut all the way so that these strips are attached at the top. Once you open the paper, you'll have the strips needed for the bottom (Picture 6 above)
• Put glue on the top and bottom edges of the cylinder and glue the top colored paper all the way around. (As shown in the left corner picture below). 
• Glue the bottom strips to one side of the cylinder. Decorate both sides of the cylinder with some golden ribbon or golden paper strips. You can get creative and add glitter, stones or whatever else you like. 
• With a sharp, thick needle, make two holes across from each other on top of the cylinder and create a handle to hang them using ribbon or thread. 

Make these lanterns in different colors and hang them in a row. 

How are you preparing for Diwali??

Randomness

It's been a while since I was home alone being a couch potato, only my needle and yarn to accompany me. Mom and dad left yesterday to continue their trip at my sister's, leaving a huge void in my house. I'm quite thankful for the wonderful time we spent together though, and it consoles me that they are just across the country as opposed to the globe! Now that it's back to just the two of us, I won't need to cook as much. For now, I'll update you on all the happenings in the last few days.

No butter baked goodie - I had wondered how applesauce worked in baked goodies all this while. After a successful trial, I'm convinced of the power of apple! I baked an eggless yogurt cake for mom and dad before they left, using this easy recipe. I cut the recipe in half, used only 1 tbsp of sugar instead (for mom) and (apprehensively) substituted oil with applesauce. Boy, was I sweetly surprised at the end product?! The cake was moist, fluffy and tasty. I would recommend adding some fruits or berries to the cake though since it's pretty one tone. Mom and dad gave two thumbs up.

Float fun - I stay away from sodas; not just for health reasons but I don't like the taste at all. Ice-cream floats though are a different story though. Creamy vanilla ice-cream dunked in fizzy root beer is the ultimate summer dream. We got my dad hooked onto root beer floats while he was here. If you haven't tried them or haven't had them in a while, do revisit soon =D.

Feeling peachy - Take a look at the velvety peaches we've plucked from the tree recently! we snacked on a few juicy fruits and saved some for a tart, maybe.

Anjeer Barfi - Everyone who visits our house 'oohs' and 'aahs' over the giant anjeers (figs) in the backyard. My sister and bro-in-law love figs and asked us to save some for them. I don't know what the status will be when they visits us in fall, but I wanted to surprise them with some fig goodness. I made fresh Anjeer Barfi (a sweet made from figs) and sent with my parents. Bro-in-law only saved a little bite for my sister, but I heard they loved the barfi. I used a pretty standard method to make it:

Anjeer Barfi

Ingredients:
3 Large figs (all the ripe figs on the tree)
1 Teaspoon ghee/ clarified butter
2 Tablespoons chopped dry fruits + more for garnishing
3 Teaspoons sugar
1/4 Teaspoon cardamom powder

• Puree figs in the food processor. If you don't have fresh figs, use twice as many dry figs - reconstitute them in warm water and puree. 
• In a pan, heat ghee on low-medium and roast the dry fuits for 10-15 secs. They don't need to turn color. I used almonds as that was the only dry fruit I had on hand, but you can use cashews and pistachios as well. Add the fig puree, sugar and cardamom powder and cook on medium for 10 mins or so until most of the moisture evaporates and the mixture separates from the pan in one ball. It's important that you get rid of the water content. 
• Grease a plate with ghee or line it with parchment paper/aluminum foil and spread the mixture and pat it to 1/2 inch thickness. Spread some chopped dry fruit on top and press gently into the barfi. Stick it in the fridge to cool and thicken. 
• I made a big round barfi to send it. You can cut small 1 inch cubes. 

Babies and batwas - My BF recently delivered a beautiful baby girl (yay for her), and my cousin is expecting her second bundle of joy - a girl too - very soon! I crocheted two cute little headbands for both of them. One inspired by this simple but beautiful design, and another with a pretty little flower. The second one has reached its destination already and the mommy was simply thrilled about the handmade gift :). On my recent trip to Michael's, hubby picked this rainbow of a yarn ball for me, and I crocheted a simple batwa (pouch) with a pattern I created myself. Take a look. I'm tackling this new design now.