Dear readers, please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.I have not been writing very much partly because I've entered into the vanaprastha mode, but also many other reasons. And I have been thinking about deleting this blog for a very long time for reasons that I do not wish to go into here, but I will say I'm tired of the internet; I wish to get off completely.
I didn't know what the word frittata meant until a few days ago, but that's the word I'm going to use for what was put in an offering then. Instead of eggs we got arrowroot. It came out pretty good, so I thought it'd be worth sharing INGREDIENTS:A handful of finely chopped or grated veggies (In this case, some wild chickweed) A handful of grated paneerSpices (Here was a little
Prabhupāda: Now there should be one rule that unless they are husband-wife, man and woman should not worship together.Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: On the altar.Prabhupāda: Yes. Strictly prohibited.Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: On the same altar.Prabhupāda: Yes.Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Different altars is all right, but not the same altar.Prabhupāda: No, different quarters... They should not go to the...Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: They should not be
On at least two occasions in the past, while attending morning Srimad Bhagavatam classes at a nearby temple given by two well-known sannyasi gurus, the term "consequentialism" was being explained. Basically, it was said that if we know that an action will produce unfavorable results, we should not act on it. Or as Wikipedia puts it:"The ethical philosophy, consequentialism is a class of normative
Over the years cooking has been quite a challenge for me, not only to make something nice for offering Krishna at home, but also something that my discriminating husband will honor. He cannot eat nightshades, among other things such as vegetable oils, and toor dahl (what is used in this recipe) itself has a flavor disagreeable to him unless it is masked with things like coconut, molasses,
Sometimes you see those lists of what people consider to be "life skills". If I made such a list, one of the skills would be knowing how to handle a bad mood!It's so important because, looking back to the early years of my marriage, I realize that maybe half the time that we had some conflict was because myself or my spouse or maybe both of us at the same time were experiencing a bad
INGREDIENTS: 1 cup black beans, sorted and washed and soaked overnight.A handful of vegetables such as carrots and or celery, chopped Water for cooking the beans1 teaspoon salt1 tablespoon molasses1/4 teaspoon oregano1/4 teaspoon basil2-3 tablespoons ghee1 teaspoon mustard seeds1 teaspoon cumin seeds1 t coriander powder 1/4 teaspoon asafetida1/4 t ground black pepper
Usually in the spring, after all danger of frost has passed and until the first frost prediction in the fall, Tulasi gets a vacation outside. She doesn't like indoors very much. Especially the way our house is situated, it does not get a lot of sunlight. It was designed that way because we live in a very hot climate, and it helps to keep the house cooler. But it is not very
Moong palak is moong dahl with spinach. I've been using a type of wild spinach called lambsquarter. I have also used store-bought spinach and garden kale. But since the lambsquarter is free and abundant, I use it the most. I don't have to plant it either. It just grows. To prepare lambsquarter You just need to remove any tough stems. This isn't very hard. It just takes a little
INGREDIENTS :4 overripe bananas, well mashed2-3 T sugar 1-2 T molasses 1/2 t salt 1/4 t ground cardamomflour ghee for fryingPREPARATION:Combine all the ingredients together except for the flour and the ghee.Add flour until you have a nice dough. Knead well until smooth. Then let it rest at least an hour.Shape into parathas and fry with the ghee.
Inspired by the altar of a lady neighbor bedecked with profuse flower arrangements, the garden over here has been expanding. We decided to start growing some other kinds of flowers, so we can offer attractive vases of flowers for our home altar, too!And behind the new floral bed are two curry leaf trees. There's two more west of here. Curry trees grow well near the south side of the
Tostones means fried twice. Made from green plantains. Here's a recipe: tostones The only recipe adjustments were using ghee for frying instead of vegetable oil and using hing instead of garlic. These can make a nice offering for Ekadashi, but in that case, omit the hing.This was my first try at tostones. Still, they came out crip and delicious for Krishna's offering.INGREDIENTS:4
The okra plants in the garden needed thinning. The tender leaves of the new plants make a nice subji or sak, spinach dish. I use this recipe:Zero waste- Okra leaf saagAnd instead of feta cheese just used paneer cubes that were stir fried in ghee and added at the end. I also added the lime juice at the end.INGREDIENTS:3 T ghee2 t ground coriander1/2 t ground cardamon2 large bunches of okra leaves,
I first heard about planting by the moon from The Farmers Almanac, a long time publication here in the US. There are different activities recommended for different phases of the moon. And then I learned that it is also according to what astrological sign the moon is transiting at any given date. Here's a sample website that gets into more detailI did notice a good yield following FA's dates for
INGREDIENTS:1 c split peas, soak overnight and drain Water1 carrot, scraped and chopped1 stick of celery, chopped 1 t salt3-4 T ghee1/2 T fresh ginger root, grated (optional)1 t black mustard seeds1 t cumin seeds1 t ground coriander 1/4 t black pepperPREPARATION:Bring the peas covered in water to a boil. Skim off the foam. Add the salt and vegetables. Cover and cook on
Another “weed” worth posting. It’s edible. It shows here the leaves and seeds. There is one variety that has really sharp thorns. Those need to be pulled up. And then you may be blessed, hopefully, with the thornless type growing prolifically in your garden. It’s cooked like a spinach. The seeds may be used as a cooked cereal or ground into a flour
INGREDIENTS:About 8 cups of chopped cabbage2 T ghee1 T grated ginger1/4 t yellow hing1 t coriander powder1/4 t black pepper1 t turmericSaltpaneer from 1/2 gallon of milkPREPARATION:1. Heat the ghee and add the following spices. The ginger should be browned first, followed by the hing, coriander powder, black pepper, and turmeric in quick succession.2. Add the cabbage and stirfry a few
A lot of whey gets made while making paneer. That extra whey is great in chapati and bread doughs; subjis, and dahl (only after the dahl is cooked and thickened). And here we are using it in a smoothie. Just blend together bananas, whey, roasted nuts and ground cardamom in the proportions desired. It’s that simple. I’m not going to write out a regular recipe here. Just
Often a breakfast item.INGREDIENTS:1 c coarsely ground wheat ( or farina/sooji)4-5 T ghee or butter3 c water1 T ginger, grated 1 t mustard seeds1 t cumin seeds 1 t urad dahl1/4 t hing1/4 t freshly ground black pepper 1/2 t ground coriander 1 sprig curry leaves (optional)1 t fenugreek seeds 3 c chopped veggies ( zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots…)Salt (
After much research and trying to find a local supply of twigs, it was satisfying to discover that my local supplier of twigs was all along right in our front yard. A willow tree. In this case, black willow. Another plus is the bark of this tree contains salicin and this used, with a little preliminary education, as a pain reliever. Salicin is the major component in aspirin
That’s right. Carrots (New Talavan farm fresh, too!). I got off long ago the well beaten path of sugary sweet foods typical in the American diet. And breakfast over here has been evolving ever since. The carrots pictured below accompanied some vegie rice with chickpeas and a bowl of sweetened yogurt.Yesterday it was daikon radish and beets sautéed together with their accompanying
Tulasi just wants to serve. And occasionally we get a chance for a little extra service for her. I started noticing browning on the tips of some of her leaves. So I went to a couple expert devotees for advice. Here was the reply:“This is often diagnosed as black mold... If there is a way to elevate Tulasi Devi off the surface She is sitting on to create an air pocket underneath Her, this
In winter, Tulasi can suffer taken indoors into dry, heated homes in the west, since she likes humidity. This in turn makes the infamous appearance of spider mites. To keep them away and keep Tulasi happy, spray under her leaves morning and evening. For smaller pots of Tulasi, a sprayer attached to a sink works well.Another method is using a spray bottle for bathing, ideally filling
Some people grow it and cut it as needed. Which is ideal. But to store it can be challenging. It doesn’t do well in plastic bags from the grocery store. Some suggest storing it with the tips submerged in water. Others say wrap it in a paper towel. Somewhere came the idea to wrap it unwashed in an absorbent cloth, then put it in the plastic grocery bag. Periodically, remove any aging leaves
Do you ever wonder how villagers in India make yogurt without getting some already made at the store to use as a starter to make your own? Well, several videos on YouTube show how it’s possible. Some make it from tamarind pods or chilies with stems intact. And others from a piece of lemon. We decided to give it a try. Basically you get a little warm milk, enough to cover a slice of