Great escape from a biting three year old

Hamsa Mahapurusha Yoga
Of all my nephews and nieces, this July 15th nephew is my favourite. A strong sun, moon Am going to ignore his married life in future. D60 shows it all. Other aspects, am sure, he will become somebody big. He is god's gift, the first great grandson of my grandfather, in an unbreakable male chain. He has my favourite hamsa mahapurusha yoga, like most babies born in 2010 have.

He made us laugh all the while. Many a times, i caught myself gazing at him. Wonder, how guru being a GK is going to impact hamsa mahapurusha yoga. Like the midnight's children, i wish these 2010, 2014 June 4 borns could grow up soon. Wonder, what they would become.

Action replay
After a late lunch, i was working on the laptop, sprawled on the sofa, when the 3 year old wanted to play with the digicam and laptop. In an effort to save the digicam and the dongle, that was precariously hooked to one end of laptop, i bit my nephew's arm, very lightly and he was wearing a full handed tiny blazer. My mom, her elder sister were there, my bro was there, yet no one took my nephew away from the dongle which was flashing blue lights.

Not to be outdone, he came back to bite me and at last, after many shrieks from my end, my brother and aunt came to my rescue and lifted my nephew tussling to bite me. All my work was stopped now. Thank god, at last, my brother distracted my nephew with a recording of his recitation of A for apple, B for bat sing song. He soon gave up biting and went to sleep. It is a privilege to be with him even for just one day.

He repeated, everything, we said. Amazing, this young age, any language of the world can be mastered. Anything could be learnt and imprinted for life. Wish i could get back my childhood. Either i should be less than 5 or greater than 60 years old. :-)

Kurinja Keerai - Gymnema sylvestre - Meshashringi aka Madhunaashini

Kurinja Keerai - Gymnema sylvestre - Madhunaashini

Yesterday, my train escort's mom came home. A very lean lady with a heavy bottom, a radiant face, sharp nose, pleasant appearance on the whole. I offered her kuppaimeni parantha and keelanelli parantha with paneer. She said kuppaimeni parantha was not bitter. After a while, i showed her other paranthas. She told, how much her daughter disliked my favourite mooli parantha. She also told, how she disliked mom's ration rice yellowish idlis. So much for the government hoopla over scheme distributing inferior rice freely. People feed hens with that rice. And mom makes yellow idlis with that rice. Whatever! That aunty, told mom that she gave her husband kurinja leaves everyday for his diabetes. After reading wiki, i wanted to test, if kurinja keerai, indeed suppressed the sweet taste. No suppression in sweet taste, that i could discern, for i had gulab jamuns, and semiya payasam along with kurinja keerai.

She also introduced saaranai and karkataan keerai. Need to explore this sometime later.

Jamuns, Semiya payasam, Nei paruppu, Kurinja Keerai kootu, Carrot poriyal, Kothavaranga paruppu usili, Kondai kadalai sundal, Ullundu vadai, appalam, Mulangi Sambar, Okra kaara kolambu, Rasam, Curd

Kurinja keerai is a bit bitter, but it is very much eatable as a paruppu kootu with a liberal dose of coconut cumin seed paste.

Medicinal Benefits
See this blog

A member asked guruji, westerners ask us to eat less, more frequently, while we talk about fasts, eating one or two meals, or nothing at all. How to lose weight?

Guruji replied stating, eating meshashringi with honey increases metabolism and thereby helps reduce weight.

2015 update:
Rains, and no one to clean the terrace top, and nature takes over with mango, tamarind leaves decompose providing a nice layer of soil.

Keela Nelli - Phyllanthus niruri - Bhumyamalaki

Keelanelli

Keelanelli Bhumyamlaki Closeup

Medicinal Benefits
Wiki
Not supposed to be had during pregnancy
siddha
herbs

Keelanelli Chutney
On asking mom, how she makes Keelanelli chutney, she said, they just feed it to cows. So in order to escape the bitterness of keelanelli, added corriander, pudhina, curry leaves, coconut and fried channa and urad dal to make the keelanelli chutney. It was quite yummy.
      

Keelanelli Chutney with Aavaram Poo Chutney

Keelanelli Parantha
A trite bitter, but yummy.

Bhumyamlaki Parantha with Amlaki chutney

Ponnankanni - Matsyaksi - Alternanthera Sessilis - Sessile Joyweed

So many varieties of this keerai are there, that every time, i would ask mom, is this also ponnakanni? Reddish ones, the ones i ate as a child, and this one now.

Ponnakanni Leaves

Ponnakanni leaves with flowers

Medicinal benefits

It is good for eyes is what i have been told.
1. See this blog
2. Flowers
3. Divinewellness

Weekend Saturday Samayal
      After PG food, this was sheer ambrosia. Thanks to god for this food and all the blessings. I came home after almost a month after mom's birthday. During Independence day holidays, had gone to sister's place, where i got to drink fresh cow's milk, fresh curd from cow's milk in Sriperumbudur. A rarity in the world of pasteurized milk.

Paasi paruppu payasam, Kathrika Sambar, Rasam, Curd, Nei paruppu, Ponnakanni Kootu, Kothavaranga Paruppu Usili, Roast Moong Papad

Mom said, she would pluck drumstick leaves, but went to office, without getting me the leaves. While coming back, she came with ponnakanni, keelanelli, kuppaimeni and paruppu keerai leaves - all plucked from the thickets inside her factory compound walls. The keerai kootu in the picture has both ponnakanni and a little bit of paruppu keerai. I left the kuppaimeni and keelanelli alone, to make them separately, so as to discern their individual tastes.

Mom cleaned and chopped the leaves and made the coconut cumin seeds paste. With a little bit of moong dal and thuvar dal, Ponnakanni paruppukeerai kootu was ready in minutes.

Maramallis
      Come september, the divine fragrance of maramallis simply stops me on the road. Every morning, it is a carpet of these fragrant maramallis. With screeching crickets, and plenty of open space, god! it feels so good after pg in bangalore.


Recipes

Ponnankanni Kootu
Wash and cut leaves.
Heat oil/ghee, splutter mustards and add curry leaves, and a little asafoetida powder
Saute the cut leaves till the volume reduces
Add turmeric, salt, water and let it cook till leaves are soft
Add cooked dal, coconut cumin seed paste and mix well
After coconut paste is added, take it off flame within a minute.

Kothavaranga paruppu usili
My colleague BK introduced me to various usilis in 2004-05. She would say that her mom made a rice paste, always made vathal puli kozhambus.
recipe

Rasam
It is tamarind very rarely for rasams or sambhar. Mostly just tomatoes, raw mango or lemon.
Grind a little pepper, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, one chilli, curry leaves coarsely in mixie
Heat few drops of oil, saute the ground mix, add asafoetida
Saute cut tomatoes and add water, salt, turmeric, a little bit of coriander leaves
When rasam starts frothing, before it comes to boil, take it off flame and garnish with coriander, curry leaves

Simple Sambhar
Heat oil, fry mustards, curry leaves, asafoetida
Saute cut vegetables- brinjal and lots of tomatoes in the absence of tamarind
Add turmeric, coriander powder, chilli powder, salt, mix well
Add the water in which brinjal was soaked.
Once vegetable is partially cooked, add cooked dal, cook for 3-4 minutes
Finally, do a tadka with ghee or oil, mustards, asafoetida and curry leaves

Instant Paasi paruppu payasam
Need something sweet to start and end a meal. My payasams are not traditional, they are instant, for i start late close to 12 pm and have to finish before mom returns from office around 12:40 pm. Even if nothing is available, i mash a little cooked rice/wheat flour/multi grain flour/aval or poha/rava to liberal dose of jaggery, ghee, milk, add lots of nuts fried in ghee with ellaichi

In the slowest flame, heat ghee, fry nuts and keep nuts aside.
Add pressure cooked moong dal to this ghee and stir gently
Mix lots of powdered jaggery and ellaichi to dal
Add thick milk to this mix, after taking off flame (to prevent curdling of milk)
Garnish with nuts fried in ghee