Pico Di Gallo / Salsa

How about a fresh condiment which is quick, tasty, easy and no cooking needed.. Sounds too good to be true? Here is a Mexican condiment which is very famous of their cuisine and tastes mind blowing delicious. Its simplicity is just admirable. For part of Taste and Create, I am paired with Tamy. She has a nice blog and a variety of recipes and decorating ideas. I chose this simple salsa recipe from her blog and made some changes to it for our preference.

Liebster Award

Liebster Award

Awards are a sign of appreciation and motivation. I am very happy to receive my first blog award from Achu of Tangyminds. Thanks to Achu for giving me this award and am very happy for it. Do check her blog which has a lot of interesting and rare recipes (some to mention are - Dilpasand, Apple strudel, Granola trifles) . This award also comes with a game which is very interesting as you get to know more about the blogger friends.

Rules for receiving award:
1) Each person must post 11 things about themselves.
2) Answer the questions the tagger has set for you.
3) Choose 11 people and link them in your post.
4) Create 11 questions for the people you’ve tagged to answer.
5) Go to their page and tell them.
6) Remember, no tag back.
Rule 1: Post 11 things about yourself

1. Love spending time with my family
2. Love to cook and share the food I cook
3. Love to take photos (people and food)
4. Documents things to make sure I do not forget
5. I try my best not to lie
6. I love listening to music
7. Love watching cooking shows (read only GOOD cooking shows)
8. I like to do things more planned and in an organized way
9. I multi task
10. I talk a lot about healthy food (some I follow)
11. I believe "Home made food is the healthiest food on the planet". Even Home made fast food is healthier than store bought salads. - I believe this.

Rule 2: Answer the tagger's questions

What was the inspiration behind your blog? - My passion for cooking, documenting and photography
Which one do you prefer: A vacation trip to mountains or islands? - Islands
Craziest thing you've ever done ? - U turn my car in a very small road (less than 10 feet) with both sides of the road being a ditch and the bus driver continuously honking behind!!!
What is your idea for a perfect breakfast? - Pongal and Chutney
Who is your favorite blogger? - Many
What kind of music do you enjoy? - Melody and Carnatic
What is your idea of a perfect vacation? - Well planned, relaxing, lots of pictures, good food
What is your favorite past time? Spending time with family, Cooking, Blogging, Music
Which is your favorite place to shop in this world? Why? - T. Nagar... You get a festival feel all the time!!
Are you active or quiet or calm person? Active
What quality do you most like in yourself and why? - I try my best not to lie and keep up what I say. I am a strong believer that the biggest asset for anybody (rich or poor) is their word and if they cannot keep it up, then they are liable to themselves.

Rule 3: Tag and pass the awards to 11 other bloggers - This is actually very hard as I follow so many blogs and if I have to choose only 11..... I am trying my best here. I have some interesting questions for you. Please feel free to answer them at your time and will.

Champa
Jagruti
Nithu
Divya GCP
Sangeetha
Raks kitchen
Sharmis passions
Vardhini
Mireille
Krithi's kitchen
DK

Rule 4: Create 11 questions for the bloggers to answer

1. How many blogs do you visit and read daily?
2. Which social networking site (facebook, twitter, networked blogs, subscribe option, google connect) is the best according to you and why?
3. Which camera and lens do you use?
4. What is your favorite movie?
5. When doing a completely new recipe, do you follow the original completely or make changes as you do?
6. Which recipe took many tries before it came out to your satisfaction?
7. Your favorite pass time
8. How do you store your bookmarked recipes?
9. How do your store your recipes that are tried and tested - other than your blog?
10. How many items do you have in the draft ready right now?
11. How many food blog events do you participate in a month - approximately?

Again, very happy to receive this award and happy to pass it to 11 bloggers. Congratulations to the bloggers who have won this award. Please share your valuable comments.

Achari Paneer

A very interesting dish with Paneer. The same can be made with potatoes also. I was very skeptical while doing this dish for 2 reasons – no garam masala powder and no whole garam masala also. I have not tasted a paneer dish without these masala spices and was not sure how this will turn out. I got the recipe from here and this one is surely a keeper. This tastes best when served hot and goes well with roti, naan, white rice or pulao. I have used dried dill leaves here, you can use the fresh ones too. Make sure to chop them fine. 

Garbanzo Beans Salad

You on diet – eat salad… Salad is considered a very healthy food.. and sometimes boring food too. People imagine salad as a combination of uncooked vegetables mostly spinach, lettuce, onions and some salad dressing to add all the calories reduced by the vegetables. This salad is very refreshing and tastes best when served cold. It is very rich in protein (all credit to garbanzo beans). The nice potato chips topping (2 or 3 chips per serving) gives an interesting taste, texture and dimension to this salad. I got this recipe from here.  Make sure to add the potato chips just before serving or it will loose it crispness.

Paasi Parupu Paniyaram

Paniyarams are quick food that are served hot. These are cute paniyarams which are very colorful and tasty. Adjust the green chili to taste. Make sure to chop the leaves fine. Addition of onion makes this one extra special. You can also avoid green chili and ginger and add pepper powder instead. I got this recipe from here and made very few changes. This batter is a boon to have on hand. Can be made the previous day and the paniyarams can be made in a jiffy for a breakfast, lunchbox or quick tiffin. You will need a kuzhi paniyaram pan to do this. I have used the non stick pan, so I needed just a few drops of oil per paniyaram. Traditional iron skillet may consume more oil.