Monthly Mingle - Scintillating Salads

This is a Monthly Mingle and I invite you all to take part in this mingle by sending in your salad entries. Yes! The theme for this mingle is Scintillating Salads!

Salads are versatile and makes a great start to any meal - incorporating all the goodness and freshness from the freshest ingredients available on the planet. Salads can be served as any part of the meal - appetizer salads, side salads, main course salads, dessert salads etc.

Salad is any of a wide variety of dishes including vegetable salads; salads of legumes, grains, pasta; mixed salads incorporating meat, poultry, seafood; and fruit salads. Green salads include leaf lettuce and leafy vegetables with a sauce and dressing. Other salads are based on pasta, noodles or gelatin. Most salads are traditionally served cold, although some, such as south German potato salad, are served warm.

With umpteen number of options and varieties of salads available, adorn your thinking hats and blog about your favorite salad and send it to the mingle this month!

Here are a few guidelines for the event:

1. Create a dish that fits the "Scintillating Salads" theme.
2. Post about it in your blog from now until September 30, 2011 (entries must be in English)
3. Your creation should be prepared for the current Monthly Mingle theme and shared with a maximum of 2 other blog events.
4. Please provide a link to this post and the official Monthly Mingle page.
5. Once you have posted the dish, please send the following details to divyablogs[AT]gmail.com on or before September 30, 2011.

Now, go start tossing your favorite salads!! Here are some salad ideas!

Show Me Your Dosa!

After a little break from the Show Me Your.. series, I am here with another theme. It is going to be dosas this time. Dosa is a staple breakfast in South India. You can never find any home without a grinder to make dosa batter. Even people moving abroad, never forget to pack a grinder along with their luggage. It is that famous!!

Dosa is a fermented crepe made with rice and black lentils. The dosa is rich in carbohydrates, contains no salt, sugar or saturated fats and its constituent ingredients of rice and lentils mean that it is gluten-free and contains protein. The fermentation process increases the vitamin B and vitamin C content. There are various ways of transliterating dosa: dose, dhosha, dosay, dosai, dhosai, tosai, thosai, or dvashi. There are several different kinds of dosas made with different grains and legumes. Dosa can also be made healthy with brown rice and beans.

Here are some guidelines for the event:
Blog about your favorite dosa and email me the following details to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com on or before July 31, 2011:
Name:
Recipe name:
Recipe URL:
Attach a picture of your final dish:
Feel free to use the logo.
Link your blog post to this event announcement.

Archived entries are allowed. But please link back to this announcement.
Non-bloggers can email your recipe and picture to the above email address.

Looking forward to all your delicious dosa entries!

Show me Your Summer Cooler!

It is summer in most parts of the world and it is time to chill out with some refreshing summer drinks! It might be so hot outside and you might not feel like slaving yourself cooking up meals at the kitchen. Go make yourself a refreshing drink to chill yourself and beat the heat! Summer involves so many activities like outdoor water fun, gardening, beaches, bike rides, beach trips and outdoor games. Top all these fun activities with summer coolers!

All you have to do is to whip up a quick and refreshing summer cooler, blog about it and send it across to me. It can be any type of drink - lemonades, sodas, ice teas, fruit juices etc.

Here are a few guidelines..

• Post a recipe of your favorite summer drink in your blog during the month of May. Archived entries are not allowed.
• Please link back to this announcement and feel free to use the logo.
• Also do shoot me an email to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com before May 31st with the following details.
• Name
• Blog Name:
• URL of the post:
• Picture of the drink:  

Thanks for sending your lovely entries for Show Me Your Muffin event. Will be posting the roundup soon.

To start, check out this watermelon lemonade recipe! Now, GO chill out with your favorite drink!

Show Me Your Muffin and the giveaway winner!

To check out the winner of the giveaway, please scroll down to the bottom!

I am here with the next edition of "Show Me Your.. " series.  After breakfasts, cakes, omelettes, lunchboxes, curries, fridges, wholegrains, cookbooks, salads, sandwiches, smoothies and soups it is MUFFINS this time! Muffins have always been our favorite be it plain ones to ones with nuts and chocolate! They are great finger foods and even make a wholesome breakfast.

So get out your aprons and baking pans and start baking your muffins. Send them across for this event. Some guidelines for the event.

• Create a blog post featuring your muffin recipe.
• Feel free to use the logo.
• Please link back to this announcement page.
• Eggs are allowed in recipes.
• Multiple entries are allowed. 
• Archived posts are allowed if you provide a link to this announcement page. 
• Email your entries to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com on or before April 30, 2011.

And the lucky winner of the CSN giveaway chosen randomly is..

Swapna of Simple vegetarian Recipes!

Thanks everyone for participating and sharing about your favorite cookware!

Show Me Your Soup!

,It is freezing out there in many parts of the world and what can be more comforting than a warm bowl of soup and some crusty bread to dunk in it. After showing off your cookbooks, it is time to get cooking your favorite soups this month.

According to Wikipedia, "Soup is a food that is made by combining ingredients such as meat and vegetables with stock, juice, water or some liquid base. Traditionally, soups are classified into two main groups: clear soups and thick soups. Soups are similar to stews, and in some cases there may not be a clear distinction between the two. Generally though, soups have more liquid than stews.

Homemade soups are ideal for any healthy meal plan. So, get out your aprons and start cooking your favorite soups with your favorite ingredients.

Some guidelines for the event...

All you have to do is prepare your soup with any ingredient, blog about it and fill the details in the following form!

Please link back your post to this event announcement. 

Your soup can be vegetarian or non-vegetarian.

Archived entries are allowed if reposted and linked back to this announcement page.

Feel free to use the logo.

Send in all your entries to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com before Feb 28, 2011.

Veggie/Fruit of the month : Potato

This event was started by Priya and is all about veggies and fruits. Every month a veggie or fruit will be features and you could share your delicious recipes made out of the star ingredient. Thanks Priya, for the opportunity to host this lovely event. The star vegetable chosen for this month is Potato.
Who does not like potato right? We have countless recipes using the humble potatoes and countless varieties of potatoes - Baby Potatoes, fingerling Potatoes, Red potatoes. Purple Potatoes and the list goes on.. The potato is a versatile vegetable that is available in almost every country and all through the year.

Here are some guidelines for the event..

Cook any dish featuring POTATO. It could be a breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner. It could be any course of the meal. But the main ingredient has to be potato. It can be cooked in any way or it can even be in raw form.

The recipe has to be vegetarian. Eggs are allowed.

You HAVE to make new recipes for this event. Archived posts are not allowed.

Please send in your entries by January 31st, 2011 to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com with the following details.

Name:
Recipe URL:
Picture attached:

Please link you blog post to the original event post along with this event announcement page.

Link your post to the original event post along with a link to this announcement page.

Feel free to use the logo.

Non bloggers can also email me your entry with a picture of the dish.

Happy cooking and have a great New Year!!

picture source: www.disney.com

Show Me Your Cookbook!

After my Cookbook Review, I noticed that even though I have a few cookbooks, I have never been cooking with them much. They lie in a corner of my kitchen collecting dust. I usually find it easy to find a certain recipe online or in other blogs. Last weekend, when I was browsing my cookbooks, I realized how each cookbook had a personality and style of cooking which cannot be obtained just from browsing online. The various pictures in the book look really appealing and enticing me to cook! Hence, the theme for this edition of "Show Me Your".. event series.

I have decided that I should try atleast one recipe a week from any of my cookbooks, so that I get to know new recipes, put my cookbooks into good use and also find a reason to blog my creations!

Few guidelines for the event:
For the event, all you have to do is click a picture of your favorite cookbook/cookbooks or your entire cookbook shelf and send it over! In your post you could also list the name of all the cookbooks your proudly own, and also any interesting stories you would like to share regarding your cookbooks.

Please link back your post to this event announcement.

Please include all details in a single post. If you have any archived post featuring your cookbooks, you could very well send them over linking back to this post.

Send me an email to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com with the following details:
Name:
Blog Name:
Permalink of your blogpost:

Please send in your entries before December 31, 2010.


Happy Cooking and also do check out my new Food Blog Events Calendar!

Clip art licensed from the Clip Art Gallery on DiscoverySchool.com

My Legume Love Affair (MLLA #28) - Event Announcement

Hello Foodie Friends..
Am back all charged up after my trip to India.. Will catch up with all your posts soon.. Am here with an exciting event announcement.

Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook offered me the opportunity to host October's edition of My Legume Love Affair (MLLA #28). Thank you Susan!

What is a legume?
According to Wikipedia, “A legume in botanical writing is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or a fruit of these specific plants. A 'legume' fruit is a simple dry fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually dehisces (opens along a seam) on two sides. A common name for this type of fruit is a pod, although "pod" is also applied to a few other fruit types, such as vanilla. Well-known legumes include alfalfa, clover, peas, beans, lentils, lupins, mesquite, carob, soy, and peanuts.”

Fresh or dried beans, lentils, pulses, and/or the sometimes edible pods that contain these seeds, derivative products like tofu or besan,  fenugreek, carob, peanuts, etc are all acceptable ingredients for this event.

MLLA is all about the legumes of any sort as the main draw. Hence, please note that the "legume" being used for the dish must be the main ingredient rather than an auxiliary one.

Here are some of the rules for participating in this event:

• Post any recipe on your blog with any legume as the main ingredient during the month of October. Use of logo is optional.
• Please link back to this announcement post and also to MLLA host line up page on The Well Seasoned Cook .
• All courses and cuisines (vegetarian/vegan/non-vegetarian) are welcome, as long as legumes are the dominant ingredient. 
• Multiple recipes are allowed (although only one submission will be counted towards the random drawing). Recipes submitted to other events are also allowed. Recipes from archives can be accepted ONLY if updated and reposted as current.   
• Email your recipes to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com with the following details on or before Oct 30: 

1. Name:
2. Location: (required)
3. URL of the recipe:
4. Picture of any size: (optional yet preferred)

•  Location of each participant is necessary to know who qualifies to win the Hurst Bean prize, shipped to U.S. residents only. If you don't want your location published in the round-up, please indicate this in your email so that I can maintain your privacy.
• For those who dont have a blog, pls send me the recipe and other details and I will gladly add that to the round up as well. Such entries also make eligible the participants to win the random drawing. 

Here comes the best part of the event:
Susan has offered to sponsor two exciting prizes to a randomly selected winner:

1) Winner chooses any cookbook or food-related book from Amazon U.S. valued at not more than 15USD, not including shipping.  This prize is offered by Susan at her expense and includes worldwide shipping.  Susan does not receive any compensation from Amazon.

2) Hurst Bean Box - A case of six bags of the winner's choice of Hurst Bean products, suitable for every diet, sponsored by Hurst Bean. (Due to shipping restrictions, this prize can only be awarded if the winner is a U.S. resident.) FTC Notice: In May 2010, Susan, at her request, received two Hurst Bean complimentary products which are not available for purchase in her local markets. Susan does not generally accept free products from Hurst Bean nor is she financially compensated by them.

Drawing Structure - If the winner is a U.S. resident, she/he will be the recipient of both Prizes 1 and 2 above.  In the event that an international winner is drawn, a second drawing will be conducted from the U.S. pool of entrants to ensure that the Hurst Prize is awarded every month.  The international winner will receive the book, and the U.S. winner will receive the Hurst Prize.

What are you waiting for? Start cooking!! Looking forward to your entries..

What's on my Fridge Door?

Show Me Your Refrigerator is the ongoing event here in my blog. Almost every kitchen has a refrigerator and I thought it would be fun peeking into each others kitchen. All you need to do is snap a picture of your refrigerator. It can be anything related to your fridge - be it the front door, freezer or even the contents inside the fridge, vegetable crisper, freezer door etc.

Here is mine!

It has a magnetic notepad in the lower left corner to note down my grocery list, some magnets collected as souvenirs during our trips, some fun Yahoo! emoticons, and a paper butterfly..

Now it is your turn to show me yours!!

Last date to send in your entries - July 30th.
Check here for more details.
Non-bloggers can email me your photos and I shall include them in the roundup..

Show Me Your Refrigerator

I wanted to have some different theme for this month's Show Me Your.. series. When I was cleaning out my kitchen and pantry, I was thinking of some fun topic and I decided that this would be a nice theme for the month. This month's event is all about REFRIGERATORS!

SHOW ME YOUR REFRIGERATOR! Show me your refrigerator and I will tell you who you are! It is a fun saying...What about you folks? Have you ever tried to sneak into others' refrigerator? It is time to sneak into others refrigerator.

It can be anything concerned with your fridge. You will have to post a picture of your refrigerator. It can be any picture featuring your fridge door magnets, photos and organizers in your fridge door, freezer hoardings, your beautifully arranged condiments in your fridge door, your crisper or even a messy fridge as it is..

Non-bloggers can email me a picture with your name and I shall include it in the roundup.

Please email me the following details to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com before July 30th.

• Name
• Blog Name
• Picture of your refrigerator

Please limit two entries (photos) per person.

Start clicking! Looking forward to your entries.

Global Kadai Roundup

Burritos and wraps are easy to make with any sort of filling and they are so handy and convenient. They are versatile and can be filled with practically any filling. Here is the roundup of the Global Kadai event, which is an event started by Cilantro wherein you make an indianized version of the global recipe chosen for the month. Burritos/wraps was the theme chosen for last month. Thanks to all my fellow bloggers who came in with wonderful versions of burritos.

Cilantro - Chicken Burrito
Muskaan - Veg Baja Gordita


Muskaan - Easy Veggie Wrap
Muskaan - Mediteraanean Vegetable Wraps


Madhavi - Paneer Potato Frankie
Denny - Mushroom masala burrito


Usha Rao - Egg Roll
Kanchan - Egg wrap/Frankie


Sonal Agarwal - Paneer Tikka Wraps
Az - Chicken Wrap/Roll


Priya - Soya Chunks and Potato Masala Wraps
Simply Food - Bean burritos with an indianized touch


Jyoti - Chilli Paneer Wraps
Priya - Capsicum and Tofu Zunka Wraps


Kalai - Bean Enchiladas
Premalatha Aravindhan - Bean Burritos


Nisha - Beef Burritos with refried beans and Indian spices
LK -Paneer Burrito with Mango-Avocado Guacamole
Sonal Agarwal - Rajma wraps


PS - Basic Bean and Rice Burrito
Priya Srinivasan - Homemade Tortilla veggie Wraps


Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal - Indian Flavored Burrito
Roopam Garg - Paneer and spinach wrap


Niloufer Riyaz - Reshmi Paneer Tortilla Wrap
Niloufer Riyaz - Tandoori Chicken tortilla Wrap


Divya Vikram - Bottlegourd Wraps
Sanyukhta Gour - Stuffed Moong dal Burrito

Show Me Your Smoothie!

After an edition of Show Me Your WholeGrains, I am here with another edition! It is going to be smoothies this time! With the summer creeping in, in some parts of the world and summer at its peak in some others, it is difficult slaving inside the kitchen preparing meals. Smoothies and juices are a great way to make a meal with all those nutrients in there and can be whipped up in a jiffy.
Take out your blenders and mixers and start whipping up your favorite smoothie/juice/shakes/summer coolers with your favorite seasonal fruits or whatever you may like.

Some guidelines for the event..

Post a smoothie/juice/shake/drink recipe between May7th and June 15th.

You could send in a maximum of five entries.

If you have any entries already posted in your archive, please repost the link during the event duration.

Link back to this announcement page.

Feel free to use the logo.

Send me an email to divyablogs[AT]gmail[DOT]com before June 15th with the following details:
Subject: Show me your smoothie!
Name:
Recipe Name:
Recipe URL:
Picture attached:

Looking forward to your entries!

Image source

Healing Foods - Spinach Roundup

After much delay, I am here with the roundup of Healing Foods - Spinach roundup. Thanks a lot Siri, for giving me the opportunity to host this lovely event. I also extend my gratitude to all my fellow bloggers who sent in their healthy and delicious entries for this event. I received around 85 entries for the event!!
Onto the roundup..
Lakshmi - Spanakopita
Meeso - Greek Garbanzo Stew with spinach


Simply.Food - Spinach Dhokla
Jagruti - Spinach and dryfruit puffs


Tien - Spinach and Shallot Side dish
Sowmya Arun - Spinach Chapati/Tortilla

Kalai - Palak paneer
Muskaan - Spinach Strawberry peach Salad


Sudha - Spinach Kofta Curry
Aruna - Spinach Kootu


Jyoti - Palak Aaloo Paratha
Padhu - Potato spinach curry


TnS - Spinach Paratha
Jyoti V - Stuffed Pasta with Spinach



LK - Palak Paneer
Latha - Spinach and Ridgegourd sambar


Sumi - Spinach Mushroom Quesadilla
Shabitha - Spinach mushroom Curry


Ruchikacooks - South Indian Spinach kadhi
LK - Spinach Paratha

Valarmathi - Spinach and Tofu Stirfry
Suma Gandlur - Spinach Carrot Dosas


Kalyani and Gayatri Rajamani - Keerai Kootu
Veggie - Monologues - Burmese Spinach Mushroom Stirfry


Sumi - Spanokopita
Sweatha - Spanakorizo


Nandini - Palak Paneer
Nandini - Methi Chaman
Nandini - Spinach and Scrambled egg stir-fry


Sanyukta - Lahsuni Palak Saag
Madhuri - Palak Chutney
Shama - Spinach Mor Curry


Alison - Spinach Cucumber and Avocado Salad
Sonal - Corn Palak


Niloufer - Shikampur Kebab
Alison - Spinach Avocado and Tofu Smoothie


Premalatha Aravindhan - Spinach kofta in yogurt sauce
Niloufer - Tofu and spinach soup with spaghetti


Swetha - Palak Dal
Preethi - Palak Kadhi


Saraswathi - Vendaya Keerai Sadam
Saraswathi - Dill Leaves poriyal


Saraswathi - Keerai Kootu
Saraswathi - Methi Chapathi


Rupali - Brown Rice and Spinach Pilaf
Nandita - Whole Wheat Penne in Spinach Sauce
Shabs - Spinach and ricotta cannelloni


PJ - Palak Dhal
Swapna - Spinach Sambar


Nandhini - Spinach Vada
Nandhini - Palak Chicken
Prani - Palak Chapathi


Nisha - Spanakopita
Mythreyee - Spicy Dal Palak


Nithu Bala - Spinach and Peas Pulao
Nithu Bala - Palak Mutter Paneer


Usha - Spinach Rice
Nithu Bala - Spinach poriyal


Usha - Kheema Palak
Usha - Spinach Raita


Maya - Keerai Kadayal
Meena Krishnan - Spinach Pancakes


Priya- Spinach masiyal with coconut milk
Priya- Stuffed cheese spinach and oat buns


Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal - Palak Paneer kofta
Vanamala - Spinach Rice


Shri - Sauteed Spinach
Mahimaa - Spinach Masiyal
Vidhya Iyer - Spinach Potato Dhal


Priya - Spinach and Flax Seeds Paratha
Kanchan - Hara Bara Kabab


Kiran - Spinach - Cranberry bottlegourd sambar
Kiran - Spinach rice


Swapna - Spinach Pathroda
Radhika - Sigappu Mulai Keerai Masiyal


Harini - Jaya - Palak Thonthanam
Suma Gandlur - Spinach Tomatillo Masoor Dal


Cooking Foodie - Palak Paneer
Kamalika - Mixed Vegetables with steamed chicken balls


Cooking Foodie - Spinach and Cheese Spirals
Goveggo - Spinach Curry


Kamalika - Stuffed Spinach Chicken Breast
Kamalika - Baked Spinach Chicken with baked potato


Sanyukta - Go Green
Sanyukta - Spinach Dal


Sanyukta - Spinach Egg Curry
Sanyukta - Bicolor Patty
Roha Khan - Hyderabadi Palak ka salan



Do send in your entries for Global Kadai by May 7th!