The Autumn Palette

The September equinox just passed and the Autumn palette is painted all around with the amber glows, the gold spills , the fluorescent yellows, the deep reds,  warm oranges and the browns. I am lucky to live in this part of the world where Nature paints its best , before getting into the deep winter sleep. With a good number of warm sunny days coupled with cool crispy nights -  the colors this year are truly breathtaking. One of the best times of the year for my walks in the woods is now and walking in autumn is full of fresh air, vibrancy and I totally immerse myself in the beauty of these glowing reds, oranges and yellows. Join me in this colorful walk where each leaf shines like a flower bathing in the sunlight...

This is just the beginning. Watch this space for more. And what are you waiting for? If you have autumn colors near you - use the weekend to stroll through them.

All pictures by me

linking to   Sundays In My City 
Patty's Weekly Story at Coloursdekor

An apple a day keeps the doctor away

I am not a big fan of  Apples. But I have a friend who is in Norway for a short stay and the only thing she asks me is for APPLES - straight from the tree. I have few apple trees in the garden but I never really go pick them :-). So this week for G  I went on this small picnic into my garden ...

 

Some of them were baked by Ingela into an apple cake and the hot cake tasted YUMM!!! with the vanilla icecream.

 Some of them were pressed into this pure clear sugar free apple juice at a nearby apple factory - given by G

Why are apples good BTW

• Pectin -- Pectin is a form of soluble fiber than lowers both blood pressure and glucose levels. It can also lower the levels of LDL, or "bad" cholesterol in the body. Pectin, like other forms of fiber, helps maintain the health of the digestive system. Apples are an excellent source of pectin.
• Boron -- A nutrient found in abundance in apples, boron supports strong bones and a healthy brain.
• Quercetin -- A flavonoid, this nutrient shows promise for reducing the risk of various cancers, including cancers in the lungs and breast. It may also reduce free radical damage. Free radicals develop when atoms in the body's cells have unpaired electrons, which can lead to damage to different parts of the cell, including DNA. Quercetin may neutralize free radical damage, which has been implicated in a variety of age-related health problems, including Alzheimer's disease.
• Vitamin C -- Vitamin C boosts immunity, which helps maintain overall health.
• Phytonutrients -- Apples are rich in a variety of phytonutrients, including vitamins A and E and beta carotene. These compounds fight damage from free radicals and can have a profound affect on health, including reducing the risk of heart disease, diabetes and asthma.

So let us follow this proverb as first recorded in 1866 - "Eat an apple on going to bed, and you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread." 

All pictures by me and Text about health benefits of apples from here 

My forgotten treasures

I bought these sculptured porcelain spoons long long ago in one of my trips to Prague. Yes Prague is synonym to crystal but I was so happy when I spotted these fine porcelain in one of those many narrow streets off the Wenceslas square. Each spoon had a name and was packed into a box with its picture on it and with the name of the designer and the sculptor too. That's amazing isn't it? Very conveniently I tucked them off into one of the storage almirahs and with time completely forgot their existence, until a recent spree of decluttering unearthed them :-). I am not sure what treasures my kith and kin will discover in their attempt to empty my loft and cupboards when I am dead and gone :-). Do you have the same problem of forgetting things that you buy that are safely tucked into some forgotten corners or do you keep track of them all  -  tips Please.

The base of the "Fluttering Beauty"

  
Common Poppy

Dragonfly

  
Brilliant Blooms - Canna Lily

  
Their delicacy and finesse - enhancing the joy of owning fine porcelain

and adds that li'l extra to the cosy tea times

Have a nice weekend
all pictures by me 

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Show and Tell Friday

Are you a sucker for color ?

I AM!!!! Pastels are my all time favorite and they look even better when combined with tone on tone objects du jour. These spaces found me drooooooooooooooooooling over again and again....

Images here 

A day with the spring .........

I am not day dreaming. You heard it right. I know it is easy to look to Spring than to Autumn. . It is actaully a day with Spring......................... rolls :-). For years I have been wanting to learn them and somehow never got to doing it. Today my Japanese friend Mikuko taught us - me and my son how to make spring rolls and when I went in, I thought I had to slave over the rest of the evening. But it was much easier than I thought or should I say - with M  around nothing will be too difficult :-). 

 

She threw in some finely chopped ginger garlic on to a hot pan with sesame oil and then emptied the finely cut Crispy veggies one after the other. Some boiled shredded chicken was put in too. 

 

Then came in the glass noodles, soya sauce and a dash of pepper and salt. After sauting for few minutes the mix was ready to be wrapped in. Since this was my first time it was fun tearing apart the wraps too. 

Lo ! here we are,

 
 but what hapenned to the steps between the sheets and the wraps ? I got too excited and busy wrapping them that I totally forgot about the camera, clicks and the blog :-). Fair enough, I was there to learn the Spring rolls. 

As always a delicious dinner followed. She is a great hostess and within minutes she can serve a galore of specialities. She can make Dosa, Vada, Sambhar, Idi appam (South Indian breakfasts) with the same ease as she makes Suhsi , rolls, Noodles, cakes and pies.  She is not running a hotel but she can make anything and everything. I know none who can make rounder vadas than her. My kids, who usually fuss over to go for dinner parties,  readily jump at her invitation.  Mikuko we are lucky to have you around us.

Kitchen Special

The title sounds a bit scary on my blog to those of you who know me by now. The first sentence with which I entered the blogland was - 'I have a kitchen becoz I got one with the house :-)'. Then are you curious to see what I am up to in the kitchen special. Walking in the speciality Norwegian shops these days is like walking in the streets of India. The last thing I could imagine to make way to their tablescapes is ........ any guesses ??

 these chargers

Yess ! that is what I am saying, are nothing but our very own Roti Chaklas ( the plates to roll out Indian bread).... 

I am wondering how would the Belan's (rolling pins) follow next :-)

Need holders for ting and tang .....

 How about some dangling spoons n forks

See you again on the other side of the weekend.

linking to

Thrifty Thursdays 

Tablescape Thursday