December already?

Is anyone else surprised that it is mid December already? Or is it just me? I feel like this year passed by so quickly. I find that interesting because this year was not one of the best years and I guess it is a good thing that it flew by.
This past weekend, we had a girls weekend out and I must say that it was pretty interesting. We all had our own light bulb moments. I should hang out with just my girl friends more.:) Anyways, here's what I wore one of the nights. The weather was so amazing in Austin and all of sudden, I missed being in Austin. I always thought Denton was my second home, but I am now ready to move my home.

Dress: Limited
Shoes: JCpenny

Post Thanksgiving post :)

This is my last week in Austin and I am back today after a whirlwind trip to New Jersey after I spent an amazing thanksgiving with my two beautiful sisters and friends. We spent a lot of time cooking, eating, and playing board games. It was way too much fun!! We also went Ice skating at the Rockafeller center; something my youngest sis wanted to do for a really long time. None of us really know how to skate but it was fun nevertheless and  laughed a lot.

I want to give thanks to my beautiful family and old friends that keep me going no matter what and new ones who make life interesting. I never thank my parents. They are most supportive parents anyone could ever hope of having.Today, I just want to say how grateful I am to have them.

Much Love Mommy and Papa!

I am sharing a picture of the Thanksgiving feast we all had. 

Took all day to cook this meal:)

Me, Akhi (my lil sis) and Aakriti with help from Manoj and Maneesh made the Turkey, Chicken 65, Onion Pakoda, Butternut Squash soup, pasta, Veg Biryani and Pecan pie.

Everything was a success except my butternut squash soup. I was disappointed that it did not turn out the way I hoped. On the other hand, the pecan pie was a rave. Everybody loved it. We ended up eating it out of the pie dish with Ice cream. YUM!!

I hope all of you had a great thanksgiving!!

Holiday season is almost here!

This year, me and my sisters decided that were going to make Thanksgiving dinner and for dessert I want to make pecan pie. I have never made any kind of pie before so, this is kind of my dry run for the actual day. It actually turned out pretty good; if I can say so myself.;) I took it to work for my colleagues and they liked it. Mission accomplished. The pie crust I used was store bought, but here's what I used for the filling.

2 cups White sugar
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 cup pecans
3 whole eggs
1 cup corn syrup
1/3 cup butter
1/2 tbsp salt.

The recipe is so simple, I could make it all the time. Just mix all the ingredients except the pecans. Pecans go in the pie shell and then I put in the mixture in top and baked it for about 1 hr 10 min and cooled it overnight. and DONE!

Ready, set. eat!

Bang! Bang!

There is something about a hair cut that just renews you. I got myself bangs this weekend and I feel sassy! A blow dry just makes a girl feel great. I love my new hair and I could not stop asking my sister who went with me to the salon how I looked all weekend.:) Here's a peek.

Pictures from my phone- Thanks to Instagram!

To all my fellow Indians-- Happy Diwali- The festival of lights!!:D

Evening snack: Dhokla

Dhokla is a traditional Gujrati (West Indian) snack famous for its sweet and sour taste. It is a fluffy sponge like bread normally made with fermented chickpea flour. It is normally served with some coriander/mint chutney. I have not had Dhokla a lot, me being from Southern India and all. The most clear memory of  having Dhokla was actually after I moved to the US. One of my then room mates was an amazing cook and she had made it one evening. Today, I used the instant Dhokla mix that can be bought at most Indian stores.

Instant Dhokla mix

There are instructions on the box, but I did add a few of my ingredients to make it more flavorful. I added ginger paste, yogurt, oil and some water to make a paste. I made sure that the mixture was not too watery. I then transferred it to a container and then steamed it. You can also use a microwave if you prefer. But, you will have to be careful to cover the container as the microwave can easily dry out your Dhokla.
For the tadka/ dressing, I used mustard seeds, some green chilies, curry leaf, asafoetida and some cilantro.

Fluffy Dhokla all dressed!

Ready to eat!:)

Enjoy! Have a great rest of the week!

Go Bananas!

Today, I decided to try a new recipe from the food network website. I had some ripe bananas which were begging me to eat them, so I decided to got for a frozen banana sorbet. I also wanted to make caramel sauce, as I love to drizzle it on top. Here's what I used:
For the Banana sorbet:
2 ripe bananas
1 tbsp lemon concentrate ( The original recipe asks for fresh lemon, but I did not have any at home)
2 tbsp honey
Few peanuts for some texture.

I froze the bananas for about 3 hours, peeled them and processed in a blender with the lemon juice and honey until pureed  with some chunks left over. All I did was scooped it in to a bowl and ate it with some home made caramel sauce.

For the Caramel sauce:

1 cup Brown sugar
1 cup Half and Half
A pinch of salt
4 tbsp butter

I heated up all the ingredients together for about 15 minutes on medium flame, poured it in a jar after the sauce cooled a little and refrigerated it. It did not turn out with the texture I was expecting it to, but it still tastes pretty good. I will definitely try it again to perfect it. I will definitely drizzle it on top of some apples or some brownies. YUM!

The banana sorbet tastes good. The consistency was actually like ice cream; soft and creamy. And it will satisfy a sweet tooth. The caramel on top was a bit much for me--too sweet. Next time, I will drizzle some semi sweet chocolate and also add some walnuts for some texture. Also, I would peel the bananas before I freeze them.

Banana sorbet with Caramel sauce.

Hope you will try it!

"Fall" in love!:)

This weekend has been hectic but amazing. I am getting ready to leave New Brunswick, NJ after visiting my little sister. We drove to Washington DC and the drive was breath taking. Beautiful colors everywhere! You definitely dont see anything like that in Texas. It was loads of fun, a birthday party for my cousin, met with a friend with school after a long time, and friends from college. It just reminds me how lucky I am!!!

Sunglasses: Versace
Dress: Limited
Tights: Forever 21
Necklace: Ranjana Khan for Limited
Jacket: A'gaci
Boots: Thrifted
Bag: Express

Hope you all had a great weekend too!:)

Alive and Kickin'

I will be honest. I have'nt worked out in a while... Today was my first day working out after I don't know how long. I was sweating bullets. But the feeling of completed a workout even though you feel like you are going to die is pure elation.

My new kicks!

On a completely different note, I received several compliments on my new running shoes! I love the color- Neon red- like a stop sign! Stop and look at them!:D In a weird way, they inspire me to go work out more. Hopefully, I can keep going and achieve my fitness goals.

Have a great rest of the week.

P.S: I know the pictures from the previous post were blurry. Sorry about that. Wont happen again. I have to buy a good camera, but I can't afford one right now. 

Un"limited"

So.. Yay! This is my first post for my blog and I hope everybody reading it will enjoy it as much as I do writing it. To be honest, I am nervous and I feel like I don't know what I am doing, but I am equal amounts excited as well.
Today, I went shopping!!!:) Needed a little retail therapy. For people who don't know me, I love clearance racks. I prefer not paying full price for anything and I know a lot of people are with me on that.;) I love "The limited" store for the exact same reason. They have a lot of options in the sale pile. Here's what I bought today.

Python clutch/bag

Black and white pleat inset dress

Printed dress

* All pictures taken from the online website: www.thelimited.com.
P.S: This post is NOT sponsored.















I can't wait to style them and make them my own. Have a great rest of the weekend! XO