Gardening tips - Satisfaction of seeing something grow

For the longest time, when I was working, I would want a nice terrace garden with lots of flowers. Invariably the plants got neglected in the mad rush to get everything else done. Now that I have the time, I decided to grow some plants and in the process discovered the pleasure of picking fresh herbs from your garden.

Right now I have mint, curry leaves, green chillies ( have only got 2 chilies so far), tulsi, carom leaves, turmeric leaves; besides the flowering and ornamental plants. My attempts at growing basil ( a favourite herb) have failed dismally. Haven't given up though and hope to succeed with my next lot.

It has been trial and error and I would say I'm still a novice but some of the things I learnt so far include

1. Not all plants need to be watered everyday. Check the soil and water if it seems dry.
2. An effective pesticide for aphids (small white dots) is basil. Boil 2 cups of water and add 1/2 cup of basil leaves. Allow to steep overnight. Drain and add  1/2 tsp of liquid detergent. Spray on affected areas of the plant.
3. Used tea leaves, water that has been used to wash rice and dal act as effective fertilisers.
4. Need a bushy plant, keep removing the tips of the branches.
5. Carom leaves and mint are very easy to grow - use stem propagation.

Am in the process of trying out neem powder as a pesticide and an organic fertilizer. Results in the next post.

Corn Samosas

The samosas were a tiffin treat. They make for a great snack too. If you have the dough for the casing and the filling ready, these can be made in a jiffy.

Ingredients for 6 to 8 samosas

Casing

1 cup flour
1 tbsp oil
salt to taste
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
Water to knead into dough

Filling

1/2 cup boiled sweet corn kernels
1 tbsp grated coconut
1 tbsp chopped Coriander
1 green chilli
Salt to taste

Oil to fry

For the casing, knead into a stiff dough and keep aside for 15 mins. Put all the ingredients for the filling into the mixer and grind coarsely. Make balls from the kneaded dough; about 1 inch in diameter. Roll the ball out into a flat roti. Cut the roti in half. Add the filling in one half, in the center and fold into a samosa. Deep fry the samosas till golden. If you have filling left over, you can use it to make stuffed parathas which turn out as good.  The rotis can be premade and very lightly roasted and refrigerated which is what I had done to save time in the morning.

Super Quick Trifle inspired by Tiramisu

This dessert was made for a family get together where I wasn't sure if everyone would be OK with coffee liqueur. I normally make this with Baileys Irish cream to give it a Tiramisu like flavor. This has the following ingredients for about 10 people

1/2 kg sponge cake cut into squares - this can be store bought or made at home.
2 tbsp Cocoa powder 
1 cup hot water 
1/2 cup Orange crush - I used mapro orange crush
400 ml fresh cream
Orange segments and chocolate shavings to garnish

Mix the cocoa powder in water. Dip the sponge cake in the cocoa 'decoction' and arrange on the serving dish. Beat together the cream and orange crush. Taste this - is you like it sweeter you can add powdered sugar and mix to get the desired sweetness. Evenly spread the orange cream over the cake. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes till the cream is partly set. Decorate with chocolate shavings and orange segments and chill till serving time. Can be made a day in advance - will stay as long as you don't permit tasting :)

For tiramisu trifle, I use coffee decoction instead of cocoa and Baileys Irish cream instead of orange crush. In this case you need some sugar to sweeten.