AM I FAT?

   
kareenas pic  courtesy http://bollywoodcelebden.com/

In the times of size zero and six pack abs the pressure to remain fit and maintain a good physique for both men and women is quite high,i am a fairly sized woman a uk size 8figure yet i go to gym 5days a week and slog away,its more of a habbit for me now more than anything the fact that it allows me to eat everything and remain a size 8 apart from the great health benefits that comes with exercise..I get amazed watching girls who are probably a size zero running on the treadmill for an hour and above and then making their way to the weights section followed by a rigourous abdominal workout and when you talk to them you realise that these girls weighing not more than 45-53kilos are actually trying to loose weight. Often in the locker room i have heard them asking each other after dressing up am i looking fat?it makes me wonder whats wrong with this world and the youngsters today.My neighbour who i know since she was in class 11th in a delhi school a sweet bubbly teenager weighing around 90kgs would often tell me after coming back from school that while walking home some guy on a bike shouted out to her moti (fat)i wonder is being fat a crime?i understand that it leads to health problems but does that give any stranger a right to call a person fat?I know of people who jokingly call their friend a chubby girl with a beautiful face moti(fat)or how much will you eat look at your size all in good fun but do these people passing such remarks even in good fun realise what they may be doing to someones self esteem or confidence for that matter?My niece who delivered a baby 5days back is already asking the doctor when can i hit the gym again and is constantly fussing over her weight gain, is this size zero which seems to have become a social disease stopping her from enjoying her first few months with the newly born?My daughter weighed around 80kgs during her school days i was of course concerned but i never pushed her after hours at the gym she lost some 22kilos and still shes constantly trying to diet along with her workout routine and questions me everyday mom am i fat?Am i over reacting or is this really a big problem?

lemon/orange cake

Well here is one more recipe but this one is not low fat or healthy..though you can substitute the sugar with honey but i think in this case using honey as a substitute would be as good as having a cheese burger with diet coke instead of normal coke..but then again drops of water make an ocean..

you will need

2eggs
rind of 1orange or rind of 2lemons
100gms custard powder
100gms ground  sugar
100 gms butter
125gms maida(all purpose flour)
1tsp baking powder

beat the eggs,orange rind or lemon rind,ground sugar and custard powder with an electric beater,and keep it aside.now melt the butter and once the melted butter cools down a bit add it to the already beaten mixture.add the maida and baking powder to this and mix well.
put some butter paper in a pan or you can take some oil or melted butter and spread it all over the pan you plan to bake the cake in and pour the cake mixture in the pan and bake in a pre heated oven.

once baked you can enjoy this cake with tea..and if you want to add some icing on it please let me know it will be my pleasure to guide you on it..my cakes waiting for me..

my fusion low fat pasta recipe

So is my love for pasta,till now i shared a love hate relation with my favourite dish pasta..everytime i dined out i tried my best to resist this rich dish oozing out carbs and hidden calories that would eventually make its way to my love handles..but a couple of days back while strolling down the aisles of le marche i thought of a way to make this foe called pasta a friend..though this recipe is very similar to the indian pasta version of onion tomatoes and macaroni..bt theres a twist and that is it does taste italian and its extremely healthy..you must try it as well if u are a foodie like me but wanna watch yout weight.

time required-30 mins
serves-4
you will need

200gms whole wheat penne pasta
1 small red onion cut length wise
1teaspoon chopped garlic
1bunch spring onions with bulbs chopped
2medium sized tomatoes chopped
5pieces of babycorn thinly slices
8pieces of brocolli
1teaspoon chopped garlic
2teaspoons olive oil
1tbsp ajina-moto
1tbsp red chilli sauce
1tsp black pepper
1tsp vinegar
1tablespoon white wine
salt to taste
1tsp mixed herbs(available at any super market)

to begin with fill up a saucepan with water add the pasta in it along wid 1tsp salt and 1tsp oil and let it boil till the pasta is soft then strain out the excess water and keep the pasta aside..

heat the remaining 1 tsp oil in a non stick pan add red onion and pepper to it saute for 2-3mins or until the onion becomes tranlucent,once done add chopped tomatoes,garlic,ajina-moto,salt to taste and cook on medium flame until the tomatoes are fully cooked and the water dries out.now add spring onions along with the bulbs,brocolli and babycorn,the spring onion will release some water keep the heat on medium until the water dries out and then cook on low heat for another 5mins or till the spring onions become a bit soggy and dark in colour while doing so add vinegar, chilli sauce ,and wine you can also use vodka insted of wine if you want and if you are a teetotaller you can completely skip the wine..add mixed herbs to it  add pasta to this mixture cook for 30seconds and voilaa your pasta is ready..you can add parmesan shavings to it in the end but i generally skip this step..

serve hot with garlic bread
sllluuurrrrrrppppppp

          copyright(c)alka narula

MATA HARI THE SPY WHO WASNT

Mata Hari who was executed by firing squad in france in october 1917,is probably the most famous spy of all times.shes reknown for her beauty,her numerous millitary lovers,her provocative oriental dancing,and,above all her espionage.yet in fact she was not oriental,or even a spy.Mata Hari was the stage name adopted by a plump,middle aged dutch divorcee named mrs.margaretha macLeod who left her alcoholic scottish husband in Netherlands East Indies now known as indonesia and opted to become a dancer in Europe.

INNOCENT VICTIM most historians now accept that,far from being a spy,Mata Hari was simply an innocent scapegoat-shot because the french govt.wanted to cover up its military inaptitude by manufacturing an all powerful ring of german agents.

Human Cloning VS Avatars

My grand dad though a god fearing person but an atheist had a great deal of influence on me as I spent  hours, listening to his stories and often he would talk about Hindu gods. He was not quite convinced with our half human ,half animal gods nor he was convinced with immortality theory. Though he is no more but he did leave a confused mind behind that mind wanders in search of the facts and that is me.

Recent claims of human coloning,and research on immortality drugs by  scientists have left me confused about Avatars ( The mystic beings who take birth on the earth at precise moments in order to help man and show him the way from his ordinary mortal state to an enlightened consciousness.)  , and evolution of life on earth.I have often wondered about theory of half human ,half animal and  immortal  Hindu Gods . If we go by Darwins theory of Evolution "From the invertebrates came the fishes. From the fishes the Amphibians and from the Amphibians the Reptiles. The Reptiles in turn gave rise to two separate classes the Aves (or the birds) and the Mammals. And ofcourse in mammals the final step in evolution (atleast as of now} was Man."

In fact in the study of the manifestations of Lord Vishnu, better known as the Dasha- Avatars suggests that , the earliest known life on the earth was of amphibians in the water, from where the progress was chronicled and was followed by a life sustaining not only in water but progressed to some extent on land. The Lord took shape of a tortoise. (Koorma-avatara). Amphibian became semi-amphibian, and then an animal in swamp or slush. Lord became a Boar and this animal progressed to half-human in the shape of Half lion + half-human (Nara-Simha) , the path of progress took the half human to full human shape. The next avatar was that of a Dwarf (Vamana) The process of progress of Dwarf  to a full human was natural, but with a wavering mind, uncontrollable, and acting without reasons ,he came to be known as Parasurama, a man without control.. Slowly the man became perfect,always giving importance to the penance than the pleasure ever respecting the guru and the elders and remaining dutiful to others wherever he was and he came to be known as Rama. And then the perfect human form emerged in the form of Krishna ,who was known for his cleverness and ability to think and win. A person of intelligence, taking decisions to suit the situation and ready to fight. Ready to mediate, and ready to love and ready to be loved. Tranquility, submission, passion for peace is the next step from achieving everything. He was Buddha.The cycle has to end, so that it can start again. Kalki(Anti Christ), they say will come to destroy the world. So that evolution can take place again. I tried to  understand rather convince my self although,debating within my mind untill Scientists claimed that an artificial human can be created by cloning  The technology of cloning mammals, although far from reliable, has reached the point where many scientists are knowledgeable, the literature is readily available, and the implementation of the technology is not very expensive compared to many other scientific processes. For that reason Lewis D. Eigen has argued that human cloning attempts will be made in the next few years and may well have been already begun
I end the post here much confused in my mind, whether to believe in the theory of Avatars or Evolution or Cloning , it certainly is beyond my comprehension.

Recipe for " over night chicken "

This is my secret recipe and i call it 'over night chicken " this is my contest entry for 'Master chef India 2 contest " on Indiblogger.in . I christened it 'OVER  NIGHT CHICKEN ' as it takes almost a night for the flavours and spices to get absorbed and set in the chicken.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

chicken with bones  - 1 full
 mustard oil   - 1/2 LT
vinegar          - 1/2 cup
fresh garlic paste   - 100gms
fresh ginger paste  -100gms
red chilli powder   -2tsp(or to taste)
salt    - 2tsp (or to taste)                                     
cloves  -6nos
green cardamom     - 4nos
Black cardamom     - 6 nos
cinnamon     - 2sticks
Tej patta   - 6 leaves
Black pepper   - 4nos
Saunth powder  - 1/2 spoon
Sauf powder  - 3 tsp
Chilli sauce green  - 1tsp
Ajinamoto   - 1/2 tsp

Method

Make a paste of 1tsp salt, 1 tsp red chilli powder ,2tbs vinegar,1tsp chilli sauce, a pinch of saunth powder and 1tsp saunf powder , add chicken to this paste and mix well so that the chicken pieces are completely covered by the paste . Keep the chicken in refrigerator and let it marinate over night.

The nxt morning or after twelve hours of marination ,take the chicken out of the refrigerator and remove the excess water if any  keep the water in a seperate bowl (chicken might secrete water) .

 Burn the mustard oil in a heavy pan and add the chicken pieces to it  let it fry on a medium flame till tender. Once well fried take the pieces out of the pan and in the same oil add  fresh ginger paste , fresh garlic paste
 all the sabut masala (whole spices) and saute  till the paste is light brown.

Add fried chicken, and the drained chicken water to the fried ginger,garlic and sabut masala paste and saute  at low flame till the water dries out . Now add  all the remaing masalas (spices),vinegar,ajinamoto to it , mix well and allow it to cool at room temp.

This chicken is ready to have , two hours after its cooked. Have it with your choice of bread....hope you enjoy it...

           copyright(c)alka narula

Race with Gadgets..........generation tech

 I started off my warm up which comprised of skipping in GX class(group exercise classes like muai thai, combat etc held at my gym)  ,when suddenly i turned towards my daughter who also works out in the same gym and asked her to join me ,a little apprehensive but she paired up with me and skipping became a fun game for both of us while
others watched in dismay.often in my mind i travel back to my child hood when growing up was so natural,we did not have any gadgets or machines to work on.Playing on the streets,climbing up the trees,hide and seek ,was all  fun.But we have entered an era of machines  and the new tech savy generation is  totally dependent on machines.Children are no more seen playing in colonies but yes they are certainly found working out on machines in gym ,their favourite games are either play stations , mobile phones or internet ,the other day i was amused to see my clients 3year old son sitting in one corner of the room engrossed in his i pad and i was amazed when my client told me "i got him an i pad so that he would leave the cell phone alone".I call it GENERATION TECH which is a result of nuclear family system coupled with race for never ending desires for materials.Theres no contentment ,parents want to earn more and more to afford luxuries as a result children are rewarded with machines to keep thmselves busy. Hit and Run cases are often heard of now a days and most recently Famous Cricketer Azharudins son was killed by speed ,which probably has become a norm these days.
You turn around and see people moving their lips while no ones around , typing on an ipad and smiling by self ...walking on a treadmill unaware of whos on the next machine living in a house for 10 years not knowing the name of the old man living next door watering his plants every morning......Are we not surrounded by madness all around??