My 100th Blog - Celebrating with Corn Paneer Payasam!

I would like to welcome all my readers, followers and well wishers to my 100th Blog Post!!! . A dream come true for me :).  I would like to thank the Almighty for being with me through this journey!!

A big thank you to my family, my friends, well wishers who have been my inspiration and motivation through this journey!

I had taken a break from work to be with Dhiraj (my son) who was going to attend his 12th Std exam.  Like all mother's I was very tensed and worried as exams were nearing. I guess due to stress I used to often fall sick also :(.  I met with my Manager - Prashant Sabnis one evening and told him that I would not be able to continue working and would resign from work as I would require 2.5 months of leave.  He informed our HOD - Mr. Shankar Seetharaman about this.  Mr. Shankar called me and told me that I should not take a hasty decision of resigning from work and that he would grant me leave for being with my son.  I took his advice and proceeded on leave.

My staying at home definitely ensured that I took care of Dhiraj and being with him  definitely gave him confidence and most important being a foodie he got to eat variety of dishes:).  This is my personal experience and I would say that every parent should be with their children when they require your support :).

Staying at home was not very easy as I have been working for almost 23 years now... After children left for school and college and husband left for work i.e. 10:30 am to 3:30 pm, I was not sure how to pass time.  I used to cook new dishes every day, click pictures and copy them on to my machine.  Then one day, with the help of my husband, Rajesh, we created the blog account and posted my first recipe and then not a single day, I sat idle... till the time children were back, I used to do my writing work.   I dedicated my time in writing and posting recipes and utilized my time and this kept me busy.  This has now become a passion for me ... These days, I dedicate time on weekdays, when Ria, my daughter does not have much homework and then I spent around 2 to 3 hours during weekends to write the blogs.

My very close friend, Sandhya Mantha read my first few blogs and called me up one evening and told me that instead of just putting the final picture of the dish, start clicking step by step pictures and post them.  I immediately implemented her idea the very next day :)

Today I am posting my 100th Blog and this has evolved from a small personal blog into a great deal of information, research, plus family stories, and a wonderful source for finding delicious simple recipes.

I get great pleasure from writing this blog as it gives me the opportunity to share simple, quick and instant recipes with all my readers! Your inspiration and willingness to continue to read my words are very encouraging. I had no idea that people from across the world would welcome my writing. I originally thought that my readers would be just my friends and relatives, but I am proud to inform you that my blog has been viewed over 1,00,259 times (and counting)....and the Google plus post blogs have been viewed for 7,08,548 times with 68 followers .You all are just amazing! 

I am very grateful to all of you. Your comments and feedback has kept me excited and motivated to continue this project! Every time one of you says that I inspire you, you know what happens? You inspire me :)!

Let's celebrate this success with a dessert!

Corn Paneer Payasam

Ingredients :

Sweet Corn - 2 (grated)

Ghee - 1 tbsp

Sugar - 1/4th cup (you may add more if required)

Milk - 1/2 ltr

Grated fresh Paneer - 1/4th cup

Saffron - 4 to 5  strands

Cardamom Powder - 1/2 tsp

Dried Ginger powder - 1 pinch

Almonds, Cashew nuts, Raisins & Dried Khajoor (dates)

Method :

Grate the sweet corn.  In a Kadhai, add the ghee and when hot, add the grated sweet

corn and saute for some time till the raw smell changes.  Now add the milk and allow this to boil.  This mixture will be a bit thick.  Now it's time to add the sugar, grated paneer and cut dried Khajoor.  Allow this mixture to cook well. Add the cardamom powder, dried ginger powder and saffron.  Garnish this Payasam with almonds, cashew nuts and raisins lightly roasted in ghee.   Serve hot or chilled!