Henna Butternfly - A little tattoo for the wrist

Here is a little henna butterfly... on a very tiny wrist! Lucky that I finally figured out how to roll a mylar (or cellophane) henna cone. These cones make a very small tip possible.. and they keep their shape quite well.

For large designs, I still love my plastic cones, sealed with a rubber band that easily rolls down as paste is expressed. They make doing a full back or a large tribal design go much more quickly than using a smaller tip.

The little dots & flowers ensure the design compliments the wrist.

Tree Tattoo in henna by Ann George

Here are a few answers to FAQs that come up on Saturdays. First, all henna tattoo is freehand, meaning I don't use stencils or transfers. The photos in the little albums I put out on talbes are all photos of henna I have done. Most of those photos reflect traditional henna patterns, but I also do "original" designs.

Here is one such example. It is a tree. I am sure there are patterns for trees, but I didn't have one on hand. Winter trees, or fall trees are one of the few things I feel I can actually draw with pencil & paper, so my client was lucky to order this design. I hope you enjoy it.

Golgappa

Pani Puri in Marathi

Yield: Approx 50 medium puris
Time: 60 minutes.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup Semolina (Barik Rava)
2 tbsp Maida (All purpose flour)
Salt to taste
Club soda water to knead the dough.
Oil for deep frying

Method:
1) Mix semolina, maida and salt together. Add soda water and knead a stiff dough. Cover with a damp cloth and let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes.
2) Make small balls (approx size of Blueberry) of the dough. Cover them with cloth to prevent drying.
3) Heat oil to deep fry puris. Roll the small balls into round puris and deep fry them. Oil should be of medium temperature. Oil temperature should not be too high or too low.
4) After frying the puris, put them on a wire rack (used to cool the baked items). and place a baking tray below the wire rack to save the oil which will drip from the fried puris.
5) Puris will be crispy. However, if they become soft, spread them over baking tray. Preheat oven on 200 F (93 C). Place the tray on the middle rack. Bake puris for 10 to 15 minutes. Puris will definitely become crispy and will stay crispy alteast for 3 to 4 days.

Related Recipes:

Pani for Pani puri

Stuffing for Pani Puri

पाणी पुरी - Pani Puri

Pani Puri in English

साधारण ५० मध्यम पुर्‍या
वेळ: ६० ते ७० मिनीटे

साहित्य:
३/४ कप बारीक रवा
२ टेस्पून मैदा
चवीपुरते मिठ
क्लब सोडा वॉटर (प्यायचा सोडा)
तळण्यासाठी तेल

इतर संबंधित पाककृती:
पाणीपुरीचे स्टफिंग
पाणीपुरीचे पाणी

कृती:
१) रवा, मैदा आणि मिठ एकत्र करावे. त्यात सोड वॉटर घालून एकदम घट्ट भिजवावे. सुती कपडा पाण्याने भिजवून घट्ट पिळून घ्यावा. भिजवलेला गोळा या कपड्याने १५ ते २० मिनीटे झाकून ठेवावे.
२) नंतर भिजवलेल्या पिठाचे करवंदाएवढे छोटे गोळे करावे आणि ते गोळे कोरडे पडू नयेत म्हणून ओल्या फडक्याखाली ठेवून द्यावे.
३) तेल मध्यम आचेवर तापवावे. गोळे लाटून पुर्‍या तळाव्यात. तेल खुप गरम किंवा खुप कोमट नसावे. मध्यम आचेवर तेल तापवावे.
४) पुर्‍या तळल्यावर जाळीच्या रॅकवर (जो बेक केलेला केक गार करण्यासाठी वापरतात) तेल निथळण्यास ठेवाव्यात. या रॅकच्या खाली एकादे ताट ठेवावे म्हणजे निथळलेले तेल ताटात जमा होईल.
५) पुर्‍या शक्यतो कुरकूरीत राहातील. पण जर राहिल्या नाहीत तर बेकिंग ट्रे मध्ये पुर्‍या पसरवाव्यात. ओव्हन २०० F (९३ C) वर प्रिहीट करावा, बेकिंग ट्रे मधल्या रॅकवर ठेवावा आणि साधारण १० मिनीटे पुर्‍या बेक कराव्यात. बेक केल्यावर पुर्‍या नक्की कुरकूरीत राहतील.

Labels:
Pani Puri, Panipurichya purya, Golgappa, Golguppa, Puchka

Peacock Henna Pattern for the Legs.

Here are photos of a henna peacock pattern that travels across the lower legs. II I were a better photographer, I would no doubt have a better photo series so that you could more easily copy the pattern.

Of course you are welcome to use this design, which was created from traditional components & influenced by the tattoo style of the most excellent artist at Winnipeg Henna in Canada.

If you would like a henna tattoo, I will be at Midnight Sun, Five Points, Jacksonville Florida this Saturday from 2 ish until 5:30pm. Midnight Sun now closes at 6:00 on Saturday, so be sure to come early if you want a design for the Memorial Day weekend.

Remember, if you want a lower back tattoo, it is important that you wear a low cut pant or skirt & a midriff blouse. This will give the henna paste lots of time to dry without rubbing off on your clothes.

What is fortunate about this freehand pattern is that the tail of the peacock seems to travel well from the inner right leg (the double photo) to the outer left ankle (the single photo ). I think the blessing dieties of henna tattoo were present at this session. I hope to have photos on line of finished color for some ot the tattoos you see in the May blog. All most all of them show the henna with the paste on the skin. The finished color will be a shade of reddish brown. The paste I am using this weekend is very fast, I tested it, and will leave good color on the hands after staying on the skin for two or three hours. As always, the farther from the tips of the fingers or toes we put the henna, the more pale the finished color.

New Henna Slide Show online

Here is a new upper back tattoo. My client really like the tattoo pictured on my business card, and I started that design, but as always, henna seems to choose what it wants to do for everyone, and this was no exception.

You can see the updated Saturday Henna Slide Show by clicking the title of this post.

Of course you can also get a glimpse of the wonderful imports available at Midnight Sun. I you just want to wander in a colorful paradise .. stop in to visit.

Gilding is now available in jewel & matte colors.

ताकातली पालक भाजी - Takatli Palak Bhaji

Spinach Buttermilk Curry In English

वाढणी: २ ते ३ जणांसाठी
वेळ: २० मिनीटे

साहित्य :
पालक १ जुडी (बारीक चिरलेला)
२ कप आंबट घट्ट ताक (दही घुसळून अगदी थोडे पाणी घालावे)
पाव ते अर्धा कप शिजवलेले शेंगदाणे
फोडणीसाठी: १ टिस्पून तूप, १/४ टिस्पून मोहरी, १/४ टिस्पून जीरे, १/४ टिस्पून हळद,
३-४ कढीपत्ता पाने
३ हिरव्या मिरच्या (बारीक चिरलेल्या)
१ टिस्पून आलेपेस्ट
चवीपुरते मिठ

कृती :
१) कढई मध्ये फोडणीसाठी तूप घ्यावे. तूप गरम झाल्यावर त्यात मोहरी घालावी. मोहरी तडतडली की जीरे घालावे.
२) १/२ चमचा हळद घालावी. त्यात मिरची + आले घालावे, सर्व नीट परतल्यावर कढीपत्ता घालावा, शिजवलेले शेंगदाणे फोडणी मध्ये घालून परतावे.
३) शेंगदाणे परतल्यावर लगेच त्यात चिरलेला पालक घालावा. गॅस मध्यम ठेवून पालक नीट शिजवून घ्यावा.
४) पालक शिजल्यावर त्यात घट्ट ताक घालावे आणि उकळी येईस्तोवर ढवळत राहावे, नाहीतर ताक फुटते. शेवटी चवीपुरते मीठ घालावे.

टिप : जर ताक जास्त आंबट नसेल तर चिंचेचा कोळ घालावा.

Labels:
spinach Curry, spinach recipe, palak recipe, palak healthy recipe, spinach healthy recipe

Spinach Buttermilk Curry

Spinach Buttermilk Curry in Marathi

Serves: 2 to 3 persons
Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
Spinach 1 medium bunch
2 cups thick and sour Buttermilk (beat yogurt and mix with little water)
¼ cup cooked Peanuts (soak peanuts for 5-6 hours and pressure cook)
For tempering: 1 tsp Ghee, ¼ tsp Mustard seeds, ¼ tsp Cumin Seeds, ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
3-4 Curry Leaves
1 tsp Ginger Paste
3 green Chilies, Finely Chopped
Salt to taste

Method:
1) Wash spinach and pluck the leaves. Finely chop Spinach leaves.
2) In a wok, heat 1 tsp Ghee. Add mustard seeds, Cumin Seeds, Turmeric Powder, Ginger paste, chopped green Chilies, curry leaves. Then add boiled Peanuts and sauté.
3) Stir peanuts for about 30 seconds. Then add finely chopped spinach and let it cook on medium heat. Do not cover the wok while cooking spinach.
4) Once Spinach is done, lower the heat and add buttermilk to it.Keep stirring until curry starts boiling. If you stop stirring, you will not get the desired smooth curry like texture. At the end, add required amount of salt.
Serve hot with chapatti or white Rice.

Note:
1) If buttermilk has less sourness, add little tamarind pulp in the curry.

Getting Darkest Henna Stains

Here is the Kanji symbol for honor, embellished with a tribal design. Do you see it hidden there?

This design was applied to the back of the upper arm, which is often a very difficult place to get a dark color.

Click the title of this post for helpful hints about things you can do to get the deepest henna stain from the "Goddess of Henna", Catherine Cartwright-Jones.

I follow many of her suggestions, and always try to make the best paste possible so that you will get the best henna tattoo every time.

When you come for your tattoo at Midnight Sun, I will give you a little paper to read & sign. Many helpful hints about how to get the best color are included on that paper.. so please have a read.
(Please note: this is a photo of the henna paste still on the skin! This raised black paste is scrapped of to reveal the finished tattoo).

Power Symbol Henna Tattoos

Here is Terri's power symbol henna tattoo from Midnight Sun. She chose a design that we found online & customized it by adding her own symbol at the top.

She chose to have this design on her inner wrist, and we sealed it with a surgical paper tape so that she could get the longest wear & the darkest color.

So it's not necessary to have a full hand design to enjoy the beauty of henna tattoo. Stay "tuned" for the next design on line. Hope to see you soon.

Gilded Wrist Tattoos

Here are just two of the many fotos from this henna this weekend at Midnight Sun. There are so many more to publish!

I have some tribal henna, some power hennas, a kanji in disguise, and a lovely piece for the foot coming soon.
. As always, the longer the paste remains on the skin, and the hotter you get, the darker the finished color.

It is also important to remember that henna on the palms of the hands gives the best color!

Gilding the lotus?

Here's a foto from Saturdays henna at Midnight Sun. Apparently it was a busy weekend at the different beaches, so it was a quiet in town. (Fun for us!)

This is a foto of gilded Nile style lotus blossoms. They run together in a vine pattern because that's what the henna seemed to want to do.

The yellow gilding was done with a paste made from pulverized yellow glitter & yellow cosmetic powder. It seems combining glitter with a fine powder base in the same tonal group gives the best finished gilding to date.

The coral embellishement gilding was a very fine "gem" powder. I like these, although they are more expensive than glitter, because they are so fine.

Stuffing for Pani Puri

Panipuri Stuffing in Marathi

Consider each stuffing for 3 to 4 persons


Related Recipes:
Puris for Panipuri recipe
Pani for Panipuri

Pani Puri Filling 1

Ingredients
3/4 cup Whole Moong
Pinch of Turmeric powder (optional)
salt to taste
Method
1) Soak Mung beans for 8 to 9 hours into warm water. Pick the mung beans and remove any hard beans. If you want to sprout them, Tie them tightly into a clean cotton cloth atleast for 8 hours in warm place.
2) Pressure cook upto 2 whistles. Add little salt while pressure cooking.
Note: Some people like to add pinch of Turmeric for color and flavor. So add it while pressure-cooking.

Pani Puri Filling 2

Ingredients
3/4 cup dried Yellow Peas
Pinch of Turmeric (optional)
Salt to taste
Method
Soak dried peas for 5 to 6 hours in lukewarm water. Pick and remove any hard beans. Pressure cook properly soaked peas until soft and tender.
Note: Some people like to add pinch of Turmeric for color and flavor. So add it while pressure-cooking.

Pani Puri Filling 3

Ingredients
3/4 cup Dry whole Moong
1 Boiled Potato
Chat Masala to taste
salt to taste
Method
1) Soak Moong beans for 10 to 12 hours in lukewarm water. Drain water, transfer soaked moong beans to a clean Muslin Cloth. Lift up all the edges and tie together tightly. Keep it to a warm place for atleast 8 hours to get sprouted. Pick and remove any hard beans. Pressure cook properly soaked and sprouted beans to soft and tender.
2) In a Bowl, mash potato. Add Chat masala and salt to taste, mix well. Now add cooked Moong beans. Use this mixture as filling in Pani Puri.
Note: Some people like to add pinch of Turmeric for color and flavor. So add it while pressurecooking.

Pani Puri Filling 4

Ingredients
2 Boiled potato
1/2 tsp Roasted cumin, crushed coarsely
1/4 tsp salt
Pinch of Red chili powder
1 tbsp Cilantro, finely chopped
Method
1) Peel the boiled potatoes. Add roasted cumin, salt and mash them.
2) Transfer to a bowl. Sprinkle little red chili powder and cilantro for garnishing.
Note: Do not use Red potatoes.They become sticky after mashing.

Pani Puri Filling 5

1/2 cup Plain or Masala Boondi.

Fill 1 tsp boondi into each poori. Fill the poori with spicy and sweet water. Serve.
Another idea is to add boondi into spicy water. Boondi will soak the water and get swollen. Soaked boondi also taste good in pani puri.

Pani Puri Filling 6

Ingredients
1/4 cup Green Mango pieces
Pinch of salt
Pinch of Red chili powder
Method
Sprinkle salt and red chili powder on the top of green mango pieces.
Accompany green mango pieces with any of the above stuffing.

पाणीपुरीचे स्टफिंग - Filling For Pani Puri

Stuffing For Pani Puri in English

इतर संबंधित पाककृती:
पाणीपुरीच्या पुर्‍या
पाणीपुरीचे पाणी


पाणीपुरीचे फिलिंग - १
साहित्य:
३/४ कप हिरवे मूग
चिमूटभर हळद (ऐच्छिक)
चवीपुरते मिठ
कृती:
१) मूग ८ ते ९ तास कोमट पाण्यात भिजवावेत. त्यांना मोड काढून ते शिजवून घ्यावे. शिजवताना थोडे मिठ घालावे
टीप: शिजवताना चिमुटभर हळद घालावी. त्याने मूगाचा उग्रपणा कमी होतो तसेच रंगही येतो.

पाणीपुरीचे फिलिंग - २
साहित्य:
३/४ कप पांढरे वाटाणे
चिमूटभर हळद,
चवीपुरते मीठ
कृती:
पांढरे वाटाणे ५ ते ६ तास कोमट पाण्यात भिजवावेत. ते मऊ शिजवून घ्यावे. शिजवताना थोडे मिठ घालावे.
टीप: शिजवताना चिमुटभर हळद घालावी. त्याने मूगाचा उग्रपणा कमी होतो तसेच रंगही येतो.

पाणीपुरीचे फिलिंग - ३
साहित्य:
३/४ कप हिरवे मूग
१ शिजवलेला बटाटा
चाट मसाला
मीठ
कृती:
मूग वरील कृतीप्रमाणे मोड आणून शिजवून घ्यावे. शिजवलेला बटाटा निट कुस्करून घ्यावा. त्यात शिजलेले मूग घालावे, चवीपुरते मिठ आणि चाट मसाला घालावा.

पाणीपुरी फिलिंग - ४
साहित्य:
२ उकडलेले बटाटे
१/२ टिस्पून भाजलेले जिरे, कुटून
चवीपुरते मिठ
चिमूटभर लाल तिखट
१ टेस्पून कोथिंबीर, बारीक चिरून
कृती:
१) बटाटे सोलून कुस्करून घ्या. त्यात कुटलेले जिरे आणि मिठ घालून मिक्स करा.
२) एका मध्यम वाडग्यामध्ये हे मिश्रण काढून त्यावर लाल तिखट आणि कोथिंबीर पेरून सजवा.
टीप: लाल रंगाचे बटाटे (रेड पोटॅटो) वापरू नयेत. लाल बटाटे कुस्करल्यावर त्यांना चिकटपणा असतो.

पाणीपुरी फिलिंग - ५
साहित्य:
१/२ कप खारी बुंदी किंवा मसाला बुंदी
कृती:
पुरीला भोक पाडून त्यात १ टीस्पून बुंदी भरावी त्यात तिखट-गोड पाणी भरून पाणीपुरी खावी.
अजून एक आयडिया म्हणजे तिखट पाण्यात बुंदी घालावी त्यामुळे बुंदी फुलेल. तिखट पाणी आणि फुगलेली बुंदी पुरीत भरावी आणि खावी.

पाणीपुरी फिलिंग - ६
साहित्य:
१/४ कप कैरीचे बारीक काप
चिमूटभर मिठ
चिमूटभर लाल तिखट
कृती:
कैरीच्या कापांवर लाल तिखट आणि मिठ पेरावे आणि वरील कोणत्याही स्टफिंग बरोबर पाणीपुरीत भरून खावे.

Labels:
Pani Puri, Puchka, golgappa, panipuri recipe

Shaded Henna Flowers - A delicate look for the leg

Here is a photo with the henna paste still on the skin. I never use "black" henna, as there is no such thing! I use pure, safe, all natural Jamila henna powder for all my work this year.

For this design, you may be able to see that I experiemented with two shading techniques. One was to treat the henna cone not unlike a pencil, using it to do shading motions with the paste.

The other effort, which may or may not result in an effective shade this time, was to mix henna paste with lemon juice & sugar to create a "wash". I used this diluted henna to fill in some of the flower petals.

I will let you know how this turns out. Click the photo for a close-up.