January 06, 2010

Welcoming 2010 with a Cypriot Olive, onion and herb bread and Sweet Potato baked "Fries" with spicy Mayonnaise dip

Hello everyone!!
Hope you all had a wonderful Shivaratri, Diwali, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, Eid and New Year celebrations. Yes I know, can't believe myself that I have been gone that long!!
Well... I am back to blogging in good spirits, new positivity and hope. I appreciate all your support during my long absence and thanks for all your emails, comments enquiring about my safety, well being, for missing me and asking me to return to blogging. Better late than never, so here I am.

Here is my belated new year toast to all of you. Have a very happy, prosperous and healthy 2010. Be positive, surround yourself with good things in life, keep all the toxic people out and smile more. Cherish your families and friends. Cheers!! :)

Here is a healthy tasty savory bread I baked to start the New Year after many many months of not baking anything at all and also for Thanksgiving, I had bought some Sweet Potatoes. I thought I would try baking some fries instead of deep frying to serve with a spicy hot sauce Mayo dip. They came very good, tasty sweetish fries with spicy dip for appetizer or just to snack on.

Cypriot Olive,onion and herb bread:
Source for this bread recipe is "100 Great Breads" by Paul Hollywood, with my own modifications since some ingredients are in grams in this book and he used 30gms of fresh yeast instead of dry Yeast. I had to make some adjustments in the recipe to suit me.

You need: (Makes 1 big loaf or two smaller loaves)
1 1/2 packages of dry active Yeast (or about 1 1/4 tbsp),
1 1/4 cup water, (you may or may not need all the water)
1 tsp sugar,

3 1/2 to 4 cups white bread flour,
(you can mix white and whole wheat bread flour),
1 tsp salt,
2 tbsp Olive oil,

1/2 to 3/4 cup drained well and pitted, roughly chopped black Greek Olives,
(Kalamata or any kind of Olives you like),
4 tbsp chopped white sweet onion,
2-3 tbsp fresh mixed herbs or 1 tsp crushed dry mixed herbs,
(Author used 4 tbsp chopped Cilantro but I used fresh Basil and Parsley from my herb pots).
Mix the Olives, onion and herbs and divide into two portions. Keep aside.

To bake this bread:
1. Add yeast to 1/4 cup of warm water with sugar and let it foam for 10mins in a stand mixer bowl or any big bowl you are using to knead the bread.
2. Sift 3 1/2 cups of flour, salt and add oil. Mix well. Add Yeast mixture to it and remaining 1 cup water gradually as needed and use the kneader hook for 4 mins to knead or knead the dough well by hand until soft and pliable.
3. Add 1/2 cup of remaining flour only if needed to make a soft dough. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces, cover the bowl and leave it to rest for an hour in a warm place.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. Mix the herbs, Olives and onions, divide into 2 portions. Add each portion to each piece of dough and knead to mix well. Shape into rounds. I made one big oval shaped loaf instead of two. Place both pieces of round dough on the Parchment paper on the baking sheet.
5. Sprinkle the top lightly with some flour (optional) and cut a "X" on loaves to release the steam when baking or slash the bread across 1/4" deep as you see in the picture. Cover with a clean cloth and leave to rise again for 45 mins.

Preheat the Oven to 400F.

6. Bake the loaves for 30 to 40 mins or until baked golden and sounds hollow when tapped the bottom of the bread. Don't bake too long.
7. Let it cool completely on a rack before you store in a plastic bag like Gallon size Zip-lock bag.

Serve the toasted slices with soup or with cream cheese or with hummus. You can also serve the slices with grilled meats, Greek style Yogurt salad like Tzatziki. Enjoy.

******************************************************************************************************
Baked sweet Potato fries with spicy Mayo dip:
I baked these for Thanksgiving day. Deep frying the sweet Potatoes probably make them tastier, crispier and yummy I am sure. But I baked this time. Sweetish salty fries with spicy and tangy Mayonnaise dip go very well together. Enjoy.

You need:
2 Sweet potatoes, narrow and oval shaped would be good to make finger chips,
Enough salt to sprinkle. Coarse black pepper powder (optional).

To bake:

Preheat the oven to 400F

1. Wash the sweet Potatoes and dry them. No need to peel the skin unless you want to. Cut into 3 to 4" finger chips, about 1/2 " to 1" thick. Better to make them same length and thickness to bake them uniformly.
2. Layer them on a thick non-stick baking sheet, spray little Canola oil on top or mix the finger chips or fries with oil in a bowl and then layer on the sheet.
3. Bake in the oven for 30 to 40 mins or until fries are golden, cooked thoroughly and crispy. Oven time differs, so use your judgment to cook them.
4. When they are done, spread them on a cooling rack to cool them a little and sprinkle with salt and pepper to your taste.
5. Serve with spicy Mayo dip while they are still warm.

Spicy and Tangy Mayo:
1. Take 3/4 cup Hellman's Mayonnaise (light Mayo is okay too but I prefer the regular Mayo) in a bowl, add 2 tsp Sour cream, 1 tsp or more of Sri Racha hot sauce or any hot sauce you like.
2. Sprinkle 1-2 tsp of any fresh herbs you like or 1/2 tsp of Italian dry herbs, salt and pepper as need it. Some minced white sweet onion can be added too for crunch but optional. Mix well and serve as a dip with baked fries.

That's it! Beautiful to look at and very tasty appetizer or snack to serve.

*******************************************************************************************************
My thanks to my dearest friends!!
Sometimes life kicks you from your peaceful, happy slumber to wake you up to smell the "coffee" as they say. After you deal with the reality, in most situations, these experiences will help you change your life hopefully for the better, to make you appreciate more of what you have, realize who your true friends and well wishers really are and to find yourself again in the process even though I do not wish to repeat the last six months of 2009 ever again. Life will never be the same as before for me but I am sure it will be different in a good way. I hope, pray and wish that 2010 will be fabulous for all of us!

Here is a quote I like the most:

"A woman is like a tea bag- you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water" by Eleanor Roosevelt. Here are more of them from this lady.
I had few rough months last year since July (personal, nothing to do with blogging or any blogger), took me a while to deal with all that and recover in one piece. Some of my blogger friends (you know who you all are, I am not listing your names here for privacy reasons), my dearest friends from India, my family helped me a lot during this tough time with their advice and absolute support without judgment. I really do appreciate everything you did for me and a HUGE thank you from me to all of you. I feel privileged to have you as friends in my life.

Blogging/Blog surfing:
Since I am cooking just for two most of the time these days, I won't be cooking specially for any blog events except for very few ie only if I already have any dish to post for my blogs suitable your events. Event hosts, don't take it personally please. I don't feel like cooking just for events or even blogging that much anymore, trying to cut down cooking a lot these days too.
I am also not going to blog surf a lot everyday and will not publish any negative, rude comments either, will try to keep blogs clean and positive. I will come and say hello to you whenever I see your names/blog profiles here in my blogs. I don't think I can handle surfing 200+ blogs I have listed in my reader on a daily basis, best to avoid myself getting a "carpal tunnel syndrome", seriously!! :D

I recommend these movies I loved:
"Julie and Julia", Walt Disney's "Up", "Avatar", "Sherlock Holmes" and "Nine". I liked "Nine" specially.

Have a great day, see you all next week. I still have to post my 2009 Summer garden pics!

144 comments:

Yasmeen said...

So nice to see you back Asha.Best wishes for the new year.A hearty bread and love the baked fries :D

A journey called Life said...

Heyyyyyyyy Ashaji so good to see u back.. im going off to read ur post now.. was too thrilled so just stopped to say hi..

suvi said...

:) good to see you back.

Anonymous said...

What a fabulous way to start the year.... hugs to you asha and wishes for a wonderful year full of the love of family and friends.... happy 2010, that bread looks very tempting

Dershana said...

hey asha, a big hug and welcome back. i was not into cyber world for long 'cause of my delivery and he first couple of months of handling a colicky baby. then when i started visiting i read your message, was really worried, wanted to write many times but saw that your profile had only a blogger related email ID and you had specifically mentioned you don't need interference. but i kept checking every few days, just saw this post today and am so happy you are back. whatever it was, i include you in my prayers to make you a happy person all over again.

indosungod said...

A Big Hello Asha!

Good to see you back with that wonderful bread. Don't say you won't be cooking much, just when I have planned a trip to NC ;)

Anonymous said...

Nice to see you back!

Anjali Koli said...

Asha so happy to see back! You take good care of your self and a super year to you ahead!!

Manasi said...

GOOD to see back! I was hoping would be back and soon.
I don't know what happened Asha, but I hope nothing like this will ever rock ur boat.
I am not a religious person but yes, like u, I too believe, what goes around, comes around.
God Bless and keep the faith.
WARM hugs.

Finla said...

Happy new year Asha. And I do wish you from my heart that you have a much better 2010.
I agreee you only know your own strength when you go through a tough time. And I know you are a really tough person.
Hugs and love to you.
Now to the recipe bookmarking this one, will make then when I have a cheese evening so that I can serve this bread too. Isn't paul hollywodd a brittish chef.
Saw Avatar in the holidays and loved it, this weekend we are going to see Holmes. We have the full series of holmes from black and white till the recent ones. We all three are crazy for the fellow :-)

Nandinis food said...

Welcome back, Asha! Belated new year wishes! I'm happy that you came back! I love all the dishes in this post! They're all fantabulous! Especially the french fries and the dip!

Take care and have a nice time!

Pavithra Elangovan said...

Nice to see you back.. Lovely bread and baked one and dips.. Wish you very happy new year

Kalai said...

Ashakka!!! It's so great to see this post from you, dear. I saw a post from you a while ago and wanted to email you, but it sounded like you needed some privacy... I sincerely hope that you are doing well and are handling whatever is going on with you. If you need an ear, I'm always here for you. I'll be sure to pray for you.

I've been extremely quiet in 2009 for many reasons as well. Let's just say that I am very very happy to bid adieu to 2009!!

The bread looks amazing and I adore sweet potato fries!

chef and her kitchen said...

Glad to see u back.....back with a bang!!!
we all really missed ur posts.....
Happy New year to u and ur family..

Veggie Belly said...

Welcome back and happy new year!

FH said...

Thanks girls. Hope you all had a great start for the new year. I will see you all shortly in your blogs. Just came home, had some chores to do today! :))

Mona said...

Welcome back Asha! Missed you immensely. All the best and HUGS to you! May god fill your life with immense happiness and fulfill all your wishes.

jayasree said...

Ashakka, its so good to see you back. Never thought it will take so long for you to come back. Wishing you and your family a fabulous 2010.

Love those baked fries.

Wish you don't take such long breaks. Liked quote about tea bag and woman. Each one realises their strength only when one pass through such hard situations. May you and your family have a peaceful year ahead.

Cham said...

Welcome Back Asha! Glad to see ur post in 2010- I Wish and Pray for You that you should have a Wonderful and Peaceful Year ahead.
Nice and warm bread to start!

Ann said...

Oh wow, I had just commented yesterday, and you are back with a bang today!!! MY oh my, I must ahve incredible power - ha ha ha. Hope 2010 is much more positive for you. Looks like you had a rough time. Every cloud has a silver lining, your rainy days must have passed. I missed your posts. Good to see you back!

Indhu said...

Glad to have you back :)
I love that bread!
Happy New Year :)

Finla said...

Why dodn't you join in Townsquare, it is a bit like TOI.
Here is the link
http://townsquare.romasharma.com/

s said...

Baking bread is somethi i am yet to get a knack of..this looks super! Welcome back!

FH said...

F, didn't know that site, I will join. Thank you girl! :)

Bong Mom said...

So glad to see you back dear Asha.

Watch "3 idiots", I loved it. Trisha should watch it too :D

Kannada Cuisine said...

Hi Ashakka!

Glad to have you back... Happy new year and trust things are good at your end :)

Karthika said...

Wishing you a great start and a wonderful year ahead. I am so glad you started blogging. Good Luck with everything.

Unknown said...

So good to see you back with delicious bread and fries, both looks yummy..
Take care..

sra said...

Hey Asha, so you posted! Good to see you back :)

Madhuram said...

Hurrah! you are back! I was checking in regularly for any updates and went disappointed without any. A very happy and peaceful New Year to you and everybody in your family.

I have to watch all the movies you have listed. Nine? I didn't hear about this until now. Will check out what it is.

Sharmila said...

Happy New Year dear Asha! Am soooo glad you are back. :-) I did make a few rounds here but found no new posts ... so guessed you must be still on a break. And a big hug for your strong spirit. TC. :-)

Priya Suresh said...

Glad to see you back Asha akka, wat a fantastic entries, lovely bread and baked sweet potato baked fries..Wishing u and ur family a happy and prosperous new year 2010..

FH said...

Karthika, thank you. I tried to click on your profile name to go to your blog to comment, it won't allow me because it's inactivated. If you can, please activate your profile so I can visit your blog. I have been out of touch with blogs for a while, so I don't remember all the URLs! :)

Vikis Kitchen said...

Welcome back Asha. Wish you and family a very happy , prosperous and blessed New year dear. For me, 2009 starting months gave a lot of panics and hard to solve problems and even now I can't imagine those days. Now I am thanking God while thinking of those months.....sometimes memories are haunting me too. I am sure God has the power to give us correct directions in our time of need.
Best wishes and hugs dear.

Cilantro said...

Welcome back Asha. Wish you and your family a very happy New Year.

Swapna said...

Nice to see you back Asha:)...Wish you a very Happy 2010!

Bread looks delicious and sweet potato fries sounds interesting...will try it soon....

Recipeswap said...

Asha its so good to have u back ,really missed u and ur wonderful recipes.
Glad thats 'its' all over and u are better.Take care.
Happy New Year.

Jaya M said...

Asha,
welcome back and good to see you here :)..
wish you a very happy new year ...
now even if you dont find time to blog hop and do "comment" thing , I will still be coming to visit here and never stop admiring your inner strength and will power thats for sure :-)..
take your time and try to enjoy the life ..
hugs and smiles

Jaya M said...

oh! came back to tell the sweet poatao fry and the bread looks so delicious ...
hugs and smiles

Sumi said...

Missed you, and good to see you back in action.:)

FoodLovers said...

Good to see u back Asha ....
Wish u a very happy new year ...
Loved ur bread and fries dear

FoodLovers said...

after ur india trip i was hceking very often to see any updates from ur side ...

nice to see u back asha with a great recipe

Unknown said...

Hi Ashakka, I am so happy to see a post from you. Have been lurking around your space for a while to see if you have posted. Happy New Year and hope you have a great year ahead!

Meera said...

Asha,
So happy to see your post. You rock!
Happy New Year! Hugs to you.

Pavithra Kodical said...

Happy New Year Ashakka. Welcome back:) Nice to see your post, 6 months i felt as though the blog world was going slow..Perfect bread.
I heard Sherlock Holmes movie is good, have read the book, will plan to watch the movie this week.Keep posting more recipes.

Lakshmi said...

Welcome back Ashakka. Wish you a very happy and peaceful 2010. Cypriot bread look yumm.. Hugs to you :)

amna said...

glad to see you back with a bang! happy 2010 :)

EC said...

Am so very happy to see your post..was just wishing that you overcome your tensions soon and relax..Wishing u a belated Happy New Year ..

Uj said...

Happy New year to you:) Hope the year ahead brings a lot of comfort and satisfaction for you and your family.. I have missed your blog sorely and was hoping that you would be back to blogging :)

Pavani said...

Sooooooooo nice to see ur wendesday post again Asha.. Welcome back. Wish you and your family a very Happy & Prosperous New Year. Loved both dishes, sweet potato fries are my all time favorite..

Rachel said...

Hey welcome back and wish you a new year with all goodness!

Siri said...

Welcome back Ashaji.. I was so thrilled to see your comment today :) Wishing you a very Happy & Joyous 2010. I love the color of the bread and fries..ofcourse ;)

I saw Up, Sherlock Holmes .. and loved them both..

Did you Avatar (in 3D).. I didn't have any expectations when I first went to this, but was pleasantly thrilled once I was done with it..:)).

Hugs,
Siri

Madhuli said...

Hi asha, Happy New Year to you and your family!Hope 'All Izz Well' for you in 2010!Loved the sweet potato fries.

Linda said...

Welcome back, dear Asha!! Sending you a big hug, and all good wishes for a joyous and peaceful new year.

On a foodie note, I could have some of that spicy dip spread on tasty olive bread! ;)

Raaga said...

Happy New Year Ashakka!

Here's a bear hig from your little sister!

Raks said...

Its great to see you back Asha,Happy new year! And hope you will be blogging regularly here after :)
Hugs,
Raks

ruchikacooks said...

Ashaji, before I started blogging I was a regular visitor to your site but an invisible one.

I kept checking every now to see now and then if you are back and I am so happy to see a post.

Wishing you a very happy new year and all good things.

Divya Kudua said...

Hey Ashakka...soooooo good to see you back.I was so excited to see your post pop up on my reader.Loved reading through your post.I truly agree with what you said.

Loved the bread..I am yet to try baking bread..:).Waiting to see your garden pics:)

Seena said...

Welcome back Asha! Glad to see you back.. :)

Srivalli said...

Happy New year to you Asha, it's good to see you back!..

Jayashree said...

Happy New year to you and your family, Asha. It's good to see you back.

LifenSpice said...

Yahooo! Ashakka, so nice to see you back! Will look forward to your wednesday posts. I too dont blog much these days but hopped in here when I saw your post in my reader. Those dishes look delicious! Loved the sweet potato fries.

Glad that you could forget and move on..I perfectly understand what you went through. You have all our support! 2009 has been pretty bad year for many of us. I too had so many set backs in terms of career and all. Hope 2010 is a very happy and peaceful one. Happy new year to you and you family! Hugs:)

notyet100 said...

welcome back,..;-)bread looks yum,,,will try this and let u knw tk cre,...;-)

lubnakarim06 said...

Asha.....it's been really very long seeing a post from you....what i like most in the post is the topics u cover for u r absence to presence...from cooking to books...from quotes to movies and much more...there is so much to learn from you....love the way u always try to handle the things....I think these qualities in me will come with age...hope u have very rocking and yummy 2010....love that spicy version of mayonnaise dip...bread looks yum too...

Indian Khana said...

Hello dear wish you n all Happy New Year too..its gud to see....I hope to get back to bloggin too soon :) and dnt knw whtever happened but u r back in full spirit its gud to see..keep it this way and be happy..inbtw bread n fries looks too bookmarked it.

FH said...

Thank to all of you dear bloggers for showing so much affection and good wishes, I need them all and I will take it! :))

Siri, we didn't choose to go to 3D "Avatar", kids didn't want to wear that 3D glasses but I bet 3D is amazing to watch.

Mandira said...

So good to see you're back Asha. We missed you! Happy New Year to you and your family.

Sunshinemom said...

Hey!! Happy New Year!

I am so glad you are back. I hope this year will be good in every aspect of life for you:).

That bread looks so good and I have all those ingredients too:).

As is obvious, I can't stop smiling since I saw your comment:).

Shama Nagarajan said...

Welcome back dear.....happy new year..nice recipe

shankari said...

Glad to see you back. Here's to a healthy and positive 2010.

Unknown said...

so good to see you back...happy new year..hope to see you more this year..

Deepthi Shankar said...

Hi Ashakka .. I am so glad you are back. New year wishes to you

Kay said...

Hello Asha, soooooo good to see you! :D

I baked some sweet potato fries last week and they turned out good! Yummier than potato fries, I say!

May this new yr bring you joy, good health and more happiness than your heart could hold.

- Kay

Anonymous said...

Good to see you back.Wishing you a very happy new year.

Shalini

FH said...

Shalini, so good to see you again too. Happy new year to you and family. Have fun and thanks for not forgetting me! :))

Pari Vasisht said...

Hi. Wish you a happy new year. I started blogging during your absence from blogosphere, have frequented ur blog earlier. Good to see you back.

Malar Gandhi said...

Welcome back, Asha.:) Wish you Happy New Year, may all your dreams come true.

Hope everything is back to normal, didnt feel like interfereing 'as the previous post clearly said that you don't invite comments for this post'. You kept us worrying for sure.

Big hugs, good to have you back. I will definetely understand...if you don't blog hopp or participate in th events, please take care.

I dunno what happend'...wish you lot of strength, my friend. I am a naturalist, but yet beleive in Karma...what goes around will sure come back one day.

I really enjoyed the movie julie and julia...too good.

Bread looks perfect:)

Love,
Malar

FH said...

Thank you for your support and understanding Malar, I appreciate it. It's true that I wanted to take my own time, deal with it in my own way without thinking too much about any other things. It did help and I am doing lot better now but waiting for that "karma" to strike! :D

DK said...

I AM LIKE JUMPING LIKE CRAZY HERE! You should see me now! Mu husband might send you a check for a broken couch later on, FYI, just in case ;) ;)

I am so glad to see you dear for two main reasons - one selfish of course, since I get to copy your creations and pass of as my own at home here ;) and two - to see you getting back into business and talking and sounding so much like THE asha I have come to adore.

Karma will bite their ass for sure and that time I will among the first to smile along with you :)

aaaaaah!! 2010 is looking great already...

Muah and tight hugs

FH said...

LOL!! DK, I am getting my check book ready right about now!!!!
You are a great gal, have a good heart. Hugging you back! :))

Karthika said...

Hi Asha - I used my gmail ID to comment. I am setting up a private blog just for my family and friends. I will definitely send you the link once its ready.

Saju said...

Hi Asha, Missed you. Great to see you. Happy New Year to you and your family

Gita Jaishankar said...

Nice to see you after a long time Asha...I hope you are feeling better now...take care...hugs :)

San!!! said...

Incredible as well as irresistible recipes.Happy new year !!!

MR said...

happy new year to u to
nice to c u back
we missed u :)

Pravs said...

I am so glad to see your wishes in my blog today. You won;t believe me if i told, before i saw your comment in my blog, i was thinking i should come to yours and wish you a very happy new year. I am happy i am still in your thoughts and so happy to see you back blogging. Wish you and your family a very happy new year !
Love the dishes your have presented in this post. What a beauty that bread is. Tempted by the looks of sweet potato and mayo dip.

Alka said...

I know it sounds cliche...but am so very happy to see you back.Me too had absolutely reduced the blog hopping frequency and number, blogging,commenting, and yeah cooking for events too...was really stressed out , so needed a break.
But you know what, I feel happier for the reason tht u r back, tht u refused to bow down to adverse situation.
Keep blogging as per your convenience,if there are few who object to your views, there are hundreds(and am sure... even more than that)who adore you and support you, so for sake of ppl like us, don't let negativity of past, affect ur present.
Bread looks superb,and I am looking forward to make some baked FRIES ;-)
Happy New Year to u and ur family
Hugs !

Kalpana said...

Hiii... Wish You And Your Family A Very Happy And Prosperous New Year!!! :)

Seeing you after a loooonnnnggggg time... But happy to see you back. Take care...

Red Chillies said...

So good to have you back Asha and a warm wishes for a Happy New Year. Hope you have a wonderful year ahead! Hugs.

Dibs said...

hi asha! wish you great 2010! Saw you on LG's blog, and discovered you are back :-) we've been very sluggish blogging. both amma and i have our handsful with my two month old daughter :-)

FH said...

My heartfelt thanks to all your comments girls. Makes me feel wanted and happy, so glad to be back! :))

Have a great weekend and have fun. See you all next week.

Usha said...

Good to see you back, Asha ! Hope you have a wonderful 2010 ....The bread looks absolutely fantastic !

delhibelle said...

Asha is back..let the feasts begin:)
Happy New Year

Archana said...

Hi Asha, great to see you back !
Wish you and your family a wonderful year ahead !
Wishing you loads of happiness and love this year !

J said...

Greatttttt to see you Asha! Happy New Year to you! Do watch the movie 3 Idiots and say Aal Izz Well!! :)

Smita said...

Hi Asha,
Nice to have you back. I am very sorry to hear of your personal trouble but I hope everything gets better and god gives you the strength. Take care and good luck!
Smita

Vanamala Hebbar said...

Hi Asha , Nice to see you back.

Rahin said...

Ashaa ...gr8 to c you back in action ...thts a gud begining for the new year....the bread and fries look wonderful, I too have a post on fries in making :D ...big hug

Bhawna said...

Hello Ashaji, Nice to see u back.
A very happy 2010 to you.

Anonymous said...

Welcome back to a stronger Asha!

Wishing you the best for the new year!
and looking forward to more fabulous recipes!

Arun

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

Its great to see you back again and I hope you're going to be regular here.
I love it that you started your "comeback" with bread! :)

Wishing you a very great year ahead.

Unknown said...

Hey ..Happy happy very happy to see you back in action.Thanks for the sweet comment.Hoping to see you more often...

Kate/Kajal said...

Hii Asha, its been really long , how are you ?:)

Wishing you a fabulous 2010 !!!

Laavanya said...

Hey asha soooo good to see u back. :)
A very happy new year to u and ur family. Hope all is well now and u are back to ur joyful self. That is one good looking loaf of bread. Looking fwd to many more of ur posts

Prajusha said...

Asha,
wish u a happy and prosperous new year 2010.
great to c u back.
thanks
prajusha
www.icookipost.com

Anonymous said...

I am glad things worked out for you Asha. I had no idea you were on a break for sad reasons. I thought you went on a vacation or something. I hope this year brings lots of joy and happiness to you. On that note I do hope u keep blogging yummy recipes...we really miss u otherwise :)

musical said...

Happy New Year, Ashakka! Wish you a very happy, healthy, relaxing and most importantly, a stress free 2010.

Warm regards,
musical.

Nammaruchi.blogspt.com said...

Home baked bread and fries.. what a nice way to start a new year, thanx for the recipe.

Sumy Sunil said...

Good and great to see you back..Wish you a very happy and peaceful and prosperous 2010.

Sailaja said...

Welcome back, Asha. Wish you and your family a blessed 2010!

FH said...

Thanks to all of you. Have a great Monday. See you all very soon in your blogs, I just started my day here! :))

mommyof2 said...

Welcome back Asha:-)

Parita said...

Hello Asha....good to see you back!! I too am keen on watching Sherlock Homes :-)

Uma said...

so so glad to see you back Asha! I was so happy to see your comment today. Thank you so much for the wishes. Wish you Happy New Year too!!

Bread and the fries are so tempting as always. Hope to see you blog more often. Take care :)

Shilpa said...

Wish you and your family a very happy new year Asha. So nice to see you back.

Preety said...

hey great to see you after so long..and i can see you are back with yummy dishes ..happy new year dear

musical said...

Hello Akka, thanks for the sweet reply and for taking time to drop by and say hello :).

Keshi said...

Happy New Year Asha! So lovely to see ur yummy posts again, and especially to see u back in Blogville after a long hiatus. HUGS I missed ya!

Im not blogging anymore..I hv been long gone since last July but I write occasionally, whenever I feel like. But Im absent in Blogville and I dun go blog-hopping anymore. I do sometimes, only very rarely though.

However, even if u dun hear from me anymore, plz know that I think very high of u...u r not only a great friend, but u r a wonderful & rare humanbeing...one who knows what LOVE is.

ty so much for ur friendship over the years! TC KIT and God bless! XOXOXO

Keshi.

Sujatha said...

Hi Asha, nice to see you back.. Wishing you a happy 2010 with all your wishes and dreams coming true.. Take care.

Mahimaa's kitchen said...

hey asha, happy new year!! great to see you back. potato fries look to die for.

Vani said...

Welcome back, Ashamma! It's good to see you back in action! Wishing 2010 to be a fabulous year for you and your family. I hope everything works out and works out beautifully well for you, Asha! Hugs!!

Shri said...

That bread is so perfect!Have a great year ahead, Asha!

Myvegfare said...

hi asha, wishing you a very happy new year, that's a wonderful bread and the fries too!!, I can understand when you say so, but, whenever you make something new for the only two of you!!, just remember to post, we would enjoy it, was the sherlock home movie really nice, I love sherlock homes, didn't like the trailer much!!

FH said...

Jaya, just taking it easy for cooking for events only for now.Too much food will left over if I start cooking just for events and there are so many now a days! :))

Yeah, this new Sherlock Holmes is lot different from the old ones, love to watch BBC series with Peter Cushing.

Cynthia said...

Asha dearest, Happy New Year to you and the family!

Shah cooks said...

nice to see u back, Asha. Happy new year and wishes for a peaceful year ahead.

Margie said...

Dearest Asha
Happy New Year...may 2010 bring you much joy, peace and love!
So missed being here!
Wonderful post!
Thank you!

Margie:)

Archana said...

Hey Asha, I tried the spicy dip - its so nice and yummy ! thanks for sharing !

lissie said...

So happy to see you back, Asha! Be a new you and enjoy every moment of your life. Wish you all the best in 2010!
loved the bread so much..

FH said...

Thanks to all of you, have a great day. See you all soon! :)

Arch, thank you for trying the dip, I love it too, enjoy.

Meeta K. Wolff said...

good to see you back asha!we missed you! i also hope that whatever happened to you has settled down and the storm has blown over. always remain the smiling and happy person we know you to be!

FH said...

Thanks Meeta. I do need all your best wishes and prayers. Glad to know to that you all care and feels great to be back to blogging too. Hugs to you! :)

Rajani said...

the fries and mayo look delicious! will try these out :)

bird's eye view said...

Hi Asha, Happy new year - hope it'll be a great one. Missed you. It's good to see you back and what a coincidence of your post on sweet potato fries - I had sweet potato wedges with my lunch today - am planning to post about it

FH said...

Hi BEV, good to be back too, hope you are doing well. Looking forward to Sweet potatoes dish there as well, I love the sweetish taste! :)

Pooja V said...

Hey sweetie its sooo great you are back. **Hugs ** **Hugs ** **Hugs ** **Hugs ** !!
I hope this year is wonderful & full of hapiness & I REALLY mean it.

FH said...

Thanks sweetheart. I appreciate your wishes and I do need them Pooja! You too have a wonderful 2010 :))

Anonymous said...

Dear asha chechi,
we dnt know each other.. i always loved ur page,i listened to ur views just as a little sis.....was very happy to read bot food, garden, kids etc etc..and when u stayed away from blogging i just ddnt send u a msg just coz u said u ddnt want to b bothered.....
i too believe in karma but i am ready to kick their(who ever hurt u) asses for ur happiness..coz i dnt want a sensible woman/mother stay away from her creative side for any reason...
lots of love and kisses sis
lena.

FH said...

Lena, I am so touched by your comment. Yeah, I needed some time for myself to deal with the problem. Well wishers like you are the reason why I didn't give up on blogging although some do want me to give up. Thank you so much for your words, I almost choked up when I read it. Hugs to you. With all your blessings I will always be okay. God bless you too, happy new year! :)

Roopa said...

Hi Asha,
Glad to have you back. :)
Love your blog.Its colorful,honest, positive and inspiring.
Thank you!
Warm Wishes.

KonkaniBlogger said...

Hey Asha, saw ur comment in my blog and rushed here. So good to see your posts again, that's a great start to 2010, happy new year to you :)...Am sure the bad things are left behind, you are doing better and going great and wishing you the very best in everything :)..

FH said...

Roopa and Maya, thanks girls. Yeah, new start for a new year, no pint in dwelling in the past but I will never forget 2009! :P

Anonymous said...

I have never commented just enjoyed your blog, missed all your posts. Glad too see you back. Hope all your trials are things of the past and you emerge stronger.
And Yes karma does come back!!!

FH said...

Thanks Anon. I couldn't stay away forever from well wishers like you. Yes, will wait for that Karma to hit. Hugs to you and I appreciate your words! :))