Some might find it dreary, some depressing but to me, Autumn has always seemed exotic. With trees sporting warm tones of colours, from a mellow yellow to a fiery red, the first half of Autumn is more fun than Winter can ever be.

After Bonfire Night, it gets tedious, admittedly, with sodden leaves on pavements that make you slip and slide but despite this, there’s nothing to beat Autumn. Last week, as we were bowling through Scotland, with the hills covered in orange, I was most ecstatic. Standing at Glenfinnan, gazing at the Viaduct, it the air seemed to thrum with magic. I wouldn’t have been surprised had Harry and Ron come flying in a battered Ford Anglia.

There’s nothing to beat Britain during the cold months. Fireworks, roasted chestnuts, christmas lights going up everywhere – there is a sense of expectation and revelry that only Autumn can give. Other people can keep the crisp Spring, the warm Summer and even the frigid Winter. Me, I’ll be happy with Autumn. Sodden leaves and all.

The past year has been a very difficult one.

Not just because I now have two kids to look after – but because my family lost one of its brightest jewels. My baby cousin, my uncle’s daughter, Shraddha, who was three and half months shy of her third birthday when she passed away suddenly.

That has been a very difficult thing to accept and overcome.

She was such a star and her passing has filled me with so much despair and outrage. And some guilt. In the past year, the number of times I had started writing, only to throw it away have been countless. I have been under a cloud of “what does it matter anyway?”

So my cyber life has been more than a little neglected.

But it has been that, that has sustained me these past few difficult months. My not-just-cyber pals-anymore pals have been mailing me, sending me virtual hugs ever so often, not just for me, but for my whole family, that the grief seems slightly bearable.

There will never be acceptance – how can one just accept the fact that this child, who had every right to a fantastic future, who had everything going for her, should be snatched away so rudely, so soon?

But, with a little help from my friends, the hole seems a little less hollow. So thank you – you know who you are.

One of the first pix of The Mintlet

Dear Mintu,

I cannot believe my ickle baby, who I held in my hands moments after birth, is now a year old. A baby no longer. When did you go and grow up on me? More importantly, why so quickly? I looked around the wrecked house and am amazed that you have grown up big enough to trash the whole house – in mere minutes, too!

There are loads of thinks I can say about you – the funny way you walk, how you tip your head to a side and say “yesh” pretending everything is a phone, how you are always carrying on with your daily havoc with a sing songy tune, how your face brightens up on seeing your brother… but as I am still in shock that a year has sped past me, I won’t. Instead, let me seek proof in the form of a slideshow of  my favourite photos of you from the past year.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Happy Birthday Minty Moo! Here’s to a zillion more!

Lots of love,

Mummy

1. Write in an “inverted pyramid” format – the conclusion first, background details next.
2. Be precise. Internet users are notorious for their short attention spans and so, try not to exceed the 700-word mark.
3. Proof-read. Proof-read. Proof-read.
4. Keep your target audience in mind, when drafting the content. If your article is aimed at teenagers, for example, be concise and use plenty of images.
5. Break up the content with sub-headings.

Photograph by Sundeep D

Can there be a more sumptuous treat than this Queen of Sweets? Fresh carrots, whole milk, assorted nuts make this a medley of yumminess.

To make this, you need

Carrots, grated – 1 kilo
Whole milk – 1 litre
Khova / Khoya / Mawa – 150 gms
Sugar – 2-3 cups
Ghee – 3 tbsp

Ghee – 1 tbsp
Broken cashew – 1 tbsp
Golden raisins – 1/2 tbsp (optional)
Cardomom / elaichi – 2-3 pods

Take a thick-bottomed kadai and heat the milk in it. Once the milk starts boiling, slowly add the grated carrots into it. On a low flame, let the carrots cook in the milk.
Keep stirring frequently to prevent the milk forming a layer on the bottom and/or getting burnt.
Once all the milk has been absorbed, add the grated mawa to the mixture. The mawa / khova / khoya will add a creamy texture to the halwa.
After the mawa has been folden in, add the sugar.
The sugar will melt and needs to be stirred constantly to prevent from caramelising.
After the sugar has blended well with the cooked carrots, add the ghee and continue stirring.
As the halwa gets cooked, it will absorb the ghee into it.
The halwa is ready when it stops sticking to the sides of the pan and rolls into a ball when stirred.
Take it off the flame.
Heat ghee in a smaller pan and saute the nuts and raisins before adding them to the halwa.
Add powdered cardomom and mix well.
Enjoy!