Rava Fruit Kheer (Ravai Pazha Payasam) and... 1 year of Blogging!

Its a year, already! My first post on this blog, was exactly one year ago.. Its just incredible to think back my journey in this blogosphere for the past 1 year. What a great year it has been! Though creating this blog was so unplanned, I think this was one of the best spontaneous decisions I've ever made! When I started taking baby steps into my blog, I was a little pessimistic that I may not have time to keep it going after a few posts, but it has far surpassed my expectations, and I can't believe that I've made 77 posts in a year and still managing to maintain the pace! Just the feeling that I could write something atleast a week, in spite of my regular family commitments and routine, keeps my morale high.

Although the original intention for this blog was just share my favorite recipes, this blog now has also become an outlet for me - a space to express all my thoughts through my regular rants and ramblings... about my Excitement and Frustration, Likings and Dislikings, Laziness and Energy.... and ofcourse about my Passion for cooking! Becoming a blogger and blog-reader, has taught me so many things along the way. I've improved my photography and writing skills (atleast a little bit), and ofcourse, I learned a lots of wonderful recipes! Every step along the way has been so much fun.. selecting the blog's name, designing the layout, clicking photos, first post.. and I still remember how much I was excited to see the first comment on my blog! I danced a little after knowing that somebody has taken the time to read my content and is willing to try my recipe!

Embarking into this blogging journey, I had no idea that I will be making so many wonderful and inspiring blogger friends on my way! Its amazing how well I got connected with you all. What something started as a simple recipe site to share just with my family, has now grown into something much beyond, with a wider range of readers and a community of friends! I thank you all for visiting my blog as and when you can and leaving such nice and encouraging words. A special thanks to my family & friends for their support and encouragement. Without you all, I probably wouldn't have come this far.

To celebrate my little blog's first year, I'm posting a dessert today. This is a slight variation from the regular kheer and I first tasted this at my friends place a while ago. I liked this healthy and tasty recipe with the addition of rava which brings a nice consistency to the dish. As usual, a simple and easy party dessert!

Ingredients:

• Milk - 1 cup
• Water - 3 cups
• Sugar - 1 cup
• Fresh fruits - 1 cup (banana, grapes, apple, cherries etc. Do not use sour fruits like pineapple or orange)
• Rava - 2.5 tbsp
• Almonds - 12 to15
• Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp (or) 5 cardamoms crushed finely.

Procedure:

• Soak the almonds in hot water for atleast 15 mins.
• Dry roast the rava and set aside.
• Mix the milk and water and bring it to boil. Simmer for 5 - 10 mins.
• Meanwhile, peel off the skin from the almonds and make a paste out of them. Add this to the boiling milk and mix gently. Boil for 2 mins.
• Now add the rava little by little and keep stirring so that no lumps are formed. Boil for 5 mins under medium flame while stirring often.
• Now add the fruits, sugar and the cardamom powder one by one and mix gently. Boil for 5 more mins in low heat. Remove from heat.

Delicious fruit kheer is ready!