There is strange electricity in the air these days… not just the dry static but the creative kind. Art is oozing from every corner, canvases, etsy and blogs. People are designing like they care a damn. These are great times.

To keep the tempo going, here is my free blog giveaway for the creative souls who want to make something special for their homes.A solid color handmade box with recycled paper that holds inspiration within.

Sturdy Handmade Paper Utility Box for Reuse

Open the box and what do you see?
About 20 handpicked dried woodroses, including buds and flowers from my place. They are delicate, exotic, long-lasting, down-to-earth and can be made into many lovely things.

What are Wood Roses?
They say that the botanical name for wood rose is Merremia tuberosa. It is creeper/ climber/ vine that grows like crazy in a short span of time and flowers only when is has firmly established its presence. While the fresh flowers are bright yellow, the dried ones are richly colored in shades of mahogany, brown, beige and tans. Each dried flower cracks open to reveal 4 seeds. These flowers are fragile but last for years. And these flowers are lovely.

Box full of delicate wood roses - So far handled with care

What’s the catch?
This is not a sweepstakes contest or promotion giveaway. It is simply a gift for those who want to create. You only have to want it so much that it will be yours.

I have two boxes full of delicate wood roses, packed carefully, ready for dispatch. Also note that the sturdy box is plain/ not branded and can be re-used for storage.

You have to create something out of these roses and share it with me so that I know you indeed made a good use of these beautiful roses. You need to share your photos of your creative project. It is this simple.

How do I get my free giveaway?
Just let me know and I will give it to you in a week’s time. If too many people ask, allow me the liberty to pick out the lucky two.

PS: While you leave your comment here, please do not provide your personal/ contact details in this form below. I will contact you with the email id you have provided here.

In case you missed your chance, I might be gladly compelled to make another box for you. Nothing makes me happier than seeing these wood roses come alive in some art lover’s home.

Getting Ideas?
Here are some ideas and inspiration for you to create something new. You can do anything with it… make an enchanting woodroses wreath, dress up your dinner table, adorn your candles, or simply place them where it touches your heart… these lovely dried flowers stay for as long as you care.

But then, surprise me! Inspire me!

DIY - Welcoming WoodRoses Wreath on your Door

Wood Roses with some dried seed pod inspiration

Surround your candle with woodroses

Magic starts after Twilight - Click on the image for this table centerpiece tutorial

Now, do you want this box?

17th March 2012 – BLOG GIVEAWAY WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Thank you all for writing and sharing your thoughts on these woodroses giveaway. Im pleasantly surprised to see how many of you love these flowers and want these to be yours.

Since I have only two boxes, I’m forced to pick out the winners randomly. There is no way I could select anyone based on their lovely comments. That would be so unfair.

So the winners of Wandering Mist Blog Giveaway are:
1) Sejal
2) Diane Melendez

Congratulations to you both. I will send an email shortly confirming your contact address. I hope that I see some lovely creations from your end soon. Please share your project photos with me.

And those who did not win but have melted my heart, I have a few flowers that I can give you. I will write to you soon and figure out a way to give them. But the deal remains the same. You have to make something out of them and share the photos.

It is easy to win when there is nothing to lose. I will be having more exotic giveaways soon, so stay connected. An easy way is to subscribe to this blog feed and stay updated on my upcoming giveaways.

Wander by again.

Untitled - Oil on Canvas - 36"x36"

This hiatus has been long. But for all things good.

For growth. For change.
For re-charging the batteries.
For clearing the mind-clutter.
For focus. For clarity.
For absorbing more.
For rolling up sleeves and
For making some dreams come true.

“She turned her can’ts into cans, and her dreams into plans.”
Kobi Yamada.

See you soon!

Winter morning. Warm Sunlight. Warmer Muffins.

Wake up to the aroma of freshly baked orange almond muffins… just out of the oven! What a thought! Just made real.

My inspiration to bake comes from my kid who loves anything pulled out of the oven. His love for these treats make me all the more adamant to bake clean-good stuff than feed him lard-loaded bakes from the local bakers! Not to mention the ever-increasing junk that comes with it (read synthetics, preservatives, colors, and many things gooey and weird).

Here is a simple recipe that wont take too much time or effort. Within half hour you will find a batch of warm, soft, orangy, fuzzy, crunchy, yummy, cupcakes ready.

Big Batch of Almond Muffins with Orange Juice & Peels

My ingredients are always approximates and keep changing everyday but to help you get the idea, here is the closest measurement.

Ingredients for Orange Almond Cupcakes:

• Flour – 1 1/2 cup
• Baking Powder – 1 1/2 tsp
• Oil – 3/4 cup
• Sugar – 3/4 cup
• Eggs – 3
• Salt – 1 pinch
• Vanilla Extract – 1 1/2 tsp
• Almond Extract – 1 tsp (optional)
• Orange or Lemon Juice – About few tablespoons or as per taste
• Crushed Almonds – a handful
• Dried orange peels – a handful (optional)

How to make Almond Orange Cupcakes:

• Sieve flour and baking powder together. Keep aside.
• Whisk eggs well.
• Add vanilla essence, almond essence, sugar, oil, salt, orange juice and mix well.
• Add almonds and dried orange peels.
• Add flour to the wet mixture. Mix gently.

To make Orange Almond Cake:
Grease your baking dish with oil or butter and dust with flour. Pour the cake batter immediately. Bake for 30-40 mins at around 170 degrees centigrade or until the toothpick/knife comes out clean.

To make Orange Almond Muffins:
Spoon the batter into cupcake moulds and bake for 15 mins at around 170 degrees centigrade or until the toothpick/knife comes out clean.

Crusty Muffin Top with Craters - An Invitation by Itself

My Notes:

• These cupcakes were born out of available ingredients in the kitchen. Anything that could seemingly fit in the taste meter was popped in. Orange, almonds and vanilla is a good combination. So it works. If you substitute orange juice with lemon juice, you get Almond Lemon Cake or Cupcake.
• The sugar can be adjusted as per taste. I generally use minimum quantity of sugar in the bakes. I do not believe in icing unless the occasion demands embellishment.
• Orange peels are the secret behind many tasty cakes. Follow the link for a quick and easy way to make dried orange peels that can be added to Christmas cakes, chocolate cakes, etc.
• The almond essence is not required unless you need heavy almondy taste. Since most of the available almond essences in the market are synthetics, it is really not needed. Go more on real almonds.
• Some people like their cupcake crust crunchy and browned. For this, you can leave them in the oven for a few minutes extra.

The floral mania continues. This is the season to celebrate and the world seems to have come alive in all colors and hues. Adding joy and mirth to every nook and corner are the lovely flowers in thousands of colors. And then add the magic of rain… forming dewy drops on the petals.

There is so much to take in but alas the rushed man. Where is the time to stop? Where is the time to see?

Here are some of the rain-laden beauties that were captured as life went by. These are no exotic flowers of the garden but run along the alleys and roads. Some call them weeds; some stray seeds. I call them soul food.

Bling Busy

All set to become a juicy vegetable. Awaiting the pollinators.

Pink? Magenta? Fuchsia? Purple? Phew!

I wish I had a better camera.... no?

Purple burst. Never thought delicious would be the word for this

Ah! Paradise.

Peruvian by nature

The journey from yellow to scarlet.

My purple flower fixation continues. Someone help me.

All flowers and no twigs? Some pearls of wisdom here.

This floral journey will continue… Apologies, it is too hard to stop.

Please let me know if you have captured any flowering beauties this season. Drop your link here. I would love to see.

Color me Orange! (Pix Credit: Lukas, Berlin)

Holidays are back again! Time for all things exciting and beautiful. Holiday decorations, gifts, loved ones and not to mention the cakes and bakes.

To help you kick start the baking season, here is a quick tutorial on how to make dried orange peel that goes as a secret ingredient in many yummy cakes, bakes and savories. A little secret about the orange peels is that it curbs your hunger pangs too

Oranges are in season and orange peels go into garbage. A better way is to harvest all the orange peels, sit in the comfort of your chair and make candied orange peels that you can eat right out of your tin or add to your cakes.

How to make dried orange peel
Here is a simple recipe with no hard and fast rules for measurement. You will arrive at the best quantity of each ingredient after an attempt or two. Here is my personal favorite:

• Peels of 2 big oranges (having eaten the lovely fruit)
• Sugar – Handful
• Water – Enough to cover the peels

Having eaten the orange, collect the leftover peels.

With a spoon or a knife, clean the pith. The white part of the peel is slightly bitter and can be removed. If you like a bit of bitterness in your baked goodies, you can leave it on. I prefer scraping the pith as the dried orange peel tastes sweet and tangy.

Scrape the pith for making dried orange peels

Wash the peels thorougly and cut it into thick or thin slices.

Julienne Well - Cut orange peel into thin slices

You can wash the thin slices again before you boil to ensure all the scraped pith and little bits are left behind.

Strips of orange peel ready to become candy

Boil the peel in adequate water with sugar. You could leave it on slow fire for a while for the peels to become tender.

15 minutes should suffice.

Boil - to infuse the peel with sugary sweetness

Drain out the peels, spread it on a plate or tray and leave it out in the sun for 2 days.

Sun-kissed luscious strips

After two days, take a bite of this peel to see if it is done.

If it is crunchy and crumbles, it is done and dried.

Done and Dried

Stock on this dried orange peel which can last for months. You could simply chew on them (as they are addictive), add a few into your iced tea or hot tea, dip into molten chocolate and set it to dry or simply pop in a few into the cake or cookie batter.

Whats an orange cake without a peel within?

That was yummm!!!

But even yummier are the candied orange peels that follow the same procedure as above. The moment you drain the peels from the water, roll them in powdered sugar so that the peels are well coated and put it out to dry. You could also bake these to speed up your drying time.

I’d prefer the sun-kissed peels and day. I made quite a few of these but needless to stay that they are disappearing at a fast rate. You know why!

For all the christmas cakes, apple cinnamon cakes, carrot cakes and more, this one ingredient does wonders. Did I tell you that chocolate and orange is a killer combination?

So all you bakers, make you own box of candied peel and keep adding that yummm factor to your baking escapades!

You could also gift a box of these as goodies to someone who bakes. Hmmmm, thats a very thoughtful handmade gift.

Let me know if this helped. And if you too are munching it away