WOW, had one of a kind sleepover with my beautiful little Dino’s, my T.rex and our Dino dynamic friends. We spent our night at The Field Museum in Chicago with the dinosaurs.

Dozing with Dino, which I do all the time with my 2 Dino princesses, but this was special. Special for everyone of us. It was all so well planned, small exciting hands on workshops, wonderful exhibits- some scary too, new sleeping bags, exciting!!!! sleeping in the sleeping bags for the first time and the most interesting part was the thought of everything coming to life at midnight, like the movie “Night at the Museum”.

Some days are just special, no words can express the feeling…….. Waking up by the shores of Lake Michigan with a beautiful sunrise and finding yourself  between those ancient amazing creatures….. I know they are just bones but they were saying so much, so much about themselves and about us.

Always remember that you are absolutely unique, just like everyone else. Margaret Mead

We were standing there in front of them and asking each other, what would have happened!!
Life is so unpredictable but at the same time beautiful. Not sure if there is a tomorrow……then why worry so much today. Ah!! I know that’s not how it works, if it did we would still be in Stone Age……;). One thing is for sure, just sitting around and worrying is not going far. Living today to the fullest and being prepared to face tomorrow is the brave thing to do.

But it was lot of fun, something very different from an usual day.

Unlike those poor Dinos, here is a recipe with ingredients, given a choice would sprout to life.

Super Dal

I named it super dal, for all the super qualities in it. I would say one of the best for low carb dieters, keeps u full for a long time.

The mung bean or green grams is a rich source of low-fat protein. One cup of cooked dal has 14 g of protein,15 g of fiber. It contains both insoluble and water-soluble fiber. Water-soluble fiber reduces LDL cholesterol and reduces risk for cardiovascular disease. It is considered low-glycemic and stabilizes your blood sugar too. Better results if soaked (1 to 6 hours), reduces bloating.

Red Chori beans are a good source of minerals, rich in Iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc and folic acid.

Black gram is nutritious and is recommended for diabetics. It is rich in potassium, phosphorus and calcium. It is rich in vitamins too.

Super dal : Makes 4 to 6 servings, depends on how you eat, just that or with roti or rice.

Ingredients:

• Green gram                                 1 cup (8 oz cup)
• Red Chori                                    1 cup
• Black gram                                  3/4 cup
• Onions                                         2 medium ones
• Green Chilly                               4 to 5 (as per taste)
• Ginger                                          1 1/2 tbsp chopped
• Mustard seeds                            1 tsp
• Cumin seeds                               1 tbsp
• Curry leaves                                few leaves
• Cilantro                                        1/2 cup chopped
• Salt                                                to taste
• Oil                                                 2 tbsp
• water                                            6 cups

Directions: Soak just green gram if you plan ahead, or just start. Use a pressure cooker for this one.

Prep: Chop onions, ginger, green chilies and cilantro.

Heat oil in medium high, add mustard seeds, wait till they pop. Add cumin, chopped ginger, slit or chopped green chilies, curry leaves. Saute for a min.

Add chopped onions and fry them till they are medium brown. Add the beans, water and salt, pressure cook till 3 whistles.

Never force open a cooker, wait till all the pressure is gone. Open and check for salt, add some water if it looks little dry, boil in medium, add chopped cilantro.

TA-DA ………….done.

Eat it just the way it is, with roti and raita, or with rice