Evening Routine and a healthy Kheer!

"It's incredibly liberating to spend some time talking to someone and not caring about what you sound like. It's about understanding myself."

My evening routine is still work in progress but here's the rough sketch -

5.30 PM : Leave Office ( my commute is 28 miles each way - I call up a friend/husband/son on my way back home or do a work call)
6.15 PM :  Reach Home and get dinner on the table
7.00 PM : Done with Dinner
7.15 PM : Leave for the gym for a 7.30 PM Zumba Class ( M, W, F) - if no Zumba then my husband and I walk the dog and  watch some TV
8.45 PM : Get back home
9.00 PM : Hang out with my son after which he goes to bed
9.30 PM : Read a book on the kindle, Watch TV or some nights I have a 1 hr Engineering Meeting
10.45 PM- In Bed, Asleep

Here are some things that I have found help me in my quest for finding grounding and mindfulness in my life :

1. An acceptance that every day will not be equal, some days I will be bone tired and grumpy, other days I will be energized and ecstatic...yet I will treat every day with equanimity and try to get it to a good close
2. Eliminate Negativity - I find that when I keep my thought positive, hushing that inner critic, giving my son praises vs. criticism and by practicing gratitude for this wonderful life, I am able to end the day on a high note. I make a mental list of all the awesome things that happened to me  that day before I fall asleep (my mental gratitude journal.
3. Do at least one thing you love - I do  a LOT of things I love...I dance (I go to Zumba), I spend time with my son and husband by taking a walk with them, I play with the puppy and I read in the evenings...
4. Plan for the next day - Nothing is more discouraging than beginning the next day without a plan - I know by the time I go to bed what's for lunch for Krish and me and I have things ready in the kitchen for a quick in and out in the morning. I also plan out my work to-do list for the day in the evening.

I made a healthy dessert for the boys this evening (yay! for saturdays). It is  quick to make this  Kheer made with Palua or Arrowroot. Palua or Arrowroot is a medicinal root found in East India and I got my stock from the Adivasi Mela when I was down in India but you can find it on Amazon too. Palua is nutritive, and is used as an agreeable, non-irritating diet in certain chronic diseases, during convalescence from fevers, in irritations of the digestive and respiratory tract  and is well suited for infants - it's jelly has no peculiar taste, and is less liable to become acid in the stomach, and is generally preferred by young infants to all others. It helps with weight loss and heart health.

How to make Palua Khiri in your Instant Pot?

Ingredients

• 4.5 cups of 1% Organic Milk + 1/2 cup
• 5 tablespoons Truvia/ Brown Sugar Blend
• Crushed Elaichi (Cardamom)
• 1/4-1/2 cup of Palua or Arrowroot Powder (this thickens the kheer, so add based on how thick you like your kheer)

How To?

1. Mix the 1/2 Cup milk with the 1/2 cup of Arrowroot
2. Add 4.5 Cups of Milk+ Truvia + Crushed Elaichi plus the slush from step 1 to your Instant Pot
3. Set the Instant Pot for Manual 5 minutes (NR)
4. Once the pressure has naturally release, open, stir and taste 
5. If you are happy with the sweetness, go ahead and keep in glass/earthen container for it to set ((if not please add more truvia to your taste)
6. Once it cools down, you can keep it in the fridge. Garnish with almonds and savor this wonderful dessert which is actually very good for you!

Do you have an evening routine?