BestPartyEver - An online tool for Event Management

Parties and Events bring excitement to one's life, and also makes one feel valued and appreciated. I, for one, am a huge advocate of parties and gatherings. I love to plan surprises for my friends and family (maybe I'd be better off as an Event Manager:)) In my hunt for party ideas, I was referred to this wonderful site called Best Party Ever, which is like a social network that helps people find and share ideas on Event Planning, Vendors, Recipes, party tips and more, so I thought I'd share my find with you. And if you run out of ideas or have something in mind but don't know how to execute it, this site is something that will set you on a roll. Online Party Planning Tools make it easy to setup an event, manage vendors to hire, monitor a budget, create invite RSVP lists, and create and manage task lists for the upcoming event. Check out the cool features that this new site offers!!

Before I go into the site details, I'd like to say that this is a brand new site and they have just rolled out an Alpha version. The concept appealed to me, and there's tonnes of features that they are adding, but it's new, and hence is undergoing updates every day, so not all features and functionality is working yet.

Getting Started
Even when you've been planning parties forever, there's a chance you can run out of Party Ideas, or are simply bored with the same stuff everytime and crave for some new and exciting ideas. That's precisely what best Party Ever is all about. It is a social website that encourages users to share and gain inspiration from each others ideas. Once you go and register for a free account, you can create your own profile and start browsing for event ideas and suggestions. You can browse the existing ideas and add them to your idea list, or create new ones. What I liked was the fact that you can adjust your privacy settings so that all part of your profile is not displayed publicly.

Creating an Event
You could also create a New Event, where you will be prompted to create an Actual Event that you are hosting, and which would be publicly available for anyone to see. Besides the description, you could even create an Guest List, send invitations, assign and organsie tasks in a Task List, create a budget and track your expenses. They have a bunch of more features coming up, so we know there's room for improvement. I really liked the clean look and feel of the site, and it is quite easy-to-navigate and search for stuff. You can even save some ideas that you've seen, or comment on them and share your tips. There are some really nice ideas already up there for Super Bowl, Valentine's Day, Housewarming and some themed ones like Halloween, Sweet Sixteen or a Superstar Theme Party!!

Searching for Ideas and Vendors
This is the really cool part, and perhaps something that excited me the most! it's easy to get ideas, but it's not often easy to find places or vendors from where you can get all the party stuff. Sure, party City works, but not always! This site has a cool Vendor search, so say I enter "Super Bowl" and search for stuff, it gives me a nice page full of ideas already submitted by others, followed by restaurants, vendors, and other related links. Of course, a lot of this is not functioning right now, but if they deliver on what is promised, I think it would be a cool thing as not many Event management sites offer such a facility right now! Also, it lists over 50,000 vendors including Wedding Planners, Event Planners, Caterers, Party Supply Rental, Restaurants, Limousine Rental, Disc Jockeys, Beauty Salons, and more. So you know you'll definitely find a match.

Party Planning has always been a great business to be in if you have the right attitude and the right touch. This application allows you to take your events to the next level. I think the freshness and colorfulness of this site adds to the party mood; I'd recommend to go and check out this site if you were looking for a new take on event planning.

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Panchvati Garlic Dal (Mixed Lentil Soup) - A Healthier Choice

"Garlic Dal", similar to Lentil Soup, is a favored variation to Gujarati Dal, especially for the people of North India, and this particular Panchvati Garlic Dal recipe is a great wya to enjoy a bunch of lentils at a time! It is called Panchvati, because it combines the goodness of 5 different kinds of dals(lentils) and is deliciously flavored with garlic, spices, ghee, green chilies and quite a bit of cilantro. The mixture of dals gives this a nice thick texture, and the aroma of ghee (clarified butter) makes it a treat to consume even by itself, perhaps as a lentil soup! Combine the Panchvati Garlic Dal with parathas or plain Jeera Rice, and you are all set for a delicious meal!

Ingredients
I used 5 kinds of lentils in the recipe, but you can omit any of them depending on your taste and/or availability of the lentils.

1 cup toor dal (Pigeon-peas or Split Red Gram, yellow colored)
1 cup moong dal (Green Gram or mung Bean, split, without skin, yellow colored)
1/2 cup chana dal (Split, skinless black chickpeas, yellow)
1/2 cup urad dal (Black gram, split and skinless, whitish in color)
1/2 cup masoor dal (Red lentils, Split and skinless, pinkish-red in color)
6-8 cloves of garlic
2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 cup cilantro - chopped, and some more for garnish
1/2 onion - finely chopped
3 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
3 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp garam masala powder (indian grocery stores should have it)
salt - to taste
lemon juice - to taste
2 tsp black pepper powder
2 green chillies - cut finely

Method
Mix all the dals and pressure cook them with 6 cups of water in a pressure cooker until 5-6 whistles. We want all of them to be thoroughly cooked. Once that is done, remove in a bowl and blend them well in a grinder, spinning for about a minute or so, ensuring that all dal/lentils are broken down and a smooth puree is formed.

Take the chopped coriander and grind it with 1 tsp salt and 2 tbsp water to form a smooth paste.

Now take a pan, add the ghee to it, add the cumin seeds, green chillies and garlic, and saute for a couple of minutes. Then add the finely chopped onions and saute again till they turn brownish and glossy.

Next add the garam masala powder, turmeric powder, black pepper and the cilantro paste. Now add the lentils and fill up with sufficient water to achieve desired consistency. Mix everything well, then add salt and lemon juice according to your taste, and let it cook covered, for about 10 mins or so. Stir in between to make sure it does not stick to the base of the pan. When it becomes thick and starts boiling, remove from flame.

Transfer the dal or soup to a serving bowl. Garnish with chopped coriander and some more fresh black pepper if desired, and serve hot with Jeera Rice!

This Garlic Dal is a great way to fill yourself with some protein and fiber, and the beautiful blend of flavors makes it apt for a Lentil Soup recipe too!

Related Recipes:
Gujarati Dal
Mix-Vegetable & Coconut Milk Soup
Roasted Cauliflower & Bell-Peper Soup

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Doodhi/Lauki Kofta Curry (BottleGourd Dumplings) in Almond and Cream Gravy

Kofta Curry is a very famous Indian curry, and goes through endless variations. Though paneer, cheese and vegetables seem to be the favorites, I also like the simple koftas made from lauki, called bottle-gourd in English. This elongated gourd vegetable is quite nutritious too, especially good for your eyes and skin, and due to the rich water content, it can add to the softness in the koftas. This one is a very low-fuss recipe that comes from my mom's kitchen, and unlike the restaurant-style Malai Koftas, these dudhi koftas require minimal preparation and cooking time, and yet can make any meal special. I modified my mom's recipe to pair almonds with bottle-gourd, and also make the curry more richer by using almond and cream in the gravy. The result was delicious, and I urge you to try this bottlegourd kofta curry to serve with your parthas or simple jeera rice!

Ingredients
1/2 mid-sized bottlegourd
1/2 to 3/4 cup besan (chickpea flour)
1/2 cup blanched almonds
slivered almonds - for garnish
1 medium onion
2 medium tomatoes
3-4 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup whipping cream
1-2 cups water
3-4 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp garam masala powder
3-4 tsp red chilli powder
salt - to taste
2-3 tbsp lemon juice
chopped fresh coriander - for garnish

Method
Take the onions and garlic and blend them to form a smooth paste. Take the blanched almonds, peel off the skin, then blend them with 2 tsp water or milk to form a thick paste. Blend the tomatoes separately and keep aside.

Now take a pan, put 2 tbsp oil and add the cumin seeds. When they start spluttering, add the onion-garlic paste and sate till it turns light pinkish with a glaze. Now add the garam masala, tomato paste, salt, the remaining spices and slowly add the milk, stirring it. Now add the almond paste, a little water to make a rich gravy, then cover with a lid and allow to simmer on medium flame.

Take the bottle-gourd and grate it in a bowl. Then press it through a strain or your fingers to remove all water from the bottle-gourd. It's important to do this else the koftas will break in the gravy. Now add the turmeric powder, salt, red chilli powder, half of the slivered almonds and the besan. You can also add some lemon juice to your taste. Mix well and form small round or oval dumplings from the mixture. Add more besan flour if required to give proper texture and shape to the koftas.

Now increase the flame for the gravy so it starts boiling, then gently add the koftas (dumlpings)into the gravy. Cover with the lid and reduce flame. Let them cook for 3-5 mins, then gently flip the koftas over, taking care not to break them. Add more water to the ravy if required, then add the whpping cream. Stir gently and let it cook so the spices and flavors get soaked in together.

Once its done, gently remove the koftas first and transfer them into a serving bowl, then top it with the remaining gravy. Garnish with chopped coriander and slivered almonds, and serve hot your delicious Doodhi/Lauki Koftas with Parathas or Rice!

Similar Recipes
Malai Kofta Curry
Hariyali Koftas

Spicy-Crispy Bhindi Masala

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