Plain Eggless Cake (Orange flavored)

You know how kids like celebrating their birthdays, getting presents, cutting cake, blowing candles etc? OK, so our 4 year old is no different. He enjoys celebrating his birthday; and the part that he likes the best is singing Happy Birthday to him, followed by blowing off the candles. The joy on his face at the end of it all is priceless. We are sure he would not mind repeating the process every single day and still enjoy the same. In fact, we have heard him say “Happy Birthday” and blow candles even in his sleep.   As a result of…

And then…..it snowed!

After a glorious week, with the temperature in the 70s (F), here in our neck of the woods, the weather finally caved in and made way for some pretty snow. Until yesterday we walked around the stores with just a sweater, talking how unusual it was for this time of the year. While the north east bore the brunt, we enjoyed a pleasant weather. Maybe we spoke a bit too loud as it started early in the morning the very next day.

Potato, Pepper Dry Curry and Konkani Daal (Daali Thoy)

This post has been in my drafts for ever. For one reason or the other I never got around posting it. And now that the New Year is just around the corner, I thought this was an opportunity to clear out the old ones and make way for the new ones. This combination of Daal and potato-pepper curry is simple yet filling and comforting meal. At the end of a long day, nothing spells more comforting than the combination of potato curry, rice with bowl of thick Daali thoy. The Daal called Daali Thoy/ Dali Toi in Konkani is a…

Maddur Vada Recipe

  Maddur vade is a popular deep fried snack from the state of Karnataka. This snack originated in the town of Maddur which is situated in between the cities of Bangalore and Mysore. It is not uncommon to find them being sold in bus stations, train stations etc, restaurants (of course) with people flocking to eat those crispy yummy things. The old traditional restaurants, Darshinis (vegetarian fast food restaurants) in Bangalore serve this as a breakfast/snack item along with Coconut chutney and they are one of the hot sellers. Come to think of it, what could ever be unlikeable about…

Red Beans and Red Pumpkin Curry

I made this curry on a whim last evening. I used whatever ingredients I had on hand that needed attention, threw them together and made this yummy tasting curry. In my defense, most usually I plan our dinner in advance as I can be prepared about tasks to do in the evening. If you ask me, the most daunting task about cooking is the planning part, making something that is easy, healthy and which everybody in the family likes. Anyway, I do my planning usually while driving to or back from work. Now that is the time of the day…

Leftover Idli? Try Idli fries

Whenever I have leftover Idlis, I usually make Idli Upma or Idli Roast. Idli Roast is shallow frying whole Idlis on a flat pan, until it is crunch on the outside and soft on the inside. Suffice to say that many a times; we look forward to eating Idly roast more than the regular Idlis. I got this idea of cutting the idlis as strips and making Idli Fries, when I was flipping through a food magazine at a dentist’s office. The recipe there was for making baked fries using Polenta, somewhat similar to this. I loved the idea and…