Mooli Theplas

Even though I am not a Gujarati, I been exposed to some limited Gujrati dishes growing up and I have had a soft corner for it. But over the years that I have been here in the US, I have taken immense liking to the cuisine. Thanks to Gujarati friends here, who indulge us with their finger licking dishes when we meet for potlucks and picnics.  And also there is a huge selection readymade, top quality Gujju food in the Indian groceries. This makes it a breeze to try out and get familiar with new type of dishes. The khandvis,…

Simple Rajma Curry

Rajma is a popular North Indian vegetarian dish consisting of red kidney beans in thick gravy. They are cooked along with onions and tomatoes in array of aromatic spices.  Served along with rice (Rajma Chawal) or roti it is touted as a favorite comfort food.  I have posted one version of Rajma before; now this one is rich as it has paneer/ cashew paste in it and is comparatively complicated. So this is something which I won’t make it on a weeknight.   I taste is awesome though and I reserve it for special days or on days when we have…

Easy Chickpeas Salad

Off late we have been experiencing moderate weather unlike the scorching heat we get during this time of the year. It does not mean that we are completely out of the woods yet, there are some spikes and we still have days on which the temperature climbs over the 100F. On such days, I don’t feel like staying in the kitchen more that I have to and I resort to quick and easy salads of this type for lunch/dinner.  With good amount of protein and fiber this salad is a winner. I love the colorful and healthy combination of beans…

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Cabbage Rice – a lunch box recipe

I am usually on the lookout for new and interesting ideas to pack for my lunch. I prefer light lunches that way I continue feeling alert in the afternoons.  This rice recipe with cabbage works well, as it is light and not too heavy. It is easy to make and does not take a long time. If there is some left over rice from the previous night, then this gets done in a jiffy. All that is needed is to season and sauté the vegetables and then mix the powder and rice.  I use the readymade MTR brand Vaangi Bhaat…

Mexican Rice – for a picnic potluck

I had briefly mentioned about our picnic at the park in my earlier post in which few families got together and did a potluck. With heat looming, it was a weekend well spent, as the kids spent hours together splashing in the water, while the adults stayed in the shade chatting and enjoying the assortment of delicious food. The theme was chosen as Mexican cuisine and everybody pitched in food ideas. Some criteria to keep in mind was that the food had to be kid friendly, easily transportable and would not perish soon. I prepared this Mexican Rice along with…

Instant Oats Idli

Over the past 5 years that I have been blogging, I have learnt and tried many recipes from various bloggers. Be it a new dish, different cuisine, adaption of an existing recipe, healthy tweak to traditional favorites the list is endless. It is amazing how many ideas are out there just waiting to be grabbed. And it also inspires me to come up with new ideas and to try something on my own.  I love the ‘healthy tweak to the traditional favorites’ the best. You take a proven traditional dish, like Idlis and Dosas enhance it with health quotient and…

Dum Aloo/ Potato Biryani

As you know, Biryani is rice based dish jazzed with meat, vegetables, dry fruits and aromatic spices which engulfs the taste buds. People who are experts in making this labor for hours in the kitchen to come up with its exotic taste. However this is a recipe for Biryani we came up with when we craved for something delicious and aromatic, but were not willing to spend hours together in the kitchen. Being close to the weekend the pantry was empty and we were short on vegetables, so we decided to use just potatoes in this dish. You can add…