Ash gourds are a staple in South Indian kitchens, and I enjoy making a variety of dishes with them, including ash gourd juice, sambar, majjige huli with it. With their numerous health benefits, I’m always on the lookout for new recipes to try. Today, I am sharing ash gourd raita recipe made with only ash gourd, yogurt, and tempering. Its a perfect accompaniment to Indian meals and is ready in less than 10 minutes....

Most of us eat rice every day. It goes well with dal, sabzi, curry, and other foods and is healthy and wholesome. It is also quite versatile. Rice is used in a wide variety of delectable delicacies, from basic steamed rice to pulao and biryani. However, did you know that there are countless types of rice grown all over the world? Every variety comes with its own flavor, texture, and taste....

Aug 11, 2015, Updated May 07, 2023 If you have been following me for a while, you would know that I am a big chocoholic. I think I am slightly obsessed with it and this has been the case ever since I was a little kid. Back then we didn’t use to get too many different varieties of chocolates in India so every year I would look forward to my aunt’s visit to India (she used to live in Dubai) so that I could stuff my mouth with fancy chocolates....

Dec 14, 2014, Updated May 07, 2023 So every year during the holidays I get into the mood of making and decorating sugar cookies. I am not a passionate cookie decorator, honestly I feel lazy to make the whole royal icing and store it but when I sit down to decorate, I enjoy it a lot, like a lot. I have made these sugar cut out cookie for India’s Republic Day and also did an eggless version with eggless royal icing for Easter this year....

Mar 31, 2014, Updated May 07, 2023 Cookies are my favorite thing to bake or maybe it’s the cupcakes? Well, it’s hard to say what I like to bake the most but cookies are definitely one of my top favorites. I am always looking out for new cookie recipes and also trying to develop few on my own and this one belongs to the latter category. Those in India know what tutti frutti is, for those who don’t tutti frutti are dried candied fruits and I have already made some eggless cookies using them....

Dec 08, 2017, Updated May 07, 2023 Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. For more information on my Affiliate and Advertising Policy, please click here. This week has been so cold here but on the brighter side it’s also been sunny. What do you guys prefer cold and sunny or warm and rainy? I would take cold and sunny any day. I just can’t deal with the grey skies and constant rain after a while....

Making hot chocolate from scratch is one of the easiest ways to make this festive drink. A simple and easy homemade hot chocolate is the best way to warm up on a cold winter’s day. And there are so many ways to customize it so you’ve always got your perfect cup. With my hot cocoa recipe, you can easily adapt the ingredients to fit your needs, and it makes a great addition to any DIY hot chocolate bar....

Oct 24, 2015, Updated Nov 15, 2022 The soup season is here, it’s everywhere! I have always been a soup lover, in India winters weren’t as bad as they are here. I mean we never got any snow in Delhi, ever but it was still cold, like in 40s. During those cold winter evenings when I used to come back home from my tuition classes, I always wanted a bowl of hot soup and nothing else....

Nov 08, 2023, Updated Oct 30, 2024 When planning a Diwali menu, I like to start with a drink or two, then do 2 to 3 appetizers, 3 to 4 mains out of which one is always a paneer sabzi and then a dessert or two. That’s the usual standard protocol that I follow. Along with that, I will have salad, chutneys and other condiments. Here are 2 sample menus for your Diwali party....

Jun 12, 2018, Updated May 07, 2023 Lightly sweetened and topped with powdered sugar, this cake is so amazing with coffee! What kind of cakes do you guys like? The layer cakes with frosting like this Blueberry Lemon Cake or simple coffee style cakes like this Easy Strawberry Cake? I like both but it just depends on the day and occasion. If it’s a birthday, I would go all out and make a layer cake with lots of frosting....

When I want a meal that is warm, comforting, and yet quick (under 30 minutes with ‘cheats’ to make it even quicker!) and fairly low-effort, then a Thai curry is where it’s at. I always keep homemade curry pastes in my freezer, ready to use whenever I want. Combine that with coconut milk and your favorite vegetables or protein of choice and serve alongside fluffy jasmine rice, and you have a recipe worth returning to time and time again....

Nov 05, 2020, Updated May 07, 2023 This is a popular cake from Irani/Parsi cafe and bakeries in India. Indian inspired dessert are my favorites. It of course has to do with the fact that these flavors are more familiar to me and hence they appeal more to my taste buds. Cardamom, rose, saffron are some of the most popular flavors used in Indian desserts. And while these flavors are extremely common in mithais (Indian sweets) like burfi, ladoo, peda etc....

What is garlic confit? How to make garlic confit On the stovetop So, it should be no surprise that I am sharing how to make garlic confit—it is another of my favorites. I am even sharing three methods so you can choose the one that best fits your needs – on the stovetop (taking less than 30 minutes!), in the oven, and in a crockpot. The garlic cloves become tender, soft, and smooth like butter, and their flavor is milder and slightly sweet....

Mar 23, 2014, Updated Jan 02, 2018 Cauliflower is one vegetable which I cook in my kitchen at least once a week and because we love this veggie so much I try to mix it up with different things in order to come up with new recipes. I mean I definitely love the popular combos like Aloo-Gobhi (potato & cauliflower), Gobhi-Matar (cauliflower & peas) but I have made them so many times that now I’m kind of bored of eating them....

Raspberry and coconut is a classic flavor combination that I absolutely love! The homemade raspberry jam filling, paired with a coconut cream frosting, makes for a delicious heart-shaped cake that is perfect for any celebration. Whether it’s for afternoon tea, a family gathering, or a special occasion like Valentine’s Day, an anniversary, or a Mother’s Day, this cake is sure to impress. Watch the heart-shaped cake video How I make it Prepare the heart cake batter: To begin, combine the softened butter and sugar in a bowl and whisk them using an electric mixer until the sugar is fully incorporated....

As someone who practically lives in their kitchen, I’ve had to experiment with various “interesting” ingredient substitutions over the years. That sparked my love for making my own DIY ingredients at home (like homemade dairy-free milks, one-ingredient butter, nut/seed butters), and now learning how to make brown sugar with a combination of white sugar and molasses! By making it at home (or using any one of the other brown sugar substitutes listed below), you never have to run out again....

Discover the joys of homemade, naturally colored pasta! This simple and customizable recipe enhances your meals both nutritionally and visually. The basic dough requires just 1 cup of 00 flour and one egg per portion, allowing for a variety of vibrant, natural colors without altering the taste. Made entirely from vegetables, these colors brighten your dish without affecting the flavor, making it perfect for anyone seeking a healthier, more appealing meal option....

While I’ve previously shared a recipe for a quick chili sauce, this time, I’m making a thick, creamy, flavorful harissa sauce/paste – perfect for adding heat and smoky, tangy flavor to tons of dishes! I know it’s possible to buy the paste in-store, but homemade harissa is just so simple, and it’s packed with fresh flavors and perfectly adapted to your tastes – how spicy, smoky, sweet the flavor is all up to you....

I recently started sharing my morning breakfasts on Instagram, including several simple oatmeal recipes (like this Healthy Banana Oatmeal and Berry Oatmeal). No matter how I ‘fancify’ my oats, though, I tend to use a basic oatmeal recipe as my base, which is why I thought I’d share my method for how to make oatmeal on the stove – for creamy, delicious results every time! I always have jumbo-sized bags of oats in my apartment; whether I’m using them for overnight oats, blueberry baked oatmeal, healthy oatmeal cookies, sprinkling them into smoothies, or using them to make this basic oatmeal (aka oat porridge), there’s definitely no lack of inspiration for oat recipes in this apartment....

Recently, I’ve shared a few of my favorite versatile ‘sauce’ recipes, like this Mango Sweet Chilli Hot Sauce and Avocado Cilantro Dip. Finishing up the trifecta of dip indulgence is this creamy peanut dipping sauce. Once again, this recipe is ridiculously simple to make. If you have a blender or food processor then it’s basically as simple as chucking everything in and blending till smooth. No blender? Then you can use a whisk and do things the old fashioned way....