Baba Ganoush

I had been thinking to make the middle eastern baba ganoush for a while now. Tangy , healthy, refreshing and equally easy to make. The simplicity of the recipe will make you wonder why u bought the prepackaged or tinned version for so long.

A great appetizer to start a great party. 

Shrikhand

A month beginning with notes of celebration. Now be it Eid, Ganesh Chaturthi or the Labour day weekend that you may be enjoying with your family,here's a super simple recipe of the most delectable dessert that tops my list of the sinful ten.

Shrikhand is Indian sweetened saffron yogurt, eaten on its own or sometimes with puris /deep fried bread.Traditionally, curd or plain yogurt is hung in a cheese cloth for 7-8 hours or overnight and flavored the next day with some aromatics. Like a blank canvass, you can bring your own spin to this basic recipe that i present by adding cubed fruits or fruit pulp.

Rajasthani gatte

Lately, we have been marathoning flavors from home. Quintessentially rajasthani, gatte (pronounced ga-tte) are savory gramflour dumpling. A great dish to surprise your palette, if you have'nt tried it already. 

Rajasthani cuisine like many other cuisines, is truly influenced by the availability of ingredients locally. An arid land, vegetation in the region is scarce.In the era gone by, food mainly consisted of many variations of lentils and dried produce. The hot climate required eatables which could  last longer. Fast forwarding to the present times, this recipe comes handy when you find your refrigerator scarce by the end of the week :)

Rajasthani garlic chutney

Our home smells great today. I just made dal bati with the boldest lahsun-ki- chutney (garlic chutney) for lunch. The perfect compliments bati dal garlic chutney, are the weekend staples in any rajasthani home like mine. Though i'll confess , our global diet these days lends an empty slot for this favorite food from the rugged land of warriors, only once a month. I 'll share the circle of my rajasthani plate soon but today i wish to highlight this fiery , fully packed chutney recipe.

This chutney is made mostly in winters as large quantities of garlic in it keep you warm. But like rest of the things which are year round now, garlic chutney is a must must in any rajasthani's pantry. History has it that lahsun ki chutney formed the working lunch of peasants in rajasthan, along with bajra ki roti /millet bread and onions.

Mangoes and cream

Feels really long that i posted some love ! So here i am again.

Mangoes and many stories of summer embrace my mind . As a kid i remember the whole joint family sitting and eating mangoes by the buckets and yes literally. Water was stored overnight in big earthen pots and stood covered on our big terrace under the glittering  blanket of stars and moon. The cool water quenched our thirst like no refrigerated or iced water can or could back then too. Well continuing, the next morning, cartons of washed mangoes were immersed in the pot which were then shifted in shade. And done lunch, we all would sit and relish the super delicious mangoes around an appetizing platter of  family talks, jokes and gossip. Hmm summers could never be summers enough if not for our siblings cousins aunts uncles parents grandparents. Sitting far away from home, i feel cocooned,  to know i have a train of relatives to call mine and call anytime :)