Pongal is a South Indian Tamil rice dish made with rice and lentils that are cooked like a thick porridge. Rice and lentils are cooked together with salt and turmeric until very tender and then mixed in with ghee and toasted black peppercorns. As comforting a dish as it can get, this is a pure clean flavor that tastes awesome with a side of spiced tomato sauce called gotsu. Continue reading Pongal. South Indian Tamil Rice and Lentil Porridge
Tag Archives: spices
Pepper Paneer Curry
Sweet, spicy, flavorful and very easy to make this curry is. When I made this sweet pepper curry I had received loads of garden fresh peppers from my neighbor in all shapes, sizes and varieties. I kept racking my brain trying to figure out what I could make that would use up all these peppers in one main dish. This pepper and paneer curry was the result. We had it with chapatis but one could have it with naan, tortillas, stuff it in a burrito, or serve it as a side dish. Give it a try! Continue reading Pepper Paneer Curry
Bharazi. Black Eyed Peas in Coconut Milk
Looking for a totally different black-eyed pea recipe to make for good luck in the New Year? A dish from East Africa? Try this black-eyed pea stew called bharazi created by Indians living in Kenya. Bharazi is an Indianized Kenyan dish made with black-eyed peas or pigeon peas, coconut milk, and spices. Continue reading Bharazi. Black Eyed Peas in Coconut Milk
Pistachio Cardamom Cookies
Pistachio Cardamom Cookies! Need I say more? Wholesome pistachios and sweet cardamom in a shortbread cookie – positively delicious. I asked my daughter Sri to make these pistachio cookies for the holidays from a cookie book called Indulgence Cookies by Christabel Martin. This is a cute little cookbook with all the right type of cookie recipes – meaning each recipe is made with good wholesome ingredients and nothing complicated. With simple easy to follow instructions, lovely aroma of cardamom, crunch of pistachios, and a little edge from the lemon zest, all this makes a grown up not-too-sweet cookie, perfect to have with a warm cup of tea. Continue reading Pistachio Cardamom Cookies
Cardamom Cashew Pistachio Granola
Want to give homemade granola over the holidays? Try making this variation of granola with the sweet aroma of cardamom. If you like the exotic flavor of cardamom, this will become your new favorite granola. To make this recipe easy I made my granola with already roasted cashews and pistachios and just added them at the end after the granola was toasted. Very easy and delicious this granola recipe is and if you love having granola with Greek yogurt in the mornings, then this will surely add an exotic twist to your morning granola routine. Give it a try! Continue reading Cardamom Cashew Pistachio Granola
Molasses Crinkle Cookies
Looking for a no-egg cookie recipe with the heavenly aroma of ginger and spices? These fragrant and wonderfully spiced molasses crinkle cookies made with dark molasses and ginger are the ones to try. The only modification I made to this easy recipe from Molasses Crinkle Cookies by Jennifer Causey on Cooking Light Magazine. is adding 1/4 cup of chopped crystalized ginger in the dough and as garnish on the cookie. For an easy cookie recipe that tastes outstanding, give these a try! Continue reading Molasses Crinkle Cookies
Warm Apple Ginger Cider
Warm apple ginger cider is a cider that is served during the winter months at our local bakery Manresa Bread here in Los Gatos, California. Their hot apple cider has to be my daughter Anjali’s all-time favorite drink. Any time Hitesh stops by the bakery to pick up pastry or bread he comes home with Manresa’s apple ginger cider for Anjali. She could drink this all year long if only Manresa would sell it all-year round. But alas it is only available in the winter months. So what does Anjali do the rest of the year when she craves apple ginger cider? I make it at home. With warming fresh ginger, slices of fresh orange, and sweet cinnamon – apple ginger cider is the perfect drink on a cool afternoon at any time of the year! Give it a try! Continue reading Warm Apple Ginger Cider
Butternut Squash & Chickpea Curry
Take a traditional Indian chickpea curry called chole and add some fall-inspired butternut squash and what you get is this delectable butternut squash and chickpea curry. I love this curry so much I have been making it often this fall. The butternut squash adds a nice sweetness to the dish, and the addition of peppers and potatoes combined with chickpeas makes this an awesome one-pot meal. Served with naan or chapatis or ladled over steaming rice or quinoa – either way you have it this curry is delicious. Continue reading Butternut Squash & Chickpea Curry
Spicy Roasted Butternut Squash
Roasted butternut squash with an exotic spice rub elevates a sweet squash into something delectable. If you like roasted butternut squash and the wonderful flavor of spices, I promise this spicy roasted butternut squash will knock your socks off. My friend Shalini brought this variation of roasted butternut squash for a dinner gathering and I can honestly say the platter was wiped clean by all 😋. Everyone loved it! Continue reading Spicy Roasted Butternut Squash
Kale Quinoa Pilaf
This very quick and easy quinoa pilaf has been one of my favorite go-to dishes when I want to make something fast. What makes this pilaf a breeze to make is the frozen quinoa and kale blend that I buy at Costco and keep in the freezer. The frozen quinoa has four individualy wrapped packets, each with cooked quinoa and super green such as kale. This way I can use one, two, or three packets depending on how many people I am serving. All this recipe requires is cutting an onion, a pepper and a few garlic cloves. Then just cook the veggies with spices and add them to the quinoa. That’s it. For a scrumptiously delicious quinoa pilaf in as little as 15 minutes give this quinoa blend a try. Continue reading Kale Quinoa Pilaf
