Food Fashion Recipe Blog

Badam Anjeer Roll/ Fig Almond Burfi/Anjeer Burji/Anjeer Barfi

November 5, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Anjeer roll has many names: fig roll, anjer barfi or badam anjeer roll, it is a treat that’s pleasing to the eyes, deliciously moist, tender and nutty with a hint of rose, cardamom. And it can be made at home easily. This stuffed fig roll is naturally sweet from the figs and is refined sugar free. Perfect for a diwali platter or sweet gift box.

Diwali is the Festival of lights, family and lots of food!

It is one of the most popular festivals in India, if not the most. There are many stories linked to the reasons behind the celebration. Growing up, Diwali for me was all about new clothes, fun with family, food and FIRE CRACKERS(it was like the July 4th in India).

Ladies would start making savory and sweets a week before the big day. Snacks would be stored in big steel boxes. Cleaning was a big part, painting the home, changing linens, it was all chaotic. Shopping for clothes was also so much fun. The stores would be so crowded that we hardly had space to turn around.

We might not be celebrating how we did back then, but I love to make sweets and savory snacks and give it to friends.

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pumpkin roti

October 27, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Pumpkin roti. Three ingredients, few important steps, and you have the easiest and softest roti there is. This pumpkin roti stays soft for two days if wrapped well and you can skip the pumpkin and make the most perfect delicious plain rotis/ Phulkas.

My love for pumpkin just gets stronger by every passing year. I have a plethora of PUMPKIN recipes on my blog and I can’t believe I didn’t share this one, it’s something I’ve been making for years.

The minute I posted my quick gluten free roti recipe, I started getting requests for the wheat fail-proof phulka or roti. For some reason it has taken this long to share. Every time I share rotis or phulkas on instagram, I have had a sea of requests for a foolproof roti recipe that stays soft for a long time. It’s the season, and why not pumpkin roti?…

Banana Blossom Poriyal – Vazhaipoo Poriyal

October 22, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Vazhaipoo Poriyal/Banana Blossom Sabzi or Banana Flower Stir fry is a very tasty side that goes perfect with a simple dal rice or perfect with chapathis. Made with potatoes and coconut, this is a vegetable which is very special and extremely healthy.

Vaazhai poo or Banana blossom/flower is widely used in Asian cooking. Known for it’s health benefits, this is also extremely tasty and rarely found in the markets.

Cleaning the banana blossom is quite a tedious task. It involves removing the outer purplish layer(bracts or petals), peeling the florets and meticulously removing the stigma and the plastic cover(perianth). It is so worth it!!

I learnt how to clean and cook this Vazhaipoo or Banana flower from my mom in law and her sister. They make it often and they have patience to clean a bunch of them. Late afternoons, they sit on the large dining table, oiling their hands and ready to take on the task of cleaning four to five banana flowers. They make amazing Vazhaipoo Vada, a fritter made out of the banana flower, which is so tasty. But, I love this poriyal that they make….

sweet bonda -Vada in Coconut Milk

October 20, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Sweet Bonda- soft spongy Urad Dal Vada soaked in sweetened coconut milk. It’s a heirloom recipe of a very culturally rich small community of a district in Tanjore/Thanjavur. Perfect Navratri Sweet.

The memories of this sweet bonda traces back to when I was about 14-15 yrs. Back road drives, our yearly trips with aunts, uncles and cousins.

That year we visited Tanjore, South India. Tanjore is known for many things: It’s paintings, the very popular temples that were build during the Chola empire, and their hospitality. How can I forget the food?! To this day, Thanjavur and it’s food has stuck with me. We stayed at my mom friend’s home. A traditional home with thatched roofs, inviting thinnai and beams that were intricately carved out of teak wood. There are not enough synonyms to describe how varied their food is and how very delicious it is.

Reaching Tanjore past midnight, we went straight to bed after a few minutes of obligatory talk….

Healthier & Loaded Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins with tahini

October 17, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

These soft pumpkin muffins are loaded with chocolate chips and pecans, with tahini in the filling, it’s over the top flavorful. Made with olive oil and whole wheat flour, it’s little healthier, but no one can tell. Make one batch and it will become your favorite too.

We are still seeing high temps in the Bay Area, but that doesn’t stop me from going pumpkin frenzy. At least my home smells like Fall.

I’ve made a few batches of these over the last many years. They’ve also made a few trips to the bake sale, and they get sold before you can spell PUMPKIN:’).

I don’t measure, I eye ball pretty much everything especially when muffins are concerned. And every single time I get lucky. Last week a friend of mine asked for the recipe and it hit me that I don’t use any recipe for this. So, I decided to write it down, send it to her and while we are on a roll, share it with you’ll. It’s after all one of my most baked muffins during pumpkin season. Breakfast, lunchbox treat, after school snack… Best Ever Loaded Pumpkin Muffins for everyone!…

Authentic Garam Masala

October 6, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

The most popular Indian spice blend is the garam masala. This fresh, fragrant, authentic and simple recipe is made from slow roasting the whole spices and grinding them.

Garam Masala is a common Indian spice blend, that’s perfumed and pungent, a combination of warming spices used to season many Indian dishes. Every household in India has a different recipe for this masala spice powder. It varies greatly across India, depending on the region, household and personal preference. And that’s why Garam Masalais so special and nuanced.

Garam masala is darker in color, spicy and not hot, and nothing in comparison to the other blends. A completely different flavor profile.https://youtu.be/v8uESTv1SMw

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Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani – Best and Easiest Dum Biryani EVER

October 3, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

If you love biryani, this hyderabadi chicken biryani will WOW you. This layered biryani is so flavorful and will become your go to biryani recipes. You will love this easy and delicious recipe!

Can anything be more marvelous than a big pot of Biryani? Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani.

Woke up bright and early ready to embark on the art of making biryani.

We sit down to a mountainous task of peeling those tight headed mini garlic. Turmeric washed chicken gets a soak in a home made slightly sour but sweet yogurt, fresh ginger-garlic-green chili paste, red chili powder and the freshest garam masala. A squeeze of lemon splashes into an eye while I mix with my bare clean hand.

Precision cut onions get piled up on a steel plate just to be dumped in a kadai of hot oil, to get golden fried and caramalized( NO STORE BOUGHT fried onions). The marinated chicken gets cooked in an abundance of oil mixed with ghee, to a perfect 80% percent. On the side, the pleasant fragrance of basmati can be whiffed in the second floor as she starts dancing around in a large pot with spices. A steam rises to the face as I carefully drain the water separating the rice that look like glistening pearls not wanting to stick to each other. The rice is not fully cooked, because she needs to soak in the juices of the flavorful chicken when layered, later.

I line up everything like an organized morning assembly at school.

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Masala Egg Bhurji- Most delicious Indian style scrambled eggs

September 30, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Masala Egg Bhurji/ Spiced Eggs is a perfect celebration dish for the non-meat eaters. Works for a special-occasion breakfast loaded with sweet peppers, goes great with rotis or on toast. YUM!

Anda Bhurji or Scrambled Eggs is probably one of the most made food in every household. This Anda Bhurji is nothing short of amazing, it’s a special dish that can be served on occasions or for your Sunday brunch.

This recipe sprung to life one fine, August afternoon as I was strolling around the kitchen getting ready for lunch. Got the chicken out and exactly knew what I was making for my little boy. But, lunch for my pescatarian hubby had me scratching my head. I’ll come to that later, I thought. First let me marinate the chicken. While mixing the yogurt, like a circuit breaker blew up, I had an idea….boom!!…

Sesame Apple CAke

September 28, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Thinly sliced sweet apples run through this tender, fluffy and buttery Sesame Apple Cake. This apple cake screams simplicity and comfort, a cake that is not overtly sweet and so so satisfying.

That abundance mentality vs scarcity mentality. We are human, we want it all. Recognition, success, respect, money – these are all things that most of us dream of having in abundance on a daily basis.

Steven Covey in his book Seven Habits of highly successful people coined this well.

_________”Most people are deeply scripted in what I call the Scarcity Mentality. They see life as having only so much, as though there were only one pie out there. And if someone were to get a big piece of the pie, it would mean less for everybody else.

The Scarcity Mentality is the zero-sum paradigm of life. People with a Scarcity Mentality have a very difficult time sharing recognition and credit, power or profit – even with those who help in the production. The also have a a very hard time being genuinely happy for the success of other people.

The Abundance Mentality, on the other hand, flow out of a deep inner sense of personal worth and security. It is the paradigm that there is plenty out there and enough to spare for everybody. It results in sharing of prestige, of recognition, of profits, of decision making. It opens possibilities, options, alternatives, and creativity.”_____

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Pumpkin Dal with Beet Greens

September 27, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Cozy and comforting Pumpkin Dal or Poosanikai Kootu is perfect for autumn and cooler months. It’s easy to make and with the addition of beet greens adds so much more flavor.

Happy Autumn!!

It’s that time of the year when pumpkin and butternut squash is in abundance, and I’m all about pumpkin recipes, be it sweet or savory. I’ve been eating this pumpkin kootu or pumpkin dal from when I was a baby. I’ve always liked the slight sweetness in my curries and this one with chapathi or just plain rice is phenomenal.

Authentic South Indian everyday food/recipes uses very less spices, simple local ingredients and never over the top hot. It’s always fresh and few ingredients. This recipe uses channa daal for it’s bite and texture, creamy which also holds it’s shape. This pumpkin dal works best with channa dal/split yellow chickpeas or even split yellow moong daal.

Flavorful Indian food is so much faster and you can get the most authentic taste with just a few ingredients.Thanks to my mom for yet another healthy and delicious recipe that is a staple at home….