Gluten Free

HARISSA-MANGO PANEER AND PEARL BARLEY-DILL SALAD

January 17, 2015 By Asha Shivakumar

This month was my whole grain month. As I measured out the barley to cook that morning, I did not realize that I had to be creative about how I made use of it for the next three days.

Little did I know that after you have a decent portion of this grain, you won’t be hungry for hours. But isn’t that a good thing? Oh well, maybe. For me, it was ok. So, long story short, I cooked 4 cups of barley which turned out to be around 8 cups of cooked barley. The kids were very apprehensive at the sound of the grain but it turned out they enjoyed it especially when I paired it with something they love….

SPICY FENNEL ROASTED BABY POTATOES

December 4, 2014 By Asha Shivakumar

Welcome to my new space!!!

I hope all of you had a great Thanksgiving!

We did, and I am excited for my new little space here.

When the thoughts of writing snippets along with food came to mind, blogging was the way to go. Since I procrastinate so much, it helped that my then 12 yr old opened up a blogger account and jumpstarted the blog. That’s the story of how this blog was created.

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ZESTY AUTUMN VEGETARIAN PROTEIN SOUP

November 15, 2014 By Asha Shivakumar

It was Friday night, and the kids didn’t care what they ate. All they wanted was to take a break, relax, and do nothing. After a few days of binge eating and carb overload, we all had to eat a bit cleaner for a few days. The good thing is, the kids love to eat healthy food, but only when it tastes good. When they help make it, it’s even better! ;). I called them to come up with their own ingredients for a soup(little did they know I had it all planned). The little one chose the vegetables, the teen chose beans, and we had a winning combo. I asked them to chop, clean, and organize. I had the base ready, and they put things together; it’s that simple. They enjoyed it and were thrilled that they came up with it :).…

DOSA- A SOUTH INDIAN SPECIALITY

February 5, 2014 By Asha Shivakumar

DOSA with PEANUT CHUTNEY(a perfect South Indian breakfast)

Imagine going to your in-laws’ home for the first time, that itself is nerve wrecking(it was for me). How would you react if they ask you to make dosa? It was quite overwhelming. At that time, I didn’t know how to make coffee to save my life, leave alone the art of making a perfect crispy dosa. I slowly made my way to the kichen, kept the flat iron pan, and started making my dosas. That was not so bad until my father-in-law came and said, “hold on, let me show you how to make a proper dosa”(in a nice tone). My ego was hurt, and I was not a happy girl.

Back at my parents’ home, we did make dosa, but it is not as popular as it is in some parts of Southern India. My hubby comes from Coimbatore, a place known for its idli and dosa. Well, along the years, I’ve learnt much traditional cooking from my in laws, and I love their cooking style.
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SAVORY WHOLE GRAIN WAFFLES

January 23, 2014 By Asha Shivakumar

How are you’ll doing? Hope you are keeping yourself warm and safe.
What have I been up to??
Not a lot. Watched a very bad movie, infact the worst Indian movie ever and it had the biggest cast.
Ran 6 miles today after taking a break for a while, feels AMAZING.
Ohhh and by the way, watching episodes of STAR GATE. I remember watching it long back. Now on Season 2 and I am quite addicted now. After the boys are in bed, hubby and I watch at least four episodes, loving it.
And also made a huge batch of these waffles.

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Ridgegourd Yogurt and Coconut Milk Stew with Sriracha Garbanzo Beans

January 9, 2014 By Asha Shivakumar

Ridgegourd Yogurt-Coconut Milk Stew with Sriracha Garbanzo Beans

As the holidays are behind us and a new year is ahead of us, a fresh start always feels good. It was relaxing,took a break from all social networking, yet crazy, couple of weeks. We ate a great deal of food, spent some quality time with friends, and baked plenty of different goodies. After a couple of weeks of waking up late, skipping workouts, eating out, and having absolutely no routine, I was craving to get back into shape. I guess that sometimes, too much of a good thing can annoy you.

Well, I am quite excited for the New Year. I have no resolution in particular, but I have goals I want to accomplish. To start off, I am in deep need of some detox. Well, the carb lover that I am, it is hard to do that. However, once a day, healthy smoothies or soups/stews are not a bad thing.
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INDO THAI – SPICY CHICKEN CURRY with VEGETABLES

December 17, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

If I had to summarize my weekend into one word, it would be: congested. Isn’t it annoying when you feel feverish but the temperature couldn’t be more normal. The whole weekend almost flew by resting and take out food. Not sure how you feel about NyQuil, but I can sleep 2 days straight with just 2 tbsp of it. I actually did(not literally), it did feel good.

What I did miss was home made comfort food, like some rice and spicy curry. I’m pretty exhausted from all the take out.

So after couple of days of take out food, I got up on Sunday and made my Indian Thai Curry(spicy). We enjoyed it with some coconut rice. Yum.

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FIGS-CHIA AND HAZELNUT COOKIES (Gluten free)

December 12, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

All last weekend I craved for cookies, not any cookie but a cookie which was different. As far as my cookie craving went, it had to have figs(I had em’ sitting in my pantry for days staring at me), had to have hazelnut spread and should be great to pack as a gift.

I’ve wanted to make these for months now. The time was right, I had a few hours to myself, the first box of cookies that I made to give friends are here.
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PEPPER CHICKEN On Rice Cracker( PAPAD)

December 8, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

It’s 3.30 p.m.; the front door opens to two hungry boys. The perfume of pepper, warmth from the spices, and the sizzling sounds are just inviting. If I was in my parent’s home, I would ask the same thing, “Mom, it smells so good, what are we eating?”

I have to put my foot down on some things.”Go change, wash up, put on your home clothes, and I will tell you what I cooked,” I say.

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RAVA LADDU/Rawa Ladoo with nuts – HAPPY DIWALI

November 1, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

HAPPY DIWALI!!
DIWALI- Festival of Lights.
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).

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