Vegan

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 :).…

CRISPY CAULIFLOWER AND BROCCOLI WITH ASIAN DRESSING

January 15, 2014 By Asha Shivakumar

It has been a good couple of weeks. I am trying to get back on track with my workouts and a good healthy diet. I’ve always been consistent with workouts, in fact I can overdo a bit but the results are definitely well worth it. Although my parents beg to differ, they hate to see the skinny me. Food, on the other hand is something I love too much to be eating less portions and healthy all the time. So I have to come up with tasty alternative which are liked by all. I am so glad that my boys are into salads and smoothies.

This was our light dinner for the day, with a cantaloupe smoothie (cantaloupe, strawberry, and coconut water). …

OPA SQUASH DUMPLINGS IN SPICY CURRY-Kofta Curry

October 10, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

When things are in a rush, every body’s got lots to do and you feel the need for extra couple of hours in a day….then comes the spicy yummy meal craving. That’s when one pot meals come in handy.

Don’t you love one pot meals?
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SPICY GARBANZO PEANUT SALAD – ‘Sundal’

September 15, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

My words his experiences.

“I first ate this version of the salad at a festival in my neighbor’s house. The simplest way to describe that festival is ‘a doll festival‘(GOLU). They keep miniature idols of GOD, and dolls of mythological characters on tiny steps made of wood. The dolls would’ve been collected over many years, received as gifts, and also inherited from parents and grandparents. Ladies get together, sing, pray, and give this salad in mini bowls to guests.

College days were fun. Going to the beach with my guy friends was an experience. Chennai(in the southern part of India) has some of the nicest beaches. We watched kids playing, moms and dads watching over the kids, and couples walking hand in hand. It truly was a sight.

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SPINACH PAKODI KADHI with roasted garlic- GUEST POST

September 5, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

Today I am happy to be guest writing for one of my first blogger friends. Now, we all know blogging is a lot of work which we all love, but doing it with two little ones can pose some challenges. Shruthi, a beautiful photographer manages both pretty well and her sincerity can be seen in her work.

PLEASE visit her beautiful blog Part time chef. Thank you so much.

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BUCKWHEAT/FLAX SEEDS SPICY CRACKERS with GRILLED GOLDEN BEET DIP/HUMMUS

August 20, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

I am not Vegan.

I eat gluten in some form every day.

Healthy food habits…not all the time.

We do go sometimes Vegan for a week, just to see how it feels. Being a South Indian, rice is a huge part of our daily meals, we naturally follow a gluten free diet to a certain extent.

Now about eating and following a healthy lifestyle, wish I was more consistent with it. We eat quite healthy, actually very healthy, but after a good healthy meal, we go out for Gelato:). My new favorite flavor FicoPistachio, oh yum.
OK, I don’t eat ice cream everyday, but I need a sweet something after dinner time. Do you crave a dessert after your dinner?
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THAI COCONUT CURRY SOUP- Spicy topped with NOODLES – 50th post and Giveaway/gift

August 16, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

Yes, it’s my 50th post and I can’t believe I made it this far.

These last 3 months have been beyond what I could ask for. You being a huge part of it. Can you imagine that you work so hard on your recipe, your writing, your pictures, and you see 3 views? That sucks big time. I also saw that those views were mom’s, my teen’s and mine.

I remember when I was overwhelmed at the very thought and process of creating a blog. There were questions like ‘Honey, how can I make this picture bigger’ to ‘Nik, can you please teach me how to add links’. They seem simple right, but too much for me then. Technical details seemed to pass through me without touching me.
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SPICY PLUM BARBECUE SAUCE and Grilled Tofu – How I went from making sweet jam to spicy barbecue sauce

July 22, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

Harvard takes perfectly good plums as students, and turns them into prunes – Frank Lloyd Wright

I was 7, I think. It was 19XX coughs ;)..

During vacations, my grandma whom I fondly called ‘Amma’ and the little me, each carrying a wire grocery bag walked hand in hand to our local fruit market. Just the BAG, brings back nostalgic memories.

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YUCCA and Red Quinoa Fritters with Saffron Aioli

July 18, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

What came first the chicken or the EGG?

Summer for me is the time to laze around, sleep crazy hours and the time to socialize. My foodie friend and I have been planning a meetup for a while now.

The day came, and I was excited to have her home for coffee. I made these Peruvian inspired yucca fritters for her. Coffee was set in my small and cozy backyard. Got ready in my butterfly summer outfit, pinning my hair up and in summer sandals, was ready for some girly couple of hours.

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Black Rice Salad with Spicy Honey Balsamic Dressing

June 23, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

“When walking, walk. When eating, eat.” rashaski · Zen Proverb

During the years when China was ruled by an emperor, black rice was dubbed as the “Forbidden Rice”. It was cultivated in very small amounts because it was only for the emperor’s consumption.

Sporadic visits to the gym and binge eating regularly does make one want to postpone summer for a bit longer. A rude but healthy gesture came along when I got handed a huge bag of black rice. I know, I know I like my rice but I’m not ready to combine my daal with black rice. Would you?
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