VEGETARIAN

Kovakkai/Tindora/Ivy Gourd Curry Easy Curry with Chickpea Flour and Peanuts

February 22, 2018 By Asha Shivakumar

This is a simple delicious curry for vegetarian and meat lovers. This kovakkai/tindora Ivy gourd curry with chickpea flour and peanuts is absolutely a treat for the vegetarian lovers. Have it with rotis, and it’s perfect.

We all hail from different ethnic backgrounds and cultures, and have limitations on what we do eat and not.

There are many myths in different cultures, and we Indians are quite famous for it. When you grow up in a distinctive culture, it’s bound to influence your lifestyle, your belief system — and perhaps most enjoyably, your diet. Eat okra, you’ll do well in math. Eat too much ivy gourd, your brain will not be as smart (no joke, I’ve seen people say this), don’t have banana after 6 p.m, or my favorite one, don’t have yogurt rice after you eat meat. I’ve heard it all….

Quick Yellow Thai Curry – 20 Min.

January 24, 2018 By Asha Shivakumar

This quick yellow Thai curry will both impress you and leave you craving for more. It’s so easy, and you don’t even need any paste. It’s a weekly staple in our home.

If there’s one thing we would take out quite often, but I was still overwhelmed by, it was Thai food. For some reason, for years I thought making Thai curry with Thai paste was laborious. Well, making a Thai curry paste does require a few ingredients, but it’s actually quite simple as I later learned. However, on the days I run out of my curry paste and have a hankering for Thai Curry, this is my go to….

Vegan Healthy Vegetable Dal with Kale and Yam

January 15, 2018 By Asha Shivakumar

This vegan healthy vegetable dal is filled with ton of good veggies, kale and yam and carrots. Perfect hearty meal.

We are mid Jan and I have been on a vegetable high this month on the blog and otherwise. We make many different types of dal and I’ve been fond of mixing a few different legumes for a hearty and delicious meal. Dal seems to be one of the biggest source of protein for vegetarian eaters. South Indians love their dal and this has become one is become by absolute favorite, healthy vegetable dal….

Quinoa Ven/Khaara Pongal with Gotsu

January 12, 2018 By Asha Shivakumar

The first festival of the year for Tamilians, Pongal. This quinoa pongal with gotsu is a slightly healthier alternative to the classic pongal that is usually made on this festival with rice.

Happy Pongal / Sankranti to all who celebrate!! When they say India is a land of festivals, it is true. We probably have a festival every month of the year. The crazy part is that they are not small festivals; each one is big. Pongal is a harvest festival dedicated to Sun God. It’s a celebration of the first crop. It’s celebrated over four days, each day with its own significance. You can read more about the mythology and significance behind Pongal here.…

Stir fry Tofu with Pepper Wraps -15 minute recipe

January 4, 2018 By Asha Shivakumar

This easy stir fry tofu peppers is a healthy balanced meal. Eat it on some noodles, or wrap it in lettuce! A good gluten-free and healthy vegetarian meal.

Tofu Love

I remember the first time I tried tofu. It was in a soup, and it felt slimy… too soft and quite bland. I unfortunately couldn’t be trendy and like it. Then again, I’m a little picky with trying different foods, and it has to be really good for me to like it. However, I never waste; I will always eat it up. It took me the longest to fall in love with tofu. Only a few years ago, I figured out the secret to perfect tofu before stir-frying….

black eyed peas and eggplant curry

January 1, 2018 By Asha Shivakumar

Black eyed peas curry with eggplant and spinach rotis, a healthy and tasty way to begin the New Year. Healthy, nutritious and extremely tasty. Happy 2018!!!

Happy New Year! Wishing you a Very Happy 2018! Hope you all have an enriched and fulfilling year ahead.

Black eyed peas is supposed to be a lucky dish to have on New Year’s. It’s a Southern tradition, and you can read the reasons behind it HERE. For us, we just love black eyed peas, and that’s reason enough to share and enjoy this dish.

And here we are, in 2018. A new year. Beginning of a New chapter.

Whatever it maybe,

Find What ignites worlds within you

Let your work, everything you create,

Be a direct extention of your heart space,

Now, more than ever,

The world needs more of our light

Go find what sparks it

And people that wholeheartedly believe in it,

And use to go out + change something.

Danielle Doby…

Perfect CHEESE BOARD – Roasted red bell pepper and Tomato Chutney

December 28, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

A party feels complete with a perfect cheese board. Make this roasted red bell pepper and tomato chutney, which is spicy and goes perfectly with an array of cheeses.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are enjoying your Holidays. We had a relaxed and joyful one. I wanted to wrap 2018 on a fun note and was out of words to do it. I asked my teen to write a guest post and here goes… Hope you have a good laugh, I sure did….

Quick Chickpea with Spinach Curry – 30 Minute Dish

December 1, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

This quick golden-hued chickpea spinach curry is simply the perfect cozy meal on a cold evening.

Happy Friday!! Happy December!!!

The cookie and cake season is here, and I bring to you a healthy and delicious meal for those “I don’t want to cook” days, when you are too busy baking up sweet treats….

Twice Baked Potato with Pepper Jack-Cauliflower-Peas Stuffing (Indian style)

November 14, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

A perfect snack, side or a light lunch. These twice baked potatoes are stuffed with a spicy cauliflower peas stir fry that’s mixed in with pepper jack and wild rice. It makes for an amazing Thanksgiving side, as well as a light, delicious lunch.

It’s okay to be an Idealist, I guess!!

Maybe you’ve been called a dreamer your whole life—by others and by yourself. Are you the person spending half your time envisioning what you’d love and want to do or be?

I see some of you nod in agreement. I also see my parents shake their head side to side and saying, “That’s not reality, step down my dear…”

Trying to bridge the two worlds, the practical and the reality, is a dreamer’s challenge….

Masala and Meatballs – Pre-order Time!!!

November 2, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

It’s finally ready!! We are so excited. Masala and Meatballs is ready for pre-order! The book releases January 2018!

HOW I FEEL AND WHAT THE BOOK IS TO ME

It’s time to celebrate. I finally feel the excitement!!

This book is my baby. It’s the moment I’ve been waiting for years. It’s my dream, that has been brewing in my mind, even before I knew how to make a cup of coffee. I don’t know which leg to stand on. It’s all too exciting, and a bit daunting. Soon, my little book will take on its own journey, across book stores and around the world. It’s been a very exciting, and wild, journey. I’ve learnt so much in the process, which has been very empowering for me.

“There are moments which mark your life. Moments when you realize nothing will ever be the same and time is divided into two parts, before this, and after this…” – Fallen (1998)…