Sweet bread

Sweet Paratha stuffed with nuts

August 27, 2020 By Asha Shivakumar

Sweet Paratha. Flaky buttery paratha stuffed with nuts, spiced with cardamom and saffron is topped with sweet condensed milk. Divine and irresistible. Perfect as a sweet treat, a great snack, and offering during festivals.

WHEN I WAS GROWING UP, mom made an array of quick sweet treats for a junk loving household. Although my dad was very health conscious, sweets was his weakness. He would skip a chapathi, but eat that sweet poli, or mom’s classic gulab jamun. Sweets were not a rare appearance like many homes. Mom made her famous sweet dosa, sweet pongal, pal poli, sweet paniyaaram for breakfast, and evening snacks were the classic traditional ones. When special occasions came by, there were the pricey nuts involved and more ghee, of course.

Being a working mom, she never made us feel like she was busy, she made sure to pamper us with the most delicious food and quality family time. I didn’t have to pester her a lot, a request or an order sometimes, and anything we asked was ready in minutes. Although there were so much sweets, she’d balance it out with all the veggies she snuck in into our diets. Smart lady!

…

Salvadoran Sweet Bread / Semitas De Dulce (Sweet Stuffed Bread)

May 15, 2018 By Asha Shivakumar

This Salvadoran Sweet Bread / Semitas De Dulce is a traditional bread stuffed with panela/jaggery. A delicious twist on the classic recipe is to use your favorite jam as a filling.

You have to taste the culture to understand it.

We travel for many reasons. To explore, for love, for glory, for adventure, for thrills, to get away from reality, to relax. For the new and the familiar, for sensory thrills and serenity, for socialization and isolation, for risk and reward, for the journey and the story and the secrets. I travel for all these reasons. Which is all just another way of saying that I travel to eat….

Red Bean-Cardamom Buns

February 7, 2016 By Asha Shivakumar

What’s your favorite dessert?

I couldn’t pick just one. It’s coffee cake one day, falooda another, or a simple gulab jamun, which I always love.

While San Francisco is famous for it’s Golden Gate Bridge, cable cars and earthquakes, it’s also very famous for its restaurants. There are no words to describe the popular sourdough of San Francisco, it’s amazing. The food truck festival is a very popular one. The Ghirardelli ice cream is just to die for. My mouth just waters with the memory of the English muffins from Model bakery. Ahhh, so good. Little Italy has some beautifully created dishes as well. While burritos are considered sacred here, Chinese food is like an institution. We have some very very popular chefs who have great restaurants, and I’ve been to a lot of them. It is a food heaven filled with culture and beauty.

…

WALNUT MOCHA BREAD with Cardamom

October 28, 2013 By Asha Shivakumar

Somethings are great in theory.
Like the Mazda Miata I wanted. Can you imagine driving the kids and carpooling?..NO, so not practical.
Like the beautiful apple tree we bought and thought that we would see apples in couple of years, it’s got the same number of leaves on it as the day we bought it.
Like the good intention to wake up at 4.00 a.m. for my workout.
Like the time we wanted a dog. We dog sat our friend’s little shih tzu and we loved him. Just that he loved my sandals too, he would nag us to take him out every time. I love animals, but in no rush to get one.
…