When I was in my late teens, I worked for a bakery in downtown Disney. The bakery sold a caramelized onion and feta tart that was simply divine. That job did not work out for me and I quit within a month, but I never forgot the taste of that tart. I tried to look up recipes for… Continue reading Paneer and Caramelized Onion Rustic Pie
January is over and that diet Puja and I were on is finally over. It was a tough 30 days, but we are pretty happy with our results. I lost nearly 15 pounds last month. I’m not going to say we ate perfectly every day, but we did stick to it pretty close to 100%,… Continue reading Baked Pears: A Healthy Dessert
The Super Bowl is coming up already. That means it’s about time for one of my favorite things… Chicken Wings! I went to lunch with a couple of my co-workers on Friday and the conversation eventually ended up at football, as it so often does. They started talking about their Super Bowl plans and I,… Continue reading Jeera Chicken Wings (Cumin Chicken Wings)
Happy New Year everyone! What are your designs for 2015? Puja and I are jumping into the weight loss thing. It seems like every year we gain a few more pounds over the previous year, lose it, then over the course of the year gain it back with a couple of extra pounds to boot.… Continue reading Indian Spiced Roasted Sweet Potatoes to Welcome in 2015
Cookies are my favorite thing about the holidays. I love to bake them and share them with friends and family. This year I almost didn’t get around to the holiday baking though. Since we spend Thanksgiving and the two following weeks in India, it didn’t even feel like the holidays to me.
Happy Diwali! Today is one of India’s most celebrated and well-known holidays, Diwali – The Festival of Lights. Diwali goes on for five days. It is a celebration of the triumph of Light over Dark, Good over Evil. On the lunar calendar, it begins on the day of the new moon, when the waning moon… Continue reading Walnut Bars (Burfi) for Diwali
This masoor dal is so easy to make. Simply, throw some lentils, water and spices in the slow cooker, put on the lid and forget about it for several hours. There is no chopping vegetables or sauteeing onions. No fuss! Then, when you’re ready to eat, pour over the fragrant “vaghaar” by heating some ghee… Continue reading Slow Cooker Masoor Dal
These Masala Cheese Toast Sandwiches are a simple combination of boiled potato, cilantro chutney and cheese on bread. There is a delicate crunch to the bread, with a soft interior of savory potato, and just the right amount of gooey cheese. These masala sandwiches are served with sweet and tangy ketchup and a spicy cilantro… Continue reading Potato Sandwiches: Masala Cheese Toast Sandwich
When I opened our CSA box this month the first thing I saw was a huge bunch of green– carrot greens. I normally throw out carrot greens because you pretty much have to use them right away or they dry up and become useless, but with all of these greens I knew I couldn’t let… Continue reading Carrot Bhajias (Carrot Fritters)
One of our biggest goals with Indiaphile is to take the mystery out of cooking Indian food. Despite the long, complex history of Indian food, most dishes are no more complicated to make than western dishes. A dosa is no more difficult to make than a pancake. The multitude of vegetable dishes, shaaks as we… Continue reading Spicy Pineapple Lentil Recipe
I have a special place in my heart for farms. I spent many of my childhood summers surrounded by mango orchards and farm land. My brother and I would wander through the farm for hours with our dog, Shimbo. We spent hours inventing games, naming trees and including our favorite trees in our games.
When people come over to my house for Indian food for the first time, I often serve Potato Shaak. I like it because it is so representative of the flavors of Indian cooking, and it just feels like a homestyle meal.
