The first time I saw a roti jala (Malaysian Net Pancakes) was some 8 years ago at Malaka Spice, a really pretty restaurant in Koregaon Park in Pune. The eye-catching pancake soon turned into a Piece de resistance! Since then I have always hoped to make it at home but never got down to it. Last week whilst surfing for some recipes for work I came across this dish again and it was quickly noted down to be made the following weekend. I needed time to design the mould to drop these pancakes too!
And you might think I’ve gotten completely carried away with my need to eat and produce healthy food! How can that weird combination even work! But it does. And what I haven’t added in that mighty long title, is that the ragda was made with sprouted white peas. don’t look at me in disdain! try it and decide for yourself. It’s chaat with the same flavours we all love just super healthy and protein heavy!
So yesterday I tried to bake a sugar-free oats and yoghurt cake with blueberries. I broke the first rule of baking, didn’t measure my baking powder and over beat the eggs. It ended up being hard and bread like, I don’t usually have such disasters in the kitchen and was super upset. I needed a pick me up. Nothing in my fridge seemed to be right for the moment and I had run out of chocolates 🙁 That’s when I glanced upon 2 slices of a thin herbed wheat pizza base. My brain started ticking. Should I convert them into quesadillas? (pronounced: cay-suh-dee-yuh) Or may be just turn them into dinner…something that’s warm, simple, wholesome and smooth. The thought of a Baked Cheesy Tortilla brought back a smile. The dish requires very little attention whilst its cooking. It’s almost like a pizza but 100 times more nutritious and loaded with healthy vegetables like mushrooms, spinach, onions, tomatoes and the cheese in it comes from cottage cheese. It’s my go-to-dish, try it and you will know why 🙂
This cake was conceptualised purely out of the need to finish the pumpkin and carrots in the fridge. My inspiration was the indian version of this combination, carrot and pumpkin sweet puri’s (fried flat breads) that are made with jaggery and wheat flour. They are deep-fried to a crispy texture and had with chai in the evenings. The cake was just as delightful and made for a classy dessert that was wiped out in 3 sessions: post lunch, post dinner and post breakfast. The cake is a little dense from the gluten-free flour that’s used and is best iced the traditional way: with cream cheese and cream.
The sun’s hard and harsh rays are sadly forcing the strawberries into oblivion. 🙁 But I must say, this year, I’ve eaten strawberries almost right through the season and I bid adieu to my most favourite fruit with nothing less than a sugar-free pie!
There’s something about this luscious fruit with at least 200 seeds that makes people go crazy about it. It’s believed that in the yesteryears, the royals feasted on this fruit and newlyweds were entitled to strawberries with soured cream as a wedding breakfast, believing them to be an aphrodisiac. I however dig them for their nutritional value: vitamin C and K, a good dose of fibre, folic acid, manganese and potassium and they help regulate blood sugar levels. Could I ask for more?
Summer’s here. After a gap of almost two months the ACs have been switched on again. My fridge is full of fruits and cold soups. It’s time to say bye to the heavier creamier dishes. This weekend I saw myself churning up chutneys for my chat party—pani puri, bhel, sev puri and making this super light and cold version of a chiffon pie made to celebrate the oranges!
A salad doesn’t necessarily need to be on a bed of lettuce, not does it have to be boring and put together at the last-minute. Salads can be zesty, fruity, crunchy and even have a bit of carbohydrates for good measure! My newly discovered love for couscous, sees me pairing it up with greens, fruits and cheese often. While many people mistake couscous for a pasta, though its made of durum wheat the manufacturing process is very different, The wheat is crushed rather than ground up to make the pasta. What i love about couscous in a salad is that it gives the salad a beautiful texture. (more…)
I love burgers. And cheese stuffed burgers were the signature dish at my second restaurant. We would make them with different meats and veggies always experimenting with the flavours and textures. Soon stuffed burgers were the only way these patties could be made! I wasn’t surprised when my parents requested for them for a celebratory meal to mark their 51st anniversary. Though the family had chicken burgers, my sis is following Lent and was a vegetarian! And she wanted mini veggie burgers!
If there’s anything I love, it’s a good dessert to end my meal and a good digestif to end the day 🙂 This lemony cake was first baked 3 years ago for a New Year party in Goa. It’s tangy, minty, lemony, creamy and has just the right caremalised kick from the lemon wheels that are cooked in sugar till they are crisp and brown, and sweet and sour to taste! It’s literally an explosion in your mouth. What’s more eating your cocktail is the new trend! Get ready to bake this over the weekend
My mom has a problem with the food I eat, “How can you eat without rice or flat breads” is a question she often asks. And though I’ve tried explaining the no-carbs at night funda, she just can’t understand it. Your meals do vary from normal when you have a health conscious diabetic in the house! “All you eat is stir-fry, what good is that! It’s just quick cooking,” she laments. There she is right. If you are quick with the knife, your stir fry can be ready in less than 20 minutes. And it’s healthy, full of veggies and gluten-free 🙂