EVENT: SHHH COOKING SECRETLY THEME: MIZO CUISINE The Seven Sister States have been a challenge where the cuisine is concerned. All these states depend on locally grown vegetables, fruits and herbs. So far we cooked from the states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and now its Mizoram. Still got two more to go Nagaland and Tripura. The states we have covered so far tend to use quite a bit of meat for their everyday meals. Mizoram is no exception. Mizo Vawksa made from pork, Misa Mach Poora, made from shrimps, Paanch Phoron Torkari is a veg and non veg dish, Bai a dish whereby pork and veggies are mixed, Swahchiar a rice dish cooked with meat, fish or chicken. Koat pitha is popular in…
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Continue ReadingEVENT:FOODIEMONDAY/BLOGHOP THEME:#188 IDLY MEDLEY RECIPE: BUCKWHEAT IDLI/ KUTTU IDLI Buckwheat Idli is a soft, fluffy, nutritious ,steamed and healthy breakfast or snack to enjoy. Enjoy it with some sambar and chutney, or on its own with some chutney and ghee drizzled over it. Or, you can stir fry them with some podi masala or spice powder. I simply love podi idli. What is Idli? Idli or Idly is a popular South Indian savory steamed cake which is usually made from rice and black lentils(urad dal). The batter is allowed to ferment overnight without yeast or other raising agents. Next day its steamed in a idli stand or in small bowls. Its a popular breakfast dish and is served with usually with a coconut chutney and…
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Continue ReadingEVENT: DESI BLOGGERS CONNECTTHEME: HOLI KE RANG The Festival of Colors is just round the corner and once again everyone will be planning what food to have as friends and families get together to enjoy this festival. Like many festivals in India, it celebrates the good over evil. It also marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring, but take it from me I don’t think there was a spring season in Bangalore, from winter it went straight into summer. It is very hot here. Traditional Story: Hiranyakashipu, a demon king wanted to take revenge against Lord Vishnu who had killed his younger brother. Hiranyakashipu prayed for years and was granted a special boon by Lord Brahma that literally made him indestructible. He…
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Continue ReadingEVENT: A- Z RECIPE CHALLENGE THEME : A DISH BEGINNING WITH THE LETTER F RECIPE: FIG AND AMARANTH COOKIES Fig and Amaranth Cookies are gluten free, delicious, melt in the mouth kind of cookies that can be enjoyed on Fasting Days. Amaranth flour, a bit of butter and sugar with chopped dried figs, these cookies are so easy to make. No baking agent is used as I am not sure if baking agents are allowed during Ekadashi, Shivratri and Navratri Fasting Days. What is the A- Z Challenge? Well, we’re a Facebook group and every alternate month the participants make a dish with the relevant letter. The group was started in May 2018 by Jolly Makkar and Vidya Narayan. Jolly blogs at Jolly Homemade Recipes.…
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Continue ReadingEVENT: SHHH COOKING SECRETLY THEME: MEGHALAYA CUISINE Megha means clouds and thus this North Eastern State is known as the ‘Abode of the Clouds’. True to its name, its receives plenty of rainfall. The state comprises of Garo, Khasi and Jaintia Hills. Majority of the population are Christians. The neighbors are Assam to the north and Bangladesh to the south. The Nohkalikai falls near Cherrapunji is the highest plunge waterfall in India, 1115 feet. Till 1972 Meghalaya was a part of Assam. The hills have many caves which fast is making Meghalaya a famous destination for cave exploration activities. Meghalaya has many living bridges, roots that are old span waterbodies to form suspension like bridges. Coming to the cuisine of Meghalaya, the staple diet consists…
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Continue ReadingEVENT:FOODIEMONDAY/BLOGHOPTHEME:#185 GLOWING SKIN RECIPES When Amrita who blogs at The Food Samaritan suggested glowing skin recipe, I thought wow, what a topic. We normally tend to ignore the fact that food very much predicts how our skin is going to look or looks. The glowing radiant smooth appearance of the skin comes from within us and not entirely from what cosmetics we use on top of our skin. It is important to use facial creams to combat dryness of the skin due to variation of weather and seasons. I personally am not into buying very expensive creams for my face or skin. I don’t believe that a Rs.5000 plus pot of facial cream rich in Vitamin E or collagen will change my skin in a…
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Continue ReadingEvent: FoodieMonday/Bloghop Theme: 178- Harvest Harmony Recipe: Til Gud Ke Ladoo Til Gud Ke Ladoo is an easy recipe whereby roasted sesame seeds are mixed with powdered jaggery, peanuts, coconut, spices and ghee and rolled into balls. Perfect recipe for the harvest season or Makar Sankranti. The best part of this recipe is that you don’t need to make the jaggery syrup. Making jaggery syrup perfectly can be a challenge. Festivals In India Festivals are always a memorable part of my travels to India. Last year we missed celebrating Makar Sankranti, Lohri and Pongal in India as we left before the 14th of January. However, what I remember is that whichever market area we passed by in Mumbai, the whole scene was a feast…
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Continue ReadingEVENT: A- Z CHALLENGE THEME : A DISH BEGINNING WITH THE LETTER E What is the A- Z Challenge? Well, we’re a Facebook group and every alternate month the participants make a dish with the relevant letter. The group was started in May 2018 by Jolly Makkar and Vidya Narayan. For January we have to post a recipe using an ingredient that begins with E. I decided to use eggplants. I could have used other ingredients like eggs, elephant yam but stuck with eggplants for one main reason. I make baigan bharta often as my hubby loves it. I serve it either with rotis or bajra rotla. When I had to decide a dish for this challenge I made up my mind that this time my…
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Continue ReadingEVENT: HEALTHY WELLTHY CUISINES THEME: 59 HWCG #WINTER DELIGHTS AT HW Having a hearty bowl of hot piping soup is the most comforting food one can during winter to ward off the cold. As I have mentioned before, I per say do not experience winter where I live. However at the moment I’m in Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya. Usually Dec to March is suppose to hot but the weather here is cold, though the sun comes out. My brother in law was teaching me how to make a sourdough bread(previous attempts have failed as the dough became too soft!) where handling the dough is much easier and the does not require too much kneading. He also has after much experimentation made the dough…
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Continue ReadingEVENT: DESI BLOGGERS CONNECT THEME: DIWALI DHAMAKA The Group Desi Bloggers Connect: My contribution for this theme is Coconut Laddoos/ Coconut Fudge Balls. Bloggers Connect is a Facebook Group where members support each other by sharing and commenting on each others post. I’ve met many food bloggers though this group. For this Diwali Festival, the admins decided that we should prepare a sweet and savory or either dish to share for the theme. My Story: When I volunteered to take part in this event, I had jotted down a few options. One was a recipe that my mother in law use to make often during Diwali. However, its a bit time consuming and it will have to wait for another time. After I got back from…
