Survived Hurricane Sandy

Looks like I haven't posted anything after Hurricane Sandy. Never saw such a storm in my life! The scariest sounds of the winds blowing, branches crashing against the glass panes. And not to mention, the bizarre lightning that was a strange greenish blue in color. Glad to have survived it. Life was difficult for one week. Even for the animals. I wonder what this squirrel was thinking. Hope it did not lose anyone dear. Maybe it's looking down...

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Kovakkai Poriyal - Ivy Gourd Stirfry

This is the first guest post on this blog, from one of the biggest followers of my blog, my dear husband! Now that he has started trying his hand in cooking, he surprised me one day when I came back from work, by cooking up this beautiful poriyal. I have never tasted anything like it before and it was scrumptious! He even plated it and took photos for me to post this on the blog. How sweet! Hopefully there will be more guest posts on the way. This...

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Hummus (Hummous)

Hummus or pronounced as Hummous in the Middle East, is a ground chickpea, tahini dip that goes great with almost anything! As a child, my dad would bring home Arabian Barbecued chicken or Chicken Broast on days we decide to eat takeout. In Riyadh, Chicken broast was a popular local fast food. A popular fast food joint was Maccoys, where the queues are sometimes so long, it goes far out of the store. Hummus is always a free accompaniment with...

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Seekh Kabab

Seekh kababs are my favorite variety of kababs. Grilled on skewers also known as seekh, until juicy and succulent, they're just mouth watering. The seekh is a round metal skewer, however I used bamboo skewers that have been soaked in water (to prevent them from burning when grilling). You can use any kind of ground meat for this - beef, lamb or chicken. But it should not be too lean, or it will become too dry. So make sure it has some amount...

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Vendakka Pachadi - Stir fried Okra in yoghurt sauce

Okra is a vegetable that I would steer clear of as a child. My dad used to say that his mother would prepare okra curry like beef curry during the lent season. And nobody would miss eating meat, coz it has a meaty texture. I never liked the slimy gooey texture, but after being married to someone who loves this vegetable, I had to prepare it to keep him happy. The okra stir fry is one of his favorites and my mother-in-law gave me the easiest recipe...

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Samosa Chaat

My previous post was about Punjabi Samosas. In this one, I'm using the same samosas to make a flavorful Indian snack called Samosa Chaat. Serving Size: For one plate Ingredients: For samosa chaat: Samosas - 1 or 2 Chana masala - 2 tbsp (recipe below) Green chutney - 1 tbsp (use coriander chutney/mint chutney/ Coriander-mint chutney) Date and Tamarind chutney (Sweet chutney)- 1 tbsp Plain yoghurt - 2 tbsp, whisked with a pinch of salt Red...

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Punjabi Samosa

Ingredients: For stuffing: Potatoes - 6, medium Green peas - 1/2 cup Oil - 1 tbsp Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp Asafoetida - a pinch Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp Green chillies - 3-4 (increase or decrease according to your spice level) Ginger - 1/2 inch piece Fennel Seeds - 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder - a pinch Crushed black peppercorn - 1/4 tsp Garam masala - 1 tsp Amchur (dry mango) powder or Anardana (dried pomegranate seeds) powder - 1/4 tsp Coriander...

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Kottayam style Red Fish Curry

This recipe is not for the faint hearted! One look at this blood red curry and you know why. ;-) But this is how fish curry is prepared in most Christian households in central Kerala. Its popularly known as Kottayam fish curry. Kottayam is one of the districts in central Kerala, with a large population of Syrian Christians. In Malayalam, its called Meen Vevichathu. The gravy is of a thin consistency laced with red chilli powder and a hint of...

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A Photo walk on a beautiful Autumn morning

Last weekend, my neighbors were off for their son's wedding, so they asked us to take care of their cats for them while they were away. My husband usually goes over every morning and evening to feed them, but I decided to accompany him last Saturday as it was such a beautiful morning. The whole place is gearing up for Halloween and the decorations are already going up. I brought my camera along to capture interesting sights along the way. This...

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