Carrot and Chai Masala Cake with Pistachio Cream Cheese Frosting   Serving carrot cake is a classic Easter move. But what if the classic got an Indian twist?   Carrot cake with an Indian twist? My version puts homemade chai masala in the cake batter, and the frosting turns an ever-so-slight pale green with the nutty addition of ground pistachios. Since carrots are in abundance right now, this Carrot and Chai Masala Cake with Pistachio Cream Cheese Frosting would be a great dessert to make anytime this spring.  Heirloom Carrots I adore the heirloom carrots that come in various s ..read more

LOADED SMASHED POTATOES   My dear friend Michelle, whom I have known through Instagram for about 10 years, has come out with a wonderful plant-forward and pescatarian cookbook – Supper With Love. We go back a long time – she was one of my first friends on Instagram, who supported me when I started making jams for the Jam Lab.   Michelle is a wonderful person, who is straightforward, honest and a beautiful soul. I had the pleasure of meeting her when she was in the Bay Area last September, shooting for her cookbook. She has a beautiful website, filled with amazing plant based recipes ..read more

VEGAN Broccoli Soup with Masala Kale Tempura In January, many people make New Year’s resolutions. Changes are good, and the start of the year is a natural reset. Many of us try to employ a more mindful and healthy way of eating, bringing more fresh vegetables to the forefront.   And who says healthy food has to be boring? Bring on soup season! It’s food for the soul, comfort in this dreary weather. Soups are versatile, easy going, forgiving — and you can make any soup your own. A little extra of one ingredient isn’t going to drastically change the taste of the end product. Substitutions w ..read more

Orange Shortbread with Cranberry Champagne Buttercream   It’s cookie season! Baking cookies, sharing with friends and family is one of my favorite things to do this time of the year. I first developed this recipe for the magazine Bake from Scratch in 2019. I loved these cookies then and loved it now as well.    Oranges are one of my go-to ingredients to add to baked goods in the winter. The zest of oranges has a ton of flavor, and adds a wonderful flavor profile to the cookie. Here are some of my cookies that have orange in them.    Orange Zest and Cardamom Sugar Cooki ..read more

Pear and Ginger Barfi Bars   As a kid growing up in Mumbai, my favorite fruit next to Alfonso mangoes was pears. As soon as they were in season, my mother would bring the pale green beauties home from the market, and I would immediately devour the first pear, right out of the box, juice dripping from the corner of my mouth. It was bliss.   Juicy, crunchy, ever so slightly soft and super sweet, pears are an underrated fruit. They bring natural sweetness to any dessert. WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT KIND OF PEARS? I did not grow up with varieties of this fruit. But after coming to the United ..read more

  Diwali is the biggest Hindu festival of India, celebrated over a period of 7 days per the Hindu Calendar.    WHY IS DIWALI CELEBRATED? Diwali comes from the word Deepavali (which is essentially a diya or a candle in the form of a small clay pot with a wick and oil). It is the day when Lord Rama returned from Lanka after defeating Ravana, and rescuing his wife Sita. The whole city of Ayodhya was lit with diyas, and hence it is called the Festival of Lights. The festival marks the victory of good over evil.   WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT DAYS LEADING UPTO DIWALI? The website h ..read more

BAINGAN BHARTA WITH HERBY YOGURT DIP and NAAN CHIPS   This recipe focuses on an underrated fruit: eggplant (yes, eggplant is classified as a berry). Eggplants, which come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors, are in abundance everywhere right now.     Where are Eggplants grown? Eggplants are native to India, Africa and South Asia, but they are widely used in various cooking traditions across the globe: stir fried, stewed, roasted, braised, in curries, steamed or fried. The most common variety has the very pretty darkish purple skin, a white flesh with loads of seeds ins ..read more

PEACH-SAFFRON AND CORN MACARONS   This is my last peach recipe for this year! Although we are lucky to have peaches in the Bay Area, all the way up till the month of October. I adore peaches and nectarines. Yellow ones are my favorite. I love the tartness of the yellow ones.   The pretty color of the peaches makes me so happy! The shades of yellow, slight orange with a touch of bright pink truly makes for a pretty fruit!    The combination of peaches and corn in a dessert is sublime. Corn adds a subtle sweetness and creaminess, and peaches bring the tartness in a dessert. M ..read more

MAKAI NO CHEVDO   Makai no chevdo is a popular Gujarati dish that is really simple to put together. Corn or butta is in season during the monsoons, readily available right outside our home, on Juhu Beach. Makai no chevdo was a regular at home. Mom made it often for all of us as an evening snack.   It is one of those dishes that is easy to put together and requires minimal ingredients as well. It captures the essence of Gujarati cooking – sweet, tangy, spicy and an absolutely delicious snack, or meal if you want to make it one.   Think of makai no chevdo like corn grits, which is ..read more

Vada Pav   Vada Pav is an emotion. My first taste of the iconic Mumbai street food snack was at my school – that ran from pre-K to the 10th grade – Jamnabai Narsee School. Mom would allow us to have a snack during our short recess, a couple times a week – and vada pav was the first choice always. What is Vada Pav? Vada means fried ball of some sort – in this case, boiled potatoes tempered with Indian spices like turmeric, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafoetida, and curry leaves. Lemon juice is a must for that slight tang, along with cilantro leaves.   Balls are made with the mashed t ..read more