Grain-free, gluten-free, and vegan, these chickpea chocolate chip cookies are out of this world. Pillowy soft, fluffy, sweet, melt in your mouth, chunky chocolate chip cookies. Continue reading “Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies”
Thick and creamy chia pudding layered with shredded coconut, mango chunks, and roasted pistachios. The fresh tropical flavors for a healthy breakfast will become your favorite way to start the day!
Continue reading “Mango Coconut Chia Pudding”
Crispy, sweet, and salty bites of tofu paired with sauteed bright broccoli on a bed of rice noodles. It can’t get any better than this. Filled with protein, this Teriyaki Tofu Noodle Bowl is perfect for a weeknight dinner or lunch prep.
Continue reading “Teriyaki Tofu Noodle Bowl”
This easy, one pan meal is a hearty and healthy vegetarian meal the whole family can enjoy. Ready in just 30 minutes, it’s nutrient dense, packed with protein and fiber. Made with simple ingredients, this Sweet Potato, Black Bean, and Brown Rice Skillet is colorful, tasty, and satisfying.
Continue reading “Sweet Potato, Black Bean, and Brown Rice Skillet”
These healthy almond butter muffins are the perfect tasty treat. They are perfect to add in the lunchbox for a snack or dessert, or even to eat for breakfast.
Continue reading “Almond Butter Muffins”
This Dragon fruit Smoothie Bowl is a beautiful, quick, and easy tropical breakfast recipe! Dragon fruit, also known as pitaya, is nutrient dense food packed with antioxidants, low calories making it a great option for vegan and paleo diets. Made with just 3 ingredients, dragon fruit, mango, and coconut water, add your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Continue reading “Dragon Fruit Smoothie Bowl”
This Creamy Vegan White Bean Soup is a healthy one-pot soup that will fill you up, give you energy, and is full of flavor!
Continue reading “Creamy White Bean Soup with Spinach”
Growing up in an Indian household meant turning to natural and food remedies for minor ailments. If you had a tummy ache, Mom made us eat carom seeds or even cumin seeds. If we had a cold sore in the mouth, she would make us keep a clove on the sore for a few hours. There are so many more remedies that my mom and grandmother used but the one I remember and is most popular these days is turmeric.
As soon the cold weather set in or the first cough or sneeze of the season was heard, my mother would add turmeric to everything we ate. She would also make us drink Haldi Doodh or turmeric milk before bed each night. As a child, I hated this. As an adult and a mom, it is now my go to. Over the years, I’ve changed it from the basic turmeric and milk to adding a few new ingredients. Take a look!
Basically, every spice added to this recipe has anti-inflammatory or antioxidant properties or both. I normally use cow’s milk when I make this for the kids but I have made it with almond milk and it has turned out just as good. I do recommend not to use sweetened milk if you are using a plant based milk as it changes the taste of the final product.
Here’s to wishing a healthy winter and a Happy New Year with my first recipe this year!
Here are the tools I used for this recipe:
These Bloody Mary Deviled Eggs might just be the best deviled eggs you’ve ever eaten. This recipe adds a fun Bloody Mary twist to this popular appetizer, garnished with gherkins and olives. Bloody Mary Deviled Eggs are perfect for any holiday party, brunch, New Year’s Eve, or even brunch.
Continue reading “Bloody Mary Deviled Eggs”
This Pesto Risotto with Roasted Tomatoes and Chickpeas is creamy and cozy, bursting with flavor! Topped with roasted tomatoes and chickpeas,it becomes a luscious main course.
Continue reading “Pesto Risotto with Roasted Tomatoes and Chickpeas”
A perfect combination of fall flavors, this salad is perfect for lunch or as a side for dinner. Roasted beets and butternut squash are served over peppery arugula, tangy feta cheese, earthy walnuts, sweet pomegranate arils. Tossed in a maple dressing that is easy to make and shake, this beautiful salad is gluten free and nutrient dense!
Continue reading “Beet and Butternut Squash Salad”
This Cranberry Apple Quinoa Salad is filled with bursts of sweetness, texture, and nutrients. The quinoa soaks up a delicious Maple Dressing and the arugula gives just a hint of a peppery note. What’s best is it’s great to eat for lunch, or have as a side dish.
Continue reading “Cranberry Apple Quinoa Salad”
Creamy and nourishing, this delicious Autumn Squash Soup is just perfect for a cozy dinner at home during these cold days. This soup is a spin off of Panera’s Autumn Squash Soup without the extra calories. But don’t worry! It still tastes amazing and just like Panera’s. The best part is that whilst you make this delicious soup, your home is going to smell like fall. Can it get any better?
Continue reading “Autumn Squash Soup”
Vibrantly pink, nutty, tart, and tasty, this Beet Pesto is absolutely delectable.
Continue reading “Beet Pesto”
**Note: Original post created Jul 2017. Updated October 2021**
The first time I was introduced to this traditional Punjabi meal was during my wedding planning. My husband and in-laws requested that this be on the menu somewhere. I didn’t understand what it was or the goodness of it until quite a bit later (much later than my wedding). Of course, during my wedding, I didn’t remember eating or tasting anything with so much going on. After I got married, I remember my mother-in-law making it a few times for my husband and seeing the pure joy on his face as he ate the Saag and Roti. I felt, wow, such a simple meal (for Indian food) and yet it brings him so much happiness. Of course I decided to try it out on my own.
I am always told, even to this day, how this is supposed to be a really hard recipe to master. I’m definitely not making it the way my mother-in-law does, but my shortcut recipe has managed to impress her, my husband and my daughter! As they say, a way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. I’m already in my hubby’s heart, but this is one recipe that guarantees a spot for any of you out there looking to impress your significant other.
Sarson da Saag is basically a vegetable dish made of Mustard Greens. It is very earthy in taste and rich not only in flavor but nutrients also. Mustard Greens provide an abundance of potassium and Vitamins K, A, C, and E. Traditionally, it is cooked in water and hand churned until you get the creamy, buttery consistency. If I had the time, I might try it. But since I don’t, I obviously created a shortcut (my handy dandy blender). Try it out and tell me what you think:
The saag tastes great on its own, but man does it just go a whole other level with Makki di Roti. Makki di Roti is basically corn bread. It’s not your traditional Roti that is usually soft and pliable. This is a bit thicker and can hold all that saag without getting the roti soggy. One more thing – Makki di Roti is typically made by flattening the dough between the palms. I am using a different technique by placing the dough in between a ziploc bag and rolling it out with a rolling pin. This just works better for me.
Looking for more Indian recipes? Check out some of these:
Sprouted Moong Beans Sabzi Gujarati Style
Instant Pot Rajma (Kidney Beans)
Methi Thepla
Instant Pot Kali Dal
Avocado Roti
Here are the tools I used for this recipe:
Flavorful, satisfying, and addictive, these shishito peppers are simple to make with 3 ingredients and very healthy!
Continue reading “Blistered Shishito Peppers”
This homemade Moroccan Spice Blend is the perfect way to add a little flavor to your meats, fish, or even vegetables! Roast, grill, saute, marinate, or even simmer in a soup, this blend is versatile and will enhance any recipe you use it in.
Continue reading “Homemade Moroccan Spice Blend”
A big name with big bold flavors, this dipping sauce is creamy, tangy, fresh, and vibrant. It lightens up any foods you are eating and is great healthy dip to add to your appetizer table.
Continue reading “Avocado Cilantro Lime Dipping Sauce”
This vegan, nutritious poke bowl filled with lots of veggies and a sriracha dressing is so delicious and addicting. A one-bowl recipe with so many beautiful ingredients and easy to make is a perfect meal that is customizable for your palate.
Continue reading “Vegan Poke Bowl”
Fresh and beautiful veggies from across the rainbow to make amazing salads are my favorite. This Quinoa Fiesta Salad is one of my family’s favorites. As a mom, it makes me happy that the girls are getting so much nutrition in one bowl. The kids look at the colors and get excited to eat a rainbow and I love that they are enjoying fresh and healthy ingredients!
This salad does triple duty which I love. A dish which becomes a meatless entree can also serve as a side dish or a salad depending on my mood. The cherry on top of this recipe is that it takes less than 30 minutes to make and is very forgiving if you need to substitute or leave out ingredients.
HOW DO I MAKE A QUINOA FIESTA SALAD?
1. Cook the quinoa. While the quinoa is cooking, you can get the dressing and your other ingredients ready!
2. Make the Cilantro Lime Dressing. I love this dressing because it is so light. If you choose to leave it out as I do for my girls, simply replace it with a drizzle of Olive Oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
3. Combine all of your ingredients in a large bowl and toss well to mix.
4. Enjoy and get addicted to this salad as much as my family and I are!
Here are the tools I used for this recipe:
Sabudana or tapioca pearls cooked with sweet potatoes and cashews is a popular vegan and gluten-free dish that is consumed in Gujarati households, especially during fasts. Continue reading “Sweet Potato Sabudana Khichdi with Cashews”
**Original post published Nov. 2020. Updated Aug. 2021**
A couple of months ago, I won our local Farmer’s Market cooking competition and part of my prize was a big box of fresh goodies from the market. I don’t know if I’ve ever been so excited to get fresh veggies and fruits! I honestly felt like a contestant on Chopped from The Food Network in that I wanted to use all of my produce and come up with a delicious dish.
Well, considering there were so much produce, I’m not sure I would be able to eat more than 3 bites of any dish made from all of the veggies and fruits! One of my favorites in that box was the beet greens with their beautiful red stems. I’ve had quite a few people ask me what I use them for and what they can cook out of them. A definite go to are to cook them down like collard greens but I wanted to do something more creative and decided to add the beet greens to a hash and topping it with an egg made it the perfect breakfast for a busy day or a big, healthy lunch bowl.
The vibrant orange and red colors of the root veggies as they are being cooked, the bold green of the beets…..eeek! I’m salivating just thinking about this recipe. The best part is all the nutrition you get in this sustainable hash:
Topping this hash with a fried or hard boiled egg adds a little extra protein though to keep it vegetarian/vegan, you can always replace the egg with a grilled tofu steak.
From my kitchen to yours, enjoy this delicious and healthy Sweet Potato and Beet Hash!
This chickpea salad is a refreshing summer salad filled with fresh produce. It tastes great served as a side salad or your main lunch meal. Best of all, you don’t need to make a special dressing for this salad.
Continue reading “Chickpea Avocado Salad”
Back to school is all I can think of at the moment. We’ve made it through the first week successfully so this week, we are adding a challenge – soccer practice. I’ve got two schools in opposite directions of each other, different timings for both kids, and now practice days. I’m definitely going to need as many snacks with me as possible. Easy to eat snacks and as healthy-ish as I can make them for my picky eaters are what I’m looking for.
These secret ingredient brownies are the perfect solution because the girls can’t taste or guess the secret ingredient! But the girls did approve of them and that is all I need to keep making deceptively delicious foods. Well, what is the secret ingredient you ask? BLACK BEANS! So when I first told the husband about my idea, he was very skeptical. He loved the black beans idea just wasn’t sure about adding it to a dessert.
But it works! You can’t taste the black beans at all, courtesy of my blender. And the addition of the beans gives the brownies a truffle-like consistency. They also remove the necessity of using flour so these become gluten free! My favorite part is that I can make these brownie bites in less than 15 minutes! Yep, ever heard of a baked dessert ready to eat within 15 minutes? It’s right here and it tastes delicious.
I wouldn’t count this as a healthy food but it is a good option to straight sweets. I won’t be making them all the time but often enough to get the girls moving. Make sure to pack one of these delicious brownie bites in your child’s lunch bag!
To store: Place in airtight container and keep at room temperature for 2-3 days or in refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Here are the tools I used to make this recipe:
For more snack ideas, check out these recipes:
Popeye Muffins
Almond Cacao Energy Bites
Simple Homemade Crunchy Granola
Lemon Blueberry Mini Loaves
One of my favorite times of the year is the spring when the Farmer’s Market starts to get bigger with more and more farmers who start to bring a larger variety of produce and goodies. I’ve mentioned in the past that I like to make a menu for the week (more so my kids don’t complain they want something else than what is served), but what I haven’t mentioned is how I love going to the Farmer’s Market to do my weekly produce shopping. Sometimes, I will even tailor some of my dishes to include produce I find at the Market.
Recently, I partnered with our local Farmer’s Market (Danville Farmer’s Market) and I will be creating recipes for them a few times a month in the hopes that I can bring awareness to locally farmed produce at all of our farmer’s market. Having fresh, organic produce and supporting the local farms is a win-win.
This Spring Crudites Platter is so beautiful, we all had a bit of hard time digging in. No one wanted to mess it up. Ah well, our stomachs won that round. The beauty of this platter is that you are not restricted to the same produce I picked up. Pick up what your farmer’s market has, just make it colorful.
Here is what I used:
As for the hummus, I chose purple sweet potato and red beets to be the base of each hummus. For the Red Beets, I roasted it with garlic, then pulsed it with a little tahini and a few other ingredients. This is by far one of my favorite variations on hummus. Paired with all that beautiful produce, it’s perfect!
For the Purple Sweet Potato, I baked it in the oven then pulsed it with tahini as well. Though the idea behind both hummus’ are the same, the flavor profile differ vastly. Yet both are addicting.
I hope you have a chance to make a beautiful Spring Crudites Platter like this for your next gathering. I promise you will love it.
Try it out and let me know what you think!
**Note: I used a whole bulb of garlic and divided between the two hummus dips as I knew I was making them at the same time (and a little extra garlic is always appreciated). If you are making only one hummus dip, follow the instructions of roasting cloves instead of the whole bulb.
Here are the tools I used for this recipe:
If you are looking for more delicious recipes, check these out:
Roasted Masala Chickpeas
Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
Spicy Garlic Hummus
Crispy Chickpeas and Sweet Potato Tacos
Crisp, cold watermelon tossed with tangy feta and fresh mint is the perfect summertime salad to have on a hot day. This refreshing salad is a great side to have with grilled chicken, steak, and even hamburgers! Continue reading “Summertime Watermelon Salad”
Naturally gluten-free, chewy a crisp exterior, these Vegan Amaretti Cookies are a delicious treat to have with your afternoon coffee, or to pack in a holiday tin, or to simple devour like I tend to.
Continue reading “Vegan Amaretti Cookies”
A savory filling with a crispy, flaky crust loaded with fresh vegetables that is perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner!
Continue reading “Garden Vegetable Quiche with a Gluten-Free Crust”
Vibrant, fresh, mildly spicy, and packed with flavor, this Cilantro Chutney is a necessity in Indian cuisine. This particular chutney is made using fresh cilantro, mint, curry leaves, green chilies, cashews and spices.
Continue reading “Cilantro Chutney”
A DECADENT Date Smoothie that is creamy, healthy, naturally sweetened and vegan!
Continue reading “Date Smoothie”
