I’m so happy—it’s spooky season! I may be a grown woman who runs her own business (with my sweet mom, of course), but I will never be too old for a little Halloween fun. And if I’m being honest, I live my life feeling like I’m still my teenage self, just with way more responsibility. But I try to let some of my adult self go for the month of October....

When I’m entertaining a larger group, I turn to dessert recipes like red velvet brownies, chocolate coconut cake, earthquake cake and this vibrantly colored and flavored strawberry lemonade cake. When I think summer, I think strawberry lemonade. This strawberry lemon cake has all the same great flavors, but in the form of a decadent dessert! Strawberry Lemon Cake Ingredients To make this cake, you will need butter, granulated sugar, large eggs, milk, buttermilk, salt, all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, lemon zest, lemon juice, strawberry jam, freeze dried strawberries, powdered sugar and vanilla extract....

Tis’ the season for all things strawberry. And I am very much embracing them this season. I’ve been saying this for weeks, but this year more than ever, I’m looking forward to the long sunny days of summer. And then, of course, ending the day with a sweet frozen treat. I know we’re still weeks away, but it’s never too soon for ice cream! I just adore these ice cream sandwiches....

That was until today. When I made my own and fell in love. Like head over heels in love. Ok, so that maybe a little dramatic, but I am running on no sleep and pure adrenaline. And seeing as I probably will not be getting a whole lot of sleep in the next 7 days you can expect some crazy talk over here! Back to the hummus. See I used to say hummus was not my thing....

Ingredients Light or brown dark sugar Fresh rosemary Kosher salt and black pepper Frozen puff pastry 1 egg, beaten Shredded sharp cheddar cheese Cayenne pepper Thin cut bacon Tis’ the season for all the appetizers and holiday cheer. We’ve entered Thanksgiving week and as you can guess, I’m ready for it. The holidays feel even more special this year and I’m really making an effort to do everything. Decorating? It’s in the works....

When I’m looking for a meal that I know will be a hit with my friends and family, I turn to cheesy spinach lasagna, chicken noodle casserole or this super easy tamale pie. One of my favorite meals growing up was when my mom would make tamale pie. This classic beef and cornbread dish never goes out of style, and I love how easy it is to make. How do you make tamale pie?...

I am sharing tamarind chutney recipe without dates in this post. For sweetening the chutney, I use jaggery (gur/gud). You could use sugar instead of jaggery. It’s common to discover Indian kitchen cabinets brimming with achar (pickles) and our refrigerators filled with an array of chutneys. Among many, green chutney and tamarind chutney are two condiments that I always keep on hand. They are perfect to drizzle on indian chaat, pakoras or serve with tikka and kebab....

I always look forward to this post at the beginning of every holiday season. To me, this is the official start of the holiday craze. Halloween is Monday and Thanksgiving time is upon us. If you’re hosting this year, you’ve most likely started to plan. If you’re lucky enough to be a guest, you’re probably brainstorming what side dish or dessert to bring. Or maybe you’re plotting the perfect hostess gift....

It has been my long time wish to make Tea Kadai style Thengai Biscuit at home! I have fond memories of having these coconut biscuits from the only bakery in our locale growing up. They were called as Coconut Macaroons and we loved them. These biscuits are also very popular in tea stalls, to be munched with hot tea! Although I have never had them from a tea stall per se, I have seen them wrapped up in news papers or stacked beautifully in large glass jars....

If you’re a tiramisu fan, you’ll go crazy over this frozen version of the popular treat! When it comes to entertaining, I love to make ice cream cakes because they’re a make-ahead dessert that always goes over well. This tiramisu version combines the flavors of coffee and chocolate to make a unique and exciting sweet treat. How do you make tiramisu ice cream cake? This ice cream cake is not difficult to make but it does require some time to chill in between layers so plan accordingly....

Charu or Rasam is such an integral part of any South Indian meal. Prepared with tomato and tamarind (sometimes with only either of these), this is the simplest accompaniment for rice. There are a number of variations of Rasam or Charu – Pepper Rasam, Tamarind Rasam, Lemon Rasam, Garlic Rasam, some fruit based Rasams like Pineapple Rasam and some really interesting ones like Betel Leaf Rasam! Today’s recipe is another classic from my Mom’s kitchen....

If there was ever a cake that really made me think of my mom, it’s this cake. Chocolate mousse is one of her favorite desserts. Anytime I ask her for a suggestion on what to make, 9 times out of 10 she replies, “how about a healthy chocolate mousse?”. She’s big on trying to avoid any added sugars, so the January desserts are always her favorites. As you can imagine, she was overly excited about the layer mousse cake....

Vegetable Udon Stir Fry is a quick and easy noodle recipe made with udon noodles and a lot of vegetables. Udon Noodles are thick, egg-free Japanese noodles made with wheat and are soft when cooked. As cooked udon noodles are thick and rich, it is very easy to add them to noodle soup or a stir fry. They absorb the flavor of the sauces really well and are quite delicious....

Can you guess what could be the best side dish for dosa, in my opinion? Its not coconut chutney, it is not sambar, it is not chutney powder but it is Kurma! I really love crispy dosa with vegetable kurma and look for leftovers so that I could use up. I usually make my mom’s version I grew up eating and it turns out perfect every time. Recently, I learnt about Vellai Kurma having had that in Saravana Bhavan a couple of months back....

Sometimes I’ll stare at the photos of each days recipe for quite a while, contemplating the best way to share my excitement over each recipe. I will not lie, it can be really hard. I don’t want to sound like I’m saying the same thing every single day, but the bottom line is that I truly love each recipe I share with you all. Sure sometimes I’m more excited about one recipe over another, but if I don’t one hundred percent love something, you guys will never see it....

These noodles are what I call “college student” food done healthier…thanks to the addition of brown rice ramen and plenty of summer zucchini. And while this recipe is the simplest, I can promise you that it’s also delicious. It’s a recipe you’ll make time and time again. Maybe on a rainy night (it’s currently downpouring) when you just need a bowl full of comfort in the form of buttered noodles....

If you love fruit, you’ll love this assortment of fruit salads that use almost every fruit imaginable with fun additions and dressings thrown into the mix! Fruit salad recipes are great! You can make them for all seasons and with any type of fruit you want. They are so versatile which makes them an easy go-to option for potlucks and cookouts. My kids love fruit. So, naturally, we keep it on hand a lot....

These recipes have everything you need for summer like grilled meats, kabobs, foil packet recipes, side dishes, drinks and more. It’s about that time of year when you start planning for BBQ weekends with amazing friends and family. Summer dinner recipes are ones that make memories. People refer to your gathering by the dish you made or ‘remember when you brought that one salad,‘ so give them something to remember this summer....

Whenever I’m entertaining, I put out a variety of dips such as rotel dip, corn dip and this layered Mexican dip. This recipe has been in my family for years, and it’s always a huge hit with family and friends. For every single holiday or gathering, my mom makes 7 layer dip. It’s become a tradition! What I love about this dip is that it takes just minutes to put together, is easy to customize to your tastes, and is totally delicious!...

Today? We’re balancing things out a bit. It’s all about the balance……..Right?Balance is a good thing. And really every salad NEEDS to be finished off with dessert. Preferably a gooey, chocolatey, oh so indulgent one. Like these bars. 7 Layer Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars. Yeah, I am totally serious. No messing around. That would be just cruel. It is no secret that I have been pretty obsessed with coconut....