Wooing our sweet but finicky landlady was the motive behind baking these quick cookies. Just back from a long holiday, I was taking my time settling back into the daily routine, when our nice but neatnick landlady decided to drop in since she was passing through town. Despite being a fellow neatnick, I found myself experiencing an anxiety attack. After a few deep breaths and talking to myself to calm…
I like to keep things simple. But it’s not easy in a world that wants to complicate life with more. Going out for ice cream can be a nightmare – choosing between Haagen Dazs and Baskin Robbins; maybe consider frozen yoghurt, sorbet or gelato as well. Next step, flavours – fruity, cheesecakey, with chocolate chips, swirly…nuts? Do I want it in a cup (regular or large), normal or waffle cone?…
Ripe fruit and the poetry of John Keats – I don’t know when the association began (perhaps while drowning in the pleasure of his sensuous imagery during my literature classes in college in hot and dusty India, as far away from Keats’s England as one could get); but strangely it’s a concept that makes some kind of weird logic in my head. One of the high priests of the Romantic movement, Keats…
Yes it’s true, everything that celebrity chefs say on TV, and all the superlatives penned in cookbooks on the satisfaction of baking the perfect loaf of bread. After suffering many failed attempts at making bread, and ending up with stodgy blocks that could only be used in the construction of a building, I need a new dictionary of words to describe the warm glow of achievement that spread through my…
Garish weddings, cakes groaning under sugar sculptures, pancake and blue eye shadow, bling and blow-dried beehives, melodramatic soaps and mushy greeting cards crammed with pink hearts, gilt and glass drawing rooms,red and oily overcooked curries…are just some of the things that make me scream OTT (over the top). I’m more of a less is more kind of person.…
Making kids eat beet is a bit like subjecting them to Schubert or Mozart, while their souls swing to the hip-hop beat. In fact, I know most people aren’t nuts about beetroot, and that’s precisely why I tried this salad. I wanted to make beets cool. Most times they are seen on cheffy dishes -watched TV and then forgotten. But there’s a reason why chefs are cooking so much with…
Spring has begun behaving like summer now, with the mercury regularly hitting the mid 30s (but I’m not complaining). After putting up with two bone-aching winters in a row (I moved hemispheres at the end of the Indian winter and at the beginning of the SA one), I’m absolutely over the moon (or sun) re-discovering my predominantly summer wardrobe of shorts, skirts and flipflops. And I’m in the mood for…
Bold and beautiful, that was my mood while making this unapologetically siren-red, full-bodied risotto. You know how on some days you’re happy with your workout, the endorphins kick in and you feel like a million bucks. So I was ready to pull out the stops and dish out a dinner that had a Beyonce-like personality – eyeball-attracting appearance and robust,voluptuous flavours.…
Spring has magically breathed life into the earth and little green shoots and leaves are sprouting all over my garden. Brown is giving way to green and buds are bursting open to reveal their jewel-hued personalities. It seems that life is everywhere in its most vibrant and vigorous avatar. These days I delight in exploring the corners of my garden, looking for new life, and each time I spot a…
Like Sade’s velvety voice, the luxurious creamy texture of this Roasted Butternut Squash Avocado and Feta Salad, wraps you in a soft, downy, duvet. I wanted to make a filling salad sans meat, so I chose ingredients with rich texture that would perfectly complement crisp slices of a baguette. Butternut squash gets better when roasted with a splash of olive oil, acquiring a lovely caramelly crunch that adds an extra…