‘Life is full of surprises. Just say ‘never’ and you’ll see.’ I did say ‘never’ to this Samsung Notebook after posting my entry for a recipe contest by Del Monte. And today when I open the parcel marked with ‘Winner - 1st Prize’ I understand that it takes more than just magic to make any dream a reality. These are the moments when all those unseen tiny efforts you put in to keep your passion alive seems worthwhile.  Thanks Del Monte and IndiBlogger for making it happen! The winning recipe a  No-Bake Chocolate Brownie is an easy treat you can make well ahead of time during festive season.

Some news travel faster than lightening. I found myself standing near my oven, baking goodies for friends way before the feeling of winning this pretty Notebook could sink in

My knowledge about Middle Eastern cuisine is very limited, its either a creamy Hummus, spicy Kebabs, handy falafel sandwich or a luscious Baklava. I always think that there is not much scope for a vegetarian to venture into the same. But the past couple of years of food blogging changed my perspective of food and I now enjoy cooking & eating out of my comfort zone.

Sometime in July 2012 when a dear food blogger friend Faith from Edible Mosaic mailed me that she is in the process of publishing her cook book and asked me if I would be interested to review her book. I was excited for her new venture and felt honored to be a part of her world of dreams. A wonderful friend who was the very first AFBLHS guest on Lite Bite and is a great support from the my early days of blogging.

The rustic iron Wok which was abandoned long back sits pretty in the backyard of my mom’s place after the entry of  that swanky oven in her kitchen. This black heavy-bottom wrought iron wok has been a part of our childhood memories for long. The melt-in-mouth cookies, Naan Khatais, Baatis and sort of spongy cakes she baked in it makes this ‘wok’ an important  part of our growing years.

These Chickpea flour (besan) cookies were the most baked goodies in our indigenous oven. Half of the wok was permanently filled with sand and a thin aluminum plate served as the baking tray to bake.

‘If there is no chocolate in heaven, I am not going‘  ~ Jane Seabrook   Oh no I am not jumping in the bandwagon of chocoholics. I enjoy my celibacy with chocolates barring a few occasional indulgences now and then. And given a choice between different flavors it is vanilla for me.

“Anything tastes good if it has chocolate in it” says my little princess as a matter of fact.  No doubt that this luscious, gooey and seductive food is defined as world’s perfect food by many. A tiny bar of chocolate can save many bad days and meals at home.
I used half of the pack by rolling out the chocolate Truffles and made this no-bake nutty chocolate cake with the rest. Thanks to my friend now I shop for more of these ‘once upon a time disdained’ cookies

All good things in life are simple and I feel that it is our expectations and desire to get more from it makes it complex. The junk food addiction, chopping down trees endlessly to make paper marooning animals of their habitats, plastic menace….we are moving from simple ways of living to the more complex world. And to think of it, the idea of wrapping around leaves and eating apples straight from the tree as done by our ancestors could solve many a problems of modern day living

A fresh fruit in its natural form is my kind of dessert any day and given a choice I would love to serve a plate of fresh fruits to my guests as well to end a meal. “This is not a dessert we will expect from the author of a food blog” is the answer to my query from my guests most of the time.

“Try the dual flavor vanilla & chocolate cereal or this new variety of cereal in the shape of Planet & stars…and this one….” Phew..shopping for children’ food could be  so distracting than compelling due to endless choices in the same. These myriad choices do make life easy for busy moms with almost no cooking, quick & fuss free breakfast options in the market. But in the bargain I feel we loose on the natural and healthier foods and food products which were available a few years back.

Cereal was certainly not our bowl of breakfast in the growing years during late 60s and early 70’s. And then when plain cornflakes was first introduced in India it became a fashion statement and was welcomed with open hearts in many homes.

“Crackers can be addictive!”  Hmm.. never knew till I baked these Flax seed wholewheat crackers for myself. Ragi, Millet, cornmeal, oats and Quinoa in the pantry pushed this super food to a corner. After a long hibernation that packet of shiny brown Flax seeds finally moved out from my refrigerator. And when I was thinking to bake something with my tiny treasure, got a call from mom.

Nutty Carrot Pudding a.k.a Gajar Halwa, this ubiquitous dessert hardly needs any introduction to those who love Indian food! This rich, decadent and comforting sweet made with red carrots adorns the dinning table of  many households during the chilly winter nights. The juicy sweet red carrots which gives the distinct color and taste to the pudding are available only for a few month in a year and its presence also welcomes the beginning of winter days in India. Fresh carrot juice, pickled carrots in  jars, exotic carrot jam, colorful pilaf with tiny chunks of red carrots and just plain carrots is what I love to serve mine.

“And please make it 100 plus cookies’ added hubby dear hurriedly. “We have been browsing loads of scrumptious recipes on your wife’s blog for long but nothing has come to us, is she really making all those that we see in the pictures, sir?” was the query from one of the co-workers from his office which made me go for this marathon baking session. When your reputation as a food blogger is at stake numbers hardly matter

After pondering over the quality vs quantity of the numerous recipes I had in mind, I zeroed upon these Lemony Shortbread.

“What does a Cheesecake remind you?” To me it conjures the feeling of digging into soft snowy mountain, a refreshing dessert you really don’t want anyone to tell you about how much cream cheese, ricotta and quark has gone into making it. Just dig..eat..and repeat.
I am not much of a cream fan and try to replace the same in all my cooking & baking for good and also avoid gelatin in my recipes if the food is for the consumption of my family. Somehow Gelatin makes me feel unnatural, but …