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.

“Pumpkin..what..don’t tell me it has pumpkin in it?” I baked this wholewheat pumpkin coconut bread for the 14th wedding anniversary of my friend and did not reveal the ingredients till the last piece was left. It was a delightful surprise for my anti-pumpkin friend, who never cooked this humble veggie in her kitchen and believes that a pumpkin is no good than scaring crows and keeping the evil at bay

In most of pumpkin bakes the veggie is first cooked or baked to get pumpkin puree and then added to the batter but I avoided that step…lazy…Hmm..sort of.

Certain food brings back the memories associated with it, the person who cooked it, the people we ate with, and the occasion it was cooked for. When Alicia Cowan of My Dish contacted me to write about food which makes me nostalgic, it took me a while to zero down to just one recipe! Oh yes..this Cottage cheese in exotic gravy mom prepared for almost all the parties we used to host at home is a nostalgic recipe. Though not for the flavors and the recipe itself but for the fun & frolic we had during those parties with friends. And mom was quite famous for this Paneer Jalfrzi with her hot Kulchas.Even now whenever (read rarely) I cook this recipe I make sure to call at least one childhood friend to talk about those wonderful childhood days of yesteryear.

‘Silence after the storm‘..the last few days of high decibel sound, screaming and running around the road to burst crackers has finally come to rest. Even the intermittent spell of rain did not dampen the spirit of festivity for my kids & hubby for whom my garage was the make shift center for bursting crackers. And no, I will not crib about the land, noise, water and air pollution which was left after the festival of lights was over. When I am not able to influence anyone in my home even after 16 years of marriage, against indulging in sugary sweets, oily savories and buying crackers at exorbitant prize (which could actually get me a dedicated server for God knows how many years) then who am I to complain…’to each his own’.

What Christmas is to any westerner Diwali is to all Indians. Fun, frolic and sweets galore is what Christmas & ‘festival of lights – Diwali‘ bring forth! A week’s time is what is left for Diwali and I could already smell the earthy aromas of melting jaggery, fragrance of cardamom and spices emanating from every direction of my house. Yes everyone in the neighborhood is busy preparing the traditional sweets and savories before time so that they can share the same with others on the festival day.

A slice of rich & dark Brownie is a delight for any chocolate lover, be it a gooey, chewy, fudgy or cakey brownie you just cannot stop with one. I like sticky and gooey brownies with loads of nuts in it, more better if it has some fruit or veggie hidden in it. Brownie is probably the easiest to make as against baking a cake, bread or any other goody. No waiting time needed for that intimidating yeast to work and flexing muscles for kneading the elastic dough, just mix it and bake it and you are in for a sinful treat. The treat is to celebrate Lite Bite being featured on Yummly today.

Celebrations never end in India, just when I thought that the hectic months of festivals are over, Diwali is round the corner. Time to indulge in sweets and savories again. I love to make sweets which are easy to prepare without compromising on good taste, my time & of course health. And I am planning to bake cookies or goodies which are light on sugar and oil instead of making those time consuming traditional Indian sweets this festive season.

“First there was a Fresh Corn Dessert a few days back and now there are two more desserts for the weekend..Hmm…do I smell some conspiracy” inquired the puzzled hubby. “Is all the sweet temptations for the digital SLR?” he smiled and replied to his own query after he noticed a sparkle in my eyes! The decision to buy this high-end digital camera has been put on hold for almost a year by the dear hubby. As he wanted to get completely convinced that I am really serious about my blog and will put the camera to good use before succumbing to my demands. And I saw my wish getting wings when he reached for his lap top to Google for digital cameras

A lot has been going around with school working in full swing for children and the AFBHLS series on Lite Bite. My drafts which are already brimming with recipes and pictures is what I count on when there is less time to bake. Cookies are the most easiest of goodies which could be baked with very few ingredients in a shortest possible time.

I baked these Peanut butter wholewheat cookies at my mom’s place on her demand, to impress her neighbors who were eager to meet her food blogger daughter! She watched me baking these cookies and called her friends for evening tea. I could not get chocolate chips there and replaced the same with a handy Fruit & Nut Vochelle chocolate bar. And needless to say these peanut butter cookies made me a star of her colony

A sweet indulgence – making Fudge is very common during festivals and many religious ceremonies in India. Though Wiki defines it as a western confectionery, for me a fudge is what completes any Indian festivity as long as I remember. From the humble melt-in-mouth Besan ki chakki (chickpea flour fudge) to the more exotic Kaju Katlis (cashew fudge) Indian festivals are incomplete without these goodies. With loads of sugar, butter and milk to go into making these fudge, these goodies are truly a sinful indulgence!

Peanut butter fudge is high on calories but if eaten in moderation it could provide all the health benefits attached with peanuts in your diet. These Nutty Peanut butter Fudges are highly addictive and a word of caution is to keep a tab on the number of times you open your refrigerator