Harveen's Baking Affair

Admit it when it comes to quinoa, we need any number of recipes we can get . Naturally gluten free , it is the only plant food that is complete protein and a nutrition powerhouse. Rich in magnesium among other essential minerals and loaded with antioxidants , it literally begs to be included in our diet . But this is where the challenge comes . There are not many quinoa recipes to go around. So , when I came across this one from twopeasandtheirpod.com, I knew it deserved a serving on my dinner table too. Once I set up my mind for something, baking in particular  , little can dissuade me ..no , not even a hailstorm .  Let's talk about the hailstormnow . We had a major unexpected one . While I was grocery shopping for the ingredients of this particular bake, the roof of our supermarket was being pelted so hard that many a weaker soul were having a slight look of panic about them. Of course, the fact that the roof starting leaking and flooding one aisle might have contri

What do you do if you find yourself with a couple of overripe bananas but are in no mood to make plain ole banana bread?  Admit it, you have already eaten it a gazillion times and by now you are craving for  a different version or change altogether. Yours truly faced a similar predicament this morning when she found three overripe bananas staring at her from the fruit tray this morning. I decided to transform their pitiful existence into something beautifully edible yet different . That's where the healthy twist came in. The all purpose flour had to be replaced with nothing less than whole wheat .  Wasn't in the mood for 50 -50 either. So all purpose flour exited the scene albeit  with a heavy heart . Next, the oatmeal was converted into flour form by giving it a run in the blender/food processor. The original  recipe  which uses all purpose flour is dairy free , but yours truly took the liberty of  using 1/4 cup milk as the whole wheat batter was  thicker.  Could have

We have a braid obsession going on in the Roy house. My daughter has reached that age when any tangible thing that can be braided is most certainly is. Much as I adore my daughter , her constant braiding of my hair was getting a wee bit annoying so decided to get creative and divert her attention from my poor tresses to braiding bread instead. It is too early to call this diversion a success but no such doubts regarding the bake. It was a resounding success based on the time it took my family members to finish the last of it . Patience is definitely a virtue while baking bread . Right from checking for bubbles to see whether the yeast is activated to proofing it twice till it doubles in volume ..haste is the enemy . But the end result is so worth it. Bread baking is extremely gratifying and therapeutic as well. You get the high of having accomplished the same  which our ancestors have been doing for times immemorial. Origins of the bread have been traced back to the early Egypti

Nothing says "Summer is coming" better than a fruit smoothie . Made this cataloupe kiwi one in the hope that it would bring some sunshine in our neck of woods where it has been gloomy for the past week. Let's not pay attention to the fact that kiwi is a winter fruit or the fact that to this date I am really not sure whether melon and cantaloupe are the same. Back in India. they were always melon or musk melon to be precise ( a simple google seach yielded that fact) but here they are cantaloupe. Seems while all cantaloupes are musk melons , the vice versa is not true. Let's keep it simple though ..call it whatever you may , it won't take away the deliciousness ..not even a wee bit . Ingredients - (Serving for two) 2 kiwis peeled and cut 1 tsp lime juice 8-10 mint leaves(more if desired) 2 tsp honey ( I omitted it altogether) 1 1/2 cup chopped cantaloupe or melon  1/2 cup water some ice cubes Method -  I used a Vitamix for this but any b

My son is a chocoholic . Even after reading the first statement, if you were inclined to ask him what kind of cake he would prefer for his birthday , his without a doubt reply would be "a chocolate one." By now , you must be thinking that I have it easy while decided what type of bake to bake for his birthday . You may be right or somewhat right . Last year for his birthday I had it easy ..rosettes were in  , so I simply decorated a chocolate fudge cake with chocolate butter cream rosettes. Here is a picture of the same . Just don't get confused ..the blog post is still about the chocolate swiss roll. This year , my inner gemini was screaming for something different. Admit it , there is not a lot you can do with a chocolate cake . You could cover it with ganache and decorate with chocolate shaving but have done it so many times, that it has virtually become yawn inducing. Moreover , since it was a family affair only , didn't want a bulky layered cake . In lieu o

Have no clue when this happened but somehow Friday became "Friesday" in the Roy household. Wait..I think I have a clue . Maybe it is the fact that after a week of healthy eating and home cooked meals , the idea of indulging in some junk food seems too hard to resist. I may detest fried potatoes personally but hubby and kids are far too fond of them . So much so that even the talk of them is enough to warrant a visit to the nearest Burger King . Yes, they are very selective about their fries. It has to be the above mentioned as anywhere else just wouldn't cut it..anywhere else the fries are either too bland or not crispy enough . So, you guys get the general idea of how possessive they are regarding their fries and any call for replacement or substitution is met with fierce resistance from Mr. Roy himself. But when has that deterred me before ? I am always ready for a challenge . My son may have given a "shocked" look when I suggested the idea of bake

I have to admit that I am very carroty person ..nope I am not a red head though my penchant for red dresses and lip color is well known . It is just that I love carrots and anything derived from them especially in sweet form. Yep, Gajrela or gajar ka halwa as it is called in some parts is my all time favorite dessert . Come to think of it , it's kind of strange that I haven't incorporated this Vitamin A and dietary fibre rich food in my bakes yet.Well , now seemed as good time as any , so when I came across this carrot oatmeal cookie recipe from KitchenAid , I knew I had to give it a try. If you have been following my blog , you must be familiar how I try to put a healthy twist to my bakes, This recipe was no different ..it was simply begging for some healthy makeover. For starters, I knew the all purpose flour was a definite no no . So, replaced it merrily with 100% whole wheat flour.Also, took the liberty of replacing the butter with equivalent amount of olive oi

  Contrary to what you guys may be thinking based on the page title, let me hasten to tell you that it is not the start to a fruity affair but a continuation . My love affair with baking fruits is as strong as before ..it's just that some more passion has been infused into it on account of it being spring . Any loyal follower to my blog can attest to witnessing the byproduct of this affair in the myriad bakes posted here. From the whole wheat  blueberry bread  to oats  banana muffins  and all bakes in between, I have you "fruitily"covered. Today , it was the strawberries that attracted me ..had me in their spell right from the first glance at the new health food store in our town. The fact that they were organic and still reasonably priced only added to the attraction . Like a damsel in distress in the vintage romantic novels my mom used to read , I swooned and was about to faint but then common sense prevailed and I just grabbed them and claimed them