Sweetpotato - Cauliflower Fritters

Hey everyone, how you've been? Summer here is at its peak and so it's summer vacations time. And that means kids (rather hungry kids) at home. It is very important to fill their tummies with healthy food in these harsh hot days. Well, these fritters have been one of my favourites lately, as they taste, hmmm, different! I just love the sweetness of sweet potatoes and the crunchy bits of cauliflower. It went so well with the tomato sauce and a simple cucumber salad.

Cauliflower and sweetpotato combo is just perfect and super healthy. Together they provide great doze of vitamins and minerals. They both are a very good source of B- vitamins, Vitamin C, vitamin D,magnesium, potassium and fibres. They both are easy to digest. Well, I also like to add any kind of seed available (flax, sunflower or so) to make these fritters even healthier. So do play with vegetables and try interesting combinations that taste good and add to your health. As for now try these fritters , enjoy summer and always cook the natural way!!!

Valentine's Day Special

Planning to spend your Valentine's day at home? Then try these quick and easy Valentine's day special recipes and make your Valentine extra special.

Breakfast Smoothie Superbowl

Have a great start of the Valentine's day with this easy fullfilling, super healthy breakfast smoothie bowl!!! Just give a gorgeous makeover to your regular strawberry smoothie and bring a big smile on your Valentine's face 😆. This breakfast has everything nuts, seeds, cornflakes and fruits ; a perfect vitamins packed breakfast!! Just use your imagination and add any available ingredients at home. In fact, you can use any smoothie of your choice and serve it this way. So try this idea and cook the natural way!!!

Pomegranate Paneer Kabobs

The new year has begun and so is our resolution, so I am planning to celebrate this Valentine's day the healthier way (psst...except the chocolate treat 😉). And as always we gonna stay at home and enjoy the day together. Keeping the recipes simple but special, I will spend less time in the kitchen and keep more time for us. Well, I think beetroots, pomegranates, strawberries, raspberries and other reddish stuff are perfect to bring out lovely colours that can make valentine dishes attractive. In this recipe, I used pomegranate as the base of the marinade. It came out so well. This recipe is perfect for lunch, I think. Just have them with any bread of your choice along with green Chutney! No chopping, no cutting , just fuss-free relaxing afternoon!!! So try this recipe and cook the natural way this Valentine!!

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Pasta

Hello everyone! Christmas is just few days away and the market place looks so festive and merrier. Especially the bakery shops. I tried some mini cakes but the homemade cakes 🍰 have no equals. Christmas joy inevitably indulges you into sweets, bakes, cakes or heavy meals. So a light, yet fullfilling meal is  a wise choice.

This pasta recipe has an amazing taste of roasted red bell pepper that gives this pasta recipe a smokey flavoured sauce, instead of regular tomato based sauce or cream sauce, that we usually make. Adding cream is totally optional, or you can use coconut cream (or milk) instead. You can also make the bell pepper sauce ahead and store in refrigerator for upto 2 days or in freezer for upto a week. So try this pasta recipe and cook the natural way!

Lemon-Thyme Brined Chicken

Hello everyone, Happy day to you all! I know you must be very busy with your Christmas preparations. Be it  home or a room makeover, make-ahead meals, shopping, guests, to name a few, . Still you need to keep the home festive-ready, need to cook festive treats and need to entertain guests. So few no-fuss recipes is what you need to make your work easier. And this recipe, with few ingredients, would just serve the purpose. Although it has very few ingredients, the way it is cooked, is what brings out an amazing taste! 

Lemon with any herb is a heavenly combination, isn't it? This chicken recipe has a beautiful lemoney flavour with the freshness of thyme. It is not a very spicy dish, but has a mild-elegant taste. And brining, yes the magic factor, takes any meat recipe to another level. I wet-brined for this recipe. With few spices, the brining creates a smooth spicy hint to the dish. So get the recipe down below and try it out and impress your family and friends. Wishes from cook the natural way!!!

SPICY PINEAPPLE FRITTERS with CASHEW CHUTNEY

I love pineapples🍍, they have a very addictive taste. The flavour is so refreshing and distinct. But cutting a pineapple has always been a big task for me, Thanks to the tips and tricks on internet on  "How to cut a pineapple" , that made things a lot easier. This tropical fruit is loaded with Vitamin C and manganese and is also a good source of potassium, copper, calcium, B6, thiamin and folate. It has an enzyme called Bromelain, which aids digestion and reduces swelling. In fact, this enzyme is used in  making medicines also. But people who are taking blood thinning pills should avoid this fruit. Well, the center stalk that we usually throw away, has the maximum benefits and it is tasty too. And the outer tough skin can be used as stirrers in drinks! (good idea💡, isn't it?).

Well, now how I got the idea of adding them into Fritters (aka tikki, or pakora). Whenever I go to any barbecue restaurant, there is one skewer I always wait eagerly for, and that is the pineapple skewer. I just love the bomb of flavours bursting in my mouth (spicy, salty and sweet). So one day I decided to use this amazing flavour, and tried this recipe. OMG, it was soo good and now it is in my "must try recipe list". Every time I prepared these fritters, every time it got appreciated! And the cashew chutney goes very well with them. I kept the chutney less spicy, so to balance the spiciness of the recipe.  So Go and try them and cook the natural way!!

VEGETABLE SANDWICH in CHEESY SAUCE

Winters make me eat a lot 😋😋, I become a food freak, and it is not the regular meals that I crave for, but I want "something special" to satisfy myself. And this encourages me to try different recipes! I have prepared vegetable sandwiches many times before, but these sandwiches stole my heart and that's why I am sharing them with you. I wanted to make sandwiches which had more vegetables and less butter or cream or mayo, but still creamy and delicious. So I added brinjal (eggplant), yes eggplant 🍆. It made the sandwiches "melt in mouth creamy" and the cheese sauce doubled the taste! You can use any vegetable of your choice but don't forget to add the star ingredient ( that is the eggplant) to these sandwiches The crusty bread outside and creamy filling inside, oh it was so delicious!

Well the year is heading towards it's end and Christmas is on it's way. So I am gonna warm myself near my oven and try out my baking skills. This year I had frequently been "on and off " on my blog for so and so reasons, but I am really glad to find all my friends here, still in touch with me. I love you all for that 💗. So I hope you like the recipe and always cook the natural way!!

Corn-Celery Soup

Hi everyone!! It's getting cold here and what a better way to comfort yourself is to have a warm bowl of soup. And if it is healthy, it's great ! I know everybody loves corns and this soup has it's beautiful combination with celery. The sweetness of bell pepper and the creaminess of cashews make this soup a treat in itself. If you are vegan, you can use olive oil in place of butter. So welcome winters with this golden yellow soup and cook the natural way!!

Cucumber -Coconut Pasta Salad

Are you bored of tomato and cheesy pasta? Then you must try this pasta recipe! I have tried this recipe many times before sharing it with you (that's what I always do) and trust me every time it got appreciated. The star ingredient here is the coconut. It adds wonder to any dish it is added to, isn't it? Although it has started raining here but still sometimes the weather gets hot, and a Pasta salad is just perfect .

Well I had been a little unwell lately, so I was kind of away all this time. But the food was always on my mind. I could hardly managed to cook and posting a recipe was way beyond for me... Hehe! But I am glad that I am curing myself through natural ways and I am so impressed by the power of every day food. I would like to share my experience in my coming posts soon. Anyways, back to the salad, this tasty pasta salad is simply quick and easy recipe. The yogurt and cucumber also make the salad perfect for summers. So try this Pasta recipe and cook the natural way!

Sooji-Nariyal Ladoo | Semolina-Coconut Balls

Holi (the festival of colours in India) is round the corner and the food blog world is flooded with delicious and tempting sweets. And here is mine. Well, now when we have learnt to make HOMEMADE CONDENSED MILK, let's use it to make these delicious ladoos. I think when we add Coconut to any recipe, it creates a magic. The food tastes amazing. What do you think? In these ladoos (balls) also coconut is dominating. I have also added cashews that give these ladoos a very distinct taste. So, you can say, it is a combination of kaju katli (cashew fudge) and nariyal ladoo (coconut fudge). It is an easy and very popular sweet here. So try these ladoos (balls) this holi and cook the natural way! 

Dried Fenugreek Potatoes

Here is my lazy Sunday fix. Sundays should be relaxing, what you you think?  On Sundays I have a mental set back and I feel so spoiled! Even Kitchen seems to be an uninviting place, hehe! At least there should be a complete "chill-out day" in a week. Even studies have proved that having a lazy day in a week can help reduce stress, high blood pressure, stroke! Wow, I get a great boast when I learn about such cool things *happy face*. Well, still you have to cook sometimes and  that is the time when you start thinking about all those rescue recipes- easy and quick. This recipe will do just that thing for you. Potatoes with fenugreek are one of the best combinations and every Indian household must have tried it once or more. I tried to bring out a nice change to the recipe. The perfect blend of choicest spices will sure make you try this again and again. It is easy, vegan, glutenfree, healthy and super tasty!
 Potatoes, or rather poor potatoes, have a very bad image among weight watchers. But having potatoes once in a while will NOT make you look bad, trust me. It is not the poor Potato who is the culprit, it is the way that you cook it, makes the difference. Be it the deep fried chips, fries or even baked but with lots of cheese and oil will bring more harm than health. In fact potatoes are low in calories and high in fibres! They are a very good source of vitamins and minerals, easily available and easy to digest. So you can try eating potatoes with this less oil healthy recipe (though I have also added cream which is totally optional) and always cook the natural way!

Valentine's Day Special Recipes

 Let's celebrate valentines's day with these easy and quick recipes!

Fruit Love (valentine special)

Ok how about a fruit salad, after breakfast, with your valentine? With a little effort and clever ingredients you can transform a simple fruit salad into a delicious and healthy dessert!! This fruit salad has my HOMEMADE FIG JAM but you can use any jam instead. Nothing is awesome than a bowl of fresh fruits, it charges you and your mood too! So make this easy and quick salad and have some sweet fruity chit-chats with your valentine!! And yes, you know it, cook the natural way!!

Beetroot Besan Cheela | Beetroot Gramflour Panrolls

Here comes the lovable month of the year!! Well we all love our loved ones but sometimes we take "expressing our love" for granted. We assume that our loved ones know how much we love them!! But this "expressing of love" is what nurtures a relationship! (of course not made-up, but real!) So let your feeling pour out this valentine!

And if planning to cook something lovable for your love than I have just the recipes for you! This besan ka cheela (gramflour panrolls) needs no introduction, every Indian kitchen is well known with this easy and quick recipe. And that's what we need "easy and quick", after all who wants to spend hours in kitchen to express their love,duh?
This gluten-free breakfast recipe with the goodness of beetroot and a gorgeous colour, will surely bring a smile on your valentines's face! Lately, the lentils flour has become really popular for healthy gluten-free recipes! And this cheela is a must-try! Have them with chilli sauce and boiled potatoes (just sauté cut boiled potatoes in oil, cumin, Salt and red chilli powder). So try this beetroot cheela, which is not only beautiful but healthy too and cook the natural way!

Dates-Mint Chutney

Finally a little relief from chilly weather here. Well whatever be the season or weather is, enjoying food must go on. And what a great way to make your food interesting than enhancing it's taste with chutneys or dips. They make any flat boring dish very perky and fun. This chutney has all the flavours in it - sweet, spicy, salty and sour.  Hmm interesting huh? Dates with mint is a great combo. This versatile chutney can go well with any kind of food, be it snacks, with meals, vegetarian dishes, meats or so on. So take out those dates lying in your kitchen somewhere, make this chutney and always cook the natural way!!

Oat-Cardamom Parfait

In french parfait means perfect and this dessert is indeed a perfect dessert for me! It is sugar-free, gluten-free, can-be-vegan, full of fruits and above all satisfies the sweet cravings the healthy way! Parfait is usually made using cream or yogurt but I like it with oats. It gives additional health benefits too! The cardamom flavour gives this parfait depth and lemon perks-up it's taste.
The first month of 2016 is about to end and you all must be working hard towards a healthy-you. Having  a healthy dessert is an award for all the diligent efforts you have made so far. So make this dessert and have a treat from my side :P and always cook the natural way!!

Sweet Corn Soup

It's really cold here and I cannot survive these chilling evenings without a warm bowl of soup! Sweet corn soup needs no introduction. This soup is everybody's favourite and the food blog world is flooded with it's recipes, all different, all tasty. Now here is how I make this soup. The addition of coarsely grounded corns accentuates the corny flavour and basil gives a nice herby hint to the soup. Hope you like it and cook the natural way!!

Corn - Celery Soup

Ok who wants soup?? I don't know about you but every winter evening, I crave for a warm bowl of delicious soup, and that encourages me to try different ingredients to make something different than usual! This soup is not only delicious but also fullfilling, and low in calories too. Corns are everybody's favourite, celery has a unique taste and bell peppers gives this soup a nice sweetness. So try this soup someday and cook the natural way!!

ROASTED CAPSICUMS SALAD with SUNFLOWER SEEDS

NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS, well they sound good, but need efforts, don't they? According to a survey, more than 60% of new year resolutions are related to health and fitness. So this month, I am going to share some recipes here which may help you to achieve your set health goals. Let's kick start the new year with something healthy, nutritious and of course tasty! This gorgeous coloured salad is easy with very simple and basic dressing and no oil. But the combination of roasted capsicums, raw vegetables and fruits and pickled chillies, they all together lift up the taste of this salad.

Sunflower seeds adds to its health benefits. Sunflower seeds are a very good source of Vitamin E, magnesium and antioxidants. Eating them on regular basis will improve your health. I eat roasted unsalted seeds as a snack! So do try them and cook the natural way!!