Now that Halloween has passed, I am looking forward to my favorite American holiday, Thanksgiving. Aside from the centerpiece meal that this holiday tends to focus around (or sides like stuffing), I love Thanksgiving because it does not revolve around material things. We really have a chance to get into the spirit of gratitude and…
Puja season is around the corner and I can already feel the excitement in the air. I feel it when I go out in the mornings and the air is crisp. I can smell the dew on the grass and see the leaves changing color. Obviously these sensory cues would be different if I had…
Rooti, like rice, is a staple in Indian homes. You may just see it at every meal. It is a very simple preparation of a flat bread that does not take a lot of time or ingredients. Rooti is the Bengali word for this food item. If you hear anyone say roti, rotli, or chapati,…
Shooji (sooji), can go by a few different names. Haloowa (halwa) and Shira are a couple of others. What it is, essentially, is the Indian equivalent of Cream of Wheat. In Indian culture, this is a dessert and is often times seen made for pujas (religious ceremonies). We eat it a lot for breakfast. It…
The weather is getting nicer and we are spending so much time outside. And when out and about, who doesn’t love to visit a food truck for some great street food? A little walk and talk around the city with something deep fried to snack on sounds like a very enjoyable afternoon to me! India’s…
Have you ever heard or or tried Jackfruit? Jackfruit is a tree that is native to India and is related to the fig tree. The flesh of the fruit that comes from this tree resembles cooked, pulled meat when it is prepared. In Bengali, we call this Gaatch Pata which literally translates into Tree [Goat]…
It’s winter and Baby, it’s cold outside. It’s also now February which is officially Soup Month. What are some of your go to soups in the wintertime? I know for me, I love a hearty soup on cold days and chili is one of those dishes that really satisfies. While growing up, rajma was a…
It would start with me sitting on the kitchen counter. Baba got out a large steel pan and added the dry ingredients. I distinctly remember the box of Carnation dry milk and how it smelled and how it felt like very fine sand. This was how we started our day making golab jamun, a dessert…
There is a little guilty pleasure that comes from eating a piece of warm, soft, and chewy naan. It goes with everything. Making naan is something that has been pretty intimidating to me. It seemed like it was something that would take a long time and even with the time, did I have the…
We are in them. The dog days of summer. It’s hot and humid and we just want to stay cool and dry. Growing up, we did not have central air conditioning in our home until maybe I was in junior high school. We had a wall A/C unit in the living room and my sisters,…