10-minute Rasmalai
This is barely a recipe–and worse, it’s not the kind I really advocate considering all the canned stuff it’s made from. But. I will make…
2-minute Microwave Chocolate Mug Cake
If you have a food blogger for a wife, chances are she won’t ask you get her a Louis Vuitton bag or Jimmy Choo shoes…
A third set of grandparents and a recipe for fruitcake
As grandmothers go, she fit the bill perfectly. Her softly starched, block printed or sheer woven Chanderi sarees would whisper as she walked slowly around…
Apple Pie with Samosa Pattis (or Wonton wrappers)
Baking in India is a challenge. It is highly upsetting to walk into the best of markets and not find all the gorgeous bakeware and…
Arbi Tikkis: Deep fried Colocasia Nuggets with Yogurt Dip
It’s really hot in this part of the world right now. Metabolisms are sluggish, and kitchens are too hot to cook anything in. I have…
Avanee’s first birthday cakes
I just realized I hadn’t put up any pictures from Avanee’s first birthday. Considering I write a food blog, it’s quite a shame I don’…
Baked Karanji and Baked Namakpare
The original, Marathi version of this article appeared in Loksatta on November 10, 2012 and can be read here. I got married on Dassera, and…
Baked Lemon Cheesecake
Give me a roomful of chocolate desserts and one miniscule piece of baked lemon cheesecake, and you know what I’ll choose. That I love cheesecake…
Basic Chocolate Cake
I’m not particularly fond of chocolate. Did I ever tell you that? I don’t remember throwing tantrums for chocolate or chocolate-y things. Except once. When…
Best 1 Bowl Chocolate Cake Recipe (No butter)
If you bake a decadent chocolate cake for my birthday, I will probably be a tad bit disappointed. I know. “80% ” means little to…
Bisi bele bhath: Sambar rice
When down, eat rice. I always go by that. Nothing can comfort you like a good serving of carbohydrates. This Bisi Bele Bhath (BBB) or…
Blueberry muffins
Few things go well with coffee–any form of fresh bread slathered with butter, khaari biscuits (an Indian flaky pastry), and cake–no frills cake. So when…
Brioche
One of the foods Amma offered me when I was ill or generally low, was a fruit bun and a mug of hot Bournvita. It…
Cashew and Vanilla Bean Cookies
I had been reading about the Arusuvai chain on Indian blogs for a while and watching everything like a silent passerby when I realized I…
Chakolya/Daal dhokli
A long forgotten Sunday lunch dish; a close cousin of the Gujarati daal dhokli, this lentil-based pasta is a favorite with my family. Just what…
Cheat’s Haandvo Recipe (Baked!)
Almost every corner kirana (grocery) store in Mumbai stores little plastic packs of Idli, Khaman (Yellow dhokla), Dhokla (the white kind), and Theplas, each with…
Christmas Fruit Cake
A few days ago, a journalist from a popular daily called to ask if I could help her with some information for a story on…
Chutney-stuffed pomfrets
My fisherwoman has been getting us the cutest little pomfrets this past week. They fit snug in the palm of my hand (which, I assure…
Ciabatta
A few weeks ago, when someone posted a picture of a Ciabatta loaf on one of the social media forums I follow, I was very…
Coconut and Pistachio Cake
I am not a big fan of dried coconut. Dessicated coconut, at least the kind we get here is probably worse—it is dry and tastes…
Coconut Fudge and Jam Tart
Every Thursday, when the family would fast for the family deity, my great grandma would make naralachi vadi or coconut fudge squares for prasad or…
Coffee and Hazelnut Biscotti
The original, Marathi version of this article appeared in Loksatta on October 6, 2012. When I was a kid, a middle-aged, tall, bearded, slightly annoyed…
Coffee and Orangette cake | Black and White Wednesday No.2
A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to the Mumbai launch of Café Coffee Day’s new premium coffee, Mysore Royal. I have…
Creamed Corn (Maharashtrian style)
When we were kids, the only kind of corn we got in the markets was the white corn. Like a string of the best pearls,…
Croissants (and getting published in BBC Good Food)
It’s been breads, breads, and breads for a while now. Let me start with the highlights: 1. I did a feature for BBC Good Food…
David Rocco’s Eggplant Pasta
When my brother and I decided to start our recipe video channel, we were greatly influenced by food shows from abroad–the extreme close ups showing…
Donuts
Two days ago, my nieces, Shreya and Ananya, kicked up a racket when their grandma came over to pick them up from my place. They…
Dosas: South Indian Rice and Lentil Crepes
There are some things I absolutely must, always have in my fridge–cilantro, coconut, yogurt, lemons, and dosa batter. If even one of these is absent,…
Easy Garlic Butter Prawns
It has been “winter” in Mumbai and after the long and seafood-deprived monsoons and unbearably hot October, good quality seafood is finally back in the…
Easy Vegan Chocolate Almond Cake (and a lesson in tolerance)
Harini is one of the first food bloggers I met in Mumbai, and we instantly became friends. It’s not very difficult to make friends with Harini–she’s…
Egg curry and Pao
We’re a dunk family. I love immersing long, crisp khaari biscuits or rusk toasts in masala chai or filter coffee. MK will happily let…
Eggless Microwave Raspberry Muffins
Every so often, I get the urge to bake something, and fast. Remember this? And this? Usually, this urge comes-a-calling when I am chasing the…
Eggless Vanilla Cake with Grandma’s Plum Jam
The ever-so-kind gadget guru dad has gifted me a brand new, kickass camera. The Canon 500D. Everything I wanted and more. The obsession with photography…
Eggless wholewheat pancakes
Long, long before Betty Crocker’s red boxes made their way to India, my nine-yard-saree-clad great grandmother was busy experimenting in her kitchen with a pancake…
Eggplant in Chili Garlic Sauce
One of the staple dishes I always insisted Amma made for my birthday was this–Eggplant in Chili Garlic Sauce. It is a decidedly Indo-Chinese dish,…
Food processor focaccia and 100 posts
Turns out, the last post I wrote was my 100th. This little jhola of mine has been with me through so much–I started writing the…
Fried rice from leftovers
What happens when… …1. The party is long over 2. You have a weekend getaway coming up 3. You have a fridge stocked with odds…
Gingersnaps/Ginger cookies
You know how, as children, we never liked grown-up cookies? Spiced, low sugar, bitter-ish cookies that looked so unappetizing? I mean, at least compared to…
Hot and Sweet Veggies with Sticky Brown Rice
I read Justin’s post on Slippery Shrimp when I came back from Kaivalyadhama, a Yoga and naturopathy farm on the outskirts of Mumbai. After a…
How Gampu came back
When I was a child, we went to my paternal grandparents’ home for Ganpati celebrations every year. My grandmother was in poor health since as…
How sugarcane jaggery is made
I have always been incredibly fond of jaggery. One of my earliest memories is of sitting with my friend Madhura on the stairs of the…
How to make Ghee
Ghee. That quintessential Indian fat that must make an appearance as a cooking medium or condiment at every authentic Indian meal. I don’t know what…
In Defense of Yeast
Shortly after the release of Crumbs!, the Centre for Science and Environment (Delhi), published a report that laid bared the fact that commercial breads contained…
Indian Herb Tea
I’ve been down with a viral fever. All of yesterday, I was pampered by MK, who took the day off to be with me, ma-in-law,…
Inspirational People: Harini Prakash | Recipe: Lemon Cake with Mint Syrup
I’ve always talked about how this blog gives back to me much more than I give it–over the years, I have benefited in terms of…
Kaale Gaajar ki Kaanji
Come spring, Radha kaku would try and find out if her sister, Auntie Evie had any plans of coming down to Mumbai. Radha kaku had…
Kairi Panhe | Aam Panna | Raw Mango Cordial
I’ve been feeling a bit uninspired lately. There’s too much going on at once and I feel I’ve lost all creative abilities. The scorching heat…
Lemon and Blueberry Pound cake
Blueberries are rather rare here in Mumbai. Thanks to some exotic food stores, however, we’ve been getting an occasional supply of good blueberries without having…
Low sugar Coffee and Cream Cake
My father is a simple man. He has few needs—three mobile phones, two laptops, and god knows how many cameras and music players; a good…
Maharashtrian style stuffed chilies/peppers
One of my favorite things in the vegetable market, to look at and shop for, is the variety of chilies/peppers. I love the hotness and…
Mango chutney
My maternal grandmother always had some chutney or other in her refrigerator. It’s a tradition I try to maintain. Not half because I like to…
Mango phirni: Mango and Rice pudding
Ramzan evenings on Mohammad Ali Road in Mumbai are an institution. I remember going there just before the day’s fasting came to an end and…
Mango sasav: Mango curry
If you’ve been reading my blog (ahem), you will remember this mango curry recipe. I make it every season, by the kilos, and it gets…
Mango sasav: Mango curry (1)
I have been resisting mangoes for a while. Actually, since Dada passed away, nobody in the family has been enthusiastic enough. The picture of a…
Marmalade and Valencia Orange Cake
When we were children, WIT (Women’s India Trust) would rent our school’s prayer hall for their exhibitions. On sale were beautifully block printed aprons, bedspreads,…
Metkoot Recipe (and a Metkoot-based Salad)
My daughter has a stomach infection. Why? Because she’s teething at the speed of light and is tempted to help herself to whatever she finds…
Mocha mini muffins
Having a 7-month-old who wants to master her standing and walking skills every second of her waking time can leave you with little time to…
Mushroom Risotto and Quick-fix Garlic Bread
One night, when I was craving the goodness of cheese and the comfort of rice at once, risotto seemed the obvious choice. The only risotto-able…
Naarali Bhaat
Apart from the fact that Naarali Poornima is the day Coastal Maharashtra celebrates the coconut and that fisherfolk offer coconuts to the sea on this…
Olive, Basil, Sundried Tomato and Garlic Bread
No story this time. Just the simple desire to bake a good home-style bread. Ingredients: 225 gms. all purpose flour 2 tsp. dried yeast 1…
Orange and Nutella cake
Is it just me or is the weather really horrible? It makes me want to do warm, fuzzy things–things like orange cake. So that’s what…
Patole: Rice and coconut dumplings in turmeric leaf
Aai’s picture, courtesy: Nirmala Purushotam My maternal gran has been one of the biggest influences to my culinary obsession. As a kid, I would…
Patra or Alu vadi: Colocasia leaf rolls
Nothing can get fresher than a bunch of recently cut greens. A bundle of un-torn, fresh-as-the-morning greens tied up in string or with a blade…
Peach and Cherry Cake Squares
When I was little, and there were no supermarkets around, we would buy our stock of weekly fruit (which was usually a lot) from Amitabh…
Peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies
I use peanut butter for cooking; but somehow, I can’t bring myself to slap it in between slices of bread. MK likes his bit of…
Phansaachi Athla-Gara Bhaaji (Stir fried Young Jackfruit)
Summers in Khanapur were redolent with the heady fragrance (or stench, if you didn’t like them) of ripe jackfruit among other aromas such as mango…
Pineapple Upside Down Cake
One of my favorite tea-time treats is the classic pineapple upside-down cake. Place a platter containing the de-molded cake next to a steaming hot cup…
Pistachio and Cranberry Cookies
Once Diwali is over and the ingredients for your Christmas cake have been soaked in copious amounts of alcohol, you are left with huge amounts…
Piyush: Shrikhand shake
What do you do when the party’s over and there’s just one serving of Shrikhand left? You make Piyush! The Maharashtrian version of lassi, this…
Plum Upside Down Cake (Eggless)
I love upside downs. I think they make for pretty tea cakes, and they look gorgeous with very little effort. I’m always on the lookout…
Potato and Pea Samosas with Sweet Fennel and Chili Dipping Sauce
It was in the dark space under the main staircase. The chapel was right next to it but who cared about god other than during…
Prawn Karanjia (Prawn Turnovers)
MK can’t stand my fisherwoman. I don’t blame him. She’s kind of…insistent. Unfortunately, when she comes in every other morning, I’m usually attending to Avanee’s…
Prawn moilee
I love prawns. But you know that, don’t you? From here and here and here. You know how I simply must buy them when the…
Puli Inji Prawns: Prawns in Tamarind and Ginger sauce
Being born into a Maharashtrian Brahmin family usually means eating chincha-gulachi aamti (tamarind and jaggery based lentils) at least thrice a week. We have tongues…
Puliyogare Gojju (Masala) Recipe
Geeta came to the Gore family as a young girl to work as a general help around the house. She would lay the table and…
Pull Apart Pesto Rolls
This is something I first made a year ago, at least and have been making and teaching a lot ever since. It’s a simple bread…
Pull-apart bread rolls
Way back in the 1970s, my maternal grandmother picked up a copy of one of Tarla Dalal’s first cookbooks—The Delights of Vegetarian Cooking. A lot…
Quick Chocolate Strawberry Cream Tarts
I think Marathi cookery shows are a disgrace. The sets are ghastly. The props are mediocre. The photography is ridiculous. The cooks are downright untalented….
Ragda Pattice
My mum insists she hates cooking. She’s an artist, a dreamer. She says she’s rather spend a day at the art gallery or reading a…
Recipe video: 1 Bowl Chocolate Orange Cake
This is a perfect cake or those sudden cake and chocolate cravings. It is a lovely moist cake with the aromas of orange coming through…
Recipe video: Blueberry Focaccia
I generally prefer local fruits over imported ones. I cannot tell you how much juicier and tastier our Indian plums are over the “Chinese” ones…
Recipe video: How to make Bebinca
When I saw this video on Nags’ blog, I knew that I had found the easiest way to convince my filmmaker brother to make a…
Recipe video: How to make Bread
These past few days, I’ve seen a jaw too many drop promptly to the floor every time I say anything about baking bread at home….
Recipe video: How to make Gingerbread cookies
Every year, we celebrate Christmas with as much (if not more) enthusiasm than we celebrate Diwali. We put up the tree and do gifts. I…
Recipe video: How to make Mango burfi (Fudge) and Diwali wishes
I hope you’re having a lovely Diwali–surrounded by loved ones and so drunk on happiness that the diyas and lanterns are all dimmed by the…
Recipe video: How to make Meen Moilee (Kerala-style Fish in Coconut sauce)
I treasure my utensils and kitchen appliances with more love than my wedding ring. And if I were to choose between my Kerala-style clay pots…
Recipe video: How to make Tomato Saar or Tempered Tomato and Coconut Soup
No matter what part of the world you grew up in, I’m sure a teeny bit of your childhood memory store is occupied by tomato…
Recipe video: Peach Upside Down Cake with Warm Cherry Sauce
I love this time of the year because it brings in my favorite fruits. I never mourn the end of the mango season because it…
Roasted corn on the cob
If you’re from Bombay, you’re probably also up right now, wondering what happened to the city. Wondering why, out of the blue, our beloved city…
Saffron and Cardamom Lemonade
On Ranade Road in Dadar, there once sat a man who sold lemonade. Limbu Sarbat, actually—the Maharashtrian version of lemonade. On a crowded corner of…
Sesame Cookies (and memories of Sankranti)
After all these years of having grandmas scream down our ears that seasonal, local produce is good for the body, we now have bomb-charging nutritionists…
Shrikhand
I sometimes wonder if my in-laws think of me as the eternal “jeans-wearing,” “diet-food-eating,” “rebel feminist” soon (daughter-in-law). Which, I guess, I am (evil laughter)….
Slow roasted Cherry Tomatoes with Garlic and Thyme
As kids, my brother and I would satisfy mid-meal hunger pangs by pulling out a juicy red, plump tomato from the fridge and eating it…
Spiced mini cookies
As a result of diligently following the chef’s recipe for the Pineapple upside-down cake, I was left with a good dollop of the butter and…
Stollen
The original, Marathi version of this article appeared in Loksatta on December 22, 2012 and can be viewed here. Mumbai has never really had a…
Stuffed Chili Pickle
One of my earliest memories of eating pickle is from way back when I was in primary school. Because we lived in a company township…
Surmai curry: Kingfish in spicy coconut curry
I’d been trying to clear out my fridge for the past three days with a good success rate in preparation for the Amritsar-Dharamshala trip. (Yes,…
Tagine-inspired Chicken with Root Vegetables and Saffron Couscous
When the first real showers of the Mumbai monsoon finally strike, I go into one-dish-meal mode. I cannot, cannot, cannot bring myself to make or…
Tender Cashew Stir Fry
Early summer is when the cashew trees bear fruit. And nut. All along the rich, fertile coastline of India, cashew trees are laden with a…
Tomato and Raisin Chutney
My current favorite snack is a couple of crackers dipped into or topped with something. Non fussy, easy to put together, enjoyable, and filling. That’s…
Tomato Sauce for Pasta, Pizza, and Dips
I have always advocated freshly cooked food. If you open my freezer or pantry cupboard, you will not find even one tray of ready to…
Top 10 Easy Cake Recipes on saeekhandekar.com
Every day, I have at least one e-mail or comment asking for a cake recipe. Turns out, I post cake pictures often enough to prompt…
Top 10 Monsoon Recipes on My Jhola
As I watch the rain crashing down from my little suburban window and sip on lemongrass tea (freshly picked lemongrass from a rain washed window),…
Top 8 Mango recipes
Every year, when the first tart green raw mangoes make their appearance in the market, I start planning the dishes I want to make. I…
Translated Loksatta Article: Beyond 2 Minutes and a Pad Thai Recipe
The original, Marathi version of this article appeared in Loksatta on September 1, 2012 and can be read here. In the swanky, heavily air conditioned…
Translated Loksatta article: How to make Sundried Tomatoes and Sundried Tomato Bread
Last month, I wrote my first Marathi food article for a leading Marathi daily, Loksatta. For those of you who wrote in and called with…
Translated Loksatta article: Iced Kaleidpscopes and a Recipe for Alphonso Mango Sorbet
This article appeared in Chaturanga, the magazine section of Loksatta on June 2, 2012. View the original article here. Iced Kaleidoscopes If you grew up…
Ukdiche Modak: Steamed rice and coconut dumplings
As a child, perhaps the only reason I waited for Ganesh Chaturthi was the modak. An order would duly be placed with a Vile Parle…
Undhiyu
One Sunday winter morning, year after year, my grandfather would leave his Cooperage apartment and catch a cab to a dusty by-lane in Girgaum, the…
Vaatli Daal
It would be incorrect for me to say that some of the traditional Indian recipes I have here are of tremendous archival value. They’re not–they’re…
Vanilla cupcakes with Strawberry Curd
There are some days when you wake up in the morning thinking of cheesecake. Well, at least some days when you’re pregnant. Several hours into…
Watermelon and Mint Soup
You heard that right. It’s a soup, not a juice, not a smoothie. It’s a liquid that you ladle into a soup bowl, garnish, and…
Welcome to my new home, everyone! And a recipe for Methaamba (mango relish/chutney)
Since I started writing My Jhola in 2008, it went through several avatars, progressing in appearance, content (intent, even) through the years. Early this year,…
Wholewheat and Bran Bread with Sundried Tomato, Garlic, and Rosemary
Sometimes, in the summer, I like to slip into the shoes of those old aunts and grannies who would climb up to their terraces in…
Yearning for coffee
I’m trying to keep off coffee. Difficult, for someone who’s used to two of these a day: I’ve not bought any real coffee powder (read…
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