Love and Calories!!

Happy New year everyone!! Yes I am alive. Fat and fine as usual and am extremely ashamed of not posting a single recipe in 2014 and I blame it solely on me. Sloth is one deadly sin and I confess that I was fully drowned in one. However I have buried my lazy past in the past and here I am starting my 2015 with a bang. I have dusted the cobwebs from my blog and it’s now up and running. The love and calories is here with double the love and may be fewer calories. My first post of this year is “breaking the fast Muffins”. Since it’s got some dried fruits, seeds and carrots in it, you can very well call it a “Healthy” muffin. I had these lovelies last weekend for my breakfast accompanied by some freshly squeezed orange juice prepared by hubby dear. It was indeed a good start of the day. :P Ingredients: · 300g of plain flour · 50g of oats · 50g of caster sugar · 3 tsp of baking powder · Handful of sunflower and pumpkin seeds · Two handfuls of any chop...

When I go for my weekly shopping at the Tescos or Waitrose, I spend atleast 4-5 minutes in the Cereal aisle. I love to see and read those different varieties and colourful packages of corn flakes, bran flakes, weetabix, cheerios, different flavoured oats, muesli etc. Out of these, Granola always stood out. This luxury cereal always grabbed my attention. By the look of those golden honey roasted oats, mixed with nuts and berries of different combination, my mind imagines a bowl, spoon and a dollop of greek yoghurt and me having Granola in some island in Greece. (the luxury advertisements influence my thoughts)!! :P So the love for granola made me look for a homemade version of it and 'BBC food' helped me come out with this one. The entire process of mixing the rolled oats in maple syrup and honey and later roasting it with the mixed nuts and berries was indeed therapeutic. I have made a tin full of granola and safely stored in an air-tight container. It should suffice for ...

The first time I came across this dish was on our honeymoon in Switzerland. The country was beautiful as expected, the cuisine too didn't disappoint us. Since  this picturesque country shares its border with Germany, Italy, Austria and France, its cuisine too has a large influence of these countries as you go towards the respective borders. We enjoyed the famous cheese fondue, Swiss Cheese and Chocolates, Swiss meringue with cream and last but not the least our favourite breakfast item....POTATO ROSTI!! During our week long stay, Rosti dominated our breakfast plates. It was way back in 2007 when I experienced the dangling sound of metal Cow Bells hanging around the necks of the cows, the beautiful alpine meadows, the charming old houses decorated with coloured flowers, the diplomatic capital of the World Geneva where we visited the United Nations office, Jungfraujoch - my first snowy experience at the top most point of Europe and more....everything still remains fresh...

"To eat well in England you should have breakfast three times a day". - W Somerset Maugham "Full English" or "Traditional English" or "Farmhouse Breakfast" or "Fry-Up" are a few of the names given to this sumptuous, heavy, filling & satisfied breakfast of the Great Britain. This is the most popular breakfast of the UK just like the American breakfast. Like Pancakes in an American breakfast, over here its bacon & eggs. A Full English Breakfast consists of many dishes put together in just a plate & is served in almost all the pubs throughout the day. One can very well differentiate it with any other Continental Breakfast. A typical "Full English" consists of bacon, poached or fried eggs, fried tomatoes & mushrooms, toast, sausages, baked beans & hash browns. But as you go to different areas in the UK certain items in the plate are either included or removed from it. Some people include black pudding, m...

Every one knows to make a simple French Toast, so this won't be difficult at all. Am just adding up some cinnamon into the original version. This was our quicky breakfast today morning, because I got up a little late than usual. This is a sweet version of eggy bread that's wonderful for a lazy weekday breakfast making. Have a bite & off you go for your work. :) Ingredients: 4 eggs 4 tbsp milk 6 slices of bread 1 tsp ground cinnamon 4 tsp sugar 1 tsp oil (or a cooking oil spray) Method: Mix half the ground cinnamon with the sugar & set aside. Beat the remaining cinnamon together with the eggs & milk in a shallow dish. Cut the bread into triangles & dip into the egg mixture. Heat a non-stick frying pan & spray some oil. Cook the eggy bread one by one, cooking both sides for 2 minutes, over a medium heat, until crisp. Sprinkle the french toast with some cinnamon sugar. Wanna make it healthy?? Try substituting skimmed milk, wholemeal bread & low fat...

Now you must be thinking, who doesn't know to make Rava Upma? What is so special about it? Every 5th person residing in India knows to make it and is a common breakfast item in almost all the Indian household. We Indians take this dish for granted. Well up until a week back, even I thought the same about this dish and looked down on Rava Upma. Not anymore. Last week I read a news about an Indian born, New York Chef Floyd Cardoz who won the top prize of £100,000 in an American show called "Top Chef Masters". No prize for guessing, he made RAVA UPMA!! After reading the article, I immediately decided that the recipe of a basic version of Upma must be on my blog. And here I am sharing the if not a "million dollar", then atleast a "hundred thousand dollar worth Upma Recipe". :) Upma is a popular South Indian Breakfast dish, mainly prepared by Semolina. It has a great resemblance with the Italian Polenta. It can be made with many variations by adding vegeta...

A very easy, filling, quick tiffin which you can make in a jiffy, if you are that busy on a week day & also not want to miss the main meal of the day, i.e BREAKFAST!! Its Bread Upma. All the ingredients in this recipe can be found at all homes, all over the world. Prepare it, cook it, eat it & off you go! Ingredients: 10-12 bread slices 2-3 tbsp yoghurt 1 big onion (finely chopped) 1 big tomato (finely chopped) 5 green chillies (finely chopped) 1 capsicum/bell paper, optional (cut into 1 inch cubes) 1 tsp garam masala 1/2 tsp turmeric powder 1 tsp red chilli powder 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp mustard seeds 6-7 curry leaves 2 tbsp oil 1/4 cup coriander leaves (finely chopped) salt to taste Method: 1) Cut each bread slice into 1 inch squares with a knife. Keep aside. 2) In a big bowl, mix the yogurt,red chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and salt. Now add the cut slices of bread to it, mix well until the yoghurt mixture coats the bread pieces. Keep aside. 3) Heat the oil in...

Vada is a generic, common name given across India, to a round shaped fritter fried in oil. Vada's can be made of either different lentils, gram flour or even potatoes. It differs in size too according to different cuisines. Its a perfect savoury tiffin enjoyed & relished by everyone. Its crispy on the outside and soft & fluffy inside...mmmm... I made "Uzhunnu Vada" today for my breakfast. Uzhunnu in malayalam is Urad Dal/ Black gram. Uzhunnu Vada is the Indian cousin of the Western DOUGH NUTS! Probably because of its similar looks!! Medhu Vada has become so popular now that it is now treated as a street food in India. I was missing my "Annapoorna Sambar Vada" of Coimbatore that today I ended up making some. My Vadas have not come out perfectly round but who cares, taste is all that matters. :) Ingredients: 2 cups urad dal (split black gram) 1 large onion (finely chopped) 3-4 green chillies (finely chopped) 15-20 peppercorns 2 inch ginger (optional, finel...

Today I bring to your dining table, the taste of The United States of America. Its a common breakfast dish served in the States. Nope...its not pancakes. They do have some other amazing stuffs too other than pancakes and maple syrup. :) Its "Sweet Corn Fritters"!! This cooked breakfast is a taste of America - a delicious, different way to start the day. Just try it if you want a little change from your usual omelette. :) Ingredients: 4 eggs (beaten) 1/2 medium red onion (finely chopped) 1/2 tsp dijon mustard (optional) 200 gm sweetcorn (I use the tinned one) 2 tbsp chopped parsley (can use coriander leaves) 2 tomatoes (thick round slices) salt & pepper for seasoning cooking oil to drizzle Method: Heat your omelette pan & drizzle some oil into it. Let it become medium hot. Using a fork, combine all the ingredients mentioned above except tomato slices in a large mixing bowl. Season well with salt & pepper. Create a small or big fritter by putting 2 generous la...