One Day At A Time!

Hey everyone! Hope 2026 is treating you well. Texas experienced a couple days of snow in January. I have mixed feelings about it. Love the snow but not the travel restrictions it comes with. Today's sweet treat is my kiddo's favorite dessert, sometimes I pack it in the kiddo's lunch box too. Since this is homemade, you can decide the kind of ingredients you want and also the amount of sugar.  Ingredients: Raw Walnuts / Akrot - 3 cups Milk Powder - 3/4 cup Sugar - about 2 tbsp Green Cardamom / Elaichi - 4 (seeds only) Saffron / Kesar - few strands Whole Milk - about 1/2 cup How to make Walnut Bites or Akrot Ladoo at home: Microwave about 1/2 cup milk for a minute or so. Let it cool down completely. In a food processor jar, add walnuts, milk powder, sugar, cardamom seeds and saffron. Blend until walnuts are finely powdered or coarse if you like. Milk powder stops the walnuts from becoming oily while blending.  Vegans can add oats instead of milk powder. Keep in mind that you ...

Hey everyone! Hope all is well in your part of the world. Texas is blessed with beautiful Goldilocks weather. Touch wood. I love going for walks during this time of the year. Sunny mornings brighten my mood and my day. Do share your favorite thing about holiday season. Today's post is an American version of Mangalore Banana Buns . Over ripened bananas and no all purpose flour in my pantry gave birth to this new recipe. Here it goes. Ingredients: Ripe Bananas - 2 Jaggery/Gud/Gul - 2 tsp Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 2 tsp Oil for frying Bisquick Pancake Mix - about 3 cups How to make Fried Banana Buns with Bisquick Pancake Mix: In a big mixing bowl, mash the bananas. Add jaggery and cumin seeds. Mix until jaggery dissolves. Now, start adding Bisquick pancake mix, little at a time, until a soft dough is formed.  If jaggery is unavailable, molasses or sugar works. You can skip jaggery or sugar if you want.  Cover and ferment the dough overnight. Next day, the dough will darken and double i...

Hey everyone! How is winter treating you? Texas is a blessing in the harsh winter months. But, I still miss snow on Christmas Day. I would love to go to Michigan or a cold part of the US to enjoy a White Christmas.  There are days when I feel low and I am unable to cook. Some days, I feel like eating something different. And takeout can get pretty expensive. At times like these, prepared Store Bought Meals are a good option. Today, I am sharing 5 of our family favorite meals from Sam's Club . Let me start with everyone's favorite - Pizza. Cheese Pizza from Sam's club Cafe is one of our go to meals on grocery shopping days. $9 for a 16" Baked Cheese or Meat or Pepperoni Pizza is a good deal, in my opinion. Goes well with a simple Garden Salad or Caesar Salad. Next one is Mexican Enchiladas. Two kinds are available - Rotisserie Chicken Enchiladas, Hatch Chile & Chicken Enchiladas . Hatch Chile one is cheesier and costs slightly more than the other. Both are about $1...

Hey everyone! December is here and so is the holiday season. I love the lights around this time of the year. A night time drive is wonderful. At the end of the year, resolutions also come to mind. Well, some worked for me and some did not. I'll share a positive one with you guys. This year, my picky eater started eating salads. Touch wood! Like most children, my kiddo's tastes keep on changing. I am grateful for the salad eating change. Let me share Kiddo's Favorite Salad Lunch Box . When it comes to Salad Greens, my kiddo only eats Romaine Lettuce. A new vegetable is still a win, for me. Three vegetables - Romaine Lettuce , Persian Cucumbers and Sliced Carrots are a constant. Regular cucumbers are a big no. So far, 2 salad dressings are liked - Ranch and Olive Garden Salad Dressing.  Shaking the lunch box with all salad vegetables, crunchy toppings and dressing is the most fun part for my kiddo. Shake! Shake! Shake! Grapes are a must in kiddo's lunch. Any color is oka...

Hey everyone! Hope you all are doing well. Texas is blessed with colder weather now. I am grateful. Winter weather makes me cook cozy, comfort food. What is comfort food for you? Soup with a nice baguette is one of my favorite meals. Let me share multiple ways of adding a variety of vegetables in your everyday diet. Let me start with my favorite Vegetarian soup. Italian Minestrone Soup . Most Italian restaurants serve Minestrone on their menu. Traditionally, this soup is cooked with wine. I make it minus the wine. I love that this meal has pasta, beans, leafy greens and fresh vegetables all in one bowl. My husband and I love soups. But my kiddo doesn't. The 2nd way of eating multiple vegetables is  Indian Mixed Vegetable Paratha . Parathas are usually stuffed flatbread. My kiddo doesn't like stuffed ones. So, I make the Gujarati Thepla. Thepla is made with Fenugreek or Methi leaves. Over the years, I have modified it and my kid calls it Pink Paratha. Click on the pink link and ...

Hey foodies! Hope all is well in your part of the world. Here, in Texas, it's been raining for the past few days. Cloudy, rainy weather makes me lazy. Just cozy up with a cup of coffee or binge on snacks. Popcorn and movies! Everyone knows that. Let me share our family's favorite snacks. Easy, inexpensive, hassle free, Sugar Free Munchies. Gluten Free and Vegan too. Do tell me which snacks are popular where you come from. Let me start with my kid's absolute favorite. Seaweed . I can't stand the smell of seaweed, but both my husband and my kiddo love it. Seaweed is vegan for some and not for some.  The second one is  Roasted Edamame . This one is store bought. I haven't tried making this at home. My kiddo takes both Seaweed and Edamame to school as well. 3rd one is my favorite. Coconut Slices . Here, in the US, I use frozen coconut. Thaw the frozen Coconut Slices and they are a wonderful vegan snack. The 4th one is everyone's favorite. Popcorn . I get the popcor...