As a whole, Indian desserts rely primarily on two ingredients: milk and butter (and sugar, but that’s a given, right?). In most cases, it’s easy to find a suitable replacement for both of these (coconut oil, anyone?), but not all desi desserts are created equal. Ras malai, a rich concoction ...

This is one of the simplest (yet most complicated) Indian dishes. At its most basic, it's lentils, rice, a few spices...maybe a veggie or two. But that's only the beginning: You can add tomatoes, prepared sabzis (vegetable curries), nuts or even hot sauce. O.K., maybe not hot sauce. At least ...

I'm not the type of person that cooks with a plan. In fact, I'm quite the opposite. Most of my best creations have come out of a full fridge and an empty stomach. I stand in front of the open door, the fridge's itsy bitsy light barely illuminating its contents. ...

I did it again: I ate too much dark chocolate last night. Every time I promise myself I'll be good, I end up going for the fridge in the middle of the night. Before I can even think about a solution for the stomach cramps, thoughts of calories begin to ...

It's only January 2nd and I've already fallen off the metaphorical wagon several times. Actually, I've fallen off multiple wagons, which is quite impressive considering I didn't even make a resolution this year. Get a real job? Nah, too ambitious. Lose weight? Not again! Get out of Michigan? Well, we ...

Normally, it's hard for me to think of a vegetable or fruit I don't like. There are several I don't like to prepare, but few I won't eat. Up until now, okra has been one of those vegetables that never quite sat right with me. It might be the strange seeds ...

Spinach: it's one of those things only Popeye could love. But even my little brother likes this stuff! Traditionally, the dish is made with cubed paneer, which is an Indian cheese made of acid-seperated milk (think cottage cheese). While my brother prefers the heavy, cream-laden restaurant stuff, I always went for ...

This is going to be short and basic as I don't have access to the internet right now. This is new....a texted post! Roast eggplant (more detail tomorrow). In the meantime, heat a pan with nonstick cooking spray over medium high heat. Add a few cumin seeds and roast till fragrant. Be ...

I consider myself somewhat of a hummus connoisseur. It has a comfortable place on my list of favorite foods: right between fro-yo/Kroger yogurt and almond/peanut/chocolate hazelnut/pistachio butter. Unlike those other things, which I have not only made, but also mastered, hummus seems to require a certain zen-ness that I simply ...

That just happened to have some candles sticking out of it. Well, 3 candles to be exact: one of which was broken and one of which was so far melted it could barely be called a candle anymore. Sloppy writing (the tube of writing gel exploded on me!) and disfigured candles ...