Besan Ke Laddu Recipe | How to Make Besan Ke Ladoo

Learn how to make Besan Ke Laddu ~ Sweet chickpea/gram flour balls flavoured with cardamom and ghee

The festival of lights is here… Diwali or Deepavali is the occasion which brings lot of joy and laughter to fill our days with cheer and hope for something best to come! We are having a quiet Diwali at home as the man of the house is away in Scotland attending a conference and will only be back on Friday night! Which means the young man of the house is seen following me everywhere chattering and asking me non-stop questions as why we have lit dozens of the candles and diyas, what am I cooking, why the house is decked as a bride, what is Diwali, why are we celebrating it, why are we Hindus, who made us Hindus, does it mean we can’t celebrate Christmas, will he still get Christmas presents from Santa and many more until I pretend to faint! I don’t miss the fire crackers back in India as my little fire cracker is here to bombard me with his never ending questions and chatter. :)

On the Diwali eve, our home came alive with flickering of diyas and candles lit in every nook and corner with the soulful evening raga playing in the background. The fragrant smoke of incense, camphor and dhoop waltzed with the fragrance of roses and jasmine. The clang of pots and pans, the heady aroma of saffron, rose water and cardamoms and the joyous laughter in the background was everything that any festivals are about. Unlike last year’s extravagant and loud Diwali which was the first for LD with his grandparents, this year’s celebration is quiet and mellow with just three of us. As it was the case with any festival, we were missing our loved ones on this joyous occasion. The beautiful memories of Diwali of my childhood are something I treasure the most. The light, laughter, joy, great food and a lovely company is something that makes this festival so special. So I feel the real need to create wonderful memories for my young man by carrying out century old traditions passed from one generation to the next. And what better way than the stories of the festival accompanied with a delicious food which is heart and soul of any Indian festivals?!

French Macaron Recipe with Salted Caramel and Cardamom Cream Cheese Filling | Guest Post by Nisha of My Kitchen Antics

Learn how to make French Macarons with Salted Caramel and Cardamom Cream Cheese Filling from Nisha of My Kitchen Antics

“There was a mood of magic and frenzy to the room. Crystalline swirls of sugar and flour still lingered in the air like kite tails. And then there was the smell-the smell of hope, the kind of smell that brought people home.”
~ Sarah Addison Allen

I am reminded of the above lines from a book ’The girl who chased the moon’ when I think of today’s guest blogger. I asked her if she could do me a favour and write a guest post for my blog for the second time. She not only agreed to be a guest blogger for the second time, but sent me five amazing recipes to choose from! Again!!! This girl leaves me spoiled for choices and salivating at the most amazing and tempting recipes she whips up in her kitchen. I am talking about my gorgeous friend Nisha who blogs some scrumptious treats at My Kitchen Antics. Her blog is filled with stunning photographs, wonderful recipes and witty anecdotes which makes you want to come back again and again! It didn’t take me too long to choose the French Macarons recipe from the 5 different recipe choices she gave me. If there is someone who can make mean Macarons, then it definitely going to be none other than a macaron diva herself who is also happens to be a consultant at Bobo Macarons! Nisha, thank you for sharing one of my most favourite recipes with us all. You can read more about Nisha by following her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

I am back again with a guest post for Sia. And this time, we decided to go with French Macarons. I would totally understand why Sia asked me to go with Macarons because everyone on my FB page kinda know I'm obsessed with these sweet lil things.

I can’t claim I'm an expert at macarons, because there are still instances where something terribly goes wrong and im left wondering if I will ever figure it all out some day. But once you get the hang of it, you will realize it’s one of those things you'd want to experiment with over and over again with different colours, flavours, shapes etc etc.