Vatteppam/Vattayappam – Kerala Special for Indian Cooking Challenge

I'm currently on vacation in India at my parents place and having a wonderful time. This trip has been pending for a long time and I'm realizing that three years is really a looong time. Everyone and everything seem so different from what I remember...lot to catch up!!

I'm a little late in posting, been a little busy and a little lazy, but really enjoyed this challenge. Vattayappam is a familiar dish and we make it almost the same way. Love it for breakfast. This recipe for Indian Cooking Challenge is from Shn's Mishmash.

I'm skipping the recipe this time, do visit Mishmash for a detailed description.

Suruttai Poli - Indian Cooking Challenge

Indian Cooking Challenge this month was all about Surattai Poli, a delicious sweet snack. This was a welcome break from all the cake and chocolates we've been having for the last few days. I made it last evening and we finished it this afternoon, irresistible!! The recipe was shared by Nithya, big thanks to her.

Happy 1st Birthday Anushka!!

My baby turned ONE yesterday. I can't believe a year has gone by. I've been going over all the pictures of this past year and I wish I could go back and relive some of the moments, especially those when she would be so content just to be held close. She has started walking now and dislikes being carried. She has not said a legible word as yet, but talks constantly. I just love hearing her talk animatedly. It's so exciting to watch her grow and yet I want her to stay a baby forever. These are such precious times.

To celebrate her big day, we had a small party with a few close friends. We did order a cake, but I wanted to bake something for my little one too. Anushka is lactose intolerant and a few of our friends eat only eggless cakes, so I baked an Eggless Strawberry Cake for the special day.

The eggless sponge recipe is from Sunita's blog and was delicious. I made two layers and just sandwiched them with dairy free whipped topping mixed with some fresh strawberry puree and a layer of strawberry slices. Topped the cake with just the whipped cream and M&M for color.

Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to take pictures of the sliced cake, but the birthday girl seemed to enjoy her first cake:)

Khandvi - Indian Cooking Challenge

I missed almost all the previous Indian Cooking Challenges, but not this one! I would never give up an opportunity to make khandvi...its one of my favorite Gujarati snacks. They don't always come out great and even this time I barely used half the batter, the rest was too cold to spread:(. But I did enjoy the challenge and the dish was awesome. I made it this morning and after some quick pictures we had it for breakfast...a welcome change. YUMM!!