Dark Chocolate Coconut Banana Bread

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Parita

My sister and I are similar in lots of ways – from the way we look and sound to our most subtle preferences and habits. And since I’m the older one, I claim that she’s my mini-me. In fact, I love to irritate her and tell her she’s a copy cat.

But deep down inside, I love it!

I love that we share a passion for exercise. I love that we both enjoy “healthyifying” foods. I love that even though we are "healthfiers,” we can get down with some Taco Bell. I love that cheese is our weakness. I love that our laugh is so similar. I love that we often use the same facial expressions and hand gestures. I love it all!

But most of all, I love our shared obsession of all things chocolate. If there’s anyone who’s love for the good stuff rivals my own, it’s Aekta. Hard to believe, I know!

So when Aek told me she finally tried a Dark Chocolate Coconut Banana Bread recipe she found a while back, I was a little jealous that I wasn’t at home with her to enjoy a piece. What she made sounded delicious. Even my mom was picking away at it…and she’s not a huge fan of chocolate.

While at work yesterday, I got an email from Aek with a link to the recipe. That was all I needed to rush home, quickly change out of my work clothes, and get to work in the kitchen. I too wanted to enjoy a warm piece of banana bread.

You guys, our apartment smelled divine as this bad boy was baking away in the oven. Divine. And the taste and texture of the bread was awesome. It’s dense and hearty, chocolaty, not too sweet, with bits of coconut throughout. I will definitely be making this again.

A few notes…(of course) I tried to make the recipe a little bit of my own. Just a few slight changes. I used whole wheat flour instead of whole wheat white and honey instead of brown sugar. Otherwise, I pretty much followed it to the tee.

Let’s just say that any and all chocolate cravings I’ve been having over the past few days were thoroughly satisfied!

Are you and your siblings similar? What’s your favorite way to cook with coconut?

5 Key Takeaways from the Weekend

Posted on May 20, 2013 by Parita

1. I’m a “cookieaholic.” In fact, after reading Dixya’s post about Lindsay’s cookies, I knew exactly what I had to do after work on Friday. Like literally the minute I stepped inside the apartment. I wasted no time whipping up a batch of these Peanut Butter Avocado cookies (trust me, you absolutely can’t taste the avocado). Let’s just say, I had no regrets!

2. My new colleague, Bhusha, is honestly one of the nicest people ever. We spent a good portion of the weekend together, and it truly felt like I was hanging out with one of my girlfriends. She has such a beautiful spirit. I already told her that come Friday, I’m going to cry. She thinks I’m kidding. Ha!

[Bhusha hates getting her picture taken so let’s pretend I was able to capture one of us together.]

3. I have another restaurant recommendation for y’all. Nexxt Café on Lincoln Mall Road is awesome. At first, I was a little nervous after seeing the extensive menu. There were easily 100+ different dishes listed. We ended up picking some winners…

Sweet corn tamales (YUM!)

Spinach artichoke dip

Eggplant sandwich

4. Gelato is the best thing ever. EVER. Gelateria 4-D (also on Lincoln Mall Road) has some delicious, super creamy gelato. A must try if you’re in South Beach.

5. I could get used to dinner views like this. Definitely.

What was a major highlight from your weekend?

Unexpectedly Good Masala Dosas

Posted on May 17, 2013 by Parita

On my way home from work on Wednesday, all I could think about was dinner and what I was going to make. Since Vishnu’s been spending his days and nights at the library, I’ve been doing my own thing most nights of the week. I had settled on making a quesadilla for dinner when much to my surprise, I found my hubby studying at home. Woo hoo!

Dinners together are rare right now, so I changed my mind about the quesadilla and decided to make an Indian meal. As I looked through our pantry, I found dosa (savory Indian crepe/pancake) and sambhar (a slightly spicy Indian soup) mixes hiding in the back. I called my mom to ask a couple of questions, and she reassured me that it would turn out just fine.

Before I share the details about how I pulled this all together, I want to say a few things about these mixes. First, most Indian grocers carry Gits brand products. And most major cities have at least one Indian grocery store. Just ask Google. Second, these mixes are not really healthy. About half way through, I looked at the ingredient lists and found things like partially hydrogenated vegetable oil shortening and butylated hydroxy anisole (a preservative). Not a fan of hydrogenated anything so that was a bummer. However, we do not eat Gits dosa and sambhar very often so I let it slide. And finally, using these mixes was not intimidating at all. It was honestly one of the easiest Indian meals I’ve ever made.

For the dosa mix, all I literally had to do was add water. That’s it. When actually cooking the dosa, I was extra careful to maintain an even layer of the mixture. Dosas are best when thin and crispy (in my opinion).

The sambhar was a little more involved. I had to add water AND chopped tomatoes..haha!

For the masala filling, I cooked a medium onion and a large sweet potato in coconut oil and added a bunch of spices (turmeric, mustard seeds, red chili pepper, cumin/coriander powder and salt). It turned out really well.

Leftover masala mixture

As I was plating everything, I realized that something was missing – a chutney (sauce)! I frantically called my MIL (she’s a dosa expert), and when she didn’t pick up, I called my mom (who also makes great dosas). She asked me what I had on hand and gave me a few ideas. I quickly mixed together some Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, coconut powder, salt, sugar, and red chili powder. I know this sounds strange, but it was perfect on top of the dosa. The cool yogurt complemented the masala and sambhar perfectly.

Side note: Vishnu didn’t like it, but only because he prefers his chutneys dairy-free.

I was so proud of myself when I took the first bite and realized that my dosa actually tasted good!