tricolor | tiranga – zezoo cooks

Tiranga Shrikhand Bars (frozen yogurt bars)

celebration, dessert, eggless, freezer friendly, gluten free, grain free, indian, maharashtrian, snack, sweet, themed, tricolor | tiranga, vegetarian

(jump to recipe)

Ever since my friend Shruti told me how to make shortcut Shrikhand (a sweet and creamy dessert from my home state of Maharashtra in India, made with hung yogurt, sugar, ground cardamom and saffron) using Labneh, I must have made it dozens of times. It comes together in no time – whisk together Labneh (extra thick middle-eastern yogurt cheese aka yogurt that is the consistency of cream cheese) and sugar with a pinch of ground cardamom and saffron, and chill in the fridge for a bit. That’s it!

I make it quite frequently to go with elaborate Indian meals – meals that have 7 or 8 other components as it is. So making the shortcut version is an easy win, especially if you make the mango version of it, called Amrakhand (Aam = mango), with mango pureé subbing for half the sugar. I’ve had this idea of converting Shrikhand to a bite-size, easy to freeze format, so that its easy to get a quick taste of it occasionally without investing any time/effort. I thought it would be a great idea to try a “Tiranga” (Indian tricolor) version of it to celebrate the upcoming Indian Republic Day (January 26th).

Continue reading →

Tiranga Dhokla (Tricolor Savory Sponge Cake)

appetizer, breakfast, celebration, grain free, gujarati, indian, maharashtrian, make ahead, savory, snack, themed, tricolor | tiranga, vegetarian, weeknight

(jump to recipe)

Every year around January 26th and August 15th, depending on how many Indian people you know and follow, you may have noticed your Instagram, Facebook and Twitter feeds bursting with the Indian tricolor of Saffron, White and Green, or the “Tiranga” (“Tir” = three, “Ranga” = color). If you are not sure why, it’s because January 26th is India’s Republic Day and August 15th, it’s Independence Day! Flags are hoisted in every institution all over the country, and the tricolor waves proudly throughout the country in the hope of a more secular, open and better tomorrow for my motherland!

And, if you are obsessed with food as I am, you might see elaborate tricolor preparations all over your feed too – tricolor rice, desserts, parathas (flatbreads) and the like. I myself try to make something new each year; this past year I made Tricolor Dosas (rice and lentil crepes), and for 2019, I am applying the “Tricolor” filter to one of the India’s favorite snack, the Dhokla (pronounced Dhow-klaah).

Continue reading “Tiranga Dhokla (Tricolor Savory Sponge Cake)” →

Tiranga (Indian Tricolor) Mini Dosa

breakfast, celebration, dairy free, dinner, gluten free, grain free, greens, indian, legumes, lentils and pulses, lunch, main, savory, snack, south indian (tamil | kerala ), themed, tricolor | tiranga, vegan, vegetarian, weeknight

When you think about cooking and food as much as I do, anything that’s plain starts to look like a canvas. The Dosa (a fermented rice and lentil crepe from South India) with its mild, slightly tangy taste lends itself well to being a canvas on which other colors and flavors can shine. So, going with my tricolor (Tiranga, the Indian flag) theme, something I usually do every year on India’s Republic Day (January 26th) and Independence Day (August 15), I picked Dosa and used carrot pureé for the orange and spinach pureé for the green! Super easy and fun twist on regular Dosa (and even Idli) to celebrate my motherland!

In the past I’ve done this with Idlis and Dhokla (detailed recipe is already on the blog), and it was delicious! The carrot in particular tastes really good.

Continue reading →