Umami Avocado Toast

Most of our friends inquire with my partner “How do you feel being repeatedly subjected to a plethora of culinary experiments on a daily basis?” His public response is usually “I feel lucky” but in reality our arrangement is as long as he gets to eat this specific Avocado Toast every Saturday morning, he’ll put up with anything under the sun! So in the interest of domestic harmony, every Saturday without fail (for almost 3 years now) we are committed to this personalized fun take on the classic Avo Toast!

Ingredients (serves 2-4)

6-8 slices of Sourdough Or Multigrain Bread

1 Medium Avocado, pitted and thinly sliced into wedges

Flaky Salt, to your preference

1-2 tsp of your favorite Chile Pepper Flakes (paprika, Aleppo style, Gochugaru or hot red pepper - are some in-house favorites)

PICKLED FENNEL

1/2 Medium Bulb of Fennel, thinly shaved or sliced into ribbons

1 tbsp Lime Zest (substitute Lemon)

2 tbsp Lime Juice (substitute Lemon)

Pinch of Fine Sea Salt

Pinch of Granulated Sugar

Condiments (recommendations)

Garlic Spread from Trader Joe’s

Yemeni Zhoug Sauce from Trader Joe’s

Indian styled green Chutney from any Indian specialty grocery store

Softened Philadelphia Cream Cheese

Whipped Ricotta with some sour cream

Directions

🥪 Combine all pickled fennel ingredients in a small bowl. Give a good mix, cover and let it pickle for 25-30 mins. Toast your bread slices the way you like it! My way is to brush lightly with olive oil or butter and sear it for 2-3 mins on a hot cast iron skillet

🥪 Now slather whatever condiment (I like the combo of Zhoug with whipped cream cheese the most) you like on the toast. Top it with thin slices of avocado then generously pile the pickled fennel on top

🥪 Finish with flaky salt & chile pepper flakes. Enjoy!

*Note: If your avocado is too soft/over ripe to be sliced then just scoop some flesh and transfer on the condiment slathered toast. Using a fork mash it a few times in all directions. Top with pickled fennel.

Multipurpose Creamy Salad Dressing

Chop up any seasonal veg such as cucumber, tomato, radish, fennel and/or celery. Smother with this creamy dreamy dressing and some fresh herbs to finish … a delectable side salad is ready in no time!

*to bulk up feel free to add some croutons, toasted pita or any cooked grains

Ingredients (enough for 2 Salad bowls)

1 tbsp Lemon Zest

1 tsp Chile Pepper flakes (if possible look for Aleppo Pepper flakes)

2 tsp ground toasted coriander seeds

1 tsp ground toasted cumin seeds

2 tsp Poppy Seeds

1 tsp Sesame Seeds (or just use total 3 tsp Poppy Seeds)

2 tbsp Lemon Juice

1 tbsp good quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Sugar

4 tbsp Tahini

2 tbsp Greek Yogurt (substitute with Vegan Yoghurt to keep the dressing dairy free)

1 tbsp water (more to adjust the consistency)

Optional additions

Handful Soft Herbs, chopped

Directions

🥣 Combine first 9 ingredients in a small bowl, whisk until well mixed to form a seedy Lemon oil mixture. Then whisk Tahini, yoghurt and water in a medium bowl. Now gradually stream the contents (Lemon, seeds, oil & spice mix) from small bowl into medium bowl (Tahini mix). Keep whisking until its homogenous and doesn’t look split. Add a couple splashes of water to adjust the consistency of the dressing

🥣 Now divide your salad ingredients (greens, fruits, veggies, grains, protein , etc.) into bowls. Pour the dressing and toss well!

🥣 For extra punch, add some chopped up soft herbs like basil, mint, cilantro or parsley into the lemon oil mixture. Enjoy!

Umami Salad Dressing

If I have to pick one Condiment that I can’t live without , probably this one! A versatile Salad dressing that can zhuzh up any dinner or lunch during any time of the year.

*can be made ahead and refrigerated upto 2 days

Ingredients (serves 4 as a side)

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 tbsp citrus zest

1 tsp red pepper flakes (use your favorite pepper here)

1/2 tbsp ground toasted coriander seeds

1 tsp ground toasted fennel seeds

1 tsp Dijon mustard paste

3 tbsp citrus juice

2 tbsp white wine vinegar or Rice Vinegar

1 tsp Light Soy Sauce (use Tamari / Coco Aminos / Fish Sauce instead)

1 tbsp water

2 tbsp good quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions

🥣 Combine everything in a blender. Whiz 4-5 times or until everything looks homogeneous and , well emulsified

🥣 Now divide your salad ingredients (greens, fruits, veggies, grains, protein , etc.) into bowls. Pour the dressing and toss well!

Umami Noodles

These super easy super delish noodles are fantastic on their own but they are also a perfect vessel for your go to protein or with a fried egg.

*just stick to the measurements and feel free to substitute soy with Tamari or Coco Aminos to keep it soy-free. Or add lime zest and juice instead of vinegar for a zing.

Ingredients (serves 2)

200-220g Cooked Noodles

Base

2 tbsp Neutral Oil such as Vegetable, Sunflower or Canola

4 scallions, finely chopped

1” ginger, peeled & grated (optional)

4 garlic cloves, peeled & crushed

1 tsp hot chile pepper flakes (substitute ground black or white pepper)

1/2 tbsp ground coriander seeds

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

Sauce

1 tsp Cornstarch

2 tbsp Light Soy Sauce

2 tsp Rice Vinegar (substitute with any white vinegar)

1/2 tbsp Brown Sugar or Maple Syrup

Garnish

1-2 tsp Roasted sesame seeds

1 tbsp chopped Basil, Chives or Cilantro

Directions

💥 Whisk all Sauce ingredients and keep it aside. Now, in a large heatproof bowl (you can totally use a large cookware too), combine all base ingredients except oil. Heat up oil until it’s making a sizzling noise ( about 4 mins on medium flame). Pour the super hot oil into the bowl with aromatics, give everything a good mix. Now add the sauce into the bowl. Cover & let the flavors meld for 10 mins

💥Meanwhile whisk all sauce ingredients and keep it aside. Cook the noodles according to package instructions and transfer straight into the large bowl with aromatics and sauce.

💥 Toss everything until well combined. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds & herbs. Serve right away!

Citrus Salad with Bitter Greens

One of my most favorite salads to whip up during any time of the year. Sticky and caramelized citrus served on a bed of seasoned bitter greens such as endives (aka chicory) and arugula. Finished with an orange blossom-maple syrup dressing, crumbled feta and toasted seeds.

Ingredients (serves 4 as a side)

2 Chicory or Belgian Endives, separated

25-30g (about generous handful) Arugula Leaves, roughly torn

2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

½ tbsp White Wine Vinegar (substitute apple cider vinegar)

½ tsp sea salt

1 tsp crushed black pepper

2 Medium Oranges or 4 Mandarins – flesh cut into 1 cm thick discs and peel zested

5 tbsp Maple Syrup

80ml Fresh Orange Juice

1.5 tsp Orange blossom water or Grand Marnier liqueur

Topping

Handful Pomegranate Seeds (optional)

60-65g Crumbled Feta

1 tbsp Toasted Fennel Seeds

1/2-1 tsp Maras or Urfa Chile Flakes

2 tbsp Roasted Pumpkin Seeds or any Roasted Nuts of your choice

Flaky Salt to finish

Directions

🥗In a small pan, combine maple syrup and orange juice cook on medium high flame for 7-8 mins or until reduced to runny syrup. Then add the orange discs into the syrup and cook for 4 mins flipping halfway so that each disc is nicely coated and looks golden & sticky. Take off heat stir in the orange blossom water and orange zest. Let it cool and come to room temperature

🥗 Meanwhile, in a bowl - combine first 6 ingredients, give it a good mix and keep it aside

🥗Arrange the dressed endives & arugula on a serving platter. Transfer the sticky oranges on top of the leaves. Scatter pomegranate seeds, feta, chile flakes and seeds (or nuts) then drizzle any leftover orange maple syrup. Finish with more flaky salt and enjoy!

Silken Tofu Citrus Celebration Salad

A dish that celebrates the citrus season and my love for silken tofu with sesame oil - charred peppers and cherry tomatoes are mixed with a flash fried ginger scallion numbing oil, which is further intensified with blood orange zest and juice, soy, vinegar, Shaoxing cooking wine and toasted sesame oil. Silken tofu and citrus wheels are arranged in a platter then this smoky sweet aromatic dressing is poured all over. Finished with toasted sesame seeds, flaky salt and scallion greens. It tastes better over time and can be kept in the fridge up to 3 days.

Ingredients (serves 4 as a side)

14oz or 400g Silken Tofu, cut into roughly 2” x 4” rectangles

3 Blood Oranges (substitute with 2 Navel or Cara Cara Oranges), peeled and cut into 1/2” thick discs

5-6 Mini Sweet Peppers, whole

12-14 Cherry Tomatoes, whole

Dressing

2 tbsp Fresh Ginger, grated

1 Scallion, white portion - finely chopped and green portion sliced at an angle (reserved for garnish)

1 tsp Ground Sichuan Peppercorns (I use a mix of red and green , feel free to use whatever is available)

1.5 tsp Chile Flakes (feel free to use your go to hot pepper flakes)

2 tsp Roasted Sesame Seeds

2 tbsp Vegetable oil, shimmering hot

2 tsp Red Wine Vinegar

1 tbsp Shaoxing Cooking Wine

3 tbsp Blood Orange Juice (substitute with fresh Orange Juice)

2 tbsp Dark Soy

1/2 tbsp Maple Syrup

1 tsp Toasted Sesame Oil

Garnish

1 tsp roasted sesame seeds

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

1/2 tsp Flaky Salt

Directions

🥗 Heat up a skillet, once smoking add peppers to it, using tongs begin the charring process. After 8 mins, add tomatoes into the skillet & continue charring everything until blistereded and soft. About 15 mins total. Once cool enough to handle, chop up the peppers and leave the bursting tomatoes as is

🥗 Combine first 5 Dressing ingredients in a heatproof bowl, pour the hot oil into it, give everything a good mix (it should making a hissing noise). After 1 min add remaining dressing ingredients, followed by chopped peppers & tomatoes. Give everything a good mix and let it marinate for 45 mins at least or upto overnight

🥗 In a large lipped platter, arrange the tofu pieces and blood orange discs. Pour the dressing all over, garnish with sesame seeds, oil and scallion greens. Serve at room temp or chilled (during summer chilled version is too good), Enjoy!

*Note: Feel free to substitute the citrus during summer with peaches or plums

Grilled Halloumi Salad with Pepita Brittle

Blood orange discs are tossed with grilled Halloumi, baby arugula, chives, sumac & broken shards of pepita brittle. The whole thing is covered in a blood orange juice and toasted coriander seeds dressing. The addition of seed brittle is a recent iteration and takes this humble dish to a new level! It’s one of the top salads that’s often requested by my partner, hope you all liked it as much as we do.

*Pepita Brittle can be easily made ahead and stored in an airtight container to use whenever. Feel free to substitute blood oranges with tangerines or juicy navel oranges

Ingredients (serves 2)

120g Baby Arugula Leaves, cleaned & pat dry

15g Chives, roughly chopped

7g Either Basil or Parsley Leaves (combo of both works too)

2 Blood Oranges, de-seeded & white pith removed , sliced into discs

1/4lb or 114g Halloumi, sliced into large rectangles

1/4 tsp Flaky Sea Salt

1 tsp Sumac

Pepita Brittle

1/2 cup Salted Roasted Pumpkin Seeds / Pepitas (I get it from Trader Joe’s)

Juice & Zest from one Blood Orange

1/2-3/4 tsp Ground Chipotle Chile

2 tbsp Maple Syrup

Dressing

2 tsp Blood Orange zest

1 tsp Red Pepper flakes

1 tsp Salt

1/2 tbsp ground toasted coriander seeds

3 tbsp Blood Orange Juice

1 tbsp White Wine or Champagne Vinegar

1 tbsp Water

1.5 tbsp good quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions

🥗 Prep the Pepita Brittle - heat up a non-stick pan & add all the ingredients. Cook until sticky, about 5-6 mins. Once cooled, break it into small pieces & keep it aside

🥗 Prep the dressing - whisk all the ingredients and keep it aside. Heat up a non-stick skillet, add few drops of oil. Then place halloumi slices, cook each side for a minute or two (until you see the golden blisters all over)

🥗 Combine 3/4 dressing with arugula and herbs; mix well and divide into two bowls. Now divide blood orange discs, pepita brittle pieces & grilled Halloumi into those bowls. Drizzle the remaining dressing, add flaky salt & sumac. Serve with a thick slice of toasted bread

Note: to bulk up the salad feel free to add cooked couscous or quinoa. Horner, make sure to adjust the amount of dressing & seasoning accordingly

Leeky Fennel Farinata with Fixings

For your weekday lunches or chill Weekend brunches, I urge you to make this glutenfree Génoise classic! I have used yoghurt and baking powder for a fluffy center and Yorkshire pudding cooking principle of batter in super hot oil for crisp edges. Hope you like it as much as we do.

*it involves resting time so make sure to read the full recipe to plan accordingly

INGREDIENTS (serves 4 as a side)

Batter

200g Chickpea Flour

30g Full Fat Greek Yoghurt (sub with your preferred vegan yoghurt)

575g Cold Water

1/2 tsp Baking Powder

1.5 tsp Salt

1.5 tsp ground White Pepper (substitute with black pepper)

2 tsp Baharat Spice Blend (optional but highly recommended)

2 tbsp Olive Oil

2 tbsp chopped Tarragon leaves

Filling

100g Leeks (only white & light green portion), sliced into thin rounds

1 large Fennel Bulb cut into 8-10 wedges

Pinch of sugar

1 tsp Olive Oil

2 tbsp Toasted Pumpkin Seeds (optional)

50ml Neutral Oil

Flaky Sea Salt & Fennel Fronds for garnish

Pickled Asparagus (optional)

8-10 Green Asparagus, shaved into thin strips

1/2 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tbsp lemon zest

1/2 tsp Chile flakes

1 tbsp chopped fresh Basil leaves

1 tbsp chopped fresh Tarragon leaves

Sauce (optional)

1 tbsp Unsalted Butter (substitute with vegan butter or oil)

15 Cherry Tomatoes

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 small Shallot, chopped

1/4 tsp Chile flakes

1 tsp Sugar

1/4 tsp Salt

2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

Directions

🥣 Combine and whisk first 3 batter ingredients until very smooth (ensure no dry floury spots remain). Cover & let it rest at room temp for 4-5 hours or overnight

🥣 Meanwhile make the sauce. Melt butter in a skillet, add tomatoes, garlic and shallot. Fry on medium heat for 10 mins or until tomatoes have broken down & look jammy. Once cooled, blitz the contents from skillet with remaining ingredients. Adjust seasoning & vinegar, if required. Keep it aside

🥣 Now add remaining batter ingredients to the rested base batter mix. Add leek rounds and whisk everything; pre-heat oven to 465F (or 230C). Now add 50ml oil to a 33 x 23 cm large baking dish & pop into pre-heating oven

🥣 Heat up 1 tsp olive oil in a pan, add fennel wedges & sugar. Lightly caramelize the wedges all over, for 3 mins. Take out the baking dish after 15 mins & immediately pour the batter while it makes a hissing noise. Swiftly arrange the Fennel wedges on top and put it back into the oven for 18-20 mins or until the edges look deep golden & crisp

🥣 While the Farinata is in oven, make the pickled asparagus - toss all ingredients & let it pickle for 20 mins. Once out of the oven, run a spatula underneath & transfer the Farinata onto a board , sprinkle flaky salt & more white pepper. Cut into squares, serve along with the sauce and pickled asparagus. Highly recommend with some Lillet Blanc or Rosé

*Note: you can absolutely substitute shaved asparagus with some arugula

Umami Tomatoes

Perfect topping or condiment to posh up your pasta, sandwiches, salads, stews and what not.

Ingredients (enough to store in a pint size container)

4-5 medium sized Vine Tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges

2 tbsp Olive Oil (or any type of oil)

3 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar

1 tsp Fine Sea Salt

1/2 tsp crushed pepper (black/red/white)

1/2 tsp Granulated Sugar

9-10 sprigs of Thyme, pick leaves and chop up roughly (if using dried thyme then 1-2 tbsp)

Directions

🍅 Pre-heat oven to 340F. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well

🍅 Arrange the wedges on a parchment lined baking sheet (reserve the excess juices/liquid) and bake for 60 mins or until they look dark, slightly shriveled yet a bit juicy

🍅 Let it cool completely. Transfer into an air-tight container/jar then add the reserved juices and store up to 2 weeks in the fridge. Use it to jazz up sandwiches, pasta or eggs!

Sambar Kewpie Egg Salad Tartines with Pickled Radish

My bold take on European egg salad tartines fusing the Japanese Kewpie with Indian Sambar Podi (aka Powder). It’s punchy, creamy, refreshing and full of surprises.

*for the vegan version use cooked butter beans instead of eggs & substitute kewpie with vegan mayonnaise

Ingredients (serves 4 as a side)

6-7 large eggs, boiled

3 Breakfast Radishes, thinly sliced

10g combo of chives & cilantro leaves, finely chopped

3 tbsp Lime Juice

Pinch of salt

Pinch of granulated sugar

1-2 tsp Gochugaru (substitute with any chile pepper flakes)

Dressing

2.5 tbsp Avocado Oil (substitute with Olive Oil)

4 scallions, finely chopped

1/2 jalapeño, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

1/2 tsp ground coriander seeds

1 tbsp Sambar powder (I prefer Madras 777 or Aachi Brand)

3/4 tsp granulated sugar

1 tsp Salt

90g Kewpie Mayonnaise

1 tbsp Lime Zest

6-8 slices of Sourdough, toasted with some olive oil or butter

Directions

🥣 In a bowl, combine radish slices with 1/2 qty herbs, lime juice, pinch of salt & sugar. Let it pickle

🥣 In a small pan, add first 6 dressing ingredients & start cooking on medium flame for 4-5 mins or until everything looks golden & very aromatic. Turn off heat, transfer into a large bowl, add rest of the dressing ingredients & give it a very good whisk until well incorporated

🥣 Now roughly chop up the boiled eggs, transfer straight into the bowl with dressing. Add remaining herbs & carefully mix until all egg pieces are well coated with the dressing

🥣 Lay out the slices of toasts, spoon some egg salad, arrange pickled radishes and finish with a dusting of Gochugaru. Enjoy!

No-churn Cold Brew, Soy and Kahlúa Ice cream

To get in my mum’s good graces while welcoming her to our place, I made a special “welcome home” treat commemorating two of her most favorite things in the world - coffee & ice cream but of course gotta show off some UMAMI flair to her! Even after confessing that the secret ingredient was booze, I saw her continuing to sneak out scoops from the freezer in the afternoon when everyone was busy… proper🎤 drop moment in my culinary journey!!!!

Ingredients (2 pint boxes)

200g sweetened condensed milk, room temperature

12g Instant cold brew granules (I use the Trader Joe’s brand but feel free to substitute with any Instant Coffee Granules/Powder)

2.5 tsp Dark Soy Sauce

30g Kahlúa

270g Double Cream or Heavy Whipping Cream, super super cold

Directions

🍨 In a bowl, combine first four ingredients. Give everything a very good whisk so that it’s a luscious homogeneous mixture

🍨 In another bowl, add cream straight from fridge and using electric beater - whisk for 5 mins or until soft-medium peaks are formed

🍨 Now carefully, fold the whipped cream into the Kahlúa condensed milk mix - in 3-4 batches. First batch of whipped cream folding should be deliberate so that the base is well mixed. Think of it as sacrificial!

🍨Try to be gentle and preserve as much volume as possible from next batch of folding. Once thoroughly mixed, transfer into a loaf tin or two pint boxes and freeze for 8-12 hrs

🍨Take it out for 3-4 mins before serving. Dust with more coffee or cocoa powder, drizzle some chocolate fudge or as is …enjoy!