About

Hello lovely people and welcome to my blog.

My name is Shivani, I am a British-born Indian who grew up around the most exquisite home cooks. I am a mother to the most beautiful little girl, who is my inspiration. I’m a home cook with a passion to create and eager to play and learn with the camera as I stage and take photos of my creations.

I have always been a foodie, always loved to try new things, however it wasn’t until my mid teens that I really got into cooking.

If you grew up in an Indian household, you most likely started helping in the kitchen from an early age with learning the essential chapati. I would come home from school and my first task in the kitchen was to make the chapatis. At that time though, I don’t think I was too keen to do it but of course now, looking back, I am so grateful for being taught techniques and methods that laid the foundations.

Once my inner “chef” had woken, I absolutely relished in cooking, especially for my husband on Ekadashi days (fasting from grains), I wanted to make sure he didn’t feel like it was a chore and instead had plenty of nutritious alternatives to turn to. This has to be my favourite culinary achievement.

My appetite to experiment and understand ingredients really started to take form. For me, the most notable time was when my daughter’s weaning journey started. I was so excited to cook for her, experimenting with different ingredients and textures not to mention adding in a variety of nutrients.

One thing you’ll notice about my recipes, is that, I do not use onion or garlic and that is down to following a Bhakti Yoga philosophy. It teaches us to eat foods which are grown in the mode of goodness or “sattvic”. More of this can be better understood through the teachings of Ayurveda (the science of life) the world’s oldest holistic healing system. It breaks down not just the qualities of a food but what is suitable to each individual, as diet is not a “one size fits all” approach. It truly is a science to live by.

So here’s a little bit of background on me pre-blog.

I’ve grown up in the U.K. countryside with very much your typical country lifestyle, full of fields, wellies, dogs and horses, I loved the freshness of it all.

After graduating with a BSc in Mathematics and a MSc in Financial Market Analysis, I worked in the finance sector within Risk Management in the world of trading in the City of London. If you’re thinking of the hustle and bustle of wall street, you’re not far off. This crazy and intense arena was my world day in and day out and I loved every moment of it. It was where I had always wanted to be as my Father was a Trader and I wanted to be just like him.

That was my week, but my weekends were and still are full of food, family, friends, fun and more food. Yes, I am a complete and utter foodie. I love to explore different restaurants, the new, the old, the quirky, basically any chance to eat some good food.

Being a vegetarian all my life and now trying a more vegan diet, I have been veganising my mother’s classics as well as making my own creations. My mother, who is not only my culinary inspiration but my guide in navigating through life. I’m always intrigued as to how creative modern-day cuisine has become and absolutely love a good afternoon tea.

I wanted to blog my recipes as a way of sharing them with others and to have all my flavourful comforts in one place.

Hope you enjoy this journey with me.