This spin on Indian chilli cheese toast is absolutely decadent and delicious. It’s sort of like an Indian-inspired jalapeño popper cheese toast! Each toast has 10-15gm Protein, and ready in 15 minutes!

This is another recipe in my series of amazing, hearty summer sandwiches inspired by popular Indian sandwiches. I’m reimagining those sandwiches or components from those sandwiches. The goal is to create sandwiches with lots of texture and flavor while also making them hearty, high in protein and fiber, easy to make, and perfect for an easy summer lunch. These toasts boast 10 to 16 rams of protein and 5 to 7 grams of fiber per toast!

Don’t miss the other sandwiches in this series: my coconut tofu sandwich and curry leaf tofu sandwich!

Indian chilli cheese toast is usually very simple. It doesn’t have anything other than green chillies and cheese, sometimes with a few veg like onion and peppers, herbs, and seasonings. The two main ingredients are shredded cheese and green chillies. It doesn’t have any bean chili. This is all about green chilli.

That combination of green chillies, cheese, salt, pepper, and chaat masala tastes incredible, so I took that idea and added tofu for extra protein and volume. I also added nutritional yeast for more flavor and protein and hemp seeds for even more protein. Then, I added a generous amount of green chillies, piled everything onto toasted sourdough, and broiled it.

Most of the time involved is simply chopping the vegetables and green chillies and crumbling the tofu. After that, it only takes about three minutes under the broiler.

I also make a crispy tempeh and garlic topping to level up the texture and flavor and add even more protein. The crispy garlic is incredibly delicious on top. I add Kashmiri chili powder to the tempeh for color and that deep Kashmiri chili flavor, along with lime zest. All of these flavor combinations are just heavenly.

Depending on the size of your toast and how much filling you use, you can get anywhere from 10 grams of protein up to 16 grams of protein per slice. It also depends on the bread you’re using. Whole grain bread usually has even more protein! If you want to keep it gluten-free, use gluten-free bread, a gluten-free tortilla, or my almond flour gluten-free naan as the base.

You can broil these chilli cheese toasts, air fry them, or even put them on a grill. This recipe is crispy, cheesy, spicy, zesty, and packed with incredible flavor and texture. It’s an absolutely fabulous combination. You need these cheese toasts in your life! And see recipe notes for more flavor combinations!

Why You’ll Love Chilli Cheese Toasts

• crisp bread topped with creamy chilli-cheese mixture that turns golden brown in the oven
• crispy, savory, tangy crumbled lime tempeh topping adds even more flavor and texture!
• easy to make ahead and assemble as needed
• easily made gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free

Continue reading: Triple Chilli Chilli Cheese Toast with Crispy Lime Tempeh -High Protein

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This crispy curry tofu sandwich has amazing, sweet-and-savory garam masala caramelized onions, curry leaf chilli oil glaze and a creamy yogurt sauce with swirls of chili oil. It’s sort of an Indian-inspired hot honey situation, and it’s so delicious!

This summer I am bringing you sandwiches inspired by popular Indian sandwiches. This one is a crispy spicy Chikin sandwich made vegan with crispy tofu that is coated in a curry leaf chili oil glaze, topped with garam masala caramelized onions (these are soooooo good) and paired with a herby cooling yogurt sauce. This sandwich packs so much flavor and texture.

Unlike the usual crispy chicken sandwiches that have a batter and are deep fried, we’re making a coating with cornstarch, white rice flour, and plenty of spices. The tofu gets tossed with oil, coated in the mixture, and then baked or air fried. The white rice flour and cornstarch make everything super crispy, and the tofu is ready in about 15 minutes.

While the tofu gets crispy, we caramelize onions with garlic, garam masala, and black pepper until everything turns golden brown. These sweet, umami-filled peppery onions take the sandwich to the next level.

Then, we make the curry leaf chili oil glaze. This is the biggest star of the sandwich. The glaze is sweet, spicy, zesty, and packed with curry leaf flavor. It makes the tofu juicier and pairs amazingly with the rest of the sandwich.

We also stir some of the glaze into a yogurt sauce made with fresh herbs, such as cilantro, mint, or parsley. Then everything gets layered into a sandwich, wrap, grain bowl, or salad bowl. Each component is ridiculously delicious on its own, and together they become four times more ridiculously delicious! You can use these components separately as well. That crispy tofu is an amazing addition to bowls, wraps or salads. The curry leaf chili oil glaze is fantastic to add to any creamy dip or yogurt, to drizzle over curries , or use as salad dressing! The yogurt sauce is a fantastic dip! These components, can also be paired to make a wrap or a bowl without the bread! Every bite is an explosion of textures and flavors.

It was a struggle to name the sandwich if you have ideas for a better title do let me know!

Why You’ll Love Crispy Curry Tofu Sandwiches

• Indian-inspired sandwich with tons of amazing flavors and incredible textures
• garam masala caramelized onions add so much flavor and texture
• versatile! Serve as a sandwich, wrap, salad, grain bowl, etc.
• each component can be used separately!
• easily made gluten-free, soy-free, and/or nut-free

Continue reading: Indian Hot “honey” Curry Tofu Sandwich with Garam Masala Caramelized Onions

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Sticky-sweet-savory teriyaki tofu is a 1-pan dinner that is so simple to make in just half an hour! Serve with rice, quinoa, or with crunchy veggies in tacos or wraps. (nut-free with gluten-free and soy-free options)

This is a really delicious, super quick one-pan weeknight meal. I toss the tofu in some soy sauce and cornstarch, then crisp it up.

The sauce is super easy. You just add all of the ingredients into the pan, bring it to a boil to thicken, and then fold in your tofu with whatever veggies you like. That’s it. It’s super quick and super delicious!

Teriyaki tofu is also versatile. You can change up the flavor of the sauce as you like. You can also switch up the protein. Use tempeh, chickpea tofu, chickpeas or beans, vegan chicken, or soy curls. See the recipe notes for how to make this with alternate proteins, since the cooking method changes slightly for some options.

No matter how you serve it, get ready to fall in love with this fabulously delicious teriyaki tofu!

Why You’ll Love Teriyaki Tofu

• super easy 1-pan, 30-minute meal
• crispy tofu in sticky, flavor-packed teriyaki sauce
• versatile! Serve over rice or quinoa or in tacos, lettuce wraps, etc.
• naturally nut-free with easy gluten-free and soy-free options

Continue reading: Easy Teriyaki Tofu (30 minutes, 1 pan)

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This warm cabbage carrot beet salad, with a wildly flavorful golden garlic green chili oil, is full of flavor, fiber and texture! Inspired by Indian sambharo, it has shredded veggies, crispy, crunchy roasted lentils, lime and spices to make a super satisfying salad. Gluten-free soyfree nutfree

Cabbage is a nutrition powerhouse. It’s a source of vitamin K, C, manganese, iron, fiber, and more nutrients, vitamins and minerals. And it’s a great addition to your meals.

There are already so many options on the blog.  Indian food has plenty of cabbage usage in different formats, so we’re going to explore another flavor-packed way to use cabbage and celebrate this vegetable today!

I’m making a warm, spiced cabbage salad which is inspired from Indian sambharo. This is a Gujarati or Western Indian dish, which is kind of like a salad. We shred the veggies, then make a wildly flavorful spiced oil with mustard seeds, greens chiles, garlic and curry leaves. Then, we add the shredded veggies, toss them well, and then serve them with a squeeze of lime.

I’m leveling it up a bit by adding more veggies, some garlic, and some lime zest. I’m also topping it with some crispy lentils to add more protein and extra texture to the dish.

You can cook the cabbage a bit longer, so that it becomes a cooked cabbage side, which also will go really well with any of the curries and dals on the site. Or, you can cook it just enough to warm the cabbage a little bit but still crunchy, and it will work as a salad, whether you want to serve it cold, warm, or at room temperature. 

No matter which way you prepare it, sambharo is a side dish that works well with any meal that you want, whether it’s with an Indian entree or another cuisine. 

If you don’t like lentils, you can make crispy chickpeas or crispy tofu and add that to this, as well. It’s a great side to have in the fridge to serve anytime you like.

There are so many creative ways to serve sambharo. You can add it to tacos. You can add some juicy fruit, such as oranges, for some sweetness and juiciness. You can add unripe, raw mango or papaya instead of some of the veggies. You can add other vegetables, like fennel, radishes, bok choy, Brussels sprouts, etc. as well.

To make a smaller serving, adjust the serving size on the recipe (top left corner) and values on the recipe card will change accordingly)

Why You’ll Love Sambharo

• nutritious veggie side with amazing textures and flavors
• simple tadka (spiced oil) dressing is easy to make in 1 pan
• versatile! Serve as a salad, cooked veggie side, or stuff into tacos
• naturally gluten-free, nut-free, and soy-free

Continue reading: Sambharo (Indian Spiced Cabbage Carrot Beet Salad) with Crispy Lentils

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Caramelized Roasted cabbage with crispy chickpeas, creamy tahini sauce, and an herby jalapeño gremolata has just an exquisite flavor and incredible combination of textures! 18g Protein, 16g fiber!

This is a mouthful of a recipe name, but that’s the components of the recipe, and they go so amazingly well together. This is roasted cabbage, elevated.

We roast the cabbage in the oven until it develops caramelization on both sides and becomes really soft and melt-in-your-mouth inside. Then, you pair the cabbage with crispy, lemony, garlicky pan-fried chickpeas. These chickpeas are so good and add amazing texture contrast to the soft cabbage!

Then there’s the creamy tahini sauce with tahini, garlic, lemon, and Dijon mustard, which is our refreshing, creamy base. 

And then we make this gremolata (an Italian herb salad) with lots of herbs, jalapeño, lemon, and red wine vinegar. It’s crunchy, herby, vibrant, and brings the entire dish together.

There is so much texture and flavor contrast in this dish, and you can serve it any way you like. You can spread the tahini sauce on a serving platter, top it with the cabbage, chickpeas, and gremolata, and serve it that way. Or, you can serve individual cabbage wedges and top them with the gremolata and chickpeas, then drizzle the tahini sauce all over.

Serve it as-is or with a side of sourdough, pita, or garlic bread. There is plenty of flavor in every bite. There are also several flavor variations you can make, which are mentioned in the recipe notes.

Heads of cabbage can vary quite a bit in size, so use a small to medium cabbage. The wedges will be easier to handle and will cook more evenly. If using a large cabbage, make the wedges thin enough that the centers cook through evenly while the outsides caramelize.

Cabbage is a low-calorie, nutrient-dense vegetable. This is the year of the cabbage, because it is so nutritious, cheap. Cabbage is a great source of vitamins K and C, manganese, iron, fiber, and B vitamins. You can prepare cabbage in countless ways. I have many cabbage recipes already on the blog, including several Indian-inspired preparations as well as recipes from other cuisines. Be sure to check them all out!

Why You’ll Love Roasted Cabbage Wedges

• caramelized, melt-in-your-mouth cabbage pieces with crunchy chickpeas, creamy tahini sauce, and spicy herb topping
• incredible combination of flavors and textures
• versatile! Serve these components any way you like.
• naturally gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free

Continue reading: Roasted Cabbage with Garlic Lemon Chickpeas, Tahini Sauce, and Jalapeño Gremolata

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Kidney bean stew with smoky, creamy, Cajun-inspired flavors is an absolutely delicious, 1-pot comfort food dinner! Make it in the Instant Pot or on the stovetop using dried or cooked kidney beans. (gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free. 24 grams protein, 20 grams fiber per serving)

The chilly weather in Seattle has me craving something hearty and warm. I love kidney beans and wanted to make Southern, Cajun-style red beans, but I also wanted it to be thick with more texture, like a chili with those rich, Cajun flavors. So this is kind of a mix of the two.

Smoky kidney bean stew is great with your favorite toppings, or you can serve it with rice. It’s a really hearty meal. We use red lentils to thicken the stew and give it a meaty texture, though you can also use brown lentils, because they will break down during the cooking time needed for the kidney beans.

You can cook this two ways. You can cook the kidney beans first and then add the lentils and cook the whole stew, or you can add everything together and cook it that way. Both methods are listed below. 

You can also change up the flavors by adjusting the spices, adding more beans, or adding black beans along with the kidney beans. You can double the recipe to make a large batch, and it’s freezer-friendly.

Why You’ll Love Kidney Bean Stew

• one-pot, high-protein meal
• amazing smoky flavor and tons of cajun seasonings
• hearty kidney beans and meaty texture from lentils
• versatile! Used dry or canned kidney beans, and make the beans beforehand or the whole dish at once.
• make-ahead and freezer friendly
• naturally gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free

Continue reading: Smoky Kidney Bean Stew

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Oil-free Black sesame cookies are chewy, nutty and delicious. They need 1 Bowl, some almond flour, creamy tahini and sticky-sweet dates for amazing flavors and textures. No oil, no butter, no whipping butter and sugar! The black sesame is a beautiful addition to cookies, adding a great nutty flavor and crunch. Gluten-free Grain-free

Black sesame is trending, so I decided to use it in these fabulous cookies. I use my almond flour cookie dough that you all know I love, because you don’t need any extra bowls, any whipping up of butter and sugar and all of that. No extra equipment, and they come together in about 15 minutes.

One of the common requests I got for that almond flour cookie dough was to make it without any oil or coconut oil, so today we are using tahini instead. You can use regular tahini or black sesame tahini. If you don’t have tahini, you can also use some smooth, creamy almond butter instead.

We make this very simple dough, add in some crushed black sesame seeds along with dates, cinnamon, vanilla, and tahini. Then, you bake it up into these chewy and delicious cookies. They’re crisp on the edges, chewy in the middle, and because of the tahini, they’re also incredibly moist. 

Black sesame is nutty and looks pretty and tastes delicious. It is also a powerhouse of nutrients, like calcium, magnesium, iron, antioxidants, and protein. They are a great addition to these cookies. There’s just a fabulous combination of flavors and textures in these black sesame cookies!

Why You’ll Love Black Sesame Cookies

• crisp, chewy cookies with a nutty flavor and beautiful black sesame seeds
• sweet, chewy dates contrast the nutty flavor of the cookies
• simple to make in 1 bowl
• naturally gluten-free and soy-free

Continue reading: Black Sesame Date Cookies (oil-free!)

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This simple versatile 10 minute chickpea mushroom protein base is Great for meal prep, budget friendly, high protein (17g) and fiber. Make it into burgers, smash burger tacos, parathas, taquitos, falafels and more! (gluten-free, soy-free, oil-free option)

Staples such as ground meat(veggie grounds, beefy crumbles etc) are a great help when you need quick meals that are also nutritious, hearty and delicious. This is an easy 10-minute protein mixture that you can use in various ways. So that’s what we’re going to do!

We’re going to make a hearty, easy mixture with chickpeas, mushroom and walnuts and use it to make smash burger tacos, stuffed paratha, spiced rice, burger patties, taquitos, and little falafel-style balls. All with this same mixture as the base, adding in different flavorings and using different cooking methods.

Watch me make these on my YouTube video!

Other ways to use this mix, make Enchiladas!, Arayes(stuffed Pita that is toasted on a skillet) , add to pasta sauce to make bolognese, add Italian herbs and crushed fennel seeds to the mix, toast for a few mins in a skillet and add marinara or pasta sauce. Use in lasagna, use the balls in favorite curry sauce!

No matter how you serve it, this mixture has a great, savory, almost meaty flavor with lots spices. It’s a great burger-like mixture that works well in so many different applications.
Let me know in the comments how you use this chickpea mushroom mixture!

If chickpeas aren’t your thing, you can use other beans, like black beans or  cooked brown lentils. 

Why You’ll Love this Chickpea Mushroom Mixture

• quick and easy to make in about 10 minutes in the food processor
• use right away, or make for meal prep! Keeps 3 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer
• So many delicious ways to use it: smash burger tacos, stuffed paratha, spiced rice, burger patties, taquitos, and little falafel-style balls.
• chickpea mushroom mixture is naturally gluten-free and soy-free with an oil-free option

Continue reading: 6 Meals from 1 Chickpea Mushroom Protein Mixture!

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Indian food reimagined! Potato chickpea cauliflower paratha tacos are quick and easy. No mixing or kneading or rolling the dough to make this shortcut paratha(stuffed flatbread)! 19g Protein, 12g fiber, 7g iron! (soy-free and nut-free with gluten-free option)

The Easiest “Parathas”! 🌮Paratha tacos are a super easy version of paratha(Indian stuffed flatbreads) . There are four ways they are much easier and more fun than making a full-fledged paratha: 

1. There’s no kneading involved, since you don’t have to make the dough.
2. You don’t have to be an expert at rolling and stuffing parathas. 
3. We make the same filling you’d use in a traditional paratha, but we stuff it into tortillas making Smash tacos
4. You can easily make it gluten-free by using gluten-free tortillas, since you don’t need the dough to be stretchy.

Instead of making dough from scratch, we start by making a paratha filling of potatoes, cauliflower, and chickpeas with the the same spices that I’d put into my favorite paratha. I add chickpeas for protein to make these more of a meal than a side. Then we cook this mixture, put it inside tortillas, seal them so they stick, and then pan fry, bake, or air fry. 

It’s super easy and quick. If you use a food processor, the filling comes together in about 15 minutes. If you don’t have a food processor, the prep time will take longer, but is still very easy. I include those directions in the recipe card below. 

It’s also a great make-ahead option. You can make the filling ahead and keep it in the fridge for up to four days. You can also fill and seal the tortillas and refrigerate, then pan fry just before serving.

I make a amazing, quick, cooling yogurt cucumber dip based on Indian raita, which pairs really well with the paratha tacos. You can also serve with mango chutney, cilantro chutney, or a side of Indian mango pickle. 

Definitely make these Aloo gobi paratha tacos! They are very versatile. You can use different beans instead of chickpeas, use other veggies in place of potatoes and cauliflower, adjust the spices, and make these your own.

Why You’ll Love Paratha Tacos

• Delicious flavor and experience of parathas(stuffed Indian flatbread) with much less work. No Roll parathas!
• Authentic Indian paratha filling, stuffed into tortillas for ease.
• Easy to make-ahead.
• Naturally soy-free and nut-free with easy gluten-free option!

Continue reading: Paratha Tacos with Chickpeas Potato Cauliflower

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Marinated white beans with lots of veggies and savory sautéed garlic and cherry tomato are a versatile staple to have in the fridge. There are so many delicious ways to serve them. I have listed 5 of my favorite ways! (gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free, budget-friendly)

I always have some marinated white beans in the fridge because they are just so versatile and they are a great source of protein, fiber, iron, magnesium, and potassium. Beans are just a fantastic nutrition boost in every bite, and they’re budget-friendly, too!

This simple salad is also easy to make. First, we take some white beans, such as cannellini beans, and amp them up with plenty of veggies and a delicious dressing. Then, we boost the flavor even more by adding in this quick blistered cherry tomato and crispy garlic topping. 

These marinated beans just have so much flavor! You can serve them as is with some sourdough or garlic bread, or add them to salads with some arugula or spinach. If you’re using a lot of greens, you may want to make a little bit of extra dressing.

You can also serve these on top of roasted sweet potatoes or roasted veggies, add them to wraps, or serve them as a side with any meal. If none of those are your jam, make a marinated white beans bruschetta! Or, spread some hummus or yogurt or my tofu ricotta on a plate and top with these marinated white beans and some sprouts or crispy breadcrumbs. 

The textures and flavors of these marinated white beans are just mind-blowing, no matter how you serve them.

Why You’ll Love Marinated White Bean Salad

• flavor-packed, budget-friendly meal
• perfect for meal prep! Make a batch on the weekend and serve it many ways all week long.
• super flavorful with lots of fresh herbs and rich flavors
• blistered tomato and garlic topping amps up the flavor even more
• naturally gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free

Continue reading: Marinated White Beans

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