Jalapeño popper pinwheels have the creamy-crunchy texture and spicy flavor of jalapeño poppers in crispy, pinwheel form! Perfect for parties, game day, holiday dinner!

I love crispy pinwheels as appetizers for parties or any get-together. They’re such a satisfying, handheld snack that’s quick to pick up and not too messy. And you can add whatever fillings you like to pinwheels, like the veggie filling in my spinach pinwheels, spiced lentils in my kachori pinwheels, or spiced potatoes in my samosa pinwheels. 

And today, we are making jalapeño popper pinwheels, which have a mix of pickled and fresh jalapeños along with non-dairy cream cheese, rolled into puff pastry sheets and topped with crispy breadcrumb and cheese mixture. This amazing appetizer is basically jalapeño popper dip rolled up in a crispy puff pastry sheet!! It’s spicy, creamy, cheesy, crispy and just addictive. They need few ingredients, and are also easy to make ahead.

Delicious, crispy-creamy-spicy jalapeño poppers pinwheels are perfect for a crowd! Serve them at your next dinner party, Diwali dinner or holiday party when you have vegetarian and vegan guests. They’re delicious on their own or with a dip, like vegan ranch, celery ranch, or garlic dressing.

Why You’ll Love Jalapeno Popper Pinwheels

• hand-held roll-ups are perfect for parties and holiday gatherings. No individual plates needed!
• creamy jalapeño popper dip rolled up in crisp puff pastry
• easy and fun to make! Can be made ahead.
• soy-free and nut-free with easy gluten-free option

Continue reading: Jalapeño Popper Pinwheels (vegan)

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Chickpea tikka masala puffs!! Chickpeas and veggies in a super delicious 1-bowl, No cook tikka masala sauce, stuffed into crisp puff pastry pockets. These are perfect for holiday parties!

These are another quick appetizer that will be a hit at your next dinner party or Diwali party! They use this one-bowl, no-cook tikka masala sauce that you mix with chickpeas and vegetables then stuff into a puff pastry sheet. Bake, and you’ve got these crisp, savory, super delicious tikka masala puff pastries that are party perfect!

For extra creaminess, you can even add some vegan cheese or cream cheese to the pastries before folding and baking.

Tikka masala puffs are super simple, super delicious and also really versatile. The sauce has a ton of flavor, so it will work with any protein you like. If you don’t like chickpeas, you can use some white beans, torn up tofu, or chickpea tofu. You can also use soaked and drained soy curls or vegan chicken instead, as well. 

If you make these into small hand pies, they’re easy to serve and you won’t have to dirty any extra dishes, because your party guests won’t even need a plate to enjoy these amazing appetizer. It’s a win-win in every which way!

You can also make these ahead. Simply roll out your puff pastry, add the filling, shape them, and then freeze until the day of serving. When you bake, you may just need to add a few minutes to the end of baking time to cook them through from frozen.

Why You’ll Love Tikka Masala Puffs

• easy, 1-bowl, no cook tikka masala sauce that’s full of flavor with any plant-based protein you like!
• simple and fun to make
• perfect for Diwali or any other holiday party
• naturally soy-free and nut-free with gluten-free option

Continue reading: Chickpea Tikka Masala Puffs (savory pastries with Tikka masala sauce)

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These Indian-inspired chilli tofu puff pastry parcels are the perfect fusion appetizer for a Diwali or Indian-themed party. Or really any other party, because they are just so delicious! You all will love these Indo-Chinese Chilli Garlic Tofu in crispy parcels! Options for gluten-free and Soyfree

The festive season is here and I am bringing some fantastic appetizers this year. Flaky puff pastry stuffed with spicy savory, Indochinese chilli garlic tofu stir fry makes a super delicious vegan holiday appetizer. These are amazingly delicious hand pies that will absolutely be a hit at your next holiday party.

We make the Indochinese chilli garlic tofu “paneer”, and then try not to eat it all before we get a chance to stuff it into that puff pastry. Because the tofu is just so tasty by itself! No one will blame you if you snack on it a bit while you fold these.

There are 3 kinds of chilies/heat in these. There’s Kashmiri chili powder, which is usually mild but can be moderately hot depending on the brand. There’s black pepper and there’s hot green chilies such as Serrano or Indian chilies. Green chilies also vary in heat. So adjust these to adjust the heat to preference. Use less of each for mild heat.

I use a mixture of non dairy milk and maple syrup as the pastry wash. This helps the pastries get nicely golden and also help them stick really well when shaping into whatever kind of parcels.

Why You’ll Love Tofu Puff Pastry

• flaky puff pastry with sweet-spicy-savory filling
• 1-pan chilli garlic tofu filling is full of amazing Indochinese flavors!
• festive appetizer for Diwali, Indian dinner party, or any other holiday
• naturally nut-free with gluten-free and soy-free options

Continue reading: Indo-Chinese Chilli Garlic Tofu Puff Pastry (nut-free)

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Malabar eggplant — crispy eggplant in a shredded coconut red chili curry sauce — is a delicious introduction to the deep flavors of South Indian Malabar cuisine. Serve it with naan or flatbread and some dal for a veggie-packed meal that’s also packed with flavor!

Some veggies can be difficult to like when made simply. Eggplant is one of those. This Malabar eggplant is packed with flavor and texture and is very versatile. You can bake the eggplant or pan fry it. And you can even use other veggies instead, like cauliflower.

South Indian Malabar cuisine is a mix of multiple regional cuisines in Southern India. It’s heavily influenced by coastal and Kerala cuisine along with the many other nearby areas, because of the region being a major trade route. Kerala was considered “the spice garden of the ancient world,” because it produced flavorful spices like cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, turmeric, and pepper.

Trade, migration, and invasion brought influences from Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Malaysian, and other cuisines to Malabar region(north kerala region).

If you want to explore Malabar cuisine further, also check out my Malabar veggie curry

But back to this eggplant.

The other day I had lots of eggplant on hand, so I decided to make a Malabar-style eggplant , the sauce of which is inspired from crisp and spiced Malabar Chikin recipes. Usually I use cauliflower in this recipe, but you can basically use whichever vegetable you have handy. All of the flavor is in the batter, and that batter is super delicious. After battering and baking or frying the veggies, you toss them in this easy sauce and serve with some tofu curry or dal. You can also replace half the eggplant with tofu to ale this into a meal!

The sauce for Malabar eggplant is on the dry side. If you want to make the dish saucier, you can add in some coconut milk. The sauce can also be rather hot, so adjust as needed based on your heat preference.

🍆 Why You’ll Love Malabar Eggplant

• melt-in-your-mouth eggplant coated in a flavorful, crispy-crunchy batter
• incredibly shredded coconut curry sauce with option to make it even saucier!
• versatile! Make it with eggplant or cauliflower or protein like tofu or seitan or soycurls and adjust flavors and textures to taste.
• naturally gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free

Continue reading: Malabar Eggplant (Crispy Eggplant with Spiced Coconut sauce. gluten-free)

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South Indian Crispy cauliflower pepper fry stars cauliflower covered in a flavor-packed peppery batter, that is baked and tossed in a delicious onion curry leaf chili sauce with even more black pepper! It’s an amazing appetizer or side dish, and I have tips for how to make it a meal, too! Gluten-free Soyfree nutfree

This is another pepper fry from South Indian cuisine. It’s a simple veggie pepper fry recipe with cauliflower. We are making the dry version of this, which you serve as an appetizer, like my potato pepper fry.

Usually, the cauliflower is deep fried and then tossed with this onion, black pepper sauce mixture. For this version, I am baking the cauliflower. I’m coating it in this simple, flavorful batter and then baking it so that it gets nice and crispy. Then, you toss it with the pepper fry sauce.

You can bake the pepper fry sauce in the same pan with the cauliflower or cook it in a pan on the stovetop while the cauliflower bakes in the oven.

Cauliflower pepper fry is a side dish or and appetizer, but if you want to make it into a whole meal you can add some cooked chickpeas in the end or some crisped up tofu along with the cauliflower and serve it with rice or flatbread of choice.

However you serve it, cauliflower pepper fry is insanely delicious! You do want to serve it immediately after mixing it with the sauce, as the sauce has a bit of moisture and it’ll take away from the crunch of the cauliflower. But even if it has gone a bit soft, it is still very very tasty! so don’t have to worry about that if you have leftovers. If any is left, Just store in the fridge, reheat on a skillet or oven or microwave, and serve it as a side.

Why You’ll Love Cauliflower Pepper Fry

• crispy cauliflower in peppery spicy pepper fry sauce
• delicious appetizer or side dish with options to make it a meal
• sauce uses so many kinds of fresh and dried peppers!
• baked not fried for a lighter dish than the original
• soy-free, nut-free, and gluten-free

Continue reading: Cauliflower Pepper Fry (soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free)

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Creamy, zesty, cashew nacho cheese is delicious for dipping and great on tacos, burritos, nachos, and more. You make it in the blender, no cooking required, and it’s so versatile! Nutfree option

I have a couple of versions of nacho cheese on the blog . They are nut-free, so I decided to make a nut-based version which is creamier and more decadent. This is a super easy vegan cheese recipe. Just add everything to the blender, and blend until smooth and creamy. 

From there, you can adjust the flavors by adding more spices or adjust the tang with lemon juice to make this your own. 

Use this cashew nacho cheese over nachos, burritos, a taco bake, baked potatoes, on blanched broccoli, or however you like. Add some salsa for even more flavor and serve with your fave tortilla chips! For a more neutral cheese sauce recipe see my potato carrot vegan cheese sauce

Why You’ll Love Cashew Nacho Cheese

• rich and creamy vegan cheese sauce with no oil needed
• velvety smooth with light smoky and spicy notes
• versatile! Adjust saltiness and spiciness easily. Serve on nachos, tacos, burritos, and more!
• naturally gluten-free with an easy soy-free option

Continue reading: Cashew Nacho Cheese (gluten-free, oil-free with soy-free option)

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Indian Saag aloo — crispy chunks of spiced potato over a bed of absolutely flavorful spinach curry — is just a fabulous combination! This restaurant style version is deeply seasoned with incredible flavors and textures.

The other day, I was wondering why some vegetable-based Indian dishes use fewer spices than meat-based ones. There are several reasons for this. Veggie dishes, like saag aloo, are more homestyle recipes meant to celebrate the flavors of the veggies. Others like Chana masala also are often homestyle recipes. But why shouldn’t veggies be packed with flavor?

What is Saag Aloo?

Saag Aloo is spiced Greens with Potato. It can be a wet curry style dish or a simple stir fry kind of dish. Greens can be spinach, mustard, amaranth or other local greens. The homestyle aloo saag is usually dryish. This is a restaurant style saag aloo that uses all of the incredible spices from chicken saag style recipes, but without the meat. To make this into a meal, you can add cooked chickpeas into the saag or serve it along with my Punjabi chole chickpea curry, dal, or tofu curry on the side. You can also substitute half of the potatoes with some crispy tofu to make it into a tofu and potato spinach curry. 

To make a restaurant-style version, we add a lot more spices and some more fat added to the saag for a more flavorful, creamier experience. For a better texture of the spinach, I like to pulse the frozen spinach in a food processor for a fine chop like texture instead of too leafy or all pureed. I prefer that texture in saag aloo. If using fresh spinach, then finely chop and use. You can also use a combination of greens for this saag like mustard greens, chard, amaranth greens and other seasonal greens.

I also bake the potatoes ti so they are crispy and golden and serve them just lightly mixed in. Homestyle palak aloo has the potatoes cooked with the spinach for a softer potato dish. For a homestyle less spiced version try this palak aloo.

Why You’ll Love this Saag Aloo

• crispy, spiced potatoes over a creamy, super flavorful spinach curry
• easy to make into a meal by adding chickpeas or tofu!
• so versatile! Make with leafy greens of choice, like mustard greens, baby kale, amaranth greens, etc.
• restaurant-style meal at home in only 40 minutes
• gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free

Continue reading: Restaurant-Style Saag Aloo (Indian Potato Spinach curry)

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Butter chicken bao (stuffed steamed bun) is an addictive snack or entree! No steamer needed, they are cooked in a skillet. Fluffy bao with a crispy bottom, stuffed with creamy, plant-based Indian butter sauce soycurl filling! Nutfree

These are fusion steamed buns with a filling of soy curls in butter chicken sauce, and there is also some sauce on the side to dip.

The bao are a simple yeasted bread dough, and then instead of steaming them in a steamer, I cook them like dumplings. I got this technique from Woon Heng, where you crisp up the bottom of the bao a little bit, then add some water to the skillet and let them cook and steam until the water disappears.

This makes amazing bao! They get steamed and fluffy, and also get a crispy bottom. 

Why You’ll Love Butter Chicken Bao

• cloud-like dough stuffed with succulent, flavorful, vegan butter chicken
• special technique gives it a crispy bottom for even more incredible texture
• naturally nut-free
• soy-free and coconut-free options

More Vegan Buns

• Coconut Dinner Rolls With Indian mustard seed tempering
• Teriyaki Chickpeas Bao
• Sweet Potato Rolls – Soft Herb Dinner Rolls
• Vegan Pesto Pizza Rolls Recipe

Continue reading: Butter Chicken Bao (Stuffed Bun)

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Addictive peanut sesame potatoes are crispy-crunchy on the outside coated with Indian spices, ginger, garlic, peanuts and sesame. Loads of flavor and easy to make. Glutenfree Soyfree recipe. Nutfree option

These sesame potatoes are kind of a mix of Gujarati potatoes and maharashtrian potatoes, that I’ve eaten at several of my friend’s places while growing up. The nuts, sesame seeds, spices, cilantro, ginger and garlic are all crushed up to make a super flavorful mix that is roasted with the potatoes. Potatoes + whole lot of flavor = heaven!

These are great as a side with any yellow dal or curries or as breakfast potatoes or simply as a snack.

Sesame potatoes are best with small or baby potatoes or you can just use cubed potatoes. Keep them at least 3/4-inch in size, so they are not really tiny and there’s enough surface area for all that delicious roasted spice and seed mixture to stick to.

Why You’ll Love Sesame Potatoes

• Potatoes
• literally covered in flavor with an amazing texture
• addictive side dish or snack that’s easy to make
• naturally gluten-free and soy-free
• peanut-free and nut-free options

More Indian Potato Recipes

• Bombay Potatoes
• Jeera Also – Cumin spiced potatoes
• Aloo Matar -easy potatoes and peas
• Samosa potato Pie
• Crunchy Spicy Potatoes

Continue reading: Peanut Sesame Roasted Potatoes

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This recipe has an amazing, spicy flavor and a crunchy texture without the need to deep fry. While you bake the cauliflower, prepare the sauce in a pan on the stove. Toss it all together, and enjoy!

If you’re not familiar with gochujang, it’s a fermented Korean red chili paste with a sweet and spicy flavor. It adds sweet heat and an umami flavor to all sorts of dishes and pairs perfectly with crunchy, baked cauliflower.

Why You’ll Love Gochujang Cauliflower

• Easy to make
• Baked, not fried
• Perfect, crunchy texture
• Full of flavor
• It’s naturally gluten-free

More Vegan Cauliflower Recipes:

Sticky Sesame Cauliflower

General Tso Cauliflower

Cauliflower Tikka Masala

Black Pepper Cauliflower

Continue reading: Gochujang Cauliflower Baked

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