Posts

Looking Back At January'2014: The List
I have been a regular reader of One Hot Stove's The List posts and I must say I am hooked on to them! As the month end approaches, I find myself looking out for Nupur's The List posts... needless to say I was so happy when she encouraged other bloggers to start posting their own lists :) These posts are like a month in review posts. However just the idea of jotting down these otherwise ordinary moments of a month gives me enough motivation to spend my time doing meaningful and creative things. Anyway, that's the hope - or the hidden agenda I should say behind starting The List series here on Ginger & Garlic :) So here goes - here is my first monthly List. January was a busy month as usual. Work is always crazy in January after the winter break so it was a busy month work-wise. Rain Gods are not smiling over the bay this season, we have hardly had any rain. California is officially in drought but I am ashamed to admit that a part of me …

Vegetarian Sushi Rolls!
We love Sushi (our toddler also enjoys veg sushi rolls!). On many weekend afternoons we hang out at our favorite downtown sushi restaurant enjoying delicious sushi rolls & sashimi, sipping miso soup & hot tea with a side of tempura noodles. So it was only natural that the sushi bug would bite me at home too. I have been attempting sushi rolls at home for a few weeks now. I am not yet brave enough to handle raw fish so my attempts have been limited to vegetarian sushi rolls or imitation crab. My sushi rolls are not as good as our favorite restaurant yet, but they are definitely good enough for a weeknight sushi craving :) Sushi is simple yet complex. You only need handful of ingredients but there is still an endless art to bringing out the best from your ingredients for a perfect sushi rolls. So as much as within your means, go for the freshest or best quality ingredients. You can find them at your nearby Asian grocery store. What you wi…

Methi Thepla (Fenugreek Flatbread)
For a long time I did not know the difference between methi paratha and methi thepla.  Methi paratha was prepared quite often at our Marathi home while one of our Gujarati family friends used to bring methi theplas frequently to any potlucks or picnics. They both appear to have the same ingredient list and how different could the prep methods of two flatbreads really be, but as anyone who has tasted both can tell, thepla tastes very different than paratha - there is no denial to that! After some serious Google searching and talking to a Gujarati friends, difference is finally clear to me: it's whether you cook the methi before mixing with flour or not.  In a traditional thepla, you make a quick dry methi subzi, let it cool and then mix it with flour and besan for a dough. While in methi paratha, methi is usually chopped and added raw to flour along with spices. A relatively small difference but makes a great difference to theplas taste and texture…

My Favorite Baby/Toddler Meals
I know it's a cliche repeated God knows how many times, but really, kids grow sooo fast!! Time literally flies.. I still vividly remember taking that first pregnancy test at home and having butterflies in my stomach, a lot of questions on our mind and a broad smile on our faces :) I can not believe that moment was close to 3 years ago! Seriously, where did the time go?! So before it's too old and out of my mind, I want to jot down some of my favorite baby/toddler meals.   As regular readers of Ginger & Garlic know, I have a pretty consuming job (which I love btw so no complaints there!) so by the time I come back home, I would rather spend remaining free time playing with little one or taking her to park or reading books with her. As a result I am always looking for quick, fresh and easy meals which are toddler approved.  Most days our little one eats whatever we are eating. I am blessed with a foodie daughter, I must say! She loves trying o…

My Favorite Baby/Toddler Books
I love to read. My reading habit is fueled by the mild insomnia I carry. I fall asleep much easily if I read something just for around 20 minutes before going to bed. It helps flush the brain from all the day's thoughts.  Ever since my daughter was a few months old baby, I have been reading lots of baby/toddler books to her. And I don't know whether it's nature or nurture, but she also loves being read to. She now has a library of over 35 books, some of which I bought, some of which are gifted and yet others are hand-me-downs from our family friends. She daily picks out 10 some books and asks me to read them.  She pleasantly surprised us recently by "reading" a book on her own! Of course she can't read yet, but she has pretty well memorized her favorite books and can recite them back all with actions and tones and everything :) It took me a long time and many book dollars to figure out which ones are great baby/tod…