tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28868627730099920082024-03-13T06:42:37.201-07:00A Brownian Walk Through Life...My meanderings into food, books, crafts and tech.PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13216417733538286264noreply@blogger.comBlogger217125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-62260698745498953842024-03-02T20:41:00.000-08:002024-03-04T08:18:53.095-08:00Bookshelf Update: Everyday Dharma<p>I read an awesome book recently. I picked it up at my local library and quite by chance, I would add. Many years ago there used to be a bookstore, a branch of Borders, within a mile of our house. It was my favorite place to spend Sunday afternoons.. browsing through the artfully curated tables of books and pre-reading many of them in a comfy leather chair. Borders closed all their physical stores since then. I still miss the convenience and experience of it so much! I feel a well stocked local library is the next best thing. What I like the most about our library (and Borders!) is the serendipity of finding a book you wouldn't have known, let alone picked otherwise and once in a while feeling like you found a true gem!</p><p>This is how I feel about this book, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/65646922" target="_blank"><b>Everyday Dharma: 8 essential practices for finding joy in everything you do</b></a> by Suneel Gupta. I usually don't go for any self-help books, but something about the book and the summary (specifically it's call-out to arrival fallacy - which is something I have felt over and over again) caught my attention and I checked out on a whim. I can honestly say this is the best non-fiction I have read to date this year!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgAxfIpTRd7jjN6Au043w_I9JCW7B-rmqWxrc7zpn1bW2xTOWHdleJ1tcRLAvy8Vm7SjUy3sFlpb27YtbVTS8cTR-WzWvGrxmzM0gxLjygHWHm_kHqToE5uKgdd-kM9mWQduu8gpYPcisFgjbmokxwcOR986nV7G5UcH1wpS5y--N62GzRRZU5TLRX6Q_r9" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="265" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgAxfIpTRd7jjN6Au043w_I9JCW7B-rmqWxrc7zpn1bW2xTOWHdleJ1tcRLAvy8Vm7SjUy3sFlpb27YtbVTS8cTR-WzWvGrxmzM0gxLjygHWHm_kHqToE5uKgdd-kM9mWQduu8gpYPcisFgjbmokxwcOR986nV7G5UcH1wpS5y--N62GzRRZU5TLRX6Q_r9" width="159" /></a></div></div>The author states that we are conditioned to believe in "arrival fallacy" - a belief that once we achieve the next step, whether that's a promotion, more money, buying a house etc etc, we will be happy. However, once the moment arrives, the happiness is short-lived and soon we find ourselves chasing the next moment with the same promise. Over time it leads to burn-out, stress coupled with realization that outer success alone (wealth, job, social standing) does rarely lead to inner success (happiness, fulfillment, well-being). <p></p><p>So what does? Following your dharma or your calling/purpose -- dharma is the essence of who you are. It's the inner flame that can lite up the world around you or if ignored, can burn a hole inside you. I'll be honest it took me a while and a lot of self-reflection to think through what my dharma is.. but this is where the book really helps. Through simple yet touching stories, the author walks through 8 ways to identify what your dharma is, how to practice it in everyday life, and how to achieve fulfillment by living your purpose. </p><p>The author then talks through 8 elements of practicing your dharma:</p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Sukha - practical tools to uncover your essence. It's already inside you, you just need to find ways to remove layers hiding it - the layers can be societal expectations, judgement, other people's priorities. The author gives excellent "chisels" to help us remove the layers and find our dharma.</li><li>Bhakti - full-hearted (vs full-time!) devotion to dharma.. how duty can help you practice your dharma and vice versa. </li><li>Prana - energy over time. How much energy you bring to a task that practices your purpose is more important than how much time. Embrace an energy scheduling mindset versus time scheduling mindset. </li><li>Upekha - finding comfort in the discomfort around you. Embrace outside triggers with an inner evenness</li><li>Leela - when you are in the state of Leela, your work becomes play and play becomes work.</li><li>Seva - forget yourself to find others.</li><li>Tula - balance, an intersection of letting go vs taking charge. Both are important, so how do you balance them both? Learn to celebrate the beauty of brokenness/failures.. reduce the need to control the situations and let serendipity take course.</li><li>Kriya - action leads to courage. Even if you can't see the full strategy ahead, take the first step. When making decisions that are taking longer, think if they are one-way doors vs two-way doors. </li></ol><div>Each section is filled with heart-warming stories and practical tips. One of the most touching quote for me was this: "the meaning of the life is to find your gift, the purpose of life is to give it away!" :)</div><div><br /></div><div>The author says his dharma was story-telling and you can tell, he is an exceptionally good story-teller! The book is incredibly catchy, honest, the author comes across as very authentic and does not hide his failures or vulnerabilities, which I really appreciated.</div><div><br /></div><div>Overall, 5 stars for me. This is not a book I would have ordered or read otherwise, but is a gem that will stay with me forever. ❤</div><p></p><p> </p>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-40641047774456921992023-12-05T20:39:00.000-08:002023-12-10T10:37:26.705-08:00Dreams of Fall 🍂....<p>Fall is my favorite season 🍂 , right up there with the spring. I love the chill in the air foreshadowing the cold winter days; lazy weekends spent dreaming of Christmas, huddled with a warm cup of tea or freshly baked cookies getting lost in an awesome mystery book (or two!). I love all the small little things from driving home in the rainy evenings, taking in the sights of tinsel lights adorning the houses, even that incessant Christmas music blaring non-stop on the radio 😂 --- but most of all, the thing I love most about the fall is the dance of vibrant show of colors in our garden! </p><p>We are fortunate to have a house lined with a variety of mature Japanese maples and other trees which adorn themselves with absolutely gorgeous yellows, reds and orange hues these few weeks of the year.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.a-brownian-walk-through-life.com/" rel="nofollow" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="2268" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVh2fPYo6LTqpzSm7E8KpSshdqafvUWV0SuHsbrq_j_YbragOBeAq_1cWwaUS3Nw5NooysTalmqUD6sod41e2ru-gpQq2jo28rYwonlTm0Pb3KoO080nBk-vhO4msEavl1KkRV2DsSNOOfGD8q1l3qt9QjNSl_v_-MQTISxKZOS-OYgzugzIuRt8uSjt7T/w360-h640/PXL_20231202_195548403~2.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>It's so gorgeous and uplifting to look out the windows and see the nature at it's absolute best... <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.a-brownian-walk-through-life.com/" rel="" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_WQ5OX9Mi7jARagJwFFspVX4NEKtwX3cNN0BVhYMR1YWkPG2fa_iG2xwGsKll7Dyfi_XYp8VqmR2W8cL-t3DvN3r3rPfLHbePlBqTpTo_SEgBtt890NKqO_EnNQNnEQtteNHjmAq1-whIjsA3CRcIDlI9ZP97zSyau-ijlFgcHJ2yWi41EjpffhxqG6jZ/w640-h360/PXL_20231203_192904377.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />It also reminds me that like all the beautiful things worth chasing in life, they are all but momentary, with us only for a sliver of time... within a matter of 2-3 weeks the trees will shed these beauties until the spring awakens them again with new buds, a promise of a new life...<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.a-brownian-walk-through-life.com/" rel="" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu1us6r7E8yjxIixInE_1A8l0gt5GsOnxxIlDmWMBKWavXIZcSarqQ2md3AXzydjouVVmSJ0EZPpu8ZnIq1PISssJ3L9oDXShScLCVMr3josXzhEaetpOrS4ShpsashL0LdGJGl3UG_ogkoAdePuSAZ2eCI1eOrywdC9V1ujoq1YKHyN0EweYJ3r_0TKN7/w640-h360/PXL_20231202_195620678~2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>It also reminds me that we must all remember to take a pause and enjoy the small pleasures in life when we can, where we can.. ❤ take that time to smell the roses, orange blossoms or enjoy the fall colors..<br /><p>Along with the fall colors, we have also been devouring lots and lots of pomegranates and oranges... Pomegranate tree during fall is a sight to see by the way -- warm yellow leaves with huge red jewel-like fruits popping out of them!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.a-brownian-walk-through-life.com/" rel="" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2243" data-original-width="3113" height="462" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1PKnD-qPNxS1HiyL-Hp-138u0N3hbCWBut6hyhBOg16oFhIIjjzt9KD2vn4P1plqIo7Kwm_NVwDL5lnumBVmvWBfcz8Ye6HsvAWk1i_0jpw_1subtGHpIc8vtKVyRWqFytjvYFPmhrnJxkXToxZy5WcPbTL6bzY_agZymmYdDGRXNWZWViZhlDgiBd9Bn/w640-h462/PXL_20231202_195648130~2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Second reason to love fall other than cookies and 🍂? It's the official start of the comfort food season for our family! I am not cooking as much anymore, but here is our simple "house chicken curry in a hurry" that you can make start-to-finish within 20mins and SO yum! Serve with hot rotis, rice and a side of raita and pickle and it's a meal fit for a queen.. (or it's the type of meal I would want everyday if I were a queen 😂)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.a-brownian-walk-through-life.com/" rel="" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2142" data-original-width="2963" height="462" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQk0C1VBO-LA8ufK2zP_Ekwu_dWzEPhwYQCpKjpA_1zCC0TlIEfc7BkPF3z5_SAAcH1hijNpfrZhNvwA497_IR-8iXr22UXvw3LnPzSXhL1GycydSk_ryOHNx9nLLZ2Sbc5lgiOMYedReJlxyTcO4pwH5Ou5V2rNRLRO0HXiHz1px2ZkJqzB9gNSy0i_rr/w640-h462/PXL_20231205_021129154~2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>Third reason that make me dream of fall? It's books, books and more books! It's the time during November/December when I finally get some "light" days and weekends which I truly devour with a scrumptious book or two! This time I have outdone myself by reading not just one or two but 4 (!!) books at a time! I simply pick up the book based on the mood. Here is in my reading nook right now: brand new mystery release by an author I like (<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/127305892-no-one-can-know?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=BIOGFshEsJ&rank=1">No one can know</a>), a very old mystery book also by an author I adore (<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16307.Hallowe_en_Party?ref=nav_sb_ss_2_10">Hallowe'en Party</a>), a non-fiction (<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/197566578-broken-money">Broken money: how our financial system is failing us and how we can make it better</a>) and a historical fiction (<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63024287-the-first-ladies">The First ladies</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div>Hope you are spending the last few weeks of fall enjoying the season's best offerings.. till next time! 🍂</div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-64937379947350208892023-11-19T20:11:00.000-08:002023-11-21T19:49:31.119-08:00Food & Travel<p style="text-align: justify;">As much as I don't want to believe it's been a year since I last posted, I totally can believe that :) This year has so far been one of the uber crazy ones filled with hectic work schedules, family events and lots of travel (largely business but also personal). Without boring you with all the details, I can safely say that I am looking forward to the Thanksgiving and Christmas weeks to give me some much needed R&R - breather to slow down, spend some time with family and friends and get back into the kitchen, even if just for a little bit!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I have largely taken a hiatus from daily cooking (thanks to my husband who has picked up the mantle better than I could have!), the travel this year led to some really awesome and memorable meals and connections over food.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I enjoyed lots and lots of fresh seafood and guava during multiple trips to Taiwan; and ate some really awesome fish preparations and sushi while visiting Japan! </p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh__RnjizmeLe3CD1SBavHld_33k7Z4iFYbhrNunE8cB19CRW2Ho1pfcGp5axEUqAEBadztY3yQCvlIvC_nJR9Mw9fiGMd8cS-3Bs_AU8-rCBbks9SG7Cp-Idv97LUtVtIm-ZBnrPh5g-ANJbCHFx7W2_5W4dI-hNzhckWy9Cows9t4vudYa1I8CUdoHj6W/s4032/PXL_20230722_114722542.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Simple sea salt roasted fish with miso soup & rice" border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh__RnjizmeLe3CD1SBavHld_33k7Z4iFYbhrNunE8cB19CRW2Ho1pfcGp5axEUqAEBadztY3yQCvlIvC_nJR9Mw9fiGMd8cS-3Bs_AU8-rCBbks9SG7Cp-Idv97LUtVtIm-ZBnrPh5g-ANJbCHFx7W2_5W4dI-hNzhckWy9Cows9t4vudYa1I8CUdoHj6W/w640-h360/PXL_20230722_114722542.jpg" title="Simple sea salt roasted fish with miso soup & rice" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Simple sea salt roasted fish with miso soup & rice<br /><div style="text-align: left;">... all super simple preparations but very flavorful due to the freshness of the ingredients used. We also enjoyed lots of soba noodles with a simple soy broth to dunk them in... yum!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Japan</td></tr></tbody></table></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZo4DeMLMWiSSmWrMGVH133VvZw24S5fxcTViaAVq_cRSADkFSgwuV_f8aCaRhScBfZA45ku1kXpJwI4-xmgwTybKxv1h1K_9hz21YzW35OqjmI89hyphenhyphenDs62CQilauZDi6li16z6gmpZ0Vhp-NtEK1aaR40lWLatADzSfZEuZT5irBaJs0SVnsmBR9ZSV1l/s1599/IMG-20230721-WA0011.jpg" rel="nofollow" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1066" data-original-width="1599" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZo4DeMLMWiSSmWrMGVH133VvZw24S5fxcTViaAVq_cRSADkFSgwuV_f8aCaRhScBfZA45ku1kXpJwI4-xmgwTybKxv1h1K_9hz21YzW35OqjmI89hyphenhyphenDs62CQilauZDi6li16z6gmpZ0Vhp-NtEK1aaR40lWLatADzSfZEuZT5irBaJs0SVnsmBR9ZSV1l/w640-h426/IMG-20230721-WA0011.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soba noodles with tempura</td></tr></tbody></table>Simple meals were also complemented with some truly Michelin rated experiences full of Chef's creativity using flavors of the season and various sake paired perfectly well!</div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZiyYoXJnrQ5GNs0C4C7z4IO5TrGEB-zTpCajUAuzuHNmCtmzmUOmDwtUYIVvBYTQ73OzG_AJi5Kcpq0aLLa1aIWRajzvVRDxzder2Fv6LOLKUfrR21EZHRUna3nsepE7I6yOmK3QTu_Zarsx1dOCgshNdQ9yUaSfTA1wT8XlaODVdEO_ycr6Eo8eqhKq/s4032/PXL_20230718_100018204.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZiyYoXJnrQ5GNs0C4C7z4IO5TrGEB-zTpCajUAuzuHNmCtmzmUOmDwtUYIVvBYTQ73OzG_AJi5Kcpq0aLLa1aIWRajzvVRDxzder2Fv6LOLKUfrR21EZHRUna3nsepE7I6yOmK3QTu_Zarsx1dOCgshNdQ9yUaSfTA1wT8XlaODVdEO_ycr6Eo8eqhKq/w640-h360/PXL_20230718_100018204.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /></div></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td class="tr-caption"><div style="text-align: left;">Along with domestic travels and various Asian region travels, I also ended up travelling to India multiple times this year leading to some truly memorable culinary experiences! This is the first time I traveled to India during Durga/Dasara times - not only I enjoyed the festival and celebrations but I also got to enjoy lots of Citaphal (!!) - a fruit once my favorite, but which I haven't eaten in 20 some years!! And my mom's Amla Kees (grated dried Amla with salt) -- it was truly a feast to the senses ❤</div><div><br /></div></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHqcA9flIsG1fekuozPU9ZW43W92Cgrjeuom-JTGT2MQTXCYMi2GFcen6VL35kv7qbH4gu45xBadz3ADghjgROPTIki0xmUPN51yu8xbQ2ddp_5LcMvolZi1Hta_NEbnmOe_QWUoKvzHEvFBwU9NPHhvc60MW91ZPf9ML22lbdKzPFiKDwreJK4TOo3gqS/s4032/PXL_20231022_144704526.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHqcA9flIsG1fekuozPU9ZW43W92Cgrjeuom-JTGT2MQTXCYMi2GFcen6VL35kv7qbH4gu45xBadz3ADghjgROPTIki0xmUPN51yu8xbQ2ddp_5LcMvolZi1Hta_NEbnmOe_QWUoKvzHEvFBwU9NPHhvc60MW91ZPf9ML22lbdKzPFiKDwreJK4TOo3gqS/w640-h360/PXL_20231022_144704526.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Citaphal (custard apple fruit) and amla kees</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Business travels in India took me to Bengalaru and Delhi -- I took the opportunity to eat lots and lots of idli and chutneys every day for breakfast while in southern India!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUcE0A22Mxx_UDRbHpn4kuYH1DTw9lyaQVU0_fzeeZqCfa4GOftllw719Hhy3kixhNRg3S2Z9Lfu2_ECwJMgtwiHE_ZZLAoUeSMNxvMFyfr2ncLEuFpTxtvjHYQMHXI-P3hhlVOpqQa7ENOApzCI712Mh-6QFno3Jprl1wXKMsGlpOaJqnRfy79rX64X16/s4032/PXL_20230604_042748060.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUcE0A22Mxx_UDRbHpn4kuYH1DTw9lyaQVU0_fzeeZqCfa4GOftllw719Hhy3kixhNRg3S2Z9Lfu2_ECwJMgtwiHE_ZZLAoUeSMNxvMFyfr2ncLEuFpTxtvjHYQMHXI-P3hhlVOpqQa7ENOApzCI712Mh-6QFno3Jprl1wXKMsGlpOaJqnRfy79rX64X16/w640-h360/PXL_20230604_042748060.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">.. while my favorite dinners often were solo meals of chicken biryani and mango margarita (an awesome combo btw)!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXPcyAlMmENKIWb-3RUr2TALqp3oShVVi5Jhedz9rWL3LI-FsiSt-KlIoeL_NR-202vbxFcJWjctFhJsggoE34jCuG-3P095zdJH_uC5hS_FmImxpG4MsJ4LFLe6acGDzvQg1B-sBLvNjkoFFv4dCWF_q5qXpfeEqEpmQHXXHoNjeyJB2WBSYw-gL2ue0r/s4032/PXL_20230607_134715153.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXPcyAlMmENKIWb-3RUr2TALqp3oShVVi5Jhedz9rWL3LI-FsiSt-KlIoeL_NR-202vbxFcJWjctFhJsggoE34jCuG-3P095zdJH_uC5hS_FmImxpG4MsJ4LFLe6acGDzvQg1B-sBLvNjkoFFv4dCWF_q5qXpfeEqEpmQHXXHoNjeyJB2WBSYw-gL2ue0r/w640-h360/PXL_20230607_134715153.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While travels are hectic, some small nice gestures by hotels and airlines make such a big difference! Such as landing a 2am flight and checkin at a Sheraton and finding these absolutely yummy appetizers left in the room by the hotel staff as late night snacks (hummus, couscous salad and crackers, pita bread)..</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqGtolDmE0yljKMW4Llb2Mcdr1_pFbv00vEF4NLk5EJAx4b1xekdsCoHWUpSvUyAZ0htMOIVMqVZH8LpIQrUXWclTd0Embig16iXF5trw2pNXDx3Y9IuHGzYikkxSO5jp-1Jy9aDzGakPS6pUzl7yWsyZaBXqaDwTgzbHCqgzI0YdYF8wUZ6TxaTmXJgni/s4032/PXL_20230603_204034936.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2073" data-original-width="4032" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqGtolDmE0yljKMW4Llb2Mcdr1_pFbv00vEF4NLk5EJAx4b1xekdsCoHWUpSvUyAZ0htMOIVMqVZH8LpIQrUXWclTd0Embig16iXF5trw2pNXDx3Y9IuHGzYikkxSO5jp-1Jy9aDzGakPS6pUzl7yWsyZaBXqaDwTgzbHCqgzI0YdYF8wUZ6TxaTmXJgni/w640-h330/PXL_20230603_204034936.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Or memorable meals enjoyed at flying altitudes, sometimes with turbulence to shake things up a bit 😊</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS9Mx2GkXS1vAVN6rr8OoQkfju3ZIe9L-5Q1uTjZDyZlxiA3IA-IEP0bUp11jvq8nXSnfhyphenhyphenh8IbqIPQBKP1FSipqU99bO_CXsGsn0YhuvbztDRFuq4hxPOuIzSeHatHVwP8DmD9AaBLIEO3piKDPAIPUjzrHurqNl1redrSGjGPbbcn5gHahnk5zfU0RCf/s2046/PXL_20230416_231848691-COLLAGE.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2046" data-original-width="2046" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS9Mx2GkXS1vAVN6rr8OoQkfju3ZIe9L-5Q1uTjZDyZlxiA3IA-IEP0bUp11jvq8nXSnfhyphenhyphenh8IbqIPQBKP1FSipqU99bO_CXsGsn0YhuvbztDRFuq4hxPOuIzSeHatHVwP8DmD9AaBLIEO3piKDPAIPUjzrHurqNl1redrSGjGPbbcn5gHahnk5zfU0RCf/w640-h640/PXL_20230416_231848691-COLLAGE.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I am thankful for the opportunities to be able to make these travels -- there is nothing like visiting new (or old!) places and enjoying local delicacies... good food and good chat always means great memories to cherish forever!</div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Outside of travels, we have been enjoying our garden fruit bounties this year! Our pomegranate, fig, yellow plum and persimmon trees are a gift that keeps giving... this year with plenty of rain and sunshine, we were treated to the plentiful bounty of mother nature!</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4-SpKLD8bfUUcQARmaONZydZY7oha792w0Sy63RCLfMm1ARsVTCUiMfeaoSuXgN4qGUkf0BfbmoqGKhTUC2D6woM-nBxt4hYcc2-l9MHGoNMmSbOcfNd8ynehjKU_7nanbcZgROVwpe0H0B4pke5_2j6F5_VPbA8G2aNrV5oUAMOblMPjX69BFFkt9mgQ/s2046/PXL_20230710_022254963-COLLAGE.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2046" data-original-width="2046" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4-SpKLD8bfUUcQARmaONZydZY7oha792w0Sy63RCLfMm1ARsVTCUiMfeaoSuXgN4qGUkf0BfbmoqGKhTUC2D6woM-nBxt4hYcc2-l9MHGoNMmSbOcfNd8ynehjKU_7nanbcZgROVwpe0H0B4pke5_2j6F5_VPbA8G2aNrV5oUAMOblMPjX69BFFkt9mgQ/w640-h640/PXL_20230710_022254963-COLLAGE.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Garden bounty: plums, persimmon, figs and pomegranates!</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">While I have cooked very less this year, these are some of my favorites dishes I made :) One of the accomplishments this year is that I finally perfected an instant mango pickle recipe - so yum and so quick and simple! Being an achaar fan all my life, being able to make the fresh achaar is something I truly cherish.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJWMg4o-ZCWJeHYc9kPXQMSQDInE6rQGk5sjXv_zkt7gUC-HwJ-P190ck-d-xB6OOYHvG9mnVr7rBTYJmgvjtajtfFPd3lXo55SZ7mCdK320PirGlthUTRq3xOYQkV42o54xOTZt45kX8vVMHFLFM8gKk1LpQnyzd17L_iwEU2bJVBIa-JHooSQloT6z9E/s4032/PXL_20230702_203146298.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJWMg4o-ZCWJeHYc9kPXQMSQDInE6rQGk5sjXv_zkt7gUC-HwJ-P190ck-d-xB6OOYHvG9mnVr7rBTYJmgvjtajtfFPd3lXo55SZ7mCdK320PirGlthUTRq3xOYQkV42o54xOTZt45kX8vVMHFLFM8gKk1LpQnyzd17L_iwEU2bJVBIa-JHooSQloT6z9E/w640-h360/PXL_20230702_203146298.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">...and Shrikhand, which we whip up at home every year for Ganapati, Diwali and special occasions!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUcWiGhxRaFVIlJMCkgCPgRZqHDdxwz_xSCv7Z2VJtO0yaUEME3zjJLh1dF2GwdETzCbABT9kyTDp8pzAHBSsrWCYPurbLXSCyVlirxXc89Gf8bpcFRrwf5Ahqotpzy7dKCQfO3ia-eejfnuESVgIOOlnvaSjZPAEcXe44Ila8pXjLg96ccqO6WMaG_qVa/s4032/PXL_20231113_022619581.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="4032" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUcWiGhxRaFVIlJMCkgCPgRZqHDdxwz_xSCv7Z2VJtO0yaUEME3zjJLh1dF2GwdETzCbABT9kyTDp8pzAHBSsrWCYPurbLXSCyVlirxXc89Gf8bpcFRrwf5Ahqotpzy7dKCQfO3ia-eejfnuESVgIOOlnvaSjZPAEcXe44Ila8pXjLg96ccqO6WMaG_qVa/w640-h360/PXL_20231113_022619581.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">And last but not the least, my favorite foods of the year list won't be complete without the amazing spread my daughter put together for mother's day.. a true breakfast in bed delight of the year!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE4U7kz-SdNknBMxTuOaXr8IcayEo6MKXYxjy3R17iiP7VrtPvK1D0FMdBGQ6_0bDQTWMJ9OmHp93km2x9oTXVCwPeKLkQUawNrhcViBZjNkG_II4Q8eTKJhUqIluW8t_Bo8_Fi4H93VZ6L0PVbt-Zu0o9SbHdwG3MvVby0x12uWAsrqfyy7mF7yZ7L4_L/s3936/PXL_20230514_160701923.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1919" data-original-width="3936" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE4U7kz-SdNknBMxTuOaXr8IcayEo6MKXYxjy3R17iiP7VrtPvK1D0FMdBGQ6_0bDQTWMJ9OmHp93km2x9oTXVCwPeKLkQUawNrhcViBZjNkG_II4Q8eTKJhUqIluW8t_Bo8_Fi4H93VZ6L0PVbt-Zu0o9SbHdwG3MvVby0x12uWAsrqfyy7mF7yZ7L4_L/w640-h312/PXL_20230514_160701923.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I am looking forward to using these last few weeks of the year to catch up on some good recipes long waiting in my bookmarks folder - hope to be able to write to you all soon! ❤</div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-40228959685678991152022-12-26T11:00:00.002-08:002023-11-21T20:04:56.929-08:00Happy Holidays and holiday baking!<p style="text-align: justify;">I wish you all a very very happy holidays this year! Holidays to me is that treasured end of the year time to spend with family and friends, relaxing with good food, good books/movies and of-course a steaming hot cup of tea or coffee and something sweet to nibble along :)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The holiday week is not complete for us without loads of baking. Every year my daughter and I make dozens of cookies of various varieties and spend a couple of afternoons decorating them with personalized patterns and send them as gifts to her teachers, friends and neighbors. This year we chose sugar cookies, gingerbread cookies and <a href="https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/almond-snowball-cookies-recipe-1928153" target="_blank">almond snowball cookies</a>! </p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_lPDiQ4SoVN0v9tCVvEVxFgL-aFGu7nXsh0zjrKtPJAzpTJn7S-MFArBPLBFLx3_I2boYTMnDy42e1aBj9d0Och-ZPmN__nOY98txOf6NDzKqTT-nPRZjy8-lqmZasg2SQaVhAOsRHUQ2Q7ZWi2rtwaTkIuu9PmRcjrzTWViTmV-W6o0g8RAzfXCZw/s4032/PXL_20221218_165642273.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_lPDiQ4SoVN0v9tCVvEVxFgL-aFGu7nXsh0zjrKtPJAzpTJn7S-MFArBPLBFLx3_I2boYTMnDy42e1aBj9d0Och-ZPmN__nOY98txOf6NDzKqTT-nPRZjy8-lqmZasg2SQaVhAOsRHUQ2Q7ZWi2rtwaTkIuu9PmRcjrzTWViTmV-W6o0g8RAzfXCZw/w640-h480/PXL_20221218_165642273.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Of these, I must say the snowball cookies were our favorites - they were very nutty, melt in your mouth types with a distinct almond flavor enhanced with a good quality almond extract. We'll be making them more throughout the year for sure!<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZJMYLS1c2PzQgfrXMA0BZBD34eOfCRWdurL2NqOqQ_qoeQQ_6t7-Hs8IgWSZBGQpi0C5GmVBb_yb_aPKbNo9T5gxzbnLLHYjCpWJRxLbuYzY2AUCAtmeFvY1ewdvzfRMFFKONF7oMkbl63wG8pw4RSi7EKDSv1SL4ZwlE_TLbXYpr4xE-M84mnqx4mQ/s4032/PXL_20221217_203530829~2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZJMYLS1c2PzQgfrXMA0BZBD34eOfCRWdurL2NqOqQ_qoeQQ_6t7-Hs8IgWSZBGQpi0C5GmVBb_yb_aPKbNo9T5gxzbnLLHYjCpWJRxLbuYzY2AUCAtmeFvY1ewdvzfRMFFKONF7oMkbl63wG8pw4RSi7EKDSv1SL4ZwlE_TLbXYpr4xE-M84mnqx4mQ/w640-h480/PXL_20221217_203530829~2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZFY_CNYL4QWQAyXrF5a81GEDMFbfOiTPT_uIn6yZfAhyk3_4IQoYhlj66SDkYjNQInKzqAaKu7cBFKuYzcYltGAEweF4B-OLvCqbRq6tTeb3zfOgb1t-fUQOu1TDKXKtc6Xv9QL2IvgEaZiZMBzDUalRD3PTSR0zofJeaJ65cSd3JFWJ0Jrp-ClnH2Q/s3642/PXL_20221214_061742352.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2848" data-original-width="3642" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZFY_CNYL4QWQAyXrF5a81GEDMFbfOiTPT_uIn6yZfAhyk3_4IQoYhlj66SDkYjNQInKzqAaKu7cBFKuYzcYltGAEweF4B-OLvCqbRq6tTeb3zfOgb1t-fUQOu1TDKXKtc6Xv9QL2IvgEaZiZMBzDUalRD3PTSR0zofJeaJ65cSd3JFWJ0Jrp-ClnH2Q/w640-h500/PXL_20221214_061742352.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Now that my daughter is 11, she takes charge of decorating the cookies. She decorated most of ours this year with very interesting icing decorations - she made one with fraction equation for her math teacher, one with adverbs for English teacher and personalized a cell cycle diagram for her science teacher. I made some for work with Google logos. All in all we had a wonderful time baking and making lots and lots of cookies.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBMlJfvmXuL6WYbILpXnX20XVvk6RNzdEQkl36Xsux_HWrCgff-odNELJEiFL7h-EPK7Ory2f-t8zYkLq-sd7G1Cf-bTmuw-9qJel7XNkCzGjLgvzGMR5WhR_p0O6petSHZ-1Yp-06DfPI-LUmaP_AQtw6luLmI_MgLTNdNd_OJkyzyCmA5KQULtBiyw/s4032/PXL_20221218_191347604.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBMlJfvmXuL6WYbILpXnX20XVvk6RNzdEQkl36Xsux_HWrCgff-odNELJEiFL7h-EPK7Ory2f-t8zYkLq-sd7G1Cf-bTmuw-9qJel7XNkCzGjLgvzGMR5WhR_p0O6petSHZ-1Yp-06DfPI-LUmaP_AQtw6luLmI_MgLTNdNd_OJkyzyCmA5KQULtBiyw/w640-h480/PXL_20221218_191347604.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In addition to the cookies, we also made an apple tart when we had guests over. It's super simple and literally takes 15mins to prepare. Thinly slice 3 large apples, add 1/3C (or more!) brown sugar, vanilla extract, 1/4tsp each of cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom powder, pinch of salt and mix well. Thaw store-bought puff pastry dough and cut in vertical stripes. Arrange apple slices leaving 1inch border on each side. Optionally add 1 Tbsp butter broken into small bits over the tart. Bake for 13-15mins at 400F. Remove from oven. Transfer to a platter. When it cools down, sprinkle powdered sugar on top. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream on the side!</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWEuR4C1yr1XIwgfLzyn02ODPLdFodtI7r1g0eCMqv19odmDFbJElG6VLh1e2-cpBvOu0auA3mi9oi8wRpo6HISRRTYyuHtIy8SVJ6e1jm500BYikueTh8xK8vQeqN4Irq0BOv2nrVAobjF7hA9NGS2L4_lr5QNjw3IrjELN9HKXoroERPDJbjKgnY1A/s4032/PXL_20221224_194356870.PORTRAIT~2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWEuR4C1yr1XIwgfLzyn02ODPLdFodtI7r1g0eCMqv19odmDFbJElG6VLh1e2-cpBvOu0auA3mi9oi8wRpo6HISRRTYyuHtIy8SVJ6e1jm500BYikueTh8xK8vQeqN4Irq0BOv2nrVAobjF7hA9NGS2L4_lr5QNjw3IrjELN9HKXoroERPDJbjKgnY1A/w640-h480/PXL_20221224_194356870.PORTRAIT~2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Hope you all had a wonderful and relaxing holiday break and here is to a fantastic new year ahead! <p></p>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-74413083654025915762022-12-23T21:58:00.001-08:002023-11-21T20:05:06.737-08:002022: My Year In Books!<p style="text-align: justify;">As I am about to welcome the last week of 2022, I am thinking to myself, how did this year fly by SO fast! This year I found myself having less and less time for cooking, instead I had my fill of the kitchen fun on weekends and those special days when we were entertaining dinner guests. I did however travel a lot (mostly for work but also some long overdue personal visits) and read a lot. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Reading has been particularly satisfying this year as I happened to hit upon an eclectic collection of highly satisfying books. I also tried to hit the local bookstores wherever I traveled internationally and stuffed a paperback in the side pocket of my luggage so I always had an interesting story to get lost into on those long airplane rides :)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">As I look back at the year, these are my year's personal best reads - mostly the books I read but also one or two which my daughter read or made me co-read 😃 which we both thoroughly enjoyed!</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9gg9_n3gKZ8tmenrthRP8jb1ThbFY0G7n9qR4oTIah3sl27_v2itAtwXEUqR_svG-mStW2cLEmFzbFbaJEmnjxabw5fAx9-QD4X-0g9BzDyr-27Hno94K-9Wjqgx8kpbGZ48BATeuy87kbaCrjW01qW_ZhWD2S0-7fF9du06wOkOkC7BBYrocE0YDow/s2771/43925876.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2771" data-original-width="1882" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9gg9_n3gKZ8tmenrthRP8jb1ThbFY0G7n9qR4oTIah3sl27_v2itAtwXEUqR_svG-mStW2cLEmFzbFbaJEmnjxabw5fAx9-QD4X-0g9BzDyr-27Hno94K-9Wjqgx8kpbGZ48BATeuy87kbaCrjW01qW_ZhWD2S0-7fF9du06wOkOkC7BBYrocE0YDow/w136-h200/43925876.jpg" width="136" /></a></div>First off I found myself fully engorssed into two popular pager-turners: first is <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43925876-the-giver-of-stars?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=L5iDN2jOWv&rank=1" target="_blank">The Giver of Stars</a> from Jojo Mayes and second is <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34912895-the-great-alone?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=iFcQLBXVcT&rank=1" target="_blank">The Great Alone</a> by Kristin Hannah. Neither of them are 2022 releases, but I read them this year and I must say both books left a lasting impression on me. The general book theme I usually go for are books with a leading strong female character which both of these books more than obliged :) <p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43925876-the-giver-of-stars?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=L5iDN2jOWv&rank=1">The Giver of Stars</a> is based on a true story of the Packhorse Librarians. Based in rural Kentuky they are a group of women who become part of Eleanor Roosevelt's travelling library. These brave women weathered the forces of convention and gender stereotypes and on horseback travelled dangerous paths through gorgeous landscapes of rural Kentucky to deliver books to the remote families who rarely have access to any - and through this build a strong bond of female friendship that last for their lifetimes and become their lifelines!</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaI9TsW1LG07ULPC_R6XwqG5W9uXFD8aMk2K1Hw6sV7uaUj4CFGtJgBAAuBaAtYp6l5UR8i4OmzYif9QMAOp0H8SjEfMJt2glF-fc4DkS7HOpmz3WjPnLoJPzwII_2SJmmaYYP5WHboYSWBeDDwunLZadH0ctglq22R8Nqq5tLB-9pjwZlRCnHfPgL1A/s2560/57127277.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2560" data-original-width="1675" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaI9TsW1LG07ULPC_R6XwqG5W9uXFD8aMk2K1Hw6sV7uaUj4CFGtJgBAAuBaAtYp6l5UR8i4OmzYif9QMAOp0H8SjEfMJt2glF-fc4DkS7HOpmz3WjPnLoJPzwII_2SJmmaYYP5WHboYSWBeDDwunLZadH0ctglq22R8Nqq5tLB-9pjwZlRCnHfPgL1A/w131-h200/57127277.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>Another awesome read, and my most favorite read of the year was by a debut author, a fantasy fiction based on Ramayana story of Indian mythology - not a topic I usually jump to, but boy am I happy I stumbled upon this gem - <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57127277-kaikeyi?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_7" target="_blank">Kaikeyi</a> by Vaishani Patel. <div><br /></div><div>Kaikeyi may be one of the most vilified queen of the famous Indian epic story, Ramayana, where she is depicted as a jealous queen who wants to see her son on the throne of Bharata and thereby uses the boons given to her by the King to send her stepson (Lord Rama) to 12 years of exile through her scheming. </div><div><br /></div><div>This book is a re imagined tale told from Kaikeyi's perspective where we see an incredibly strong, determined and influential woman who is not ready to accept the destiny as outlined for her but instead is set to make a mark in a world predominantly dominated by men and God. Reading the story makes you nostalgic but also rethink some aspects of the story many of us have heard growing up - to me it's a narrative that tells nothing is black and white but instead everything has it's grayscale. I truly loved this book and looking forward to re-reading it again sometime soon!<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKYQyz3dNI35WEU5-od_msLY2CEeW2GP4Udy5RUxx6fpezHiF49PXOYQxAuQdtpF5rp2JT03gIHFrkPgz8AT4F0dyvH_-0QkoZYABnbJlYoRIOcxkLPVgoF1Px2t9K67pvr32q5Dan7Bhgg8tzmApozTS6eTOTuTI0DD77ObmRyjlJ34vs8OGz0i5Ng/s500/22085568.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="329" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKYQyz3dNI35WEU5-od_msLY2CEeW2GP4Udy5RUxx6fpezHiF49PXOYQxAuQdtpF5rp2JT03gIHFrkPgz8AT4F0dyvH_-0QkoZYABnbJlYoRIOcxkLPVgoF1Px2t9K67pvr32q5Dan7Bhgg8tzmApozTS6eTOTuTI0DD77ObmRyjlJ34vs8OGz0i5Ng/w132-h200/22085568.jpg" width="132" /></a></div>Lastly, another fantastic book we read at work is <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22085568-the-culture-map?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=zjgEwGN9pO&rank=1" target="_blank">The Culture Map</a> by Erin Meyers. It's a great guide for navigating cultural differences and understanding that the culture we grew up from has a profound impact on how we interact with others. It's also filled with many useful tips and strategies of how to interact with different cultures. I have worked in international companies for many years so I was skeptical picking this up wondering how much I'll really learn but it was very interesting to read about how different cultures evolved and interact. While we all must remember there are differences within every culture and one rule rarely applies to all, it's still a useful read to understand how cultures interact at a broad stroke. <p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhSwvRQ95fNs5eJZz0DStN4iEen_2ob3Pqt9STEMK2PBik5t4cTe2Y1B05p7QqiSrChlHdtwh__rNlJMmCihZb5gI5g0k_aI4P2v0XaDSrMuPBbHKUn2cyWDf8en1EOULnwIYVCYZ31r-CRJxT0X1LN5E2qc8VNDTU0-ymBM6WltEx0uYJbUMc20a7RA/s600/55977848.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhSwvRQ95fNs5eJZz0DStN4iEen_2ob3Pqt9STEMK2PBik5t4cTe2Y1B05p7QqiSrChlHdtwh__rNlJMmCihZb5gI5g0k_aI4P2v0XaDSrMuPBbHKUn2cyWDf8en1EOULnwIYVCYZ31r-CRJxT0X1LN5E2qc8VNDTU0-ymBM6WltEx0uYJbUMc20a7RA/w133-h200/55977848.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>Finally, two books both me and my daughter really enjoyed are <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55977848-room-to-dream?ref=nav_sb_ss_2_13" target="_blank">Room to Dream</a> by Kelly Yang and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11607446-the-wishing-spell?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_11" target="_blank">the Land of Stories</a> series by Chris Colfer. Room to Dream is a book from the Front Desk series about an Asian American girl and her journey through normal day to day happenings at school, home and about pursuing her dreams of being a writer. We have enjoyed all books in this series, but this one is our favorite :)<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">The Land of Stories is a series of 6 fantasy books where twins Alex and Conner explore a unique world of classic fairy tales where all the known and beloved characters come alive and various adventures await! We have read 4 of the 6 books and 5th one is on my daughter's reading table ready for the Christmas break 😀</p><p style="text-align: justify;">My TBR pile is already overflowing and I can't wait to see what reading adventures await in the new years! Hope you had a wonderful 2022 and happy holidays!</p></div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-61840868553777905392021-07-18T12:23:00.002-07:002021-09-15T19:24:05.829-07:00Pressed Flower Cards & Announcements!<p style="text-align: justify;">Hello all, it has been a long time!! I have been meaning to post for a while, but life has been busy... I am spending a lot of time scrounging for recipes and reading other blogs, but truth be told, I have not been cooking as much as I would like these days. Work has taken up a lot for the time being, so my time in the kitchen has been limited to the precious weekends. However, I have been reading a bunch of good books (more on that later) and doing interesting summer crafts with my daughter.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">As you may have noticed, this blog has been re-branded from Ginger & Garlic cooking blog to A Brownian Walk Through Life, a blog that covers food, cooking, books, crafts but also occasional commentary on tech or my long running interest of personal finance or investing. Recipes will still be a big part of this blog, but I am hoping to broaden it to other interests and write about them often.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, with the announcements out of the way, here is the craft I wanted to share with you all today. I got the idea from <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/24/t-magazine/pressing-flowers-how-to-crafting.html">this nytimes article</a>. As a kid I loved drying flower petals and then using them to make greeting cards. It's the same concept except you use watercolors to accent and add more depth to your dried flower art.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GwbPh7oXvv8/YPR_CWiXeJI/AAAAAAAA09M/AdxyXkbdvyQkbokAoYrFIKzvNJ9AGGXUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210704_195931113.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1479" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GwbPh7oXvv8/YPR_CWiXeJI/AAAAAAAA09M/AdxyXkbdvyQkbokAoYrFIKzvNJ9AGGXUwCLcBGAsYHQ/w462-h640/PXL_20210704_195931113.jpg" width="462" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">We picked a bunch of flowers from the garden (you can also buy multi-colored flowers from supermarket) and dried them for about 10 days pressed within the pages of a thick book. Stack another thick book on the top for good measures :) Once the flowers are dried, use thick watercolor paper, color it in abstract or let your creativity run wild and then glue the dried flowers using any good quality glue you may have at home.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3m5oBzGW3uE/YPR_Od8TQFI/AAAAAAAA09Q/1vVLJV8847YOwSWBkSLv3aiAUypqz4wIgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210704_195910485.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1589" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3m5oBzGW3uE/YPR_Od8TQFI/AAAAAAAA09Q/1vVLJV8847YOwSWBkSLv3aiAUypqz4wIgCLcBGAsYHQ/w496-h640/PXL_20210704_195910485.jpg" width="496" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">It helps if the flowers are multi-color - pick some yellows, blues and purples along with reds and also be sure to dry some interesting twigs or leaves! </p><p style="text-align: justify;">It's a great craft to do with kids.. and what a wonderful hand-made gift to send to friends or grand-parents!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T54iUpycTDA/YPR_XNwz41I/AAAAAAAA09Y/IAMTjdIKqf8oH2PMxh-u7MrqMu6HIjfgQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210704_195955648.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T54iUpycTDA/YPR_XNwz41I/AAAAAAAA09Y/IAMTjdIKqf8oH2PMxh-u7MrqMu6HIjfgQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/PXL_20210704_195955648.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">We have a second batch of flowers drying at the moment and hope to post another round of dried pressed flower cards soon.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Enjoy!</p>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-1293049322669512762020-12-27T16:50:00.005-08:002021-01-10T15:14:07.969-08:00Fried Maggie Noodles & Reading, Activities Update<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">If there is one meal which defines my good old college days back in India, it would be this fried maggie recipe. Nights used to be super cold at my residential college campus and since our girls hostel had a 10pm curfew, the kitchen staff used to host a post-curfew canteen every weeknight to fuel all the eager students for their late night studying. </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The canteen didn't have too many options, but it served us just fine! I remember braving the chilly nights wrapped in multiple shawls to get to the canteen for the pleasure of a steaming hot mugful of tea and a hot snack - which on cold nights would almost always be this plate of freshly prepared steaming hot fried maggie.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The recipe is super simple and I know it by heart because the cooks used to prepare to order right in front of us. I highly recommend using Maggie Masala packets (available at Indian grocery stores) and no substitutions - as much as possible to retain the authentic taste.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TyOQy5kf-0s/X-koVBoHViI/AAAAAAAAwPM/lhniloQkKlodQu2uLmXKugtpNbP6Gm53wCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201124_202944530.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TyOQy5kf-0s/X-koVBoHViI/AAAAAAAAwPM/lhniloQkKlodQu2uLmXKugtpNbP6Gm53wCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20201124_202944530.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />To make fried maggie, boil the maggie noodles per the package directions, just don't add the masala yet. Meanwhile chop half cup of veggies into small bites (1 carrot, few peas) and 6-7 small cubes of paneer (Indian cottage cheese). You can skip paneer and add sliced mushrooms instead, but paneer is an excellent companion to the maggie noodles to provide texture.</span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Heat a little oil (2 tsp or so) in a hot pan. Fry paneer pieces for a few mins until slightly browned on the edges. Then add veggies and fry for another minute. Add spice masala that came with the maggie packet and mix well. Then add the boiled noodles and mix everything well. Remove from heat and serve hot with a side of hot tea. Enjoy!</span></p><h3 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: helvetica; font-size: small;">Reading & Activities Update:</span></h3><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lmWEVEK-WAY/X-kqr6m7cyI/AAAAAAAAwQs/KVujCpJAvecXvri1_P0fzRuyW4viJIkEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s473/35232443._SX318_.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image credit: goodreads.com" border="0" data-original-height="473" data-original-width="318" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lmWEVEK-WAY/X-kqr6m7cyI/AAAAAAAAwQs/KVujCpJAvecXvri1_P0fzRuyW4viJIkEQCLcBGAsYHQ/w134-h200/35232443._SX318_.jpg" title="Image credit: goodreads.com" width="134" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image credit: goodreads.com</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: helvetica;">My reading has slowed to a crawl of late.. and when I read, I found myself reaching for my comfort books, the tattered copies of the well read and beloved books like Jane Austen collection, Agatha Christie or Jhumpa Lahiri books. </span><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica;">However, I discovered an excellent new author recently (courtesy of the local library for featuring this author in an international celebration week) - Sujata Massey - I read her <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35232443-the-widows-of-malabar-hill" target="_blank">The Widows of Malabar Hills</a>, which is a very light mystery set in 1920s India, very much like an Indian Agatha Christie (another favorite author!). The lead character is Ms. Perveen Mistry, Bombay's first woman lawyer. The book is a chronicle of her personal and professional ups and downs in a vibrant Bombay of British India along-with a delicious mystery she is tasked with on the side.<br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YeyAL5OrfZc/X-kqzegQC8I/AAAAAAAAwQw/hZ9ltOryr-4I6tnZ0BZi_JudvNmGFM1GgCLcBGAsYHQ/s475/40545212._SY475_.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YeyAL5OrfZc/X-kqzegQC8I/AAAAAAAAwQw/hZ9ltOryr-4I6tnZ0BZi_JudvNmGFM1GgCLcBGAsYHQ/w134-h200/40545212._SY475_.jpg" width="134" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image credit: goodreads.com</td></tr></tbody></table></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">After finishing that, I continued with the second in series, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40545212-the-satapur-moonstone" target="_blank">The Satapur Moonstone</a>, and it didn't disappoint!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">After those I picked a sizzling mystery, purely because the excerpt looked great, and it turned out to be a surprising page turner. Lisa Jewell's <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35297426-then-she-was-gone" target="_blank">Then She Was Gone</a>.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Now I am onto a book I have been waiting to read for a while, Barack Obama's <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55361205-a-promised-land">A Promised Land </a>. I am not too far into it but thoroughly enjoying it so far!</span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PTXl-KYRYoA/X-kq6EhGRyI/AAAAAAAAwQ0/NprjOvJ7G_ApnOaoSQ-p4Vzv686t_npkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s475/55361205._SY475_.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="312" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PTXl-KYRYoA/X-kq6EhGRyI/AAAAAAAAwQ0/NprjOvJ7G_ApnOaoSQ-p4Vzv686t_npkgCLcBGAsYHQ/w131-h200/55361205._SY475_.jpg" width="131" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image credit: goodreads.com</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">On the activities front, winter holidays means lots of free time, both for me and the daughter! This holiday break is all about jigsaw puzzles for us. We never really got into puzzles seriously, but I am really enjoying solving puzzles with my daughter this break. We went from 100 pieces, 200 pieces, 500 pieces, to our ultimate goal of solving 1000 piece puzzle during Christmas. As they say, life after-all is a game of jigsaw puzzles where a player must keep playing until all the pieces of the life fit in place, just so :) </span><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mGuWyJ_3fcA/X-kpTE7wUeI/AAAAAAAAwPw/Xxyg02_e3p0E6B6GvX1x9uA57SDB1VpcwCPcBGAsYHg/s2046/PXL_20201219_184305898-COLLAGE.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2046" data-original-width="2046" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mGuWyJ_3fcA/X-kpTE7wUeI/AAAAAAAAwPw/Xxyg02_e3p0E6B6GvX1x9uA57SDB1VpcwCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h640/PXL_20201219_184305898-COLLAGE.jpg" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: helvetica;">We have also been taking long walks wrapped up in sweatshirts, scarves and mittens and spending the afternoons making various newspaper crafts - all inspired by the New York Times' At-home section. We made a bunch of recycled paper bows to wrap up gifts and some festive snowflakes to decorate the house. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YNpw7uvqpdo/X-kpipbyH2I/AAAAAAAAwQA/AJImmnK_NCsuYzID9nCPkj806l_rwohiwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201220_192934354.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YNpw7uvqpdo/X-kpipbyH2I/AAAAAAAAwQA/AJImmnK_NCsuYzID9nCPkj806l_rwohiwCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20201220_192934354.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Until next time...</span></p></div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-47476393006279302492020-11-26T18:47:00.001-08:002020-11-26T18:47:17.551-08:00Happy Thanksgiving to All!<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This has been a strange year to say the least; what from spending the whole year working from home, schools from home, the global travel and life as we know coming to a pause.. unlike anything any of us would have ever imagined! I can not believe the year is coming to an end..</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Through the twists and turns and the wild ride of 2020, I have still found so many things to be thankful for! I am thankful that everyone in our family and our friends are well.. sure, a bit wary with cabin fever and tired of isolation but healthy and well. Considering the hardships a lot of people are going through, that is a lot to be thankful for to be sure.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">So this thanksgiving, like a lot of families across US, we spent at home, just with the 3 of us. It was different, but special in it's own way. We didn't skimp on any of the dishes or the decoration.. and while the table was a lot smaller than usual, we didn't miss a single bit on the festivities and the spirit of the season.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U0oHFFzX9SM/X8A1VeSvS9I/AAAAAAAAvis/Qwjh7ep2X54bs9sg-SY9-T7zD1lqE0XRgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201126_213125742.jpg" rel="nofollow" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U0oHFFzX9SM/X8A1VeSvS9I/AAAAAAAAvis/Qwjh7ep2X54bs9sg-SY9-T7zD1lqE0XRgCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20201126_213125742.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Our menu was simple - ie, a lot of dishes but all sorta simple. We started off with <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2010/10/roasted-butternut-squash-soup.html" target="_blank">roasted butternut squash soup with ginger & apple</a> and roasted brussel sprouts w/ lemon. Our main dish was <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2018/05/roasted-chicken-provencal.html" target="_blank">baked herbs de provence chicken breast with olives</a> and roasted rosemary potatoes, combined with sides of freshly baked flaky biscuits, sweet potato casserole, <a href="https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/cranberry_sauce/" target="_blank">cranberry maple relish</a> and couscous w/ roasted butternut squash & parsley. For dessert we made a home-made <a href="https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/best-pumpkin-pie-recipe/" target="_blank">pumpkin pie</a> and rounded it all up with a chilled bottle of Riesling and a lemonade for the little one.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uMBlA87siw0/X8A1i0truwI/AAAAAAAAviw/XQnFstKt21Q43z7xGi7F_8oTtATiATzAwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201126_213131699.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uMBlA87siw0/X8A1i0truwI/AAAAAAAAviw/XQnFstKt21Q43z7xGi7F_8oTtATiATzAwCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20201126_213131699.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">We spent the morning cooking - daughter & I. It's a lot of fun involving kids in the kitchen. She made some tea sandwiches and was in-charge of table decoration and tasting. We put on some nice music (which was changed to a Disney kids music station pretty soon :) ) and spent our morning cooking and chatting and afternoon eating it all up!!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Through the thick and thin of it all, I think that is what thanksgiving is all about - finding those special moments with your loved ones and being thankful for all that you have.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Hope you were able to unwind a bit and enjoy a smaller thanksgiving with your family! </span></div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-64394476007970908522020-10-24T14:57:00.007-07:002021-01-12T22:15:47.453-08:00Recipes & Reading Update - Oct'20<p style="text-align: justify;">2020 continues to be a very strange year. For many of us, it's been close to 8 months of working, schooling from home. While I continue to enjoy the no-commute part and spending more time w/ kids parts, a little monotone fatigue is also setting in. To add to that, we went through a crazy fire season in bay area, fueled by (guess what) a rare freak lightning storm event late summer igniting multiple fires across the nearby forests and mountains. For weeks, the sky was filled with smoke and the sun looked like a red orange ball in yellow orange skies. We lost parts of our beloved <a href="https://www.sfgate.com/california-wildfires/article/Where-do-we-start-Santa-Cruz-wildfires-damage-15628620.php#:~:text=Smoke%20hangs%20low%20in%20the,old%20state%20park%2C%20California's%20oldest.">Big Basin Redwood State Park to raging fires </a>and countless mountain communities suffered damages. Only recently that we are back to better weather now.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Anyhow, through all that, here we are in the crisp fall season! Days are getting shorter and mornings are crisper. It's a blissful feeling to sit in the front yard watching the increasing yellows on the trees, fall roses in the air, basking in a nice warming sun, sipping hot coffee. We must all enjoy life's little pleasures!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Cooking has been a challenge of late both with work picking up and the fatigue of the same recipes over and over. So we changed things up a bit last month. I found convenient salad kits at our local Whole Foods. They are great - just mix prepped things together, add the dressing from the kit and serve! We have tried kale ceasar salad, asian salad, greek salad, cranberry walnut salad, sweet kale & Southwestern salad. I pair the salad with a warm soup - either leftovers from a big pot cooked over the weekend or bought from Whole Foods (creamy tomato, carrot ginger, Indian spiced red lentil soup - are all great!). Easy fuss-free lunches! We had a few crazy days when adults were all in meetings during daughter's lunch hour, but the salads are so simple that an 8-year old can put them together and manage to have a healthy lunch with little oversight.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-02Kn8OLYx6Q/X5SfD81HJvI/AAAAAAAAuyE/NuPpgmOJOqkBGUHkZPthKKumvp0Dn8L5ACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201022_183430706.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-02Kn8OLYx6Q/X5SfD81HJvI/AAAAAAAAuyE/NuPpgmOJOqkBGUHkZPthKKumvp0Dn8L5ACPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20201022_183430706.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">Friday and weekends is when we *really* cook. Last weekend, as a nod to fall, I made a simple pumpkin bread from <a href="https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/pumpkin-bread/">this recipe</a>. It came out wonderfully. The only edit to the recipe I made was to reduce the sugar and increase the fruit (pumpkin in this case + cranberries). A slice of this bread with butter on top is a great fall afternoon treat!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_xQO2531k7c/X5SfPqAEmmI/AAAAAAAAuyI/ELwKAJP_xpwPZqGVNGJIx6EEY8F6YxInwCPcBGAsYHg/s3537/PXL_20201012_171414570.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2802" data-original-width="3537" height="508" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_xQO2531k7c/X5SfPqAEmmI/AAAAAAAAuyI/ELwKAJP_xpwPZqGVNGJIx6EEY8F6YxInwCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h508/PXL_20201012_171414570.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">I also got into naan making recently. It's always something I have wanted to try and I was amazed at how easy it was to put together the dough and how tasty it came out cooked on a cast iron pan! Truly restaurant quality... this is a <a href="https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/homemade-naan-recipe/">keeper recipe</a>, I'll be sure to be making it again & again.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M8QynBD4Z30/X5SfcflcaDI/AAAAAAAAuyM/rm_h3H0455IJ0c3167uK3BCM2OrgDeytQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20200905_201718327.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M8QynBD4Z30/X5SfcflcaDI/AAAAAAAAuyM/rm_h3H0455IJ0c3167uK3BCM2OrgDeytQCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20200905_201718327.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">Our fig tree has been overflowing with fruit this year.. though finishing it up has never been an issue at our home. We all love ripe sweet figs and can polish off 10-15 big ones in a sitting :) They are also great added into salads or on toast with goat cheese - yum!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_imBrdbiiXU/X5SfvQL5CsI/AAAAAAAAuyU/L6Oc28dSV70KSIqd8ejv_LuFQXZfBtfwgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20200901_225532819.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_imBrdbiiXU/X5SfvQL5CsI/AAAAAAAAuyU/L6Oc28dSV70KSIqd8ejv_LuFQXZfBtfwgCPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20200901_225532819.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">Another fun treat this summer was grilling Indian papad on an outdoor grill. We have an electric stove which is not much friendly to papad making. I tried microwave method but wasn't really a fan of it.. until my husband decided to throw them on the grill one day. Nicely toasty and yum - great with chopped tomato onion masala on top!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-OpCJ2URqg/X5Sf2dG6STI/AAAAAAAAuyY/_8_v2a9HkgEndEWdF4k6PfitDNoU5DCkACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201017_011232299.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-OpCJ2URqg/X5Sf2dG6STI/AAAAAAAAuyY/_8_v2a9HkgEndEWdF4k6PfitDNoU5DCkACPcBGAsYHg/w640-h480/PXL_20201017_011232299.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Reading Update:</span></h3><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36809135-where-the-crawdads-sing" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Image Credit:goodreads.com" border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jjkl6G33cvY/X5Sf93xMbaI/AAAAAAAAuyc/Czr4DvrRnFI_G25LNc2dbzbkJ5KSOe1owCLcBGAsYHQ/w133-h200/36809135._SY475_.jpg" title="Image Credit:goodreads.com" width="133" /></a></div><br />While my reading velocity slowed down quite a bit recently, I still managed to dig into a few interesting reads. The first was a bestseller <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36809135-where-the-crawdads-sing">Where the Crawdads Sing</a> - a mystery set in the marshlands of south which is also a coming of age story of a young abandoned girl living alone and figuring her way through life. I enjoyed the book - it was a page turner for sure.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48593857-recipe-for-persuasion" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Image Credit:goodreads.com" border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-81YVDHaiWrA/X5SgE-IrvVI/AAAAAAAAuyg/Sd69Jlnxr1QsOCG4VgGvFnYct-YufcqywCLcBGAsYHQ/w133-h200/48593857._SY475_.jpg" title="Image Credit:goodreads.com" width="133" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Second was a portrayal of <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36099972-jane-seymour-the-haunted-queen">Jane Seymour</a>, the Tudor queen #3 of King Henry VIII. I am interested in the history of that era and enjoyed the book of the queen seldom portrayed compared to her well-known predecessor Anne Boleyn. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br />Third book was by an Indian author <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48593857-recipe-for-persuasion">Recipe for Pursuasion</a> - while the book itself was a bit hard to keep going at times, it was interleaved with delicious food writing that kept me from putting it down. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Lastly, my Mom recently made this wonderful knitted/crocheted Diwali Faral plate (snacks) which made our day. Retired after many years of working as a maths professor, now she is able to devote all her time to her passions - which has been arts and crafts of all sorts. She takes a lot of joy and pride in teaching these crafts to the younger generation through her Youtube channel <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/knittingguide/featured">Kalopasak</a> - check it out!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Till next time, folks, hope you have some spooky time watching scary movie, candy scavenger hunt or whatever else you plan to do this Halloween :)</p>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-13773024835850845462020-08-02T17:13:00.004-07:002021-01-10T15:14:07.969-08:00Summer Bruschetta & July Reading/Activities<div style="text-align: justify;">Any time is a good time for bruschetta but, it's at it's best in mid-summer when the tomatoes are at their sweetest and fresh basil is abundantly growing in gardens everywhere. We often make bruschetta in summer - it's our favorite camping food. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">4-5 weekends every summer we go camping to nearby beaches or redwood forests. Only one night spent camping every visit, but it's a lot of fun, and undeniably a highlight of our summer. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">We always make bruschetta when we go camping... it's so easy and a perfect camp food! I pack 3-4 nice ripe heirloom tomatoes, a bunch of basil and usual condiments. Chop the tomatoes finely (seed and all), grate a clove of garlic and add to tomatoes, add handful of finely chopped basil ribbons. Season with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper - and voila, bruschetta is ready! Sometimes I add chopped kalamata olives or mozzarella cheese for an extra oomph but totally optional.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While the bruschetta is resting, we slice and grill the bread loaf using lots of olive oil straight on the campside grill and then rub the freshly grilled bread with a clove of garlic to impart more of the garlicky flavor. Then laden the bread with bruschetta and dig in! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kTAvXoGstVY/XydVItHNVcI/AAAAAAAAtsA/EvEk6W98KG01YCY3cWG97D0SPzN5h6MkQCPcBGAsYHg/s640/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200718192423534_COVER.jpg" width="640" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I don't mind tomatoes releasing water and making a little sauce in my bruschetta, I love dunking the remaining parts of toasts in that and devour at the end. But if you do, just salt the chopped tomatoes and set them aside for 15 minutes, gently remove the water and follow the remaining steps.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This year all the campgrounds are closed.. but we are keeping the camping spirit going by making camping foods in our backyard on the weekends and sharing scary stories under the starlit sky. Here is to hoping the next summer brings us lots of missed outdoor activities and travel :)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>July Reading </i></b></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LtJvXEe9-VQ/XydVbGbyz7I/AAAAAAAAtsM/A_RhoeTBfJQCvs24VUAjZ22hsAn-s8CmACLcBGAsYHQ/s450/1885.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="291" height="230" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LtJvXEe9-VQ/XydVbGbyz7I/AAAAAAAAtsM/A_RhoeTBfJQCvs24VUAjZ22hsAn-s8CmACLcBGAsYHQ/w149-h230/1885.jpg" width="149" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I started July with an ambitious book list but at these times when so much around us is changing rapidly, sometimes a lot of comfort can be found in an old beloved book... a book where you intimately know what happens next and you have read it and enjoyed so many times but still every reading brings you a new round of joy and happiness. One such book for me is a beloved copy of <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1885.Pride_and_Prejudice?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=v8IoauPWrx&rank=1">Pride & Prejudice</a>. I re-read it again and enjoyed every bit of it!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Another good read for the month was <a href="" id="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43818122-the-stationery-shop" name="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43818122-the-stationery-shop">"The Stationary Shop" by Marjan Kamali</a>. It's a sad but ethereal love story set in 1950s Iran, woven with the political backdrop of the time. There are no major spoilers but a story describing political climate of the nation and it's effects on everyday people. I enjoyed reading the book, the culture and the often detailed descriptions of Iranian foods and recipes :)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On the beach reads front, I read "Distant Shores" by Kristin Hannah. I have enjoyed a lot of her books but this one fell off the mark for me.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EFQdqY7HLoI/XydWN5T5zjI/AAAAAAAAtso/7FJfa-i2tcs66o-Pjr-61-ZeXXANmCRBwCLcBGAsYHQ/s475/43818122._SY475_.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="314" height="194" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EFQdqY7HLoI/XydWN5T5zjI/AAAAAAAAtso/7FJfa-i2tcs66o-Pjr-61-ZeXXANmCRBwCLcBGAsYHQ/w129-h194/43818122._SY475_.jpg" width="129" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Last book of July was a juicy mystery by <a href="" id="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51933429-the-guest-list?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=JuLhSksaMB&rank=1" name="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51933429-the-guest-list?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=JuLhSksaMB&rank=1">Lucey Foley "The Guest List"</a>. While not very thought provoking, it is indeed a page turner keeping you glued to the book as often a good mystery can :) </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In terms of activities, on the same theme of familiarity, I binged on the season 2 of Downton Abbey - which is by far my favorite season :) Daughter and I also finished our embroidery projects and spent a wonderful afternoon weaving these hand bracelets - so fun!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1535" data-original-width="2046" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WVR115-f2Kg/XydWibWLBAI/AAAAAAAAts4/hPrXD1cFDRE2sKwo6eMppYkL_SDstKK_QCPcBGAsYHg/s640/IMG_20200717_120037-COLLAGE-COLLAGE.jpg" width="640" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hope you are having a good summer and staying safe!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-32302820793539452232020-07-26T17:43:00.000-07:002021-01-10T13:48:46.955-08:00OT: Kids Craft - Paper LiliesThis is a guest post by my daughter (who incidentally has been pleading, crying and in-turn trying to convince me to give her a guest post once in a while on this blog... but, let's see :) ). To her credit, she does spend a lot of time inventing her own recipes and making crafts. This is one of her favorite craft project this summer. So without further ado, here are the paper lilies. <div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jPHdqwFEhLA/Xx4hdcPRbiI/AAAAAAAAtlg/_xbcNjgtPY0OrfG7QWbyudF-eKnrvIJzQCPcBGAsYHg/w625-h469/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200726172932732_COVER.jpg" width="625" /></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-c5c2c492-7fff-0907-0ddd-584433aa1674"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 16pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: "Pinyon Script", cursive; font-size: 15pt; font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;">How to make paper lilies</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lilies come in different shape,size,and color! It is time to design your own lilies. Even though it is not spring you can still make paper lilies! This is the way you can express yourself, culture, and ideas. Also this is a good craft to do with kids!! If you don’t have craft paper I suggest you use two sheets of regular paper and stick them together. Also, if you still don't want to do that you can use paint paper. If you don't have yellow pipe cleaner you can use whatever pipe cleaner you have unless it is not matching your flower.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I hope you are doing well in the covid 19! Stay safe, get creative, and enjoy this craft!!! </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You will need: Craft paper, yellow <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Anvin-Cleaners-Chenille-Decorations-Creative/dp/B07X2N7L48/ref=sr_1_5?crid=SXXD8TRH4DKQ&dchild=1&keywords=pipe+cleaners+craft&qid=1595810410&sprefix=pipe+clea%2Caps%2C214&sr=8-5">pipe cleaner</a> and green pipe cleaner, pencil, hand, scissor!!</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(if you don’t understand, look at the pictures)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is gonna be fun okay!!</span></p><br /><ol style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0;"><li dir="ltr" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Take the paper and put your hand over it!</span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Trace your hand neatly using a pencil and cut using scissors. </span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fold it like this:</span><span style="color: magenta; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 83px; overflow: hidden; width: 134px;"><img height="104" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/0a0jYWtvyzDxwe8mXkhgHBp5B9tRXX0BUuEHoOFflCmkirIa3Q2c7hftmraClZ6_588B2uQT-LRRCYHdyGMIJ3nNITtLHQgLdFdX_DQ5jWXEBLoDrRQlbIcLXC1oKGaaBop6KU8x=w168-h104" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="168" /></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now with your pen roll the paper like this:</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 85px; overflow: hidden; width: 148px;"><img height="106" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/PKgDaXFJNrMeV6BNYu21BhN70NM5B_6uPZpj9Nm6CN0aT7aBE8b6jH6zHkzxJkgl4QWRLVi-sGB0Taflc7fK8Ev8mzmyI03J0ccy55nVW08catLQgpDLjnBKahuCed65DvWqH9yP=w185-h106" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="185" /></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Take your yellow and green pipe cleaner, fold the yellow pipe cleaner into a small thing,and stick both together, like this:</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 83px; overflow: hidden; width: 111px;"><img height="83" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pg2ddy9nEyw-5PvTDal52Y4XJL7rwPOG7osnQ9YfkN4MJGYegmOoW39sRNFzr0f7UqPUpNeZH1UlwKz4z4rGQRgrdPnBhTv1wxDd4qyUZ0V6_mQFPKHvOLIxX1-7JdOwEvsNrvKB" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="111" /></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now, stick it in your flower</span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: Lobster, cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wrap it in a bow and</span><span style="font-family: "Pinyon Script", cursive; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> enjoy!!!</span></p></li></ol><div><font color="#bf9000" face="Pinyon Script, cursive"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-26Nq22Mcyho/Xx4iwV-H1AI/AAAAAAAAtl0/Q5QHZevWnmsl_KYLVXW7c8TxrkZfdtexwCPcBGAsYHg/w625-h469/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200726172934489_COVER.jpg" width="625" /></div><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></font></div></span></div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-1691546722478111382020-07-25T11:19:00.003-07:002021-01-10T13:48:55.533-08:00Rustic Summer Plum Tart<div style="text-align: justify;">I have been taking daily walks in our neighborhood during this work from home phase. Boundaries between the "work time" and "home time" have become hazy for so many of us, that it helps to set small rituals to remind you of just that. Our ritual is to go for long evening walks across our neighborhood right after I finish my work and before we start dinner prep. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There are so many things I am noticing about our neighborhood that I never did before! Like there is a beautiful creek and an old style footbridge tucked away merely a mile from us (I had no idea!).. and how many of our neighbors have fruit trees in their front yards - all laden with apricots, plums and lots and lots of apples! The apples are still small and green, but the plums are ripe everywhere.. we often see perfectly good plums lying on the sidewalks fallen from a tree laden with fruit.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">As you can imagine, we are over-flowing with plums at our house as well - some given by our young plum tree, a lot shared by generosity of neighbors and our CSA. After enjoying a lot of plums this summer for snacks and deserts, I was left with a bag which was not super sweet and more on the tart-sweet side. What better motivation than make a plum tart then!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0MN64SxF4F8/Xxx3lW1W7GI/AAAAAAAAtiI/LR2o7UTKeFEqAODglJYjpJta2GNgFrqxwCPcBGAsYHg/w625-h469/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200719190952134_COVER.jpg" width="625" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This is a very simple recipe and perfect for weeknight deserts too. I used the <a href="https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/perfect_pie_crust/">pie-crust recipe</a> I always user - but you are welcome to use frozen crust too.. works just as well and a huge time-saver!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Pre-heat oven to 350F.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">To prepare the filling: thinly slice 5-6 plums. Add 1/2C sugar (or less depending on how sweet the plums are), 1/4tsp cinnamon, 1/4tsp salt, 1/4tsp cardamom powder (optional). Mix well and set aside for 20 minutes. After 20 mins, drain the plum juices but do not discard! Arrange plum slices on the pie crust tightly and fold the edges inward to "seal" the tart. Brush the edges of the crust with melted butter. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bake for 40 minutes until the crust is golden and the fruit is bubbling. While the tart is baking, cook the plum juices + 1Tbsp of whatever fruit preserve you have at hand (I used strawberry) until it forms a thick sauce. When the tart is out, brush the sauce on the plums, let it cool completely and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. Enjoy!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YEX7DThVyOw/Xxx4NqH1DCI/AAAAAAAAtiU/fgAzlLsETxAzQkvlQZrItHx7BT_K6imxwCPcBGAsYHg/w625-h469/00000PORTRAIT_00000_BURST20200719183353772.jpg" width="625" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-69510260952756766602020-07-17T17:09:00.002-07:002021-01-10T13:49:26.182-08:00Easy Bread Loaf & Summer Home Activities!<div style="text-align: justify;">I caught on to the COVID home baking trend pretty early on, I think. It started with a need to make a sandwich loaf at home but once I mastered that, I realized that baking bread, even without a bread machine, can be super easy and deeply satisfying - just as long as you have access to flour and yeast! </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">My mind has been set for a while now on learning to bake a crusty bread loaf.. the kind of loaf with thick crusty skin and soft fluffy bread inside that you can dunk into hot soup and enjoy. I came across <a href="https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/the-easiest-loaf-of-bread-youll-ever-bake-recipe">this recipe on King Arthur Flour </a>and true to it's name it was indeed a very easy bread loaf to put together. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I didn't change anything from the original recipe except halving it and making one bread loaf instead of 2. In the hindsight however I should have made 2 for the work of 1.. the one loaf I made in the morning was long gone before the dinner time :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ptZyozjOq0c/XxI72BPFtMI/AAAAAAAAtZI/HQHx9OXx5bYCy53Gaj6bPgO-HRoIKTa_gCPcBGAsYHg/w625-h469/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200711125703557_COVER.jpg" width="625" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I am sure to be making this bread loaf again and again now. A keeper recipe.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A7EYYvU0yK0/XxI8AMXj42I/AAAAAAAAtZM/lzSbYZf48ZUxVD2TW_CiH556Z0LdQqWcQCPcBGAsYHg/w625-h469/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200711131443090_COVER.jpg" width="625" /></div><h3 style="text-align: justify;"><i><font face="verdana">Summer Home Activities:</font></i></h3><div style="text-align: justify;">This summer has been special for my daughter because she got to spend all of it at home, without any summer camps or travels. She was excited about no summer camps - she is at the age where she has gotten over the fancy of the camps and just prefers spending her time her own way. However she was bummed about the no travel plan. Anyhow, she got a promise out of us to make up for it by 2x longer vacation next summer :)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">We did manage to do a lot of fun things at home however and had a lot of summer fun. It was a different kind of summer than traditional summer, but fun-filled neverthless!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">She is quite outdoorsy and likes to learn a new outdoor activity every summer. This summer learning to skateboarding has been her main project. After a few falls and bumps, I think she is coming along quite well!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">We wrapped up our Spanish learning course on duolingo and embarked on Scratch programming. <a href="https://scratch.mit.edu/">Scratch</a> is a programming language for kids - like blockly, where building a game or a program is simple putting the right blocks together. It encourages kids 8-12 to build logical thinking which is a key skill of computer programming but at the same time keeping it fun and exciting. I spent some time teaching her scratch, she attended an online camp and had fun building some fun new games like this <a href="https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/408752593/">obstacle run</a> and a <a href="https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/409435487/">simple translator</a> (being a young coder and all, both games need keyboard and not mobile friendly yet :) )</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I also bought an <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TW564FZ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1">embroidery starter kit</a> and we had fun doing embroidery together on long weekend afternoons. It took us about 4 weekends to finish the two projects - but we had a lot of fun. She did the simple straight stitches and attempted some loops. I finished remaining loops and all the french knots. We are super happy with how it turned out!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2046" data-original-width="1535" height="781" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v-65VCVpueQ/XxI9Dqb8VtI/AAAAAAAAtZc/mvlvKjpdIgQdu6U0aFI2CNM6eQg3aM_ugCPcBGAsYHg/w586-h781/IMG_20200717_120037-COLLAGE.jpg" width="586" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I hope you are all having fun and relaxing summer break and staying safe!</div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-1633709764446162802020-07-11T14:26:00.000-07:002021-01-10T13:49:59.728-08:00Flax-Seeds Chutney (Javasachi Chutney) & Reading Update<div style="text-align: justify;">Javas (or brown flax seeds) chutney is a quint-essential Maharashtrian condiment. Easy to prepare, cheap due to the abundance of flax seeds in the region and super tasty. This chutney is a staple of farm lands, where fresh roti (or bhakri), this chutney with a glob of oil and some sabji can make a flavorful easy to prepare everyday meal.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While flaxmeal (ground flax) is more common in supermarkets across US, for this recipe I prefer using whole flax seeds. You can find them at Trader Joe's or buy bulk from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bobs-Red-Mill-Flaxseed-13-ounce/dp/B072M2FRJ9/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3OTC47083VWW6&dchild=1&keywords=bobs+red+mill+flaxseed&qid=1594501519&sprefix=bobs+red+mills+fla%2Caps%2C223&sr=8-3">Amazon of this Bob's Red Mills</a> brand.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The "recipe" is super simple. Roast 1C golden flax seeds and 4-5 large peeled garlic cloves on medium heat stirring frequently until they release a nutty aroma and are starting to turn brownish. Often flax seeds pop while you are heating them, so be careful not to be to close to the stove. Remove from heat and let them cool completely.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DqF0iZR-gUA/XwotJmdVP2I/AAAAAAAAtII/sdUmI28eQk49jCD3DeC4XfeeAYlPRJzvACPcBGAsYHg/w625-h469/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200621130813857_COVER.jpg" width="625" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Once cool, add the roasted flax seeds and roasted garlic cloves to the blender, along-with 1/4tsp red chili powder and salt to season. Blend until smooth and powdery. Taste, adjust salt as needed. Store in an air-tight container and serve as condiment for any meals! Mix 1Tbsp of this chutney with warm cooked rice, olive oil and salt for a quick meal or add oil to 1Tbsp of this chutney and eat with warm pita breads - yum!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><i><font face="verdana"><b>Reading Update:</b></font></i></div><div style="text-align: justify;">My reading front is still going strong. This stay at home phase has provided a unique opportunity by saving the commute times that I am putting to good use by exercising couple times a week and reading 30 minutes almost every day. Access to kindle and online library makes finding content a breeze!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fq_iiqP4HD4/Xwotkfuls5I/AAAAAAAAtIQ/g-kys9c6lwQm9z6GNnWOZBwKM0D2fCZwACLcBGAsYHQ/s475/53007917._SX318_SY475_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="313" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fq_iiqP4HD4/Xwotkfuls5I/AAAAAAAAtIQ/g-kys9c6lwQm9z6GNnWOZBwKM0D2fCZwACLcBGAsYHQ/w169-h256/53007917._SX318_SY475_.jpg" width="169" /></a></div>I would classify June reading as 2 hits and 1 miss :) I read highly awaited book <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53007917-the-henna-artist" target="_blank">The Henna Artist</a> by Alka Joshi. This is a beautifully told story transporting us back to the 1950s India, Jaipur in particular, told from the voice of a henna artist, Lakshmi, known for her most unique and creative patterns - it's a story of many contrasts, women's struggles and empowerment in a paternal society, cast systems and middle class vs upper class struggles. All in all, this was a true page-turner.. transporting me back to 1950s Jaipur. A must read!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2hEXf2CWmx4/XwotquGPi-I/AAAAAAAAtIU/cGdCbgfqeIcjjQnOD3Ud_QEJAwK8o1CJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s475/35478041._SY475_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2hEXf2CWmx4/XwotquGPi-I/AAAAAAAAtIU/cGdCbgfqeIcjjQnOD3Ud_QEJAwK8o1CJgCLcBGAsYHQ/w170-h256/35478041._SY475_.jpg" width="170" /></a></div>The second hit was this well awaited Marie Benedict's <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35478041-carnegie-s-maid">Carnegie's Maid.</a> This is a book about a young girl, Clara Kelley, leaving her family behind in Ireland to travel to America to support her family and earn some money. She doesn't have much more other than her wits, an uncanny business sense and resolve to strive and do better, both for herself and her family. She ends up as a lady's maid in the Carnegie household of Pittsburgh, and soon her employer starts to trust her business instincts. It is again a story of a woman ahead of her time, with a business sense parallel to the business magnet Andrew Carnegie, but needing to hide her talents and thoughts behind a subdued ladies' main persona. I have enjoyed all of Benedict books so far, so I knew I would love this book, and happy to say it didn't disappoint me :)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v6W6_4I0pDg/XwouCmjo8NI/AAAAAAAAtIk/rqPWOe3_EsgcKTmf9QKrsB74NzJ-eShqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s475/23396040.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="314" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v6W6_4I0pDg/XwouCmjo8NI/AAAAAAAAtIk/rqPWOe3_EsgcKTmf9QKrsB74NzJ-eShqQCLcBGAsYHQ/w170-h256/23396040.jpg" width="170" /></a></div>Third book, and a miss, was "<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23396040-ada-s-algorithm">Ada's algorithms</a> - How Lord Byron's Daughter Ada Lovelace Launched the Digital Age". Ada has been long considered as the original computer programmer, and a key but overlooked figure in the history of computers and programming. I wanted to love this book, I really did, but unfortunately writing was hard to keep up with - not being written as a story and not being quite a well engaging non-fiction either, I finished the book but it was quite a struggle at times.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Anyhow, my July reading list is promising and I look forward to posting about it here soon!</div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-90286697523607183102020-06-20T18:24:00.001-07:002021-01-10T13:50:17.632-08:00Zucchini Paratha & A Sudden Sweet Tooth<div style="text-align: justify;">I love the changing seasons -- like now, a crisp and flowery spring is giving way to hot summers, just as the life we know it is inching back to what is likely a new normal for the rest of the year. The usual bearers of the summer events like end of school carnival, trips to local ice-cream parlor and visits to the magnificent California beaches were very much muted this year... but one thing screamed summer loud and clear - and that is lots and lots of zucchini and stone fruits in our CSA boxes!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">For last few weeks, our CSA box has been overflowing with zucchinis, peaches, plums, nectarines and juicy California apricots. We have no problems finishing any amount of fruit at our home but finishing loads of zucchini is another matter :) This year, along-with grilled zucchini, zucchini "spaghetti" and zucchini raita, one new thing I introduced in our rotation is this zucchini parathas. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-327DO6DtNUs/Xu61c4-mZGI/AAAAAAAAsnY/rBUe7-7WQ6YH-HuEVUDSipRr71BSaWAowCK4BGAsYHg/w625-h469/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200606194541378_COVER.jpg" title="Zucchini paratha" width="625" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>The recipe is very similar to the methi and <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2016/05/chard-parathas.html" target="_blank">chard paratha</a> I have posted before. I used 2 large or 3 small zucchini, grated them fine, salted them and then pressing very hard removed as much water as I can. Instead of discarding the zucchini juices, I used part of it to make the dough. I seasoned the whole wheat flour dough with grated garlic, cumin powder, turmeric powder, salt and chili powder (but skip adding chili powder if cooking for kids). Other than that, it's the same recipe as the <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2016/05/chard-parathas.html" target="_blank">chard paratha</a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">These parathas are very tasty, soft and best enjoyed right off the griddle with a dollop of yogurt or any chutney you might have at hand. Enjoy!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Normally, we don't make a lot of sweets at home. We enjoy sweets once in a while, when visiting bakeries or coffee shops or one of the numerous birthday parties we attend every year. This year however, may be it's the lack of bakery visits or the birthday parties, but suddenly we have all developed a strong sweet tooth and craving sweets at home! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1F3h7VgM9jM/Xu612nMo-gI/AAAAAAAAsnk/89fiy4fDdqM1WPd5TXKr0wlu097NeqlOwCK4BGAsYHg/s4032/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200613200418849_COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="192" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1F3h7VgM9jM/Xu612nMo-gI/AAAAAAAAsnk/89fiy4fDdqM1WPd5TXKr0wlu097NeqlOwCK4BGAsYHg/w256-h192/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200613200418849_COVER.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In addition to the usual chocolate cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, chocolate bundt cake and fruit tarts, I posted previously, I also dabbed my hands at some Indian sweets - mainly this besan ladoo! Believe it or not, this was my first time making it at our home :) I often shy away from home-made sweets because none of us usually crave it, and if it's home you would eat it whether you crave it or not.. but like I say, this stay at home has changed a lot of our palette and what's made at home!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D3z1VYcs5I8/Xu62SoOJgvI/AAAAAAAAsn0/tnb7BwB5Y3wVNiVysT4pS3Qrddn4rdUlgCK4BGAsYHg/s4032/00000IMG_00000_BURST20200531202035847_COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="192" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D3z1VYcs5I8/Xu62SoOJgvI/AAAAAAAAsn0/tnb7BwB5Y3wVNiVysT4pS3Qrddn4rdUlgCK4BGAsYHg/w256-h192/00000IMG_00000_BURST20200531202035847_COVER.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On healthier side, my mid-afternoon pick-me snack has been this very berry cereal bowl with any two types of berries (strawberries and blueberries are my favorite combo) with cereal of your choice and milk of your choice... yum!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">And the bear banana pancake which brought a huge smile to my daughter's face when she found them in her plate our Saturday morning :) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N5YMFeA4mwE/Xu62tXUSNTI/AAAAAAAAsoE/OxPe8xmCx7Iq4cygbjbxhT5SYD4bACD_ACK4BGAsYHg/s4032/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200620094816880_COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="192" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N5YMFeA4mwE/Xu62tXUSNTI/AAAAAAAAsoE/OxPe8xmCx7Iq4cygbjbxhT5SYD4bACD_ACK4BGAsYHg/w256-h192/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200620094816880_COVER.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hope you are all staying safe and healthy - until next time!</div>PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-4679710853939169722020-06-07T21:05:00.003-07:002021-01-09T17:16:40.991-08:00Spaghetti Pomodoro<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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One of the things we miss the most in this stay-at-home phase is going out to our favorite local restaurants. Sure, we can always do takeout, but it just doesn't feel the same without the anticipation of the evening out or the ambiance.</div>
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So instead we have been cooking at home, a lot - but we also crave a few of our go-to restaurant dishes, like this <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2018/05/steamed-kale-with-garlic.html" target="_blank">sauteed kale with garlic </a>from Din Tai Fung or the spaghetti pomodoro from Campo de Bocce. <a href="https://campodibocce.com/" target="_blank">Campo de Bocce</a> is a lovely Italian restaurant chain in Norther California combining scrumptious family style Italian food with the appeal of outdoor bocce courts to play a few games! It's a lot of fun with a large group of family or friends, where you can combine fun of playing a few bocche rounds and nibbling on their amazing appetizers or enjoying a relaxed brunch!</div>
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Anyhow, my favorite dish of their menu is the humble spaghetti pomodoro. I have been attempting to re-create it at home for a while now, but my attempts took a new urgency the last few months. I am happy to say this version I think comes super close! </div>
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What I like about this recipe is that it's simple, easy to put together but very tasty with fresh, vibrant flavors which burst right in your mouth! Pair it with a good Chianti or your favorite dry red wine, and it's a meal to remember.</div>
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Spaghetti is cooked just al-dente with a bite left to it and the sauce is a simple saute of fresh roma tomatoes, garlic, basil, olives and a really good quality olive oil. I am not a fan of pasta with canned tomato sauces, so I like this fresh vibrant sauce with barely cooked roma tomatoes. Give it a try and I am sure you will love it (and won't miss the meat or fancy additions :) )</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SfiGH0dJp_s/Xt22JkGc-2I/AAAAAAAAsdU/q44Bhic0FaIHSdh-z9M9QmoQ4r40bhHuQCPcBGAsYHg/s640/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200601195719258_COVER.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spaghetti Pomodoro</td></tr>
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Recipe is simple: </div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;">Cook spaghetti al-dente in a boiling salted water per the package direction (I use 4 servings of spaghetti per the package direction). </li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">While pasta is cooking, warm few Tbsp good quality olive oil in a large pan. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Add 4-5 finely chopped garlic cloves and cook stirring until the oil is fragrant but taking care the garlic doesn't burn. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Follow-up with 5-6 fresh roma tomatoes, chopped fine. It's best if you can find freshly picked tomatoes either from the garden or farmer's market - but if not store bought would be just fine too. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">All salt & pepper to taste.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Cook tomatoes until they are just about to soften and loose their shape - 5-6 minutes. Turn off the heat. Do not let them become completely saucy, they should soften but partly retaining their shape.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Add a dash of balsamic vinegar, pinch of sugar to balance the acidity and stir well.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Right before serving, add handful of chopped fresh basil and chopped olives. Mix well.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Serve sauce over pasta. Drizzle with a little more olive oil & top with grated Parmesan cheese and chili flakes (if using). Enjoy!</li>
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I don't think olive is in the original version but it's an addition I love it in pasta. But feel free to skip too.</div>
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This spring our garden is flourishing with lots of flowers, lavender and citrus blossoms! Our pomegranate tree is laden with flowers and a promise of bunch of small fruit buds. There is soft soothing aroma of new lavender in the air! It has been a pleasure to sit in the yard and work the hours away!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Native cactus, lavender and pomegranate blossom</td></tr>
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We have also been able to enjoy a few hikes to nearby mountains while social distancing. They have been very relaxing and therapeutic, a time to steal from all the stresses of the work and unease in the world!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mountain hikes - wildflowers, city views and a laden peach tree!</td></tr>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-44092505446451515522020-05-25T17:52:00.000-07:002020-05-25T17:54:05.836-07:00Stay-at-home Food & Activities<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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It is hard to believe we are in the week #11 of stay at home here. Over 10 weeks of home-schooling, 77 days of not going out for sightseeing or dinner and over 230 meals made at home later, here we are!! </div>
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The cycle of the prepping, cooking and cleaning is endless! Managing work and home-school has been a bit of an adventure with kids sneaking on and off into work meetings and parents walking into school zoom :) but on the whole we are settling into the new rhythm well and might I say, even enjoying it a bit. It has been stressful to see the news; but personally also enjoying no daily commutes, no drop-off and pickups and just less juggling social commitments with everything else.</div>
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With so many meals at home, our kitchen has been churning non-stop! I learnt to make a few things from scratch not being able to just go out and buy prepped ingredients - like this dosa and idle batter for example. We always bought dosa/idle batter, but now with the abundance of hours at home, I realized it's actually pretty easy to make batter at home. Home-made dosas and idlis have been making a rotation every-other week at our home and they are always a hit.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1201" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N78Vn1MJroc/XswpNnt_q5I/AAAAAAAAsHQ/79OB6LHx_jYLec1zoMD3KeD1UjjYQoeigCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200411192012542_COVER-COLLAGE.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="480" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dosa & Idli w/ Home-made Batter</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vnewo62B9QY/Xswph0qExQI/AAAAAAAAsHg/I8_oo1U1ZQsw2O71dOr7krJH7C-pv8w2gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200401162136878_COVER-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vnewo62B9QY/Xswph0qExQI/AAAAAAAAsHg/I8_oo1U1ZQsw2O71dOr7krJH7C-pv8w2gCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200401162136878_COVER-COLLAGE.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Home-made pizza dough and bread</td></tr>
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We are also making bread and pizza dough at home. To be honest, given a choice I would still buy store bought bread - because while my plain white bread is coming out great, the whole wheat one still needs improvements and I love the store bought whole wheat. On the other hand, home-made <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2020/04/home-made-pizza.html" target="_blank">pizza dough</a> has been a solid hit! Given a choice, I don't think I'll ever go back to store bought pizza dough anymore.</div>
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To nibble on, we have been baking lots of baked goodies like chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, blueberry mini-muffins, simple chocolate cakes and banana oatmeal bread. The daughter definitely takes the lead in this department :)</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wtImmQQCIM8/XswqEHybg6I/AAAAAAAAsH4/AVgQldRjVhUxA7K8adjXOvwVkLqowrpnwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200328105830256_COVER-COLLAGE.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baked Goodies!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dMg_GZzJM48/XswqPCNYTYI/AAAAAAAAsIE/xNxMDZoYfLcZuQ29FfLbHA-Ahlh0kAVmACPcBGAsYHg/s1600/00000IMG_00000_BURST20200507185341948_COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dMg_GZzJM48/XswqPCNYTYI/AAAAAAAAsIE/xNxMDZoYfLcZuQ29FfLbHA-Ahlh0kAVmACPcBGAsYHg/s320/00000IMG_00000_BURST20200507185341948_COVER.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thai Basil green curry w/ tofu</td></tr>
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While lunches have been simple - left-overs from previous dinner or <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2020/04/wild-rice-veggie-bowl-kindle-love.html" target="_blank">wild rice bowls</a>, <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2020/05/quick-lunch-lavash-wrap-w-roasted.html" target="_blank">veggie wraps</a> or veggie burgers -- we attempt different rotations in dinner to avoid the dinner fatigue. Our recent favorites have been pav bhaji, Thai basil curry with tofu, udon noodles and lots of different pastas!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ggYy-5bL0H4/XswqUQSBHGI/AAAAAAAAsIM/Y2tvW7ILAPkAn6VV1ksKO3fG_-qG9SDSACPcBGAsYHg/s1600/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200525104808772_COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ggYy-5bL0H4/XswqUQSBHGI/AAAAAAAAsIM/Y2tvW7ILAPkAn6VV1ksKO3fG_-qG9SDSACPcBGAsYHg/s320/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200525104808772_COVER.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Very berry pancakes</td></tr>
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Another family favorite has been this very berry pan-cakes. Made with chopped raspberries and blueberries in the batter and a strawberry-orange sauce, it has been a huge hit with everyone and something we will keep making for a few more weeks until berries become scarce with summer.</div>
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Stay at home time has also been filled with lots of reading time for everyone in the family! With less outdoor distractions, I am happily finding little time here and there to make a dent in my to-read list.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vGTU2k1ft4M/XsxmMKcKfWI/AAAAAAAAsLM/DIsex86cQugEsUZQiozF3lXc1ggO1WpFgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/41795733.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vGTU2k1ft4M/XsxmMKcKfWI/AAAAAAAAsLM/DIsex86cQugEsUZQiozF3lXc1ggO1WpFgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/41795733.jpg" width="132" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uLrDYWtWqM8/XsxmG5YzXoI/AAAAAAAAsLI/qrkiI_OcVkYF5RK8zPHAYArLDJbjFZzkwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/51148108._SY475_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="315" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uLrDYWtWqM8/XsxmG5YzXoI/AAAAAAAAsLI/qrkiI_OcVkYF5RK8zPHAYArLDJbjFZzkwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/51148108._SY475_.jpg" width="132" /></a>Most notable read was <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51148108-the-tenth-muse" target="_blank">The Tenth Muse</a>, which is a story of an Asian-American woman mathematician at a time when it wasn't common for women to be professors or pursuing careers in mathematics. It is a story of the challenging Math problems she solves, strength, courage in her profession she exhibits as well as her journey to finding her lineage along the way and finding who she really is. Overall a highly recommended read!<br />
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On the thought provoking side, I also enjoyed reading <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41795733-range" target="_blank">Range: Why generalists triumph in a specialized world</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44778085-red-at-the-bone" target="_blank">Red At the Bone</a> as well as <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35425236-the-night-diary" target="_blank">Night Diaries</a>. And on light side, lots of good page-turner mysteries and Tudor English stories like the Couple Next Door, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13261812-gone-girl" target="_blank">Gone Girl</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8148078-the-other-queen" target="_blank">The Other Queen</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52673376-katheryn-howard-the-scandalous-queen" target="_blank">Katherine Howard</a>.<br />
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On the kids reading front, my daughter's school shared a subscription of <a href="https://www.getepic.com/" target="_blank">Epic! Reading</a> e-reading platform with her, which has been a life-saver engaging her with countless books and hours at end!<br />
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My daughter and I are also crafting a lot - we recently took up sketching, which does not need a lot of supplies; and next we are taking up embroidery.<br />
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However the most fun activity we are sharing together is learning Spanish on a free <a href="https://www.duolingo.com/" target="_blank">Duolingo</a> app. I have always wanted to learn a new language, so with more time at home we took up Spanish. Today is our 30th day of learning. We only spend about 15 minutes a day after dinner but we are making good progress and most importantly, having a lot of fun speaking Spanish to each other!<br />
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I am looking forward to summer ahead - enjoying the warmer weather and perhaps a chance to get out a bit more!</div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-77199050934944339802020-05-09T10:36:00.001-07:002021-01-10T13:50:43.369-08:00Polenta with Ultimate Spring Vegetable Saute<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Early in the lock-down days, I subscribed to CSA deliveries. So every week a box full of fresh veggies and fruits gets delivered to our home. It has been a huge source of respite and inspiration to see the familiar farmer's market fresh veggies during these lock-down times - not to mention I feel good about playing our part in supporting local farms who are feeling particularly challenged as local restaurants slow down.</div>
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This polenta with spring veggie saute is a spur of the moment creation from looking at the CSA box and thinking of what to make. Last week we got fresh fava beans in pods, early asparagus shoots, celery, young garlic and some mint sprigs. </div>
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<b><i><u>Preparing fava beans:</u></i></b></div>
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To prepare fava beans, remove them from pods (get your kids to help with this step! :) ). Boil water in a small pot, add fava beans to boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove and drench them in ice-cold water to stop cooking. Remove from the icy-water and shell the beans to remove the outer skin. That's all! Young spring fava beans are super flavorful and are a treat!</div>
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<b><i><u>Preparing polenta:</u></i></b></div>
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Add 5C water to a large pan along with a Tbsp of olive oil and some salt. Let it come to boil. Then reduce heat to simmer and slowly while stirring continuously, add 1C dried cornmeal for polenta. It is important to keep stirring so the cornmeal does not stick together. If it does, just try to mash up and separate with the back of your spoon. Cover and let cook on low heat simmer for 15-20 minutes until you get the desired consistency. Some people like it loose and some other like it more congealed. Add water as needed. Once polenta feels done, add another dash of olive oil and mix well and remove from heat. </div>
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<b><i><u>Preparing veggie saute:</u></i></b></div>
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While the polenta is cooking, prep the veggies. Chop the asparagus, celery, green garlic (or regular garlic cloves), handful of olives and capers. Heat olive oil in a large pan. When warm, add garlic and saute for a few minutes until fragrant. Add fava beans, asparagus, olives and capers. Saute for a few minutes. Remove from the heat and add fresh chopped mint (or basil would go well too). </div>
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<b><i><u>Assembly:</u></i></b></div>
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To assemble, in a plate, create a bed of warm polenta. Add spring vegetable saute. Season with any sauce or chutney you may have at hand (I used left-over mint cilantro chutney) or just plain good quality olive oil. </div>
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Enjoy!</div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-32979764117628508112020-05-02T11:11:00.001-07:002021-01-10T13:51:10.019-08:00Quick Lunch: Lavash Wrap w/ Roasted Veggies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I finished week 8 of working from home this week! Wow, but who is counting, right? There are so many things which are so heartbreaking about this current phase we are in, not to mention sufferings of so many; but just to look at the bright spot a bit, I find myself starting to like the perks of remote working too - like no commute to and from work (which in bay area traffic is saying something!), no waking up early in the morning to prepare for school drop offs and the best perk of all has been getting to spend sooo much time with my daughter. </div>
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We are always running around so much, this new forced isolation has helped us connect better as a family and just slow down the pace of the day a bit. Still not to say that the weekdays don't fly by! By the time Friday afternoon rolls, I am just about ready to shut the work laptop off and spend the next two days reading books, playing board games and baking some treats or just napping!</div>
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Lunches have been especially tricky as I am often back to back in work meetings; so most days lunch is left-over from the dinner last night. But on days where that's also not available, I see myself going back to the two tried and trusted quick healthy lunches: <a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2020/04/wild-rice-veggie-bowl-kindle-love.html" target="_blank">the veggie bowl</a> and this lavash veggie wrap.</div>
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We have a CSA subscription which delivers a fresh box of veggies and fruits every week, so we often have some veggies in the fridge waiting to be used up. Lavash is a thin unleavened bread made in Tandoor which is eaten in many parts of Asia. I like it best because it's ideal for wraps! It's thick enough to hold everything in without being dry or chewy. We get <a href="https://www.goodeggs.com/sfbay/californialavash/traditional-lavash/56c0036bfa25ea0300f0a547" target="_blank">this brand</a> from our CSA, but any other brand that's pre-cut for wraps would work equally well I think.</div>
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The "recipe" is not a recipe at-all but rather an "assembly" which is perfect for hurried lunches.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0_RbNuT9NMY/Xq23jx90K3I/AAAAAAAArP4/5Tptg-vcN0cxuch7eBPJrbQSyGM5l0MpQCPcBGAsYHg/s640/00100dPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200501125556498_COVER.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lavash Wrap w/ Roasted Veggies</td></tr>
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There are a few components to the wrap:</div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>spread</i></b>: first spread the lavash with a spread of your choice. Hummus, pesto, chutneys or cream cheese - whatever you have at hand. Spread a layer evenly on the wrap.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>filling</i></b>: I add roasted veggies (broccoli florets, carrot slices, mushrooms - roasted at 400F for 15 minutes) or raw (cucumber slices, tomatoes, lettuce, olives).</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>cheese</i></b>: optional but I love a sprinkling of mozzarella on my wrap.</li>
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That's it. To make it easier to roll, I add filling on one side of lavash leaving the other side empty and roll as tightly as I can to make a log. You don't need to tuck the ends in. Once rolled, slice the wrap in half and use toothpicks if needed to hold it together. </div>
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Enjoy! </div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-38307034823803669562020-04-09T21:42:00.000-07:002021-01-10T13:51:21.360-08:00Home-made Pizza<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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At our home we do Friday pizza nights. The pizza is usually "home-made" but with store-bought dough. I have always used Trader Joe's dough which is convenient and makes good pizzas. However as is right at this time, we are trying to not hit the stores for every small thing and trying to make alternatives at home as much as possible. </div>
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So I decided to try my hands at making pizza dough. Surprisingly it was extremely easy and so tasty, making me go "duh" why haven't we made it before. Home-made dough while being very easy to put together was so much more flavorful than store bought one. It elevated our pizza 10x notches! I don't think I'll be going back to the store bought one anytime soon, atleast not on days when I have time to let the dough rise.</div>
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I loosely followed this <a href="https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/pizza-dough-recipe-1921714" target="_blank">Food Network</a> recipe but changed the proportions to suite the amount we need and also tweaked to the ratios that had worked for me with the flour I am using in the past. If you are new to dough baking, I recommend to follow the FN recipe as is.</div>
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<b><i>Dough:</i></b></div>
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Add 2C AP flour, 2tsp sugar, 1tsp salt, 1 packet instant yeast, 1Tbsp oil and 1C warm water (110F temp) to mixer and mix and knead until the dough forms and is soft. Put the dough covered in an oiled bowl and let rise for 2 hours or until doubled in size. After 2 hours, punch the dough, make into 2 balls and let sit for 10 minutes while you prepare sauce and the toppings.</div>
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<b><i>Tomato sauce:</i></b></div>
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Warm olive oil in a pan, add 2 chopped garlic cloves, 1 large tomato chopped, dash of balsamic vinegar and dried basil, salt & pepper and let cook for 5-10 minutes. </div>
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<b><i>Toppings:</i></b></div>
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Slice onions, mushrooms, red pepper, olives, pineapple - whatever you would like to top your pizza with.</div>
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<b><i>Assemble:</i></b></div>
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Roll the dough into a crust using flour and oil as needed. Top with tomato sauce, cheese and toppings.</div>
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<b><i>Bake:</i></b></div>
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Bake for 20 minutes in a 450 pre-heated oven. Rotate half way so all sides cook evenly. Enjoy hot!</div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-63297863248433780692020-04-04T20:25:00.000-07:002021-01-10T13:51:21.360-08:00Wild Rice Veggie Bowl & Kindle Love<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I love eating veggie bowls for my work lunch. However I don't make them at home as often, so with this stay-at-home period I am hoping to add a bowl into the lunch rotation once a week!</div>
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Bowls are super simple and super adaptable to what you have at hand - making them particularly attractive options these days. A good bowl essentially has a few components, each prepared separately and put together at the end customized to eater's taste:</div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Cooked grain:</b> this serves as the base. It can be plain cooked rice, wild rice, couscous or quinoa.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Protein:</b> baked tofu is my favorite but can also use roast chicken or boiled egg.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Veggies:</b> roasted broccoli, sliced onions, avocados, cucumbers, carrots, chopped cabbage, micro-greens all good :)</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Garnish:</b> sliced nuts or sesame seeds</li>
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A good bowl comes together quickly and is a healthy powerhouse. This version with wild rice is my particular favorite. The only other thing I would add to this is sliced avocado but we were out of avocado and so skipped it. This is how I put it together.</div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Wild rice: </b>in instant pot cook 1C dried wild rice per package instructions. I added 2C water, a little olive oil, pinch of dried rosemary, 3 peeled cloves of garlic, salt & pepper. Cook for 28 minutes high pressure and then natural release.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Baked tofu:</b> marinated tofu in peanut butter + soy-sauce + dash of water + sugar for 15 minutes. Then baked at 400F for ~15minutes. Broiled 1 minute at the end.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Roasted broccoli:</b> roasted broccoli at 400F for 15 minutes with salt, pepper and olive oil. Remove from oven when broccoli looks to slightly charred. Drizzle with lemon juice.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Veggies: </b>slice onions, cucumbers.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><b>Garnish:</b> Top with sliced almonds.</li>
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Enjoy!</div>
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A few weeks ago when I realized that we were going to be in this work from home phase for atleast a few weeks, along with pantry buying, a spur of the moment purchase I made was a kindle! We borrow books quite often from library - my daughter is an avid reader and goes through atleast 20 books in 2-3 weeks and is always asking for something new to read. So not having access to our local library and being stuck at home was going to be hard.</div>
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However all public libraries now a days have an amazing collection of e-books on their e-library sites usually served through apps like Overdrive or Libby. The only concern is that reading on phone for an extended period of time can be stressful to eyes. And in addition I don't like to leave a phone or laptop with kids unattended. So Kindle made perfect sense. Our library app was compatible to the kindle and so we borrow e-library books and send them to Kindle.</div>
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I love the e-ink display - it's so easy on eyes and feels paper-like and very light. The lack of distraction when reading is a huge plus. My only quip is the UI interface is a bit sluggish and with gray-scale only it's not the best experience to browse new books and choose what to read, so I do the choosing the next book part on a phone, but once a book is chosen and pushed to Kindle, it's the best e-reading experience.</div>
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Anyhow, we are loving it a lot. Our e-library has more than plenty choices for kids and I am finding a lot of high value content there too particularly as our local librarians are curating content to appeal to the demographic and the suddenly increased reading appetite of their patrons!</div>
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I hope you too are finding creative and relaxing ways to take your mind off of the news and spend the time well and stay sane!</div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-91810486438501989022020-04-03T17:19:00.002-07:002021-01-10T13:51:30.829-08:00Home-made Sandwich Bread Loaf<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This social distancing is inspiring a new wave of home-bakers don't you think?! Along with the usual suspects such as hand sanitizers, wipes and toilet papers, it was interesting to see that even the humble bottle of yeast was out of stock almost everywhere! I guess during these uncertain times simple skills like bread baking can be deeply comforting. Or perhaps baking serves as a creative and therapeutic outlet to battle the anxious news surrounding us... whatever may be the reason, I am happy to say that I have joined the bread baking bandwagon as well :)<br />
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So on a Sunday morning we set off making our first loaf of bread. I wasn't ready to attempt a sourdough starter, and besides we eat simple sandwich bread loaf a lot often than a crusty round loaf.<br />
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I followed <a href="https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/basic-homemade-bread/" target="_blank">this recipe</a> to the T and to excellent results! The bread came out just as we expected and the whole process start to finish was very easy. A perfect recipe for beginners who don't have a bread machine or want to make it the old fashioned way.</div>
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The bread was light, fluffy and very tasty! Best of all it filled our kitchen with wafting aromas while it was baking. A few tips I found very useful though not listed in the original recipe:</div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;">It is very important to proof the yeast properly if using active dry yeast. I tend to be impatient in this step. The yeast started bubbling after full 5 minutes and it's really worth the wait of upto 10 minutes until it's done it's thing before proceeding to the next step.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Also important is the temperature of the warm water. I find it really needs to be around 110 degrees. If you have a thermometer, worth checking for preciseness. If not, remember that your body temperature is generally 98, so 110 will feel warm to your wrist but not very hot.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Equally important is the kneading step. It's time to workout those hand muscles! Every now and then I watch the Youtube primer of how to knead to get the techniques right. Kneading is a big step which defines how well the bread will be structurally.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Other than that let the bread rise twice and bake to it's perfectness!</li>
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We enjoyed warm bread with butter and jam - it truly was so good! Once you start baking your own bread, it is hard to go back to store bought and not compare :)<br />
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Meanwhile the natural cycle of the seasons and trees and plants goes on. It's a beautiful weather outside with early spring flowers blossoming everywhere.<br />
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Whenever possible I take meetings sitting outside on our patio or in the garden and just marvel at the beauty of the nature! Here are some early poppies and daisies from the garden. Enjoy!<br />
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-65921714577462793122020-03-29T11:21:00.000-07:002021-01-10T13:51:54.394-08:00Chocolate Bundt Cake & Another Week of Stay-At-Home <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I now completed 3 weeks of working from home; and 2 weeks with family working from home. The second week brought with it much needed smoothness in our daily routines. We went for walks everyday; made simple dinners every night which served as left-over lunches for the next day and found us managing our work time with daughter's remote learning time without anyone having to pull their hairs apart - all in all, it was harmony and I think we are settling into this new normal :)</div>
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I found some strategies which work well for us, the first is time limiting the news hour and coronavirus topic at home to evenings 5-7pm, which hugely helps manage stress/anxiety particularly as kids are always listening, even if we don't think they are! The other is shifting the kids school week so that she has no work on Mon/Tue two of my busiest workdays while she makes up for those days on our weekends. </div>
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We also set aside some time every week to just have family fun - cook something together, play board games (chess and Jenga are current favorites!) or watch movies (+1 to Disney+, great kids and NatGeo content). </div>
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I think this phase is going to be bring a tactical shift into how we cook and eat and bring back the forgotten value of family time. For a while now, a lot of us have been so busy in our lives (both professional and internet social) and reliant on modern day luxuries like DoorDash or countless restaurants or frozen meals that we forgot the basics - the basics of cooking from fresh ingredients and the basics of enjoying leisurely dinners with good ol' family time. I wonder if this phase will force us to explore those skills and if so, I think we are going to come out of it stronger as a society! </div>
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The vegetable patch and a fruit orchard in our garden was always a luxury until now, but now it's a much necessary supplement of fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs for our meals (even though it's tiny in quantities today). I find myself baking bread out of necessity instead of curiosity. It's challenging times for sure, but I do think as a society it will help us reconnect to some of the basics of simple fresh family meals and enjoying each other's company. </div>
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Anyhow, on the food front, this week saw us making simple meals like egg curry w/ roti, spinach daal w/ rice, fajitas, burgers and simple cauliflower curry w/ tortialla. We did manage to squeeze in a few luxuries like this no-fried batata wada and also a very yummy chocolate bundt cake!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">stay-at-home week2 meals</td></tr>
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This chocolate bundt cake was a sudden inspiration... while going through pantry I found an old half used packet of chocolate cake mix. The only additional ingredients it required was 1 egg and few Tbsp oil, we had that so we quickly put the batter together. It's been many months since I made a cake, so while looking for the regular cake pan, I instead came across our bundt cake pan (another well loved kitchen utensil catching dust in the pantry) and decided to tweak the cooking times a bit to make a bundt cake instead. </div>
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The result was this delicious light and fluffy chocolate cake. I waited 10 minutes after removing the cake from the oven before doing "the flip"... and we cheered like the staff of NASA when it made the "pop" sound noting the cake had successfully landed from the pan to the plate!</div>
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We dusted it with powdered sugar and ate with a few fresh chopped strawberries on the side. It was delicious! These small impromptu luxuries I feel are super important to keep the spirits up, particularly with kids. Enjoy and stay safe!</div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-34362626317294978532020-03-28T11:10:00.003-07:002021-01-09T17:18:04.491-08:00The No Fried Batata Wada (Potato Fritters)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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One of the silver linings for me during this stressful stay-at-home period is that it's the first time I really spent so much time with my daughter at home! Otherwise it has always been daycare or school or summer camps - we took vacations together, sure, but those were generally time spent away from home. </div>
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It has been lovely spending more time and doing more activities with my 8 year old. One of which has been trying new recipes or making something we haven't made in a long long time.. generally by her "farmaish" or request. This is how one rainy and cold afternoon we decided to make batata wada.</div>
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Batata wada is a crowd pleaser deep fried dish which almost everyone loves! However I am not a fan of deep frying and also at these times wasting a whole bunch of oil after frying seems a bit risque move, don't you think!<br />
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So we settled on a plan B - which is using my trusted <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Pro-Logic-P7A3-Cast-Iron-Aebleskiver/dp/B00063RXQA" target="_blank">aebleskiver pan</a> (or appe patra) which had been sitting catching dust at the back of the pantry. I bought mine on Amazon many years ago to make appe, dahi wada but it's also great for making healthier versions of popular fried items.</div>
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Aebleskiver pan is a heavy cast iron pan with 7 holes for making small fritters or pancake balls. Due to it's uniform heat and high temperature, you can "fry" in it without using a whole lot of oil. I use 1tsp oil per ball and the edges get nicely crispy. </div>
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The recipe is super simple! We boiled potatoes in the afternoon and afterwards it took me about 30 minutes start to finish in the evening. We served it with a simple raita which my daughter put together with yogurt, salt, home-grown mint and cumin powder. Yum!</div>
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<b><i>Recipe:</i></b></div>
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<i>Serves hungry 3</i></div>
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<b><i>Ingredients:</i></b></div>
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<u><i>For potato filling:</i></u></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>2 medium sized russet potatoes</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1 shallot - finely chopped</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>3 cloves of garlic - finely chopped</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>handful of cilantro</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1 Tbsp oil</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1/2tsp mustard seeds</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>3-4 curry leaves - torn</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1/2 tsp turmeric</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>salt to taste</i></li>
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<u><i>For batter:</i></u></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1C chickpea flour or besan</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1/2 tsp turmeric powder</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1 tsp cumin powder</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>1/4 tsp chili powder (optional)</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>salt to taste</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>water to make batter</i></li>
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<b><i>Recipe:</i></b></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Boil potatoes. I used instant pot high pressure for 12minutes and then natural release. Once they have cooled to handle, remove the peel and mash finely.</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Heat oil in a non-stick pan, when hot add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Once the seeds start to pop, add onion and garlic and cook until onion starts to brown stirring often. </i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Add turmeric, mashed potatoes, salt and mix well.</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Cook for a few minutes and remove from heat. Let cool.</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>While it's cooling, make batter by gradually adding water to chickpea flour + spices and salt. The consistency of the batter should be pancake like but on the thicker side. It's important for the batter to be thick so it stays coating the filling while the wadas are cooking. If it's thin, add more chickpea flour and adjust spices.</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Make small balls of the potato filling using your hands.</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Heat aebleskiver pan on medium high heat until it's hot. Add 1/2 tsp oil in each hole.</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Dip the potato ball into the batter and quickly transfer it to the hot pan. Let cook for a few minutes until the bottom edges have crisped but not burnt (you can peek after a few minutes - reduce heat if necessary).</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Flip the wads in the pan. Add 1/2 tsp oil on the sides of each pan hole so the bottom can crisp again.</i></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><i>Remove from pan and serve hot with your favorite condiment - raita or ketchup!</i></li>
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Stay safe everyone!</div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2886862773009992008.post-74038929435613165152020-03-21T17:37:00.003-07:002021-01-10T13:52:07.690-08:00Pantry Meals & Social Distancing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Here in California we finished our first full week of social distancing and shelter-in-place. It's an unprecedented time which calls for unprecedented actions and co-operation from everyone. </div>
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The usually overflowing bay area freeways were empty this past week and home streets were lined with parked cars as most of the residents stayed home and practiced social distancing and did the best they could juggling work from home with kids' school from home.</div>
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It was hard to get going at first but I think I am settling into this new rhythm. Even as we complain about small inconveniences, I keep reminding myself that we are amongst the more fortunate ones - not having to worry about living paycheck to paycheck or having jobs to go back to or with elderlys or folks with special conditions to care about.</div>
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Like others we spent a bunch of time getting groceries and pantry organized. We stocked our pantry with staples such as different kinds of <u>rice</u> (plain, wild rice, jasmine rice), <u>beans</u> (black beans, kidney beans, navy beans, garbanzo beans) both dried and canned, <u>lentils</u> (split peas, urad daal, red lentils, french green lentils), <u>pastas</u> and <u>noodles</u> (spaghetti, bowtie, udon and soba noodles) as well as other <u>whole grains</u> such as cracked wheat, couscous, quinoa and cornmeal. Most of these are regular residences of my pantry, so it was mostly a task of checking up on stock and refilling if low.</div>
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Our freezer is generally well stocked too, with some <u>frozen veggies</u> like peas, spinach and <u>fruits</u> like blueberries, pineapple cubes and some <u>frozen ready to eat meals </u>from Trader Joe's - dumplings, palak paneer and Thai curry.</div>
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The <u>dairy</u> was more challenging - we stocked up on milk, eggs, yogurt, cheese and also bought some shelf stable milk and soymilk.</div>
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It is a time I feel good about having invested in basic kitchen skills and a trove of quick cooking recipes to dig into. Somehow the fact that I can whip together bread if needed with ingredients from pantry is deeply assuring and satisfying!<br />
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We have been cooking and eating all the meals at home - which is a challenge in itself juggling everything else, but like everything else it's settling into a new rhythm of it's own.</div>
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Cooking and baking has always been very relaxing and rewarding activity for me and it's a daily comfort to cook for and enjoy meals with the ones you love.</div>
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Here are a few largely pantry based vegetarian meals we have enjoyed these past 2 weeks:</div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2018/12/creamy-polenta-with-shitaake-mushrooms.html" target="_blank">Polenta with sauteed mushrooms</a></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Pasta with roasted grape tomatoes</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2014/03/quick-cooking-quesadilla.html" target="_blank">Black Bean and Cheese Quesadilla</a></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2014/02/soba-noodles-with-stir-fried-vegetables.html" target="_blank">Noodles with Stir-fried vegetables</a></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2013/01/masale-bhat-spiced-rice.html" target="_blank">Spiced Cauliflower Rice (masale bhat)</a></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Simple vegetable sabzi</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Gobi parathas</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://ginger-and-garlic.blogspot.com/2016/03/rustic-apple-tart.html" target="_blank">Apple tart</a> as a special Friday evening treat!</li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Social distancing week 1 - pantry meals</td></tr>
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Here is to wishing us all health and happiness and that we all keep our sanity through this period of social distancing and to the world a quick recovery from the current crisis!</div>
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PJhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05221269312196722068noreply@blogger.com