There are some dishes we make when there’s nothing in the refrigerator. There are some dishes we make when you have no time at all. There are some dishes we make that are purely comfort food and remind you of home. This dish is all of those things for me………
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What’s your favorite dessert?
I couldn’t pick just one. It’s coffee cake one day, falooda another, or a simple gulab jamun, which I always love.
While San Francisco is famous for it’s Golden Gate Bridge, cable cars and earthquakes, it’s also very famous for its restaurants. There are no words to describe the popular sourdough of San Francisco, it’s amazing. The food truck festival is a very popular one. The Ghirardelli ice cream is just to die for. My mouth just waters with the memory of the English muffins from Model bakery. Ahhh, so good. Little Italy has some beautifully created dishes as well. While burritos are considered sacred here, Chinese food is like an institution. We have some very very popular chefs who have great restaurants, and I’ve been to a lot of them. It is a food heaven filled with culture and beauty.
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A pepper vegetable soup with lentils, so so good and perfect for cold weather. Vegetarian Mulligatawny – Spiced Vegetable Pepper Soup
One of the main things that makes me smile about this soup is its name. The word is derived from Tamil (South Indian language). Mulliga means pepper, and tawny/tanni means water. I speak that language, so you can imagine why I find it slightly amusing.
I have had my share of this soup in restaurants, not because I love soups, but only because I was intrigued by the name. Because soups were not part of meals growing up, we were adventurous and just had to start off very daintily with a soup at restaurants. When a bowl of soup was kept in front of us, I always had this expression: like how could this be pepper water? Some served it with a mango relish, some were soupier and had tomatoes in it. Chicken broth was used in many and chunks of chicken were found in some. I even had mulligatawny soup once which was so bombarded with cream that I wanted to chat with the chef. Honestly though, I have no clue what the original was and how it came about.
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Eggplant is a love or hate kind of a vegetable. Most of our household belong to the latter. A reason that this is my first eggplant dish on the blog:). In the words of one of my friend, ‘this is a curry even a non-eggplant lover would enjoy’.
It’s just that growing up I was never fond of aubergines/eggplant and dad would sit next to me for hours staring and waiting for me to take a small bite. Time would go by slower than normal..tic toc tic toc. I didn’t give up, I didn’t eat. He gave up..poor dad. Although not a big fan then, now I am. I have found a formula that I love. Just that now, hubby will eat a burnt toast but not eggplant and he is the most non fussiest person I know. Oh well…to our post.
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Have you ever asked yourself, “If I were to re-live the last 10 years, would I do some things different?” I definitely ask myself that sometimes.
We rush to achieve perfection in everything, and try to juggle a ton of stuff when all we can do is manage one. After all, we are just human. I would like to change small things. I didn’t have to vacuum everyday. I didn’t have to buy that perfect gift and drive around 4 hours to find one. I really didn’t have to eat that whole bag of chips (although I enjoyed it then). I would’ve loved to visit family back in India more often.
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Happy November!!
There’s something about the cooler weather, twinkling stars as early at 6.00 p.m., and all the festive pumpkins and persimmons in the grocery store. Everything screams of holidays, parties and food. Everyone gets in the mood of perfecting their pies, the sides and their birds.
The appetizers are some of the last to be remembered. Don’t you think?
I have a great one for you. Just make a lot of it and have some bottles of chutney ready to go for your guests, they’ll want it.
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It’s October, it’s Autumn. To me, it’s the start of a lot of baking, cooking, festivities and entertaining. I hope everyone’s as excited for Fall, Pumpkins, Warm Spices, and Soups.
All of that can get overwhelming at times.
But, sometimes, even too much of a good thing is really good, like this soup!
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Being a foodie has always made me think in one perspective, the sensual experience of eating is all in the head. I’ve always felt garlic is a package of surprises. You can use it in every possible innovative way, and there’s a new surprise each time. Now let’s hold onto this thought for a while…
Our bags packed and we are ready to get this thing going. We drove four hours to this beautiful site with winding roads. We reached our destination and were able to stretch our legs a little. Tall redwood trees, green and white tents, sounds of birds chirping invited us. It was hot, but we felt cool under the shade of the tightly packed trees. The tall trees towering above called us in a way with their outstretched branches. The warm sunlight streaming in was definitely inviting. We parked our cars and decided to poke around some more. Little did I know, I’d see the shadow of a bear that night…
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You’ve heard it many times, read many experiences and you will hear it many more times.
When I stepped out into the cold chilly San Francisco airport as a new bride, I really had no clue what I was getting into….
I walked into a blank canvas in every sense. A large apartment with not a chair to sit on. No pots and pans, no spoons, I felt almost helpless. Really helpless and very thankful because for the name God, I could not make a decent coffee. Eating out was the only option until I got really bored of it….
Being human is like a huge tide. Some days it’s beautiful, and others it’s terrible. The brain is crazy and so complicated, and I love it. Life is a journey. No amount of work or distractions can actually interrupt this beautiful and well desired journey….have you ever searched for a friend?
As I sit with my friend on the stone bench waiting for the last of the musketeer to come, I watch lots of colors, girls giggling, and a gush of sand rising. We have to get to our first period, but she hasn’t come yet. …