With just the right amount of spices, sweet carrots and fluffy rice, this carrot rice recipe is my friend Devi’s signature dish. Paired with yogurt raita and vegetables such as green beans, potato curry or cauliflower curry, this carrot rice makes a delicious lunch option. Continue reading Carrot Rice
Category Archives: From the Kitchen
A Flavorful Vegetarian Lunch at Devi & Del’s
My Dad visits us here in California about once every year, and every time he visits we are invited for lunch or dinner at a few of our friend’s homes. One of our dear friends are Devi and Del, and over the years going to Devi and Del’s home for lunch when Dad visits has become almost a tradition. The last time we headed over to Devi’s we were treated to a delicious vegetarian Indian lunch. Our friend Rose and her son Alex joined us too, and we all had a lively afternoon discussing cultures (India, U.S. and Philippines) and U.S. politics. Oh my what an animated debate we had – all in good humor 😄. Continue reading A Flavorful Vegetarian Lunch at Devi & Del’s
Cauliflower Leek Soup with Chives and Sour Cream
Cauliflower Leek Soup with Chives and Sour Cream
Ingredients:
- 1 large cauliflower cut into medium sized florets
- 2-3 leek stalks white and light green parts finely cut
- 2 medium potatoes peeled and cut into small pieces
- 4 tbsp finely cut chives
- 5 cups broth
- 1/2 cup sour cream (soup can also be made without the sour cream)
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
Continue reading Cauliflower Leek Soup with Chives and Sour Cream
Carrot Ginger Tea Cake with Lime Glaze
Here I was waiting at the dentist’s office for my kids to get done with their appointment and as is typical of me I picked up a few magazines in the waiting room to occupy my time. Funny thing about these magazines, even though I subscribe to a few of the same magazines at home, somehow when I read them at the doctor’s office, the articles seem more interesting – go figure 🤔. This recipe for carrot ginger tea cake is from Sunset Magazine, and is one of those magazines that I do subscribe to and get a nice crisp issue mailed to me at home. I know I went through the issue when I received it, and I know I must have seen this carrot cake recipe, but not until I saw it at the doctor’s office did it look enticing enough for me to want to make it. I came home and promptly looked for that issue and found the recipe. Continue reading Carrot Ginger Tea Cake with Lime Glaze
Kale and Shallot Risotto
I had just picked a basket full of fresh kale from my veggie patch and wanted to cook something delicious that same day for dinner. I asked the kids what they were in the mood for – kale pasta? kale paneer curry? or kale risotto? The answer was a unanimous “Kale risotto please!” Kale risotto it was for evening dinner. Continue reading Kale and Shallot Risotto
Berries and Cream & Berries and Cream
My Berries and Cream climbing rose has to be one of my all time favorite roses. Of all the rose bushes I have in my garden (and I have a lot) Berries and Cream puts on the most spectacular and prolific floral show.
Berries and Cream pumps out non-stop blooms all season long, and what beautiful blooms these are. Shades of pink, pale yellow striped with white, this is one showstopper of a bloom. No sooner are one flush of blooms over there are already new buds on the bush ready to bloom. This goes on all season long all the way until fall. Winner of a bush she is!! I absolutely love my beautiful, fragrant, thornless, climbing rose Berries and Cream! Continue reading Berries and Cream & Berries and Cream
Creamy Chèvre on Baguette with Fig Jam
Artisanal creamy cheese topped with fig jam on a baguette, it’s a positively decadent combination. This is the easiest appetizer to pull-off with the most luxurious of results. Our friend Shelley brought this delectable cheese appetizer to a holiday party that tasted and looked amazing. Most of the fun in making this appetizer is shopping for the ingredients. Selecting the right creamy cheese, picking up a sweet fig jam, and grabbing an awesome baguette – this is a great opportunity to try something new and have fun with it! Pick a cheese that is spreadable and packed with flavor for this wonderful appetizer. Any type of soft flavorful creamy cheese such as Blue Cheese, Brie, Camembert, Chèvre, or Gorgonzola will work. Continue reading Creamy Chèvre on Baguette with Fig Jam
Sherry Cake
Not too sweet, with the lovely fragrance of sherry, this is a wonderful cake that is the easiest to make. This sherry cake recipe is my friend Swati’s favorite. She has been raving about it and baking this cake for years. It is one of those cakes that is almost always on her dessert menu when we get together for dinner at her place. Continue reading Sherry Cake
Eat Better Not Less. 100 Healthy and Satisfying Recipes by Nadia Damaso
Eat Better Not Less. 100 Healthy and Satisfying Recipes by Nadia Damaso is a cookbook I received as a Christmas present from my daughter Anjali a few months ago. She presented it to me with the caveat that though the majority of the book was vegetarian, it wasn’t hundred percent vegetarian, but she thought I would really like it anyway because it had lots of beautiful pictures (my daughter knows me well 😀). I am such a sucker for pretty photos and gorgeous presentation 😃. Anjali asked me after I opened her present “Don’t you love the cover? Isn’t it so pretty? I know you like books with beautiful photos. This one has lots of pretty pictures and the recipes are healthy too.” I tell you, on a cold December morning opening a present with such beautiful pink and green colors and fresh colourful vegetables, it did bring a smile to my face 😊. Continue reading Eat Better Not Less. 100 Healthy and Satisfying Recipes by Nadia Damaso
Artichoke & Jalapeño Cream Cheese Sandwich
I made this artichoke jalapeño cream cheese sandwich for lunch more times than I can count when my eldest daughter Sri was in high school. Once Sri went off to college I stopped making these sandwiches completely, there was no need. Then recently while shopping at Costco I came across a tub of the same artichoke jalapeño spread I used to use in those sandwiches – which was LaTerraFina chunky artichoke and jalapeño dip, and I got a craving for those cream cheese sandwiches I used to make. I picked up a tub of LaTerraFina artichoke and jalapeño dip and all the necessary ingredients for that nostalgic sandwich and made it for lunch recently, they tasted just as delicious as I remember 😋. Continue reading Artichoke & Jalapeño Cream Cheese Sandwich
