My Vegetables/Herbs Garden

I consider myself lucky to be raised in a family where blooming of flower or vegetable is considered an occasion. I have fond memories from childhood seeing my parents always talking about how to mend and care our garden. We have always had flowers in front and side of the house and different kinds of vegetables in back as long as I can remember. Mom would always offer flowers to God every morning from our garden. We had luxury to have home grown vegetables almost all winter.

So when I got married and came to US, I have always wanted to continue this tradition. Unfortunately, I did not have an apartment so far with outdoor space. Hence when we moved to this new place last winter, I was eagerly waiting for summer. (Though my parents are quite pro, I myself had never done any job.) I shared this idea of having few plants with my husband. He did not sound as enthu as I was but he left everything up to me.Finally one fine evening I went to Home Depot, picked few vegetables which I will be using frequently. I was quite disappointed to find that all of them require direct sunlight at least 6 hours a day since direction of my balcony does not support it. I read tutorials online and watched videos and yes, kept my fingers crossed.

It has been couple of months now and all of them are fully grown. This year I have only 4 of them but next year I intend to have more, thinking to add parsley, jalapeno and oregano. And yes, I am indeed happy and satisfied.

Sweet Cherry Tomato

Sweet Green Pepper

Basil (I use fresh ones during summer and dried leaves during winter, I use it in pasta/pizza sauce and salads)

Mint (This has been my favorite. It hardly requires any care and I use it almost everyday in Raita, Chutney, Tea and Salads)

100 Recipes!

100 recipes in less than a year..that too juggling between home and work! It indeed feels great. I just want to stop by and share things about me and my blog.

My mom had always been very much strict about me learning cooking. I hardly paid any attention in the beginning, but after a while cooking started giving feelings of satisfaction and independence. Then I decided to learn all those dishes which I like very much, so I do not have to buy them or be dependent on someone to make them for me.  I got basic training from my mom but I actually started cooking on regular basis during my stay in Mumbai. For more than 2 years, we cooked lunch and dinner every day amidst heavy work load. This gave me confidence that I can cook every day if required. I became very independent after I got married and came to US. I was the sole authority of the kitchen and very well utilized time exploring different cuisines and grocery stores during my earlier days (When I was not yet working). My mom always told me about a marriage that a way to man’s heart is via stomach. And luckily, I got a perfect match. A husband who could admire any experiment I carry out in the kitchen.

Whenever my experiments turned out successful, I started taking a picture and sharing it with my mom. Once in a while mom would ask me for the recipe and I would feel so proud about it. Once when I was arranging all recipes in a cookbook, I thought why not to start the blog. I was not sure how far I could go with this so until now I did not even publish or share it with friends. But today I am happy to write here.

I started this blog to note down only variety recipes. I do have some every day recipes when they turned out exceptionally delicious. I have noted down recipes only after successfully trying them out. I believe, cooking is an art but anyone with interest can excel at it with patience and practice. Cooking a tasty dish once in a while with help is not a big deal. But cooking everyday and managing everything from grocery to cleaning, avoiding any waste of food, making sure about nutrition, bringing variety and keeping budget factor in mind is some task.

This blog has made me more disciplined and meticulous about what I cook. I am looking forward to many more recipes

Happy cooking and happy eating and now, happy writing!

Preserve strawberries

We both love strawberries with cool whip and in a milk shake almost round the year. But during cold days they are not easily available. Even if they are, they are not as sweet as they are in summer and also quite expensive. So usually, at end of the summer I’ll buy them in bulk and freeze them for winter. I have tried different methods to preserve them but the one described below suits me the best.

Procedure

1. Cut the tops off and thoroughly clean them

2. Gently pat dry them with clean towel and arrange them in a plate upside down (So flat surface is at bottom) such a way so they do not touch each other

3. Keep this plate in freezer uncovered for 2-4 hours so berries become hard and easy to handle

4. Now store them in a tight container or a zip loc bag in a single layer

They remain good for at least 2-3 months

Stonewell Kitchen

The other day we went to National Harbor. I fell in love with this place not only because of Harbor beauty but also because of small designer shops across the street. One among them was Stonewell Kitchen. I had always heard about Gourmet Kitchen Ingredients, but never happened to see where they are actually sold. Watching food network always makes me curious, what kinds of spices are being used by big chefs? I had also read about Ina Garten, that before becoming full-time chef, she and her husband owned a gourmet kitchen shop in NY for about 18 years. We spent about 15 Minute inside the shop and I was completely mesmerized by its arrangement, it was no less elegant and stylish than any designer boutique!!

They had different sections for different kinds of jams, sauces, dips, salsa, dressings and finally, some utensils. The beauty is that you can almost taste everything. They offer you to taste all the varieties with cheese crackers. I did not buy anything this time, but next time I’m gonna buy some salsa and dip mix for sure. Now I know what to buy :)