I would take my 4-year-old son to the park near the Japanese Tea Garden almost every afternoon to play. After a couple of hours of play time, we would sit down by the tea house and have green tea with almond cookies.
Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is currently celebrated all over the world by over a billion people. San Franciscans take pride in honoring diversity; this includes celebrating Diwali! On Sunday Nov. 12, 2023, the Outer Sunset Farmers Marker & Mercantile was buzzing with activities including crafts, a cultural exhibit, a sari show, Indian themed dances and a cooking demonstration with food sampling to share this beautiful holiday with the community! This was the first outdoor celebration of Diwali in the Outer Sunset of San Francisco. And, the OSFMM plans to repeat Diwali and other cultural celebrations in the future.
One simple sweet my mother made on Diwali morning has left me with deep and fond memories. It is called Sheera – also known as simple Halwa in some parts of India. Sheera is often served as prasadam (gods leftovers) to the attendees of Hindu temples after a worship ceremony.
Kadhi is a North Indian soup that is prepared with a variety of methods, with one common denominator; it is always made with yogurt and besan (garbanzo or chick-pea flour).
I have not bought jams from a grocery store ever since I moved to California, some 50+ years ago. And I have raised three children, frequently making them PB&J sandwiches for lunch. Now that the kids are grown, I still enjoy making jams, sometimes for myself or to give them away to friends.
The summer season in San Francisco’s Sunset and Richmond districts is hardly noticeable as we don’t have hot sunny, summer months. But this should not prevent us from doing summer things, such as planning a picnic or a cookout.
Besides being sweet and flavorful, corn is also a healthy food. Corn is rich in vitamin C, an antioxidant that helps protect your cells from damage and prevent cancer and heart disease. Yellow corn is a good source of the carotenoid, lutein and zeaxanthin, which help in maintaining healthy vision.
Zucchini is available all year in most parts of the United States. It is an easy vegetable to grow in the summer, even in the foggy parts of the San Francisco Bay Area. Once these summer squashes get growing, you will have so many that you will have to find new recipes. Good recipes can turn this vegetable into a centerpiece.
Some South Indians believe that “curry” came from the Tamil word “Kari” (meaning a sauce), but then the North Indians would argue that “curry” is derived from the word “Kadhi” (meaning yogurt soup).
Depending on how you plan to serve this beet borscht, it can be thick or thin; it can vary in form, content and consistency. I like my beet bortsch with lots of red broth. You can modify the recipe by adding more vegetables, such as potatoes (or even beans) to make it thicker.
I prepare food for a lot of vegan folks who do not consume animal products for various reasons, such as to be healthier or to help the environment or to respect animals’ rights to live. Then there are those people who cannot tolerate dairy or cheese. So, I have to come up with ingredients and options that are suitable for these diets.
Home-made sauces are usually tastier and can be more nutritious if you prepare them with right ingredients. Once the sauce is made, it can be refrigerated for up to a week or frozen for a longer period.
Thanksgiving celebrations in the U.S. started with Native Americans and Europeans sharing food after the harvest. However, many people today do not realize the vital role the Natives played in cultivating crops such as corn, squash, beans, tomatoes, and berries and sharing this knowledge with the pilgrims.
Pumpkins and other orange vegetables, such as sweet potatoes, are abundant with a variety of nutrients, such as vitamins A, C, E and K, and minerals, including potassium and iron.
This cabbage recipe is easy to prepare and affordable to make for a large crowd. Besides being inexpensive, cabbage prepared using this method is delicious!
