Soulful Creations

  One day after I land, Maya ji made me some lovely authentic Maharashtrian vada pav (bread with potato mash, a spice mixture and hot green peppers). I never imagined that Vada Pav would be this really light meal despite being fried (so you can of course then imagine that it would be easy to shove a few down the food pipe!). That was my second breakfast by the way... I need to get the recipe from her, will post it later.

I have left my postdoctoral positions- yesterday was my last day. I am sure most people are sane enough not to attempt making nearly 15 pieces of jewelry overnight- I did because I am INSANE but hey who cares- it  was a boat load of fun especially since I have not made any pieces recently (I had this gnawing fear of having lost my creativity). These pieces look good- don't they! I could not leave out the boys, could I- so they got cookies- made this seeded chocolate chip cookies (recipe from Martha Shulman, of course with my own modifications)- these cookies were delicious!!   I also made these cards- stamps and distress inks are your friend!

Do you have those moments of wanting something so bad- well I had one this weekend. I was eyeing this gorgeous chocolate cookie recipe on Oh She Glows (an awesome vegan blog, might I add) all of Friday (yes, yes even while I was at work). Sunday afternoon after a short one hour nap, I woke up, went to the kitchen and made these damn yummy cookies. Wet ingredients: 1 tablespoon ground flax mixed with 3 tablespoons water 1/4 cup virgin coconut oil (do not melt) 1/4 cup vegan butter  1/3 cup unpacked brown sugar 1/3 cup natural cane sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Dry Ingredients: 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt 3 tablespoons cocoa powder 3/4 cup gluten-free rolled oats, processed into flour  3/4 cup GF all purpose flour 100 grams finely chopped dark chocolate (1 chocolate bar) Directions: Preheat oven to 350F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, mix together th

As a part of our January book pick - it was time to read Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin and make something inspired by the book. While I did finish the book and the challenge a while ago, I forgot to write up a post. Book Review: The book set in post-genocide Rwanda revolves around Angel Tungaraza, a Tanzanian who moves to Rwanda with her husband Pius and her children (well technically her grandchildren but her own kids were dead so she and her husband are raising their grand kids). She has a cake business and her cakes are pretty popular- every time a client comes in to order a cake, Angel puts on some tea, and her customers pour their hearts out before they order the cake.  I found this book extremely cloying. Angel could do no wrong...she helped everyone, listened to everybody's stories, made beautiful cakes, took care of her children...  In one short sentence- I did not like the book. I read the book while drinking chai, an Indian variation of the Rwandan milky t

I love to read books and I love to cook- so "Cook the Books" event called out to me, what more can I say? When I didn't want to just sit around and catch up Breaking Bad episodes leading up to the finale yesterday, I threw these buns and some great vegan-gluten free strawberry cupcakes in the mix.  The book chosen for the bi-monthly event Cook the Books is Sarah McCoy's "The Baker's Daughter "- a story about that intertwines food, history and a great narrative (toggles between WWII times in Germany and the present). I am just about a third done and so far like what I have read. I will post the review once I am done reading but in the meantime I leave you with these gorgeous buns that are traditionally made on St. Thomas Day that falls on Dec 21st (which also happens to be the shortest day).   Thomasplitzchen Buns 1 cups all-purpose flour 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 cup butter 1/4 cup raw sugar 1 tsp baking powder 1/4 cup almond milk Filli

 This labor day weekend, wise guy and I set off to Padre Island, a 3 hour drive that turned out to be more like 5. The drive was not so great with me pouting ( to indicate my petulant annoyance!) all the way and the wise guy deciding to stop at a random Mexican joint in Refugio for dinner (it seemed like a popular spot except our innumerable ways of saying no carnitas seemed quite ineffective!). Anyway once I set foot on the beach all was forgotten. Funny how the ocean has that effect on people. And we found a great place to eat- JBs German Bakery where the smell of freshly baked bread and the sights of pristine German engineering kept us going back for more. This picture of a gorgeous grilled chesse sandwich was taken in color and then converted to black and white.  Submitting this to Black and White Wednesday started by Susan, now taken on by CindyStar . This week the event is hosted at Cook almost Anything .