I crave curry...

When I was considering what type of man I wanted to marry, I remember that one of my absolute unwavering desires was to find someone who was willing to be fearless with food and willing to try different types of cuisines. Thankfully, Zac's palate has been plenty stretched, especially since his mission in Vanuatu precipitated many exotic eating opportunities. I hear stories all the time about how cat tastes or how fatty bat meat is. Whenever I ask him what he misses from the foods of his mission I usually hear about how good their roasted taro was and about the coconuts. He also tells me that tin meat is so much better abroad, which I totally agree with because spam and corned beef in a can did taste a whole lot better in the Philippines than it ever has here in the States. Anyways, last night I was craving indian food. Initially I was planning on a cauliflower and potato curry, but while I was at the grocery store I decided a meatless dish would not fly with my husband very well. So I ended up making a Chicken Curry Tikka Masalsa meal and it was divine. I always thought that the term "Masala" was referring to a specific dish, but it is simply referring to a mixture of spices ground together and used as a seasoning. For my Masala I crushed coriander, cumin, and fenugreek seeds and then added the tumeric, curry, garlic and ginger. It was so good.

I have watched video upon video of how-to's for naan and I realized that I need a tandoori oven...unfortunately that wont be a possibility for a very, very long time but when that time comes, we will feast on Naan and all the other Indian delicacies that are 100% better when cooked in a tandoori.

This was my naan, still pretty good. I just used a very simple recipe and topped it with olive oil and fresh coriander.

If you have not had Indian food before, trust me it is so delicious. Most of the mixes in stores/jarred sauces are pretty good too. You will not believe how well all the spices work together.

Bon Appetit 

The makings of tomato soup

I know, I know it is almost August and it sounds a bit insane to be making soup especially since we live in a basement apartment and the ventilation is not the best, but this is so worth it. This soup is so good. Many tomato soups I've tasted are too tangy and almost have marinara sauce feels to them, but this one is rich and addicting. Zac and I are visiting his grandparents tomorrow and will be bringing them lunch. I've been thinking about tomato basil soup a lot lately so I figured this is the perfect opportunity to make the soup and to splurge on some fresh basil. We also got a loaf of bread from Kneaders (which is slowly become a favorite over Panera) so I am excited about making asiago croutons.


As for dessert, we will have to wait until the morning if it will even be edible. I planned on having a meyer lemon panna cotta, but I accidentally used the same wooden spoon I used to sweat the onions on the panna cotta base! The moment I realized I had done so I gasped so loudly Zac thought I had cut myself. I almost thought about restarting but according to Zac, he could not taste the onion so I am hoping it will be okay.


I definitely recommend this soup. The recipe is a hybrid of many, and really, really, really, works well with a grilled cheese.

Bon Appétit!

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

5 Roma tomatos (quartered, and roasted with olive oil, salt, pepper, 2 fresh thyme sprigs, and 3 gloves of crushed garlic at 400 degrees)

1/2 an onion cubed and sauteed in olive oil until sweet and translucent

2 Cups of fresh basil (very lightly packed) and roughly chopped

5 Cups HOMEMADE or low sodium chicken stock (Pacific is really good)

2 teaspoons of castor sugar

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 can whole peeled tomatos

1/3 cup heavy cream


After onions are sauteed (about 15 min), add basil, roasted tomatos, stock, and sugar. Bring to a boil and let simmer on low for 30 min. Add salt and pepper to taste. Blend until smooth with an immersion blender. I usually add the cream at this point (and you should only omit this step if you have the heart to deprive yourself of the full creamy tomato basil soup experience).