Valencia is the undisputed home of the paella. Do you know what paella is? Paella is a rice dish. The most popular version is a seafood paella but Valencia is known for its green vegetables with duck/rabbit/snails/chicken paella with a special seasoning. The Valencia paella is supposed to be the original paella. The Spanish are proud of their paella. Paella Amor's blog has so many photos of the world's largest paella made in a huge pan that holds 13,000 lbs of rice. The 4,300 sq. ft. paella pan was stirred by giant cranes. How fascinating! I was always so curious to taste what authentic paella tastes like, so in 2017, we found a really good deal on Scott's Cheap Flights and took a flight to Valencia, in Eastern Spain. You know me. I was not about to kill any animals or fish so I called several places before this Spanish trip to find a spot that would serve me up some vegetarian, almost authentic paella. And, I did. We made our way down to an area called Passeig De Neptu. It was indeed a beautiful area, right by the beach. Here, we found a restaurant, right on the beach called El Coso - which had both vegetarian and gluten-free options. What you see here is a medium-grain rice (looks a bit like arborio but less creamy). It was full of eggplant and zucchini and you can taste the saffron too. No beans, or carrots or peppers or peas - but I wish it did. We did not order any alcohol but we saw the award-winning La Papica wines everywhere. Apparently, La Papica has a legendary restaurant down the street from where we were as well as four great wines. The restaurant is frequented by celebrities and has been around since 1898. The next day, I went around the streets of Valencia looking for a paella pan. I had spent time at home browsing paella pans on Amazon, but I thought getting the real thing from Valencia itself would serve me well. This was a really good idea, because I got lucky and found the pan size I was looking for. I also bought a paella seasoning and the paella rice. Very grateful for this cultural experience. I am looking forward to making paella at home on Friday, March 27 - because it is National Spanish Paella Day! ¡Buen provecho! If you would like to celebrate with me, you can find these things on Amazon. Note: This is not a sponsored post. I was not paid to mention any of these brands or wines or restaurants. I am just documenting my experiences.

Today, we ordered pick-up from Tara's Himalayan Cuisine 's Venice Blvd location. They also have a Brentwood location, by the way. I found the Himalayan cuisine to be quite unique and influenced by several countries: India, China, Nepal and Tibet. Here is what we ordered: Happy to report that their vegetarian Momos were great. This is a Nepalese-style dumpling made from flour, filled with veggies and then steamed. In our order, we got six handmade dumplings. We also ordered their Chow Mien. This dish is influenced by Chinese-style stir-fry noodles and has a bunch of mountain spices. It was quite tasty, and although I don't like squash in general, it tasted quite delicious in this dish. In addition, we ordered the Chana Sadeko, a chickpeas, cucumber and tomato cold salad, slightly sweet and definitely citric. That was one of my favorite items. Finally, their Thukpa Sherpa's Stew was lovely and perfect 'soup' for a cold winter day. It had the perfect mix of vegetables and noodles simmered in spices in a medium-spiced broth. Thukpa is eaten frequently in the Himalayan 'Sherpa' culture. I recommend this restaurant. I know we will be back! Who are the Sherpas? The Sherpas are an ethnic group. They live high in the Eastern Himalayan mountains, and many have fantastic climbing skills. Most Sherpas belong to an ancient sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Their diet is starch-heavy (lots of potatoes), vegetables, noodles and meat. Himalayan Mountain cooking uses a lot of turmeric, ginger, garlic, cumin and szechwan pepper. Their spicy stews are great to keep the cold away. Their yak-butter and yak-meat are popular. This article will tell you more about the Sherpa Diet for Legendary Mountain Strength.

Lets start here. I began preparing for this COVID shit show a couple weeks before all hell broke loose here in California. My grocery was done, I had everything at home to keep my family safe for a month. I even had a day schedule for my kid and a family meal plan for each day of the month. Let that not surprise you. My friend AB says, I am built for disaster. But I gotta say, slowly but surely...I am losing my shit. And I know, I am not alone. I am fed up of cooking and cleaning. I am tired of recording my University lectures that most of my students are not really watching. I crave alone time. I've put on the weight that I spent six months last year trying to lose. My muscle mass is gone because I can't row at the gym anymore. I am drinking more wine than I really should. My partner's job has been just insane and non-stop - and that means I am doing everything else in the home, except his job. I still can't find toilet paper or an Amazon grocery delivery slot. I agree that my issues are so tiny in comparison with what's going on around me but I am definitely feeling that contextual stress - Such despair on my social media feeds and on the news. We lost a family member in India last week. I have a friend in Detroit who has lost 13 of his friends. Two people I know lost a parent. Two more found out their dads had cancer. A student with a documented disability has serious anxiety because two of her family members were admitted to the hospital. Another student is now living in a trailer that leaks. A couple students in the restaurant industry have lost their jobs, some in retail are afraid they will get sick and infect their older parents at home. Several of my friends in healthcare are on the front lines. One friend had to lay off a bunch of her team members. Another had to close her practice and lay off ALL her staff of ten years. It's just all really sad and depressing. Yesterday, I watched a three-hour MBUSD board meeting online. Budgets are being slashed. Amazing teachers are being laid off. The Music program is on shaky grounds. Students and parents are holding on to some hope that there may be in-person graduation ceremonies. Conversations are around how we need to grade students this year, struggles with teaching online, and if district schools will open again this year. Really, all the same conversations that we are having at the college level and for our students. I am already so exhausted with what's going on around me but I think that we are in this for the long haul. The shit show is about to get a lot more shittier. We are seeing more furious reactions to Trump's tweets or Fauci's comments, depending on which camp you are in. More folks feeling lost, or suffering. Some are dying. There are supposed medicines that work, and then they don't. Conspiracy theories. Prayers vs. science. People demanding to open beaches. Folks gathering (!) to protest stay-at-home orders. You may or may not call them covidiots but in all honesty, people are just sick and tired. And understandably so. So, where do we go from here? Do we wait for this shit show to be over, for the beaches and the schools to open, for the social media shaming to end? How long do we wait for our life to go back to how it was? Do we let the storms pass and wait for the sunshine? Do we wait for Godot? Truth is, we have no choice but to brave what comes our way. We need to be strong enough not to let this virus hold us hostage. Yes, there are losses, sorrows and sad stories. This is a terrible time in our lives. But we have to make our way out of this darkness. And while all of us have different realities, we have to push ourselves each and every day to work on our dreams, to live our stories, and to create and enjoy happy moments in whatever way we can. Positive thinking will help. A willingness and an open mind to look for that silver lining will make all the difference. Smell a flower. Watch a plant grow. Meditate. Give each other massages. Call an old friend. Foster a puppy. Write a blog. Call a parent. Make a new friend online. Pray. Read a book. Draw. Watch something funny. Sing. Learn a skill. Entertain your children and be entertained by them. Play a board game. Light a candle. If you can, donate to food bank or feed staff at the hospital. Be grateful that you have a roof over your head. Celebrate that you finished a book. That the earth is healing. Little steps to a happy soul. Let's not wait for the darn sunshine. Don't surrender, resist. Find inner joy, despite of the storms. You got this.

This brand of coffee has been here since 1990. It is a small-batch roaster that focuses on organic coffee, impacting communities both locally and at origin. It was this mission that caught my eye. I just celebrate brands that believe in fair trade practices and also participates in community events. And I am not really a coffee drinker but this coffee, I like. Strongly recommend. PS: I don't mind their teas either. Probably best as afternoon tea, as it is has a super light profile.

La Brea. Saturday morning 10:45 AM. Here we are, in mood for a pastry. The line is long, we wonder how much we would have to wait. I can't but admire the industrial planters that are outside on the sidewalk. There is a huge outside dining area. It looks welcoming and communal but it's full. Their parking lot is, too. We are asked if we have pre-ordered the pastries. Apparently, you go to exploretock.com and pre-order food in advance. There is a separate pre-order window. We had done no such thing, and I am now thinking this was a waste of a trip but then we are told we can still order pastries at the counter so we decide to wait in line. The menu could be easily accessed with red labels on the floor but then someone handled us a physical one too. Most folks are here for the French-inspired brunch. Us, not so much. We had already ordered Ethiopian food, and we were picking up baked goods for the week. Soon, we were inside. Really high ceilings and so much on display. We were definitely in for a treat! We picked up a bunch of different things (Raspberry Pistachio Kouign Amann, a savory Danish, a fruit tart) from the bakery, see below. We also picked up a bag of chocolate meringue cookies and biscotti. After this COVID nightmare ends, we will be back here. Unquestionably. Their menu has several vegetarian items, perfect for brunch. And, this place has great reviews, it's an easy sell to throw a brunch party here.

The Torrance Bakery has been a South Bay staple for 25+ years. It is best known for its cakes. For almost 30 years, The Daily Breeze newspaper has invited friends, neighbors and customers to vote for their favorite people, places and things. A few weeks ago, we saw that the Torrance Bakery was recognized as the best bakery in South Bay (Southern California) by Daily Breeze. We are new to the area. When someone wins an award, we are always curious about WHY. So, we made our way down to Torrance to find out what the buzz was all about. There was a line outside when we went but it went quick. There were tables outside too but everything was taken. We picked up a bunch of stuff: A slice of cake, a cupcake, a cookie, a macaroon, a vanilla donut w/ sprinkles, a plain croissant and a bran muffin. They packed it all quite well. We refrigerated all the bakery items and consumed them over a whole week. My personal favorite was the chocolate ganache cake - no cream, just chocolate and fudge, just fabulous. My daughter's favorite was the cupcake with a colorful marshmallow candle on the top. Everything worked out perfectly. Lovely experience. We'll go back someday.

When we first moved to Los Angeles, we made our way to a town called Calabasas . Of course, my daughter was hoping to spot a Kardashian or Miley Cyrus or Brittany Spears or Justin Bieber or Selena Gomez - because you know, that's where they all live. Imagine her disappointment when she saw NO ONE. My goal, in contrast, was to check out a local hang called Pedalers Fork . And, disappointed I was not. This restaurant, folks. It rocks a bike theme. Even the restrooms are something to write home about. They have an outdoor and indoor, a huge bar, and a little bike store at the back. They also roast their own coffee beans and the smell is incredible in their coffee area. And the food is awesome. We ordered a few breakfast items and could not resist their fresh orange juice mimosas. One thing we don't see in too many restaurants is giant sized coloring worksheet for kids. My daughter is used to getting smaller sized sheets but this one kept her busy for a while! The service is fantastic and I highly recommend this place! Note: This is not a sponsored post. It's a cute spot so want to tell others about it!

Traditional cooking methods. Delicious food. This place is a FIND! Very unassuming and in a super industrial area, no signs, warehouse feel but simply great food. Eatalian Cafe in Gardena is a pretty large facility with crispy-thin Italian-style pizzas, decent size portions, great gelatos and desserts and good wine. Nice servers. This is a great spot for vegetarians. Call (310) 532-8880 to make reservations. Their address is 15500 S Broadway, Gardena, CA 90248 They also deliver. One time, we got food delivered from Eatalian to LA Ale Works , which is a wonderful child-friendly brewery with indoor-outdoor spaces. It took an hour of planning ahead of time and scheduling the delivery - everything was perfect. My rating for Eatalian: 8.5/10. Note: This post is not a sponsored post. I just like the place and so I am writing about.

I am going to make this quick. If you like ice cream and you are into multicultural flavors, check this place out. It's in Westwood, in what we call ' Little Persia'. And be prepared to wait in line. Saffron and Rose is a Persian ice-cream shop. The founder, Ali Kashani-Rafye began making ice cream in Tehran 75 years ago. His photo is on the wall of the shop. The ice cream uses whole milk and has authentic flavors - saffron, dates, rose and pistachio. It feels premium with delicate flavors. Ingredients seem natural and vegan options are also available. We bought a couple scoops to try - Rose, saffron, dark chocolate and mint chocolate chip. We took a pint of Orange Blossom for home. Interesting tastes, all of them. Overall verdict: The ice cream is pretty amazing. Some recipes go back 2400 years. The rose flavor reminded us to Roohafza. Anyone interested in Persian ice cream and its history, look up Bastani Sonnati. This is the traditional Iranian ice cream. If you have terms such as Falooda, and Sharbat, know that they are from Iran and have interesting histories.

Looking for classic, old-fashioned ice cream? This is it. Welcome to Fosselman's in Alhambra, ladies and gentlemen. This store has been serving up ice cream for 100 years. The ice cream is delicious, real quality. I am told this is the oldest ice cream shop in Los Angeles. A 100-year traditional recipe is what separates this ice cream from so many others. We visited this store on a hot summer day. It was the perfect solution to the heat. I think my complaint was TOO MANY FLAVORS! But that's a good problem to have. We got a parking spot right in front of the store but there was still a line outside. Lots of locals here, it is definitely a popular store. Just look at the colors and flavors. Just amazing. Last year, Fosselman's celebrated their 100th year, and I am sure they are here to stay. If you are a LA-local, you have definitely had their ice cream somewhere. You may not have visited one of their two retail shops, but these folks have 500 wholesale clients! Retro by design, this reasonably-priced ice cream shop is definitely a LA-must visit.