New ingredients and tools!

I'm back.....after more than 2 months! This is the longest break I have ever taken from my blog....and what do I say?! I was travelling for a good one and half months in that time, without my laptop. And the other two weeks were spent in preparing for and then recovering from the travel. Not that I am complaining! But the good part is that I have loads to share with you from my one month visit to the US of A. Some new experiences and new stuff for my kitchen.

Needless to say, USA is the perfect destination for any passionate cook. The variety in terms of kitchen equipment and ingredients is mind-boggling! I wish I could have carried some 100 kilos of baggage from there, and most of it would have been sitting in my kicthen. But sadly, owing to my limited luggage space, I had to choose my buys carefully. Apart from a stash of macadamia nuts, dried cranberries, blueberries n cherries, hazelnuts, coffees, etc, here's some things that I can't wait to use.

Some new tools to help me in my kitchen adventures....a garlic mincer, a ceramic knife, and a microplane zester. The garlic zooms works great even for a single clove. It's much easier to clean than a garlic press, and perfect for when you want minced garlic rather than pulpy garlic. 

The next thing that I am really excited about is wild rice. I remember writing about it in my very early blogging days, when I had heard about it for the first time. So when I saw it in a Whole Foods, I immediately had to buy some. Can't wait to make it! If any of you have any tips to share about wild rice, I would love to hear them. 

My next awesome buy was from the Ghirardelli Chocolate factory in San Francisco. Though the place was packed with tourists, I totally enjoyed trying the chocolates and then buying some. And of course, I couldn't leave without buying their world-famous cocoa powder. Also bought some of their sweet ground chocolate.

The cocoa powder has such an intense aroma, and a beautifully rich brown color. I wish you guys could smell it. Definitely the best cocoa powder I have ever smelt! I am hoping to bake some sinfully delicious desserts with it soon. 

The last interesting things I bought, that were new to me, were Raw Agave nectar and Black Truffle oil. I have had dishes in restaurants that have truffle oil in them, but I have never used it myself. And agave nectar is something I had only heard of until I had a cocktail made with it, at a bar in New York. Pretty interesting I must say. Looking forward to seeing how I can use them in my cooking. Again, any tips and info welcome. 

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