Classic Afghan Cookbook

Our love of Afghan food started a few years ago when friends of ours invited us to eat at the renowned Helmand restaurant in Baltimore. The restaurant is owned by the brother of Afghanistan President Karzai, and naturally, everything we tasted that night was unforgettable. Since then, we've explored other Afghan restaurants closer to us. (We highly recommend Bamian in Falls Church. Very delicious and so much closer to us than Baltimore!) Dishes like Kadu, (sweet baby pumpkin), Ashak (scallion dumplings) and Naan (traditional bread) relieve our hunger pangs, but also feed our addictions for Afghan food.

The next sensible progression of our fascination with the tastes of Afghanistan is to cook it ourselves! One of my most recently acquired cookbooks is the Classic Afghan Cookbook. The author, Mousa Amiri, owns a popular Afghan restaurant in Sacramento, and the recipes looked so good, we had to give it a shot. So on this past 4th of July, we celebrated with an Afghan feast! Stay tuned for a post on the dishes we made from this cookbook!

Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant - Falls Church now open!

Attention all metro DC vegetarians! (And omnivores as well!)
Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant has just opened a new location in Seven Corners, Falls Church. This new location is bigger, sleeker and just as wholesome as the Fairfax spot! Opened this past Tuesday, expect small hiccups, but as always very tasty fare. We had the pleasure of dining there tonight. The dining room was hopping for a Monday night, we think this location will serve the community well.

All the meals served at Sunflower are vegetarian and deliciously prepared pan-Asian specialties with wholesome ingredients and no artificial flavors. Omnivores usually can find something tasty to eat on the menu without missing the meat. This new location boasts several private booths and a couple of rooms for private parties. There were several new menu items, appetizers such as the Japanese BBQ Kebob, a nicely grilled flavorful medley of veggies and meat substitutes served on a bed of greens. Kevin had the mu tea, and a jinenjo soba noodle dish. I ordered perhaps my favorite dish from them so far, a Sunflower Specialty called the Songbird, fresh chunks of soy protein and wheat gluten lovingly dressed in a sweet spicy sauce. Paired with the smokey, fruity longan and jujube tea, the meal was fantastic. Even in its first week of operation, Sunflower exceeded all expectations. The Fairfax location has a much more homey feel, but we like the fact that this restaurant is only a mile away from us! Now we have even more reasons to frequent this wonderful vegetarian restaurant. Check it out!

Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant
6304 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA
703-237-3888

Note: The Sunflower website has not been updated with all the information about the Falls Church location, or the expanded menu.

Photo image by alitaylor on stock.xchg