Onigiri in a Fruits Basket

Arashi : The STORM that will thunder around the World! Wait! Watch! 2016

2011-02-14T06:58:00.000-06:00

Arashi : The STORM that will thunder around the World! Wait! Watch! 2016
Well… live took a wierd turn on 1/23/11 after seeing Gantz. Somehow I started talking to the REAL Ninomiya Kazunari of Gantz after his premiere interview with Matsuyama Kenichi-san (er… itsumo death note no l-san! ha nino! :P) and he asked how his interview English was. Well, I was honest cause I’m an American and said it was ok but his pants were interesting! Which he replied, “interesting? What was interesting?” I said, “you are too skinny to wear leather pants hun, They need someone like Brad Pitt.” He replied, “he’s old… and a father… and old. old. old man. I am sexy in my pants and have “power” I raised an eyebrow and started laughing out loud, “Brad Pitt is like fine wine they get better with age. Like Sean Connery” His reply, “yes but I have power [in my pants]. I think he left before I got to the, “what kind a lamborghini?” all the while rofl rofl rofl! Well until 3 other Arashi members (the REAL ONES) friened me with official black AU Android cm suits… and real looking profiles!. OMG @>@ WTF! OMG! WTF! OMG!!! @.@Needless to say it’s a been a roller coaster ride and I am now the proud owner of Sora Takaku Arashi International Agency. I will be facilitating and managing Arashi’s big break into American entertainment. So let me introduce my boys (and yes JE still has them as well as JStorm):Masaki Aiba: Tensai! Shimura Doubutsuen. Where he reads to baby lions Japanese fairy tales while running away from the toddler tigers *facepalm* He’s was in a Jdrama last winter called My Girl on TV Asahi and he did so well they brought him back! So now he’s currently starring as lead actor at Bar Lapin of TV Asahi as the hawt sexy mysterious Bartender…. (god he’s hot in that outfit! Hey I am not dead!). Please watch my little special boy do his genius miracles. ^^Kazunary Ninomiya: or Nino/Neener/Miya of OhMiya. Nino is known as the actor of JE actually best actor of his generation PERIOD…. He has been in Letter of Iwo Jima (a Clint Eastwood directed Hollywood film) and now Gantz and Gantz part II that released in 300 theatres across the US. Now he’s busy doing promo work for the movie in Japan since it got released in the US first! (hahahahhahahahhahah! I was THERE AND TO THE LADY WHO WAS BITCHY I am a fan girl FIRST!). The interview as cute… he NEEDS TO SPEAK MORE ENGLISH! Or at least better english cause I want him as lead star of Akira directed by James Cameron (yes that avatar dude) when his current project is done. Satoshi Ohno: Oh-chan/Oh of OhMiya/Sa-to-shi/Papa/Ridaa/Leader (oh fearless one, no really!). Ohno is the TRUE artist behind Arashi’s famous fabulous five. He sings, he dances like an angel … er… a sexy as hell angel….. , he makes cool clay figures that are all black people *facepalm*, he acts (almost as well as Nino does and Nino is the youngest to get a Galazy Award!), he dice he slices… oh wait sorry it’s informercial time in here! ^^; Gomen!Jun Matsumoto: MJ (the other one), Jun, Junji, Junnie, MatsuJun ( I dare you to call him anything but matsujun hahaaha *grin*). Who is also an actor singer dancer etc…. but who cares cause his REAL talent is producing and managing Arashi VERY hard to get into CONCERTS! Especially the Kokuritsu one every August (awww we the fans get to celebrate his bday every year!) before they go on national tour until around January. Want to know why even the rich, powerful, and connected can’t get in to an Arashi Kokuritsu concert? Well it’s this guy’s dreams and aspirations and copious watching of the OTHER MJ during concert planning that has made Arashi concerts THE CONCERT TO WATCH OR GO TO~ in all of Japan. Sho Sakurai: Sho chan, Sho san, Sakurai-san, Mama (*grin* one guess at who all calls him that… hey he is the mother hen of the group an silent leader). Sho chan (as his beloved Aiba calls him, in a usually whiney I am a little kid voice: SHOOOOOOOOO_CHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAN dekinai T.T Sho chan SHO CHAN SHO CHAN *tosses keys over while screaming like a girl*! Yes you did Aiba chan! Proof? Go watch Himitsu no Arashi chan episode 21 or 22 or 23 where they go to a “haunted’ japanese style inn and have to take this creepy looking doll to the shrine in back. With about 5 or 6 “terror spots” Sho, Nino, and yes Aiba ichiban scaredy cats!!!! Really! I have never seen grown men jump SO MUCH. MJ can try to play cool at least. Ridaa has ice in his viens….. dude I do not know how… but somehow Oh-chan is on a different frequency from the rest of us humans… or thinking of his next fishing trip since he’s fishing crazy right now. (GO DO SOMETHING INDOORS YOUR SKIN IS TOO DARK STILL!!!)Oh wait I was talking about Aiba’s Sho-chan… ok so this MAN… (mother hen rofl) not only graduated WHILE he is an idol! from Keio (it’s like going to Stanford or Yale) with a economic degree in 2004. He’s now a newscaster on Monday nights on News Zero. Oh and that’s WHILE HE ALSO acts, raps (he’s Arashi and I believe JE’s first rapper too cute), speaks perfect English, does variety show mc’ing, annnnnnnd *takes a breath* er wtf else?? Guys isn’t that enough? I already have Anthony Bourdain wondering when thiese boys shit , shower and shave! (Never… ok well er.. at night before bed? Before work like most men??? I don’t know I am NOT THAT CLOSE TO THEM… and god please NEVER let me get that close to them *shudder* somethings you SHOULD NOT know or favorite Idols….)So after all that INDIVIDUALLY then they ahve three main variety shows on each week (Nihon TV) AArashi ni Shiyagare (succeded my favorite show of all time Arashi no Shukudai-kun T.T), VS Arashi on Fuji TV, as well as Himitsu no Arashi-chan were Sho can’t dress without a stylyst, Aiba IS STYLISH! Oh-chan is stylish in his own plain way, Nino… nino is an interesting one *winks at Nino* I’ve already told hime that he looks best in jeans, khakis, and cords… then our Junjil… *sigh* he tries… he really tries to be original and I TOTALLY blame Japanese people and their “everything be same!” mentality cause I LOVE his outfits! Well … ok most of the time! If you all don’t know there is a section of Himitsu no Arashi chan that the boys choose their own *rofls again at double parker!* outfits and people (usually models) judge them. I will have to tell you all that it is the most HILARIOUS thing I have EVER scene! Which explains why it’s they main and longest running show (since AnS is gone….. *cries again* no more A no Arashi, M no Arashi, Aiba no dice game (god he’s a genius! and miracle boy) , no more Special A no Arashi that is 4 hours long where the boys try everything from growing food together to seeing if Aiba can fly on a big kite (yes he can! but he can’t land :P) and Sho chan NARROWLY got out of taking a hot air balloon made of newspapers! Someone one was on crack to suggest that! MJ looks so happy doing things that the insurers probably cringe at like sky-diving to play yo-yo etc. God I miss that show… it’s was a half hours laugh out loud thing that made me so happy every Monday nights. I really need to go hire the AnS staff.. they knew how to make a show where the BOYS shine not the guest or the sets… (heh yes that is what I think of A ni Shi and I think the producer needs to be fired! ritzy glamourous sets do not make a better show… give them the AnS staff back! At least that wasn’t boring!)So after three main shows… they also have CMs, Ad campaigns, and magazine/interviews shoots. SO if you can’t tell these are the HOTTEST BUT BUSIEST damn Idols in all of the Land of the Rising Sun (Japan!) So check um out cause I the center of a STORM and I am about to make the viral in America. Starting with a reality show that is being picked up hopefully by the Travel Channell, to Aiba in Mythusters… who is more baka Aiba or Adam???? *rofl*, to Ohno Satoshi art show at the Mets in NYC, and possible depending on Cameron and New Line get Nino the lead in Akira, and for Jun since he’s a star struck lil boy when it comes to Hollywood it’s Johnny Depps next project! ^^Keep an eye on the social media we go viral with pretty much this message 2/14/11 8 am US CST. Arashi WILL invade Twitter, Facebook, LiveJournal, Typepad, and Blogger. Then watch for Sho Sakurai’s interview with Nada of Free Egypt, President and Lady Obama, and the speechwriter for “yes we can” in Washington DC. Then watch for the YouTube channels of OFFICIALLY released Arashi drama, variety, etc. And the first episodes of the reality show, “How a Japanese Super busy as fuck Idol… makes it in America (tm)!” not very well without me is my guess. I have a bad feeling I am going to be hearing, “deeeeemmmmmooo, Candy-chan…. ore…. dekinai… honto ni wakanai… eigo warui…. *cries, whines, acts not his age but still cute* A LOT! Yeah, two guesses as to WHO that IS! *sigh, facepalm* WHY GOD WHY ME! Why the hell did I say I’d do this and spend my PERSONAL fortune on it? (Unless the Marriott, Hyatt, AstinMartin, Mercedes, BMW, and the like do not endorse my boys by the end of the year! Which THEY WILL!) SO everyone new fan and old… keep an eye out… we go live in 5 hours (oh my fucking god!, now I am going to cry!)Sincerely,Candy UpathambhanandaCEO and OWNER of Sora Takaku Arashi International Agency2/14/11 incorporated USAThanks to Wells Fargo Bank for investing in a start up, American Express Corporate Travel for providing a private plan, the Marriott (where one nutty fan girl sat a the computer for 22 hours straight with LOTS OF TEA and SUGAR!!!!), all my friends and family who have put up with the nutty girl who keeps trying to die on them before she can get home to Bangkok, Thailand! Be back soon… geesh I am BUSY! Oh and did I tell ya I helped Nada of Free Egypt get that stupid ass of a “pharoah” out! Now my people are free! Thank ALLAH!!!!!! *says dua* Jordan is next… to all the leaders of the Middle East… comply or we come after YOU next…. say goodbye to corruption and nepotism…. say hello to people, citizens, free and able to run their own damb country. Well it’s just a warning… hey don’t take my word for it… i just helped free Egypt is all *polishes nails on shirt* naw… it was nothing! Facebook is my friend! Hahahahahahh!

Food Tour of Iowa

2009-02-26T12:27:00.003-06:00

On Superbowl Sunday, at a party (i.e. just another reason to eat and knit together) at Knitted Together in West Des Moines, one of the ladies at my table casually mentioned that there was a restaurant located in Des Moines that served dim sum and from what she had heard was fairly decent. Well, after I picked up my jaw at the thought that dim sum had finally made it's way here, I was quick to dismiss the thought since I highly doubted it would be anywhere near as good as what we get out in Los Angeles. I couldn't help but wonder however so a couple of the ladies and I decided to check it out.

When I got home that night I decided to Google the restaurant to see when it opened and found great new blog, that actual showcased some of Iowa's culinary delights for the rest of the world. Yes, there is more to Iowa than corn, pigs, and soy bean. Really! Don't believe me? Well check out Ben Gordon's Food Tour of Iowa blog, you'll be stunned at the lovely pictures showcasing some very tasty looking food from Iowa and all over. Ben, a young, charming, talented food enthusiast, takes you a tour of how diverse Iowa can be from the organic sustainable farms to the higher-end dining scene available here. It's nice to see someone blogging about the bounty of Iowa and how it's not all about big farms and bad food. There's a reason we feed the world and that's because Iowa produces some of the best there is to offer. Please join me in my support of a new fellow blogger in hopes that the future of really good food continues on and not everyone in the future will be eating highly processed crap from a box. There is hope yet, methinks.

As for this blog you all can look forward to some new post showing up soon. I now have a good kitchen to work in and Ben has my creative juicing going about what great food we have available. I'll let him show you all the world of restaurants and farms while I play around with some wonderful new and not so new products found in Iowa. In the fridge currently is cinnamon raisin dough proofing gently and a new bacon made locally that I picked up to try. Stay tuned for updates soon.

**Note: This plug has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Ben is cute and single.***

OnigiriFB wanders off muttering about her girlfriends and their devious minds. Hrmph!

Chickpea, potato, and spinach curry.

2007-01-07T12:00:00.000-06:00

New year, new post, new me! I told my doctor that my New Year's Resolution is to be healthy. In keeping with this resolution I decided to give vegetarianism a try.

My first foray into vegetarian cuisine is a chickpea, potato, and spinach curry. I've heard that this is a standard Indian dish and often served with rice or chapati. Since I didn't have or know to make chapati I decided to have it with whole wheat tortillas. That worked very well.

I didn't really use a recipe but used ideas from a few different recipes I've made before. Don't let the ingredients list scare you it's really easy. Give it a try, it was divine.

2 cans of chickpeas
2 potatoes, cut into small chunks
1 frozen box of spinach
1 can of diced tomatoes, juice included
1 can of coconut milk
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch of ginger, grated
1-2 Tbsp of curry powder
1 Tbsp tumeric
1 Tbsp cumin seeds
1 Tbsp chili powder or 1 serano chili, chopped(optional)
2 Tbsp of oil
cilanto to garnish

Saute onion, ginger, and garlic in oil on low to medium low until brown. Add curry powder, tumeric, cumin seeds, and chili (if using) fry about 1 minute. Add chickpeas, potatoes, can of tomatoes, and can of coconut milk. Simmer for 30 minutes. Add spinach and simmer for another 10-15 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve with brown rice and/or whole wheat tortillas.

Help me! I've been bit!

2006-09-19T00:01:00.000-05:00

Fortunately, I haven't been bitten by the cold or flu bug like my friend Emi of Knittrips. Hope you get well soon!

I have, however, been bitten by the knitting bug. With the crisp days of fall showing up in Iowa I've found knitting to be the perfect hobby. I spent most of this weekend holed up in my house knitting hats. I'm in love with the Umbilical cord baby hat pattern from "Stitch N Bitch" by Debbie Stoller.

So easy and So cute!

So easy and cute I ended up making two! Oh well, a baby can never have too many hats, right?

Thank you BAM for lending me the pattern.

**Special Thanks to Ollie the Oliphant, model.**

Not so lazy Sunday morning.

2006-08-20T12:40:00.000-05:00

My usual Sunday routine is to sleep in until as late as possible and then laze around in bed until the bladder says, "GET UP!". For some reason this morning I woke up clear headed and a lot more energetic than normal. What to do, what to do? Well, cook, of course!

Monkey Bread

2 cans of home-style biscuits
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven, 350 degrees. Combine cinnamon and sugar in plastic bag. Cut biscuits into quarters, toss in cinnamon/sugar mixture. In pie plate, arrange coated pieces. In saucepan, combine melted butter and brown sugar, boil 1 minute. Pour butter/sugar mixture over biscuit. Bake 25-30 minutes. To serve, invert pie dish over plate.

Ahhhh! Yum! Breakfast is served.

Hrm... wonder what other goodies I can make today....

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

2006-06-04T22:36:00.000-05:00

A few people have bugged me about the lack of recent post on this blog. Since illness reared it’s ugly head I haven’t been able to cook as much so posting about nothing didn’t seem like something other people would read. However, looks like with the summer sun my illness has decided to give me a breather and I find myself cooking, reading, living, and loving life again. In commemoration of this feeling I decided it was time to post on this blog once more. This time around I think I’ll be going back to blogging about whatever the heck I feel like. If you don’t like..... well too bad! Stick around. My life might not be that bad after all....

Tea Time Thursdays VIII - China Green Tea

2006-03-02T23:35:00.000-06:00

Welcome to the eighth edition of Tea Time Thursday. Today I was actually going to feature a different tea but, after trying the China Green I knew I had to write about it. I actually had an opportunity to taste this tea in the tea store the first time. A week later I was back in Gong Fu Tea to pick up some, it made that much of an impression.

I noticed that it didn't taste the same when I brewed it at home. Today I had a chance to try it again in store and was lucky enough to borrow a bit of Mike's time. During our conversation he mentioned that green teas really need a gentler temperature and a little less time to brew. So now ,per Mike, I will be picking up a thermometer to make sure the water is only 175 degrees or I will have to try letting my kettle sit for 5 minutes off the heat after bringing it to a boil. The optimal temperature of brewing green teas is 175 degrees, because if the water is hotter you release the tannins in the tea making it bitter. I'm hoping I got that right, if not Mike or Rusty please correct me.

This tea is very mellow with almost a sweet after taste. I'm in love with the how mild it taste. I was also surprised to learn that it is a green tea from China. For some odd reason I thought green teas only came from Japan. You learn something new everyday, huh?

If you like green tea I highly recommend you try the China Green. It's very nice and my current favorite. Yeah, I know that doesn't say much since I change favorites practically every week. You try drinking these teas and see if you don't fall in love with them. I dare you.

Enjoy!

Tea Time Thursday Friday?

2006-02-24T00:36:00.000-06:00

Er... oops! I totally spaced today was Thursday. I knew, I just spaced it though. Or I should say yesterday since it's 12:30am right now. My rule is usually if I haven't been to bed it's still Thursday, so here goes. Sorry, everyone, I promise to do better next week!

Well.. I did have something planned but it got interrupted by a very special gift. Please excuse me for a minute...

*jump up and down and squeals like a teenager at a boy band concert*

Ok, sorry had to get that out. You see, this week I was the lucky recipient of a package from Montreal, Canada. Mon ami, Joel, a tea purveyer who resides in China and owns Golden Teahouse in Montreal, sent me a bunch of new teas to try. They are mostly Oolong teas and then one package of Chrysanthemum pearls which I had requested. I can't wait to try them and tell my readers ALL about them!

Thank you, thank you, thank you Joel! I heart your gift.

Gaeng Jeud Mara Sai Moo

2006-02-18T11:41:00.000-06:00

I’m not sure if it’s the bitter cold here in Iowa that reminded me I had made this soup recently or if I’m craving it again. It’s probably both. In Thailand, soups are divided into two categories; spicy soup and non-spicy soup. The spicy soup category includes those favorites such as Tom Yum Gai and Green curry. The non-spicy soup, generally not well known in the States, is more typical of the western idea of a broth type soup. We ate both types quite a bit and if there were children under the age of six in the house there was always a bowl for them at the children’s table. Unlike it’s western counterpart Thai non-spicy soup is eaten with rice and is part of the main meal.

Pork-stuffed Bitter Melon soup is one of my favorite non-spicy Thai soups. It is probably taken from the Chinese as there is a huge Chinese influence in Thailand. The first time I had it I absolutely hated it but, the more I ate it the more it grew on me. Now I get cravings for it’s unique flavor. You can find bitter melon at your local Asian market if they have a good produce section. I’m lucky mine does so when I get a craving for this soup I can just pop down for one and scurry home to make soup.

One thing I’ve noticed about Thai soups is that it does not require a lot of time. While you can use stock or bullion cubes I’ve done it without. I make mine pretty much the same way I’ve seen our cook back home make it a million times.

1 bitter melon, cut into 3-4 sections, hollow
½ lb of ground pork
1 clove garlic, minced
½ tsp salt
½ tsp ground white pepper
1 cilantro root or 3 cilantro stems, finely minced. Keep leaves for garnish.
2 Tbsp soy sauce

If you have a mortar and pestle ground garlic, white pepper, and cilantro until it forms a paste. If you do not, mince together finely. Mix ground pork, white pepper, salt, garlic, and cilantro stems until combined. Stuff into hollowed bitter melon. In a pot bring to boil 4-5 cups of water, add stuffed bitter melon and soy sauce. Boil for half an hour until melon is very tender. Garnish with a dash of white pepper and cilantro leaves, serve with rice.

Enjoy!

Recipe slightly adapted from Thai Table.

Tea Time Thursdays VI - Pound cake

2006-02-16T17:14:00.000-06:00

Welcome to the sixth edition of Tea Time Thursdays. Please let me know if you have a blog an would like to join me in any tea related post. I may be contacted via email or you can just leave me a message on the blog. If you want to join me, I’ll be happy to feature your blog and write a short note regarding your post of the day.

Last Sunday I decided I would try a recipe found on eGullet.com for a pound cake. I’ve grown up all my life eating Sara Lee’s frozen pound cake but, never thought of making my own. Well, since this year I decided I wanted to learn more about baking, I figured, "Hey, Why not?"

This pound cake is rich, moist, and dense. It’s a little sweeter than what I’m used to but, it made a great treat for afternoon tea. I sliced up some strawberries, whipped up some cream, and made a wonderful strawberry shortcake. Today's tea was the Dalai’s Daily from Gong Fu Tea store. I’ll post about that next week.

For Becca’s delicious pound cake recipe click here.

Enjoy!

Tea Time Thursday V - Wu Yi Shan Red Cape

2006-02-09T15:50:00.000-06:00

Welcome to the fifth edition of Tea Time Thursdays. I know I've been a little lax in blogging lately. I can only plead illness as my excuse. I've not been up to much cooking lately but, I have got some baking in. I don't do so bad at mixing stuff and sticking it in an oven for awhile so in the next couple of Thursday's I'll be unveiling my creations. Hopefully, things will get better and I'll be blogging about more wierd asian creations soon.

I'm in love...

with Oolong teas, that is. If you remember I wrote about an Oolong tea for the first Tea Time Thursday, check it out here, and was waxing poetically about it then. Well, after a few weeks of drinking that tea non-stop I got a little bored with it. So I snuck off to Gong Fu Tea store again and asked Mike for a slighter stronger oolong. What he suggested was Wu Yi Shan Red Cape. Here's the information on Gong Fu Tea's website about this tea:

"Red Cape Oolong tea was prepared by and for the Chinese Imperial Family of the Yuan Dynasty (13th and 14th centuries). This is a wonderful, highly oxidized Oolong grown on the slopes of the famous Wuyi Mountain in Fujian Province – home to some of the world's most prized teas. The leaves produce a liquor that is smooth, rich and woody in character. Treat yourself to this royal tribute tea. "

You know I didn't know that until today when I went to the website to link it for you all. Interesting, you learn something new everyday. While I don't think the Wu Yi Shan Red Cape will replace my favorite oolong so far it is a good tea to drink while eating various Asian cuisines, especially Chinese. This tea leans a little more towards black teas or, in tea-speak, is more oxidized than the previous Oolong tea I have tried. Wu Yi Shan Red Cape tea taste slightly more bitter in the aftertaste and less floral but it's a very clean flavor. It doesn't fight with any of the flavors found in Chinese food and would help refresh the palate as you ate. So the next time you're in the mood for Chinese take-out, pick up some Wu Yi Shan Red Cape tea to go with it. It was good enough to serve the Imperial Family so I'm sure you'll like it. You may just feel a little like royalty yourself!

Enjoy.

Tea Time Thursdays IV - Earl Grey Creme Brulee

2006-02-02T18:08:00.000-06:00

Welcome to the fourth edition of Tea Time Thursday. Today I decided to show you a dessert made with tea. Last month, a recipe in Midwest Living’s January/February 2006 issue caught my eye as it included the use of Earl Grey tea. I had just purchased a wonderful Earl Grey Darjeeling from Gong Fu Tea store and decided it would be fun to try making a dessert out of it. I’ve never used tea in cooking before but, I have heard of using tea in a few Asian recipes. Please join me today as I make my first recipe using tea.

I’ve had creme brulee at fancy restaurants before but never thought to make it myself as I thought it was complicated. After reading the recipe I realized it wasn’t complicated it just needed a few specialized pieces of equipment that I didn’t have. Luckily, BAM lent me her set and finally got a chance to try my hand at making creme brulee.

The first thing I did was heat the heavy whipping cream and half&half until it just began bubbling. I then add the Earl Grey tea and let the seep for an hour off the heat.

When it was done seeping I strained the loose tea using a fine sieve.

Next, in a seperate bowl I combined the egg yolks and sugar with a whisk, thouroughly.

Ladle creme brulee mixture into ramekins and bake in a bain-marie on a 350 degree oven.

After 45-50 minutes remove from oven and cool on rack. When the ramekins have cooled cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour to 24 hours.

Right before eating sprinkle with sugar and carmelize top with a culinary torch. Serve.

The Earl Grey Creme Brulee was good but, I'm not sure I would make it that often. I think I prefer the classic version of creme brulee more than this one. The flavor of the Earl Grey tea came through very clear and was almost a little bitter. It's a rich dessert and I could only eat one small ramekin before getting full. My favorite part? The carmelized crunchy sugar topping, of course. Yum!

Here's the recipe I adapted from Midwest Living if you would like to give this a try.

2 cups half-and-half or light cream
2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsps Earl Grey Darjeeling, loose leaf
9 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar plus 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar for carmelized topping

Enjoy!

Tempura

2006-01-31T12:03:00.000-06:00

Every once in awhile I go through a phase where all I crave is deep fried foods. To satisfy my latest craving I decided to make tempura. Tempura is a classic Japanese deep fried batter dish consisting mostly of vegetables and seafood. It can be found in just about any Japanese restaurant in the States and abroad. I first tried tempura when I was in Bangkok at a Thai friend’s house who was taking Japanese with me. The most ubiquitous tempura is shrimp and various vegetables, though you may also use just about type of seafood. The thing I love most about tempura is that the batter is lighter than most deep fried dishes found here in the States. Since it’s so light I can pretend that it’s not THAT bad for me.

Don't be scared to try at home it may be a little messy but, it's worth it. I cheat and use a pre-mixed box of tempura flour you can find in your Asian section of the supermarket(I found mine at Supertarget). Make sure your water is ice cold and don't overmix the batter. Keep the vegetables thin or bite-sized and peel and devein the shrimp; I left the tail on for presentation but you can peel the whole if you like. The trick to keeping your shrimp from curling up, if it matters to you, is to make small cuts at the bottom of the shrimp and press down so that the shrimp is flat.

I fried my tempura in a wok, you could use a deep fryer if you like. The ingredients I chose, shrimp, sweet potato, Japanese eggplant, and onion, didn't need long frying times. Most tempura will take between 2-4 minutes. Remember you are not looking for a golden color like most batter fried foods.

I drained my tempura on paper towels prior to platting. Serve with a bowl of rice and some tentsuyu (tempura sauce made from mirin, soy sauce, and dashi) makes this a very delicious meal. Or just sprinkle it with a little bit of sea salt and eat like popcorn. Yum!

Enjoy.

**Pardon the blurriness of the photos I must have been having a blurry day!**

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

2006-01-29T11:44:00.000-06:00

Happy Chinese New Years to all my Chinese friends and readers! Hope you all have fortune, happiness, and many red envelopes! Let's welcome in the year of the Dog with much noise, fun, and feasting.

For anyone interested the picture above is from the Iowa Animal Rescue League and Laddy is currently up for adoption. Please see their website for his information and information on other wonderful pets needing a loving home.

Iowa Animal Rescue League

Tea Time Thursdays III - Mediterranean Chamomile

2006-01-26T22:46:00.000-06:00

Welcome to the third edition of Tea Time Thursday. I have to admit that I was considering not posting this today as the past week as been a bit hectic. Two of my faithful readers, BAM and Emily of Knittripps, kindly reminding me tonight at our knitting group meeting that they were waiting for my post made me reconsider. Well, that and the threat to life or limbs did make me think twice about not posting. Just kidding!

For those of you new to the blog, Tea Time Thursdays are days where I will blog about my latest foray into gourmet teas, things made with tea, and things that go well with tea. Today I’d like to feature a tea that might not get much recognition in the tea world, a chamomile tea. I’m not that fond of herbal teas but a good chamomile tea is a needed item in any pantry. If your tummy is feeling delicate or you’re having trouble sleeping this is the tea for you. You can pick up chamomile tea anywhere but, I had the chance to try Gong Fu Tea’s Mediterranean Chamomile when I was over at Emily’s and I knew I just had to pick some up for myself.

The tea is normally a golden color but the light was a little wierd when I took this picture.

Gong Fu Tea’s Mediterranean Chamomile is the best chamomile tea Emily and I have had the pleasure of drinking. This humble herbal tea may not be something one considers when thinking of gourmet teas, but once again the gentlemen at Gong Fu Tea store have surprised me. What make this tea different from your normal supermarket brand is the quality of the chamomile and the blend. Mike and Rusty have chosen a unique blend I’ve not encountered before with a chamomile tea. Their Mediterranean Chamomile is a wonderful blend of chamomile, hibiscus, and orange that makes this tea a bit sweeter than most chamomiles on the market. I love the taste of this while I’m getting ready for bed, it’s like drinking a cup of warm sunlight. It makes me want to sing, “the hills are alive with the sounds of music....” while traipsing through wildflower . Ok, it would make me want to go traipsing if I weren’t so darn tired. *yawn* Excuse me, I really need to get some slee......zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Enjoy!

***You may not want to drink this tea early in the day as it may cause the need for an afternoon nap! I found this out via a very scientific research project when I tried this tea during the morning hours. I was confused as to why I suddenly needed a nap but then remembered why a lot of people drink chamomile tea in the first place. Oops!***

Choux à la Crème Pâtissière part Deux

2006-01-19T17:35:00.000-06:00

“Mon Dieu! Sacred Bleu! What have you done? No, no, non. Le amatuer!” says the pastry chef as he watches me make cream puffs for the first time. In my previous post for Tea Time Thursdays I decided to make cream puffs or Choux à la Crème Pâtissière as Chez Ptipois was so kind enough to translate for me so I can seem sophisticated on my blog. *Ahem* Hush! The first thing I made was the pastry cream. I learned a few valuable lessons as I made it and would like to share them with you.

Le Lesson number 1. Do not leave ingredients on stove unattended while reading eGullet. May cause over-boiling of milk and possible burning of pastry cream.

Le Lesson number 2. While making pastry cream it is a good idea to have an ice bath nearby in case of making a mistake by not following lesson number one.

Le Lesson number 3. It really is not that hard. But for a few minor mishaps, that I was able to save, I don’t think I did too bad for my first attempt.

So the pastry cream was done a few mishaps and into the fridge it went to cool as I made me pate choux. Lesson learned on pate choux?

Le Lesson number 4. Strength train prior to making dough as wimpy arms are not a good thing. Man, pastry chefs must be buff!

Le Lesson number 5. Do not try pate choux when straight from oven as it is impossible to consume only one. Where you will have to make more. Hrm.. I don’t know about this one. MORE cream puffs aren’t a bad thing.

Le Lesson number 6: Not only were these easy to make, they were tasty too! And the best part? I have LOTS of them.

Enjoyed with a nice cuppa of Earl Grey these really hit the spot in the late afternoon.

Tea Time Thursdays II - Choux à la Crème Pâtissière

2006-01-19T11:04:00.000-06:00

Welcome to the second edition of Tea Time Thursdays. This week has gone by so amazingly fast that I’ve kind of got myself in a bind. You see, I just managed to sneak to off to my favorite Des Moines tea store, Gong Fu Tea, and pick up some new teas and I haven’t had a chance to really try them yet. I will usually try a tea for a week or so during different times of the day to get a better feel and taste of that tea before I post about it. So without a tea to post about my mind has really be racing trying to find something for my second Tea Time Thursday.

Onigiri: Hrm... What to blog, what to blog?

Voice in my head: Well.. how about something made with tea?

Onigiri: Erm.. there is a recipe I want to try out but I’m missing the ramekins to make it in. BAM is letting me borrow her set but I won’t see her until next Thursday at our semi-monthly knitting get-together.

Voice in my head: Ok. Well how about something to eat while drinking tea?

Onigiri: Oh, what a good idea! Um.. Ok, well what DO you eat while drinking tea?

Voice in my head: Oh, Good grief! Listen, dummy, what’s your favorite dessert? What have you been wanting to try making after you made your New Year’s resolutions? Hello.... earth to Onigiri!

Onigiri: Oh yeah! Cream Puffs! I love cream puffs! Ok, that’s what I’ll do. Er..how do you make cream puffs?

Voice in my head: You’re on your own for this one, chick-a-dee. I’m outta here.

Ok, so besides showing you all that I’m a tad bit insane because I listen to the voices in my head, that little brainstorming session did give me a wonderful idea. I’ve always loved cream puffs but have heard they are hard to make and easy to screw up on. So I’ve avoided making them because of that reason.
I did consider popping down to my local patisserie and buying some of their beautiful cream puffs but, another voice (yes I have a few) whispered, “Why not give it a try. The worse that could happen is you throw them out.”

Come join me while I make my first batch of cream puffs. Since the voices in my head weren’t that helpful (they never are), I scoured the internet and my various cookbooks looking for a recipe. In the end I decided on Pichet Ong’s Pate Choux recipe on eGullet and a pastry cream from Cooks.com. What will I be drinking with my cream puffs? Earl Grey Darjeeling from Gong Fu Tea, of course. I like mine with two lump and milk, please.

Since this will be a long post I'm breaking it up into two. Please check back for my post about making choux à la crème pâtissière.

**French translations provided my wonderful fellow blogger Chez Ptipois**

Phad Thai

2006-01-17T21:21:00.000-06:00

Well Battle Khao Soi has come and gone and this Thai girl is so ashamed. Even though only 3 judges voted it looks like the farang (foreigner) is winning. Austin, the wonderful person he is, crowed and then left for the southern part of Thailand. Alas if only I had made my own curry paste like he did. In my defence, I really hoped by showing my blog readers a simpler version using store bought curry paste you would be more likely to try making it yourself. Go figure, eGulleters would take that into account. Just you wait Austin, I'm not giving up! We WILL battle again! There's one more fellow eGulleter that has yet to weigh in. So we shall see, we shall see. Mayhaps the girl from France will have us BOTH beat. Go Ptipois!

Well to comfort myself I decided to make some Phad Thai. Why? Because it doesn't require any curry paste! Yes, I'm a wee bit upset. But like a good Thai I will just shrug my shoulders and say, "Mai pen rai". (It's no problem.) On to other things I say, namely Phad Thai. I don't know many people who haven't heard of this dish. It's fairly easy and should only require a trip to the Asian market for the tamarind. You don't have to use tamarind, but I think it makes a huge difference.

From clockwise: banana blossom, bean sprouts, tofu, minced shallots and garlic, chili powder, tamarind. On the side: vegetable oil, fish sauce. Not pictured: sugar, egg, and rice noodles soaking in water.

Heat wok on high heat. Add oil. Add shallots, garlic, and tofu. Stir-fry until tofu begins to golden.

Add noodles, stir-fry. Add fish sauce, tamarind, chili powder, and sugar. Stir-fry quickly for a few minutes on high heat. Add half of bean sprouts, stir-fry. Push noodles to side, crack an egg into work, scramble for a few minutes. Stir-fry noodles into eggs.

Plate and garnish with green onions, remaining bean sprouts. On the side is a quarter of the banana blossom, sugar, and chili powder. Not shown half of lime.

To eat I squeeze some lime juice on the phad thai, mixed in some extra sugar and chili powder and stirred it all together. This how phad Thai is served in Thailand.

Recipe adapted from ThaiTable.com

1/2 of a lime
1 egg
4 tsp fish sauce, or to taste
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp chili powder
2 Tbsp oil
1 shallot, minced
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp tamarind (substitute white vinegar if needed)
1/2 package Thai rice noodles, soaked in lukewarm water for 10 minutes
1 package extra-firm tofu
3 green onions, sliced into 2-inch pieces
1 cup bean sprouts

Enjoy!

Battle Khao Soi; the heat is on!

2006-01-15T17:21:00.000-06:00

Battle Khao Soi has begun and Onigiri, whose reputation is on the line, tries to defend the honor of all Thais as she prepares to make khao soi. I, your host, Alton Brown will be interviewing and observing Ms. Onigiri as she prepares this famous Northern Thai dish.

Alton:
So Ms. Onigiri could you tell me a little about what your going to
be doing today?
Onigiri:
Yes, I would be happy to. I’ll be making khao soi using Chez Pim’s
recipe as posted on her blog. After some research, I found her
recipe to be the easiest one to re-create in an American kitchen as
there were only two items I needed from the Asian market, fresh,
flat, Chinese egg noodles and pickled, sour mustard greens. The rest of
the ingredients were easily obtained at my normal Iowan supermarket, Hy-vee.
Alton:
Were there any deviations from her recipe?
Onigiri:
Not much. Khun Pim’s recipes is quite good but I ended up only using
deboned pieces of thigh meat and chicken legs instead of breast meat, since I prefer dark meat. Other than that I think I put a bit more water in mine as I like my khao soi more soupy.
Alton Brown:
Well, there seems to be some a few people highly interested in this battle between yourself and Austin of RealThai. I would like to send you off with some of your own words, “A lot of talk, but no khao soi yet, my friend.” So I suggest you to get in the kitchen. With that, I will now leave you to your cooking. Good luck and Allez cuisine!
Onigiri:
Thank you, Alton. I would like to say on behalf of all my Thai
"This Thai girl will make you all proud and be the champion of
this battle! Su thigh kha! [Translation: I will fight to
the death!]

Garnishes clockwise from top limes pieces, cilantro, sliced shallots, pickled mustard greens, and chili powder in oil.

Stir fry Thai red curry paste, curry powder, and turmeric powder.

Add chicken and stir fry to coat.

After adding all the coconut milk and water, simmer. Season well.

Boil and drain flat Chinese egg noodles.

Top drained noodles with khao soi curry sauce, then garnish as desire.

Alton:
Wow, that looks tasty. Any last words for our audience?

Onigiri:
I'm so glad you think so, Alton. I hope the judges will agree. I really enjoyed this competition and I hope Austin did too. For all the ribbing and joshing around in the end it's still all about the food. So I hope by this challenge we have demonstrated how easy it is to make this dish, whether your in Thailand or in Iowa. Enjoy na kha!

*** Disclaimer: This interview is a parody of Iron Chef America (tm) and only took place in this blog writers imagination.***

Iron Bloggers: Battle Khao Soi

2006-01-14T00:04:00.000-06:00

Austin vs. Onigiri

Well, now I've done it! I opened my mouth and sassed the wrong person.

Austin of RealThai, a wonderful food blogger located in Bangkok, Thailand, started a thread on eGullet about two famous Thai noodle dishes; phad thai and khao soi. He explains the dishes and has some great pictures on his blog also. The discussion on eGullet led to some private emailing between the two of us where I just happened *cough* to mention that I didn't think a White guy (even if he lived in Thailand) could make khao soi better than a Thai girl (even if she lived in po-dunk Iowa, USA). There was no trash talking involved, I mean come on... Moi trash talk? Phulease.

To settle this mild dispute a war is brewing! Or, at least, gently simmering as we two food bloggers decided to duke this one out by having a khao soi cooking contest. We have chosen Sunday as our day of ~~battle~~ cooking and will each post about it that evening. I'm sure everyone will agree that a Thai girl will win hands down over some White guy. Just remember, even if he is a professional food photographer, it's taste that matters the most! In this, I am certainly a shoe-in to winning. So be sure to be extra nice to Austin on Monday as he may be a bit sore about losing to little ole me.

Tea Time Thursdays

2006-01-12T16:36:00.000-06:00

I'm starting a new tradition on this blog, in the style of Sugar High Fridays, except I would like to feature all things tea. Thursdays will be my day to feature gourmet teas, food made with tea, or nibbles that will go well with tea. I hope everyone will enjoy this as much as I will and if you wish to join me please email me at onigirifb(at)yahoo.com.

For my first Tea Time Thursday I thought I would write about the lastest tea I'm addicted to Wu Yi Shan Ti Kwan Yin, an Oolong tea, that I purchased at my favorite Des Moines tea store Gong Fu.

Oolong teas are in the middle between black teas and greens teas. They have a light floral taste with a bit of a bitter aftertaste. I've found that this is a great all-around tea that goes well with most of my Asian dishes.

As you can see in the picture above the color of this tea is a little darker than that of green tea. According to Mike, the kind part-owner of Gong Fu who is nice enough to put up with me, Wu Yi Shan Ti Kwan Yin is a good oolong that embodies what an Oolong tea should be.

I found this interesting information on Gong Fu's website:

"Our finest Ti Kwan Yin comes from Wuyi Mountain – the legendary home to Ti Kwan Yin (the Buddhist Iron Goddess of Mercy). It is one of the most oxidized of the Oolongs, and yields a heavy aroma and fruity fragrance. It can be steeped many times without becoming bitter. The classic choice for a Gong Fu Ceremony."

If you look on the plate next to the tea cup I took some of the brewed tea leaves out of it's pot so you can see what it looks like. Once again the gentlemen at Gong Fu have astounded me with how wonderful their products are. You can see that all the brewed tea leaves are actually whole tea leaves. This is a sign of good quality. Kudos to Mike and Rusty for once again providing me with a wonderful new tea to be addicted to.

Well, folks, that's it for this inaugural post on Tea Time Thursdays. I hope you all try Wi Yi Shan Ti Kwan Yin, it's my current favorite. I'm sure I'll have lots more to share with you in the coming thurdays and I'll be down hunting for the lastest tea once Emily un-bans me from going to the tea store!

Ma Po Tofu

2006-01-10T02:09:00.000-06:00

I would love to say that I have eaten this dish all my life, but in actuality I came across this dish in an Asian market here in town. I have no idea why, but for some reason every few months or so the only thing that sounds good is some tofu. When one of these cravings hits the only thing I can do is take myself off to the Asian market and get some. While racking my brain on how to prepare the tofu I happened across a packet of pre-made sauce for a dish called Ma Po Tofu. I had heard of this dish but had never had it before. After reading the ingredients were only minced pork, scallions, and tofu I figured it would be an easy dish to make. So I tried it out and after that first plate I was hooked. The following year, when I was in Los Angeles, Islaine’s mother took us out to an authentic Chinese restaurant. I asked for this dish and realized that the package stuff I had been eating was no where near as good as the real stuff. Since I am not the worlds greatest Chinese cuisine cook I had problems recreating this dish without the packaged pre-made sauce. Just looking at the ingredients list makes you want to cry out "ai ya" (the Chinese equivalent of the Jewish "oy vey")and give up.

But then I found a thread on eGullet that showed me step by step instructions on how to make this Ma Po Tofu. It looks so easy I knew I had to try it out, so after a trip to the Asian market, I did and boy am I happy now. Never again will I have to use the pre-made sauce. Give it a try, if you can stir-fry you can do this dish. Ah Leung even includes step by step pictures. I will always be grateful for eGullet and Ah Leung who showed me how to make Ma Po Tofu. The recipes make quite a bit but don’t worry you’ll be loving your leftovers, I know I did!

Hzrt8w's (Ah Leung) Ma Po Tofu recipe

Enjoy.

Gai Lan with Oyster Sauce

2006-01-05T13:36:00.000-06:00

Since it seems the food blogging world is all about healthy foods this month I thought I would post about some of the healthy dishes I did between Thanksgiving and Christmas to try and stave off those unwanted pounds. One of my favorite ways to eat healthy is to incorporate more vegetables and protein in my diet instead of those heavy carbohydrates, such as rice, pasta, and bread. Ok, well, not rice. Asking a Thai girl to give up rice is nigh impossible. I also try to avoid anything high in sugar. So toss out those bags of cookies and candies you may have leftover from the holidays and try some healthy food with me.

On my annual trip out to Los Angeles one of the restaurants I must eat in is the Empress Pavilion. This is the best dim sum restaurant and the first restaurant we hit after my plane arrives. My foodie friend, Islaine, out there knows that if I’m not taken for dim sum there will be hell to pay. Usually, in the form of me whining for however long I’m out there! Well to combat all those delicious dumplings and oily treats I always request this item from the carts that wander around.

This is gai lan (Chinese broccoli) blanch and served with an oyster/sesame oil sauce. It is very easy to make at home and you can substitue baby bok choy, broccoli, broccolini, asparagus, or sugar snap peas. All you do is blanch your vegetables for a 5 to 7 minutes and then put them in an ice water bath to keep them pretty. The vegetables should be tender-crisp.

Recipe for sauce:

1 tsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp vegetable oil
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in 2 Tbsp of water.

In a small saucepan, mix all ingredients except cornstarch. Heat gentle for about a minute then add cornstarch mixture to thicken. Cook for about 30 seconds longer. Toss sauce with drained greens or pour over top. Yum!

Enjoy.

**Recipe from Dim Sum The Art of Chinese Tea Lunch by Ellen Leong Blonder**

Moo Satay

2006-01-03T01:02:00.000-06:00

Now that I’ve had a chance to mostly recover from my food and alcohol laden New Year’s Eve I thought I’d write about the food Emily of Knittripps and I made for her wonderful, fun, and crazy party. After much discussion and ogling over various recipes we decided we would make the Blue Cheese Grapes we had tried at Mosaix on my birthday and a Thai appetizer called Moo Satay.

Like buffalo wings in America, Moo Satay is an appetizer found all over Thailand and Malaysia. They go well with beer and alcoholic drinks and are a must have at any Thai party. The most common version is pork that is marinated in a combination of curry powder and coconut milk, skewered, then grilled. Moo Satay is always served with a peanut/curry dipping sauce and a cucumber salad making this a hearty appetizer that can also be a light meal. I’m proud to say they were very well received at Emily’s party.

Sorry about the quality of the pictures I was so busy eating Emily had to remind to take a picture!

Moo Satay recipe from Thai Table.

Click on the link for the recipe I used if you would like to give this a try.

Enjoy.

Happy New Years!

2005-12-31T16:00:00.000-06:00

Inspired by Emily of Knittripps' post about looking forward and looking back I decided to do my own list about food (what else) resolutions.

2005 Highlights:

- created this blog;
- started cooking more ethnic cuisines, especially Thai;
- forayed into the wonderful world of gourmet teas.

2005 Lowlights:

- ate way too many fast food meals, especially McDonald's;
- inconsistant blogging;
- being too lazy to make lunch, whereby eating junk or fast food.

2006 Resolutions:

- learn more ethnic dishes, like Korean;
- try my hand at more pastries and desserts, they for some reason scare me;
- explore more local eateries and specialty stores.

I hope everyone has a Safe and Happy New Year!

Gong Fu Tea Part II

2005-12-28T22:16:00.000-06:00

~~HELP!~~ I think have become a tea junkie!

A few posts ago I wrote about my trip to find the perfect Christmas gift for my girlfriends and my total delight at what I found at Gong Fu Tea store. Of course, I really wasn’t able to walk out of that place without getting something for myself. (Oh, come on, you know I deserve it!)

Well, since then I’ve become a tea addict. I think I’m averaging about 2-3 cups per day and I came home tonight and all I wanted was to curl up with a nice cuppa. It’s getting so bad that now I’ve taken to leaving the tea brewing pot on the counter and every morning I wake up, stumble out of my room, and turn on the kettle. I’m not even sure I’m awake half the time. Hrm... do you think I need tea drinkers anonymous yet?

My morning tea with milk and sugar:

I adore Earl Grey. This has to be the best I've ever had. The wonderful aroma of bergamont is to die for. No oily or alcoholic taste/smell to it either which, I believe, means they use real bergamont in their blend and not the essential oil you find in most Earl Grey.

My afternoon tea:

This is the white tea I was telling you about. A delicious tea I find very similar to a green tea but with a more delicate flavor. The only thing I found about this tea and the next one is that I really don't like the first brewing. So I've taken to rinsing my tea (pour water, let steep for only 30 seconds, discard water) and drinking the second brewing.

My evening tea:

According to the gentleman that was helping me, this tea is their biggest seller. I now know why. There is an amazing floral bouquet that wafts up at you as soon as you open up this tea. It's a bit too floral for me but I've found I really enjoy it right before bed. Somehow, it's very relaxing.

Oh, and this is the really cool tea brewing pot I picked up for Emi, Sherry, and I.

Love it! You put the tea in the pot, pour water, wait the minutes it takes for the tea to brew, then you put it on top of your tea cup. There is hole in the bottom that opens when you put it over you tea cup. What a wonderful invention. I may have to go get a few more.

You know, nevermind about helping me... I think I kind of like my new found addiction, thank you very much!

Moo Sup Pad Bai Gkaprow (Minced Pork Stir-fried with Thai Basil)

2005-12-27T00:29:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago I posted about an Asian grocery shopping spree. Now that things have settled down a bit I decided I would show you what I made with all that food.

Another favorite luncheon dish from Thailand I used to eat on a semi-regular basis was gai pad gkaprow. Translation = chicken stir-fried with Thai basil. It is usually served over a bed of rice with a crispy fried egg over easy and some of the ubiquitous Thai condiment; Thai bird chilies in fish sauce with a squeeze of lime. This is a dish you will find all over Thailand. I’ve eaten this dish in the south on a white sand beach, on a mountain top in the far north, and all over Bangkok, from street stalls to fancy restaurants.

I was in the mood for pork so I decided to make mine with some minced pork I had picked up. One of the greatest things about stir-fries is you can decide what meat you feel like. If you’re in a Thai restaurant you may want to give this dish a try. Live a little and get it spicy like we do, come on I dare you. I double dare you!

If you feel like trying your hand at this at home here's the recipe:

3 Tbsp canola oil
1 lb. Minced pork (or chicken, sliced)
6 cloves garlic, minced
5 to 20 Thai bird chilies, bashed with the side of a knife or chopped (adjust for you heat level)
2 shallots, minced
1 cup of Thai basil leaves
2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce for color
pinch of sugar
dash of white pepper

Heat wok or large saucepan until smoking hot, add oil. Add garlic, stir for a few seconds, then add shallots, stir-fry for another 30 seconds or so. Add minced pork, stir fry until done, about 2 minutes. Add chilies, stir-fry another minute. Add fish sauce, dark soy sauce, pinch of sugar, and white pepper. Add basil and stir-fry until it is wilted. Serve over rice with a egg over easy if desired. Garnish with cilantro.

Recipe adapted slightly from Kasma Loha-unchit.

Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

2005-12-25T11:07:00.000-06:00

Hope everyone is having a great day full of fun, family, friends, presents, and most of all FOOD! Here is a picture of the christmas cookies Emi and I baked a few weeks ago to get your stomach rumbling:

Gong Fu Tea

2005-12-22T10:15:00.000-06:00

In search of the perfect Christmas gift for my two girlfriends Sherry and Emi of Knittripps I finally made my way to the East Village. For those who have not heard of the East Village it is an area of downtown Des Moines that has been renovated. Instead of dingy old abandoned buildings there are wonderful eclectic little boutiques and shops. As much as I would have loved to have wandered all over this new neighborhood I had a specific shop in mind for this trip. For my two tea-loving friends I decided to check out the selection at Gong Fu Tea. I'm awestruck by what I found.

Upon walking into the store I immediately knew this was going to a store I would be frequenting often. I was charmed at seeing all the shelves of teapots lining one of wall of the shop, their collections of teapots are designs from around the world that range from normal to whimsical. I probably could have spent hours looking at these pots. As the gentlemen behind the counter were busy with other customers I meandered into the rear of the store and found some delightful candles, soaps, cups, and tea-related gadgets.

After snagging two candles for some other people on my list, I made my way up to the counter and just stood in awe of the selection available. Canister upon canister lined ths shelves behind the counter filled with loose leaf tea from around the world. Did you know there is a tea from Africa? I didn’t. While I don’t claim to be a tea connoisseur I have grown up drinking teas and have been exposed to many different Chinese and Japanese teas, just don’t ask me to name them. So with the help of the ever so charming and knowledgeable gentleman behind the counter I was able to pick out somes teas as gifts and for myself. As a slight test and a bit of curiosity I quizzed the gentleman, who I believe is part owner of the store, as to the various teas he carried. Here are some of the teas I found out they carry:

Earl Grey
English Breakfast
Chamomile
High quality jasmine
Oolong
Green teas
Black teas
Chrysanthemum teas - these are cool they come in tight bud that will blossom in your tea cup.
White tea- tea that has not be oxidized at all.
Dragon pearl tea - if I remember right this type of tea is very high grade serve to royalty type teas

I asked about the last three types of tea just to see if he knew about them. These last three are high quality teas that I’m told you have to go to tea stores in Los Angeles, New York, or San Francisco for. I would never have thought I’d find them in a locally owned little tea store in Des Moines, Ia. [Insert picture of me dancing with glee here.]

Luckily, for my girlfriends’ or for me I’m not sure yet, I was on a mission to purchase gifts. So I managed to curb my desire of buying every tea in the store and only walked out with three teas for myself and two gift containers of four different teas and tea brewing pots for my girlfriends. If you, my wonderful readers, are lucky I might be able to talk Emi into taking a picture of her gift for you all.

Sorry for the length of this post, but I just had to tell you about the Gong Fu Tea store. I’m in love with this store and will probably wax poetically about it for ages. If you’re in Des Moines and like tea you MUST!!! go there. Even if you don’t like tea GO THERE! If you do, you may just find me ensconced in the corner with a good book or some knitting as I plan to be there quite often. If you really can't make it (and there better be a good reason as to why) to the Gong Fu Tea store click on the name above and it will take you to their website.

Enjoy!

Granite City's Sunday Brunch

2005-12-04T00:51:00.000-06:00

The weekend before Thanksgiving a good friend of mine came up to town and suggested we go to Sunday brunch at Granite City. Most sundays I’m lucky if I get out of bed before one o’clock and the last thing I’m usually thinking about is food. You have to understand that saying something, that a foodie like me isn’t thinking about food for once!

Since this was a special occasion to spend some time with a good friend I actually got up, got showered, and dressed before 11 o’clock. Amazing, huh? I think so! Alright, my bad sleeping habits on sundays aside what I really wanted to talk about was the food. What else, right?

If you haven’t had the chance to check Granite City’s amazing Sunday brunch I highly recommend that you do. It’s a little pricy at $14.95/person and you may have to wait a bit for a table and in the buffet line, but man is it worth it. At the beginning of the buffet your choices already get your mouth watering. After retrieving our warm plates, we stepped into line and were offered a choice of fresh strawberries, cantaloupe, chocolate muffins, blueberry muffins, white chocolate raspberry muffin, or croissant. Oh my!

I started off with some fruit, a croissant and took a white chocolate raspberry muffin home with me. Next up was your choice of eggs, scrambled or cheesy egg casserole with ham. I had the scrambled eggs. They were to die for and I don’t even LIKE scrambled eggs. I ended up going back for seconds on the eggs even when I felt my stomach was about to burst. The eggs were buttery, had a wonderful flavor, and seemed to melt in your mouth. I’m drooling just thinking about them. Next is a choice of sausage or bacon. Every in my party who had been there before kept raving about the bacon so, of course, I had to try it. It was wonderful. I believe it was a smoked apple bacon. I remember thick pieces of bacon that tasted real without any weird artificial flavor taste to it. This, my friends, is what bacon should taste like.

I faintly remember a pasta dish (it is brunch after all) and some potatoes. I think I had the potatoes and there were good but not that memorable. Almost at the end of the buffet, there was roast beef with horseradish sauce. It was a little too well done for my taste as I like my beef pretty rare, but still very tender. At the end of the buffet was a made to order egg mcmuffin stand. My friend had one and said it was great. I trust her taste so I’m sure it was, sadly I was too full on my second trip up to try it. But, you can be sure I’ll try it on my next trip to Granite City’s Sunday brunch. Well, that is if I make it past the eggs and bacon I’ll be heaping on my plate.

Oh, and before I forget, you can also get mimosas and bloody mary’s. The bloody mary’s very tasty too. Just beware those can fill you up and you might miss out on more of the scrambled eggs and bacon. Sorry, I REALLY like the scrambled eggs and bacon. Can you tell?

If you get up early on a Sunday I highly suggest a trip out to Granite City. It’s a great place to take your friends or family out for a special Sunday treat and laze away the late morning and early afternoon hours. Just be sure to schedule a nap for the afternoon. You may need it, I know I did.

Asian Grocery Shopping Spree

2005-11-28T22:12:00.000-06:00

Today I got up and decided it was time to change my diet. With all the rich foods (most carbs and fat) of the past week I really wanted to get some healthy eating in. At least until the middle of December, when I'll be baking my Christmas cookies and preparing for more holiday feastings, I want to try and eat healthier. Instead of insipid salads for the next two weeks I decided on a better way to get some veggies into my daily routine. I'm switching to a mostly Asian diet. Traditional Asian food I grew up on consist mainly of vegetables, small amounts of protein, and rice. Many of the dishes are healthy. After a peek in the cupboards, I realized I really needed to go the Asian Market. Here are the staples I picked up:

Along with some frozen seafood, pork belly, and ground pork:

What I went to get in the first place:

Finally what no Asian meal would be complete without:

Now my kitchen is stocked and I'm ready to cook some great Asian meals.

**Click on each picture to go to my Flickr site where I have described the products.**

Khao Mun Gai Turkey

2005-11-27T22:54:00.000-06:00

Well, another Thanksgiving has come and gone, the traditional Thanksgiving feast is now a fond memory, and your tastebuds are now looking for something different. You look in your fridge and what do you see? Turkey, turkey, and MORE turkey. If the thought of yet another turkey sandwich isn't a pleasant one, you may want to try Khao Mun Turkey.

This is my way of using up leftover turkey. Khao Mun Turkey is actually supposed to be made with chicken, since turkey isn't a commonly eaten meat in Asia. Khao Mun Gai (literally rice in chicken drippings) used to be one of my favorite lunches when I lived in Thailand. All I had to do was walk out our front gates, cross a street, go up to the street stall, and order. Alas, I no longer have that luxury in Iowa. So I had to learn to make it. It's a time consuming dish with many different ingredients, so I have rarely made it. Not to mention, it's pretty fattening and greasy for an Asian dish.

With some leftover turkey and turkey stock I decided to make a mock Khao Mun Gai. I was pleasantly surprised at how well it turned out. I ended up having it for 3 meals and now I wish I had some more turkey. It was very tasty!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2005-11-24T10:26:00.000-06:00

Well after doing pretty well at posting for a little while, the arrival of a good friend heralded much feasting and fun, so, alas, blogging got put on the back burner. Have no fears, I have many a post lined up for your reading pleasure. I did say FEASTING remember?

But today I just simple would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. May your day be will with fun, laughter, family, and friends. Much love and many thanks for all of my readers.

Enjoy the day and happy eating!

Spatchcock

2005-11-17T01:11:00.000-06:00

I love the word spatchcock. I ran across it on an eGullet thread. I've heard of the technique but never heard the term before. So what is it? Basically, all it means is the split open a whole chicken and lay it flat. I used this technique for the first time to do roast chicken.

I love a good roasted chicken. I seem to do one about once a month. Besides noshing on just roast chicken it's great for leftovers. I'll usually use it in sandwiches or over a salad.

Here's a picture from the front. As you can see the chicken isn't quite flat. I forgot to take the wishbone out. It didn't hurt anything and I actually liked the hollow it created as I mounded the chicken over some garlic cloves and onion wedges. I'm not sure if this technique will replace my normal method of roasting chicken as I like to stuff mine with aromatics. However, it did make for some nice crispy skin and was quicker that my normal routine.

Spatchcocking:

Remove giblets and neck, rinse chicken inside and out, pat dry with paper towels. With sharp kitchen shears, cut down both sides of backbone, remove back (freeze this part for stock later). Snip out wishbone (optional, mine worked just fine with it). Press chicken flat.

Season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Rub with a good amount of olive oil. Mound over one medium onion, cut into wedges and garlic cloves. Bake at 425 degrees, 40-60 minutes. Let it rest for at least 10 minutes after you remove it from the oven so the juices can soak back into the meat. Bonus is this also gives you time to make your sides. I served this with a simple romaine salad and some fresh, hot, crusty french rolls. Nummy!

Won't you spatchcock today?

Enjoy.

Chicken, beef, or human? HUH?

2005-11-16T00:36:00.000-06:00

Ok I knew Thailand has some foods that may seem a bit strange or unappetizing but THIS? I never thought I'd say this about a food offered in Thailand but, uhh, count me out on this one.

(AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong)

Alright, before you go running off screaming to canceling those plane ticket and hotel reservations, the picture is NOT really human parts for sale. It's just bread. Kind of unappetizing bread, in my opinion, but bread nonetheless.

Kittiwat Unarom, a 28 year old Thai art student, makes these out of bread at his studio in Protharam, Thailand. His reasoning behind the creation of such ghoulish looking bread is to make people "ponder whether they are consuming food, or food is consuming them". Interesting. It certainly made me ponder. Ponder how far it was to the porcelain god, that is. But, that aside, it did also make me ponder about what we eat and the old adage of "we are what we eat". Hrm, does that make me a JapChinKorVietAmer-Thai? Woah, that's just too wierd.

Read the rest of article by Watcharaporn Taithongchai,Associated Press Writer, here.

Wonder if I can order some of these for next Halloween. That would be cool!

I want! I want! I want!

2005-11-15T10:30:00.000-06:00

Oh my. I just found out Mario Batali, one of my favorite chefs from the Food Network Channel, has a line of enamel cookware. I mean the man's a legend. Ok maybe not a legend. But he is a good friend of Anthony Bourdain and we all know HE is a god, at least amongst foodies.

I've been drooling over this panini grill for 10 minutes. Anybody want to get me a christmas present? Please? Pretty please! If you get it for me I promise to cook for you. Pinky swear.

Photo from Italiankitchen.com

Check out more of Mario Batali's cookware here.

Typical Breakfast

2005-11-14T23:17:00.000-06:00

Please don't start thinking that I've turned into some kind of tofu-eating health nut. I'm not really. I'm still just a tofu-eating nut. *ba-da-ching* Ok,ok comedian I am not. However, I have gained a healthy interest in all things organic. I first noticed organic products when I my local HyVee opened a neat little organic section. I also started going to an organic store Emi told me about. One of the first things that got me hooked on organic products was yogurt. Now a typical breakfast for me is a bowl of granola mixed with cranberries and almonds topped with yogurt and honey.

For some reason I've never been a fan of yogurt until I found Brown Cow's organic top cream yogurt. There is a vast difference in the taste and even the texture of organic yogurt. It has a richer taste and is creamier than the yogurt you usually find in the stores. The only place I've seen it in town is at the organic store I mentioned earlier. So sometimes it can be a pain just making a trip to get some granola and some yogurt but, man, is it worth it.

Photo from Brown Cow Farm's website

If you haven't tried this product get thee to the nearest organic store. Your tastebuds will thank you for it. Trust me.

Spicy Tuna Mayo Onigiri

2005-11-13T20:19:00.000-06:00

A few days ago I made some onigiri that tasted amazing but looking a bit scary. Today I had the chance to perfect my technique and came up with some prettier looking ones. Tasty too!

I ate two of the onigiris and a large bowl of plain miso soup for an late lunch/early dinner. Dessert was the pile of grapes. Not a bad meal, and relatively healthy I believe.

For those of you who don't remember my second post that explained what an onigiri is, I'll recap a bit. Onigiri, also known as omusubi, is the Japanese equivalent to the western sandwich. It is a common item found at picnics or in your lunch bento (boxed lunch). Like sandwiches, fillings can be pretty much whatever you'd like. Most are flavorful as to constast with the bland rice. Some common filings are umeboshi (pickled plums), tuna/mayo, salted salmon, or even Spam (very popular in Hawaii).

Onigiri is fairly easy to make. Most people I know just use thier hands to mold the rice into shape or use a mold. The most common are ball shaped, barrel shaped, and triangle shaped. I usually use a mold but since that's currently in a box somewhere I had to try to shape mine by hand. Not very pretty I tell you. I found a great trick to hand molding on Egullet's Japan thread. (Have I told you how much I love Egullet? I do, I really do.)

Take a piece of saran wrap and place it over a shallow bowl. Spoon heap of hot rice into the middle of bowl, spread it out a bit. Put filling in the middle of rice. Gather up plastic wrap and mold into desired shaped. Wrap in nori. Easy as pie. I think I like this trick better than using my mold. Thank the lord for Egullet. (^.^)

Today I decided to make my favorite which is spicy tuna (Starkist Sweet and Spicy Tuna in a pouch),minced onion, and Kewpie mayonnaise. I also mixed in some furikake with the rice before I assembled my onigiri.

Recipe:

4 cups steamed Japanese rice
2 Tbs fuikake
2 sheets nori (seaweed)

Filing:
1 pouch Starkist Tuna Creation sweet and spicy flavor
1/2 onion, minced
1/4 cup Kewpie mayonnaise*

Use technique described above. Should make 4 decent sized onigiris.
Enjoy.

*Kewpie mayonnaise is a Japanese brand mayonnaise found in Asian markets. It is more acidic then American mayonnaise. Use whatever you feel like.

Here's a great site featuring different conbini (convenience stores) onigiri. Click me!

Japanese Pizza = Okonomiyaki

2005-11-10T14:37:00.000-06:00

Since I’m still a wee bit sick (yes I know story of my life, this time of year is a bad one for me. Damn fibro!) I’m still jonesing for some comfort food. The last couple of days I’ve been on a Japanese food kick. Dinner on Tuesday night was some onigiri with spicy tuna and mayo (I would have taken a picture but... umm.. I really need to brush up on my onigiri molding skills) and today its okonomiyaki.

My first introduction to okonomiyaki was through a Thai lady married to a Japanese man I had met in my Japanese class in Bangkok. She introduced me to sushi and a lot of typically cooked at home Japanese dishes. Okonomiyaki was one of my favorite dishes she introduced me to. My love affair with Japanese foods other than sushi began because of her. I miss my "elder sister" from Thailand, I wonder if she is back in Osaka now. Whereever she is, I'm very grateful for the cooking lessons she gave me so many years ago. Now, sad to say, I probably cook more Japanese cuisine than I do Thai. The main reason for this is because most of the ingredients I need can be found at my local grocery store. Whereas, for Thai cuisine I almost always have to go the Asian market.

After reading the okonomiyaki thread at egullet. I decided I needed to try making this dish myself. The okonomiyaki that I’m used to has ground pork, shrimp, konnyaku, and shredded cabbage. Looking in my fridge I realized the only thing I had was a head of cabbage. *Grumble* Well I guess it was time to improvise. Scrounging around, I found a can of spam and some artificial crab sticks so that’s what ended up in my okonomiyaki. It was actually pretty good, though I really have a hankering to try the original version again. That, however, would require a trip to the grocery store and the asian market so that might have to wait for another day

In the pan prior to flipping.

Recipe:

2 eggs

1-2 cups flour, approximately

2 cups water, approximately

1/2 head of cabbage, shredded large

1/2 lb ground pork

1/4 lb raw shrimp, cut into small pieces

1/2 cube konnyaku (optional)

3-4 green onions, diced

Topping:

Tonkatsu sauce or worchester sauce

Kewpie mayo

Bonito flakes

Nori (seaweed) flakes

Combine first 3 items, you're looking for a pancake like consistency; add flour or water as needed to get the right texture. Add the rest of the ingredients, stir. In large non-stick frying pan on medium heat, pour half the mixture and pat until it looks like a large fluffly pancake. Cook about 10 minutes on first side, flip*, cook another 10 minutes other side. Slide onto plate, top with tonkatsu sauce (or worchester sauce), mayo, bonito flakes, and nori. Repeat with other half of mixture. Makes two large okonomiyaki. **

* I use the Spanish tortilla method. Put large plate over skillet, flip skillet over, slide okonomiyaki from plate back into frying pan.

** I can eat about half of one before I get full. Then again I can only eat two slices of American style pizza so that may give you an idea of how much to make.

Feel free to experiment with ingredients as okonomiyaki like American pizza have whatever you like in it.

Thai Flavors

2005-11-03T14:31:00.000-06:00

The other day I called up a friend to see if he wanted to join me for lunch since he had the day off. I'm usually the one who picks the restaurants amongst my group of friends and that day I had a craving for some spicy Thai food. I'm still a bit sick so I was jonesing for some comfort food. We agreed to meet at our favorite Thai restaurant only to find out that it was closed for a month of renovation. I was determined, however, to eat Thai food so we ended up at Thai Flavors Restaurant as it was the most convenient Thai restaurant for where we need to go after lunch. I was surprised to see how busy it was.

I was hungry so I decided to have an order of vegetarian eggrolls. The were delivered to the table tongue-burning hot (trust me) and were great. These are the type of eggrolls I grew up eating. Inside was a mix of carrots, cabbage, and vermicelli noodles. The sauce was obviously not from a bottled and was lighter than your normal sweet & sour sauce.

I had the green curry lunch plate with chicken. I asked for it Thai hot but either they didn't trust me or they've toned down what they consider thai hot. Green curry is never supposed to be eye-wateringly spicy but there should be a nice kick. I wanted it SPICY though and was sad that it came pretty normal spicy (to me).

My friend had the padthai which he said was pretty good but not quite up to standard of our favorite Thai restaurant. I've had it before and would have to agree. There are better versions to be found.

All in all, Thai Flavors did satisfy my craving. The dishes we had tasted like what I expect from a good Thai restaurant. Sadly, I think they are starting to cater more towards American taste. I missed the flavor of thai basil in my curry and the padthai was a bit sweet. Not a bad place for lunch though as it was quite cheap, all lunch plates were $5.95. If I remember right the dinner menu is quite a bit larger so I may have to head back that way sometime.

Food: 7/10
Service: 8/10
Price: Lunch under $10
Authenticity: Slipping a bit but not too bad. I remember crying when I ordered a 3 star dish when the restaurant first opened. So I expected to be hurting as I ate my 5 star rated spicy lunch. Sad to say I didn't even have to reach for the water glass once.

I vant some blood.

2005-10-31T22:42:00.000-06:00

If you are easily grossed out or haven't eaten lunch you may want to skip this next post. Don't say I didn't warn you.

The other day Eddie Lin of one of my favorite food blogs Deep End Dining posted a blog about different blood related foods he tried for us. One of his pictures sparked a memory with me.

Pork Red Cake. Happy Garden. San Gabriel, Ca

Blood is a popular item in cuisine from around the world. Brits have blood pudding. The French and German's have blood sausage. But its Asian countries (China, Vietnam, and Thailand that I know of) who have taken the cake (pun intended) when it comes to eating blood. When I lived in Thailand some of my favorite lunch dishes from the street stalls included nice big chunks of blood cake a.k.a the pork red cake as its listed above. If you look at the picture the brown tofu-ish item is what I'm talking about. There were many a noodle soup bowls consumed with those luscious cubes of blood.

Another favorite noodle soup dish was beef noodle soup with fresh blood squirted into it. When the blood hit the hot broth it curdled and added a wonderful indescribable taste to the broth. Mmmm... memories... makes my mouth water just thinking about it. For those of you who haven't had the opportunity to try this delicious treat, blood cakes are savory with a hint of sweetness. The texture is something between gelatin and tofu. It is commonly found in different types of soups, similar to the one pictured above. Oh and btw, those white things floating around in the picture. Those are intestines. Pig intestines, I believe. A favorite "variety meat" of mine.

Ok I think I need to go find dinner. I'm really starting to salivate as I write this. Alas, no blood or guts for me tonight. It's not an easy item to find in Iowa.
Sigh. I need to move to LA.

Happy Halloween! Muahahaha! ;)

On Top of Spaghetti

2005-10-25T21:40:00.000-05:00

On top of spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
I lost my poor meatball,
When somebody sneezed.

It rolled off the table,
And on to the floor,
And then my poor meatball,
Rolled out of the door.

It rolled in the garden,
And under a bush,
And then my poor meatball,
Was nothing but mush.

The mush was as tasty
As tasty could be,
And then the next summer,
It grew into a tree.

The tree was all covered,
All covered with moss,
And on it grew meatballs,
And tomato sauce.

So if you eat spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
Hold on to your meatball,
Whenever you sneeze.

Some people crave chicken soup when they are sick. I craved meatballs. Namely spaghetti and meatballs. Being a wannabe foodie I couldn't just go pick up a bag of frozen meatballs, I had to make them myself. So today my sick, sniffling, coughing, and aching body got up and made some meatballs. However, since I'm still a wannabe foodie I cheated and used Paul Newman's Fra Diavolo spaghetti sauce.

You know what? I'm no longer sniffling or coughing. There must be something to this after all huh?

Lyrics courtesty: http://www.scoutsongs.com/lyrics/ontopofspaghetti.html

I finally did it!

2005-10-20T23:56:00.000-05:00

No, not that! I finally got myself a digital camera. (Yeah, that's what you were thinking I'm sure.) After I decided to blog I started looking for a digital camera. Well I finally found one I liked and that fit my criterias; basically fit in my purse, took good pictures for posting on this blog, and not too pricey.Today I walked into my local photo store, plunked down my little plastic card, and this is what they gave me in return. I liked it.

I guess I don't have a good excuse to not post pictures anymore. Somehow, I don't think your saddened by this fact. Jeez, what I do for you people. (j/k)

I've read a lot some of these.

2005-10-19T09:32:00.000-05:00

I used to think I was well read until I found this list at Knit Tidbits. Sad, sad, sad. I guess I've got some reading to do huh? Now where did I put that library card?

List Of 100 Books You Should Read Before You Die

Bold if you've read it.
Italicize if you've read part of it.
Put ** if you want to read it.
Add a book, if you like

#1 The Bible
#2 Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
#3 Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
#4 The Koran
#5 Arabian Nights
#6 Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
#7 Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
#8 Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
#9 Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
#10 Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman **
#11 The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli **
#12 Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
#13 Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
#14 Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
#15 Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
#16 Les Miserables by Victor Hugo **
#17 Dracula by Bram Stoker
#18 Autobiography by Benjamin Franklin **
#19 Tom Jones by Henry Fielding
#20 Essays by Michel de Montaigne
#21 Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck **
#22 History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon **
#23 Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
#24 Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
#25 Ulysses by James Joyce **
#26 Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio **
#27 Animal Farm by George Orwell **
#28 Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell **
#29 Candide by Voltaire **
#30 To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee **
#31 Analects by Confucius
#32 Dubliners by James Joyce Joyce
#33 Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
#34 Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
#35 Red and the Black by Stendhal
#36 Das Kapital by Karl Marx#37 Flowers of Evil by Charles Baudelaire
#38 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
#39 Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence
#40 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
#41 Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser
#42 Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
#43 Jungle by Upton Sinclair
#44 All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
#45 Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx
#46 Lord of the Flies by William Golding
#47 Diary by Samuel Pepys
#48 Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
#49 Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
#50 Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
#51 Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak
#52 Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant
#53 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey **
#54 Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus
#55 Catch-22 by Joseph Heller **
#56 Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X
#57 Color Purple by Alice Walker
#59 Essay Concerning Human Understanding by John Locke
#60 Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
#61 Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe
#62 One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
#63 East of Eden by John Steinbeck
#64 Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
#65 I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
#66 Confessions by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#67 Gargantua and Pantagruel by Francois Rabelais
#68 Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes
#69 The Talmud
#70 Social Contract by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#71 Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
#72 Women in Love by D. H. Lawrence
#73 American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
#74 Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler
#75 Separate Peace by John Knowles
#76 The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
#77 Red Pony by John Steinbeck
#78 Popol Vuh T.S. Eliot.
#79 Affluent Society by John Kenneth Galbraith#80 Satyricon by Petronius
#81 James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
#82 Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov **
#83 Black Boy by Richard Wright
#84 Spirit of the Laws by Charles de Secondat Baron de Montesquieu
#85 Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut **
#86 Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
#87 Metaphysics by Aristotle
#88 Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
#89 Institutes of the Christian Religion by Jean Calvin
#90 Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse
#91 Power and the Glory by Graham Greene
#92 Sanctuary by William Faulkner
#93 As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
#94 Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin
#95 Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
#96 Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
#97 General Introduction to Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud
#98 Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
#99 Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Alexander Brown
#100 Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess **
#101 Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines
#102 Emile Jean by Jacques Rousseau
#103 Nana by Emile Zola
#104 Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
#105 Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin
#106 Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
#107 Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
#108 Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Peck
#109 Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark
#110 Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
#111 The Odyssey by Homer
#112 Harry Potter: The Goblet of Fire by JK Rowling
#113 The Pelican Brief by John Grisham
#114 Sphere by Michael Crichton
#115 War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
#116 Tales of the Otori by Lian Hearn
#117 The Bacchae by Eurpides **
#118 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
#119 Starseeker by Tim Bowler
#120 The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
#121 Sabriel by Garth Nix
#122 Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead by Tom Stoppard
#123 The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger **
#124 The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky
#125 Macbeth by William Shakespeare
#126 Othello by William Shakespeare
#127 Why I Am Not a Christian : And Other Essays on Religion and Related Subjects by Bertrand Russell
#128 The Metamorphoses of Ovid **
#129 Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
#130 Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy **
#131 A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
#132 Empire Falls by Richard Russo
#133 Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka **
#134 The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
#135 Frankenstein by Mary Shelly
#136 Emma by Jane Austen
#137 Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
#138 Guns, Germs, & Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond

Tapas at Mosaix

2005-10-18T14:56:00.000-05:00

Growing up Thai I've always eaten food that have complex tastes. Every Thai meal should be compiled of dishes that maybe sweet, salty, spicy, sour, and/or bitter. Most meals will consist of at least 3-4 dishes with dishes that strive for layers of different flavors all melding into something wonderful. Generally, dinners in my family would consist of a curry, a stir-fry or two, a fried dish, and a salad. These were served with corresponding dips and condiments to flavor our rice with. We would all sit down to dinner with a large plate of rice, take bite sized portions from the main platters of food, mix this bite with some rice, eat, and then chose a spoonful from a different dish. If you watch most Asian families when the dine in Asian restaurants you will see them sharing food this way. This way everyone gets a bit of this and a bit of that. I still have a hard time going to Chinese restaurants with most of my American friends as they usually order their dish and they don’t share :-( Or at least not as much as I’d like them to.

So where is this all going? Well I’m hoping by explaining how why I’ve always wanted to try tapas. [Click here for a definition of tapas] I just love the idea of sharing multiple little plates of highly flavored tidbits while drinking good wine. Combine this with a nice atmosphere, a great friend, and wonderful conversation and you have one of my favorite ways to spend an evening.

Yesterday for my birthday Emi took me to a fancy pantsy restaurant in town called Mosaix. I’ve always wanted to go there because I had read they had tapas. Mosaix is one of the higher end restaurant in towns and this might seem like a antithesis of the tapas that are found in Spain (generally bar food), but since the owners also own JT’s Wine and Spirits at least your guaranteed a great wine to go along with your tapas.

I found this was definitely the case when we started our dinner with a glass of wine each. Emi had a love reisling and I had a wonderful pinot noir from Australia. Bad food blogger that I am I didn’t manage to get pictures or the correct names for most of the dishes. I really need to work on that huh? But at least I can give you enough descriptions of the dish that you be able to order them if you choose to.

For our tapas we started with grapes rolled in blue cheese and crushed pistachios. Emi and I are big fans of blue cheese and we both were very interesting in trying this dish. Six of these tasty tidbits arrive on a platter of arugula with slices strawberries in what was probably my favorite presentation of the night. I loved biting into these as the combination of sweet grapes and tangy blue cheese went well together. The texture of the pistachios added a nice crunch to the dish.

Our second dish was grilled oysters with a dark sauce. I don’t quite remember what was in the dish but do know that one of the key compositions of the sauce was a soy sauce or worcester sauce. This was probably my least favorite and I thought the cooked oysters tasted gritty. The sauce had a good flavor though.

Our third dish was Gambas al Ajillo, a well-known tapas dish. I believe this is the spanish version of shrimp scampi. This was my favorite dish of the night and the one I wanted to try the most. Mosaix version had wonderfully large shrimp bathed in lovely garlic butter. I loved the simplicity of this dish. The shrimp was sweet and very succulent. This would have been even better if they had served some nice crusty bread to dip in the remaining butter.

Our fourth dish was Patatas Brava which I believe is another quintessential tapas dish like the Gambas as Ajillo. After the prior dishes it seemed a bit bland but as I cleansed my palate with another glass of pinot noir it became more flavorful. I liked the flavor of the potatoes with the sauce.

Next came blanched white asparagus with a aioli sauce and baked brie with onions and apples in phyllo dough. Out of all our dishes these two I think I could have done without. The asparagus was something I could do at home and I really didn’t care for the sauce. It was similar to what was served with the patatas brava but didn’t add enough flavor to the bland vegetable. The brie was lost amidst the overpowering onion flavor and the doughy tasty of the pyllo. I certainly noticed the apples in the dish but I really couldn’t taste them.

All in all, I had a great time but I think that was more because the lovely company, the good wine, and great conversations as opposed to just a fabulous meal. It has given me great ideas for what to serve at a wine party.

Cryptonomicon

2005-10-06T14:49:00.000-05:00

Awhile back I mentioned that I would be writing reviews of the books I read. Well I finished Neil Stephenson's Cryptonomicon a couple of weeks ago and never managed to get around to blogging about it.

So with no further ado...

Cryptonomicon is a story set during WWII and present day following the lives of Lawrence Waterhouse and his grandson Randy Waterhouse. Lawrence Waterhouse isn't good at much except music and numbers. He ends up in the Navy and after the Attack of Pearl Harbor goes on to become a high-level cyrptoanalyst for the US government. Intertwined with Lawrence's story is the story of his grandson Randy who is a computer programmer. The plot twist and turns through WWII battle scenes, high level mathematics, history, treasure hunts, and even romance.

I liked the book. It was, however, quite pedantic. If you like a story to go from point A to point B with no stops in between this is not your book. But, if you don't mind a story that gets lost, stops and has a picnic, and then takes the scenic route this is a book for you. Are you aware that there is a correct way to eat Captain Crunch? According to one of the protagonist, Randy, there is. All in all, this book is a full of geekish masturbatory material. Though, the non geek may appreciate it also you might find it a bit annoying.

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

2005-09-23T21:26:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday I went to the Kansas City Renaissance Faire. I used to go every year but hadn’t made it down there in the last few years. This year a co-worker who works there gave me free ticket so I decided I had to no excuse not to go this year. Since I love reading fantasy, love history, and love to find unique little trinkets renaissance faires are right up my alley. So far I’ve only managed to go to the one in Des Moines, Minnesota, and Kansas City.

The Kansas City Faire is my favorite. It’s a big faire but you can pretty much get through the whole thing in one day. The last time I went to the Minnesota one I only managed to do 1/3 of what I wanted. Kansas City is also closer and cheaper if I remember right. It’s usually opens for Labor Day weekend and runs until mid-October. There’s plenty of things to do and load of fun to be had by all. Check it out sometime.

Kansas City Renaissance Faire

Here's a picture of my henna tattoo that I got down there amongst other things.

Caution! Life can wear you out.

2005-09-19T23:07:00.000-05:00

Wow! It’s been way too long since I’ve posted.

Does it ever seem to you like things just seem to happen all at once? My life has a tendency to be that way at least. I’ll go through a period of doing pretty much the same old same old, then wham one thing after another happens and life gets incredibly busy. That’s what has happened to my life recently.

Here's the quickie version of what has been putting me through the spin cycle and has left me feeling like a wrung out piece of laundry. Hooked up with boy, found out a friend was moving in a week, found out guy was a Asshole (capitalization intentional), spent a lot of time with friend, repaired a friendship, helped friend move, spent some one on one time with another friend I rarely get to see alone, realized dating a co-worker makes life awkward (someone please slap me if I EVER hook up with a co-worker again), fixed work situation, found out a different friend was pissed of at me for some unknown reason, decided to be mad at said friend back (never said I was mature :P), went to a Green Day concert (was on the floor about 10 people away from the stage *jumps up and down squealing like a teenager* had an awesome time!!!!), and finally I went to a Renaissance Faire where I got a great henna tattoo which I’m in love with. This was all in the space of two weeks!

Damn I’m tired. But at least I’ve learned a lesson, realized I have good friends, and had some wonderful, unforgettable, great times. These are the things that make my life so fun. At the very least, I’ve some great blog material if only I can get the memories typed up.

First item on the list, however, is SLEEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Blog Addiction

2005-09-01T21:09:00.000-05:00

I'm posting this in reply to a recent topic on a board I read called exmo-social. The topic was what blogs do you read. I knew I read a lot but I have never bothered to list them all out. Good thing I have kinja.com to keep track of all of them or I'd never leave the house. I'm really beginning to wonder if I'm a bit odd for having so many additions. Oh well, you all love my quirks anyway.

Food Blogs

http://scentofgreenbananas.blogspot.com - Guam, US
http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_grindz/ - Hawaii, US
http://deependdining.blogspot.com/ - Los Angeles, US
http://afullbelly.com/ - New York, US
http://www.amateurgourmet.com/the_amateur_gourmet/ - New York, US
http://www.arthurhungry.com/ - San Francisco, US
http://becksposhnosh.blogspot.com/ - San Francisco, US
http://chezpim.typepad.com/blogs/ - San Francisco, US
http://www.deepfry.blogspot.com/ - Pacific Northwest, US
http://tasteeverythingonce.blogspot.com/ - Pacific Northwest, US

http://www.travelerslunchbox.com/journal/- Europe
http://chocolateandzucchini.com/ - Paris, France
http://worldonaplate.com/http://davidlebovitz.com/ - Paris, France
http://foodmigration.com/ - Paris, France

http://www.chubbyhubby.net/ - Singapore
http://umami.typepad.com/umami/ - Singapore
http://tabetai.blogspot.com/ - Singapore/Brunei/Malaysia
http://stickyrice.typepad.com/ - Vietnam
http://www.noodlepie.com/blog/ - Vietnam

http://slashfood.com - Unknown
http://www.sautewednesday.com/ - Unknown
http://www.roboppy.net/food/ - Unknown
http://kitchenmage.typepad.com/ - Unknown
http://www.101cookbooks.com/ - Unknown
http://www.worldonaplate.org/world_on_a_plate/ - Unknown
http://www.blogjam.com/ - Unknown
http://gastroblog.com/ - Unknown
http://oad.typepad.com/oa/ - Unknown
http://sevensoy.blogspot.com - Unknown

Thai Blogs

http://oakmonster.com/
http://thai-blogs.com/
http://thailand.blogs.com/dailydose/
http://bangkok.metblogs.com/
http://thaicoon.blogspot.com/

Japan Blogs

http://tokyotimes.org/
http://tokyo.metblogs.com/
http://www.yongfook.com/ - Hilarious blog, also does reviews of Japanese conbini food
http://xogij.blogs.com/xogij
http://smt.blogs.com/mari_diary/

Misc

http://gumbopages.com/looka - Misc
http://simonofspace.blogspot.com/ -also known as SoSCrack MUST READ! Awesome sci-fi story by the author of the Darth Vader blog http://darthside.blogspot.com/
http://fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com/ - Fantasy book reviewer
Woodley’s Blog
Emily's Blog- Knitting blog
Beth’s Blog - Knitting blog

Yikes! Help! I need blogger's anonymous!

Sweet corn and watermelon. Gotta love it!

2005-09-01T01:23:00.000-05:00

The good thing about living in the heartland of the country is the wonderful produce that is available. Especially around this time of year. There are some things in Iowa I will definitely miss when I move. Good pork and beef, the only dairy I LIKE the milk from, and the produce to name some. Since I’ve been living on fruits and veggies lately that’s what I’ll talk about today. (I think I’ll save my addiction to the AE dairy for another day.)

Iowa is well known for its sweet corn. There is nothing like Iowa sweet corn. I've always liked corn, but now I REALLY like corn. Especially sweet corn from Grimes in August. Less than 5 minutes in a pot of boiling pot of water, a little (or a lot :P) of butter, and maybe a pinch of salt or chili powder and you have yourself meal. How can one ear of corn be a meal you ask? Trust me, you’ll want more than one and next thing you know any food you’ve made (like the main dish) will just sitting on your plate as you devour ears upon ears of sweet kernels. Umm, yeah, not that ever happened to me. *cough, cough* Excuse me, I think I need some dental floss.

So what was for dessert? Watermelon! Another summer time must have. The watermelon I’ve been eating is to die for. Sweet, juicy, and seedless. I could eat this watermelon for days. Er, I guess I already have been. Hey! At least its not fattening right?

Little fruit and veggie stalls that pop up on street corners ever summer are the greatest. It may be a bit more expensive to buy from them, but it is well worth it. I’d much rather have the watermelon from there then from what’s found in the air-conditioned, trucked in from god knows where, supermarket stuff. Most of these stall sell just a few items; all seem to at least have sweet corn and tomatoes. The ones I frequent on the corner of 63rd and Grand has peaches, watermelon, corn, tomatoes, and canteloupe.

Oh and the best part about the fruit and veggie stall on 63rd and Grand? The seller is HOT! *drool*

Hello, My name is Onigiri and I'm a book addict.

2005-08-24T00:16:00.000-05:00

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I’m a reader. If you know me really well, you’d also know that I dabble in writing also. Well I’m not sure if I write well, but I sure can read. Most people might have a book or two piled up on the night stand. Me? I have a pile next the night stand, by the window, on the bed, next to the two overflowing bookshelves...

My addiction to book has gotten so bad I now have taken to sneaking off to the bookstore when I’m alone just so I can get my fix. I used to bring a friend, but most wont let me go near a bookstore if I’m with them. They have all figured out that if they let me go into one they won’t see me again for another few hours and getting me out of one is near impossible. Some people close out the bars, I close out Barnes and Nobles. Yes, I know, I’m a sad, sad nerd. *sigh*

So is there a point to all this?

This is my lovely way of telling you that some of my future post (er... probably soon) will involve the discussion of books. Hopefully, you will all be interested in what I’m reading at the moment and what I think about them. I read just about every genre and even the odd cereal box if I don’t have anything handy around (an oddity since I usually have some reading material nearby). My favorite genre is fantasy, but I do tend to branch out depending on my interests at the time. Lately, I’ve been reading more sci fi, bestsellers, and occasionally a romance or a mystery book. I have a slew of favorite authors and if one strikes my fancy I will often try to read everything they’ve written. I have a bad habit of reading a few different books at one time, all very different. In my currently reading pile there is a fiction book, a book on writing, a classic, and a history book. Just to give you a glimpse of I will possibly be reviewing, here's what I'm reading:

Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephensen

On Writing by Stephen King

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Salt: A History of the World by Mark Kurlansky

My first food blog

2005-08-18T23:13:00.000-05:00

Saigon Cafe

In a fit of boredom I deceided to drag a friend of mine out to eat pho . It didn't take much; just a bit of whining and bribery. (Cause I'm good like that -_^)

I started out the night with Vietnamese iced coffee which is one of my favorite ways to drink coffee. Coffee was introduced to Vietnam by the French so needless to say it is NOT your typical American weak brew. No, it is pure espresso served in a French press that is suspended over a collins glass with a separate glass of ice. What makes this drink so unique is the thick layer of sweetened condensed milk that lies in the bottom of the glass. So when your press is done dripping you grab a spoon, stir, and pour the mixed coffee over ice. What you get is a sweet, creamy, and strong iced coffee drink. Nummy!

Next we each had an appetizer so we could share. I had the pork and shrimp spring rolls and my friend ordered the egg rolls. Spring rolls are similar to egg roll, but are not fried. The rice paper wrapper is generally rolled around thin noodles, lettuce leaves, mint, bean sprouts, shrimp, and in this case pork slices, served cold. The dipping sauce, quite unique to Vietnamese cuisine, is a mixture of sugar, vinegar, chilies, and grated carrots. The spring roll was good, but it didn't have the mint or bean sprouts tucked in like I'm used to. The egg rolls were well seasoned but the pork was still a bit raw.

I had the Hu Tieu Mi and my friend had the Pho Saigon. My dish was good. It is a similar noodle dish to pho only its made with both egg noodles and rice noodles, then topped with Chinese bbq pork and seafood instead of beef. This soup is made to be a meal and trust me there is plenty of food. All the noodle soups are served with a plate of bean sprouts, basil leaves, sliced chilies, and pieces of lime. There are always condiments such as Siracha sauce, soy sauce, and hoisin sauce at the table. This way you can garnish and season your soup to your taste. My only complaint is that the broth at first was a bit sweet, but a squeeze of lime and a squirt of Siracha sauce solved that. My friend says her broth was a bit bland but the meat and meatballs were good. Both had plenty of noodles to slurp up. In fact, neither of us could finish our bowls.

Service was quick and friendly. Be sure to tell the staff you want your appetizer first so they can hold off on making the soup. It's a very quick meal to put together so it came out when we were still trying to finish our appetizers. Was it the best pho/mi I've ever had? Well, no. But the restaurant is in a good location, close by, and they make a pretty good bowl of noodle soup. I'll probably be back in a month or so.

Food: 7/10
Service 8/10
Price: Cheap and filling.
Authenticity: Missing a few ingredients but all in all pretty close to what I'm used to back home.

Update

2005-08-18T23:04:00.000-05:00

I really need to get the hang of this blog thing. I keep saying "Hey this is cool, I should blog about it" and end up coming home and read other people’s blogs. Well since I seem to have a few different thing I want to write about I should be posting a bit more frequently. I think the Cymbalta is really helping. I feel tons better and have been easing my way back into being a social bunny again *hops around*

Sometimes drugs are, like, your friend dude.

The joys of new medication.

2005-08-06T17:54:00.000-05:00

I must apologize to my vast audience of probably one person (thanks Emi).

It’s been awhile since my last confession... er post. To this I must blame my ever wonderful condition of fibromyalgia, with its ever annoying symptoms of fatigue and pain. This relapse has put me out of commission for the last three weeks or so. No need to worry however as I have taken my sorry self off to the doctor and been prescribed a new medication. Whether or not said medication is helping I’m not sure. The pain does seem to be decreasing and I do seem to have a bit more energy. So that’s good news.

Hurrah for doctors and modern medicine you might say? I am not so sure. The latest round of pharmaceuticals given to me is called Cymbalta. I was given 4 sample bottles consisting of 7 pills each and told to take one per night without the need to fill my stomach first. After also handing me a prescription to fill once the samples ran out and a command of "see me in four weeks", the doctor with a cherry smile and a wave, disappeared. Leaving me with a bag full of drugs, a $15 copay, and questions.

Questions, oh you know, like..um what the hell was this drug and why am I taking them? The internet is a wonderful thing I tell you. I’ve since found out that Cymbalta is an anti-depressant that also helps alleviate the symptoms of fibromyalgia in women. Only women. Weird, but true and another sign that men and women are vastly different creatures. I also found out that there are some annoying side effects. The side effects are nausea, dry mouth, decreased appetite, anorexia, increased sweating, and suicidality.

SUICIDALITY??? Taking an anti-depressant that causes suicidal thoughts and actions. Great! Reminds me of the anti-nausea pills I was on once that the side effect is nausea. Kind of defeats the purpose huh? So far I’ve been on it for about 4 days and the only side effects seem to be dry mouth and decreased appetite. Which means I drink loads of water, pee frequently, and forget to eat. Maybe I’ll lose weight. The only problem being I’m not hungry but my mind thinks I need to eat and likes to remind me at about nine at night. This leads to me standing in front of the open fridge for half an hour while I rummage through food that doesn’t sound appetizing or takes too long to cook whereby I end up eating junk food. Methinks somehow this will NOT lead to weight loss, whaddya think?

Onigiri in a Fruits Basket

2005-07-14T21:58:00.000-05:00

I thought the best way to begin would be to explain the name of my blog. The name comes from my favorite anime series Fruits Basket. An onigiri is a Japanese rice ball, the equivalent of a the sandwich in western society. To be an onigiri in a fruits baskets is obviously a little odd.

Sometimes thats how I feel, little like the odd man in the totem pole. I live in the heartland of America and all of my friends here are American. Don't get me wrong I love my friends dearly, but sometimes I can't help but wonder if it would be different having at least ONE Asian friend close by.

Someone who doesn't think its weird to eat rice everyday. Someone automatically takes their shoes off upon entering a home. Someone who knows that theres a difference between a Thai girl and a Taiwanese girl (ARG! I hate when people think I'm Taiwanese when I say I'm Thai). No, I am not the only Asian in this state, but for some reason I just have never made friends with any. All the ones I know are out in California. Maybe I'm too American?

Eh, who knows.

2005-07-14T11:11:00.000-05:00

My very first post. What to write, what to write? There's so many things I'm interested in it hard to just pick one. Do I write a food blog and satisfy the amateur food/chef side of me? Or do I write about anime and all things Asian to satisfy the Asian side of me? How about blogging about books as I'm a bookworm? Aw, what the hell, I guess I can write about it all huh? It is my blog after all ^-^