Mother’s Day Brunch

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Happy Mother’s Day! My mother is in CO visiting her grandkids (it’s Mother’s Day so she gets to do what she wants.) Not sure if the mother of her grandkids was expecting it, but oh well. We went to brunch with the in-laws. Kirkland’s Yarrow Bay Grill, with its wonderful view of Lake Washington, offered a nice brunch today. We started with warm scones and croissants. The husband is a croissant connoisseur, and when he raves about a croissant, you know it’s going to be good. These, split in halves, were warm, moist, buttery and flaky. With some berry jam it was truly one of the best croissants I have tasted in a long time. I ended up picking up a second half. These were so good that the husband grabbed one more half before the main course was served for fear the waiter would take away the bread bowl too soon. That’s when I snapped this pic.

croissant via chattycha on flickr

Up next was a fruit dish … berries, melons and pineapple with a smidgen of yogurt on top. The husband also got a mint leaf. Following the fruit we had a salmon and lox appetizer served with crackers. All very nice.

For the main course I ordered the Seafood Frittata. Lobster, crab, scallops and various other seafoods combined with eggs and served with roasted potatoes and asparagus. A tomato salsa was drizzled on top. It was a bit heavy on the cilantro. Not a problem for me, but meant that the husband wouldn’t give it a taste. The husband ordered the Scrambled Eggs Carbonara. That looked quite good but I didn’t give it a taste. I first said no when he offered me a bit and the plate was cleaned when I thought maybe I should have given it a try. He gave it a thumbs up (how can you not say no to anything with bacon?

The Seafood Frittata (a bit blurry, but I was was hurried as I attempted to be inconspicuous about taking a photo:

seafood frittata via chattycha on flickr

A nice, enjoyable brunch with the in-laws. It was lengthy, too. Our reservation was for 11:45 and we finally left around 1:30. Quite nice to not be rushed. A long line of mothers and their families were waiting for their tables as we were leaving. Was quite glad that we got an earlier reservation time.

Connector-ing

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I’m trying out the new Connector service that is available by the firm. My trip so far:

8:40 am: leave my house to go to MM to get a latte. I figure 20 minutes is plenty of time to get a latte, even if the line is a bit long.

8:50: it’s my turn at the front of the line and I decide, no, not enough time to get a latte, so I order a short drip with room instead. The lady at the espresso maker is going at 33 RPM in a 45 RPM world. As much as I hate Starbucks, I know they can get through a line of 9 people in what seems like 9 minutes. Not the case here.

9:00 am: Board the Connector, find a good seat. Take a tour of Wedgewood as we pick up more and more worker bees. Predominantly male. I think I’m one of 2 women taking the Connector on this route. Unsure if this is reflecting the departure time (9am, with a 10 am arrival to your building), or if it reflects the alternative commute options. Hm.

9:24 am: We’ve just got on the ramp at Montlake. Traffic is not as bad as at 7:30, as well it shouldn’t be.

9:37 am: Just got off at the 148th Ave exit. We’re pretty much on schedule.

9:56 am: Sitting at my desk, finishing this post. The shuttle to my building left “West Campus” at 9:45 (Two minutes after the scheduled arrival time of the Connector. Not bad). While on the Connector I had enough time to review some email and proofread a document. The ride was quiet, comfortable, and didn’t smell like some of those Metro busses do.

All in all, a positive experience. Hooray! As much as I’m enjoying this (wi-fi! Lookit me, I’m online, trying to be productive!), nothing beats the Vanpool. Are you hearing me, Eva? Nothing beats a quick pick up route and drop off right in front of my building.

Fruit

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As much as I love dessert (and if you can’t tell from my posts, I <3 desserts!), the husband and I have finally had to put the kibosh on buying slices of pie; cookies; eclairs and other sweet treats for a while. (My anniversary cupcake, red velvet with cream cheese frosting from Cupcake Royale, doesn’t count). So instead, I’ve been making fruit salad. Mangoes from Mexico have entered their ripe season, and every one I’ve bought have been ripe, sweet and juicy (for anyone interested today’s mango was my third in eight days). Also here are red grapes; ruby red grapefruit; banana, fuji apples and a couple of slices of (canned) peaches.

fruit cup via chattycha on flickr

 

Tyler Florence Classic

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Picture this. January 2003. Winter in Chicago, my second quarter in graduate school. Living in a tiny studio, with a cruddy Internet connection. With freezing cold winter days and the husband (at that point, the fiance) in a different time zone, it is no wonder that my best friend was cable television (as seen through a 13-inch VCR/TV Combo). Winter 2003 is when I discovered the Food Network. My favorite show, the one I taped if I was at school, and watched every day, sometimes twice a day, was Food 911 with Tyler Florence. This recipe, from an episode when he was helping some housewife learn how to cook with tofu, became a staple when I was in school. This, and a chick pea/tomato/spinach curry dish over rice. Hmm. I’ll have to re-create that one at some point, too.

panko-fried tofo with spicy ginger soup

Panko-breaded tofu, pan-fried, served atop soba noodles in a spicy ginger soup. In this instance I used buckwheat noodles, but you get the idea. The soup is a hot and sour type of broth, made with a mixture of soy, oyster sauce, rice wine vinegar, sambal sauce and thinly sliced ginger coins.

BTW, it was in grad school that I also loved watching reruns of NYPD Blue. I watched five or more seasons of the show throughout the spring/summer (LOVED not having class until 1PM!)

This just in … whimsy & spice has arrived

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whimsy & spice

Friends of my brother have recently started a boutique confectioners business. Aware of my fondness for food blogs, Ray sent me the link to their blog right away (why are all these great food blogs out of NYC, anyway?). Sweet fine day is an ongoing tale of a couple starting a family and a business, at the same time. Drool over incredible photos of dulce de leche brownies, and view interesting posts about the trials and errors of creating the perfect marshmallow, the right shortbread cookie, etc. Throw in a few Asian recipes, some photos of very cute kids and you’ve got a reason to check in every day.

So imagine my excitement when Ray informed me that whimsy & spice had opened an etsy shop! As soon as they were available I purchased some caramel-infused marshmallows. Along with it came chocolate marshmallows, and samples of nut and spice biscotti and shortbread cookies. I was so excited I nearly forgot that I eschewed desserts for the rest of the week. Then again, if I eat this for breakfast, it’s not exactly breaking any rules.

I can’t do the food photography justice, so you’ll have to visit their etsy shop, their Web site, or their blog and see for yourself.

Thanks, Whimsy & Spice. I love the marshmallows. I’m bringing them to work, a) to enjoy with my morning cup of coffee, and b) to show off and instruct everyone to get buy their own.

If I lived in Brooklyn I would visit you at the Flea, but since I don’t I’ll continue to enjoy your find shipping services.

my whimsy & spice shipment

By the way, the marshmallows. They taste … like marshmallows. Incredibly light, fluffy and fresh marshmallows. I shall have some hot chocolate tomorrow specifically to enjoy with a light, fluffy and fresh marshmallow.

moo-shoe pork

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Here is the card Max gave me for the birthday (inside it reads ‘have a porkfect birthday’ or something like that:

moo-shoe pork via chattycha on flickr

No doubt this is what inspired my decision for what we should eat on the birthday, mu shu pork and chinese broccoli.

Yes, it’s true. We spent the special evening eating take-out Chinese food and watching “NCIS” reruns. I just love that show.

Oink.

Birthday Dinner, part 2

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And it’s not even my birthday yet! (here is part one)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chattycha/2411574639/

So here is the deal with the pie. Every year on the husband’s birthday, the husband’s mother bakes him a banana cream pie. Nothing fancy. Literally it is the same pie recipe she’s been making for him for the past 30+ years. It very well might have come from an issue of Redbook or the back of a Jello Pudding package. And the husband wouldn’t have it any other way. Within the last couple of years my birthday also made it to the “birthday pie” list. Now I get a pie on my birthday! Or the day before, which is fine by me. This is coconut cream pie (recipe from Martha, according to the MIL). A coconut filling layered beneath fresh whipped cream. Toasted coconut and shaved chocolate to top it off. Plus, a homemade crust that looks like a REAL crust (unlike some crusts I’ve known). Plus plus, I also received the pie plate that the pie arrived in as a gift. Beautiful stoneware from Crate & Barrel.

And, because we couldn’t just have pie for early dinner/late lunch/whatever it is you have when you eat at 2:30 in the afternoon, the husband made one of his (and my) favorite dishes that he pulls out for guests: gnocchi al romano. Rich cheeses, eggs and milk, magically/scientifically combined with semolina flour then baked/broiled to perfection. The 16 words I just used to describe the dish doesn’t do the actual cooking process any justice. Just keep in mind that on more than one occasion, when cooking this dish, has the husband hurled out expletives and thrown a few pans around the kitchen. It’s intense. But the results are sooo good. In the background of the photo below you can see the ragu bolognese sharing the plate, another specialty he’s prepared on occasion (the pics of the bolognese didn’t come out, but picture this).

 

San Diego Dinner

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Yeah, so I’m kind of going backwards on the posting. Here is another meal from San Diego. Team meals are super fun for me. We stay in a hotel that has a kitchenette in each room, which is pretty crucial as we are all careful with what we are eating during a race weekend. We are a couple of blocks from a major supermarket, and we tend to go there once or twice a day. For dinner we gather in a hotel room/cottage/outdoor patio/etc. and we all bring something to the party. On the first night my hotel-mates and I made pasta salad to go along with the chicken we were barbecuing. (Sorry, no pic)

The next night was pasta night. “Jody, you’re cooking tonight” was the command from a certain rower, much to Jody’s surprise. As a Seattle firefighter she has the experience of cooking for large numbers. It was just pasta, but a lot of pasta.

via chattycha on flickr

via chattycha on flickr

At Jody’s request we went to the store bought and some supermarket-style brownies. These were extra-special because they were topped with chocolate icing. My teammates got into the spirit of this food blog I’ve been keeping and recommended that we “plate” this next one special.

via chattycha on flickr

Click here to see the lucky coxswain who got to take a bite. I suggested she replace the existing strawberry with a clean one, but she refused. Crazy girl.

Let me apologize again for the fuzzy pics. The lighting in the room was nil and I really dislike the look of the flash (see pasta pic above). I have to figure that one out. If you have tips/suggestions, please let me know.

Mom’s Home-Cooking

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Since I was mute for a week, I find myself on a posting roll tonight. It helps that I took a two-hour nap this afternoon and now am wide awake with nothing better to do.

My parents met me in San Diego on race day and drove me back to their home in San Gabriel (about 12 miles east of LA; a 2+ hour drive from San Diego). That evening we had dinner at my cousin’s new house in South Pasadena, but Mom was the chef. She prepared a few dishes in her apartment kitchen, we stopped at Sam Woo’s BBQ to pick up some Ginger Chicken, then one of my cousin’s prepared a chinese-style chicken soup.

Considering the state I was in when I arrived (not just tired, but depressed, you can read all about it here), and after trying to watch my food intake for so long (in addition to what I was eating, how much I was eating), this was the kind of comfort food I needed, though I didn’t know it until I was stuffed to the gills, yet still trying to wash down one more slice of watermelon.

Here is (most) of the meal. At some point I put the camera away because I was too darn busy eating …

Tomato Tofu Soup.

tomato tofu soup

Spicy mustard greens (A bit too spicy for my taste. My cousins and parents had an at-length conversation about whether this was a spicy dish or not. 5 out of 6 said not spicy. 5 out of 6 were nuts. It was spicy.)

mustard greens via chattycha on flickr

Ginger Chicken from Sam Woo’s. A take-out staple. Sorry for the fuzziness, but you get the idea.

ginger chicken via chattycha on flickr

This next dish was surprisingly my favorite. My mom used to always make her scrambled eggs WAY too salty. It was pretty gross (sorry, Mom). In this dish, eggs and scallions, she added crunchy radishes. I’m not sure how the radishes were prepared (like the chinese-style pickled ones that come in a jar, though it wasn’t that pickled tasting. Just the texture was similar). And, she toned down on the salt. I kept coming back to this one. She told me she’d tell me what was in it, but she never did. That’s her style.

eggs via chattycha on flickr

Again, sorry for the fuzzy pics. Don’t know what was wrong with me this day.

What, you were expecting something different when I said “Mom’s home-cooking” and “comfort food”? Maybe you pictured creamy mac and cheese, or a tuna casserole? Well, we’re Chinese for crying out loud.

And, by the way. We don’t do Kung Pao. We don’t do Sweet n Sour. We do this. And we do it very well.