12 posts tagged “food”

I can eat pizza everyday b/c I love it that much!  This morning I decided to make my own pizza, the way my dad taught me when I was younger.

What you'll need:

I had lunch at my uncle's house today to celebrate my Godson's 9th birthday. He showed me what was left of his vegetable garden since summer is almost over and the cold weather is blowing in.

This year he had a good crop of cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, head and romaine lettuce, mini red and green peppers, cabbage, zuchinni, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, jalapenos, chili peppers, and squash.

Aside from vegetables, he also grew a variety of herbs and beautiful red and white roses that would be perfect for wedding bouquets.

In the middle of his garden he has a huge black compost bin. He continously adds fresh food scraps to the bin throughout the year. Then as summer approaches and he begins to cultivate his garden, he empties the compost and scatters the rich soil before planting the seeds.

Last month, to his great surprise, a watermelon along with numerous honeydews started coming up. Unfortunately they need a few more weeks to grow to full size but because the weather is getting cold, they may not have that chance.

Just before we left we managed to score the biggest honeydew that grew =)

I didn't cook much before Steve and I were married last year.  My mom always tried to get my sister and I in the kitchen but we just didn't have that passion to cook.  And we couldn't really stand to be in the kitchen with my mom b/c she has her own way of doing everything and we didn't have the patience to hear her explain how it's done and why, then give us a demonstration, then finally allow us to do it.  It took so long to do one simple thing that by the time it was time for us to do it ourselves, we were so impatient and just wanted to get the task done.

Now that I've moved out and have to do my own cooking, I really wish I had more patience back then and paid attention to how she did things.  I know one day when she's gone I'll regret taking her cooking lessons for granted.  I've tried to cook beef 3 times so far.  The first time was a complete disaster as I tried to prepare a simple stir-fry dish and overcooked the beef so much that it took 5 minutes to chew one piece before you could swallow.  Neither Steve nor I wanted to take it for lunch the next day.

The second time I tried to roast it and made 2 mistakes: I put waay too much seasoning and I cut with the grain instead of against.  Cutting against the grain has been a huge problem for me b/c I just don't understand which way the grain is running.  To me it's criss-crossing all over the place which is so intimidating so I haven't touched beef since then.  The roast beef ended up also extremely chewy but the flavour was actually great once you scraped off the excess seasoning.  Steve's comment pretty much summed up this dish: he would rather suck it than eat it.  LMAO!!  This one didn't make it into our lunch boxes either.

Tonight I decided to give it another shot and made another stir-fry beef dish.  I spent a good 15 minutes analyzing each piece, slicing one way then the other and tugging the pieces apart to determine which way the grain was running.  I even called my dad for extra support and encouragement who told me he couldn't really explain the grain b/c he couldn't see what I saw at that exact moment so he'll have to show me in person next time.  We hung up and after another 10 minutes of analyzing I finally started slicing and praying that this time things would work out and my beef wouldn't be so tough.

I cooked it for a lot less time, added the veggies and stir-fry sauce, then was ready to taste.  Final verdict: not bad at all!  It didn't melt in my mouth but it wasn't too chewy either.  Nice!  With a little more practice I think my beef dishes will get better.  I might attempt the roast again.

He eats the weird looking, non-perfectly shaped cherries that don't look too appetizing after I pick them up and decide I don't want it.  But he was nice enough to save me the best for last... a cherry shaped like an ass!

While shutting down my laptop at work today, I suddenly had a strong craving for the steamed ginger chicken served at every Chinese restaurant.  Lately I've been experimenting with cooking and trying to learn how to cook all my favourite Chinese dishes, so I went over to my Chinese co-worker to see if she knew how to make it.  She called her mom who was kind enough to explain how it's made. 

What you'll need:
> Chicken (whole or parts)
> Soy sauce
> Ginger
> Green onions (aka Scallions)
> Cornstarch
> Salt
> Oil

How to prepare:

1. Marinate chicken in soy sauce, cornstarch, salt, and finely chopped ginger and green onions.
2. Steam chicken on medium heat for 30 minutes.
3. To make the sauce, mix chopped ginger and green onions along with salt in a bowl.  Heat oil and pour in bowl.  If you hear it sizzle it means the ginger and green onions are slightly cooking.

Sorry there are no exact measurements but I sort-of just eye-ball everything.  Unfortunately the food in the pics taken with my blackberry don't look so appetizing but I promise it was delicious! 

 

The warm weather has finally arrived and it was the first time I could bust out my new Michael Kors sandals which I love to pieces. It was free hamburger day at my favourite burger joint but I was starving and one look at the long line-up was enough to make me turn on my heels and find something else to eat. Free or not, I will not wait for a ridiculous amount of time for food.

So Steve and I went across the street and ordered a rather pricey (but delicious)burger which we enjoyed outside on the patio. There was a slight chill in the shade but it was nice and warm in the sun. Felt so good to have some sun shining on my bare arms again after being cooped up inside all winter.

Steve made me the most wonderful breakfast this morning. It was so delicious that I can't resist sharing it.

What you'll need:
> Sliced bread
> Eggs
> Peanut butter
> Syrup or honey
> Steve's secret ingredient: bananas!

How to prepare:
1. Spread peanut butter on 2 slices of bread.
2. Slice bananas in 1/2 inches and put on one of the slices of bread. Put other slice on top and squish.
3. Beat 2 eggs in a bowl.
4. Heat pan and pour in eggs.
5. Fry bread on both sides.
6. Enjoy with syrup or honey.

I have to admit the peanut butter kinda threw me off but it was so delicious so don't skip!

I wasn't sure on the exact design of my wedding cake but I knew I wanted something all white and elegant.  I spent hours browsing the net for the most spectacular cake but it was my mom who was flipping through a magazine and came across this one:

I went to see my cake lady who was Steve's co-worker's wife who did an amazing job on my sister's wedding cake; and she was confident she could make it.  I went with a 3-tier cake instead of the 4 shown in the photo b/c 4 is bad luck in the Chinese culture.  The square bottom tier was chocolate mocha, the round middle tier was vanilla, and the cube top tier was tangerine flavour.  I also asked her to personalize the cake by adding our initials.  The final product was even more breathtaking than I imagined.