Random food thoughts

In lieu of an actual useful post full of pictures and a recap of my vacation and insightful thoughts, I'll just keep the blog going with this fact about me today:

All I really want to do these days is cook.  Then eat. It must be genetic.  My sister is a professor at UBC and she confesses to me (about teaching, being on the tenure track) "I just want to make cookies!"  My mom made "practice" loaves of both banana bread and carrot cake last weekend (and she has totally made both things tons of times before, so not sure what she needed to practice.)


My latest trend is slow cooker recipes.  I'm trying to save a few bucks here and there by not buying so many lunches at work.  At $7-$8-$9 a lunch it does add up.  However, I always get tempted to buy hot food even when I bring my own, because hot food is just so much more tempting than cold.  I've managed to go a whole work week with lunches catered by me tho, yippee!!  I started putting things into the slow cooker the night before and packing up a fresh hot meal in the morning.  Luckily this is the season for stews and soups, and lucky I love soups and stews.

I gotta try this one next week: Slow Roasted Chicken
http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Secrets-of-Success-for-Slow-Cooker-Chicken-Video/Detail.aspx

Is it vacation time yet?

I'll have an update and pics from the dance showcase soon! It was a great night.

The busy-ness keeps on coming.  This week is filled with packing up my apartment and moving to the new one this weekend.  But I have to repaint my bedroom first...right now it looks like something Eeyore would live in.  Whoever thought a navy blue room wouldn't be depressing?

I feel like I have to put my head down and get this done as soon as possible.  I need time to plan said vacation!

More Cowbell, please

A little shameless self promotion - also because I'm SO proud of my dance group.  The above is the nearly last practice we have for our dance performance in ...eeeep.... 6 days.  Here's a clip from our latest practice - I'm SO PROUD.



Er....yeah, so I am thinking this Wa (or Va) Tribe must be a cow herding people.  In fact, I've looked up some videos of their traditional dance and damned if there aren't cow skulls hanging up in the village square.  I'm particularly proud because we (me, DJ, Wei-ling, AJ) basically learned this dance ourselves, rechoreographed a good chunk (the original group had 3 people), AJ made the he costumes herself...and it's the riskiest dance we've ever done, both thematically (these people LOVE cows) and athletically.  But it's just so COOL - who knew any tribes in China danced like this?


1 tech rehearsal, 1 dress rehearsal to go.  Wish us luck!

D.I.Y. #3- The Zen of Cookies

Don't you just love days where the plan is to do nothing?  I amazed myself this fine Saturday (now Sunday) by my incredible multi-tasking of doing nothing yet accomplishing quite a lot.

My to-do list today looked consisted of:
1. Go to the bookstore

2. Make pancake breakfast

3. watch some tv

4. make cookies

5. start packing up the apartment

Thoere must be some Zen saying about how not TRYING to accomplish a lot means you'll be relaxed enough a hell of a lot done.  I feel like I really managed to filled up my day and be extremely productive despite waking up at 11 am and managing to watch Face/Off, Casino Royale, AND Bones AND Fringe.  The packing jitters are starting to set in, when I have to decide what I can pack now to make life easier for myself and what I won't be able to live without for the next 2-3 weeks.  Gah.  The anxiety is rising, although my subconscious must be very concerned about my shoes - I dreamed the other night that it was deathly important I pack all my shoes FIRST.  But I decided in the end that considering the next week will be eaten up by dance rehearsals, I can safely start packing away less used cooking equipment.  I don't exactly see myself making sponge cakes anytime soon.

The crowning achievement of my day, though, must be the cookies.  I've been promising Amy I'd make my Auntie Ellen's chocolate chip cookies ever since she told me about Levain Bakery in New York -  apparently famous for their chocolate chip and walnut cookies.

WELL...I've been eating Auntie Ellen's cookies since childhood and I have to say, this is my favorite CCC of all time.  Just the right balance of nuttiness, chocolate, not overly sweet, and somehow, her cookies always remain nice and firm (I was using the Tollhouse recipe for ages, but whenever I bake that, it always melts into a giant cookie puddle.)  I don't make them as well as Auntie Ellen, but a few more practice batches should do it!  So simple, so good.  Next time I'm thinking of substituting pistachios for the walnuts just to see how it turns out.  Enjoy!

Auntie Ellen's Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 measuring teaspoon baking soda

1 measuring teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, softened

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 measuring teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

2 cups chocolate chips

1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375⁰ F.  In small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. In large bowl, combine butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract, beat until creamy.  Beat in eggs.  Gradually add flour mixture.  Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  Drop by level measuring tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake at 375⁰ F. 9-11 minutes.

Shake it like a....

I've never been one for Photoshop filters, considering them a cop out unless used with great subtlety and sparingly.  It must be the photo snob in me who thinks, "That's cheating!"  But I just downloaded some fun iPhone apps that make your photos looks like old school Polaroids and I must admit I do like the results, a lot!

On a side note, I was never one to use Polaroids in artistic endeavors, except as test shots for large format cameras.  Still, it's sad that they no longer make them.  The sticky goo left on your fingers with that fresh chemical smell still makes me nostalgic (and, I apologize to future children in cases these toxins have seeped into my body.)

I downloaded ShakeItPhoto ($.99) , Polomoid ($1.99), and PhotoFilters (free).  Photofilters is just the color filters included in the Polomoid app.

Polomoid is kind of annoying, because it takes your photos and seems to force a landscape orientation, ending in some weird cropping.  But I do like the filters that make your photos look as if they'd been sitting in the sun, or the chemicals have started to go funny.  I had better luck using  ShakeItPhoto to come up with a composition I liked and then the free Photofilters to tweak the colors a bit.  Any of these apps may be applied to a picture you are about to take or stored on your iphone, and you have the option to keep a copy of the original photo.

Also, ShakeItPhoto lets you shake your iphone whilte the photo "develops"  to simulate the action made immortal by Outkast's "Hey Ya!"

What is it about the Polaroid look that is so fun?  I think partially it is the framing element.  Pictures automatically look just so much more finished, official, formal, what have you, with a frame.  It makes it sort of more precious (in terms of being cute, not valuable.)  For instance, I took these three so-so pictures which I didn't feel much about and after some app action, I kinda like them a lot more.  They look more special...or maybe what I needed all along was more contrast, color pop. 

I wonder if future generations will also get the nostalgic feeling people of my (and older) generations do?  Or does anything old give off that nostalgia? Hm.  In any case, I am personally a sucker for the funky colors of old chemicals, or the cross-processed look.

I tried the look on some of my "artsy" photographs - that is, NOT snapshots, and things I had set up, lit, posed very carefully and I don't like how these two have turned out.  Maybe it's because I already cropped and framed them, or just that I had spent a lot of time getting them to look just so.  Or, this look isn't for everything...but if I can get this to be decent quality I would consider printing out some of the other "snapshots" to a larger format for home decoration, instead of just decorating my facebook or computer hard drives.

Anyhow, fun new toys, so you can expect a few fake old photographs to pop up in future posts. :)

D.I.Y #2 - onigiri

Oh!nigiri!1!  

Have you ever been watching an anime and seen the characters chowing down on onigiri and thought, damn that looks good!  I want some, but how do I make them?  Here’s how!

What are onigiri?  Basically, onigiri are rice balls with a filling (fish or picked vegetables, wrapped in seaweed for easy handling.  They are especially delicious grilled, as the rice gets nice and crispy.  That’s all – rice and filling.  I’m 90% sure the compact hand-held aspect (and cute shapes) add even more to the flavor.  The cuter a food is, the more delicious, right?

Ingredients

 1. Fresh, hot steaming rice.  You can mix some sushi vinegar in it if you like, although that is a bit untraditional.  The rice must be hot and steaming, or else it won’t stick together.

 2. Filling of your choice.  I’ve used some lightly salted salmon as the filling for mine, you can choose your own to taste.  If it is meat, pre-cook your meat and cut into small pieces.

To assemble:

1. Onigiri making is easier with molds, but you can use your hands to make triangular shapes as well.  Fill up the mold half way with the rice and insert a piece of meat.

2. cover with rice and compress

3 Flip out onto a plate.

That’s it!  Between each ball rinse out your mold in cold, salted water (and also your hands) to keep the next ball from sticking.  The salt in the water will add a bit of flavor.   Wrap and seaweed and enjoy!

I like my rice crispy so I decided to grill these. I whipped up a quick sauce of 1/3 soy sauce, 1/3 sesame seed oil, and 1/3 mirin.  Maybe there was some vinegar in there too.  Brush some onto each side of the onigiri and throw it on the grill…

(If you don’t have a grill, broiling also works pretty decently too.)

Lastly, proceed to stuff into your face, and enjoy! :D

Public places, lonely spaces

Last weekend I took a crack-of-dawn flight up to Canada to visit some family. In a favor that trumps all favors, my lovely roommate dropped me off at the airport about 4:45 am (meaning we got up at 3:30 after staying up really late watching Bring It On – probably a foolish idea). 4:45 am is an interesting time to see an airport.

I’ve always had a fascination with being at a place normally bustling with people during the deserted off hours. I think it started with school playgrounds during the middle of summer, my parents’ ice cream store after closing, even your own home in the wee hours of the night. It’s like seeing someone you know only from work on the weekends in a T shirt and shorts playing football in the park with their kids (or your teacher at the grocery store – what, you have a LIFE outside of how I know you? What is this third dimension you have?)

The airport is particularly interesting to me since it for the sole purpose of moving people from one place to another. When I think of an airport I think about excitement, joy - because I'm always trave

ling on vacation or really happy to be home. When it's empty you realize that all the feelings you have associated with a place were brought there only by you to fill that space. What does it do when no one is around?

For me it's somewhere between beautiful, sad, and eerie - seeing a secret face. When you're the only other person there it's rather intimate.

There’s another Doris Cheung out there from Vancouver who already did a whole series of photographers about places like airports with know people so I’ll refrain from making a dramatic, symbolic statement with an art exhibit and just leave you with these. I think 3 am would be an even better time, and if I only had a tripod…

This one is my favorite...taken when rushing to my proper terminal! It seems awfully symbolic to me but I will leave it to you all to find whatever meaning you like. :) I think the lighting could go moodier, but that's just me - although there's something about the slow shutter speed-drenched with light look that draws me too since I know it's pitch black outside!

For a full album view of the pictures I took, the link is here.

http://picasaweb.google.com/cheungd/SFO2009#

And in a case of life imitating art, I found out that the West End of Vancouver (Stanley Park, I think?) looks just like that famous Seurat painting that is always getting parodied, Un dimanche après-midi à l'Île de la Grande Jatte:

I just need a few people with umbrellas and that's it!

Indian Springs Spa

I have not-too-surprising confession: I love being pampered.

I used to think that spas were waste of money. A frugal Asian upbringing combined with equal parts being a tomboy and being plain poor influenced me growing up. Then I went for my first massage, courtesy of a gift certificate. Wow. From then on it was downhill for me; body scrubs, deep tissue massages, pedicures, manicures, actual salon haircuts instead of Supercuts...things that would horrify my mother with how much they cost and level of decadence.

Let me tell you though, massages and pampering are nice. Being good to yourself really makes you feel…good. It isn’t all about looking better although a pedicure will bring my toes from ugly straight to cute; it’s about taking care of yourself and liking yourself enough to know that you deserve it. And if you can get a lot of girlfriends to go with you to a spa day, so much the better.

Which leads me to the most perfect day in recent memory. – a trip to Indian Springs Spa in Calistoga to celebrate DJ’s recent graduation from Berkeley with Masters in Public Policy. (We wouldn’t be good friends if we let her go alone!) Calistoga is renowned for mud baths, mineral baths, and hot springs; Indian Springs features lovely spa treatments in addition to an Olympic sized swimming pool fed by said hot springs.

Maybe it was overeagerness on our part, but my roommates and I arrived in Napa about two hours early. But happily that meant we had plenty of time to load up on goodies from Bouchon Bakery. (Speaking of decadent. Thomas Keller decides he needs bread for French Laundry and just opens a bakery?) A beautiful bakery has the effect of reducing me to near tears, and my brain to quivering mush because it’s just so pretty and I want to eat everything. And the early hour (arriving at 8 am at Bouchon!) with insufficient coffee perhaps confused us further resulting in our buying enough pastries to feed our friends x3. But who could say no to glazed fruit tarts, pecan sticky buns, and éclairs? Stronger women than us have tried and failed. (That’s a lie. No one truly tries to resist!)

Once at Indian Springs, we settled in by the pool to snack (gorge) on baked goods, relax, and await our mud baths.

About those mud baths. There’s nothing like unexpected communal nudity to bring you and your friends closer together. I had been expecting a private or semi-private room with slate tile floors, candles, and darkness. But of course, this is mud we’re talking about. The attendants led pairs of us in turn to a white industrial shower room and proceeded to:

1. strip us of our bathrobes
2. rinse us
3. help us into the mud baths and cover us with mud
4. help us out
5. rinse us again
6. drop us into mineral baths
7. and then herd us to the steam room.

If it sounds a little disconcerting, it was – especially in not knowing what to expect and having a friend pop her head out of the shower to giggle “You’re naked!” (Thanks, DJ. You gave me a heart attack.)

Mud also gets…in places. It was a sticky, gooey experience, but really quite fun! I went off on a teeny fantasy about being a dinosaur in the La Brea tar pits after, but basically stopped thinking after being soaked and steamed to emerge wobbly legged and very VERY relaxed. Nothing going on in my brain after that! Just in time for soaking up some sun by the pool.

All in all, a perfect day. Spas might be an occasional splurge but all I can say is – decadence, come on over.

Here’s a link to pics from day:
http://picasaweb.google.com/cheungd/IndianSprings2009#

Thoughts #1 - SF Marathon 2009

I had this PE teacher in middle school who once made us run 3 miles in the name of fitness. [Insert swear word here], but I really wanted to kill him and/or die. Who knew that one day I would willingly subject myself to running 26.2 miles? Certainly not I…even until 2 years ago I swore I would never creatively punish myself in such a manner. At this moment, I’m STILL not sure why I ran a marathon.

The closest explanation I can give is this: I didn’t think I could. Running the half last year proved me wrong about not being able to do that but I learned my lesson about how it works. You don’t just jump in without any training. You build up from running 15 minutes on the treadmill to being able to run 3 miles. And from the 3 which seemed so hard before, it turns to 4, 6, and 8. After 8, it’s all just training through 13 and beyond.

Up until marathon day I was still only 80% sure I could complete it. I’d trained up to the 20 mile distances, but there is a big difference between 20 and 26…and no matter what my training buddy said I know it took 5 hours. (I may be able to jog for long distances but one has ever said I’m fast at doing ANYTHING, especially eating tofu pot, running, or calculating tip.) I had so many worries - would I finish in the 6 hour time limit? Would I injure myself on race day? Would I simply freak out and quit halfway through?

The following is a summary of my mental monologue as best I can recall:

Pre-race: AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH! ooo, coffee. AAAAAAAAAAAAHH!

Race start: Hey guys, are we going in this wave or the next? Guys? Oh, we’re already running. Shoot. Ok, I’m ready. So ready. Yes, I am mentally prepared.

Miles 6-9: Ok, doing good. I’m at the Golden Gate Bridge, feeling strong. Damn, this bridge is crowded. I really hate these rude people who are passing me on the right! And you stupid b*tch, what are you stopping in the middle of the road?! I wonder what would happen if terrorists blew up the bridge right now. Or like in X-men when Magneto pulls the bridge apart? If I survived the fall, could I swim to shore to save myself? I’m almost to Marin. I better keep my eye out for explosions.

Miles 11-12: These hills are rude and offensive.

Mile 13: Halfway there. Feeling good. So nice and peaceful now that the people running the first half are gone. I like Golden Gate park and this goo I’m eating is tasty. Who are all those people over there and why are they running towards me?

Mile 13.5: I hate these second halfers with all my soul. Why are you so peppy and cheerful? Stop crowding you and breathing my air!

Mile 18: Wow. I think I blanked out for awhile there.

Mile 19: Dear Ms. Half Marathoner, you did NOT just cheerfully tell me to “Come on! Run!” up that slope I just slogged up. I hate you and you CLEARLY did not just run 19 miles like me. You shut up now.

Mile 21: I’ve now gone further than I have ever gone before. Miles 21-26 are my true test. I should blog insightfully about this.

Mile 22: I hate the world. I hate everything and everyone. Bring me ice cream.

Mile 23: 3 more miles? I can do it. No wait. Damn. 3 miles is a lot.

Miles 24-26: If I count 660 seconds that’s 11 mins. If I can count 660 twice then that’s about 2 miles at 11 min/mile. 1,2,3…

Mile 26 -26.2: SPRINT! SPRINT! OMG sprint towards the end oh look friends smile sprint omgyoucan stoooopomg!!1!ponies1!1

Let’s get one thing straight here. I don’t love running, even now. No, seriously! But snarkiness aside, I feel like when you’ve run a marathon you can basically do anything. I’ve had a lot of stress lately revolving around work and my living situation. But it all falls away when it comes down to you verses 26.2 miles of pavement. And, I felt afterwards that if I could push myself into doing something I never thought I could do, I can do ANYTHING. (I briefly felt like the Queen of the World and everyone ought to be bowing to me.) The training I put in really carried me through until the end. Even if my speed was not that great, I don’t really care right now.

I’m still enjoying wearing my mental tiara that says I rule the world.

D.I.Y. #1 - Facial Scrub

Do you like smooth, soft facial skin but are too cheap to pay for expensive beauty products? Here's a recipe for a facial mask out of common drugstore purchases that should cost less than $10. I can't promise that you'll go from looking like

to

But let's be honest here. Even Yoda could use a little exfoliating and moisturizing to bring out that healthy green glow.

What you'll need:

1. any kind of clay facial mask

2. honey

3. uncoated apsirin

1. 2. 3.

How to use:

1. Take a few tablets of aspirin and sprinkle a few drops of water on them until they start to melt into a paste. only a small amount of water is necessary, you don't want it too runny.

2. Mix in equal amounts of the clay mask and honey.

3. Slather a thin layer onto your face avoiding your delicate eye area

4. You can use this as a mask and just let it dry, or go straight to gentle exfoliation.

5. follow with cleanser, and always, moisturizer.

Why does it work?

The clay mask helps to draw out impurities such as dirt and excess oils from your skin and pores. When your pores get clogged, that's when you start breaking out into zits/blackheads/whiteheads. Honey is a wonderful natural humectant, meaning it draws moisture to your skin (and did you know it is also an antibacterial agent? You can put it on burns, too!) Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) is very chemically similar to salicyclic acid, which is the medication in anti-acne astringents. The aspirin tablets also melt easily into a sand-like texture which makes for great exfoliating, which will scrub away dead skin cells (which also clog pores, have a dull, dry appearance) to reveal newer skin. Also, your moisturizers will penetrate more deeply and therefore be more effective.

I had been trying out a clay mask, but felt like it wasn't doing me any good at all. Then I had the brilliant idea of mixing it with honey, and almost right away I felt like my skin was much more refreshed! I had already been using an aspirin-honey scrub on occasion, so it was just natural after that to mix the three. I mix up a small batch (trust me, it doesn't take much, about 5-6 apsirin, a couple squirts of clay and honey) into a small sealable container and use that for the week. I use this about every other day, and I feel like my skin has improved greatly in tone and texture since I've started using it.

Try it and let me know how it works out! I think you'll have good results and possibly want to keep touching your face.

Just don't do that too much in public.

Rave #1 - Up

I had the great fortune of attending a Friends and Family screen of Pixar’s new film Up yesterday and I don’t think I can tell you just how much I love this movie. Trust me, it’s a lot.

Pixar really manages to outdo themselves with every movie (with the exception of Cars). Each movie focuses on different life themes…and I give them props for really considering what themes will reach across audiences of all ages. What I really love about Pixar lately, they don’t shy away mixing the humor and heartwarming goodness they’re known for with a dose of tragedy – because that’s what life is, fantastical elements aside.

So, if you’re going to go watch Up, BRING TISSUES and don’t wear eye makeup. I kid you not. If you thought the opening to Finding Nemo was one of the toughest to see, the first 10 minutes of Up pack just as much punch.

Up is going to pull the heartstrings (just tug a little harder, Pixar, really I can take it…not) of everyone with aging parents or relatives, not to mention those worries about yourself or loved ones getting to their golden years and being alone. Just imagining my future life partner passing away before me…cue bawling now.

But what made me cry EVEN HARDER was the main character Carl finally fulfilling his lifelong dream. Of course he learns life lessons along the way, like the meaning of having a dream to fulfill, and finds he has more to live for and all that good stuff. This is the sort of thing that makes you want to 1) call all your parents/grandparents to tell them you love them, and 2) run home and start pursuing that dream you had but thought you had to give up. BECAUSE IT’S NEVER TOO LATE.

Go chubby Asian kid! I hope my child will one day have the can-do attitude that you do.

I won’t say much more about the plot because I don’t want to give any spoilers – except, when you all see this movie and get to the part with the planes in the hangers, you just KNOW what is going to come next in a Wallace and Gromit homage. And combining that with a Star Wars joke…this fangirl admits her toes curled in joy.

Good job, Pixar! I salute you.

Character #2- The Salad Lady

Who would pass up a cheap lunch option? Not the Salad Lady!

Every once in awhile I make a nod to being healthy by having a salad for lunch – and ever time, I see the Salad Lady. The great thing about this salad bar, you only pay according to box size instead of by weight. As everyone who has ever been a college student/Asian/have a fast metabolism, this is the equivalent of vegetarian food heaven – eat all you can smash in a box for low price of $4.75.

The Salad Lady has perfected filling her bowl to an art form. Every day, her salad overflows her small size bowl like a volcano. Cheap leafy greens? Not for this Madam of Vegetables. Her skills are so advanced, she has negated the usefulness of the box lid. This is the kind of salad that you can’t help but stare at – and it will stare back at you. I would estimate that her salad rises above the edge of the bowl by at least 3 inches every time. When she gets soup at the adjoining bar, you better believe that she’s ladled out all the good stuff that sank to the bottom of the broth and her (small) bowl is filled to the brim.

Now, I understand the joys of being cheap (see above – re: college student, etc.). But I’m starting to wonder if the Salad Lady is a recovering kleptomaniac distracting herself with harmless salad. Sure, cheating the system is fun the first few times, but it gets little ridiculous on a when it happens every day. Also, it is obvious to everyone that 1) the Salad Lady is not a poor college student and 2) she is not eating salad for the health benefits of tons of cheese, eggs, and sunflower seeds. If you have a problem Ma’am, please – there have got to be support groups out there.

Character #1 - Thor

Thor is the god of thunder and lightning and he exists at the university where I work. The first sighting of Thor dates back approximately a year ago, when I first saw him shuffling his way across campus. He looks like this:

Only instead of impressive abs he has a beer belly and is badly dressed because he is a college undergrad. At first, the sight of Thor was enough to make me giggle and sigh, because his swagger plainly states he does not care what others think of his appearance. He may have a belly and sloping shoulders, but he walks as proudly as if he had Thor’s war-hammer with +80 awesome factor. He is just that confident. You would be too, if you had the power to throw storms and lightning bolts.

Then came the day my heart was shattered, when I saw Thor light up a cigarette and puff away. It was further shattered when he cut his hair, let it grow back long enough to put into a ponytail, and now I see him walking around with no shoes on. That’s right, barefoot in a public place. Thor turned out to be a dirty hippie and I died a little on the inside when I found out.