I have an examination this week, so I apologize for the brief post!
Until next time, happy eating all!
Monday, May 26, 2014
Musings on a Monday
Ever wish you could just transform into a bird and fly towards the horizon?
I have an examination this week, so I apologize for the brief post!
Until next time, happy eating all!
I have an examination this week, so I apologize for the brief post!
Until next time, happy eating all!
Sunday, May 18, 2014
Milky bun delight!
***Anyone viewing this before 10:40 (May 18th): sorry for the glitch! Was making changes to layout and accidentally made text white!
As a treat for the hot weekends that have been happening lately, ice cream seems like a great treat!
MOH and I went to a great place to get ice cream, Afters, and it was a great treat! A cute little shop in Fountain Valley, this place serves up ice cream inside a milky bun. AMAZING. The milky bun is this sticky, sweet, gooey goodness that has ice cream of your choice (cookie monster flavor is a must for first-timers) squished inside. The results? Crispy, warm bun with cold, ice cream inside. Perfect treat for a hot summer's day! If you're ever a fan of donuts, milky buns, ice cream, or cold goodness, this treat provides the best sugar rush!
In other news, I recently got myself a watercolor paint set and have been dabbling in watercolors. It's more focused than pastels (at least in my experience), but equally fun in its own way!
The weather has gotten better (last week was a scorcher), so MOH and I have been taking more walks during the weekend. There's a great trail within walking distance that leads to a pasture/canyon, so we often go that route. Here's a little visitor we found along the path that MOH was quick to photograph.
I wish I looked that introspective.. or that cute.
These recent blot posts have been short, but I promise to get more content out in June!
Until next time, happy eating all!
As a treat for the hot weekends that have been happening lately, ice cream seems like a great treat!
MOH and I went to a great place to get ice cream, Afters, and it was a great treat! A cute little shop in Fountain Valley, this place serves up ice cream inside a milky bun. AMAZING. The milky bun is this sticky, sweet, gooey goodness that has ice cream of your choice (cookie monster flavor is a must for first-timers) squished inside. The results? Crispy, warm bun with cold, ice cream inside. Perfect treat for a hot summer's day! If you're ever a fan of donuts, milky buns, ice cream, or cold goodness, this treat provides the best sugar rush!
In other news, I recently got myself a watercolor paint set and have been dabbling in watercolors. It's more focused than pastels (at least in my experience), but equally fun in its own way!
The weather has gotten better (last week was a scorcher), so MOH and I have been taking more walks during the weekend. There's a great trail within walking distance that leads to a pasture/canyon, so we often go that route. Here's a little visitor we found along the path that MOH was quick to photograph.
I wish I looked that introspective.. or that cute.
These recent blot posts have been short, but I promise to get more content out in June!
Until next time, happy eating all!
Sunday, May 11, 2014
Happy Mother's Day - soup in honor of Mom
It's Mother's Day and what better way to honor my mother than to make soup?
As a child, and even now, my mom's go-to dish that was a must for every dinner was soup. It would be different types of soup, depending on either her mood or the seasonal selection. No matter what the ingredients, my mom's soup was always a welcome sight on any day. If it was warm, cooled opo soup would accompany fried fish.
If it was a cold, wintry day, you could expect to see sup mang cua (crab asparagus soup). Delicious in every way, you could practically feel the love with every spoonful. Whenever I make soup, I think of my mom.
What better soup to honor mom than lentil soup? Lentils? It may seem like a stretch, especially since lentil soup is something foreign in Vietnamese cuisine. This soup however, is incredibly hearty, healthy, and made with love - something my mother's soup always embody!
Lentils are part of the legume family, and are grains that are high in protein and fiber. Cooking lentils is really simple - just soak the lentils in water, remove off any debris and particles, and boil for ~40 minutes. They are extremely hearty and are used often in curries, stews, or in stir fries.
To make this soup, it is extremely flexible - if you don't like certain ingredients, or want more vegetables, modify as you choose. I prefer my soups to be on the chunkier side, so I like having lots of veggies in my soup!
Lentil soup (modified from Allrecipes):
Ingredients:
- Seasoning
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
4 bay leaves
1 tbsp 21 seasoning salute (Trader Joes)
1/2 tbsp oregano
1/2 tbsp onion powder
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 potato, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 cup of corn
1 cup red lentils, soaked for 20 minutes
6 cups of water
1 tbsp tomato paste
Protocol:
1. In a soup pot, warm olive oil
2. Add seasoning ingredients (everything from celery to garlic) and cook until onions have sweated (look translucent)
3. Add in bay leaves, additional seasoning, potato, corn, and lentils - stir around for a minute
4. Add in water and tomato paste and bring to a boil - once boiling, simmer for about 40 minutes, stirring ocassionally
5. Once lentils cooked through (taste test if unsure), taste test and add additional salt if needed.
Hope everyone is having a great Mother's Day! Happy eating all!
As a child, and even now, my mom's go-to dish that was a must for every dinner was soup. It would be different types of soup, depending on either her mood or the seasonal selection. No matter what the ingredients, my mom's soup was always a welcome sight on any day. If it was warm, cooled opo soup would accompany fried fish.
If it was a cold, wintry day, you could expect to see sup mang cua (crab asparagus soup). Delicious in every way, you could practically feel the love with every spoonful. Whenever I make soup, I think of my mom.
What better soup to honor mom than lentil soup? Lentils? It may seem like a stretch, especially since lentil soup is something foreign in Vietnamese cuisine. This soup however, is incredibly hearty, healthy, and made with love - something my mother's soup always embody!
Lentils are part of the legume family, and are grains that are high in protein and fiber. Cooking lentils is really simple - just soak the lentils in water, remove off any debris and particles, and boil for ~40 minutes. They are extremely hearty and are used often in curries, stews, or in stir fries.
To make this soup, it is extremely flexible - if you don't like certain ingredients, or want more vegetables, modify as you choose. I prefer my soups to be on the chunkier side, so I like having lots of veggies in my soup!
Lentil soup (modified from Allrecipes):
Ingredients:
- Seasoning
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
4 bay leaves
1 tbsp 21 seasoning salute (Trader Joes)
1/2 tbsp oregano
1/2 tbsp onion powder
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 potato, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 cup of corn
1 cup red lentils, soaked for 20 minutes
6 cups of water
1 tbsp tomato paste
Protocol:
1. In a soup pot, warm olive oil
2. Add seasoning ingredients (everything from celery to garlic) and cook until onions have sweated (look translucent)
3. Add in bay leaves, additional seasoning, potato, corn, and lentils - stir around for a minute
4. Add in water and tomato paste and bring to a boil - once boiling, simmer for about 40 minutes, stirring ocassionally
5. Once lentils cooked through (taste test if unsure), taste test and add additional salt if needed.
Hope everyone is having a great Mother's Day! Happy eating all!
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Free comic book day ramblings: Locke and Key - a must read for horror fans
Happy Free Comic Book Day weekend! Free comic book day happens the first week of May and really opens up the community to the joys of comics. Comic book stores usually carry popular comics on hand that are free to the public.
Maybe you only read comics as a kid. Maybe you just got into comics recently. Or maybe you read them as a kid AND still do now. No matter the reason, no one can deny that comics capture this untapped imagination and limitless wonder in everyone. With the growing genre, there's almost a comic for everyone out there. Whether it's superheroes, ghouls, vampires, mad scientists, ice kings, or zombies, you are sure to find something you'll enjoy.
The comic is written by Joe Hill, a writer who specializes in drama and horror, and the artist is Gabriel Rodriguez. These two are such a great combination. We got the first book, read it, and were instantly hooked. There's something very eerie about this book, and it has its fair share of horror, drama, adventure, and mystery all infused with some really good art. I cannot emphasize how good the art is - so detailed and at times, eerie.
While the series itself is pretty short (6 tradebacks in total), do not be thrown off by the length - Locke and Key can more than hold its own as a very thrilling, quick-paced series that will make you zoom through the books. If you're a fan of horror or supernatural, I would highly recommend this series!
Hope everyone had a great weekend! Until next time, happy eating.
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