I am one who appreciates eclectic taste hence, identifying my love of collecting, antiquing and thrifting. It takes a creative mind to repurpose an item, see past the junk to seek out the gems and have an appreciation for the ‘hunt’. I enjoy antique shops, junk shops, estate sales, yard sales, thrift stores and great deals!
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Category: Recipes
Frutas, Frutas, Frutas!!!
Meandering the streets and open-air markets of Mexico you’ll find push-cart vendors selling varied items from chapulines (fried, spiced grasshoppers) to squash blossom tacos. Street food is commonplace and abundant as a means to a living for some locals and a way to experience a culture and a country for some tourists (like myself.) I basically ate my way through the Zòcalo of Oaxaca!
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Summer on Sliced Bread
Summer days seem to last forever yet fill up fast, no one wants to miss out on sunshine and warm-weather activities by spending a few hours over a hot stove. Fire up the grill and whip together these open-faced sandwiches by harvesting a few key ingredients straight from your garden!
Smash-tastic!
For those of you who are familiar with whoopie pies (and you know how good those are) well, eat your heart out because to me, a smashie is a delicate and glorified whoopie pie!
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Remix: Born to hand CHIVE baby!
The following recipe is a spin-off from a class I took with the Grand Rapids Cooking School at the Uptown Kitchen in Grand Rapids, MI. At the class we made a Garlic Chive and Almond Pesto which was shockingly green and highly addicting! I remixed it fusion-style with Asian Chives (which are very garlicky) and Candlenuts. Candlenuts frequent the sauces and sambals of Malay and Indonesian cooking, acting as a thickener and are known for their high oil content. I find it interesting, that throughout various parts of the world the candlenut plant is medicinal, treating ailments with the bark, leaves and fruit.
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Fish on the Grill, Beer on the Porch
A long day of work overturned by a relaxing, late night meal and enjoyment of nightfall whilst sharing conversation and beers with friends on the porch. Can’t get better than that!
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Knee-High by July
A summer memory:
Sitting on the front stoop, my sister by my side with a brown-paper grocery bag and a heavy bottomed cooking pot. There we sat shucking away the green husks and wisps of silk from Mid-Western sweet corn. We knew that summer had arrived when corn was offered up at roadside stands and grew to be knee-high by July. Nothing beat those crisp, golden kernels, bursting open with a pop of sweet, starchy goodness!
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A nod to Cinco
Last night was an uncelebratory nod to Cinco de Mayo. My friend (A.) invited me over for dinner and between what she had in her fridge and what I had in mine we were able to collaborate a meal. Fish Tacos with fresh Tuna and Southwest Slaw accompanied by Rick Bayless’s Lime Ice
(A.) seared the Tuna in a spice blend, prepared a cabbage slaw scented with lime juice and honey and whipped up a fresh yogurt to drizzle atop our tacos!
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Coconut Porter
I was at a pub in Gunnison, CO and this brew caught my eye….Maui Brewing Company, Coconut Porter, brewed with hand-toasted coconut.
I ordered it up and my chilled porter arrived, not in a bottle and not in a glass but in a can! I was a bit stunned that a microbrew was served dressed in a can and I would expect nothing less from a PBR or Strohs but a microbrew? I snobbishly requested a glass.
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Off-the-Cuff
Sunday was a bit like spring…I awoke to a warm rain followed by a burst of green leaves and grass. I enjoyed my morning coffee over bossa nova and rain drops and dabbled with the ever-addicting Pinterest until yoga class.
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Strawberry Pretzel Salad
No matter how you say it this dessert has absolutely no class! What it does have is the perfect blend of sweet and salty and a flair of 1950’s Jello! Strawberry Pretzel Salad is common place on the potluck or buffet table, and makes its rounds about once a year for family holiday gatherings.
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Rosewater and Pistachios
“We snaked our way among the merchants and the beggars, wandered through narrow alleys cramped with rows of tiny, tightly packed stalls. Baba gave us each a weekly allowance of ten Afghanis and we spent it on warm Coca-Cola and rosewater ice cream topped with crushed pistachios.”
–The Kite Runner
Coconut Milk + Oatmeal = ♥
A delightfully relaxing Sunday morning involves coffee while seated at my tulip table listening to NPR….this was my morning!
Wrapped in Indonesian Flair….
I typically arrive home, post-workout around 8:00 or 9:00 pm each night and at times I don’t have a meal readily prepared. This is a problem because after a long ride or hard run I need food fast. Perhaps some of you can relate to the following scenario:
Girl works all day.
Girl flies home grabs a banana, water and changes clothes to workout.
Post-workout girl comes home STARVING.
Girl turns into a ravenous crazy woman scanning the cupboard or fridge to eat whatever is quick and appealing….NOT GOOD!
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Ful Mudammas
Throughout college I worked part-time at a local Mediterranean restaurant, The Pita House. The restaurant locale resides in an eclectic neighborhood with a good mix of college kids, families, hipsters and hippies. I was able to walk to work everyday, worked along-side my BF Brooke and donned a self-fashioned turban with a kanga from Brazil…it was highly fashionable for my then, bohemian self (and a heck of lot better than a hairnet!) My uncle humorously referred to me as, Erykah Badon’t…funny guy!
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The Singapore Airlines serves it!
Singapore’s National Dish a local delight….Hainanese Steamed Chicken Rice
Served up to passers-by at food stalls and carts this dish is also easily prepared at home. It was introduced to me by my co-worker (Sophia) who grew up in Indonesia, she said that her mother would prepare it for her when she felt under the weather…a promise to cure-all ills!
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Table Without Borders 