Banana Yoshimoto & Building Bread w/ Matt

I remember the first few pages of Banana Yoshimoto's novella, "Kitchen" moved me to such nostalgic heights that I was compelled to write up my will and request that my funeral be held in a well broken-in Indian restaurant's industrial-sized kitchen where waffs of aged spices and armies of rusted kitchenware overwhelm the atmosphere.. and after reading it for the fifth time it's getting easier to imagine haha..

"The place I like best in the world is the kitchen. No matter where it is, no matter what kind, if it's a kitchen, if it's a place where they make food, it's fine with me".Me and my bro, Matt, are considerably different, but the one thing that thwarts our sibling rivalry is our comman desire to be knowlegable and active foodies. So when I asked him to help me make some Chinese-styled buns he looked up at me with cool eyes as if to say,"Why else would I ask you to come home?"

I was so incredibly relieved that the dough rose as much as it did, last time I tried to prepare yeast I killed it by mixing it with 'boiling' rather than warm water, which killed the yeast. So don't repeat my mistakes! To help it rise i left it in the garage where it was very warm.

Do you spot the piyo?

The result? Well, my folks seemed to like it but I wasn't satisfied. They were soft, sweet, and looked like buns you'd find at your local Asian bakery..but I guess it needed something to stand out..well, the mystery can be solved with a second trial!

-Angela

Summer nights

What is there better to do in 106 degree F weather than plan out what to eat for dinner? Well that's how Angela and I roll. We rounded up some friends, and got cooking, from shark fish to wrapping dumplings....it's all here!


Opening some packages of wonton wrappers...very happily!

The filling was prepared with beef (oops, forgot the shrimp)! We had several different shapes and "designs" for these wontons, and I personally think that Vick's won since his looked like a version of gold pieces of currency!

Angela was very much into the wrapping process. =P

The entire batch! Yes, we did make a lot!

And into the pot they go! When the dumplings float, it's a sign that they are ready!
A second item on the menu was an improv puff pastry filled with potato, corn, salmon, and bell peppers, with a touch of coconut milk for a sweeter flavor. :)

After baking and assembling:

The inside:
Some more ingredients to prepare noodles, made by Peter! He added shabu shabu meat and some veggies.

And here is a very nice kimchi soup (you can guess who made it if you have viewed previous posts)!

Shark fish prepared by Vick. Very unique, eh?




And now...it's BBQ time!
One of our special BBQ chefs, Brian, and Tiff!
An oil-free tilapia prepared by Jenny (yes, it's very healthy!):

Some hot dogs and buns with a nice presentation!

Preparing some fried rice:
I also prepared a side dish of corn, carrot, and potatoes:

A tomato sauce, spam, and egg fried rice:
A healthy salad prepared by Jenny, with an interesting salad dressing with mystery ingredients xD...

And you can't have a BBQ without chips and salsa!

Lamb kebabs, chicken wings, and some nicely seasoned catfish:
There was LOT LOT LOT of food, and even more leftovers!
Our guests, tasting the food!
All smiles must mean the food was delicious! =)


- Candice

Pazookies with Amy and Breast Enhancing Cookies...

This is my good friend, Amy, and she asked me to join her in whipping up her first attempt pazookie and of course I couldn't turn down the yummy offer..

Tossed in the flour, brown sugar, vanilla extract, butter, etc and mixed with Amy's spiffy retro egg beater.

Topped off with some vanilla ice scream and you've got ideal comfort food. Isn't it just the right shade of golden brown? Props to Amy. I remember my first attempt at recreating a BJ-style Oreo pazookies (don't think dirty) turned out looking more like black scrambled eggs forced into the shape of a hockey puck, bleh.

So here's another zinger thrown into the FDA's lap: F-Cup Chocolate Cookies.

So I stopped by Oto's, the Japanese supermarket in Sacramento, and this caught my attention in the snack aisle-

Yup, these are 'breast-enhancing cookies' and the WARNING label emphasized that it should not be consumed by pregnant women or young children. Ummm...yea...they should have put it up on a higher shelf..maybe in the pharmacy aisle..and no, I didn't purchase this.

-Angela

Homemade Kimchi and Stinky Tofu

See how happy Vick is to make kimchi? As a kimchi addict it makes me happy too.

I would like to briefly profess my love for kimchi; I eat it practically every other day as a soup seasoner, midnight snack (warning: this may lead to stellar morning breath), a sobering jolt in the senses after a hard night's drinking, and I apologize to my dormmates last year for stinkin' up the community fridge with my industrial size bucket of sour spicy goodness...

So here's the pepper, head of cabbage, salt for salt water, green onions, radish (optional), and preserved baby shrimp.. Let the cut cabbage soak in salt water for at least 6 hours, then mix in the rest of the seasonings

After about several days we got this:

Yea, it's definitely not gonna live to see tommorrow

More on pungent food-Stinky Tofu

I have never tried or seen stinky tofu in my whole life until my recent trip to 辣妹子 located at 8th ave and Clement street, SF.

Here's what we ordered:

Tan Tan Ground Beef Mein

Extra Spicy (as was illustrated by 5 red chilli peppers and exclamation marks on the menu) ST

Extra Spicy ST w/ Chili Oil and Meat
The first bite was overwhelming with extreme flavors and flame, :D . After a couple more bites I was kind of more fascinated with all the new flavors than with deciding whether or not I actually enjoyed them. Turns out I don't have the acquired taste for it but I'm very happy to finally be out of the dark about the often indescribable flavor of the popular streetstall treat.

- Angela