Resolution #23: Reinstate salad-eating regimen.

I made a pretty lengthy list of New Year's resolutions this year, and by golly, I'm going to try to keep them. Yes. I'm feeling super positive.

Two of my overall goals for this year, which I hope my resolutions will help accomplish:
1. Be healthier.
2. Be greener. (But more on this one later.)

I don't know about other food bloggers, but I personally have always had a challenging time eating healthy while satisfying my love of food. How does everyone else do it? It amazes me sometimes. Maybe I just have no willpower. See, when I cook, it's always gotta be "the real stuff," I say. I pass on the margarine and reach for butter, I opt for the full-fat cream cheese, and I could never, ever bring myself to substitute in Splenda for sugar.

I just can't do substitutes like that. I can't! Don't make me.

What I can do, however, is try to eat more of the "real stuff" I like that's actually somewhat good for me.

Which brings me to New Year's Resolution #23: Reinstate my salad-eating regimen.

A couple years ago, I used to make and eat salad for lunch at least 4 days a week. Not only that -- it was the SAME salad every day: roasted chicken breast, blue cheese, walnuts, cranberries, and granny smith apples over a mesclun lettuce blend with balsamic vinaigrette.

Man, I loved that salad. What am I talking about -- I still love it.

Anyway, I kept that up for several months and it was GREAT. I didn't get the least bit tired of it, until one day, when I forgot the apples. And all of a sudden, I didn't feel like eating that salad anymore. It was strange, and a little sad. It was almost like that scene in Forrest Gump when Forrest all of a sudden decides he wants to stop runnin'.

And I fell off my healthy lunch regimen and haven't seemed to pick it up again.

So, this year, I'm going to try to eat salad at least four times a week. And it's not going to be a burden. Nope. Because they're fun to create!

Asian Sesame Salad


Ok, I have a confession to make. I pretty much stole this salad from Panera Bread. It's roasted lemon herb chicken breast, sliced almonds, sugar snap peas, cilantro, green onion, sesame seeds, mandarin oranges (which I added later) over mesclun and romaine lettuce with Asian sesame dressing. And I topped it with noodle crisps I picked up from a local Chinese dive.

Cilantro Lime Salad


Baja chipotle chicken breast, diced tomato, corn, avocado, cilantro, green onion over mesclun and romaine lettuce with creamy cilantro dressing. I added tortilla strips (I have to put in a little carby crunch) and a squirt of lime juice. You could also add monterey jack or cojita cheese.

Both dressings I got from Fresh and Easy, but I know Trader Joe's also makes a really tasty cilantro lime dressing.

Kinda relevant: For more lunch ideas, LA Times just ran an article that has a ton. Well, 40. Compared to my measly two, that's a ton.

Butternut, before I forget.

AH. The month's practically vanished!

I guess I forgot to say that I was going on an extended vacation. To the land of back-to-back family shindigs.

I missed Food Blahg and Twitter. I hope everyone had a great holiday. Well, I suppose it isn't all over yet, with New Year's coming up and all. And yes, even more family shindigs await.

At least one more thing to wrap up here before year's end, though. Even though it's old news. Oh well.

Busted butternut.

You may remember that I went a little squash crazy this fall. I managed to cook with a handful of different squashes -- kabocha, buttercup, and pumpkin -- but my favorite was definitely butternut.

The first I bought was a beaut -- practically perfect as far as butternuts go. I got it early on in squash season so I had prime pickin.' And then I bought a couple more later on. I used up the less attractive ones first because I really adored that first one I got. My mother, who also discovered how much she liked butternut squash after she'd had a bit of mine, asked if she could have it. I refused.

And then later, this happened:


My beautiful butternut took a dive to the kitchen floor and cracked (see the bottom left?). I teared up a bit. I suppose this is the consequence of being a butternut hog. And since I could not just leave it out like that, I reluctantly cut it into two manageable pieces to be able to store it in the fridge. Bye bye, butternut.

Oh, and thank you for the tasty dishes.

Roasted butternut with shallot and sage, tossed with goat cheese and penne:


Butternut gratin with goat cheese and hazelnuts:


I also made a butternut bisque to help soothe my cough (no photo).

Yes, I realize I made pretty much the exact same dish with three slight alterations. You can't blame a girl from wanting to use up her leftover ingredients from Thanksgiving!

I still want/need to try the spaghetti, acorn, and delicata varieties. Perhaps it'll be a New Year's resolution. Along with updating this blog more often.

See you next year.

My Thanksgiving weekend...

In a word: rough.

Here's a summary of what went down:

- Felt a little handicapped by two new recipes for the mashed potatoes and stuffing/dressing (the previous recipes I could do with my eyes closed).
- Was completely confounded by a new turkey-trussing method, which, ironically, was Alton Brown's. Every year, I forget how to truss turkey (I guess I need to make whole poultry dishes more often), so I look up the same instructional video on Food Network -- except I couldn't find it this year. Aren't you supposed to be making this easier for me, Alton, instead of delaying my turkey from getting into the oven by half an hour?
- Took out the turkey too early because I am apparently unable to properly use a thermometer. I just could not get in sync with my turkey this year! My stuffing and sweet potatoes were taking up space in the oven by the time I realized that my bird was a few degrees away from saying "GOBBLE," so I had my sister make a frantic run to my aunt's house where Thanksgiving is hosted (luckily only 3 minutes away) with the turkey in the passenger seat, while my car was beeping incessantly warning her to buckle in her 20-pound turkey child.
- Made a mess in the oven by forgetting to place my springform pan, containing my post-Thanksgiving pumpkin cheesecake, on top of a sheet pan. I felt really bad about it because my mother had just made the oven all spic and span when she cleaned up the turkey splatters. After that, I cleaned it up myself of course, but not without forgetting to use kitchen gloves. So now I have a scaly monster for a right hand.
- Finally: contracted a really, really annoying cold/cough.

BUT. Despite all the mishaps, Thanksgiving was a success. After we cooked it all the way through at my aunt's, the turkey was still super tender and tasty. The two new recipes -- caramelized shallot and sage mashed potatoes and hazelnut, sage, and mushroom stuffing -- were well worth the extra effort. I added a little oomph to my turkey stock this year, resulting in a superbly rich gravy.

I just hope next year's Thanksgiving runs a tad more smoothly.

Now, please join me as I look back on reaping the rewards of a rough weekend!


Counter-clockwise from top left: my mom's salad with peanut dressing -- a staple at any family party (oh, forgot to mention that we always have American + Indonesian food at Thanksgiving), BBQ chicken, mac 'n cheese, corn spoonbread, baked sweet potatoes and apples, turkey turkey, Honeybaked ham, creamed spinach and corn (a dish I'm retiring to the dismay of a beloved cousin), fried bakmi, Oma's bakso soup, krupuk, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberries. I only made seven of these dishes.


The stuffing was among my favorites this year. I used a Pullman loaf from Poul's Bakery in Orange instead of a box of dried bread cubes. I'm definitely not opposed to shortcuts, but using real bread is WORTH it. The creminis are great, and the hazelnuts make it so festive!


Aaaand this is why I love having a pastry chef for a cousin.


YES that is a mini crème brulée next to the mini fruit tart, pumpkin pie, pecan pie and brownie!


A pretty good first attempt at making cheesecake, if I do say so myself. The crust is made from gingersnaps, pecans and candied ginger; the topping is sour cream and marshmallow. All of it is creamy, dreamy and wonderful.

Thanksgiving is still my favorite holiday.

Buttercup and pumpkin.

Yes! I'm squeezing in at least one more post before Thanksgiving.

Buttercup squash is similar to kabocha, although the texture is more starchy and the flavor is less rich, in my opinion.


I just baked it, scooped out the flesh, and topped it with cinnamon, brown sugar, and walnuts. And then I baked it again.

It was not my favorite. It would probably be better suited in a stew. At least its funky appearance provided some amusement.


As for the pumpkin.... I cheated and used canned. (I am reserving my actual sugar pumpkins for something more exciting.)

But this chocolate pumpkin tart still counts, right?


The fresh whipped cream and pecans are essential. This tart recipe was super easy, but I should have lined the bottom with parchment. The bottom of the pan pops up from the sides, but the melted chocolate + caramelized sugar cemented parts of the tart onto the pan. I hate fighting with my food.

But we kissed and made up.

Next: My butternut debacle. (P.S. Take the poll if you haven't already!)

So much squash, so little time!

Ack. How the heck is it the weekend before Thanksgiving already?

Since I'm running out of time, I need a little help in deciding what to do with the remainder of my butternut squash. Please take my poll to the left!

And wish me luck in my Thanksgiving prep.

Snack bonanza!

Lately, mostly due to lack of time to cook a full meal for myself on weekdays, I've been snacking myself into oblivion. Here are three recent favorites, to satisfy three separate cravings:

Pretzel Crisps (savory):


This buffalo wing-flavored snack might as well be laced with crack. I can't get enough of them. They're as addictive and light as potato chips, but are crunchier, taste way better and are better for you. Look how gloriously thin they are:


I bought the buffalo wing and garlic flavors at my local Sprouts, to justify my passing the sample tray about a dozen times to snatch up more and more of these. They really should not leave those things unattended.

Trader Joe's also has its own version -- and they're everything-flavored. Though, they carry them kind of sporadically, so don't get mad at me if you can't find them.

Isabella's Cookies (sweet):


These were a random impulse buy while waiting to purchase my lunch at Ivy's Cafe in Tustin (simple, healthy, yet somehow super delicious sandwiches/salads). I like these cookies because they (1) taste homemade (which they are) and (2) come in unusual flavors. The above is "The Paddy" -- mint chips and semisweet chocolate chips. And below:


"The Muffy" -- a tribute to a muffin top (undoubtedly adding to my "muffin top"), this cookie is studded with dried blueberries, white chocolate chips, and milk-chocolate covered blueberries. I've also tried "Chocolate Haze," which has whole hazelnuts and dark chocolate chunks. I'm still trying to find "The Shortcake," an homage to strawberry shortcake.

The Pure Bar (healthy):

Although it's not common, I'd imagine, I suppose it's possible to have a healthy craving. The Pure Bar is all-vegan raw food -- organic, nothing cooked, no preservatives, and all that jazz. Now, I am usually not into these super healthy meal-replacement bar dealios. In fact, I find many of them quite awful, especially when I have to think for longer than 15 seconds about how the vegan peanut butter and chocolate bar I'm chewing tastes even remotely like peanut butter and chocolate.

Maybe that's why The Pure Bar is not only tolerable, it's astonishingly delicious: It doesn't really try to emulate any flavor. It just is.

Example: The wild blueberry bar, my favorite, just tastes like dried blueberries, complemented with little bits of walnuts -- enough to satisfy, but rare enough to invoke a fond appreciation for each walnut encounter as I slowly make my way through. Same thing goes for the apple cinnamon.

While I tend to stay away from the ones promoting themselves as chocolate, the chocolate chip trail mix bars offer an interesting alternative: cacao nibs. It's not as indulgent as a good, rich bar of dark chocolate, but it's definitely still "the real thing," and a suitable substitute if you're trying to be healthy.

But like many good things, The Pure Bar does not come cheap, and so far I've only been able to find it at Whole Foods.

As my snack preferences change as often as my cravings do, only time will tell what my tastebuds have yet to discover in the tasty world of munchies!

Kabocha.

Yeah, so, I haven't really been following the schedule o' squash as well as I had intended. But I have started!

First up: Kabocha squash.


Kabocha is a Japanese pumpkin and its flavor and texture, according to Wikipedia, is comparable to chestnuts. I'd have to say I agree.

It's commonly used in tempura. Mmm. That's what I love about squash: its versatility in creating both sweet and savory dishes. The following recipe is an example of the latter execution.

Miso-glazed kabocha squash:


(I'm annoyed because my camera battery died before I could upload my own photos, and I don't have my memory card reader with me. But blah di blah di blah, you probably don't care.)

This recipe from Sunset Magazine was a good first one to try, although when I make it again, I'll probably cut slightly thicker slices, to be able to savor more squash per bite. Also, I over-glazed them; saltiness hampered the natural sweetness of the squash. Let the taste of nature's bounty shine through! Power to the squash! .. And other hippie phrases.

More tips for my future self!
- Be patient when baking; semi-crunchy squash is not so yum.
- Don't leave out the sesame oil; it's a nice finishing touch.
- It's pretty tasty on a bed of steamed rice.
- The rind, while edible, gets annoying after a while.
- Kabocha is fun to say. Kaaboochaaa. Heh.

Yay, 1 down, several more to go (picture a butternut squash, a buttercup squash, and sugar pumpkins all lined up in a row on my counter).

Summer grubbin': A look back.

Well, hello.

It's three in the marnin'. But goshdarnit, I promised I'd do this, didn't I?

Needless to say, I have been one busy mofo. Three separate time-consuming activities, all important to me, have swallowed me up whole. At least I won't have to worry about one of these anymore after the next four days.

It is one sad, crazy world when a food-loving gal is unable to contribute to her own food blog. It makes me long for the yum-filled days of summer, when I could afford the money, time, and patience to buy fancy pastries, make stews, and layer popsicles, respectively.

So as a gift to myself, here's a look back at a few snapshots of summer, when life was perhaps a smidge more carefree, and a whole lot tastier..


Some Crust Bakery in Claremont... Oh, how I miss the raspberry- and lemon-mousse cupcakes and chocolate chip pumpkin cookies.


And the key lime cupcake.


Just.. the key lime cupcake. That's all. Try it and this jibjabba might make sense.

Summer was also the time of whimsical movie-plus-some-food-completely-unrelated-to-the-movie-and-vice-versa nights. Okay, I only held one of those. But who could forget "Japanese Curry and James McAvoy Movie Night"?! James McAvoy's Scottish accent and Vermont Curry-brand curry, with "a touch of apple and honey," will forever be ingrained together in my mind, that's for sure.


Finally -- the art of popsicle making!

Step 1: Buy a ridiculously unnecessary popsicle recipe book.


Step 2: Buy a ridiculously unnecessary -- but freakin' adorable -- Sailboat popsicle mold set.


Step 3: Create beautiful and delicious frozen treats in an attempt to justify the silly splurges committed in steps 1 and 2.


.... After I've finished my nostalgic sobbing about summer's end, I'll do my best to focus on what fall brings:

THANKSGIVING!!

Schedule: squash. Or squashed schedule.

This fall, I am determined to cook with a multitude of winter squash. Butternut and kabocha are at the top of the list. Oh, and pumpkin, of course. I've got a schedule of recipes mapped out, so hopefully, I'll be able to follow it.

I know I've been seriously neglecting Food Blahg. :( If time permits, look forward to a full-fledged post later this week..

See you in a couple weeks.

Agghhh.. In case you couldn't tell, Food Blahg is on hiatus for the time being, until after this month is over. Enjoy the rest of your September, and I miss you!