Where I've been.

Because it's obvious I haven't been here, at my blog.

Well, I took a trip to Seattle.

Pike Place was my Favorite Place. More photos from my Seattle foodventures soon!

Spent a weekend sipping wines in Santa Barbara.

Beautiful Sanford Winery. And delicious Sanford wines.

But mostly, I've been in my little balcony, tending to my little garden.

Now, I'm notoriously terrible at gardening -- an attribute that is known by former roommates, old co-workers, friends and family. But I love the concept of growing one's own food. I love working the soil with my fingers, planting a tiny seed, and waiting patiently for it to grow into a beautiful plant. I love thinking about Mother Nature's amazing ability to do this. And I love semi-frightening people with my hippie talk.

Many, many times I have tried and failed to grow plants (and keep them alive). Herb garden kits, tulips, even bamboo plants have suffered and died from my gardening inability. But with a little inspiration and encouragement from my co-worker, whom I now call my "garden godmother," I decided to give it another go.

I started with edamame seeds I had bought in Japan a year ago. I was amazed and encouraged when they germinated quickly and grew so rapidly (considering they had been dormant for more than a year). They were doing incredibly well for a very long time, until...

Still clinging to life.

They got attacked by what I later figured out were leaf miner bugs (awful tiny things that burrow inside the leaves of the plant). I also read somewhere that edamame plants apparently need a soil depth of at least 13-15 inches. My poor plants, which were in a 5-inch planter, were seriously suffering from lack of soil nutrients. And I probably overwatered them, too. Oops.

BUT I was able to harvest four little pods from my entire set of plants. I steamed them quickly in the microwave and the beans were so sweet and tasty. They may have tasted just as good as a frozen bag of edamame from Trader Joe's, but I had to give myself a little pat on the back for keeping something alive long enough to produce something that was actually edible.

The edamame plants eventually died, but I've learned from my mistakes and I'm totally encouraged to try again. In the meantime, I've been growing, from transplants, strawberries (regular and alpine), purple basil, Italian parsley, piquin peppers and a variety of succulents.

My sempervivum tectorum began flowering!

I'm also growing daisies, sweet pea and cilantro from seed, and sweet basil from cuttings. One of my strawberry plants even produced a baby plant from a runner!

So, I guess the point of this post is: I'm sorry I haven't been blogging because I've been gardening, but really I'm not sorry because gardening is awesome and everyone should totally feel encouraged to garden and grow their own food.

Also, I'll post a wrap-up of my Seattle trip next.

Earth's bounty. On a tiny little island.

If you ever venture to Yoron, you simply must experience the fresh, wholesome, organic goodness that is Sharon Fruit and Herb Garden Restaurant.

This restaurant is situated on an organic farm, and wouldn't you know it, all the fruits and vegetables and herbs come directly from the farm. The farm right outside the restaurant's doors. The farm that is tended to everyday by the happy people of Yoron. And by the happy kids of Yoron, who come to the farm from the neighboring preschool to learn about how veggies and fruits and plants grow.

I just loved it. All of it.

On to the actual eats: to start off, we had two kinds of pizza -- one with corn and ham, the other with calimari and shrimp and peppers. You can start off any meal with pizza, I think. Especially if they taste like these did.


Then, spaghetti with pork belly and fresh okra, onion and tomato.


And just in case we weren't stuffed from the huge mounds of pasta, they gave us little sandwiches, too. These were as simple and as scrumptious as can be.


Dessert was just amazing: fresh mango pudding. SO fresh, and you could taste it. I felt like I was eating the mango straight off the tree.


And finally: refreshing homemade papaya soda.


And something that isn't shown here: fresh lemongrass herb tea. Made from fresh lemongrass. That is GROWN, right THERE, in the gardens outside. That they hand-picked just for us. You just can't get any fresher than that.

I tasted Earth's bounty that day. And it was delicious.

Markets in downtown Naha, Okinawa.

Glorious sensory overload, especially for seafood lovers:




Mini mangoes! Together now: Awwww.


An Okinawan specialty: Taco rice.


Miso that resembles salsa:


I picked up this strange fruit: kanisuteru. The flesh was sweet, soft and starchy, and tasted similar to chestnuts.


Mango Tango ice cream from Blue Seal -- how Okinawans do ice cream.

Harajuku crêpe.

This is the filling of a stuffed crêpe, obtained in the Harajuku district of Tokyo.


Fresh strawberries, strawberry pudding, whipped cream, and rice dumplings. I wolfed this puppy down, and then I craved another. Are ichigo (strawberries) sweeter in Japan?

Corn bliss.

I waited way too long to check out Mil Jugos in Santa Ana since reading this review on Food Frenzy/Gluttonista. What was wrong with me? Because these arepas -- little stuffed corncake sandwiches -- are just too good to miss out on.

The reina papeada arepa comes warm and crispy around the edges, overstuffed with tasty chicken potato salad and avocado. A squirt of the zingy green dressing that accompanies this, and it is good to go. Straight into my belly.


Fresh, sweet papaya juice is a delicious way to wash it down (and attempt to mask the potent green sauce breath).


But most importantly, at Mil Jugos I've learned that cachapa means 'corn heaven.'

Well, not literally. But to me, it does. The cachapa con queso blanco:

Corn, pancake, cheese, fresh cream. Yes. Yes, yes, yes.

I need not say anything further to convey the love I feel for this.

* * *
Mil Jugos
318 W. 5th Street
Santa Ana 92701
714.836.4601

Apparently, I cater, too.

As a bridesmaid for my friend's wedding and one who loves to cook, I offered to be in charge of food for the bridal shower. And because this turned into my first catering experience, I'd like to share how it went.

Let's start kind of backwards -- the dessert is always everyone's favorite part anyway:


These chocolate-covered strawberries were a collaborative effort by both me and my sister -- I dipped and she drizzled. My first few attempts at drizzling the white chocolate resulted in a couple messy, weird, "artsy-fartsy" strawberries -- or so my bride later called it. I called it more fartsy than artsy. To be completely accurate, it looked like a mentally unstable leprechaun took a tiny little can of white silly string and went to town on the strawberries. My sister had pointed and laughed hysterically at them and at me. That's when I made her my designated drizzler.

She was on a roll and helped me decorate the party favors as well -- homemade giant fortune cookies.


After attempting three and a half recipes for fortune cookies, which all failed because they turned out too delicate, too soggy, or too gritty, I finally settled on a standard tuile batter recipe, provided by pastry chef cousin Irene even before the other recipes' trials and errors. She later made fun of me for ever doubting her recipe in the first place. I promise I won't do it again.

Fortune Cookies (Basic Tuile Batter)
5 oz sugar
3 oz butter, softened
3 oz egg whites (equivalent to about 3 egg whites), slightly beaten
4 oz flour (in weight, not volume -- it equals about 1 cup of flour)

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg whites and beat on medium speed with an electric mixer until combined. Beat in the flour. The batter should be a peanut butter-like consistency.

Spread the batter evenly in a very thin, 4-inch circle on a silpat or on parchment paper. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 7 minutes or until edges are browned. Remove from the oven and wait 30 seconds, then loosen the cookie from the pan with an offset spatula and flip it over. Place the "fortune" face down on the cookie.

Working quickly (and it helps if you wear thin gloves), loosely pinch two ends of the circle together like a taco. Press the folded side of the cookie perpendicularly against the rim of the baking pan, and gently bring the edges closer together to make a fortune cookie shape. Set the shaped cookie in a muffin pan to cool and harden.

If you're brave and fast, you can try making two at a time.

Other things on the "Asian-themed" bridal shower menu:
Chicken satay
Gyoza
Thai lettuce wraps
Maki-zushi
Egg rolls
Edamame
Tofu with peanut sauce

I also offered to make phallic cupcakes for the bachelorette party, but was reminded of the non-phallus policy. Boo!

The O.G. of farmers markets. Part 1.

My visit to L.A.'s Farmers Market on 3rd and Fairfax was during one of those sweaty, so-hot-my-face-might-melt weekends Southern Californians are all too familiar with in late spring/early summer... even though oddly, we haven't been experiencing any recently. (The lateness of this post is so apparent.)

Anyway, it was midday when my cousins and I arrived at the Farmers Market, when the scorching sun was at its peak scorchability. I walked around in a daze, overwhelmed by the heat and too many delicious food choices.

In order to avoid passing out, I decided first to find something to drink. I found it at The Salad Bar, stall #424.

"Whatever that is, I'll have it."

It was a clear barrel of pale, natural orangey liquid, with ice cubes and pieces of fresh fruit afloat. It looked so yummy. And ice cold. Perfect.

"It's fruit punch, and sure."


Oh my. With fresh strawberries, grapes, chunks of apple, orange, cantaloupe, watermelon and honeydew, the juice was fruit salad in drink form -- a flavorful fruit party of all the aforementioned fruits. (YES A FRUIT PARTY.) Nope, this was definitely not the gross, artificial crap that stains your tongue red for days. And special bonus: After I slurped up all the juice, I had an actual fruit salad waiting for me at the bottom! Wonderful.

My cousins, who opted instead for watermelon lemonade and a $4+ smoothie, were envious of my $2.50 fruit punch from heaven.

For food-food, I settled on a heaping plate of Mediterranean cuisine from Moishe's, stall #336.


Here it's been half eaten, but shown are pieces of lamb kebab, tabboule, rice pilaf, and in the back is a couscous salad and hoummus. All were delicious -- especially the lamb, which was tender and packed with flavor, and the couscous, dressed with a spicy-sweet vinaigrette.

I washed it all down with a second fruit punch. Mmm.

Next.. Part 2: My bounty of baked goods.

* * *
Farmers Market
6333 W. 3rd Street
Los Angeles 90036
323.933.9211

The Salad Bar
323.933.3204

Moishe's Restaurant
323.936.4998

Avocado makes a better dessert.

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YUMZERS.

I'm sure this has an official Indonesian name (maybe just es alpokat?), but I call it avocado soup. Mother whips up this delicious coffee-flavored avocado dessert for me using just fresh scoops of avocado, ABC brand Mocca Syrup, crushed ice and a touch of water.

Actually, she makes it for herself, and then I steal it.

Guac is great and all, but the buttery avocado just.. belongs in dessert.

Comfort food at its finest.

If you love comfort food, particularly of the American variety, hearty and delicious, made with love and lots of butter, then Paula Deen's probably your go-to food TV mama for recipes. And if you're also happening to look for a food blog that specializes in down-home cowboy grub, then look no further than The Pioneer Woman.

This weekend I made Pioneer Woman's berry cobbler, a prime example of comfort food in dessert form. The original recipe calls for only blackberries, but I used a frozen mixed berry mix with blackberries, raspberries and blueberries. So it didn't look exactly like this.


But it looked and tasted just as delicious. Moist, sugary and tart, I finished probably about a third of the cobbler in one sitting. And it is SO easy to make.

(More alterations: Instead of 1 cup self-rising flour, I used 1 cup all purpose flour + 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder + a pinch of salt. And I threw in 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract in the batter for kicks.)

Remember, comfort food recipes aren't for calorie-counting health nuts. These dishes are, more often than not, bad for you. But in such a good, good way.

Corn > pomegranate.

Pomegranates are such a hassle. They are messy and they make your fingertips all stained and sticky. The seeds are too big to swallow, but too small to spit out relatively non-disgustingly. I've been eating one for the past couple days and I think the acidity of the juice actually burned a blister into my tongue and throat. So why do I keep eating it?

Because it's so damn fun. I love popping or peeling open a new section and finding the juicy red jewels of fruit all huddled together, in their feeble attempt to hide from me. They're so cute. And after I've plucked the little fruits individually from their pods, I sometimes like to crush them on a napkin or in a bowl to see the sudden burst of soft fuschia color... and I think, "That is the perfect shade of lip balm!" Also, the fruits remind me of kernels of corn.

Too bad they don't taste like corn. I love corn.