Playdate

High Tea

When Hannah bought a teeny tiny tea set "for me" for Christmas, and then proceeded to make me play with it every day, I knew what to do for her third birthday. Little girl needed a tea party!

Tea parties require tea sets, of course, so I spent hours pouring over eBay listings for vintage child-sized tea sets. I bid on and lost several before finally winning one very cute little lustreware tea set with a floral pattern.

I also spent hours researching and planning the menu:

Tea Sandwiches: cucumber on pumpernickel; pineapple cream cheese; ham spread
Fresh scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam (my mother's homemade, of course)
Fresh berries
Birthday cake: Coffee Cream Torte from the Blueberry Hill Menu Cookbook
Tea served with sugar cubes and  cream

Everything was delicious, but some things were a big hit with the adults, but not so much the kids. For example, here's a picture of Hannah looking for somewhere to spit her cucumber sandwich:

Other things, like the Blueberry Rooibos tea, were a much bigger hit with the kids than the adults.

But I could have made three times as many scones and still not had enough.

What was fun for me was how much fun everyone had, even my sister who seemed dubious at the beginning and my ten-year-old nephew who sneered "Boys don't drink tea."

And especially my Hannah Bean.

It's that time again...

So, once again, I hate everything I have been cooking.  It's been winter (sort of) so I've had my share of roast chickens and lasagne.  What else?  Anyone?

I'm in the middle of cooking a roast chicken (shocking!) right now, but I'll update later with some recent things I've cooked that haven't been...  terrible.  If I can think of any.  I get ready to go to the grocery store every week, and just flip through my recipes, and I can't find anything I want to make.

Part of the problem is that I have so little time on the weekdays, so I pretty much have to have something ready to eat in about 20 minutes.  Not a lot of time for creativity.  On the weekends I try to make things that leave leftovers, either for lunches or for an additional dinner.  But that's still not a lot of time for good cooking.

So... thoughts?  Suggestions? 

Jung's Addiction

I'd love to admit something more juicy. 

I wish it was more interesting.

Or even an awesome rock band. 

No, I'm much more pathetic than you think.

My secret addiction is to this...

 

Aside from this scientific laboratory's man-made un-natural creation, I eat mostly healthy, natural foods.  It's my ONE thang that is utterly disgusting and totally useless to my body...but I love it!  Why? 

I've stopped looking at the ingredients list years ago.  Denial is a powerful thing.  I've tried organic half and half but it's fattening.  The amount of skim or 1% milk I'd want (for the right color) cools down my coffee too fast.  I've tried to quit a few times...but I always come back.  What's in this shit?  Wait, I don't want to know!  When I buy coffee, I always drink it with milk or creamer.  So why can't I do it at home?

Definitely, there is nostalgia at work.  We moved to the States when I was 5.  My parents kept me at our fish store instead of enrolling me in kindergarten.  Right before lunch time, my mom put me in charge of watching for customers while she prepared our mid-day meal.  Since it was winter, I sat on the radiator and waited for customers to arrive.  Everyone else drank coffee to keep warm but considering my age, my mom gave me hot water with...you guessed it...COFFEE-MATE.  And there it began.

My addiction/love of coffee itself did not start until college...when I needed it to do all-nighters.  I don't remember when I started up with the Coffee-Mate again, but does it matter?

Coffee-Mate's website shows a huge array of flavors.  I'm an 'Original' gal. 

By the way, January 15th marked the 30th anniversary of our arrival to America.  We can't believe it.

Coffee-Mate and I have a long history together. 

Italian Wedding Soup, sort of.

I like making soup. It's easy and it feels like you're being some sort of good mom/cook on cold winter's day.

I pour lots of organic chicken broth into a big pot and warm it up. Then I add carrots. Then use whatever you have to whip up some tiny meatballs: ground beef, turkey, meatloaf mix...whatever. Salt, pepper, egg, breadcrumbs, fresh chopped parsley. Sometimes a bit of chopped onion, but my family prefers not to have it. Put a little olive oil on your hands to roll them out and put them on wax paper. They should be petite! Add them to the chicken broth. It can all simmer for awhile and then I chuck in pastina (or little pasta like orzo or rings or ABC's.) Watch the pastina ratio, because a small amount turns into a lot very quickly. The last thing is to toss in a bag of baby spinach. I think kale is more traditional, but I find I usually have spinach on hand. Season to taste and simmer until done.

Microplane a bit of strong cheese over the top and swirl it in: parmesan or reggiano or some other stinky Italian cheese. Serve with a crusty loaf of bread and glass of white wine. Comfort!!

Brooklyn Brewery

Recently, we had the amazing opportunity to go on a private tour of the Brooklyn Brewery in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn.  Rob and I took a few college friends to walk through the brewery with the Brewmaster, (that's gotta be an awesome way to introduce yourself..."Yes, I'm the Brewmaster") Garrett Oliver.  He described the brewing process, let us peek inside the drums and gave us a condensed history of beer, all of which is outlined in his book, "The Brewmaster's Table".  Below is a picture of a few hops used for their beers. 

Along the way, we got to sample some of their fine selection of beers; the first was "Pennant", then.... uuuhhhh...who am I kidding.  I got way too drunk to remember any of the beer names.  BUT what I DO recall is "Local 1".  Honestly, I'm not sure why I went on a beer tour because I really don't like beer, BUT this Local 1 is THE BEST BEER I'VE EVER HAD.  It's in a champagne bottle...or as I learned that night, champagne stole the bottle shape and cork from beer!  A bit of history was revealed.  Anyway, I need to get my hands on this beer.  It's incredible.  And, that's not the alcohol talking, it is REALLY amazing.  If I can't get the local stores to stock it, I will have to drive to Williamsburg and get a few cases.  It's THAT fucking good.

As the night progressed, I got red in the face (many of you know what that means) and we were all having a great time.  Here's some of what I retained from the tour...

The Brewmaster described how beer paired with cheeses is better than wine.  It's just that most American beers are so bad, you wouldn't THINK of having it with a a fine dinner.  He is part of a movement to bring GOOD beer back to America and introduce Americans to the idea of savoring beer, like wine.  Did you know that Brooklyn Brewery's beer is the best selling American beer in Europe?  Mr. Oliver does classes on pairing beers with different dishes and recently held one at Murray's Cheeses.  On our tour, we got to sample six different beers, light to dark, each with a distinctive taste.  The last and darkest beer was described to us as "almost an espresso", and indeed it was rich like coffee and could be paired with desserts.  Fascinating!

The brewery tour ended with (1) the rest of our party arriving late and (2) happy hour starting.  The brewery opens its doors at 6:00 for happy hour!  As we continued to get sloppy drunk on this fantastic beer, we noticed the 20-somethings chowing down some gourmet pizza (and that we were the only 30-somethings).  The pizzarias deliver TO THE PUB!  This might have been one of the best nights of my life!  I don't even remember what the toppings were...there was definitely some cured ham on one of them...but it was fantastic.  And that's not the alcohol talking either. 

Before he left, Garrett Oliver was nice enough to sign a few copies of his book (that a friend bought for me) and give us the beer glasses as souviniers.  Sadly, in my drunken stuper, I decided I no longer wanted to carry my glass.  It was getting too heavy for my drunken fingers.  It may still be in shards along the brick wall I threw it against.  And as Karma would have it, my friend lost the books on New Jersey Transit.  Someone will turn signed books to the Lost and Found, right?  Uuuhhhh, now that's definitely the alochol talking.

Thanks

So, what's everybody cooking for Thanksgiving?

Can I just say how much I love this holiday?  Sit down, with loved ones, and EAT!  And the food --- stuffing?  Mashed potatoes?  Is this not heaven?  There is too little gravy in this world!

I'm always interested in what other folks decide to cook for their Turkey Day Feast.  This year, I'm going simple and not making anything fancy or time-consuming or that would require me to look at a recipe.  Why?  Number one, because I'm still completely disorganized even though I moved back into my house over 2 months ago.  I can't find my cookbooks or 75% of my kitchenware.  Number two, because we are planning to go to the parade in Manhattan early Thursday morning, so I must have dishes I can either make the night before or that can cook in just a couple of hours after we get back.  Otherwise it will be a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, complete with toast and popcorn.  Number three, oh really, do we even NEED #3?   I just don't feel like it, ok? 

I did all of my grocery shopping today (Tuesday) so all I have to do tomorrow is get some dining room chairs.  And wash sheets and towels.  And clean the bathrooms.  And vacuum.  Aaaargh.  Even when I try to simplify, I still have too much to do.

Anyway, here's our menu.  Please share yours, because maybe I'll want to borrow a recipe or two.  For NEXT year.

Turkey Breast (not a whole turkey) baked with apples and onions
Salmon (baked in whatever kind of sauce Freeman's Fish Market has tomorrow)
Mashed Potatoes
Stuffing (From a bag.  Sue me.)
Carrots (Simmered on the stove top, in apple juice and cinnamon - my kids LOVE this)
Asparagus (roasted in olive oil with salt and pepper; or steamed and served with melted butter)
Wheat rolls (Whole Foods)
Whole Foods "home-made" gravy (Like I was EVER gonna make my own gravy)

A little wine, some pie, seeing my nieces (and my boys with their cousins)...it's going to be great.  I hope the weather holds and we can make the parade, but if we don't, that just means more sleep for me.  Either way, I'll be thankful. 

Where's the Chef? Out blogging, apparently....

So I was in the city all day and just got home, and of course am totally unprepared to write a blog entry tonight, so I'm going to make it short.

We've been talking offline about dinners and what to cook and blah blah blah, stuff that's probably only interesting to us, but whatever.  I had a couple of favorite easy things I thought I'd share with the group.

1.  Beef Stew.  I've made this recipe both on the stove and in the crock pot.  I think it's better on the stove but you can't beat it for convenience in the crock pot -- you don't even have to brown the meat first (something I would never want to do before going to work in the morning, so it has to be done the night before, and let's face it, I'm rarely that prepared).

2.  Breaded chicken breasts.  This may be the easiest thing I've ever done, but it really turns out well -- and thanks to my stepmother Joke, who has taken cooking classes in _Paris_ and then turned around and made this.  (I'm not sure but I don't think this was one of the things she learned there....)  I like my  [chicken] breasts thin -- and they cook faster -- so I preheat the oven to 400 or so (yeah, that high).  I take the breasts and cut them lengthwise, then dip them in olive oil, then dip them in a mixture of italian bread crumbs and parmeasean cheese.  You can do the first dip with egg, I guess, but olive oil is easier to me and works just as well.  Then I arrange them in a lasagne dish sprayed with cooking spray, and let them cook for 20 minutes.  While that's cooking in the oven, I make couscous (5 minutes!) and a vegetable. 

3.  Something I want to try next week:  I have some Trader Joe's tomato soup, and I want to go back and get some TJ party meatballs, throw them together with some cooked pasta, sprinkle with parmesean cheese, and eat.  I'll let you know how it is.

So... um... these aren't so good for the vegetarians among us, but those are some quick and easy things I've done recently (or am thinking about doing). 

P.S. I'm just now browsing the Trader Joe's website -- they have recipes! 

I'm Bringing Ethnic Back

Whenever my parents visit, they bring with them bags and bags of prepared Korean food and ingredients to make more food.  I LOVE their visits.  I don't cook Korean meals for my family.  In fact, given the task, I'd fail miserably.  I'm not sure why I never wrote down recipes, let alone paid attention to my mom as she prepared the most delicious Korean dishes, but I haven't.

Well, last week, I made a special "postpartum" soup for a friend (while my mom gave me instructions over the telephone) and it made me realize that I've been neglectful of my heritage for too long.  The excuse that the closest Korean grocer is 40 minutes away will no longer be accepted.  I'm on a mission.  So, let the Kim Chee - in all its glorious varieties - pickle!  Fire up the grill for some serious Bul-Go-Gi!

Here's a demo of what my mom, sis and I made before our weekend road trips...

Coincidentally and ironically, as I make the Korean cooking promise to myself, I come across this article in Marie Claire magazine..."erasing ethnicity".  You have to read all four pages.  Each one is more disturbing than the last.  What is going on with my Seoul Sisters?  Growing up here, I was both teased and complimented on my Asian eyes.  Undergoing eyelid surgery was not in the vocabulary.  My sis-in-law, having grown up in Korea, DID have the procedure.  Does she look more American than me?  NOT AT ALL. 

In the same "special report" (but not on the website) there is an article written by MTV News Correspondent, Suchin Pak.  She was born in Korea but grew up in San Francisco.  She writes, "Like so many Asian families, mine really believes that the more Western you look, the more successful you'll be.  No wonder I spent most of my teens using theatrical glue and Scotch tape on my eyelids to fake that fold..."  She explains, "None of my non-Asian friends understood why I wanted eyelid surgery.  But in Korea, it's just another life step: You get a degree, you get a job, you get your eyes done."  Well, turns out, I've been living in a bubble.  A bubble named America, where no one gives a shit about the shape of your eyes.  BTW, Suchin Pak did NOT have her eyelids done.

Did you read the page about Leg Lengthening?  Ugh.  What is wrong with people?  Okay, so I'm taller than average for a Korean gal, but at 5' 4-1/2" (and don't forget the 1/2"), I am FAR from statuesque.  Why in the world do people blow out their knees for a couple of inches?  Get some fucking heels and call it a day! For crying out loud, for the price of surgery ($15,000 - $25,000) you could get hundreds of gorgeous Jimmy Choo's!  Obviously, I just don't understand.  In HS, some Korean students moved into town (thus relieving us as the only Koreans in school).  All of the girls were shorter than me and one of them once said, "It must be nice to be so tall."  ???????? 

If only she (and all these girls) could have seen what I see...from up here.

Take Me Back

Lately I have been really longing for a good dinner in a nice restaurant.  Way back when, in my other lifetime when I was childless and worked in New York, my friend Carolyn and I would, on a random Thursday, just pick a new place (usually based on a description in Zagat's) and go.  We never had any real expectations, just curiousity and hope.  And the fact that we'd be drinking didn't hurt - I mean, after a few, how bad could it be?

We found some really fun places - there was this little Italian place in one of the villages (east, west, who can keep track?) where they made you sit outside until someone else finished.  It was that small.  They gave us wine and as we sat and viewed all the denizens of the area we both came to the same conclusion: "We are not now, nor were we ever, nor will we EVER be, cool".  It was actually a good thing.  Saved a lot of therapy and bad wardrobe choices.

I enjoyed my dinner immensely and then we went to a bar that was an old-style hair salon, where you sat in hair-dryer seats (with the big units above) and drank your whatever-tini.  We were so out of place, in our wool suits and pumps and briefcases, but man, we didn't care.  And the thing about really cool people...they don't make you feel NOT cool.  Or maybe we were drunk.   Or...were THEY?  Whatev.

While I love my diners and other kid-friendly places, I've been missing those days.  It's more difficult in the suburbs.  First of all, you've got the kids.  Second of all, well, see "First of all".    There are many fine establishments in this area that I love but hardly ever get to - Basilico, Voro, Martini's - and those I've wanted to try, but, ya know, I'm busy - Highlawn Pavilion comes to mind, as does Antonella's.  And of course, if you're getting a babysitter, you might as well hop the train to the city.  But, what would I wear?  My hair's been in a ponytail all day.  Do we have a train schedule?  And...hey, is Law & Order on?   Nevermind...

So tonight Sandra actually had big plans to go into the city and, as her spouse is out of town, I was going to babysit.  These logistics (get in car, arrange ass on couch, point remote, CABLE!!!) I can handle.  However, her plans fell through so instead we decided to take the kids out to eat together. 

I really was in the mood to try something new so I was not going to settle for Village Coffee Shop or St. James Gate, though I love them both.  I threw out the newest addition to Springfield Avenue, Indigo Smoke, but Sandra was skeptical.   Then I remembered the little place whose divine smell I smell every time I park in the Yale Street lot on my way to Cafe Meow.  Churrasco!  It advertises itself as Portugese BBQ. I don't know what that is.  But, there's a little liquor store right next door - Wine Cellar?  Wine Something?  I dunno - they had wine, and so did we. 

Oh, MAN!  Just what I've been missing!  It was really divine.  It was a real restaurant, cloth napkins, nice tables, artwork on the walls, beautiful decor.  We were the only ones there for the first part of our meal - later other patrons showed up and I hope that our rambunctious children didn't ruin their awesome meals.  My chicken marsala was perfectly breaded, with succulent mushrooms atop two juicy pieces of chicken breast, accompanied by some amazing spanish rice, crisp vegetables in butter, and home-made potato chips.  OMG.  I ate EVERYTHING on my plate, and I'm not kidding.  I would have licked it if I wasn't in a public place.  It was that good.  I'm amazed that such a gem has escaped my radar and I hope you all try it (they do take-out). 

They were EXTREMELY family friendly - to the point of telling me "one juice is enough for two kids" and then bringing me two separate sippy cups for the one price.  Also doing the same with the kids' meals.  And not getting annoyed with us when the kids were too loud and Sandra and I were too involved in our conversation to care.  I mean, how often do you get out? 

I will definitely be back, with or without kids.  It was so fun to discover a new place to eat, and it reminded me of all the great experiences I had many moons ago in the city.

P.S. at one point in our conversation, Will and Connor both had to use the bathroom.  We let them go by themselves, to the MEN'S ROOM, though I had an eagle eye on the doorway the whole time.  They were SO psyched when they came back to the table.  This was a milestone for our independent guys.  Sandra gave them high fives!  (To check if they had washed their hands (clever!); also to congratulate!)

P.P.S.  At the end of the meal, ALL kids had to go potty.  The boys went back to the mensroom b/c they love it so.  Sandra had to take Emma to the ladies' room.  I'm out front with Libby and Milo, and Will comes back:  "Mommy, we are going to need your help.  We both are going to make a poop and we need you to wipe our bums."  AAAAAAnd....we're back.

Put Down That Glass, Ladies...oh, wait...

So, a couple of days ago, some sobering news - drinking alcohol raises your risk of breast cancer, and it doesn't matter which kind.  Wine is just as bad as whiskey.  This saddens me.

But then, today, a ray of hope!  Having kids may protect you from breast cancer!  Yippee!  So, the next time your kids make you so crazy that you NEED a drink, thank the little pains in the ass for making it all possible.

Cheers!