family, woodworking, photography, K-pop
My parents live on a couple of acres in the middle of the woods. Over the years they’ve planted quite a few fruit trees and last week one of the plum trees was so loaded down that the branches were in danger of snapping. E had a blast helping pick the plums. He wasn’t the most productive picker ever but it was definitely very cute.
By the time we got on the plane yesterday E was pretty tired. I thought he would sack out but he didn’t. Fortunately he was still a trooper and entertained himself for a long time by looking out the window. When he started getting cranky I broke out his portable DVD player and a super engrossing/annoying Wow, Wow Wubby DVD bought especially for the occasion and all was well.
On flights to Seattle I like to sit on the left side of the plane because if the weather’s nice you get a pretty amazing view of Mt. Rainier in all its glory.
We had an epic date on Saturday that lasted from just before 5 pm until after midnight. It was great spending so much time with N. His department at work took us to dinner and then to a Real Salt Lake game. I hadn’t ever been to a professional soccer game before but I surprised by how much fun it was. Apparently our team is pretty good–they won 2-0 and it was their 21st home win in a row.
During the game the section we were sitting in won free Whoppers from Burger King and everyone got these pom-poms with coupons on the handles. E has been having fun shaking our around the house. I think E would have enjoyed the game but probably isn’t old enough to last through the whole thing. If we’re still living here in a couple of years it would be fun to take him.
There are several different fan groups that sit in the south end of the stadium. Two of them have drum lines that drum and chant during the ENTIRE GAME. We were sitting a little close so it was kind of loud but I sort of liked it. It made me nostalgic about playing drums in the pep band during high school games. And it definitely added an upbeat feel to the game. Plus I have to admire the endurance of anyone who can drum and cheer for two hours straight.
After the game N and I realized that if we hustled across the street we could make it to a showing of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. I was kind of tired by this point but really liked the movie. I liked the graphic novels it’s based on and I think they did a good job adapting it for the screen. I recommend seeing it; it’s a lot of fun.
The weekend went by in a bit of a blur and now today I’m rushing around getting ready to take E and go visit my family in WA. I’m looking forward to catching up on some sleep, playing with my mom’s dog’s litter of Maltese puppies, and eating loads of delicious Korean food.
This week I decided to make something from The Everything Slow Cooker Cookbook
What should have been an easy dump-it-in-and-forget-it-experience went awry when on Wednesday morning I pulled out the roast I had just bought on Tuesday afternoon only to discover that it had turned rancid. N smelled it himself and confirmed it so it wasn’t just my wacky pregnant sense of smell. By the time I bought a new roast and returned the bad one to the store it was already after 2pm. And it was supposed to cook for at least 8 hours.
Add to that E had been in rare form all day due to teething and I was ready to call it a day. So I stubbornly popped the roast in at 2:30 pm and informed N that I thought we should order pizza for dinner after E went to bed and that we’d have the beef the following night. So last night after I got home from class we had the sandwiches which were pretty good (if a little heavy on the liquid smoke.) And E LOVED the meat and ate a whole bowl of it for dinner which is awesome.
Texas Barbecued Beef Sandwiches
Ingredients
Instructions
The Verdict
3 (out of 5 stars). If you’re looking for a book containing the slow cooker dishes you remember your mom making when you were a kid this will do nicely. It covers main dishes, appetizers, soups, etc… More puzzlingly it also includes a chapter on bread(apparently you bake it inside a #2 coffee can inside the cooker). Recipes heavily rely on pre-prepared ingredients such as ketchup and canned goods but for me part of the joy of slow cooking is just being able to dump everything in. However, it seemed like many of the recipes are variations of the same.
It seems like many of the recipes aren’t that great, health-wise (high in sodium and fat) but nutritional info isn’t included. Photos are also missing but that probably helped keep the list price down. If you don’t have a slow cooker cookbook you can probably find most of the usable recipes at allrecipes.com or someplace else online.
I’m taking a two-week photography class from the very talented Bryan Niven (portfolio and blog). Since it’s through the local community ed program it’s pretty casual. Last week only three other students showed up to class. I felt a little out of place since they were all easily over 60 but I enjoyed the lecture.
We were supposed to come up with three different concepts for our homework. Last night the girls in our church youth group went to the Thanksgiving Point gardens and I bought my camera along so I could do my homework.
I need to narrow these pictures down to three: the first one is my favorite but I’m not sure about what other two to use. I’d love any input. What do you think?
Motion
Leading lines
Selective focus
Rule of thirds
Leading lines? (I didn’t know those girls, they were just there being picturesque. Utah is completely over run by little blond girls in frilly skirts.)So how about you? Which ones would you turn in?
Dear E,
This month has been a busy one. It’s was pretty crazy for me work-wise and I feel like I wasn’t able to be there for you as much as I normally am. Let’s just say that you watched more Nick Jr. than normal. But you’re a resilient kid and seem to have emerged from a few weeks of semi-neglect with your good humor in tact.
Everyday you say something that cracks me up and makes me wonder how you got so big all of a sudden. The other day you were twirling a wooden snake around with your arm and I was was worried you were going to smack yourself in the face so I told you to be careful. You stopped and looked at me and nonchalantly said, “Don’t worry, Mama” and continued (without any face-smacking incidents). I was a tiny bit miffed that you dismissed my concern so gallantly but couldn’t help being charmed. If you ever take up skateboarding or some other injury-prone pastime I don’t know if I’ll be able to bring myself to watch.
This month you went pee in your potty chair for the first time. You were running around without a diaper and you sat on the couch and I told you it was time to go to the bathroom so you looked down and peed a little (I should have been more specific about the location). We rushed you to your potty chair where you finished. You’ve done it a few more times but not very willingly. It would be nice to have you out of diapers but if you aren’t ready I’m fine with waiting a little while more. I think it might be more convenient if you were still in diapers when we go to Korea in the fall, anyway. I don’t know what it’s like now, but ten years ago some public bathrooms (like in subway stations) still had squat toilets.
Yes, we just bought our tickets to go to Korea a few weeks ago. I can’t wait to show you the things I love about Korea. Your dad and I wouldn’t have met if it weren’t for our shared connection to Korea and it seems fitting that we go there on our first international trip as a family.
Speaking our family, we’re expecting a new baby at the end of January/beginning of February. Your dad and I worry a bit about how you’ll adjust. You can be pretty jealous of my attention sometimes. Since you still have a very basic understanding of time we haven’t really told you yet that we’re going to have a baby but we’ve talked about babies in general and about how they’re nice and it’s nice to give them kisses. You seem amenable to the idea but we’ll see.
I know it will be a big adjustment to have another baby but I’m not as worried as I was about having you. I’m far from perfect but these last few years with you have given me enough confidence that the thought of having two kids doesn’t make me want to run for the hills; it makes me excited. You’ve helped me grow into my own skin as a mother and I’ll always be grateful to you for that.
Love,
Mama
Cookbooks on Trial: Back with a Vengeance! I know that I haven’t been posting every day lately but I’ve just been swamped–swamped and reeeeally tired. I think I might go back to posting M/W/F so I can focus more on each post. I might post more often than that but telling myself I only need to post on M/W/F makes me feel less stressed. Anyway, I actually got my crap together this week and cooked a new recipe!
I don’t think I necessarily picked the best recipe out of Takashi’s Noodles
The recipe was more labor intensive than the way I normally make cold soba (i.e. using store-bought concentrated dipping sauce). The homemade dipping sauce tasted a little off but I’m not even sure if I used the right type of kelp for the stock so all bets were off. Overall, it was pretty tasty though.
Left to right: what I hoped was kombu and bonito flakes.Cold Soba from Takashi’s Noodles
Broth
14 oz. dried soba noodles
Garnishes
Directions
To prepare the borth, ready an ice bath and set aside. Combine the dashi, soy sauce, and mirin in a stockpot over high heat. Bring to a boil, then decrease the heat to a simmer and add the katsuobushi. Simmer for 2 minutes, then turn of the heat and let sit for 3 minutes. Strain througha fine-mesh sieve into a bowl and place the bowl in the ice bath to cool
Once the broth has cooled, place a pot of water over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the soba noodles, stirring to prevent them from sticking together. Cook for 4 or 5 minutes, or until the noodles are al dente. Drain into a colander and rinse under cold running water. Wash the noodles with your hands until the water runs clear and the noodles are cold to the touch.
To prepare the garnishes, set up garnish plates by arranging the nori, yuzu peel, scallions an d wasabi in small bunches on each of 4 small plates. Pour the broth into 4 teacups or small dipping bowls. Divide the noodles among 4 large plates. Each person will have a garnish plate, dipping bowl, and cold soba plate.
To eat, top the noodles with the shredding nori and add the yuzu peel, scallions, and wasabi to taste to the broth. Grab some noddles with chopsticks and dip them into the broth to coat the noddles then quickly slurp them down.
Dashi (Makes 2 quarts)
Place kombu and water in a large stockpot and let it soak at room temperature for at least 20 minutes. Bring to a boil over high heat. Remove the kombu and decrease the heat so the liquid is simmering. Add the katsuobushi and gently mix into the liquid–don’t stir vigorously. Simmer for 10 minutes longer, then strain through a fine mesh sieve.
Garnishes, dipping sauce, and soba noodles.
The Verdict
4 (out of 5 stars). If you are serious about learning how to make and cook Japanese noodles this is a wonderful book written by a master of the field. Takashi Yagihashi is a highly respected Japanese chef and the book is blurbed by fellow luminaries like Eric Ripert, Daniel Boulud, and Susur Lee. For the most part the recipes are pretty straightforward but they do demand commitment to such things as making your own dashi and other stocks. Some details are omitted (as in a recipe calling for 4 oz of beef but not specifying the cut) which might cause confusion for beginners like me. Nutritional info is also omitted.
It’s a gorgeous book with lush photographs and is fun to look through and read. It covers all sorts of Japanese noodles: ramen, soba, udon, somen, plus some fusion dishes. It is for the serious noodle fan. To me it’s more of an aspirational book rather than something that will help you put dinner on the table on a weeknight.
But sometimes it’s nice just to flip through a cookbook and dream.
Thank you for all the kind wishes, everyone. You guys are awesome.
And now for something completely different:
In case you don’t know, Sandra Lee has a show called Semi Homemade on the Food Network. She specializes in using store-bought ingredients to make gimmicky dishes. Most episodes of her show feature themes complete with elaborate “tablescapes” and crazy cocktails (she’s big on the booze).
It’s not that I’m against using shortcuts: I use a lot of canned tomatoes in dishes and I think cake mixes are God’s gift to home cooks. And in theory anything that gets people cooking at home instead of going through a drive-thru is a good thing.
It’s just that some of her ideas are just plain strange (e.g. the ice cream baked potato).
So…I’m pregnant! After the early miscarriage I had at Christmas I’ve been fairly nervous about this pregnancy. But I had an ultrasound at 10 weeks and the fetus looked okay, like an tiny dancing gummy bear. And now I’m at 14 weeks and finally starting to relax a bit. I know plenty of things can still go wrong but it’s less likely now and frankly I’m tired of guarding my feelings and bracing myself for disappointment. It’s been exhausting in a way.
So I’m finally letting down my guard and just going with the joyful assumption that come February we’ll have a new baby in our family.
We are SO excited.
Last night N and I went to another concert in Pioneer Park. We saw E’s favorite band, The New Pornographers. (Seriously, we listen to their latest record Together at least four times a week in the car at his request.)
The band’s name can be a bit unsettling but Wikipedia says the A.C. Newman came up with it after watching a Japanese film called The Pornographers. But other people thought the name was a reference to Jimmy Swaggart’s reputed claim that rock and roll was “the new pornography.”
But despite their name their music is pretty kid-friendly pop rock. There were a bunch of kids at the concert bopping around. It made me wish we could have brought E but I think he’s still a few years too young. It was a great show; they’re consummate professionals and excellent at performing live.
Sadly, E woke up today feeling a little under the weather. He has a mild fever so I’m keeping him home from preschool so right now he’s convalescing on the couch while wearing a sparkly green party hat he found in his toy box–cutest sick person ever.
(And yes, I know his haircut is a hot mess.)Hopefully E will be feeling better later today–N’s company is having their summer party tonight and I kind of want to stop by Old Navy because their layering camis are $2 until Saturday. Not really sure how much I need some but 2! dollars! (I am a total sucker.)
We have kind of a busy weekend planned–we’re going to a bon voyage BBQ tomorrow for a friend who is leaving to do humanitarian work in Indonesia for a month and then we’re getting together with two of my college roommates. If E’s feeling better tomorrow night we might try and catch a movie and dinner. And if there’s any time left over there are a few shows to catch up on off our DVR (new season of Project Runway!)
I hope you have a great weekend!
