Goodies at home

Been back in MN for about a week and thankfully have not gone hungry. Here are just a few things that make me smile:

Eating at my friend's new Indonesian inspired restaurant BALI. Pictured is fried tofu, they're HUGE. I enjoyed everything: anchovies and peanuts, deviled eggs, shrimp curry. Open late, check them out if you can.



Baked goodies by my sister. Junk cookies: chocolate chips, dried cherries, caramel, banana chips:


And myself. Salmon tarts: garlic, onions, feta or goat cheese, and smoked salmon on a puff pastry. Seasoned with pepper.



Family hot pot.

Christmas candy

The classics are my favorites.

Study snack

Just got off of work and need to get some reading done. Too late for caffeine, but I need something in my stomach: pancakes with blackberry sauce. Used apple juice instead of water, no need for sugar.

Not food but...

It's snowing in Austin! Me and Chris went out to take some pictures and enjoy it, but then went back inside after 5 minutes. Can't wait for MN.

Basil shrimp

Veggie dumplings from My Thanh. They seem like a happy bunch.

Heat olive and sesame oil, cook dumplings for 1 minute. Add a little water, reduce heat, cover for 5 minutes. Remove cover and increase heat until sides brown.


Marinated shrimp in garlic, onions, tamari, and nuoc mam. Cooked with ginger, carrots, and green beans. Seasoned with salt, pepper, dry chilli flakes; topped with scallions and basil.


Basil. When I worked at a Vietnamese restaurant, a customer complained his basil wasn't fresh. The least I could do, he said, was give him fresh sides for his pho because he "liberated you (my) people." I smiled, politely apologized, and turned towards the kitchen. Instead of getting the jerk what he wanted, I simply washed his wilted basil so it looked "fresh", returned it to him, and he was statisfied.

Sam's kitchen

La Mexicana

Last night with Chris:


24-hour La Mexicana bakery
1924 S 1st St
Austin, TX 78704

Sandwiches everyday

Another dau hu banh mi, I can't ever get enough of any type of banh mi. I went to Fiesta too late to grab the regular baguettes, so I got the other ones. They're HUGE! The crust had a slight taste of garlic.

Pickled veggies and lemongrass tofu from My Thanh (stir fried with onions and garlic). Side of gingered tamari for steamed carrots and green beans.

Mango sorbet

I rarely get anything from the ice cream section. Ice cream sandwiches, fruit pops, fudgesicles, cookies and cream, strawberry, vanilla-I can never make a decision. So I walk away frustrated and empty handed.

Not this time though.

Haagen Dazs Mango sorbet: "This sorbet is made from a specific variety of mango called Criollos that grows in Ecuador and Peru. Widely considered the finest mango in the world, they're celebrated for their sweet, delicately orange-like flavor."

Happiness in a pint.

Tung Ho

Wikipedia: Garland chrysanthemum (Leucanthemum coronarium, Chrysanthemum coronarium), also known as chrysanthemum greens or edible chrysanthemum, is a leaf vegetable in the genus Leucanthemum. It is referred to as tong hao in Chinese (茼蒿), shungiku (春菊) in Japanese, ssukgat in Korean and cải cúc or tần ô in Vietnamese. I just call it the leafy thing for soup.

Lemongrass tofu, tung ho soup with shrimp, picked radish and carrots.

Soup: Mince shrimp and marinate with nuoc mam and scallions. Boil chicken broth and add tung ho. Add shrimp when water starts boiling again. Cook for about 5 minutes. That's it.

My busy week will end soon. I'm looking forward to having extra time in my kitchen. Or bed.