It’s that time of year again…

People having that obsession to lose weight/slim down. I don’t know I just notice around this time of year everyone including me have this strong desire to get slimmer–just suddenly sign up for a gym membership or eat less. Maybe because of all the BBQs and get together and just how lazy summer can be, the weight gain happens. Around this time we want to want to get slimmer before the holidays or push to reach our goal weight by the end of the year.

I notice a slight weight gain. You see…my eating habits are really simple. I eat a lot in the day time and slowly eat less by the end of the day. I make sure I eat something every three hours and by 8 pm I stop eating. I usually eat two meals per day–breakfast and lunch or breakfast and dinner. But lately I’ve been frequently eating three meals per day. I usually just eating breakfast and lunch and I’d only eat dinner if I’m dining out. Take today for examples:

Breakfast- two bagels with cream cheese

Snack – Clif Energy bar

Lunch – Chicken Adobo with lots of rice!

Snack – Almonds and Dark Chocolate

“Dinner” – Greek Yogurt with peaches and granola

Actually for dinner during the work week I cook but it’s usually just food for the next day for my next several lunches at work.

At work I just noticed lately there’s been a lot of conversations where my coworkers say “I gained ten lbs that I just lost– I gotta start working out again” or in the Facebook Newsfeed it says they checked in the gym, etc. In my apartment, my roommate is doing something active everyday–EVERY SINGLE day and I say that’s hard core. And my boyfriend can no longer refer himself as as the skinny fat kid after stepping on the scale :-p.

Like I said, it must be that time again!

Organizing my closet…

So my closet in my new space is a lot smaller than my last place. My last place–the closet was unnecessarily HUGE my clothes really didn’t fill the space.

So this is where the clothing rack comes in–this is only for coats and dresses. The nice thing about this clothing rack is that you can change the height and width so you’re not really wasting any airspace. You can find this at Target for about 20 dollars.

Still in the process of organizing my closet.

Want this Ebelskivers pan! (via SugarMama Baking Company)

Tags

cooking, Reblogging, Things I like/

This is so going on my wish list!

http://www.target.com/p/Pancake-Puff-Aebleskiver-Pan/-/A-10759114#community-participation

For more ebelskiver recipes, click these links or check out the Recipes tab at the top: cherry; strawberry and blueberry; maple-banana-walnut, banana-graham cracker, spiced apple maple; lemon; a basic batter; another basic batter This little recipe –and its three different takes on the filling–struck me for a few reasons. Not on … Read More

via SugarMama Baking Company

Mint Chocolate Chip Gelato

Tags

chocolate, cooking, ice cream, mint, recipes

Mint chocolate chip is my boyfriend’s favorite flavor. So I decided to give this a try.

What I think: The mint is really strong. I don’t think you need to eat a lot. It tastes like the plant without eating the plant.

According to my roommate and boyfriend, they think the initial taste is a very strong mint taste–very sharp and cool. And the aftertaste the flavor settles and melts in your mouth. My roommate says the after tastes ends with notes of chocolate.

So glad I made this today because it’s so hot outside.

Here are my photos.

source: The Culinary Chronicles

Ingredients:

2 Cups Whole Milk
1/3 Cup Sugar
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
Pinch salt
1-2 Bunches Fresh Mint, washed, dried, and destemmed
5 oz. Dark Chocolate

Make a slurry with about 3-4 tbs of milk and corn starch in a bowl and set aside.  Add the remainder of the milk to a sauce pan, mint, salt, and sugar under medium low heat.  When mixture starts to bubble, turn off heat and allow mint to steep for about 1 hour.  Then pour mixture over a sieve and squeeze out the fluid from  mint and discard.

Reheat his mixture under medium low heat. When it begins to bubble, add your mixed slurry and stir making sure there are no clumps. Continue to heat until it thickens..when you can run a line on a back of a spoon without the mixture coming together it should be done.  Cool completely (preferably over night) and then add to your ice cream maker, follow it’s directions.

Place the container that you plan on storing the ice cream in the freezer.

In the mean time, coarsely chop the chocolate into small pieces and heat over a water bath.  When the ice cream maker is done, scribble the melted chocolate onto your cold container–it should freeze almost instantly. Scoop in a layer of ice cream and break up the chocolate. Scribble more chocolate and layer on more ice cream.  Continue until done and freeze until firm.  Before serving allow to thaw just slightly before scooping.

surprise!

No water in the apartment–actually the whole apartment complex! Should I take a shower at work?? see…there was apparently a notice three days ago from the City of San Diego that the water will be shut off until 6 am. Didn’t see the memo…speaking of memos…UPS never left a note that our TV was in our neighbors place–we thought someone jacked our TV (more that in another post).

Anyways back to the water thing–the faucet is running SOME water. There’s a pitcher of water but I usually drink 2 glasses before going to bed and this pitcher is between two other people too yikes!

Thank god I didn’t do pilates because I do sweat and I’d smell bad the rest of the night and at work. If I shower at work–drying off wouldn’t be very fun because there’s NO BLOW DRYER!

Anyways I’m getting back to whole postcrossing thing! Mailing some postcards tomorrow!

In other news, I sent Mocha to New York City–hope she has fun! Like I said, let me know if you’re interested in Mocha traveling to your town!

Bulk up like a Sumo Wrestler

Tags

Asian, cooking, Japanese, Soups

Wanna bulk up like a...sumo wrestler? Now you can with this soup called “Chanko Nabe”!! On Saturday, I made this on my first try and believe or not—everyone liked it.

You see, every time my boyfriend and I go to LA we like to stop by my friend’s house and cook for them. The first time was pineapple fried rice served on a real pineapple and the second time we made banh xeoh. Looking through my blog I cannot believe I never got around posting those too.

Anyways this time my boyfriend suggested to make Chanko Nabe because he saw it in the food network. It looked really good but my concern was that one of my friends doesn’t like pho (shocker!!). How can one NOT LIKE pho!! But yet she likes Beef Noodle Soup…? But yet she does not like sushi… Anyways she loves this soup.

So folks, here’s the recipe!! and my side notes:

Side notes:

• I used bouillon cubes instead of chicken broth
• I did not have shimeji mushrooms, bok choy, prime rib roast (will put that next time!), and burdock root
• FYI pretty much almost no rules when making this stew and since we like mushrooms I added more mushrooms
• Like sumo wrestlers after a meal, we took a nice long nap
• (off topic) Still need to write more substantial posts…

Ingredients

• 1 (2 7/8 ounce) packages fried tofu, cut into large pieces ( abura-age)
• 10 cups chicken broth
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons mirin
• salt, to taste
• 1 medium waxy potatoes, peeled, quartered lengthwise, sliced crosswise, and blanched
• 1 piece daikon radishes, peeled, quartered lengthwise, sliced crosswise, and blanched
• 1 small carrots, trimmed, peeled, sliced on the bias, and blanched
• 1 leeks, white part only, trimmed, washed, and sliced on the bias
• 1/4 head napa cabbage, cored and cut into large pieces
• 4 shiitake mushrooms, stemmed
• 4 ounces shimeji mushrooms, trimmed and separated
• 4 ounces fresh burdock root, trimmed, peeled, and shaved into long thin strips
• 10 ounces grilled tofu, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch-thick pieces ( yaki-dofu)
• 1/2 lb boneless chicken thighs, cut into thin strips
• 7 ounces bok choy, root part trimmed
• 1/2 lb prime rib roast, frozen then thinly sliced
• 1 lb udon noodles

Directions

1. Open abura-age and place in a colander. Pour boiling water over deep-fried tofu to remove any excess oil. Allow to drain.
2. At the table, set cooking pot on a portable stove in center of table. Fill with chicken stock, add soy sauce and mirin, season to taste with salt, and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
3. Divide remaining cooking ingredients, except noodles, into thirds. Keep chilled until ready to cook.
4. Add about one-third of the potatoes, daikon, carrots, leeks, cabbage, mushrooms, burdock, grilled tofu. chicken, fried tofu, and bok choy to simmering broth.
5. Cook until vegetables begin to soften and chicken is just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Add about one-third of the beef.

source: food.com

Strawberry Rhubarb Bread Pudding

I remembered taking a trip to Julian back in January–and it was my first trip too! Mr. Fish took me to Julian Pie Company and I ordered apple pie. Mr. Fish ordered Strawberry Rhubarb Pie and I actually liked his better because I guess I like tart flavors. Anyways, I just happened to bump into this recipe and decide to give it a try .

Things I should’ve done a little differently:

- make the custard the night before and put it in the fridge.

- add vanilla ice cream on top yum! Or maybe more custard

Otherwise, it’s pretty good .

So I didn’t include the orange zest and included walnuts as the original recipe. I wanted to put walnuts but my roommate is allergic. Last week I baked banana bread–one was with one walnuts and the other without.

So anyways here’s the recipe--Strawberry Rhubarb Bread Pudding. 

Source: Eating Well

CUSTARD

• 4 large egg whites
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup skim milk

SEASONINGS

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest (optional)

BREAD & FILLING

• 4 cups whole-grain bread, crusts removed if desired, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 1/2 pound, 4-6 slices)
• 2 cups roughly broken gingersnaps
• 2 cups quartered strawberries, fresh or frozen (thawed)
• 1 cup diced rhubarb
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, lightly toasted (optional)

TOPPING (optional)

• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, lightly toasted, or Streusel Topping

View from my window

That’s right folks. We are experiencing a neighborhood black out.

You know you’ve attended a ghetto wedding when…

Tags

ghetto, San Diego, wedding

Me and my boyfriend went to Target to buy a gift from the registry. By the time we got to the cash register, I just realized that we forgot to buy a gift bag but there was no time to run back and get a gift bag and arrive to the wedding on time.

Then my boyfriend had a brilliant idea asking the cashier guy to double bag our stuff. I told him “we’re wrapping our gifts in Target plastic bags?” and the cashier says “well it’s all right to be ghetto once in a while” and I said “but this is a wedding!”

…and well…he’s right…it’s all right to be ghetto once in a while…and that defined the rest of the night.

At Marina Village

In order of occurance:

- the invitation says the ceremony started at 6 but really it started at 7. Even our friends arrived super late but yet just in time for the ceremony

- the bride– the way she carried herself was so gangsta

- the audience during the ceremony was more like a peanut gallery. You know the part where the priest says “yada yada yada say ‘I do’” and she doesn’t say “I do” but the audience and her mom kept screaming out “say I do, I do!” I think the reason why the audience acted they way they did was because they’re probably hungry. I was already hungry myself because the wedding did start an hour late.

- After the ceremony the bride goes “everyone go to the reception and drink! Get wasted!”

- We go into the reception hall and there were already people getting food (it was buffet style). Keep in mind no bride and groom yet so we ate before they showed up an hour and a half later. This is what happens when the wedding is an hour late.

- When the wedding party was getting in the mom goes “EVERYBODY STOP EATING FOR A SECOND–OR MAYBE A WHILE” so that’s when the bridesmaids and the groomsmen make their entrance.

- When the flower girl and ring boy were about to make their entrance, the DJ introduces the bride and grooms’ name and the bride goes “wait! You got it all wrong!” The DJ did not know the name of the flower girl and ring so people kept shouting it out.

- the bride kept dropping the F-bomb throughout the reception

- the bride kept arguing with her mom

- There was an open bar and everytime the bartender walked out, everyone ran to the bar pouring their own drinks and grabbing the alcohol

- The toast speeches were funny and kind of shallow. There were phrases that consist of “beer pong”, “my friend was smoking out–just kidding I guess”, “I farted on his face”, “oh he (groom) is so totally into you that’s why he’s talking about that other hot chick”, “We manipulated him (groom) to go out with her (bride) and look they’re married.”

- I only heard half of the toasts speeches because everyone wase talking not listening to the toasts. Or people were saying half their speeches because they were laughing and couldn’t finish their speeches.

- The garter part was kind of awkward. The groom took the garter off with his hands but his bride kept telling him “no use your mouth” but he didn’t use his mouth. So the bride announced “look we’re going to do the garter toss again and we’re going to do it the right way” and it looked like the best man did the job. Awkward.

- I like Alicia Keys and everything but why is “Teenage Love Affair” (I know she’s not talking about teenagers literally but the title…) the song of the night (it was played twice). There were other questionable songs too.

-btw, we were the youngest people in the whole guest list which is 23-27 (other than the wedding party being 21-23 years old). Everyone else was late thirties and above.

Anyways, after the wedding–I didn’t feel so bad about the Target plastic bag wrapped wedding gift.

Still at the wedding

P.S. its on Filipino time :-p

Ceremony hadn’t started.