Appetizer: Heavenly Stuffed Wings – de-boned chicken wings stuffed with ground chicken, silver noodle, cilantro, water chestnut and black mushroom. They came with this great sweet dipping sauce. This was kind of scary at first (fried! processed! breaded!) but the deliciousness made up for it.

For dinner we shared 4 dishes. The Blue Mango Fried Rice – a big house special: chicken fried rice topped with sweet garlic pork.

The Green Curry – eggplant, bamboo, and bell pepper are soaked in coconut milk, with a hint of basil (cannot be mild).

Mushroom Mountain, as usual – soft tofu, baby corn, bamboo, straw mushroom, and bean sprout stir-fried with a bit of green curry paste. Sesame seed are sprinkled on for a beautiful finish.

And Basil Chili Chicken, also as usual – with bell pepper and onion.

After dinner we went out for dessert (frozen yogurt) at Golden Spoon – pumpkin pie and chocolate flavors. The toppings were raspberries, mango (not ripe, unfortunately), and crushed brownie bits.

Blue Mango never disappoints. And neither does Golden Spoon. If you ever get a chance, go there! (I’m talking about the Blue Mango on Stevens Creek – I hear the other one is not so good.)

Now that I’m in NJ I don’t have Blue Mango. But I do have Edo Sushi! Bobby, Julia, and I all went out for dinner tonight. I love this place. Edo Sushi is a Japanese and Chinese restaurant on Route 31 in the same shopping center as Pennington Market. It’s about a 10 minute walk from my parents’ house.

First is the tea… (unlimited and free – my two favorite qualities). Notice my cool NY key chain – it’s kind of vintage because it has the twin towers on it. I think I got it back in middle school.

I got chicken and broccoli with the sauce on the side (brown sauce).

The other pictures didn’t come out, but Julia got veggies and tofu with the sauce on the side (also brown sauce). Bobby got the Dragon vs. Phoenix – chicken, shrimp, and veggies stir-fried with yet another brown sauce. He also got a big pot of rice.

We finished everything. The check came with pineapple cubes and fortune cookies. Yum! I love Edo’s.

This dinner was nice after my indulgent afternoon… My parents gave me a massage + facial combo for my birthday and I finally used it. I went to Sydney Albert Salon Spa in Princeton. I’d highly recommend this place – I’ve been going there for years and I’ve always loved everything. Their haircuts are amazing, the facials are fantastic, and the massage was wonderful. Bobby also got a massage and he loved it.

While we were getting pampered, our Relocube arrived. Now we have to unpack it. I’m going into the city tomorrow, but when I get home I think we’re going to try to start sorting through all of our stuff. It’ll be a big project.

What’s your favorite restaurant?

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Another announcement – HealthyYum has a coupon code for organic healthy Halloween candy. Check it out!

Recipes used in this post:

• Butternut Squash Fries (for all types of squash though)
• Homemade unsweetened ketchup (with added stevia this time!)

Last night I made a delicious dinner, part of which is pictured here. Also pictured is my big pumpkin. This was miso soup (just hot water, miso, and wakame seaweed), “sweet dumpling squash” fries, and my homemade ketchup. Mmm… squash is amazing. What a lovely carb. Not pictured are the rest of the fries and 2 La Tortilla Factory wraps that I had with peanut butter

The sweet dumpling squash are small and roundish; they have delicata coloring. I also call them “I’m a cute squash”. They made great fries.

A few nights ago I made butternut squash fries for the first time in a while. Once I discovered kabocha, I kind of forgot about butternut. Butternut used to be my go-to squash, and now I remember why. (I still prefer kabocha though.)

These were also dipped in my homemade ketchup.

I got a few questions about my camera – I use a Nikon D40 (SLR). It’s digital. I got it about two weeks ago. The lens it came with (I got it on craigslist, so it didn’t come with the standard kit lens) is a 55-200mm, 1.4-5.6G lens. It’s great for zoom; it’s actually not that great for close-ups, so I’ll be getting another lens too as soon as I can. If you are debating getting a digital SLR, check out Ken Rockwell’s website. He has great information and advice.

I know, I know – I owe you a carb hugging picture. It’s coming. I just haven’t gotten around to taking it yet. Can you guess which carb (or carb appliance) I’ll be embracing? Maybe I’ll do requests.

(I also have some awesome breakfasts to share… Stay tuned!)

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• October 18, 2009 -- Shake it like a salt shaker

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I finally figured out their recipe for the Spicy Burdock Root Salad. Their salad has lotus root, but I was all out. I subbed in water chestnuts instead. Theirs also has mizuna (a salad green), but I didn’t have that either so I just left it out. The ingredient list looks long, I know – but it’s really very simple. Texture is really important here, so make sure the onion and celery are both sliced very thinly. My mandoline helped me achieve the awesome textures, but a grater would work just as well; so would a lot of patience with a knife.

I kid you not – this will be the best salad you ever make.

FYI: Konnyaku is a Japanese yam… it’s the base of shirataki noodles. A block of konnyaku has 0 calories (just like true shirataki noodles – not the tofu kind). It’s great for digestion and overall health. I get mine at my local Asian markets. It’s next to the miso. I would also check near the tofu, or near the refrigerated noodles. If you can’t find it, I guess you could substitute a different veggie or maybe some seitan.

Maggie’s Spicy Burdock Salad

Ingredients (serves 4-5 normal people… or 1-2 crazy salad eaters)

• 2 cups of burdock, sliced up (I used a mandoline)
• 1 block of konnyaku, cut in small slices (or a different veggie or seitan)
• 1 small can of water chestnuts (6 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon oil (sesame)
• 1 inch of ginger, grated
• chili powder and/or chili flakes, to taste (optional)
• 1 medium onion, finely sliced (mandoline)
• 4 stalks of celery, finely sliced (mandoline)
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 tablespoon stevia (or other sweetener, to taste)
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• 2 tablespoons Bragg’s liquid aminos (or soy sauce)
• salt & pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Boil the konnyaku slices in water for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse.
2. Heat the oil in a pan (wok) over high heat. Add the ginger and saute for 1 minute. Add the burdock, drained konnyaku slices, water chestnuts, and chili powder/flakes. Saute for about 5 minutes. You can reduce the heat to medium-high if you’re nervous about burning. When the burdock is tender enough to chew, remove it from the heat and let it cool.
3. Mix together the water, vinegar, and stevia. Soak the sliced onion and celery in the mix for 5 minutes, then drain.
4. Combine the burdock mix, the onion/celery mix, the carrot, sesame seeds, Bragg’s, and salt and pepper. Top with more sesame seeds, if desired. More sesame seeds are always desired by me.

Om nom nom. Bobby and I devoured this. He actually said it was *better* than Delica’s salad. You MUST make this. If you are scared of any of the ingredients (burdock! konnyaku!) – don’t be. Burdock is amazing for you. Burdock health benefits: it’s good for the reproductive system, the skin, the digestive system, and it’s even anti-cancerous. Other burdock or konnyaku recipes:

• Carrot Burdock Kinpira
• Lemon Garlic Okra & Sweet and sour Konnyaku
• Hijiki salad
• Vegetable sukiyaki

I adore Asian/Eastern food. I love eating with chopsticks (way cooler than forks). If it were up to me, I would probably eat Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Thai food for every single meal. Oh wait… I pretty much do The only difference is that I eat oatmeal or oat bran instead of rice, and I eat squash every single day. (Sounds kind of like a cool vegan lady I know.)

What are your weird food quirks? What is your favorite food (cuisine or dish)?

Stay tuned for a silly picture and updates from this weekend’s apple picking adventures!

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• March 24, 2008 -- Asparagus and sesame salad

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I got almost the same thing as I did last time (3 salad combo), except I doubled up on the Spicy Burdock Root Salad (A spicy mix of braised burdock and konnyaku (mountain potato) tossed with thin slices of white onion, celery, julienne carrots, and wild mizuna), and got a single a serving of Hijiki and Soybean Salad (Hijiki (seaweed rich in calcium, iron, and fiber) mixed with dried soybeans, edamame, konnyaku (mountain potato), daikon, wild mizuna, fried tofu, and kuko (wolfberry)).

Bobby got the 2 salads + 1 main item combo (like last time). He opted for the Spicy Burdock Root Salad (this is our favorite), the Wasabi Garlic Potato Salad (Garlic potato salad with wasabi mayonnaise, edamame, snap peas, and romaine hearts), and for his main item he got Sweet & Spicy Chicken (Marinated chicken, lightly fried, served with sweet & spicy sauce).

We split that iced tea.

I made my rice cooker oats again for breakfast one day this week…

This time I topped them with chopped dates and a whole bunch of sesame seeds. I love adding sesame seeds to oats – they give a nice chew and crunch. I couldn’t decide which picture I liked better.

Have you tried rice cooker oats yet?

You guys had some really good input about my post regarding rest days. I continued my pattern of unintentional and/or fun workouts the last few days – I had my accidental 5 mile walk on Thursday, yesterday I did 20 minutes of Tom Morley yoga and about a mile of walking (I consider yesterday a very lazy day; I just walked to the grocery store but got too much stuff and Bobby had to pick me up), and so far today I did a 35 minute video – Self: Slim and Sleek, Fast! Bobby has class all day so I’m on my own. We were going to go to a pumpkin festival but that will probably happen tomorrow instead.

Oddly enough, Meghann and Kath both posted about non-rest rest days yesterday! Their opinions were similar to mine. Remember to check out my workout page if you ever want to see what I’ve been doing. And don’t forget about my yoga page – it has lots of great (free) yoga resources. I should probably update it because I’ve found some more (free) sites.

Another post I enjoyed reading was Tina’s post this morning – she ate a pretty amazing looking muffin for breakfast. Muffins are actually one of my favorite foods, but I don’t really eat them that often. She reminded me that I should definitely treat myself occasionally! Back at Cornell, Bobby and I used to go to a cafe called Mate Factor and they had the most amazing muffins. This is their raspberry one (old picture). I’ve posted about Mate Factor HERE and HERE and HERE.

I’m off to shower and enjoy this lovely fall Saturday. What are your plans? What’s your favorite muffin?

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• September 29, 2008 -- Lunch for 9/29/2008

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It was a humongous bowl, so I went pretty easy on the toppings. I had raisins, almonds, and in-house granola. I also added a little bit of skim milk. I actually managed to finish all but 1 bite of this gigantic bowl of oats. I brought the bloggies some homemade tea bags…

For lunch we went to the Ferry Building to get our favorite – Delica rf-1. It’s a Japanese delicatessen with the most amazing salads. I got the 3-salad combo; Bobby got the 2-salad + a main item combo. Bobby got Wasabi Garlic Potato Salad (Garlic potato salad with wasabi mayonnaise, edamame, snap peas, and romaine hearts), Spicy Burdock Root Salad (A spicy mix of braised burdock and konnyaku (mountain potato) tossed with thin slices of white onion, celery, julienne carrots, and wild mizuna), and for the main item he got Tofu & Chicken Patty with Hijiki (Free-range chicken and organic tofu patty with hijiki seaweed and carrot; served in a sweet soy sauce).

I got the Spicy Burdock Root Salad, and a double serving of Hijiki and Soybean Salad (Hijiki (seaweed rich in calcium, iron, and fiber) mixed with dried soybeans, edamame, konnyaku (mountain potato), daikon, wild mizuna, fried tofu, and kuko (wolfberry)).

I think we go to Delica almost every time we head up to San Francisco. It is probably the best food I have ever eaten. I’m not kidding. It’s that good. We’re heading up to SF tomorrow so I’m sure we’ll be back.

What is your favorite restaurant, and where is it? What do you get?

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My dad introduced me to kohlrabi a while back; he told me the best way to eat them is peeled, sliced, and dipped in fresh salt. I love it. They are quite easy to peel – I actually slice them first and just pull off the skin. It comes away easily.

I also got fresh plums and some green grapes for freezing. I got firm, tart plums in an effort to make my fruit consumption slightly less sweet. It works in my head.

Anyway, back to Nihonmachi (Japantown). Nihon is the Japanese word for Japan, says Bobby, and machi is the Japanese word for city or town. It’s an adorable little square of San Jose, about 8 blocks long and 1 block in width. After the farmers’ market, we went to a ramen place for lunch. Bobby got this, and I stole some:

I was holding out for my green juice when we got home. This was miso ramen: ramen noodles topped with various veggies (bamboo – my favorite, scallions, sprouts, seaweed, and maybe others), some pork, and a perky swirly fish cake.

Speaking of Japan, my kabocha (Japanese pumpkin) love is back in full force. I had about 2.5 pounds of it, steamed, last night and I had some the night before as well. I can’t believe I went so long without it!

Have you ever been to a Japantown/Nihonmachi? Or another very cultural town?

P.S. I wrote about language & thought at my other blog – if you’ve ever read 1984, you might enjoy this.

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• May 23, 2009 -- Whole Life Challenge: Day 2
• December 16, 2009 -- Recipe: Roasted Butternut Squash with Broccoli and Raisins

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• greens – romaine lettuce, celery, 1/2 a cucumber
• jazz – 1/2 granny smith apple, 1/2 lemon, mint leaves (more than yesterday), big knob of ginger

I love the cucumber and mint flavors – they go so well with the ginger, apple, and greens. It’s a wonderful combo – try it out.

Can you see that crazy candle in the background? I love the way it melted around the other candle. I don’t want to get rid of it.

I had a few delicious things last night. First up was kabocha… with guacamole. Unfortunately, the avocado I got was watery and bland; I guess that’s what I get for getting cheap avocados at Han Kook (Korean grocery). I had more bowls than this, but didn’t have guac with the rest. The kabocha was to die for.

I also had raw corn the same way I have popcorn – with sea salt, chili powder, and cinnamon. It was great. I liked it even more than I like popcorn.

This morning I was out running errands and I decided to stop by Mitsuwa, a Japanese grocery store that I don’t go to often (Han Kook is closer) but that I love. I got all this for $15.25. I do know how to bargain shop when I want to.

• whipped butter (not organic, but from non-hormone cows): $2.79
• 2x iceberg lettuce – $0.69 each
• 2x bag of tomatoes – $0.99 each
• package of green beans – $1.00
• package of snow peas – $0.35
• bag of (3) granny smith apples – $0.99
• 2x pack of 2 ears of corn (4 ears total) – $1.19 each pack of 2
• bag of (2) asian pears – $0.59
• head of romaine – $0.79
• 2x package of mushrooms – $0.29 each
• package of ginger – $0.87
• napa cabbage – $0.49/pound

I like to stalk the bargain shelves at Asian grocery stores. Han Kook doesn’t have one, but most do. Not everything I got was from the shelf; the butter, napa cabbage, ginger, romaine, and corn were all full price.

I’m off to read something… I’ve been spending entirely too much time on the computer recently and I need to stop. I did write about linguistic determinism last night if you’re interested in some linguistics info.

What’s your favorite way to save money? Do you shop sales, have a special store, use coupons, or something else?

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The oat bran was:

• 1/2 cup oat bran
• 1.5 cups water
• dash of salt
• 4-5 tablespoons of my ABU (1 part almond butter to 3 parts chocolate soy milk)

The miso soup was:

• matcha soybean green tea for the base (with lemon)
• wakame
• spoon of miso

I try to make a big pitcher of tea every morning and drink it throughout the day.  It was really good as a miso soup base.  I especially liked the hint of lemon (I slice a whole lemon and dump it into the tea).

I get the tea from Lupicia – I have a ton of different flavors and I’m trying to use them up so I can get new ones.  This is “Matcha Black Soybean Rice Tea“.  One of my (and Bobby’s!) favorites.

This breakfast was surprisingly filling, since the green oat bowls are actually bigger than what I made today (spinach gives it volume).

Don’t forget about my June challenges.  I’ll be updating about them either tomorrow or on the first of July. I have to admit, I kind of forgot about most of them.  I was supposed to declutter and give away one thing every day, but I think I only have 2 things in my declutter box.  I suppose I can find 30 things to give away tomorrow though.

Do you have any challenges that you want to work on?

P.S. Bobby comes back from Miami tomorrow morning and I couldn’t be more excited.  I missed him

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• November 27, 2009 -- Thanksgiving Recap
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• June 4, 2009 -- Yoga Flow Sequence

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• sashimi on the far right (tuna, salmon, and yellowtail pieces – precut from Han Kook)
• sushi rice (for Bobby – white rice + vinegar/sugar mix)
• seaweed (nori) and lettuce for wrapping
• jicama “rice”
• shredded kabocha + garlic, sauteed
• daikon sprouts
• bacon bits
• soy sauce + wasabi for dipping

I did not make enough of the fushi ingredients because I underestimated my white-carb-loving boyfriend.  Bobby loved the shredded kabocha, loved the bacon bits, the sprouts, and he even loved the jicama rice.  This is a boy who could live on white rice – I couldn’t believe he enjoyed my crazy version.  He tried the wraps with regular rice and with the jicama and actually preferred the jicama rice for these wraps.  He says it was very “fresh“.  I’ll definitely be making this again.

When I was at Han Kook getting the sashimi and some groceries, I picked up this guy:

Heather had one the other day so I wanted to try it.  It’s called a chayote.  Chayote has a big booty.  What should I do with it?

This morning Bobby and I went to the farmers’ market where we got these delicious yellow nectarines and yellow peaches – 3 pounds for $5.

My mom and I got them last week from the same place (we tried all of the stands and this one was the best).  They’re really delicious.  I like eating them when they’re still really firm, and so does Bobby, so we found the firmest ones possible.

In other news, I have a new layout!  Thanks for the comments on it so far   Stop by and check it out to let me know what you think.  Happy Saturday!  What have you done so far this weekend? Remember to call your dad tomorrow

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Emily’s was raw, but mine wasn’t.  I did different toppings.  Here is my take on it, which of course included my not-so-secret lover, kabocha.  Yes, Bobby is jealous of my squash boyfriend.

Kabocha-ushi

Ingredients

• for the “rice”: 1/2 of a jicama (~1/4 pound or so – maybe a little more than a cup, chopped?); 1 teaspoon brown rice syrup; 1-2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• kabocha topping: shredded kabocha (~1 cup); 3-4 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped (or less; I’m a garlic lover); a few teaspoons sesame oil
• daikon sprouts
• vegan bacon bits
• lettuce leaves (romaine)
• soy sauce and wasabi (for dipping)

Directions

1. Chop up the jicama.  Pulse it in a food processor until it starts to look like rice.  Then add the brown rice syrup and the vinegar.  This makes it sushi rice-esque!



2. Shred the kabocha and saute it on high heat with the garlic and sesame oil for 5-6 minutes.  It’ll shrink.



3. Wash the lettuce and stuff with the “rice” (jicama), kabocha, sprouts, and top with yummy yummy bacon bits.



4. Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat… and dip in soy sauce and wasabi.  I like lots of wasabi.

This was so awesome.  I think I’m going to make it for lunch again today.  Or maybe we’ll have a sushi night tonight and I’ll make Bobby try it.  He’s not going to go for fake rice, so I’ll make him real sushi rice… but maybe I can get him to eat kabocha with me.  Nom nom nom.  You need to make this.

What toppings would you use? I’m guessing that very few people have tried daikon sprouts… I found them an Han Kook the other day when my mom was here.  They’re great.

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