Red on red

1-31-2011 Mon. cold, cloudy.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- steamed vegetable buns | kumquats
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea
DINNER --- lotus root sandwich tempura | borscht ( Russian red soup: oxtail and beef broth with beet, red cabbage,tomato, potato, green onion, mushroom ) | homemade bread | pan-fried scallion flat bread | red wine

• borscht is full body ( from beef bone marrow ), and full color ( red from beet, red cabbage, and tomato)
  

Lunar New Year dinner

1-30-2011 Sun. not as cold, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | homemade focaccia bread | kumquats
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- ( a Lunar New Year Dinner for family and friends ) sparkling wine | adamame | dried-moss-seasoned fried bread dough twist | baked Japanese sweet potato fries | lotus root sandwich tempura | grilled rice cake with dashi broth and grated daikon | Shanghai salsa ( smoked bean curd, cilantro, and roasted peanuts with chili sauce ) | Shanghai fried spring roll ( with fillings of threaded napa cabbage, shiitake, snow pea and smoked bean curd ) | wonton soup ( shrimp, mustard green, kumquat zest, needle mushroom, radish sprouts ) | sauteed butterfly-cut shrimp and snow peas, king mushroom confit, soba noodles with white miso and shiso dressing | Teriyaki eel and rice with pickled vegetables | white wine and red wine || sweet rice dumplings ( in fermented rice broth with Goji berry and kumquat zest )

grilled rice cake with dashi


Shanghai spring roll, Shanghai salsa


wonton soup


soba, king mushroom, shrimp and snow peas


eel rice bowl

• power is back. had great time cooking and shared our lunar new year dinner with friends.
  

José's Zaytinya

1-29-2011. cold, cloudy.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- ( at L. M. in the room with fireplace ) coffee | croissant | scrambled eggs and bacon | orange juice
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- fresh kumquat
DINNER --- ( at Zaytinya ) pita bread | Taramosalata ( traditional spread of cured carp roe ) | crispy Brussel afelia ( brussel sprouts, coriander seed,barberries, garlic yogurt) | sautéed seasonal mushrooms ( with dates and toasted almonds ) | crispy potatoes ( with yogurt and caper salt ) | Cretan Snails ( with potato puree, garlic broth, beech mushrooms and ouzo ) | Octopus Santorini ( grilled Mediterranean octopus, marinated onions, capers, yellow split pea puree ) | crispy Veal Sweetbreads ( with orange, caper, baby fennel ) | sirloin and baby spinach ( with caramelized sesame seeds, pomegranate seeds, cumin and caraway seeds ) | Farik pilavi ( grilled green wheat with shiitake mushroom, apricot ) | Lebanese red wine | Turkish coffee chocolate cake | apple sorbet | raki ( Turkish anise flavored spirit ) | Turkish coffee

pita and spread

Brussels sprout

fries and yogurt

seasonal mushrooms

sweetbread

grilled octopus

grilled sirloin

green wheat

Turkish coffee, Raki, and desserts

• Jose Andres' Mediterranean cooking, Zaytinya covers the region of Turkey, Lebanon and Greece.
  

a winter wonderland

1-28-2011 Fri. cold, light snow.

BREAKFAST --- nothing
LUNCH --- ( at A.J ) wonton soup | chicken and mung bean noodle in sesame and mustard sauce | fresh soybean and lightly pickled mustard green | fried pancake with fillings of vegetables and beef
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Chai | kumquatsDINNER --- ( at F. Afghan restaurant ) house salad | flat bread| Bulanee: leek turnovers | Pakowray Kachalu: sweet potato fritters | Aushak: tender and slippery leek dumplings smothered in ground beef, yogurt, and spices | Sabsi Goushti: lamb shank simmered with minced spinach| basmati rice | red wine

• wandering among restaurants when still no power in the kitchen. kumquats from the Chinese market are very fresh.

Carpaccio

1-27-2011 Thu. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- Turkish rice
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea | dried fruit
DINNER --- ( at Vapiano ) carpaccio | shrimp and fennel salad | pizza ( spinach, artichoke and goat cheese ) | red wine | cappuccino

making tea in the dark

• no power, no cooking. Carpaccio at Vapiano, raw beef as creamy as butter.
  

an escape to East Mediterranean

1-26-2011 Wed. cold, snow and icy rain


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with vegetable ragu source
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER ---Lebanese green olive and egg salad | Turkish saffron rice with clams and smoked mussels | boiled beet leaves with sesame oil dressing and toasted sesame seeds | wine

• cooking an escape to East Mediterranean from the snowy and icy reality. lost power right after the dinner.
• the Minimalist makes his exit today: -- I refused to buy into the notion that there was a “correct” way to prepare a given dish; rather, I tried to understand its spirit and duplicate that, no matter where I was cooking... the question was not, "Would I cook this as a native would?" but rather, "How would a native cook this if he had my ingredients, my kitchen, my background?" -- M.Bittman
  

Challenging Momofuku

1-25-2011 Tue. cold, cloudy.


BREAKFAST --- coffee | Pocky
LUNCH --- stir-fried Shanghai rice cake with mustard greens
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple | Chinese sweet rice cookie
DINNER --- ramen in vegetable broth ( with napa cabbage, beech mushroom, tofu skin roll, wood-ear and spicy pickled bamboo shoots) | steamed taco-shaped pork buns ( wine and soy braised pork shoulder, caramelized shallots and jalapeno ) | wine

• soup noodles and pork buns, Chinese comfort food made famous at Momofuku, came back home
  

stay warm

1-24-2011 Mon. very cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with stir-fried chive flowers and pressed tofu
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- tomato and egg soup with tofu skin and lotus root | sauteed taro roots with shallots | clay pot stew of fried tofu, lotus root, shiitake, wood-ear, carrots and bamboo shoots | rice | wine

• clay pot stew has high heat capacity, help to stay warm in a very cold winter evening
  

fresh pasta made from rice

1-23-2011 Sun. very cold, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | scallion pancake | apple | pear | sweet rice dumplings
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Fujian green tea | roasted wild mountain walnuts
DINNER --- baked Japanese sweet potato | lotus root sandwich tempura with filling of tofu skin, shitake and shallots | stir-fried Shanghai style rice cake with B.B.Q. pork, snow peas and young mustard greens | wine

lotus root sandwich tempura

shanghai rice cake

• rice cake ( 年糕 ) is like fresh pasta, made from rice in certain elaborate process, a bit sticky and chewy, a special food for the lunar new year holidays in southeast China.
  

Taro root and a farm called Bright Stream

1-22-2011 Sat. very cold, pale sun.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | coconut cream bread | apple | pear
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | taro root seasoned with shiso and seaweed flakes
BEFORE-CONCERT-DINNER --- braised whole fish with ginger and scallion sauce | sauteed Swiss chard and tofu skin | rice | wine

• taro root is very fresh and creamy today, winter is the season for good root vegetables.

Asaf and Sulamif Messerer in The Bright Stream, 1930's

Bolshoi, the Bright Stream UK Premiere 2006

• another Shostakovich's work, this evening is a ballet of its own kind: the Bright Stream ( a "collective farm" in 1930's Soviet Union )

soft tofu and pressed tofu

1-21-2011 Fri. very cold wind, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with ragu sauce and hong-hao leaves
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea
BEFORE-CONCERT-DINNER --- stir-fried chive flower buds with smoked pressed tofu | tomato soup with snow peas and cilantro | ma-po tofu | rice | wine

• concert : Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony

an Indian dinner

1-20-2011 Thu. cold, cloudy.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- steamed dumplings
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- ( at Francesca's ) cauliflower korma (cauliflower stew in thick sauce) | Manali aadoo daal (apricot chickpeas stew, from Manali on the Himalayas) | garlic chutney *(HOT garlic sauce)* | raita (cooling yogurt sauce) | naan | rice || German Mosel Riesling ( very fruity ) | Italian Oltrepo Pavese Riesling (drier, a little higher in alcohol, very aromatic )

• Francesca started preparing spices in the morning, making dough and sauces in the afternoon, cooking the delicious dishes till the evening.
  

Winter vegetable soup

1-19-2011 Wed. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- pasta with ragu sauce
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea
DINNER --- vegetable soup of Tong-hao leaves, baby bok choy, fried tofu and winter bamboo shoots | steamed dumplings with fillings of chicken, shiitake and bok choy | wine

• Tong-hao leaves added very distinguish flavor to the simple and clear broth, bamboo shoots added crunchy texture.
  

fresh sauce, dried pasta

1-18-2011 Tue. cold, freezing rain


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- quinoa with winter greens
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea | apple
DINNER --- pasta with vegetable ragu sauce | smoked mussels | sauteed snow peas with Thai basil and garlic

pennoni rigati ( #39 De Cecco )

fresh vegetable ragu bolognese

• the ragu sauce was prepared yesterday for the quick meal this evening. it got thicker and tasted even better after 24 hours sitting. when it comes to pennoni rigati, dried pasta is better in getting " al dente " the toothsome texture.
  

homecooking special

1-17-2011 Mon. cold, cloudy.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | homemade Focaccia bread | goat cheese | apple
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | sweet rice snack
DINNER --- Focaccia bread | spicy minced chicken with Thai basil | Tong-hao porridge with crushed peanuts | rice | wine

Focaccia

• ten more hours fermentation improved the texture and flavor of the focaccia.
  

food blog two hundreds ago

• in a second hand book store found an old book by Zhen Ban Qiao ( 郑板桥）a Chinese poet/painter in the 18th century. He wrote poems to record daily life, such as an entry on this page: a simple meal at Ms. Lee's house, older son chopping the fresh meat from market, younger son collecting dried branches to make a tender fire, fresh beans from the garden, the wonderful smell spreading beyond the bamboo fence...
  

homemade Focaccia with olive oil and sage

1-16-2011 Sun. cold, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | egg with milk | apple
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- homemade focaccia | butternut squash and apple soup | sauteed young kale leaves | stir-fired shrimp with winter bamboo shoots and Thai basil | rice | wine

Focaccia

shoots and leaves, + shrimp

• Focaccia is a simple Italian flat bread punctuated with olive oil and the aromatic flavors of sage and garlic
  

Butternut and apple soup

1-15-2010 Sat. less cold, cloudy.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | coconut cream bread | Norwegian pancake with apple AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- manila clams poached in white wine | baked Japanese sweet potato | butternut and apple cream soup | boiled quinoa with fennel, roasted piquillo pepper, and tamotillo green sauce | sauteed Swiss chard | Lagunitas Brown Shugga beer

squash soup

quinoa

• nutty, tart, sweet and creamy, a hearty soup to warm up in the deep winter
  

a delicious rice bowl

1-14-2011 Fri. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with sauteed bitter melon (leftovers)
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- (at Sharon's) crackers with edamame dip and roasted eggplant +red pepper dip | sauteed baby bok choy with oyster mushroom | minced chicken with Thai basil and chili | boiled baby Chinese broccoli with oyster sauce | sauteed butterflied shrimp with snow pea | bowl of rice

• Sharon's delicious meal served in traditional Chinese way: a big bowl of steamy rice, covered with all fresh made vegetables, chicken and shrimp.
  

tomatiilo story

1-13-2011. cold, sunny .


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with clay plot stew of winter vegetables (leftovers)
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- tomatillo salsa verde | basmati rice | Asian BBQ chicken drummettes | sauteed bitter melon with fermented black soybeans | sauteed shiitake and lotus root | tomato and cabbage soup with fried tofu and bean sprouts | wine

• the fresh tart flavor of tomatillo is special, telling a very different story from tomato.
  

winter's delight

1-12-2011 Wed. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with pork chop and Brussels sprouts (leftovers)
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- pan-fried lotus root slices | clay pot of stewed wheat gluten, wood-ear, shiitake, winter bamboo shoots, shallots, and carrots | Chinese winter greens sauteed with garlic and fermented black beans | rice | wine

• it is like " Buddha's delight" , the clay pot stew is our winter's delight
  

Borscht, in 1920's Shanghai version

1-11-2011 Tue. cold, cloudy, light snow


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- pizza with toppings of shiitake and sweet onion | clementine
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea | apple
DINNER --- Russian soup of Shanghai variation ( beef broth from beef bone with marrow, cabbage, onion, tomato, lotus root and bamboo shoots ) | pan-fried pork chop | steamed and pan-fried Brussels sprouts | rice | wine

• Borscht (Russian red soup ) was brought to Shanghai by Russian refugees after the 1917 Russian Revolution. variations happened over time where beets were hard to find locally, tomatoes and tomato paste were added in to provide the red color, and the sweet sour flavors. the Chinese version of Russian red soup (罗宋红汤）is still popular in Shanghai today.
  

homemade pizza

1-10-2011 Mon. cold, sunny.

BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with silky tofu, cilantro and leek | clementine
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple | sweet rice cookie
DINNER --- curry beef soup with mung bean noodles and fried tofu | homemade pizza (three toppings: wine-sauteed shiitake, caramelized onion, pepperoni and piquillo pepper) | wine

• the soup warms up the body, the pizza baking warms up the kitchen
  

Braising, in olive oil or wine and soy

1-09-2011 Sun. cold wind, sunny.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | egg and milk | apple | scallion pancake
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | sweet lotus seeds
DINNER --- chapatti bread with California goat cheese | olive-oil-braised and broiled fennel bulb | quinoa with confit beech mushroom and cauliflower ( braised in olive oil) | baby octopus braised in rice wine and sweet soy with fresh ginger and green onion | sparkling wine with pomegranate juice

fennel bulb

quinoa and confit mushroom ,cauliflower

• thin sliced fennel bulb is braised over low heat in olive oil, then broiled over high heat. an experiment to get a texture toothsome and smooth with a crispy edge.
  

a meal in Shanghai style

1-08-2011 Sat. cold, overnight snow, cloudy.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | coconut cream bread | scallion pancake
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | sweet lotus seeds
DINNER --- pan-fried lotus root slices seasoned with five-spice | stir-fried Shanghai rice cake with winter bamboo shoots, bean sprouts and green onion | Shanghai-style wine braised short ribs | wine

blooming paperwhite

• all Shanghai food. paperwhite ( 水仙, "nymph flower" ）is a traditional New Year indoor floral decoration in Shanghai
  

Ankimo: beauty and beast

1-07-2011 Fri. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- pasta with pork tenderloin and leek
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
PRE-DINNER-DRINK ---( at W.R.C. Paul's art show opening) wine
DINNER --- ( at K. Sushi ) ankimo (monkfish liver) | mackerel nigiri | miso-marinated and grilled salmon jaw | Ichiban beer

• monkfish has a beast-like look, ankimo is a beauty of Japanese foie gras. Unfortunately the beauty was presented in a wrong way at K. Sushi.
  

thyme perfumed olive oil

1-06-2011 Thu. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with stir-fried pork and leek (leftovers)
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- Chinese taco buns with wine braised beef and cilantro | confit of mushroom, leek, shallot, and carrots in fresh thyme infused olive oil | stir-fried five-spice potato threads | rice | wine

thyme infused olive oil, vegetable confit

• thyme olive oil slow-poached vegetables have wonderful flavors and silky texture.
  

chop, fry, boil

1-05-2011 Wed. cold, sunny.

BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- pasta with red pepper cream sauce
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea | apple
DINNER --- stir-fry of pork tenderloin and leek with chili sauce | stir-fry of cauliflower and onion with curry sauce | boiled rice | wine

chop, fry, boil

• sustainable food: But perhaps most important, a cooking repertoire of three basic recipes can get anyone into the kitchen and beyond the realm of takeout food, microwaved popcorn and bologna sandwiches in a few days. --- chop, fry, boil: Eating for One, or 6 Billion, Mark Bittman
  
  

a hot spin on red sauced pasta

01-04-2011 Tue. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- steamed dumplings
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- Japanese green tea | apple
DINNER --- goat cheese and fig crackers | vegetable soup with shiitake, okra, fried tofu and cilantro | pasta with hot red pepper cream sauce ( emulsified olive oil with roasted red pepper, habanero ) | sauteed shiitake, artichoke heart with chilpotle | wine

• like the pasta, and like it hot. the goat cheese with olive and fig crackers are slight sweet to cool the fire from habanero and chilpotle.
  

the 365th day

01-03-2011 Mon. cold, sunny.


BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- sauteed eggplant with Mexican mole dulce ( spiced chocolate sauce) | potato
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- apple
DINNER --- steamed mustard green dumplings | egg-drop soup with napa cabbage, tomato, okra, and fried tofu

soup with matsutake mushroom flavored broth

• a celebration mark for the 365 records in ONE-YEAR flow of Popo's River
  
  

lotus root

01-02-2011 Sun. mild, cloudy.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | scallion pancake | apple
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- pan fried five-spice lotus root | baked Japanese sweet potato | steamed Chinese taco buns with five-spice braised beef and cilantro | steamed and pan-fried Brussels sprouts | pan-roasted baby potatoes | wine

• pan-fried lotus root slices are slightly chewy with five-spice laced crispy outer layer.
  

Another year flows by 似水流年

01-01-2011 Sat. mild, light rain.


WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | clementine
LUNCH --- ( at M.M.'s ) udon noodles in chicken broth with spinach, oyster mushroom and snow peas | pickled bamboo shoots and celtuce
DINNER --- stir-fried sweet-sour lotus root with leek | sauteed napa cabbage, needle mushroom, and cured tofu | rice | wine

• a quite beginning of the new year.