Four Score and Seven…Oh Wait Just 4 Years

It feels like a life time since I moved to New York City but in reality it has only been 4 years and today marks that anniversary…. Also as a surprise it happens to be the one year anniversary of this blog. I did not realize I started it on my moving to New York anniversary last year but while looking through my archive I noticed it this past weekend…

Moving to NYC was a big, huge, monumental change in my life and after all this time here I feel like I still have so much to do yet at the same time I long for some change of scenery. We will see where this next year takes me but what I know I will continue with is this blog. In starting it I created a reason to cook new things all the time and to improve my skills and while I have been a bit sporadic in my posting, mostly due to lack of good photos and the will to write, it has defiantly influenced my cooking and eating for the better. When I am out I have been trying new things and at home I have been trying to eat more healthy and make more interesting food… In this upcoming year I plan on continuing to do the same and sharing as much as I can here.

Just for a bit of fun I thought I should share my favorite Gratuitous Photo Photos from the past year

MUSHROOM ENGLISH MUFFIN

EARLY FALL EATING: DEAR BUSHWICK

GRANOLA BARS: THE MASTER RECIPE

SUMMER BOUNTY

A New York Moment

Sometime something so incredibly cool and unbelievable happens that you are still shocked hours or days later that it happened. NYC can bring a lot of these moments but by far this has been the most amazingly cool thing to happen that I am still in shock. What happened you say… Banksy ‘tagged’ (for lack of a better word) my apt building as part of his NY residency series! I am still  dumbfounded that my random building in my strange neighborhood in Brooklyn was his choice for a piece.

I also love the fact the text says “Value is Arbitrary” something that truly resonates with me.

Photo via Banksy NY

Photo via Banksy NY

Sometimes life is just grand and you have to enjoy the weird incidences that happen. Thanks NYC for reminding me.

DOCUMERICA: Images from the US National Archive

Through a random link a friend posted on facebook I found this endless treasure trove of amazing images from the 1970’s funded by the EPA called Documerica “Back in the 1970s, the Environmental Protection Agency sent over 70 photographers to all 50 states in order to document the environmental concerns of the regions. The EPA had only just formed in 1970, and the interest in the state of the environment was high.”(Allison Meyer; Hyperallergetic). You can find the series on the U.S. National Archive Flickr Page. Below are some cool food related shots but really the whole series is fantastic and such a time capsule, you can check out the highlights in this set here.

The Golden State

Last night I arrived in California for a long weekend trip and it feels so good to be back. I was born and raised in Northern CA and have spent most of my young life moving around and traveling around the northern part of the state. This is the state with the wilderness that helped me develop such a love for nature and the outdoors, this is the state that formed my attitude on life, this is the state where I first fell in love with food of the world due to thankfully growing up in such a multi cultural community in a such a multi cultural state, this is the state the helped make me who I am.

When I am away my heart yearns for so much in this glorious state, the Redwoods of the North Coast, the majesty of the Yosemite Valley, the glory of the rocky Pacific coast, the dense fog of the San Francisco Bay Area, the freshness of the produce, for absolutely everything.

I will always love you California and it is so lovely to be back in your embrace

Wednesday

Its been hot and humid and rainy in New York recently and all that together has made me one unproductive person… I have so many things I have been wanting to make and cookbooks to review (Recently Burma: Rivers of Flavor, Vegetable Literacy, and The Latin Road Home have fallen into my possession, to name a few) but this weather has just sucked up all the energy I have. As this most annoying slump continues, which hopefully my upcoming trip to Portland Oregon will help break, I figured I might as well post this hilariousness I recently ran across on the web.

THE FRENCH PRESS OF BEL AIR

Need I say more?

Happy Wednesday!

Views from Germany

I came back recently from a trip to Amsterdam and Nürnberg, Germany and I have had a really hard time getting back into the swing of regular life which includes posting here. I have been working on making a mini city guide for Amsterdam but it has not gotten far.

View from Burg Pottenstein

Until I get my act together and actually get the city guide made and a few other posts I have on the back burner here are some pretty photos from Germany!

Burg Pottenstein

Spring Interlude

Nothing beats the warm breeze on your face from that first real spring day. The sun shining down instantly washing away the cold and grey of the winter months.

The desire to be outside grows and grows making you anxious and antsy all day to leave the walls which confine you. Your concentration wanes until you finally step outside again to soak in all the spring time glory.

Spring has sprung and hopefully it is here to stay….

An Ode to Travelling by Air

You disembark from the ground transportation that brought you here, you stand waiting while the large sliding glass doors open and you are suddenly met with the sounds from within. You hear the click clack, click clack of plastic wheels rolling across slick tile, the dull echo of hundreds of voices reverberating off the floors and the walls, that feeling of excitement, anticipation, and joy that you are so close to somewhere else, somewhere new, somewhere exciting all rush in to consciousness all at once. You have arrived at the airport with passport in hand and suitcase in tow, where anything is possible and the whole world awaits you.

That initial rush of excitement quickly fades to the rigours of the procedure, of the process, Where do I check in? Where is Security? Is the line long? Did I leave myself enough time? but still harbored in the back of your mind is the happiness of being there and leaving your life behind to travel somewhere far away. The routines continue and boarding begins, you get your ticket scanned and walk the tarmac to the plane, you look for your seat to find someone sitting in the wrong one, you ask them to move and take your place and await for take off.

 

The flight might be long and being 6 feet tall you are perpetually uncomfortable on planes but the discomforts are bearable for the rewards of the destinations. Being somewhere new and connecting with long lost friends is worth all the pain and annoyance in the world. Hours upon hours later you land hopefully at your destination and not a layover somewhere.
Oh but this time you have a layover and oh no you once again booked flights with tight timing you race for the gate of your next flight hoping that you do not miss the connection. You make it with time to spare because oh guess what your flight has been delayed… of course. Eventually you board and into the air you go once again killing the time until you finally arrive at your final destination.

Once you land and disembark you go about the process the same regardless of where you have ended up. First stop customs, to go wait forever in line just to have your passport stamped, then off to baggage claim where even after having to wait forever for customs your bag still has not come through. Finally it comes and then you are off to find your way to wherever you are going. Maybe you are lucky and someone picks you up in a car, maybe you have to navigate public transit, or maybe just maybe you take a cab if you are feeling extravagent. If you are somewhere new this can be a nerve racking and stressful part of the journey but eventually after much confusion and drama you figure it out and off you go into the grand unknown finally feeling at peace that you have made it and eager for the adventures that await.

*Please note all the photos in this post are my personal photos, please do not use without consent*

Wanderlust

Paris, France March 2011

Wan·der·lust noun \ˈwän-dər-ˌləst\ : strong longing for or impulse toward wandering (Merriam- Webster definition) known as Fernweh in German.

While this is primarily a food blog travel is an important part of my life and an important influence in ones cooking amongst other things. Traveling and wandering off the beaten path is one of the greatest ways to start understanding the world more and learning to look at everything differently. If you can save up some money and take a trip to a place unknown to you and see what you learn and taste in the process. I hope in the coming months to post a little bit more in relation to travel and food and how all are connected.

This post is just a small homage to my past travels and my upcoming ones this April and hopefully can help to inspire some travels of your own.

Nuremberg, Germany July 2012

Paris, France July 2012

Pacific Grove, California, USA September 2011

Nuremberg, Germany July 2012

*Please note all the photos in this post are my personal photos, please do not use without consent*

Noodles for Days

In an effort to work on refining my cooking skills and not wasting food I have been making a lot of vegetable stock  I have been using my vegetables that are not too old to eat but are not ideal to use in the state that they have ended up in by hanging around my apartment too long. This has been perfect as the weather has been cold and soupy goodness is just the right thing.

Vegetable stock is an incredibly easy thing to make. There are great recipes and guidelines everywhere but a quick rundown of my basic technique is as follows.

   1. Cut up whatever vegetables I have on hand, making sure at the very least there is some carrot and onion in the mix. (pictured on the left; this stock had carrot, red and white onions, cilantro, plum tomato, 1/2 a jalapeno, bay leaf, Salt, and black peppercorns.

2. Throw everything in a large pot and cover with water filling the pot most of the way

3. Put on the stove on low and let cook for a hour or two making sure it does not come to a simmer.

4. Strain through a fine mesh strainer and use!

With my vegetable stock I have been especially into making noodle soups. To do this I have been heating up my stock, sometimes with a little bit of miso paste and dried shitakes for some extra flavor, cooking noodles and some sides separately and throwing it all together. I have been adding some soy sauce to the shitakes for them to take on some extra flavor and adding them to my final noodles as a garnish.

I think the most important thing when cooking at home, especially when making something as simple and versatile as noodles, is to not take things too seriously. Anything can go and as long as it tastes good who really cares after a long day at work?