Did you know that this year, January is National Hot Tea Month? Pretty spiffy, 2015, I like you already. I ended 2014 with a deliciously spicy, but totally not winter appropriate, noodle recipe & begun the year with a completely appropriate winter soup recipe. Since this month is extraordinary as it’s National Hot Tea Month, I thought what better way to combine the tail end of last year’s last recipe with this year’s first recipe? Well, what better way? I’ll tell you: put a bird on it! Couldn’t resist a Portlandia reference – let’s try this again: pour some tea on it! Using tea as soup broth is not some new invention, but it’s underrated & not trendy…yet. Depending on the quality of tea you’re using, green tea is packed with antixoxidants, light caffeine, & so darn healthy for you (lowers cholesterol!). Slurp it up with some noodles & you’ve got one great healthy meal recipe! No need to go on some strange Beyoncé lemonade detox! Drink more liquids (*cough* tea *cough*), eat fresh, seasonal whole foods, & avoid fast food! Boom, detox. & you thought shedding that holiday weight would be hard, pffffffpfpfpfpfpft. Now hit that “continue reading” button to get ahold of my new recipe celebrating National Hot Tea Month!
Nikon D5300
Gearing up your household for GameDay? This year’s Super Bowl XLIX featuring the New England Patriots vs. the Seattle Seahawks is just around the corner, taking place on February 1st. If you’re not holding a get together at your home, but attending a party, try bringing one of these appetizers to help those anxious snackers as they root for their team. Not into football or sports in general? No problem! My recipes are still great for any party. No matter what party you plan on hosting: pity, pajama, dinner, for funsies, just ’cause, graduation, baby shower, etc you can’t possibly go wrong with some homemade salsa, guacamole, or cheesy corn. If you’re just an anxious snacker & need new snack ideas, avoid drinking alcohol, caffeine, & hot dogs. Get your nerves relaxed with some chamomile tea & some whole grain chips dipped in any of my Game Day recipes. If you’re going to carelessly munch on food, it should at least benefit you right?
Additionally, I’d like to give a shout out to my brother. Today is a special day for Vinny because it’s his birthday! My father is terrible with remembering dates–which is why I made our WiFi’s password his wedding anniversary so he’ll never forget–but he is grateful that my mom coincidentally popped us out during holidays: Super Bowl Sunday (Vinny) & Memorial Day (me). Obviously these dates change every year, but he knows when those holidays come around, our birthdays probably will too. Vinny made some really excellent guacamole last time I bought an excessive amount of avocados, so my recipe of guacamole isn’t dedicated to him. Rather, I’m dedicating my Vegetarian Meatless Meatballs recipe to the guy whose favorite Subway sandwich was the meatball one. Vinny may be too lazy to make these meatballs, but I think he would enjoy them because they’re packed with umami. Ladle on some homemade marinara & hug them with some buns to get your own vegetarian meatball sub. These meatballs are perfect for Game Day for your vegetarian friends (meat lovers will enjoy them too)! Cook them in a pot with marinara (store bought is fine) & watch it get devoured!
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Today I’m dedicating this post to a beloved foodie, whom I met during the first week of my freshman year in the high school cafeteria. This was where a large group of friends from various junior highs gathered on plastic & wooden tables, eating terrible public school lunches. I was the only one in the group that came from a private school who knew absolutely no one in my grade, yet I was welcomed to sit with them. While the group was very large, we had pockets of mini cliques. One of those cliques was a group of four: Kim, Viviane, Vy, & me. We had similar schedules, so we walked over to Vy’s house after school, waiting to get picked up by our parents. While we waited, we often made instant noodles & gushed over our attractive schoolmates, The OC, & celebrity gossip. We formed our own little girls clubhouse on Clubhouse Lane, bonding, laughing, & slurping complex carbohydrates. We called ourselves The Fatty 4 & dubbed our after school dates Noodle Parties.
As we got older, one by one, we obtained licenses to drive, which meant branching out beyond the realm of instant noodles. We ate sushi, shabu, Thai, Mexican, seafood, everything – we just ate everything. We almost always gathered at a restaurant to catch up & feed our bellies. We had a lot in common, but were also vastly different. We shared an ethnic heritage, an understanding of Vietnamese immigrant culture, but above all, we shared voracious appetites. We were foils of one another: Vy & I were more adept at planning while Kim & Viviane were much more spontaneous. Vy & I knew we wanted marriage & kids way down the road, while Kim & Viviane debated whether they could handle the commitment. Kim & Viviane were more likely to be the life of the party, while Vy & I approached others with caution. While we had many differences, ups & downs, we always reveled over great food & company. We had an appetite for adventure & ate & tried new food all the time. While I couldn’t tell you what Kim’s ultimate favorite food was, I can tell you that she certainly loved noodles, seafood, meat, & her vegetables…so pretty much everything.
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After publishing over 50 recipes on TB, you’d think that as a breakfast lover, I’d have a bundle of breakfast recipes, but I don’t. Breakfast should be on the no-fuss side of things, especially when you’re on the go in the morning, but I think you weekend breakfasters will appreciate this dish. Many of you may be familiar with donburi, a Japanese rice bowl dish topped with meat of your choice. Oyakodon is a type of donburi in that it is characterized by its usage of egg, making it perfect for breakfast or brunch. My Tofu Oyakodon recipe is a medium fuss breakfast/brunch recipe, perfect for kitchen beginners. It’s easy, efficient, cheap, & delicious that it works as a great base recipe. Since you have to bake the tofu & you’ve got some dishes to wash, it’s kind of a medium fuss type of meal, but well worth it, I promise! Modify it to your own personal preferences because if you’ve never eaten oyakodon before, it’ll change your breakfast game. So what else is the fuss with this recipe? Chopping up onions & mixing an egg. You can handle that, right? Right? No one needs a doctorate to chop up some onions, so be more proactive & less lazy, GET CHOPPIN’!
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Happy New Year, everyone! I recently flew back to Boston after spending my Winter Break with my family in California & I can’t tell you how happy I am to be back here. Not that I don’t love my family, I absolutely do, but coming back & seeing it snow is breathtaking. Walking about to the grocery store, cheeks rosy & face numb, with the snow drifting analogously to confetti was magical. It’s so beautiful here, but let’s not forget that it’s also a good deal colder here than it is in California. Channeling my inner Elsa, the cold never bothered me anyway, but that’s also because I’m equipped with recipes for comforting warm soups! Curious what’s in my arsenal? Spice up your life with my new spicy soup recipe that’ll keep you warm during this frosty season. If you’re on the West Coast or Florida–well, I suppose 18 ºC (64 ºF) is “cold” to you–this soup will suit you just fine. I present to you my Spicy Sweet Potato Soup, a cold buster whether it’s the weather or if you’re feeling under the weather.