Chocolate (Tofu) Pudding.

In celebration of Halloween...(okay okay, fine, that's just an excuse), who am I kidding? I sneak some chocolate in everyday. I whipped up a batch of chocolate tofu pudding. "Whipped" sounds so effortless, doesn't it? Anyway, reasons being - I was told by my doctor to cut fresh animal milk from my diet entirely. Also, after a somewhat dreadful visit to the dentist's office, I am now more or less on a liquid diet. Yes, my life rocks!

The recipe is incredibly simple and there's really no room for mistakes. All you have to do is blend all ingredients in the blender and voila! Chocolate Tofu Pudding! Even my mom didn't believe it was made with tofu. Surprise, surprise! 

Next time, though, I will probably use milk chocolate chips instead of bittersweet. 

"Nothing Like Chocolate"

The 4th annual Carmel Art & Film Festival is set to take place October 10-14, 2012. 

While scrolling through the film list, I came across "Nothing Like Chocolate" and naturally, it caught my interest! Directed by Kum-Kum Bhavnani, the film delves into the social, economical, and historical truths of chocolate, much of which can really be a shocker to those not in the know. 

The Carmel Art & Film Festival:

Deep in the rain forests of Grenada, anarchist chocolate-maker, Mott Green operates an unusual chocolate factory that makes delicious creations unknown to a world saturated with industrially produced cocoa, much of it harvested by exploited child labor in West Africa. Mott utilizes solar power, employee shareholding and small-scale antique equipment to make delicious, organic, and socially conscious chocolate. Each step in the production process, from cocoa pod to candy bar, involves ethical and sustainable methods aimed at empowering the community of farmers involved. This is an intimate story of the relentless and headstrong Mott Green, founder of the Grenada Chocolate Company, as he pursues his unique vision to create the best chocolate in the world, ethically and taste-wise. Nothing Like Chocolate allows us to enter the world’s smallest chocolate factory, and we see how, by tackling the unsustainable and exploitative practices of the Goliaths of the industry, they are doing enormous things for cocoa communities, and the world’s sweet tooth.

"Nothing Like Chocolate" will be showing on Friday, October 12th at 4pm @ the Youth Center Upper Theater. 

Returns!

Hello! Hello! Hello!

I am finally back from my adventures in Asia. Three months seemed way too long in the beginning, but time flew by way too quickly! It has been such an emotional experience that, really, trying to describe everything is not without difficulty. 

Onwards, I finally put my new, made in France, madeleine pan I received to use. I made madeleines the other day with Bakeologie's Earl Grey recipe but that didn't go quite according to plan. First, I did not have Earl Grey, so I used a Chinese tea that I had on hand, which did not smell as though it really infused the melted butter. Also, I'm pretty sure I used too much lemon zest because after tasting the madeleines, one would think they're actually lemon. 

I also noticed that it's a matter of really watching over as the madeleines cook because different pans take different times to cook. I'm also trying to figure out why my madeleines didn't come out of the pan cleanly, as I buttered and floured as directed. 

Next time they shall come out as expected!

Extended MIAs.

When deciding to leave for Asia, I knew there would be many things I'd have to leave behind - an essential being decent speed internet access. 

Of course, as life would also have it, my laptop charger has been on the rocks for the past month and has now malfunctioned completely. 

I have more pictures than memory can hold but blogging will have to wait 'til early September at the earliest. Hopefully my memories won't be a blur. 

On another note, I will be leaving to Cambodia for a couple days!

Cheers to those of you who celebration all that summer has to offer! I am sad to be missing out on weekend barbecues and evening mojitos. 

::

Can Tho and Kien Giang

It's been a few weeks since I've stepped foot out of the city, and surely, every place in Viet Nam has its own distinct delicacies. 

Our first stop was Can Tho and not the city, mind you. We visited my uncle in-law's family in Hau Giang Province, which is about 20-30 minutes from downtown. 

Local delicacies included snake and field mice. 

The snake was slow-cooked into a stew. I found it a bit difficult to eat since there wasn't much meat but a lot of small bones that one could easily choke on. The texture was chewier than chicken for sure and the color a kind of beige-grey. 

I skipped on the fried field mice. 

 Since Hau Giang is located so far off on its own, its people make do with fresh local produce. 

The main dish was hotpot. Instead of the usual greens, a different kind of watercress was used into combination with squash flowers and another (the name doesn't come to mind at the moment). I liked how the flowers still had a crunch to them, even after having been dipped into boiling soup. 

Being the late risers that we are, a good portion of the water market vendors had dispersed by the time we arrived in Downtown Can Tho. 

Each vendor hung their product on long sticks to indicate what they were selling. 

After the market, we stopped off onto an island for lunch. 

Candied kumquats, used to cure sore throats. 

Sea snails before preparation. 

Cooked with ginger, lemongrass, and fresh coconut milk. 

Banana tree. Nothing ever goes to waste, as almost every part of the tree is utilized in some way, whether in cooking or other purposes. The reddish/pink flower is sliced into thin strings as garnish in many Viet Namese dishes. Banana leaves are, as seen in many Asian cultures, used as wrapping for storing and cooking food. 

~

Onward to Kien Giang! 

It was the first time I'd done a homestay in a (very) rural area. It's simplicity was a refreshing break from city life. We showered with water pumped up from a well. Also, I slept under a mosquito net for the first time in my life. They say that without one, the mosquitoes would have sucked me dry (although Saigon mosquitoes have already done a pretty good job at that). 

This is my uncle chopping up sugarcane. As I've come to know, there are different types of sugarcane. Either because they are too old or just plain too hard, most sugar cane found in Saigon this month is just used for pressing. The sugar cane in Kien Giang, however, was young enough to be had as a snack. During my last trip to Viet Nam, sugar cane was more or less the only thing I was snacking on all and every day. 

Preparing fresh crab for boiling. 

Even rural areas have modernized (a bit). In these photo, you can see a partial water pump mechanism. For those who can afford it, a motor can be used to pump up water instead of the old hand-pump mechanism. It saves a lot of effort and is much more productive. 

Fresh shrimp caught in the backyard!

Our Kien Giang stay was short but truly eye-opening. The biggest problem that I saw was the amount of lead contamination in the local water. The only source of close to drinkable water that these people have are derived from wells, yet the grounds are seeped with lead. They do as much as they can to filter it, although it is evident by the locals' skin condition that the problem still remains. 

The Usuals.

It's been all too quiet on this blogging front. Yes, yes, I know...

Lately, most days are spent lazing away. Eat, sleep, repeat. Oftentimes, when I am not traveling, I feel as though this summer is just like any other, except I am residing on another continent. 

I have been filling the gaps between main meals with street food. There are so many options here (mostly savory), that it's ever-so difficult to make a decision as to what to eat. Lately, my usuals have been fried sweet potato wedges, xoi bap (sticky rice with corn, sugar, and fried onion slivers), and nuoc sam (tonic). 

Fried sweet potato wedges:

I've tried a couple different stalls and so far, the lady on a Ba Hat Street alley (by the Lawyer's office with the navy signage) does it best. Although there is usually a bit of a wait - the fact that she fries it according to orders really makes the fries hot and crispy. Also, the potatoes she uses are actually sweet. She does not, however, take orders over the phone, nor does she deliver. In this day in age, that is very much a set-back for her business. Luckily, she is stationed only a couple blocks from my house. My growing impatience and laziness does mean that I refuse to walk such a distance for fries. Hahah, do I sound like a stuck-up fat kid or what?!?

Xoi (sticky rice) bap (corn):

I had heard of some UH-MAZING xoi bap from across the grapevine. My cousin and aunt were raving about it. The problem was that the xoi bap lady could only be found once in a blue moon. Fear not, the people of Saigon! I hold, in my phone contacts list, the holy grail! (We figured out her daily location schedule anyway. Yes, we stalk food vendors, but not just any. Only the great ones of course.) I usually don't even touch xoi bap but heck, I ate a whole lotta xoi bap last night and am still craving for more. 

Nuoc sam:

There are tonic vendors on every damn street corner of this city, but of course, my lady makes it best. Hahah. Located right off the seven streets intersection, we usually just drive up onto the sidewalk and stop in front of her cart for some refreshing (and I use this term only because she keeps the tonic really chilled) nuoc sam. Mind you, we don't even need to get off our scooter! 

The water in Viet Nam tastes off to me for some reason. It just doesn't taste like...water. So it's always two tall glasses of tonic and two bottles for home. 

Dalat

Saigon temperatures were bearable before I left for Dalat...or so it seemed.

Dalat lies nestled in the valleys of the Central Highlands. Its weather is much like that of San Francisco and in Viet Nam, that's god-sent. 

The market had a lot to offer in terms of variety - quality, not so much. This is primarily a photo-post since I haven't done that in a while. 

Quail, rubbed with coloring for more "appeal".

Chao ga (Chicken porridge)

Fertilized quail egg and hot vit lon (Balut).

Does the texture of the babies (hair and tiny bones) freak you out as much as it does me?

Shellfish galore!

Nem nuong with fried rice paper. I could eat the fried rice paper all day!

Asian yogurt - tart. 

Grilled rice paper with an egg and chives. Apparently this is one of the new "it" snacks everyone has been craving. Dip it in a tarmarind or hot sauce. Viet Namese flat bread, anyone?

Stopped by Windmill Flower and Coffee because it reminded me of home. Macadamia latte. When in Viet Nam, drink Viet Namese iced coffee only!

Jackfruit spotted on roadside stands on the way home. 

Banh Cay

When I am not stuffing my mouth with delicious food, my mind is left to wander about what foods I should be eating. It's a dangerous cycle really, one that I don't see myself escaping in the near future. 

So. much. snacking. 

Today, while at my cousin's place, I had banh cay (spicy fried dough). There's a lady who sells fried snacks literally right in front of her front door. I wish I had that kind of convenience back home. 

On the rare occasion that my mom picked me up from school, we would stop by the Vietnamese fast food place to buy a dozen banh cay or so. It was always a hit or miss, sometimes more fresh and crispy than others, but always a cherished memory. 

Bun Days

What did I do with my day? Eat, eat, then eat some more. 

Breakfast - banh cuon with a side of banh cong

Coffee - Sorrento milk coffee

Lunch - bun cha

Snack - che Campuchia

Dinner - bun thit nuong

Breakfast was taken a bit later than usual today because I was video chatting with mother dear and my uncle was stuck on Sudoku. 

We went for banh cuon. It was pretty good but I was more tied to the banh cong. It was really crispy, haha. 

At Cafe Sorrento, my cousin and I met a lady who coincidently takes her breakfast in our neighborhood every morning, so we made plans to meet up with her soon for some Cambodian food. 

Speaking of which, whyyy me?! I was lounging around when my aunt asked if I wanted to take a stroll through the neighborhood market. Of course I was game since nobody was home. I saw a sign for che Campuchia (Cambodian dessert soup) and was curious as to how it measured up to its Vietnamese counterpart. Someday, I tell ya, curiosity will have the best of me, not that I haven't experienced that before. 

The yellow things looked like jackfruit but turned out to be something else entirely. I don't even know what. There was a slice of squash with an egg custard center. The only thing I knew in the che was the green jelly. Overall, I thought the che was really odd. 

Every aspect of the che looked normal but once I poured it out of the little baggy, I sensed a familiar smell. What do you know? 

Durian.

The worst part is that I had to eat all of it while looking as though I was really enjoying it. No such thing as wasting food here. Just. My. Luck. 

Much fun and good food was had at dinner. My uncle and I stopped by his cousin, Bac Xuan's sewing shop. He had joked that we were hungry but had both forgotten cash at home, so she insisted we all just go out for dinner, which we did! We joked about Bac Ky cons (younger generations) the whole time, even though my dad's side is from Northern Viet Nam (Southerners like to mock Northerners' accents). 

Bun thit nuong. 

Going to eat with nice aunts means that she'll keep on placing food in your dish no matter how often you reiterate that you'll grab food as you please. To top it all off, aunts don't like to waste food. At times like these, yeah, I really wish I had more than just one stomach. 

Banh Xeo

I honestly can't remember the last time I had banh xeo (Viet Namese pancake). In the states, I'm usually not a fan because the crisp is lost to the thickness of the pancake. No worries, a trip to Viet Nam will fix that. 

Wok-sized banh xeo were the main attraction on a busy street side. Behemoths! I never knew they came this big! Holy smokes! If you've ever eaten banh xeo, do you ever find yourself just picking at the soggy parts after all the crispy areas have been consumed? Well, I do. The feeling is along the lines of..."Can I bring this back and refry it?" 

We also had banh khot (which was also thinner than usual) and some nem nuong. 

Rice cake overload. 

To close the night off, my cousins and I scootered around District 1 looking for refreshments. We ended up at a smoothie stand on the sidewalk. I ordered an avocado smoothie. I know...so vanilla of me, but all that rung in my mind from the list that the waiter had told us was durian smoothies. No thank you to that!

I can assure you that it's not just me who is repulsed by the mere thought of durian, although I did enjoy it as a kid. 

We were planning on going for sea snails tonight but I was stuffed. Yes, sometimes that happens. Another cousin called for a late-night snack. Is it possible to gain weight while in Viet Nam? We'll have to wait and see.  

Until tomorrow!

Hello Saigon!

The heat will not deter my foraging for food! That's not to say that I won't be found lazing away wherever there is air conditioning.

My plane landed around 10 pm last night. By the time I got home, it was close to 11 pm. The streets were mostly empty except for those selling the last of their pushcart food. No worries! My cousins took me for banh bot chien (fried rice cakes) in an alleyway. They cut it up for you in bite-sized pieces here and it's actually crispy (who would've thunk!). Back in the states, no matter how many times I reiterate the fact that I want my rice cakes to be crispy, they always come out as if they never even touched a frying pan.

My cousin Ky and I stopped by her cousin Kim's place for ice cream. Kim needed an electronic whisk but we only brought over tongs for kneading dough. Suffice to say, that wasn't of much use. It also turns out that she was trying to make more of a mousse than ice cream, since she was planning on whipping up some cream and adding coffee and sugar...unless that's what people consider to be ice cream over here? I'm confused. Will have to find out later.
Anyway, we sat in the kitchen for about an hour trying to whip the cream until its peaks were stiff but that was to no avail. Once again, I blame the heat! Heat = no peaks!
Kim likes to try out new recipes and her parents left her and her brother to live by themselves in a pretty big house. Something tells me I'll be over there pretty darn often.

I apologize for the lack of pictures. It's been less than a day and I'm still a paranoid newbie. Using an iPhone on the streets is just asking for trouble over here.

Will be meeting up with my aunt and cousins for more rice cakes and whatnot later for dinner today! Hopefully pictures come up soon?

Goodbyes, Hellos

Currently waiting to board my flight to Saigon!

Alley food is calling my name!

Oren's Hummus Shop

The early birthday celebration begins! And with hummus nonetheless! 

Went for lunch with my friend Wing today in downtown Palo Alto. Ahhh!!! Hummus!

I'm an avid lover of hummus. I eat it all too often. I can honestly say I've tried most of the huge variety from TJ's. Yeah, okay, I'm a bit obsessed with hummus, but it's sooo good! 

(I apologize for the incessant use of exclamations throughout this post).

I've passed by University Avenue a million times, but somehow I've never noticed this shop. Then again, better late than never!

It was a really nice day, so we sat outside!

I ordered the beef kabobs with hummus and sweet potato fries (not included in the above picture). For the first time ever, the kabobs were nicely seasoned and perfectly moist. I've been to my fair share of Mediterranean restaurants and usually the kabobs are dry and hard. The fries were crispy and the hummus. Oh the hummus! Hahah, tasted fresh, no lemon = My kind of hummus! 

Shakshuka. Wing didn't say much about it, but he finished the whole thing? Hahah. 

Definitely will be back for more hummus! 

Porto's Bakery

Cheeeeeese rolls! These two words alone make my mouth salivate. 

On Saturday, we were off to Porto's for cheese rolls. Yeup, that's right. I had cheese rolls for lunch. Don't forget the potato balls! 

When Dora told me about these famous cheese rolls, I actually thought they'd be savory. The name is a bit misleading, isn't it? Between Julie, Dora, and I, we bought two dozen. AHAHA

The potato balls were meals within themselves.

Ground beef is stuffed in a potato ball and fried. 

Thank goodness I don't live near this place, or else I'd be in for a double bypass in no time at all!

Freshly Baked Eatery

Week of errands and shopping and then some more errands. Time to pack for Asia! 

Picked up my sister, K, and then off for sandwiches at Freshly Baked Eatery! They bake sourdough fresh every morning in-house (hence the name) and are only open for lunch.

Chicken Breast 

Classic - roast beef, country ham, and turkey on sourdough

K and I eat got 1/3 of a pickle with our sandwiches. I'm the Asian Snooki when it comes to pickles!

Chego

This is my most exciting Los Angeles post so far. Seriously.

If food trucks served food as good as this, I'd be an avid follower. 

Dora took Julie and I to Chego, an Asian-fusion favorite of hers in Culver City. 

Ooey Gooey Fries - sour cream sambal, melting monterey jack and cheddar cheese, cotija, chillies, cilantro, and pickled garlic

The fries were oh so crispy. I think they were lightly battered before fried. 

The Chego Burger: Exhibit A - 1/2 pound grass fed burger, cheese, coconut mayo, chili sauce, fried shallots, wild arugula, Thai basil and pineapple

Oh. Dear. God. Easily THE best burger I've had anywhere. I loved the addition of Thai basil. It just made the burger that much more distinct. The grass fed beef was heavenly and cooked medium-rare, just how I like it. Halfway through, I was still trying to catch my breath. Every morsel was so delicious. Alas, I tried to finish up most of it but could not. 

Oh yeah...We got to meet Roy Choi, executive chef of Chego! I was really excited. I'm still excited to share this with you! He was really cool and down to earth. This was as close as I've ever been to meeting someone famous. Hahah.