There’s nothing like a plain ol’ log of fresh mozzarella cheese to liven up an old favorite recipe for Halloween! Given it finally seems like Fall and the weather has turned “cooler” in only a way that it can in SoCal, I’ve been having more cravings for heartier and richer foods. My craving for lasagna was a good opportunity to add a little Halloween spookiness to our meal. Fortunately for me, it seems as...
Read More
BOO! Every year around this time, I profess my love for the Halloween holiday and this year is no different. Until I had the little one, Halloween was fun, but now that she’s getting older and Halloween is filled with crafts, decorations, costumes, and of course, candy and treats, it’s even MORE fun. For starters, there’s the costume (hers I mean). This whole year has been all about The Little Mermaid, so not surprisingly, she...
Read More
Comfort. That’s probably one of the first things that come to mind when I think of my childhood besties. When we get together, I am comforted and happy. They are my family. Our get togethers are at least 30 strong (and still growing I’m happy to report), with 10 girlfriends, their mates and a minimum of 10 kids running around. It’s quite an affair, so you can only imagine the amount of food that is often served at our...
Read More
It’s been SO cold here in Southern California and honestly, I haven’t wanted to leave the house much. Perhaps a daytime high temperature of 55 F degrees is “mild” by Midwest and East Coast standards, but for us Los Angeleno natives, that’s downright close to freezing. Call me a baby for whining about our “cold” SoCal weather, but aside from soup, chili, oven roasted foods and hot comfort dishes, I...
Read More
Although almost two weeks have passed since we feasted on both traditional Japanese Osechi Ryori (New Year’s food) and non-traditional Japanese cuisine favorites, I’m still basking in the memories of delicious food and great times spent with family and great friends. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) My New Year’s posts are always a favorite of mine as I enjoy memorializing all the delicious food from our Oshogatsu (Japanese New...
Read More
As the title of this post implies, I made fried food! It was somewhat impulsive. I was cleaning out our freezer and I came across a pack of Nanka Seimen egg roll wrappers that I purchased quite a long time ago. To be honest, I'm not even sure when I bought these, but after defrosting them, they didn't have any noticeable freezer burn so I didn't want them to go to waste. I remembered a type of egg roll that my Mom used to make for us when...
Read More
It’s day three of the 2012 London Olympics and I’m slightly at a loss for words. Perhaps it’s exhaustion from our busy weekend (which I will happily share in a separate post), or because our DVR wasn’t working Sunday night when I couldn’t stay up to watch swimming, or perhaps I’m feeling a bit off because my left knee is having unusual joint issues. Instead of my weekly gym date with my BFF Monday night, I...
Read More
At a Memorial Day BBQ a few years ago, I was asked if I knew the difference between Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day. While somewhat uncertain of my answer, I replied (with conviction) that Memorial Day was a day to honor military men and women who died while serving their country, whereas Veteran’s Day celebrated living military veterans for their past service to our country. After being “quizzed” at that BBQ a few years...
Read More
