tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43211985140142341892024-02-20T15:12:59.184-05:00Food BlogUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger434125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-64317500340853845392014-07-11T21:33:00.002-04:002014-07-11T21:34:49.701-04:00Tangzhong Milk Bread<br />
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Ahoy, bread-making time! This month I've been making a lot of bread. I attempted to make the Asian milk bread with tangzhong, and it turned out super duper fluffy! This will probably be the go-to recipe for future potlucks and parties. It can be found <a href="http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/32997/hokkaido-milk-bread-tangzhong" target="_blank">here</a>. I am now embarrassed with about 90% of the bread I've made in the past that I've shared with people.<br />
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In other news, I've become irritated with recipe posts in which there are a ton of pictures of the food and not the process. Pictures of the dough, consistency of dough, size of pan, etc. are fine and dandy, but numerous glossy pictures of the finished product, from various angles, have become irksome. There's something annoying about having to scroll an entire page through pretty but useless photos before discovering a recipe, and then scrolling another page to find the oven temperature and baking time. Alas, what to do about all my previous blog posts in which I posted such images?! Rest assured future images will be more wisely chosen.<br />
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<b>My Notes</b><br />
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<li>I've made this recipe three times so far, each time with alterations because ... well, that's what I do, with limited ingredients.</li>
<li>Tangzhong - milk and flour as specified! I added some cinnamon as the mixture was cooking. You want to get a gruel-type consistency. While it cools, a skin starts to form and the gruel starts drying up. So, it is wise to scoop everything into a blob that takes up minimum pot surface area, so later you don't have half your tangzhong dried onto the edges of the pan.</li>
<li><b>Ingredient substitutions</b>, to use up stuff in the house:</li>
<ul>
<li><i>About </i>5 cups of flour - Not really sure how much. It just has to feel like a dense marshmallow, and squishy</li>
<li>Soy powder instead of milk powder</li>
<li>1/2 cup milk instead of half and half</li>
<li>4 tbsp oil instead of butter</li>
<li>Yeast! 12 g active dry yeast, mixed with about 30 ml of above-body-temperature water (microwaved)</li>
<li>Cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, vanilla, chopped dried apricot!</li>
</ul>
<li><b>Method changes</b>:</li>
<ul>
<li>Mix all the liquid with two cups of flour prior to adding the yeast mixture</li>
<li>Continue adding 2 cups of flour and mix</li>
<li>Add the tangzhong and another cup of flour, mixing here and there</li>
<li>At this point, the dough should be kneaded by hand. Keep adding handfuls of flour and kneading until you get a pliable, almost-wet, squishy dough that feels like thick marshmallow or play-doh or what I imagine hot taffy to feel like. When you poke it gently, the dough should spring back</li>
<li>Let sit in hot sweltering summer heat until doubled in size. Dough should be pliable, dry enough to not stick to the bowl, but wet enough to stick slightly to your hands. It is nice and squishy</li>
<li>Make into rolls or logs or braids and let re-rise for 30 mins</li>
<li>Egg wash! I have this nifty egg crystal package that I got from the IFT Expo last summer. I never need more than half an egg for egg wash, and now, I can reconstitute exactly half an egg! Just add water! What a wonderful world. Outside of using the crystals for egg washes though, I don't think it is cost-effective for me, as I do have access to fresh eggs during most of my waking hours. However, these crystals non-perishable, non-crushable, and therefore super for camping, the military, etc. So, huzzah!</li>
<li>Pans. I like using smaller pans because it makes my buns look big. Hehe. Well, tall. I fit all of the dough into what looks like an 8x8 glass pan. Glass is a nice material for bread, as are leftover Chipotle burrito bowl lids (but I don't have anymore of those! No more free Chipotle!)</li>
<li>Rolls (say, 8 rolls) are better in a square pan like this because the middle doesn't end up slightly raw. In a loaf pan (which I will acquire someday!), a loaf would be pretty nice</li>
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After doubling in size<br />
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After second rise (30 minutes)<br />
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Bread with almost-the-same recipe but no tangzhong, egg crystals instead of eggs, and powdered milk and water instead of milk. Oh, and no sugar because I forgot. Note how flat it is :( There is sesame on it, though. It tasted much denser and dry and ... sort of like bland pizza dough. The dough while kneading was also way denser and felt more like a cookie dough than a bread dough (no spring! no squish!).</div>
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And finally, a note about the direction of this blog. In the past year, I've had so many food experiences, but I haven't had time to update! I've also started to become somewhat embarrassed at taking pictures at public gatherings/meals, given my point-and-shoot camera (while everyone else is using their smartphones-with-flash or their fancy DSLR camera with varying lenses). Finally, food blogging, or at least, posting pictures of food with captions and descriptions, has become so pedestrian. Everyone does it now. Instagram, hashtags, Facebook brunches with hundreds of Likes...<br />
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What differentiates <i>my</i> food life from everyone else's? Why read a 1000-word essay and cooking process when you can scroll through a delicious avocado burger? "<i>I </i>did it before it was cool" is neither a decent response nor constructive. I get a much larger readership if I post one HoverZoom-able picture on Facebook or Imgur, and much more instant gratification.</div>
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Yet at the same time, how many people can say that they maintain an entire food website!</div>
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Well, now that I've graduated, a few things I'd like to do include:</div>
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<li>Actually making my own website for general real-life use</li>
<li>Somehow incorporating the blog into my website, or at least, re-designing the entire layout of the blog. An issue is that many previous posts have been terribly formatted, with Images and Words (hehe, Dream Theater) running amok. Oh, and numerous tags. Augh!</li>
<li>Deciding whether the blog is word-focused or picture-focused. I'd like to think that I contribute more to the world via stories about cooking and culture, rather than pictures of food, but pictures are quite attention-grabbing. The site layout will therefore probably reflect this.</li>
<li>Determining whether this blog will be a blog for all my thoughts, or merely food-centric. This also depends on the creation of my actual website.</li>
</ol>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-24527616602728961602014-01-03T18:04:00.000-05:002014-01-03T18:04:08.612-05:00Green Tea Pocky<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well! This is an instance in which the depiction is actually the same size as the product! The green tea Pocky was alright. The coating was kind of thick and the sticks were very plain tasting. It was pricy for 12 meagre sticks but the packaging was impeccable. I have saved the beautiful box.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-26821550110481346082014-01-02T20:36:00.002-05:002014-01-02T23:49:47.993-05:00Lasagne and MeatballsUsed up a bunch of leftovers to make lasagne and meatballs. While my tactics are questionable, the fridge is now organized and the food tastes fine.<br />
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The lasagne has a lot more cheese than necessary, and also includes leftover turkey pepperoni (my sister has now decided that she no longer wants them). The sauce includes homemade sauce, store-bought pasta sauce, a teaspoon of leftover vegetable cream cheese and a few tablespooons of leftover Greek yoghurt in lieu of butter. It is a very beefy four layers (1 lb of cow, pepperoni, cheese, tomato, spices, yum). I added an extra lasagne sheet, which is that crusty topping.<br />
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The 78 meatballs were made with:<br />
<b> 1+ lb of minced cow</b><br />
<b>4 slices of toast</b>, crumbled by hand (my mum ate the first two slices I made. Oh no!)<br />
<b>>1 cup shredded mozzarella</b><br />
<b>1 chopped onion</b><br />
<b>4 cloves chopped garlic</b> (enclose cloves between two bowls and shake vigorously to remove skin -- <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0d3oc24fD-c" target="_blank">see here</a>)<br />
<b>1 egg</b><br />
<b>1 tbsp oil</b><br />
<b>spices</b><br />
<b>1/4 cup milk</b><br />
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and baked for 20 mins at 350F. The cheese oozes to the bottom, so you have to cook it on the bottom rack in order for the cheese to crust up when it falls onto the pan. Cooking on the top rack means the cheese melts but doesn't crust up anything and you end up with meatballs in puddles of fat.<br />
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Now, what to do with a pound of leftover shredded mozzarella?<br />
Cheesy bread tomorrow ...maybe.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-64296550830479490422013-12-31T18:07:00.003-05:002013-12-31T18:07:41.709-05:00Minado SushiI can't decide whether I like "traditional" sushi or newly invented crazy sushi. On most days, the plain salmon nigiri or salmon + avocado maki suffice to make me happy.<br />
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Yesterday and over Thanksgiving break, my family and I went to Minado and they have very bizarre sushi varieties. It was quite interesting.<br />
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The above include a fried piece of Spam sushi (the one with the nori wrapped vertically around a fried rod), an oddly-sweet kiwi sauce roll (neon green sauce), a slightly off scallop sushi, a fried chicken sushi (between the scallop and seaweed salad ones), and some others that I don't remember. I recall there being some bell peppers in some of the sushis, and one of them was avocado, salmon, and Washington apple. I initially couldn't figure out what the apple was, and guessed melon. Funny how when a cube of food is put out of context, it is difficult to pinpoint what it is. The Spam one was just bizarre and the kiwi sauce was bad (but my brother enjoyed it).<br />
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This was from Thanksgiving. One of the rolls (the one with the leafy stuff) was the Texas roll and it had a chunk of cooked cow. I don't recall what the other rolls included. Their spicy mayo sucks. Too much mayo and not enough sriracha.<br />
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Overall, it was quite fun trying out all these bizarre and novel rolls.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-63908241339596733032013-12-29T00:10:00.002-05:002013-12-29T02:23:56.615-05:00Interview Travelling (Seattle WA, Madison WI, San Jose CA)This semester was crazy because I was interviewing for a job, which involved quite some travelling. In this haze, I somehow managed to visit a whole handful of airports and hotels. The places documented here include Seattle, Madison, and the Bay Area.<br />
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<b>Seattle!</b><br />
I had a nice breakfast at the hotel. I know that it's not the fanciest but it beats most of the breakfasts and lunches I've had all semester (wow, I sure have been neglecting my ... life). I mean, hot food! More than one item in my sandwich!<br />
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I went to downtown Seattle after my interview and got some pumpkin and coconut gelato at Gelatiamo. I didn't particularly enjoy the pumpkin one because it felt too heavy. I got to sample the rice gelato, which was delicious (but I wasn't in the mood for it). They had all these beautiful baked desserts but I really wasn't in the mood. I languidly walked around downtown chomping on gelato, checking out people going to dress-up/Halloween parties. </div>
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I went to dinner at The Crab Pot with a friend I hadn't seen in almost exactly 7 years. The Crab Pot is famous for, well, the crab pot.</div>
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The bread was really dense and hard to chew (or I was just tired) and the entire place was happy and rowdy. We were given mallets and cutting boards! Bibs! I did not wear the bib because it just felt over the top. The food arrived in a giant bucket and was poured onto the table. Cleanup was therefore very easy. What a feast! I really enjoyed the corn, mussels, clams, and sausage. There was a lot of overcooked shrimp, but the crab was good. Everyone was super nice and I found the place unique. I would definitely go there every time I visit Seattle in the future.</div>
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The SeaTac airport has the best restaurant ever - Anthony's Fish Bar!! This place made me so happy! I got delicious clam chowder and mediocre Alaskan rockfish taco with mango (awkwardly sweet and fishy, while also savoury).<br />
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Cold rockfish taco on the plane, while attempting to study.<br />
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An airport store had quite the selection of candy (blurry due to my phone camera).<br />
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I had a layover in Minnesota, where I bought some candy corn gummies (which tasted like generic gummies) and a "Montana bar", which was actually just a oaty bar covered with chocolate and coconut.<br />
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<b>Madison, Wisconsin</b><br />
At the layover in Cincinnati, I got a turkey club from the Wolfgang Puck restaurant/bar. I find it humourous that Wolfgang Puck's name is being used in restaurants at airports, since I associate airport restaurants with... well, solely Burger King or restaurants along those lines.<br />
The sandwich was ok.<br />
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I had a super fancy breakfast at the Concourse Hotel on the morning of the interview, but I was too nervous to enjoy it. I had an amazing meal during my interview!<br />
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<b>Bay Area</b><br />
My first flight got delayed so I had some time to check out the crochet cakes in display cases at the Philadelphia Airport. They are really nice and I think I would make some when I have time.<br />
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In N Out Burgers!! Whoo! Our cab driver was really nice and we made a pit stop here (latent dream come true!) and I wanted to buy everything. I got a chocolate shake that I had to chug down because I forgot that I wasn't allowed to take this through airport security (I had made the same mistake in Seattle where I bought some coffee right before entering security).<br />
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The burger, fries, and In N Out sauce packets <i>did</i> make it through security! Huzzah! I got to eat them both cold while waiting for my flight. At that point, I wasn't even hungry. The burger was fantastic.<br />
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The animal fries were not that good. They were really soggy, possibly due to it sitting in a paper bag for half an hour, but I was not impressed.<br />
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I had a layover in Phoenix, where I found the presence of "Icelandic water" quite funny. The airport was completely packed with people, even though it was one in the morning. I was tempted to get a pumpkin shake but at that point I just felt exhausted and thirsty. Deflated would be a good word, and the only thing I wanted was to sleep horizontally, undisturbed for 15 hours.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-67225026168426471542013-12-24T23:59:00.003-05:002013-12-25T00:13:06.119-05:00Pinwheel CookiesOh, it's been a while. So much has happened and much delicious food and little alcohol (huzzah! I can legally drink now!) has passed through my digestive system. And now starts the frantic trying-to-stuff-as-many-posts-into-2013-as-possible. Today, I will talk about making pinwheel cookies. Below are 93 cookies.<br />
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I made nutella + jam + dried fruit pinwheel cookies in 2007 or 2008 and they turned out pretty hard and sweet. I guess they were acceptable. I don't recall how I rolled the cookies though, since I don't recall it being a tedious task. Last night, however, rolling the cookie logs took way more time and gnawing away at confidence than I anticipated.<br />
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I made a double batch of <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/gale-gand/icebox-pinwheel-cookies-recipe/index.html" target="_blank">this typical sugar cookie recipe</a>, which yielded about <b>100, or 8 dozen cookies </b>and end bits that the little ragamuffin (my sister) nibbled up raw. I left them in the fridge overnight and baked them this afternoon.<br />
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<b>Ingredient Changes:</b><br />
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-- 2 cups of sugar instead of 2.66 cups<br />
-- 2 handfuls of melted chocolate chips in half the dough, yielding a light tea+milk type of brown rather than a dark brown.<br />
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<b>Regarding the Method:</b><br />
I don't have parchment paper. I reused an opened-up cereal bag, which worked pretty well as a cookie log wrapper. Unfortunately, the dough was really soft so it was hard to move around. Flouring the surface really helped.<br />
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The first method included rolling out both doughs and then folding one on top of the other, and peeling the plastic back. This sort of worked but was really tedious.</div>
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I also tried just squashing chocolate dough onto the rolled-out vanilla dough but that was also tedious. Most of the logs (I ended up with three 30-cm-ish logs, each yielding >30 cookies) were just really squishy due to it being a balmy room temperature. Most were done using the roll-two-blobs-and-smoosh-together method. Even though the doughs were not rolled into perfect rectangles, with some trimming and squishing around, I ended up with dismal looking logs, that, <b>the next day, magically sliced into artistic pinwheels</b>. I put two of the logs in a plastic bread bag and kept the other one rolled up in the cereal bag in the fridge.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeQZDAp2KUfZst8EuloKHNVcPL_ggyNtDtr-mX3zKbO2YEV12efgYexTJPs4NtTz0jxncnRN-E74BkdB7ffk23Y3jKGsfSkyEBoioMIt0kXeoyO7lb8tLjyPZ3ZLg6mhBDQLn1JDbNz7E/s1600/pinwheelcookies+(8).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeQZDAp2KUfZst8EuloKHNVcPL_ggyNtDtr-mX3zKbO2YEV12efgYexTJPs4NtTz0jxncnRN-E74BkdB7ffk23Y3jKGsfSkyEBoioMIt0kXeoyO7lb8tLjyPZ3ZLg6mhBDQLn1JDbNz7E/s320/pinwheelcookies+(8).JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Next time, I will probably chill the dough for an hour rather than for 20 minutes. A lot of the rolling was done by eye, and my cookie sizes ranged from Oreo-sized to Navel orange-sized.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg42uNjrWem5SDk8DMqsD2xVKlLdkNgR06l0OZzgWbtWSLeN36IphKKcvjl8NTPaXbLDOrOrUendNhhdCQGEymH5rXLja3Kqj1TpHjinAHN7pTz3rcEn-fQ0DdONuSyOwbKy6RMzKv0y1Q/s1600/pinwheelcookies+(6).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg42uNjrWem5SDk8DMqsD2xVKlLdkNgR06l0OZzgWbtWSLeN36IphKKcvjl8NTPaXbLDOrOrUendNhhdCQGEymH5rXLja3Kqj1TpHjinAHN7pTz3rcEn-fQ0DdONuSyOwbKy6RMzKv0y1Q/s320/pinwheelcookies+(6).JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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How surprising! They actually look beautiful!!</div>
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The cookies were sliced at about 7 mm ? and baked on the middle rack of a 350 F oven for exactly 10 minutes. It turns out that the bottom rack is no place for a cookie-to-be, and a aluminum foil pan yields a longer cooking time for the cookie. So, I stuck with the cookie sheet I got for my 15th birthday that is still intact and loved.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioPTqornT2DvhHIJ1AFMLUPDzlyyxhdBhyLE3_Laiq5Wlswr107i6hHRc48pXX3z-ezAbThKAMaT53rnU34ew1FqMOz1FIrtY1erH-lrZSz9Do40V5pyufrxNHCIeyJsRobgDpt799geI/s1600/pinwheelcookies+(9).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioPTqornT2DvhHIJ1AFMLUPDzlyyxhdBhyLE3_Laiq5Wlswr107i6hHRc48pXX3z-ezAbThKAMaT53rnU34ew1FqMOz1FIrtY1erH-lrZSz9Do40V5pyufrxNHCIeyJsRobgDpt799geI/s640/pinwheelcookies+(9).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Perfectly cooked and no burned edges!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPf5JBTd-MPm9qAyic3VubDkmr-M2VRuAwgLIL1jYxzNHIKp5PsFdILzyRpLR1f2EdK3TPBAt_GXyN4fdPa-ImlAfZR4n8xrhWhnLDQLva1riMxCI8yI9qaW7VmZ5yiwXe2dDUAhOrbpE/s1600/pinwheelcookies+(11).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPf5JBTd-MPm9qAyic3VubDkmr-M2VRuAwgLIL1jYxzNHIKp5PsFdILzyRpLR1f2EdK3TPBAt_GXyN4fdPa-ImlAfZR4n8xrhWhnLDQLva1riMxCI8yI9qaW7VmZ5yiwXe2dDUAhOrbpE/s640/pinwheelcookies+(11).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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The spots on the cookies are chocolate chips that did not melt completely.<br />
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The cold logs are only sliced immediately before placing onto the pan and baking. Although I buttered the pan with a butter wrapper for the first batch, subsequent batches did not require any pan-buttering. The trick is to swivel the cookies off the sheet as soon as the sheet is taken out of the oven. At this point, they don't stick to the pan. This means very hot fingertips and quick scooping of cookies onto a spatula, and then the cooling rack (or directly on, if you like hot fingertips).<br />
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The cookies do expand a bit during cooking and unfortunately I had to squish some cookies together because I didn't want to bake a batch of only 3-5 cookies.<br />
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Look at this stack of equal-diameter cookies!<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgOUtdKqFARhBmcFtDatgYo-yCU9T3dQrHYSOPm2AArCbSlgMkOJzd0JFyyISv9-H0UWK34i0ssyUClVL6UCVmXWrYvhHjn3g44bIoU0xgEKrrdhrJwo0o969fehIO_aAU1dQ8HcB2Ew/s1600/pinwheelcookies+(10).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgOUtdKqFARhBmcFtDatgYo-yCU9T3dQrHYSOPm2AArCbSlgMkOJzd0JFyyISv9-H0UWK34i0ssyUClVL6UCVmXWrYvhHjn3g44bIoU0xgEKrrdhrJwo0o969fehIO_aAU1dQ8HcB2Ew/s640/pinwheelcookies+(10).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-67954583409075336222013-09-28T15:49:00.000-04:002013-09-28T15:49:01.041-04:00The Irish Embassy Pub & Grill<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="text-align: center;">I am an embarrassment to Ireland. How can I be Irish and, well, culturally and ethnically not? All I have is a piece of paper that I've only seen once in my life saying Hey, This Person is Irish. Which reminds me of this goal I had a while back: I should be at least culinarily aware of Ireland.</span><br />
...but I'm not, really.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsKZ9RNOu0xORp9jqvjCVSe3hyphenhyphen7JVjrGqgmXvvRslFiznaJXLqIOGdKCZx4Yhp-ozBW8UcfKKnOspFkIHHcrgI7W2yaIbclr8iVurtTXuDhwMKisHz84Az59wWDPG9NuX2SiRFC65x98/s1600/day3-4+(450).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsKZ9RNOu0xORp9jqvjCVSe3hyphenhyphen7JVjrGqgmXvvRslFiznaJXLqIOGdKCZx4Yhp-ozBW8UcfKKnOspFkIHHcrgI7W2yaIbclr8iVurtTXuDhwMKisHz84Az59wWDPG9NuX2SiRFC65x98/s400/day3-4+(450).JPG" width="300" /></a><br />
So back to history. Over a month ago, I was in Toronto for vacation and we were wandering around downtown after having an extravagantly happy time in Centre Island (THERE WERE BUNNIES!!), and we happened upon a Guinness sign on a building at an intersection, and my mum noticed the word Irish (one of the handful in her English vocabulary). As it turns out, it was <a href="http://irishembassypub.com/" target="_blank">The Irish Embassy (Pub & Grill)</a>! Now, it was nearly 4:30 pm, so we decided to have an early dinner. Come to think of it, we might have skipped lunch that day. It's all a blur now.<br />
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Of course, Guinness is beer and I don't talk about alcohol on this blog (but I'm going to be legal in the US soon, so, would this change?), but my mum encouraged me and my brother to have a Guinness (Irish culture shot, all in one!) because we were in Canada. I found this extremely comical and absurd. Have beer? With the family? At 4:30pm? In Toronto? So, *giggles*...but no.<br />
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Now I wonder whether I should've, because the next time I get to have a Guinness will be <strike>in a fortnight</strike> when I turn 21.<br />
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So, The Irish Embassy! What a place! High ceilings, clear menu, posters of Irish cottages and castles next to the bathrooms, green doors, bar, clean tables, and giant goblets (for the Guinness)! I felt like I was in some sort of wonderland (or maybe I was just tired). There's something vaguely nostalgic about all this, even though I've never actually been to an Irish castle or cottage. Perhaps I'm wondering about the life I could've had. Overall, I had a wonderful experience.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQmZz1jFaNT-bZqfqQ2-OltH2V-K-SQjf-sIi3RIKfh4VIKEJJptLGxb5w50Ceq2m2NtemM6onuf3bxlEzTFq6tgDIltUfATPpzFZy7_gV8bqQWNfmW1XMzkUGxKMSYwwJP8OX_HEj8y0/s1600/day3-4+(439).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2m95pEzdOK0mz22KgolLZEwZrdBXJeThhw4hbP50xS_98JmexR5pT_-TmlvkNl6cVIk0AE63DDnPSxmrxPWFLKQOf4WwbkTPGH2MiLODsZ59jHT6neAIFLDEgzwI2Kz-VrZFn8eezOaA/s1600/day3-4+(440).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2m95pEzdOK0mz22KgolLZEwZrdBXJeThhw4hbP50xS_98JmexR5pT_-TmlvkNl6cVIk0AE63DDnPSxmrxPWFLKQOf4WwbkTPGH2MiLODsZ59jHT6neAIFLDEgzwI2Kz-VrZFn8eezOaA/s320/day3-4+(440).JPG" width="240" /></a><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQmZz1jFaNT-bZqfqQ2-OltH2V-K-SQjf-sIi3RIKfh4VIKEJJptLGxb5w50Ceq2m2NtemM6onuf3bxlEzTFq6tgDIltUfATPpzFZy7_gV8bqQWNfmW1XMzkUGxKMSYwwJP8OX_HEj8y0/s320/day3-4+(439).JPG" width="240" /></div>
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We ordered Irish poutine (what a mix?), cottage pie, and lamb stew.<br />
The poutine had no gravy - it was all mayonnaise, cheese, and salty pig bits. It was tasty and probably the least authentic Irish thing on the menu, which was fine.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLmGwgU0sPJcnWHo6tdLmLMEtt5Z2En3GuhgHYn6jJK-F0jXeeh9os3ZUvP2w9nNAF9Hw_thYFipQYQfgwa9wSxO3vH-R5XtN8qjQO9rP_tOc7SKF8a_xsHOR6KraeyN_aV5tthT2h-Nc/s1600/day3-4+(444).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLmGwgU0sPJcnWHo6tdLmLMEtt5Z2En3GuhgHYn6jJK-F0jXeeh9os3ZUvP2w9nNAF9Hw_thYFipQYQfgwa9wSxO3vH-R5XtN8qjQO9rP_tOc7SKF8a_xsHOR6KraeyN_aV5tthT2h-Nc/s640/day3-4+(444).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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Stew. My mum said it reminded her of when she lived in Ireland. I don't like how the flesh was overcooked.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdSX-xYUR3c142ft3X9IOXXLX8OKaxjG0Kyqs2nwO86phcxKt90JdB1nZfm6u1ko-UMTz5RZj_FZdT5tCAZEFMbuoWdpqA1S3JrPRokQuTN79J3o4jIO7GX4fDY3EOislGwPHwcnJ_tTI/s1600/day3-4+(442).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdSX-xYUR3c142ft3X9IOXXLX8OKaxjG0Kyqs2nwO86phcxKt90JdB1nZfm6u1ko-UMTz5RZj_FZdT5tCAZEFMbuoWdpqA1S3JrPRokQuTN79J3o4jIO7GX4fDY3EOislGwPHwcnJ_tTI/s640/day3-4+(442).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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Cottage pie: my favourite! It also came with an assortment of veggies!!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif1uxKHje2JFjHy_WMhHF6dppceA2w7VfuNUVNNktLYrB-WnfKwbqFlfeDFUQJ7g1LP1bQ7q5ZAh0PcXpgB-rlMirSQ9kU8CqpQqIk3b0Cw2wCZDSG5qfJwKsOWV3e0AfDZ6s2xe5c_Kc/s1600/day3-4+(443).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif1uxKHje2JFjHy_WMhHF6dppceA2w7VfuNUVNNktLYrB-WnfKwbqFlfeDFUQJ7g1LP1bQ7q5ZAh0PcXpgB-rlMirSQ9kU8CqpQqIk3b0Cw2wCZDSG5qfJwKsOWV3e0AfDZ6s2xe5c_Kc/s640/day3-4+(443).JPG" width="640" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeju_JtETLr5vshL6wEW9mqfaUJXdb-2OKLS2VYxohL4f-jGsV68opH3-DorjdMWc7WrGhxp2vhXdMKhpiowRIFZFQnckoqWAgnVUJfgp0NPOQHJxH_xSaS-xQfJPEZMUiFIyjDDnrWSE/s1600/day3-4+(445).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeju_JtETLr5vshL6wEW9mqfaUJXdb-2OKLS2VYxohL4f-jGsV68opH3-DorjdMWc7WrGhxp2vhXdMKhpiowRIFZFQnckoqWAgnVUJfgp0NPOQHJxH_xSaS-xQfJPEZMUiFIyjDDnrWSE/s640/day3-4+(445).JPG" width="640" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-56870067674147546032013-09-27T12:50:00.001-04:002013-09-27T12:50:39.230-04:00Estia - Restaurant WeekDespite having lived in Philadelphia since 2010, as of the 15th of September, I still had not participated in Philly's Restaurant Week. Restaurant Week always seemed too expensive and time-consuming to be worth the food, and I was right.<br />
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However, that doesn't mean that dinner at Estia, a fancy but laid-back Greek restaurant, was not enjoyable. Quite the contrary! It was one of the best social events of my college life, shared with the group of friends who frequented my dorm's computer lab. Yes, apparently, solid friendships can form among strangers when we all spend 10+ hours a week in a computer lab for 2-3 years. Especially when they nonchalantly walk in on me passed out over my computer science notes.<br />
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The food was delicious, and the atmopshere and service were excellent. The walls were decorated with giant chunks of rock, and there were linen curtains at the booths and an open kitchen.<br />
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Appetizers included grilled octopus (fresh, fleshy, and slighty charred tasting), or salad. The grilled octopus also had some endive triangles, which was pleasant because it is not a leaf I commonly find at restaurants.<br />
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The main choices were juicy (also slightly charred) lamb with a sauce I didn't like, an entire almost-deboned fish, or a vegetarian dish that the server did not recommend. <br />
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Dessert was either honey semolina cake or baklava, with exactly 1 raspberry (although, possibly by accident, my friend got both a raspberry AND a blueberry). The honey cake was disappointingly dry and crumbly, and the gelato did not make up for it.<br />
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Restaurant Week meant that we could get a dinner meal for $35 (appetizer, main, dessert), which ultimately amounted to around $46. Yummy.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-62979303037591646422013-09-22T22:10:00.000-04:002013-09-22T22:10:18.366-04:00Cinnamon RollsI am awfully backlogged with posts. I still have a whole bunch of foods from IFT, Ithaca, Toronto, and the rest of the summer to discuss! Unfortunately, I am in the midst of projects, jobs applications, job interviews, and studying for the GREs (but actually not, because I still haven't gotten through one practice test yet).<br />
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For study break a few weeks ago, I made cinnamon rolls for the first time. Although <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/cinnamon-rolls-recipe/index.html" target="_blank">the recipe</a> gave a serving size of 12-15 rolls, I ended up with 16 (I mean, how do you cut 15 evenly-thick rolls?) in each batch, giving 32 rolls overall.<br />
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The residents devoured the rolls like vultures fighting over one chubby mouse.<br />
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I didn't make any icing because it would've just been messy, and there would've been fifty students strolling around making doorknobs sticky. For the two batches, I think I used around 21 g of active dry yeast, and twice the amount of sugar in the dough (since there was no icing). As it was over 80 degrees in my room, I let the butter soften at room temperature, and the buns rose pretty quickly.<br />
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This is my kitchen, work desk, dining table, closet, bookshelf, and bedside table. My goal is to keep it scrupulous and clean/sanitized all year.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEIaHj01gqxBqMHYUgqh7kBTbrA6adJyMgg8d8XRVj8VCNNpHCiEKdqshOfGb9Ied2MTlbQsFY5Zc1EiDa9yZXtBR5dyWcT7mg_gqZlfC0MLwBqJ2v46PabCJ0XIWs5agcPW0lAE3Vuxo/s1600/100_6331.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEIaHj01gqxBqMHYUgqh7kBTbrA6adJyMgg8d8XRVj8VCNNpHCiEKdqshOfGb9Ied2MTlbQsFY5Zc1EiDa9yZXtBR5dyWcT7mg_gqZlfC0MLwBqJ2v46PabCJ0XIWs5agcPW0lAE3Vuxo/s320/100_6331.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The fun part! I pressed out the dough (no rolling pin) so that it was about 7mm thick.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Sb-HrZFw9fJXkeGAUc0os93EMueuue3Izfvfnw3GFJJ7GpiS2kq1HihIt5ovQgx_kQixa4DRfTMGNCTVf3TqyXCMyFnc764tILB_3CWzA1QIVZwmHrlm0zHqu37TNYeURfiz9Jt9RS4/s1600/100_6334.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Sb-HrZFw9fJXkeGAUc0os93EMueuue3Izfvfnw3GFJJ7GpiS2kq1HihIt5ovQgx_kQixa4DRfTMGNCTVf3TqyXCMyFnc764tILB_3CWzA1QIVZwmHrlm0zHqu37TNYeURfiz9Jt9RS4/s320/100_6334.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The rolls rose a lot! I didn't grease the foil pan, yet the buns came out pretty easily, no doubt due to the butter in the rolls trickling out while baking.<br />
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Mmmm. All I got were some crumbs (and a loud marriage proposal, that, of course, was just a disguised compliment)...but that's perfectly acceptable, because I have the skill, so I can make 1024 more, if I really wanted to.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-86149470125726382412013-08-05T14:38:00.003-04:002013-08-05T14:38:55.111-04:00Bounty Bar<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdSEPOie5fcYP-InriQ0qmfGRjPRrIdR4SQ70qKKrFOAIEi9jslYZX1xGYcryKvKDGdBAQdLDnVdQSiJuRtpeNqMWa7VVPB3kUPLmy1dccgDb7LJVxp56kU72tCwynRKX1CxR_yfrzXnw/s1600/aug5+(32).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdSEPOie5fcYP-InriQ0qmfGRjPRrIdR4SQ70qKKrFOAIEi9jslYZX1xGYcryKvKDGdBAQdLDnVdQSiJuRtpeNqMWa7VVPB3kUPLmy1dccgDb7LJVxp56kU72tCwynRKX1CxR_yfrzXnw/s1600/aug5+(32).JPG" /></a><br />
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Bounty bars are very simple. They're like Almond Joys but they lack the almond, and they have their logo and palm trees stamped on their bottoms. I guess they're the Commonwealth equivalent to Almond Joys. They have different ingredients, too. I like their wrapper more, though.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-67763726538747692072013-08-02T13:27:00.000-04:002013-08-02T13:27:00.052-04:00Flesh Products from the IFT ExpoAm I surprised that there weren't many animal flesh products at the IFT Expo? Most of the samples were attempts to make cereal/candy/chocolate/desserts more "healthy". However, there were some snacks that showcased the lastest in animal flesh preservation technology. There was also a booth that was giving out plates of cooked animal flesh which was extremely delicious, but their marketing seems to have failed because everyone was standing in line obtaining a plate of grilled meat, disregarding the company name, and not signing deals. Or maybe I didn't notice because I'm ignorant.<br />
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1. Plate of Scrumptious Grilled Animal Flesh<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbZJrNmsNz80hmW4J0TTqCXEP2ASoroszGY79mZbFotkPGK7g-ybomnRkoVp93W1A-VFkX2-7Bis_TfYOeLjYNkLUcu63ORPa8NgRArWmKlCDN-elGtM4O76J3BeP4fyqPkSH9t84dBIE/s1600/chicago13+(257).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbZJrNmsNz80hmW4J0TTqCXEP2ASoroszGY79mZbFotkPGK7g-ybomnRkoVp93W1A-VFkX2-7Bis_TfYOeLjYNkLUcu63ORPa8NgRArWmKlCDN-elGtM4O76J3BeP4fyqPkSH9t84dBIE/s640/chicago13+(257).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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2. Beef Sticks<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj51AQ6tXn3K0DrIfJtJJ3qYbPytqPsIChouWss2c6BjDrBQjLod1j6KtKFpH4NPsAJrjmhe-nNtJzIysI42N3XyG8TSgx2NbMLB7SxQJAOpSHtSBTuq6GbaQ8Nj1WkB7zt8ibpsUMcgxA/s1600/jul31+(10).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj51AQ6tXn3K0DrIfJtJJ3qYbPytqPsIChouWss2c6BjDrBQjLod1j6KtKFpH4NPsAJrjmhe-nNtJzIysI42N3XyG8TSgx2NbMLB7SxQJAOpSHtSBTuq6GbaQ8Nj1WkB7zt8ibpsUMcgxA/s640/jul31+(10).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
These were very flavourful but had a peculiar texture. The casing was typically chewy, but the filling can be described as a combination of sawdust, tuna, and pork floss. This may have been due to the oleoresin? I would've expected a more cohesive or gelatinous texture. Despite this, they were delicious.<br />
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3. Teriyaki Jerky<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH-1Zuo_1QQt2hsDIOup9EvssxnKDMXcaCkrRG60znwgt45dTtRdosyMJvAiak-8_VtzsDpruGPQnBiVRV0E15HD9dJDPXifR6gfSwEE0HFz5Ix_-oKbyZ4-11bLrXefplugwM-zpo-TI/s1600/jul31+(43).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH-1Zuo_1QQt2hsDIOup9EvssxnKDMXcaCkrRG60znwgt45dTtRdosyMJvAiak-8_VtzsDpruGPQnBiVRV0E15HD9dJDPXifR6gfSwEE0HFz5Ix_-oKbyZ4-11bLrXefplugwM-zpo-TI/s640/jul31+(43).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
This was unusually sweet and rectangular. It had an arid texture that warranted reluctant chewing.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-17137254843532630762013-08-01T13:13:00.001-04:002013-08-01T13:13:08.507-04:00Chips Chips ChipsSo how is the world of chips (crisps) doing today? From the IFT Expo, IFTSA Mixer and Dominick's, I managed to scanvenge a whole stomachful of new flavours and types of chips and now I have to admit that yes, apparently I do collect interesting chip wrappers (I've been in denial about this for the past 3 years).<br />
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1. Munchos Flamin' Hot Chips<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0PzbozxR7fpr1msdf3qfZadETLKmHjfGNeO6T5DVbj2SmF898hTdAjR_tuwYfXMlCKvuYc4P26-YJ_QpnsFd4wJuSBcJoA7iL3gMGSue87alNaXK1hBjB2lu6COD8K1acU6jrG1uT-9g/s1600/chicago13+(282).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0PzbozxR7fpr1msdf3qfZadETLKmHjfGNeO6T5DVbj2SmF898hTdAjR_tuwYfXMlCKvuYc4P26-YJ_QpnsFd4wJuSBcJoA7iL3gMGSue87alNaXK1hBjB2lu6COD8K1acU6jrG1uT-9g/s400/chicago13+(282).JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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These are radioactive in terms of color and taste. After a few dozen of them, my fingertips were tainted pinkish-red. The chips are really thin and spicy (possibly the spiciest I've ever had, but that doesn't mean much because I don't go on a quest for spicy chips) and lack pretty much any other flavor.<br />
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<img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTy9zB5Rum-iBInUhZaGz6Ffri8DbHOmOIpLXM4unY_xBJTEx_n0E2DMc-hkivsOT1MD41lacfmvMFkj-borolzDzQNsQfj1IGUFpiS1oH6WPLVFUjQoOaRySXC-VQB7GNdjlyxbHw20w/s400/chicago13+(283).JPG" style="color: #0000ee; text-align: center;" width="300" /><br />
I had a trade sample! Unfortunately, I now have lost the wrapper :( I wonder what I'm going to do with the current wrappers and Pringles/Stax canisters in my collection, which currently includes cucumber, lemon tea, blueberry, steak and fries, dill pickle, and seafood.<br />
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2. Ruffles Max Flame Grilled Steak Chips<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLyxgn6rLqLf8bs-DujLHNZ-aJ3urh41_DF0_rqygoSDYxm_M_rpcentjHRVaX_LJjh8NoFIONq6UUk7572YVUt_W0Cokt1MFza3tE0zadyD3V8XIAKOqw6ITpon5eMnJ7dVrs9OY-DbA/s1600/chicago13+(268).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLyxgn6rLqLf8bs-DujLHNZ-aJ3urh41_DF0_rqygoSDYxm_M_rpcentjHRVaX_LJjh8NoFIONq6UUk7572YVUt_W0Cokt1MFza3tE0zadyD3V8XIAKOqw6ITpon5eMnJ7dVrs9OY-DbA/s1600/chicago13+(268).JPG" /></a><br />
These taste slightly burnt and steaky, as expected and offer an addictive fragrance. <span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">♪</span>The wondrous smell of them linnnngers on me now...I hope you know, I hope you knowwww that steak chips are tasty and limited edition...It's personal-sized, for myself and I, we've got some pigging out to do...<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">♪</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw0VQlE6OmH8jCVZpQnTP5ye13gaSl4uqbC8Ved1jWK8TsWQ0XJ6d6-rjH4XBwvfwG6mhSUryLSuEm_tuv_jvyDvVULapVJVguMqiG9oNPcnseKXP1uS2LqTG58pRpMKrAtF__RJ5LOzk/s1600/chicago13+(272).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw0VQlE6OmH8jCVZpQnTP5ye13gaSl4uqbC8Ved1jWK8TsWQ0XJ6d6-rjH4XBwvfwG6mhSUryLSuEm_tuv_jvyDvVULapVJVguMqiG9oNPcnseKXP1uS2LqTG58pRpMKrAtF__RJ5LOzk/s1600/chicago13+(272).JPG" /></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><br /></span><br />
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3. Doritos Dinamita<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8nEmvicM9MYpi2VyC8aRLrdu2qcRB0f83toYWCsiP0mTUgBAt5u5OqQsShS4s6rb6pvNrcRjKrStpVEkBUcBSTlJ8JMVQxWruknxaA41_et0xSygafgyR4SDTz_94ANgwQXArvDdDCkc/s1600/jul31+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8nEmvicM9MYpi2VyC8aRLrdu2qcRB0f83toYWCsiP0mTUgBAt5u5OqQsShS4s6rb6pvNrcRjKrStpVEkBUcBSTlJ8JMVQxWruknxaA41_et0xSygafgyR4SDTz_94ANgwQXArvDdDCkc/s640/jul31+(2).JPG" width="604" /></a></div>
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What a novel shape - rolled tortilla straws! Unfortunately, I did not have any cocktails, gazpacho, bruschetta, or chowders to sip with them. These were mildly spicy and offered a punch of green pepper (although the package claims that it is red pepper, all I feel are bursts of green bell pepper). These are so entertaining to eat!<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht1ZHuw0RUIbFJwZjyZAuIXZxTo_zfMyGh3tYLDL68gNaWm3WpbQNbV8ZUHRc1LyXlW4010eZFaePhN2DkWY1KsPZfFJNH5Swx6iuLmVvr5Q_pMb_BMF65rVmB6O7NHZ6BiugmAWFZK6E/s1600/jul31+(9).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht1ZHuw0RUIbFJwZjyZAuIXZxTo_zfMyGh3tYLDL68gNaWm3WpbQNbV8ZUHRc1LyXlW4010eZFaePhN2DkWY1KsPZfFJNH5Swx6iuLmVvr5Q_pMb_BMF65rVmB6O7NHZ6BiugmAWFZK6E/s640/jul31+(9).JPG" width="578" /></a><br />
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4. Seneca Apple Chips<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGLT1tzndtZsaqMnVbjBqQAvEw2b6F8COlg9XBWgxy4M6wA31FqtgnjHeNNFJ9FQoJ7ee2onQN7374Sd1uB7pUUtlI9iCGMG8fTNdHx9m4t5r5Fi_k63qnZr-bkQDUdFgCD_luQE3Fz7k/s1600/IFT+(4).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGLT1tzndtZsaqMnVbjBqQAvEw2b6F8COlg9XBWgxy4M6wA31FqtgnjHeNNFJ9FQoJ7ee2onQN7374Sd1uB7pUUtlI9iCGMG8fTNdHx9m4t5r5Fi_k63qnZr-bkQDUdFgCD_luQE3Fz7k/s1600/IFT+(4).JPG" /></a><br />
I feel negatively towards this product because an entire scrumptious apple is likely less than 100 Calories and fat free, while this meagre package of 5 g fat prompts the (cliche) joke "Who put some chips in my container of air?"<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUK_QX6AoZ4lEffKoIqNr-deDP8_jkY-iu9xSmrP3fgWN_CjOx8bwkoVpdlAvdf28THjbuRD1A2rjFS9KOZ32mAnmW9JisYD43m_c5Zt9-MwhpRBxGPAZaDDKJ-A82YuFUM0XpoKwoVA/s1600/IFT+(5).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUK_QX6AoZ4lEffKoIqNr-deDP8_jkY-iu9xSmrP3fgWN_CjOx8bwkoVpdlAvdf28THjbuRD1A2rjFS9KOZ32mAnmW9JisYD43m_c5Zt9-MwhpRBxGPAZaDDKJ-A82YuFUM0XpoKwoVA/s1600/IFT+(5).JPG" /></a><br />
Sure, it's tasty, but it lacks any sort of caramel flavour. And sure, maybe this snack can prompt kids to eat more "fruit" (does this even count as a serving of (fresh) fruit, though?) but I dislike the marketing techniques and the fact that there is packaging. Fried apple in a packet. Other products on this line include fried pear in a packet.<br />
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An apple is just less convenient, right?<br />
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5. Peppadew Sweet & Spicy Potato Chips<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzitQkEJodXwb2FdF8Qy-BZhU4STKa_Si33AzdmZlm8oGlgE7NNP-xFAIv4Mb4-vGPgDPMGj75jiITcVyXNO6Eoimm2TbmL6YU1nzTM6lGjPVbLVFWacPQpwRx1dN-ZEOcbNdJZDrsVAM/s1600/jul31+(31).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzitQkEJodXwb2FdF8Qy-BZhU4STKa_Si33AzdmZlm8oGlgE7NNP-xFAIv4Mb4-vGPgDPMGj75jiITcVyXNO6Eoimm2TbmL6YU1nzTM6lGjPVbLVFWacPQpwRx1dN-ZEOcbNdJZDrsVAM/s400/jul31+(31).JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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These are sour. Like, pickle sour. But, after frantic chewing, the potato starch itself is sweet. They're also pretty spicy and umami. Absolutely delicious!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggGGhmn_a3fN_BjCHnlHYRJn3YwtqWxt5toAzzWbIWoTEhkZkCTKT3adk53kehg8gwquzf8p_X4blmSmuLhNpDBgeJIHchtwOOIvhTQR__AZpJR4eZQrxe9DY9kvYo7Od6OwX1WiwWAdA/s1600/jul31+(33).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggGGhmn_a3fN_BjCHnlHYRJn3YwtqWxt5toAzzWbIWoTEhkZkCTKT3adk53kehg8gwquzf8p_X4blmSmuLhNpDBgeJIHchtwOOIvhTQR__AZpJR4eZQrxe9DY9kvYo7Od6OwX1WiwWAdA/s400/jul31+(33).JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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6. Limon Cheetos<br />
Well, these are lime flavoured but I had been under the impression that "limon" is "lemon". I forgot to take pictures of it. The Cheetos smell like barbecued or rotisserie chicken. You know how Cheetos are bright orange? Well, these are bright red. They taste sour (like lime) and spicy, but are NOT cheesy.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-87949463258744827632013-07-31T17:35:00.001-04:002013-07-31T17:35:29.810-04:00Chocolate Turkish Taffy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5JyyhF53-KfqZwBKnZYGOjEJXoEuon0ymHxuc8FDa-gBh9hBR1qEDcBmNcQaksGcQLiHJhU3bGE1W2FjbO7uefYZ9ugyCNwbG80ofMVOHjnVKpMgatyyrA0hMxQoE7UZCL9m2UICioEc/s1600/chicago13+(14).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5JyyhF53-KfqZwBKnZYGOjEJXoEuon0ymHxuc8FDa-gBh9hBR1qEDcBmNcQaksGcQLiHJhU3bGE1W2FjbO7uefYZ9ugyCNwbG80ofMVOHjnVKpMgatyyrA0hMxQoE7UZCL9m2UICioEc/s640/chicago13+(14).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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Yippee, novelty candy! Turkish Taffy is this airy, slightly porous, dense marshmallow-y light sugar candy that is advertised to be snappable. The idea is that you hit the bar against a hard surface, causing it to shatter. Then, you eat the pieces of the bar. I chewed the pieces because that's how I eat candy. The bar had a really clean break, which is interesting for a candy with the consistency of hard caramel and the flavor of cola.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ5aFNV6sRMIvgWW-wK-UW_xqDUjMHPqJot5QeBIbiOKfkUEGcS2_boywVWrHS9Dw743tlA_ix6MOW_K_Ufm_4XwtvJusuCF6unewO-MAtyipNHmQh-mV65uTh2x0nTRmmYu0R6UoYvb8/s1600/chicago13+(15).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ5aFNV6sRMIvgWW-wK-UW_xqDUjMHPqJot5QeBIbiOKfkUEGcS2_boywVWrHS9Dw743tlA_ix6MOW_K_Ufm_4XwtvJusuCF6unewO-MAtyipNHmQh-mV65uTh2x0nTRmmYu0R6UoYvb8/s640/chicago13+(15).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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Good candy bar for angry or violent people. And non-angry non-violent people.<br />
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It is definitely preferable to hit the candy while it is still wrapped, or else you get chunks all over the floor and table.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-35754248673588811322013-07-30T16:03:00.002-04:002013-07-30T16:07:22.586-04:00"Real People" Dinner<div style="text-align: justify;">
At a Discussion Dinner for my program, I was making a point and rambled that we first pilot test our food/solutions in our lab, and then, after approval, "give the test to real people." This phrase became the butt of a handful of jokes later in the discussion, and I am now ostensibly the lab assistant of a lab that has "non-real" people. On a related note, AK distinguishes "real people" food and lodging from college kid living conditions. "Real people", for example, have vapid paintings on their walls, and don't eat ramen-with-poached-egg. In a clutter of spontaneity and thoughtful planning, we managed to have a remarkably posh "real people" dinner on the porch of his house, complete with neither tablecloth nor napkin. Actually, apart from the food and sunset, everything else was rather "college kid"-style (including Christmas lights). However, the food is the only thing that matters and it's neat choosing not to pay for perfect plating and swanky music.</div>
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Unfortunately, as is frequently the case this summer, I didn't have my camera, so these phone pictures will have to suffice.</div>
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<b>The Menu</b></div>
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Not-Crusty-Enough Baguette with Camembert</div>
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8 Oysters (4 Chesapeake, 4 other)</div>
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Ribeye Steak with Mushrooms and Steamed, Buttered Spinach</div>
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<b>The Oysters</b></div>
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Oysters are really expensive to order at restaurants. At Simeon's, oysters are $37.50/dozen (I think). At Wegmans, however, they are only $1. Although this sounds perfectly ridiculous (because an entire box of mac and cheese is $1), consider ordering 6 cooked-from-frozen mozarella sticks for $7.99+tax+tip from a generic casual-style restaurant. And they revel in it.</div>
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The woman at the Wegmans seafood counter was very nice and explained to us that one of the oyster types was more briny than the other. However, I don't remember which was the more briny one, and I don't remember the name of the other oyster type either. Suffice it to say that 4 of the oysters looked more textured and wavy while the other 4 looked neat and tidy. '50s conservative, vs. '60s whoot-whoot, if you will. Although the two types of oysters came in different nets, I ended up mixing them due to a memory lapse. In another memory lapse, I put the oysters in the freezer, only to realize 20 minutes later that oysters should probably not be frozen because the oysters were still alive (maybe?) and that frozen scallops (and other seafood) have a terrible texture, so why not oysters? So, they were promptly moved to the fridge.</div>
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However, obtaining oysters is not the main problem. Opening them is. I didn't see the point of purchasing a $20 oyster opener, and I was confident that we could pry them open <i>somehow. </i>The woman at the counter suggested using a screwdriver. She also said that legally speaking, she could only tell us to eat them cooked. I found this humourous.</div>
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We tried using a butter knife and another sharp knife to pry open the oysters, before AK found that a 3/8-inch drill-bit (flat) works perfectly as an oyster opener! You gently poke the drill-bit between the bottom (corner?) of the oyster, and then gingerly wiggle the drill-bit around the perimeter of the oyster.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9jL1S0mFPUTP2PiD0IsG3YCtshgLhGn2HX9CW1XGooiO1n-geMx-pCzbaL4FDWksTu3IYILJ3UfTdHJQ5-Df5AQAcZCYcDoKfVGGgXdsGaup7Nf-OqKBCwF23W3Ay0vJQsb2LBHJMjI/s1600/WP_000428.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9jL1S0mFPUTP2PiD0IsG3YCtshgLhGn2HX9CW1XGooiO1n-geMx-pCzbaL4FDWksTu3IYILJ3UfTdHJQ5-Df5AQAcZCYcDoKfVGGgXdsGaup7Nf-OqKBCwF23W3Ay0vJQsb2LBHJMjI/s1600/WP_000428.jpg" /></a></div>
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After a short amount of time (much less than the time taken to get to a restaurant, order food, and wait for food), we had our oysters! They sat in the fridge on ice, covered with a plate, for about an hour until we ate them.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuTgHtnkwki7Q5fRNUFgS6doG6iO6c0W6cEqxkEYS4CRFbTl9ZyRWCcHnUBKpNIdmZTOR_yxiXW68exuIv1Zo8XwaQza-n5byjxPA4lDGL5-I-xVms-iL-0TaeiKHilveXKPfEjGpZZ_o/s1600/WP_000431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuTgHtnkwki7Q5fRNUFgS6doG6iO6c0W6cEqxkEYS4CRFbTl9ZyRWCcHnUBKpNIdmZTOR_yxiXW68exuIv1Zo8XwaQza-n5byjxPA4lDGL5-I-xVms-iL-0TaeiKHilveXKPfEjGpZZ_o/s1600/WP_000431.jpg" /></a></div>
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The camembert was good because the rind was bland. That's probably not how it's supposed to be, but is agreeable towards my preferences. The steak was good. There were chunks of fat in it, and little blobs of mushroom and garlic. The spinach was made by steaming in this collapsible colander/steamer (like <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx5Fny7HHQUMkSwCSVM6XvBwSywTf0OxI-h3LSK_rBi4YvXqDfU8Ye7QIkKz6QYoyv4IcJuSuzRaCp9OD_oCOaP600V7bn2n5oXfVWJNv3McFAy06w57TvYpiaAkqaWxQT9Dt_8bFWNZpG/s320/IMG_0746.JPG" target="_blank">this</a>), which I think is super nifty device!</div>
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This was so fun!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaI27xw_3qgi1hsalPTzXGASV4m2w8mppOh1HWcguqdG7QpF1B4k4vzFtSEhMvTKfai3wsb0nIYrwPcKdohGhecVx9KMTJd3pOGYxCLc61OFco9YV60oNGUdyjzdugQurvO20gxD3qsgc/s1600/WP_000439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaI27xw_3qgi1hsalPTzXGASV4m2w8mppOh1HWcguqdG7QpF1B4k4vzFtSEhMvTKfai3wsb0nIYrwPcKdohGhecVx9KMTJd3pOGYxCLc61OFco9YV60oNGUdyjzdugQurvO20gxD3qsgc/s1600/WP_000439.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-24255942283436937852013-07-28T17:53:00.003-04:002013-08-05T14:26:45.235-04:00Carriage House Cafe<div style="text-align: justify;">
(No Pictures...but a milestone!)</div>
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Brunch: my least favourite meal of the day because it means that I didn't wake up early enough for both breakfast, second breakfast, AND lunch. However, brunch at the Carriage House Cafe this afternoon was quite a relaxing and novel experience.</div>
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Carriage House Cafe is a restaurant that offers local food. It is blatantly obvious when pointed out, on Stewart Ave, but is otherwise camoflauged because it has no blatant neon sign and it is painted an olive green that matches the nearby trees. It kind of looks like a barn, and the front door is difficult to open. The interior is both bubolic (with stone brick walls, lazy fans, and a winter scene painted on a giant saw) and old-school modern (with typewriters, a turtle lamp, old-style radio, and glass tables), if that's even a style.</div>
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It was really busy when we arrived at noon, so we either had to wait upstairs (really pretty, natural lighting, clean, quaint), or sit at the couch. We decided that we might as well eat at the wooden coffee table with the velvet, paisley-seated couch with plump beige cushions in which you could lose yourself (or your wallet, haha). It felt a little uncanny to be about 50 cm lower than everyone else seated at tables. Maybe it just seemed too casual. If the entire restaurant were couches and beanbags... well, then, <i>that's </i>a business plan.</div>
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The locally-killed animals included salmon, cow, pig, and rabbit (there may have been others but I don't recall...). As I have never been offered the opportunity to try rabbit, I was in quite a quandary. I like rabbits. They're cute. I frequently consider getting a pet rabbit after I graduate. Heck, a rabbit face is on my login screen! So...no rabbit, rabbit pate, or rabbit sausage? What a eerie feeling, which was soon overwhelmed by my animalistic desires to try new animals and not be a hypocrite (because I eat cows. Why not rabbits?).</div>
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I ordered the breakfast sandwich, which was an apple and rabbit sausage, egg (I asked for poached), and salad lettuce, served in house-made ciabatta (one side coated in butter, the other side with some mildly spicy mustard mayonnaise), with fried potato chunks on the side and homemade ketchup. The apple and rabbit sausage was really good. It was slightly peppery, and the apple cuboids were the size of rice grains. The rabbit part was very juicy, chewy, and sausage-like. It was kind of like eating a cow burger patty, but more fatty and chunky. I wonder which part of the rabbit they used. I would assume that the legs would be too muscular, thus rendering the patty too lean if they used it. But then, where <i>do </i>they use? The poached egg were great. The ciabatta was perfectly crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside, with lots of holes. The butter soaking into the ciabatta made me question why <i>I </i>never buy good butter to put onto my toast - or rather, why I never eat buttered toast in the first place. I also really enjoyed whatever mayonnaise sauce thing they threw on the other half of ciabatta.</div>
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The potatoes and ketchup were pretty good. Perfectly fried.</div>
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I also tried a slice of bacon which was pretty thick and not very fatty. It was pretty good but a bit too salty.</div>
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Overall, I currently do not regret adding rabbit to the list of animals I've consumed, though I think I prefer lamb more. The list is:</div>
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Cow</div>
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Pig</div>
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Chicken</div>
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Duck<br />
Goose</div>
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Lamb</div>
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Various fish (eel, salmon, etc.), but not shark</div>
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Various other seafood and crustaceans (clams, mussels, oysters, squid, octopus, in various states of rawness)</div>
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Turkey</div>
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Quail</div>
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Snake</div>
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Turtle</div>
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Rabbit</div>
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Contrary to stereotypes, I have not tried kangaroo or dogs or cats. Possibly because of the stereotypes, I would prefer to keep it that way for now.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-48144135343840808532013-07-25T13:34:00.000-04:002013-07-25T13:34:26.171-04:00Sustainability in the Food Industry<div style="text-align: justify;">
One of the presentations at the <a href="http://pie-314.blogspot.com/2013/07/institute-of-food-technologists.html" target="_blank">Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Conference</a> was about sustainability in the food industry. I care a lot about sustainability (specifically waste management and reduction), and it <i>has</i> occurred to me that there are careers in this area in food. I think that one of my college application essays said something about that, actually, back when I felt more optimisitc and full of potential.</div>
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Ah, here we go:</div>
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<span style="color: #355e00;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">The
chance to learn and research about crop production in relation to
both the local biological impacts and domestic and foreign economical
aspects would provide me with deep and broad insight. I would have
the opportunity to change an agricultural or business practice,
although I already frequently boycott or contact companies such as [company name redacted] to recommend that they use less processing in
products. As a potential biotechnologist with a detailed
understanding of the economy, I aim to promote fresh, varied food
that is healthy, beneficial for the environment, and economically
viable for efficient production and storage.</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
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Well, that bombastic essay resulted in my rejection to the LSM program, which in retrospect, is a relief. In any case, at the Expo, I went around a bunch of booths asking about their sustainability initiatives, or what people in that area do (i.e. I need a job). Sure, product development is engaging and interesting too, but I would feel more useful to the world by researching or developing more sustainable packaging or food production methods. So let's swivel back to the sustainability presentation.</div>
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I got there a bit early and sat in the second row because the first row was occupied by a woman and her daughter. I watched them as they chatted. Soon, it occurred to me that the woman was the one who was giving the speech, and later, it hit me that she was actually extremely important. By this time, I had lost my chance to introduce myself to her, and after her presentation, she and her coworkers left. On the bright side, I had a neat conversation with her 11 or 12 year-old daughter.</div>
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So, rule number 1: If the person doesn't look busy, introduce yourself. You could be speaking with the Senior VP of Starbucks. And indeed I could've been.</div>
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Dr. Mary Wagner gave an interesting but broad presentation about coffee-growing sustainability efforts by Starbucks. I would've liked to have a chat with her afterwards because I had a lot of questions.</div>
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She started off by distinguishing between the Arabica and Robusta beans. Starbucks uses only Arabica beans. My notes say something about the coffee cherries being handpicked, and the only part of the cherry that is kept is the coffee bean. I wanted to ask whether there are efforts to develop applications of coffee pulp and skin (because in the dairy industry, they used to discard whey until they realized that protein powders were an enormous market). This would be the kind of research I'd like to do and would find fulfilling (perhaps). </div>
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The coffee is grown on hilly land +/- 20 degrees from the equator. Coffee is susceptible to this fungus that causes "coffee rust", a disease that has something to do with lack of water. Of course, water (over)usage is a huge problem in the world. There are actually two kinds of processing, dry and wet, and a goal is to make dry-processed coffee taste like the wet-processed version and therefore minimize water usage.</div>
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I wonder, do they compost the coffee cherry skins and pulp? Do they use fertilizers? What happens when the nutrients in the soil are gone? Move to a higher patch of land? Doesn't this immensely increase transportation costs?</div>
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Apparently, a factor with which Starbucks is currently toying is the growth of coffee plants at higher altitudes. They're trying to figure out how this would affect taste, water usage, growth conditions, etc.</div>
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After this flurry of overview, there was time for three questions, so I asked whether the hills from which Starbucks obtains their coffee uses any sort of crop rotation. Apparently not. I also wanted to ask whether the topsoil is affected by coffee planting, and whether there is erosion occurring because of the lack of deep-rooted trees. I mean, I had plenty of questions...enough for a coffee chat. Looks like I'm finally learning about the importance of networking and grown-up/professional, extroverted things like that.</div>
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The second presentation was by Dr. Ruben Morawicki, and the idea that stuck with me was this: "A practice can't be "more" or "less" sustainable. It's either sustainable or not." Yet, I think he also meant that there <i>are</i> more "sustainable" processes than others (e.g. superflous water consumption does occur).</div>
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There was this spider graph (<a href="http://www.emeraldinsight.com/content_images/fig/1770130601002.png" target="_blank">like this</a>) which is used to compare products based on their energy usages/other metrics. I had never heard of spider graphs before, and I am instantly fond of, and will use, this method for decision making (yes, even for trivial things such as what to have for luncheon).</div>
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The third presentation, by Dr. Jason Hill, discussed biofuels. The take-away message was that people oversimplify everything. When someone asks what's "better" for the environment, we need to define "better". Better for the company (more profits, but also less innovation and a shadier public image)? Better for the consumer (more convenient, but ridiculously expensive, OR, less convenient but cheaper)? Better for the earth (but more difficult to make this practice work on a large scale, therefore contributing no net "betterment")? </div>
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It makes me wonder, and then feel rather helpless.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Citation: Wagner, M, Morawicki, R, Hill, J. Research Needs for a Sustainable Food System. Institute of Food Technologists Conference and Expo 2013. S503 McCormick Place. July 15 2013.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-47444110713243724752013-07-24T23:26:00.000-04:002013-07-25T11:50:47.848-04:00Rulloff's RestaurantYay, dinner at a restaurant-bar-type place: <a href="http://www.rulloffs.com/" target="_blank">Rulloff's</a>. Do I feel like an adult? Do I feel comfortable with a beer at the table (not on my side)?<br />
What a peculiar lifestyle.<br />
We sat at a table next to the only wall-window in the place. Happy Chowder-TV-show type music played in the background, which later switched into some sort of jazzy fling. There were ceiling fans, dim lighting, and a dusty cabinet.<br />
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I asked for clam chowder because I've had a fortnight-long craving for it (specifically, in a bread bowl, but they don't have bread bowls). However, I was later told that they had run out from lunch time. This was completely fine with me. I know this happens. At least they make it fresh?<br />
AK (not to be confused with AK from high school) got French Onion Soup which tasted pretty good.<br />
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He also got a pulled pork sandwich and sweet potato fries. The pulled pork sandwich came in a burger bun, which was unexpected but extremely tasty. I had no idea that pulled pork was so succulent and the BBQ<br />
sauce wasn't overwhelmingly sweet. I also haven't had sweet potato fries in 2 years and these were excellent.<br />
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Instead of clam chowder, I got the California burger with potato fries. The burger had a smidge of guacamole and baby sprouts which were pretty good since I've only ever had mung bean sprouts that <a href="http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100518121506/recipes/images/9/92/Bean_sprouts.jpg" target="_blank">look like this</a>. The cow part was also really chewy and umami. It was a nice meal except I felt a bit hurried. Maybe I eat too slowly, or maybe the waitress was bored. We weren't left alone for more than 10 minutes at a time. I kinda wish the place was more crowded (though, as primarily(?) a bar, the place was near empty at 7 pm) so that I would've had an entire hour or two to nibble on food and people-watch.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-7199304659124993162013-07-23T13:08:00.000-04:002013-07-26T14:43:33.311-04:00Chicago Food!More about Chicago Food during the <a href="http://pie-314.blogspot.com/2013/07/institute-of-food-technologists.html" target="_blank">IFT Conference</a>! Man, how I wish I could've stayed here longer to eat more!<br />
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1. Giordano's - Special Deep Dish Pizza<br />
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Here I was, jumping around excitedly like a 5 year-old at the planetarium! "Oh deep dish pizza! I've stalked you on Wikipedia and Google Images for years... and now I can finally have you!" For a busy, famous restaurant on a sunny Friday afternoon, Giordano's managed to squeeze the 12 of us into one large booth, without reservations and only a 15 minute wait. The food did take a while to arrive, which was completely acceptable. Although there were various other foods on the menu (Italian roast beef sandwiches, soup, thin crust pizza, etc.), we were all set on ordering deep dish pizza. We ordered three medium pizzas and 2 plates of fried calamari + lemon + green beans + onion(?). The calamari was good (but isn't it always?) while I found the green beans to be really soggy. After one is done with the appetizers, the waiter/ess comes and whisks away your plate. We learned this the hard way after JT's plate was nabbed, even though he had already sprinkled herbs, parmesan, and other condiments onto his plate, ready for sticking to his slice of pizza.<br />
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The medium pizza was meant for 3-4 people, so we divided ourselves up according to preferences. My group and I ordered the "Special", which was mushroom, green pepper, onion, and sausage. The other two pizzas were pesto + chicken(?) and half mushroom, half something else. Ah, I appear to have not paid attention.<br />
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The pizza arrived on a metal plate that fit over a plate-chair, underneath which there was a cake pan full of condiments. RN joked about taking away the cake pan for cooking back at Cornell.<br />
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I consumed a wondrous quarter of deep-dish pizza (with one issue)! The bottom was a thick, bready crust, topped with plenty of onions and peppers and exactly 5 measly chunks of sausage, topped with a thick layer of cheese, topped with tomato sauce. The cheese was extremely stretchy and the crust was perfectly doughy and crusty (with the bottom being noticeably undercooked and floury). However, I did not encounter any sausage until I was 3/5 done with my slice (or 4/5, if you consider only the saucy part, and not the crust). I guess they only sprinkle the sausage on the perimeter. I am not entirely happy with the fact that there were only about 20 grape-sized chunks of sausage in the entire wheel of a pizza, but otherwise, I was satisfied and rotund.<br />
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[UPDATE 7/26: My brother's friend agrees with me regarding the dearth of sausage on the pizza]<br />
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That evening, I found another pizza place but I didn't try any because I was still digesting my luncheon.<br />
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2. Portillo's - Chicago-Style Hot Dog<br />
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The next day, I went out exploring all the great grocery stores and streets of Chicago. Chicago <i>really </i>likes revolving doors. I happened upon Portillo's on my way to the Doughnut Vault. Portillo's is in this indoor courtyard-type place, with old-style interior design which was part barn, part street, and part sqalid close-knit neighborhood. There were ribs, frozen custard and Italian roast beef sandwiches along with the classic Chicago hot dog. Portillo's opens at 10:00, and I chanced upon it at 10:08am. By that time, there had already been 17 previous orders! 20 to 30 people were milling about, eating or waiting for their food, while cheerful swing(?) music pranced around in the background. At one table, a group of 4 ate hot dogs and drank beer from giant goblets. The person in front of me asked for ribs, only to be told that one could only get ribs at the adjacent food stand.<br />
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The hot dog sausage was very normal. Boiled. Boring. The intriguing parts of the Chicago hot dog are the poppyseed bun, the pickle spear, and the various plant items in it. Overall, the hot dog was underwhelming. Just ok.</div>
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There was also an advertisement for garbage salad.<br />
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3. Doughnut Vault - Chestnut Yeast Doughnut and Coconut Old-Fashioned Doughnut<br />
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I love the Doughnut Vault! The entire setup is perfectly comical. Outside the literal hole-in-the-wall, painted on the brick is this a bright and humble menu. I arrived at about 10:45 am. As I walked in, the letterbox on the door facing the wall had two slots - Love Letters and Hate Mail. Cute, I thought absent-mindedly, as I heard a voice say that I had just beaten the Saturday morning crowd. It turns out that the Doughnut Vault gets pretty busy in the morning, and their opening hours are determined by whether they still have doughnuts. Look at <a href="http://chicago.grubstreet.com/2011/04/win_a_golden_ticket_to_the_dou.html" target="_blank">this line</a> from two years ago! Fortunate for me, by the time I had arrived, ther were only about 6 people relaxing at the table outside the store.<br />
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To the left of the letterboxes, there was a small countertop. To the right of the countertop was a glass/mirror menu and a shelf of doughnuts hidden in a cubby. The two people at the counter were extremely friendly! The woman let me halfway past the counter to look at all the doughnuts. For a small shop, they had a wide selection of doughnuts! There were chocolate, vanilla, and chestnut yeast doughnuts, and coconut, gingerbread, and possibly some other "old-fashioned" doughnuts. I asked which kind Dunkin has (because I'm not a fan of Dunkin's Doughnuts), and she said that she didn't know.<br />
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I got the coconut doughnut, and after a small deliberation, also got the chestnut one because I've never had chestnut-flavoured non-Chinese products. I brought the doughnuts to Millenium Park to eat (but I ended up saving the Chestnut one for breakfast the next day). The smothering icing on the coconut doughnut was really good, even though I know it was probably just powdered sugar and water. There were a few shreds of coconut mingled with the icing, but the doughnut was not overall coconutty. There were small black specks throughout the icing, which could've been vanilla or some other flavouring, but whatever it added was decidedly undetectable.<br />
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It turns out that Dunkin probably does the yeast doughnuts, because I didn't particularly enjoy the chestnut doughnut texture, while the "old-fashioned" coconut doughnut was fantastically fatty and cakey.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPlERUySzj2j8L8gzpSgDCoaYNdUoRLU8paVKKQl8CfgjWE1xxcz8ch-NkXlaUn7Nc-rxIX_eFhELxPKGsoWSob-iKhAFv3yO0ubrvexfYxHRHxEAZEzjb3bib7myb9Gr8W6aJ_tHafUs/s1600/chicago13+(146).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPlERUySzj2j8L8gzpSgDCoaYNdUoRLU8paVKKQl8CfgjWE1xxcz8ch-NkXlaUn7Nc-rxIX_eFhELxPKGsoWSob-iKhAFv3yO0ubrvexfYxHRHxEAZEzjb3bib7myb9Gr8W6aJ_tHafUs/s640/chicago13+(146).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">The chestnut doughnut icing had stuck itself to the paper bag (what a pretty paper bag!) There was no chestnut flavour, so I was not a huge fan.</span></div>
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4. Grocery Stores! As you may know, whenever I go to a new place, I enjoy visiting their grocery stores to see what regional things they sell.<br />
<ol>
<li>Some small convenience store near The Wit, near under a bridge and possibly around some milkshake place. Here, there were Dill Pickle Lays Potato Chips, Limon Lays Potato Chips, and Honey BBQ Lays Potato Chips. I bought the Honey BBQ ones because I <i>have</i> tried Dill Pickle ones before <a href="http://pie-314.blogspot.com/2012/08/montreal-day-3.html" target="_blank">in Montreal</a>. They were a bit sweet but did not taste like honey. Overall, they weren't as salty or dark as normal BBQ chips.</li>
<li>Dominick's<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU5ENhBZ3Gr_AnFsmlRrvdACVydfSOivr4b5A5mHSs3Ctm0ojBHt-e-EqHnzxqQILVyWq-Z-wJcq6r0bVROvU1MWpzJF6NLdNsLoQ4TdMDZeDJQVzWpT_90-d6YPdXlx-j0fhQHDpQfnA/s1600/chicago13+(65).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU5ENhBZ3Gr_AnFsmlRrvdACVydfSOivr4b5A5mHSs3Ctm0ojBHt-e-EqHnzxqQILVyWq-Z-wJcq6r0bVROvU1MWpzJF6NLdNsLoQ4TdMDZeDJQVzWpT_90-d6YPdXlx-j0fhQHDpQfnA/s320/chicago13+(65).JPG" width="320" /></a><br />Here, I bought some Limon Cheetos because I'm pretty sure the East Coast doesn't really have them. I have yet to try them though. Dominick's was pretty nice, overall. It's still hilarious to me that one strolls in and out of the store through a revolving door.</li>
<li>Fox & Obel - This was a fancy gourmet market where there were gummy pandas as opposed to gummy bears. The entire place was dimly lit and there were so many confections.</li>
<li>Trader Joe's - Felt just like the Trader Joe's in NJ and in Philly. Bought a peach because I anticipated eating no real fruit or vegetables in Chicago. While eating the peach, I got mistaken for a local. Why, thank you!</li>
<li>Jewel Osco - I got a guacamole sample, noted the ordinary chip selection, and left.</li>
</ol>
5. The Blommer Chocolate Factory<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaIXwltkQSDqQVWTm8OpkH4Vo3FWQmANRJlYQMZu_s4RTsANSa0CO8bfVJHIVbqb5ztRBHofRUvMFxZc7sTRp1teqEdlG300UjPhSwF8Owsk2o23k-FZ1YrX7krxU0Qf4PxFl1NhzHnZM/s1600/chicago13+(93).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaIXwltkQSDqQVWTm8OpkH4Vo3FWQmANRJlYQMZu_s4RTsANSa0CO8bfVJHIVbqb5ztRBHofRUvMFxZc7sTRp1teqEdlG300UjPhSwF8Owsk2o23k-FZ1YrX7krxU0Qf4PxFl1NhzHnZM/s640/chicago13+(93).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
I purposely got "lost" in Chicago. I wasn't actually lost, because I knew that if I walked towards the tall towers (specifically, the Willis tower), I'd end up in the touristy business district. On the way there, on Kinsie Street, I saw a Chocolate Factory! As I walked towards it, the I noted a bunch of trucks, and the smell of chocolate wafted towards me. A real chocolate fragrance. Unbelieveable. At the intersection (directly opposite Jewel Osco) was the chocolate shop, open to the public.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJURK9Yfiy0pc3JoM5lBvis0NNqMSo5h0A3LGwcF4PfHKJo80OLB5LrIja4XA4g4QoYi9y6zK38huAHLOD_LYXnbX-LqTleqxsiu8qGmfXPuCUda1xAsjkcsn3Z-daJL8F2ayNzQ4P3iE/s1600/chicago13+(96).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJURK9Yfiy0pc3JoM5lBvis0NNqMSo5h0A3LGwcF4PfHKJo80OLB5LrIja4XA4g4QoYi9y6zK38huAHLOD_LYXnbX-LqTleqxsiu8qGmfXPuCUda1xAsjkcsn3Z-daJL8F2ayNzQ4P3iE/s640/chicago13+(96).JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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I wonder if they change the banner every year.<br />
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The shop had so many chocolate and non-chocolate items. The shopkeeper was really friendly. When I asked whether they sold dark chocolate by the half-pound and he said no, he went into the back and gave me a large chunk of the dark chocolate I had been eying. It was pretty good, and I was satisfied. He also said that all the chocolate-covered things are not manufactured by them, but they <i>do</i> cover the things (Oreos, nuts, dried fruit, espresso beans) in their chocolate. They had quite a selection of chips, chunks, blocks, bars, and sugar free delicacies.<br />
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I was debating between (dark?) chocolate-covered espresso malt balls or chocolate-covered brownie chunks, and ended up buying half a pound of the malt balls because I can make chocolate-covered brownies myself! They are thickly covered with this soft, compound chocolate coating that doesn't taste very much like coffee. There is only a faint coffee aftertaste. texture is more like hardened ganache than chocolate. It's not bitter at all, which is uncharacteristic of dark chocolate. The bright side is that the malt balls are <i>NOT </i>like Whoppers (i.e. they lack that bizarre waxy mouthfeel).<br />
Incidentally, I met the Blommer company at the IFT Expo and they gave me (and everyone else) an ice cream bar.<br />
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6. IFT Reception and IFTSA Mixers<br />
My take on the Chicago hot dog.<br />
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My take on the Italian roast beef sandwich. It was good.<br />
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Had my first jalapeno popper. </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-18534570075309341382013-07-22T15:59:00.000-04:002013-07-25T11:53:49.363-04:00Taste of ChicagoI love Chicago (or at least, the touristy areas I visited)! My fellow students and I went to Chicago for the <a href="http://pie-314.blogspot.com/2013/07/institute-of-food-technologists.html" target="_blank">Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Conference</a> (which was<br />
fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!<br />
NOTE!! MY<br />
!!!!!EXCITEMENT!!!!!<br />
BY THE SUNDRY EXCLAMATION MARKS!!!!)<br />
and we had a couple of free days to lounge around and explore Chicago. So of course, I drank it all in and spent more time wandering around the city than in my comfortable half of the hotel bed.<br />
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Our trip coincided with the Taste of Chicago Festival near Millenium Park. This reminded me of the BBQ Festival in NYC I stumbled upon many years ago (I didn't try anything there that time, though), except that it was more diverse. Apart from the plain-cheese deep dish pizza, there was also lots of cliche Asian fare, African goat + plantain stew things, and frozen bananas on sticks (wrapped in opaque plastic packaging, so they probably didn't hand dip them an hour prior...).<br />
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For $8, one could obtain 12 tickets. Food samples/servings were about 4 to 12 tickets. Bottled water was 6 (or was it 8?) tickets, and there were no water fountains. There were free samples of juice and tea that certain companies were distributing, and I did have my reusable water bottle, so I was not entirely dehydrated. The hand-washing stations outside the portable toilets stated "Water is not potable".<br />
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Coincidentally, everything I got had chicken in it.<br />
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I did not get anything from here, but the slogan is pretty Good (see what I did there?). </div>
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Classic Chicago-style hot dog, lacking ketchup.</div>
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I got a tamale here but I didn't get to eat it until I returned to the hotel. It was just ok. The chicken was kind of stringy, dry, and tough. Is that how it's supposed to be in tamales? In 粽子(zong4 zi3), the meat is usually pretty overcooked and stringy, and I don't find that texture very enjoyable. The corn part was good though! 4 tickets.<br />
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I found schnitzel! I've wanted to try schnitzel ever since Chowder (the TV show)! I was pretty disappointed. It just tasted like a crunchy-coated chicken chunk that was kind of tough and bland. What happened to thin slices? Pummelled with a hammer? Tender? So maybe this was mediocre schnitzel, or maybe I find schnitzel banal. 4 tickets.<br />
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Finally...chicken etouffee with rice! I've never had etouffee before. The broth was extremely flavourful! It was simultaneously mellow, smooth, and a crazy explosion. The chicken was just ok though; slightly tough. I will try crawfish etouffee at the next opportunity!<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-87330187382614337952013-07-21T13:39:00.000-04:002013-07-25T11:51:43.692-04:00Institute of Food Technologists Conference 2013IFT Conference and Expo 2013. What a blast! As someone from a university that doesn't have a food science program, IFT was an eye-opener to the food science industry. I found so many aspects of food science that I had never considered, and I also learned that there <i>is </i>a career in food packaging, sustainability, and waste management. Who knew?<br />
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I'm not really sure how much I'm allowed to expose about the IFT Expo because we weren't really allowed to take pictures, and a lot of it was probably supposed to be confidential information. However, I can give an overview of the program. We had an opening ceremony on Saturday the 13th in the evening, where the current and next IFT president talked to us, and we watched a bunch of videos to much fanfare music. We then had a networking reception with snacks. Each day of the conference, there were presentations, poster sessions, product development competitions, and the Expo. The Expo is basically thousands of booths (7 football fields, apparently), each showcasing their products and looking to sign a deal with some consumer company. According to my friends, these people would start off all cheery, but lose interest as soon as they learned that we were students. I only found that this occured in about 17% of the people with whom I talked. Most companies were willing to chat, answer my questions (interestingly, a lot of people were in Sales/Marketing, so they didn't know how to answer my technical questions), and give me samples and point me to more information.<br />
I obtained many samples. Stevia seems to be a big research area currently. In reviewing my samples, half of them were sweet items (brownies, chocolate, cereal, granola, dried fruit, candy, gummies) that had been modified to include more fiber, less sugar, more vitamins, less fat, more protein, less gluten...<br />
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I went to watch a student product design competition finals. I personally didn't think that the presentations were good enough to warrant this as the finals (typos, stumbling on words, overall organization), but who am I to judge?<br />
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At night, there were some IFT Student Association mixers, one at the Navy Pier and one in the Hilton. For a food science event, the food was merely ok. I feel like Google entry-level employees have better dining options than the typical food industry R&D employee, which is just silly.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-56224072337030559182013-07-06T11:32:00.002-04:002013-07-06T11:32:41.384-04:00Corning Museum of GlassWho knew the Corning Museum of Glass had food-related displays?<br />
I highly recommend the museum if you happen to be around upstate NY.<br />
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I was unaware that Pyrex is owned by Corning. It was pretty cool seeing old playsets and cookware.<br />
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There were also lots of art pieces made with glass. We saw a glass-blowing demonstration and it was fantastic.<br />
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The juicer and food bowl seem a bit impractical but I guess they're pretty.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-65976836842619816892013-06-29T13:24:00.001-04:002013-06-29T13:24:03.427-04:00Baguettes (from May)After Finals were over, I decided to make bread the night before I moved out. <i>Packing? Psh, I could do that later. </i>(But it actually turns out that I can just throw all my stuff into canvas bags).<br />
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I decided to make baguettes because I don't like turning the oven up to a high temperature at home, whereas it's fine in my dorm's kitchen where the heat doesn't cling onto you like duct tape. I also really love baguettes. All day every day.<br />
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Although these aren't exactly authentic because they're kind of dense...I think they pass. I don't remember exactly what recipe I used, and now I can't find it online, but I think it was this:<br />
10 g active dry yeast<br />
680g flour? Some mix of white and whole wheat<br />
330 ml water?<br />
Some salt...<br />
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I had to knead the dough for at least 10 minutes before everything was incorporated. Halfway through, I started to believe that there wasn't enough water (because it was pretty floury) but after a lot of kneading, the dough becomes really hydrated and sticky.<br />
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I think I let it sit for 1.5 h? Then I formed the baguettes, and let it sit for another hour. It is unfortunate that I don't remember the steps...<br />
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After rising, they go in the preheated oven with a metal container of about 50 ml water that will create a lot of steam. The steam in the oven emulates conventional baguette ovens that have steam injected in during baking. Refer to <a href="http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2012/11/19/why_does_steam_make_bread_light_and_crusty_it_slows_down_the_cooking_process.html" target="_blank">here</a> to learn why steam helps with crust formation.<br />
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I liked this so much I gave some to my GA, SP's mum, and friends. It needs bigger holes though (too dense and not as chewy at the moment).<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-49647346587787398922013-06-27T15:39:00.000-04:002013-06-27T15:39:08.645-04:00Macarons!<div style="text-align: justify;">
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On the 26th of February, I had my phone on. Those who know me know that my phone is <i>never</i> on because I don't usually text.</div>
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Coincidentally, I received a text from the preceptorials committee! Preceptorials are mini classes that occur over the semester. One can learn how to make a clay bowl, revel in philosophy, take a tour of some part of Philadelphia, or paint some mural. Every semester, I sign up for the cooking and art preceptorials, along with some other ones. The problem is that most preceptorials have size limits, so I usually get waitlisted for all of them. However, here was a text telling me that I was off the waitlist for the macaron preceptorial that evening, and that I could participate if I wanted to! So, instead of studying for an upcoming midterm (Algorithms?), I decided to learn how to make macarons with 11 other students, taught by one of the guys who owns the Sugar Philly food truck.</div>
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Mararons, not macaroons.</div>
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The last time I tried making macarons, I ended up with this <a href="http://pie-314.blogspot.com/2012/07/failure-number-2-whipping-egg-whites.html" target="_blank">yummy cookie failure that was stuck to the pan</a>. Since then, I had actually tried macarons (in Montreal and at a Wharton Supply Chain Conference that I went to, hoping to meet some R&D people from Pepsi -well, <i>that </i>didn't work out).</div>
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(After baking)</div>
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This time, I was given a lot of advice on how to make good macarons. As this occurred 4 months ago, all that advice is hazy, but here are the most important notes:</div>
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<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Use a <i>large</i> metal bowl to whip egg whites.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Whip egg whites until you can hold the bowl upside down without anything falling out. This takes about 10 minutes of pure whipping.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Use gel-based dyes, not water-based ones, because they are more concentrated.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Preferably obtain a Silpat liner for the baking pan, or at least, use parchment paper.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">To even out the tops, gently hit baking pan onto table a few times.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Let macarons rest at room temperature until they become matte in colour (slightly dried out) before baking. This took about half an hour?</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">When baking, rotate the macaron pans and alternate the racks. I think we started on the top rack for 3 minutes, then the middle rack for 3, then the top rack again for 3, but I really don't remember. </li>
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(Dulce de leche filling, made by heating a can of sweetened condensed milk, in the can) </div>
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Anyway, I'm positive that there are many resources on the internet regarding perfecting macarons. The main problem causing my failure last time was that I didn't whip the egg whites long enough.</div>
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I proceeded to study for my exam while eating macarons.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-9657324872414593122013-06-26T11:31:00.000-04:002013-06-27T13:32:23.781-04:00Sei & Maine Avenue Fish Market - Washington DCYes, this happened an entire month ago, but I never got around to posting about it. This was the second Memorial Day Weekend we've spent in D.C. (see the first time in 2010 <a href="http://pie-314.blogspot.com/2010/05/dc-in-nutshell.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://pie-314.blogspot.com/2010/06/la-tasca.html" target="_blank">here</a> - I'd like to think that I've grown up more since then?).<br />
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In a nutshell, food-related events included:<br />
<ol>
<li>US Botanic Garden!</li>
<li>Teaism - my first bento box!</li>
<li>Hirshhorn Museum - giant butter!</li>
<li>Sei - fancy sushi!</li>
<li>Maine Avenue fish market!</li>
<li>Hot dog from a "70s hot dog" food cart that was bad.</li>
<li>National Museum of American History Food Exhibition</li>
</ol>
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Now, in extreme detail!</div>
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<b>US Botanic Garden</b></div>
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I love botanical gardens. I love them more than zoos. More than museums. I revel in looking at oddly-shaped leaves and brightly coloured flowers. I saw an avocado tree in real life! A pineapple plant right in front of me! This was fantastic! Sure, plants aren't cute or cuddly but it's so exciting for me to see the species that end up feeding me. Look! Marshmallow plant, even though modern marshmallows don't contain it.<br />
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<b>Teaism</b><br />
SP and I went to <a href="https://teaism.com/Restaurant/PennQuarter7.html" target="_blank">Teasim</a> for lunch. I've never had a bento box before so this was exciting! The restaurant is beautifully decorated. In the basement, a constant, relaxing flow of water supplied the granite(?) pool in which carp swam around. So, this probably isn't authentic Japanese cuisine but it was still a neat, well, "fusion".<br />
SP got the make-your-own-handrolls box. Unfortunately, the salmon was smoked. The nori was really crispy though, and I taught SP how to make the cone-shaped maki. The cabbage was pretty good, and I loved the mayonnaise.<br />
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I got the cooked salmon bento box. The cucumber was good but not as sour or spicy as usual pickled cucumber (though I typically eat Chinese pickled cucumber). The spinach was kind of astringent. I liked the salmon but I wish it were raw :(<br />
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<b>Hirshhorn Museum of Art</b><br />
Giant butter! I would love to have this as a bench or bed. My entire house in the future will have food-shaped furniture.<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.seirestaurant.com/" target="_blank">Sei Restaurant</a></b><br />
For dinner, my family (minus my dad) and I walked around for a good hour before deciding on sushi at this nondescript sushi place halfway between Chinatown and Independence Mall. However, we then decided that we wanted to go to Chinatown to eat. While we were walking around Chinatown looking at menus, debating the authenticity of whatever the restaurants offered, my sister complained about having to walk so much. At some point, she exclaimed that we should just go for sushi. A guy walking past us stopped and advised "You know, if you really want good sushi, you should go to Sei."<br />
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Welp. After some walking and much confusion ("The map says it's right there!" "I don't see it. I just see the Spanish place." "It should be right there near the corner..." "..." "Oh! It's hidden!"), there we were, shuffling down some steps into the reception area of Sei, where they have posh business cards. From the outside, all you see is a small patch of white translucent glass with the word "SEI" written in thin letters.<br />
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We were seated at a white square table in the middle of the frustratingly dimly lit dining area. We sat on plush white chairs with no armrests ("modern", I guess). There was a candle at the table. I felt like I was in a lounge/club/bar type place. Young professionals were hanging around at the other tables, though I think there was one table with little kids. This place was possibly too classy for me.<br />
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They had interesting types of rolls. We ended up trying the fish and chips roll, a salmon roll with strawberry, a typical eel and avocado roll, and another one that escapes my mind (but possibly had scallops?). My sister only eats salmon nigiri or sashimi, so that's what she got. However, she was distraught with the fact that they had already put wasabi on the rice, under the salmon.<br />
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I enjoyed the salmon roll with strawberry. It was unexpected. As this occurred over a month ago, I've shamefully forgotten most of the details. The fish and chips roll wasn't greasy at all, so it wasn't exactly what I had in mind. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the food and experience!<br />
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<b>Maine Avenue Fish Market!</b><br />
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The next day, SP and I were walking towards the paddle boat area, when he remembered that there is a fish market in DC. As I love visiting different regions' markets/grocery stores, we decided to check it out. Apparently, in the past, the fishmongers would sell the fish at the port. However, there was some rule that made it illegal to sell fish on the port. So instead, the seafood is now sold directly from the boats that are anchored to the port. Technically, they aren't "on" on the port. I lamented the fact that I was unable to buy fish to bring home (because it'd have to sit in my bag or the back of the car for 2 entire days). However, we did have some delicious oysters (2nd time in my life?) and shrimp. They have both ready-made and fresh seafood.<br />
The oysters were dislodged ("shucked" is the word, I suppose) right after we ordered them. They were very tasty.<br />
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We took the shrimp to the park/pathway near the paddle boats to eat. It was a really sunny day although it was a bit breezy, which gave a mild chill. Also, I like cocktail sauce.</div>
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<b>National American History Musem - Food Exhibit</b><br />
We got a pretty bad hot dog at a food cart on Independence Mall. It was supposed to be a "Mexican hot dog", with cheese and guacamole. We were given a hot dog with Cheez Whiz and diced unripe avocado (or maybe it wasn't even avocado. No avocado flavour). That was a letdown.<br />
However, the Food Exhibit was alright. I wish they had more original documents rather than printouts of posters, though.<br />
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I think this would be funny to sell nowadays.<br />
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I really liked this one, even though I haven't had a Frito in about 4 years.<br />
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A pringle container!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUvj0vUFLkXAFRIVRFxEj9TK4qk6LcjuaW19tVxbRlGP06yi8s6ew3-d0AEQ1nEb9iu3A7BtyaYYnalGTL80Px49hyphenhyphenJAU9Gyl3FIrsAvchtdXJS2a727K4C3ZjKQ1xEaWPWOTfuI2YRWo/s1600/dc1+(69).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUvj0vUFLkXAFRIVRFxEj9TK4qk6LcjuaW19tVxbRlGP06yi8s6ew3-d0AEQ1nEb9iu3A7BtyaYYnalGTL80Px49hyphenhyphenJAU9Gyl3FIrsAvchtdXJS2a727K4C3ZjKQ1xEaWPWOTfuI2YRWo/s320/dc1+(69).JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have never seen this for sale before, so that was cool.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6AQ1Bs1UEGFPEqS6CpoSUu3d_izNy4OxczRzNzdKK7xkZ6mVjzcx0otQyYQE1GyLYzgpgGewwRd1PpCMhpSuHY0E4Uej9FPzrkNW9JIjGfFO3EasB-t2Cy8fxa6uzRLaGGjq4Kj-GB_A/s1600/dc1+(70).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6AQ1Bs1UEGFPEqS6CpoSUu3d_izNy4OxczRzNzdKK7xkZ6mVjzcx0otQyYQE1GyLYzgpgGewwRd1PpCMhpSuHY0E4Uej9FPzrkNW9JIjGfFO3EasB-t2Cy8fxa6uzRLaGGjq4Kj-GB_A/s400/dc1+(70).JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Who knew there were so many shapes?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRT0Sk06kSO2GViTFbMFEGwPIV6HldkElknmCC7Y9H0rjBWkuV0Jewl0c5wifECEsjtYTOKMXbjPex5emW7DsbQggUje_6tVEJ0G1BNXqdV4tMHunGcItOOd16rtLScdhbbxKEFo4JSuw/s1600/dc1+(73).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRT0Sk06kSO2GViTFbMFEGwPIV6HldkElknmCC7Y9H0rjBWkuV0Jewl0c5wifECEsjtYTOKMXbjPex5emW7DsbQggUje_6tVEJ0G1BNXqdV4tMHunGcItOOd16rtLScdhbbxKEFo4JSuw/s320/dc1+(73).JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I forgot why the pins say this.<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">Taco maker.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4321198514014234189.post-90384816436605258852013-06-25T11:08:00.000-04:002013-06-27T15:10:03.827-04:00Some Ice Cream Place<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoT4aQu-pdiM0g7gS55vG8p_x0WpWR-VFDN-zJFL9kMclxUultcCHkZacOqGMWMDotgkOTQV_DFhuJxrUlFMWMR77vuH8CKXEEWyA8BR3wfBUTVM3kvi6PDJJf74guQdTReXPtFfs0HtA/s1600/100_4540.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoT4aQu-pdiM0g7gS55vG8p_x0WpWR-VFDN-zJFL9kMclxUultcCHkZacOqGMWMDotgkOTQV_DFhuJxrUlFMWMR77vuH8CKXEEWyA8BR3wfBUTVM3kvi6PDJJf74guQdTReXPtFfs0HtA/s640/100_4540.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Somewhere between Ithaca NY and Geneva NY is this ice cream store that sells wine ice cream. As I am not of age, I didn't try any. However, they also have lots of other ice cream. I bought a "small" mint chip ice cream whose scoop ended up being larger than my fist. It was also only $2.60. I'm not sure whether they make all these normal ice cream flavors on-site though, because I saw a Hershey Ice Cream sign, and the mint ice cream tasted pretty normal.</div>
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The lady at the resgister seemed a bit irked and impatient but that might've been because there were 13 of us causing a ruckus and/or paying with card (which required signature).</div>
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I am unable to recall the name of the place and I can't find it on Yelp or Google Maps. It was somewhere between Geneva and Ithaca and I think it was a sky-blue cottage off the "highway".</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcCEZZ8UPJKI_JbEYiFhtM_ZEefdAxJjlMErtLYWI9lZINxNZiz8W3VyqSeghyc9tX6i_BNxVqDQHD3Wwgv6QOJvl_8areV1OwUv9579zt1jTIDS__UshU5S9zNvqlRqzDj5bJa8Jz-4/s1600/100_4541.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcCEZZ8UPJKI_JbEYiFhtM_ZEefdAxJjlMErtLYWI9lZINxNZiz8W3VyqSeghyc9tX6i_BNxVqDQHD3Wwgv6QOJvl_8areV1OwUv9579zt1jTIDS__UshU5S9zNvqlRqzDj5bJa8Jz-4/s640/100_4541.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0