sandwiches

This post is long overdue, but here it is. Ive been home for a while now, now I'm waiting to go to Rome, prepping my body for the overload of food that is sure to come once I'm there. Mostly I've been sitting around, lying around, rolling around, playing some video games, and watching old episodes of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch. That show really went downhill after season 3. Also my dad found a dead raccoon in our yard.

The last week and a half of school, Neal and I were seriously running out of food but didn't want to go grocery shopping, so we pooled our resources together, which resulted in some pretty trashy food, but I promised myself that I would never talk about it to anybody. But also we made some pretty good stuff, like this BLT. It was probably the best one I've ever had, including the one from Atlas Foods.

And at some point, Danni (who I am going to miss a lot by the way if you are reading this), Neal and I went to Pho Paradise (ps everybody in Prov should go here ASAP) and got so much food for sooo cheap. Also, according to the internet, it's the only Vietnamese restaurant in RI that's good, which I believe. This is a Bánh mì (which I copied and pasted from Wikipedia, so that's how I got those accents over the letters). It has thinly sliced pickled carrots and daikon, cucumbers, cilantro, mayonaise, and pork. Also maybe peppers, but I'm not sure.

Anyway, I hope everybody has an excellent new year/decade and try not to think about it so much or else you might freak out and have labored breathing like I did last night.

thanksgiving leftover sandwiches

I know I haven't even posted Thanksgiving pictures, but there are too many and blogger takes so long to load them and I can only post 5 at a time. So here are the sandwiches Neal and I made.

Neal's sandwich, which was almost like mine but with lettuce and sopressata salami from Trader Joe's. God it is SO good.

Here is mine broken down:

Toasted white bread (normally I use rolls, but I didnt have any), turkey, and yes, turkey skin. SO WHAT

Then a layer of non-toasted white bread soaked in homemade gravy, mushroom-artichoke stuffing

Then, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and white cheddar.

Carb overload, but it feels so good. For a little while.

I would normally also put in green beans and no mashed potatoes, but I changed it a little. Then I had pumpkin pie. There was also some corn on the side, which I put in Dylan's sandwich when he came over later. I can't wait to do this again for Christmas. Thanksgiving pics to come + a surprise cake from Molly and her sister

I hope everybody had a happy Thanksgiving. Mine was fabulous, even though I missed the Purina dog show. I have lots of food pictures for you, but first, I think I'm going to go wash off the smell of turkey and bacon grease and butter off of my hands and face. I'm also going to brush my teeth because when I got home last night, I was way too full/tired to do that. So I had a little bit of salami, chewed on a piece of mint floss and fell asleep. It's ok to judge me for it. I judge myself a little bit too.

things to do once i get home

eat these sandwiches

starting with this reuben

The heat in my apartment is off and I'm trying to decide if it's worth it to take a shower and then be briefly naked in this cold. Last night I went to sleep with socks and a sweatshirt on, so I'm really leaning towards no. Thanksgiving is coming soon. Things are about to get really wild.

So when we were in New York Neal and I went buckwild and got a lot of food, and obviously we had to get Korean food. We wanted to order Korean barbecue (did you know that there is no "q" in this word? neither did I) but it was sooo expensive. So we ordered things like this instead. Blurry picture of Neal's. Read about it here

Then we saw H Mart, which is a chain of giant Korean grocery stores. At least at home they're giant, but I guess there's a lot less space in NY so it was a lot smaller and cramped, but really exciting so we decided to make our own Korean barbecue. And you can figure out what that is over here

From the top left going clockwise (I think): that's just salt and sesame oil, kimchee pre-frying, gochujang, tofu stolen from the Portfolio, squash, and lettuce that normally wouldn't be chopped up, but when you're taking stuff for free, you take what you can get. There was also a salad that I can't find, but it was a soy-saucey, lemony, wasabi-y sort of thing. I kind of made it up.


It's like eating bacon for a meal, but without the guilt because...I don't know. I probably wouldn't feel guilty eating bacon for a meal anyway so maybe it's just me.

hi friends

Maybe a week ago, maybe two, Joseph and I went to the Met. My second time this whole year, and it was great. I got mozzarella sticks and George gave me too many. I also made hamburger sandwiches because I didn't feel like buying buns. And also I saved my left over mozzarella sticks. They are so precious when you're not on a meal plan.

I made the patty a square, like Wendy's. But I don't serve severed fingers in my food.

I also went to the Print Fair, most of which I don't really remember because I spent most of my time thinking about what food I was going to eat afterward. New York Hot Dog & Coffee was the first stop. Hot dogs meet Korean food.

Neal's kimchee hot dog.

My bulgogi hotdog. It was really really good. I don't really know how to describe it. Sweet soy-sauce bulgogi + the salty hot dog + crunchy sour pickles, it was all good. I wish the buns had been toasted though.

We went and got Korean food later and some garlic knots and cream puffs and candy. But my internet is being slow, so that's another day.

We thought we saw the filming of Gossip Girl, but it turned out to be this show Glenn Close is in, so we circled the block 3 times trying to see her, but we didn't. It was too bad because Glenn Close is much better than Blair Waldorf.

Now I'm going to go take some Tylenol and try to keep breathing through the half of my nose that hasn't gotten stuffy yet. Or else I have to start breathing through my mouth and I hate doing that because it makes me thirsty and also makes me feel like that weird kid who breathes really loudly during tests and then you can't think about anything else.

I have/had mice. And so I haven't really been making that much food, but here are 2 things that I made when I wasn't at my house/thought the Jerrys were gone.

This is nacho heaven. Layers of chips and cheese, with spicy chicken chili, refried beans, olives, homemade guacamole, homemade pico de gallo, sour cream. Obviously I was too excited to eat to take good pictures.

I went over to Gianna's to make pumpkin pie, but I couldn't stay to eat the pie. It was really really terrible. We had leftover graham cracker crust crumble, and I had the genius idea of topping the pie with it. We put it on when the pie started to firm up so the crumbs wouldn't sink to the bottom. I heard it was amazing.

Print fair this Friday. New York Hot Dog and Coffee. LOOK OUT

PS Dogfish Head Pumpkin Ale, so good so perfect

desserts gone wild (why didnt anyone correct my typo)

Last weekend was Julia and Becca's birthday. There were lots of deserts that Julia made. It made me realize that wearing pants is never a good idea. Always stick to elastic waistbands or dresses

Starting form the bottom left: strawberry shortcake, pineapple and kiwi, lump of noodles, chocolate and vanilla cake (if I remember correctly), chocolate strawberries, ladyfingers with Nutella in the center, pink cupcake, I don't remember the flavor, with raspberries, and cookies with more Nutella

Orange slice jello shots

end of summer food

The last weekend home my parents and I went to breakfast at this place in "downtown" Edmonds, but I already forgot what it's called. It was really good, the potatoes were kind of bland, but I like starch, so I ate them anyway. I only wished that they didn't give me packaged butter. I don't like that. And also more bacon.

spinach and feta scramble

My dad's "Western" omelet (how do you spell this word? spell check always corrects me but I think this looks wrong)

LOX

I also made stuffed peppers. I don't really like bell peppers that much, but when they're stuffed with rice and sausage and cheese, they taste pretty good. I couldnt figure out if I wanted to stuff the whole thing, or only half, but I tried cutting the top off in a nice circle and almost cut myself, so I decided to halve them instead. :(

This picture is blurry and bad, but the steam kept fogging up my camera and this is the best I could do. There was also corn, but I forgot to put it in. Anyway, I also made mashed red potatoes with sour cream and garlic. I hope you like these super old plates from before I was born. Or maybe a few years after.

I've made some good food since I got to school, mostly with Neal, but I forgot to take pictures of it, except for this lime garlicky chicken and potatoes au gratin, but they look bad. Cooking for just myself is kind of hard, so I end up eating a lot of starch and cheese. And one time, I tried to make the Elvis sandwich (PB, bananas, bacon) but I didn't have bacon, so I used salami. It was a bad idea. But I think I have being doing an ok job of keeping myself alive. I think we're making pizza this weekend.

Did I post this?

This is an ugly picture of an ugly soup. But it's like the ugly duckling because it tasted good, which is not quite how the story goes but I think you get the idea. I made it earlier this summer. It's pea soup with ham, celery, carrots, potatoes, and onions. I made banana bread yesterday and my dad made dumplings. But I didnt take any pictures. Now I'm going back to Providence today, which I am excited about, but I also don't like leaving home because every time I come back, I love Seattle more and more. BUT I'm looking forward to eating Nice Slice and spinach bagels from Carr Haus so it's not all that bad.

Southern Kitchen

The restaurant in Tacoma where everything is fried or covered in gravy/cheese

Southern fried chicken + corn hash or something + mashed potatoes + mac n cheese
And a corncake that isn't around

Fried okra

Catfish

clean fish

On another note: this is what appears to be a BLT made by Neal with tomatoes that he grew

why

do i look at food blogs at night, when it is too late to eat/i am to lazy to make something? i am so hungry and there is no food to eat!!! this is the worst feeling in the world. i also want to try the elvis sandwich or whatever. it's peanut butter, bananas, and bacon. ugh i wish i had a personal chef. i would lie in bed all day and eat.

non dairy treats

Last weekend I was in Oregon, which is really nice, but like a less cool version of Washington. Maybe I am just starting to feel some separation anxiety. We ordered 5 whole crabs for 5 people and a pound of clams and it came with garlic butter and some other super spicy horseradish sauce. Then the guy gave us an extra crab, maybe because my crazy aunts were flashin $100 bills all over the place. But everybody, except me, was too full. So I ended up eating the most (what's new?) at 1.5 crabs and probably half a pound of the clams because everybody was too enamored with the crab to notice them. :(

It was a happy day.

Then I went to Todai a few days ago. It was good, but nothing special. The some best sushi I've had this summer/ever was in Montana, strangely enough. But my cousin is the one with pictures, so I have to wait for her to give them to me. Anyway, here are pictures from Todai:





Yesterday I went to Tilth, but I only have terrible cell phone pictures. So I guess you can expect another installment of crappy cell fone pix very soon. Now I am going to go curl up in a ball and wish that I hadn't eaten so much dairy this past weekend.

hey friends

i've been busy. then i got sick, and as I started to recover, I ate pizza for two days straight, so overall, my stomach hasn't been feeling ok. but you know, whatever. i do what i want and my stomach has got to deal. will update with pictures soon.

THE BLAT

So the plan was to go to Pallinos and get that amazing turkey pesto sandwich. But instead, I ended up at Atlas Foods which was SO MUCH BETTER and I had the greatest sandwich of my life. I think people really underestimate how hard it is to make a really good B.L.T sandwiches. I realized this at the end of last semester when I started eating lots of B.L.Ts as a way to eat a lot of bacon minus the guilt. First, the bread should be perfectly toasted and crunchy. I got a B.L.T today at Jimmy John's and it was a bad idea because their bread was all sub-by and soft. Secondly, the bacon has to be thick and crunchy but still a little chewy. I know the Met bacon is nothing like that, but if you used enough of it, it was still GOOD. But I think that was kind of obvious. Thirdly, there has to be enough mayonaise. The mayo really makes the sandwich. God, it must really suck to be a vegan/vegetarian (sorry Kayla and others). Also, I think leafy lettuces is much better than shredded lettuce.

So in conclusion, this was the best B.L.T I have ever had, except it was not really a B.L.T because there was avocados in it, making it a BLAT. It was an avocado spread, but it was perfect because it wasn't too thin or too chunky to stay in the sandwich. The 'A' could also stand for aioli, which is what they used. At the time, I couldn't remember what the difference between aioli and mayo is, but it seemed to taste better. But when I googled it, the internet told me that lots of restaurants just put aioli because it sounds better and it's almost the same thing. Except not because aioli has garlic. So my point is I don't know if it actually was aioli or if my brain tricked me into believing that it was because I thought it tasted way better.

Also, these fries were amazing. So perfectly crunchy on the outside and hot and soft on the inside. I was also happy to eat a real pickle. I have not had a good pickle since I got to RISD.

I am going to Yellowstone on Sunday. Then Banff. In a car full of 7 Asian family members, 4 of whom are my aunts, cousin, and mom. I think we all know what Asian women tourists are like. I mean, I am excited and I like my family, but I am also scared. God have mercy.

So long suckers! I'm going to eat a bison burger when I get there. I also love Canadians.

some stuff i've passed through my digestive system

So since my dairy-crisis, I have been making some things that I can eat without feeling like I want to throw up. I've also been testing my limits and currently it stands at 1 quesadilla, a glass of milk, and an ice cream, which is really not that bad considering lots of people can't even eat that. And apparently cheese is not as bad as milk, which is good news. And in regards to my hula-hooping, it has not been going that well. It is this cheap-o one from the Asian grocery store that is supposed to talk to you while you hula hoop. It is really weird and I should have just gone to Toys-R-Us. Anyway, these pictures are in no way reflective of my productivity this summer.

Yesterday I made this lemon basil chicken, but it turned out kind of funny and I didn't like it, so I used the left overs and put them in an omelette this morning with cheese, tomatoes, onions and potatoes. I thought it was good. The egg was not big enough.

I also made this lemon garlic spaghetti with tomatoes and some basil. Apparently lemon, basil, and garlic are the only 3 ingredients in my house.

This is from the day after I decided not to have very much dairy but then failed when I ate sour cream on my tacos. I made pico de gallo, which is so easy to make and also so delicious. Just chop up onions and tomatoes and cilantro and add salt and pepper. I put some garlic in mine. I also like leaving the seeds in the tomatoes because it makes it jucier. I wish I had used limes instead of lemons though. It tastes better when you let it sit in the fridge for a few hours before eating it. This picture is from before that.

This is my herb garden. There is parsley, basil, rosemary, and thyme.

These are from the farmer's market a few weeks ago. Earlier that week I was at Aarons house when I discovered that he has strawberries growing in his driveway. I ate them and they were so good... So then I had to get these at the farmer's market. The are so tiny, but so much sweeter than those giantic ones from the grocery store.


HEY someone should photoshop my pictures so I can be on Tastespotting and take over the world. They are apparently "low contrast, and not sharp." I'm not entirely sure how to make that better because I think these pictures look fine, but then again, I only know how to press the button on my camera and upload them onto my computer, so if you are bored, you should help me.