559 Days of Summer

This particular morning in the East Bay, the skies are overcast and there is even a slight mist wetting my lashes as I walk to work. I blink a few times to clear the haze. The air is saturated with humidity, and below me feet, the pavement is slightly damp. The dirt path on which I walk releases a musty, earthy smell – not unpleasant, but comforting and almost warm. Can you imagine? My ballet flats leave just the slightest imprint on dirt, and with great care, I try not to disturb the leaves that have fallen and rested there. They seem soo at peace. At ease. Happy. And I envy these leaves. Because happyness (not a typo) seems to elude me. Doesn’t it seem so fleeting? So ephemeral! So impossible to achieve. The best you can do (it seems) is to chase it, as one would will-o’-the-wisps. And every so often, you get really close, but once again, it flips and darts just beyond your reach. These past few days, I’ve been in the best of company and have been experiencing new fun things – but it seems that I am only getting spurts of happiness here and there – it doesn’t last as long as it use to. Weird, right? At one point, I thought I knew what happiness was. And now, everything just pales in comparison. My spells of “happy” use to last days, weeks, months. Now I can only count them by the hour, the minute, the second. My friend poppy said that it’s a sign that we’re no longer naive youth. Perhaps that’s it. But then again, 5 weeks ago, I was blissfully happy with myself. What changed inside of me?

Cowboy Cookies
Source: Martha Stewart
A few quick notes – this cookie recipe, though delightful in texture [chewy, crunchy, hearty], lacks in flavor. I suggest adding another 1/2 cup of sugar and another stir-in ingredient to contrast all the other flavors that seem to meld into one homogeneous thing. I chose dried cranberries which have the perfect amount of tart to balance it all out.

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 sticks butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
6 oz semisweet chocolate chunks
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
* 1 cups dried cranberries

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder.
In a stand mixer, beat butter and sugars until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Slowly incorporate flour mixture, and mix just until combined. Stir in oats, chocolate, pecans, coconut and dried cranberries. Drop rounded balls of dough onto baking sheets, giving enough space for the cookies. Bake until golden brown or about 12-15 minutes. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to rack and allowing to further cool. Enjoy!

Spicy Cajun Shrimp
Who needs Boiling Crab when you can do this at home? This is a delicious savory-spicy-tangy dish that is so easily prepared in any kitchen. The initial richness of the butter sauce is immediately cut through by a sweet-tang from the fresh lemon juice and tomatoes that brightens the dish. The last impression you get from the dish is the “after bite,” a hot kick on the back of your tongue from all the Sriracha and peppers this dish has. It’s Cajun after all. And my own touch – added lemongrass to intensify the aromatic experience. The only way to enjoy the fully sensual experience of food is to engage all the senses. This dish does just that.

Ingredients
2 lbs whole shrimp [crawfish is good too!]
1/8 cup crushed red pepper flakes
2 sticks butter, melted
1/8 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup Worchestire sauce [soy sauce ok!]
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup sugar
1 large tomato, cut into 1/4″ wedges
1/4 cup Sriracha Sauce [increase as needed]
2 stalks lemon grass, chopped into 3″ lengths
2 Thai peppers (ot hiem), julienned
paprika, salt & pepper, to taste
2 cobs grilled corn, chopped into thirds

Directions
In a small sauce pan, add all ingredients but raw shrimp, red pepper flakes and corn cobs. Test taste and adjust as needed. The liquid should be a bright red in color, be salty and tangy, and end with this wonderful sting on your tongue. The degree of that sting all depends on how much Sriracha and pepper you put in. Allow all the ingredients to simmer on the stove, allowing the lemongrass to release all its fragrance, letting the flavors meld together. Remember, cooking isn’t a science. It’s an art. Let your tongue guide you. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, season the fresh shrimp (head and shell still attached) with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Place in large pot and pour butter broth over the shrimp. Add grilled corn cobs. Let marinate for 30 minutes before cooking. On high heat, cook shrimp and broth until boiling and until shrimp is firm and red, gently stirring occasionally. Eat immediately! The broth is really good with some garlic-rubbed bread on the side.

It’s also often said that we live for those brief moments of happiness. All our hardships and sorrow only serve to make those happy moments more valuable and meaningful. Maybe that’s what this is – maybe that’s where I am now. Or maybe I should adhere to the advice of my favorite writer – Alexandre Dumas:

“There is neither happiness nor unhappiness in this world; there is only the comparison of one state with another. Only a man who has felt ultimate despair is capable of feeling ultimate bliss. It is necessary to have wished for death in order to know how good it is to live…..the sum of all human wisdom will be contained in these two words: Wait and Hope.”

Yes, I will wait and hope.
AnhD.

New Summer Day

For some, summer brings to mind long lazy days by the blue pool, sipping frothy pina coladas through a pink umbrella straw. For others, summer is a limitless trail over rugged terrain, victorious sunsets just beyond the horizon and nights bonding by a campfire. For me, summer is lush fruit, sand between your toes, and an abundance of quality time with those you might otherwise have neglected during the school year. My life post-relationship has been this unending series of catching-up and gossip, of happy hour and delicious food, of laughter mingled with a few tears – ultimately leading to the mending of a (still hopeful) heart. I think it’s healthy. I never thought that I’d be soo dependent on others. My friends and family are keeping me sane, and I could not thank them enough for that. So as a treat and to show that their efforts are not in vain, I picked fresh fruits from our garden (overflowing with plums, nectarines, and lemons- soon Asian pears, as well – hollar if you want some), and made a delicious fruit crisp. Topped it off with vanilla ice cream – Enjoy!

Nectarine Crisp
Source: Epicurious

Ingredients
Topping:
1 cup all purpose flour
6 tbs brown sugar
1 tsp grated lemon peel
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
*1/4 cup quick cooking oats [I like texture]
*1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
*1 tsp raw sugar crystals

Filling:
2 large eggs
1 cup crème fraîche [sour cream works just fine]
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbs + 1/2 cup all purpose flour
3 cups blackberries [I used blueberries]
4 medium nectarines, pitted, cut into 11/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup sugar

* not in original recipe

Directions
Preheat oven to 375*F. Butter an oval ceramic dish (about 8″x10″).
Whisk flour, brown sugar, lemon peel, salt, and oats in bowl. Add melted butter and vanilla. Combine until evenly moistened but still crumbly. Set aside.

For the filling, whisk eggs in large bowl to blend. Beat in sour cream and vanilla. Add 1 tablespoon flour and whisk to blend. I also added MORE grated lemon peel – it is just too fragrant to exclude.

Place berries and nectarines in the prepared ceramic dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup flour and sugar over the fruit and toss to coat. Pour egg/sour cream mixture evenly over fruit. Using fingers, crumble topping over fruit, distributing evenly.Bake crisp until custard is set and topping is golden brown, about 55 minutes. Let cool at least 10 minutes and up to 1 hour before serving with ice cream.

Bon appetit!

I wouldn’t say that I am HAPPY, per se. That would be misleading. I’m not necessarily emotionally stable either. It is expected – I have the right to mope, to self-pity (so unattractive BTW), to laugh and cry in the same heartbeat. But at least I’ve gotten over “despair” and am now moving on to “hope.” Hope for a different and better future. I’m 21 for crying out loud! Idealism is fuel for the young-hearted! I know what I want, and I am determined to go get it. Wish me luck!

AnhD.

For Good

Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better?
But because I knew you, I have been changed for good

Welcome back friend! It has been a while, but I am back and here to stay. I went to Carmel-by-the-Sea earlier today to reflect and mull over life and my existence (so Descartes right?). Well, the last few weeks marked my 21st birthday as well as the end of a good relationship. It was an amicable ending, but why did it end? Clearly, I have a lot to mull over. And though this is a food blog, and you were probably directed here in hopes of finding a recipe, this blog has evolved to become a dynamic record of food and life. I hope, my friend, you don’t mind…

Carmel has always been my escape. I would drive down during high school to journal or think or get a good lungful of fresh air. Even now, I go, hoping to gain some peace of mind. But as I sat on the beach today, I couldn’t help but be haunted by distant whispers of growing old together; haunted by the gentle tickle of the wind that mocked where the imprint of an embrace had been; haunted by a brilliant sunset that once illuminated kind eyes. Suddenly, everything around me seems to hold a fond memory. Every place has a story. Every food brings to mind a good time. Even my sanctuary, Carmel, was invaded by these memories. Yes, it would seem as though my existence had been reduced to nothing more than shadows of the past. But not so, concerned friend – it is merely a part of the healing process. The other part consists of (do I even need to say it?) kitchen therapy

Traditional Marbeled Loaf Cake
Source: Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients
2 cups + 2 tbs flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 sticks butter, room temp
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup whole milk
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted

Directions
Preheat oven to 325F. Butter and flour a 8.5X4.5X2.5″ loaf pan and place on 2 stacked baking sheets.
Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
With a stand mixer, beat butter until smooth and fluffy. Add sugar and beat for 3 minutes until light and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time. Beat in vanilla. Reduce mixer speed to low and alternately add flour mixture in 3 additions and milk in 2 additions. Mix only until incorporated.
Divide batter in half. Mix melted and cooled chocolate into half the batter. Keep the other half plain. At random, spoon plain and chocolate batter into loaf pan. Use a table knife and add zigzags/swirls through the batter.
Bake for 75 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Tent with foil as needed. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before unmolding, then cool on a rack to room temperature before consuming.

I made 2 of these loaves, and they were gifted to special relatives. I also made some good cranberry oatmeal cookies for friends (who coincidentally are also going through breakups…) It felt wonderful. Let me emphasize, dear friend, that I am recovering from the end of a good relationship. And though I’m not sure that I’m any better of a person after the relationship, I do know I have been changed, and it has been for good. Thank you 45,000+ friends for visiting and reading. Let us continue to grow and nurture this friendship together.

Heart to heart,
AnhD.