Hey Mr. Taliman, Tali Me Banana

Saturday was Yvone's bridal shower and I was in charge of fruit and cheese. I got (or rather, my dad got for me) a cheese tray and a giant bowl of fruit from Costco. I was all prepared to just open the lid and let people have at it but my mom scoffed at me and told me I needed to "display" it, make it look "nice." I think a plastic bowl would have looked classy but she shot her laser eyes at me and I conceded to her demands. So I thought hell, go big or go home right? I cut up a watermelon and put the mango, pineapple, strawberries, kiwi, grapes, strawberries, and cantaloupe around it. Freakin magical.

A Typical Monday ... err.. Wednesday Night?

So Michelle, Jess, Nick, Eddie and I do this thang where we have dinner at each other's houses every Monday. It was my turn to cook (hey-o!). It was also on a Wednesday night instead of Monday, we traded Jess for Mindy, and I thought Jager was a good follow-up to this meal (but that's the tale (tail?!) of a different beast).

Anyway, even though my camera was giving me the red-light death battery blink, I thought I could stretch out its life. I was wrong. So I had to take pics with my cell phone. But that's okay; a little photoshop makes everything better.

Here's the spread:
I made rice, tofu (marinated in my new favorite marinade that I've dubbed "the yummy"), chicken (also marinated in the yummy), garlic green beans, spring rolls with a spicy peanut sauce and a ponzu/soy/ginger/garlic sauce, and some delectable chocolate chips cookies made by the fantastic folks at chips ahoy (brought by Nick).

Here's some tasty photoshopped green beans with garlic. yum. i sauteed some garlic in some olive oil and then added what I felt was about 3 pounds of green beans. Cooked those up for a few minutes and then added some water and put a lid on it until they were bright green and had lost that raw taste. BUT I left 'em with a little crunch because that's the way I like it. Oh and there's the chicken in the back. Chix isn't the star. I didn't taste it (cuz I can't) but everyone said it tasted really good, so I'll take their word for it!

I know these spring rolls look like reject orphans of the spring-roll world, but it was only my second time making them and I was a little rushed for time. So they're not pretty. But they're tasty! Inside of these little guys are cucumbers, carrots, bean sprouts (with the ends snipped off because that stringy entrail is just gross to me), basil, mint, and tofu.

Mmm. Tofu in the yummy. This is like a package and a half of tofu. I wasn't messing around here. So you probably want to know what the yummy is. I don't know the measurements of what goes into this. I don't really measure. I eyeball. And no it's not because I'm "that good" so I don't need to measure. It's because I don't want to have to 1) find a measuring spoon/cup/whatever 2) I don't want to have to wash another dish, and 3) I don't want to have to put said dish away. It's out of sheer laziness, nothing more.

Oh that's right! The yummy. The yummy is: soy sauce, mirin (sweet rice wine), salt/pepper, red chili flakes, garlic, onions, a splash of oil (I use veggie oil, but sesame oil would be nice!), a little bit of sugar (brown if you've got it), and water. I usually let my tofu do backstrokes in this yumminess for an hour - hour and a half and then just throw it in a skillet and cook 'er up.

And there you have it. I'll make sure to charge my camera battery next time.

In the Beginning ...

In the beginning there was food, and it was great. Then came the food coma. I want to put you in a coma.

Top 5 foodie facts about me (in no particular order):

1. i am a vegetarian (since age 10. creepin' up on 15 years!)
2. i am pretty sure cheese is God's gift to not only the world, but to me specifically.
3. i dislike a lot of foods/condiments most people like. i.e. - ketchup, ranch, blueberries...
4. i think soups are the best thing ever
5. i like to look at recipes and not follow them