WOW

Nick and I just had one of the best meals I've ever cooked, which is saying something, maybe a lot. Will share about it really soon, but it's a super interesting dish. Two of the ingredients? Orange juice and gin.

YUM! Now off to watching a movie with beer in one hand and cheesecake in the other :D

Thanksgiving Photos!

I had so much to give thanks for this Thanksgiving! Awesome jobs, a great place to live in Los Angeles with amazing friends, being near my awesome boyfriend (which still excites me everyday!), family, family, and lots of good food everyday :) Thanksgiving highlighted those last two for me: good food and great family. I missed my family so, so much (and missed the medley of foods we usually have...like pizza, mashed potatoes, hot wings, enchiladas, stir fry noodles, spring rolls, and pie), but I am glad I got to spend the day in San Diego. 


Mrs. Lerum really went all out for the meal and it was not only delicious but beautiful as well. Here are some pictures to recap a wonderful celebration. 

We had several rounds of alcohol that night, beginning with the white wine :)

The beautiful place settings! :)

We can rarely get a normal, cute picture of us.

The appetizers :) There was also rice crackers with hummus mmm, mmmm, mmmmm.

I'm pretty sure I ate 1/4 of this salad by myself. It was in a huge bowl, but I made my dent because it was so delicious! Yum, asian salad with caramelized almonds and mandarins!

Baked to perfection. One of our many, perfectly prepared sides (we also had an east coast visitor in the form of baked pineapples!).

One of two massive turkeys :) Can we say turkey leftover dishes? I actually found quite a few that sound delicious! Like a turkey white bean chili soup with lime and cilantro!

My Oreo Cheesecake made an appearance that was greatly appreciated by Tom :)

And finally, the requisite pumpkin pie. We also finished off the night with some Hot Apple Pie drinks. Remember those? They were fantastic-- sitting outside at the fire pit, sipping Tuaca Italian liquer mixed with apple cider and topped with whipped cream. Not a more satisfying meal could be found...

We had many more sides, all of which rounded out the turkey excellently. And I am already looking forward to Christmas dinner and to throwing a Christmas party soon! :)

I just made amazing blueberry sugar doughnut muffins this morning before church. They taste like a doughnut in muffin form...quite amazing! And I made some fairly traditional cookies-oatmeal with peanut butter chips. Come back soon to see my posts about that! And I'll be making a fair number of thai dishes this week because we bought an amazing Gewurtztraminer in Sonoma Valley that would pair well with thai food! I'm so excited to start this week!!!

Hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving. xoxo

Finally, the long-awaited Lasagna!

And I think it's worth the wait! I am a big fan of lasagna, so liking a lasagna recipe is not a big accomplishment for me. However, Nick does not eat it with any hints of fervency (I know! And he calls himself half-Italian!) and he ended up liking this lasagna. That's a good sign of an excellent recipe. I have to admit it was much better the second time around, when we made a few changes to the original recipe.

This is a very long recipe, but I'm going to go ahead and type it in so that you can see all the changes/suggestions I made. This recipe is from thekitchn.com and it's awesome. :)

Chunky Cheese Lasagna (who doesn't like a recipe that starts with Chunky Cheese?)
Serves 10

10 dry lasagna noodles
1/2-3/4 lbs of ground turkey, beef, or meat substitute--cooked (I used 1 lb and didn't think it was too much meat at all. I did this both times, and there didn't even seem to be enough meat to cover the lasagna consistently. I am also a traditionalist so I went with meat both times. However, I am also an asian and cooked the meat with a few splashes of soy sauce, salt, pepper, and italian seasoning).
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes (I used diced instead. I like the chunky cheese to be complimented by chunky tomatoes)
1 1/2 tsp of sugar (vital, in my opinion. People don't use sugar enough when cooking. My mom was always using honey, rock sugar, brown sugar, etc. when preparing main dishes)
1 onion-diced (I used white)
1 small eggplant, zucchini, or summer squash--diced (I went with eggplant)
1 red bell pepper--diced (I used two.)
1 package of baby bella mushrooms (I omitted this. Hate mushrooms)
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup cottage cheese (avoided skim like death)
2-3 cups of shredded cheese (kitchn staff recommended a quattro formaggi combo of mozzarella, provo, romano, and asiago. You can get this at Trader Joe's. However, I used a Mexicanish blend the second time around and it was soooo much better. It's mainly a personal preference, but I usually always use mexican cheese in Italian recipes because I like the barely spicy and tangy background that Mexican cheese lends to typically fairly tomato-y and creamy (that's a lot of -y endings) Italian recipe. )
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried thyme
1/8 cup of water or chicken broth (used 1/4 cup of broth both times)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all the chopped vegetables with the spices. Everything should taste slightly salty at this point (if you try a piece).

In a 9 x 13 casserole dish or baking pan, spread a light layer of crushed tomatoes and sprinkle 1/2 (I just sprinkled 1 whole teaspoon) tsp of sugar over the top. Arrange a layer of noodles to fit into the rectangle (should be about 5 noodles). Spread half of the ricotta-cottage cheese mixture over the noodles. Then layer on half of the vegetables and half of the meat. Finally layer on about one cup of cheese and half the remaining crushed tomatoes. Repeat with another layer, reserving some cheese for the topping.

Swish the water or chicken broth in the empty can of tomatoes and dribble evenly over the top of lasagna. Cover the lasagna with a double layer of tinfoil and bake for one hour (I only needed 45 minutes of cooking time). Uncover the lasagna and add the reserved cheese. Bake uncovered for a few more minutes.

Ready for the picture after all this text??

It was really hard for Nick and I to take appealing pictures of lasagna. The main problem is we took it on leftover night, instead of when it was fresh (we had guests who were hungry! Can't blame me!)

We had a really fun dinner party this weekend, complete with a beautiful cosi signature salad (which  has been previously featured on this blog), wine, beer, and over $200 worth of Susiecakes desserts. I finally had their cheesecake, which is out of this world. They currently have sour cream and pumpkin flavors, both of which are out of this world.

I have to mention that I stopped at La Brea Bakery for lunch today and it was amazing. It was just like a sandwich shop I would have found in les rues de Paris. Tres mignon! And so delicious. I had what they called an "Autostrada" panini which has salami, prosciutto, coppa, provolone, mortadella, hot cherry peppers on country white sourdough bread. The place carries salads, sandwiches, homemade pastas, as well as an abundance of freshly baked delights. I actually had the best muffin I've ever had here. Yes, the muffin master has found her trophy muffin. It was an orange cranberry almond muffin with a sweet orange glaze. The muffin itself was crispy on top, soft and moist towards the bottom, and not too overwhelmingly sweet. I managed to enjoy it throughout the course of the day, savoring all the different flavors (and textures! there were orange peel bits and whole cranberries in the muffin) with each chew. I think I've found my hot spot in Los Angeles. :D Becca, we have to go together when you get back, if you haven't been yet.

Okay, here are some beautiful pictures of the delicious salad as well.

w

Wow, talk about a health fiesta. PARTY ON.

I bet that makes you want to eat a salad. I'm heading out now to make one for dinner. Tata!

I'm still alive!

It has been a while since I last updated but I wanted to let you know I am alive and well! Nick took to spoiling me a lot this week, so we actually ate out quite a bit and had yummy sushi and ethiopian food (oh my gosh! The Little Ethiopia here is so amazing and every restaurant on that street has gotten great reviews. Imagine 10 different Lalibela's (If you're a Yalie)). There's a vegan Ethiopian restaurant called "Rahel's" that I am super anxious to try out soon! Teddy, you HAVE to visit me so we can go there! :)

Anyways, beyond that, I've been super-enjoying my two jobs. Next week, I start the third one with an interior designer so I will be even busier! I can't wait :) Susiecakes is super awesome, as always, and I'm actually throwing a big dinner party tomorrow. I'm making lasagna again (it's great for large numbers) and I will definitely take pretty pictures (I took some last time but they didn't look that good). Guess who's catering the dessert for tomorrow? Susiecakes! I'm going to bring home everything for my guests...I've learned that my favorites include their oatmeal white chocolate cranberry cookie, lemon bar, sourcream cheesecake, pumpkin cheesecake (seasonal), celebration cake, and their lemon cupcake! I'm excited to hear what my friends prefer!

I'm also making dessert for Thanksgiving at the Lerum's house in San Diego next week. Does anyone have a good dessert recipe for Thanksgiving? Maybe a family classic you're able to share? I know I'm going to make two oreo cheesecakes (a favorite for the Lerum boys), but I'm thinking of making a pie as well!

Here is an apple pie that Erica made when she came over to sleepover the other weekend. It was fantastic and I watched her through some steps--it didn't look that hard, either! I have never made a pie before, mainly because I don't like how they taste, but this one was not too sweet, very crusty, and full of applies (10 to be exact!).

The beautifully rolled out dough :)

The massive pie, unbaked.

Sugar tossed on top, fork holes for the pie to breathe...perfect!

I should have taken a picture of a slice, but we made it as a gift! That's why I'm also a little anxious to make another one so I can cut it and take beautiful food photography!

I'm excited for Thanksgiving treats, family, and fun! I'll post again this weekend about the dinner party! Yay!

Welcome back, Marilynn

I know it hasn't been too long since I last posted but it was probably the longest hiatus I've ever taken! It's been a whirlwind week. For weeks I've been searching endlessly for jobs and was starting to settle for mediocre ones that would at least help me pay the bills. But this week, almost out of nowhere, I had four fantastic job offers. I thought it was a joke of some sort initially, but it soon became somewhat stressful as I strove to choose which one(s) to accept. I was torn and I hate saying "no" in general. It turns out I took three part-time jobs, and I'm sure I'll write more about it in the next few days. For now, I'm glad I have wonderful, exciting, super cool jobs, and that I have made up my mind and feel at peace. For now, I just want to focus on something that clears my mind and focuses it. FOOD.

I've been making some really delicious dishes lately :) I am very proud of the most recent ones. I managed to pull myself away from the absolutely perfect NYT pizza dough to try another one from the trusted thekitchn.com website It's one of my favorite food websites and they not only have great food tips in general (like using a microplane to mince garlic! and how to store basil for maximum freshness) but great recipes that they try themselves. This thin crust pizza dough was definitely a great change for pizza. It's a thin crust, but it is not too crispy. It was actually a little doughy but still flat and slightly crispy (depending on how long you cook it).

I really like the recipe because it requires no rising time, and it tastes good, too. It's amazing how intricate dough can taste when it involves a mere 4 ingredients.

These are just iPhone pictures (which are surprisingly good). The recipe makes two slightly-larger-than-personal size pizzas. Nick and I didn't quite finish ours, but it was not because it wasn't tasty. They were just a little too large for us to finish in one sitting (but the leftovers made for great lunches the next day). I topped with red onions, bell peppers, sundried tomatoes, and fresh tomatoes and mozzarella, just in case you're curious.

They actually remind me of the Yale dining hall pizzas, which is a good thing!

Another recipe I tried was a beef enchilada recipe. I was actually more interested in making homemade enchilada sauce than anything else. I usually Trader Joe's enchilada sauce, which is delectable (perfectly spiced and spicy), but this one was better. I will definitely use it for all my enchiladas.

I would say that the filling for the beef enchiladas was not as tasty as I would have liked. I followed the recipe to a tee but next time, I would add diced green chiles, chili powder, and other flavorings like nutmeg and garlic and diced bell peppers. Or, I'll most likely go back to my chicken enchilada recipe but apply it to beef. It's really a great one. Better than this recipe's filling.

But by the looks of it, these enchiladas are fantastic! The sauce and the abundant cheese and refried beans more than made up for the bland filling.

Mmmm....one of my favorite meals. So flavorful and delicious! And my boyfriend takes such great pictures!

Maybe you noticed but there are some desserts sitting behind the enchiladas. At my second day at Susiecakes, I not only sampled all 7 of their specialty cakes (my favorite is the celebration cake, but they also have Carrot Cake, Traditional German Chocolate, Red Velvet, Tropical Coconut, Marble cake, and Old-Fashioned 6-Layer Chocolate cake) and 8 of their frostings (lemon was my favorite! but peanut butter and strawberry are a close second), they sent me home with 18 cupcakes (we can actually take home as many as we want...so I am throwing a cupcake party soon!), a 7-layer bar (you remember that's one of my favorites, right?), a brownie edge (we always ask customers if they prefer edge or middle :), and a sweet heart cookie (sugar cookie sandwich with butter cream filling). I need to start working out for this job!

One of every flavor.

Top Row:

Vanilla, Strawberry, Red Velvet with red velvet crumbs, Vanilla with signature Susie Blue frosting.

Second Row: Chocolate, Pumpkin with Creamcheese, Strawberry, another chocolate.

Third row: Peanut Buter, Coconut, Chocolate Mint, and Lemon (my fave!)

I forgot to mention their seasonal sugar cookies! Right now it's a Turkey!!!

The slightly gimongous 7-layer bar.

It looks like I won't have to worry about dessert again. Ever. ;) They almost made me take home a 9-inch red velvet cake but I'm sure that I would not be able to eat all of that without getting sick or getting huge. :) But now you know who to be friends with if you want free and delicious goodies!

Sonia, I will post pictures of my lasagna soon. It was really good, but the recipe made a whole 9 x 13 pan of lasagna and Nick and I are still finishing it off. For tonight, I'll be making pad thai! YUM!

Thanks for the congratulations and the thoughts, my dear friends! I'm glad this blog makes you guys happy because that's why I keep it up! Love, ML

EEEEEEeeeeEEEeee!

So even though it's 1:30 am and I should be sleeping, I am way too excited about my new job. Susiecakes is officially my happiest place on earth; Disneyland has no hold on this bake shop. I've already told you that this place is supposed ot remind you of your grandma's homemade desserts, but I didn't realize until today how much effort Susiecakes puts into its philosophy. First of all, the best part about working here is not even the fact that I'm surrounded by beautiful and delicious things (I'm serious about the delicious part. I am not one to be biased in my judgment of store-bought baked goods (if anything, I'm too harsh on them) but this place makes stuff that tastes homemade and in some cases, even better), but the love and friendship that fills the place. One of my first criteria for any job that I apply to is seeing whether or not the company treats its employees with respect and fun. I don't care what the pay is, I'd rather work for pennies at a place where everyone is happy and respected. Susiecakes does that. We hang out, talk to each other while working, and joke around. That, in addition to the constant milieu of customers in the store, makes the time fly by like crazy. My 5.5 hour shift literally felt like half an hour. I didn't look at my watch once. To me, that's a sign of a very good job.

BUT, that's not to say that the dessert part is not fantastic. Part of my training involves eating everything that they make there. They say it's because they want me to be able to describe what everything tastes like to customers, but I'm convinced it's just because they want me to get fat. Today, they packed 6 cupcakes (picture below. Flavors: Red Velvet, Lemon, Strawberry, Coconut, Vanilla with Vanilla Buttercream and Seasonal (Pumpkin with Creamcheese frosting), three face-sized cookies (chocolate chip, iced molasses, and snickerdoodle, all soft!), whoopie pie (signature dessert), and a red velvet cake slice (also very popular). Tomorrow, I try the rest. All the days after that until I become a blimp, I have the privilege of taking home as many treats as I want. I could literally take home 100 cupcakes if I wanted (because they had about that many leftover for the food bank tonight) but I should probably share with the less fortunate.

There are my cupcakes. Thank you to Andrew, Kelsey, and Cari for helping me devour some. I like the thought of having a cupcake party every week now :)

Don't worry, I will still cook. I could probably just eat a whoopie pie for dinner every night, but I don't think Nick would be too excited about that. I actually made a fantastic lasagna tonight. I'll have to post about that soon, along with the excellent and authentic chicken tikka masala I made other night. And the new pizza recipe I just tried! Oh, so many food-related thoughts floating through my head right now! How did I ever survive without this blog?

I love you all! I'm off to finish the Twilight series. I took a break for three days because I seriously was giving up every other part of my life to read the books. They consume me. I can't wait for the premiere which is going to be a few blocks away from Nick's place next week! EEEEEE!

Life is good. No, actually, life is delicious.

Baking Post Numero Dos

Hi everyone!

Nick and I had our 3.5 year (I insisted on the half-year celebration just so we could celebrate something! It's not actually that huge of a deal to us) anniversary date last night and it was so fantastic. We went to my friend's favorite sushi place in Los Angeles. It's on this quieter street in Santa Monica but I'm so glad we are "insiders" now! The street is lined with japanese restaurants and shops and stores and other businesses. Our sushi place was totally affordable, super fresh, and really delicious. Even their vegetable rolls (which are one of my favorite rolls) were surprisingly pungent, flavorful, crisp. Thanks, Becs! :) And thank you, best friend, for a wonderful evening! <3

Now to finish off my baking journal for the week. I made two really good desserts for bible study this week. The first one, and probably the better one, is another fantabulous recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World! I have planned a slow and steady assault on this book's recipes, pledging to try each recipe out over a certain amount of time. It is the most joyous pursuit possible and these S'more cupcakes did not disappoint. Yes, they're s'more flavored! So much so! I didn't even tell anyone they were s'more flavored cupcakes and instead secretly watched as people bit into them and a knowing grin broke onto their faces. It was fantastic to watch, muahaha. Then, someone would exclaim: They taste just like s'mores! They're s'more cupcakes! The pleasure of making something so delicious and then being able to watch others enjoy it....

Seriously, this s'more cupcake tasted just like a marshmallow with graham crackers topped with dark chocolate chunks (see above!). I made two frostings. Some had the chocolate ganache frosting and others had the vanilla buttercream frosting! I topped with graham cracker crumbs and chocolate chunks. The filling also has graham crackers in it. But I'm not sure what made people remark about the perfect marshmallow taste hidden within. The recipe used pretty typical ingredients...it must have been magic!

The chocolate ganache, as always, was perfect in texture (a little bouncy but still very dense). The cupcake is like every other cupcake from this book--flavorful, dense, exciting!

Here are the ones with the vanilla frosting :)

I shouldn't be surprised that this book keeps wow-ing me over and over again. But somehow, I am always pleasantly bowled over by each new recipe. Yay for the best gift ever, Teddy!

Finally, I made one of my favorite desserts (probably fourth on the line after Angel Food Cake, Rice Krispies, and Brownies). The seven layer magic cookie bar! Or dream bar! Or whatever you call this heavenly piece of sweetness.

It's basically 7 ingredients layered on top of one another. Graham cracker crust (with butter counting as an ingredient), condensed milk, butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, nuts, and coconut. It is so rich and sweet, but in such a good way. If you haven't come across this beast, where have you been?? If you have, you know exactly what I'm talking about when you walk into a room and you can hear this treat calling you, beckoning you to come and eat 7 times your share of it. This is one of my favorites for a sleepover party. Something about it makes me think of fun times with girls, movies, and gossip. It is definitely labeled as a classic in my book.

*drools*

Well, I don't know about you but I am excited about this weekend! Erica and I are hanging out with Nick's mom for a super cool girls-only weekend. :) Shopping, eating, desserting...the whole kit and caboodle. And we get to do it all in lovely San Diego. Something about that place makes my muscles relax and my mind completely at ease. It's vacation land if I've ever visited any. And I will make sure to take lots of pictures of my favorite dessert place! And their desserts! YAY!

PS Just to add some color to this rather brown-looking post, you have to check out this link! It positively made my day!!! SO CUTE!


http://blogs.ocweekly.com/stickaforkinit/the-art-of-the-bento-box/

Japanese Bento Art! AWWwwwwwYUMMMMMmm

Baking Post numero uno

I just realized that I baked so much in the past two days that I'll have to split my posting into two! Wow, I actually had to turn on the air conditioning for a little bit because it was getting hot in the kitchen :) I can't wait until it actually gets cold enough here where baking is made even more practical because it warms you up!

The first thing I wanted to post is another batch of Zingerman Chocolate Chunk cookies. They really are the best chocolate chip cookies ever. I have said this before and I will say it again: forget your nyt.com chocolate chip cookie recipe, and don't even bother to mention your nestle tollhouse recipe...these are it. They're crispy on the outside, soft inside, perfectly salted but slightly sweet, and awesome in every single other way a cookie should be.

It is definitely advisable to use good chocolate for this recipe. It calls for dark chocolate. I usually use Ghiradelli but this week, when I made two batches, I used a whole pounder-plus from Trader Joe's.

Straight from Belgium. Fantastic price, fantastic quality. You really can't beat Trader Joe's!

See, you don't even have to try and these babies come out looking perfect.

Ok, so I dislike being redundant and posting twice about the same thing, but these deserve the attention. And you will, too, if you make them.

Something new that I made: some dark chocolate brownie cupcakes with reese's cups inside of them! These are a crowd pleaser. I told you before I don't like chocolate but occasionally I crave brownies. This week I've had these cupcakes as well as the traditional hot brownie with vanilla ice cream. It totally hits the spot when that spot arises. :)

Do you want to hear a secret? Brownie is one exception to my "you should always make things from scratch!" rule. Well, there are a couple others if I'm going to be completely honest (like that costco muffin recipe!), but there are very, very few. The reason I cheat on brownies is because I have yet to find a recipe that actually tastes better than the Ghiradelli brownie box mix. Sometimes I find something that comes close, but it really isn't worth the time and effort to buy really expensive cocoa powder for the recipe. Ghiradelli is great because it comes in dark chocolate flavor, which is barely sweet. :) Ok, so the recipe for this is officially amateur in terms of baking skills needed, but it's still wonderful. I'm a little ashamed but my tummy is not. 

Now the next one is one of those recipes that make you sooooo happy because

1. It is so easy

2. It tastes soooo sooooooo much better than the store-bought kind

3. And it's something you can eat 5+ of without feeling sick.

What could it be? Peanut butter granola bars! Who doesn't like granola bars? It's a great afternoon snack or a healthy post-lunch dessert. It's great for on-the-go munching and it comes in so many different flavors. This particular recipe was aiming for the sweet and salty combo, which I happen to love. It has a light peanut butter flavor coupled with a sweet honey texture. As soon as you try this, you'll wonder why you never did it before. It doesn't even involve baking--just some over the stovetop heating and then some time in the fridge. I can't wait to stuff these guys into my kid's lunch boxes someday. Again, I can, because I definitely don't want kids anytime soon, but you know what I mean, right?

I used a mixture of peanuts, almonds, and sunflower seeds for my nut combination. I love how this recipe uses spices like cinnamon and flavoring like cocoa powder. 

This is the beautiful assembly of granola forming right before your eyes. I just added the peanut butter, honey, and corn oil to it!

There they are after sitting in the fridge for two hours. Delicious bars of golden, peanut buttery, oat-y goodness. The bars stay chewy and delicious for a week. You can eat them cold or at room temperature depending on how crispy you want them to be!

NOW for the good news you've all been waiting for! I got a job at Susiecakes!!! If you don't know what that is, it is basically like Sprinkles or Magnolia but I like it a lot more because I think their baked goods taste better *and* their ambience is way cuter! It's owned by a Chicago couple who wanted it to reflect on of their grandma's kitchens so it has a great retro vibe to it! I'm starting in counter sales and packaging the goodies that we sell (which includes delicious cakes, pudding, bars, cookies, whoopie pies, and of course, cupcakeS!) and will hopefully transfer into the kitchen sometime! You have to come visit me during my shifts if you're in the area. This is the original Susiecakes but they're just opening their 5th location in San Francisco! For you east coasters, keep your fingers crossed that this adorable little slice of heaven comes to your city soon :) For all my friends here, I wanted to let you know that you can thank me later when I bring home cupcakes at the end of the day because guess what: employees get to take home whatever's left at the end of the day! YAY!

Ok, I hope you can tell that I am a little excited. Everyone there is super nice and super friendly. My interview felt like a coffee cup conversation with an old friend :D

ML will make her mark in the baking industry soon!!!

More on persimmons

I know I mentioned how I love persimmons in a recent post, but here's some actually informative information on persimmons instead of ML's infectious but unhelpful enthusiasm. It's from a daily email I get from Tasting Table, which is also available to other big-city-dwellers in NYC, DC, San Fran, etc.

Tues. 03 Nov '09 Cooking | LOS ANGELES Fuyu You Persimmons are fall's fruit of the gods Like pumpkins and gourds, persimmons are a sure sign of fall. The fruit looks like a tomato crossed with an orange, and has a spicy-sweet flavor with a hint of cinnamon. And right now, you can't walk through a farmers' market without seeing bins full of Fuyus and Hachiyas, the most common varieties. The squat, orange-colored Fuyus are crisp, like apples, and get softer as they ripen. Eat them straight, or slice and toss them with baby greens, toasted pecans and lemon-olive oil vinaigrette, as Amelia Saltsman, author of The Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook, recommends. Chefs prize the delicate, heart-shaped Hachiyas for their soft, custardy texture. They make great marmalade, which David Myers uses to top a lobster-and-pumpkin soup at Sona. At Tavern, pastry chef Breanne Varela plays up the fruit's butteriness in her classic persimmon pudding. But at Ford's Filling Station, chef Ben Ford prefers very ripe Fuyus for his easy persimmon bread pudding--even soft, they're sturdier than the Hachiya. Served warm, this decadent dessert calls out for a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream (click here for the recipe). When selecting either variety, make sure they're ripe (or they'll be too tannic) and soft to the touch. And don't worry about those freckles on the skin: They're completely normal.

 I haven't really thought about it before reading this email blurb, but persimmons would be great for baking because of their sweet-spicy taste and custardy texture. Maybe a persimmon muffin with pistachios? I'll have to test it out :)

I have a lot of baking things to post because I had a baking frenzy yesterday. It felt like it had been so long since my last baking frenzy. That last week of being bedridden with Edward Cullen was necessary but not entirely happy. I am finally back in the kitchen churning out the sweet goodies for all my lovely friends, but you'll have to check back tomorrow to see the full report. For now, here's another good Asian recipe that I'd like to share. It's called Cashew Chicken and it's very simple and clean, but an easy dish to consume in one sitting with jasmine rice.

While making this dish, I realized that one of the best ways to cook chicken is to cover it in a very light dusting of cornstarch first. I remember seeing my mom do this while growing up, and I never understood why. Basically, once the cornstarch hits the oil in the pan, it creates this perfectly crispy texture to the outside of the chicken. This is desirable in a lot of chicken dishes where the chicken comes with a sauce (almost every dish and especially every Asian dish) but you don't want the chicken to just be soft tofu-ish  blobs of protein (sorry to you Tofu fans...I hate tofu partly because of the texture when it's not fried. When it is fried, I still have problems with its flavor). Anyways, it's a great and easy trick you should use next time you make chicken with a sauce.

I think I would like anything with green onions, cashews, soy sauce, and rice vinegar.

Well, the colors really changed depending on the lighting, huh? This is the actual color of the sauce. It's rather clean and light, not a dark "general Tso" or "drunken noodle" mess (those are absolutely delicious in their own way but if you're looking something less pungent, this is a good alternative).

I also made a Malaysian fried noodle dish for the Lerums this weekend. We had a really fun weekend going to church, getting coffee at Groundwork, hitting the Farmer's Market, eating lunch together, and then visiting Nick's jazz recording studio where he works. Nick is a real stud-he can work equipment and programs that I can't even being to grasp. I would like to say that it's the same for him with my architecture programs and equipment but I'm afraid he might actually be better at that stuff than I am. He's just smart like that though :)

Anyways, I didn't eat too much of this dish because for once in my life, my appetite was not roaring. It was actually nonexistent. I think it was part of getting over my sickness, but I thought the dish tasted bland. Everyone had seconds and thirds though, so I think my tongue was not really reliable that day. The sauce is actually pretty traditional despite the unbecoming presence of the very American condiment, ketchup. My mom used ketchup all the time growing up--she used it in stir fry dishes, curries, dressings, etc. The sweetness of ketchup balances out the fish sauce or soy sauce that you might use, I think. 

In any case, I love rice noodles. They're probably my favorite pasta-type. This dish actually called for flat wheat noodles so you should try that if you're not allergic to wheat (duh). This dish also had an abundance of fresh veggies from our Farmer's Market trip including bell pepper, tomatoes, and cauliflower, and aromatic onion. 

I hope you check back here tomorrow! I'm still waiting on my good news so I can't tell you yet, but I know you're all waiting with absolutely bated breath, right? I'm off, because my breath is bated for a completely different reason....oh, Edward, why did you leave Bella???!!! My heart is breaking....