As you may remember from a few recent posts, I have a TON of stuff to giveaway on the blog, thanks to the fantastic folks at The Meyer Corporation and Amazon.com.
The first giveaway is coming up on Monday to celebrate the Munch’s 2nd birthday. (I basically can find any reason to give something away…) He is very aware that he’s going to be two. It’s pretty awesome.
Making sure the belly button is still there...
I haven’t decided what to giveaway first, but it’s going to be good, trust.
Come back on Monday for the details of how to enter. You’ll have a week to put your name in the hat, and then of course there will be many more giveaways this summer, so if you don’t win, just keep trying!!!!
What are you doing this weekend? I have a date with Curious George, the Munch and some cupcakes. Stay tuned for pictures next week. It’s gonna be fantastic!
Something amazing happens during the summer months in Seattle. Amongst all the hustle to get outside and enjoy the weather, every now and again you find yourself just for a few hours, doing nothing in particular. It’s a really wonderful opportunity to remember how lucky we are to see the sunsets, hear friends and family laugh around the table, and smell, taste and touch the endless fruits (and veggies and meats) that nature has to offer.
For the 4th of July this year, I was in Bellingham, a city/town north of Seattle by about 80 miles, just South of the Canadian border. I went to see my sister, Kate, her husband, Nathan, and my nephew, Riley (aka The Munch).
For fireworks viewing, we went to Nathan’s mom’s place out at Birch Bay. It really is incredible.
After a lazy afternoon walking the beach on agate patrol (I only found like 1 or 2, but as a team, we probably got 10!), we had grilled cheeseburgers for dinner with deviled eggs and bruschetta (homemade by yours truly, including the soda bread which I’ll share in another post this week).
Then we watched the sun go down, and the fireworks begin. It was just spectacular! Riley got to stay up WAYYYYY past his bed time, but we had to let him see the fireworks that everyone around the bay was setting off (including us – we were on the reservation after all)!
The next morning, I was feeling inspired and made a tasty apricot coffee cake. Not my best ever, by far, but the Munch didn’t seem to mind, did he?
So, next time you have a few minutes to relax and take it all in, do! You’ll be surprised what it might lead to…
Last night I was at the grocery store after a pretty long day. I was tired, hungry, tired and hungry (uh, wait….okay I already said that….that’s how tired and hungry I was).
I needed to buy something for dinner last night as well as something for dinner tonight, as I’m having a couple of friends over and one is a vegetarian. I headed over to the cold case where I knew they kept the tofu (just wait to see what I’m making with it! I’ll post the full method tomorrow, after I’ve made it). As I walked over there, I saw a little “turn style” (not sure what it’s really called), on top of this podium thingy (real specific, Siir’, thanks!)…..
I thought to myself, I wonder why they are selling seed packets next to the tofu? Right. That makes sense. So I looked again and realized it was a rotating kiosk full of recipe cards! And the podium had a reference guide-book on it with divider tabs that showed how to cook every kind of meat and vegetable! I could NOT believe my eyes. Here are some free resources for EVERYONE to use, just sitting there in this little corner. I have been in that store at least 100 times and have NEVER seen it sitting there.
So, of course I took full advantage of what I saw.
Tonight I’m making the Sweet Ginger Carrots to go with the tofu and then I’m doing a Kale pesto pasta salad. Can you say YUM?
For the tofu, I’m going to bake it like it’s my crispy baked chicken (the same recipe that I used for my Food Network YouTube Challenge Video) and just sub out the chicken for tofu, and reduce the amount of yogurt so it doesn’t get soggy (I drained it last night).
I’ll show you how I did it tomorrow!
Next time you’re at the grocery store, keep your eyes peeled for these cool, free resources. Most stores have something of this nature, whether in the deli, butcher counter or produce department. When you are short on inspiration, borrow some!
When we celebrate the 5 days of summer in Seattle, it’s nice to have a cold spritzer of some sort to relax after a long day.
Yesterday I came up with just the thing! It’s a vodka and organic lime spritzer. It was super easy to throw together because I had done a bit of prep last week. See, I came into a LOAD of lemons and limes and they were pretty ripe. When a couple went bad without me noticing (and after drinking as much lime water as I could handle), I decided to make some lime infuse simple syrup.
Simple syrup is just that: simple. For me, it’s equal parts liquid and sugar. I used organic, raw sugar so it was a little dark, not white. I had a cup of fresh squeezed lime juice and I added a cup of the organic sugar, mixed together and simmered on low until it started to form a foam at the surface.
Now, I could have let it go longer, which would have condensed the syrup, making it thicker. But since I was thinking I’d use it for refreshing cocktails when my friends came over, I decided to keep it pretty thin. The thickness definitely makes a difference on how easily it combines into other liquids.
I let it cool in the pan, then transferred it to a squeeze bottle and stuck it in the fridge. I let it sit for a couple of days before giving it a try. It’s subtle, tangy and sweet. Just perfect for a spritzer.
Here’s what I used in the spritzer:
Siiri’s Vodka Lime Summer Spritzer
1 shot (so 1 fluid ounce) vodka
1 shot lime syrup
ice cubes
sparkling water (you could also use club soda, tonic water, 7Up, sprite, etc. just watch the sweetness)
Now, what I did realize is that it could use a little something extra…I’m not sure if it will be a cucumber slice, maybe a bit of cucumber juice (from Paul’s AWESOME Jack LeLane juicer that’s in my kitchen) or maybe some muddled basil. I think any of the above would be good.
This went down scary smooth, kids. It’s light and doesn’t leave your mouth feeling puckered or coated at all! Just remember, one is enough – enough sugar, enough alcohol, enough to cool you down! Then back to the water….we Seattleites have to hydrate, afterall, it’s hot here!
I’ve got some fun shenanigans up my sleeve for the rest of the summer now that we’re in full swing (can you say MAJOR GIVEAWAYS ALL SUMMER LONG?!??!?!?!?!) but I have a bit of organizing to do before I launch the first giveaway.
So, for now, I wanted to share two fun things I made over the past week that made my days just a little brighter. Afterall, with all the crazy weather (unpredictable at best) here in Seattle these past few weeks, I need something to pull me through!
First up is this tasty, mid-afternoon treat that pulled me through the remainder of the work day:
This is an iced latte that I made in my office with nothing more than a packet of Iced Starbucks VIA, a frother and a bit of milk (and cold water of course). Seriously, I love coffee all day long, and on a hot afternoon, an iced latte is right up my alley. But we don’t have an espresso machine here, or a cart anywhere nearby. So I just made it myself. I have a cheap frother I keep at the office. This took me less than 3 minutes total. I enjoyed it thoroughly, and it gave me a little pick-me-up that lasted till dinner time! YUM.
That was last Thursday or so…..
Then this weekend, I was running around like a wild turkey for various wedding errands for some friends of mine, and I had just enough time between errands and the ceremony to go home, flip on the Food Network for 30 minutes and relax. Of course I got hungry when I was watching whatever was being made (can’t recall what was on, Nigella I think), so I jumped into action and made a 2 minute guac and devoured it with the basic tortilla strip chip:
You can see I left it pretty chunky. I like it this way, and it’s much faster, less intense prep. Yes, there’s the chips in the background. Here’s a better picture:
Here’s how I made it:
Siiri’s 2 Minute Guac
2 avocados (pretty ripe, almost lost ‘em!)
1 Roma tomato (also really ripe, I’ve been struggling to eat all my produce myself in time)
1 lemon (squeeze the juice right into the bowl before mixing things up)
Pinch of salt
Pinch of smoked paprika
Two pinches of garlic powder (this is quicker than actually chopping the garlic, and this way you don’t get the bitter edge of fresh garlic)
Pinch of either black pepper or cayenne pepper
I used a spoon to scoop out the avocado and mash everything together. A fork may have been easier, but right now I’m all about dish consolidation. So this was easier for me. I used a knife to chop up the tomato and slice the lemon.
This literally took two minutes to make.
It was actually much better the next day, (okay, so it was last night at like midnight, don’t judge, I walked 5 miles yesterday and got hungry. I know I’m not supposed to eat late at night!) after the flavors had time to meld.
There’s been an obvious lull in activity on the blog over the past few weeks, and for that I do apologize! I was made aware of a challenge that had been issued by the Food Network through their YouTube channel by my good friend, Kim (of DoIhaveLipstickonmyTeeth.com and KimWhiteMakeUp.com fame) who insisted that I throw my hat in the ring! Little did Kim know, I have been working for months on some short video ideas I wanted to put together into a food video portfolio. This was the perfect opportunity to actually develop a NEW video idea and attempt to make something happen!
I approached my talented group of friends to volunteer their time, energy and resources to help me produce what I feel is a pretty good “first stab” at how I might approach a cooking show. (this is the first of a handful of still shots I grabbed from the video. Not sure this “Freeze-frame” look on my face is the best, but it is real – and funny).
Mmmm, yam fries! *Don't get me started on yams vs. sweet potatoes. I feel like no one knows the difference!
My overarching plans for where I’d like to go with food are much more far-reaching than a cooking show alone, but of course there’s a huge market there as well. Whether it’s through the Food Network, my blog, local events and grass-roots efforts (shout out to the Delridge Co-op effort!), or continuing to troubleshoot and teach in my friends and families’ kitchens, I will continue to pursue this love of mine!
Prepping the BEST crispy baked chicken (I swear people think I fried it when they bite in!)
While I continue to plot my multi-media approach to ensuring parents, professionals, students and everyone else has accessible tools to get back in their kitchens and cook to their heart’s delight, please enjoy my video! (I am really bummed there was a time limit, as I had to cut out the part where I make this awesome summer salad. But I’ll highlight that in a future post, so don’t worry, I’ll still share my secret!
So, you’re asking, “Siir’, the video’s great and all, but what does this all mean? Why are you doing this?” Here’s the breakdown: the submission window closes Friday morning and the “judges panel” will choose up to 15 finalists who will then be turned back to the public for final voting. From there it’s a basic voting process: the person with the most votes after two weeks wins.
What do they win? A one on one meeting with the Food Network Executives.
The summer salad, which sadly didn't make the video due to time constraints.
For a home cook/ food enthusiast/foodie/former industry work horse like myself, who wants to share their cooking and joy of food with the world, this is a fantastic (once in a lifetime) opportunity.
If I am blessed enough to make it as a finalist, I’ll be sure to scream from the rooftops to let you know! Of course you can’t hear me from up there and you can see my smoke signals from the blogosphere, so I’ll make sure I tell you here as well, so (if you like my video) you can vote for me!
The ultimate test! (trying your own cooking, that is...)
In the meantime, feel free to let me know what you think, I welcome all feedback, after all, cooking for others, especially on TV and video is all about how well my work serves others! Let me know how I can be better for you all!
It’s Thursday. It’s July 1st. It’s Seattle. It’s raining.
So, what to do? Pretty much only one answer: Go to Sushi Yama for lunch.
If you live in the Seattle/Bellevue area of Washington, I highly recommend hitting this place up for lunch one day. But they get really busy, so go early, or like me, late (I arrived at 1:40pm and there were maybe 5 people. PERFECT!)
I wasn’t sure how they’d feel about me snapping pictures, so I pretended I was texting and snapped these pics with my ever-crappy cell phone camera:
Here's some various goodies coming down the sushi train towards me. Yes, I said sushi train. (I LOVE THIS PLACE!)
This is a blue plate which is $2.50, WAY to rich for my blood. But I do wonder what the haystack tastes like...it's a roll with crab, avocado, something else - cucumber maybe - and tobiko all over, topped with a haystack of fried who knows what (and who cares, it's fried people)
Festive fruit cup complete with self-contained shade mechanism.
There goes the haystack again! Taunting me and my cheapness...
This is the best dessert ever created by all of Japan. Sorry if you don't agree, but you won't be sorry when you taste a warm sesame ball that's been deep fried with red bean paste inside. YUM. The plate is pink, which means $1.00 and it comes with 3 balls. I ate two before I remembered to take a picture.
Going.......
GONE! Ah, how I love you, sesame balls.
And here's the damage: 4 pink=$4.00, 2 green=$3.00. Total with tip: $8.67
I hope you have a place near you that makes you feel as good as Sushi Yama makes me feel! In case you are curious, Sushi Yama means Sushi Mountain, or Mountain of Sushi (at least that’s what they say). They should call it Sushi YUMMA!
