I met my friend, Alisa in my first year of culinary program. She was studying to be a dietitian and needed to take basic culinary classes. When I walked into the classroom (kitchen, in this case) I spotted her and I put down my knife kit right next to her. I was one of the older students…and I really didn’t feel like working next to the kids who just graduated from high schools..(no offence just because I may not understand their current lingo…) She had already finished her B.A and had a husband …Yes— she is going to make me [...]
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My older sister just had a baby, so being the good sister that I am , I drove 5.5 hours to her house to help her out. Well..now I have a new respect for all the mothers out there….man, taking care of a new born baby is not a joke. Babies cry a LOT! My sister barely has a moment to take a shower, clean or cook. I thought I had a hard time house-training my puppies. You literally have to give them non-stop 24 hours attention and of course, she has to feed him every 2 hours…my poor sister…full [...]
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- Posted on
14th May 2012
- in
Asian, Main course
- by
blackdogfoodblog
I love ethnic dance, food and culture. And I was lucky enough to make friends with an incredible woman, ‘Aparna‘ at my dance studio. She is a private chef, cooking instructor and Ayurvedic lifestyle coach – Of course, I showed up in her next cooking class. I’ve never been to India ( the only indian dish I know is from the restaurants ) so I was super excited to see what homemade ‘real’ indian food is like. And I made what I learned at home!!! Now I can proudly say I cooked ‘real’ indian food. This curry is not thick [...]
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- Posted on
7th May 2012
- in
Bread & Sweets
- by
blackdogfoodblog
I I had left over silken tofu from Roasted corn and coconut chowder so I made my favorite vegan chocolate mousse. This is so easy I can do it with my eyes close. And trust me, you will too. Ingredients 1/2 pound silken tofu, blended in food processor till smooth 6 oz chocolate chips 1 teaspoon expresso powder 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract For coconut whipped cream: 1 can full-fat coconut milk, 1 Tablespoon powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract. Preparation 1. Place chocolate chips in microwave safe bowl and microwave till melt. Important : Take the bowl [...]
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- Posted on
6th May 2012
- in
Soup, Vegetarian
- by
blackdogfoodblog
Do you love your neighborhood ‘Trader Joe’s’? I do, I do! How did people survive before TJ? I can’t imagine….And I love their oh so lovely and kind cashiers… who always ask ’How is your day going?’, ‘What did you do today?’ ‘What’s your plan for the rest of your day?’…etc, etc….but I have to admit that I sometimes have one of those days that I wish I was at ‘self check out’ and just get the heck out of the store. I don’t want to chat with you, it takes me more than 30 seconds to get my head [...]
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- Posted on
29th April 2012
- in
Breakfast
- by
blackdogfoodblog
Something about a hot skillet makes everything yummy and comforting. Today, I’m giving my body a break from a morning workout, going to just take a deep breath and slow it down for a change. I’m not going to grab spirulina water for breakfast and run out to get workout done, run around like a mad woman wearing myself down. I’m going to make myself a ‘proper’ breakfast (of course after I make one for my hubby and pack snacks for his work day ) and take in this beautiful morning with my lovely puppies….only if we had a few chickens roaming [...]
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- Posted on
22nd April 2012
- in
Breakfast, Misc
- by
blackdogfoodblog
When I was home in Korea, I ate Kimchee in almost every meal so I never had to worry about getting enough probiotics. But now I’m here in the ‘western’ world….where probiotics come in pills and supplements, I have to make sure I get enough of them. Oh I do take supplements – coffee berry, schzandra berry, fish oil, brewer’s yeast for vitamin D, spirulina, cinnamon and a shot of aloe vera everyday, (My husband started deleting ‘Dr. Oz shows’ from our DVR….) But for probiotics intake, you can’t deny creamy & delicious yogurt. (Aside from probiotics, yogurt is loaded [...]
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I’m back!!!! Yes, I am still alive and well. We just went through some kitchen cabinet work so our kitchen was all torn apart. At some point, I did not even have an access to the refrigerator….but it’s all done and it feels good to be back. Hope some of you missed me. With the kitchen all torn apart, the only food I could make was simple and fast dishes like potato-leek pancakes. We were invited to a dinner party a few weeks ago and I made these on a tiny corner of the kitchen counter while our worker Santos measured [...]
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Spring forward everyone! Now there is still light outside at 6pm…Yay~ we made it through the winter! Although it’s been unusually cold here for the last few days, I decided to head out to farmer’s market. I picked up some fava beans and gorgeous looking Maitake mushrooms. I wanted to cook something ‘farmer’s market- healthy’ but I didn’t want one of those cold quiona salad…yucky….something warm and comforting…something green and earthy. Ditch those winter veggies and let’s put a little spring on your plate. Today, I felt like putting on a super bright fuchsia lipstick (It’s IN, right?) and my husband freaked [...]
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Besides wine, Sake is my favorite drink (adult beverage, I meant). So when SakeOne (One of very few American sake makers. I think there are only 4…) contacted me, I was thrilled. They were going to send me a box of their premuim sake. Heck yeah! I will trade in food for sake anytime!!! My gosh, I was pleasantly surprised by it’s taste. So pure and clean! (If you see the term “Ginjo” anywhere on the label, it means ‘Premium’ where at least the outer 40% of the rice gets milled away – protein/fat is removed for it’s best aromatic flavor. [...]
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- Posted on
21st February 2012
- in
Bread & Sweets
- by
blackdogfoodblog
My 8pm sweet tooth kicked in. I opened the freezer. And there is a lonely left-over pint of sorbet. Sorbet? Really?…… I wanted more than sorbet…..Moist, rich and decadent chocolate cake – I want a piece. Velvety, light and fluffy mousse – I want some of that too. Dark chocolate – Mmmmmmmm, White chocolate – Yummmmmmmm. Why not have it all? I am a greedy girl. >*< So next day, I went to a store determined to make this sumptuous dessert. Don’t get intimidated by it’s look. It’s actually pretty easy. But if you don’t feel like making it into [...]
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- Posted on
15th February 2012
- in
Breakfast
- by
blackdogfoodblog
I am definitely a morning person. The dogs wake us up at 6:15 am (Yup, even on weekends…..aghh…. ) I make my husband a breakfast, work out, and do all my to-do lists in the morning. Of course, around 4 pm I need a cup of coffee for ‘Round 2′ of the day….This toast is my all time favorite breakfast! Avocado has tons of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, iron, copper and has perfect beauty fat. (I put avocado in my green smoothie everyday! ) This breakfast is so simple yet so delicious. Here is ‘no-recipe’ instruction : 1. Toast a slice of [...]
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- Posted on
8th February 2012
- in
Main course
- by
blackdogfoodblog
Oh Valentine’s day….. I am probably one of those rare girls who doesn’t make a big deal out of it. First of all, pink and red are my least favorite colors, I don’t like getting flowers ( I kill almost all the plants that are brought into the house. I barely keep my herbs alive…And they get oh so messy and stinky! ). Before I met my husband, I used to spend my Valentine’s day treating myself with a massage and facial, come home with take out food and watch ‘American Idol’. I was fine with that. And yes, my [...]
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- Posted on
1st February 2012
- in
Misc
- by
blackdogfoodblog
I ran into Chef Pink at Wholefoods market a few months ago and she told me about ‘Underground supper club’ that she was starting. And I was so excited to join this 4-hour-long delicious evening of an amazing local organic meal , supporting favorite farmers, fisherman, ranchers and of course, my favorite local Chef…. The theme of the meal was ‘Surf and Turf’ - Since we’ve been having such a wonky weird winter, Chef Pink thought what a better way to celebrate a central/southern California winter, which can be more like a summer. All paired with locally made artisan beers. I [...]
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- Posted on
24th January 2012
- in
Bread & Sweets
- by
blackdogfoodblog
I spent last 2 days perfecting my gluten free muffins. Muffin pans after muffin pans, measuring cups, spoons, whisk, pan and paper…. thank god for my amazing cleaning goddess, Maria…. I have been waiting for the day you come to my house….**** Finally, muffins approved by my husband! You can’t tell they are gluten free. In fact, I think they taste even better than regular ones. Give them to your Tri-Athelet friends next door who always make you feel guilty. Or freeze them. I just took a blueberry muffin out from the freezer, warmed it up, spread it [...]
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