Cleansing my Stomach

Been feeling pretty FAT lately... : /

Resolution?
Eat some veggies for dinner! : D

Since i don't like salad, canned tomatoes +
canned corn became my best friend! : )

The other night, i bought some Japanese
Seaweed salad (basically some kunbu,
mixed with sesame oil, red pepper flakes
& white sesame as dressing)
and mixed that with Corn...

MMMMmmMMmM : D
Veggies can be yummy and filling, too!

Valentine's Dinner #2 -- OMAHA

I'm a little behind in posting this...
but here's our 2nd Valentine's day dinner! ; )

Since goh goh wasn't able to schedule the Kittichai
dinner on Feb. 14th, he decided to go the extra mile
& cook a special homemade meal ; )

Here's the mushroom / onions / diced Tilapia side dish
bubbling in the red wine / Balsamic Vinegar : )

When goh goh announced 2 weeks prior to V-Day,
that he's gonna cook and has planned a special meal,
i knew that something's up.

But i definitely didn't think he'd go so far...
as to order Omaha Steaks!!!



I ended up picking out Ribeye &
Pork chops for the night...

Pork chops were cooked on the stovetop
in a corningware dish -- i didn't know that
could be done!
It's so true that you can learn something new
every day : ) hehe...

Here's the chef's content smile,
with a special occasion drink: Sparkling cider!
(Although, we both agree that the traditional
Apple flavor tastes better than the berries / peach!)

Yipppeee! : ) Such a wonderful meal ; )

Thanks, goh goh : D

** p.s. In terms of the Omaha Steaks,
we agreed that they didn't really live up to the hype,
the fame and the $$$.

A normal Ribeye, i suppose, would be much thicker
than what we received in the package.

It doesn't taste bad,
but it doesn't taste any better than
the fresh ones we can get at Stop n' Shop either.

It wasn't an unpleasant experience,
but neither was it spectacular : 0

Well, let's see if the other cuts are better
(we still have the filet mignon & the burger patty
in the freezer).
I'll certainly let you know '_'

Challenge: Cook whatever's home!

What's more fun than having friends over for dinner?

: D The answer is... not much!



So this time, we had the NGs over : )

Since i cooked for the past few times
when guests came by,
this time around,
we had goh goh cook instead : b

To make it challenging,
goh goh had to use whatever he can find
in the fridge / pantry : )

What did he come up with, then? : D



Creamy broccoli x spinach : )


Parmesan Cheese Crusted Tilapia Filets


Highlight of the meal:
Sprite marinated Pork tenderloin!


In other words,
Homemade Roast Pork aka Cha Siu : D


A miracle happened after our meal:
NO LEFTOVERS!!!!! *_*

This almost never happened...
But obviously,
a) Goh goh did a great job estimating the portions
of food;
b) the food tasted YUMMMM : )
c) we invited some great guests!!! : D

Afterwards, we got to enjoy some beautiful
+ tasty desserts our guests so graciously brought:


Peanut Butter Chocolate Pie


Pear Pie / Clementine Pie /
Chocolate Mousse Dome Cake /
Espresso Marshmallow Chocolate cup /
Strawberry Cream Eclair

: DDDD we also had Haagen Dazs coffee ice-cream /
Friendly's Orange cream ice-cream /
Bread Pudding : )

OH... SO FULLLLLLLLLL... *0*

Valentine's Feast #1 -- Kittichai

Last year's V-Day,
goh goh and i made reservations at
WHITE CASTLE... 0_o

HAA!
Not because of their food,
but that it was funny enough,
to mock the rave about spending mucho $$$,
celebrating a 'holiday' we don't believe in.

However, due to the snow storm & the car failing on us,
we couldn't even go through with this silly plan.

This year, however, we turned around and decided:
Hey, why not make this yet another reason
(read: excuse) for us to enjoy some good food?!

Considering that goh goh & i:
A) love sharing Thai food together
B) never miss the Iron Chef show on sundays;

We're bound to come to come here,
after watching that amazing episode:
www.foodnetwork.com/food/show_ia/
episode/0,1976,FOOD_16696_47931,00.html

Taaaaa DAAAAAAAA! : D

KITTICHAI RESTAURANT

This restaurant is quite busy,
hence the required reservation beforehand.
Yay for goh goh ; ) who took care of that.

The design of the restaurant is very artistic & classy,
while the atmosphere is romantic & comforting : )

Here, take a look:



A sense of Modern Thai --the theme of the restaurant's
cuisine -- is richly conveyed in the decorations.

Hanging Orchids + Floating Candles = WOW!!!

Goh goh: "Are you done taking pictures yet?
Can we please look at the menu now?"

What's a girl to do,
when so many amazing choices are presented? : (

Appetizer:
Seabass Tempura with Sweet-Chili Tamarind Sauce

Verdict: How in the world can the seabass bites
be SO JUICY?!?!?! 0_o

After the appetizer, i was admiring the design
of their glasses: It's in a rounded square shape,
with a slight dip on each side, very well
fitted for the customer's fingers : )

I admire their detail-oriented design,
even down to one single water glass!

At the sight of the utensils presented to us,
i got all giggly and exclaimed,
"Goh goh, LOOK! These look exactly the same
as the ones we used in Bali!" **huge grin**

awww... such lovely memories : )))

Here comes our entree!

Goh goh's pick:
Wok-seared Tiger Prawns
with Garlic Pepper sauce and green beans

My pick:
Pineapple Braised Short Ribs in Green Curry,
Thai Eggplant and Sweet Basil

Side (A given): Jasmine Rice

Verdicts:
- Prawns were FRESH & HUGE!
Crunchy and flavorful ; )

But we've had better sauce before...

- The Short Ribs were so AMAZING *_*
We were speechless after the first bite,
and had to pause to let the tenderness of the pork,
the fragrance of the coconut milk,

the tartness of the pineapple,
the smooth texture of the curry... sink in.

i deliberately ate really really slow,
and drank very little water,
in order to savor every bite as long as possible *0*

However, we didn't order enough,
given the small portions of the dishes : /

Hence the Random Pick:
Baked Chilean Sea Bass marinated in
yellow salted beans with morning glory.

What's yellow salted beans?

What's morning glory?

NO IDEA.
But we ordered it anyway! : D

Goh goh said, "Let's hope that this dish is
even more amazing than the Short Ribs!"

Verdict?

Haha... goh goh said we must show the world
how fat we are, for we cleaned all the plates : b

The Sea bass, just like the appetizer,
is THICK + JUICY + SMOOTH : 0

The glaze on the fish is mildly sweet,
giving off a faint resemblance to a miso glaze.

Morning Glory turns out to be Water Spinach's
other (prettier) name : )
& somehow, the garlicky veggies complement
the fish PERFECTLY.

It was dish-licking good *0*
& i consider it a (high) tie to the Short Ribs : )

In HEi's book, meals are not complete without desserts!

But... i wanted to try so many of them 0_o
What to do?????

These days, i feel like goh goh's been spoiling me,
esp. when it comes to food.

& here he said, "Go ahead. Order an extra.
You know you want to." : )

Taaa Daaa! ; )

My pick #1: Coconut Crepes with Kalamanci Sauce

Verdict:
I was expecting coconut inside the crepes,
but it turns out to be a ball of REALLY SMOOTH
& MILKY coconut ice cream ; )

The crepes were not filled, but were thoroughly
soaked up in the citrus syrup,
topped with sweet tangerine slices & glazed orange zest.
Loved it, but was below my really high expectations : b

Goh goh's pick: Jasmine Flan on a Sweet and Sour
Fruit Salad with Jasmine Rice Ice Cream

Verdict:
The flan was OUTSTANDING.
I've never tasted anything quite like it.

The petite beauty was infused with
the unique flavor of jasmine,
& it complements the jasmine rice ice cream
like a match made in heaven! *0*

The fruit salad was top quality also ; )

My pick #2: Thai Tea Ice Cream Sundae
with Palm Seeds and Coconut Jelly

Verdict:

The chef's creativity was overflowing in this dish!

All homemade ice-cream:
Thai Iced Tea -- Silky texture,
every bite filled with the aroma of traditional thai black tea
Creamy Coconut -- as mentioned above ; )

Thai Iced Coffee -- Crushed coffee beans infused;

So glad this wasn't smooth like the others,
for the difference in texture makes a sharp contrast ; )

What's even better?

Top them all off with Chocolate + Caramel Sauce +
crushed almond caramel bits!

i was eating so slow at one point,
that goh goh had to coax me into speeding up,
before all the ice cream melted : b

The only disappointment in this dish:
the coconut jelly sat in the banana-like flavored syrup
too long : ( & the jackfruit tasted like banana, too.

(yes, i don't like bananas...
so i'm making personal preferential criticisms.)

All in all, i couldn't have been happier with this meal!

Quoting Goh goh,
"This is one of the best meals I've ever had!"

FYI:

Kittichai Restaurant

Address: 60 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012

Reservations: 212 219 2000

Website: kittichairestaurant.com

p.s. Don't you want to go there with me again,
to try the family/ tasting menu?! : DDDD

Welcome! Taste Testers!

It's a beautiful thing
to have friends come over to our place,
and be the taste testers of my cooking ; D



Well, as the saying goes...
Friends don't let friends go hungry... RIGHT? : D



Thanks to David,
we got some shots of my cooking in action!



Black bean Garlic Pork Chops bubbling in its sauce ; )



Lap Cheung (Chinese Sausage) diced,
awaiting to be added to the rice : )



The kindest guest, Aaron,
washing dishes for us : )



I made the stir-fry cabbage/corn dish too spicy,
with too much Garlic Spicy sauce... 0_o"
So i was trying to reverse the trauma
by adding sugar... : b haaa!



Yay for friends!
YAYYYYYY for God's blessings & provision,
that we have a home to accomodate others
while serving them with yummy yummy : )

Deboning Session

We caught Zach in action again...
HAVING A FEAST eh, little buddy? : )

Yes, we created these BONELESS monsters again...
as requested by the Chins : )


Although, this time --
i hosted a deboning session with 2 participants--

Student #1. Donna


She's dicing some tilapia, which we were going to use
to stuff the chicken wings : )


TAAA DAAAA! Such a beautiful sight... *_*
I then, proceeded to marinate them with:
sea salt, white pepper, lime juice, garlic, rosemary...


Stuffing #2: Marinated Minced Pork with Mushrooms
(Marinated with: salt, black pepper, sesame oil...)


YAY! There you see Student #2, Nick!


According to Nick, deboning chicken wings
make his hands 'Chickeny';
& he called this thumb-in-wing action "Chicken Finger."


There, you see us putting Chef Nick at (more) work,
dicing up the mushrooms : )
This boy is growing up to be ladies' ideal man!


Meanwhile, Donna's friend Nancy came by,
and made very yummy guacamole *_*

i wonder if i can find a way to stuff chicken wings
with guac one day... that'd be something i can eat ALL DAY!

These are worth 2 hrs of hard work yo!!
(Totaling over 70 wings!)


After that, Donna had more fun with some chicken breasts...
Fajita in the making : )


Meanwhile, i sauteed the minced pork with the mushrooms.
Note: They're not fully cooked!
I just cooked them to about 70% done.

Then, we sauteed the fish also,
let them cool a lil bit,
then start stuffing! : )


Left: Minced pork/mushrooms;
Right: Apple / ham.


Goh goh seemed quite troubled,
when Donna suggested him to don an apron.


Pan-fried goodness : D

MMmmmmmMMm... O-I-L-Y.




A close-up shot of the apple & ham wings : )

After adding honey & bbq sauce,
they're put into the oven,
then transformed into these juicy, crispy beauties!



Yeahhhhhh! Such was our perfect Sunday dinner
with the company of friends & families! LOVELY! : )