Lazy Sunday Readings

It's over 110 degrees outside at 11 am. I didn't really feel like doing anything after returning from farmers market so I was checking websites I haven't been following recently.

At BuzzFeed, I found two articles that are actually worth mentioning. Click the pictures to jump to the articles.

38 Anthropologie Hacks

This article introduces some DIY blogs and websites with brilliant ideas of making things at a fraction of Anthro price. I am mot a fan of their inflated prices but they do have inspiring products. I have snapped pictures with my phone so many times at Anthro, hoping to use the idea later.

41 Camping Hacks That Are Borderline Genius

 

It's been several years since my last camping trip. I am so taking my exercise mat on my next trip!

Spicy Tomato Soup and Cheese Toast

Tomatoes are probably on the list of veggies and fruit kids hate but it has been one of my favorite ingredients all my life. Tomatoes are so versatile; they are tasty fresh, sauteed, or roasted.

This tomato soup is good hot or cold. The chilled version is great to beat the summer heat. As always, I am a believer of substitutions and additions. There are some rules to be followed, I agree, but cooking should be flexible (and fun)! For example, this particular soup in the picture has mushrooms in it. I'm sure most tomato soups don't have 'shrooms in them. It may sound odd but mushrooms add a lot of flavors. Although it could be blended with the rest of the soup, I like them sliced to enjoy the texture.

This type of soup is a great way to hide veggies. My husband, a meat and potato guy who hates 98% of vegetables, loves this soup. He has no idea that this soup has celery and carrot in it. Ha-ha!

The best companion for this soup is a cheese toast. I'm sure grilled cheese is fantastic as well. I am addicted to rustic baguette, a baguette with sesame seeds (from a bakery nearby), so that's what I usually use. Use what ever the melting cheese you have in your fridge. Cheese toasts used to be one of my favorite breakfast items when I was in elementary school. It is good any time of the day!

Click "Read more" for the recipe.

A Mystery Vegetable

It was the end of spring this year. My favorite vendor at a local farmers' market gave me an unfamiliar Asian vegetable she didn't remember the name of. She told me that she was experimenting growing new plants in her garden. The flowers and the leaves definitely look like it belongs to Brassicaceae but I had never seen this plant before. An hour of Internet search didn't really give me an answer.

It was already lunchtime so I took out my wok and stir fried this veggie, aburaage, and udon noodles. I flavored it with soy sauce, shichimi,  and sesame oil.

The flavor of this vegetable was pretty mild. I would use it as a substitution for mustard green or komatuna. The leaves were a little glossy like kai-lan but the stems were tender like that of komatuna.

What I Don't Have This Summer and I Really Miss

These are pictures I took with my phone in 2012.

I didn't have time and energy for serious gardening so I enjoyed container gardening. Mint and arugula survived last winter and were doing fine until two weeks ago. Both of them died when I was away for a week.

Basil, mint, and oregano

Arugula

 Thai basil and a special guest, humming bird

What I need to do is to build a gardening bed of some sort with a fence. Fence! See the beautiful basil in the first picture? My iron gate has openings so it does not stop small animals from coming into my yard. When I came from a weekend getaway, BUNNIES ATE half of my basil. I'm sure they had nice basil-scented poop that night.

Smoked Salmon Salad

I found this picture in July of 2011 holder. Smoked salmon salad!!!

This is a great appetizer in summer.  I served this salad on different occasions and got many compliments. It goes great with crisp, dry white wine. 

Click "Read More" for the recipe.