following an unknown path

apricot chicken delight

The first half of this semester was hard.  Weird schedule, lots of new pressures and responsibilities, and a lack of energy.

Unfortunately lack of energy is a vicious cycle--no energy to cook good stuff = eating out; eating out = not always eating the best foods; not eating healthy = no energy. 

So, during the midterm week, when I wasn't grading tests or catching up on laundry.  I searched for some recipes to turn into the 30 meals project that Carrie, my RA in college (well, and my college roommate's sister-in-law) told me about on this post. (BTW, thanks Carrie!!)

My requirements were that the recipes:

• could be made in less than 20 min,
  
• needed to be low-carbish,
  
• needed to delight mine and my husband's taste buds, and
  
• could be made with things easily found in Taiwan.

Finding meals that meet all four requirements was no small task!

Although Lawrance is generally easy going and not too picky about food, finding things we both love to eat often has proved to be a challenge. 

So, my first recipe test was something I found at Cooking During Stolen Moments: Apricot Chicken.

It was SO easy and best of all packed full of flavor!!  

I kinda went a bit overboard using freshly cracked black pepper and might have used extra garlic--so our's was not only tangy, but spicy too--she does say to season to taste. :)

This is probably the least low-carb recipe I collected since it uses apricot jam, but it is definitely something I'll be making again before too long. 

Side-note to anyone in Taiwan wanting to give this a try: I used half of a jar of Carrefour brand apricot jam (french name on bottle) to cover 6 chicken breast quarters.

dinner at dudu cafe

One of our favorite restaurants is called DuDu Cafe.  It is a family style restaurant that serves food that is most similar to Chinese dishes you might find in the States.

Here's what we had. . .


{bamboo shoot, served cold}

{cashew chicken}

{kung pao chicken}

{pumpkin seafood soup}

{beef with green peppers}

Now do you see why we like it?  DELICIOUS!!!

how do ghosts eat?

Sarah Beth, an MK in Peru, asked on my last post:

That's interesting. Who ends up eating the food? In Peru we have something very similar. They put tons of food on top of the graves of their family members and leave it for several hours. But when midnight comes, the family eats the food! I wonder about the logic... what is it like there??

Something similar happens here.  The food and drink offerings are made first before the paper money is burned.  In order to offer the ghosts (at ghost month), ancestors (during ancestor worship), and idols (at temples and Chinese New Year), incense sticks are stuck into the foods or food packaging.

After a set amount of time--it varies from family to family and holiday to holiday and probably other factors too--the offering table is taken down and the food brought inside. 

The family will then eat the food. Many college students have told me waiting for the tables to come down at Chinese New Year (after midnight) so that could eat the goodies was one of their favorite parts of the yearly holiday.

I have been told that the "spirit of the food" is eaten, they are after all feeding spirits.  Some have told me that because the spirit of the food has been eaten the food tastes bland and stale.  Others have told me that because the spirit of the food has been eaten the food tastes better, as if it has been blessed.  And, then others admit to the food not being that much different at all.

The offering tables are set up differently from area to area and family to family, just like every American family decorates their Christmas tree differently.  But there are also differences in setting up an offering table to idols, ancestors, or ghosts. 

At Ghost Month, often a basin of water and a hand towel can be found on or near the offering table so that their "honorable guests" can wash their hands before partaking of the meal being given to them. These two flickr photos (here and here) show ghost month tables with the typical basins with hand towel out front. 

Not to be confusing, but I don't have any Ghost Month photos easily accessible.  What I do have is photos I took last November outside of my school.  I noticed everyone was setting up tables with drinks as the main offering.  (I have no idea who or what was being worshiped.)  And, at many tables instead of the traditional little red wine cups, there were bottles of coke and tea boxes.

{seven traditional little cups with rice wine}

{seven cans of beer from a restaurant}

{seven lemon tea boxes from a resturant}

{seven bottles of coke}

{coffee boxes from a grocery store}

snacks for the ghosts

Today is the start of Ghost Month, so this weekend when Law and I walked into Carrefour we saw lots of snacks on sale.  Piles and piles of snack food.  At first I was like "why?"  Then it dawned on me--offerings for the ghosts.

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People are setting up tables like this with snacks and drinks and fruits in order to worship their ancestors.

honeymoon muffins

(aka Grandmother Smith's To-Die-For Carrot Muffins)

I'm not sure how many of my cousins were given a batch of these to eat on their honeymoons, but I know my sister and her groom got a batch, and so did we. 

That's how good they are . . . you will want to eat them on your honeymoon.  (Ok, so maybe the real reason you want to eat them on your honeymoon is because you are trying to save money broke after the wedding and they are easy to pack and carry.  BUT, being practical doesn't make them any less yummy).

So since I've not enjoyed these treats in nearly a year, I was really craving some.  So, I pulled out my grandmother's recipe and made a batch.  If you follow her recipe you are going to get a "yeild" of several dozens of muffins.  I mean come on . . . it calls for 9 eggs, 6 cups of carrots, and 3 cups of oil!!

At first I was trying to figure out how to half the recipe--but how do you put in 4.5 eggs?  Then I figured out she must have TIPPLED the recipe.  There was no way I was only going to make a mere 1/3 of a batch . . . I wanted extras to freeze for later. 

So, on Saturday I made this GREAT, BIG, HUGE batch of carrot muffins!  YUMMY!!!!

I also discovered that Grandmother must shred her carrots because I grated mine . . . . and there is a difference (in texture, not taste).  So, if you are wanting to "hide" the carrot aspect from children, I recommend shredding, not grating the carrots.  But, if you are wanting them to feel more "hearty" then grate them instead.

So, without further adieu . . . here is my grandmother's recipe for Honeymoon Muffins. :)

6 cups flour (I used 2 cups whole wheat, and 4 all purpose)
3 ¾ cups sugar
6 t soda
6 t cinnamon
1 ½ t salt
6 cups grated carrots
1 ½ cup raisins
1 ½ cups coconut
1 ½ cups pecans
9 eggs
3 cups oil
3 shredded apples (I left the skin on--this makes them SO moist)
6 t vanilla

In large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, soda, cinnamon and salt.  Stir in carrots, raisins, coconut and pecans.

In separate bowl, combine eggs, oil, apples, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture. Stir only until combined. Spoon into lined or greased muffin tins.

Bake at 350°F for 15 – 18 minutes.

Like I mentioned before, these muffins freeze very well.  Either let them thaw on their own or pop them in the microwave oven for just a bit and eat hot.

I bet you can't eat just one!!

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Also, thanks for the several ideas about recipe storage.  They were very helpful!! :)

ten years ago, I wrote my first "blog"

Ok, so actually it was written on what is called a website . . . but still I was trying to make it like a blog before blogging platforms were abundantly everywhere. 

Ten years ago, in a school's computer room somewhere in northern Taiwan, I became a blogger, and I didn't even know it!

To get my printed photos online, I began using using a scanner in Chinese and yahoo's geocities to record my daily life here in Taiwan.  The photo quality is terrible . . . and the layout was tedious, but, if I do say so myself, the design was better than many "homemade" websites from the late '90s. 

But OH!  if I had had flickr and blogger back then, not to mention a digital camera  . . . how sweet that would have been!!!! 

In fact, I carried my mom's 35mm film camera in my purse daily for a year.  Soon after that I got my first digital camera, and so for nearly 10 years now my purse has always housed a point and shoot camera.  It is essential--more important than lipgloss and a driver's licence!

Anyway, Geocities is closing later this year, which made me want to take a walk down memory lane.  Feel free to click through and see what life was like for me as an exchange student in Taiwan in 1999. 

Here was my very first "blog." (nothing is there now besides the "first blog," which I didn't even know was a blog at the time.)

I had an index/home page (which originally was set up kinda of like flickr's sets page), that I changed when I started using another site and then changed again when I moved to blogging.

Here are the "1st pages of each group of photos":

flying cows in taiwan
summer in taiwan
studying in taiwan
residing in taiwan
friends in taiwan
sightseeing in taiwan
holidays in taiwan
classmates in taiwan
religion in taiwan
vacation in japan

Based on these "album" names, can you guess what I called that very first site? 

That's right "amanda in taiwan."  And, yes, my love for not using capital letters in my online world titles started with this very site . . . ten years ago!! (Can you tell I'm having a hard time accepting it was a decade ago that all this happened!?!?!)

Bye-bye, my dear first online home.  Rest in peace.

lawrance cooks on fridays

We both work mostly in the afternoon and evening--somewhere between 3-9ish.  So, we usually have our mornings together, so our "big meal" is lunch time.  Monday to Thursday I do the cooking, but since I have class on Friday mornings, Lawrance has been cooking on Fridays recently.

When we married he could fry an egg and boil instant noodles. 

Law's mother is an excellent cook, and she prepares three meals a day every day.  They hardly ever ate out.  Moreover, she grows her own vegetables organically.  Very healthy, very frugal.  (Confession: this knowledge kinda scared me after I found out . .. I knew I'd never be able to live up to that.)

Anywho, one day he got the random idea to call her and ask how to make shrimp and fried eggs.  Then he started playing around with other dishes. 

Let's just say . . . I'm blessed. :)  I always look forward to lunch on Fridays.

my first birthday married

I made the traditional birthday cake for my mom's side of the family.  It is a peppermint cake.  It is really easy--add a few drops of green food coloring and a 1 teaspoon of peppermint oil to "white" or plain cake batter.  Layer with chocolate frosting and crushed peppermints.  DELICIOUS!!!

But . . .  there was one huge disappointment . . . the "peppermints" I bought here in Taiwan had some extra "flavor" (menthol).  That's just not right on a birthday cake!! :)

My birthday present was the purse sitting behind the flowers . . . I got to pick  it out. 

And, on the Saturday before my birthday, Lawrance came home with the flowers.  At that time all the lilies were closed.  It was fun watching them one by one throughout the week.  He is SO thoughtful!! :)

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And, Lawrance took me out to a stake place called "Tasty."  They have a set meal that is 7 courses--for most of the courses you get to choose between 2 or 3 items.  It was very nice! 

I think they have some of the best wait staff in Taiwan. 

Not all of the courses and also not in the correct order, but to give you the basic idea . . .

Maybe not the best dessert they have but definitely the coolest (as in most unique) is a fried chocolate wanton that you break and pour over vanilla ice cream.  Then you get to eat the rest of the fried chocolate wanton.

not suitable together

(No, no, not me and Lawrance  . . . we are perfectly suitable together! :))

That is what the manager at McDonald's told me when I asked for mayo on my cheeseburger the other day.  In fact, my request was so not ok, the clerk had to go get the manager.  She wouldn't do it because beef and mayo are not suitable together. 

She said she would be happy to put some mayo in a cup and allow me to put it on my own burger but she couldn't couldn't add it to my cheeseburger for me because they "don't go together."

What!?!?!?!

It's been a looooong time since something has shocked me culturally . . . but this sure did.  I mean totally . . . mouth hanging wide open in total culture shock.  I felt like I must be an alien for wanting mayo with my beef.

But, "why?" I asked her.  Her only answer was "well, people in Taiwan don't think mayo goes with beef." 

In my head I'm thinking, "WHAT!!!!! You guys put mayo on EVERYTHING . . . even fried shrimp!!"

Up until this point our whole conversation was in Chinese.  Seeing I was still suffering from acute culture shock the manager switches to English to ensure me that I heard correctly, "they are not suitable together."

Ok, fine, whatever.  I'll take it on the side and put it on myself.

I'm still not satisfied and I've continued to try to think about why . . . is it something to do with ying and yang?  something with the fact that cheeseburgers don't have lettuce and mayo in Chinese is only called "salad dressing" (doesn't work--what about the shrimp)?  something she made up to get me to leave her alone? 

Anyone out there with a another "suitable" possible reason?

She was nice in that she did give me the mayo--enough for 15 hamburgers, no joke--on the side in a sundae cup.  She must have felt really bad for literally sending me into acute culture shock.

(FYI: pic on left is from a few years ago when Sam was here . . . he ordered his dessert in Chinese by himself.  I was so proud of him.)

tong yuan tradition

For the first time in 30 years, I went to school (aka: work) on Christmas day as did Lawrance.  In fact, since he didn't come home till after 10, there was no point in cooking a special meal.  So, in order to still do something special, after lighting our advent candles and opening gifts, we made tong yuan. 

We also made these sticky sweet dumplings right after we decorated our Christmas tree in late November. 

Below is a video of Lawrance showing you how to prepare tong yuan.

a shower

A few months ago . . the weekend before Lawrance came to America, there was a "Smith Family Bridal Shower" where all of my aunts and most of my cousins came to shower me with blessings.  It was the first time in two years that I had seen most of them!! 

My mom and sister did all the decorating . . . and they did a great job.  It was so colorful and fun . . . because, well, they used gerber daisies. 

See how cute? And yes they made those really cute daisy cookies!!

We ate at a local Chinese food place that does the round table, everyone share thing.

Mom made me wear a silly veil for awhile while we played some shower games:

And, the girls blessed me with some cute stuff for our master bathroom, things to use in the kitchen, a great cozy blanket for two, and some beautiful lingerie too.

One last photo . . . of me with mom, Sarah, and Grandmother.  I am blessed.  Oh, so blessed!! :)

pompoms and favor bags

Mom and I spent some time this week working on wedding stuff.

First, we started making things to hang at the wedding.

We will be hanging these tissue paper pompoms both in the tree and in the reception hall.  Have I mentioned we are having an outdoor wedding and are getting married under this great big, 200 year old tree:

I've always dreamed of an outdoor wedding.  As a side note, I always told my family that I'd get married barefoot in someone's backyard--it almost happened till mom found the inn.  And, well, I'm going to wear sandals because Lawrance thinks it's safer.

Back to the pompoms.  Mine will be orange, teal, pink, and yellow.  We also have some pomanders made out of several different colors of gerberas to hang from the tree.  Mom made those.

We also bagged candy that Lawrance and I picked out in Taiwan.  Traditionally in Taiwan, a bride and groom will stand at "the exit door" to thank all the guests for coming to their wedding.  This also ensures that everyone at the wedding has one more chance to congratulate the new couple. 

They stand at the door with their parents and pass out candy and cigarettes.  I'm not sure what the cigarettes symbolize; however, I do know about the candy.  :)  The giving of candy at the wedding symbolizes the guests sharing in the sweetness of the new marriage.  Or that the guests wish a sweet life on the new couple. 

Lawrance also told me that in Taiwanese the word for "candy" sounds like "di di" which means "little brother."  So, by taking the candy the guests are also wishing the couple has a son very soon.

One aspect of the candy is that I've been told to take the candy in even multiples.  In other words, never take just one piece.  Taking two pieces is important because you want the two of them to stay married forever. 

So, . . . Lawrance and I got some of the traditional wedding candy and also some other fun Taiwanese candy we thought Americans would like.  We aren't going to stand at the exit door at our American wedding, but we will give out the candy in little bags with an explanation of its cultural significance as our American wedding favors.  The little bags look so cute and make me very happy.

frozen delights (simply taiwan 3)

There were many times I told my cousins "you've not really been to Taiwan if you haven't ________."  And, one of those "fill in the blanks" was "eaten cuo-bing" (剉冰, shaved ice).

Cuo-bing is a wonderful Taiwanese delight!!  Cuo-bing is shaved ice topped with yummy stuff.  I like it topped with either fruit or an assortment of chewy things.  And, traditionally it is topped with things like peanuts, beans, sweet potatoes, or taro pieces.  In addition to these yummy things, a sweet syrup water is poured onto the ice and sometimes sweet condensed milk is also added.

The above photo was taken at a self-serve cuo-bing shop at a night market.  You fill up the bowl, they weigh it, and then top it with ice and the brown sugar water.

Here are some fruit topped bings I've enjoyed:



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Here are some of my students enjoying a great big bowl of fruit bing:



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This one is a more traditional bing one of my friends enjoyed--it is topped with green beans, herbal jelly, and peanuts:



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These girls are enjoying ice covered with green beans.  Yeah, I prefer mango too. ;)



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There are many kinds and types of cuo-bing. And . . . they are so YUMMY!!!!

birthday cakes galore!

One of the benefits of having 8 hours of class on my birthday is that over 140 people sang happy birthday to me!

And . . . three of my classes surprised me with cakes!!

The first class actually used another student from another class to tell me they were in an assembly in another building, and our class would be canceled and I was free to go home.  I walked by their classroom before my class and it really was empty (little did I know they were hidding in the stairwell).  I debated for a moment whether to trust them or not.  I decided they were trustworthy.

I sent a text to one of the students and told her what I expected them to have completed by our next class.  But, about 5 min into class time the three guys in the class came into my office and told me the assembly was over and they were ready for class.  So, we all went back to the classroom.  I was thinking about how amazing these kids were since they were willing to have class even though they actually had a free pass for the final hour of the day. 

When we walked into the classroom, there was a party going on. :)  (Can you see the numbers on the cake?  That's right . . . 18!!!)



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They had transformed the chalkboard into a giant birthday card.



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Another class came back from the break during the second hour of class with a cake . . . and so we had a party too! :)



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Even though my last class wasn't over till 9:00 and I didn't get home till after 9:30, some special friends were waiting for at my neighbor's home with pizza and cake to celebrate with me.  I don't have picture of that cake, but here I am with my neighbor and her daughters. (I don't know if you can tell, but to me, I look SO TIRED.)



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Then the following day, 15 minutes into class, some of the "absent students" came in carrying a cake and singing "Happy Birthday!"  First thing one of them told me after singing was "you can't count me tardy" (apparently, I'm known for being strict about that.)



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Then later during the week of my birthday, a dear friend, Anna, stopped by with a beautiful little cake to help me celebrate my birthday.  She had seen my blog on Monday and thought I needed some cheering up--isn't that so sweet!!



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So, if I had to be in school all day on my birthday, it was nice being surprised so many times! :)  And, I also appreciate the others who through out the week made me feel special too. :)
 

happy chinese new year!!!

Happy Year of the Rat!! 

This photo above was taken at the day market on the morning of Chinese New Year's Eve a few years ago. During the Chinese New Year time, every store sets out candy and every home has a tray of candy set out for guests.

Perhaps it is to wish friends and neighbors a sweet year--that's just a random guess on my part. :)

(I'll try to share some more Chinese New Year traditions with you next week.)

Here are some more photos of Chinese New Year candy for sale.  Some are in the shape of firecrackers, some in the shape of an ancient weight for currency, and some look like Chinese lanterns.

blessing fruits (updated)

At Chinese New Year, everything is a little more festive--including the fruits that have "blessing" values assigned to them.

I forget which blessings pineapples and oranges are supposed to bring.  Perhaps wealth--anyone know for sure?

UPDATE: In the comments, Lawrance, answers my question.  I put his reply here to make the answer more accessible to others.  Thanks for clearing up my vauge impression, Lawrance.

Pineapple means prosperous because of it sounds like "prosperity come"(旺來：旺--prosperity，來--come) in Taiwanese.

Orange means auspiciousness because of it sounds like 吉子 in Mandarin.(吉：auspiciousness，子--children). Parents hope gods can bless their children with auspiciousness.

secret ingredient in sweet and sour chicken

Remember the neighbor-friend that I'm swapping cooking lessons with? 

Well, last week she taught me how to make sweet and sour chicken.  Wanna know what the secret ingredient is?

That's right: KETCHUP!!! This is what makes it sour!

Oh!  It was so yummy too.

So, if your in the neighborhood, stop by and I can try out my new Chinese cooking abilities on you. Just give me a little heads up, so I can head on over to the grocery store for some ketchup first.  :)

eating at a department store

Department store food court food in Taiwan is actually quite good. 

I had this for dinner one day last week when I was starving.  It is a fried chicken breast served with a tomato rice omelet and curry.  It also came with corn soup (aka thick egg drop soup), steamed egg (with mushrooms, fish balls, and chicken broth inside for flavor), salad (shredded-cabbage based), and some herbal jelly soup.

And, to make it even better . . . this yummy meal only cost me about five US dollars.  Sweet huh?

a new favorite

When I babysat for a missionary family awhile back, the mom made oatmeal casserole.  It was the first time I've ever tried such a thing.  You eat it warm, but pour milk over it kinda like cereal.  I am an oatmeal lover, so this new twist to an old favorite was a welcome treat.

I decided to make it for my own weekend-before Christmas guests who were spending the night.  Like many casseroles, you can put it all together the night before, leave it in the fridge and just pop it into the oven the next morning.

Here's what I did:

1/3 cup butter

2 eggs

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed

2 tsp. vanilla

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup raisins
2 small apples, chopped skin on
1/3 cup nuts (walnuts or pecans
1 cup plus 2 TBSP. milk

3 cups quick-cooking oats

Grease a 1-1/2 quart casserole dish (I don't have a casserole dish, so I just used a cake pan). Preheat the oven to 177C or 350F.

Drop in the eggs and beat them slightly. Add the brown sugar, baking powder, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Mix well, and make sure there are no brown sugar lumps. Whisk in the melted butter and the milk. Stir in the oats.  Stir in the optional raisins, apples, and nuts (although optional, these make it oh so scrumptious).

Bake, uncovered, for 35 minutes. The top should be starting to brown. Remove from oven. Spoon into bowls and pour milk over the top.

I just mixed everything right there in the casserole dish.  This fed six of us, even with going back for seconds.  I also happen to know that it is good warmed up in the microwave the following day.

Next time, I am going to experiment with using Splenda instead of the brown sugar, I know it will give it a slightly different taste, but that'd be ok. 

Also, the original receipe I followed was slightly different.  One difference is that it called for 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder; I didn't have that so I left it out.  I didn't miss it, but you might.

yummy

This was yummy. It only cost $1.50.  No other commentary needed. :)

hot pot just gets better

Pumpkin hot pot used to be my favorite.  But, I think I might have just found one that is even better. 

At A Guan, a restaurant near my apartment, they allow you to have two kinds of soup for boiling your food in by providing a split pot.  I chose coconut milk and curry.  The curry soup base was so wonderful I didn't even need the hot pot dipping sauce that I love so much.

This was also my first time to have chicken hot pot.  I usually choose beef or pork.  The chicken at this place was wonderful . . . I'd choose it again in a heartbeat. 

Anyone wanna come join me for hot pot this weekend?  I'd be happy to go again!