I have had a love-hate relationship with Pad Thai for a while now. I loved it when I had it in Thailand and I hated it anytime I ordered it at a restaurant stateside. You see, the so-called Pad Thai I’ve had in restaurants has always been coated in this weird orange-colored sauce that scares me. It tastes funny too. But when I visited Thailand 7 years ago, I learned that real Pad Thai is not orange or scary. Not even a little bit.
I also learned that the peppers in the panang curry in Thailand are not bell peppers like they are over here. I learned this as the locals in the restaurant all laughed at me when I burst into flames. Well, maybe I didn’t burst into flames and maybe they didn’t laugh at me, but it was a lesson I will never forget. Peppers in Thailand are hot… even the ones that look like bell peppers.
Anyway, enough about spontaneous combustion. I was telling you about my love-hate relationship with Pad Thai. I still sometimes order it, holding out hope that I’ll find the same light, fresh noodles sans freaky orange sauce that I loved in Thailand only to be disappointed once again.
But no more. Not since I found an easy and tasty Pad Thai recipe in the latest issue of Everyday Food (which by the way is quickly becoming my favorite food magazine).
Granted, the recipe is not 100% authentic — it doesn’t use fish sauce and tamarind and the 100 other ingredients the authentic version calls for — but it is light and fresh and easy with a capital E. You can seriously have this ready in 30 minutes flat (and most of that time is just soaking the noodles). I’ve made it 4 times in 2 weeks and unless I am on a beach in Thailand, I am never ordering Pad Thai in a restaurant again.
Now, let’s make some Pad Thai…
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Tagged as: dinner, gluten free, healthy eating, noodles, pad thai, thailand, vegetarian
Behold: an apple. It is good for you (vitamins, fiber, blahblahblah), and it tastes good to boot. What could be better?
Cheese, that’s what. Melted, gooey, cheddar cheese.
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Tagged as: apple, breakfast, cheddar, cheese, snack, vegetarian
It wasn’t until I moved to California that I began to appreciate changes in weather. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and all of that. Growing up, my time was split between Georgia and Texas, and in both states we lived on the coast so the storms could be spectacular. But I took the almost daily summer thundershowers for granted. It’s just what the weather did… how boring.
Then after a year of sunshine and mild California weather, I went back to Atlanta to visit friends. It was July. We were at an outdoor party enjoying grilled hamburgers and sunny weather when all of a sudden a dark cloud rolled in. Within minutes, we were being pelted by quarter-sized raindrops. Everyone at the party ran for shelter… except for me. I ran into the rain and looked up. I let the drops hit my cheeks and shoulders. I was so happy to see real rain that I didn’t care about the funny looks I was getting from the rest of the party-goers.. About fifteen minutes later, the rain stopped and the party resumed outside.
After that short rain shower, I was flooded with memories of rainy days. Sitting at the sliding glass door watching the water come down in sheets. The cool, clean smell after a big shower washed down the trees. And I remembered the time I was five when my best friend and I went sloshing around her backyard with a tiny umbrella between us during a storm. We got soaked to the bone but it was so much fun.
It doesn’t rain very often here, so I miss it (though we get the extended drizzle sometimes). But yesterday we had a good, long rain shower. I cracked my backdoor so I could hear it hitting the trees. When I woke up this morning, the rain was gone, but it left behind a crispness in the air that said it is now unmistakably fall.
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Tagged as: first sign of fall, roasted onions, roasted tomatoes, soup, tomato soup
Okay, so… I know the summer peaches are almost gone, and that’s really a bummer (I love peaches). But just in case you still have one or two lying around without a purpose I wanted to share this with you. This salad was inspired by one I had at the Taste of the Nation in Napa last month. It was one of the simplest dishes being served but it had the greatest impact on me. The dressing was light, and the peach delectable… plump and ripe, the juices ran down my chin and fingers. Excuse me, I’m having a moment.
Suffice it to say, it was one of the best bites I had that day. And before I had finished eating it, I knew I had to try making it at home. [Continue reading...]
Tagged as: arugula, peaches, salad, vinaigrette
The other day it was so hot that I did not want anything warm to eat so I sent out a tweet “What is your favorite heat-wave meal?” I got a few responses, but the one that stood out was from Scott aka Seattle Food Geek: “My fave is a platter of mozzarella, tomato, basil, melon, prosciutto, bread, w/olive oil, + a bottle of Riesling.”
Why didn’t I think of that? It’s something we’ve had before, but somehow I couldn’t come up with anything beyond “cold. no-cook. cold…” (it was hot, people). Anyway, just because I couldn’t think of it myself, doesn’t mean I couldn’t eat it. So Dan and I made a meal of caprese salad and melon with prosciutto… a little baguette and good olive oil on the side. Perfect, light meal.
Tagged as: appetizers, caprese, heat wave, melon, nablopomo, prosciutto, quick meal
