Garden fresh

So last month brought me another year closer to thirty -- yikes! I got several awesome presents to mark the occasion this year, and today I'm highlighting one of them. My tita Malou (tita is Tagalog for auntie) planted me a wonderful mini herb garden with Manoa lettuce, parsley, dill, green onions, and rosemary. Tita Malou is a gardening genius . . . she has enough herbs in her homegrown garden to start a little farmers market. But I am happy to report that my mini garden is doing quite well a month later. I'm very proud of it! Let's take a closer look . . .

You can't miss the flourishing Manoa lettuce and parsley. They grow very nicely in the hot, humid, sunny environment.



And here you can see the hardy rosemary, delicate dill, and lovely green onions. The dill seems to agree the least with the sunny environment and has scorched in some places. I'm thinking it might be better off in its own pot in some shadier area.



I've been snipping pieces here and there to use in my cooking, but hadn't gotten around to trying the dill. Although I was excited to use it, I wasn't very familiar with what to use it for. With the current frazzled state it's in, I thought it best to use as soon as possible. Looking at what I had in the fridge, I decided on a BLT sandwich with herb mayonnaise. Here goes . . .

1. Toast bread and wash herbs thoroughly.
2. Take out and prepare other ingredients. I had cherry tomatoes on hand, but regular tomatoes probably would have been easier to eat on a sandwich.



3. Cut up the herbs (I used dill and green onion) and toss into the mayo. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and some pepper to taste.



4. Assemble sandwich and dig in!



Very yummy and fresh. There is something so satisfying about eating food that was just plucked from the earth. The addition of herbs adds so much flavor to a simple, everyday sandwich. I feel satisfied, but not overly full . . . the perfect disposition to finish with some Ben & Jerry's peanut butter cup ice cream!

Dinner and a Movie: Mostly Martha

On the recommendation of a friend, I rented Mostly Martha, a German movie about food and love. My kind of movie! Mostly Martha was very sweet and beautiful, but I didn't expect it to be so educational! I learned a few things from watching it. First, in Italy, basil is called basilico. I think it sounds so much nicer like that. And second, boiling a lobster is the worst way to kill it. I am truly sorry for the torture my friends and I inflicted on that tasty crustacean back in the college days. We didn't know! Apparently, you're supposed to deliver a precisely-placed stab to its neck. Now I know, but I think I'll leave the preparation of lobster to the professionals in the future.



There's a scene in it where the Italian chef Mario is eating a simple pasta dish, which served as my inspiration. It basically looked like noodles in a thin layer of tomato sauce and parmesan cheese. But the idea behind it is to use only a handful of quality ingredients, and really let them sing and shine together. So, I present this Roman dish, Pomodoro E Basilico.



If you find yourself with a healthy arsenal of basil as I did this weekend, this would be a good dish to unload it on. The use of such few ingredients really made me stop and savor their combination together . . . the acidic, tangy tomato . . . the nutty, pungent, earthy parmesan . . . and the star of it all, sweet basilico! I had to restrain myself from adding even pepper and garlic to the dish. It struck me as a bit odd that there was no garlic in the recipe. I will have to add it next time, because garlic makes everything better! For tonight, however, I did as the Romans do (well, as Fabrizzio Favale of Mediterraneo does, that is).

Result? Delizioso!

The color of fall . . . in summer

My camera has officially died -- so in memory of the old Olympus, I'm posting a couple of its last moments with me. These were taken in May . . . it felt like autumn in Hawaii!

Goodnight Moon

Today I saw Honolulu Theatre for Youth's production of the classic Goodnight Moon. Being that I love children's books and have benefited from HTY's programs in the past, how could I miss it?!

The play definitely did not disappoint . . . everything from the set, to the whimsical characters, dancing, stage choreography, and original music were excellently done! With such a simple book they were able to create complex, funny characters that captivated the young (and old) audience. I would recommend taking any toddlers you know to see this play! Only one week left! But if you're young at heart and want to be taken up into a fantasy world for an hour, this play is for you, too. HTY's Goodnight Moon is really magical and fun!

Their re-creation of the book through the set was amazing . . .



We followed the play with a stop at the previously mentioned Hokulani Bake Shop. I didn't think I'd be back there so soon, but this time I didn't miss the opportunity to sample one of their creations. I had the lemon cupcake with lilikoi frosting. The cupcake was moist and delicate, and the frosting wasn't too sweet. All in all, I was very happy with it!



After all that sugar, we started craving something salty, so we ended the day at Soon's. It was my first time there, and it turned out to be one of the best Korean bbq I've had! I got the meat jun with mandoo. So ono . . . broke da mouth . . . :) The meat was thin with an airy, crisp egg coating. Usually meat jun is kind of soggy and the meat can be tough, but this one was delicious!



So much good food in my tummy, made me sleepy. So good night, friends!

Hello. I'm back.

I've been busy getting sand between my toes . . .



And baking, of course! Yup, I made all of them.



Ok, I really have been baking . . . but these are from Hokulani Bake Shop. Mmmm, it smells so good in there. But I resisted the temptation to taste one, so I can't tell you how it is. One day I'll be back . . .

It's finally done!

After nine 2 1/2-hr. sewing classes, the dress is finally done! We weren't sewing during all the classes (we had to learn about fabrics, notions, how to cut fabric and work with the pattern) . . . but I was getting impatient in the end. I really loved learning how to sew, but I wished the class would go faster. I'm happy with what I made, though!

What's on my reading table

1. On Gold Mountain/The One-Hundred Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family --
I picked this up because I wanted to read something historical. It's turning out to be a real page turner. I never cared for history in school, so it's nice to get some history lessons this way.

2. Sew Subversive/Down and Dirty DIY for the Fabulous Fashionista -- I don't really care for the projects they have in here, but there were 2 that I want to attempt.

3. Apples & Pears/The Body Shape Solutions for Weight Loss and Wellness -- I always have to have a diet/nutrition/wellness book in my lineup. I seem to devour these books and find them super interesting! The premise is that your body shape and where you accumulate fat are pretty telling of your health. Belly fat is dangerous fat! I just watched a show on Discovery Health that supported this idea as well. A healthy belly measurement for women is 35 inches and below. Anything over that and you're at risk for heart disease and diabetes.

4. Easy Everyday Favorites -- gotta have a cookbook in there! The thing I love about this one is that nearly every recipe has a picture. I hate cookbooks that don't have pictures.

What are you reading? Any recommendations?