What a good looking couple!
June 17, 2011
Food Venture: Da Nang
Last week a couple of coworkers and I had lunch at Da Nang. It was the closest Vietnamese restaurant in the area and I've been craving Pho for a while so we went to try it out.
Of course, I almost never order Pho ( even though I was craving it) and almost always order Bun Thit Nuong Cha Gio (Grilled Pork w/ Rice Vermicelli and Eggroll)
Sonila tried the Com Suon (Grilled Pork w/ Rice)
Cathy had Bun Bo Hue (Hue Style Beef Noodle Soup)
The food was good, the service not so good. Definitely not your typical Vietnamese Restaurant. The atmosphere was nice, but it was missing a little of the authentic vibe. If only Que Huong was closer!
Of course, I almost never order Pho ( even though I was craving it) and almost always order Bun Thit Nuong Cha Gio (Grilled Pork w/ Rice Vermicelli and Eggroll)
Sonila tried the Com Suon (Grilled Pork w/ Rice)
Cathy had Bun Bo Hue (Hue Style Beef Noodle Soup)
The food was good, the service not so good. Definitely not your typical Vietnamese Restaurant. The atmosphere was nice, but it was missing a little of the authentic vibe. If only Que Huong was closer!
June 2, 2011
Snapshot 10
View of Detroit from Windsor, Canada.
June 1, 2011
LOL Random 8
Random bits...
Night out with my hot dates.
Two very strange people. Two very hardworking and caring people. I heart them.
2011 Summer Concert and Comedy Show at Caesars Windsor Casino in Windsor, Canada.
Trina Bao Tran
MC Giang Ngoc
Manh Quynh and the beautiful Phi Nhung
Vietnam based singer Dan Truong
Hilarious comedians, Viet Huong and Hoai Tam
Huong Lan!
Super funny, talented, and great live performer, Bang Kieu!
Vietnam based Quang Linh too! Also highly talented and silly.
Also performances by Mai Thanh Son, Thu Phuong, Diem Suong, and Ngoc Anh
Mai Thanh Son, such a fresh voice.
Night out with my hot dates.
Two very strange people. Two very hardworking and caring people. I heart them.
2011 Summer Concert and Comedy Show at Caesars Windsor Casino in Windsor, Canada.
Trina Bao Tran
MC Giang Ngoc
Manh Quynh and the beautiful Phi Nhung
Vietnam based singer Dan Truong
Hilarious comedians, Viet Huong and Hoai Tam
Huong Lan!
Super funny, talented, and great live performer, Bang Kieu!
Vietnam based Quang Linh too! Also highly talented and silly.
Also performances by Mai Thanh Son, Thu Phuong, Diem Suong, and Ngoc Anh
Mai Thanh Son, such a fresh voice.
Out of the Box: Turtle Cheesecake Brownies
Memorial Monday was not super exciting. Semi-spring-cleaned the house with the family, napped, complained about the heat, and hung out with Burst of Dori and her family. Got bored so we decided to get into kitchen.
I called on the help of my friend, Betty Crocker, again and we made Turtle Cheesecake Brownies!
You'll need a box of Betty Crocker's Turtle Brownie Mix
Preheat oven and prepare the mix as instructed. Leave the pouch of caramel to the side to use for decorating later.
Using a 12-Cup cupcake pan, fill the cupcake liners half way with brownie mix. Bake and let cool.
While the brownie cools, prepare the No-bake Cheesecake as instructed. No need for the Gramhm cracker crust unless you want to incorporate it in somehow. You can keep it for later use.
Once the brownies have cooled, fill the rest of the liner with the cheesecake mix. Snip a small corner off the caramel pouch and decorate the top of the brownies. Add a halved pecan or walnut and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
Enjoy!!
Not bad for something that I winged in the spur of the moment.
Dori's watermelon rind salad. Yum!
I called on the help of my friend, Betty Crocker, again and we made Turtle Cheesecake Brownies!
You'll need a box of Betty Crocker's Turtle Brownie Mix
Preheat oven and prepare the mix as instructed. Leave the pouch of caramel to the side to use for decorating later.
Using a 12-Cup cupcake pan, fill the cupcake liners half way with brownie mix. Bake and let cool.
While the brownie cools, prepare the No-bake Cheesecake as instructed. No need for the Gramhm cracker crust unless you want to incorporate it in somehow. You can keep it for later use.
Once the brownies have cooled, fill the rest of the liner with the cheesecake mix. Snip a small corner off the caramel pouch and decorate the top of the brownies. Add a halved pecan or walnut and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
Enjoy!!
Not bad for something that I winged in the spur of the moment.
Dori's watermelon rind salad. Yum!
May 21, 2011
Chuc Mom Sinh Nhat Vui Ve!
Happy 58th Birthday to my amazing, loving, and beautiful mother.
QQ Bakery Mango Fruit Cake.
Made with fresh yellow mangoes! The cake was very good, I like it.
QQ Bakery Mango Fruit Cake.
Made with fresh yellow mangoes! The cake was very good, I like it.
May 18, 2011
Music Update!
Wedding bells are in the air! Less than two month's before the sister's big day. The playlist has been updated with happier songs (so hard to find!). Also updated with songs I've just recently come across like Reno Binh's Se Mai Yeu Em - love it!. And I brought back modern and traditional favorites.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
May 13, 2011
Simmered Fish | Ca Kho Xup
I learned how to make this from my mom a couple years ago. It's kinda like sour fish soup (Canh Chua Ca) meets braised fish (Ca Kho). The ingredients are similar to those of the soup, but with a small amount of cooking liquid like a braise. You can tweak it with your choice of vegetables normally used in sour fish soup (pickled mustard, bean sprouts, celery, etc).
Prep Vegetables: Sliced shallots, crushed garlic, cut scallions, sliced pineapple, tomatoes, and sliced bamboo shoot. I like to use the young yellow bamboo shoot (fresh or canned), not the sour white bamboo shoot for the dish.
A clean firm fish cut into steak size pieces and seasoned with fish sauce, sambal chili paste, salt, black pepper, and chili flakes. I'm using my favorite fish, Pompano.
As usual, infuse the oil, shallots, and garlic. Heat oil first, brown the shallots, add the garlic, and then a little sambal chili paste. (careful - sambal paste might start spattering in the oil!)
Add the pineapple.
After a quick stir of the pineapple, move the mixture to one side area of the pan to make room for the fish. Sear the fish steaks.
After searing the fish, layer the shallot/pineapple on top of the fish and deglaze with 1 cup of water.
Layer on the bamboo shoot and a sprinkling of chili flakes.
Layer on the sliced tomatoes.
Cover and simmer until the fish is cooked; about 10 minutes depending on the size.
Garnish with cut scallions and or cilantro.
Serve with rice. Simple flavors and refreshing!
Prep Vegetables: Sliced shallots, crushed garlic, cut scallions, sliced pineapple, tomatoes, and sliced bamboo shoot. I like to use the young yellow bamboo shoot (fresh or canned), not the sour white bamboo shoot for the dish.
A clean firm fish cut into steak size pieces and seasoned with fish sauce, sambal chili paste, salt, black pepper, and chili flakes. I'm using my favorite fish, Pompano.
As usual, infuse the oil, shallots, and garlic. Heat oil first, brown the shallots, add the garlic, and then a little sambal chili paste. (careful - sambal paste might start spattering in the oil!)
Add the pineapple.
After a quick stir of the pineapple, move the mixture to one side area of the pan to make room for the fish. Sear the fish steaks.
After searing the fish, layer the shallot/pineapple on top of the fish and deglaze with 1 cup of water.
Layer on the bamboo shoot and a sprinkling of chili flakes.
Layer on the sliced tomatoes.
Cover and simmer until the fish is cooked; about 10 minutes depending on the size.
Garnish with cut scallions and or cilantro.
Serve with rice. Simple flavors and refreshing!
April 29, 2011
Taro & Tapioca Pearl Dessert
Easter Sunday, Mom and Phuong put me up to the task of making Che (sweet soup dessert). Mom was busy prepping all the stuff for Bun Thit Nuong and frying up some eggrolls while Phuong made Banh Bot Loc.
First time making this dessert - a few lessons learned for sure!
The pearls can be purchased at your local asian market.
Boil the pearls covered (about 1 cup of pearls to 6 cups of water)for 10 minutes. The centers will still be white - but if you let sit covered as you prepare other components, they will eventually become clear.
Steam cubed pieices of Taro. Then let cool so that they will hold up in the dessert.
Smash ginger root (1/4 cup of it) and dilute it with 1 cup of hot water (the Ginger is optional)
Strain the ginger tea and discard the pulp.
The tapioca pearls will look like this.
Fill a medium-large pot halfway with water. Stir in 1 can of coconut milk, ginger tea, and 2 cups of suger. Bring to boil. Add the cooled Taro. Bring to boil again and then turn off heat.
Gently stir in the pearls and 1 tablespoon of vanilla flavoring. Avoid stirring to much to keep the the Taro from falling apart. Taste, add more sugar if necessary.
Serve.
First time making this dessert - a few lessons learned for sure!
The pearls can be purchased at your local asian market.
Steam cubed pieices of Taro. Then let cool so that they will hold up in the dessert.
Smash ginger root (1/4 cup of it) and dilute it with 1 cup of hot water (the Ginger is optional)
Strain the ginger tea and discard the pulp.
The tapioca pearls will look like this.
Fill a medium-large pot halfway with water. Stir in 1 can of coconut milk, ginger tea, and 2 cups of suger. Bring to boil. Add the cooled Taro. Bring to boil again and then turn off heat.
Gently stir in the pearls and 1 tablespoon of vanilla flavoring. Avoid stirring to much to keep the the Taro from falling apart. Taste, add more sugar if necessary.
Serve.
Mussels Baked in a Dynamite Sauce - Bread Crumb Topping
My contribution to the spring potluck was Dynamite Mussels. I make this dish too much I think (only because it's easy and good). The difference in this batch compared to the ones I've made before is the panko bread crumb crust - which turned out nicely for some added texture.
Click link for the recipe (Less the breadcrumbs) >> Mussels Baked In Dynamite Sauce
Click link for the recipe (Less the breadcrumbs) >> Mussels Baked In Dynamite Sauce
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