Mozart and Mung Beans

Happy Wednesday! There's a Chinese expression that says "Once Wednesday is over, there's only tomorrow and the day after tomorrow until the weekend!"
Tomorrow I'm actually going to the MIDNIGHT showing of Twilight with Page... shh, don't tell. It seems like all the cool "Indie" seeming kids are actually secretly seeing the movie, but they won't want to say anything.
Breakfast: Oatmeal with 1/2 banana, applesauce, blueberries, raspberries, maple syrup, yogurt, and some grapenuts.


Snack: Peanut butter Z-bar
Lunch: Check out my awesome Chinese lunchbox!
Layer 1:
Layer 2:
Layer 3:
By the way, those are just leftovers of steamed egg and tofu with greens.
Plus an Asian pear to go with the whole Asian theme and some Kashis, dried fruit and nuts (I DIDN'T NEED THIS. I need to stop packing food that I don't need).

As for a workout today, I took advantage of workout center in PE. It was a relatively easy workout, since my legs were KILLING ME TODAY. I didn't think yesterday was hard, but I guess my body wasn't used to it. I did my swim coach's workout: 5 minutes warm up, 1 minute high, fast intensity, 2 minutes easy, for 25 minutes, then 5 minutes cool down (on the elliptical). It was enough to get me really hot and sweaty, so after class I went to the little kids' playground and read Moby-Dick until I got cold. It was nice.
I had to take public transport to music school, which was a way to get some more walking in. I was so tired, I actually fell asleep on the bus! It's rare that I'm tired enough to fall asleep standing up. I was leaning to the side, but when the bus jolted to a halt I gasped pretty loudly and woke up.
I had some time to kill before my quartet (5:30), and I had a private lesson after, so I knew dinner wouldn't be until pretty late. I stopped at Starbucks for some much-needed caffeine and food, since Starbucks has definitely been improving their food!
I got a nonfat gingersnap latte and their "Protein Plate," which had apple slices, grapes, a hard-boiled egg, a mini whole wheat bagel, peanut butter, and cheddar cheese. Squeezing the peanut butter out of the package was really fun! I didn't eat the egg yolk and only had one piece of the cheese, which was rubbery and probably not worth it. But I guess protein really is the key to staying full! I wasn't even that hungry when I got home, but of course I ate way more than I should have.
By the way, quartet was awesome! Teacher couldn't make it this week and the violist wasn't there, so the cellist, violinist and I worked on the Mozart. I love chamber music.
Private lesson also went well, except that my hands are so dry that they were bleeding a little. I need to carry around lotion.
My dad cooked again, since my mom is busy packing. Sadly, he made the dish that I miss most about being a vegetarian, and it's so extremely frustrating since I never even ate the meat anyway! It's a very humble dish: spare rib and cabbage soup. The pork is taken out of the soup and served separately with soy sauce, the soup is purged of all fat and impurities until it's a cloudy broth with leafy cabbage. I miss it so much, and it really is pretty healthy. I was tempted, but I still haven't made my decision. Every time I think I'm going to start eating meat again, I read some terrible article... like today, I read about workers kicking turkeys and shoving broomsticks down their throats.

Anyways, I feasted on vegetables tonight: green peppers and vinegar and MUNG BEAN SPROUTS! Those are the sprouts with the smaller pods at the end, and they're green, unlike soy bean sprouts, which are yellow. The peppers are first grilled until completely burned, then stir-fried with vinegar. They have a very meaty taste.
The mung bean sprouts have lots of scallions, ginger, garlic, a little cornstarch, and sesame oil.


And we finally made real brown rice tonight! I hate the pre-packaged stuff... so dry.
Condiments: homemade chili oil
and this weird fermented tofu stuff.

I really didn't need seconds, but of course I had them. I really need to start listening to my body... maybe I would lose a few pounds. I don't really need to, but I think now I'm eating more than is really necessary. I hate feeling stuffed.
TWILIGHT TOMORROW! OH YES...

Japanese grocery shopping, major reorganization

School starts the day after tomorrow. I can't believe this. Haven't heard back yet about AP French, and I hardly know which classes I'm taking! My books don't arrive until Wednesday, so I guess I'll just need to rely on photocopies until then.
For breakfast I had oatmeal with buttermilk, berries, almond extract, almonds, and a spoonful of almond butter. The buttermilk made it really runny, so I had to heat it a bit longer, but after that it was perfect!
Today I went with my friend Yoko and her family out near the airport to their favorite Japanese grocery stores. We went to 2: one called Mitsuwa (sp?), and the other I don't remember the name of. It made me realize how much I hate driving (or at least sitting in a car). It wasn't as big as Super H-Mart, the Korean grocery store all the way in Niles, but it was still decent (there are some weird things in these photos: yes, those are fruit and chow mein sandwiches, and a scary octopus head).

I didn't want to buy too much stuff, considering all the Japanese food I ate this summer, so I just bought a few useful (hopefully) supplies:
-Japanese sweet potatoes
-Napa cabbage (on sale)
-Umeboshi (with shiso)
-Matcha, finally... it was so expensive!
-Little frozen packets of natto, since I am DETERMINED to learn how to like it
-Some prepared seaweed salad
-Barley tea
-Bonito flakes
-White miso
While Mitsuwa had a food court, Yoko and her family liked the food court at a smaller grocery store with better sashimi. There wasn't much choice (or vegetables). It was decent, but I'm not sure if I ordered the most fulfilling option. I was sick of grilled fish and sushi, so I decided to get tempura udon, since it was the only noodle option without meat. There was only one piece of shrimp tempura (it was good), and some flavorless fish cakes, but sadly, no vegetables! Yoko got the shoyu ramen, which was topped with egg, fish cake, pork, and lots of kombu. Her sister got ramen too, but with a different soup. All our food came with packaged (but warm) rice balls. You had to unwrap them in a specific way according to the numbers on the wrapping. You could also choose from a variety of fillings: I got umeboshi and Yoko got kombu. I basically ate the seaweed and the umeboshi, but not really the rice, since I was eating noodles and it seemed unnecessary. I have to confess that the sushi looked great-- her parents split a giant Tiger Roll that came with seaweed salad and miso soup.

Next time I would still probably get a grilled fish set, though.
We stopped at Costco on the way back, and I looked for my camera battery charger and couldn't find it.
I came home a few hours later and was hungry. Other than that little piece of shrimp, the lunch wasn't very high-protein (or fiber). I had some cottage cheese and greek yogurt with berries, honey and wheat germ.
After I had eaten, I practiced some piano. I'm super worried for my piano lesson on Wednesday. Originally it should have been last Wednesday, the day after we got back, but thank god we realized that I would be too worn out... also, this is the first time that I didn't practice ALL summer, pretty much, and my parents didn't nag me at all. I think it's because I was taking on swimming and Chinese. I'm working on the Bach Italian Concerto and that's it. I need a piece to play for my re-audition to my Saturday program!

After that I realized how much major reorganization I had to do. My mom helped me move my computer to my vestibule/ closet area. I think this is really going to clear space on my desk and actually give me a space to work! Last year I was constantly working in the kitchen because 1) there was no room on my desk to write and 2) I got too distracted by the internet. I think I'll also sleep better without the computer in my room, although tonight I won't, since my room is such a mess. I also cleared out the drawers and shelves, threw out a ridiculous number of dried up pens and broken pencils, and I also plan on clearing on the closet and donating some of the clothes I never wear. Tomorrow I have to finish this! I also need to buy my camera battery and the rest of my school supplies. I also need to make sure I'm doing exercise, since I won't be swimming at the meet on Monday and I didn't do anything today. It's amazing how much less I eat when I don't work out. I think I might run tomorrow morning or go back to Ratner and swim later in the afternoon (or both!). I will be organized... I have to be. I've been using the same folders for the past 2 years and they're usable but tattered. I know it's a waste, but I'm buying new ones... it's really discouraging to start the year with less than perfect notebooks, since they get totally trashed by the end.
One of our family friends from when we lived in Cambridge, Helen, who goes to U of C now, came over for dinner. She went with my mom to the farmer's market this morning. Both my mom and I were exhausted from all the organization (or more like disorganization, since everything seemed to get messier by the minute), so dinner took a while and was kind of impromptu. We had one of our favorite Deborah Madison (see a pattern?) beet soups, which uses every part of the beet, including the greens and even the peels, which are used to make a stock. We also had arugula salad with a little bit of goat cheese and roasted pepper.
We debated and debated about what else to have, and decided on baked eggs over mushrooms-- I've never had baked eggs, but I usually dislike the yolks when they're separated from the whites. Basically, we sauteed mushrooms with a little butter (or olive oil if I'd had my way), herbs and red wine, then baked them with the eggs on top. We also sauteed cubes of whole wheat bread to make croutons for it. We were supposed to bake them for 15 minutes, but every time we checked on them, the whites still looked transparent! We took them out after 15, but we had completely overcooked the yolks. Maybe because the eggs were so fresh that the whites didn't turn opaque as easily? I don't know. Either way, I probably wouldn't have eaten the yolks anyway, but it would have been better if they were runny, since the mushrooms were a bit dry. They were also a little bit too heavy on the herbs, but other than that, the dish was a great combination of flavors and textures-- the mushrooms were chewy and meaty (also in their savoury taste), and the croutons were more spongy than crunchy, so that the whole dish became almost like a bread pudding. We'll definitely try it again.
Also: corn on the cob
My mom and Helen had a little bit of the ice cream for dessert (we took it out hours in advance this time, and it still wasn't that soft), and said that without compote, the peach flavor was stronger. I didn't have any (just didn't feel the need to), and I had a peach instead. It was so juicy and wonderful (great adjective, I know, but I'm falling asleep). So tired. I will now go to bed in my (computer-less) room!

A Comparison of Two Gourmet Artists

Sorry I haven't posted in a while! I haven't really been in the mood...
Anyways, this post is a little different, since I'm using this compare-contrast theme as an excuse to catch up on past meals that I haven't written about yet.
I think I mentioned that part of my dad's job is curating Chinese contemporary art. In Chicago, he's a professor (most of our "family friends" are grad students), but here he hangs out a lot with hip, young artists. They mostly invite us out to restaurants, but the certain artists who are skilled in the kitchen invite us over to their apartments for some intense creative fare. The two artists whose meals I'm about to describe are so different, I was laughing through the second meal thinking about the differences.

ARTIST #1: Zhao Gang, painter
Age: 40's?
Info: prefers the "western" lifestyle. Smokes countless cigars and drinks vats of wine. Lived in New York, allegedly also worked at a Japanese restaurant there. Two 12-year-old daughters with different mothers, just got remarried.
Apartment: minimalist, spread out, zen. Tiger skin rug, but other than that, everything else is white. Music playing is usually jazz or classical.
Cooking style: very spur-of-the-moment. He actually invited me over to be his "sous-chef," but mainly I just ended up watching him cook, which was okay because it was interesting.
He was late carrying groceries, then forgot his key and had to get someone to open the door for us. Once inside, he pulled out a huge slab of raw fish and began slicing it into sashimi. I had never seen the entire sashimi process before, so I was fascinated, especially when it turned out to be yellowtail, MY FAVORITE sushi fish of all time!
Weirdly enough, before the inner, more edible layers of the fish were revealed, the flesh was dark, like mackerel or swordfish. First he removed the bones and harder, darker bits, taking care to slice THINLY (he sharpened his knife first). Then he soaked the fish in water to get out most of the blood (ew). After that, he basically continued to thinly slice off any part that didn't look totally edible. Then he put the slabs in the refrigerator and waited to slice them before serving. He also froze the bones and other parts in case he wanted to use them for a fish stock.
The next dish he made was really rustic and bizarre... a kind of baked dish of frogs legs and chicken. I have never seen anything so simple... and by this time it was almost time for everybody else to arrive, so he really was leaving everything to the last minute. He put the frog's legs, a whole chicken, halved purple potatoes, rosemary, and salt into a casserole dish and baked it. Halfway through, he took off the lid and added a lot of olive oil, then put it back in.
By this time, everybody else was here, so he got to work on the sashimi, which had gotten a bit too hard in the fridge, so we had to thaw it a bit. Then he sliced it expertly into sushi restaurant-esque pieces, arranged it on a plate and decorated the plate with streaks of wasabi.
We also made a salad-- just a normal frisee salad with walnuts and cherry tomatoes, but his dressing was very strange and surprisingly delicious: equal parts olive oil, balsamic, soy sauce, sesame oil, and a little sugar!
While the chicken/frogs were cooking, he randomly decided he wanted to make a side dish. He began to saute carrots, shallots, olive oil, and a pinch of sugar (he didn't seem ever to use salt or pepper). "Do we have any cream?" he called to his wife. She rifled through the fridge and only found butter. "I guess that'll do," he said, and preceded to throw a few tablespoons into the pot. After the carrots had softened a bit he put them in the blender and tried to puree them, only to find out that the blender was leaking. He wiped up the leak and continued to blend. When this was done (he was stopping periodically to smoke his cigar and sip wine), he showed me how to make what I thought was the best dish of an evening: parmesan-crusted mushrooms. The mushrooms he used were a gigantic Asian variety: very chewy and perfect for pan-frying.
The recipe was so simple! All you did was dip the mushrooms in a combination of milk, breadcrumbs, parmesan (And he used Kraft!!), and basil, then fry them in a bit of olive oil. The crunchy outside was perfect with the rubbery texture of the mushrooms.
As for the other dishes, I really enjoyed the carrot-shallot puree, and sitting there, I already began to envision other purees... beet-ginger, parsnip-maple syrup, etc. etc.
Apparently the frog legs were stringy but the chicken was good. In all honesty, that dish didn't look very appealing.
Zhao Gang isn't really a dessert person. Everybody mainly just drank a lot of wine.

Artist #2: Chi Peng, photographer
Age: 27?
Info: Don't really know much about him. Young, speaks English, was a student of Miao Xiao Chun, another artist friend. Doesn't smoke or drink at all. Has a really awesome apartment, seems to really like music and movies, and his cooking has even been featured by a few magazines! He's really into entertaining... apparently once he filled his entire apartment with blue balloons. Also, he had a really awesome pair of gold converses in the front hallway...
Apartment: JUST REALLY AWESOME. Everything is wood, with a high ceiling and rooftop garden. While Zhao Gang's was pretty empty, Chi Peng's was COVERED in everything: CDs, DVDs, wind-up robots (which my dad collects), Hungarian handicrafts, antique German dollhouses, you name it. All his napkins and bedspreads he designed himself. Everything was covered in vegetation: his downstairs shower was filled with plants, and his counter was covered with them.
Cooking style: Professional and restaurant-like. We got there late, but he still had everything ready. The table was set beautifully with pristine white plates and creeper-like leaves, and he poured everyone fresh mint tea. He said we would eat now, and while he had a student to help him bring everything out, we barely had time to turn around before the table was covered with dishes. The presentation was breathtaking! Everything seemed to have been arranged effortlessly, but with the skill of a professional chef! Here is what we ate:
Shan Dong- style seafood soup: This soup was almost western-tasting-- like a consomme with the Chinese equivalent of zucchini, bay scallops, clams, and other seafood. I tasted a slice of sea cucumber, which really just added texture. I don't know what else he could have put in it to be so flavorful and light, but it was wonderful.
Barely-baked Salmon: The salmon was the best dish. It was so lightly cooked that it was almost like sushi, but the outside was encrusted with crushed garlic, basil, and thyme.
Egg custard/ ji dan geng: how did this guy know exactly my favorite foods?! This is a simple Chinese dish that my dad makes for me all the time. It's basically just egg and water steamed and then drizzled with soy sauce. Qu Peng apologized for not putting enough water in his (it was a little hard), but he put shrimp in the center, which added a sweetness that my dad's doesn't have. Plus, he served his in individual rammekins!
Stirfried lotus root: I love lotus root and I love vinegar, so I loved this! Very simple, just lotus root, Chinese black vinegar and Sichuan peppers. It was great!
A soupy dish of shell-on shrimp, vinegar, and cabbage: This was my favorite after the salmon. I don't really know how to explain it, except that it was so vinegary my tongue began to sting. While this was great for me, I don't know if everyone else felt the same way. I love vinegar...
A very light but slightly spicy dish of those Chinese mushrooms that are so thin and stringy they look like noodles. There may have been vinegar here too, but I think there was a touch of chili oil.
Mashed Chinese sweet potatoes: Remember those Korean sweet potatoes I wrote about, the ones with the yellow/white flesh? They still eat those in China, but I always thought they'd be too waxy to eat mashed. Turns out they're not, but it's just a different kind of texture! He said he added a little cream and butter, but it really wasn't overly rich or cloying. The yellow sweet potatoes are more mild than the red, so it was a perfect compliment to the vinegar-heavy dishes.
Salad: This was totally western, but still creative. It was just a salad mix of frisee, arugula, raddicchio, etc., but he added raisins and grated peanuts, and sesame seeds for some texture. The dressing was a simple vinaigrette of balsamic, olive oil, and mustard, like I make at home.
There was only one meat dish: I don't know what it's called, but it's a typical Chinese pork dish. Whereas in America fat on meat is frowned upon, the Chinese love it for its texture. This pork is a bit like barbeque pork, but it's so fatty that it's almost gelatinous. My dad really likes it.
I even sipped a bit of red wine to go with this fantastic meal!
For dessert, we just had pineapple and watermelon, but he presented it with more flowers and garnished with ice cubes!
I still can't get over the fact that he cooked ALL these dishes... I wonder how long it took.

So there you have it-- two artist chefs. In this case, food was definitely art. I always think it is, but it must really help to be an artist as a profession and a gourmet as a hobby.