Hello 韭菜盒子 (Chive Pockets), We Meet Again!

The first attempt I tried making  韭菜盒子 (Chive Pockets) was back in 2008.  It was a noble try but nothing to get excited about.

Checkout how I did the first time: Chive Pockets

Now that I have a better handle on FLOUR, I thought I would give it another try.  Can you believe that I am now experimenting northern Chinese food (steamed buns, pork buns, etc...)??  I'm not even from the North!!  OK, that's a story for another time.

Lessons Learned from my second attempt last night:

#1 - Follow the recipe.  Yes, flour is not your friend if you don't follow its rules!!  I learned that I need to use the right water temperature.  Cold, lukewarm or hot.  It depends on what you want to make.  For chive pockets, you need a temperature of between 65°C - 70°C (or 149°F - 158°F.  Yap.  Good luck with that).

#2 - Knead the dough.  I know! I know! And I'm pretty good at kneading dough now.  I know I need to knead that baby until smooth and elastic - just like breads!

#3 - More chive please.

#4 - Cook the ground pork first.  This was a big discovery for me.  I used uncooked pork filling the first time and it took forever to cook through.  I ended up cooking the chive pockets as if they were pot stickers.  And the result was GIANT pot stickers with dried hard skin.  The correct way is to gently brown all sides of the chive pockets and cover the pot for couple of minutes to heat through.  That's it.  So point #5 from my first try is a bad one.  Chive pockets are not pot stickers!!

So, here's the result of my second attempt.   Much better yes?  I now need to work on shaping the pockets so they stand up like little purses.

The New Bread Lady

I came a long way in learning to make bread.  From relying on the bread machine 100% to just using it to knead dough to making bread from beginning to finish by hand.  OK.  You can call me bread lady now!!

In the beginning, there was no guarantee that my bread would be successful.  First loaf might be great but the second one a flop.  No idea why.  So I would buy a loaf of bread as backup just in case mine failed.

On my bread making quest, I even tried no knead breads - they were supposed to be easy - but somehow they just didn't come out right. For a while, I was pretty deflated (ya, like bad yeast) since I couldn't even handle simple no knead.  Heck!  A 5 year-old can make no-knead breads!!

But I got the hang of kneading dough over time.  All the practicing paid off!!  I actually enjoy kneading dough now believe it or not.  And slowly but surely, my bread started to look like real bread on a consistent basis.  I even made a darn good loaf yesterday!  It was tall, soft, fluffy and good looking.

See?  You like?  You like??

Another life lesson learned: Practice makes perfect.  I learned to shape it like a sandwich bread from thekitchn.com just yesterday.  Now, my bread is really coming together.

From memory, here's the Allrecipes.com honey whole wheat bread recipe (with minor adjustments from all the reviews I read):

1 1/8 cup warm water

1/4 cup honey

1 tsp salt

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup bread flour

2 TBL butter

1 1/2 tsp yeast

350° F for 25 minutes

The recipe is written for bread machine.  I just pretend that I'm the bread machine.  If the machine can make bread, so can I.

Piggy on the Roof

Look what's up on the roof?!?!  It's a PIG!  It's a PARTY PIG!

After all these years, I finally found the perfect weathervane for our roof.  You know, one of those whimsical thingies that sit on the rooftop; one that turns and turns when the wind blows; one that people usually stop to take a peek?  Ya, that weathervane!

I always wanted one but not just any one.  I want a pig because mom loves pigs and she collects anything pig.  Moreover, I want a unique pig up there - no more flying pigs (and roosters) - and I want it simple, elegant yet artistic.  Boy, it sure takes some searching.

I finally found one that I have been looking for and I think it makes a statement.  A dancing merry pig holding a martini.  How cool is that?  And, that's definitely the Wu Family theme.

James, Jason and I chipped in and got this cute pig weathervane for mom's 75th birthday.  It's hammered out of copper and made in Maine. James secretly installed the mount couple of days ago.  Yesterday, during mom's pre-birthday celebration (we shall party again on her actual birthday), we asked mom to come outside to take a peek.  She had no idea what she was about to see.  

Mom, look up!  Look up there!  It's a PIG! 

James hid on the roof waiting for my cue.  When all eyes were on the roof above the garage, he popped the pig in the mount.  Immediately, the pig started swirling and dancing in the wind holding that lovely martini.  It was so cute!!  Mom and dad got a good kick out of it.  Mom loved it so did everyone else.  

So, from now on, folks just have to look for the house with a party pig on the roof to find the Wu House.

Party on.

First Time for Many Things

Colon screening is like a ritual for those who turn 50.   Yap.  Doctor recommends that one should do a colon screening when reaching age 50.  When I had my annual checkup this year, my doc smiled and said, "it's time."

So I had my FIRST colonoscopy yesterday.  Along with the procedure, I also encountered my many firsts:

• First time without solid food for 36 hours - just water and water and water...
• First time having a IV injection - like blood donation except fluid going in not coming out
• First time taking in pure oxygen
• First time being wheeled in a hospital bed - what a weird feeling looking at the ceiling flying by
• First time dozed off under anesthesia - knocked out in less than a minute

What an experience!  Welcome to to middle age, Suts!  The actual screening was the easiest part.  The worst part was preparing for it.  Not being able to eat was hard; drinking that nasty solution and 32 oz of water in one hour time was the hardest - and I had to do it twice!!

There are few ways to do colon screening.  Colonoscopy is the most invasive one yet the most thorough. Don't shy away because the procedure is inconvenient or unpleasant.  Take charge of your health.  Do your screening when the time comes.  This is the best 50th birthday present that you can give yourself.

To read more: Colon Screening

Go Hog (Wild) Island Oyster Co. Clam Chowder!!

I was strolling down Market Street couple of weeks ago and a photo caught my eyes.  It was on the front cover of this free magazine displayed in a curbside magazine rack.

It was a picture of a pretty bowl of clams.  Very yummy looking, so I grabbed a copy of the magazine to check it out.

It turned out be a bowl of clam chowder - original recipe created by the owners - from the Hog Island Oyster Company.  It didn't look like the usual creamy gooey New England style clam chowder.  But where was the recipe? 

People!  People!!  Don't tease me with a delicious food photo and not tell me how to make it.  That's just wrong!!

I first went to the Hog Island Oyster Company website to check out the menu.  Yap.  Right there.  $14.  I then google Hog Island Oyster Company Clam Chowder and ta-da, I found the recipe!!

My God, how did we ever live without the search engines (especially Google)???

Monkey see.  Monkey do.  I tried the recipe promptly and it was scrumptious!!  I don't know if my version tasted like the real thing though.  I guess I should go spend the $14 to find out and to thank the Hog Island Oyster people for this wonderful dish.

Never know what you will discover even during a lunch time stroll.  So, once again, I learn to keep my eyes open and be ready to try something new.

Here's the recipe: Hog Island Oyster Co. Manila Clam Chowder