All posts tagged: nomnomnom

mealtime at kleinefreuden. 

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My crafty lady crew is the fanciest, especially when we let our ceramicist friend be in charge of mealtime. Welcome to Kristin’s! She’s got classic style and throws the best mealtime parties. You can check out her lovely ceramic pieces here, too. Ooh la la! Whether it’s a sit down meal or a casual night with friends, there is loveliness spewing from all the places. There are always homemade breads, an assortment of dishes made with the freshest ingredients, and a whole lot of love & fabulous lighting. #nofilter Heirloom silverware. Handmade drinkware. Freshly squeezed juices. Mealtime is an event with these ladies. There’s always excellent conversation, fresh flowers, and, of course, photo opportunities. It’s safe to say that when I come over I feel like I’m on vacation at a bed & breakfast. Thank you Kristin for always welcoming friends into your home and making us feel so cozy and loved! How do you entertain your crafty crew? Share below. 

love snacks!

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Love snack, baby, love snack! Here’s a fun DIY for Valentine’s: golden treat containers. Materials & tools: containers (I purchased “petri dish”-like plastic containers from Oriental Trading Company) contact paper (I used gold) scissors treats (I chose hazelnuts and chocolate chips) How to: Select your container of choice. I like to go with clear containers for edible items so the contents can be seen easily. For contact paper, choose your favorite color/pattern and cut out shapes or letters. I chose hearts for this project. Ensure your container surface is free of dust. Peel the backing off of the contact paper and adhere to your container. Fill your golden containers with your treat of choice. Nuts, chocolates, candies, … You can also fill the containers with different items and stack them. Who wouldn’t want a tower of treats? Yum! Can’t wait to gift these!

oh hey, santa fe.

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Oh hey, Santa Fe. Your flavors are rich and inviting. On a recent trip to Santa Fe I got to eat my way through the town. I was given specific orders to eat something with green chile and to get my hands on some sopapillas. Done and done. My first food experience was fancy catered wedding food. Every bite was bold. We started with a baby spinach salad wrapped in cucumber, topped with crispy bacon, and drizzled with a goat cheese dressing. Not pictured: mini scallion cheddar cornbread. Then, the main course: a surf and turf dish – chicken with romesco and fish with chimichurri – served with grilled mixed vegetables and basmati rice. The food did not end there — there was a dessert table all night, and as the evening progressed, burritos and waffles. We were stuffed to the brim. And then the altitude kicked in and started to affect me. My nightstand made it look like I was sick all weekend, but I didn’t let it stop me from seeking and eating more …

the bagel.

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When I was younger, I decided that when I grew up I wanted to own a bagel slicer. It’s a bit of an odd life goal, but I really liked bagels and thought it would be a fun gadget to have. I would have perfectly sliced bagels all the time and all of the crumbs would be gathered at the bottom of the slicer. Well, growing up happened and I still don’t own one. Whoops. They taste so much better out of a fancy professional toaster oven anyhow. Plus, if topped with house-made schmear it could make for a very delightful snack. And that brings me to this bagel: The jalapeño cheddar bagel with salmon schmear from the juice bar at Whole Foods on the Alameda in San Jose. I’d like to give a shout out to this bagel. Dare I say the best bagel I’ve ever put in my mouth! A crisp, but soft bagel, not chewy. A slight heat from the jalapeño. A creamy, but light schmear. And the shmear to bagel ratio was on point. I would travel the …

beautiful bowls.

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I love soup. Even if it’s warm out, I’m game for a hot bowl of comforting pho, chicken noodle, curry, hot & sour, egg drop, sinigang, soon do boo…Mmm. Feast your eyes on these beautiful bowls of comforting broths, tender meats, and fresh greens. Beef Noodle Soup While waiting out an oil change, the fiancé and I found ourselves having lunch at Taiwan Bento in Uptown Oakland. I had the beef noodle soup which was especially delightful on this day because I hadn’t had it in at least seven months. The pickled greens, melt-in-your-mouth beef, and the sweet carrots provided a nice balance to a rich, savory broth. Recommendation: pair with the house-made soy bean milk. Korean Noodle Soup Ah, Spoon, one of my favorite East Bay eats for two big reasons. (1) They have delicious spicy tofu soup. I can’t get enough! And (2) they open at 10a so I can get a Korean soup fix for weekend brunch! On this visit, I had symptoms of an oncoming migraine and I was feeling dehydrated. …

pocky vs. pocky.

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I love me some Pocky. Don’t believe me? Well, here I am with a giant balloon Pocky that I got for free with Pocky purchase. Do you believe me now? My favorite flavor: PANDA. Well, actually they are cookies & cream flavored with a panda on the box. And while at the market to pick up some Panda Pocky, I discovered the non-Panda-on-the-box cookies & cream Pocky and wondered what the difference could be. I had to do a taste test! First off, the price was the same. The Panda Pocky is made in Japan; the other made in Thailand. Packaging-wise, Panda Pocky wins. The plastic tears much easier…and there are happy pandas on the wrapper. And inside, non-Panda Pocky had ten more sticks. Side by side, you can see that the Thai version (left) is thinner and longer than the Japanese version (right). The Thai Pocky biscuit is lighter in color and the cream has a tan hue. The cookie bits were similarly sized and distributed. Let’s eat them! The Thai cookies & cream was definitely sweeter, more …

cooking with daddy, episode 001.

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I don’t cook as awesome as my Dad yet, but I definitely picked up a lot of his cooking techniques and am continuing to learn. Every time I visit home, I like to watch him cook, and ask a lot of questions. In this episode of Cooking with Daddy, we’re making savory breakfast – garlicky shrimp, sweet potatoes with maple aioli, and sautéed alugbati (it’s similar to watercress). It’s fancy, but so simple! Baked sweet potatoes with maple aioli Sweet potatoes have become a staple in my parents’ home in the last few months. They are great source of Vitamin A, fiber, and potassium. Heat the oven to 400°F. Peel and slice the sweet potatoes; then, place on a baking sheet. Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes; no need to rotate/flip. While baking, make the dipping sauce. You’ll need about a 1:1 ratio of mayo to maple syrup. For two potatoes, about 1/4c of each mayo and syrup is plenty. Garlic shrimp Get some butter lovin’ melted on a pan (about 3 …

a pot of gold.

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It’s almost St. Patrick’s day, and whether you’re throwing a celebration or not, here is a super simple snack you can feel good about sharing with company or eating all by yourself. — Popcorn with homemade flavor dust. First up: Nutritional Yeast Popcorn None of that weird powdered cheese business, just that weird flakey yeast business. Nutritional yeast is all natural, great for the lactose intolerant, and tastes like cheese with a slight nuttiness. Pop your popcorn on the stove or with a popcorn machine. Toss with melted butter and sprinkle with nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper. It’s that easy. As a general rule of thumb use: 1/2 c popcorn kernels 4 tbsp unsweetened butter, melted 1/2 c nutritional yeast s & p to taste If nutritional yeast isn’t your style, go through your spice rack and pull out some of your favorite flavors. I mixed up some taco seasoning. Use the same recipe as above, but replace the nutritional yeast with 1/2 c taco spice. Taco seasoning: 1 tbsp chili powder, 1/4 tspn garlic powder, 1/4 …

food presents.

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Food presents make some of the best presents! My cubicle neighbor gave me some homemade chutney this week. I immediately opened it up and inhaled. It smelled so fresh, and she mentioned it would be very spicy. I couldn’t wait to prepare a meal to be complimented by the chutney. That night I grilled some white fish, seasoned lightly with with onion power, salt, and pepper; sautéed broccolini (from the farmers market food truck!) with turmeric, coriander, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper; and steamed some quinoa. I topped it off with the beautiful bright green cilantro chutney. The intense flavors of garlic and the subtle apple cider vinegar gave the chutney a perfect balance of sweet and salty. The spice – just right! It was enough to surprise your taste buds and then make you want more of it. It was so good, the fiancé went back for seconds, and then finished my plate. I suppose I will need to start placing orders with my co-worker. Feature a favorite condiment below, and by favorite I mean so-good-you-want-to-drink-it-straight. 

plate it.

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I’m currently in love with serving salads on rectangular plates. The fiancé, Jason, purchased a couple of these plates for my birthday last year and I had been using them for my craft set ups. Now that my winter shows are over, these plates are back in the kitchen. Oh, what fun! Since we had been traveling, we decided to have a quiet New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day back in our apartment. We cooked some nice meals together and served them up on our fancy plates. What do you think? Restaurant quality? Almost? For New Year’s Eve dinner we had potato bean soup, warm kale salad with a sweet onion balsamic dressing, and brandy milk punch. The potato bean soup recipe came from The Vegan Road., except ours wasn’t vegan because we added beef broth. Some other substitutions: celery seed instead of celery, Italian spices instead of Italian sausage, and dried beans instead of canned (If you do it this way, make sure to cook the beans first, then add the potatoes for the …