Food for thought

There are few things more enjoyable in life than a plate of delicious food. Any kind of cuisine will do. From basic to exotic, food affects our lives a lot more than we acknowledge. I consider myself a foodie. Maybe a bit of a newb in that sense. I mean I'm no Andrew Zimmern, for sure. Maybe more of an Anthony Bordain (I am in love with him!!!)...but even that's a stretch. My palet is not too adventurous, but I definitely have a great appreciation for food that is deserving of it. I do have some dietary restrictions due to my religion. To sum it up, I keep kosher, but I'm not Jewish. I'm a seventh day adventist christian. So, in theory, I should even be vegan. But I'm not there yet. I hope to be eventually. There are a lot of delicious vegan friendly recipes out there. Take this one for example. A classic, albeit random, creation by my mother



Brown rice and black eyed pea pilaf with curry cucumber stir fry. I usually hate cucumbers. I can't stand them raw and the thought of them cooked, I confess made me gag. But it was surprisingly delicious. I had it for about three days in a row...ON PURPOSE. My mother, although not a classically trained chef, is quite adept at adapting. One day she decided she wanted to make spring rolls, so we did. She made the filling and I helped roll them. This is what we came up with





I'd have to say we did a pretty good job. They were fantastic. They were never around long. I don't quite remember how or when I became so obsessed with all things Asian, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE Asian food. I also really enjoy their culture. My favorite Asian country would have to be Japan. I was really devastated to hear about the earthquakes there. I was planning a trip as a graduation present to myself (in about 3 years or so). Maybe by that time things will be better. I was actually learning Japanese for a little while...I'll take it up again when I have time. I recently discovered that I really enjoy Vietnamese food. I had no idea until the first time i tried com chien ga from Pho all Seasons in mesa. I was instantly hooked. My idea of filthy slutty food porn. Take a look:



Take a second look. You know you want to. Salivating yet? Well it tasted about 100 times better than it looks. I really really wants some now. I consider myself a bit of a fried rice connoisseur. I mean I've had fried rice from many places on several occasions and I have YET to find one better than this. The spices alone; white pepper, black pepper, coriander, and the fresh cilantro they put on top? This is not your typical fried rice, my friends. This would instantly translate anyone to fried rice heaven if such a place existed. I actually even had it twice in one week (which is not recommended by the American Heart Association, but I say it's totally worth it if you're up to the challenge). Sometimes I feel like a complete fatty, because they owner kind of knows me there. I tried to go on a health kick and when I came crawling back like a fiend he said "where have you been? I haven't seen you in a while" Oh my fatness...I had an epiphany that day. That, however, doesn't mean I don't visit occasionally still. Recently their quality has been slipping. It just doesn't taste the way it used to. I might give them a chance to redeem themselves sometime soon. We'll see.