Family Dish

Currently I’m reading The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken by Laura Schenone. In this book the author is on a search for an authentic ravioli recipe which she can point to as a definitive “family” dish. Not surprisingly, her search leads her down a road of various family secrets, surprises and self-discovery. Anyhow, in reading the passages where the author chooses which heritage to further explore for her culinary purpose (as you can tell by the title she chose her Italian ancestory), she discusses the different types of dishes that each of her ancestors would have made. Her discussion made me think of my own family and our “family” dishes.

Culturally, people from my parents’ generation did not read and write, and, I believe, did not experiment with food. I’m not saying that they did not enjoy food, or lacked the imagination to experiment with what was available to them, rather that food was not a luxury, but a very basic necessity and was prepared in that way. Since coming to the US, my parents’ culinary experiences have changed, especially with the availability of certain products (e.g. abundance of meat and dairy products). Like the author, I associate my family dish with my mother (or the matriarch of the family). When I think of my mom, there are several dishes that automatically come to my mind and could be considered our “family” dish. For example, eggrolls, pho, tapioca dessert, and curry noodle soup (similar to Malaysian laksa lemak). However, the “family” dish I find most comforting, which was probably thrown together as an afterthought and born out of economic circumstances, and I find so synonymous with my mom is a simple ground beef and cabbage stir fry. The dish just consists of ground beef, finely chopped cabbage, and salt, served with white rice (which is served at all meals in our household). I’m sure my siblings may remember this dish and may think of another dish as definitive of our “family,” but in my mind, this is our “family” dish.

Purple Coneflower

[My first Wordless Wednesday.]

Wordless Wednesdays???

I first started this blog to with two purposes: (1) sharing my thoughts and the daily events in my life with family and friends, and (2) as an exercise in writing (I know that I'm not writing a novel, but the blog does force me to write). Anyhow, as I was surfing the internet, I came across another blog that features "Wordless Wednesdays," in which the blogger just posts a picture every Wednesday. Taking a cue from this blogger, I think I might just incorporate Wordless Wednesdays into my blog. I know that it doesn't help further my writing, but it is another way for me to share more images and it may prove to be useful when I don't have the time to post a written entry. Of course, I don't intend to turn this blog into a photoblog, but it would be fun to share more pictures. So I think I'll start implementing Wordless Wednesdays next week.

Pink Poppies

My poppies are blooming. I've been pining for a very long time for some poppies in my garden. I wanted scarlet and brillant orange Oriental poppies (Papaver orientale) to grow in my yard, and it seems that the seeds I planted earlier this spring have established themselves but have not bloomed (I think they are prennials and will only bloom early in the spring).

However, I also purchased some seeds for the pink poppies (which are annuals and bloom in the summer). I didn't think that I was going to like these pink poppies, but I'm very glad to be proven wrong. The stem and leaves are light green, perfectly complementing the poppies' multiple crepe-like petals. Like all of my other flowers in the garden, the poppies are fleeting--blooming for several days, then leaving behind only the pod.

Hard Labor

When I first moved into my home, there were tons of raspberry bushes growing on the northern side of my garage. You cannot imagine my excitement. The thought of eating fresh raspberry every summer kept my hopes up. Well, several years later, the bushes have not produced any berries and I'm no longer excited. Nor do I have any more hopes for these raspberry bushes. So, I took a rational approach and decided that it was best to take out all of the raspberry bushes since it was taking up precious gardening space.

On a recent weekend, I cut down all of the very thick and thorny raspberry canes and pulled out by hand the smaller canes. I then used a shovel and hoe (which also had a two-prong pick) to dig into the soil and dislodge huge roots, once more using a lot of elbow grease to pull out the roots. A soil rototiller would have immensely helped my efforts (and my aching muscles), but I think I got the bulk of the roots out. At this point, I may have to rent a tototiller to help loosen up the soil and take out any more roots. Already I'm planning what to do with this space. It's a narrow space, but I'd still like to do something with it--maybe a secret garden (who knows).

Handmade Dolls

Several weeks ago, when my sister was here visiting me she saw the two plaid dolls I made for myself several years ago. The dolls are inspired by something I saw on the Internet and I made a pattern for myself and designed the basic components of the doll. My doll resembles the ones I saw on the Internet, but is much more homely looking (meaning, my doll is not as cute).

I recycle old shirts and clothes, turning the fabric into the doll's body. All of the stitches are sewn by hand, and the doll itself is also hand cut and hand sewn. Since the doll is 100% handmade, it's time consuming to make just one.

So when my sister was here, she was so enamored of the dolls that she generated plans to create many different dolls to give away. For those who know of my sister, she means well but often has a hard time following through. She began making the doll on the left with the floral prints (cutting out the patterns, sewing on the buttons, stuffing the body), and I helped her finish it (sewing the body together, sewing the decorative stitchings). This morning, I finally finished her doll and all it needs now is a tag. There are still several other dolls she left with me that she started and are still in the process of being finished. I guess at this point, I'm just glad to finally finish one. Sister, you'll be getting your doll soon (I hope).

Lilies

My lilies are blooming. They're blooming in my garden and in my house. I don't know why I've never noticed lilies before or given these flowers any attention until I moved to Minnesota. I mean, like every other person, my earliest memories of a "favorite" flower is the rose. Not surprising, roses are supposed to be the queen of all flowers, but I think a good argument can be made that lilies could easily overthrow the rose to be queen.

Since living in Minnesota, I've been introduced to lilies and I can't get enough of the flowers. There are so many varieties and the fragrance of many are intoxicating (e.g. smell a Madonna lily and you'll be in love with it). I have several different types growing in my garden and there are several that I've started from seed (which I can't wait for it to mature). This is my first year, since planting my lilies (luckily for me, my home came with some common--but still very beautiful--orange lilies), and I'm excited for their growth next year.

It's Not a Gooseberry

I actually have a little Roma tomato growing. With the recent recall of certain tomatoes and the cool weather occurring in Minnesota, I'm just excited to get anything. I can't wait for my first ripe tomato, considering that I've been abstaining from store bought tomatoes.

I've also noticed that some of my other tomato plants are developing little flowers. This year, I got smart and planted tomatoes (such as cherry tomatoes) that will produce fruit eariler during the summer rather than later. Hopefully, I'll be able to add my own tomatoes to salads in a couple of weeks.

Underneath the Paint

If you haven't realized it by now, I'm totally a "do it yourself" type of person. Sometimes I take on projects in order to save on costs (e.g. taking out my rotting deck and replacing it with a brick patio), and at other times I take on projects because I'm curious and just want to learn (e.g. crocheting a blanket). Regardless of my original intent to start a project, the process and end product is pretty satisfying.

So last week, I was shopping at the thrift store and purchased the following two items: a wooden toy chest and a wooden chest of drawers. Both were in good condition but in dire need of a paint job. Upon purchasing these two items, I went on the internet to learn about stripping off the old paint and repainting the items. This sounds lame, but I've been wanting to learn how to strip paint from wooden furniture.

Well, I fist worked on the toy chest, which was an easier task because it was so small. I wish I had taken a "before" picture (seriously, I really wish I have a "before" picture of it), but I ended up repainting the toy chest white with pink trimmings. I hope to use it to hold my afghans and small blankets. Currently, I'm in the process of stripping the chest of drawers and I think I'll reuse the pink and white paint. Once I'm done, I'll post up the "after" pictures.