It’s strawberry season and I love it. I felt inspired to whip up a quick dessert for myself (OK, it’s enough for a group of 8 people) on a Sunday after watching a movie with a character named Ichigo. Ichigo means strawberry in Japanese.
Tricia got the first chance to share her SF memories, and now its my turn! As soon as Tricia surprised me with plane tickets for San Francisco, my mind was racing. The west coast is uncharted territory for me, especially as far as food goes. And given San Francisco’s reputation as an eating Mecca, I knew that I had research to do. Continue reading
Tricia here! We haven’t gone on a vacation in awhile so this trip was long overdue. As a gift, I decided to take Siddharth to San Francisco, one of the top foodie paradises on the planet. Siddharth had done a lot of research previously and I figured it was time to see the real deal. Continue reading
Bluefin
2820 Dekalb Pike
East Norriton PA 19401
610-277-3917
Moving from Malvern to Blue Bell has its perks – notably, a whole new batch of restaurants that we have yet to explore. Siddharth stumbled upon Bluefin while running a couple of errands. Located in the Northtowne Plaza in East Norriton (at the intersection of Dekalb and Germantown), Bluefin is not necessarily in a spot that would be expected to have great sushi. We did find some favorable comments on Bluefin on Chowhound (best site for reviews from people that are in the know!), so we went in hoping for the best.
Pardon the long absence! Due to a combination of many factors (mainly that I have been focusing on finishing my dissertation!), we have neglected our duties as World Tasters for some time. However, I am now a full-fledged doctor (not medical), and we are ready to share our food experiences with you. Since, our previous post, in addition to my graduation, Tricia has relocated to Blue Bell here in PA. In our explorations of the area, we ran across a wonderful Korean Supermarket just down the road – Assi. Inspired by our trips to Assi, I recently decided to tried to make my own version of Korean BBQ (as you may know, BBQ sauce is a passion of mine). Brisket was a great cut for this recipe, but I think pork shoulder may also work well. The big secret is to cook it for a while to make sure the meat really cooks properly. The result is a deliciously tangy, slightly spicy, and wonderfully tender BBQ beef.
Greetings, blog readers and happy mid-autumn to all. The mid-autumn festival is a holiday in China/Hong Kong that celebrates the harvest of the fall crops and the time when the red moon is the brightest of the year. Of course, here in Northeast, it coincides with the very beginnings of the beautiful changing colors of leaves.
The Northeast has seen an incredibly hot summer this year. For us, we’ve had ample opportunity to grill out and smoke meats on a trusty new smoker (posts upcoming!). But for all the hot eats we’ve cooked up, cool and refreshing side items are a must. And this chilled carrot soup recipe really fits the bill. While carrot soup doesn’t sound incredible interesting, I decided to put in some unique ingredients to spruce it up. Cardamom, ginger, and cumin really complimented the natural sweetness of the carrots in the soup, and a few additions (tapioca, basil oil, and fresh cream) really dressed this up for a dinner-party opening course. We think it makes for a great start to a nice meal!
Ciao
2 Hickory Hollow Lane
Ithaca NY 14850
607-257-2233
Italian restaurants sometimes seem like a dime a dozen, especially in a town like Ithaca. However, a good Italian restaurant with exceptional prices in Ithaca is a true gem. In comparison to a lot of other cuisines, going out for Italian food has never “knocked our socks off” – in terms of complexity of flavors, we’re usually able to make it best at home! With that mentality, we didn’t have high expectations about Ciao, but we decided to try it.
Sticky Rice
401 E State St
Ithaca NY 14850
607-275-3641
Ithaca is a college town, and as such it’s loaded with delivery and takeout options. But to be honest, after 5 years here, those options might tend to seem stale. Sticky Rice is a hidden gem among them. While they sell Thai food, they mainly serve Laotian cuisine, which is unique and delicious (and sets them apart from local competitors like Tamarind and Taste of Thai). From grilled duck curry (Gaeng Phed Ped Yarng) to beef stir fry in roasted chili paste, we’ve never been disappointed in their food. Always well cooked, properly seasoned, and if you like it spicy they do it better than any other place in town (be warned their hottest is seriously spicy – attested to by Siddharth, resident spicy food aficionado). At around $10 per dish, we recommend picking 3-4 for 2 people and sharing so that you can have a wonderful family-style meal!
Summer on east coast is hot, hot, hot and a great way to keep cool is with some homemade ice cream. This past weekend, we chose to celebrate the summer heat with some fresh blueberries and strawberries. And a great way to compliment your homemade ice cream? By sandwiching them between two shortbread cookies! This was our first time making ice cream sandwiches and they are a cinch to make if you have some patience (or just a weekend) but we promise, they are worth the wait. Make a few to serve at your next summer BBQ!
