mochihead

Why are you all the way in Philadelphia and not here in Hilo?! You would think with being in the middle of the ocean, we'd have better sushi here. Grrr.... I guess visiting your restaurant is yet another reason for me to travel there! How are your sweetbreads cooked and seasoned? I didn't realize you could sous vide that, too! Also, if it's not a total house secret, what is your gyoza dipping sauce based upon?

Darn it. Not in Hawai'i either. Discrimination, I tell ya!

Marrow bones!!! <3<3<3 Will you be getting some and making dinner with them anytime during your blogging? It's been storming non-stop over here, too. We've been in flash flood watch for the last 2-3 weeks now. At least it's warm rain! Keep dry, Jaz!

CATS AND THE CITY! YAH! I miss SF and will be going nostalgic through your pictures and words.

Do they grow 'em in glass cubes like the Japanese watermelons?

This has been such a wonderful blog! Thank you so much for sharing all your eats, your kitchen and your family with us over the last week! I especially loved your heirloom recipe collection and would love to see a copy of them! The writings on the back of the cards are simply priceless. Would you be willing to share them with an outsider from Hawai'i? ps - good luck and best wishes on your move! I, too, love the rain. Although, I have to admit that we're getting a bit much for the last few weeks. It would be nice to have something other than flash flood warnings and alerts on the radio and news!

Almost every fruit that I can get locally here from the farmer's market (or my backyard or my sister-in-law's farm). You just cannot beat rambutan, apple bananas, lychee, white sugarloaf pineapple, mangosteen, lilikoi, sapote & mangos. When I was in college in California, I couldn't believe people were buying those fruits in the store - underripe & with no yummy fresh fruit aroma! Vice versa, I haven't touched any peaches, nectarines, berries since I've been living back home here in Hawai'i. I was completely spoiled with the local farmers in the Central Valley who saved crates & flats of the stuff for me. Now, nothing is the same. *sigh*

Star anise is great seasoning for boiled peanuts. Just add sugar, salt and a bunch of the star anise to the water. Mmmmm... It's also great in Chinese style oxtail soup with wintermelon, peanuts, ginger....

Thank you so much for your week of blogging! I haven't had much time to post this week, but I thoroughly enjoyed your anecdotes, the pictures of the markets and especially the kitchen and fridge!

Beautiful molds, everyone! I give you credit for making them - they're time consuming to make. I personally don't make them often since it involves some creative engineering for me to get the layers to sit straight - darn slightly slanted fridge!

Daniel, they should have had YOU as challenger, or guest Iron Chef. I think your Pig Fest would have won hands down. Why do the chefs keep shying away from the skin? There was only one dish with the pork skin cripified. I still remember the turkey battle where they didn't even have a dish that featured the crispy skin. HEATHENS!

Barbie Doll Flavor? Does it come with it's own accessories, too? I heard that there was a cantalope flavored Kit Kat also. Has anyone ever seen/tasted it?

According to www.ochef.com: Link to article

Yum! Avocadoes are all over the place here and we just finished off a huge bag from my neighbors. Growing up, we used to eat mashed avocado with sugar sandwiches. One of my aunties would make an avocado pie with lime jello (never did like that). But I love avocado with just some shoyu or in sandwiches/salads. SobaAddict70, your avocado sashimi sounds yummy! I would probably add toasted shredded nori all over the top of it, too, but that's just me. And, in keeping with the avocado recipes, here's an Avocado Cake Recipe from Kate Hopkin's website, Accidental Hedonist. I wish I had seen it before we ate all of the avocadoes. Now I'll have to go make googly eyes at my neighbor again for more.

So... exactly (or approximately) how many cassoulets HAVE you eaten? And did you have a different one every time? Looking forward to reading your blog!

I'd have to agree with purplewiz on that one Japanese woman judge. She's rather annoying. And Wylie is the closest to ICJ that we've seen yet. I think my only really big complaint with the ICA chefs, is that there's not enough use of guts and offal of the theme ingredients. Damn it, I want to see the livers, intestines, eyeballs and fins used! I think the worst was Flay's turkey dinners where all he did was use the turkey breasts. But that's for another thread.

I thought this episode was fun to watch - especially considering the theme ingredient. All I could think was, "I wonder if anyone is going to make a gourment filet-o-fish ala McD's." I know everyone's picking apart the judges for their qualifications, but for me, part of the fun of the show is having people express their tastes, regardless. Doesn't anyone remember the original Iron Chef Japan's judges? You had singers, politicians, actors, artists, sumo wrestlers, baseball players. None of them had the food credentials of Jeffrey Steingarten (whom I love to see judging because he tells it like it is), but they were still all part of the fun of the show. Without having actually tasted any of the dishes, I think I would also have agreed with the outcome. Wylie's dishes looked fascinating, but Mario's probably enhanced the flavor (!) of the fish more. Either way, it was fun to watch.

Shhhh.... I've been known to eat cold boiled potato with ketchup and cheese, too, but never with raw onion added! And your snacks sound like my meals! I've been known to sneak into the fridge at night, too, to eat leftovers, but I'm not sure... no, wait. I'm not sure sneaking is the right word. I work from home, so I'm usually up until the sun rises, then go to sleep. So it's not sneaking, right? And for now, in case before your blog ends, I just want to say thank you so much for such a wonderful journey through your pantry, kitchen and eating! You've reminded me so much about all the foods I love (and miss) as well as given me a whole bunch of new recipes to try out! (Puddings, here I come!!!) I also learned how to speak goat and sheep! Yay! Please let me know if you're ever in Hilo, Hawai'i and I'll be sure to rustle up some of the freshest fruits and veggies for you. And macadamias from our backyard. Or maybe I'll just make a trip and visit with you and Swisskaese.

Thank you so much for sharing your food, family and life with us for this last week! I really enjoyed everything and learned so much! Sending happy, healthy wishes for a speedy recovery your way!

I always consider the stems as part of the heart - the hefty meaty portion after you've nibble nibble nibbled all of the leaves. Marlena, I'll have to try your goat cheese fried artichokes! Yum.... cheese and artichokes and fried. How could that NOT be just fantabulously delicious? I also used to cook artichokes and chicken together all the time when I was in California. Quartered the baby artichokes, sauted with garlic, capers, lemon, then tossed in some thyme roasted chicken and dumped the whole thing over risotto or some nice pasta. Although I'm not sure I can be like aliwaks and drink milk after eating artichoke. Yikes. Do you find yourself munching or snacking on things other than fruit & bagels throughout the day and night?

What do you do with all of the leftovers? I know you mentioned that sometimes uneaten meals become staff meals, but do you ever "recycle" the leftovers into something else for the next meal? Or does it all just become staff meals?

Artichokes with melted butter is enough for me. Fresh butter. Real butter. Mmmmm.... And I choose Marlena's father as my dining partner now! Why doesn't he eat the artichoke hearts?!

Swissakaese, I'm not sure what's more pornographic - the visual of you rolling naked in the artichoke patch or the amazing cost for artichokes where you live!!! That's the first time I've heard of that particular liquer. I'm not sure I could do Cynar. Artichokes are for eating, damn it. All the time, anytime.

percyn, I think I'm in love with your breakfast! This lazy Sunday morning was kim chee fried rice, two overeasy eggs and Chinese boiled peanuts. Sorry, no pictures - was too hungry!

This is such a fascinating side of cooking to see! I catered for a number of years (way back when), but I've never done the day after day personal cheffing that you do! Where do you normally go for groceries and produce? Do you usually end up with money from your $600/week budget leftover? If so, do you put it into a "kitty" for rainy day cooking - like if your employers want caviar one night? I'm sure they don't need to worry about money, but do you ever clip coupons or have run out of your given budget in a week?