Thomas Everything Bagels Review

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I'm not a fan of bagels.  For the last 10 years of my life, I've been giving myself several chances to learn to like bagels so I can fit in with my friends and everybody whom I know. I had given up on trying until last night when I was trying to shop for my usual favorite "Portuguese Rolls" from ShopRite in Manchester Township New Jersey, and the rolls were all sold out. I was desperate to buy something in preparation for breakfasts this week.  So I ended up having a crappy breakfast this morning, despite the delicious Philadelphia Honey Pecan cream cheese that I very generously spread on top of the toasted bagel half.  Priced at $4.69 for a bag of six bagels, they are a lot more expensive than my usual favorite bag of 6 Portuguese Rolls freshly baked daily at the grocery store's bakery at $2.49 per bag.  

I just tossed away the 5 and a half bagels in the trash because I don't think I want to keep eating them in the morning for the rest of the week. I don't like the bagel's bitter "after-taste" that is so typical with breads that have long shelf-life, piled in the grocery store's bread aisle.  Then there is the 'preserved' smell of such breads that always bothers me, even through the plastic bags.  I thought bagels could be different after being toasted and loaded with cream cheese.  But the bitter after-taste of the bagel was so prominent that I initially thought it was the fault of my cream cheese due to artificial sweetener.  But the cream cheese was actually very good and the bitterness was solely from the bagel.

I won't buy this line of bagels anymore.  I haven't lost my hope for bagels yet.  May be one day when I feel brave enough to try another brand of bagels, I'll finally find the one. Until then, I'm going to stick with the freshly baked Portuguese Rolls.

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All Natural Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

My friend invited me to a potluck death party yesterday. (Or, do you call it the post-funeral party?)  It was a party to gather all her mother's friends, relatives and everybody who had known her well to celebrate her mother's death.  Wait, this doesn't sound right... I should say, "to commemorate her mother's life on earth".  

I always hate potluck party because: 1) I hate being obligated to bring a dish when I'm not much a social cook or a social baker, 2) the food  that was brought by the attendees was never good 99% of the time regardless of whether the food was grocery-store bought or so-called homemade, and I always left the party feeling hungry.  A potluck party always presents two levels of stress to me, i.e. the stress of  brainstorming on what food to bring, and the stress of acting as if I enjoy the food brought by others to the party when it really sucks.  But yesterday, it was the rare 1% of the chance that I actually enjoyed something at a potluck.  They were the all natural Pink Lemonade Cupcakes that I bought from Trader Joe's. ($ 3.99 for a box of 4 cupcakes).

I am never much a fan of American cupcakes (because they always taste too sweet and loaded with heavy hydrogenated vegetable shortening that I hate, and I grew up with less sweet, lighter, fresher, perishable cakes at Asian bakeries).  These all natural American style Pink Lemonade cupcakes that I bought actually surprised me because they tasted very good.  The cakes were really moist, buttery, and rich in lemon flavor.  The cream cheese icing was light and not overly sweet. Most importantly, the icing didn't have the yucky food coloring taste that I experienced with all the other American store-bought cupcakes; and also the ones proudly home-made by my friends (who drown their cupcakes to death with colors that made them look too scarily colorful to eat).  The icing tasted light but very delicious and the color is a natural coloring from Hisbiscus flower.

I bought 2 dozens of these cakes yesterday and lied to my friend that I made them at home... I have no idea what compelled me to cook up such a lie.  I guess it's because on Instagram, I often see  my friends proudly showing off their signature dishes that I have unconsciously developed a vanity to want to prove that I'm not the barren one who has no signature dish of my own!  So I went to great length to make my store-bought cupcakes look more home-made by topping them with low fat chocolately cat cookies (with no artificial colors or flavors, and no preservatives), which were also bought at Trader Joe's. (16oz tub for $2.99).  

I personally won't top these cupcakes with chocolate cookies again because I don't think chocolate goes well with lemonade...But my thoughtless food pairing yesterday actually made my home-made lie more believable to my friend.  Luckily, the attendees at the party ate the chocolate cat cookies and cupcakes separately, so such an odd combo of flavors didn't ruin the cupcakes. My two dozens cupcakes disappeared at the party very quickly while other attendees' brownies and sheet cakes were sitting on the buffet table, mostly ignored.  May be the attendees at the party were acting as if they liked my cupcakes since I lied that I made them myself.  If you want to find out whether they were faking their reaction on my cupcakes or not, grab a box of this at Trader Joe's and see if you enjoy them.  I do, very much.

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I Always Know That Carbs Are Actually Better For Me

Content shared by: Jane Ong

I was brought up in a carb eating culture where we all eat lots of carbs like fresh white breads, noodles, and white rice.  All my family, friends,  relatives and myself are slim.  I never knew carb was bad until my American friends told me that they couldn't eat white rice or white bread because they said pasta,  white rice and white bread made them fat.  I did see their concern but I never was able to relate weight problems to the food I eat so much, white rice and white bread??  I just never knew in my life anyone in my hometown (with many millions in population) who isn't slim, from my schoolmates, my neighbors, to my own family and friends in my hometown; we all have diets that are culturally heavy on white rice, white bread and all kinds of noodles (or pasta).

The doctor in this video just confirms what I always suspect: carbs can't be as bad as they are portrayed in the American dieting culture. It's because my family and I have been eating mostly carbs all our lives and we are all slim and healthy people, except for me because I'm recently suffering from some minor adult acne breakout around my periods.  I suspect that my breakout as an adult has much to do with my recent years' increase in consumption in meat and proteins.  The rest of my family have flawless and blemish free skin. I know I don't have the acne gene because I never had acne problem before.  The only difference between me and the rest of my family is I'm living in America now and I am eating a lot more meat and dairy. Meanwhile, everybody in my family are still having the same white rice heavy diet  like we always did.   

How To Cut A Classic Batonnet

Content shared by: Jane Ong

Batonnet what?  I had never heard of "Batonnet" until I read about Celebrity Chef Marcus Samuelsson's cooking school experience in his autobiography "Yes Chef". Now I can see that there is a lot of standing around in the cooking school to just watch and listen!!!  This is no less boring than when I had to sit through Statistics 101 in college, which is actually a lot safer for someone who has chronic daydreaming syndromes like myself.  I really respect those of you who can cut Batonnet.  I certainly will chop my fingers off due to my attention deficiency disorder....  There must be some kind of gadget out there that can cut Batonnet real fast, no?

Heart Healthy Whole Grain Blueberry Oatmeal With Flaxseed & Plant Sterols

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

Even though I love having breakfasts in restaurants during the weekends, making breakfast during the weekdays have always been part of my getting-ready-for-work morning ritual.  Okay, by "making", I really mean "microwaving".  For more than two weeks, I have been having this Trader Joe's whole grain instant blueberry oatmeal every weekday morning ($3.99 for a box of 8 packs), and every weekends afternoon as snacks.  This is the best tasting instant oatmeal I have tried and it tastes like homemade, when microwaved with water according to the direction.  I like to add a couple tablespoons of low-fat milk after microwaving and a drizzle of condensed sweetened milk to add more creaminess and taste to it.  I like this oatmeal so much because it's really flavorful with oats and whole grain.  The blueberries add just a hint of sweetness.  This oatmeal is very mild and subtle on sweetness.  While I hate all the overly sweetened instant oatmeals out there, I do love to add a drizzle of condensed sweetened milk to this unsweetened Trader Joe's instant oatmeal for texture and for the perfect level of sweetness for myself.  For some reason, this instant oat meal is best microwaved with water, not milk.  So milk should be added after microwaving and not during.

I have been suffering from acne breakout in recent months and I suspect that it could be due to my lack of fiber in my diet, (of course my work stress too).   This is what prompted me to start a daily dose of this oatmeal.  Whether having this everyday will help me clear my skin or not, I have yet to see, but I have found that since I have been eating this everyday for about 2 weeks now,  my digestive system has been improved and I'm no longer suffering from constipation.

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Avocado Bacon Tomato Egg Benedict

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

For years, I had walked by this cute restaurant for many times near the beach, but I never tried it out because I didn't see the menu being any more special than the other restaurants on that same street. This morning was the first time I got to try this place out.  I tried this place out today because I noticed that since its first location near my old apartment by the beach years ago, this restaurant has become an expanding chain.  I happened to drive by its new location near my new neighborhood on my way to the bank. It happened that on this particular stretch of street, unlike the beach town I used to live; I wasn't aware of any boutique restaurants competing for my breakfast money besides the fast food chains and my usual diner Coco's.  So this restaurant became my only obvious choice when I was craving for the kind of California breakfasts I used to so enjoy when I was living by the beach.

The yellow decor inside looks just as cute as the yellow decor outside.While it looks like a lovely cottage restaurant, the setup is more like the fast food place where customers order the food at the counter, and go find their own seats, with the number tags they are given.  I ordered the Avacado Bacon Tomato Egg Benedict ($12.00) from their specials' board, and an iced coffee ($2.40.)

It took me a while to find the station that keeps the iced water, napkins, creamers, sugar, etc.  The iced coffee was okay, not as good as the one I had from my favorite Asian bakery.  The egg benedict was a little short on hollandaise sauce but it tasted great.  I wish they could drizzle more.  I could have asked for more sauce but since it was a self-service restaurant, I just didn't want the hassle to walk to the counter to ask the cashier (who seemed to be busy taking on new orders) for more sauce.

Bacon is the same bacon and tasted pretty much like bacon everywhere.  The salad drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette, avocado and potatoes were really fresh and high quality though. I could taste the freshness.  I loved the fresh flavor of the potatoes there. They were a lot healthier than the typical hash brown. For those who are used to food with a lot of seasoning, they may find this egg benedict a little bland tasting.  It's because this dish is completely relying on the bacon, pepper, herbs, and a light drizzle of hallandaise sauce for flavor, and there wasn't much salt.  It's good for those who are watching the daily sodium consumption. For others who need more salt, they just have to sprinkle it themselves.  For me, I, every once and a while enjoy food with less salt for a change. 

To me, the only spoiler for that egg benedict was the English muffin.  I didn't like the bread at all because the English muffin tasted stale to me.  I don't think it's really stale.  It's just I was never a fan of the typical grocery store bought English Muffin or bread of any kind.  Such breads just carry that hint of smell and taste that bother me a lot and I always tell my friends that those breads smell stale to me, even though my friends don't seem to be bothered one bit.  For this reason,  I don't usually like to have sandwiches in most of the restaurants.  This egg benedict would have been perfect if only the fresh whole wheat bread from my favorite Asian bakery were used instead of the grocery store quality mass-market English Muffins.   I also don't like the self-service business model, because it's just inconvenient when customers need to box up leftovers or to ask for extra something.

Restaurant: Yellow Vase Bakery, Café & Flowers 

Address: 28902 Western Ave, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275

Phone: (310) 833-1313

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Portuguese Egg Tart For Sunday Breakfast

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I admire people who dedicate their Sunday mornings to making home-made breakfasts.  To me, Sunday morning is when I make up the sleep I miss during the weekdays. The last thing I want to do after waking up from my long sleep on Sunday morning is to make breakfast, I don't even want to make coffee. Unless I have some compelling reasons to stay home on Sunday, then I will unwillingly make breakfast.  Otherwise, after I rise and wash up on Sunday, I normally just leap out of the door and drive to my favorite places to get breakfasts. I usually go to different places to have different types of breakfast from week to week, and today, I went to one of my favorite Asian bakeries to get my beloved Portuguese Egg Tart ($1.65), to enjoy with my favorite Iced Coffee (medium 85C Coffee from the same bakery for $2.75, equivalent to Starbucks "Venti" size). 

This Portuguese egg tart is almost as good as the famous one I had from Macau during my vacation there a few years ago.  This is actually the freshest and best tasting egg tart I ever had in America. (Well, the last time I had Portuguese egg tart in America was at a supposedly authentic Portuguese cafe in Sherman Oaks CA, which I didn't care for because it was cold and the pastry wasn't fresh enough for me. I wasn't impressed with the way it tasted either. )

I also like the iced coffee here better than Starbucks because it's not as bitter, but it's more flavorful and aromatic,  and it comes already perfectly creamed and sweetened.  Sunday breakfast like this is one of the reasons I put up with the high rent and ridiculous long commute to live in Los Angeles.

Bakery: 85C Bakery Cafe

Address:1735 W Carson St, Torrance, CA 90501 

Phone: (310) 320-8585

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BBQ Ribs & Buffalo Wings

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I'm not the kind of person who can wait till Memorial Day or July 4th to have BBQ. I'm the kind of person who enjoys BBQ just on any typical day, whether it's a holiday or a workday.  Thank god there are so many places in Los Angeles where I can pick up BBQ on the way home.  Tonight when I drove by Chicago For Ribs on my way to an evening run by the beach,  the air was drafted with the delicious charbroiled BBQ aroma so intense that I could smell it even when I had my car's windows all rolled up.  I admire the other commuter cars which just ignored the aroma and went straight home to cook dinner, or to wherever they needed to be.

When I smelled that enticing BBQ, I just had to make a U-turn to cross to the other side of the road to have my BBQ dinner.  Of course, I ditched my evening run for a BBQ dinner combo instead ($12.95).  The dinner combo came with my choice of 2 meats, which were baby back ribs and buffalo wings.  I like the baby back ribs which were tasty and tender but I wish I had gotten the BBQ chicken instead of the buffalo wings which were just deep fried and smothered with BBQ sauce.  The wings weren't  that much better than the frozen ones I bought from the grocery stores.  Besides,  I'm never a big fan of thickly breaded fried chicken wings drowned in BBQ sauce. I ordered the wings thinking they were charbroiled.  The baby back ribs were great though. The dinner combo also came with 2 sides of my choice, and a piece of corn bread or dinner roll, which I picked corn bread, coleslaw and mashed potato.  The coleslaw was somewhat too bitter for me but the mashed potato and the corn bread were great.  I really enjoyed the corn bread with the whipped butter there.  For $12.95, it was a lot of food on a big plate (which provided enough leftover for lunch tomorrow), and also a learning curve for me with this restaurant.  Now I know what to order  next time to make a more delicious BBQ plate.

Restaurant: Chicago For Ribs

Address: 1637 W25th St, San Pedro, CA 90732

Phone: (310) 832-7427

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Southwest Chicken Quesadillas

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I have to admit, I'm no expert in Mexican food, I had never had Mexican food until I moved here to Los Angeles.  Even though I like Mexican food, I rarely have it because I just like Asian food more. I like Mexican food enough that I can eat it everyday for the rest of my life if the only kind of Asian restaurant near me is PF Chang.  

The last time I had a quesadilla was probably 3 years ago. When I saw the above box of frozen chicken quesadillas in Trader Joe's freezer ($3.69 for a box of 2), I remembered how I liked it so I bought a box to try out. The flour tortillas are supposed to be filled with white meat chicken, Monterey Jack and Pepper Jack cheeses, corn, bell peppers, spinach and black beans, with mild jalapeño peppers, and Mexican style spices. I wasn't disappointed, the quesadillas tasted rather good for frozen food.

If I have to rate these frozen quesadillas, I will give them 4 stars out of 5.  They make great meals during those times when I leave work so late that all my favorite restaurants are closed. I also like eating one of them for breakfast when I wake up in the morning feeling hungry and miserable. (Each quesadilla has 400 calories).

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Free Chocolate Macaron Giveaway

Our test kitchen is going to try out the above all natural macaron baking mix.  We are therefore looking for a taste tester to taste the macarons we will be baking from this mix.  We will ship the taste tester half a dozen chocolate macarons to taste, and the taste tester will then let us know how he /she likes them.  (Note: we are doing this test independently with our own money and we aren't sponsored by the manufacturer or any of  its retailers directly or indirectly.) 

To qualify to participate in this taste test, you must be free of any form of food allergy.  To apply, please do the following before April 15, 2016; and we will randomly select a taste tester from our pool of  qualified candidates if there is more than one applicant:

1. Be a follower of this blog through Google +, or Twitter, or Facebook.
2. Share this post on either Google +, Twitter or Facebook.
3. Scroll down this post and fill out the giveaway participation form.

London's Afternoon Tea Tour Bus

Fried Egg With Balela Bean Salad And Buttered Toast

Recipe submitted by: Jane Ong

I can't live without eggs.  I had been having at least one egg for every meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner) for many years since I was weaned off my milk bottle. But my egg consumption has been drastically cut down since I graduated college.  It was not because I was worried about the cholesterol.  It was mainly because I have this horribly long commute in the morning to work that I don't have time to cook and eat breakfast.  But whenever I have the time to indulge in my morning breakfast at home, I always treat myself a fried egg over easy.  According to Harvard University, eggs contain nutrients including protein, vitamins B12 and D, riboflavin; and folate, and therefore may help lower the risk for heart disease when consumed in moderation. (i.e., One egg per day.) To make my fried egg breakfast healthier, I gave it a middle eastern twist by pairing the egg with Trader Joe's super delicious Balela Bean Salad. (If you are a talented cook, you can probably make your own Balela Bean Salad, but I opt for Trader Joe's all natural high quality ready-to-eat version because I absolutely don't know how to make this bean salad myself.)

Makes 1 Serving:

Ingredients:

• 2 oz of Trader Joe's Balela Bean Salad ($2.69 for 8 oz container)
• 1 large organic egg
• 1 piece of high quality white bread, toasted and buttered (I got my bread freshly made from my favorite Japanese Bakery)
• Dried parsley flakes 
• Moran's Grilling Seasoning 

Direction:

1. Fry an egg in any style you want (I prefer mine to be over easy with runny yolk inside).
2. Sprinkle dried parsley flakes and Moran's Grilling Seasoning on top of the egg, serve with buttered toast and Balela Bean Salad.

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Vietnamese Chicken Curry

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

When I first moved to Los Angeles, the first thing I noticed wasn't the lame "Hollywood" sign. (By the way, what's so special about it that this sign has been featured on so many posters and glossy pages of travel guides?)  It was the ugly strip malls on almost every block I drove by that caught my eyes.  I found many of these strip malls very ugly, and depressing (because they just have such a third world vibe about them).   

But lately, I have fallen in love with these ugly strip malls in Los Angeles because I realize that there are always ethnic mom and pop restaurants nestled in them.  I never know what new food I will discover by driving into an ugly strip mall and this "unknown" element just adds a little excitement to my boring commute home from a long day of stressful corporate prison.

Last night, my venture into one of these strip malls had gotten me a tasty bowl of Vietnamese Chicken Curry ($7.99) with steamed rice on the side.  Compared to Thai curry or Indian curry dishes, Vietnamese curry is  much lighter in texture and the sauce is more broth like than gravy like.  I found this light version of very tasty and tender chicken curry stew very appetizing.  This is the kind of dish that goes extremely well with steamed rice or crusty bread.  I can get really full and satisfied by eating a lot of rice with only half of the chicken curry. This allows me to box the other half home for lunch the next day.  I can always make a big pot of steamed rice very easily with my rice cooker at home to use up the left over curry.  This helps cut down my dining bills.

Restaurant: Taste of Viet
Address: 1650 Sepulveda Blvd, Harbor City, CA 90710
Phone: (310) 326-2889

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Middle Eastern Fusion - Savory Shrimp

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

Whenever I am lucky enough to call the shots for my business lunch or dinner, I try to bring my clients to my favorite restaurants near my home.  This restaurant is one of those I proudly introduced to my clients who are health conscious and picky about food quality This is an organic restaurant which serves natural and organic food, so I myself come here every time to splurge a little when I get my paycheck .  I have been coming here since this place opened years ago.  And each time I visited, I cleaned the plate because the food here tasted just so good.

I usually ordered the kebabs but last night I tried out the savory shrimp, which had broiled shrimps, broiled veggies (that included potato, asparagus, eggplant and mushroom), enhanced with a creamy sauce seasoned with white wine and onions, served with cilantro-infused rice. At $25.95, this dish is one of those more expensive entrees on the menu. But if I get the opportunity to treat myself, this is where I spend my money. I just love to support neighborhood restaurants that use locally sourced organic and natural ingredients.  This place is near the beach and the Friday farmer's market.  It's a great place to round out a weekend evening of breezy beach walk and shopping at the Farmer's market.

Restaurant: Turquoise Restaurant:

Address:1735 S Catalina Ave, Redondo Beach, CA 90277 

Phone:(310) 373-3234 

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Marie Callender's Herb Roasted Chicken

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

Even though I'm living in a town that has lots of great restaurants nearby and there are lots of delivery options,  there are times I just want to stay in my PJs and I just don't want to interact with anyone, and that includes calling restaurants to order delivery. I guess I can still order online but it seems to me popping a frozen dinner in a microwave is less a hassle.  Today is such a day.  This is why even though I am not a big fan of frozen dinners, I still store a few boxes in the freezer, particularly when they are on sale.  

This Herb Roasted Chicken meal from Marie Callender's is the best frozen dinner I had tried so far.  I bought it on sale for way under $3.00.  Just like the box says, the bone-in chicken is tender.  This roasted chicken tastes actually better than the Grocery store rotisserie chicken I've had in a number of American diners.  For a meal that has only 430 calories, it's quite filling (for me).   Right now they are doing a "Child Hunger Ends Here" campaign, under which the company will donate 1 meal for each code I enter on the campaign's website. The code is printed on the back of each frozen dinner I bought.  This just makes eating frozen dinner at home  so much more meaningful than ordering restaurant delivery.

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Seasoned Pork And Sausage Clay Pot Rice Meal

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I was working on my client's company yesterday in Costa Mesa in Orange County, California.  I stayed on for dinner instead of jumping on the crazily congested 405 to get back to Los Angeles. I thought I would avoid waiting on the freeway. But instead of waiting on the freeway, I found myself standing with a tray of food waiting for a spot to eat in a food court inside the Mitsuwa supermarket. I love my neighborhood Mitsuwa supermarket so much that I always seek it out whichever town I visit. But of course, not every town in California  has a Mitsuwa supermarket. I was so happy to see one near my client's office in Costa Mesa.  I just didn't expect it to be so packed at 7pm in the evening. It was like a mad house there.  I hadn't experienced a food court this crowded in America.  When I was standing around and trying to look for an empty spot to put my tray down, I almost felt like I was back to my vacation in Hong Kong.  There were so many Asian people crowding in the food court:)  

It was only when I tasted the food, I realized I wasn't in Hong Kong.  While the Seasoned Pork & Sausage Clay Pot Rice Meal ($7.29) tasted decent in terms of food court dining in America, it's not nearly as delicious as the ones in Hong Kong.  I did find it okay for a weeknight dinner after work.  I personally like it much better than fast food pizza.  The meal came sizzling hot with a bowl of broth based turnip soup on the side.  It's filling and comforting.  I always love the tasty and chewy Chinese sausages.  But I have to admit I've had better Chinese sausages elsewhere. The jam-packed parking lot and the long wait for the food (due to high customers traffic) was also a little annoying to me, from a spoiled customer's view point.  I'm sure such busy customer traffic is fantastic for the vendors and the supermarket in terms of cash flows and profitability. My father in Hong Kong always said, "I would rather be in a crowded city that presents profit opportunities for business than a quiet country side where I don't see the shadow of even one person..."

For me, I just hope that Mitsuwa in Costa Mesa can expand the square footage, particularly the square footage in its parking lot to accommodate its visitors volume.  Until then, I will temporarily stay away from it.

Restaurant: Sky Express
Address: 665 Paularino Ave, Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Tel:(714) 437-7198

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Korean Chicken And Mixed Vegetables Bento Box (Chicken Japchae 닭고기, 잡채)

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

The reason why I love Korean food so much can very well be explained by the photo above.  For a lunch box at $10.95, it came with very delicious Korean BBQ chicken, a side salad, well seasoned mixed veggies, Korean pancake, Korean glass noodles, great al dente steamed rice,  and in addition to the lunch box; a bowl of soup, and numerous side dishes that includes potato salad,  and various yummy Korean pickles and seasoned veggies!!!  I come here a lot for this BBQ chicken lunch special because one lunch box has enough portion for both my lunch and dinner.  I also come here to pick up BBQ chicken lunch specials whenever I go picnics with my friends and family. A lunch box like this just makes fantastic food for picnics!!

Restaurant: Pine Tree Korean BBQ Restaurant
Address: 25890 S. Western Ave, Harbor City, CA 90710
Tel:(310) 325-1186

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Banana Foster Tarts

Recipe submitted by: Jane Ong

Knowing my limited cooking abilities, my mother-in-law emailed me a recipe that she claimed was so deliciously easy that it would keep me mellow at the end of my stressful work day and also make me feel somewhat accomplished about myself...

Ingredients: (Make 6 tarts)

• 1 package Keebler Mini Graham Cracker Pie Crusts
• 3 ripe bananas, sliced
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/8 cup brandy (I used Pierre Douchene Napoleon Brandy V.S.O.P bought at Trader Joe's)
• A pinch of cinnamon powder

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven at 375F, lightly spray the pie crusts with Pam Butter Cooking Spray and bake for 5 minutes.
2. At medium heat, cook butter and brown sugar in a sauce pan, stir until sugar and butter melt together.
3. Add brandy to 2) above, stir and heat until bubbly.
4. Add banana slices, gently stir until bananas are well coated with the liquid.
5. Remove from heat and let the mixture sit for a few minutes.
6. Spoon the bananas mixture into the pie crusts, sprinkle with cinnamon powder.

I think this banana brandy sauce will also be good on pancakes and waffles.

Cantonese Style Shrimp Chow Fun 乾炒蝦河

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

As lunch specials go, I consider the Cantonese style Shrimp Chow Fun to be one of the most satisfying.  At $7.95, I got a plate of aromatic flat rice noodles, freshly stir-fried with shrimps, green onion and bean sprouts.  On days when I don't feel like eating the same old rice for lunch (which I need to not feel hungry for the rest of the day), I opt for Chow Fun (fried flat rice noodles).  Among all styles of Chow Fun, I love the Cantonese style most because it's not drowned in greasy gravy.  Whenever it's available on the lunch special menu, I always order it because I don't think this is something that can be made in the average home kitchen. Making this dish requires very high heat and great skill of tossing and stir-frying on top of a very powerful stove.  Otherwise, the noodles will come out too bland and soggy, without the great aroma that's infused into the noodles from the high heat.  Even when it's not on the lunch menu, I usually just ask for it and the restaurant will make it for me.

Restaurant: Nice China Cafe
Address: 2543 Pacific Hwy, Ste B, Torrance, CA 90505
Tel:(310) 539-0323

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Japanese Big Fried Chicken

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

Like chocolate, fried chicken is one of those foods that has tremendous universal appeal.  It's amazing how fried chicken can be done so similarly and yet taste so differently in different cultural renditions. I recently had a piece of the fried chicken in one of my favorite Japanese Ramen restaurants, I think I could be blindfolded and I could tell it was Japanese fried chicken.  Yes, it's this obvious to me and I am also a huge fan of KFC.  This Japanese fried chicken  just has this distinctive crispiness on the skin that has this burst of rich flavor for each crunchy bite.  The meat is very juicy, tender and amazingly seasoned.  As if all these great flavors aren't dynamic enough, the fried chicken comes with a side of seasoning salt. This is a special seasoning salt that gives the taste of this delicious fried chicken another kick of excitement.  As a big fan of fried chicken, I really love this one!  It's $3.00 for one piece, by the way.  

Restaurant: Hakata Ikkousha
Address: 21605 Western Ave, Suite J, Torrance, CA 90501
Tel:(424) 558-3953

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Winner Announcement: Free Book Giveaway Martha Stewart's Christmas

We had only one participant for the above free book giveaway. The winner for the above free book giveaway is: Laurie. We had already shipped the book to the winner. Please continue to follow us for our upcoming free cookbooks giveaway.

Korean Dumpling Soup 만두국 (Man Du Guk)

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I love dumplings. But I had never had Korean dumplings until today even though I go to Korean restaurants a lot.  It's because every time when I ordered steamed Korean dumplings or boiled dumplings in Korean restaurants, I was told the dumplings were sold out!!   It just made me even more curious about the Korean dumplings, and it therefore made me more eager to try them out.  I finally was able to order the Korean Dumpling Soup (laced with egg drop and topped with shredded dry sea weed) today at one Korean restaurant. I felt so lucky!! While I still prefer Chinese dumplings a lot more, I enjoyed the Korean dumpling soup very much.  The  broth was so soothing and comforting. I think the broth was infused with anchovy. But there was no obvious fish taste.  The broth  just tasted delicately delicious.  As for the dumplings, I think the filling is minced beef, glass noodles and some veggies, which I think were a little under seasoned.  But then may be it's supposed to be this way to be paired with the tasty broth and an array of richly seasoned vegetable side dishes. I love the side dishes in this restaurant because they made me love eating my veggies.  Besides, this restaurant always includes my beloved potato salad among the side dishes, while it varies the rest.  The dumpling soup also came with a bowl of rice on the side.  As a lunch special, it costs $11.95. But I usually stuffed myself up so much with all the side dishes and rice that I always ended up taking most of the dumpling soup home.  The dumplings actually tasted  better the next day.  Service can be slow, so I suggest ordering to go by the phone and go for pick-up when time is a luxury during lunch hour.  I was overall happy with the food in terms of taste and satisfaction.  I also love that I learnt a new Korean word today, "Man Du" means dumpling in Korean.    

Restaurant: Pine Tree Korean BBQ Restaurant
Address: 25890 S. Western Ave, Harbor City, CA 90710
Tel:(310) 325-1186

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Chinese New Year Food That Americans Can Serve On Halloween

Content submitted by: Jane Ong

Can you guess what this is by looking at the photo?  This is Pig's Hand Stew In Southern Chinese Miso, Chinese name is 南乳炆豬手, Cantonese phonetic: Nam Yue Mon Chue Shau. (I call the sauce miso because it's made with the same principles of fermenting the bean curds, but in this case, Red Yeast Rice is used for the fermentation).

I went to one of my favorite dim sum places yesterday and I discovered this off-the-menu special dim sum dish just by talking to the table next to me.  The couple at that table recommended this to me because they said I got to have the "must-have" Chinese New Year dish that was supposed to bring prosperity and wealth in the coming year.  Then I remembered my parents always had the dish called "Unexpected Wealth On Hand"  every Chinese New Year when I was growing up.  This is the dish that is made of stewed Pig's Hand with some special hair-like vegetables called Fat Choy, which has the similar sound as "Getting Rich" in Cantonese.  The sale and harvest of this vegetable has been banned by China since 2000, because the mass  harvest of it had allegedly caused desertization, which is bad for the environment.  There are now simulation fat choys in the market, and due to the huge demand for the real thing, there is actually a black market selling the real fat choys.  This sounds crazy.  I had it every now and then when I was a kid and it tasted nothing special to me. The vegetable had actually no taste at all, it's  like  extremely  fine glass noodles, but black in color.  

So when I ordered this special pig's hand stew, I was expecting it to come with the pig's hand and also some veggie (veggie has the similar sound of "Fortune" in Chinese).  But it turned out there were just the pieces of the pig's hand.  I took one bite and I spitted it out because it got the subtle  funky smell and taste like the fermented  bamboo shoot in Japanese Ramen.   I never liked this kind of smell and taste because it reminds me of "urine"...  I suspect that it's either the quality of the Chinese miso that was used, or the quality of the pig's feet.  It could be that the pig's feet wasn't thoroughly blanched and treated before being stewed. 

I used to love this stew when I was a kid. Last time I had it was a few years ago at a Chinese restaurant in Hong Kong.  It tasted so good, and not fattening, yet it was really tender.  Back then, I loved the sauce so much I actually boxed it up to bring home to dress my steamed white rice.  I had never had this dish in America, but now that I tried, I don't think I will order it again.  But if you know which Chinese restaurants in America makes great Pig Hand's Stew in Southern Chinese Miso, please let me know.

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Taiwanese Pickled Ground Pork Rice With Marinated Egg

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I always love the little diners and tea houses in Taiwan whenever I visit.  I'm so happy to find a Taiwanese tea house within a short drive from my home to relive my vacation memory in Taiwan.  One of the Taiwanese dishes I love from my vacation in Taiwan is Pickled Ground Pork Rice With Marinated Egg, so that's what I often order whenever I visit this tea house.  I usually order a small size for lunch ($6.85).  It comes with a bowl of delicious meat sauce, a tasty marinated egg,  a bowl of steamed white rice, sprinkled with seaweed flakes, topped with corn and Chinese cabbages.  It's a comforting and filling meal, and it feels healthy to me because it's so balanced with grain, veggies and proteins.  The meat sauce makes the veggies and rice taste so good.  I'm not naturally a veggie lover, and I don't like the boiled and bland veggies side dishes in the typical American restaurant.  But I enjoy my veggies in this Taiwanese meal.  I also ordered a large iced Yami Coffee at regular sweet level (it tastes okay, not great), which is a mistake because it's pretty expensive at $5.13.  I will just stick with water the next time...

Restaurant: Yami Tea House
Address: 24705 Narbonne Ave #101 , Lomita, CA 90717
Tel:(310) 326-2650

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Trader Joe's Streusel Topped Blueberry Muffins

Review Submitted By: Jane Ong

Even though I can make delicious banana nut muffins from scratch,  I always go to Trader Joe's to get its Streusel Topped Wild Blueberry Muffins whenever I crave for blueberry muffins ($3.99 for a box of 4).  They taste really natural and not overly sweet with the corn syrup that is widely used in a lot of cheap baked goods in discounted warehouses and the typical supermarket chain.  They expire fast but they can be stored in the fridge and are really good for several days. They are light and fluffy after being warmed up in the microwave for 20 seconds.  I also feel good and clean after eating them, which from my experience indicates that there is no hydrogenated vegetable shortening.  I can't tolerate margarine and vegetable shortening because I feel nauseous every time when I consume a baked product that has it.  Regardless what the bakery tells me, I can absolutely feel the presence of such hydrogenated oil because my body for some reason just rejects it every time and makes me feel sick.  I like these muffins at Trader Joe's because they don't make me feel sick at all.  Each muffin has 320 calories and it's good for my portion control for breakfast.  I stick to only consume less than 500 calories for breakfast.  I don't think I can make these muffins any cheaper based on my hourly pay at my job.  Between spending an extra hour at work and spending an hour making my own blueberry muffins, I'd rather get them from Trader Joe's.  I still will make my own if only I can find a really good recipe and I have the free time:)

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Deliciously Candy Clad

Just imagine wearing all our favorite candies and cakes:)

Rival 2-Slice Toaster Is My Cheapest Appliance Buy Ever!!

Review submitted by: Barbara Weiner

This is the first toaster I ever owned.  I rarely toasted my bread at home and when I did, I usually used the broiler in my tiny kitchen's built-in oven.  As a renter , I move around a lot so I always try to avoid acquiring too many things, appliances included. My very little space in my kitchen counter top is another reason why I never bought a toaster before.  My problem with toasting bread in the oven broiler was, I had to pre-heat it and then I always burnt my toasts.  So eight months ago when I saw this 2-slice toaster with a price tag of $6.50 at Walmart, I had to buy it.   I have been using this toaster a lot since then, and I have been very satisfied with my toasts.  This cute and compact toaster doesn't take up much counter space and it's very easy to clean.  I especially like that the electric coil can be neatly tugged in the nooks underneath the toaster (unseen) when it's unplugged.  At $6.50, this is the cheapest and most useful appliance I ever bought.  This toaster is made in China

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Blue Corn Tortilla Chips Breakfast Under 5 Minutes

Recipe submitted by: Jane Ong

Even though I eat out most of the time, I still use my kitchen to cook, particularly after I returned from my vacation in Southeast Asia and blew all my savings just so I could live like a princess for a few weeks. In the last couple days, I have been eating this for breakfast and dinner at home because it's fast, easy and cheap....

Makes 1 Serving:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of Trader Joe's Organic Blue Corn Tortilla Chips
• 1 large organic egg
• 1/4 cup of Trader Joe's Mild Pico De Gallo Fresh Salsa
• Dried parsley flakes 
• Moran's Grilling Seasoning 

Direction:

1. Layer a plate with  blue corn tortilla chips.
2. Fry an egg in any style you want (I prefer mine to be over easy with runny yolk inside).
3. Put egg on top of the blue corn tortilla chips and spoon the fresh salsa around.
4. Sprinkle dried parsley flakes and Moran's Grilling Seasoning on top of the egg and serve.

The grill seasoning and the parsley flakes just made my egg taste really good.  The Trader Joe's salsa is one of the best fresh salsa I had tasted, and I think it's the best tasting store bought fresh salsa among all the store bought fresh salsas that I had tried in various American grocery stores.  I won't recommend jar salsa at all.  You can surely make your own salsa if you prefer, For me, I think I can't do a better job than Trader Joe's in terms of producing such a high quality salsa, or does it even make economic sense for me to make it myself.

Vietnamese Spring Rolls And Combo Pho

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

I just returned to Los Angeles from a vacation in Southeast Asia, and yet my first meal back in America is Vietnamese.  I just can't stay away from Asian food.  I came to this Pho restaurant because my friends highly recommended it. But somehow, I just feel that the Vietnamese food here isn't too authentic.  The food is not bad, but not great.  Vietnamese Cuisine in Toms River NJ and Mrs. A Hanoi Pho here in this area both have much better Phos than this place.  The broth in Mrs. A Hanoi Pho tasted a lot more flavorful with no sensation of MSG. Meanwhile, the spring rolls in Vietnamese Cuisine back in Toms River  just tasted a lot better because the carrot and daikon julienne in the spring rolls were pickled and seasoned, and  Vietnamese Cuisine in Toms River NJ also used mint leaves inside the spring rolls for the greens, instead of purely lettuce. Meanwhile, the spring rolls I had in this restaurant ($5.99 as shown in photo) tasted pretty bland to me.  Yes, I used a lot of the peanut sauce on them, but the absence of  pickled and seasoned veggies, and the absence of mint leaves inside the rolls really water down the flavor quite a lot.

The House Combo Pho (Beef Brisket, Half a Beef Ball and some Tendons, $7.99 for a large bowl) in this place was totally dependent on my own addition of a lot of Hoisin Sauce and  Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce.  I normally don't like to add these sauces into my Pho. It's because in a good Pho place, the broth is the soul, which takes many many hours to slow cook and lots and lots of ingredients to churn out the broth.  I prefer to enjoy such richly flavorful broth as is without ruining it with the Hoisin Sauce and Sriracha Sauce which should be, in my opinion reserved to be used in water, not a great quality Pho broth of labor.   I always prefer my Pho to be in a slow cooked broth that is so flavorful that no extra sauce is needed.  I think the Pho at this place is just too bland  for my palate,  it's not a bad place to go for some simple and affordable lunch and dinner on a busy workday.  I personally just like Mrs. A Hanoi Pho much better even though the price there is higher. You get what you pay for.  The difference is clearly shown in the broth.  And I do miss Vietnamese Cuisine back in Toms River NJ, which is the only restaurant I miss from that area.

Restaurant: Pho 1945
1945 Pacific Coast Hwy, Lomita, CA 90717
Lomita, CA 90717
Tel: (424) 263-5989

Spicy Miso Chicken Stir Fry Rice Bowl And Iced Thai Tea

Review submitted by: Jane Ong

A week before Christmas, I treated my friends to one of my favorite dinner joints for some rice bowls.  My treat to them was in lieu of Christmas presents. I'm not good at shopping for presents but I figured out that I could treat my friends to a nice dinner while I opened the Christmas gifts they had for me.  My friends told me they were really delighted to experience such good Chinese food.  I am not even sure if this is Chinese food because I have a feeling that this is East Asian fusion food, or it can be Taiwanese style East Asian food.  I don't know if the owners are Taiwanese or not, but this kind of rice bowl reminds me of the similar ones that I had when I visited Taiwan a couple years before.  It also reminds me of the lunches I had when I was a kid.  My mom cooks this way, which is stir fry of thinly sliced good quality meat with lots of  fresh & crispy veggies, dressed with a very light sauce.  I think most Asian home style stir fries are light (but deliciously seasoned) like this.  The Chinese food in a lot of Americanized Chinese restaurants are too heavy and too drowned in either stuffy brown gravy, or the overly sticky and sour "sweet & sour" sauce.

I don't make this kind of stir fry at home because I don't have good knife skills to slice meat this thin and I don't like to load up on numerous type of veggies that I end up trashing because I can't use them up fast enough.  Cooking  for 1 to 2 people is a challenge when I like varieties in my rice bowl, 3 ingredients just don't cut for me.  I would rather spend time in working over time than making stir fry at home because I can get a Spicy Miso Chicken Rice Bowl for only $8.25, which is much less than what would cost me if I spend the time to cook it myself.  I also like the numerous kind of teas at this place. This time I ordered Thai Milk Tea ($3.00), which is not as sweet as the ones I got at the Thai restaurant, because this is somewhat a non-Thai lighter version.  

I like both versions. This lighter version really complements my meal here because I feel really healthy after meantime. There is just this light, clean and comfortable feeling.  So it all depends on whether I am craving for rich food  or light clean food at the moment. But I find this light version of Thai tea very enjoyable.

Restaurant: Go Go Juice Café

Address: 1943 Pacific Coast Hwy, Lomita, CA 90717 

Tel:(310) 539-6486

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