use real butter

Sorry for the hiatus, but I was on travel visiting with my two favorite kids in the world. It’s always a shock for me to walk into the kitchen of non-cooks. One of my old supervisors had a kitchen that was spotless and pristine because he never cooked. He ate out for every meal! I don’t know if that is the norm or the exception, but the family I visited eats out a lot (or orders take out) and their pantry is full of processed junk and convenience foods. I usually feel pretty ill after eating fast food once a month let alone daily. It’s a different perspective on food, that is for sure.

At one point I did manage to visit a Super H Mart which was awesome! I just googled it and found that we have one in Denver. A one hour and twenty minute drive is definitely better than a 3 hour flight. Sweet. They had lovely produce too, like these pretty Indian bitter melons:

They had baskets of scuppernongs on sale at the entrance. I didn’t know what they were and neither did my mom. She popped one in her mouth, bit down, and made a face like she was about to cry. She spat it out into her hand and said it was *sour*. That very evening, Joyce emailed me about scuppernongs and how she loves them. I followed her link to the wikipedia entry and laughed aloud when I read how they are eaten – without the skin. Now I’m really curious to try one. I’ll have to tell my mom about it after she gets back home.

Sometimes I need to get my bearings straight after I travel and this trip was no exception. I felt tired, disoriented, and without appetite – until it was time to make a grocery list. Then I began looking up recipes for things I wanted to try this week and suddenly the food enthusiasm turned on again. It probably helps to be in my own kitchen, looking forward to preparing fresh and delicious things that we like.

Fall is coming and I am so ready!

On Saturday, I did something odd and decided to ditch kayaking in favor of exploring Seattle. I don’t typically enjoy urban exploration, but when you’re in a lovely setting with great character and even better hosts, then it is hard to pass up. Erin and Caroline are the perfect tour guides, much like Jerad and Kell of Sydney. Here’s my tour of Seattle in pictures. Unfortunately, it doesn’t capture everything we did!

blueberries growing in erin and caroline’s yard

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We left Whistler (finally) and headed for dim sum in Vancouver. Dim sum was very good, although I think my parents ordered too much (they kept saying they weren’t hungry, but then they ordered so much food!). Unfortunately, we had to wait a half hour to be seated, and by the time we headed for the US, we were behind schedule. That was quite unfortunate because the border crossing (a different one, as we thought we’d be smarter) took 3 hours. It boggles the mind how people and systems can be so poorly implemented, but it happens on a daily basis. So all you can do is creep along in the very slow line (400 meters in 2 hours).

After the border crossing, we dropped my parents off at their friend’s house in a woodsy Seattle suburb where they were spending the weekend. Then Jeremy got us to downtown Seattle where life and the city were hopping on a Friday night. We managed to park the car at the one spot that opened up and changed in the front seat from our grubby clothes into something more presentable for our reservation. Cascadia was just around the corner and an absolutely beautiful restaurant inside. We felt so hungry and thirsty! We agreed to order a really nice meal and just *breath out slowly* relax – or rather rejoice. The food here was fantastic. Caroline said Kerry Sear is one of the best chefs in Seattle. Oh man…

cascadia: ahi tuna appetizer with passion soy (!!)

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