Sauteed daikon radish

With canola oil, ginger, a splash of vinegar (I used rice to retain the pristine white color of the shredded, daikon radish), and lastly minced scallions just before dishing. Another dish brought back from my co-ed summers of daily cooking with friends. Other fond memories include sauteed mustard greens, tomatoes and eggs, steamed egg custards, tofu mustard greens and salted duck egg soup, tofu seaweed egg flower and tomato soup, pan-seared whole fish, etc etc, tofu and thousand-year egg, etc etc. I guess by branching out you lose some old comforts =/

I think I have re-acquired the tasted for goat cheese

Mixed Greens, feta, dried cranberries, avocado, vinaigrette, topped with chopped toasted almonds. Delicious. I thought I have passed my days of infatuation with intense cheese-dried fruits-toasted nuts salads (blue cheese, candied walnuts, dried cranberries, chopped apples...sounds familiar?), but alas, they have a second spring!

I used to try to ration fatty foods, healthy fatty foods, throughout a day. But I think now I have ceased keeping track 0.o I thrive on fat...nuts, avocado, peanut butter, salmon, sesame, olive oil, hummus, bring it on! Don't know if this is good.

Variations from Rhapsody on a theme of Kale*

 Kale! This super food is new to me within a few weeks, but already I quite like its deep characteristic fragrance and hearty texture, and the dark green color--I prefer dark greens over light greens anytime (with the exception of cabbage and cauliflower, perhaps, but you could argue that they're actually white). So here are a few recent experimentations:

Raw kale salad with edamames, chopped tomatoes, avocado, and chopped toasted almonds. This salad ended up being a little bit too tough to the tooth for my taste. I've had similar experience with the kale and edmame bistro salad from TJ's, which is the same thing except without avocado and with dried cranberries and scallions. Perhaps I will always find salads with kale as the main protagonist a bit tough.

 

The same salad above with slightly less kale and the addition of sauteed kabocha squash, red quinoa and hummus. I liked it better!

Unpictured: Kale, sauteed kabocha, onions, and portabella, red quinoa, hummus, avocado, and chopped toasted almonds. Sounds like a handful, but it was good. The kale is still raw, but I threw it into the pan a few seconds before dishing the sauteed veggies. The vol. ratio of kale is less so than in a raw kale salad.

Kale bowl with brown rice, sauteed onions and kabocha, edamame, sesame seeds, avocado. I also like this one a lot. I think I seem to have found what I like in kale...

The hearty super green stands up well to heat, bold flavors, and complex layerings of textures and flavors. I like it best when the kale composes less than majority of the dish by volume, which works with complex layerings of ingredients :P I still prefer it raw, but after scrunching with a sprinkle of salt and sometimes mixing with hot ingredients, it is much less tough tough, more broken down and fragrant. I will keep trying things out, and look forward to the glorious road ahead with my new green friend. To our imperfect but beautiful world.

* 18th variation from rhapsody on a theme of Paganini--the most beautiful piece of music in the whole wide world.

Eggplant cold dish

This is a Chinese eggplant cold dish that is pretty easy to make. Chop up 1 Chinese/Japanese eggplant, whole or partially peeled, and microwave, with a little water on the bottom for the effect of steaming, for 4 min total on high, stirring/remixing halfway. Check to make sure eggplant is soft and cooked. Drain remaining water. Mince 1 stalk scallion and 1-2 clove garlic, and add about 2 tsp of each of soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil, mixing to make the sauce. Drizzle sauce over eggplant and mix well. The spongy eggplant soaks in the favor of the oriental spices and sauce and the signature fragrance of sesame oil. Yum! Leftover friendly. 
 

Making the dish for the first time in a long time and from distant memories, I used way too much scallion and garlic, and the excessive raw spiciness actually made me tear up. I added edamame in hope of diluting the intensity of favor. But green and purple are also pretty to look at. The ratio above should be better though, and more consistent with what I did in the past.

Kabocha rice bowl

Sauteed sliced kabocha squash and sweet onions, chinese broccoli stalks, brown rice (with add-ins: black and soy beans and corn), edamame and sesame. The fibery Japanese squash lends a delicate sweetness and charming color to the bunch, and lightly salted, thaw-and-eat edamame is always a mild but flavorful complement to most partners, not to mention deceivingly convenient. Toasted white sesame adds an additional layer of fragrance.

Tomato-basil salmon steak :)

I came across a salmon steak recipe in a magazine I was idling flipping somewhere public. It seemed simple enough and I had all the ingredients (no oregano or parsley or fennel or other fancy herbs, and I still had basil that I was fretting over how to use up, from the big box I got for the tomato basil eggs), so I decided to give it a try. I didn't memorize it exactly but the ratio/procedure I used seemed to work. I have decided I like to wing it when it comes to cooking.

Cook defrosted salmon steak, about 1 in thick, in a little olive oil in pan over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes per side, while rubbing salt on the side facing up (I am too lazy to marinade). Set salmon steak aside. Cook large clove of minced garlic in the same oil (I added a little more because I started out with very little) in pan until lightly browned. Add coarsely chopped basil leaves from about three stalks and stir for about half a minute. Add one medium-large tomato, cut into small chunks, the runnier seeds removed, salt, and a little water. Place salmon back in pan and cover until cooked through but tender, about a few minutes. Dish and serve.

For dinner I also made garlic sauteed gai lan (Chinese broccoli) and served myself a bowl of brown rice and red yam. I felt quite accomplished and proud: for one I had a proper meal with main dish and sides, as opposed to my usually meal-in-a-bowl, and I felt a a silly feeling of being pampered and fancy; for two the salmon steak actually turned out splendidly! I was lucky to get the timing right and the fish was tender and flavorful as well as lightly imbued with hints of tomato and basil. The pureed tomato-basil-sauce-reduction-thingy also tastes great with rice, although perhaps a slightly less pureed form would do fine as well. The thinner belly parts of the steak were on the salty side, so I will keep that in mind and skew the salt-rubbing toward the thicker parts next time. But all in all I am content, pleasantly surprised, and so happy that I found another simple, non-fuss way to cook salmon than my lazy-man's baked fillet. It had been a good dinner :)

The presentation had to be a bit ghetto with a rubbermaid and my old stainless steel plate. How I wish I had a WHITE plate that would bring out the rich hues of the slightly charred orange salmon and dark green basil and fiery tomatoes! Perhaps it is time to suck it up and get new dishes...

The leftover for next meal. Somehow looks prettier.