Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Wendell's Summer Rolls with Pork Meatballs

from Chowhound.com

Wendell made this for dinner last night.  He saw the recipe in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser and it can be found here. It went well with my leftover Vietnamese food which I happened to have had for lunch.

IMG_8747

We had trouble with the rolls sticking to each other and also to the plate, so we kinda ate them as soon as they were rolled. I ate mine with V's So Damn Ono Tofu Sauce

IMG_8756

1/4 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon each
finely chopped fresh basil, mint, cilantro 1 pound ground pork
10 rice papers
3 to 4 cucumbers, julienned
Sliced jalapenos (optional)
Handful mixed herbs

Pickled vegetables:
1/3 cup distilled white vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 (3-ounce) carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1/2 (3-ounce) daikon radish, peeled and cut into matchsticks


Sauce
1/3 cup water
1- 1/2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1 -1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons
fish sauce
Juice from 1/2 lime
1/2 fresh red chili, seeded and
finely chopped
1 small garlic clove,
finely chopped
1/2 carrot, peeled and cut into small, thin matchsticks
page4image12832


To make sauce: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water, rice vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Let cool slightly, then stir in fish sauce, lime juice, chili, garlic and carrots. Refrigerate until ready to use, at least 30 minutes, and up to 3 days.

To make pickled vegetables: In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring vinegar, sugar and salt to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Stir in carrot and daikon; let cook 1 minute. Let cool, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Refrigerate until ready to serve; will keep up to 3 days.

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Coat a rimmed baking sheet with canola oil.

Make meatballs by stirring together breadcrumbs, egg yolk and herbs, then adding pork. Form into balls of 1 heaping teaspoon each. Bake on baking sheet until cooked through, about 10 minutes. (Meatballs may also be pan-fried in oil.)

To assemble: Fill a round cake pan with warm water. Place 1 rice paper round into the water, turning it gently until softened. Remove sheet from the water and lay it on a plate. Arrange a few of the meatballs in a horizontal line on the wrapper, about 1 inch from the edge nearest you and 1/2 inch from each side.

Top with drained pickled veggies, cucumber and jalapenos (if using), and a sprinkle of herb leaves. Lift edge of rice paper nearest you and fold over filling, then roll over once. Fold in sides and continue to roll into a tight cylinder. Repeat with remaining rice paper and filling. Cut each roll in half at a diagonal and serve with dipping sauce. Makes 10 rolls. 

Monday, February 27, 2017

Fried Rice from Bogart's Cafe


I never heard of Bogart's Cafe on Monsarrat Avenue, but apparently they're very popular. Landon said that it's usually crowded. He had a softball game this past Saturday, and on his way home he picked up some fried rice from there. Score! I liked all three varieties that he got. 

Mama's ($8.70)
IMG_6191

Garlic Fried Shrimp ($12.00)
IMG_6190

Pork Adobo ($9.50)
IMG_6189


Sunday, February 26, 2017

Toothpaste Squeezer Thing


My cousin V bought this in Japan . . . maybe from a 100-yen store. I love it! Thanks V!!

IMG_6182

Saturday, February 25, 2017

My Chopard Geneve Watch


Earlier this past week I put all of my swap meet watches into a ziplock bag and took them to work. I left the bag in our break room with a note saying that if anybody wanted a watch to let me know and I'd install a battery and they could have it. The giveaway was pretty successful . . . eleven watches found homes . . . or should I say found wrists.

After retrieving the bag, I pulled one of the watches out. I could see the words "Chopard Geneve" on it so I thought I'd look it up. 

I checked eBay here and my jaw dropped. It looked like the watch could be worth $$thousands$$. Whaaaaat??!! Really??!! Holy crap.

I kept looking online for the exact model, but I just couldn't find it. 

I inspected the watch more carefully, and I began noticing things that made me wonder if it was authentic. The first thing I noticed was that the roman numerals XII and III had come unglued, and the number VI was upside down. The band too seemed suspect. Even though it might've been a replacement for the original band it seemed to be a pretty mediocre replacement for such a supposedly high-end watch. 

I began researching on how to authenticate a Chopard watch. One of the clues was that there should be a serial number marked on the back of the watch case. Not only was there no serial number on the case, the Chopard signature was upside down.

IMG_6146

And so it was without much hesitation that I pried the watch case open to see what the inside looked like.  Any worries about possibly scratching or damaging the case were tossed aside. 

Sure enough, the insides were mostly encased in plastic. The word "Singapore" was embossed on one of the metal pieces. An authentic Chopard watch has Swiss movements, not Chinese.

IMG_6154

So, no SCORE this time, but if I ever come across another "Chopard" watch . . .  I'll know what to be looking for!

If you have 9 more minutes to spare, here's a video for you to watch.

Friday, February 24, 2017

Hit and Run


Here is another old photo that I found on my Google Drive. 

The most luxurious car that I ever owned was a 1997 Acura TL.  I bought it used in 2000.  Somebody smashed into it in the parking lot at work and left without leaving a note. I think the car was already about 10 years old by then so I never got it fixed.

IMG_0146

Thursday, February 23, 2017

Baby K


I discovered some old photos stored on my Google Drive. I don't even know how they got there. I'm not even sure what a Google Drive is.

Thought I'd share this one 'cause it always makes me laugh when I look at it. It's from about 10 years ago. Do you see baby K? 

IMG_9919

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Watches


Please don't scold me. I know I'm supposed to be decluttering. But a guy at the swap meet was selling a bag of 30 watches for only $10.  So I bought the bag. 

IMG_6137

And look. See. Had three Hello Kitty watches in the bag. I cut off the band from the one on the right. It was all beat up and getting crumbs all over the place. I need to find another band for it. Maybe I'll take it off from one of the other watches.
IMG_8715

Look how cute the pink one is. It just needed a new battery and it works fine.
IMG_8717

This one too. Works great with a new battery.
IMG_8719

Only thing got couple pukas on the end of the strap. 
IMG_8720

I'm going to have a drawing to give the two watches away. Winner takes both the pink and the red ones. Just leave a comment here or email me at JalnaA@aol.com. I'll announce the winner this Sunday, February 26. 

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Wendell's Ham and Cheese Rolls


I saw this on Pinterest and emailed a link to Wendell. I was shocked to see him actually making it late one afternoon. Turned out he was making it for his softball team, but he did save a few for me and Landon to try.  The recipe is from here 



IMG_7977

IMG_7964

IMG_7968

IMG_7975


Ingredients:
  • 1 can Pillsbury™ refrigerated Classic Pizza Crust
  • 3/4 lb deli ham (thinly sliced, but not shaved)
  • 12 slices Swiss cheese (thinly sliced)

GLAZE

  • 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) butter
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
  2. Unroll the pizza dough onto a cutting board and press into approximately a 13×18-inch rectangle. Top with ham and cheese slices. Starting on the longer side of the rectangle, roll up the edge tightly. When you reach the end, pinch the seam together and flip the roll so that the seam is face down. Cut into 12 slices, approximately 1-inch wide. Arrange in prepared baking dish.
  3. Next combine the butter, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and poppy seeds in a sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk until the butter is melted and the glaze is smooth and combined. Pour evenly over the rolls.
  4. Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours or bake, uncovered for 25 minutes until golden and browned. Enjoy!

Monday, February 20, 2017

Totoro Charms


I took these guys off my monitor at work and brought them home to try and turn them into charms. 

IMG_6101

Look at my cool doomahichy-thingy that I got from Amazon.
IMG_8596

It holds the tiny Totoro in place good.
IMG_8612

I used my new push drill and made a tiny puka on the top of the head.
IMG_8618

I got these from Ben Franklin. 
IMG_8624

I was gonna use Gorilla glue to hold the eye pin in place, but I changed my mind and used this glue instead. The consistency is thinner than Gorilla glue so I thought that it'd do a neater job.
IMG_8640

Plus I thought that the needle tip might work out better. 
IMG_8641

I hope it'll hold the pin in securely. Do you want one?
IMG_8654

Let me know. They're so small that I can easily mail it to you. Just email me your mailing address . . .  JalnaA@aol.com.

Sunday, February 19, 2017

W & M Burger


Wendell and I went to City Mill in Kaimuki yesterday. We decided to walk next door to W & M Burger to pick up our lunch.

Their parking lot is horrendous.
IMG_6120

Service is nice but suuuper slow. From the time we first got in line until we received our order, about 35 to 40 minutes elapsed.
IMG_6126

Is it worth it?
IMG_6130

Yup.
IMG_6133

Saturday, February 18, 2017

Creamsicle Ice Cream


My coworker Michele gave me her ice cream maker!! I totally scored, yah!  Yesterday, I used it to make Creamsicle ice cream.

IMG_8666

I researched and researched and found several recipes online.  I picked the easiest one which can be found here. It came out gooooooood!!

It calls for 1 1/2 cups of fresh squeezed orange juice which turned out to be around 5 oranges.

IMG_8673

Ingredients 
  • 1 1/2 cups cream
  • 1 1/2 cups fresh squeezed orange juice
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
  1. Mix all of the ingredients together until sugar is dissolved. Chill in refrigerator for a couple hours until very cold. Mix in ice cream maker as directed by manufacturer.

IMG_8631

Leslie gave me this Vanilla Bean Paste to use. I like it a lot.
IMG_8638

Here's a 3-second video of my ice cream machine in action.


P.S.  After freezing for a few hours, the consistency became less creamy and more sherbert-y . . . still good, but not really what I wanted. 

Friday, February 17, 2017

Historical Photos


I have an email folder called "for blog" where I keep interesting blog-worthy emails. The following was in an email sent to me by my sister Didi . . . four years ago.  I think maybe I need to declutter my mailbox, yah?


Boxing match onboard the USS Oregon in 1897.
Mail

Construction of the Statue of Liberty in 1884.
Mail-35

Arnold Schwarzenegger on the day he received his American citizenship.
Mail-34

The construction of Disneyland.
Mail-33

The Beatles meet Muhammad Ali.
Mail-32

Leo Tolstoy tells a story to his grandchildren in 1909.
Mail-31

Steamboats on the Mississippi River in 1907.
Mail-30

Construction of Christ the Redeemer in Rio deJaneiro, Brazil.
Mail-29

New York Times Square in 1911. 
Mail-28

Child laborers in 1880.
Mail-27

The first photo following the discovery of Machu Pichu in 1912.
Mail-26

Elvis Presley in the Army.
Mail-25

Bill and Hilary Clinton in 1975.
Mail-24

The 1912 World Series.
Mail-23

Archduke Franz Ferdinand with his wife on the day they were assassinated in 1914, an event that helped spark World War I.
Mail-22

Mail-21

Fidel Castro lays a wreath at the Lincoln Memorial. 
Mail-20

The first McDonalds.
Mail-19

Disneyland employee cafeteria in 1961.
Mail-18

Grounded aircraft on September 11, 2001.
Mail-17

Hitler in Paris.
Mail-16

The original Ronald McDonald played by Willard Scott.
Mail-15

A Japanese plane is shot down during the Battle of Saipan in 1944.
Mail-14

The Great San Francisco Fire and Earthquake in 1906.
Mail-13

Native American overlooking the newly completed transcontinental railroad in 1869.
Mail-12

Nagasaki 20 minutes after the atomic bombing in 1945. 
Mail-11

Google begins with 34 people. 
Mail-10

Martin Luther King, Jr. removes a burned cross from his yard in 1960.
Mail-9

Winston Churchill out for a swim.
Mail-7

The last known Tasmanian Tiger photographed in 1933. 
Mail-6

Young Bill Gates and the Microsoft staff in 1978.
Mail-5

Roy O. and Walt Disney on the day they opened Disney Studios.
Mail-4

Samurai taken between 1860 and 1880.
Mail-3