Impromptu Chicken Pho

I had a hankering for some chicken pho a few days ago, and since we had remnants of a Costco roast chicken in the 'fridge I threw together available ingredients and made this.  Everything was good except for the "shiru" which was very bland.  Canned chicken broth just didn't cut it.

I remembered that I had this that I bought from H Mart the one time that I went there.  The package said "5 servings" so I expected to find 5 packets inside.

Instead it contained loose powder, but it was easy to just sprinkle some onto my soup.  It totally worked.  In 5 seconds my pho went from being super bland to being super ono!

The ingredients aren't exactly healthy, but I would so use it again next time.

Our Electric Bill

For the first time our electric bill was in the negative.

In comparison, this was our last bill before we had our solar panels installed 10 years ago.  According to my calculations $531.62 x 12 months x 10 years = $63,794.40!!

Pancakes on a Hexclad

Landon and I got Wendell a Hexclad frying pan for Christmas. Wendell baptized it yesterday by making some pancakes.  He tried out a new recipe, and the pan worked so good that the first three pancakes got burnt!  😆   After Wendell lowered the heat from "4" to "1", the pancakes came out just right.  

Not perfectly round in shape, they were fluffy and had a bit of a crunch on the outside.  Too yummy.  

The recipe is from here.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Even though the button shows how I really feel, I do wish all you peoples a Merry Christmas Day today.  No stressing allowed . . . only relaxing . . . and eating.

We're staying home again this year, just the three of us.  Wendell made prime rib last night.  Not sure what's on the menu for today.  Maybe leftovers. 

Today's Sunrise

I totally annoyed Wendell on our walk this morning.  He had softball practice to go to and didn't have time to dilly dally, but . . .

President Zelensky's Historic Speech to Congress 12/21/2022

 

Hawaiian Genealogy Indexes

I found copies of the application for marriage licenses of my grandparents on both sides here at ulukau.org.

The search site is called Hawaiian Genealogy Indexes, and it was chicken-skin amazing to find the info.  Now I know the names of my grandparents' parents including great grandmothers' maiden names!  How cool izdat! 

Tip:  It seems that misspellings abounded when translating from Japanese (for example) to English back then, so it's better to be not so precise in the search box.  My dad's father's first name was misspelled and my mom's mother's maiden name was also misspelled. 

The following is a screenshot and is not linkable.

Putin Statue

A statue of Putin has been installed in a Worcestershire village in England.  Throwing of eggs is encouraged.

Brush Pen Drawing

Halfway through this Hokusai wannabe drawing I decided to record with my phone.  Here's the result.  

Geri's Easy Chicken Pot Pie

Per Geri:   Pillsbury biscuits come in a tube of 8.  I separate them to fit into 12 muffin tin slots. Mix together left over Costco chicken, mixed frozen vegetables and 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup.  Spoon into biscuit wells and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Sounds easy yah!

Here are her ingredients (minus the chicken).

On Da Desk

I'm trying to learn brush drawing.  It's not easy, but I'll keep practicing. 

This book is good.  My sister Geri gave it to me about 5 years ago when I first started doing art.

I'm hoping to graduate into using these soon.

Takehiko Inoue uses similar brushes.  He inspires me.

Why So Greedy?

Look at how big Russia is.  Why oh why do they need more land when they can't even properly manage what they already have?

Cleta's Braised Tofu

Cleta was inspired to make this by Jenny.  I just love her photo!  You can find the recipe here. 

TIME's 2022 Person of the Year

 Well-deserved honor for Volodymyr Zelensky.

Baklava from Ross

I held on to this the whole time while shopping at Ross yesterday.  I couldn't decide if I wanted to get it or not.  Even though it was a "product of Greece" and "handmade" with an "authentic family recipe", I was skeptical about its ono-ness.

The box was grease-stained and felt light.  It was $4.99 for 5 pieces.  In the end I decided to "buy it for Wendell" because he likes nuts. 

I was surprised that they were individually wrapped.  I liked that.

It was kinda tiny . . . about two bites' worth . . .

and not as filled with nuts as in the picture on the box.  It was ono, but maybe not worth 150 calories for the whole thing so I saved the other half for Wendell.  Since I bought it for him anyway.

Pua the Escape Artist

Look who Wendell ran into on his evening walk.  Good thing we still had the owner's phone number.

Fried Tofu with Tomato Sauce

I like fried tofu and this version came out ono!

The way I make fried tofu has evolved a lot, and lately, all I do is slice the tofu, microwave for 2 minutes, drain the liquid, pat dry and fry in some oil.

Tomato sauce:  

Fry for a minute: 3 minced garlic, 3 diced shallots (I used the white part of green onions instead), 1-inch grated ginger and 1 teaspoon garlic chili sauce.

Add: 2 large diced tomatoes, 2 tablespoons shoyu, 1 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon fish sauce, and 1 teaspoon sugar. Cook until sauce is reduced.

Add:  3 stalks sliced green onions.  Cook for a minute.

Top the fried tofu with the tomato sauce.  Eat. Yummy!