Same variety, but I’m not certain about ripeness (good observation). I was reading how to eat mangosteen online (i just hacked them into halves) and it seems everyone has their own description of the flavor.
@LindaWhit, that is the correct strawberry shortcake. Thanks for sharing.
My long bike ride today wasn’t that long… the strong breeze was working against me! I finally gave up and took advantage of the vendor with vegan mochi (strawberry sorbet!) at the urban eats or whatever they call the hot mess of street vendors clogging up midtown for a month.
Since I apparently had one lonely zucchini i thought i might as well spiralize -is that a word??!- it, and turned it into a salad situation. Those two leftover tomatoes didn’t survive past breakfast, so gazpacho will happen another day.
Added tofu to the bottom, then some onion, the zucchini, a bunch of cilantro, raw corn, sunflower seeds and a bit of my too thick tahini miso dressing. Had to mix it all up really well after the photo.
Shaved beef slider was the big hit of the night. Inspired by TJs now carrying shaved steak, and our own #LindaWhit , I quick seared it in butter, sauteed criminis, made a garlicky mayo, added provolone to the beef to get all melty, and spread some of the unintentional onion jam I made last night (it was supposed to be caramelized onions - oops. too long in the IP.) on the rolls. So juicy and beefy! I was actually sorry that I hadn’t made each of us two of those, but instead made the second one from shoulder bacon, same provolone and mayo, and fat slice of Farmers’ Market tomato. It was good, don’t get me wrong, but didn’t hold a candle to the steak. I’m going to stock up!
“Jamaican patties” made with empanada wrappers.
Also working on make ahead sandwiches for a group.
Here is a muffelletta.
Those look delicious!!!
My first passionfruit. Tastes similar to guava.
Portuguese egg tart. Not a common item in Beijing. I’ve befriended bakery owners here and they had a visiting relative show them how to make it.
Butter is expensive. These prices are for roughly two sticks worth.
I am hopefully going to make cookies. No vanilla. Cashews in place of walnuts. (Peanuts too common, pecans too expensive, walnuts I could only find mixed with honey.) I have parchment, too, not shown.
Picked up some kohlrabi and beets the other day. Used the kohlrabi tops the day before but needed to get to the beets.
Made a beet salad with chick peas, celery and carrots. Of course everything is colored pink but tasty. Served with grilled chicken thighs
Dessert was chocolate mousse and berries
our dinner last night. i’ll say that whole kenji shrimp prep with the baking soda, salt & sugar toss, then threading those suckers on two skewers was about all this impatient lady could handle 
as you can see, they didn’t char nearly as well as the recipe suggested. the texture was really good (but then these were expensive, big shrimp), but they also were saltier than i would’ve liked.
the zuke salad was another exercise in blandness. has the salad queen lost her salad mojo? feh. lots leftover and no volunteers to finish it is my guess 
went to the CBDTR for a margarita fresca and a lovely martini w/3 olives with st. george’s gin. mighty tasty.
we’re playing a 3-set dance party downtown tonight at a local bookstore, with a pub pop-up serving draft beer & cocktails. we kicked out some of our wrist-slitting tunes and added a bunch of upbeat stuff. very much looking forward – i just have to put the set list together.
thanks to my pasta & gelato baby, neither of the two dresses i had in mind for tonight are an option. what will i do? i have NOTHING TO WEAR
WFD is prolly another burrata caprese pre-show. as you can see below, i have enough tomatoes for a while '-D
happy saturday, y’all!
I totally, completely, unreservedly believe in Kenji, but I never get results that look anything like his pictures.
Tomatoes look great! From farmers’ market? Make them the star of every meal.
The exterior looks pale or is it the phone flash? I love this fruit. To make it non-messy to cut open I freeze the fruit.
Have you a google translate app? Download that and install Japanese dictionary (you can choose different languages). Open and let the camera scan the characters. Most of the time it won’t make sense of whole sentences but you will have an idea from some translated words.
Today I had a simple dinner of steamed cod loin, tomato salad and freekeh. Yesterday I used up the rest of tofu and tempeh.
Chanpuru is Okinawa’s “national dish”. Tofu and bitter gourd (also scrambled eggs) are the bases of this dish. Other Asian countries have their own versions as well.
I like to add some liquid smoke to a dark sauce.
Two other things in this photo are sesame seaweed and tuna shavings.
Gym was empty. I love it when I see no faces. It’s summer, streets are half empty, many places are half empty. Once I read or heard on radio that 75% of Europeans go on holidays at least once a year. Here they mostly go in the summer.
Where are you with such amazing tomatoes already?
No its’s not the flash, the exterior is definitely pale.
Strange, most of the characters are in Chinese, just a few Japanese words. Basically it said it used non GM beans, underground mineral salt, quality rice…
Made in Japan or China?
There are dark skin and light skin. I don’t think I have tasted the light skin one though.
Today I will give Chowhound and HO a big pat on the back. These communities helped me refine my food hobby. Now, I can rely on that knowledge anywhere I am and even pass that knowledge along. Like, I taught a native Chinese person how to season a wok. At first I thought it was a big deal, but then I realized a lot of the world is the same. Most people aren’t really into food and convenience is more important. You have to search for good food and knowledgeable food people everywhere.
Here are some oversweet and cloggy foods here in Beijing. Not just tourists (99% of tourists here are from other parts of China), but locals eat these, too. The fried potato with hawthorn, candied bell pepper, and syrup could be done well. The pretzel looking doughnut is mass manufactured, everyone sells the same one. Asking shopowners doesn’t help. They will say “we make everything fresh every day” just like back home. I thought maybe it’s just one of those things, but then we were at a bus stop and I saw a shop making fresh ones. I grabbed the kid and jumped right off. It was still a bit heavy, but good heavy, like a good bagel, for example. Gives me hope for a lot of other snacks I’ve tried.
I found some spice stands.
There are at least 10 spices I don’t know of. But the spice vendors aren’t sure exactly how to use them. They try to steer me toward the packets which say use with meat or with soup. In fact, that’s what the majority of food stalls and at least some restaurants do. I’ll have to learn about these spices on my own before visiting again.
Enough complaining. (Sorry.) Here’s a picture of an induction wok burner. Also, the ovens I’ll be baking in.
I had a lovely day.
Slept in.
Leisurely got ready for the day.
Went antiquing.
It was a gloriously beautiful day.
Bought nothing but a (somewhat new) mirror.
But it looked old.
Got lost on some back roads.
Came upon a mama deer and her twin fawns leisurely crossing a country road in front of me.
No traffic, even on highways.
Came home.
Read.
Prepared dinner.
Pork chop in tangerine-ginger sauce.
Orzo.
Sauteed zucchini and red bell pepper with Penzeys Fox Point seasoning.
Wine was Coté Mas Rosé Aurore.
Dinner was good.
The day was good.
39th annual Hat Creek deep pit barbecue at the Hereford ranch for the volunteer fire dept. They wrap boneless ribeye in burlap, bury it in the pit and cook overnight.
15.00 for the meal.
Thanks! That actually makes more sense because i bought it in a “fancy” grocery in shanghai- there were a bunch on the shelf and so much less expensive than miso in nyc that i bought several different types and colors
Is this a regional technique? Just used for steak or other cuts? I’m intrigued!
