Browse Category: yum

Race Prep and Expo

IMG_4673On Friday morning, I went to the park with Koa and my dad.  I wanted to give running a week after my surgery.  I tried running a bit and was still sore at the surgical site.  So, I didn’t go very far and ended up walking around the park instead.

IMG_4680When I got home, Brother was there “working from home”.  Cool!

IMG_4682He got to hang out with Kumquat and Koa and we also convinced our mom to make some kanom krok for us.  Score!

IMG_4690

When it was time for him to take his lunch hour, we drove to the local Chick-fil-A and brought home a feast including a buffet of dipping sauces.  Yum. Gotta love suburbia!

IMG_4708In the afternoon, we went to Downtown Disney to pick up our race packets and to explore the expo for a bit.  IMG_4714They were very well-organized and if anyone can handle crowds, it’s Disneyland.

IMG_4716At the expo, Jes bought ANOTHER pair of headphones.  *sigh*  He’s not even running the race!

IMG_4724For dinner, we met up with my cousin Marie and the boys.  It was still at least 85 degrees outside but everyone managed to endure the heat while we sipped sangrias and ate pizza under the umbrellas.  IMG_8117It was also helpful to have such fun stores to go inside to cool off.  Thanks for coming out, Suminos!

 

Southern CA

IMG_4576We drove down to Southern California on Tuesday morning and the drive went rather smoothly for most of the way down.  On our way out of SF, we drove through the eastern span of the Bay Bridge one last time before it would be closed permanently the next day.  It’s kinda sad but really necessary to get rid of this section.

IMG_4578 IMG_4584Our car was also at full capacity with Kumquat, Koa, and my mom in the backseat.

IMG_4585We made a lunch stop at In N Out in Santa Nella instead of Kettleman City.  It looks pretty new and everything was so clean and empty when we were there.

IMG_4591At the 5-hour mark, we encountered some major traffic.  It was in the Grapevine and the sign said there would be an 8-mile backup with everyone merging in to the left lane.  We were at such a snail’s pace.  When I looked at our Google Maps instructions, it said to to exit Quail Rd and take some side streets.  Taking a desperate chance, we listened and totally won!  Part of it was a little sketchy with it being mostly dirt and rocks and a sign saying that we were leaving the maintained portion of the road.  We managed to by-pass 5 miles of bumper-to-bumper traffic and cut in line at the front when we got back on the freeway.  Thanks, Uncle Google. I will never doubt your instructions again!

IMG_4602

The drive took a total of 8 hours including 3 stops.  We were so tired of being in the car that we walked to Don Jose for some enchiladas and margaritas.  This is Jes’ Corona-Rita.

IMG_4626The next day was mostly for errands.  Before taking Koa to the vet, we stopped at Wahoo’s for lunch.  Yum.  Oh how I miss a good fish taco.

IMG_4623Then we took Koa to the vet in Irvine.  This is the place that we’ve always taken him since he was a pup and he was shaking as much as the first time we brought him.  IMG_4631He did surprisingly well during the examination and walked out of there with a bunch of shots.

After that, we went to Pish’s office for my long-overdue check-up and cleaning.  It had been 4 years since I had seen a dentist!! Thankfully, I had no cavities.  Yippee!

IMG_4636In the afternoon, I met up with Holly and Andrew for a little catching up before dinner.

IMG_4643For dinner, we met up with Johnny and Joy in Torrance for some izakaya and beer.  Boy, we had a very productive first day!

Basil

IMG_4430I bought this basil plant from Trader Joe’s for $2.99.  It had grown so big and bushy that I was able to harvest some basil to make caprese salad and pesto a month ago.  I took such good care of it that it kept growing to a point where I could harvest more leaves a second time.  This is what the plant looked like AFTER I had harvested the leaves.  Woot.  I’m definitely getting my money’s worth (and more) out of this plant.

IMG_4431Look at how much I got from a second harvest!

IMG_4432So, I made some pesto.  Notice the baby food processor?  It’s great for more than just baby food!  This is what it looked like when I put the leaves, garlic cloves, and some pine nuts in the machine.

IMG_4433Then I added some shredded parmigiano reggiano and olive oil to make it nice and smooth.  Once I seasoned it with salt and pepper, it was ready to go!  IMG_4434

We made pasta with chicken tonight for dinner.  The bowl is all wrong for this photo but you get the point.  So, we had enough pesto for dinner tonight and a little bit reserved for Kumquat to eat later this week with her pasta wheels.  Yippee!

Hard Water

DSC_2976On Saturday morning, we walked down to America’s Cup Park to check out Team Oracle USA’s practice race.  DSC_2978We got a good view of the Bay Bridge and I could even see the new eastern span to the left of Treasure Island.

DSC_2987We got there early enough to have a wide open view of the two catamarans racing on the bay.  DSC_3012

Here they are coming in to the finish line.  They ride so close to the spectator’s area.DSC_3017 DSC_3022This is a mural that people can color if they write down one thing they can do to help the environment.  I wrote “compost” and then colored the yellow and blue fish on the left closest to the surface of the water.  It’s a color-by-number sort of thing.  Pretty cool.

DSC_3026For lunch, we went to a new place called Hard Water, which is a whiskey bar that serves southern food.  It’s such a pretty space.

IMG_4400We ordered the Roffignac Cocktail made with Redemption rye, lemon, grapefruit, red hembarig syrup, and soda water.  Yum.

DSC_3030After a half-dozen raw oysters, we had the fried chicken sandwich and mac&cheese.  The chicken sandwich had slices of mortadella and jalapeno that added lots of flavor and texture.  The mac&cheese had hot sauce and tasty bread crumbs on top.  Both were delicious and we brought home the leftover mac for baby to eat for dinner the next day.  Can’t let all that tasty stuff go to waste!

Alameda Afternoon

DSC_2921On Sunday we met up with the Agustins.  For lunch we went to Hang Ten, which is a Hawaiian place that is more like a crab boil complete with bibs and butcher paper on the tables.

IMG_4298 DSC_2919We had quite the feast that day including whole crab, fried catfish, seasoned fries, garlic noodles, mac salad, rice, kalbi, and spam musubi.

IMG_4280DSC_2923 It was all delicious and the two little girls thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

IMG_4285After lunch, we went wine tasting at Rock Wall.

IMG_4292We didn’t buy any bottles that day but I had fun hanging out with little Zoe.

DSC_2949It’s on an old naval base with a great view of the city and Bay Bridge.  It’s oddly cool to be in such a unique location.

DSC_2957

After the tasting, Jimmy bought us a round of wine and we sat outside for the rest of the afternoon.IMG_4294We had a good time enjoying the sun, sipping wine, and letting the kids hang out and share snacks with each other.

DSC_2950

They also had some cute games and some sidewalk chalk out there for your enjoyment.DSC_2962 DSC_2966

It was a fun afternoon with some good friends.  Thanks for taking us around, Agustins!

Egg Bites

IMG_7886I had some chicken and spinach in the fridge so I made some egg bites for Kumquat.  I got inspiration from Pintrest but kinda winged it.  It started out with the following ingredients:

  • 7 eggs
  • chopped baby spinach (about two handfuls)
  • chopped cooked chicken from two nights ago (about two handfuls)
  • 1/2 cup of shredded cheese I found in the fridge
  • 1/2 cup of whole milk

IMG_7887They all went in a bowl together.  I mixed the wet ingredients together first and then dumped all the dry ingredients afterward.

I used a little baking spray on the bottom of each of the muffin wells and wiped it up with a paper towel to spread it evenly.  Then I used a ladle to get them into the muffin tins and I had just the right amount to fill all 12 wells.

IMG_7888They went into the oven at 350 degrees until they were puffed up and golden around the edges.

IMG_7890Here’s the final product!  They went into the freezer in ziploc bags for future meals.  Let’s hope Kumquat eats them up!