The Sweet Life

My education and taste evolution in the realm of tea is slow, but steady. My childhood was steeped in Celestial Seasonings, Lipton, and Tetley teas and I'm not ashamed of that. My mother can make the best iced Tetley tea with lime. It's a perfect balance of tea, citrus, and sweetness. I still drink C. S.'s Sleepytime tea from time to time. It's calming and comforting. The illustrations on the box are so cute. I'm reminded of my childhood imaginings about the little bear family on the package. I have to admit though, that when it comes to iced teas, I no longer drink Lipton or Tetley unless I order iced tea in a restaurant. I tossed out an unopened box of Tetley not too long ago. Now my iced tea of choice is by Mighty Leaf (more on that later). I have been experimenting with teas for about a couple of years now, really since moving to Chicago. I can say that working at Whole Foods Market started this trend because at our store, they sampled teas and coffee...

I'm American. I know I am, but there's a part of me that can't help but love chopsticks. My 5th grade teacher, Mrs. Johnston (if memory serves me right, it was the 5th grade, but was there a "t" or not? My mom will correct me if I'm wrong) was Japanese and she not only wrote our names in Kanji (I still remember how to write it, vaguely), but she taught us how to use chopsticks the last day of school. I fell in love with her. She opened my world and for the first time, I was exposed to Asian culture. Since then, I've only eaten Asian food with chopsticks. Now, here I am, an adult and I still use them every chance I get. I always ask for them in restaurants, and have been teased by my American friends, "You're not Chinese, what are you doing?" and have probably amazed some of my Asian friends. My friend Tina tells me that I use them better than she does and she's Chinese. I thought she was putting me on until another one of my Chin...

Unfortunately folks, it seems that I am suffering from food depression. I don't know if it's because my allergies are acting up and I can't taste things properly (or the fact that excess mucus makes eating gross), or if I'm just burnt out. I went to the grocery store yesterday and forgot how to grocery shop-I had to call my dad for suggestions. Tonight I had sushi with my friend and her daughter. I called her around 8 and suggested sushi since oddly (even more odd than my food depression), is that I was craving it. Now this is a first for me; usually Tina ends up talking me into it, and I eat it, even act like a grown up about it. I had wanted to go to a little place down the street from my, Jia's Chinese cuisine & sushi bar, but we ended up going to Para II. I had an order of California rolls, one piece each of tako (octopus), sake (salmon), and kani (crab). The wasabi was good for my sinuses, but immediately upon leaving the restaurant, they seized up ...

I didn't get to sleep until after 6 this morning. Yes, I saw the sun coming up and it was nice, except for the fact that I didn't sleep. So, knowing that the sun made it home safely, I rolled over, covered my head with sheets and comforter, and dozed. Got up in time to meet my friend downtown, and spend a bit of money before she got finished with her appt. First stop was Moonstruck Chocolate Co. Great place, first visit was almost a year ago. Can't go too often, otherwise I'll just keep eating chocolate, and that's not the best solution for anything. Last time I was there was for my birthday, and I bought a cherry vanilla milkshake. Can't remember if it was also malted or not, but it was delicious, topped off with whipped cream, chocolate bits (almost like cocoa nibs) and a dark chocolate "coin." They have the cutest little truffles. I bought one shaped and decorated like a dog for my friend since we are in the year of the dog. I almost bought one for ...

This post is old. I regret that I missed the sell by date (or is it post by??) but here it is. (Please excuse any errors or bad prose, I'm out of practice-ahem, mom). Last Saturday, I took a nice little trip, by train and bus, and a bit of a walk to Barnes & Noble to use a coupon for an extra 15% for card members (10% standard). I was going to treat myself to a dessert cookbook since I don't have any. Yes, I know, a pastry chef with no dessert cookbooks. I should be, and am, ashamed. Anyway, after a quick search through the dessert section, I carried a nice pile of books to a comfy chair. Within a few minutes, I had it narrowed it down to two books and before I opened either one, I knew that the decision was going to be a tough one. "Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Herme" and "La Maison du Chocolat" (I barely remember the title). Let's just say that it took me about an hour to decide which one to take. Price was not an option: they differed by...