a little pick-me-up

03.12.2014

image by callie

how is it wednesday already? the fact that time feels like it's going by faster indicates that i'm 100% back to the normal me. in fact, today was great! some exercise, some cleaning, some work, some quality time with my favorite person and a quick lunch date. you forget how good normal feels till you've felt otherwise, don't you think? hewph! i'm glad that phase is over. 

we got some good news yesterday. we've been focusing a lot of time and energy into fine-tuning things at the FINDlab. belinda has been heaven sent...as well as shooting fantastic food photos, she's our new lab manager too. i've also been playing a bigger role in how things run and i like knowing that i'm contributing in ways that are meaningful to build the business. the good news is that we're taking a trip in april to work on things that need some face time. it's put me in the best mood knowing that i'll be seeing and hugging family and friends. and eating at some of my favorite places too...oh man, it's going to be so fun! 

i might even be teaching a cooking class while i'm there, so stay tuned. i'll post more info about that as details get finalized. this was a fun week searching for things to share, so without further adieu, here's a little pick-me-up just for you. have a wonderful week you guys!

we watched haute cuisine on netflix the other night. jon started the night in front of the computer and ended up finishing the movie next to me. it's the story of a french country cook who was asked to become the personal chef to the president of france in the late 80's. it has subtitles (which i was totally in the mood for), really mesmerizing cooking scenes and a great story. here's an article about it too. i wanted to go upstairs and start cooking as soon as it was over. oh! and learn to speak french fluently.

my dad went to high school in japan. and my mom learned how to make REALLY good gyoza. instead of making the intricate folds to close the dumplings she had a gyoza press. i have such vivid memories of spooning dollops of pork and scallion filling onto wonton squares and then folding the press in half to seal the pillowy pockets of goodness closed. mmmm. they were so good. i came across this recipe that brought back that flood of memories. looks tasty!

our kiddos would wholehearted agree with this line of thinking.

this diagram made a good showing on my pinterest feed. completely fascinating. and the possibilities are endless!

great tips on storing produce and even herbs.

i've been craving non-asian flavors lately. i want hearty, comforting food...that doesn't involve soy sauce. these potatoes would do the trick.

are you already thinking about easter? in another life i'll choose to spend time on things like this. martha never disappoints.

i kept seeing pics of avocado toast on my instagram feed...especially from new yorkers. am i missing something? but really, i never get sick of the stuff. numma!

last week i mentioned my friend, ryan, and his kickstarter. good news! they funded! and like a week early...now they want to earn a little extra to record the album on analog tape..."straight to tape. no computers or messing around with takes. 8 folks in a room, live to tape." doesn't that sound so COOL? head on over and see what you think...

that's all for today folks! and p.s. to receive a couple extra "if i were..." menu ideas and secret recipes every month that i only share via email click here. i'll also be sending out recipes every once in a while for testing and feedback. hopefully i'll have a recipe to share for friday. talk to you soon!