Chinese New Year 2011 (and recipes)

(I'm late in posting this. . .we celebrated this the first week of February.)

A long-standing family tradition for us is celebrating Chinese New Year. We pull out the real Chinese China (rice bowls, small plates, chopstick rests, chopsticks etc.) and eat homemade Chinese food for a week. It has become a much loved family tradition. I'm sure as children start leaving home, there will be a twinge of homesickness as they miss it.

As I was making Tiny Spicy Chicken this year I started reminiscing how this recipe came into our life (and hence my quest for more good Chinese recipes). . .it's not a really interesting story, but it made me realize again the way our lives touch each other, oft times without us even knowing. It goes as follows: When I was in high school, Amy Abrams told my friend Jen Spatig that since her brother had been on his mission in Taiwan (same mission Tom went to) that her family had been eating at Chinese restaurants and that Formosa in Logan was really good. Jen took me there one day and we ordered Tiny Spicy Chicken. It was so yummy I went there many more times. (I have to note that I'm not really adventurous in my eating so I might not have ever tried Chinese any other way.) Years later, a former school mate, Shaley Smith, published a recipe for Tiny Spicy Chicken in the Preston Citizen. I tried it and it was good. . . not exact, but good. (more about that below) That was the first Chinese food I ever cooked and I've been on the look out for good recipes since then. After I married Tom, he encouraged me to cook Chinese and try new recipes. So now I have a small number of much-loved Chinese dishes.

My collection of recipes and fond family memories gathered around Chinese food all began with a simple mention and then two girlfriends going to lunch. (And such it is for many important simple things in our lives; each life that touches ours for good, as the song goes.)

All of that was a very long introduction to a few good Chinese recipes. I wish I had pictures to show of each them, (I'm always more motivated to cook when I see a picture that looks inviting) but just managing cooking this way for a week given all of the demands I have at meal time (Tess is usually at her peak of demanding-ness, homework is still being finished up and Caleb needs a ride home from track practice during dinner prep time) so putting a meal on the table is about all I can manage. Getting a few lovely photos for the blog is at the bottom of the priority list. Sorry.

Even though I've easily got a week's worth of Chinese dishes, I wanted a few new ones this year. I found this website that looked pretty authentic and I chose 5 new recipes to try. I'm sad to report that all of them were very average. If I am going to that much work to prepare these dishes, I want them to be amazing! So near the end of the week I starting playing with the recipes I got from that source. Two of these are from that source with my tweaks.

(See two of my favorites that I've posted earlier,here and here)

House Chow Mein

One of my favorite dishes at my favorite Chinese restaurant now is House Chow Mein. This isn't nearly as good as theirs so I'll still be working on this recipe, but this is quite good as is. My family gobbled it up.

1 1/2 lb of meat: steak, shrimp or chicken (for true house chow mein use 1/2 lb of all three) Cut steak & chicken into thin strips.

2 pkgs. Chinese noodles (make sure they are a wheat based noodle, not rice)

Marinade:

If using 3 types of meat, make this in 3 different containers (fry sauce container size). If using one, triple it.

1/2 tsp minced ginger

1/2 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp corn starch

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 TBSP soy sauce

Let meat marinate for at least 1/2 hour.

Cut vegetables:

2 cups thinly sliced Napa cabbage

1 onion, slivered

2 cups thinly sliced celery

1/4 cup match stick sized carrots

1 cup fresh bean sprouts

3 green onions

Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse in cold water to stop cooking. Add a few drops of peanut oil (to prevent sticking) and 1 TBSP soy sauce. Stir and set aside.

Heat 1 TBSP peanut oil in pan. Cook meat and remaining marinade in oil. Remove from pan. (If you are doing 3 types of meat, do each separately.) Add another TBSP of oil to pan and cook vegetables. Start with the carrots; then add celery and onions; add bean sprouts, green onions and cabbage last. Only cook cabbage until it starts to go limp. Combine all ingredients and heat through. Add more soy sauce if desired.

Cashew Chicken

8 chicken thighs (or 4 breasts) sliced thin

Marinate in 2 TBSP soy sauce and 1/2 tsp garlic.

Cut 6-8 green onions in 1/2 inch pieces. Set aside.

Measure 1 TBSP chopped ginger and 1 tsp minced garlic; put in bowl and set aside.

6 dried whole red chili peppers, tops broken off

1 cup cashews

Sauce:

2 tsp white sugar

2 TBSP soy sauce

1 TBSP chicken broth
4 tsp sugar
2 tsp corn starch

Heat 1 TBSP oil; cook chili peppers until they start to blacken. Add chicken and cook until almost done. Add garlic/ginger and cook with chicken for about 1 minute. Add green onions and sauce. Cook until sauce thickens. Add cashews. Serve over rice.

Tiny Spicy Chicken

This recipe is a combination from the aforementioned source and another source I found online. I'm pretty sure it isn't really similar to the original. But I haven't eaten at Formosa for many years and with as much Chinese food I've had in the subsequent years I can't tell how close this actually is. However, because I've eaten a lot more authentic Chinese since then, I'm not sure I would even like the original Tiny Spicy any more. No matter though, as this is probably my family's favorite Chinese dish I make and those outside of my family who have eaten it have love it equally. So how close it matches to Formosa's doesn't matter any more.

1 1/2 TBSP chili paste
2/3 c ketchup
4 TBSP soy sauce
3/4 c vinegar
1 c sugar
6 TBSP brown sugar
3/4 c chicken broth
1 clove garlic

Cut up 3 lbs. of chicken in small cubes. Sprinkle with garlic salt then coat in cornstarch (about 1 cup). Fry in small batches until lightly browned in oil. Place chicken in 9x13 pan. Mix sauce ingredients together in sauce pan and cook until just boiling. Pour over chicken. Bake @ 350 for 40-45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes until sauce is thickened. Serve over rice.

Won Ton Soup

I also loved Formosa's Won Ton Soup. I figured most of this recipe out on my own, but after I married Tom he added vinegar and that was the final touch. (However, he likes much more vinegar than me and adds it to his taste in his own bowl afterwards. I hold my breath and close my eyes because I find that quite unpalatable, but true Chinese would likely add much more vinegar that me. You can decide for yourself.)

3 1/2 qts water
10 chicken bouillon cubes
2 TBSP vinegar
2 TBSP soy sauce
cayenne pepper

1-2 cups broccoli cut into bite sized spears
1-2 cups carrots cut into large match sticks
chopped green onions (we love these so I do quite a few)

Won tons: Fry 1 lb. sausage until completely cooked. Drain and rinse off fat. Cool enough to handle. Put 1 piece of sausage on a won ton square and seal up according to package directions. Set on cookie sheet until ready to cook.

Combine the broth ingredients and simmer together. Add carrots and cook until carrots are tender. Right before serving bring broth to boil. Add just enough broccoli and won tons that you will serve and simmer until broccoli is slightly tender and won tons float. Spoon into bowls removing all broccoli and won tons from pan. Sprinkle green onions in bowls and stir to cook slightly.

------------------------------------

If you try any of these, I'd love to hear what you think. I'd also love to have some recommendations as to how to make them even better (I'm so not good as knowing how to make many changes with Chinese cooking). Happy cooking!

Happy Day!

This has been a long awaited day.

At least five years in the making.

Yesterday, Cache's 129th and final merit badge was signed off.

For the past 2.5 years he's only had 4 left to sign off.
Whitewater Rafting.
Fishing.
Fly Fishing.
Bugling.

Three of those four were 100 percent completed with the exception
of meeting with a counselor.

Other boys he had read about finishing all of the merit badges had left bugling as the very last badge. He didn't want to do that.

So he waited
and waited
and waited
and waited,
hoping to pass off bugling then get the other 3 signed off.

Then 2010 came and with it, 8 more merit badges added to the existing 121. In order to be able to say he completed them all, he needed to do those 8 also. Making his total to complete 12.

In October 2010, he still had all 12 to sign off. . . .

But then suddenly, he lit his own fire and finished them up.

All I have to say is that it takes a lot of work to complete all of the merit badges. . .
train a dog. . .
start and run a business for 3 months. . .
hike and backpack 150 miles. . .
make things out of leather, metal, wood and resin. . .
learn to water ski. . .
visit a bank, landfill, water treatment plant, health department and state capitol. . . .
create an archeological dig. . .
sculpt a number of pieces, including using a pottery wheel. . .
attend a coin show, a labor union meeting and international festival. . .
referee a sport for a season. . .
make a model of your house (to scale). . .
collect stamps and coins and dice and insects. . .
learn to canoe, drive a motor boat and white water in a canoe. . .
ride horses. . .
develop an orienteering course. . .
watch birds and mammals. . .
get a few turtles. . .
learn Morse code. . .
build a few things out of wood. . .
shoot with shotguns, rifles and bows. . .
visit a truck terminal and railroad museum. . .
launch a rocket. . .
catch some fish. . .
become Scuba certified. . .
make your own paper. . . .
repair things around the house. . .
create, hide and maintain a geocache. . .
fix farm equipment. . .
make a movie. . .
research on 129 different topics. . .
oh, and
learn to play 13 bugle calls
(and in Cache's case, without lessons or background in playing the trumpet or another brass instrument--he did it 100% self-taught)

among many, many other things.

I do have to say one thing about Cache. . . when he does something it is done meticulously and with great attention to detail. He really earned each and every merit badge without cutting a single corner.

{And in case you were wondering. . .in the end, bugling was the final badge signed off!}

PS. . .there is another new badge being added in 2011 (supposedly in April). He may or may not complete that. He turns 18 in May and after that cannot do scouting any more. So we'll see what happens. . .but for now, he has all of the merit badges available!

Now to figure out how to get all 129 badges on one sash. (The current longest one only holds 120 comfortably)

Events vs. Processes

The last few months I've been pondering on the differences between processes and events. Here are a few meandering thoughts:

Definitions first:

Event: Something that takes place; an occurrence or happening, a phenomenon located at a single point in space-time

Process: Subject to a process or treatment with the aim of readying for some purpose, improving, or remedying a condition; To deal with in a routine way, a particular course of action intended to achieve a result.

Too often I wish for things to be events: But it's not to be.

So I've been trying to convince my mortal self to embrace the fact that processes are what life is all about.

A few weeks ago my journal entry says this:

"Struggling this morning with one child's strong display of anger.

What to do?

Then I came upon this passage:

"We did speak unto him the words of the Lord. And it came to pass that the Lord did soften the heart of Ishmael." (1 Nephi 7:4&5)

So what would the Lord have me speak to my angry one?

He would have me express love.

Love transforms lives. But it is a process. Not an event."

Perhaps that isn't coherent to anyone else but me, but it definitely was one of those enlightened moments. Beyond the insight I was given as to how to act that morning, that tidbit of inspiration also made me realize that I don't want my family's love for me to be an event; nor do I want their forgiveness of my weaknesses to be an event. Nor do I want my love for them to be locked into a single time-space and be over with one occurrence. I should welcome and love processes.

In Elder Scott's talk from conference in October, he says "We become what we want to be by consistently being what we want to become each day." That speaks volumes about processes to me.

Last night when I was talking to my dad about this he said something to the effect of "We don't have many records of Christ's development during his first thirty years. Surely it was a very steep learning curve. He had to learn line upon line just like we do."

Later my mind went to Noah. Building the ark was definitely not an event. Nor was living on the ark. Nor was starting over again when the land was dry. All of those things were processes. Then I wondered what processes Noah (and his wife and family) went through to develop into someone the Lord could ask to complete feats such as crying repentance to unwilling listeners and building an ark and living on the ark with all of the animals. Surely there was a very steep learning curve there too. (All of that made me think of this cute Primary song that I love so much.)

I need to allow the Lord to perfect me; but it will be a process. I can't be any other way.

This is why Elder Christofferson said "We ought to recognize that all honest work is the work of God. . . By work we sustain and enrich life. It enables us to survive the disappointments and tragedies of the mortal experience. Hard-earned achievement brings a sense of self-worth. Work builds and refines character, creates beauty, and is the instrument of our service to one another and to God. A consecrated life is filled with work, sometimes repetitive, sometimes menial, sometimes unappreciated but always work that improves, orders, sustains, lifts, ministers, aspires." (Oct. 2010 conference)

Processes are work and work is a process.

So my message to myself is: "Embrace the processes". Allow them to be. Enjoy them. Learn from them. Gain experience. Events don't create the same impact on your character as processes do. Cherish growing experiences. Becoming Christlike cannot be an event, otherwise the whole plan of salvation would be unnecessary.

Embrace the process. . .

Talkie Doos

Tess: Mom, I think there are some Talkie Doos in our house.

Mom: Oh really? What do Talkie Doos do?

T: They play with little girls.

T: They read books with little girls.

T: Talkie Doos eat people.

M: And we have some in our house?

T: Yeah.

M: Where did you see a Talkie Doo?

T: Like in my closet.

M: Did you say anything to the Talkie Doo?

T: No.

M: Did the Talkie Doo say anything to you?

T: Yeah. Like "Are you going to eat me?"

M: What do Talkie Doos look like?

T: They are pink and purple and brown and white.

M: How big are they?

T: They are like this tall (Tess crouches). And they kind of have big claws to scratch fences and cars.

M: Why do they need to scratch fences and cars?

T: Because they have big claws.

M: Do we need to get rid of these Talkie Doos?

T: Yeah. We need to get a Talkie Doo trap.

M: How does a Talkie Doo trap work?

T: We need to get some of Dad's brothers. Because she is a sister Talkie Doo.

M: How many Talkie Doos do we have in our house?

T: Four!

M: Why are they staying in our house?
T: They are staying until their mother's come and get them when their daddy's stop work to get them.

M: Do you have anything more to tell me about Talkie Doos?

T: No

Jimmer Fredette by Chandler

He's so big at our house, he is a sculpture:

Email to Tom; 9:16 AM

(A few anecdotal notes have been added.)

Honey,
Do you want the good news or bad news first?

I thought so.

Bad news:

~Got stuck on the hill by the Jr. High taking Caleb to school. The road was icy and I couldn't move, so he had to get out and push. You would have thought the world had ended. Poor thing.

~Came home to see ice cream sitting on the cupboard; Chandler had brought it up from the deep freeze for my dessert (for a Primary meeting). He had set it on the edge of the counter overhanging slightly and it was dripping out of the card board container and splattering onto the floor. Who knew melted ice cream could splat so much.

~Went to get the dishtowels (from underneath the kitchen sink) to throw in the washing machine and noticed the cupboard was dripping wet. The bucket under there was overflowing a lot. (We just barely fixed a leak and thankfully I left the bucket there; I guess we will be readdressing that leak. . .)

~Opened the pantry to get a cracker for Tess and the Nesquik fell off the shelf, the lid must not have been screwed on, so Nesquik spilled everywhere.

~Realized that I don't have any small paper plates to serve my dessert on tonight.

~Still haven't gotten ready for the day; the girls have spent the morning thus far in front of the TV and are beyond grumpy and whiny.

~Made a boatload of dishes for me to do so early in the morning.

Good news:

~I got the previously mentioned messes cleaned up.

~I did get bread put in the bread machine.

~I got my dessert made.

~The dishtowels are washing.

~TV is a life saver.

~I get to stay home and enjoy it all!

Gotta go. . .Greta just de-diapered!

I love you.
darcee