A Well Kept Secret

Who would have thought that an American breakfast place named Cindy's could turn into a Thai place called Kow Thai Restaurant by dinner time? 

I sure never knew this after living in the small town of Davis for 5 years. My boyfriend and I finally found out about this well kept secret when his coworker enlightened us.  (How did she know about it? Who knows...) When I came to visit this past weekend, we decided to try it out.  Kow Thai used to be Thai Dynamite and is now under new ownership, so I'm not sure how they compare, but I did enjoy it.  I had some Thai salad and then tried something on the menu that I had not seen on a Thai restaurant menu before - artichoke soup.

This soup was so delicious.  It is basically like a traditional Thai coconut milk with mushrooms soup, but they added artichoke hearts!

This is what it looked like, minus the chicken: (photo courtesy of Baby Kato on food.com)

I am going to try to make this some time, but with the artichokes, more mushrooms, and no chicken - because it was just perfect that way.  You can find many coconut milk soup recipes online, but I did not find even one that included artichokes.

Not only did I enjoy my food, but Harry enjoyed his stir fry and Thai iced tea (free refills here - not like some Thai places). I'm glad we decided to try it.  I love finding unique places that offer new things that pleasantly surprise me. The fact that it was hidden inside of a diner, with hardly any customers, did not take away from the experience. 

A Jambaism

Think on Thursday:


I haven't seen Jambaisms in quite some time, but I remembered one that I really liked reading on the side of my Jamba Juice ...

Eat, Pray, and Love!

 

 

   

I read Elizabeth Gilbert's wonderful book a couple of years ago, so I don't remember all of the details.  Knowing exactly how the book went didn't matter to me because I was going to watch the movie and enjoy it for what it was.  I don't like to compare books to movies too much anyway, because they are by nature going to be very different. 

In the book, I underlined my favorite quotes, doggy-eared certain passages, and had to push my way through certain very detailed parts.  It was a heavy read for me (minus the Italy part), and I liked to read it slowly so that I could really get all that I could out of it.

I enjoyed the movie and I thought it was fairly easy to get the main message.  However, one person I know said he didn't get it - but maybe that is just because he is a guy. :o)  I think the main message/idea is right there in the title!

EAT:

Photo from the movie website

Elizabeth travels to Italy primarily to just eat and enjoy the pleasures that life has to offer. The American society is fascinated and probably almost obsessed with food, so she challenges this mindset and decides to thoroughly enjoy life - and every single bite of a whole pizza. 

This part of the movie somewhat reminds me of the book  "French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure" by Mireille Guiliano.  I didn't actually read this book but I heard her in an interview speak about how Americans need to learn to eat for pleasure.  We must enjoy every bite, take our time, and just eat.  Don't eat while driving, watching TV, or reading, just eat and enjoy ourselves or the company we are with.  We don't have to and shouldn't think of certain foods as good or bad, but take pleasure in eating it will balance itself out.

PRAY:

photo courtesy of turkishculture.org

In the second part of the movie (and book), Elizabeth travels to India to meditate and pray at an Ashram with her guru (one who is regarded as having great wisdom uses this knowledge authority to teach others).

Quotes from her book:

There’s a crack (or cracks) in everyone…that’s how the light of God gets in."


"[My guru] says that people universally tend to think that happiness is a stroke of luck, something that will maybe descend upon you like fine weather if you are fortunate enough. But that's not how happiness works. Happiness is the consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings. And once you have achieved a state of happiness, you must never become lax about maintaining it..."


"Prayer is a relationship; half the job is mine. If I want transformation, but can't even be bothered to articulate what, exactly, I'm aiming for, how will it ever occur? Half the benefit of prayer is in the asking itself, in the offering of a clearly posed and well-considered intention. If you don't have this, all your pleas and desires are boneless, floppy, inert; they swirl at your feet in a cold fog and never lift."

-Elizabeth Gilbert 

LOVE:

I think that Elizabeth Gilbert's main message here is that first you have to love yourself, and then you can be free to love someone else.  You don't have to lose yourself and your balance in order to love someone - it can be part of that balance.  

The medicine man in Bali told Elizabeth this: "To find the balance you want, this is what you must become. You must keep your feet grounded so firmly on the earth that it's like you have 4 legs instead of 2. That way, you can stay in the world. But you must stop looking at the world through your head. You must look through your heart, instead. That way, you will know God."

Eat. Pray. Love

Perfect quote for today:

I'm going to see the movie tonight.  I've read the book and it was so inspiring.  Which did you like better?  If you haven't read the book or seen the movie, how can these three words relate to a healthier and happier you?

Trying new things

During this summer, I am not working at my before and after school program - but instead am a counselor at a Day Camp. Unfortunately, I do not have any influence on the kids' snacks there.  They eat the same snack twice a week: goldfish, fruit snacks, animal crackers, goldfish again... and I have learned that it is important to try to teach others (especially youngsters) to try something NEW and maybe, just maybe they will actually like it!

-Try swapping plain old cheez-its for some other type of cracker (wheat thins? Kashi crackers?)

I wasn't always so open to trying new things, but once I got to college, I figured it was the perfect time to experiment. I tried out new recipes, learned from new friends, and was definitely tired of eating boring DC food.  It still isn't always easy to step away from the familiar and comfortable.  For example, this past weekend, the boyfriend and I went out for brunch at one of our favorite places in Sacramento.  (Already have posted about this place).  I was tempted to get one of my favorite things since we hadn't been there for a while - but then I saw this very interesting East African Veggie Burger.

I really enjoy vegetarian foods but didn't know if this would be good. I'm also not very good at making decisions. :o( However, I told myself I was feeling adventurous and decided to order it. Good thing I did - it was yum.  And my boyfriend, who rarely would order anything vegetarian, tried it after I insisted and he thought it was pretty good too! I am trying to convince him that even very healthy sounding things can be quite delicious.

This was a wonderful way to end our not so adventurous weekend and kick off a new week. 

This week I am returning to my previous job as a site director for a before and after school program.  I am excited about being able to use my creativity with this new group of kids - and get them to try new things!

Old and New Part II

I love the combination of new and old. New to me, but old to someone else.  This has multiple meanings for me.  One: I take pride in learning about my family's history (wrote a story about my dad's immigration).  Two:  I enjoy learning about heirlooms.  Three:  Searching for antiques or other interesting vintage items has become very enjoyable to me for the past few years (partly because of my mom's interest).  I'm not into everything vintage, but I do enjoy certain kinds. 

This is an antique suitcase I found at an antique shop in Auburn while on an exploration day with my mom.  It was probably from the 1940s or 50s, because there are some old luggage tags and stickers that were dated from the early 50s. The woman who sold it to me said that the lady who sold it to her shop said it belonged to her father. I fell in love with this thing - partly because it still has its lock and key! (I also love old locks and keys.) I'm not sure what treasures I will keep inside, but for now it is holding things from my own travels: postcards, maps, travel journals, etc.

What does this have to do with "Think in the Pink?"

Good question.

Old and New

This is kind of a tricky one - because this is exactly what we do when we choose a quote.  We are selecting an old phrase; the only thing that makes it old instead of new is that someone else has already said it. Then, we can choose to comment on it, creating something new.  

Stay tuned because tomorrow I will post about an awesome "something old" I found.

A Spontaneous Adventure

Part of being healthy is doing what makes you feel alive.

Part of being creative is being spontaneous.

These two things definitely came together this weekend. Last night, my boyfriend and I decided to drive down to Santa Cruz and then do some hiking the following day.  There is nothing like deciding to go on a fun adventure in a moment's notice.  Exploring new towns, new roads, new restaurants, and new people, is something we always like to do.  As soon as we made the impulsive decision, I had a burst of energy and the drive down did not seem even half as long as it should have.

Some highlights: seeing baby quails, trying delicious fresh baked cookies from the Pacific Bay Cookie Company, hiking amongst ferns and streams, walking along cliffs with a view of the ocean, trying (and loving) a local restaurant by the harbor, driving along curvy roads while admiring the one of a kind homes, and good conversation with my best friend.

Something to think about on.... Thursday!

Remember when you wake up in the morning that you are lucky to be so healthy.  Take advantage of that feeling: eat a good breakfast, take a walk, and just be happy to be you and alive and breathing :o) So simple.

A delicious salad...

I received an awesome cookbook for my birthday, Everyday Food - Fresh Flavor Fast, from my friend Jaclyn.  I decided to try the warm spinach salad with poached eggs to break it in.  If you ever need a quick and easy meal, this is a good one.  You can substitute so many things in case you don't have something in your fridge. I've actually made it a couple times since the first time I tried it. 

You will need (for 4 people):
1/2 cup plus 1 Tbs white-wine vinegar
4 large eggs
6 slices of bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 shallot, minced
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
12 ounces baby spinach (about 12 cups)


Step 1: Fill large skillet with 1 1/2 inches of water and heat over medium until bubbles appear on the bottom; stir in 1 tablespoon vinegar.  Poach eggs.
  ** Now this is really difficult and I've never had much luck so I decided to just fry my eggs over medium at the end.  But, if you'd like to give it a try, here are some tips.

Step 2: In a medium saucepan, cook bacon over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until browned, 4 to 6 minutes; use a slotted spoon to transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.  Cook shallot in rendered bacon fat until soft, about 2 minutes.  Carefully add remaining 1/2 cup vinegar, and boil over high heat until reduced to 1/3 cup, 2 to 3 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.

Step 3: In a large bowl, toss spinach with bacon and the hot vinaigrette.  Divide among four plates: top each with a poached egg (in my case, fried egg or two!).  Serve immediately!

I added cherry tomatoes to the spinach and piled the salad on top of two pieces of toasted whole grain Costco bread to make it more of a main meal.

The finished product: