Aww, you guys--I did front desk for interviews this year, and one of the interviewees tracked me down on Facebook and told me they got in. Not creepy at all. Just heart-melty. Aww.
Read more...On Friday, April 10, 2009, I had a giant bowl of tagliatelle carbonara. It was amazing. It came with an organic egg yolk perched on top, with "hand cut noodles, English peas, smoky bacon, black pepper and Parmesan." It was a fantastic meal, and it was also a bit of a triumph.
The last time I truly enjoyed a carbonara-based dish was late December, 2003, a few days before I left on vacation for Thailand, and the day after I ate at Joyfull. I left that Italian restaurant and arrived home, happy. It was Sunday. I went to bed, and dreamed of school lunch. Around 3am, I woke up and my mouth was watering--not because I was hungry, but because that was the signal that I was about to spew. So I spewed. It was hell.
About 10 miles away, two really good friends were experiencing the same gawdawful thing. We're pretty sure meat from Joyfull was the culprit. Worst case of food poisoning I've ever had.
So here I am, almost 5 and a half years later, and I can finally eat carbonara again. I feel like this should be a clever metaphor for something, but surprisingly, it's not. (No really, I am surprised.) Instead, I'm excited that I've reclaimed one of my favorite foods, and I'm looking forward to making pasta carbonara at home. I love a happy ending.
Be proud of me, dammit. This is directed at the people who laugh because I *need* to follow the Cream of Wheat directions. Yes, I really do.
Today I made mapo tofu from a box mix. Well, don't be proud of me for that part. I assumed that if House brand curry was okay, then House brand mapo tofu would also be okay. Wrong. It was watery and tasted like spicy and oily. I didn't eat it that often in Japan, but I knew it was wrong. I was actually impressed that I could tell how flat and boring it tasted.
So I checked some recipes online, and eyeballed from there. Yes. Be proud of me for improving a box (pouch) of mapo tofu sauce with a spoonful of miso paste, a couple glugs of hot water, sesame oil and mirin, a couple glops of oyster sauce, a spoonful of cornstarch, some grated ginger, and a few cloves of garlic. (Although, I think I put in too much mirin, because it tasted too sweet and I had to glop on more oyster sauce later.) And yes, I made that list so I'll remember for next time. I know, I'll make from scratch eventually, but I bought two boxes. Whoops.
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