Consider the Jujube

Round, like a brown stone
Firm or perhaps wrinkled, the jujube
Also known as Chinese Date
Taste like an apple-date with tiny pit
Slightly spongy, it is like
Biting into Autumn

Bap with a Vengeance

Tonite, JP and I went to our neighborhood Korean joint, Hahn's Hibachi. I'm kind of shocked that I haven't blogged about it before; it's so good, so close; so reliable. But here you go, my nosh of the day was their bibimbop with tofu. Korean comfort food, yes. A rainbow of veggies: slivered zucchini and carrots, strings of pickled daikon, spinach, bean sprouts and a lovely pile of tofu tossed in a slightly sweet marinade. All atop a mound of rice and crowned with a fried egg. Toss it together, maybe add a squirt of chile sauce, and feast. One bowl; a million flavors.

Take 5

If you like veggie juice, I've found a place that's inexpensive and very good. But damned if I know the name. It's a salad bar across from Crocker Galleria that advertises fresh juices, and they have something called Veggie 5. It's a mix of beet, carrot, celery, tomato and parsley. Fairly sweet, not at all bitter, and they keep some pre-made (though still fresh-tasting) so you don't have to wait a long time. And, it's only a little over $3 for a 16 ouncer! Drink up, cheapskate.

Plant on Water

What could be better, after a stretchifying pilates class, than dinner with your favorite pilates instructor at The Plant Cafe Organic?
Answer: not much.
This new cafe is situated right smack on the bay, and you can sit at an elegant wooden table, warmed by heat lamps, and be mesmerized by lapping water.
You can also eat amazingly fresh, delicious food. We had 2 salads - you can order them in small or large sizes, which I love - and both were plant-astic. Mine had baby spinach, goat cheese and pumpkin seeds in a champagne vinaigrette, while Rachel's boasted fluffy mixed greens, more goat cheese, beets and toasted walnuts.
My entree was quinoa with lots of veggies and baked tofu in a ginger-miso sauce. I also stole bits of Rachel's wild salmon, all crispy on top and meltingly tender inside.
I forgot to mention the whole grain bread and good-quality olive oil that's brought to your table with a cute milk bottle full of water; nice touches. I plan to plant myself there again, soon.

Ce-Reality

Friends know this about me: I am a cereal freak. Correction: FREAK. I love cereal, would take it with me as my one desert island meal, that kind of thing. But I don't eat just one kind; like Seinfeld, I keep a large stash of boxes in the cupboard. Then, in the morning, I mix maybe four kinds together, sprinkle on cinnamon and pour on the milk. Crazy but true.
If you share my version of cereality, let me suggest a new kind: Yogi, the tea people, now make cereal. And thanks to my pal Luis at Whole Foods, I went home with 2 free boxes to 'sample'. The goji berry version is gone, and it was delightful; not too sweet, nice crunchy flakes. I am still savoring the exotic Walnut Spice Crunch, which served as my afternoon snack today. The box touts 'digestive health' and 'five ancient grains' which get mixed up with nuts, spices and seeds. I say: this stuff is seriously great. It would be good on top of some ice cream or yogurt, too...if that's not too surreal for you.

My One and Onigiri

I love sushi. Raw is righteous. But I also love a little thing called onigiri: a ball of rice, wrapped in nori, with a yummy treasure buried inside: maybe pickled plum (umeboshi), maybe salmon.
Tonite at Ebisu (yes, I've mentioned it before), I ordered one and was glad I did. The onigiri was so large that Suzuki, our chef, cut it in two. There it sat on its plate like two pyramids of sticky rice garnished with my beloved, electric yellow pickled radish. I picked up one piece and bit into the mix of crackly seaweed, steaming rice and grilled salmon: heaven! Comforting, filling and a little messy to eat. Makes me want to be a Japanese schoolgirl...

Noshtober

Well, I'm going to make an attempt to write more in this, the month of Noshtober.
And for the first of the month, a brief blog to sing the praises of freeze-dried mango from our friend, Trader Joe's.
It comes in a bag with a top that rips open and reseals, always a perk for snacking in the cubicle. And the pieces are shaped like fat half moons, have a crispness when bitten, then melt on your tongue. Like potato chips, they are addictive and get all over your fingers, but who cares? You don't have to mess with a pit or get strings in your teeth...that's my kinda mango.