My Marie Kondo Fandom

Ever since I read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo, I’ve been a fan. I’m not the tidiest person and I’m the type to keep stuff so her whole philosophy is aspirational for me. 

I’ve attended a book signing and a talk that she did in NYC and I’m hoping she comes out with a book specifically about tidying with kids. I know she also started doing yoga. 


Here are some other articles I’ve read on the whole phenomenon. 

1. Some think it is as annoying as juice cleanses, given how trendy it became.

2. My older sister, Sheila has her review of the book here. My three sisters and I updated our  messenger group on our individual Tidy Festivals, complete with before and after photos.

3. After tidying, you’ll probably go shopping.  Marie Kondo’s Anthropologie shopping trip documented.

4. Gentlemen, even the magazine GQ advocates for a throwing out all the crap in your closet.

5. A stronger economy plus New Yorkers becoming Konverts equals a 22% increase in Goodwill donations. 112 million pounds of stuff. 

6. Marie Kondo: How to Choose Happiness

7.  I was at the same event that TAFFY BRODESSER-AKNER attended and I even spoke to her afterwards because I saw her interviewing Marie. I’m now also a fan of Taffy’s writing. Her profiles are the best. 

8. The Class Politics of Decluttering– good read that relates declittering to privelage. 

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Kitchen Tryouts: Why Working in a Kitchen Feels so Familiar

I’m on my second month of working as a pastry cook and I definitely feel the similarities between this job and my previous life as a football player.

To get the job, I had to go on a trail, which is the kitchen equivalent of an interview. You work in that kitchen for a shift to see how it’s like and to determine if you’re a good fit for the kitchen.In football terms this is the tryout.

I went on a bunch of trails for savory positions last year, but didn’t end up committing to a kitchen then. After our trip to Spain in May, I decided to go on trails for pastry jobs, and actually did a second trail at this job because I wanted to get a second impression before I decided.

What’s is the energy like? How are the other people working there? The most important- How is your boss/coach? The second most important- What is family meal like?

I took these and several other factors into consideration, like total door to door commute time from home.

Due to kitchen sizes, they only usually schedule people to trail one at a time, unlike soccer tryouts where you’re clearly benchmarked against the entire pool of candidates.

I was relieved to get offered the position (I was picked for the team! Yay!) Then I had to get work clothes and supplies. I love this part! It’s like going back to school.  The difficult part was getting pants. I ordered different ones online and tested them out, so now I rotate between three different kinds.

For shoes I got the the same Calzuro clogs that I used during culinary school but in black, and after prodding from my mother, a pair of Birkenstocks.  She insists it’s the best for the feet and knees. My knees need all the help it can get.

We’re given aprons and a hat, and jackets are supplied daily.  I’m so glad they stock extra small jackets, which are still slightly too big, other kitchens I’ve trailed at only stock up to small sizes.

In our kitchen, the standard response is “Oui, Chef”, just like how on the football field it’s “Yes, Coach”. I’m feeling very much like a rookie in the kitchen, learning all the norms and rules of the game.

I start work at 3pm, we stop for family meal at 4:15pm, then more prep before service begins.  Everything is in preparation for kickoff.  On some days the entire kitchen meets for a preservice meeting- the huddle- led by the sous chef in charge that day.

 

BRB: Working

Started working as a pastry cook last week, and it’s been really tiring but fun.

Interestingly enough, there are so many similarities between working in a professional kitchen and playing on a football team.

I’ll elaborate some other time, but for now, this space will be more quiet than usual (as if I’ve been posting at all) because I’m still new at the job and need to learn so much.

 

Or maybe I’ll write more, just to help me remember this amazing time of busyness in my life.

 

 

East and West Brunch on May 1, 2016

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For my second pop-up brunch collaboration for this year, I’ve created Apple Suman, combining the Filipino traditional treat with New York’s official fruit.  I’ve teamed up once again with Jappy Afzelius and Mikki Buñag to create a seven-course tasting menu with an “East and West” theme.

It’s happening May 1, Sunday at 103 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10003. I hope to see you there!

Eventbrite - East and West Spring Brunch

Fishball craving

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Fishball.  In the Philippines, this is a street food staple, sold through carts or stalls everywhere.  When I was in college, there was a cart right outside my building which sold it together with other deep-fried treats. The carts have tall jars of sauces, usually a trio of spicy vinegar, sweet soy, and spicy soy, where you can dip the skewers of piping hot fishball before you devoured them.

I was craving them one day and decided I would make them from scratch, despite frozen ones being available at the Asian store, because I like making my own food. I ferment my own kimchi and brew my own kombucha during the warmer months, so I found a fishball recipe online and found it easy enough to do.  It’s a time consuming but makes for a fun project.  I ended up cutting the balls into smaller fritters for quicker frying and crunchier pieces.

They were perfect. Crunchy nuggets and spicy sweet sour sauce.  It’s not exactly the same as the super-floury ones from back home, but they definitely satisfied my craving.

Last December, I made them for the Advancement of Rural Kids‘ holiday party, where I served other childhood favorites of mine, like Arroz Caldo and Bistek Tagalog. The fishball was the crowd favorite, and now I’m thinking of making another batch to keep in the freezer for when the craving (and nostalgia) strikes again.

 

 

 

 

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ARKies in da hawz

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Tanoshi Sushi

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For Presidents Day, we went to Tanoshi in the Upper East Side to try their 10 piece omakase dinner. Tanoshi lets you BYOB but we didn’t really feel like drinking so we just had the green tea that they served with dinner.

I really appreciated that they asked if you had any particular likes or dislikes. I’m not a fan of raw shrimp so I let the chef know. He asked if I was okay with cooked shrimp since the miso soup they serve is flavored with shrimp heads. That small cup of miso soup served later in the meal was really tasty.

I enjoyed the entire meal, all of the sushi was well seasoned, not fishy,  and bite sized. They expect you to eat with your hands and they made sure you always had  pickled ginger on your plate.  It’s definitely less fancy and more cramped  than Sushi Nakazawa, where we had Easter lunch last year.

New Zealand King Salmon
Marinated Big Eye Tuna
Amberjack with cherry blossom leaf
Yellowtail with kelp
Marinated Salmon Roe
Uni with quail egg

This was the crowd favorite. My top uni dish is still at Mu Ramen though.

Spicy Tuna handroll

Sushi purists like Yasuda would probably hate this handroll but I liked it. They keep their nori warm in a toaster oven to keep it nice and crisp.

Poached hokkaido scallops

Between Nakazawa or Tanoshi, I’d probably go back to Tanoshi more, it being more affordable, closer to home and easier to park at.

Right Knee ACL Tear: 10 Years After

Just in time for the opening of this year’s UAAP football season, Facebook reminds me of old photos I’ve shared of my football playing years.  It also occurred to me that it has been 10 years since I got my first major sports injury.  If any of the current UAAP players happen to be reading this, I hope you have a healthy, successful season.  Play hard, give your best during each game and have fun!  We all know playing sports come with its share of risks, and hopefully this post reassures you that no matter what happens, everything is going to be okay, eventually.

I remember bits and pieces of February 5, 2006.  It was a Sunday, and we were doing the second round of games for my second UAAP football season with the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons.  We were playing against UST at the dusty upper field in Ateneo, I tried to win the ball but I ended up getting collided into from behind by an opponent, and then falling to the ground.  I heard a loud crunch from my knee, my right shoulder was also hurting and I could not get up.

I was carried off on a stretcher and was kept there for the duration of the game.  I think the game ended with a draw, I can’t recall right now.  My knee swelled up, but luckily my family was there to watch the game and to bring me to the hospital.  I get x-rayed at the hospital near my house, and they find nothing broken.  I might have gone to school the next day and saw another doctor, who ordered an MRI and did the drawer test.

I find out about the confirmed ACL over dinner one night, then I consulted with another surgeon, who eventually reconstructs my torn ACL a couple weeks after.

Back then it was the worst thing that happened to me. Playing football was my life and getting injured during the tournament was a huge blow and at that time I was so devastated.   Now, ten years after, I get to look back at that day and answer the question, “Will it matter 10 years from now”?

Kind of, but not really.  I’m typing from my chilly apartment in New York, trying to think of how much that one accident from 2006 impacts my day to day life right now.  Here’s my list.

  • I get knee pain once in a while, when it gets really cold, or if I’m sitting in the plane for a really long time.  On long haul flights I have to be sure to stand up and walk around or else my knees will bother me.
  • On certain days, I can tell if it will rain just by how my knees feel when I wake up.  This isn’t too useful since I check the weather on my phone anyway, but it’s a pretty cool quirk.

After these two points, I realise that since I’ve torn both my left and right ACLs, some effects would have compounded because I’ve had both knees injured and fixed. So these next items have that in consideration.

  • I won’t be trying board sports like snowboarding or wake boarding.  I just don’t want to risk future injuries. Two surgeries and many months of rehab was enough.
  • I need to do lower impact exercise and more strengthening work. When I’m not down with the worst flu I’ve ever had in years, I try to do some dance cardio in my living room but when I do a lot of jumping, my knees hurt the next day.
  • I don’t wear high heels anymore and have to be in comfortable shoes all the time.  If I’m standing all day cooking, sneakers aren’t even comfortable for me.  I have to be in clogs.  I stopped wearing heels after I got injured but would still buy them to wear when I’ve recovered, but ever since getting injured the second time, it’s been flats or wedges only.
  • I still play football for fun once in a while, but I never go all out anymore, it’s just not worth hurt again.

If I could time travel and talk to myself ten years ago during the saddest time of my life, I would say, “Don’t worry about it too much.  Ten years from now it won’t be a big deal, you’ll learn a lot from the experience and those scars won’t be noticeable. You’ll recover from this and play two more years of college football. Then you’ll move away from home, study again, get married and find other hobbies.  It’s a great story to tell, you’ll have minor inconveniences to deal with but overall you’ll be fine. Oh and you’ll tear your left ACL in 5 years, so you’ll still be doing prone hangs in the future.”

Time really puts things in perspective, doesn’t it?

NYC brunch and dinner coming up!

After a nice long break from cooking, I’m back in the kitchen!  I was in Manila for the holidays visiting my family in Manila and my husband’s family in Bacolod, and now I’m finally kicking jet lag.

First up is a Filipino Brunch on Sunday, January 24 at Ugly Kitchen. I’m joining two friends of mine, Jappy Afzelius and Mikki Buñag, who both cook professionally here in NYC. We’ve come up with the prix fixe brunch menu below and will have two seatings, 12 nn and 2pm.  To reserve your spot please call 2127297181.
IMG_5671On Saturday, January 30, I’m cooking dinner with my Hidden Apron crew at Exhibit C.  Click on the image below to get tickets for that event.

12562396_10156445517425611_1683536793_oTo my dear friends and family, I hope I get to see you at brunch or dinner next week!  Let me know if you have any questions or would like me to reserve spots for Sunday Brunch!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eleven Madison Park

It’s taken me three years of living in New York to finally eat at Eleven Madison Park.  Despite being very much into food, most of my eating out here in New York gravitates around ramen, Khao Kang in Elmhurst, the El Rey del Taco truck for Al Pastor over rice,  Boqueria for tapas, paella and sangria, and our neighborhood Brazilian restaurant Malagueta, that serves excellent Feijoada only on Saturdays. I try to pick new places to eat in but it’s always a struggle to choose where to go next versus an old reliable place. There’s always something new to try that isn’t very pricey.  It just so happened that a friend of mine needed someone to fill in for his friend who couldn’t make it to their dinner reservation, so I decided it was time for me to see what the hype was all about. Here are my photos and comments on all the courses served.

1.  Cheddar

Savory Black and White Cookie with Apple

Gougère like savory  start to the long meal.

Black and White Cookie2. Sturgeon

Sabayon with Chive

I liked this course. You sipped it out of the eggshell. I would have wanted another.

DSC_08533. Oyster

Pie and Veloute

EMP sources these oysters from the Widow’s Hole oyster farm that I’ve visited in Long Island. The veloute captures all the oyster goodness in soup form. I wish there was more of this.

Oyster Pie and Veloute4. Scallops

Marinated with Black Truffle and Leeks

I really appreciated how complicated this dish looks to make, but it’s not one of my favorites.

Scallops

5. Caviar

Benedict with Eggs, Cauliflower and Ham

Served with those bread rounds, this course was a hit with the whole table.
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It’s served in this small tin that they also use to give you a copy of the menu at the end of the meal .
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6. Foie Gras

Seared with Brussels Sprouts and Smoked Eel

For the foie gras course, you have to decide between seared or another preparation before the whole meal starts. I think our whole table picked seared foie gras. I did not regret that choice. This dish kind of tasted Filipino-ish in a way I can’t figure out.

DSC_08697. Waldorf

Salad with Apple, Celery, Grapes and Walnuts

The salad was prepared table side and served on a wooden plate that’s set on top of a bowl with the soup version of the salad.

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8. Lobster

Poached with Butternut Squash and Chestnuts

Beautiful looking plate, subtle flavors. 

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9. Hen of the Woods Mushroom

Roasted with Horseradish

I always like this type of mushroom so this course doesn’t look that delicious but I don’t mind. 

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10. Venison

Roasted with Beets and Onion

For the main protein we chose venison over duck breast. They present the venison over coals before they slice and plate it. 

IMG_7170I liked the beet chips. IMG_7174

11. Cato Corner Cheese

Fondue with Squash and Mustard

You can’t go wrong with cheese and pretzel bread. 

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12. Botrytis

Ice cream with Bitter Almond and Ginger Crumble

Sip some wine, get a spoonful of ice cream with the ginger crumbs. 

Botrytis

13. Milk and Honey

Custard with Bee Pollen Ice Cream

Interesting textures. You can’t see it in this photo but there is honey in the center of that white nugget.

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14. Chocolate

“Name That Milk”

Pretzel with Sea Salt

EMP is in the business of making sure you leave happy. The meal ends with a chocolate guessing game. You attempt to match the chocolate to which animal’s milk was used to make it. 

Name that ChocolateI wasn’t able to guess it all correctly. But that is okay. Name that chocolateThey give you a dark chocolate covered pretzel sprinkled with some sea salt afterwards. 
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St. George Apple Brandy

Finally they leave this bottle on the table for you to enjoy. 

Apple Brandy

After the meal, we were given a container of granola for breakfast and a printed menu. I would have liked to receive the menu beforehand but also really appreciated the granola.  I left full and buzzed from the apple brandy, happy that I got to cross Eleven Madison Park from my list.  The service was amazing, the dining room was gorgeous and the plates/servingware were all pretty. I felt that the experience was worth the splurge and am now looking forward to trying their food during a different season. 

My Food Intolerance Test Results

Two months ago, I took a food intolerance test in Manila because I wanted to check if  I was eating food that was making me feel less than awesome.  I had been feeling bloated and tired, and since I eat pretty much everything, I decided it was time to find out if I had any food intolerances.  My mom had the exact same test done and my sister had a similar one done so I also just joined the bandwagon and was curious to see what we had in common.

The test involves a pinprick on a finger, then a small sample of blood is squeezed out from that into a tiny vial. It doesn’t take long and isn’t painful. After a few days, you can pick up your results and sit down with a nutritionist who will explain the list to you.

The results are given in two formats, one arranged according to the different food groups, and another arranged by order of reactivity, which I’ve included below.

The list of elevated food, here in red, are the ones I should avoid. The yellow list, can be consumed once a week and the green can be eaten anytime.

My thoughts on the food that I have to avoid:

Milk/ Casein: I’ve stopped drinking cow’s milk for a long time now, same with yogurt, but I still eat cheese and ice cream occasionally. I switched to almond milk for drinking for the past three years. I’m not really surprised that this is on the list but it still makes me sad.

Egg white: I have a problem with this because I love eating eggs! Hard boiled eggs are one of the easiest breakfasts ever. It’s portable and foolproof. I love making cheese omelets and putting fried eggs over rice dishes. Boo.

White Haricot Bean:  I don’t really eat this. Can I trade this for eggs instead?

Corn: This is difficult. Corn appears everywhere! What about my favorite nachos from the best taco truck in Astoria? Popcorn when I watch movies? Chips? Corn from Cafe Habana? Sad.

Agar-Agar: I never thought this algae derivative would be on my list. I even make coffee jelly from agar-agar instead of regular animal gelatin, but I guess I should reach for the Knox packets after all.

Soya bean: Another really tough one. Soy is in a lot of food. I love miso paste, especially when mixed with butter.  I eat tofu occasionally, but I use soy sauce often.  A lot of non-dairy ice creams and desserts are soy-based. Goodbye miso ramen.

Aloe Vera: I don’t really eat this either. Switch please.

Goat’s milk: I don’t drink it but eat goat cheese. I visited the Catapano Dairy Farm and bought several of their award winning fresh goat cheese last year over the Thanksgiving break and was planning to go again this year, but will probably pass now that I’m avoiding this too.  Sigh.

Plaice: this is a fish I’m not familiar with.

Sheep Milk: I don’t really drink it or eat sheep cheese.

Wheat and Gliadin: Oh no. I love bread, pasta, ramen, crackers, pita, cake, cookies, and most baked goods.  I can’t believe I’ve turned gluten free.

Sardine:  I don’t eat these often either.

Brewer’s Yeast: BEER. All the fermented stuff I love! This one super hard to avoid.

Red Kidney Bean, Cola Nut, Amaranth: You will not be missed.

Pistachio: A bit surprising, so goodbye to snacking on these.

Cashews: A lot of non-dairy ice creams are cashew based too! BOO.

Oat and Barley: Goodbye oatmeal.

Mushrooms: I love mushrooms. Shiitake bacon is so good. Not as good as the real bacon but is addicting is a different way.  Mushrooms in miso butter is the triple threat I will not be making anytime soon. Just writing this down reminds me of the awesome mushroom dish at Dirt Candy  that I had several months back. Why am I intolerant to mushrooms? Maybe because when I was a kid, whenever I didn’t like the food on the table, (which was often) I would eat Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup with rice. It was my staple food.

Hazelnut: Goodbye Nutella.

Mustard Seed: This is another tough one. I love using it in salad dressings!  And on french fries, burgers and hotdogs!

The borderline list:

Celery: Okay, I won’t really miss this, but celery is in most stocks.

Curry: Another tough one.

Tiger Nut: I don’t eat these.

Malt: As if there weren’t enough reasons to avoid beer.

Buckwheat: Goodbye soba. 🙁

Pea: Goodbye wasabi peas. 🙁

Plum: Will not miss this.

Radish: But I love daikon! What about my sinigang?

Pomegranate: Same as plum.

Tuna: Gosh this list ended with a bang. One of my favorite things from Mu Ramen has tuna in it. Why did I take this test again?

Food Intolerance Red


Food Intolerance Green 3

Food Intolerance Green 4

Alright, there are still more foods on the green list than the red and yellow lists combined, but after almost two months of trying to avoid what I’m supposed to, I’ve been really bad at following it.

As part of this whole experience, I started listing down my food and beverage intake on my calendar, and at first I was pretty thorough, until I started eating food that I wasn’t supposed to and started feeling guilty. If I didn’t write it down, maybe my body would forget too! Hahaha.

It’s challenging to eat out and cook for two, since my husband eats pretty much everything, I always end up having a bit or two of whatever he is having.

For the first month that I was strictly avoiding the elevated food, I definitely felt less bloated. During that time I didn’t drink alcohol much too.  So those two factors helped a lot. I was able to exercise more often since I felt less sluggish.

So what happened? Well, my friend asked if I would be interested in eating in Eleven Madison Park since they had reservations for five, but had one friend cancel.  I’ve wanted to eat there but I now they get booked well in advance so I decided to say yes.  I wanted the complete dining experience and I know how disrupting substitutions can be for the cooks so when asked if anyone had dietary restrictions, I said no.

I ate everything and also had wine with dinner plus the apple brandy after dessert. I’ll share my entire dining experience at Eleven Madison Park another time, but for now, that dinner got me to eat what I’ve had to avoid.  Now I find it harder to resist eating bread, chips, noodles, and ice cream.

-B