The picture is blurred, but I can still smell the fragrance of summer–hints of freshly-cut grass and traces of laundry spinning in the dryer. The trade wind breeze rustles through the tangerine tree in the corner of my backyard. Tip-toeing onto the creaky, wooden fence, I catch a glimpse of the fading sunset over the harbor below. The picture is clearer now. The last arms of the sun’s rays melt into the ocean, soon to be replaced by a pink-hewn sky, as if a child would smear his sketchpad with rose and violet watercolors. The canvas sky prepares itself for a new transformation–a backdrop of twinkling stars.

Goodbye sun, goodbye summer…

Though my favorite season is gone for now, I’m already filled with excitement for the sights and scents of fall–green leaves becoming golden amber and deep crimson, the smell of wood crackling under a cozy fire, hot chocolate and a warm blanket, and friends gathering over a warm and hearty, crockpot meal.

Inhale, exhale.

Hello Fall : )

Just a note to say I haven’t forgotten about this blog; I know it’s been awhile, but I hope to post again soon : )

Wow, it’s almost June!! I’ve had little time to blog in the past month and a half, but I’ve cooked, baked, and eaten a lot in that period and I just wanted to capture all of the deliciousness in pictures. So without further ado, put on your bibs (can’t say I didn’t warn you!).

Kalua pig / BBQ chicken plate lunch at a Hawaiian place in Portland…

Can’t forget the poi!! If you’re unfamiliar with this paste-like substance click below for more information about my favorite Hawaiian starch!

Loco moco…

Red Mill bacon deluxe burger…

Filet mignon and mashed potatoes at Capital Grille…

Sushi platter at Seastar…

More after the break…

Now for some home cooking – fresh ingredients from Pike…

More good stuff from the market – fresh baguette, Muscat grapes, and brie…

Main course: Alaskan halibut over tomato+spinach w/roasted fingerling potatoes; wild mushroom (shiitake, black trumpet) ragout…

Oyster mushroom risotto (my first risotto attempt! I didn’t have cheese, so I incorporated some creme fraiche – yum!). Next time I’ll use more liquid; the risotto dried out a little bit by the time I took this photo…

Chocolate crinkle cookies…

Cupcakes! The theme was UW + Spring

Ok, I think that’s enough for now. If you’re concerned for my health, rest assured knowing I recently purchased my very first bike, and with consistently warm weather and blue skies approaching, I will be happily riding the summer away : )

It was love at first bite when I tasted Trophy’s Triple Chocolate cupcake a couple years ago, and from then on I became a Trophy fan for life. As such, I’ve never been adventurous enough to step out of my comfort zone and order other flavors (aside from my second fav, Red Velvet). Nor have I really ventured outside of Trophy to get gourmet cupcakes for that matter (save for maybe two exceptions as far as I can recall). When I like something, I stick to it.

This past weekend I had the chance to explore some of West Seattle and ended up at Cupcake Royale, another popular cupcakery/cafe, to do some reading. Initially, I felt like a guilty, cupcake hypocrite for being there (it would appear I was betraying my Trophy allegiance!), but then my adventurous side kicked in and told me that I should expand my cupcake horizons. In fact, I’d actually tasted some of the Cupcake Royale lineup before (vanilla with choco frosting and even the famous once-a-year Deathcake Royale), courtesy of my co-workers, and had favorable impressions of them; however, Trophy was still the clear winner in my mind…

Well there I was, faced with a decision: which flavor to choose? I had to pick something that could provide more wow factor than the plain vanilla or chocolate cupcakes I’d sampled before. Two flavors caught my eye: Red Velvet and Salted Caramel. Red Velvet was a comfort choice, a safe choice; I’d fallen for the flavor a couple years ago and enjoy it in any cake form, so I knew I’d probably like this one. Then I turned to the Salted Caramel. Now I’m not a big fan of caramel; in fact it’s only on rare occasions that I’ll eat it (specifically, in a Twix bar, swirled in ribbons into Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food ice cream, or as in *drool* Dahlia Lounge’s creme caramel), but at that moment my inner gumption kicked in. “I’ll have the Salted Caramel.”

I walked back to my table, pink plate in hand. Did I make the right choice? Hmm, well it certainly looked delicious. Cutting the cupcake into shareable portions, I took my first bite. Moist. Very moist. Deliciously moist. Moister than Trophy? Ohh yum.

Then the caramel frosting kicked in – not completely what I was expecting, but I liked it. It wasn’t like the caramel I’m used to – that overly sweet, stuck-to-your-teeth, chewy stuff – but rather more refined, sophisticated…buttery. Mmmm. Caramel? Not a fan. Caramel frosting? Yes, please. Lastly, my taste buds got a hint of the chocolate curls and fleur de sel (salt); what a pleasant surprise and a wonderful contrast to the sweet buttercream caramel! But my tongue could not get over that delicious, moist, chocolate cake…

Wow. I could eat this again. I WOULD eat this again.

Now two days later, I’m still thinking about that Salted Caramel. I can’t say for certain that I’d choose it over Trophy’s Triple Chocolate, but it is definitely up there in my elite cupcake league. Also, my cupcake favoritism isn’t so one-sided anymore; I admit that Cupcake Royale has won over a little bit of my heart. And though I don’t have a direct comparison on Trophy vs. Cupcake Royale (perhaps I’ll have to make this a battle of the Red Velvet), I realize after thinking about things more, that I prefer Trophy frosting to Cupcake Royale’s (despite how delicious that caramel buttercream was) and Cupcake Royale’s cake (omg, moist!) to Trophy’s – marry the two and I think you’d have THE perfect cupcake….Trophy Royale anyone?

ETA: After perusing the Cupcake Royale website, I found out that the Salted Caramel was created in honor of President Obama’s love for Fran’s salted caramels – hmm, a cupcake worthy of the president must indeed be special : )

The seared ahi I shared was part of a trio of ahi appetizers (pupus) including Ahi Poke and Spicy Ahi Tostada (second picture) – yum yum! The poke brought back images of potlucks back home – family and friends gathered for a picnic at the beach, tako and ahi poke accompanying the boiled peanuts and other snackies. Of course the food at Palisade was more deluxe, but savoring each bite seemed to evoke the nostalgia of home. Even the physical menu itself had some Hawaiian print patterns on it….

Well, back to the meal…I very much enjoyed the rest of dinner, including my caesar salad, king salmon, sample bites of the wagyu steak and prawns, and of course, dessert. The chocolate mousse cake was so very rich, but I balanced the intensity with some bites of delicious fruit sorbet. For a moment, I was again brought home after tasting the guava-passionfruit sorbet, which reminded me of POG (passion orange guava), a favorite drink back home : )

All in all, I had a wonderful evening of eating and celebrating (and reminiscing!), and I look forward to the next occasion : )

Check out the new redesign:

Ah, Valentine’s Day, that over-commercialized, dreaded-by-many, possibly-sappy, day of love and cupid and hearts…lots and lots of hearts. But I’ve never been one to complain, especially if there’s chocolate involved : ) Last year, I made truffles (quite successfully, though I spent entirely too much time trying to perfect and prettify them). This year, I was short on time yet still wanted to make something cute and valentine-sy, so on a whim, I grabbed what I had in the cupboard – brownie mix and sprinkles. There was also a block of cream cheese in the fridge (I usually keep some on hand) – perfect for cream cheese frosting.

In less than an hour, the apartment was filled with delicious smells, and as I waited for the brownies to cool, I whipped up a batch of frosting. Taking a cookie cutter to the brownies, I formed heart shapes, then frosted each and shook some mini heart sprinkles on top. Lastly, I placed the finished brownies into some plastic bento box containers so they could be displayed like showpieces.

The result was better than I had imagined. The final thing left to do was grab a piece of extra brownie, spread some frosting on it, and *om nom nom nom* cookie monster style : P

To make up for the absence of curry photos, I’m posting some drool-worthy images that I’ve been meaning to upload for awhile; these were from my trip home during Christmas.

The first few are from my family’s new year’s day lunch. Hamachi (yellowtail) and Maguro (tuna) sashimi:

Onaga (red snapper):

Garlic shrimp:

Okay this one is a tribute to fans of natto, the stinky, sticky fermented beans that you either love or hate (I side with the latter). My friends love this stuff, and this is just one iteration of these beans in curry:

Spam and egg sushi (now this I find appetizing, mmm mmm):

And last but not least, my favorite shave ice from Ice Garden (#16 with oatmeal – tapioca + mochi balls + chocolate syrup)! Sounds gross but it’s soooo good; you just need to try it:

Camellia Buffet (all-you-can-eat korean BBQ):

Pepper’s Place (mushroom + pepper philly cheesesteak):

Curry House Coco Ichibanya (mabo tofu curry):

Ichiriki (dinner nabe and ujintoki [green tea shave ice]):

Genki Sushi (ahi poke nigiri – would’ve posted the spicy ahi but ate it too quickly to get a pic):

Goma Tei (tan tan chicken ramen):

Alan Wong’s (crab cakes):

I have more to post, but for now will let your eyes take a break…