Category Archives: adventures

Oct 08 2012
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adventures

marathon watching

This weekend was full. Full of plans, full of time with friends, full of food and fun…but definitely not full of sleep. Naoto’s college friend Mark was in town to run the Chicago Marathon. Sunday morning, we crawled out of our cozy beds before 6am and took the train into the city with Mark’s parents to cheer him on. We met up with Mark’s wife & his old friend Brian in the city. I was everyone’s tour guide because they were all first timers and I am a seasoned marathon spectator. Naoto has run six Chicago marathons and I’ve been around for five of them. The first year was quite an experience chasing Naoto around the city, being so excited when we saw him and being so disappointed when the timing didn’t work. By the second one, I had a better plan…and I now have the whole thing perfected…at least for me–solid viewing spots in the beginning, the middle and the end that are close to bathrooms (SO important) and coffee and snacks (also important).

It was freezing, so we were all bundled up in our puffy winter coats with hats and mittens. (Hello, winter…thanks for arriving with gusto on the day I planned to spend outside!) We got downtown early enough to see the elite runners (pictured above) and wheelchairs (pictured below) pass. The elites are an amazing sight to see–the winner finished all 26.2 miles in 2 hours and 4 minutes…a shorter time than most people finish the first half. They glide through the entire race, almost as though their feet aren’t even touching the ground. (Most runners, especially by the end, are plodding along with heavy feet.) Naoto used to joke that by the time he finished the marathon, the winner was on the flight to the next race.

After the race we all went to Miller’s Pub for a post-running (& spectating) lunch. It’s amazing how you can work up such an appetite watching so many runners! Here’s Team Mark (minus me):

After lunch, we came home, I took a nap and then we turned around and went back into the city to meet up with everyone for dinner. It was a whirlwind of a day (and a whirlwind of a weekend!) but well worth it to see old friends.

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Sep 28 2012
2 Comments
adventures, what's for dinner

Kikuko Salad

When we traveled to Japan together last year, Naoto & his family introduced me to many new tastes, textures and flavor combinations. Some were pretty scary (I remember you, abalone!), some were pretty delicious (mmm…a hot dog surrounded by a flaky crust) but some were unforgettably tasty combinations that Naoto & I can recreate at home. This salad, which we named the Kikuko salad after my mother-in-law, is one of those crazy good combinations.

 

Kikuko salad

a head of iceberg lettuce

an 8oz package of kaiware (also known as radish sprouts and can be found in Asian grocery stores or substituted with pea sprouts found more commonly in regular grocery stores)

2 tomatoes

bran flakes (yes, the regular kind you find in the cereal aisle)

Kewpie mayonnaise (found in Asian grocery stores, I’m not sure there is a substitution for this…Japanese mayonnaise is slightly sweeter, richer and smoother than regular mayo)

 

Chop the iceberg lettuce into bite-sized pieces and put into serving bowl. Cut the sprouts in half and add in with the lettuce and mix well. Slice the tomatoes and place on top of the salad.

The bran flakes and Kewpie mayo are added at the table. Think of it like croutons and salad dressing.

 

If you’re anything like I was when this was placed before me at my mother-in-law’s table, you’re thinking:

What? Breakfast cereal on a salad? With mayonnaise?

But I’m serious when I say try it…because it’s delicious! The iceberg lettuce is crisp and fresh. The kaiware is slightly spicy, like a tiny mild radish. The tomatoes are bright and juicy. The bran flakes are sweet and crunchy. And the mayo is creamy and rich. Kikuko salad covers all of the taste bases.

If you try it, please let me know what you think! And…do you have any weird food combinations that you enjoy (but maybe others question)? Please share!

 

P.S. I’ll be back next week with a new Little Red Toolbox! It’s another Honor Flight week and I’m up to my ears in volunteer emails and veteran letters!

P.S. (part 2) Kewpie mayonnaise does contain MSG…so if you’re sensitive to that sort of thing, use sparingly. I personally have a numb tongue right now…

 

 

 

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Sep 26 2012
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adventures

a trip to the Japanese market

We make a trip to the Japanese grocery store, Mitsuwa, about once a month. It’s only about a thirty minute drive away from our home but it’s sometimes hard to get out there, so when we go, we go all out! We spend as much time as we want perusing the grocery aisles and picking out new treats to buy. I love Japanese snacks and sweets. Some of my favorites are pictured above. Salad Pretz are skinny “biscuits” that have a savory salad flavoring. Happy Turn (the blue bag) is a rice cracker with a really unique powdered flavoring on it…it’s hard to pinpoint what it tastes like, but it is delicious. On our last trip to Japan, I ate a snack bag of Happy Turn every day and I brought back six family-sized bags. (To be fair, a family-sized bag in Japan is much like a small serving by American standards.) Since then, Mitsuwa started carrying it so I don’t have to be a snack hoarder anymore. This bag of Happy Turn is a special “summer edition”. I’m not sure if that means it tastes different, or just that there is a fun beach scene on it…and my translator wasn’t very much help. Pocky (pronounced Pokey) is another skinny biscuit-style snack, but it’s sweet and not salty. It comes in all sorts of flavors (a few kinds of chocolate, strawberry, coconut…). This was the first time I’ve tried the mint–so good! (The box is actually empty because I couldn’t help myself.) And the blue tube is Ramune candy. I’ve been eating this candy since before I knew Naoto and like Happy Turn, it’s hard to pinpoint the taste…kind of like Sprite, but different.

Naoto loads up on Japanese cooking staples like rice, natto (fermented soybeans…definitely an acquired taste–and one that I will never acquire!) miso, tea, ramen noodles and vegetables. And we always check out the bottled beverages to see if there are any new flavors of Calpico, a milky, tangy beverage–we like lychee the best.

While Naoto pays for the groceries, I head to the book store and spend a massive amount of time painstakingly deciding which stickers and paper-y things to buy. This time, I bought some teeny cat stickers, some matryoshka doll stickers (I use them to highlight dates in my paper calendar…the little hole encircles important dates perfectly!), animal index stickers, petite to-do notebooks, and colorful cat gift enclosures.

A trip to Mitsuwa is always followed by a stop at our favorite Japanese restaurant, Izakaya Sankyu. (Sankyu deserves its own post soon and it will get one next time we visit.) It’s nice that there’s a small taste of Japan right here in Chicagoland to tide us over until we can plan another trip overseas.

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Aug 29 2012
4 Comments
adventures, gardening, Peggy's Parties

tea in peggy’s garden

My book group friend Peggy has an amazing garden. She knows a ton about plants and flowers and spends the entire winter plotting her summer garden. She also has a vast array of pretty teapots, gorgeous teacups and lovely tablecloths. And, to top it off, she is an incredible baker–her desserts are famous in our book group.

On Tuesday, Peggy invited me over for tea in the garden. It was a perfect summer day to sit among the blooming flowers in the shade of the backyard trees. We enjoyed tea and blueberry coffee cake with a pistachio and coconut topping…soooo good!  And we were visited by several birds–goldfinches, cardinals, a woodpecker–and one teeeeeny tiny brown mouse munching innocently on some plants…until he made eye contact with us and decided he should find another yard.

It’s days like these that make me wish fall wasn’t creeping up on us so soon…

Thank you for a lovely day, Peggy!

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Aug 10 2012
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adventures

Hey Big Guy!

Hot dog stands are a dime a dozen in Chicagoland. Almost every street has one or two, and they all offer pretty much the same thing: Chicago-style hot dog (also known as a Red Hot, an all-beef frank topped with mustard, onion, tomato slices, neon green sweet relish, sport peppers, a pickle spear and celery salt served on a poppy seed bun–absolutely no ketchup allowed) , fries, and sometimes tamales, subs and other sausages. So when Naoto told me about a new “hot dog stand” in neighboring Berwyn–Big Guys Sausage Stand, I was happy to try it out, but I wasn’t flipping my lid over it…I mean, how different could it be than all the others?

Apparently, very different.

As you can tell from the menu, they have every kind of tubed meat available…and sausages aren’t topped with the usual mustard and onions. Big Guys’ toppings are homemade and very inventive. On my first visit I had the Cheddar Braut which comes topped with homemade cheddar sauce, chimmichurri and pickled red onions. What could normally be a very heavy sandwich was actually well-balanced because of the freshness of the chimmichurri and the onions. On my second visit (a few days later) I had the Buffalo Chicken Sausage (pictured on top). This sausage is their own recipe and it is pretty spicy, but it’s nicely cooled down by the bleu cheese and the veggies. I cannot wait to try the Italian Chicken Sausage (also Big Guys’ own recipe) and the Bacon Beer Cheese Soup (maybe when the weather cools off) and quite possibly a tamale…

As with most hot dog stands, there is a counter inside for stand-up eating and picnic tables in the back for a summer sit-down.

Needless to say, I think we’re going to be regulars here.

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Aug 03 2012
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adventures

soaking up summer

When our neighbor friends, Brett & Stacy, asked me to go to the game with them on Wednesday, I hesitated. I had Honor Flight that day, and usually value my sleep between the 3-8am and the 7-11pm shifts. But, I decided that I haven’t been living enough lately, so I made the choice to skip sleep and go do something fun. I am so glad I did.

It was a perfect day at the ballpark…sunny and clear, but not too hot because our seats were in the shade! And we were right behind home plate and high enough to see everything and enjoy a breeze! We couldn’t have asked for anything more–except maybe a win for the home team!

For those of you unfamiliar with Wrigley Field, the scoreboard is the famed part of the ballpark. The board is still updated manually by actual humans who move giant number placards in place for each run. Don’t you think that would be such a fun job?

Speaking of fun jobs, I’ve always thought it would be an honor to be a part of the grounds crew at Wrigley. Yes, in reality it would be a hot job, and quite stressful having to meticulously maintain the beautiful grass and ivy…but how amazing would it be to roll out the giant tarp for a rain delay! (I also realize that the dead viola and fruitless tomato plant on my balcony makes my gardening resume less than ideal for a career in maintaining a well-known field.)

The Cubs usually have a famous person sing the 7th inning stretch. This time, it was former pitcher Steve Trout. See how close we were to the press box?

See how clear and blue the sky was? I’m so glad I chose to see it instead of sleeping the day away! When my head hit the pillow Wednesday night (or really, Thursday morning) I felt like I had soaked up every moment.

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Jul 05 2012
1 Comment
adventures, summer manifesto

Fireworks

Naoto & I ventured out to the Forest Park fireworks show tonight. I hate crowds. Anything everyone wants to do, I would rather avoid–the only exceptions: a really good concert and fireworks. We didn’t take any chairs, we just stood in the community center parking lot (away from the little “festival”) and saw everything. I took my camera and tried to capture some of the magic.

 

Happy Birthday, America!

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Jun 13 2012
9 Comments
adventures, gardening, summer manifesto, thoughts

summer manifesto

This summer I will:

* eat watermelon

* dine outside (whenever possible)

* read outside every morning (aka turn off the Today Show and go outside…and reading of blogs doesn’t count!)

* find the ice cream truck at least once (We found one in Iowa last weekend and a Bomb Pop has never tasted better!)

* tend to my garden daily (no dying plants in September!)

* raise mint & basil for drinks and dinners

* try 3 “classic” cocktails (1 down with my Tom Collins last weekend!)

* learn to use my new camera (my class starts July 2nd!)

* take walks with my new camera & PRACTICE

* host a little “salad party” for our friend/neighbor Karen

* document summer & FINISH my summer minibook

* wear sunscreen & sunhats when I’m outside

* start & finish our master bathroom remodel

* finish the living room

SO excited for summer. SO excited to get some things done AND relax a little bit too. What about you? What is on your summer manifesto?

Jun 12 2012
9 Comments
adventures

iowa is the new hawaii

Last weekend, we took a little vacation. To Iowa. Three days on a farm with good friends, farmland adventures, classic Midwestern food and friendly cows…

Last year, our friends, Erin & Jason (along with their son Frank) left Chicagoland for the hills of eastern Iowa to live on the family century farm. The farm has been in Jason’s family for over one hundred years, so they all moved back to live on the land of the previous generations.

On Friday, we went on a happy hour river cruise and had dinner at the Red Top Supper Club. Have you ever eaten in a supper club? It was kitschy and oh so filling…We sat down to a plate of sweet rolls, a huge relish tray and cracker basket. The relish tray consisted of potato salad, beets, crudites, corn relish, carrot salad, bread & butter pickles, pub cheese and braunschweiger (I did not eat this.) Our meals came with soups & salads (with the salad dressings served at the table). Our dinners had names like schnitzel and chicken cordon bleu. I enjoyed a delicious Tom Collins. When we were done eating, a small plate of tiny pies arrived at the table. Most people end their meals with Brandy Alexanders or Grasshoppers or some other kind of ice cream drink…and as much as I wanted one, my stomach could not hold another bite of Midwestern richness…After dinner, we walked around Dubuque and went back to the farm and sat around a fire and drank some homemade raspberry wine. Jason’s dad is a total Renaissance Man, and his raspberry wine is delicious–not too sweet like most homemade wines.

On Saturday, we headed out to the Farmer’s Market and went up the Fenelon Place elevator. The elevator is similar to a street car, except it takes you up to the top of a giant hill in downtown Dubuque. It is said to be the shortest, steepest scenic railway.

Later that afternoon, we went back to tour the farm. When he was growing up, Jason lived on a working farm with dairy cows. Now the land is rented out to a local dairy farmer who uses the land for a place to graze some of his future dairy cows. It was mating season. There were two bulls on the farm and one was, shall we say active…twice…during the tour…with two different cows. (He didn’t even take a cigarette break.) Nature is alive in Iowa!

Naoto was all smiles here. He’d never been so close to a cow before. But he started getting a little nervous when they began surrounding us.

After the tour, Jason grilled some pork chops and fresh asparagus. (The pink Cointreau Coolers were replaced with Miller High Lifes soon after this picture was taken.)

When the sun went down, Jason expertly built a fire and we roasted marshmallows and made smores and drank more raspberry wine and just had a perfect close to a relaxing vacation. I joked during our drive that Iowa is the new Hawaii, but this vacation was filled with idyllic weather, good food, gorgeous views, old friends and happy adventures…without the jet lag and the long plane ride. For us this summer, that’s just about perfect.

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