On Sunday my friends took me out for afternoon tea at the British Museum. It was a present to celebrate my 30th birthday. I don’t know what you think when you read those sentences. Maybe “oooo” or “nice” or “how British” or even, “yawn.” But for me, it meant everything. One year ago I had been permanently in London for a month (we moved in March but then I had to go back to DC to do some stuff so I was permanently here in London starting last summer). After a month I was enjoying London but also feeling a little lost. I was thinking about finding friends, work, and a new life in London. And I hoped very much that I would make some lovely British friends who would want to do afternoon tea. Sure, it’s probably a stereotypical dream, but it was the dream I had.And then I got the job at the Science Museum and I made fast friends with Sarah, who I actually met during the interview process. She is bold, smart, and honest. She’s warm, not shy, generous, and the kind of person you want in your corner when the chips are down. And then we started our induction week and met Abbie, who is kind and friendly with a lovely smile. She’s clever, easy going, optimistic and brushes off frustration with an ease and grace that I envy. Then when we properly started work we met Charlotte who has the most piercing blue eyes and the best deadpan humor. She’s an excellent storyteller, she’s quick witted, good at taking charge and making decisions, and is an absolutely no-bullshit kind of person which is refreshing and fantastic. We started as just work friends and then became a crew. And even though they were my besties I didn’t tell them about my afternoon tea fantasy. I didn’t want them to laugh at me for being a silly American with cheesy dreams.

But, that’s the thing, best friends just know. On my actual birthday they said they wanted to take me out for a surprise and I didn’t bug them about it too much. This was big for me, I’m terrible about ruining surprises. We arranged to get together on Sunday and met at Euston station. From there, we walked through Russel Square which was filled with sun dappled tree and people having picnics, and we went on to the British Museum where they had arranged for us to have tea. YAY!

We had tea at the Great Court Restaurant. If you enter the museum through the main gates you walk into the main atrium of the museum, go up the curved staircase and you’ll  be in front of the restaurant. The skylights of the ceiling make it feel like you’re eating outside and the silhouettes of the birds flying outside overhead make really pretty shadows. The restaurant is pretty cute, and it’s sort of exciting to be surrounded by fantastic art. It’s a lovely setting – and obviously the company was perfection too.

We had the Prosecco afternoon tea. For me, tea is already fancy and lovely but adding Prosecco just bumps it up a huge notch. Also, I think all champagne glasses are elegant but I especially enjoy champagne saucers. I think it’s because they’re like a rare bird – I hardly ever see them in the wild. To me, they’re just for the movies. Sarah said maybe they’re modeled after Marie Antoinette’s breasts. I did a tiny internet search and it seems like maybe not. If you’re curious read about it here.

While I’m on the subject of glassware, let’s also talk about dishes. I love the pattern on all of the crockery. First, green is my favorite color and I think it looked original but still classically fancy. I also loved the combination of floral and bird prints. It was intricate but not over the top. I’m at the age when I look at nice dishes like these and actually think about wanting to own a set. And even, one day being the kind of person who has everyday dishes and good dishes. The picture immediately below isn’t the greatest, but you can see the pattern. Also, I like that Abbie’s pinkie’s sticking out as she picks up her tea. Clearly she’s posh.

Beside Prosecco, we of course had tea. Three out of four of us has elderflower & lemon tea which I loved and thought was the right amount of fruity and floral flavors. Sarah had ginger & lemon. There were also non-herbal options. The tea bags were great with big fat leaves in each sachet. Love that because it makes the flavor so much better. For food, we had a raisin scone and a plain scone. They came with jam and a big jar of clotted cream for the table. Clotted cream is an indulgent revelation. It’s luscious and it’s so easy to dollop a huge helping on to your scone. I should learn what else I can use clotted cream for because it’s tasty.

The sandwiches were small and dainty but full of fresh flavor. My favorite was the smoked salmon in part because the fresh dill was so vibrant. It gave the sandwich a good pop. The cucumber sandwich had the thinnest cut cucumbers and it was perfectly crunchy and refreshing. There was also an egg and a ham sandwich. I thought the cakes were the best part. There was a really rich, nearly bitter dark chocolate cake, an almond cake with a fruity surprise inside, a lemon tart, and then the cream puff. Everyone was beautiful to look at except the cream puff (which is behind the lemon tart with the raspberries on it). Sarah said it looked like the character from Fantastic Four. However, it was very nice – light, soft, and filled with lots of delicious cream. It more than made up for its funny looks.

After lots of food and chatting we went to the shop below. The shop is a lot of fun. There are books, figurines, scarves, jewelry, and all kinds of cool things for gifts. There’s also cheesy stuff like pens that look like soldiers and stuffed toys of Egyptian cats. Whether elegant and beautiful or cheesy and touristy – I think it’s all great. I love taking home a piece of a museum. Charlotte found a really intense connect-the-dot book. All the images were of big buildings and were color coded. I found a cookbook I wanted (of course), it was called A History of Food in 100 recipes. I had some self restraint though and didn’t buy it. Sarah and Abbie read some haikus. And here’s a haiku for them to summarize the day.

Surprise birthday tea
Great friends, yummy cake, and booze
Some dreams do come true

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It was fun being back in the US but also sometimes weird. Here’s why. It was nice sounding like everyone else. I knew that the words, phrases, and structures of my sentences sounded were the accepted vernacular and if I said “pants” no one thinks I mean “underwear.” That might sound silly, because yes we all speak English here, but it was nice really fitting in. It was great to see things that were familiar, even if it was just a highway or a Target. Also the weather was so lovely! Bright blue skies, warm sun, and temperatures read in Fahrenheit. Just kidding, I’m totally getting good with Celsius, but the weather was truly to die for. I loved the changing leaves the sunny weather!

It was weird though to be “home” but  not have working cell phones and have to use an adapter for my hair dryer. I saw a commercial for the new iPhones and the script in the US is almost exactly the same as the UK script, the difference is the actors. It’s weird because, I immediately knew the actors in the UK commercial, but I couldn’t place the American actors. But the weirdest thing was when Ryan and I crossed the street we looked for the cars on the left. THE LEFT. I’m adapting to my environment people! I’m really glad I am adapting, but it was weird to notice it.

The best part of the weekend was getting to see my family and friends. My parents flew down to Raleigh and spent the weekend with us. We also saw a ton of our friends from when we lived in Arlington. I will tell you more about my friends later, as I got some flack for referring them to “friends” and not by name.

We arrived on Thursday after almost getting bumped off of our flight from JFK to Raleigh. It was super stressful but we made it. My parents picked us up and took us to the Angus Barn, a really nice steak house that looks like a cozy country cottage on the inside. I so greatly regret that I didn’t take any pictures because it was a wonderful welcome-back America meal. We had giant steaks, potatoes, greens, and fried apples. We also shared cheesecake, key-lime, pecan, and chocolate chess pies. The steak was so tender and the chocolate chess pie was rich and gooey. Glutinous I know! I highly recommend going there if you want to have a hugely filling American steak dinner.

The next day Ryan had to go do groomsman things, so my parents and I went shopping at Target. I have so missed Target. I love that at Target I can buy everything I need and things I didn’t even know I wanted. I bought nail polish, and Tylenol, and a shower drain cover, and candy and more. Here are some things I didn’t buy, but are examples of why Target and America are awesome – because you can buy anything. In the Halloween section they had skeleton hands salad forks! I also found a HALF GALLON bottle of salsa. A half gallon. That is about the size of my whole fridge. Along with that there was mix for maple bacon cookies (which ordinarily I would buy just to find out about it). Also, who doesn’t want a Ryan Gosling notebook, good for writing out all your hopes and dreams? Best of all, a triple-double pack of Oreos. Ryan was mad I didn’t buy them. So am I. Someone go out and buy them and tell me about them.

My parents and I also walked around by UNC’s campus. We went to the Ackland Art Museum, which was really nice with such an array of stuff. We saw Andy Warhol photos, Greek vases, and Abstract Modernism paintings. I also did a little shopping around the neighborhood. I bought a kitchen towel, which I’m sure will someday be shown here on the blog. And I got an infinity scarf that’s faux-fur on one side and black cable knit on the other. Here’s a selfie of me and the scarf when I was at the JFK airport.

The best thing I did with my parents, was eat some Carolina barbecue. It’s a meal I know won’t be easily replicated here in London. We found the Backyard BBQ Pit. This place is surrounded by large mainstream shopping malls, but it sits there with its unassuming exterior luring eaters in with the amazing smelling smoke billowing out the back. The smoke smells sweet and smokey, and meaty and woody. It was mouth watering. Inside the restaurant is plainly decorated, but the windows are framed with puffy pink curtains and the walls are covered with peoples’ names written in marker. I got the beef brisket, my dad got pulled pork (not pictured), and my mom got the ribs. We all shared and the ribs were the winner, so much so, we went back to buy another round. The meat was so tender and the sauce was rich with a nice tingly spice. It was delightful, and as you can see I spent my time in America eating meat.

Saturday was the wedding! It was so nice to see our friends, Josh, Amanda, Charles, Brad, Haley, Shane, and Molly at Sarah and David’s wedding. You can see them in the photo below (and I know the picture of me and Ryan is goofy, but I sort of like it). But before we go on, let me digress for a second to right a few wrongs. Josh (with the beard) and Shane (top right) were giving me grief about calling them “friends” in past blog posts. Josh used to live across the street from Ryan and me, and he often came over for dinner, so I bet I have called him “friend” in the past. However, I totally gave him credit that time he drove me to the airport when I moved to London. Shane, is more specific and wanted me to say he was there when I made mozzarella sticks. I’ve fixed that blog post, but I’d like the record to show that Shane is also mentioned when I made taco salad and cauliflower gratin.  I know I’m being a bit cheeky about this, but I really appreciate that they read the blog and want to be mentioned. Thank you guys!

The wedding itself was really lovely! It was short and really romantic and personal. The officiant read secret letters the bride and groom had written about why they loved each other. It was very sweet and tender. It was clear they also thought about every detail to make it a beautiful day. From the favors, to the paper products, to the decor – it was all beautiful. My favorite elements were the sequined table cloths and the amazing flower displays. This might not make any sense, but the flowers were like sculptures and flowed like waterfalls. It was beautiful!

I had such a blast catching up with our friends, eating lots of cake, and dancing. When the wedding came to an end we didn’t want the party to stop. We headed over to Goodfellows and promptly realized we’re no longer college kids. It was loud, we sat in a corner booth, and the strobe light was shining in my eyes – but it was still fun. It was comfortable and I felt warm and fuzzy about them all. I was so happy to hang out with people we loved. Hopefully next time we can get them all to London.

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Part of the reason I love Rome is that I studied abroad there seven years ago during my junior year. Living in Rome was the first time I was away from home for so long and the first time I lived in a city. I ate so much pizza, pasta, and gelato. My roommates and I also cooked dinner together almost every night and befriended the local shop owners. We’d buy the fresh pesto and the guys in the store would give us free chocolate. My roommate Inga became one of my best friends, and with our upstairs neighbors Charlie and Michelle, we tore up the city.

We toured all over and took lots of day trips to nearby gardens and beaches. We went dancing at Coyote Bar in Testaccio, which depending on your point of view is a bar that is super authentic/divey/sketchy. We befriended the DJ and he’d let us dance on the stage and he’d play any song we liked. My classes were also awesome. I took Italian, Classics, and two art history classes. My art classes were mostly outside touring churches, museums, and ruins. It was all the best parts of college amplified. I remember going out dancing, coming home at 6am to the fruit vendors opening their stands. My friends and I went to bed for about three hours and then went to meet an Italian friend of a friend who was going to show us a church. Hope you enjoy the throwback pictures – try not to judge the duck face.

I also love Rome because it is where I fell in love with Ryan. He and I had been dating for less than two months when I left for Rome. I was sad to leave him and worried about what was going to happen. But it all worked out. Ryan had studied in Rome the year before me and set me up right. He lent me guidebooks to the city. He lent me The First Man in Rome, a historical fiction book about the Roman Republic, which sparked my interest in the city’s history. He also made me a map and marked off his favorite places to eat and tour. We also talked over Skype every day (and I had a headset like a telemarketer). We even met up in Spain for spring break. When I left Rome, I couldn’t wait to one day come back together.

Anyway without further ado here are pictures from this weekend’s trip. We took the bus from Ciampino to Termini and then walked to our rental flat in Campo dei Fiori.

We dropped our bags and then stopped for pizza. It was glorious! So crunchy, the ingredients so fresh, and also so tasty!

After that we decided to hike over toward the Vatican. We passed Castel Sant’Angelo. And we admired St. Peter’s Basilica and the beautiful piazza designed by Bernini.

But our real reason for heading that way was to eat at Old Bridge Gelato. It is the best gelato we have ever had. The places is a small hole in the wall on the way to the Vatican Museum’s entrance. It doesn’t look like much, but for €2 you can have heaven.

We then walked over toward Ryan’s old place. We sat one some nearby steps and people watched. We also went to the grocery store and loaded up on Kinder chocolates, lemon Fanta, and buffalo mozzarella. Ryan made me laugh so hard that I spit out soda (and then people stared at us).

After that we went back to Campo dei Fiori and got dressed for dinner. We went to Alfredo e Ada, a place I went to seven years ago with my art history TA and his friend who were visiting Rome. The restaurant  is down a windy road, it is cozy, and the interior is wood paneled. They have a small menu, written on the paper table cloth, that lists just a few options for first, second, and side courses. It’s simple and with some of the best cooked pasta I’ve had.

The next day we walked our butts off. I did a rough Google mapping of what we did, and we walked somewhere around 13 miles. We walked around the grounds of Villa Borghese, we looked down on the Piazza del Popolo, we ate pizza at Ryan’s favorite shop Pizza Rustica. And we walked to the Spanish steps and down Via del Corso and looked in the shops.

Then we went to the Forum. As students Ryan and I used to visit the Forum all the time. Visiting used to be free, but now it costs €12 for the Forum, Colosseum, and Palatine. We were sad that it wasn’t free anymore, but we were happy to pay the price. We also saw some new ruins we hadn’t seen before.

After that we headed to the Colosseum, which was so much better than I remembered. I didn’t remember being able to go up as high as we did. The stairs were really steep but worth the climb. They had a small museum exhibit about the inner working of the Colosseum and they showed how animals were lifted into the arena. They also had skeletons of bears, wolves, and boars! It was crazy.

For dinner we crossed the Tiber and went into Trastevere. We ate at Carlo Menta, which was where my friends and I used to go. The food is pretty good and the price is amazing. Instead of both ordering a first and second course, Ryan and I decided to share three pastas. We had pesto gnocchi, carbonara, and cacio e pepe. The pesto was so good and I realized I haven’t had good pesto since the last time I was in Italy.

After dinner we walked around Trastevere and it brought back so many memories! Ryan and I walked from dinner to my old apartment building. It reminded me of walking home from school, of going out for breakfast at a nearby cafe, and the time Inga and I tried to play Italian Bingo but couldn’t figure out how to do it. To get to my apartment you used to have to walk through a dirt lot and alley way. Today, it is under construction and being paved. It looks much nicer, but I sort of missed the grit and scary charm (below is a before and after). The apartment building itself looks like the same and still has the same graffiti. It was great fun checking it out and reminiscing about what it was like the first day we arrived.

On Sunday we decided to be more low key. We spent a lot of time at the Pantheon, which is my favorite building in Rome. It is an architectural marvel. I just love it. Inside is a perfect sphere! You could fit a giant basketball inside. Also creating the dome with an oculus – just freaking genius.

We also spent some time at Piazza Navona eating mozzarella and people watching.Before dinner we went to Lungo Il Tevere, a summer festival along the Tiber. Then we went back to Trastevere for dinner. I like Trastevere a lot because there are so many vendors selling jewelry, art, and nonsense things. There are also lots of outdoor restaurants where you can just look around and absorb the wonderful city. It’s a busy and vibrant area. Monday was our last day. We visited Santa Maria Maggiore and a few other sites. We made sure to eat more pizza and gelato. Also, we found shady spots and relaxed. I loved just being in the city, looking at the beautiful buildings, and feeling like a part of the Rome. I made Ryan promise me that would come back every 7-10 years forever. I continue to love Rome.

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My mom and Ryan’s mom organized a going away party for us this weekend. It was wonderful to be surrounded by many of our family and friends. I felt so loved and was really touched that people made the trip out to send us off. And I liked having so many different groups of people together. I felt warm and fuzzy, but I also got a bit weepy. With so many people supporting and encouraging us, what can’t we accomplish, even if we are far away? But, being far away… I will miss so many things and so many people. So I cried a bit. But not too much.

The party itself was lovely. My mom got us the most BEAUTIFUL cake. She ordered it from Samantha of Sweet Eats Cakes. My family is a little obsessed with her. Samantha made Ryan and my wedding cake, and in total, to this day, she’s made us five cakes. We love Samantha because her pricing is affordable, she is so flexible and easy to contact, and most importantly her cake is so delicious. Each slice of incredibly moist cake has four layers, which means tons of cake and more space for frosting. She makes great fruit purees and a chocolate ganache. What blows my mind is her butter cream! The frosting is light in texture but so deeply infused with flavor. Oh man, Ryan and I will miss her cakes.  Below is my Sweet Eats Cakes photo collage. 

Our going away party cake had three tiers. The bottom tier was decorated to look like Hershey, Ryan’s home town. The second tier was Baltimore, my home town. And the third tier was London, our future home town. The cake was so intricate with recognizable buildings from each city’s skyline. Even better, each tier was a different flavor! There was chocolate and hazelnut, yellow cake with oreo butter cream, and yellow cake with lemon butter cream and raspberry puree.  I made sure to eat all three flavors.

Ryan and I also walked away from the party with a great haul of gifts to remind us of home and get us ready for London. We got Nationals and Ravens gear, cookbooks, and guidebooks. We also got a ton of snack food. A picture of our snack mountain is below. Did you know there’s no peanut butter in London? Or marshmallows? Or graham crackers? That’s according to the internet, so I don’t know for sure. But I have a hard time believing that the country of London lives without smores. How could that be?

I’m not sure, but I’ll be sure to scour the grocery stores and once I’m there and let you know. And so the countdown begins. 5 days for Ryan, and a little less than 2 weeks for me. England here we come!

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Happy Three Kings Day! If you’re not familiar with Three Kings Day, it’s also called the Epiphany and you can read about it here. To summarize though, Three Kings Day is the 12th day of Christmas and it’s when the three kings (or wise men) found Jesus and brought him the gold, frankincense, and myrrh. It’s a holiday celebrated by lots of different cultures, especially in Latin America.

To celebrate this year, I decided to have a dinner party for 10 people in our tiny apartment. I invited three of my former coworkers, their significant others, my parents, and my brother. It was a tight fit (Charlotte and Craig had to bring chairs and a table), it was a little hot (I had to open the sliding door), and we used every single dish we own – but it was a blast and I’m so glad to have thrown a little party to catch up with friends and family.

And boy did we cook up a storm! In truth, Ryan and my mom did most of the fancy cooking. Together we made sangria, coquito (a coconut drink I’ll post about later), green beans, arroz con gandules, a beautiful  beef tenderloin, cheesecake, and of course, flan. It was a big meal and pretty delicious. Most importantly, it was fun. It was wonderful having my friends together, and laughing, and chatting. It was a wonderful way to start the new year and celebrate the holiday.

My only regret, is that I took very few pictures. Sigh. I had fancy napkins, red and green place mats, a pretty Christmas tree, and gorgeous food. Seriously, Ryan made a beautiful 5.5 pound beef tenderloin and it was so tender and lovely. The only picture I have is when you see it on the table in the group shot, and the picture I took of my plate when I was 90% finished eating. I wish I had more photos of everything and everyone.

For today’s post, I wanted to highlight my mom’s flan.  If you’re not familiar with flan, it’s similar in flavor to a creme brulee but instead of a hard sugar topping, it has a gooey caramel topping. It’s a custard that’s sweet, silky, and a bit jiggly. In my mind, this is one of those “magic” recipes that seems hard to figure out. In part this is because her recipe is a stained and ripped piece of paper, there aren’t any instructions, and it is just a list of ingredients and their respective portions.

I also think it’s hard because in middle school my friend Lisa and I made one for Spanish class and we burnt it and didn’t even know it until we tasted it. But, upon watching my mom make this recipe, I’ve decided it is really about patience and confidence. You have to trust your eye and you can’t rush because this takes hours to make well.

Anyway, the work is worth it because it was a big hit. My friend Ashley was skeptical that she would like it, but then after a bite she let out a gleeful, “Ooo, I like flan!” And Craig was the “flan man” and served everyone’s portion with gusto. There was none left at the end of the night. So, I know that holidays are over and you might not have much use for another dessert recipe, but I think you should consider giving this one a try. It will change what you think about flan.

Note: Scroll all the way down for printer friendly, more condensed recipe without photos. 

Ingredients:

Double boiler

4 eggs

1/2 cup + 1 tbsp sugar

1/2 cup milk (you can use any kind of milk as long as it’s cow’s milk, soy milk does not work)

12oz can evaporated milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

4 tbsp sugar

Directions:

1. Fill the bottom of the double boiler with water. You want the water to be just at the level of the bottom of top of the double boiler (when the two pieces are fitted together). You don’t want the water to be too high, otherwise when you’re cooking steam can get trapped in the flan and ruin it. Heat the water on medium until it comes to a gentle boil.

2. In blender, mix the eggs, sugar (1 cup+1 tbsp), vanilla, evaporated milk, and milk.

3. On another burner, heat 4 tbsp of sugar in the top of the double boiler. This is how you’re making the caramel topping.

4. Stir the sugar regularly. You don’t have to stir it constantly and aggressively, but you need to stir it regularly so it doesn’t burn. Watch the sugar carefully, if it bubbles then you’ll need to start over. Ultimately you want to make a caramel that is light golden brown, not dark. This process can take about 20 minutes. I tell you this so you don’t worry if it’s taking a long time, but don’t wait 20 minutes if the caramel is looking pretty earlier.

4a. So, as you’re stirring, the sugar will start to get clumpy. Use your spoon to squish the clumps. Then it will start to turn light brown. Then it will glisten and liquefy. It will smell like a candy apple. If you feel it’s going too fast, lower the heat. Or, remove it from the heat, stir, and then put it back on the burner. Ultimately you will have a  gorgeous caramel sauce. It’s done when it’s beautiful brown and a dragging spoon leaves a trail behind it.  How the sugar transforms is amazing. Cooking and science are amazing.

5. When it’s done, take the caramel off the heat. Let it sit for a minute or two to thicken.

6. Pulse the custard mixture you have in the blender just to mix it up again.

7. Scoop 1/4 cup of the custard mixture. Put the cup against the side of the double boiler, and slowly, slowly pour the custard on top of the caramel. It will slowly seep out of the cup, down the side, and cover the caramel. Do this again for a second and third time. You’re doing this so that the caramel stays a topping and doesn’t leak into the custard layer.

8. After the second and third time, you can poor a little more quickly. But, still pour it gently against the side of the bowl. Don’t just plop it on!

9. Put the top of the double boiler on top of the bottom of the double boiler (over the bubbling water). If the water starts to bubble too fast, then lower the heat. The middle picture is bubbling too fast, the third picture is slower and gentler.

10. Let it cook until the custard sets and doesn’t wiggle much. To check this you remove the lid of the double boiler, and shake it gently. To get to the finished product takes a LONG time. About 1.5- 3 hours, but maybe more. As you cook, the water will evaporate. When it gets to 1/2 inch of water, add some more hot water and keep cooking.

11. Let cool for one hour.

12. Put it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

13. Take a pie plate. Put it over the flan and quickly and smoothly flip it. The flan will drop out onto the pie plate and be ready to serve. Take a spoon and scoop out any caramel left in the double boiler. Spoon that over the flan.

14. Serve and enjoy!

Messy level: This isn’t too crazy messy, but I think it deserves a three spoon rating. You have to use a blender, double boiler, and pie plate, so there’s a lot of dishes in the end. What’s good though, is that you have lots of time between steps so you can clean as you go and you aren’t left with a big pile at the end.

Flan

 

Print

Prep time

1 hour 30 mins

Cook time

3 hours

Total time

4 hours 30 mins

 

Author: Cooking is Messy

Serves: 12 servings

Ingredients

Custard

• 4 eggs
• ½ cup + 1 tablespoon/ 112 grams sugar
• ½ cup/ 120 ml whole milk (any cow's milk will work, soy won't!)
• 12oz/ 340 gram can evaporated milk
• ½ teaspoon vanilla

Caramel

• 4 tbsp/ 50 grams sugar

Instructions

1. Fill the bottom of the double boiler with water. You want the water to be just at the level of the bottom of top of the double boiler (when the two pieces are fitted together). Heat the water on medium until it comes to a gentle boil. Let it gently boil while you do other steps.
2. In a blender combine the eggs, sugar, milk, evaporated milk, and vanilla. Set aside.
3. On another burner over low heat, heat the 4 tablespoons of sugar (for the caramel) in the top of the double boiler. Stir constantly!
4. Watch the sugar carefully so it does not come to a boil. The sugar will turn from white granules, to small rocks, to smooth liquid. When you have only 1-2 small tiny clumps but mostly liquid remove the heat. Continue stirring for another 30-60 second until you feel it thicken slightly and a spoon dragged through will leave a bit of trail.
5. Quickly re-blend the custard in the blender.
6. Using a ¼ measuring cup, fill it with custard. Press the cup against the side of your double boiler that has the caramel. Slowly pour the custard over the caramel. Going this slow means the custard will sit atop the caramel and not mix in.
7. Once the caramel is totally covered in a layer of custard you can start to pour faster. You can either continue with the measuring cup or you can lean the lip of the blender on the edge of the double boiler and slowly pour. Whatever you do, don't just plop the custard on!
8. Once the custard as been completely added, put the top of the boiler over the bottom with the boiling water. Cover with the lid.
9. Watch the water. If it's bubbling too fast lower the heat. You want it to be a continuous boil but not aggressive and bopping.
10. Cook until the flan wobbles slightly (like jello) when you gently shake the pan. This can take between 1.5 and 3 hours. Depends on the amount of water you have and how high the heat is. Check on the flan every 30-45 minutes. Check it by gently shaking the pan to test the wobble. Check it also by making sure you have at least ½ inch of water.
11. When finished cooking, remove the lid and the bottom of the double boiler. Let cool for 30 minutes at room temperature. Wipe the lid dry so condensation won't ruin the flan.
12. Cover the flan with the lid and put in the fridge for at least one hour, but ideally until you're ready to serve.
13. Remove the lid, put a plate or pie plate over the double boiler. Holding them both firmly, quickly flip the double boiler over so the flan will fall out onto the plate.
14. Spoon out any caramel left behind in the double boiler.
15. Slice and serve

3.5.3208

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Last Saturday I was hanging out with my friends, Mala and Anna, and we decided to try out the chocolate pasta. I’m lucky to have very adventurous friends – although maybe now they’ll be more wary of my cooking. We decided to try the pasta, sans bacon, since I didn’t have any. We were going to go basic: oil, crushed red pepper, maybe a little Parmesan.

So I boiled the water and dropped in the pasta. The  kitchen filled with the most decadent chocolate aroma. It smelled like hot chocolate. But that is not descriptive enough to truly convey how great it smelled. It smelled like hot chocolate on Christmas. It smelled like when you have hot chocolate and curl up with a blanket and a book on a rainy day. It smelled like when you’re a kid and you come in from a long day of sledding and you’re face is pink and cold and your mom has hot chocolate waiting. It smelled like the best hot chocolate of your life.

And that’s probably the worst part because that smell was a lie. A horrible, disappointing, lie. Smell and taste are supposed to be so intricately linked! If a dish smells good, then that is supposed to indicate that the food will taste good.

After the pasta had been cooking for a bit, I fished out one almost-done chocolate noodle to taste. It was gummy and pretty flavorless – like what I imagine mushy sawdust would taste like. I had read that chocolate pasta doesn’t taste like a candy bar, but that there was still some chocolate flavor. This tasted nothing like chocolate. Now I was worried. I gave half of the noodle to Mala, who very kindly suggested that it wasn’t done yet and we should withhold judgement.

The water was turning a dirty brown. Dark brown, like when you’ve let a tea bag steep for too long. Was that where all the chocolate flavor was? I don’t know, because unfortunately I didn’t taste the pasta water.

But, my bold friends and I powered forward. We drained the pasta, served ourselves small portions, and added our toppings. Crowded around the table, I took my first bite and declared, “this is bad!” Anna tried to be supportive, and said some things along the lines of “it’s not good, but it’s not that bad. It’s not the worst.” 

“No,” I insisted, “this is gross, bad, and a disappointment.”

Mala took one bite and said she wouldn’t eat  anymore. In fact, all three of us agreed we weren’t going to eat more. The pasta was bitter, gummy, and unappealing. It tasted bitter like when you buy very pure, very dark chocolate – but there was no richness or chocolate flavor to counter the bitterness. It gave immediate bad breath and made me want to brush my teeth. We all dumped our bowls into the trash. And then we complained, moaned, and hypothesized about what could have happened.

Did I do something wrong? Maybe. But we all felt like I just boiled pasta, how could that have changed it?

Could it be that it was gluten-free? No, we decided. Each of us had eaten gluten-free pasta before and had never had such disastrous results.

Was it the toppings? I’m not sure, but companies make chocolate bars with pepper. And Anna rightly pointed out that, “oil and cheese make everything better.” Also, we felt like the pasta tasted so bad that even if we had gone with strawberries and whipped cream, it still would have tasted bad.

I didn’t expect chocolate pasta to replace regular pasta. I didn’t expect it to be like eating a candy bar. But, what I’d hoped for was a new flavor, something that would be surprising and delightful.  This was none of that.

Do you know what I did wrong? Or have suggestions on what could have gone differently? Out of intellectual curiosity, I’d love to know.

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However, since grilling is such a big part of this holiday I wanted to share with you some hilarious pictures my mom sent me. As you might know, I have a great love for pig-themed kitchen gear. Last week, she and my brother were shopping and found this pig shaped grill. Yes, that’s right, it’s a pig shaped grill. I like the picture on the right, where you can see my brother looking “under the hood” as if maybe he’d really consider buying such a grill.

Anyway, regardless of what kind of grill you have, or where you cook your food, I wish you and yours a very happy Independence Day.

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Growing up, birthdays were celebrated by opening presents and eating cake first thing in the morning before going to school/work. Naturally, I insisted that Ryan and I do the same. Ryan woke up all groggy and sleepy, but he did sing me happy birthday and shared a piece of cake with me. I made the cake myself: it was yellow cake with a strawberry raspberry filling and a lemon buttercream frosting. Ryan had volunteered to get me a cake, and even said he would make me a cake, but I decided I would have more fun making a cake. I was inspired by a cake we had at our wedding from Sweet Eats Cakes, that was just to die for. My cake wasn’t nearly as good as hers. The frosting and filling (both of which I made!) were yummy but I over-mixed the batter so the cake came out a bit dense. It was tasty, but I had the most fun putting it all together.

Dangerous birthday gifts

After cake I opened presents. Ryan got me a deep fryer! I was so excited because I had been talking about wanting one for about a year. Ryan let me register for one when we were engaged, but no one bought it, because, seriously who needs a deep fryer? It’s not a kitchen necessity, but I thought it would be super fun to have. I mean, who doesn’t want to have carnival themed dinner nights? Think of all the things you can make! Deep fried candy bars, fried chicken, corn dogs, French fries, potato chips, hush puppies, and of course funnel cake. P.S. Mom, please send me your fried chicken recipe!!! Hungry bellies want to try it!

And, to add to the kitchen goodness, my brother got me a crème brulee set, complete with kitchen torch and butane gas. So I now have two ends of the cooking spectrum – I now have the means to makee fancy food like crème brulee and greasy street food like corn dogs. My friend also pointed out that now I’ve moved up from basic appliances to the “dangerous” ones. Using the deep fryer I did have an accident, but not related to the fryer. I’ll get to that in a bit.

But back to the birthday. I went to work and I spent a lot of the day telling museum visitors it was my birthday. After that, my besties from work took me out to lunch at Lincoln, an Abraham Lincoln themed restaurant. It was such a decadent afternoon. The weather was gorgeous and we ate outside, sitting in this cozy both. Seriously, you never see a booth outside, but we were really sitting under a tree lounging on snuggly couches. We all ate so much! We shared brussels sprouts, fries, and chips. I had a lobster cob salad and it had HUGE chunks of lobster. My friends told the waiter it was my birthday and he asked if I was turning 16. Not quite.

Lunch at Lincoln

For dessert we ordered some sweet potato pound cake thing, which sounded suspicious but was really yummy. There was this deliciously rich and decadent sauce we poured on top. The dessert was the only thing I took a picture of, with the exception of my mint julep, which was in a cool copper cup. The other pictures are courtesy of my lovely friend Anna.  I did take about 7 pictures of Charlotte pouring the sauce on the cake. Also, they gave me a free chocolate cake too, so that put my birthday cake total up to 3. Actually, make that 4, because my coworker Jonathan bought be a cupcake too.

Dinner at Quarter Deck

And, as if I hadn’t eaten enough, Ryan took me out for dinner at Quarter Deck. This was what I was most excited about, because we were going to have a steamed crab feast. I love crab picking and it’s truly a staple of summer for me.  We got a table outside, ordered a pitcher of Yuengling and waited for our crabs to arrive. My goal was to eat 14 crabs (because it’s  half my age). The restaurant gives you a bucket so you can put all your unwanted bits inside – but I laid out the crab tops as a marker to see how many I had eaten. I didn’t make my goal, I only ate 12.

I had the best time eating a leisurely dinner outside with Ryan. Some people don’t like crabs because they say it takes forever to get any food. And it does. But you can’t go for crabs really hungry. It’s most enjoyable when you go with the purpose of sharing the evening with someone. We had a few beers, enjoyed the weather, and talked, and got really messy and covered in Old Bay and crab bits.

Demon pig pitcher

I treated myself to a knife skills class at Sur la Table on Saturday. In addition to sushi class, knife skills class is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. I have always been nervous to go though, because I thought I’d be the worst, and incapable of cutting well, and might slice my finger off. Someone did cut themselves in class, but it wasn’t me. Class was pretty cool! I learned a better way to cut a bell pepper, grapes, and an onion. I also learned how to hold the knife better (it’s called a pinch grip). And that instead of lifting my arm up and down to chop, I’m supposed to do more of a continuous rocking motion that follows the shape of the blade. I’m not yet ready to throw knives at a Japanese steak house, but my skills are improving.

When you take a class at Sur la Table you get a 10% off coupon that’s good for a week. I was walking around the store and I caught my eye on a semi-ugly pig pitcher. And I wanted it a lot, but it was $50. I love pigs, and since I was a kid I’ve collected random pig things. I have coasters, a wine stopper, and little figurines, but I could not justify buying a $50 pig pitcher. Ryan also told me it looked “like a demon.” So I consoled myself by buying a pig overmitt and a spatula. (And some other things… there was a sale, what was I to do?!)

On Sunday, I had three of my college friends, Norma, Lynn, and Kim, over for brunch. They live in Maryland, so I made them trek all the way across state lines for some food.  I made an onion and pepper quiche – and I made the crust, from scratch. I also made waffles, bacon, Bloody Mary’s, and I put out a bunch of berries. It was delicious, I got to practice my knife skills, and my friends all teased me that the strawberries looked especially well cut. And, I made all this delicious food, and I didn’t take a picture of one flipping thing. The only picture I took was of my friends on the roof of my building with the Washington Monument in the background.

Do I have too many spatulas?

Also, I’m not sure how it started, but somehow Ryan started giving a speech about how I have too many different kinds of spatulas. I think it was because I was showing my friend Kim my Sur la Table purchases. She is a good and adventurous cook herself, so I thought she’d be interested. But somehow, the spatula situation got out of hand and my friends started calling us “House of Spatula.” They said I should rename my blog “House of Spatula.” Or maybe have a food truck called “House of Spatula.”  Only Kim said it made sense to have so many so I didn’t always have to wash them. And now I feel like every time I cook I should use multiple spatulas to prove that I need so many. My weak argument is that when you see the kitchens of professional cooks they always have tons of utensils and spatulas. The group pointed out that I don’t cook as much as they do. Sure, but you know how they say dress for the job you want, not the job you have? Maybe it’s like that. If I equip my kitchen like a professional chef, maybe I’ll cook like one.

So that was my birthday. It was delicious. And I think 28 is going to be all right because it includes funnel cakes.

College friends and the Washington Monument in the background

I settled on funnel cake as our first deep frying expedition because it’s a delicious treat. But also, it’s low pressure. I didn’t want to start with dinner because what if it was ruined and we are starving after work and then have nothing to eat?! Also, we had practically all the ingredients in the apartment already. And again, funnel cake is delicious.

Funnel cake is also fun. We have it at the fair, at the circus, at the baseball game. There’s just something festive about it. As Ryan and I were making it together, we were silly and dancing and having a nice time. We did have one minor setback that I thought was going to ruin the night. As he was stirring ingredients, I went to put stuff back on the shelves. I placed the flour on the shelf and a can rolled off and hit me in the foot. I yelled in pain, fell on the floor, and cried in a heap. Seriously, I was behaving like a pathetic mess. We were worried I’d lost my nail since that happened to me last year. But I didn’t, so crisis averted. Once we got me off the floor and cleaned up the blood on my foot, we rallied and were back in business. We finished mixing the dough, poured it into the hot oil, and watch with delight as we made our first funnel cakes. We also had our friend Josh over and there was immediate talk about the three of us opening a stand and selling funnel cakes to tourists on the 4^th of July.

This recipe is half of the Williams-Sonoma recipe. It makes about 4 funnel cakes if you use ½ cup of batter per cake. Also, if you don’t have a deep fryer, you can still make this recipe. What you’ll need is a deep skillet or a not-too-deep pot. Maybe like a Dutch oven. Fill it with a few inches of oil and heat until very hot. You can use a candy thermometer to try to make the exact temperature. You just want a few inches of oil so the funnel cake has room to float.

My awesome deep fryer

Ingredients

Canola oil for frying

¼ cup of confectioners’ sugar

¾ tsp cinnamon

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ cup packed brown sugar

Scant ½ tsp salt (scant means don’t fill the tsp all the way)

1 egg and 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

1 ½ cups milk (might need a bit more)

¾ tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Mix confectioners’ sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl. Set aside, this is a topping.
2. Optional: Heat oven to 200°. This is so you can keep funnel cakes warm while you’re still working on making new ones.
3. Pour oil into deep fryer. You will use what feels like a disgusting amount, but it’s ok because you can strain it and reuse it. 
4. Heat deep fryer to 375°.
5. In a large bowl mix together flour, baking powder, salt, and brown sugar.
6. In a medium bowl, mix egg, 1 ½ cups of milk, and vanilla.
7. Add wet ingredient to the dry. If it seems a little thick and will be hard to pour, add some more milk. You shouldn’t have to add anymore than another ½ cup. I think we added another 2 tbsps.
8. Put fry basket into the oil.
9. Transfer batter to a cup with a spout. We used a liquid measuring cup. If you have a funnel, use that! What you want is to be able to pour the batter in ribbons so it makes the funnel cake shape. If it pours in one big blob, it’s not going to look right. Also, it might be obvious, but if you have a funnel, then just pour the batter through the funnel into the oil. I don’t have a funnel, so I needed a cup with a spout.
10. Slowly pour ½ cup of the batter into the hot oil in a thin stream. Try to make a circular pattern. Make sure the batter is poured within the confines of the fry basket.
11. Fry for about 1-1 ½ minutes, until the underside is brown.
12. Flip the funnel cake over. We raised the frying basket out of the oil, then flipped the funnel cake, then dropped the basket back into the oil.
13. Fry for 1 minute more.
14. Lift the basket out of the oil and let drain. If ready to eat, sprinkle with the sugar mixture. If saving, put in the oven to stay warm.
15. EAT IT!!!

Messy level

Low! I’m totally impressed with this deep fryer. The max-fill oil level is much lower than the rim of the fryer so there is no spatter at all. The only mess we made was when we transferred batter from the mixing bowl to the measuring glass. It was really excellent. We didn’t even have to worry about draining the funnel cakes because the basket hangs over the oil and lets it drip there. SO EASY. I love it. I look forward to more frying.

The messy part came from smashing my toe with a can of coconut cream. Be careful!

Update 6/30 – So, I think I should up the messy level to 3 spoons. Cooking it isn’t very hard, but man is clean up some work!!! You have to clean the heating unit, the part with the oil, and the frying basket. Also, if you’re going to reuse the oil, you have to pour it through a strainer into a large jar. And so it’s a lot of steps and a lot of things to clean up afterward.

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Sushi we made during our class at Sur la Table

A trait I get from my father is that when I really want something, but maybe it’s a little frivolous, I take forever to actually jump in and do it. If Papa wants golf clubs or a new television, he’ll research characteristics and prices, he’ll go online and in stores, and he’ll talk about it. He’ll visit, and re-visit stores. And my mom will eventually say, “just buy it!!!”  But he needs to take his time. It’s what makes him feel comfortable. And I’m pretty much the same way. For a long time (like over 2 years, I’m embarrassed to say) I hemmed and hawed over a sushi making class. I wanted to go, but it seemed a little expensive and unnecessary. I mean wouldn’t it be too hard? Wasn’t class too expensive? Would I ever really make it at home? Why did I even want to make sushi? Who would I go with? And so I thought about it. And I researched which places had classes, and I price compared, and menu compared. I did this when I lived in DC, then when I lived in NYC, and then again when I moved back to the DC area. And then, as can be expected, I never signed up. But I talked about it and thought about it a lot. So, I’ve inherited this trait and now Ryan has to deal with my crazy inaction.

And like my Mom, who tells Papa to just buy it, Ryan gave me the push I needed. He suggested to Santa that I might want a cooking class for Christmas. And, Santa, Ryan and my parents came through.  (The same also happened for blooming tea, which I talked about and researched to death, and then my family finally bought it for me and I now have 4 different kinds of blooming tea).

For a Christmas gift my parents bought me a gift certificate to Sur la Table and I used it to sign up for sushi class (after repeatedly asking Ryan if we really should do that class over something else). No more thinking and planning, I was going to make sushi! And I’m happy to say, the class was totally worth it. Thanks Mama and Papa! Is making sushi at home faster or cheaper? No, it’s not. But is it more awesome? Absolutely. And shouldn’t we make the world more awesome? Yes. Now go watch the Kid President (who also wants to make the world more awesome) video I just embedded so you can feel awesome. No wait, finish reading my blog first.

Silicone sushi mat

Ryan and I finally went to class at Sur la Table in February and we made spicy tuna and salmon rolls, and a veggie hand roll. It was much easier to assemble and create than we expected. And after class I called my parents to gush about how fun and amazing it was. And we had so much fun, and so much success that we bought a sushi mat after class. There were two options for sushi mats: bamboo and silicone. Bamboo is the traditional option, but to use it at home you need to cover it with plastic wrap. According to our instructor, bamboo mats are easy to ruin and difficult to clean, which is why you need the plastic wrap. Silicone mats are modern and don’t look as nice, but you don’t need plastic wrap and  you can clean the mat in the dishwasher. We went with the silicone mat.

Prior to class, making sushi seemed like one of those secret mysteries that must be hard to put together. And real sushi masters, I’m sure, do much more complicated things with their ingredients and rolls. But for the average home cook, sushi at home is a possibility. Then, a few after the class our friends Steve and Jess came to visit and suggested we take a crack at making sushi at home. Steve and Jess are great friends to have visit. They’re easy going, but also up to try different things. The main goal being just to have a nice weekend. They’d been to DC before, so were open for less site-seeing and instead  welcomed a weekend of eating and drinking in Arlington. And for us, an eating weekend is becoming the norm. When they visited in New York we spent the whole weekend taking them out for pizza, ramen, and to drink boots of beer in dingy dive bars. Anyway, back in Arlington, we took them to El Chilango, a great Mexican food truck, and to Bayou for beignets. But the highlight was definitely spending the afternoon together making up sushi combinations and gorging ourselves on what we’d put together. It’s a great way to have an adventure and catch up with old friends. Also, making sushi at home allows you to  customize your rolls and create something that’s both delicious and brag-worthy.

I’ve made sushi once more since they came to visit and took more step-by-step pictures that hopefully will help be a guide if you decide to make sushi yourself. I’ll try to be as straightforward as possible, but some things need explanation and stories to show what to do. But I hope you decide to take on sushi at home. It’s a fun activity and even if it doesn’t come out perfectly, it will still taste delicious.

My focus in this post is mostly on the way to make sushi. I’ll leave fillings mostly up to you, but I have included a recipe for spicy tuna. This is sort of a long post, so let’s get started.

Sushi Rice:

Ingredients –

1 1/2 cups short grain rice (You can also buy rice called “sushi rice.” So far, every short grain rice I’ve found also had “sushi rice” written on the packaging)

Rice Vinegar

2 tbsp sugar

2 teaspoons coarse salt

Directions – 

Note – Sushi rice is seasoned! It’s not just plain white rice. The basic instructions are first you cook the rice, then you let it cool a bit, then you season it, then cover the rice to keep it moist. Also, this amount of rice will make about 6 rolls, which equals about 36 pieces.

1. Using a fine mesh strainer, rinse the rice with cold water until the water runs clear. This might take 2-5 minutes. Using your hands to gentle turn and move the rice so you can make sure all the rice is being rinsed off. This step removes excess starch from the rice.

2. Cook the rice according to package directions.

3. While rice is cooking, mix the vinegar seasoning. In a small bowl stir vinegar, sugar, and salt. Stir until sugar and salt are dissolved. Or mostly dissolved, I have a hard time getting the coarse salt to dissolve all the way. Set bowl aside.

4. Once rice is cooked, remove the pot from the heat, let it stand covered for 5 minutes so the rice can cool.

5. Using a large flat spoon (you can also buy a traditional paddle in stores) gentle transfer the rice to a large platter. Traditionally a wood platter is used. In the classroom the instructor used a rimmed baking sheet. I used a glass Pyrex dish. Throughout this whole process you will probably need to rinse your spoon occasionally as rice gets stuck to it.

6. Once the rice is transferred, use your spoon to gently fold the rice over in your dish. This is giving it air so the rice cools a bit. While folding, fan the rice. (Sushi kits often come with fans, but I just used a stiff piece of paper). You want your rice to be cool enough that it doesn’t wilt or melt the nori when they come into contact. But you don’t want it so cold that the rice loses its stickiness. You want the rice to be “tepid,” according to my instructions from Sur la Table. Room temperature is fine, but if it’s a little warm that’s ok. If it’s a little warm the nori might get wrinkly (I had that happen) but the roll can still be made.

7. When the rice is the right temperature pour the vinegar mixture 1 tbsp at a time over the rice. You might not use all the vinegar mixture. You want to distribute the vinegar mixture evenly. Use your spoon to gently fold the rice and coat it all with the vinegar. Continue this until the rice has a sheen.

8. Cover the rice with damp paper towels. You can also use a kitchen towel, but the instructor said that detergent scents and flavors can be transferred through cloth, so paper towels can be preferable.

Fillings:

1. Chop up vegetables into matchsticks. I used red peppers, carrots, radishes, and cucumbers. You can really use whatever vegetables you like. Heck, use whatever you like – string cheese, Twizzlers, pretzel sticks. All of those things could easily be in matchstick form.

Spicy Tuna:

I think the part that makes people nervous about making sushi at home is buying the fish. How do we know what will be good? Am I going to get sick? I can’t make you any promises about the fish you buy, but I can tell you what I know. Our instructor at Sur la Table said that “sushi grade fish” means that it is fish that has been frozen down to a certain temperature so that bacteria will be killed. She said you can ask at the fish counter about what they recommend to use in sushi. She also said some sushi bars, and sushi bars in grocery stores, will also sell you fish.

Ryan, Steve, Jess, and I went to Whole Foods. I asked the man behind the fish counter what we could use for sushi. He told me that he wasn’t allowed to recommend any of the fish for sushi, but that people do it all the time, and in Europe this fish would be considered ok for sushi. So the four of us looked at each other and decided were were going to go for it anyway. We also went to the sushi counter at Whole Foods and I had the most ridiculous conversation where neither the lady nor I understood the other.

Me: Do you have fish we could use to make sushi?

Lady at the Sushi Counter: This is sushi

Me: No, no. I want to make it at home. What fish can I use?

Lady at the Sushi Counter: Sushi is here. You can eat this.

Anyway, I walked away and we bought the salmon and tuna from the fish counter and none of us got sick. Now back to the recipe.

Ingredients: 

4 oz yellow fin tuna

1 tbsp Sriracha

1 – 1 1/2 tbsp mayonnaise (If you can find Japanese mayo – which I can’t! – use that)

1/2 tsp mirin (it’s a liquid and you can find it in grocery store in the “ethnic food” section)

1-2 tbsp finely chopped green onions (more or less to taste)

1 tsp lemon zest

Instructions:

1. For the sauce, mix the ingredients together. Taste. If it’s too hot put in more mayo. Not hot enough, add some Sriracha. Based on my research, basic spicy tuna sauce includes hot sauce, mayo, mirin, and green onions. Mix those basic ingredients to your liking and you’ve got sauce.

2. For the tuna, remove any tough sinewy parts of the fish. In the picture below I’m holding a tough sinewy part. In between the tuna layers there is sinew, but you only really need to remove what is tough (and therefore what would be hard to chew). You can tell what’s tough because when you try to cut, you’ll have some resistance against your knife. There are two ways to remove the sinew. #1 Use a knife and cut the tuna into cubes. You can cut around the tough bits  pretty easily #1 Use a spoon to scrape off the layers of tuna. This will scrape the meet from the sinew and give you small pieces of tuna.

3. Once you’ve removed the tough parts what you want it small pieces of tuna. You can do this by cutting the tuna into small pieces or by scraping the meat using the spoon.

4. Mix the tuna with the sauce. Set aside until you’re ready to fill your roll.

Making the Roll:

Make sure you have a spacious work area. Within your reach you’ll need a sushi mat, nori, the rice, cut up veggies, fish, knife, damp towel, and bowl of water. The first time we made this at home we made an epic mess. The second time I used my giant cutting board as a work space. This way I could spill, drop rice, and make rolls without getting stuff all over my table. To gush for a second, I’m crazy for my huge cutting board. I got it from the Container Store and it’s 20″x15″. Huge rights? It’s great because there’s space for EVERYTHING. Space for cutting, space for what’s on deck to be cut, space for what’s already been cut, and space for the bits that need to be discarded. Sure it doesn’t really fit in the sink, but it does fit in the dishwasher. Gush over. Let’s get rolling.

Sushi rolling set up

1. Place your sushi mat in front of you.

2. Put a piece of nori, shiny side down, on the sushi mat. The bottom of the nori and bottom of the sushi mat should be aligned. The nori is likely perforated. You want the perforation to be parallel to you. You also may want to break off 1 to 1.5 lines so you don’t have too much nori. I like to break off a bit of nori because it had a chewy mouth feel and I don’t want more of that.

3. Using the bowl of water lightly wet your hands. You want a light sheen on your hands. This is so the rice won’t stick to you too much.

4. Grab a baseball size ball of rice and put it in the middle of the nori. Using your fingers gently spread the rice across the nori. You want a thin layer of rice. Grab more rice and fill in any holes so that your whole nori sheet it covered.  If your hands are getting too covered in rice, use the bowl of water to wipe off the rice.

Jess spreading her rice

5. If you want nori on the outside of your finished roll move on to the next step. If you want rice on the outside of your roll, flip the nori over. Now the rice will be touching the sushi mat and the nori will be facing you. About 1/3 of the way up the nori from you, put a thin layer of rice.

6. Place the fillings about 1/3 of the way up the nori (if you are doing rice on the outside, you’re putting your filling on the thin layer you just made in the previous step). Layer your fillings parallel to you. Try not to go crazy, it’s easy to overfill.

This is an example where the nori will be on the outside of the finished roll

7. Put your thumbs under the sushi mat. Put the rest of your fingers on the fillings. Hold the fillings in place as you use your thumb to pull the edge of the sushi mat up and over the fillings. Press gently. What you are doing is creating a seal and locking the fillings in the roll.

8. Check on your roll to make sure it’s sealed. Then, gentle pull the sushi mat over the roll again, but this time keep pulling so you’re rolling the entire sheet of nori. You should not have a log of sushi.

Sushi rolled is sealed! Now to roll it all the way over. This is an example with rice on the outside of the roll.

9. Using a sharp knife cut the sushi into six pieces. You will likely need to use the damp cloth to wipe your knife between cuts. The knife will get very sticky from the rice and fish. I like to cut the middle first, then cut each half in thirds. Your end pieces might be a little sad and have things falling out. All you have to do it take some extra rice or fillings and stuff it in there to look nice. It’s your roll, in your house, so it doesn’t have to be perfect.

You can see the end piece is falling out a bit. I just shoved everything back in and placed it cut side up. Then you can’t tell it’s messy.

10. EAT IT! You earned it! Hope it’s delicious.

Messy Level: High. At least the first time, this was an epic mess. I’m sure professional chefs have this down to a science, but not so for me the at-home cook. The first time we had spills, rice, and soy sauce all over the table. The second time we were less messy,  but there were still a lot of dishes. Making sushi takes a lot of utensils, plates, paper towels, and ingredients. It’s another reason why you should make sushi in a group because then you have help cleaning up. Also, if you stay away from spicy tuna and stick to just plain, non-saucy fish you’ll probably have less clean up.

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