Two of my favorite things

Hello again,

It's been a while, but I am back in the blogosphere. I have a ton of new ideas and photos to post, but it will take a bit longer. So, for this entry I just wanted to share some of my favorite things with you. For this instance it will be some food items from some companies that I am really proud to support. I am really adamant about conscious eating  vs. unconscious eating. (No, we're not going to talk about people stuffing their faces when they've been knocked unconscious!)

Whenever you buy things; it's important to know how they came to be and everything (and sometimes all the things that aren't in them, as well!) that went into them. There are a lot of good companies producing quality goods that are also conscious in how they effect the environment and also in their involvement with giving back to the community/earth.

One of my absolute favorite companies that produces awesome snacks is the Food Should Taste Good Company. My latest favorite is their Sweet Potato Tortilla Chips:

http://www.foodshouldtastegood.com/faqs.html#/sweet_potato/

As a double bonus, if you buy the special pink bag editions of chips from this company; they make an addtional donation to various organizations fighting breast cancer. They also have a facebook campaign for it right now where you can purchase discounted coupons for bags of their chips and 100% of the proceeds go to the various organizations. I love it! =)

https://store.foodshouldtastegood.com/facebook

These chips are so flavorful and if you love sweet potatoes you will definitely be happy with the flavor profile. Prior to me tasting this variety for the first time; I was a little skeptical that you would really be able to taste any of the sweet potato. Sometimes when you mix things with corn, the flavor can overpower all other ingredients. This was and is not the case for these lovely, delectable, satisfying sweet potato tortilla chips. They are so jam packed with sweet potato-ness and with a softer background of corn. I love to eat them, all by themselves, but imagine them with hummus or tzadziki, guacamole etc. Soooo gooooood! =)

Aside from the sweet potato variety, they also have an awesome chocolate tortilla chip (yes, chocolate!!!) basically any chip variety you get from this brand will be good =)

I assure you I am not getting paid for any of this; I just really love the product and company =)

Another one on my list of favorite things is the Mayan Harvest Bake from Kashi. I do not often buy frozen entrées, but when I took a chance on this lovely; wow. The one major reason I picked this one out of the other varieties is obviously because it was vegetarian/vegan and the other was that it had plantains as one of the main components! I love plantains =)

http://www.kashi.com/products/kashi_frozen_entrees_mayan_harvest_bake

On top of the fact that the base is the 7 grain Kashi Pilaf mix, they have nutty pepitas, black beans, sweet potatoes and a lovely zesty sauce. I tell you when I have this to eat; I am really satisfied and happy =)
The price for one box of it isn't too bad either, right now it's $3.27 at the local grocery store. Whenever they're on sale, you better believe I stock up on these! If you know me; then you know I usually like to make everything from scratch whenever possible, but I have to say this dish is perfect the way it is. Just don't overcook it. I'd still eat it, but you might appreciate it more when it's cooked for the proper amount of time =)

Kashi, has long been an outstanding company when it comes to naturalness and environmental wellness. They do a lot of good in communities and give back quite a lot. You can see more about that by visiting the aformentioned link to their site.

Those were just 2 things off of my list and I will be sharing more of those items with you as times goes on.

I guess you could say I actually kind of listed 3 (if you notice the photo of the Veggie Heaven shirts), but I will speak more about that lovely restaurant another time. I think it deserves a full entry! =)


Peace and Health to you all.


Love,
Jessica

My Memories of September 11th 2001

Every September 11th and the days up until that day I think about what happened and what has happened since that day. I wanted to share with you my experiences from that day. It's one of the ways that I can pay tribute and honor everybody who lost their lives on that day. It is difficult and painful to return to the memories, but it is nothing in comparison to the loss of all those families.

September 11, 2001

There’s no way to escape what that date means for the people of the United State of America. In 2001, we all were ripped from our sense of seeming invincibility. I think that people just never imagined that such a huge tragedy, such a loss would happen here, we could see it happening in everywhere else in the world, but not here. I was waiting for one of my language classes to begin and one of my classmates told me that a plane had just struck one of the towers of the World Trade Center. I don’t think I fully understood that it was a commercial plane. I thought maybe a commuter plane had some issues and hit the building by accident. I wouldn’t understand  the full impact until I was driving home in my car. I had a local radio station on and all they were talking about was what was going on in New York. They were crying and frantic and describing what had happened. There was a second plane that hit the second tower and everything was in flames. They talked about the collapsing building and the people screaming for help. I was crying so hard; trying to drive home. I was shocked to the core and I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I was struggling to breath and when I finally got back to my house, I turned on the news and I saw the images for the first time. It felt like I was stabbed in the heart; all the smoke and fire and the people running. I even saw the footage of the people jumping out the towers in desperation. I thought my heart would explode. I don’t remember how long I watched, but I then called my boyfriend at the time. We had just been in New York at the towers  a few weeks prior. We spent a good deal of the day there with one of my friends ; going to the observation levels and taking photos in and all around. I thought of all the people that we met and everybody who worked and lived in those towers. They were gone. We both cried and cried. I think like most people that day throughout the country; it felt like we had been shattered into a million pieces. I was so horrified, angry and grief stricken. It traumatized us. We all wanted everything to be okay again, but we didn’t know when it would happen and when it was right to feel good again. 

I hated it so much that on that same day I had to go fill up my car with stupid gasoline. My Mom kept urging ‘You’d better go get gas now before it gets expensive!’ It was the last thing I wanted to do that day. I remember pulling up to gas station with a huge line of cars. I saw their faces and they were probably just about as red with crying and somber as mine. None of us wanted to be there. 

The next day I had to go to the Secretary of State to renew my license. I certainly didn’t feel like doing that and I remember that while on my way there a stone had gotten kicked up from the road and hit my windshield and it startled me. It left a crack in my windshield and left me even more shaken. When I got to the Secretary of State everybody had the same look; we didn’t want to be there. I went through and did my eye test and took a new photo, managed my way through, but nobody was happy. Everybody was so restless for the weeks after the attack and then months and months later still we all felt helpless. We did our fundraisers and we had ceremonies to honor the people who died, but it was never enough. It will never be enough.   

It was a while before I felt like I could even laugh or smile again . I think the day when I started to feel like we’d be okay is when I realized that life couldn’t continue to feel like that. Terrorism is designed to shake you to your core and hopefully break you down so that you become so wracked with fear that you will submit to anything. Well, I wasn’t going to do that. As much as there is anti-Americanism; there is no denying the  strong and resilient American spirit. When we are wounded we take time to heal, but we will recover. I never take my liberties and rights for granted. I understand how fortunate I am to be able to speak my mind and be who I want to be in this country. 

 We are a huge nation and we have so many resources and  rights. Our way of life  and rights can displease others and create the potential to make enemies. Oh, how I wish that all throughout the world that there was no strife and destructive wars. All I ever want for this world is peace and some people are willing to work towards tranquility while others do not see a point to achieving peace because of all the obstacles that stand in the way. Can you imagine if people stopped being so angry, stopped hating each other, stopped oppressing one another; stopped exploiting one another… Too much energy is wasted on being negative. 

When I think about how much we can achieve together when we focus and pour our energies into something positive it makes me feel really good. I know the goodness that people can give to this world and I know it’s all possible to make everything better. People have to want it; in order to make it happen. 

Tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center. They have rebuilt and made a memorial where the 2 towers once stood. There are now waterfall fountains in the footprints of the two towers. These waterfall fountains are surrounded by the etched names of those who gave/lost their lives that day at the towers, at the pentagon and in Pennsylvania. I was moved that the people who designed and planned the arrangements of the names were able to group them according to relation. The names are not in alphabetical order; rather they are grouped together by relation of friendship or family. That is so meaningful and I know that this a huge part of all the families lives; those who lost their loved ones, but were never able to have full closure because their loved ones were never recovered from the rubble. This is a place where they can come to connect and remember. There are also close to 400 trees in this area and it’s a good thing to see new life where so much was once lost. 

If you’d like to see what this memorial looks like or to donate towards the memorial fund; please visit:

http://www.911memorial.org/

If you have some memories that you’d like to share about your experiences from that day please do.

We all learn from each other’s experiences.

What do you take way from such a dark day? 

The simple truths of life:

Don’t hold onto anger and fear because it’ll end up hurting you even more in the end.

 Never take things or people in your life for granted. When you have a chance to tell them you love them; you should do it because you really never know for certain when you’ll get another chance.

Wishing you all love and peace,

Jessica

Lookout for those language traps!

I love language and culture. I've studied a handful of languages over the years including: Spanish, French, German, Hebrew, Kiswahili, Japanese as well as smatterings of many others. As I said in my first post, I grew up bilingual and I guess it was from that moment in Kindergarten where I realized that most other people didn't speak two languages at home. It was probably one of the reasons why I always loved language/culture. I understood that there were many different worlds to explore and that language was the key to gates of the world.


It's definitely intimidating speaking to native speakers sometimes, but you cannot really learn a language until you practice conversing in the language. Whenever I would start learning a new language from scratch I would do my best to have some sort of immersion in the culture. I found literature and movies and music in that language and really listened. I've always felt that once you felt comfortable enough to joke in a language that you have achieved a great success.

It's really funny and sometimes embarrassing when you're learning a new language and your first attempts to converse lead to titters or looks of shock. There are some things that do not translate into other languages word for word or may not even exist at all. Even the most seasoned speakers do make mistakes and it's only fair to point out that to speak a language 'fluently', is a bit misleading because almost everybody makes mistakes in their own mother tongue. If you are a native speaker of English and have ever taken an A.P. English course you know the deadly list of grammatical 'sins.' Here's a link to a wikipedia article about commonly misused English words:


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_commonly_misused_English_words


I admit that I am sometimes the 'grammar police' when I read/hear what other people write/say, but I do not have absolutely perfect grammar or punctuation in every situation myself; so I really shouldn't be so up in arms about it. There are still some sentences that I've heard that make me cringe though =p


If you're currently learning a new language or perhaps traveling to a different country; here is some information about 2 language traps that can lead to some interesting blunders.


Two language traps to which everybody falls victim are:

Homophones & Cognates

hom·o·phone

[hom-uh-fohn, hoh-muh-] Show IPA
noun
1.Phonetics . a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

2. a written element that represents the same spoken unit as another, asks, a homophone of x in English.

I can recall sitting in a middle school Spanish class listening to my teacher talk about her husband making blunders while he was at a restaurant in Mexico. She relished in the fact that he had once ordered jabón instead of jamón. Those are two very different things indeed. Jabón is the word for soap in Spanish. Jamón is the word for ham in Spanish. I know that from that time on, her husband never made that mistake again =)


cog·nate

[kog-neyt] Show IPA
adjective
1.related by birth; of the same parentage, descent, etc.
2.Linguistics . descended from the same language or form:such cognate languages as French and Spanish.
3.allied or similar in nature or quality.

You can say some pretty silly things when you are overly confident when using cognates. There may be some words in a language that exist, but they do not mean the same thing. Take for example the time when a few friends in France were at a fairly ritzy restaurant and one of them said apparently being very conscious about their dietary intake and insisting that they wanted bread without any preservatives 'Je voudrais du pain sans préservatifs.'


Their waiter's face had a look of shock and bewilderment because the term for condoms in French is 'préservatifs.' Oops! =o Indeed the patron would have been better off changing their phrase to
 ' Je voudrais du pain sans additifs.'


I don't know whether or not they made the patron leave or the if the waiter might have had some fun, but I'm fairly sure that if this person had some native French speakers sitting at the same table. They probably either hurriedly excused their friend or burst out laughing much to the chagrin of their blundering friend. =)


Despite the facts of high likely-hood that you will make mistakes while speaking your non native language; that should not be a deterrent for you to keep going. You will definitely learn from your mistakes and end up having a funny story to tell somebody someday.

'To have another language is to possess a second soul.'

                                                           - Charlemagne

When we travel or visit with different cultures; they really do appreciate it when you make an effort to speak to them in their own language. You may not say it perfectly, but it will make them smile and who knows you may make a new lifelong friend along the way =)

Epicuriousity for One and All!

On the book of face, I kept notes of what I cooked and also shared photos of those items as well as other photos from a number of outings to restaurants or shops. I used to call these notes 'Epicuriouslogues', but since I'm starting over with them in this quadrant of webtastica; I've renamed it Epicuriousity.

 Hopefully you'll enjoy it.

I had to use a Taro Bubble Tea to defeat this guy trying to steal my car. The power   of sago compels you!
Mmmmm tasty and refreshing justice ;p

This is Puto. Please stop laughing, I know what it means in Spanish. This is  one of many styles of rice cakes. This typical triangle shape is one formed of the steamed variety. I think in Tagalog we could also refer to this a some sort of Bibingka (a cake, but usually made out of rice or with rice in the ingredients. I bought this from QQ a Local Malaysian bakery.

I bought these at a local Asian Grocery store.  These are very good; they're surprisingly not  sickeningly sweet. It tastes like the middle of a butterfinger, candy bar except it doesn't have all that extra crap in it. It's just pure peanuts and sugar. The most similar product to it in the States would maybe be Atkinson's Crunchy Peanut Butter Bars.

Stir-fried Zucchini, Tofu and Garlic Chives with vermicelli rice noodles that I made for dinner. 

Eat me, I am your sustenance! 

Blueberry Flax cake that I made. Omega 3, whole grain and Anthocyanins, never tasted so good together. Yum Yum =)

This is what my Pico de Gallo and blackbeans rice looked like when the timer went off for my rice cooker. Yep, the rice cooker is a wonderful thing. It takes up way less energy than using the stove ( I have an electric one) and the results are marvelous. If you have to buy a rice cooker, make sure you get one with the ability of different functions and if possible get one that comes with a steamer basket.

This is what the Pico de Gallo and Black Bean rice looks like when it's all mixed up and fluffed.

I made tostones  from some ripe plantains. Usually they make them with the green plantains, but I don't think anybody is going to arrest me for doing so =)

Ohhh how we love those delectable tostones. Look at the caramelization on that tostone.

These are GF/DF/V Lemon Lotus Bars that I made. These came out alright, but I want to change a few things and make them thicker. Tasted great though. If the crust looks a bit purple; it's because of the little amount of buckwheat flour that I used in the dough.

I made quesadillas with some awesome corn tortillas from El Milagro (Local Michigan  Company)  it's filled with quesadilla cheese with oregano, a dash of adobo spice and black pepper, fresh Pico de Gallo from Dos Hermanos (another local latino grocery store).

These were all the vegetables that went into one of my Thai Curries. The  eggplant that you see is actually from my home garden =) I didn't have a photo of the finished curry because it didn't last that long =)

Paku Choi  in a tomato, garlic and turmeric sauce. Paku Choi is one of a gazillion in the Chinese cabbage family. This variety is on the bitter side (Yay, lots of Antioxidants and Phytochemials) similar to the taste of Rapini (an italian variety of broccoli). 

Sauted Sesame Yu choi. Notice how my bamboo utensils always try to sneak into my photos? ;p

So, that's it for this installment. Did any of them make you salivate in particular? Any of them weird you out completely? Still curious about these foods? Feel free to ask me any questions about them. I'll try to give you as much info as I can give you about them. 

It's always fun to try new things.

'Epicuriousity begins at birth and never ends.'

                          - J. G. I =)

Be well =)

Love,

Jessica

Kindness: Pay it Forward =)

I love everyday acts of compassion and the kindness of strangers. It shouldn't really seem to be so amazing to do the right thing, but they really do stand out when the world seems full of gloom and doom. A very simply gesture can mean so much. When you open a door for somebody or help somebody carry their groceries. When you see somebody who is down trodden and you offer them something to eat or your spare change. Not everybody will recognize your small gestures, but it's not about recognition anyway. You just do them because you know that it's the right and kind thing to do. I don't have a super profound anecdote to share about it right now, but I do have a small story to share.

One of my friends is moving to another state and so we decided to meet up for lunch so we could have a proper farewell. I naturally brought some homemade goodies for my friends because it's one of the ways that I share my love with people. We had a nice lunch together and we caught up on what was going on in our lives.  After lunch we wanted to take some photos together outside of the restaurant. We were in the middle of doing that and there was a couple inside of the restaurant  who were sitting just behind the window and I was thinking 'Oh gosh...they might be finding our photo shoot a bit annoying; so maybe we'd better hurry up so they can enjoy their lunch in peace.' Surprisingly, the woman of the couple waved to us and motioned that she wanted to help us take a group shot. We were trying to fit all 3 of us in a shot, but I was holding the camera and I was the shortest of us all and so you can imagine it wasn't working out too well. The lady came out of the restaurant with a big smile on her face and she took the camera and took a few shots of us.

Did you notice that the shirt I'm wearing in this photo says 'Love' on the front of it? =)

 I asked what her name was and she said 'Finia.' (I'm not sure that's how her name is actually spelled) I explained to her that it was really kind and generous of her to come out and help us because I thought maybe we were being a nuisance with our photo taking. I gave her hug and then I took the photo below of her standing in between my two other friends.

Hooray for Finia and good friends =)

What a sweet lady =) I waved to her husband who was still sitting inside at their table ( I don't think he could have left the table to take photos too because he would've lost their table completely!) and he just smiled and waved back and blew kisses to us. Too cute =) 

It's funny because when we were catching up while we were having lunch my friend who is moving away was talking about how many trips to the salvation army she'd taken to donate her clothes and other items from her house. We were talking about how good it was to give and  that the tax deductions would just be a bonus.
 I think the universe was listening to us and smiling =)

I believe that if we put out positive energy into the universe it will come back to us. The same goes for putting out negative energy into the universe; that too will come back to you. 

It is not always easy to do that in certain situations and with certain individuals, but you really have to try and stay with the positive approach. It'll keep you much healthier and extend your years if you're not pent up with anger and distrust. It is absolutely draining to try to stay mad at people and it is just not worth it in the end. 

I have a quote that I use in my emails:

“To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.” 

 - Sun Tzu

It is difficult to do, but not impossible. 

I hope you have a good life and that you continue to pay forward the kindness to everybody you meet.

Thank you for stopping by to read this, by doing so you have made me smile =)

Love,

Jessica

My Garlic Chive Sesame Rice Pancakes

Hello Again,

Thanks for sticking around! 

The following is an entry I transferred over from one of my facebook notes.

 Hooray for copy/paste!

Hope that you enjoy it!

Hello Everybody,

I received quite a few requests for this recipe so I'm sharing it with you now.

I recently made a batch of these to bring as a treat to one of my friends who has only in the last year been diagnosed with celiac disease. She actually called me up the other day to tell me how much she enjoyed them. I'm always glad when I can help make somebody's day better and I think that's true for all of us, right? 

Why not try and make a batch of these and share them with your friends and family?

If you do make a batch of them; do share some photos!

Sharing is caring =)

Hot off the press!

Jessica's Garlic Chive Sesame Rice Pancakes - GF + DF

1 C Sweet Rice Flour*

1/4 C Garlic Chives** cut finely

1/8 C Toasted Natural Sesame Seeds

1 tsp GF Baking Powder

Pinch of Turmeric

1 tsp Sesame Oil

1 Brown Organic Egg (or 1T Flax Eggs*** if you want to keep it vegan)

1 T Organic Agave Nectar

1/2 C or less of Filtered Water (depending on the humidity you will need more or less of water)

Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper to taste

*The type of rice flour you use makes a big difference both in texture and in taste.

You could use regular rice flour, but it will not be the same. It'll still taste good, but it will be a much harder pancake.

You can find Sweet Rice Flour in most supermarkets these days. You may find it listed as: Glutinous Flour, Malagkit or Mochiko.

Blue Star is a popular Japanese brand of sweet rice flour. Go ahead an buy a box of this if you can't find it otherwise, but usually the other brands are cheaper and no less in quality. I usually use brands that come in bags of 14-16oz and they usually originate from Thailand. If you manage to find the 3-5lb bags from any Korean brand those ones will probably be your best buy.

** You can find Garlic Chives in most Asian Markets. They may be called : Chinese Chives, Ku chai, Chinese leeks or Nira. They're very fragrant and the type that I used in these are the flat leafed variety.See picture below

Garlic Chives. Make sure that you wash the chives well as they're grown in sandy soil and you don't really want to eat any grit with your pancakes =)

*** To make Flax Eggs: for every egg you need, mix 1T of Flax Meal with 3 T of water and let it sit for a few minutes before using.

Mix all the wet ingredients together and blend well. Then add in all the dry ingredients. Let it sit a few minutes and in the meantime get your pan ready. Heat a large skillet/fry pan with a teaspoon of oil. I like to use either Canola or Olive Oil, but you can just use whatever you have in your cupboards; it should be fine as long as it's not a strong tasting oil.

When the pan, is hot ladle in the amount of batter that you want ( a few tablespoons for tinier pancakes and maybe a little less than one ladleful for bigger pancakes). Just like any other pancake when you see the bubbles start to form on the surface you know it's time to flip it to the other side which will take far less time than the first side. Once you flip the pancake; it probably takes about 1 minute more ( you'll see the steam rising from the surface). Stack the pancake on top of each other so that they keep warm while you're cooking the rest of the batch.

These pancakes are good on their own and really don't need much else, but you could definitely pair these up with a number of different things. If you thin out the batter a bit more you could make a spongy crepe out of them and use them as a wrap for your other nibbles. A way to make healthy fast food that is good for you!

If you have any questions about the recipe; feel free to ask.

Enjoy!

Lonely triangles of pancake sitting on a plate =p

Hello, it's nice to finally meet you =)

Hello out there,

WARNING: The following entry is very scatterbrained. All of this blogginess is new to me and the next entries 

      will be more concise, but for now you must deal with a bit of my verbosity =) 

                      Thank you for your patience

I've finally settled on a blog title. It took quite a stretch of time, but I finally picked one! I had mused earlier in the year with a friend about opening up a tea shop. I said that it would be called 'Humanitea' =) I really do not have plans to open up a tea shop, but I do enjoy tea of vast varieties. I have made a porte-manteau of Humanity and Tea, which I suppose reveals an aspect of my personality and interests. I think puns are cool and clever. They might be cheesy at times, but I always have to give them a bit of respect. All comedy of errors plays/novels/musicals make me laugh tremendously. Some famous writers of comedy of errors include Shakespeare and Oscar Wilde. I mean, who can overlook the Importance of Being Earnest =p

Anyhow, I don't have a one single subject matter for this blog. Lest the title of the blog mislead you; it will not always be about humanity or the beverage of tea etc. I do a lot of cooking so you may find some entries about what I've made that day or photos from out and about at restaurants etc. I can tell you that it's for certain that there are going to be entries about Vegetarianism/Vegetarian Cooking.  I've been a Vegetarian since about the age of 11; so it's been a big part of my life. I'm sure they'll be recipes and some tips and information about Vegetarianism. You'll definitely get to read about the reasons why I became a Vegetarian.

I adore taking photos and am thankful for digital cameras. I think my record for amount of photos in 1 day is a little over 2,000. I've scaled that amount down quite a bit (I couldn't afford all the memory cards! I am one of those people who take photos of anything that catches their eye. I am also one of those people who take photos of  their food at restaurants/markets. If that makes me weird; then I'm weird and that's fine with me =) 

I love languages and culture; so I'm sure I'll be writing about that for sure. I grew up bilingual. I spoke Tagalog and English at home. It wasn't until I was in Kindergarten that I realized that being multilingual was not the 'norm', for the other kids. When I was in those younger years the community that I lived in what not as diverse as it is today; so in a way I kind of felt like my family and I were kind of ambassadors in educating the school community about the Philippines, the homeland of my parents. That's most likely why I've always had an interest in languages and culture. I never liked the feeling of being boxed in and I think always learning new languages and about different cultures will help you to be more open to the world. 

Well, I hope to be writing more entries soon. Prior to me creating this blog I did share entries as 'Notes' on my facebook page. I may transfer some of those entries onto this blog; while I make the transition. 

Sorry, this wasn't the most exciting entry, but hopefully you'll be willing to stick around and see what'll come next. =)

Thanks so much for stopping by to read this, you've made me smile by doing so =)

Love,

Jessica