Writings and Travels of Lina Em
I lament often to my friend that banh mi used to cost $1 and came with a free drink back when I was growing up in Lowell. Now it’s a couple dollars more but in New York City, it’s like $8 or more! Unless you’re in Chinatown but that’s still almost $5. Ah, those days when banh mi used to be cheaper and with better quality bread.
Continue reading “Day 11 Banh Mi Salad”
What a humid, muggy, and cloudy day in Queens. Summer arrives next week and the city isn’t quite prepared.
Continue reading “Day 10 Cabbage Salad a la Som Tum”
It’s back to Meatless Monday and I was really craving Caesar salad. However, since Caesar salad does have anchovy as a base, I had to find another similar dressing that was thick and creamy. I had loved the tahini dressing for the falafel salad and wanted to reuse it.
Continue reading “Day 9 Kale Tahini Salad”
A new week of salad! The green market in Socrates Sculpture Park, Astoria returned this weekend for the summer. I went early in the morning on Saturday to see what fresh veggies I could snag. Of course, I think it would have been if I an idea of what recipes I would like to try to know what of the veggies to buy. There were just too many variety that I was unsure where to begin. I stuck to the basic and got arugula and mint.
Continue reading “Day 8 Meatball Salad”
Technically, this recipe is called Vietnamese crepe salad but I didn’t use all the traditional vegetables because I wanted to see what other vegetables and/or fruit would be good with this dish.
Continue reading “Day 7 Savory Crepe Salad”
Yay, it’s Friday!
Normally, at work, there’s free lunch but by the time I get up to go check it out, it’s demolished. So I went prepared with a super simple salad that could be eaten cold, won’t be soggy, and wouldn’t make the office smell like a Prahok kitchen. I rather like the smell of prahok.
Continue reading “Day 6 Stir Fry Kale Quinoa”
After the Berry Citrus salad yesterday, which was really good and I only a few mouthful, I really wanted to have another sweet salad.
Continue reading “Day 5 Blackberry Kale Salad”
I love hot weather. It’s one of my favorite season. But I won’t lie that it’s a bit unbearable without an AC. And since I can’t afford to waste my money on electricity, there’s no AC in the house. So all the heavy cooking/baking tends to be done in the early mornings when it’s still cooler weather, damp from dew and cooled by night breeze.
Continue reading “Day 4 Berry Citrus Salad”
Falafels were an acquired taste. The first time I tried them was once again at a college cafeteria. Needless to say, it was a very bad experience. But living in New York City, plenty of falafel stands roam the street. I’ve found some of the best places were actually these trucks. My favorite falafel truck is Taim Mobile. They serve a mean falafel and great lemonade.
Continue reading “Day 3 Falafel Salad with Tahini Sauce”
I love citrus in salad but I wouldn’t say grapefruit is my favorite citrus. Blood orange or even tangerine are a better option with less bitter taste. However, grapefruits are very good to balance a very savory meal.
Since it was meatless Monday, I chose to cook MorningStar Farm’s Italian Herb Chik Patties, which are amazing but does have that savory chicken flavor.
Continue reading “Day 2 Grapefruit, Chickpea, and Quinoa Salad”