Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/105 sec, ISO6400 “Fresh Fruit” Cedar Park, 2016
こんばんは！How’s it going? Surviving the summer-like heat?
Tonight’s photo is of some fresh pears in our kitchen. I think they looked beautiful in the evening light. The shapes are so perfect in their “pearness”, aren’t they? 😊 I think nature is amazing. Even though most fruits and vegetable varieties have been guided by farmers, scientists, and botanists, it’s still incredible that our planet can give birth to such delicious things.
I often wonder how much life exists on other planets in the universe, and what kinds of fruits and veggies exist there. I wonder how many more types of flavors are out there that we’ll never know about. Or maybe our human physiology wouldn’t allow us to perceive these new flavors? Have we tasted all that we are able to taste? These are the questions that keep me awake at night… 😜
Today I met my friend for lunch at a “gourmet” burger place called Hopdoddy. I really like the food and restaurant, plus the location we went to is close to the best camera store in Austin (and largest in Texas), Precision Camera and Video. We’re both camera otaku, so it’s fun to check out all the cool camera gear and dream about owning the high-dollar cameras. 📷
It was nice to go out for lunch, which is something that I don’t do often these days. I tend to just work through lunch and put in my hours. It has to do with the fact that I usually just have one meal a day (dinner). While that may seem unconventional, unhealthy, and perhaps even crazy, it wasn’t an uncommon way for people to live in the past.
I did a little bit of research about eating habits, and it seems that we as a society only settled on the “three meals a day” standard within the couple hundred years or so, primarily for economic and employment reasons. And of course the modern food industry pushes us to eat more and more. I’m sure the pharmaceutical companies don’t object to that either.
At any rate, when I do go out for lunch, I don’t mind splurging since I’ve been saving money by not buying lunch each day. The burger place we went to is a bit pricey but the food is so tasty! Today’s burger was a special (not on the regular menu) called the “Lil Brat”. 🍔 Since it’s close to Oktoberfest the burger has a sliced bratwurst sausage with grain mustard on top of the beef patty. It was awesome! And I also got a large order of the Kennebec fries 🍟, which I love.
I’m not entirely sure, but I think that living a more restrictive life helps me appreciate things a bit more… in this case, I really savor the food that I eat, since I don’t eat as often. I need to think about this concept some more! 😊
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.2, 1/125 sec, ISO640 “Breadwinner” Cedar Park, 2016
こんばんは！Good evening, how’s it going?
Wow, the weather has gotten chilly here in central Texas. And by chilly, I mean sub 90… 😜. Seriously though, tonight the temperatures will dip into the 60s. Brrr.
Today’s photo is of Mariko slicing the loaf of sandwich bread for the kids’ lunches. The bread she makes is so delicious, and also it doesn’t have all the chemicals and preservatives of the regular supermarket breads. A win-win!
Not only does it taste amazing, but the house smells so good when bread is baking in the oven. And look how beautiful the color is:
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.2, 1/125 sec, ISO2500 “Sandwich Loaf” Cedar Park, 2016
Mariko bakes a lot of different things, but the perfect sandwich loaf is hard to beat. If you want to see more of her baking, check out her blog. It’s pretty great.
This evening my wife and I went to a two-hour “Texas Wine Talk & Tasting” by Texas Wine Journal held at Whole Foods. It was all about Texas wines, and we learned a lot about the different regions in Texas, the history of Texas wine, and how Texas wine saved the European wine industry. It was very interesting!
And of course we sampled 8 different wines and were treated to talks by two Texas wineries – Llano Estacado Winery and Brennan Vineyards. Interesting, educational, and fun. Plus the wine! 🍷
After the tasting, Mariko and I visited the “Draft Shack Oyster Bar” inside the market and had a flight of beers and some oysters and jerk-chicken. It was a perfect meal after the wine-tasting.
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/100 sec, ISO1000 “Spaghetti Time” Cedar Park, 2016
こんばんは！How’s it going?
Here in Texas it’s still very warm out. Today reached a high of 90° F (32° C) so it still feels like summer. But it’s a perfect temperature for me! I love it. 🌞
This afternoon my fifteen-year-old son Bay prepared his first meal for the family! It’s a simple but delicious spaghetti recipe that we’ve had in the family for years so it was a perfect introduction to cooking. 🍝 He’ll be going off to college in a couple of years so we thought it would be good for him to get some experience in the kitchen.
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/100 sec, ISO1250 “Making Meatballs” Cedar Park, 2016
I helped Bay dice the onions and garlic, then saute those in olive oil. He measured out all the spices and opened all the cans of tomatoes. The recipe calls for meatballs, so he ground the beef in the Kitchen Aid grinder using a 2 lb. cut of chuck roast, then combined with all the other ingredients and formed the meatballs. Next, he browned them in the skillet and added them to the sauce.
He also cooked some hot Italian sausages and added those to the sauce. Part of making the recipe his own was slicing the sausages in a different way, and making the meatballs a smaller size than I usually do. There were a couple other “safe” deviations from the standard recipe, for instance, adding more egg to the meatballs, going without breadcrumbs, etc. It was a chance for Bay to make this spaghetti his own.
Lastly, he boiled the water, cooked, and drained the noodles. Then it was time to eat! 🍴
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/75 sec, ISO3200 “Spaghetti Dinner” Cedar Park, 2016
I was pleased that Bay wanted to cook and was enthusiastic throughout the entire process, And Koa (his 12-year-old brother) said that the spaghetti was delicious. I think that made Bay feel pretty good! 😄
This dish is a perfect one for him to know because it is easy and delicious, plus it would be easy to adjust the amount depending on how many people will be eating.
Bay’s first meal was a huge success and I’m confident that my mom’s spaghetti recipe will be passed on to the next generation. 😊
Hope you had a nice weekend!
おやすみなさい！
– B
Like this:
LikeLoading...
My camera & photos
I use a Fujifilm X-series camera for most of the photos on this site and my Instagram. Why not pick one up for yourself?
