Makeover!

It's not just the house that has been benefiting from a makeover-- but much loved furniture has as well! In my trek across the ocean last year, I did bring a few pieces of furniture that had particular sentimental value-- a media cabinet (my first "real"-- translation: non-IKEA purchase), a beautiful drop leaf table that I inherited from Jen and Eddie (that has been rebuilt, but still needs to be refinished), and a club chair.

Of the three, it's the club chair that I am most sentimental about-- maybe because I've had it the longest (almost ten years??). It was gifted by my dear friend, Lynn, and it was one of her furniture purchases early in her marriage (in the 70s?). Originally a pair, it changed hands and moved a few times-- from NYC to Boston to North Carolina, Pennsylvania, back to NYC, to Chicago and now England. It even spent some time in a frat house at Franklin and Marshall when it was in Lynn's son's possession. Needless to say, this old dear has seen a lot of action.

I love Lynn, so I love the chair-- plus it was the most comfortable chair-- the kind where you just sink into the cushions. But despite the comfort, it had definitely had seen better days-- the Campbell tartan pattern upholstery was frayed and worn at the arms and legs; it had a slip cover that was stained and didn't quite fit (somewhere a cushion cover was lost, so I had to improvise), and the frame was a bit creaky after many years of use.

So, I decided it was time for some new upholstery. We found a local upholsterer-- Roberts & Sumner, who are FANTASTIC! Amazing guys-- friendly, accommodating (they came to the house to take a look at the chair, bring fabric samples, give an estimate) and just the best to work with. When I finally decided on a fabric (after agonizing for weeks-- traditional or contemporary? solid or patterned? floral or stripe?), they came to pick up the chair and the reconstruction began.

They really liked the chair and said that they got a lot of compliments on it because of the unique shape of the frame and deep seat. When they removed the original fabric, they found very nice wooden feet (that were previously fabric-covered) that they refinished and stained and left uncovered. They reinforced the frame and replaced the springs in the base of the chair; and the old foam from the cushions were replaced. Removable covers were fitted (so we can wash them) and there was even enough fabric left over for a bolster cushion. It looks like a brand new chair-- it practically is!!

But can you BELIEVE that I forgot to take "before" photos?!? I was able to dig up one from a photo of my apartment in Chicago-- with the slip cover; but it doesn't do the makeover justice. But several friends and family will recognize the overhaul having sat in this chair many-a-time. Most significantly, LYNN! :)

(The pattern is actually blue, but it looks more grey in the photos; it picks up the light blue in the oriental rug we have... i do like to mix complementary fabrics and textures / modern and traditional...).

Going to the Mountain

IF THE MOUNTAIN WILL NOT COME TO MOHAMMED, MOHAMMED WILL GO TO THE MOUNTAIN.

So were the sage words of the founder of Islam, Francis Bacon and countless other scholars and academics no doubt (in concept at least).

Everyday is still a new experience in England-- whether it's figuring out what people are saying (I will likely forever be challenged by accent and slang), what certain foods are (yes, it doesn't seem like it would be that challenging, but believe me, it is) or trying to determine why they play the same episode of Friends about five times a day... and sometimes multiple times in a week! (I've given up). In general, I've found I've been able to compromise and find alternatives-- whether it is to food (no sushi? more grilled cooked fish and musubi... thankfully i'm able to get ume and nori; although ume has to be ordered); clothes & shoes (compromise: don't buy clothes anymore; instead have funneled my shopping compulsion into things for the home and iTunes downloads... to the positive impact on my wallet, might I add); country-living (more planning outings on the weekend; dinner at least one night of the week in the city-- coinciding with one of my travel days; spending the night "in the city" be it downtown Birmingham or London, once a week).

But the one thing that I haven't been able to find a solution to? Mexican food.

I grew up in Southern California-- Los Angeles to be exact. There Spanish is the dominant language and there are actually more Mexican-Americans than Americans. "So What?" you ask? That means kick-ass Mexican food.

And by kick ass I don't mean chain restaurants like Chipotle (although, do love me some Chipotle) or El Torito. I mean authentic, little hole-in-the-wall places that are sometimes hygienically questionable but you know abuela or perhaps tio (or tia, hijos/as o otra) are cooking recipes passed down for generations... EXCELLENTE.

And that is one of the HUGE gaps that I can't seem to fill. There's a Mexican chain called "Chiquitos" here... that is barely palatable... and not the least authentic (despite its claim). But other than that? You can barely buy ingredients (ummm... taco seasoning suspiciously tastes like curry...). So if the mountain ain't coming to Mohammed...

I've raised my chicken enchilada game to the next level and have experimented with making it taste "more authentic." I still haven't attempted to make my own sauce (I need a weekend for that), but I've been playing with the chicken mixture and think I've come up with a perfect blend thanks to some google sleuthing and piecing together bits and pieces from various places (including my friend McKay's recipe, whose this is originally based on!). Instead of grilling the chicken and cutting into chunks, I wanted to shred the chicken and make it really moist.. hence the new recipe, below. It actually is much easier than grilling (because you just let it sit on the stove) and the prep time is pretty quick. I'm still tweaking, so I'll let you know how it goes... and I'll let you know when I attempt sauces!

Hapa Shredded Chicken Enchiladas
Makes 8 Enchiladas; Extra "stuffing" can be sprinkled on top before the cheese mixture

You'll need:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3/4 a medium-sized onion, sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, smashed (I usually use 3, but I love garlic)
• 1 clove garlic, diced
  
• 1 small, or 1/2 large bell pepper (any color-- but I like yellow or green for color), sliced
• 1 medium tomato, seeded (get the goo outta there) and diced
  
• 1 large (16 oz) can of Enchilada sauce
• Tortillas (i use flour, but you can use corn or whole wheat; note that whole wheat tends to be a little sweeter so you may need to counter with additional salt... it also for some reason is a little soggier... my experience shows that flour works best)
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp butter
  
• Taco seasoning packet
• Hot sauce (optional; 1-2 tsp, or more depending on heat tolerance-- I like "Cholula" which is a Mexican hot sauce that you can actually get here-- it's available in most US grocery stores; one of these days I'll attempt my friend Alberto's grandmother's hot sauce which is AMAZING)
• Shredded cheese (monterey jack, cheddar, mozzarella-- really, whatever you like; in America they also have those Mexican seasoned shredded cheese packets which I found works well; but if you don't have it, I just mix a little of the taco seasoning with the shredded cheese-- same idea)

(chicken mixture before enchilada assembly)

Preparation:

• Place chicken breasts in a pot
• Add 1/2 onion, smashed garlic and salt
• Add water, just enough to cover top of chicken
• Bring to a slow boil; Once boiling, reduce to simmer and cook for 20-25 minutes, covered
• Once cooked, transfer chicken to bowl or other dish and place in refrigerator to cool (really for as long as you want... just want to make it cool enough to handle). I usually scoop in as much of the onion and garlic from the broth as I can-- it makes it extra tasty.
  
• Retain broth
  
• Once cooled, shred chicken (with hands) or with two forks (if using forks, you don't really need to cool)-- for the Hawaiian readers of this blog, think kalua
  
• Melt butter in frying pan (or wok) and add bell peppers, tomato, remaining onion and diced garlic; saute until veggies are soft (you can use olive oil, but come on-- there's not much better than butter. if you use olive oil, about tbsp is enough)
  
• Add chicken, taco seasoning (if using taco seasoning for cheese, retain 1/4), and 1/2 cup broth
  
• Simmer 10 min to reduce liquid
  
• If you're using hot sauce, add to chicken and veggie mixture. I usually add about 1 tbsp or more (I like it hot!)
• Cook until warm

Now it's time to assemble your enchiladas!

• Take one tortilla and add a few large spoonfuls of the chicken mixture in the center (be sure not to overstuff-- they'll be harder to seal).
• Sprinkle a little cheese over mixture (retaining enough to sprinkle over all the enchiladas once assembled)
• Fold ends toward center and roll the tortilla to close
• Place in 13x9 baking pan
• Repeat until you have used all of the chicken mixture (or you run out of space), arranging enchiladas in baking pan
• Once assembled, pour enchilada sauce over enchiladas (you may not need the whole can-- it depends how "saucy" you want them)
• Sprinkle remaining cheese over the entire mixture
• Place in oven at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes (until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling).

(Before the oven)













(The final product*)














*if you like cilantro (I don't-- but wish I did for aesthetic purposes), you can finely chop and sprinkle cilantro over the top-- it would make it very pretty). Stay tuned for a good side to this meal in the next edition of: Going to the Mountain.

**Cook's note: taco seasoning can be VERY salty; so I usually only use about 3/4 of the packet or less; I don't usually cook with a lot of salt, so that may just be me. But between that and the enchilada sauce, beware of salt!

FANTASTIC

Thanks to Lynn for this one!

The Argument of a Not So Classic Beauty

So, there's this ongoing debate that goes something like this:

"It's inconsiderate when your partner changes their appearance; like gains a ton of weight. It's selfish."

"What do you mean? People gain weight when they get older; or they could have a medical condition; metabolism changes, women also gain weight differently than men, and vice versa. It doesn't mean they're selfish-- it means they're aging."

And so on, so so forth.

One time it was prompted by a super skinny man walking down the street holding the hand of a not so skinny woman, followed by a comment about the woman probably not being that size when they initially got together. And then all hell broke loose.

It's not the way it sounds-- of course medical conditions and extenuating circumstances don't play into the debate. But regardless, it always ruffles my feathers. Is it simply about looking at the whole men vs. women / venus mars thing another way? The debate is based on the theory that men are typically physically stimulated while women are emotionally stimulated. But I can't get past the superficial part of it. Because, do you really fall in love with the way someone looks? Is that a fundamental difference between men and women?

I get the whole, "You can't judge looks across the room" argument. Sure-- there's always some sort of physical attraction that draws you to someone initially. But for something sustainable, there has to be more. Maybe it's because I've never really fallen in love with traditionally "good looking" men-- by societal standards, I suppose. To me, they're really cute... but I've always been attracted to intelligence, humor, talent, personality. Once, when asked what my type was (likely in the period of my life that I refer to as the "lean" dating years), my sister quipped, "Dork." I loved that-- because to me, dorks are the smart, interesting ones. And I like the smart interesting ones. And lord knows I'm no classic beauty-- pretty average in fact; not fat, not thin; an interesting mix of features courtesy of my caucasian father and hawaiian / chinese / korean mother... but beautiful? Not so much.

Besides; personalities are constant (for the most part)... it's who you are. What you look like changes-- your hair gets gray, you get shorter, a little rounder around the edges... you get frown lines and laugh lines and your hair thins. There's a great quote that I've always remembered-- I can't remember the source, but it goes something like this:

"It's a wonderful thing as time goes by-- to be with someone who looks into your face when you've gotten old and still sees what you think you look like."

Everyone should be so blessed.

Because even if you're not traditionally beautiful, I don't think most people think they're ugly (at least I hope they don't). To me, everyone has beauty in them. I know it sounds cheesy, but I really believe that. To me, beauty is so much more than what someone looks like. It's kindness, it's compassion; it's intelligence, it's being able to make people laugh. Beauty doesn't last forever. But the other stuff does. At least a lifetime.

But maybe this is the argument of a not so classic beauty.

Firenze

So, I'm waaaaaayyy delayed in posting the rest of the photos from my Italy trip-- but, what better time than today? Let me just say that I love Florence. LOVE. I always thought of Florence as the equivalent of Chicago and Rome the equivalent of NYC. Florence is beautiful, and small (so fully walkable), generally clean (a feat for a city that is so overrun by touristas) and the BEST? it's a city known for paper. Paper you say? Yes-- my great passion. It's known for leather too, but that's not as interesting to me (although I did buy a beautiful bag...). There's also the gelato... oh, gelato. I could eat that three times a day... if it weren't for the homemade pasta. It's a carb-phobic person's nighhtmare (thankfully I'm not).

I first went to Florence with my dear friend K, all of 8 (or 9??) years ago. She was on a whirlwind trip of Europe, meeting friends in different countries before heading to business school (I got Italy, Switzerland and Austria). It was one of the best trips I've taken. She's a wonderful travel companion, we love most of the same things; she's so fun, organized, adventurous; and, loves paper AND gelato, that it made for the perfect trip. So it was a little bittersweet to be there without her, but it also brought back a lot of memories of our trip.

One big change that I noticed was the city was MUCH more crowded. And mostly with Americans. I was there around the same time I went almost 10 years ago, but there was definitely a more, almost Disneyland, vibe. I heard American accents more than Italian, which I have to say was disappointing. Every vendor spoke English which, while easier, made Italy lose some of its charm. All said, it lost a bit of the magic of the first trip, but I still loved it. There's something magical and romantic about Italy-- I don't know if it's the light or the art, but I can't wait to go back. Next time with MRN!

(K-- there's a special photo for you...see if you can pick it out!)