Bloomington Food Girl

I was expecting today to be a normal, run-of-the-mill type day, filled with the 11:30 brunch from my sorority and lounging around the house, doing work and watching TV.  After coming back from a little walk around campus, I noticed the UPS truck in the distance, for I was expecting a package.  However, that package was not something that could have fit in a box.  As I strolled into the parking lot of my sorority house, I was heading for the front door when to my surprise, my parents stepped out from behind one of the cars.  I was shocked in more ways that I can describe, it was the perfect surprise.  I was excited and anxious to take them around the town.  Our adventurous day, today began at 12 PM noon when we drove out to check out the local Bloomington Farmers Market right behind the Smallwood Apartments, on College Ave.  There were enormous amounts of Golden Delicious apples, McIntosh apples, bright green beans, snap peas and freshly picked Bell Peppers.  My Dad and I decided on the “tie-dye” Bell Peppers and a carton of McIntosh apples.  My stomach grumbled as I reached for a juicy redish-pink apple, the first bite was crunchy and the sweetness of flavor filled my entire mouth.  I finished it in about 5 bites, but my stomach continued to grumble.  As we left the farmers market, we walked over to the local Co-Op Bloomingfoods, very similar to my favorite grocery store, Whole Foods.  I did a full circle around the “salad-bar, hot-bar”, carefully eyeing each individual dish.  I took a brown “to-go” box and filled the bottom with a bed of spring mix, a couple large slices of cucumber, a spoonful of baby cherry tomatoes, pickled bright red onions, sautéed Szechuan Tempeh and Kale, ginger-spiced Tofu and a little bit of Curried vegetables.  The mixture of foods meshed well together.  The spiciness of Szechuan flavor from the Tempeh, the lasting spice from the Curry sauce, the burst of the cherry tomatoes, the flavors just could not be beat.  Each bite had a different taste making my creation that much more enjoyable.  Our foodie day was delicious, fresh and local.

 

The Hot Pot

It's been a while since my last blog, but I'm back and ready to give your tastebuds a joy ride.  Tonight, my friend and I decided to try Siam House, a restaurant on the ethnic 4th Street, right behind Kirkwood.  We were starving, but the restaurant was extremely crowded, so we decided to sit outside on the patio.  There was a nice breeze and a sparkling ambiance of being outdoors.  I was craving Thai food, but not your typical Pad Thai or Curry dish.  I chose the Seafood Speciality called Goong Ob Woon-Sen.  It was a clay pot filled thin translucent bean noodles, bright coral-colored cooked shrimp, soft, squishy Shiitake mushrooms and green onions in a soupy ginger-garlic sauce.  The sun had begun to set and the nice breeze had turned into one with a bit of a chill as we anxiously awaited our meals to arrive.  My meal came out steaming hot, the heat from the dish provided me with an instant warmth.  I drizzled a tangy citrus sauce on top of my meal and started with a twisted forkful of the bean thread noodles.  The noodles were thin, but it was a heaping forkful, making them appear to be of a larger thickness.  The mushrooms were soft, the green onions were fresh and crunchy.  Shrimp is one of my favorite foods and these were cooked to perfection.  They were plump and delicious.  The steam from the sauce left my mouth on fire.  I continued to eat, hoping that there would be leftovers...sadly there weren't, but finishing it was completely worth it.

My Little Tibet

It was 6 o'clock on a Saturday night and I sat in my bed, super hungry.  My day had been a mish-mosh of meals but nothing that was super filling so I was anxiously awaiting a good night's dinner.  We decided on an ethnic restaurant on 4th street, right behind Kirkwood, called Little Tibet.  The restaurant aura was one of a vintage, hippie-retro scene.  I wanted to try an authentic Tibetan dish.  I decided on Phing-Sha, a bean-thread noodle stir-fry with Tofu.  The dish came out steaming hot, the vegetables peaked out from beneath the noodles and the pieces of Tofu were sitting on the sides of the plate, the entire meal was covered in a Tibetan spicy brown sauce.  I started with the chopsticks, but the noodles were sticky, so I switched to a knife and fork.  I cut the noodles into smaller pieces and then switched back to the chopsticks.  I scooped up combination of noodles and half a piece of tofu.  The noodles melted in my mouth, they were so thin, they tasted light and fluffy.  The next bite was filled with vegetables, they were crunchy good-ness.  The sauce was salty but sweet, with a spicy chili garlic aftertaste that left my mouth in flames, begging for water.  This meal was filling but not to the "full" extent, but extremely satisfying, I am excited to go back again!

Make Your Own Pizza...on a Salad!

I am not a big fan of pure carbohydrates.  I prefer the substitute ones: pretzels, popcorn, cereal, etc. rather than an actual piece of bread.  So tonight, when it was time for dinner, I was determined to make a crazy concoction using all the ingredients for "make your own pizza", but...not on a pizza.  I took a large salad bowl and filled it halfway with a previously prepared Greek salad, consisting of a lettuce mix, red radishes and chopped up scallions.  Then I moved over to the actual salad bar, where I added in some darker romaine lettuce, black beans, a little bit a Feta cheese and then the pizza toppings: chopped up juicy tomatoes, caramelized red onions, a couple spoonfuls of sliced mushrooms and miniature pieces of broccoli.  To finish it off, I poured a little bit of tomato sauce on the side of bowl as a make-shift dressing.  I mean hey, I had to finish off the "pizza", right?  My first forkful was a mish-mosh of everything.  It was full of flavor, the tartness of the radish mixed with the garlic-spiced caramelized onions, the sweetness of the tomatoes, the crunch of the black beans and the hearty flavor of the tomato sauce.  The pungent taste of the scallions left my mouth with a minty-like taste, but it quickly disappeared when I took my next bite filled with mushrooms, more onions, tomatoes and little chunks of feta cheese.  My creation of a meal was different and innovative and extremely tasty!

A Spice World

Tonight could have easily been classified in my book as the best night ever.  Okay, I take that back, the best meal ever.  As a couple us sat in the kitchen discussing where to go to dinner, people were throwing out different types of restaurants with various types of cuisines, but I had one favorite tucked in the back on my mind...Roots on the Square on the corner of North Walnut, which became the ultimate decision.  I've been sick with a cold for the past week, which has limited my food palate, because everything I eat tastes the same.  I was anxious for a place with flavor and spice, a meal with a kick! 

As we walked into the restaurant I was overjoyed with great memories had here.  I decided on the Panang Curry dish.  As we waited for the meal to come, my stomach growled with a feeling of emptiness.  I could not contain my excitement as my meal was placed in front of me.  Some people get excited about going to a party, I get excited about delicious food.  I started with taking the spring mix lettuce leaves that were surrounding my bowl and placing them into the Curry sauce.  Then I stuck my fork into a dark green piece of zucchini, the bite was crunchy but the softness of the vegetable melted in my mouth.  My mouth was on fire from the Panang spice and as I peered down into my bowl, I noticed the red specks of spice floating around in the Curry sauce.  The carrots, broccoli and mushrooms were all cooked to a perfection and they mixed well with the soft baked triangular shaped pieces of tofu.  To block out part of the spice, I broke the circular scoop of brown rice in half and combined it with the Curry sauce.  This meal has been the best so far in Bloomington, hands down.  

A Fresh Start

The day had finally arrived, it was move-in day at Indiana University, which meant some serious unpacking and unloading.  After about an hour and a half of unpacking the suitcases from home, it was time to make a dent in the 6 boxes I had stored here over the summer...but they were oh, so daunting, and to top it off, I was famished.  My dad and I got in the car to go out for lunch, we decided on The Laughing Planet on East Kirkwood Ave.  A small, healthy, semi-vegan restaurant filled with locally-grown organic vegetables.  We've been there once before and were anxious to try it again.  I decided on the Steamed Veggies Bowl with baked tofu.  In a matter of 10 minutes, I was presented with my meal, a large bowl of food separated by layers.  The base layer was a heaping portion of steamed brown rice, then came the veggie mix: boiled broccoli, crunchy green snow peas, circular cuts of orange carrots, miniature pieces of celery and green napa cabbage.  There were pieces of baked brown tofu scattered around the sides of the bowl as well as a peanut Curry sauce on the side.  I dipped my fork in the Curry sauce and scooped up the brown rice that was covered in fresh crisp vegetables.  The flavors of the vegetables were so subtle but they mixed well with the sauce.  The tofu was firm on the outside but squishy on the inside.  The meal was extremely satisfying, making it a great start to being back in Bloomington.

The Indian Summer

Tonight was my last supper...well, my last supper home this summer.  I leave to fly back to Indiana tomorrow so we took one final night out as a family.  I chose the restaurant Saffron Indian Kitchen on Montgomery Ave. in Bala Cynwyd, PA.  We walked into a small, crowded room and were led to a small table on the left side of restaurant with a view of the outside world.  We ordered a vegetable curry in a brown sauce, chicken Tikka Masala, lamb Roganjosh and Tandoori chicken.  My dish, the vegetable curry was filled with fresh green snap peas, jagged-edged cuts of zucchini and carrots, a single pale white piece of cauliflower, a couple heads of dark green broccoli and a handful of chickpeas all doused in the brown curry sauce.  The spices of the soupy curry were so powerful, each spoonful was filled with a strong, tangy flavor leaving my mouth watering and my taste-buds lingering for more.  After my first helping all I wanted was a second.  I took a piece of bar-b-qued Tandoori chicken and combined it with my curry sauce and vegetables.  The chicken was dry but it mixed perfectly with the liquid-curry sauce.  The lamb Roganjosh was filled with spices of ginger and onion in a creamy plain yogurt and garlic sauce.  The chicken Tikka Masala were pieces of cubed chicken in a tart tomato yogurt sauce.  The four polar opposite dishes meshed very well together.  This has been a foodylicious summer and I am looking forward to the treats waiting for me in Bloomington, IN.  Keep your eyes pealed for the next blog post!