So, I've been doing this blog for nearly a year now. Looking at my little map and hearing from you in other ways, its certainly grown in popularity. I'm so glad. My hope is that it's a help for others of you overseas or those of you just looking for a new idea or two!
I want to take a quick pulse check, though, so to speak. What recipes do you like? What do you want more of? Can you get ahold of most ingredients things call for? I try to not do too much calling for cream cheese or cheese--can you get these easily? Any particular meals or food items you'd really love to learn to make? Other substitutes or how to's you'd like to learn about? Any other feedback?
I want this to be useful, so please take a minute and leave a comment! It would be a huge help to me! Also, if you EVER have a recipe you think would be good to share on here, PLEASE send it my way!! You can email it to sarabeth(at)pobox(dot)com!! I look forward to hearing from you...
Hi Sara Beth,
ReplyDeleteI really like your blog. I think you do a great job with it and keeping the ingredients easy to find. My trouble is that when I moved to Asia I didn't bring a lot of spices with me...so your blog actually helps me think about what spices I might want to bring with me next time.
I know you've mentioned a few times that you don't snap a lot of pics while cooking...which I totally understand. Since moving here I've been trying to make more things with dough and actually have had a lot of trouble figuring out things like thickness, how to roll, etc. If you ever do snap some more pics while cooking I would love to see some step by steps of either bread making, dough making or tortilla making.
Thanks for your blog! It's great!
~Felicity
Love it! THanks!! Anything with beans or chicken is great for me! :) You rOCK!
ReplyDeleteI love everything you have done. I would just love to see what your family favorites are-- but that may be everything you have shared! I have loved the the how-to make things that are harder to find -- that has been helpful. Since we have moved I need to relook over all of the recipes since every move changes our frequently made dishes. Thank you for doing this -- I have been loving it!
ReplyDeleteNo, cheese is not easy for me to get. But I make it a priority when I go to "big city" to load up. I have a chest freezer. Of course, my cheese is not always the best quality -- often crumbly and seems to mold quickly. But we make do (as we all do).
ReplyDeleteI make my own yogurt, strain it for sour cream, and if I press it further, it's something like cream cheese. But it takes a LOT of milk to make even a small amount of that cream cheese stuff. ;-) My yogurt maker only holds 1 liter (one of those boxes).
I'm going to make the lettuce wraps tonight.
Whole grain rice -- you mentioned not being able to find it. I can find it in the dry goods section of the supermarket. And my city has NO butter or cheese. So I know you can find it. You know all the bins with loose things? It's called CAO1 MI3. And sometimes there's also organic stuff prepackaged -- beans mostly. Sometimes its there too.
On thing I'm super interested in is cooking with oil versus butter. Not because I think oil is better for you -- unless olive oil -- but because it's all I can find. I already make biscuits with oil, pie crust, and a great peanut butter chiffon cake. I'd be glad to share those recipes. But I'd love more along those lines.
Also breakfast! What to do about breakfast, especially? No cereal in our city besides the random box of boring corn flakes, and family dislikes granola (grrr...). We do lots of cinnamon rolls, bagels. I make a fabulous quiche, but they don't like that too much either (double grrr...).
Sorry to leave a million messages. :-)
ReplyDeleteI'd also like to know what is everyone's favorite cookbooks. Like More With Less and so on.
Felicity--I'll try to be better about pictures, especially with process recipes like breads! I'll also try to go back and add some of the step by step pictures to some of the yeast breads I've already posted. I think I did that best on the French Bread recipe...I'll see what I can add on some others!
ReplyDeleteSara--Yep, you're slowly just seeing our family favorites on here!!
Andrea--I'd love to cook with more beans--you India girls need to teach me!!
Jimmie--I love More with Less. I've also really enjoyed a cookbook I have put out by the Moosewood Collective--lots of ideas and many of them very healthy, unfortunately, a lot of ingredients we can't get in many of them.
I am not one of the best to find oil based recipes from, but I do have a couple desserts I can share that are oil rather than butter or shortening based. We make a lot of breads for breakfast too. I make the Oatmeal Wheat Bread I've shared on here and we do toast a lot with that or make it into French toast. There are lots of homemade syrup ideas on here, too! I like quiche and breakfast casserole but my kids aren't super into them either. We make pancakes a lot because they are easy for us. I also try to make banana bread, poppy seed bread, and other quick breads often.
I have been experimenting with straining yogurt to make cream cheese to share on here, but haven't been pleased with the product yet! And please, feel free to send me some recipes if you don't mind me sharing them on here!! :-)
Hi SB - thanks for all your recipes. A lot of people here are looking at your blog. I have several oil-based recipes that I can send to you that I've worked on. Also, with the breakfast foods - one thing I've been doing to a regular granola recipe is adding 1 - 1 1/2 cups of semi-crushed corn flakes to the recipe. I also add almonds (if I can find them). This seems to make it more like Honey Bunches of Oats and my family likes it better. I like the Wycliffe International Cookbook (the one with regular from-scratch recipes) and I also like the Wycliffe Cookbook that has recipes from many different countries. I have a question for the person who wrote about brown rice - I've seen it and tried it, but even after cooking it for 45 minutes, it is still hard as a rock. Am i doing something wrong in the cooking process? Also, does anyone know of a savory snack recipe using oatmeal? I've looked on the internet dozens of times, but haven't been able to find one.
ReplyDeleteThat's funny, Laurel--you were the first one that popped into my mind to ask about your oil based recipes--I remember you did a lot. I have your brownie one and chocolate cake. Yes, please send some! Yeah, I've seen the brown rice and beans, too but hadn't tried it yet. The one time I tried the black beans, I cooked them just like I would ones in the States and they were hard too!
ReplyDeleteI want you to figure out how to invite me over for dinner. I'd rather drool over the meals you serve up than make them myself so... can you whip up a recipe for finding cheap flights to your dinner table? ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your recipes! Keep doing what you are doing. I have passed your blog on to many friends here and it has been so very very helpful! Blessings! S. Affleck
ReplyDeleteI love your blog too! I've gotten lots of ideas from your recipes. I'm in the US right now and what I'd really love is your list of "what to stock up on and bring from the US" (spices, etc). I know I'm missing lots of things from my list.
ReplyDeleteCheryl
SB - Hooray! I have to ditto what Cat said ... I'd really like you to do an international flight giveaway in honor of your blog anniversary, and invite your little sister and her friends (and the winner in case it's not one of us) to dinner.
ReplyDeleteLove you! Bookie
Wow, Cheryl! That's a long list! So I'm just going to stand in my kitchen and tell you what spices are on my rack....I use them all at different times but will try to put them in a bit of order from most used to less used!!
ReplyDeleteBasil, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, parsley, poppy seeds, dry mustard, cumin, thyme, paprika, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, Lawry's seasoning salt, Tony Chacere's Cajun seasoning, lemon pepper, cayenne pepper, chili powder, sage, red pepper flakes, bay leaves, coriander, Italian seasoning, garam masala (used in Indian and Middle Eastern dishes), cardamom, mace, curry powder, ginger powder, cream of tarter, turmeric, dill, marjoram, white pepper, Cavender's Greek seasoning, ground celery seed
Usually available in China grocery stores: Cumin, Curry powder, red pepper flakes, fennel seed, ginger powder, white pepper, bay leaves
I always stock up on extracts! Pure Vanilla (great price for 16oz plastic bottles at Sam's or Costco!), peppermint extract, almond extract, butter extract, rum extract, maple extract...
I also usually buy Ranch dressing mix (buy cheaply in large bottles at Sam's!), Italian dressing packets and taco seasoning, but I've also shared recipes of how to make those on here (not the taco seasoning yet, but that's on my radar!).
I think that's the big stuff...let me know if you have more questions or wonder what I use some of it for!!
Oh, and I missed rosemary, sea salt, and whole peppercorns (we prefer fresh crushed pepper and have a little salt/pepper grinder for the sea salt and peppercorns!)
ReplyDeleteI don't know how many of you travel through Hong Kong, but there is a great grocery store there called City Super (there are several locations). I LOVE LOVE LOVE their spice selection. They come in great sized little bottles for very reasonable prices (similar to or less than the US). Most things there are pricier than other locations around HK, but not the spices. I ALWAYS go and find what I need when I'm there. So, if you or friends are traveling through, make a list and stock up!! One of my favorite places to get spices in the U.S. is at World Market!! They come in small bags for cheap and have a large selection. I especially shop there for some of the random ones that I don't use as often or are more unique to ethnic dishes I make.
ReplyDeleteThanks SB. That list was helpful...it helped me remember what I think is actually in my kitchen cabinet in China! :)
ReplyDeleteWe need a forum or something! :-)
ReplyDeleteAs far as the brown rice, maybe it was OLD. I have bought different quality, for sure. The expensive organic packages (vacuum packed) have best quality. The store packed stuff is dry and not as flavorful or whole (broken pieces).
I cook it in my rice cooker. It does take longer, but the cooker does fine. I wonder what the problem was?
Send me an email, SB, and I'll send your some recipes. (Go to my profile. It's there.)
ReplyDeleteSB- Thanks for your MANY recipes. I regularly trying something new from your blog. I love having yummy options that will work in China. As for me, I'd love to have some more crock-pot recipes, anything else that you can do with good ol' chewy Chinese beef (Ugh), and I loved the recipe for your chicken kabobs. Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteBreakfast ideas we use: egg casserole & baked oatmeal are regulars at our house. We have a breakfast rotation that helps add some variety since cereal is hard to find and crazy expensive.