-
Garlicky Mashed Potatoes
Since my husband is Irish (mostly) and my sister also has an insane love for potatoes, I have a self-inflicted high standard of what I think mashed potato should be. I love garlic! It smells so good with the buttery mashed potatoes. You can also add chopped parsley or rosemary to the mashed potatoes. The…
-
Cheesy Baked Mac and Cheese
Such a nostalgic dish! So comforting. This is the second most requested side dish at Thanksgiving. To call it a side dish does it injustice. In my family, the main course are the side dishes. A side bonus, once it is cooled you can freeze this and enjoy it later. So make lots of it!…
-
Japanese Potato Salad
I started making this potato salad after my high school friend introduced it to me. I had to make it and share with my family. My mom and aunt especially loves it with rice! Yep, you heard me…carbs on carbs. It’s different in that it contains apples and thinly sliced cucumbers. It adds so much…
-
Green Bean Casserole
This recipe is the most requested in my family, extended family, and friends on Thanksgiving. So much so that my cousins and siblings have been pinging me lately to get their hands on this one so that they can replicate it and share with their families on Thanksgiving. We used to share Thanksgiving together and…
-
Coco Ichibanya Curry, Den Den Town, & Ippudo
This place . . . if you are a hobbyist, a nerd, a geek, a crafter, a gamer, a manga collector, and/or an anime enthusiast . . . prepare yourself! This place will make you spend your money. The streets are lined with hobby stores, arcades, maid cafes, and electronic stores. But before you go and…
-
Nara Deer Park & Temples
Nara is one of the old capitals of Japan. You certainly get that feeling visiting the many World Heritage sites here. From Osaka, it is about an hour train ride via Yamatoji Rapid Service. Once there at the JR Nara Station, I was panicking because Google map indicated that it’s about a 30 minute walk to…
-
Osaka Castle
The first year we visited Osaka we didn’t get the chance to visit Osaka Castle. I remember riding on the subway at night and catching a glimpse of the castle all lit up. It was magnificent! This time I wasn’t going to miss the chance again. But first, girl gotta eat! The first time we…
-
To Osaka! Dotonbori
For our first week, we picked Osaka as our base to explore Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, and Kobe. I love the Shinkansen, aka the bullet train! The ride from Tokyo Station to Shin-Osaka Station was smooth and scenic. My favorite thing is eating ekiben; “eki” means train and “ben” is short for bento or traditional Japanese…
-
Touchdown Tokyo, Japan
Finally going on vacation! I’ve been looking forward to my 2 weeks in Japan. This time we flew from Washington, D.C. area to Toronto, Canada and then to Haneda International airport via Air Canada. It was a beautiful day and I got to sit by the window to Toronto. Look at this view! Toronto International…
-
2016 Taipei Taiwan: Traditional Chinese Breakfast, Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall & Garden
On day 6, Sunday, the main attractions we planned to check out are Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall, Longshan Temple, and Ximending shopping district. It will be another long day of walking. Let’s do this! Ding Yuan Soy Milk (鼎元豆漿 Dǐng yuán dòujiāng) First, I was really excited to find an authentic hole-in-the-wall traditional Chinese…