Happy Summer! I'm looking forward to warm, restful days, but so far, not many of those has happened. This summer actually seems cool (do I dare say "cold"?). I have not gone swimming since the short heatwave we had in the early spring.Spring...spring was so crazy, so full of activity.
D1 came back to Hawaii for a month. She shadowed a doctor in Honolulu, and got spoiled by my cousins and uncle. They graciously allowed her to stay with them and provided family "Uber" services so she did not need to drive herself anywhere. My cousin and her family fed her all kinds of ono food, including Stason's specialty, smoked lamb. D1 enjoyed the intense car convos with UMiles as he was chauffeuring her around. D1 got exposed to all kinds of food while shadowing the doctor. His nurses would bring him sinigang and lechon on days at his Waipio office. I don't think D1 ever heard of sinigang before that. In fact, D1 claims she had her first peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which Aunty Lori Ann made for her. D2 and I are confused, as D2 brought peanut butter sandwiches for most of her intermediate school lunches...it's not like we didn't have peanut butter!
In early April, Mr. Dependable and I flew to Honolulu to help D1 deal with some medical issues which turned out to be all good. D1 bounced back a lot better than I did!By early May, we were all back in Honolulu to celebrate cute little Cody's 1st birthday party. His family held nothing back! The party was at Koolau Golf Club, and they had their famous bread pudding on the dessert buffet!!! It was as creamy and rich as I remembered it from my resource teacher days. Kids were feted with games and a the largest jumping castle which could fit inside the ballroom. Yes, INSIDE the ballroom. Kikukat Dad said the best part about the party, after the open bar, was the shave ice stand, which was available throughout the party. I'm not sure how much the birthday boy will remember about his day, but he will certainly have pics. He took a pic with every guest!
D1 left for AZ the next day, and D2 and I had a few hours to enjoy being in Honolulu. We were hungry so D2 suggested we make a stop at one of her favorite Chinese restaurants in Honolulu, Fook Yuen Seafood. Fook Yuen is on the 2nd floor of McCully Shopping Center, and the big draw there is the $15 lobster (limit 1 per entree). We ordered the seafood pan fried noodles and a salt & pepper lobster. D2 said her trip to Honolulu was now complete.One thing keeping me from enjoying my summer is GERD. I remember having it for a short time about a year ago. I took some OTC meds for a week and it was gone. This time, I did the same, but it came back in a few days and I've been working with my doctor to find the right medication. I am hoping and praying I will not need to have surgery. My friends who had the surgery have described recovery as grueling. I'm not up for grueling.
My recent food consumption has changed drastically in an attempt to reign in the acid reflux. I'm eating oatmeal and banana daily. I've also discovered that salads sit very well. Up until last week, I made the mistake of having dressing with my salad...until I realized that salad dressings contain vinegar (a source of acid!). I'm not sure why I even thought dressing was okay. Anyway, I'm a bit smarter now, so I'm having my salads without dressing.
In my attempt to "dress up" my salad without dressing, I've been exploring toppings with are neutral (not likely to cause reflux). Boiled egg and shredded carrots have been my standard toppings on iceberg lettuce. But I also enjoy small bits of fish, meat or chicken. A handful of diced char siu chicken added lots of flavor to a bland salad. And no, my family is not eating bland food...they continue to eat "normal" food.
click on recipe title for printable recipe
2-3 lbs chicken
1/4 c shoyu
1 tbsp 5-spice
3 tbsp sherry
2 tbsp red bean curd
1 tbsp red food coloring (liquid) or 1/4 tsp concentrated red food coloring
Combine marinade ingredients and soak chicken overnight. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Broil 5 minutes in order to crisp the skin. Instead of baking/broiling, chicken can also be grilled over a hibachi.