Birthday Custard & Bear

For my brother-in-law's birthday dinner I took over a surprise for him:  chilled boiled egg custard.  I followed his grandmother's recipe.  You can find it here.  Since there were a lot of guests and we also were eating cake, we poured small amounts into some crystal glasses.  The rest I bet was gone in a few days!  Before dinner, we actually had another big surprise.  Be surely to follow the whole video until the bear climbs the fence.

Making Merit

 

I made these cupcakes and chocolate chip cookies to make merit for my sister at a local temple (really, meditation center).  She died two years ago.

A Thai Comfort Food

Steamed Egg w/ Pork

I actually spooned out a bit before taking this image.

The Perfect Pairing

This is a great afternoon snack, appetizer or even dessert: Sweet, ripe pears that have a bit of firmness still, sliced fairly thin and placed all over a plate.  On top, ample slices of Robusto cheese.  Buy the cheese in small $5 blocks at your local Whole Foods, and enjoy.  Another cheese that's perfect with pears is Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, which tastes a bit like butterscotch.  It's very delicious, but perhaps not one you'd desire to eat over and over.  Robusto, on the other hand, scores high every time.  Whenever I serve up this treat, it's always on my mother-in-law's Blue Ridge China.

Cosmopolitans + Thai Meal

A friend who joined us for dinner (and made the cosmopolitans) brought over these beautiful orchids.

Sliced Mangoes

I usually peel about three of the smaller mangoes at a time.  They are sweeter.  The larger ones are a bit more tart, but go perfectly with the sugar/chili dipping mix I make.  In Thailand, we like to dip fruit into sweet & spicy mixes.

Check out all the mango varieties you can sample in Thailand.

Broccoli Salad

There's bacon in there, too!  I will add a recipe later.

Healthy Snack

 

I sliced two types of apples, and then whipped up a "dip" that's given out at fruit stands in Thailand.  It's simply salt, sugar and chili.  This looks quite lovely displayed on Blue Ridge plate that belonged to my mother-in-law.

Boiled Egg Custard

Back in December, I made boiled custard, using a family recipe - the same recipe I used for the batch above.  Each time, though, I cut back pretty significantly on the sugar.  Do that to your liking.  Start with a 1/4 to 1/2 reduction.

Citrus

It's a bit more work, but eating oranges this way is really nice.

Lime/Lemon Pie

Swiss Cake Roll

Last August I made a couple of Swiss Cake Rolls - one when my sister-in-law came to town, and another when my husband's cousin visited Asheville for the first time.

Below is the one I made when Allen's cousin visited. 

Gang Jued (Thai Vegetable Soup w/ Pork)

 

Raspberry Champagne Cake

This is the third one I have done.  I called this one "Raspberry Beret" Champagne Cake, in memory of Prince.  I have another one in the works, and it will be served on Christmas day.