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General Weight Loss Tips

Vietnamese Bun Thit Nuong

vietnamese pork and noodle dish Vietnamese Bun Thit Nuong

Recipe from Jennifer Cooks

This photo, taken at night on my phone, had to be captured because I was just so excited to eat Vietnamese food that tastes so close to the ones I started eating in restaurants.

This dish reminds me of Josh and my first visits to New York. The visits that would cement our relationship  and a combined appreciated for good food. We’d go to L’Annam in Union Square every single time I visited, even once on Thanksgiving after the parade. I’d always order the grilled pork vermicelli, and he’d order pho.

I may have known, but never could  have guessed that this dish would be the same one that I’d seek out while traveling and eventually make in our home.

I think this is the perfect summer dinner and since we basically skipped most of winter and spring and seem to be headed straight  into summer (it’s supposed to be 80 degrees today! no complaints here.), I thought I’d share this recipe with you. Jennifer, from Jennifer Cooks gets it right. Also known that this would be just as good with chicken thighs or even tofu if that’s your thing. And if you’re like me and have tons of leftover noodles, vegetables and sauce, it makes an excellent cold salad the next day.

Categories
General Weight Loss Tips

Birthday Food

I have a secret to share. Are you ready? If it’s your birthday, and you approve of my cooking, there’s a good chance I’ll make you something delcious to eat. Because I love you. Just ask my husband.

For his birthday I put together this easy Vietnamese dish that happens to be one of our restuarant favorites. It’s a good thing I know how to make it because the nearest Vietnamese restaurant is three hours a way.

This dish hits all the important notes, sweet, savory, slightly salty, tangy and a little sour.

Grilled Pork Vermicelli with Nuoc Cham Sauce

This recipe is extremely easy to put together. And I love that because it looks pretty darn impressive. Here’s what you do. Purchase a small roast of pork picnic/shoulder/roast. I’ve bought this cut of meat many times and it’s gross and big. I’ve warned you. I use a sharp knife and slice off the layer of fat from the roast and then I cut thin 1/4 inch slices of meat for marinating.

For the marinate I’ve made this Nuoc Cham Sauce several times without fail. Chopped greens onions are helpful too. Let your pork marinade in half the recipe of Nuoc Cham Sauce for 1-4 hours.

I boil water for vermicelli or angel hair pasta. Once the pasta is cooked rinse it under cold water and portion into bowls.

Grill pork inside on a griddle or outside. This is important, the grill makes it magical.

Chop up a few carrots, peanuts or cashews, ice burg lettuce (this is one dish where ice burg makes all the difference), cilantro or mint, and cucumbers. A wedge of lime and bean sprouts are good too.

Arrange all the ingredients in the bowl and top with more Nuoc Cham Sauce. Sprinkle with peanuts. So, so good!

Please let me know if you make this dish, only so we can talk about how awesome it is.

I wanted to share a couple more things with you.

First, here is a photo Josh took of the cats and rabbit on the bed. I wasn’t in the house when this went down.

Yup two cats and a rabbit on our bed. Nothing strange about that. Apparently the rabbit scared the cats away.

In other news, I’ve been taking one-two days a week off of my “eating better for me” plan to enjoy carbs. It hasn’t hindered my weight loss too much as I’m down 15 lbs. so far. It’s helpful to be flexible, and I’m honestly okay with it as long as I continue to count calories.

And for even more news, I’ve been cleaning out my office because I’ve hired a real live project manager to work with me three days a week in my home office. This is a big deal, as I’ve dreamed of working on projects with another person since I started my business(es) a year ago. It’s scary and exciting to have someone to give work to. I just love that I’m in a place right now to afford health insurance and hire a part time employee. Trying to stay positive, and not negative which is a default of mine when things start going well. I worry about the most insane things when things start going well. Am I alone here?

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A Weekend in Charlottesville

Our weekend was spent a couple hours north in Charlottesville for Josh’s birthday and a friend meetup for Harry Potter. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate his birthday than with good food, sites, friends and drinks. We even made a stop into the pawn shop  for birthday gifts such as a new tuner, guitar picks and a baby blue ukulele.  And it wouldn’t be a trip to Charlottesville without a visit to TJ’s house in Monticello.

A really nice triangle room at the Omni Charlottesville.

Chicken Tikka Masala from Himalayan Fusion

Mango Mojito.

Downtown Mall.

First Pimm’s cup.

Ashley and Marques!

Ashley’s brats and waffles from Zinc.

My roasted chicken, gnocchi and crispy mushrooms.

Josh’s steak with potato gratin and onions.

Marques’s trout with cauliflower.

Grilled pork vermicelli from Saigon (my very very favorite Charlottesville meal)

Didn’t get to see katheats, they were closed on Sunday.

Monticello grounds.

Monticello

See you soon Charlottesville!

 

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