Simplicity, Midnight Snack 2, and a Tiny Extravagance.

This is what I had for dinner last night:


E made it for the two of us--chilled oriental-style noodles with scallions, seasoned with sesame oil and soy sauce. Simple, but delicious. Simplicity is good.

Simple Sesame-Soy Sauce Noodles

2 servings of thin oriental-style noodles
1 tbsp scallions, chopped
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil

~Cook the noodles in boiling water. Drain and rinse quickly in cold water to prevent sticking.
~Separate into two bowls and chill to slightly below room temperature.
~Divvy up the scallions, soy sauce, and sesame oil and mix it in good.

Makes enough for 2.

And then around 3 am, we decided to have a midnight feast, and Mi, E, and I each contributed something. tamagoyaki (rolled eggs) with nori and carrots from Mi, stir-fried green beans with garlic and onions from E, and mashed potatoes from me.


Garlicky Mashed Potatoes

7 baby russet potatoes (or 2-3 normal-sized ones), scrubbed
1/4 cup whole milk
2 tbsp butter or margarine
1/2 tbsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

~Boil the potatoes in a pot until it is soft and easily poked into with a chopstick/fork.
You can peel the potatoes if you want. I didn't.
~Drain the water and start mashing up the soft potatoes. I did my mashing with a wooden spoon. If you have a potato masher, that's great, otherwise a fork or something works fine too.
~Add the milk and continue mashing until it's your desired consistency. I prefer my mashed potatoes a little chunky, so I didn't mash them completely smooth.
~Add the butter/margarine, and season with salt and pepper according to your tastes.

Makes about 3 servings, depending on the size of your potatoes.

Just as we were in the middle of eating our feast, the fire alarm rang. At 3:30 am.

Fire Alarm Count: 24

I woke up at 3 pm today, so my eating schedule has been erratic. I had a handful of Swedish Fish after getting up, and then some shrimp-flavored crackers which tided me over until evening. Then I decided to make myself a little snack.

Mi, E, and I went to Koreantown yesterday, and in the supermarket there was an entire freezer in the back with sushi supplies: fish, octopus, and different types of roe, including salmon, tobiko (flying fish) and masago (sweetfish/capelin). I picked up a little 0.3 lb container of masago for $4.50. It's a splurge for me, because how full can that tiny container make me, really? But we all have our priorities, and since the only other thing I've dropped a lot of money on lately is my Brita pitcher (which I consider an investment) and I've been pretty tightfisted with my funds, I decided to indulge a little bit. Just a little.

Tonight I was in the mood for eggs. I'm sure for many, fish eggs with chicken eggs sounds odd, but for me it sounds delicious. And it was. Scrambled eggs topped with masago. I love roe (most foreign canned caviar is too salty for my taste, I prefer the lighter variety used for sushi), but tobiko or masago is my favorite because they're so tiny that the little explosion of salt in your mouth is more pronounced. Plus, the colors were gorgeous.


For some people who are probably curious...no, I haven't gone out to any parties or gone clubbing even though I've been in NYC for almost a month. Nor have I yet gotten drunk, high, or knocked up. Instead I find it more fun to stay in my room, cook good food and write on this blog. Yes, I make a lame college student, I know. But you're reading this, aren't you?


Edit://

Okay, one last snack before I take a shower and hit the sack...



This is another treat I picked up at the Korean supermarket--a pack of 6 mochi, two white, two pink, and two green. For those of you who don't know what mochi is, it's a sticky rice paste cake filled with a sweet filling. This filling is traditionally red bean paste, but a popular twist on this traditional food is filling it with ice cream instead. Either way, it's a yummy dessert or a late-night snack. I had a pink one, and E had a white one.