You’d think that will all the good times and good food we had in Penang for Chinese New Year, I’d want to go back. You’d think that, but you’d be wrong.
Rose Cookies
Continue reading Why I Am NOT Going Back to Penang for Chinese New Year
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Announcing “Grow Your Own” #40
Thank you to all the participants in last month’s “Grow Your Own” roundup. Let’s do it again!
Spring is officially in swing in the Northern Hemisphere. There are those of you whose gardens are not yet ready for planting, but you are still using up food stored from last year’s harvest. Some of you may be harvesting Winter crops like citrus or greens. A few outdoorsy-types are even foraging for mushrooms, ramps or nettles.
Then there are those of you who live in tropical climates with year-round growing seasons. And let’s not forget those who are in the Southern Hemisphere, where it is the peak of the Summer growing season, and all that it entails. I’ve even noticed that a lot of you are growing sprouts these days – you’re all welcome to participate.
Show off
What are you cooking with all this stuff you’ve grown / harvested / foraged? Here’s your chance to show it off! The rules are simple:
- Make a dish that uses at least one item from your very own garden or farm and post about it. If you hunted or foraged, those items are also eligible. You can also use something that was given to you, but the giver must have personally grown or raised the item. If you paid for it, then it doesn’t count.
- Anything edible that you have grown or raised qualifies, including fruits, vegetables, herbs, sprouts, edible flowers, nuts, grains, legumes, dairy products, eggs, livestock, and anything else I might have forgotten. Produce from both indoor and outdoor gardens are welcome! Different regions will have different things available, so feel free to feature things unique to your area. (Rambutan trees, anyone?) We are all about celebrating variety!
- Please make sure your dish is posted during the month of the event because we like to celebrate seasonal items. One post per blog, please.
- As a courtesy, please include a link to this announcement in your blog post, and then update later with a link to the round-up. A sample link would be like:
This post was entered into the “Grow Your Own” roundup, created by Andrea’s Recipes and hosted this month by House of Annie.
Ready to participate? Because I and lots of other people would LOVE to see what you’re cooking! To enter, just fill out the fields in this form:
http://www.emailmeform.com/fid.php?formid=532860
And make sure to include a pic (no wider than 300 pixels) of your food as well! The deadline for the February GYO roundup is March 31.
Aloha, Nate
Previous March GYO roundups:
“Grow Your Own” roundup #39
With over 40 entries from 8 different countries around the world, this month’s “Grow Your Own” roundup has a lot to offer! Many of the US entries are about using up foods harvested the previous Summer, but some entries celebrate foods available right now in Winter, such as carrots, kale, or even foraged truffles.
You’ll notice a lot of lemon and tomato entries – two crops people grow a lot of at home. There are also entries featuring some unusual crops, such as hops and kefir. So without further ado, here are this month’s GYO entries, listed by ingredient.
Bananas and Papayas
Tropical Upside-Down Cake by Kathleen of Cooking in Mexico in La Cruz, Nayarit, Mexico
Chinese New Year in Penang
Ever since Annie went to the United States to study 13 years ago, she hasn’t been back home for Chinese New Year. Sure, we’ve come back to Malaysia several times to visit, but never during this season which is the most important holiday celebrated by her family. So when we moved to East Malaysia and settled in Sarawak, one of the first things we did was book tickets to KL so we could spend this festive time reuniting with her family in KL and Penang.
Annie’s extended family on her father’s side are from Penang. When I say “extended family”, I mean EXTENDED. Her dad has many brothers and sisters, plus all the other cousins and relatives by marriage. It was said that you couldn’t throw a stone in Penang without hitting a relative. I was looking forward to the excitement of the family reunion.
And, of course, I was looking forward to the food.
Crossing Over the Bridge to Georgetown, Penang
It was a 4 hour-long drive up from KL. We had stopped at a rest stop along the way for some mediocre hawker fare. By the time we got to Annie’s uncle’s house (where we would be staying the next few days), we were exhausted.
But we had barely a chance to unload our car, wash up and settle down before Uncle announced, "come, you want to go eat?"
Well, how could we refuse? ;-d