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Well well, we had quite the traditional Thanksgiving day over here...if Asian food is your traditional Thanksgiving!!! And I bet it's NOT! I guess if you're not eating turkey, nor seeing your family, and you and your spouse are lazy and busy with an infant, it makes sense that we ended eating a few Asian appetizers for the Day Upon Which We Give Thanks.

So, I made a couple of Korean dishes that I love, and one very interesting take on a traditional Thanksgiving appetizer, courtesy of Veganomicon {a book I don't (but need) to have!}


This spinach salad was really good. The only alterations I made is that I salted the boiling water, and I left the spinach in a tad longer than indication. Also I toasted the sesame seeds before using. This is one of my favorite Korean appetizers and I was so happy to make it myself!

This cucumber salad is so refreshing and delicious. Alterations is that I doubled the recipe, I cut the cucumbers into half moons by cutting it lengthwise and scooping out the seeds and then chopping each half. I didn't use cilantro because I despise the stuff in general. I marinated in the fridge for a while before adding sesame seeds. And I added a dash of sesame oil to taste.

The piece de resistance was truly the panko stuffed mushrooms. I've had some panko breadcrumbs in my cupboard for a while now so it was a perfect way to use them. I didn't use much daikon but it didn't matter -- this was really a treat! I probably could have cooked the mushrooms a bit longer but I thought the stuffing was getting dried out/burnt. If I was less distracted I would have tested to make sure. Oh, and I used red pepper flakes instead of white pepper and it was fine, with a nice tiny kick.

Next year we'll do the usual. Having a baby and no family for thousands of miles has sure shook things up a bit. But next year Baby V will be more aware, and I like the traditions because they make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside -- turkey corpse be damned.

Pin It We had the best salad at a Greek restaurant at Coney Island a few years ago with some hot, delicious bread -- and have been eating this simple, refreshing dish ever since:

Shepherd's Salad
2 large tomatoes
1 large cucumber
1 green bell pepper
3/4 of a large red onion
Olive oil to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
mint to taste
lemon juice to taste (very important also)

Chop all the veggies into bite-sized pieces and mix thoroughly in a big bowl with the rest of the ingredients. Put in fridge for as long as you can stand, stirring juice all over the veggies occasionally.

We NEVER have leftovers of this. Not a drop.


Last nite I made pasta salad. It came out pretty good, and a really endless supply for not much money.

Amazing Italian Pasta Salad
1/2 box of rotini pasta - tricolore is good
3/4 box of grape tomatoes (these were SO sweet)
1/2 a green pepper
1 large red onion
2 cucumbers
1/2 jar of artichoke hearts w/some juice
handful of olives w/some juice
4 veggie dogs (Yves), sliced
8 sun dried tomatoes
3/4 bag of dried chickpeas (or a couple of cans of chickpeas but I try to avoid cans)


Soak chickpeas overnight or do quick soak as detailed on package (i did this). If you do quick soak, give yourself about 3-4 hours to make this dish.
Boil chickpeas for 2 minutes and turn down heat. Cook for 1 hour or until you can mash a couple with a fork.
Boil pasta, drain and shower in cold water.
Chop all veggies and combine in a big bowl. Boil hot doggies, slice up, and add. In a small bowl, combine olive oil, garlic and salt. Pour over the mixture and add vinegar. You can add some olive juice and artichoke-heart juice too. I added a lot of basil and oregano for an Italian flavor. Add pasta and get the sauce all over.
Keep in fridge for a few hours. Enjoy. Delish. And we had it for lunch and dinner the next day. And then there were chickpeas left that I didn't use, which I just had for lunch combined with some of the original ingredients (no pasta). Fabu.