CONTORTED PASTA

After a warm start, we have been having a relatively cool summer here in the UK, so my usual summer habit of living on salads hasn't really taken off yet. Only eating a salad a few times a week, I know I would never get through salad greens before they started getting yucky (it's a challenge for one person even during proper salad season) and not having greens on hand further inhibited the salad eating, until I realised: I don't actually need leafy greens for a salad. A salad can be anything. And it turns out, when you leave out the leafy greens, you're left with stuff that actually fills you up and you can make it more than 20 minutes without feeling hungry again.

So, if you would like to eat more salads, but are facing the same or different challenges in doing so, here is a non-leafy virtual salad bar which you can pick and mix to your satisfaction:

• grated carrots
• grated beets
• tinned chickpeas
• tinned black beans
• tinned butter beans
• roasted sweet potato cubes
• roasted squash cubes
• peas
• raw zucchini (or in my case marrow) cut into thin pieces
• fresh red pepper
• fresh green beans
• tomatoes
• green onions
• cauliflower (fresh or cooked)
• broccoli (same)
• shredded fresh brussels sprouts
• apple
• grapefruit
• peanuts
• sesame seeds

I can't remember the last salad I made to a recipe. Usually I improvise to a basic formula: a base of fresh veg, a fruit, and a cheese and/or protein. The fruit gives it a lift and a pleasing sweet/salt dynamic, the cheese brings umami, and the protein fills you up. Beans and their ilk are really good for this last one, and the types I've listed above have a particular hearty savouriness that give some heft to the salad both in flavour and staying power. If you have a very flavourful salad then pick a light cheese; if your salad needs interest then crumble something more intense into it. You figure out the balances with a little experimentation.

My grocery order from the local pub arrived today! The doorbell rang literally five minutes after I finished the last of my milk, so it could not have been better timed. I got everything I asked for, and the price was surprisingly reasonable, considering it was delivered to my door and one of the items was a large free-range roasting chicken from the local artisan butcher's. By the weight of it, I'm guessing it has come with its giblets, so that will be cause for some therapeutic creativity later on. I am also now drowning in potatoes and onions, so, life will go on for some time yet.

I spent most of yesterday tidying in anticipation of switching into Book Mode – mostly this means setting up my drawing table, so my desk has to be clear, but I find it a good mental palate-cleanser to do a general tidy when I change tasks anyway. Despite this I got no work done on the book yesterday at all: my brain has been nachos since the fiasco Sunday night, so I gave up trying to concentrate on anything and instead watched The Big Short, which my sister has been nagging me to do for years and which I keep forgetting about. That is a good movie! I can see why the nagging! It's on Netflix now so if you want to surprise yourself by caring about bankers, see a remarkably sympathetic portrayal of autism, and appreciate the work of a talented editor, check it out.

Another thing I did yesterday was make a necessary trip to the post office, to send off a commission intended for a child's birthday present, before said child's birthday. That was by far the most Pandemic experience I've had thus far: there was a minder at the door directing people to where their needs could be met, and turning away people who didn't need to be there. She directed the person who entered before me to use the self-service machines, but me she directed to a window in the back, even though what I came to do could usually be done at the machine. The attendant didn't turn up for a few minutes, and then was wearing a face mask and gloves despite being behind a plexiglass barrier already. I wasn't allowed to drop my two pre-stamped envelopes in the mailbox so I handed those to him as well. The recipient of the commission is ill with The Virus; though still well enough to respond promptly to emails, he is quite frank about how awful it is, so I'm hoping the package will cheer him up a bit. With any luck he'll be sufficiently recovered by his son's birthday to give it to him in person.

On my way back I stopped by the new hole-in-the-wall Tesco. It was empty of people but full of food; I got some bananas and an aubergine just to look like I was doing essential shopping, but mainly I was there for biscuits and marmalade. I don't keep biscuits in the house usually, but in Olden Days I would have two or three pastries a week when I went to draw at Pret, and after a few weeks of confinement, I was missing the fat and sugar pretty badly. The marmalade craving was surprisingly intense – I had none in my stores because I figured it would be less hard to find in a post-Brexit apocalypse than, say, dried shiitake mushrooms. My sister has promised me a care package of citrus preserves, so I only got one jar, which should tide me over until that arrives. Marmalade on buttered sourdough toast is an unusual but delightful experience – it manages to be sweet, sour, salty, and bitter all at the same time, with a good crunch-to-goop ratio. If the lockdown has pushed you onto the sourdough wagon, do give it a try.

We've tipped well past midday here and I really have to set up my drawing table, but first I have to clear my desk again ... hmmm, I can see where this is going ...

I only added the flour this morning and MY STARTER ALREADY HAS BUBBLES!






UPDATE 22:02 GMT

Did you know it takes  a l l  d a y  to write emails checking in on your students who you haven't heard from in a while?

Well OK, I also made perogies, which took a couple hours, so that should count for something. I now have about two weeks' worth of perogies, from two cups of flour and one potato and a few odds and ends. It's like the loaves and fishes, but if Jesus spent two hours listening to coronavirus news while stuffing dumplings.

All day, though!

When I moved to Mountain View and saw Castro Street, I resolved to eat at every restaurant before I left. That has not worked out quite so well, as we eat very late and usually large lunches at work so I'm not that hungry come dinnertime, and half the time I can't be bothered to choose somewhere and get there, but I'm still on the path, focusing mostly on Japanese and other Asian food because I don't know how much of that I'll find where I'm going. As much for my own reference as sharing my opinions with the world, here is my list so far ... I'll add to it as I visit more places.

Bushido: Pretty good, nice space, varied izakaya menu, but seems a little Westernized in a way I can't quite put my finger on. Had okonomiyaki one night and the beef tongue miso stew another; I've got used to making very dry okonomiyaki at home so the battery thing drowned in sauce was a bit much, but that's personal preference. The stew was tasty but a little too sweet/strong; I had to cut it with a lot of rice.

Niji Sushi: Probably my favourite restaurant in Mountain View; Vancouver sushi at Vancouver prices. They get just the right pungency in the rice, have things on the menu I haven't seen since Vancouver, and get bonus points for the mountain of age dashi tofu in an order. I first went at about 2 on a weekday; if you want to get in with no wait this is what you may like to do, as it gets a little crazy in the evenings.

Tsunami Sushi: I wasn't expecting this to be great as it failed several points in my checklist of How To Spot A Good Sushi Place, and it lived up to every expectation, but I had to knock it off the list. It's closed now, so there you go!

Kappo Nami Nami: This was the sort of izakaya place I was hoping Bushido would be ... I could run through my savings eating izakaya, everything is so good, but so small, but so good, and so many! I had the sake-marinated grilled Spanish mackerel and the ankimo, because ankimo is truly the food of the gods and it would be blasphemy to refuse the gift they've deigned to share with us mere mortals. Definitely plan to come back and, at the very least, try the bowl of little fried fishies that my neighbour got. I only wish they had gingko nuts on the menu like that place in Torrance ...

Maru Ichi: It's ramen. It's good. They make their own noodles. Boiled egg comes with the soup and you can add extra menma, it's like they want me to love them. If it weren't so darn sunny all the time I'd eat here more often (I've been twice) but while the un-rameny weather continues I must turn my attention to my quest instead. Cash-only, so come prepared!

Totoro (Korean): Had the Seafood and Tofu Hot Pot – it was magnificent, and came with a generous selection of side dishes including sesame noodles and kimchi. The 'medium' was at my top end of spice tolerance so spice wimps be warned, but ooooh yum. I want to come back here again before I go, so I might have to sacrifice an unvisited restaurant.

Hong Kong Bistro: I wanted a Cantonese greasy spoon and that's exactly what I got. Had the Satay Beef Noodle Soup because I'd never seen that offered before: It was greasy and noodly and swimming with spices; if you like that sort of thing then yay, and if not, be warned. The menu has a lot of the Chinese/western mix I remember from such establishments in Vancouver so that was a nice touch of home. If you're looking for straight-up Cantonese, though, I'd recommend:

Queen House: further up the street on the same side, they have a wide array of lunch/dinner specials (that come with soup, etc) that will fill you right up for under $10. I've had the Spicy Eggplant and I don't remember what else, something with shrimp; both were very good.

Chef Liu: A little more expensive than the other two, but from what I had (the Beef Chow Fun) perhaps slightly better overall – everything seemed really fresh. I almost got the crispy eggplant but the waiter said it was enough for two and I wasn't that hungry; she assured me it was one of the most popular, though, so I'll have to go back with someone and try it out.

Hong Kong Bakery: has Egg Tarts. Sold. Also has what T&T called a 'lotus ball' but seems to go by 'Chinese donut' around here, that sesame-crusted fried rice dough ball with red bean paste inside? I'm sure my consumption of those things has taken years off my life but man, they're good.

Scratch (western/American): Not normally the sort of place I'd choose on my own, but I was with someone who tends to pick the fanciest restaurant on the street. It definitely has that hip, high-end vibe, which comes with hard surfaces and loud music so when it's crowded it's hard to hear yourself think, but mid-afternoon it's not bad as long as you're content to eat off the (ample) appetizers menu. I had PEI moules-frites, which was quite rich but tasty. Bonus points for having cider on the drinks menu.

Shiva's (Indian): Another place visited with the above company; in this case my inherent skepticism of establishments which put a lot of effort into their decor was refuted by the really really good food. I ordered something similar to a paneer tikka masala which was divine, and when we all shared, everyone else's was great too.

Park Baluchi (Indian): Came here for the lunch buffet which was wide and delicious and included Butter Chicken, which they called Butter Chicken, which makes me suspect a Canadian connection because it's called Tikka Masala everywhere else and Butter Chicken is dry. Anyway. Also had Gulab Jamun. If they'd gone so far as to have Kheer as well I would not have made it home. I guess it turns into a club at night? Buffet > nightclub, go for lunch.

Gyro's: Your typical gyro/kebab place, has some very nice photographs of Greece (not grease, ha ha), friendly staff, open (this is important) after a late work night when I couldn't decide where to eat.

Yakko Sushi: off Castro a way; I was in the mood for sushi, Niji was too full and Sono was closed so I went hunting. It's pricier than Niji and I'm not sure it's quite worth it; for one thing the menu is overdependent on spicy tuna and fake crab. Nice friendly neighbourhood vibe though.

Pho To Chau: Nice little Vietnamese place, nothing extraordinary but good flavour and freshness. I had the BBQ Pork Vermicelli, which thankfully came in a reasonable portion size – I love noodles but sometimes there's just too many.

Pho Hoa: It's a chain, so I was a little hesitant to try, but I'm glad I did: the pho was really tasty and fresh AND they offer a 'just enough' size, which truly was just enough and made me very happy; while I love pho, I am not always willing to eat a bucketful.

New Mongolian BBQ: I am not familiar with Mongolian Barbecue in general so I don't know how this place compares, but you get to pick how much of what you want in your stirfry, which is a draw, AND they have a serve-your-own softserve machine which is pretty great, if not the first thing I think of when someone says 'Mongolian.'

Ristorante Don Giovanni: An Italian restaurant that comfortably straddles 'nice' and 'family-friendly.' I had the Pasta alla Adriatica which was pretty scrummy. They offered free Thanksgiving dinner to whoever came in the door so you know it's run by good people.

Crepevine: Despite its cafeteria-style casualness the food is quite good (and the french fries amazing) and while you may balk at paying $10 for a crepe, they don't stint on the stuffing at all, and it comes with two sides, so you'll leave full and happy. I splurged on the San Francisco because know knows when that opportunity will come up again, and I have no regrets.

Ephesus: Mediterranean (Greek/Turkish?) – A different menu from what I've usually seen at Mediterranean places, which are usually Greek or Lebanese; I got some sort of lamb mince wrapped in lavash, baked in a tomato sauce, and served with yoghurt, and it was really very good.

While it's technically not a restaurant, I absolutely must give a shout out to Red Rock Coffee, which has all the best things: social relaxed atmosphere, ample seating, community spirit, WiFi, and REALLY GOOD COFFEE. I went off mochas years ago because they were too syrupy and blah, but I think Red Rock might possibly make THE BEST MOCHAS IN THE WORLD, like just the right amount of a very dark chocolate bar melted straight into your really good coffee. Also very good cappuccinos and lattes, the drip coffee ain't too bad either, and they have a single origin bar which I'm not enough of a snob to get the most from but I appreciate its presence. And you get a 25c discount if you bring in your own mug. I need to spend a lot more time here before I leave.

Another good word must be given to Tapioca Express which has the most enormous bubble tea menu I have ever seen, and I have seen a few. If I were here longer and over the summer I might give the more esoteric ones a shot, but alas no.