I usually have a head of Napa cabbage in my refrigerator. It’s a convenient vegetable to have around because it’s easy to clean (I may see an occasional dead fly or bug on it, but little dirt) and prepare. I chop it, rinse it thoroughly a few times, and it’s good to go.

Napa cabbage doesn’t need much seasoning because of its natural, subtle sweetness. If you’re serving it as a side dish, you could add a bit of oil (vegetable, sesame, or olive) and maybe salt during cooking. It can also be cut into quarter-inch pieces and used in stir-fries with other vegetables, meat, or tofu. It makes a great addition to noodle stir-fries, lending a bit of crunch and color, as well.

My absolute favorite way to eat Napa cabbage is in soups or Chinese hot pot. I cut it into one-inch pieces and let it simmer in the pot for a while. It’ll turn soft and tender (to the point that it may break apart when you pick it up with your eating utensil), and absorb the flavors of the broth. Mmm.

The leaves are my favorite part of Napa cabbage. I’ve only eaten this vegetable cooked, but I know that it can also be eaten raw. The Pioneer Woman has a recipe for a colorful Asian Noodle Salad that includes Napa cabbage. Any way you eat it, eat it!

This item had me at “Salt & Vinegar,” two of my favorite seasonings for potato chips. And there’s one more thing that caught my eye on the packaging.

These cracklings are part of the company’s “Beer Match” series—snacks that go with beer. I don’t much care for the accompanies-beer thing, as I’m not a big beer-drinker, but salt and vinegar? Come to Cindy.

Continue reading »

My cousin Cathy told me an amusing story about Olivia, her two-year-old daughter, recently. After not hearing any nonsensical babble from Olivia for a few minutes and suspecting mischief, Cathy went to investigate. She found her daughter sitting on the bottom step of the staircase in their house, slowly sniffing individual pieces of wrapped gummy candy Cathy’s friend had given them the previous day. When Olivia realized she’d been discovered, she tried to hide her face and hands still holding the candy between the rungs of the staircase. But not before she told her mother, “No, no, no!” She wanted to sniff her gummies in peace, was that too much to ask?

I chuckled as Cathy recounted the story, finding it cute but un-relatable. That is, until yesterday.

I saw these colorful babies in the Sanrio section of the Japanese supermarket, an area I tend to avoid because it has undeniably adorable but overpriced items. I was there searching for a gift bag to go with the Tesuki Japanese Paper.

I think my eyes may have bugged out when I picked up this Chococat Cola Flavor Bubble Gum, because I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and smelling. (Yes, I gave it several good sniffs, like any crazy—or is it smart?—person would.) The gum has a strong cola scent, and the more I smelled it, the more I craved an ice-cold Coca-Cola. Chococat Cola Flavor Bubble Gum, I think you’re one of the best creations since bacon.

And the bliss continued in the form of Deery Lou Cherry Flavor Bubble Gum, smelling just as delectable as its cola cousin. Deery Lou, I love you. Really, could it get any better? It could.

Continue reading »

Sorry, King’s Hawaiian Sweet Rolls, but this milk chocolate bar is more my idea of how paradise tastes. Happy Valentine’s Day to those who celebrate it.