30 Day Lolita Challenge: Day Four

I'm not sure what this part of the meme has to do with lolita, but I'll go with it. I mean, really. It can't hurt. And I do love food. Speaking of, if you enjoy taking photos of your food and sharing good deals with others, check out this group on Facebook: Look at My Lunch.

So, if you haven't guessed today's topic is:

Day 4: 10 different kinds of food you like.

This will probably cover beverages as well, because I don't see anything in the list for drinks in the future.

Not a very appetizing photo,
but they're QUITE delicious.

Food Number One:
Gnocchi (pronounced kind of like nnyo-kki).

My dad loves to tell stories about his childhood growing up on The Hill in St. Louis, Missouri and one of his favorite things to reminisce about are the migraines he suffered as a kid.

No, I'm not joking.

He really does.

The reason he actually likes talking about such a painful experience is because of what resulted from the migraines: his mother would let him stay home from school and sleep the headache off, then he got to help her make gnocchi for the rest of the day.

Doesn't sound quite so crazy now, does it?

I only rarely got to eat her variety of the tasty little dumplings before she stopped making them, but the story from my dad was enough to leave a lasting impression. I'm still trying to convince my aunt to let me make up a cookbook of Maumau's recipes, simply for the sake of getting my hands on the one for her gnocchi (and her poundcake, but that's another matter).

How well a restaurant does its gnocchi is now a test for me in terms of their quality--if they do a good job, I'll be back.

It has to "marinate" over night.

Food Number Two:
Mom's seven layer salad.

Another family recipe I'd like to get into my hot little mitts is my mom's recipe for a seven layer salad. It involves hard-boiled eggs, broccoli, olives, copious amounts of cheese, bacon and a slew of other tasty additions. She always makes it for her meetings at work, because they'll have pot-luck lunches right after.

Sometimes, if we're really lucky, there'll be some leftovers for my dad and me to sneak when she's not looking (it doesn't happen all too much, sadly).

Food Number Three:
Maumau's Italian potato salad.

Similar to the gnocchi, this recipe has actually been passed on! My mom and dad both love making it, because it's really simple to do and really borders on the impossible in terms of "messing it up". It goes great with just about anything, so we have it pretty often for holidays and other special occasions. Our whole family also really loves garlic, for which the recipe calls in abundance, so it's a good dish to bring to big dinners.
Food Number Four:

Food Number Four:
Noodles.

Delicious kitsune udon from Kira (ie: udon with friend tofu)

I had to get a bit generic with this one, or I'd run out of foods before I even got to eight!

In short, I love noodles. In long, I loooooove noodles of all kinds. Lately, I have a particular fondness for cold, dipping udon, but that doesn't keep me from also enjoying:

• Spaghetti with meatballs
• Linguini with alfredo sauce
• Udon stirfry
• Pad thai
• Lasagne
• Pancit Canton instant noodles
• Pho
• ... et cetera.

I think you get the picture.

Food Number Five:
Tea and weird "smoothies".

Everybody loves tea, right? I mean, really. I love lots of different kinds of tea, too. Hydrangea tea is my favorite hot tea at the moment, but I also enjoy most types of jasmine and black teas as well.

I don't really have a favorite iced tea, though. In general, I'm not very fond of flavored iced tea unless they're really crazy bubble tea style, like green tea with litchi jelly or almond milk tea with tapioca. My all-time favorite tea places for boba/bubble tea are the Teahouse (a local chain) and Gelato Cup.

Gelato Cup ... Fuckyeah!

Gelato cup does "special smoothies" blending gelato, diced fruit and cream. Not "tea" in the slightest sense, but who cares! They're incredibly rich and delicious and since they come from a tea shop, I'm keeping them in this section. The photo above includes one of their specials as well as some regular old litchi milk tea.

A sweet snack from Buc-ee's truck stop on
a long road trip. Gotta love layers.

Food Number Six:
Pudding.

Chocolate or vanilla, I don't care. I love dessert pudding.

Ever since I was a kid, instant pudding cups and Jell-o pudding boxes have been sneaky additions to the shopping cart, with Mom's eye-rolling acquiescence. Given the opportunity (meaning, there's nothing else in the pantry), I'll eat a whole meal worth of pudding.

Granted, I'll regret it after, but that doesn't stop me all too much.

Sometimes, I manage to eat outside before
the grackles get me!

Food Number Seven:
Panera Bread/St. Louis Bread Company.

Okay, this one is cheating even worse than the noodles, I'm afraid. At least, for anyone who isn't me. Any time I go to Panera, I order the same thing: half sandwich (Napa Apple Chicken Salad), half soup/side dish (White Cheddar Mac'n'Cheese) and low-fat mango smoothie.

Once, they were out of the mac'n'cheese, so I didn't eat there at all.

It's not that I'm snobby or even picky, that's just what I go to Panera Bread to eat.

That and their awesome danishes.

Food Number Eight:
Flan.

When I was living in Missouri, I came to miss many of the things I could easily get at home in Texas. Because I missed certain foods especially, I started to learn to cook and bake better. Thus, I learned to make flan from scratch.

Flan is insane. It's intense. It's so rich, you'll wish it was your sugardaddy.

It's also pretty freakin' easy to make as long as you follow the steps and don't let your friend set the oven timer (because he'll put the wrong time in and your poor flan will end up with a crust thicker than a linebacker's skull; but I digress).

If you've never tried flan, I highly recommend it. It's caramel sweetness at its best.

Food Number Nine:
Apples.

Part of my love for apples is merely the fruit as a symbol and a literary element.  Quite a few writers have used apples (let's ignore the fact that Stephanie Meyer has done some awful things to it, okay?) in fiction to symbolize different things.

Beyond more contemporary fiction, the apple also shows up in myth, legend and folklore all over the damn place, primarily as a sign of temptation and the sealing of a pact or contract (and if you know anything about me by now, it's that I love myth, legend and folklore).

Naturally, there's no harm in the fact that they're tasty as hell to boot.

Food Number Ten:
Empanadas.

Photo care of the boyfriend, fresh from Marini's!

Like a pie without a pan, empanadas come in many different flavors, shapes and sizes. I'm personally quite particular to the Argentine variety as produced by Marini's Empanada House of Katy/Houston, Texas.

They come in savory and sweet flavors, with a huge number of fillings.

Just check out Marini's menu and you'll see what I mean! They're perfect for a snack, lunch or dessert, or possibly all three in one go!