FOOD FOR THOUGHT: khapoun

hands down, one of my favorite comfort foods, ever..! this dish is what we call khapoun. it's a savory coconut-based curry + fried chilies chicken and vermicelli noodle soup, quail eggs and bamboo... among a delicate combination of several other herbs and spices; garnished with cabbage, carrots, cilantro and green onions for texture and crunch! mmm... nostaglic complex flavors in this simple bowl :) absolutely divine!

although i've always enjoyed it, i don't think i've ever ordered it from a restaurant that had it on its menu. too easy of a dish to half-ass if not prepared with the love and care it deserves. even if it's "passable," i heart it too much to let anything less than amazing fly when it comes to khapoun in paricular. and like most soups, it's definitely the best serves after a day!

i've seen people adding similar condiments they do for pho - a vietnamese noodle soup - in their khapoun; call me old-fashioned, but i think that's the wrongest thing of all! maybe i've been spoiled all my life, but if made correctly, this dish needs no additional seasonings for it's the fusion of the herbs and spices stewing in tandem with the broth - coconut, fried garlic/chilies and curry - that makes it robust and hearty in and of itself! anything extra, other than a spritz of lime juice, just overpowers it - either that, or it's not good to begin with and needs to be masked. haha, jk. at least that's how i've always had it :) and yes, it's always been that good! mmm.


what's your go to comfort food?

scrabble... one of my favorite passtimes, ever!

if you don't agree that scrabble is the best thing ever invented... then we probably can't be friends. haha, jk. my best friends and i have been getting together quite often lately to play my favorite game; of course accompanied with a bottle of wine. or 2, or 3 :) and much needed girl talk!

i like to think we're all equally competitive and skilled strategically - although they'll probably argue they're better, when in actuality it's really me, haha! if you've ever wondered if scrabble could ever be played like chess - oh, it can! haha. before i picked up a 3 minute hourglass to time, it wasn't uncommon for me to have to wait 10 or even 15/20 minutes between turns! them, not me! lols. but even with that said, sometimes it really just boils down to the luck of one's tiles. but then again, luck is when opportunity meets preparation so - eh!

we've played a lot enough together to always try and win for braggin' rights over one another... but even that doesn't mean much in the landscape of how much fun we have doing it! it really is the funniest, the lengths S and L will go to in trying to convince me how a word which isn't really a word is a word, haha. good times! :)

and if you're wondering, yes... we have most, if not all, the 2 letter words memorized too, for fair play; plus, i have all their definitions down. and oh yes, i can and will use them in a sentence for you too if i must! ;) after all, this is serious business! haha.

all in all, definitely my idea of great nights in, recently! a game of wits, quality company full of laughter, delicious food and libations to match! i'm pretty fortunate for friends i can enjoy low key times with... as much as getting dressed to the nines and painting the town (red)! just another day in the life of a smalltown girl. <3

tanya davis - subtlety.

...far and few between
do i ever come across an artist,
quote, lyric, person,
or some other unanchored entity
that speaks to me;
really, speaks to me. and
paints a scenic, but
accurate depiction
of the inner workings of my
whole-hearted
self.
me...
it means the whole me.
the true soul in me.
all the many parts of me.
the fragile. and the tortured.
and the happy, human heart in me.


shhh...

listen.

love,

pieces of me...