super snacks

for the super bowl this year i decided to make a snack that i kind of imagined, hot dogs breaded in panko. i did some searching on the internet to see if anyone else had tried it and i found this. i wanted to do more of an appetizer so i decided to make what i call japanese hot dog bites. they're battered in a tempura-like mixture and breaded in japanese bread crumbs so i thought the name seemed pretty cute. if you follow that link and get the recipe you should know that the amount of batter that comes from that recipe is a lot more than you need for just 4 hot dogs. i made, in total, 14 hot dogs and still ended up throwing a fair amount of batter away when i was finished.

i used hebrew national kosher hot dogs which come, oddly, 7 per package. i cut each one in half, then in half again giving me 56 "bites" to work with. i stuck a toothpick lengthwise into each bite, dipped it in batter, then rolled it in the bread crumbs. then i basically flash-fried them in canola oil. the recipe i linked to said to fry them for 3-5 minutes but that's a lot longer than i fried mine. i think one of the reasons this whole experiment worked so well is because i was frying something that was already cooked. it's a lot harder to get a good fry from a raw piece of meat, i think, because you have to make sure it's done inside and sometimes that causes the outside to be too crispy, burnt, or tough. when they were done they almost looked like tater tots on a stick.

the part i was most nervous about was reheating them. i made them a few hours before the super bowl party and i was worried that they would become super soggy and not taste as good. i put them in the oven at 350 for probably 5-10 minutes as soon as i arrived at my friends' house and they reheated rather nicely.

i made a couple of dipping sauces for them as well. i did a wasabi mayonaise that was just mayonaise and some wasabi powder. then i did a soy mustard that was, you guessed it, just yellow mustard and soy sauce. everyone seemed to really like the bites and the condiments so yay! and the ultimate a+ for me came when one of my vegan friends couldn't resist it any longer and ate one. earlier in the day i thought that 56 bites was going to be too many but after just a few minutes at the party i realized i should have used that third package of hot dogs after all. this is definitely something i'll be making again. it was pretty easy and the result was definitely worth the time that it took to make them. top chef: just condiments or top chef: just hors d'oeuvres, here i come!

i should apologize now for not having any pictures of the hot dog bites. just this morning i was telling my sister how it bothers me when people post recipes online but they don't include a picture. i'm a very visual person and i just want to know what a dish is supposed to look like. somehow i managed to totally forget to take pictures today but, like i said, just know that if you make them the way i did they will look a lot like tater tots. that's a good visual guide, right?

it was an experience

well, EAST was interesting this weekend. a lot of people came by the cafe where i was showing and i got a lot of really nice compliments on my pictures. it was fun talking to people about my pictures, like where they were taken and the story behind them. however, it wasn't really all that fun to sit outside for 9 hours saturday and 9 more hours on sunday. i think only 1 person sold anything all weekend so that was kind of a bummer. but, like i said, i really did enjoy having so many people come by and look at my pictures. i had a lot of feedback about my use of color which i never really even noticed but i guess it's true. i am drawn to things with bright, beautiful colors. also, tons of people asked about the mannequin graveyard picture. one lady asked if it was a composite, like i photoshopped pictures of different mannequins into one image. a couple people asked if it was mannequins and real people. i guess since i've seen it in person and i know what's there, i never really thought that any of the mannequins looked very lifelike. one of the other artists there told me that my mailbox picture was, "perfect."

i was so horribly exhausted when i got home last night and the thought of doing this all over again for 18 more hours became too much for me. my bff is coming to town on thursday, then all of my sister's in-laws are coming in on saturday. my baby nephew is being baptized on sunday and i would feel awful for missing that. initially i thought that i would go do the art thing, then go hang out afterwards or whatever but after seeing how tired i was by the time i left both days, i realized that i simply can't do it again this weekend.

we're having a big family lunch from rudy's bbq after karsten's baptism on sunday. in an effort to save money i volunteered to make a banana pudding dessert. when it's just a few of us we usually get pudding from rudy's but when it's 12+ people that just doesn't make sense. my sister and i decided that pudding is too southern for steve's family so i'm going to make banana cupcakes with browned butter frosting. i think it's a nice compromise and am really excited to make them! see, if i were doing the studio tour again this weekend i wouldn't have time for that.

photo from betty crocker recipes

this is a story about pot roast

via

what meat eater out there doesn't love a good pot roast? when i was little my grandma used to make one every sunday. well, i assume she did it every sunday and not just the sundays that we were visiting. i do not care for cooked carrots but you better believe i piled my plate high with potatoes and meat then completely soaked both in meat juice. you know, the juice that's at the bottom of the roasting pan after the dish is finished cooking? that delicious meat juice. 

when i was 13 or 14 i went to spend the night with a friend at her dad and step-mom's house. they made a lovely pot roast for dinner and i was super excited to dig in. it's always been one of my favorite dishes, especially homemade. as we sat down at the table i started to peruse all the items set out in front of us and then panic set in. "where's the meat juice?!" i thought to myself. okay, a well made pot roast doesn't require meat juice but potatoes DO. how was i going to eat this without that sweet sweet nectar? i can't even remember what the meal was actually like, apparently i blocked it out of my mind. i imagine i choked down a few bites of potatoes, ate my meat, and was done. what i do remember is that as i was helping clear the table i took a stack of plates into the kitchen and saw my friend's step-mom pouring the meat juice down the sink. i was mortified. "that's not what you're supposed to do with it!" i screamed, in my mind.