Sprouting. Turned Blue.

Lately, there’s been a lot of DIY projects going on at my home. Mostly because we recently got an industrial balls-to-the-wall Kitchen Aid stand mixer. I'm told it can hold 14 cups of flour. Whoa. We introduced it to our home by making Julia Child’s challah. And then there’s pickled grapes and green garlic, pickled radishes and pickled turmeric (yes!). The Kombucha (used to scare away any squeamish visitor). I also planted a few seeds to grow edamame, although it's turning out to be more finicky than anticipated. And hopefully some wildflowers will be growing shortly.

Now, I understand that DIY experiments are inherently risky. And that’s okay in our house. In fact, it is preferred. But the other day, while sprouting, something happened with our latest DIY project that has left all of us baffled. Including the Doctor! We used broccoli seeds to sprout a large batch, gave it some sunlight, harvested the sprouts and collected a hand full of sprout tails that got disconnected. We put it in the fridge to store, but, within a few hours, the tails that were formerly a delicate white color had turned blue. BLUE.

It was kind of like when garlic turns blue when its sulfur compounds meet something that has a trace amount of copper (water, butter, lemon juice, vinegar) and forms copper sulfate. It’s very strange. After some research, I learned that broccoli sprouts have a large amount of sulforaphane. So there must be traces of copper in our tap water. I learned something today.

Very interesting, Watson.

Ready-to-Go Ramen

I am not a “routine” kind of person. Some days I like to go straight home from work and find a little relaxation by cooking (I can think of a few people who would say that cooking is the last thing they’d want to do after a long day at the office). Other days I can only muster up enough brain power to think of which Indian restaurant will comfort my sorrows.

I don’t shower only in the evenings (which is, apparently, very odd to my friend, Penny, who wouldn’t get into bed without a shower no matter what time she got home or how many late-night margaritas she may have had). In my college days of being the master of my own time, I’ve even been known to shower at 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Some weekends I might sleep in past 10 am (gasp!) and by the time I’ve made a lazy Sunday brunch it’s suddenly past noon. But sometimes I might be bright-eyed at 8 am ready to start my day. You just never know, no--wait, I just never know. Sometimes I wonder if the routine-type folks are having a better time. Maybe they are more relaxed, more efficient.

I went to the gym after work and just needed to assemble something quick for dinner. Ramen to the rescue! Vegetarian, of course. No, not that instant package of squiggly noodles you can buy for 30 cents. At Nijiya market in Japan town (or other similar Japanese grocery markets), you can buy packages that contain a packet of soy broth and fresh egg noodles to make ramen at home. Yes, really! Nijiya's ramen packages are actually flown in from Hawaii, which really excites me and makes me a little less homesick for those islands.
I cut up some veggies and gave them a quick stir fry in a hot pan. Added in a soft boiled egg and some cubed fresh tofu. Boiled the fresh egg noodles for 3-5 minutes and heated up the broth.

INGREDIENTS FOR READY-TO-GO RAMEN:

1 package fresh egg noodles with soy broth
1 bunch bok choy
green onion, sliced thin
tofu, drained and cubed
enoki mushroom (or shiitake)
1 soft boiled egg (boiled for 5-7 minutes, cooled and peeled)

** The picture above was taken before I poured the broth over the noodles and ramen goodies.

End result: Delicious ramen to comfort your soul.