What we eat, Part 1

I thought it might be interesting to devote a post or two to the eating habits of the McCullochs. Our eating seems to be a frequent topic of interest--both to you guys back home and to locals around here. At least once a week, one of the grandmas (who is waiting to pick up their grandkid from kindergarten at the same time we pick up Katie ) will ask me if our ayi cooks for us. I tell them, "No, I cook, I like to cook." Then they ask if I cook Chinese or Western food. I'm not sure if they're all that interested in what I cook or what we eat or just in hearing me butcher Chinese language while I try to answer their questions! (maybe it's like that impulse that makes people want to stare at car wrecks?)

This food conversation is inevitable if I have just gone to the market on my way to pick up Katie and have a bag of veggies or meat with me. "Oh, what did you buy? What are you going to cook?" Thankfully, last week I made vegetable soup (at Katie's request!) so there were lots of approving nods and comments like, "Oh, so healthy." Score.

So to answer the question "What do we eat?" it kind of depends on the week, but we eat mostly Western style with a smattering of Chinese throughout.

Breakfast is usually toast, oatmeal, granola with milk or yogurt. (See awesome granola recipes below.) Sometimes breakfast includes scrambled or hard-boiled eggs. Fruit (bananas, cantaloupe, watermelon). And every Saturday is pancake day (recipes also below)! Pretty standard American fare...though I must admit I miss easy access to bagels and cream cheese. I could buy cream cheese at the Wal-mart up the street, but I'd pay for it....maybe $5 for 8oz, or maybe just 4oz? I just can't quite bring myself to spend that much. I've heard of a couple folks making their own cream cheese....I'm hoping to try this recipe at some point. (That website I linked to, by the way, has been my lifeline....I've always struggled with meal planning and I would've been paralyzed over here without that blog to give me ideas about things I can make that don't require cream of mushroom soup...) As for bagels, I've heard of a bakery a couple subway stops up from us that sells them. I need to check it out, but I've also been wanting to try my hand at making them...my sister-in-law does and my friend Maghan has also had success (albeit with a breadmaker, which of course I do not have).

Photo credit:
http://travelerfolio.com/yue-fei-hangzhou/

I must say though, that I have a few favorite Chinese breakfast street foods (I'm always a sucker for street food...give me a hot dog or snow cone any day!)  My favorite Beijing breakfast goodie is called you tiao, it literally means "oil stick."  Which is pretty much what it is.  I like to think of it as the Chinese version of Krispy Kreme...if you dip it in sweetened condensed milk, it almost passes.  Locals like to eat theirs with hot soy milk--I need to try that one of these days. 

Tomorrow's post...lunch!  And now the recipes:

Patty's Awesome Granola
(recipe of my boss' wife when we were teachers here before)
Use the word granola lightly when you think of this recipe.  It's soft not crunchy and not too healthy, but so, so, so yummy.

2 cups oatmeal
1/2 cup peanuts (optional)
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup dried milk
1/2 cup coconut (optional, but very yummy)

Heat together: 1/4 cup oil, 1/4 cup honey, and 1/4 cup peanut butter
Stir together.  Cover and refrigerate (but we love best warm and fresh!)


Decent Granola (from the Wycliffe International Cookbook)
(for when I'm too cheap to make the awesomeness that is the granola recipe above)

Combine in a large bowl 7-8 cups dry ingredients:
3-6 cups oatmeal
1/4-1/2 cup each of any of the following:  wheat germ, whole wheat flour, bran, cornmeal, coconut, soy flour, milk powder, chopped nuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds
1-1 1/2 tsp spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, or allspice

Combine separately and add to dry ingredients:
1/2-3/4 cup oil, margarine, or melted butter
1/2-3/4 cup honey, corn syrup, or brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla or other flavoring

Bake at 350F (190C) for 30-45 minutes on large baking sheets until golden brown.  Stir occasionally.  After taking granola from oven, add any of the following if desired: raisins, chopped dates, or any dried chopped fruits

Optional:  add any of the following with wet ingredients: 1/4 cup oj, 1/2-1 cup pb, 1/2 tsp maple flavoring

This recipe is very flexible.  My version is pretty simple but yummy, especially with yogurt.
I do 6 cups oatmeal, 1/2 cup coconut, 1/4 cup semi-ww flour, 1.5 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 cup oil, 1/2 cup honey, and 1 tsp vanilla.  And it definitely doesn't take 30-45 minutes....mine is done much faster.  Watch it carefully so it doesn't burn.  Stir frequently.

Pancake Mix Recipe from Market2Meal
This is a great recipe, but I miss making my whole wheat waffles with the King Arthur flour recipe.  They were great.  I know ww flour is out there somewhere! 

Make your own syrup recipe also from Market2Meal
(so far we've tried blueberry and strawberry syrup but still enjoy maple the most....thanks Dad and Janet for sending the maple flavoring!)