Take Time To Love

Oh my, it's been 10 days since my last entry.  I took time off to be with my daughter last week, so I really didn't have the time to sit down and write.  I had a long list of entries to finish and what jumped out was my note written in red bold letters: "EATING YOUR WORDS CHALLENGE, DEADLINE: March 30" (I found out later that the deadline is actually on the 31st)... "think, create, inspire..." were inscribed on the same note.

For some reason, I haven't had any inspiration for this challenge. I tried to put myself into the shoes of Top Chef contestants, but alas no luck.  I would be sent home after the first quick fire challenge, hahaha.  So I skipped the task and moved on to the next.

I was staring at the blank screen of my computer monitor when a message flashed:

What's wrong with Joey? said the YM on the screen. The message came from my daughter who is now back in Berkeley.

Why? What do you mean what's wrong with Joey came my reply.

It's his status on Google buzz.  He sounds sad.

As I was waiting for her response, my thoughts ran wild as to what's going on with my son.  But at the same time, I was glad my daughter is so nosey she knows what's going on with everyone. Then on my screen was Joey's status:

"Sometimes it takes a deeply saddening piece of news for you to recognize the truly important things in life, and to remind you not to get too caught up in the less significant parts."

After reading it, I realized it was all about the tragic news involving his friend's mom.  We talked about it the night before, but I was unaware it affected him so much.   I believe that in times like this, the best way to cheer him up is to give him reassurance and to embrace him with love... I immediately came up with a plan to make him feel secure and feel loved...

A spark of inspiration came to mind.   I jumped off my seat and went to my art lab (a.k.a. kitchen). Why don't I convey the message through food, with my words of comfort written all over the food.  That a-ha moment led me to enter this post for the "Eating Your Words Challenge".  This contest is hosted by Tangled Noodle and Savor the Thyme.  What's more exciting is that celebrity host Andrew Zimmern will be the judge for the challenge.  Wish me luck!

Burger Outside the Box

Ingredients:
For the bun:
I wanted to take it to the extreme (it's Andrew Zimmern who's judging guys!)  so I used white rice to form a bun
Cooked white rice
Garlic Salt
small egg, slightly beaten
1 tbsp oil

For the burger patty
I used Asian ingredients.
2 lbs ground beef
2 tbsp hosin sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
3 cloves garlic
1/2 onion chopped
1 egg
salt and pepper

For the garnishings:
Carrots
Bokchoy, blanched and drained
Boiled egg
Sesame Seeds, toasted
Edamame, blanched and drained


Procedure:

For the rice bun:


Put the cooked rice into a mixing bowl add the slightly beaten egg. Mix them together and sprinkle some garlic powder on it. Get a measuring cup. Press the rice mixture to get the shape of a bun.  You have to press it hard and make sure they stick together for easy frying. In a saucepan, add a little oil and pan fry the rice.  Do it on the other side as well.  Be gentle as the rice may break. Set aside.

For the burger:

Mix the ground beef and all the ingredients such as oyster sauce, hosin, garlic, onions and salt and pepper.  Gently mix them together.  Make sure not to over mix the beef.  And also I used a not so lean ground beef. I want my burger to be flavorful and juicy.
Now we’re ready to form our patties. Grab a chunk of  beef and gently form a patty. This recipe yielded 6 patties.  Pre-heat a cast iron pan on high heat. Add patties and cook it for about 2- 3 minutes per side. Sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds on top. Let it rest.

 
Now we're ready to assemble the burger and this is where the fun begins.


Here's the top rice bun. I used green onions and carrots to spell the word TAKE. I used hoisin sauce initially but as  you could see it smeared the letters and they were no longer readable.

Here's the lower rice bun:  I used edamame and dotted hoisin sauce for the numbers and green onions for the short and long hand to make a clock to signify TIME.

Here are the condiments:  I was just limited to what was in my fridge, so I used bok-choy, carrots and boiled some eggs to form the word TO

And here's the patty. I sprinkled sesame seeds and formed a shape of a heart using edamame to signify LOVE...

Typically a burger looks like this:

But since this is my entry for the Eating Your Words Challenge I plated it like so

To convey my message that we should:  TAKE TIME TO LOVE.....