Lunch

Teachers' Canteen

-Cauliflower
-Liver with doufugan, seasoned with garlic and ginger (ordering
mistake - the dried tofu, which is in everything, is doufu gan, pig's
liver is zhu gan - I just heard "gan" and didn't realize I was getting
both kinds!)

Christmas Eve Dinner

Hanlin Shifu

Dongsun 冬笋
Eggplant 茄子
Hot & Sour Potato 酸辣土豆丝
Some new kind of lettuce/cabbage which is really good (stir-fried)
Potato Noodles 土豆粉 - stir fried

Beelgara Estates 2006 Shiraz Regional Reserve

Lunch

Teachers' Canteen

Sliced mushrooms, doufugan, and meat
Cauliflower

Dessert

Last night we had tangyuan 汤圆 for dessert to celebrate dongzhi 冬至 -
the winter solstice. Tangyuan are balls of glutinous rice flour
filled with sweet sesame paste which are prepared by boiling them in
sugar water. Ours had been in the freezer too long, so they were a
little dried out and had a faint gin fragrance (from a leaking bottle
in the freezer that had gone unnoticed until last night), but one of
the bags was pretty good.

Dinner

Last night we made latkes (ostensibly for Hanukkah), which turned out
well. Zoe also made Japanese pyramids of rice filled with tuna
(onigiri).

Snack

Cheddar & Onion Biscuits

add black pepper, nutmeg, and a little bit (1-2 tablespoons each) of
chopped cheddar and onions to plain baking powder biscuits.

Seasonal Vegetable

Dongsun 冬笋

Another of the bamboo root varieties, dongsun is more expensive than
other dishes. The consistency has just the right amount of delicate
crunchiness, and the flavor has just the hint of a bite to it.
Usually cooked sliced in a light sauce with vegetables and a little
meat.