It starts with these two: Fumiko and Flore. They are both great cooks, but with very different styles. She learned recipes and followed them — certain things must be done in a very exact way or it WON"T TASTE RIGHT. Learn it, follow it, and you get consistent results every time — why re-invent the wheel? He is the Great Improviser — recipes are roadmaps with many alternate routes, and he is more likely to take a by-way or forge a completely different way. His culinary hero is Emeril Lagasse, so BAM! you will find some unexpected ingredients in many of his dishes.
They are my parents, and as you might expect my style is somewhere in between these seemingly mutually exclusive styles. I learned from Mom that there are recipes you don't mess with — when you want something to taste like Mom's or Grandma's, or someone else's mom's or grandma's, then you gotta do what they did. Same when I want to know what someone else is tasting — I've read their blog, I've drooled over the food porn, and now I want to taste THAT bread/soup/cake/pizza/stew/{insert your best recipe here}! Hunt down the ingredients, pay attention to the differences, and hopefully you can close your eyes, taste, and be transported to a NYC deli, an Italian alp, an Hawaiian beach, or a tiny Greek island. If only for that moment.
Other times a recipe and a photo are an inspiration — you tweak, you substitute, you add your own something-something.... then I'm channeling my dad. Sure, Dad sometimes crosses the line (substituting Worcestershire sauce for soy sauce in Filipino chicken adobo was the most recent, never-to-be-repeated transgression... it was literally inedible...), but his curiosity about and boldness in trying new foods, as well as his flexibility in using what is near at hand are qualities that haunt every page of this site.
I was lucky to have met my soulmate in my husband (T.) — who indulges market romps when we land in a new country, and who will boldly point to an item on a menu he cannot read and then happily eat whatever is brought to him. Even cucumbers. When we met, this man refused to eat cucumbers — blood sausage, raw meat, insects, no problem; cucumbers, no way. That has changed.
Our companions in this journey have been of the four-legged variety. For 10 years it was the well-travelled Katzenschwestern (Sister Cats), Laika and Haiku, formerly known as Timmy and Tammy of the Kaiserslautern Tierheim. They flew back and forth between Germany and the U.S., and even flew to Hawaii (via Seoul). In between, they "enjoyed" car trips to Maine and to France, too. On Oahu, we were joined by Kiowea, a lo-o-ong-limbed tuxedo cat who purred his way into our hearts and home via the Hawaiian Humane Society. He and Haiku flew together from Hawaii to Washington on our last big move — no big deal for Miss Haiku who was a seasoned traveller and was familiar with things like snow, but trading geckos for crickets, and grass for snow was quite baffling for Master Kio for a while.
And me? I'm Manju — I took my name from these Japanese wheat cakes filled with sweetened adzuki beans. Born in Okinawa and raised on the U.S. island of Guam, I consider myself so lucky to have lived in and travelled to some truly incredible places. I lived and studied in the San Francisco Bay Area for 9 years before returning to my island home for the next 7. We are privileged to have lived twice in Germany, spending a total of 7 years exploring and falling in love with the land, the people, the wines, and the foods of Germany, France and nearby countries. We encamped once to Boston, Massachusetts while T. was in graduate school, and sometime later also to the Hawaiian island of Oahu, where this site was born. The last 2 years we've been in the Washington DC metro area, and just moved north to Frederick County, Maryland. Although only a 45-minute drive north and west of DC, Frederick County is more like a different country — small family-run farms dot the county and provide an unbelievable bounty of organic produce, rich honeys, wines, and grass-fed and free-range meats, dairy products and eggs. Now that we've put down some roots, I'm eager to see what happens next! Thanks for coming along on our journey...
Laika: In Memoriam
Haiku: In Memoriam
Tao = way/path/route Te = virtue/morality/strength Ch'ing = text/writings/book
The Tao Te Ch'ing or Daodejing is believed to have been compiled or composed by the cleric-sage Lao Tse over 2600 years ago. Although scholars continue to debate translations of the text from the traditional classical Chinese in which the Tao Te Ch'ing was written, and even the very existence of its author, few can disclaim its powerful legacy. In 81 short chapters the Tao Te Ch'ing distills the essence of all nature -- stillness, balance, mystery -- and reminds us to return to our own true nature. It will take an hour to read and perhaps a lifetime to put into practice.
My first encounter with Taoist thought occured in the Hundred Acre Wood. Benjamin Hoff's now-classic "The Tao of Pooh" gently introduces the reader to the fundamentals of Taoism in the person (or Bear) of Winnie-the-Pooh. I must confess that I was drawn to the book 15 years ago more for the Bear than the underlying philosophy. While reading, I remember thinking, "This is a great philosophy, I wonder how those Taoists do it." It was a nice break from studying for law exams, but it had nothing to do with my life. I kept the book, carrying it with me through six trans-oceanic moves until last year when I began to read about Taoism in earnest and found this tiny tome still on my library shelves.
The Tao Te Ch'ing or Daodejing is believed to have been compiled or composed by the cleric-sage Lao Tse over 2600 years ago. Although scholars continue to debate translations of the text from the traditional classical Chinese in which the Tao Te Ch'ing was written, and even the very existence of its author, few can disclaim its powerful legacy. In 81 short chapters the Tao Te Ch'ing distills the essence of all nature -- stillness, balance, mystery -- and reminds us to return to our own true nature. It will take an hour to read and perhaps a lifetime to put into practice.
My first encounter with Taoist thought occured in the Hundred Acre Wood. Benjamin Hoff's now-classic "The Tao of Pooh" gently introduces the reader to the fundamentals of Taoism in the person (or Bear) of Winnie-the-Pooh. I must confess that I was drawn to the book 15 years ago more for the Bear than the underlying philosophy. While reading, I remember thinking, "This is a great philosophy, I wonder how those Taoists do it." It was a nice break from studying for law exams, but it had nothing to do with my life. I kept the book, carrying it with me through six trans-oceanic moves until last year when I began to read about Taoism in earnest and found this tiny tome still on my library shelves.
Rei = universal or spiritual Ki = energy or life force
Reiki is a form of non-touch energy healing developed by a Japanese monk, Mikao Usui, in the 1920's. It is said to be an "intelligent" form of holistic healing, in that the healer need not make a diagnosis of the condition requiring treatment. Rather, the universal energy force is drawn through the healer's hands to the areas of the recipient's body that is most in need of the healing energy. Reiki is beginning to gain acceptance in hospitals and hospices as a complementary therapy (in conjunction with medical treatments) and an holistic therapy (providing spiritual and emotional healing, as well as relief from physical discomforts).
Reiki instruction and attunement is traditionally offered in three degrees. First Degree training allows the practitioner to self-heal and to heal those with whom she has physical contact. After several months of self-practice, a practitioner can go on to Second Degree training which allows healing over long-distance. After another year of practice at the Second Degree level, one can train to become a Reiki Master and attune others to practice Reiki. There are many variations of Reiki practice, most of which place much emphasis on their lineage back to Dr. Usui.
I am a second degree Reiki practitioner in the Unlimited Reiki System of natural healing. I received my first attunements in September 2005.
Reiki instruction and attunement is traditionally offered in three degrees. First Degree training allows the practitioner to self-heal and to heal those with whom she has physical contact. After several months of self-practice, a practitioner can go on to Second Degree training which allows healing over long-distance. After another year of practice at the Second Degree level, one can train to become a Reiki Master and attune others to practice Reiki. There are many variations of Reiki practice, most of which place much emphasis on their lineage back to Dr. Usui.
I am a second degree Reiki practitioner in the Unlimited Reiki System of natural healing. I received my first attunements in September 2005.
The genesis for the Way of Cooking came following an epiphany 3 years ago while watching a friend make chicken sandwiches. Having decided what she wanted to eat, V reached for a cookbook and carefully measured out the ingredients for the chicken salad -- chicken, apples, celery, seasoning, mayo. At the time I was amused and intrigued that she would go to such trouble to make a sandwich filling. What I knew about this friend was that she loved good food, and that she was a reluctant though accomplished cook.
My "aha-moment" was the understanding that she, like so many, equate cooking with following a known recipe. This may seem self-evident, but I am an inveterate improviser in the kitchen -- a legacy of my upbringing -- so the idea that it might be necessary to always use a recipe was truly an epiphany. For my friend, cooking was neither easy nor an enjoyable every day activity -- find a recipe, buy the ingredients, prep the food, cook it. Cooking was something to be short-cut, circumvented or saved for special occasions.
The Way of Cooking was developed to encourage all people who love good food to cook more often, and to cook instinctively and naturally from what is on hand and readily enjoyed. We will distill the basics of classic recipes --- understand their structure --- so the cook is free to improvise and be creative around that foundation. We are going to start with some very basic recipes: fried rice, salsa, chicken soup, etc.
My "aha-moment" was the understanding that she, like so many, equate cooking with following a known recipe. This may seem self-evident, but I am an inveterate improviser in the kitchen -- a legacy of my upbringing -- so the idea that it might be necessary to always use a recipe was truly an epiphany. For my friend, cooking was neither easy nor an enjoyable every day activity -- find a recipe, buy the ingredients, prep the food, cook it. Cooking was something to be short-cut, circumvented or saved for special occasions.
The Way of Cooking was developed to encourage all people who love good food to cook more often, and to cook instinctively and naturally from what is on hand and readily enjoyed. We will distill the basics of classic recipes --- understand their structure --- so the cook is free to improvise and be creative around that foundation. We are going to start with some very basic recipes: fried rice, salsa, chicken soup, etc.
Thanks first and always to my favorite techie, T. Without you, this would be a pretty garbled site, if it ever came to be at all. You keep me sane and happy.
ThreeTastes.com is hosted on 1&1, and was created using Rapidweaver and the Varsis Studio Creamy Wide theme by seydoggy. Both awesome products which we have customized for this site.
We try to optimize the site for viewing on as many browsers as we can. You can optimize your viewing experience by making certain your browser has the most current updates available. We always appreciate your comments and feedback. If you come across a broken link, or a page that just looks out of sorts, please let us know at webmaster (at) threetastes (dot) com
ThreeTastes.com is hosted on 1&1, and was created using Rapidweaver and the Varsis Studio Creamy Wide theme by seydoggy. Both awesome products which we have customized for this site.
We try to optimize the site for viewing on as many browsers as we can. You can optimize your viewing experience by making certain your browser has the most current updates available. We always appreciate your comments and feedback. If you come across a broken link, or a page that just looks out of sorts, please let us know at webmaster (at) threetastes (dot) com
Copyright
The contents of this site, including but not limited to, articles, blogs, photos, charts, video, and the unique combination of typography, colors and position of images and test are protected by U.S. copyright laws. All other rights are reserved.
If you'd like to use anything from this site, express written permission is required. We'd love to hear from you. Please contact us.
Disclaimer
Links to external sites are provided for the convenience of the user. They do not constitute an endorsement of, approval or guarantee by ThreeTastes.com regarding any information, services or products available on the linked site. Nor does an acceptance of advertising imply a guarantee or endorsement of an advertiser's product or service.
The contents of this site, including but not limited to, articles, blogs, photos, charts, video, and the unique combination of typography, colors and position of images and test are protected by U.S. copyright laws. All other rights are reserved.
If you'd like to use anything from this site, express written permission is required. We'd love to hear from you. Please contact us.
Disclaimer
Links to external sites are provided for the convenience of the user. They do not constitute an endorsement of, approval or guarantee by ThreeTastes.com regarding any information, services or products available on the linked site. Nor does an acceptance of advertising imply a guarantee or endorsement of an advertiser's product or service.