Only in "SoCal."
It was the second night in a row I had Tom Kha soup with tofu and vegetables. And it was ten times better at Lotus than the place off Sunset on Friday. I could have it every night. I could have a vat of it sitting on my stove top. One day, I will.
If you've not had this soup, you're probably from the Midwest. Try it. Go to a Thai place and you will not be disappointed. And if you are, give it to me. I'll gladly finish it for you.
Of course I couldn't shut up about it during dinner. So I asked Lauren, "what's your top five favorite meals?" after about 20 minutes of debating and knocking things off her list and replacing and deliberating, I asked her "ok, so what are your top five favorite foods?"
Hot dogs topped both her lists. Amazing. A dietitian who loves a dog.
This is why we are friends and we are both also eating at an organic vegan restaurant.
Her first three picks were the following:
1. A hot dog
2. Italian beef
3. A really good pulled pork sandwich
Hysterical. And really good picks. I'm pretty sure she hardly eats any of these on even a quasi regular basis.
It was my turn.
...In no particular order...
1. Chicago style deep dish pizza
2. Tom Kha with tofu and veggies
3. Thanksgiving dinner with all of its accoutrements
...these three are a given.
Then it gets a bit hard.
Some things that flash into my brain:
- 2% plain Fage Greek yogurt (yes, I'm being serious. Jerk)
- Cereal, even though I don't let myself have it for fear I would never stop
- cottage cheese/peaches/granola
- something like this caprese sandwich I used to pine over at my uni cafe in London
- Red wine..? And all the nosh that comes with-cheese, nuts, dark chocolate!
- Sweet potatoes-in any form or fashion
- Irish soda bread
- Bread pudding, shortbread, macaroons, scones, biscotti, any cookie imaginable but sugar cookies hold a special place in my heart or those pistachio coated toffee pieces at Trader Joe's that I contemplate buying every time. yum.yum.yum.
- Froyo-I could get really specific about flavors and toppings but I won't for self preservation purposes
- Sashimi and one or two damn good sushi rolls with a little hot saki
- Some kind of pasta with vodka sauce-I can't recall the noodle type but it's like this long, never ending spongy squiggly pasta that this mom and pop restaurant near my folks place makes and pairs it with their homemade vodka sauce- Ugh! So good. It's so rich that it makes me sick and I still day dream about it.
(This one really rivals with sashimi)
5. mama murph's homemade banana bread. So good. Sometimes I even like to put natural, crunchy peanut butter and chocolate chips on it. Sometimes margarine. However it is, it is delicious.
Then I thought about it, in the last year, how many times I actually ate numbers 1-5...
1. I think I had Chicago style deep dish for certain on two separate occasions but it provided leftovers for a couple of days on both occurrences.
2. Tom Kha-I can't even tell you but if I had to think about it....10-15 times would be a guess. If I had my way, more.
3. Thanksgiving, just once. Sadly. But that's kind of standard I suppose.
4. I cannot recall the last time I had corn beef. What a shame. My ancestry is saddened..
I'm pretty sure it doesn't really exist in SoCal. This climate is not really made for the Irish folk.
5. I probably shared 3 loaves of bread with my roommates over the past year. I recall bringing one of the foil wrapped dense bricks back with me nestled in my carry on only to have security paw my intimates to get at and probe my banana bread. Still don't regret the effort it took to bring a little home with me back to SoCal.
Sometimes things taste so good because they remind us of home. Of family. Of who we are. I'd say all the choices on my list except Tom Kha do that for me.
...So the fact that Tom Kha made the list, means that it is a soulful soup that literally brings me back to life.
