Oshogatsu 2023
Another Osechi Ryori has come and gone, but this year is also a special one because Bachan will turn 100 on July 21, 2023, so this is her 100th Oshogatsu and I am so grateful that I was able to prepare and host this year’s …
Tag: family
Thanksgiving 2015
I have 6 years of Thanksgiving blogs on Unrivaledkitch, which to me, shows my commitment to being there for my family and I am truly grateful that I have been able to take on this tradition for the ones I love and to share these …
Summer Time Birthday Celebrations and Mammoth
It’s September. I can hardly believe it. August was so amazingly wonderful, full of gratitude, celebration, family and friends—I miss it already. I was able to go on eight weeks of outdoor hikes with my dad, a family vacation to Mammoth Lakes and to really jumpstart my kids’ yoga business, Little Heroes Yoga, as well as participate in an amazing business course about kids’ yoga called TBoKY The Biz of Kids Yoga by Jodi Komitor. I’m so grateful to have had a wonderful summer, probably one of the best ones of my life. And I’m equally grateful to have a really fantastic fall full of kids’ yoga fun lined up.
But I wanted to highlight some of the amazing food adventures that I had in August. First of the series will be Amaya and Grandma’s birthday celebration dinner in Mammoth. I spent a total of seven beautiful days in the Eastern Sierras this year. I could have stayed for an entire month, but that’s another story. I truly am home when I go to Mammoth; the fresh air, beautiful scenery and just slowed-down pace of everything, makes it the perfect vacation for me. I’ve been going to Mammoth for my whole life and I don’t plan to stop anytime soon.
It’s so great to see the next generation of little fisherwomen come up to the Sierras with us. We really caught a ton of fish this year. I caught two pretty good sized ones and a bunch of little ones the whole time we were there. We went to a couple of new lakes: Little Virginia and Big Virginia and Upper and Lower Twin in Bridgeport, and even saw a quick hail storm.
Now, back to Amaya and Grandma’s birthday dinner. Well, the two of them have back to back birthdays and kick off our month of celebration. My sister said she’ll never have to get my mom another birthday present, mom’s present just came a day late. My mom’s birthday is August 14th and Amaya, my youngest niece, was born August 15th. My sister, brother-in-law, Maleeya and Amaya came up to Mammoth to celebrate my mom’s birthday and Amaya’s first birthday, which made it extra special for my mom and dad.
We had an amazing time celebrating. I barbequed for Amaya’s birthday and we all enjoyed this fun home-cooked meal.
BBQ Tri Tip
Boiled Fingerling Potatoes
Chopped Salad
Grilled Nectarines
Baked Beans
Grilled Corn on the Cob
Birthday cake and big smiles all around. Thank you for sharing with us.
Cheers
Unrivaledkitch
El Patron Reseda, CA
We had multiple Father’s Day celebrations for my dad this year. I’ve been working quite a bit, so we braved the restaurant scene that weekend so we would have more time to be with family instead of cooking and cleaning. My dad is such …
Granny’s 80th Birthday Celebration and Catering
My grandma is a very special woman. She’s such a loving, kind, strong and wonderful person and we were very happy to host her 80th birthday celebration for all of her friends and family. Granny has always been the talk of the town and …
Thanksgiving 2012
I’m so grateful that my family was all able to be together for Thanksgiving. I’m amazed by how much love and gratitude we have for each other. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, of course. There’s nothing better than bringing people you love together over a huge meal. I was very fortunate to have Brandon with me to help with the Thanksgiving traditions and not to mention my craziness in the kitchen. We all pitched in to make a great day for everyone—I think Maleeya really enjoyed herself. I’m still in a food coma after all the cooking and eating. I hope everyone had a beautiful Thanksgiving with some very special people. Enjoy the holiday weekend with lots to be thankful for all holiday season long.
My dad and mom brought:
Spinach dip, pimento cheese dip and ranch dip with crackers, sliced baguette and crudités (raw mixed veggies)
Two-layer Jello
Honey baked ham
Green bean casserole
Menu
Fresh Citrus and Herb Sweet-Brined Turkey with Roasted Zucchini, Black Olive and Scallion Stuffing
Turkey Breast Stuffed with Sausage and Mirepoix Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes with Irish Butter
Roasted Fall Aromatic Turkey Gravy
Spiced Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Kabocha Mash
Candied Yams with Homemade Roasted Marshmallows
Roasted Haricot Verts
Herb Roasted Mushrooms
Roasted Red Potatoes
Cranberry Relish
Cheddar Cheese, Mozzarella and Smoked Paprika Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Mixed Green Salad with Balsamic Marinated Vegetables and Buffalo Mozzarella
Roasted Cauliflower, Broccoli and Zucchini Gratin with Spicy Sausage and Pancetta
Creamed Corn with Red Onions, Chives and Turmeric
Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Butternut Squash and Crispy Pancetta
Mammoth Lakes 2012
Mammoth Lakes is a place I never tire from visiting. Throughout my life the anticipation of returning to this majestic platform of nature’s daily miracle always carries me through to another year. For as long as I can remember, my dad has visited Mammoth at …
New Year’s Day OShogatsu and Osechi-ryōri
New Year’s day is one of my favorite days of the year because it’s time for family and friends, new beginnings, reflections and always tons of food. Last year I went over the traditions behind everything (if you want a bit more information, check out this post) and this …
Christmas Tamales and Morning Traditions
I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted. This whole holiday season has been the most amazing, honest experience I’ve had in a long time. I love Christmas! It truly does bring out the best (and the worst) in people, but I think that it’s not necessarily Christmas that brings about the worst, it’s our misunderstanding of what is really important: togetherness, happiness, tenderness, contentment and compassion. I hope you carry these things with you always, through theses sometimes strenuous times, and into the new beautiful year of 2012.
This year I decided to offer my “tamale services” to my friends and family. I was both lucky and fortunate to share these amazing tasty morsels with others this year. It’s a new tradition that I decided to take on because the prices, quality and distance I had to travel to buy decent tamales, seemed to not be worth the hassle in the last couple of years. I love being able to decide what to put in my tamales, from the beautiful homemade sauces: slowly simmered broths from roasted bones, vegetables and lots of toasted coriander and cumin, to the freshly braised varieties of meats, roasted chilies and luscious cheese, which all combine to make the perfect melding of flavor and freshness. This year I exceeded my previous year’s number by over 100, making around 250 tamales of several varieties for friends and family. It was one of those things where I was able to create without recipes, but with just feelings and intuition: my favorite type of cooking.
Here’s a little photo journey of my cooking adventure.
I also made traditional pozole (you can find that recipe here) for my family for Christmas morning and tested out a new idea for menudo; both were a smashing success. I want to thank my sister and brother-in-law for allowing me to proceed with my madness in our home through all hours of the night and my little niece for bringing a smile to my face even when I was thinking at 4:00 a.m., “What did I get myself into?” But it was all worth it! I hope you put some of your favorite traditions on the plates of your loved ones this joyous season.
Happy holidays to you and yours and a wonderful 2012!
Love Kimberly
Cheer
-Unrivaledkitch
Little Brother’s Big 25 and Recipe for Pork Chop “Saltimbocca”
As time goes by, it seems that things change and we get lost in the adult whirl wind of life. Though I don’t believe I’m truly an adult at heart, the time has come to come to grip with the fact that I’m not a …