Super Salad / 'FRIENDS' Marathon / Spaghetti

Song:  Theme song to 'FRIENDS' medley 1994 - 2004

Believe it or not...

I had never seen the great romantic comedy series called 'FRIENDS'...

until earlier this month.

I was browsing through Netflix when I had seen this series...all 10 years of it.

I have now seen all 235 episodes...twice.

I am on my third time at home...

and I started it again...to watch with my mother at her home.

This series has it all...

great acting...

great writing...

great directing...

great editing...

a catchy and well applying theme song.

It also ends well.

To start out our 'FRIENDS' marathon...

we made a super salad to eat before watching it on Netflix.

I always try to add plenty of color to the salads...

for the varying nutritional content.

This basic salad mix has a great combination of the best salad greens...

along with some craisins, pumpkin seeds...

and a tasty dressing.

I always add small tomatoes...

and some other dried fruit or nuts.

I prepped the salad area...

along with the cooking area...

while my mother did the veg prep for the super salad.

With all of the salad ingredients prepped...

I then added them to the mixing bowl...

one at a time.

This is all the dressing I use.

It is only to enhance the natural flavors of the vegetables.

After thoroughly mixing it.

This is presently our favorite fruit juice.

I evenly divided the salad between my mother and I.

This was my mother's salad.

My mother finished her salad at about the same time as had I.

She loves salad...

and she can eat a lot.

We then sat on her sofa and enjoyed many episodes of 'FRIENDS'.

I love this series because...

it is both, a great comedy, and it is, often times, heartwarming.

The character development is thorough...

and because of the great acting by all in the cast...

you cannot help but love each one of them.

Jennifer Aniston...

played a lovable and light hearted young woman (Rachael).

She was the socially aware...

yet, at times, impish character of the group.

Her acting abilities had surprised me.

Usually such beautiful women cannot pull off physical comedy well.

However, she made me burst out in laughter whenever she had demonstrated

her well timed, and played, physical comedy.

She was superb in not only the comedy aspect...

but in her ability to convey feelings of love, joy, as well as hurt.

Because her role involved the most in depth expression of emotions...

and because she had expressed these emotions so well in her verbal intonations...

the well placed and exercised rapidity and spacing of her line delivery...

and especially in her facial expressions and body language...

she had really proved her acting prowess.

Courteney Cox...

played a hyper organized and, well...hyper...young woman.

She was the mature adult, and organizer, of the group.

The depth of her character comes later in the series as she develops romantic attachments.

She...along with each cast member...

has great acting abilities.

At first...

I had a difficult time empathizing with her character

(although I understood her character...

as I am a bit hyper at times (not to her character's level)...

I felt uncomfortable watching her.

I like watching people quite different from me :)

However,

her deep loyalty to her friends and to her romantic partners quickly warmed me to her.

Lisa Kudrow...

played a very free spirited young woman (Phoebe).

She was the child like, and deeply lovable, character of the group.

This was the first time I had seen her, except for an interview she had done last year.

Her quirks and open heart quickly made her my favorite.

There is one scene with Joey which made me fall in love with her.

In my eyes...

she epitomizes feminine beauty...

and in my mind...

she is one of the most beautiful actresses ever to grace the screen.

She has a certain level of grace about her...

something you don't often see in modern day females.

In one episode where she acted as if she were greatly uncoordinated while running...

she was even graceful in those scenes.

This tells me that her grace comes naturally...

and so, made me like her even more.

In some of her scenes where she is dressed up nicely...

she is breathtaking.

Matt Le Blanc...

plays a very lovable and deeply loyal young man (Joey).

He was the protector and the rock of stability of the group.

He had a very simple, yet lovable, open heart and mind.

His, sometimes goofy, character made me laugh so much...

and when he started maturing through the pains of love...

you cannot help but really caring for Joey.

His deep loyalty to his friends made him such a pleasure to watch.

His facial and body expressions were superbly acted by Matt Le Blanc.

He was so funny to watch because you never knew when the comedy would come.

Matthew Perry...

plays an insecure, but very witty, young man (Chandler).

He was the funny man of the group.

His purposely over emphatic delivery of his great wit (sardonic humor)...

always made me bust up.

He was also a great friend to all.

He had it all in comedy.

His well timed reactions elicited laughter from me...

as well as his well delivered comedic lines and facial and body language.

David Schwimmer...

played the intellectual, and slightly nerdy and insecure young man, of the group (Ross).

His raw acting talent really shows up in his facial expressions.

Of all the characters...

except when he gets frustrated (which is so funny to watch)...

his character is more muted so far as physical comedy goes...

however, his facial expressions make up for it.

His face...

and especially his eyes...

tells so much about what his character is thinking.

He also excels in portraying insecurity through his body language.

If you haven't seen this series...

Netflix has all of the 235 episodes.

It is a must see.

You will laugh and cry throughout.

And...

perhaps most importantly...

it ends very well.

It will make you glad you had seen it.

After about two hours had passed watching our 'Friends' marathon...

I started cooking the main meal...spaghetti.

I will cook a tomato concentrated dish...

at least once a week.

The health benefits of such dishes are so important.

My mother helped by occasionally stirring the noodles.

We then ate our meal.

My mother had eaten all of her spaghetti...

as had I.

We then had an ice cream bar for dessert.

My mother and I then watched more episodes of our marathon.

We will continue to watch this series...

until all 235 episodes have been watched...

several at a time each night.

My mother especially loves the physical comedy of each character.

She laughed out loud hard with each one.

---------

As you have noticed...

as the salad was a super salad (greater in quantity and materials)...

we had waited a couple of hours to eat the main meal.

Both meals are part of a healthful diet.

It is also important to make supper a relaxing and enjoyable time.

We filled the lapse with a great comedy series.

It is always good to end the day with laughter.

A New Cafe / A New Standard: Brown Rice

Song:  Into Dust

Artist:  Mazzy Star

A few days ago...

I had taken my mother to a new Korean Cafe in downtown Reno.

They specialize in quick meat and vegetables over rice bowls.

Although it was good...

it was a bit expensive.

My mother and I enjoyed it...

but we will be eating Korean food at our old favorite restaurant.

I just came back from making my mother her supper.

I had her try a new brand of brown rice with her meal.

You cook it as you would white rice.

Although both of us like brown rice...

the previous brand was a bit too hullish...a bit too much fiber from the hulls

(probably not a real word...

but it is now  :)

This brand is very good (Hukkura).

It is a short grain...

lightly milled brown rice.

It is easier to chew and digest than many other brown rice brands.

I will be making brown rice our supper staple from now on...

with the exception of a few dishes needing the rice to bind to itself...

such as Onigiri or Sushi.

I used to eat brown rice exclusively when I cooked for myself while going to university...

many decades ago.

Why brown rice?

First of all...

it is delicious...

nutritious...

and it has very positive effects on the digestive system.

Brown rice has a nutty flavor...

and it fills you up quickly.

You will find that you need only eat half the amount of rice 

than that of white rice.

It is satisfying to the body.

It has a lot more B vitamins than white rice.

In fact...

after WWII...

there was widespread famine in Japan.

Beriberi (a disease of Thiamine deficiency)

broke out among the more wealthy residents in Japan (mostly city folk)...

as they considered fully milled white rice to be a desirable rice to eat...

since it was more delicately flavored and expensive.

The country folk had eaten unmilled or lightly milled rice (brown rice).

The B vitamins B-1 through B-6 (B-1 especially)...

are in the hulls of the rice.

As a result...

Beriberi broke out in the cities...

and had left the country folk almost untouched.

What really sets brown rice apart through immediate effects...

is its effect on the digestive system.

It is a gentle binder of waste products...

due to its fiber content.

It allows a more rapidly and easily passed stool.

There is no straining (there should never be).

It also lends to complete evacuation of the bowels...

as the stool remains solid.

Its undigestible fiber content gently corrects constipation...

without making the stool too soft 

(as what happens with too many fruits or vegetables alone).

It also greatly reduces gas build up...

as a regular schedule of bowel movements prevents this.

Having a fully evacuated bowel in one daily solid movement...

 is one of the great simple pleasures in life.

You feel light and energetic.

Especially in the elderly...

all the bodily processes slow down.

Lethargy can result...

especially if one is chronically plagued with constipation.

By eating brown rice regularly...

you will lose excess weight due to eating less as the appetite is satisfied with less...

as well as through a healthful moving of your bowels more regularly and fully.

If you have never eaten brown rice before...

have a toilet plunger next to the toilet.

As the bowel movements will have more volume due to a more fully emptying

of the digestive system...you can expect to clog the toilets frequently  :)

This is a good thing.

By moving your bowels fully and easily...

you are preventing a whole host of easily preventable problems...

such as hemorrhoids, preventable bowel cancers (due to chronic constipation)...

and constipation.

Again...

one should never have to strain on the toilet.

If so...

you need more fiber.

Eating brown rice is a delicious and nutritious way 

of getting excellent amounts of fiber.

Brown rice also greatly alleviates gassiness by making regularity

of a full evacuation of the bowels something which becomes dependable and natural...

and without strain.

Shrimp Yakisoba

Song:  It Keeps You Runnin'

Group:  Doobie Brothers

Yakisoba is a favorite meal for street vendors in Japan to make.

I especially loved stopping by this one particular street vendor

plying his trade outside one of the main exits to the Osaka Train Station.

While working in Osaka...

I would often arrive home late at night and get a large container of steaming Yakisoba...

and a container of Takoyaki to then enjoy in my apartment. 

My wife often makes Shrimp Yakisoba for Alex.

I decided to make this dish for my mother last night.

These noodles may be bought at most Asian markets.

As the noodles are fresh...

they must be either refrigerated...or frozen and then defrosted in the fridge for a day.

Each package makes 3 servings...for mere mortals  :)

I made 6 servings so we could eat 2 servings each...

and have 2 servings left over so my mother could eat more as the next day's lunch.

Each package comes complete with the seasoning packets necessary for this dish

(although you may make your own sauce).

Although many prefer cabbage instead of onions...

I like onions...and I only like cabbage raw or pickled.

I usually buy the 'baby' carrots as they are already peeled and washed.

This lessens the load on my mother, as she does the veg prep.

 I sometimes buy the already cooked shrimp...

so I used them.

You may use whatever meat you like most...

but shrimp goes well in this dish.

Extra virgin olive oil is a good oil to use in this dish.

And...the pomegranate juice tastes good to...

 drink as you cook  :)

Just before my mother finished up with chopping up the veggies...

I prepped the wok with the olive oil.

With all of ingredients set...

 I preheated the wok on medium heat.

Again...

I do all of the cooking...

and my mother does all of the veg prep

(I use my mother to model for me as I take photos).

Put in all of the veggies...

and flatten them against the bottom and sides.

Then...

put the fire on high.

Even with the fire on high...

the veggie mass will take a few minutes to sear on each side.

This amount of sear is good.

Plate the veggies, and place them to the side.

You will be adding them in a short while.

Add a bit more olive oil to the wok.

Then add the designated amount of water per serving (1/4 cup).

Then...

add the noodles with the fire on medium high.

As the water slowly boils...

the noodles will soften.

At this point...

gently break them apart...

and then move them to the side while you move the blocks of noodles into the water.

When all of the noodles have separated...

continue to toss them under heat for a few minutes.

When all of the water is gone...

add the veggies...

...the shrimp...

and the spice packets.

Stir the mixture thoroughly until all of the noodles have an even appearance.

Then place the fire on high once more.

The idea is to slightly sear the noodles.

It will be ready in a few minutes from this point...

depending on the amount of sear you wish.

The meal is then ready to eat.

This was my plate.

And this was my mother's.

My mother had a good time eating this Yakisoba.

It had been too long since we had eaten this dish.

I will be making more in the near future.

Perhaps next time...

I will make scallop Yakisoba.