Hong Kong Travel Guide

April 11, 2018
Stories,Travel

A couple weeks ago, my sister and I returned from a 5-day trip to Hong Kong. For such a small city, you’d think 5 days would be enough, but we left wanting more and lamenting our far-too-short stay. We had a jam-packed schedule, mostly consisting of eating and getting spoiled at the Kerry Hotel, an urban oasis in Hung Hom Bay. The Kerry Hotel is one of Hong Kong’s newest hotels, beautifully designed to exploit its expansive and stunning views of the Victoria harbor and skyline. I never quite adjusted to local time, so was usually up by 4 am just watching the harbor traffic come and go in the early morning light from my bed with a cup of coffee.

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Dark Chocolate Chunk White Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Cookies w/ Brown Butter & Sea Salt

April 2, 2018
Food,Recipes

Stop what you’re doing and make these cookies. Seriously, stop reading this post, take your phone, laptop, or whatever you’re using to read this, walk straight into the kitchen and preheat the oven. Next, scroll down past all the mouthwatering cookie photos (it’s only going to make your stomach growl), and get straight to the recipe. Hurry, there’s butter to be browned!

Dark Chocolate Chunk White Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Cookies w/ Brown Butter & Sea Salt | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com)

You see, I’ve been on a quest to find the perfect cookie. And let me tell you, when you’re married to a baker, that’s one dangerous quest. I know what you’re thinking, the perfect cookie is SO subjective. How am I going to tell you what the perfect cookie is?! To that I say: heaps of bittersweet dark chocolate chunks, gooey white chocolate chips, and crunchy macadamia nuts all playing off that sweet nuttiness of the brown butter, and finished with big flakes of Maldon sea salt. I assure you, when it comes to cookies it doesn’t get much better. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have an oven to preheat! 😛

Dark Chocolate Chunk White Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Cookies w/ Brown Butter & Sea Salt | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com) Read More

DIY Naturally Dyed Eggs

March 26, 2018
DIY,Entertaining

As Fiona grows older, each holiday brings a renewed sense of joy. Things are starting to sink in more for her now as she approaches four years old. Easter is no exception. I’m excited for her to experience the Easter egg hunt that has become a tradition with the younger cousins in the family. The last few years meant Audrey and I guiding her around the yard. This year I feel like she’s going to be a chocolate-finding-force of her own.

DIY Naturally Dyed Eggs | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com)

Speaking of Easter excitement – what kid doesn’t enjoy dyeing eggs?! Any chance to get colorfully messy is a win! A few years back, Erica made these beautiful robin’s egg blue Easter eggs, naturally dyed with purple cabbage! This year, we’re bringing back the natural dye with not just one, but four different colors! As expected, it was a huge hit with Fiona (despite the cabbage and onion smell), and much better than those strong artificial dyes. Plus, the incredible variations you get from using the natural ingredients is worth it alone!!

DIY Naturally Dyed Eggs | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com)

I hope you give it a try . . . and please share your creations with us on social by tagging #honestlyyum. Happy Easter!!

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Irish Soda Bread with Dried Apricots

March 11, 2018
Food,Recipes

Fiona’s first year of preschool is speeding by! I swear, each day at pickup I see her patiently waiting in front of her cubby, lunchbox in hand, she looks a whole year older. The school is a co-op, so each family has a job. Naturally, ours is to coordinate the kids’ cooking activities. Once a week, the children get to participate in a cooking activity. Usually things are pretty hands-on (mixing, measuring, chopping, etc.), and afterwards of course, they enjoy the fruits of their labor at snack time!

Irish Soda Bread with Dried Apricots | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com)

This past week we made Irish soda bread. It was a huge hit, so I knew I had to whip up a version for the blog. And when I say that this recipe is simple, know that a dozen or so 3 and 4 year olds were able to bake a few perfect loaves . . .

Irish Soda Bread with Dried Apricots | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com)

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How to Make Paella at Home

March 6, 2018
Food,Recipes

Paella has always intimidated me. Between the ingredients and the way it’s prepared, I don’t think there is a dish more misunderstood and contentious than paella. But guys, it turns out, paella is incredibly easy to make. Surprise! Remember that paella workshop I attended a few months ago? That was where all of my presumptions about paella were wiped clean and I have Chef Paul Canales, of one of the Bay Area’s best Spanish restaurants Duende, to thank.

How to Make Paella at Home | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com)

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One Pot Thai Green Curry Chicken

February 22, 2018
Food,Recipes

This dish is a Thai twist on one of my favorite recipes: milk chicken. Instead of roasting a chicken in milk and aromatics, like cinnamon, lemon and sage, I’ve used a basting sauce that is composed of traditional Thai curry ingredients– coconut milk, fish sauce, green curry paste, chiles and kaffir lime leaves. If you can’t find kaffir lime leaves, you can still make the curry without it. You can also switch up the curry paste, it doesn’t have to be green. This recipe makes insanely flavorful chicken and the best part for me is a bowl of jasmine rice covered in that delicious curry sauce in the bottom of the pot!

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Old Fashioned Conversational Truffles

February 5, 2018
Food,Recipes

I like re-visiting old recipes, but we’ve rarely done it on HonestlyYUM. Today, we’re bringing back our conversation cardamom truffles. They’re so smooth and decadent and easy to make that we felt we had to bring them back! This time instead of flavoring them with cardamom we decided to make them boozy. Because what’s more important on Valentine’s Day than cocktails and chocolates?! These truffles have Old Fashioned ingredients in them– bourbon, bitters and orange zest, all creating a subtle boozy tasting truffle!

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Spicy Mouth-Numbing Szechuan Peppercorn Chex Mix

January 30, 2018
Food,Recipes

I’ve been waiting for the day I can post a recipe on this site about Szechuan peppercorns. If you’ve never tried Szechuan peppercorns before, it can be a strange sensation– they have the effect of numbing your mouth! Yes, that’s right, in certain doses, your mouth actually starts to go numb. Combined with spicy foods, like chiles, the combo of that numbing tingle and burning sear of heat is absolutely addicting. I realize that this all sounds a bit miserable but if you’re a addict of spicy foods, this is a whole new way to experience them! I grew up eating these peppercorns in their classic Chinese applications: in a spicy hot pot or steeped in a hot chili oil-laden noodle bowl. Those recipes are usually pretty intensive with lots of preparation and steps and I really wanted to use an easy recipe for a first-time Szechuan peppercorn-er.

Mouth Numbing Szechuan Chex Mix | HonestlyYUM (honestlyyum.com)

Annnd, it just so happens Super Bowl is right around the corner, which makes something as addictive as a spicy, mouth-numbing, salty crunchy snack like Chex Mix the perfect reason to use this ingredient. A note about sourcing: I’ve never been able to find them in an American supermarket so I suggest ordering them on Amazon. I also get the Szechuan red chili flakes on Amazon. If you’ve never tried cooking with Szechuan peppercorns I hope you give these a go!

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