Monday, January 11, 2010

Happy First Birthday, Wasabi Prime!

Awwww, you baked a meat-filled pastry just for lil' ol' MEEEEEEE? You shouldn't have. Well...actually, I'm sorta glad you did. Was feeling a bit peckish on New Year's Day.... So said the Wasabi Prime blog, if it somehow gained a Skynet-like sense of self-awareness and checked the "no" box for sending out hordes of Terminator robots to oppress the masses. *looking around carefully* Well, I see neither Robert Patrick nor the Governator, so I think we're safe. Let the celebration for the first anniversary of the Wasabi Prime blog begin!


Wellie  Wellie Bo-Belly, Banana-nana-fo-felly, Be-bai-bo-bel-ly - WELLIE! Photo by Wasabi Prime

I had almost forgotten the blog's first birthday! Does Hallmark make cards for that?! 'Twas the Kismet of pantry cooking that reminded me I had started Wasabi Prime a year ago, in January 2009, writing a post about my first attempt at making an epic loaf of Beef Wellington. Originally starting out on Vox because of their easy templates, I was the poster child of blog-unsavviness. I had read a wise post on Twitter that the definition of humble pie is to read the first few posts you've ever written -- so true! Three hundred and sixty five (and change) days later, I've made leaps and bounds to be only marginally less-unsavvy. I'm the last person in the world to say that this blog is anything more than hastily scribbled ponderings over stuff I jam into my gaping maw. But I will admit that writing this blog has cast a level of accountability over what we prepare and eat in our home. It has influenced our choices and kept us from falling too far into the easy path of take-out or drive-thru -- not that we don't enjoy it, we just view it more as a treat than a regular option. Ultimately, the food has to come from somewhere; if I'm craving a hamburger, would I derive any less pleasure by making it at home and having more control over ingredients and how it's flavored? Sure, it's more effort, but it will be custom-made deliciousness and I can continue to annoy Mr. Wasabi by shouting, "wait, I need to take a picture!" before we take a bite out of anything. That's true love, baby.


Meaty cheesy veggie deliciousness - Photos by Wasabi Prime

Beef Wellington doesn't exactly sound like a typical meal to make from a rummage through the pantry and fridge, but given the supply of luxe leftovers we've had through the holidays, the dish seemed like a perfect MacGyver-Meal fit for New Year's Day. We had leftover herbed goat cheese and a few scoops of mascarpone from Christmas, a lone slab of puff pastry from a baked brie and I defrosted some frozen steaks and chopped spinach in our freezer. I had gotten the idea of layering spinach and cheese from the Celebrated Chefs cookbook, more specifically Maxililien's Chef Christian Potvin's Wild Salmon Coulibiac recipe, which used wild salmon fillets baked in pockets of puff pastry, spinach and goat cheese. I could have picked up fresh salmon easily enough but I realized we have ample-stocked freezers, and it's not like we're saving steaks for a rainy day. That would be weird.

The steaks were trimmed of extra fat, cut into quarters and seared with some salt and pepper, but left extra rare, knowing the steaks would finish cooking in the oven. I didn't want us to suffer through protein hockey pucks for dinner, so the more raw the center was, the better. The pan was deglazed and the spinach was given a light toss with some shallots. Making the assembly line of meat, spinach, cheese, and pieces of plastic wrap, each little bundle was layered and wrapped so that they could sit in the refrigerator to firm up before being wrapped in the pastry dough. Compared to a more traditional Beef Wellington that uses a whole beef tenderloin, I prefer making the little Wellies. You don't get the same visual satisfaction of served slices showing off the internal layering, but the shortened cook time of smaller food parcels and individual serving sizes are nice. For plating, I let the mini-Wellies rest and still cut them into slices prior to serving, so the inside layers can be seen.


I have a bun in the oven. And it's delicious. - Photos by Mr. and Ms. Wasabi

For the sauce, I used some quartered button mushrooms sauteed in butter, a leftover merlot from Christmas, the spinach filling that didn't get used in the Wellies, and a special leftover ingredient: vanilla balsamic-soaked figs. These tart little gems were strained out of a fig and vanilla balsamic vinegar that I made for Mr. Wasabi for Christmas. I reserved the figs and knew they would serve us well at some point, and they made for a nice tartness with the mushroom and wine sauce. I added a little sugar to balance out the acidity and it went nicely with the Wellies.

It was a bit of a thrown-together meal, picking and choosing ideas from recipes, and it's the kind of cooking I enjoy best. I'll follow a recipe to understand a technique or comfort with a particular ingredient, but then it's a fly-by-the-seat-of-one's-pants kitchen experience, converting the experiences gleaned from recipes into tools for future cooking adventures. I'd like to believe that's the whole point behind cooking, building a knowledge base, one dish at a time, whether a person does it as a profession or a hobby. That's the nice thing about food -- it's not exclusive, nor does it need to be financially restrictive, and it's a collective experience that we indulge in every day.


Have a slice of birthday... custard...? - Photo by Wasabi Prime

Since it was New Year's Day, plus an anniversary of sorts, we made sure to have dessert. I followed through with my resolution to make something with rice flour, settling on my mother's mochiko custard recipe, noted in the last post of 2009. Sorry there wasn't a candle in it, nor were there any birthday songs sung. Not even a funny hat! But I'm sure the blog didn't mind. It's still just a baby, after only a year of learning new things, and I hope to have many more posts to come. Here's to another year of Wasabi Prime!

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40 comments:

  1. Happy first blogiversary (is that right?)!!!

    It's amazing to see how much a blog changes/grows in a short span of one year. This is a fantastic food blog and I hope you keep up the great work.

    Grats again!

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  2. Happy Birthday Wasabi! Gotta admit, this is your best post yet, your pics are awesome....guess 2010 is going to be great for WP!!!!

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  3. Happy blogiversary, to use Sean's word!

    Love the idea of individual Wellingtons - I'm going to have to try that soon.

    Here's to many more years of Wasabi Prime :)

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  4. Happy Birthday, Miss Wasabi Prime. You are indeed, remarkable! Keep inspiring all of us to make beautiful things happen in the kitchen. r&r

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  5. Congrats on your one year anniversary. Keep up the great posts and fantastic photos!! Cheers.

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  6. Congratulations on your first year of blogging! Your blog and photos are fantastic and I sincerely hope that you continue for many years to come.

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  7. Happy anniversary/blogiversary!Your photos are great! And I love that things were made from some leftovers and randomness in your pantry and freezer - that makes it all the better! True genius lies within your creativity.

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  8. Awww, happy birthday, Bloggy! Here's to another year of beautiful food and snappy prose, eh?

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  9. Ever since you posted the mochi custard cake for new years i've been obsessed with making it. Since i'm gluten free this has become my new cake of choie. Can't thank you enough! thanks.

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  10. Happy anniversary! I love reading your blog and look forward to many more of your wonderful posts and photos in 2010. The beef wellington look off the hook.

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  11. happy first birthday! many happy wishes for 2010!

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  12. Wow a Happy Birthday and a Happy Anniversary. All at the same time! You got it all, Wasabi Prime. An excellent meal to start what I'm sure will be a most excellent year for you. Wow, I just sound like both Bill and Ted in that last sentence!

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  13. Whoa! That some dish to celebrate with. Congrats to both of you! Many more anniversaries to come!

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  14. I send you a virtual bloggy birthday cake. congratulations and keep on cooking and writing.

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  15. Happy Birthday WP!! Love your photos - love your blog!

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  16. Happy Birthday!!!! Congratulations on your blogaversary and looks like you celebrated in great style too. All the wonderful dining tastes and flavors are so wonderfully presented as well.

    Regards,
    CCR
    =:~)

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  17. Ms wasabi- you've outdone yourself. There is only one problem- why wasn't saltyseattle invited? Those mini wellies are genius and as usual your photography makes me drool.

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  18. I must say, I really enjoy Wasabi Prime - it stands out in a feed reader packed with a million food blogs.

    I was going to offer you a link on my blogroll, but then I realised that I did that months ago anyway, impressed as I have been over the year, so I arrive here empty handed.

    Happy birthday, anyway.

    Well done, and more, please!

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  19. You make the most amazing "thrown together" meal I have ever seen! You have some serious kitchen skills. Congrats on one year!

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  20. Fig and vanilla vinegar... Inspired! Yum. And perfect for your wellie. Way to go, MacGyver.

    Happy birthday, blog!

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  21. Happy, happy day!
    That meal looks positively amazing. Good show! And congrats on a year of blogging... looking forward to spending the next year with you as well!

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  22. Happy birthday WP! Can't believe you've only been doing this a year - you seem like such an old pro... your site rocks.

    Here's to many more!

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  23. Happy day! You make wanna be pseudo foodies (but who are way to picky to be a true foodie) like me drool in awe and admiration! Keep up the great work! Bon appetite!

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  24. Hear, hear! Your blog has come a long way in a short time, and your personality really shines through in your writing. There's nowhere to go but up! And to the kitchen, of course.

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  25. Happy belated b-day, WP! :) I still can't believe that you've been doing this for a yr. You're pure awesomeness! :)

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  26. Happy blogoversary! A great meal to celebrate with!

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  27. Denise, happy birthday to your blog. You are truly talented and creative. I'm so glad I was able to find your blog or else, I would be missing a lot. The dish and the dessert looks awesome. Here's to many more years to come.

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  28. Congrats, dude! Look forward to what your blog's "Terrible Two's" has in store for its readers...

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  29. Happy birthday, Wasabi Prime!

    I'm so glad I got to know this blog, and to celebrate its first birthday with it!

    Here's a bubbly toast to many more wonderful years to come, and many more wonderful posts =)

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  30. Congrats on a year well done!
    I look forward to more anniversaries of great food, witty stories, references to late 80's memorabilia, and adorable doggie pics.
    `Cheers!

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  31. Congrats and happy birthday! They'll CERTAINLY start to make hallmark cards for blogs soon :) If not, pitch it to them!

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  32. Happy Anniversary to my favorite foodie blogger!

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  33. Can I get the recipe formthe mochiko custard cake? Thanks!

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    1. Read through the post, and you'll see there's a link to the post that has the recipe - thanks!

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  34. This looks fabulous. It is outstanding. Happy anniversary.

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