About

Name: Alicia. Pronounced “ahh*lee*sha”, which is apparently a lot harder than it looks since most people say it wrong.

Location: I am a displaced Minnesotan currently bumbling my way around Washington, DC. There’s a lot of money, a lot of power, a lot of problems, and a lot of partying interns in this town. Also, everyone has this ridiculous superiority complex about being from the East Coast. While this makes me a little bit ill and jaded, I sure to do love the public transporation and beautiful row houses. I live in an English bunker basement apartment with my culinary guinea pig boyfriend, Lee.

Occupation: That’s top secret. Let’s just say I’m not allowed to accept gifts valued at over 10 dollars.

Education: I graduated in 2006 with a BA in Political Science/International Relations. I went a small, highly selective liberal arts college, and I think I’m just beginning to understand how unique that perspective is, mostly because this city is crawling with UVA grads.

Other interests and hobbies: I’ve come to realize that my interests do not coincide with the average DC 20-something, who spends most of his/her time at the gym and at countless happy hours. Aside from food and cooking, I enjoy swing dancing, feeding my online shopping addiction, all things involving China, new age-y excercise classes that I can’t afford (pilates, gyrotonic, yoga), proper table manners, traveling, and viewing theater, art, and educational tv shows on PBS and my 800 channels of digital cable.

Favorite foods: I love: beets, goat cheese, chocolate, Chinese eggplant, a sharp aged gouda, pasta and turkey meatballs, sweet yellow cherries, lamb chops, miso, soft shell crab, white nectarines, tofu, bacon, and avocadoes, to name just a few. I love things that are complex, sweet and salty, creamy and crunchy. I also kind of love fried things, but I don’t love heart disease, so I try to stay away from that.

Me and food: Food is cultural, particularly when you come from two food-obessesed ethnicities. I am half Chinese, half Italian American. I find this reality defining who I am and what I do more and more. Eating was and is a big part of what we do as a family. I grew up helping my grandma and dad in the kitchen–hence, I am always the kitchen wench (or, the sous chef, if you will). I know I’m biased, but I’m pretty sure we eat better tasting and healthier food than the average American family. I am always amazed at how food seems to permeate so many aspects of my family life and culture. Whenever one of my cousins gets married, everyone worries whether our newest in-law likes to eat enough.

When it comes to food, I’ll eat pretty much anything. I have discerning tastes, but I’m not afraid of “weird” foods. I find picky or unadventurous eaters personally insulting. I own a copy of Miss Manners’ Guide to Eating. I’ve only recently started cooking completely on my own and am still exploring all different sorts of cuisines and techniques, so I don’t really have my own personal style or aesthetic fully developed.

I started this blog as an attempt to take my interest in cooking and writing to another level. I hope this project will allow me to combine several things I enjoy, encourage me to practice and hone my skills, and force me to document what I cook and eat. While I’d certainly like this to be a resource for others, if nothing else, I will be happy if I can create a record for myself.