Life List Item No. 122 Completed: Try Authentic Thai Cuisine

Since I have no desire to ever actually visit Thailand, I'm going to count my International Lab's Thai food-making towards this item.

Now before you protest that it's not authentic Thai food unless a Thai makes it, I would argue that A) in lab we are always using imported authentic ingredients (at a great expense to the students), and B) we are almost always using traditional cooking methods (sometimes to the great frustration of the students).

For instance, our Pad Thai resembled the picture on the left (traditional), not the oily red stuff you see in a lot of American Thai restaurants. We had all the different colors of curries, big Thai salads, wontons, black rice pudding, and even made a couple varieties of typical street food.

All in all, I'm a fan. The food was hot, spicy, and exotic. I didn't try anything on the buffet that I didn't like. The other thing that was awesome is that during this cuisine, I think I finally got the hang of testing meat for doneness by touch only. I got to make one of the big Thai salads, and in order to make it I had to grill off a bunch of flank steak. Testing it by touch makes you look more like a pro, instead of running for your thermometer or steak knife. Any how, they all came out perfect medium (still a little squishiness, but mostly resistant).

Life List Item No. 69 Completed: Do Something For A Cause

That's right. I just finished doing something for a cause. The cause being Kosair Children's Hospital, and the baby wing that Rory works on to be exact.

So here's a little history: every year Kosair holds a charity bake sale event at a major Louisville holiday festival, and the earnings go to support a different floor. This year's floor happened to be the NICU where Rory works. And if there's only one thing I'm good at, it's knowing where to get primo baked goods to put in people's pie holes!!!

So, using my contacts at Sullivan, Kosair will be receiving a nice donation of assorted baked goods from the culinary school, AND also due to my whining, the hospital will be getting a nice donation from the Costco bakery.

Now I know some might read this and say, "But Nicki, cause-doing should be a life long enterprise. You can't just do it once and cross if off your frivolous list!" To those individuals I say fear not. If this experience has taught me anything, it's that people love to receive vast quantities of fattening foods, especially if it's to help babies! Wherever there is a charity that revolves around food based incentives, ladies and gentlemen, I will be there!

Now fly on, super babies!!!